Call of the Wolf (20 page)

He was breathing raggedly when he broke the kiss, his eyes glowing, tumultuous with barely checked passion. Holding her gaze, he grasped the bottom edge of her shirt and dragged it upwards. She lifted her arms, allowing him to pull it over her head. Tossing it over his shoulder, he transferred his gaze to her breasts, cupping one in each hand, lifting and squeezing them lightly, using his thumbs to stroke the turgid peaks teasingly.

Releasing her again, he dragged his own shirt off and tossed it away and then grabbed her waist and lifted her onto the bed. She felt back, throwing her arms out in a gesture of surrender. Heat glittered in his eyes, a faint smile twitching one corner of his mouth, but he divested her of her shoes and jeans and pushed his own shoes from his feet before joined her.

She arched against his hip as he settled over her, pressing one knee between her thighs, and sought her mouth again. He countered by curling his own hips to press his erection against her, riding her thigh as she rode his with rhythmic thrusts of their hips that only drove the sweet ache inside higher.

He was a delight to her senses, the brush of his bare chest against her breasts creating a maddeningly elusive pleasure, teasing her with little bursts of sensation followed the absence of the stimulation she craved as he moved restlessly against her. She arched her back, rubbing her breasts and belly against his as he broke from her lips and explored her face with his lips and then her throat.

Lifting her hands from his shoulders, she coasted her palms over him to absorb more of him. His hair was finer than she'd expected, silken to the touch. His shoulders were broader than she'd realized, a hard ridge of ropy muscle extending from the ball of his shoulders to the column of his neck. The skin stretched tautly over his muscled form like satin, delightfully smooth against her palms and fingertips.

He moved lower in his own exploration as she finished familiarizing herself with his shoulders and skated her palms along his shoulder blades, nuzzling his face between her breasts before he traced a path up the slope to one peak and took it into his mouth. The heated tug instantly redirected all of her focus on that one point, tingles of acute sensation traveling with the speed of light from her nipple to her womb, making it contract almost painfully. She clutched fistfuls of his hair, sucking in a sharp gasp, squeezing her eyes tightly closed. The sensations instantly magnified.

He ignored the tug against his scalp, toying with the achingly sensitive bud until she was panting for breath, writhing beneath him mindlessly with the build up of heat inside of her and then he transferred his attentions to her other nipple. Uncoiling her fingers with an effort, she stroked Cameron's head, and then his shoulders and back, arching a little frantically against him in invitation.

He ceased to massage the breast he'd cupped in one hand and slipped his hand along her belly to her abdomen, cupping his hand over her mound and lightly stroking the lips of her sex through her panties. They were damp with the moisture overflowing her channel.

Releasing the nipple he'd been tormenting, he lifted his head, studying her face through narrowed eyes as he slipped his hand beneath her panties and stroked her sex, parting the lips with his finger and caressing her cleft from the mouth of her sex to her clitoris. She tensed when he touched the engorged bud, sucking in a sharp gasp at the hard jolts of pleasure that traveled through her, making her channel quake.

"Cameron!” she groaned.

He shifted upwards, silencing her with the heat of his mouth and the play of his tongue along hers. He withdrew his hand, though, tugging her panties down to her knees. As she wiggled out of them, he reached for his jeans, unfastening them and shoving them down his hips.

A mixture of relief and high anticipation filled her as she felt the heaviness of his engorged member slap against her thigh. She worked the leg trapped beneath him free, coiling it around his hips and trying to pull him to her while he was still struggling to rid himself of his shorts and jeans. He broke the kiss, aligning his body with hers for penetration. She caught her breath, holding herself perfectly still as she felt the glide of his cock head along her channel as he guided himself to her opening, surging toward him the moment she felt the connection she ached for.

He caught her hip, holding her still while he sawed slowly, shallowly, collecting the moisture her body wept for him to ease his path, allowing her to adjust to his girth before he began to thrust deeper, claiming her channel by agonizing degrees. She curled her hips, a vibration of pleasure issuing from her as she felt his shaft stroke her g-spot, setting off tremors inside of her.

He paused, releasing a ragged, pent up breath, gathered her into his arms and drove deeply, grinding his pubic bone against her clit when he could go no deeper. She stilled as he did, sensing his struggle for control in the tremors rippling through him. The feel of his flesh nestled so snugly inside of her, though, was so divine she couldn't prevent the muscles along her channel from clenching around him.

