Guardian (Wolf Shifter Romance): Reckless Desires (Alpha Protectors Book 1) (9 page)

“Yes, short.” I folded my arms across my chest, taking in their cynical looks. “Jorge is very short for an actor these days, and especially short for a model. It bothers him, and the fact that it does limits what parts he will accept. You won’t find many short models out there, but I’m short, so I’m perfect.”

“Yes, you are.”

I nearly missed Cole’s low mutter, and probably would have if I hadn’t had been looking directly at him and had read it off his lips.

Ignoring the warm glow his words ignited, I jabbed the table to get their attention. “So, Jorge can be crossed off the list of suspects. He’s doing a high-end perfume brand because he wants to work opposite me. Also, I’m bigger than him, which will be good for his image.”
Okay, that didn’t come out right.

“Bigger than him? I thought you just said you were shorter.”

Scar cut Greg’s bewildered ramble off by plonking her ass down on the table directly in front of him. “What my lovely, modest sister is trying to say is that she has a higher rating than him.” A dramatic sigh erupted from her at the blank looks. “She’s more popular, and therefore she gets paid more.”

The blank looks were replaced with ones of understanding.

“I still think it’s a stalker,” I mused.

“I hope not,” Cole muttered.

“Why?”

“Because if it is, then we’ve got our work cut out for us.” He indicated a thick stack of paper. “Threatening letters.”

“Okay—”

“From this month alone.”

Ah.
“My agency deals with all this stuff. It’s no big deal. It comes with the job.”

This time the growl was directed at me. “It’s no big deal if someone threatens your life?” He fired the words over the table, his face taut with anger.

Chairs scraped back, hands gathering the papers together into large wads. “Uh, I think we’ll—”

“Yeah, we can go check some of these out.”

“Catch you guys later.”

They all spoke at once, already on their way out of the room.

I didn’t move. Couldn’t. Cole’s eyes were pinning me to the chair.

A kiss brushed against my cheek. “Good luck,” Scar whispered before she ran after them.

Then we were alone.

Again.

“
I
need
to go to bed.” Her voice was a soft murmur.

Down boy,
I told my wolf. It wasn’t an invite.

I gripped the edge of the table, my fingers digging grooves into the soft wood. Martha was going to kill me when she saw it. She was the part-time housekeeper, though she liked to think of herself as the mother hen to our little wolf pack. She’d taken a couple of days off to visit her grandkids—thank fuck. I could just imagine what she’d say if she were here. Something along the lines of me acting like a fool and didn’t I know how to treat a lady? And then she’d smack me up the side of my head and tell me to make it right.

If only I knew how.

Tasha was already halfway across the kitchen before I snapped out of my little daydream. “Tasha—”

“What?” She sounded bitter, and I couldn’t blame her. She paused with her hand on the door, her head down, shading her eyes from me.

Being a greedy son of a bitch, I let the question hang in the air as I drank her in, committing every detail to memory. The way her cheek curved down to her jaw, the richness of her hair streaming down her back, the dusting of freckles across her shoulders.
I should have kissed every single one when I’d had the chance.

She was still waiting, her chest rising and falling in ragged breaths as she struggled to remain outwardly calm.

“Your life is important and no one should be allowed the threaten it,” I eventually said.

She straightened, turning to look at me. “Is that it?”

I gritted my teeth, forcing myself to nod.

“Why?”

“Why what?”

“Why is
my
life important?”

The bond tugged at me, hurt filtering through and hitting me square in the chest. I couldn’t help myself. She looked so fragile, sounded so lost. I shot out of my seat and strode over to her.

She flung up a hand. “Stop. Please.”

Inches separated us but it felt like a chasm. “Tasha…” It sounded like a plea, but I wasn’t sure.
It couldn’t be.

“My life is no more important than any other—”

“I disagree.” I couldn’t imagine a world without her in it, not anymore. Not now that I knew her.

“It’s my own fault. I put myself out there, made my life public.”

I closed the gap between us, her words igniting fury. “No one has the right to threaten you.” I pressed against her, savoring the weight against my chest, the tug as her fingers curled against my shirt and scraping lightly against skin. “You are who you are.”

