Beauty and the Wolf (6 page)

His father
stepped from the
elevator
an
d gave the group a satisfied grin
. “Am I interpreting something?”

“
I was just inviting these two beautiful ladies out to dinner, Dad.”

“I al
ways knew you had wonderful taste
in wo
men, son. Now you’ve just proven
it.”

“Would you like to join us
?”
Jake asked silkily.

“Sounds like a plan to me.”
He knew the invitation wasn’
t heartfelt, but he just loved to poke at the wolf inside his son.
Besides, Jake needed him to entertain Mary Ann while he seduced Sophie.
Now that he thought about it, Jake’s secretary was a very beautiful woman.
Maybe it was time to take his son’s advice. He knew his mate wouldn’t
have
want
ed
him to spend his remaining years alone.
It would be no
hardship spending time with Sophie’s friend
.
Besides, he owed her a word of thanks for helping his son.

Sophie looked from one man to the other then to her
friend.

“So we’ll pick you up at
seven o’clock
. Put on your dancing shoes.”
Jake
reached out and tapped Sophie gently on her ch
in. “Close your mouth
,
Ms. Abbott.”

He turned and wal
ked away, his father followin
g at a leisurely pace.

“What just happened?” Sophie asked, clutching the forgotten folders to her chest.

Mary Ann
grinned. “
I think you just got asked out by my
boss.”

* * * * *

Jake stopped the car in front of one of the best
restaurants
in town. A
valet
stood at the
curb
waiting to park the
car. Sophie felt underdressed even though Mary Ann had insisted she looked wonderful in her silky sundress. Sophie had insisted on wearing a cover up
with it
.

“G
o inside and see if they have a table for us, Dad
.”

His father
didn’t
contradict his son
, ev
en though both men knew all e
i
ther
had to do was show up
at the door and a table was theirs
. The resta
urant was run by one of the families
in the pack.

Rob
ert
got out, which signaled the valet
to open the door for
Mary Ann
. A
quietly
spoken word halted his
move toward Sophie’s.

Jake sat in the driver’s seat, gripping the steering wheel, his head slightly bowed.
Sophie was
suddenly racked with doubts.
Why in the world had
Jak
e Anderson ask
ed
her out
?
Images of
the women
he’d dated in the past
played in her mind. Seeing hi
s obvious distress
at the situation he now found himself in
, she willed the tears away. She would never be one of the tall leggy blondes he was always dating. So she would never be what he wanted or needed.

“You can take me back to the apartment. It’s okay. I understand that you might have been caught up in the moment. It is nice to flirt with someone, isn’
t? I hope you
let Mary Ann finish the evening,
she’s very good friend
and deserves a night out.
” She st
opped talking. She knew she
rambled, but she’d had to say something.
The silence in the car was
unbearable.

“I’m sure Mary Ann and my father will have a pleasant meal.” He
did not move or lift his head.

“T
hat’
s good.” Sophie wru
ng her hands together. She was so totally out of her depth with this man.

“
Have you flirted with many m
en, Sophie?” He turned his head
and for a brief moment she saw that
same
flash of gold in his eyes that she’d seen in his office.

Her eyes widened. Before she could speak, he opened his door and walked around the car. She didn’t know what was said to the man waiting to open her do
or, but he stepped back hastily
and
Jake was there, taking her arm and helping
her out.

The restaurant set back from the street, an awning protecting the goers from
either
the
rain or
the sun. Small pathways lead around the building. If she wasn’t mistaken, there was a garden in back with open air dining.

Jake
’s hand was
firm beneath her elbow as they walked. When th
ey reached a path, he turned
.

“Are we eating outside?” she asked.
She hadn’t seen which way h
is father and Mary Ann had entered.

“No.” The word was low, almost a growl. “There’s something I need to do first.”

Suddenly he was walking faster and Sophie fell slightly behind but she hurried to keep up. Before she could catch her breath or steady herself,
two hundred pounds of man pressed her against the side of the building.

Jake
flattened
his hands
against the stucco of the restaurant
on either side of Sophie’s head, caging her in.
His body covered hers, barely stopping short of touching. She clasped her shiny black
purse with both hands and blinked
rapidly, trying no doubt to understand what was happening.

Hell if he knew either. He just stood there a moment breathing in her scent
as it
mingled
with
the flowers that surrounded them. No o
ne could see
,
he had moved
them
in
to
the shadows. He could
do anything he wanted to her and no one would know. He co
uld inch her dress up, smooth
his hands up those luscious thighs
and pull
them slightly apart. From there he could spear his fingers through her wetne
ss, stroking her, readying her for his cock before
he turned her around and entered her from behind.