"Baby,” he murmured thickly, curling his hips to withdraw and then plunging deeply again.

She dug her fingers into his sides, for several moments lying passively beneath him and simply enjoying the caress of his flesh, but the tension wouldn't be denied. It grew, summoned her instincts. Dropping her feet to the bed to give her leverage, she began to counter his strokes, urging him to pick up the pace as she felt the rising tide toward completion inside of her.

It teased her. She found herself hovering on the brink, struggling to reach the peak and pitch herself over it. Reaching down, she grasped his taut buttocks demandingly. A shudder went through him, but he began to move faster, driving into her in the short, deep strokes she needed. A sob of breath escaped her as her body abruptly seized, shattered with convulsions of rapture. “Oh god! Oh Cameron!” she cried out.

He answered with a deep, rumbling growl, going perfectly still.

It wasn't until her body ceased to convulse and she opened her eyes to look up at him with a mixture of reproach and confusion that she realized it wasn't Cameron who'd growled. Twisting her head when she saw his attention was focused on the doorway, she stared at the three wolves just inside her door blankly. A huge black wolf stood at the front, nearest the foot of her bed. Behind him was another wolf, nearly as big, with a dark pelt, though patches of dark brown fur interspersed the black, and a large white wolf with streaks of tan.

All three were bristling, their lips curled back over wicked looking, sharp teeth.

Cameron withdrew from her abruptly, came up on his knees. By the time Abby had managed to drag her gaze from the three wolves at her door, she discovered a huge white wolf standing over her where Cameron had been moments before.

She gaped at him, but he was focused completely on the others. Even as she stared at him, he launched himself toward them, clashing with the great black wolf in the forefront at the foot of her bed. Sucking in a sharp breath that bordered a scream, Abby scrambled toward the headboard, staring wide eyed at the snarling, whirling mass of wolves at the end of her bed.

[Back to Table of Contents]

Chapter Fifteen

How long Abby stared at the fighting wolves in wide-eyed, stunned shock, she had no idea, but her mind finally made the connection it had been struggling to make since she'd looked up and discovered Cameron was no longer a man but a wolf.

It was the wolfen!

She still couldn't gather her wits to think what to do, but the moment it began to sink into her that it was Cameron—Seth, Adrian, and Jerico—the fear subsided and anger began to take its place. Grabbing the pillows from her bed, she came up on her knees and started pitching the pillows at the snarling, fighting wolves. “Stop it! Stop it now!"

She wasn't certain if it was her screamed command or the barrage of pillows she launched at them, but she got their attention. The four of them broke off their battle and turned to stare at her.

Swallowing uneasily when she found herself staring at a pack of wolves, Abby settled slowly onto her heels and finally grabbed the comforter and snatched it up to cover herself. After staring back at her for several long moments, the wolves exchanged looks. The great black, which she was certain must be Seth, turned abruptly and left the room. When he did, the white and tan wolf, the second black, and the white she knew positively to be Cameron, followed him out.

Shaken, Abby relaxed fractionally, listening until she could no longer hear the click of their paws along the floor. Anger slowly seeped into her as the fear waned. After a few minutes, she got up and looked around for her clothes, still listening for any sound that might indicate they'd left as she pulled her clothes on jerkily.

She found them in the living room—in man form. Cameron was stark naked but seemed singularly unperturbed about it. The other three had drawn on their jeans, although they'd made no attempt to fasten them.

All four turned to look at her when she entered the living room.

She stared back them, meeting the gaze of each man before she folded her arms over her chest. “What was that about?” she asked tightly.

Seth, Adrian, and Jerico all turned to glare at Cameron.

Seth met her gaze again. “Pack hierarchy,” he growled.

His response startled her. She gaped at him. “What?"

"You seem to forget,
mon ami, we
are no longer a pack,” Cameron said tightly.

Abby glanced at Cameron when he spoke, but he might as well have been speaking Swahili. She didn't have any more idea what he was talking about than she had understood Seth. “This ... has to do with the Wolfen?” she finally asked doubtfully.

Some of the tautness eased from Seth's features. He flicked a narrow eyed glare at Cameron.

Frustration filled Abby. “I don't understand."

"We have laws,” Adrian said after a moment, “pack laws."