“Who am I, Cole?” She looked up at me, daring me to answer.

My mate.
“A wonderful, kind, warmhearted, talented woman,” I answered out loud, fighting the need to gather her into my arms. “You’re also funny and stubborn and the strongest woman I’ve ever met
.
Not to mention sexy as hell.”

She blushed, her lashes grazing her cheeks.

“No one
has the right to tell you how to live your life. No one should influence your decisions, or your dreams.”

Her eyes flew open, pinning me in place. “Does that include you too?”

* * *

I
can’t believe
I actually said that!
Cole had frozen beneath my hand. He had a habit of doing that when he was cornered or undecided. It was an unfortunate tell for a man in his profession. Or maybe it was just with me.

As the silence between us lengthened, I tugged the last of my courage forward. “Do you think you should have any say in how I run my life? Can you give me any reason?” He either admitted I was his mate, or he forfeited all rights.

Why am I giving him a second chance after what he just did?
The voice inside my head screamed at me, telling me to walk away, but I couldn’t. I had to hear it from him.

“I don’t know what you’re asking,” he eventually said.

I didn’t have to be a mind reader to know he was lying.

Fine. I was done. Giving him a shove, I grabbed the door handle, ready to wrench the sucker open and hopefully smack him in the face. I’d never been one for violence, but at this moment, all bets were off.

“Tasha—”

“Don’t.”

“But—”

“I…said…don’t,” I ground out, doing my best impression of a growl I’d ever heard.

“It’s for the best.”

If he’d kept quiet then maybe he’d have stood a chance of escaping unscathed. I whirled around, my hair whipping across my cheek. “What did you say?” I punctuated each word with a poke to his chest, driving him backward through pure force of will. “You just forfeited all claim to me. You can’t tell me how to live my life. And you tell me
it’s for the best?
For
me
? You’re making decisions for
me?”
My voice rose to a shriek as I prodded him halfway across the kitchen until he stumbled over a chair, landing heavy in the seat with a thud.

His arms closed around me. It had to be in self-defense. “Tasha, listen to me. I’m not good enough for you—”

“Why do
you
get to decide that?”

He faltered, indecision on his face.

I pounced, not giving him time to recover. “You’re telling me you’re not good enough for me, but isn’t that up to me to decide? That is…if I’m your mate?” There. I’d said it. No take backs, no do-overs allowed. He had to answer.

He paled, his mouth opening and closing in a very good impression of a fish.
He didn’t deny it.

I tapped his jaw closed with my finger. “What are you so scared of?” Part of me wanted to understand, but that was a small part hiding behind a whole heap of insecurity and rejection. I didn’t know if I could take it, or if I was strong enough.

But
something
told me Cole was worth the risk.

Reaching up, he carefully traced the line of my jaw, gently, like I was made of glass. “Of hurting you,” he whispered, his other hand tugging me even closer until I nestled between his legs.

“You already have.” Breathing him in, feeling him strong and warm against me, a wave of calm washed over me.
The eye of the storm
.

“I didn’t mean to. Didn’t want to.”

“I believe you.” And I did. I could
feel
he meant it.
Somehow.

“You don’t know what kind of man I am.”

“Because every time I get close you push me away. How
can
I know you?”

His hand brushed down my back in a sweet caress. “You’ll understand. One day.”

“What? That my mate didn’t want me?”

He scowled, shaking his head. “You know that isn’t true.”

Gotcha!
I couldn’t stop the grin even though I was close to tears. “So I
am
your mate.”

His scowl deepened, then twisted into a wry smile. “Trust me to be matched with a woman who has smarts as well as beauty.”

I fluttered my eyelashes at his backhanded compliment, trying to hide the fact that my heart was hammering and threatening to tear its way out of my chest.

His voice thick with barely concealed emotion, he continued, “And talented too. A supermodel. Trust me, you’re a hard woman to resist.”