His hands moved as though to do just that.

“Jake, what’s wrong?”

Her quietly spoken question stopped him. Just.

He moved one hand to push her hair behind her ear. Tonight she had left is down. The soft brown color was nothing to write home about, but it suited her well. It was shiny and thick and not covered in layers of hair products so many of his dates used.

“I need to kiss you again.”

Sophie looked into Jake’s eyes, their color was normal now, ev
en though the brown was the darkest shade of brown that
she
had ever seen. She’d convinced her
self that she had
imaged those
movements
when his eyes had glowed golden.
Nothing outside the lion kingdom had gold eyes.

“That would be alright.” Her voice sound prim and proper like someth
ing straight out of a regency
romance novel.

“Good.”

He lowered his head and Sophie closed her eyes. The press of his lips was nothing like the quick hard kiss he had given her in the conference room. This one was soft and compelling. Barely there. She sighed in regret when his lips left hers. It was so n
ice to be kissed by a man. N
icer
still
to be kissed by the
man you
loved. Even if she didn’t really know what was driving him at the moment.

Before she could open her eyes
and
return to reality, his lips were back. No longer soft and gentle, the
y
ravaged. His tongue thrust inside
her mouth
without warning, almost as if he were claiming her.

Her purse dropped to the ground and she lifted her arms to encircle his neck. As though that movement had given him permission, he pulled her from the wall and pressed her body against his.

Sophie moaned
at the feel of his hard body against her curves. His size made her feel so small, so normal. Her head barely peeked past
his shoulder.

T
he kiss went on and on. Her tongue dueled with his
,
each learn
ing the taste and texture of the
oth
er. His arms tightened
, but she loved it. Her breasts were crushed
against
his
hard chest,
delighting
her with the fe
el, even if slightly painful. His
hand moved to
her backside, clenching and squeezing. Again almost to the point of pain, but she loved
that too.
Her leg moved of its on
accord, lifting to hug
his
hip
. His hand followed the length of her thigh, helping her.

“Touch me, Sophie. Please dear God, touch me.”

There was a hint of steely command in Jake’s voice that Sophie could not disobey. Her hands left his neck to run across his chest.

“No damn it, not there.” Jake
pressed her back against the building, the wall supporting her as he moved slightly away. His hand still held her
thigh high
.
She was helpless against his maneuvering.

“Here,” he commanded
,
taking her hand. “Touch me here.”

His moved her hand down the f
ront of his pants and
molded her
fingers around the thickness of his cock.
A cock that was
ready for action.

OMG, Sophie thought in delight. He wanted her. He actually wanted her. Sophie didn’t need his instruction anymore. He
r
small fingers massaged and squeezed, rubb
ing him from the root to the head
as he continued to eat at her mouth. He wasn’t wearing any underwear and she could feel the front of his pants becoming damp with his pre-cum.

Her pussy was wet and overflowing too. She wanted him inside her now.

“Jake.”

His
name was spoken from the darkness, a commanding
male voice. They both ignored it, continuing to kiss a
nd caress each other, oblivious
to their
audience
.

“Jake, let go of her.”

Jake stilled as though he had
just now realized the intrusion.

He lifted his head and snarled at the man who had interrupted them.

“Fuck,” the other man cursed when he saw Jake’s eyes. “Let her go, son. You need to let her go.”

Sophie whimpered as she too realized they had an audience. She buried her face in warmth of Jake’s neck.

Jake came slowly back to his senses. All he could feel was the weight of his mate in his arms. All he could smell was the scent of her ar
ousal. A
ll he wanted to do was thrust inside her again and again.

H
is father
’s words
slowly penetrated the sexual fog holding him captive. He became aware of the cool night air, the sound of birds in the distance. He heard Sophie’s rapid breathing. More importantly, he became aware of the claws extending from his fingertips which were digging gouges into the side of the building.

“Shit.” He had started to shift
. He had
started to s
hift in preparation of
claiming his mate.
Claiming her a
gainst the side of a building in the middle of downtown
Roanoke
.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck.”

Sophie, who had stiffened at his first
expletive
,
went to draw away completely. He stilled her movement with a hand
against
the back of her head, keeping her face pressed against him. He was careful not to let his claws touch her.

He realized several things during that moment. First
, he hated his father
. Second, there was no way in hell he was going to give up his mate. He couldn’t. Even if the man had wanted to, the wolf inside him wouldn’t allow it. Look how it
had taken control.