Abby blinked at him, trying to wrap her mind around the implications. She discovered she couldn't. The only thing that came to mind was that they had some sort of ‘pack law’ against having sex with humans, but that didn't make sense either when she'd had sex with
all
of them only a few hours earlier. “So ... you're saying it was alright while ago when all of you had sex with me, but it isn't alright if Cameron has sex with me?"

"Shit!” Seth snarled.

"It's the mating,” Jerico said evenly. “
None
of us should have ... not before the gathering."

Abby had been on the point of stalking out until Jerico had qualified his assertion that none of them should have had sex with her. That gave her pause, but it only confused her more. She stared at him curiously. “Y'all have sex
at
the gathering?"

A hint of amusement entered Jerico's eyes. He flicked a look at Seth but returned his attention to her. “The purpose of the gathering is to find a mate."

Reminded of their earlier discussion, Abby looked away, struggling with the unhappiness that welled up to clog her throat. They'd been pretty clear that the gathering was for Wolfen and Werewolves—not that they'd needed to. It stood to reason. In any case, it wasn't as if she was in any position to mate with anybody if they'd wanted to and could have included her. She had a hard enough time staying ahead of the mob without adding a baby to the equation.

It shouldn't have hurt that they were seeking a mate—surely she hadn't known them long enough for it to hurt that much?—but there was no denying it did or that it stung that they were supposed to ‘save’ themselves for the mate they were seeking. As much as she loathed the idea, she could even see their point in the careful breeding, but the implication that it would be alright to go back to screwing her afterward....

"Oh,” she managed to say finally. “Well ... I don't know the rules—or laws. I didn't even know there was such a thing as Wolfen, or Weres, until today.” She glanced at Cameron uncomfortably, realizing abruptly that he hadn't even gotten his climax. Poor man! That made her feel worse.

And now he was in trouble.

"It was my idea. I initiated. He just went along with it."

She could tell from the looks on their faces that they didn't really believe her, but that was just too bad! It was close enough to the truth. She hadn't tried to discourage him in any way and she could see where he could have interpreted her behavior as interest.

"Abby,” Cameron said, both irritation and amusement threading his voice.

She sent him a warning glare. “I don't see any sense in you being in trouble about it when it
was
my idea. I'm not Wolfen—or Were—so I'm not bound by the pack laws.” She glanced at the others challengingly and finally focused on Seth. “Anyway, I don't guess I'll be here for the gathering. What did Agent Milner say when you told him what happened?” she asked, changing the subject abruptly.

Something flickered in his eyes, but she couldn't quite decipher it.

"I didn't tell him."

Abby stared at him. “You didn't call him?” she asked in stunned disbelief.

His lips tightened. She could see he was wrestling with something now—reluctance, she thought. He scrubbed a hand over his face, glanced around and finally settled on the couch. Leaning forward, he propped his elbows on his splayed knees. “Milner was here yesterday—the hit men showed up this mornin'. I don't like the coincidence. It stinks to high heaven."

A wave of cold swept through Abby. “You're saying ... you're suggesting..."

His expression tightened. “I'm sayin’ I don't trust the son-of-a-bitch, and I'm not takin’ any chances that he
might
have been involved somehow."

Abby thought for several horrifying moments that she might faint. She looked around a little desperately for a place to perch before her knees gave out. Fortunately, Adrian, who was closest to her, grabbed her and guided her to a seat in one of the chairs. “When were planning on telling me?” she asked numbly when she'd gathered her wits a little.

Seth looked torn between discomfort and anger.

"I didn't see any point in alarmin’ you until I'd had a chance to check it out. I don't want you to call him, though, until I have."

Feeling hysteria clawing at the back of her mind, Abby stared at him, swallowing convulsively several times before she could find her voice. “But ... what am I going to do? I have to get out of here before they send someone else!"

Seth surged up with a sound of impatience. Dropping to a crouch in front of her, he took her hands in his. “You're safe here, Abby. I know we nearly failed you this mornin'—we were caught off guard—but we'll be more vigilant. We'll make god's damned sure nobody gets that close to you again."

Abby's face crumpled but she managed to curb the urge to burst into tears. “Don't think that, Seth!
I
don't think that! Nobody could've foreseen what happened. It's as much my fault they got me in that car—
more
—than anybody else's. I ... I lost my head when they shot you and Adrian. But, I can't expect y'all to put your lives on the line for me! I need to leave before I put everyone in more danger! You must see that!"

His expression tightened. “There is no place you'd be safer than here—among the Wolfen nation."