The smile froze on my lips as his words sunk in, a churning starting in the pit of my stomach.
What about me? The real me?
I wanted to scream and cry but there wasn’t any point. If he didn’t want me as his mate while I was rich and famous, what chance did I stand when I left it all behind?

“Tasha, I want to ask you what’s the matter, but I think I already know.”

“You do?” I croaked out, stunned that I could still speak.

He nodded, his mouth set in a firm line. “I am sorry. I wish it could be different. That
I
was different.”

Digging deep I mustered up a backbone. Or a sliver of one anyway. “So do I,” I whispered, pulling away and racing out of the room.

I didn’t look back.

“
Y
ou guys could be so cute
together.”

I glanced over at Scar where she slouched in a chair, her eyes screwed up against the bright sunlight, her legs swinging over the side.

“Scar…”

“What? You could! That’s if you two ever managed to speak two words to each other without biting each other’s heads off.”

My head whipped around, drawing a low curse from the makeup girl who was trying to do a quick fix between scenes. “I do not bite his head off! He’s the one who—”

“Yadda yadda.” She faked a loud yawn, rolling her eyes. “Whatever, Sis. You guys are—” she lowered her voice to a hiss, “—
true mates
. You should be together. I’ve seen the way he looks at you, following you around with those big puppy dog eyes.”

I nearly choked on the sip of juice I had just gulped, my eyes burning and watering furiously.
Cole—puppy dog eyes?

“The man burns with barely restrained lust.” She fanned herself, her head lolling back, chest heaving in an exaggerated sigh. “Wow, what would it be like to have a man so worked up about you? I’m sure if you
tried
you could make him lose control…” Her voice was teasing, but the look she shot me was one of pure concern.

“That’s you done, Ms. Silk.”

I turned my attention back to my makeup artist. “Thank you, Angela. Hopefully I won’t need another touch-up and that’ll be you done for the day.”

“Oh, I don’t mind.” She gathered together her brushes, a grateful smile playing on her lips.

Rising from the chair, I forced myself to make my way over to the lake. Now that the rain had paused for twenty-four hours, we were re-shooting the scene from last week.
Goody.
On the plus side, I’d managed to convince the director, Michael, to shoot me back to back over the last week, and this was my final one.
Then I was free.
One week early. I’d already packed a bag and made arrangements with my agency and realtor.

I just had to get through this one scene.

A man dressed in black approached me, his eyes focused firmly above my head.

“Vin!”

“Hey, Natasha,” he mumbled, finally meeting my eyes. “Before you ask, we had a vote and Cole will be taking the outer perimeter on this one.”

“A vote? Really?” Scar drawled from where she stood next to me.

Vin shrugged, his lips twisting in a smirk as he shoved his hands into his pockets. “You want to get this shoot finished, right?”

I nodded, all the while trying to ignore the tightening in my chest.

“Yeah, that wasn’t going to happen with Cole around. Not with you dressed like that and frolicking with action man over there.” He gestured vaguely below my chin, his eyes not moving from my face.

The man looked like he was going to have a seizure, or die trying. “Have you never seen a woman in a swimsuit before?”

He cast his eyes heavenward, as though praying for salvation. “Not my team member’s mate, I haven’t.” Turning on his heel, he stalked away, leaving us no choice but to follow.

My denial died on my lips. There was no point—they all knew Cole and I were mates.
And
that he’d rejected me.

Scar’s eyes were glued to Vin’s ass, her lips parting at the sight of the solid denim-clad muscles clenching with each stride.

“Vin?” I whispered, wiggling my eyebrows in question.

Dragging her eyes away, she winked. “No harm in appreciating the beauty around me, is there?”

A laugh I didn’t know I had left in me burst from my mouth. Hugging her into my side, I bumped her hip with mine. “No, there’s definitely
nothing
wrong with it.”

“Behave, ladies,” Vin threw over his shoulder.

“And his accent is so cute!”

“Uh-huh, very prim and proper,” I agreed.

“I wonder what it would sound like whispering dirty—”

“Enough!” Vin exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air. He tapped his ear piece. “Guys, does anyone else want to come down here and deal with this abuse? Yes, I’m being abused. No…just wanting me to talk dirty. Angel, stop. That’s not a good idea. On second thought, stay there, I’ve got this.” He let out a theatrical sigh and then pointed at a shady area, just off set. “I’ll be over there. Yell if you need me.”

Without turning around, he marched over to his designated corner, the tips of his ears suspiciously red.

“Who knew? A shy wolf!” Scar murmured, watching him leave.

“I don’t think he’s shy. It’s probably more about who we are.”

“Exactly!” She snapped her fingers, popping a hand on her hip. It was her favorite pose for confrontation, as I was fast remembering.

“What?”

“You’re Cole’s mate. There’s no changing it. You two have got to stop hiding—”

I clamped my hands over my ears. “La la la la! Enough! Leave it, Scar, I’ve got to work.”

“Fine,” I heard her mutter. “Only trying to help. You’d thank me for it later, I know you would.” She dropped down onto the ground in a graceful sprawl, her dark hair fanning around her.

Leaving her to sulk, I walked onto the set. Dropping my robe into a waiting crewmember’s hand, I smoothed a hand over my hair. “Where do you want me?”

Michael broke off from his conversation with a cameraman. “Set up like last time. Rise up from the water and take it from there. Where’s Jorge?”

“Here!” Jorge sauntered onto set, his naked chest glistening in the sun.

Looks like someone convinced his makeup artist to go extra on the oil again…
I stifled a shudder, already dreading the inevitable slip and slide when my wet skin met his. “Okay—”

“Ms. Silk?” A voice called out.

I paused, glancing over my shoulder. A man hovered at the edge of the boundary, a bunch of flowers and a letter in his hand. He was chewing his lip, bouncing from one foot to the other.

“Not another goddamn fan,” Michael muttered under his breath. “Someone deal with him.”

“But... Ms. Silk! I need to speak with you!”

Already halfway to the lake, his voice drifted on the air.
Was this him? My fan turned stalker turned psycho?
“I’ll speak to him,” I called out, changing direction.

He looked harmless, dressed in a tracksuit and sporting a slick comb-over that did nothing to hide his shiny scalp. Wishing I was still wearing my robe, I stopped a few feet away from him.

“What do you think you’re doing, Natasha?” Vin’s furious voice startled me. He pushed in front of me, giving me a good view of his back. He and Cole had something in common. I peered around him.

Mr. Tracksuit seemed to wilt under Vin’s glare, his shoulders sagging and spine crumpling. He thrust a slightly mangled bunch of flowers forward, petals scattering. “Who are you?” he muttered.

Vin crossed his arms over his broad chest, his T-shirt straining over his biceps. “Ms. Silk’s security. Who are you?”

“Jeremy.” His voice was thin and reedy. “Ms. Silk, these are for you. I... I just wanted to meet you.” He craned his neck to look at me around Vin, his eyes widening as they traveled the length of my body, beads of sweat breaking out on his brow.

My skin crawled under his gaze. I hugged my arms around my chest, managing to twine one around my hips. Now I
really
wished I was wearing my robe.

“I’m a big fan. I have all of your pictures, and copies of all the commercials and movies you’ve been in.
All
of them,” he babbled, still holding the flowers.

I plastered on a smile, my face aching with the effort.
Only one more scene and then I never have to do this again.
“Thank you, Jeremy. And thank you for the flowers, they’re lovely. Vin, would you take them for me please?”

I leaned in and gave Vin a little shove. A strange screeching noise reached my ears, muffled and scratchy. Reaching up onto tiptoes I followed the sound, zeroing in. As he reached out to snatch the flowers from Jeremy, I did a little snatching of my own, plucking his earpiece out and shoving it into my own ear.

Cole’s voice roared through the tiny speaker. “Get Tasha away from that
motherfucking
slime ball now! If he manages to lay so much as one hand on her, I will personally detach your balls from your body and feed them to you! For fuck’s sake, Vin, your only job is to keep her safe! If something happens to her then I won’t have anything left to lose and I
will
hunt you down and—”

I tapped the speaker like I had seen the guys do many times. “Uh, Cole?”