Abby blinked at him, surprised. The moment he said it, though, the image popped into her mind of the Wolfen, shifted into huge man-beasts, converging on the car. There was no doubt in her mind that an army of Wolfen—or even a handful—were more than a match for anything the mob could come up with. As suddenly as the images appeared in her mind, the certainty formed that she
would
be safe with them. “But ... I'm not one of you. Why would they even consider risking their lives to protect me when I'm not?"

Something flickered in his eyes. He flicked a glance at the others. He seemed to wrestle with his thoughts for a moment. “You don't have to be,” he responded. “I'm offerin’ the protection of my pack ... but you could be."

Abby frowned. As much appeal as it had to find a safe haven, to think she might have found a way to be safe and stop running, she didn't see how that was possible. “You mean ... make me a Were?” she asked a little doubtfully, wrestling with the reluctance/hope that was instantly at war within her.

"No!” he said harshly. “I wouldn't risk that."

Abby was a little taken aback by his vehemence—a little hurt, too, if the truth be told. “But ... I'd be one of you then ... sort of, wouldn't I?"

He shook his head. “It's too dangerous, Love."

Abby felt her heart stutter at the endearment. Unfortunately, it seemed to directly conflict with his feelings on the subject of making her one of them. She chewed her lip. “Then I don't understand."

"The gatherin'. You could chose a mate among us and you would be accepted as a pack member."

Abby felt her face heat. Her mind raced at the implications. “They'd let me do that?” she asked doubtfully. “When I'm human?"

He hesitated.

"We would demand it,
chère,
” Cameron interrupted before Seth could continue. “In the past ... no. It would not have been allowed. Strictly speakin', it's against pack law to take a human as mate even now—any Wolfen who does so would be considered a rogue. Unofficially, it has been accepted, on rare occasions, in the past, though always kept hush-hush. The Wolfen, or Were, who did so wasn't prosecuted but neither was his mate officially recognized as a pack member. Times change, however. There have never been enough females of our tribe and that is more true now than ever. The purpose of this gatherin’ is to bring in new blood. Beyond that, Prince Balin has taken a human as mate. When the council agreed to recognize his mate it opened the doors for others."

Abby tried not to feel offended, but there was no denying she did when it was clear she'd still be unwanted, officially accepted—maybe—but not really. Still, there wasn't a lot of room for pride when it came down to survival. If she was one of them, however reluctantly she was accepted, then she would be protected. She still didn't like the idea of putting other people in danger, but she did that where ever she went. The Wolfen seemed far more capable of dealing with the danger than humans.

She shifted a little uncomfortably, wondering if they were volunteering to mate with her. She could see a little problem with that—actually several. It wasn't that she was against children. She'd always figured she would have one someday, but a mixed breed? She wondered for a split second if it was even possible, but obviously it was or they wouldn't be considering it.

She didn't imagine a half-breed would be a lot more welcome than she would be, though, and the thought gave her a pang. What would she be condemning any child she had to?

She discovered when she looked up that all of the men had moved closer and cleared her throat uncomfortably. “The ... uh ... mating takes place at the gathering?"

Seth nodded.

Abby reddened. “But ... uh ... I don't think it's really my time, you know? What if it doesn't ... uh ... take?"

She discovered all four of them were looking highly amused. It annoyed the hell out of her.

"Your chosen would then have to work very hard,” Seth said, his voice shaky with suppressed laughter.

Abby glared at him indignantly. “It isn't funny! You know I don't know anything about your laws!"

He sobered. “You are only required to accept your mate before the pack,” he said gently. “You are not expected to become impregnated at the gatherin'—though that isn't uncommon—the influence of the full moon is powerful among us."

In other words, she'd be expected to produce, she thought, though she didn't think it was a good idea to voice those thoughts allowed. She didn't really think she was against the idea—it actually sent a strange little thrill through her to imagine herself with a baby—one of theirs—but she still didn't like the idea that it might be shunned. She could only protect a baby from so much. “It would be a half-breed,” she said finally. “Would it be accepted? I mean,
really
accepted?"

The four men exchanged a look she couldn't decipher.

"A pack member must find their place within the pack,” Adrian said finally. “That is the way of the Wolfen."

It sounded rough to her. Her belly clenched uncomfortably. She wasn't certain she liked the idea of her baby fighting for a pack position. Actually, she
was
certain she didn't like the idea at all! “Even the girls?” she asked a little doubtfully.