The rant stuttered into silence, then, “Tasha?”

“Would you really detach Vin’s—”

“I would,” he growled.

“What would he detach?” I heard Vin ask, but he sounded a million miles away.

“Doesn’t matter,” I replied, wondering what the hell I was supposed to do with this knowledge.
Nothing
, I decided. I handed the earpiece back to Vin and turned around to make my way back to the lake.

* * *

“
T
asha
?” I was crouched near the top road, supposedly screening vehicles as they made their way into the park. In actual fact I was assigned the only position from which I couldn’t see the lake. Which meant I couldn’t see Tasha. Originally it was a very good idea, given that she was shooting
that
scene today.

Claws shot out of my fingers, the world around me flaring with color as my wolf battered at my skin. He liked the idea about as much as I did. It had taken the whole team to convince me to change position, to stay away from Tasha today. Eventually they had hauled Macey onto the phone to convince me.

Something I shouldn’t have agreed to.
I couldn’t protect her from up here.

“Tasha,” I tried again.

“She’s back on set. I have the flowers. Nothing suspicious,” Vin answered, his voice carefully neutral.

Well, it wasn’t every day that you witnessed your friend and team member finding and rejecting their true mate.

“Got it. You keep a close eye on her.”

“I am. Try and relax, we’ve got this.”

It was telling that the other guys were maintaining radio silence, especially Angel, who always had something to say. I wasn’t sure exactly
what
it said though. They’d been pretty closed-lipped since finding out about the situation between Tasha and me.

I rolled my shoulders, trying to ease some of the tension. “Tell me as soon as it’s over.” I pushed what that meant to the back of my mind. Tasha had contracted us for two weeks, and it didn’t matter that she’d wrapped the job up in one—I was sticking it out for two, whether she liked it or not. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye. Not yet.

“Will do.” Vin tapped out.

I stood up, stretching out the crick in my spine. Giving my shoulders a tug, I glanced around. Nothing. Silence. Shrugging off the unease, I circled around, following a path down into the woods. There was the spot where I’d pushed her to the ground, where we’d tangled, wild and abandoned and angry. A soft breeze lifted my hair, carrying with it the smell of moist leaves and rabbits. There wasn’t a rabbit in sight though; they’d hopped off at first whiff of the predator walking among them.

Something nudged at my senses, a wisp of a feeling or an echo of memory. I tapped my ear. “Greg, report.”

“All clear on the monitors.”

“The fan?”

“Watching but not moving closer. He’s taking pictures though. Do you want him stopped?”

My teeth clashed together at the thought of Tasha immortalized digitally for that weirdo’s pleasure. Then I reminded myself that she was being immortalized on film, for everyone to see. “No point.”

“Got it.”

I tapped out. Something was bugging me. My wolf senses were tingling, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. Everyone was on set, with all my main suspects accounted for. The stalker fan was being watched. So what was it?

My feet continued walking without any definite direction, but it didn’t surprise me to find myself at the edge of the woods. Across the park was the lake. And Tasha. Taking a deep breath, I tried to talk my feet into turning back around, but they were stuck. The air filtered through my nose, the tastes of the park settling on my tongue. A bitter tang soured my mouth, metallic and oily and—

I jabbed my ear piece. “We have a sniper,” I snapped out in a low growl, already moving.

“Where?” someone echoed back, along with a string of lively curses.

“I don’t know. Yet.”

“I’ll get Natasha,” Vin huffed out.

In seconds I’d pinpointed everyone’s positions. But I couldn’t see a telltale glint of metal. “No, I’ll get her. You’re close to Scar—he might go for her if he can’t get a shot at Tasha.” I was already sprinting, the park blurring, my entire focus zeroing in on the woman in front of me. Chest pounding, my heart thundering in my ears, my arms were pumping and thighs burning. I saw Vin tackle Scar to the ground, covering her with his body. Tasha hadn’t seen me. She was still playing her part in the lake, the water lapping at her knees. Jorge was wading toward her, his mouth set, his stride determined.

Static crackled in my ear. “Cole, you’ve got to hear this—”