Her Wild Magic (2 page)

Once more in control of herself, Max managed to put her key in the ignition, but froze as the door to her car was ripped open.

Max looked down at the door hanging off its hinges and then up into the chillingly cold expression on the sheriff’s face. She opened her mouth to scream, but before she could utter a word, he grabbed her upper arms and dragged her from the car.

“Out!”

“Get your hands off me!” Max cried, struggling against him. “I’m not going anywhere with you!”

He pulled her down behind the car and used his body to pin her in place.

“Quiet. I’m not going to hurt you,” he whispered into her ear. He looked over her head, his gaze scanning a clutch of rocks on the other side of the highway. “We’re being watched.”

“So what?” Max snapped, trying to wiggle out from beneath him. “There’s no need to manhandle me.” She pressed back, trying to shift his weight, but froze in place when he growled deep in his throat. He sounded as if he was in pain, but the expanding bulge lodged between the cheeks of her buttocks told a different story.

“Okay, that does it,” Max said, managing to twist around until she faced him. “Let’s just step back and assess the situation for a moment. More than likely whoever is up there watching us is just some nosey hiker. I’ll get back in my car, and you get back in yours. We both forget this whole incident ever happened.”

When he made no comment, his gaze never shifting from the hillside, Max’s temper flared and she attempted to elbow him in the stomach. Her aim was off, and instead of connecting with his abdomen, her elbow landed considerably lower. He didn’t make a sound, but the blistering look he turned on her had Max struggling to swallow around the lump of fear in her throat.

“I’m not going to hurt you, so you can stop looking at me that way. I’d never hurt you, no matter what you did.” His gaze shifted back to the hillside. “He’s moved closer in, and when he realizes we’re alone out here, he’s going to let loose with everything he’s got.” He grasped her chin and forced her to meet his gaze. “I will keep you alive,” he said solemnly. “But you have to do exactly what I tell you. And no matter what happens, no matter what you see, stay close to me.”

When she continued to stare at him in amazement, he gripped her shoulder and gave her a none-too-gentle shake. “You got that?”

Max got it, and she was about to tell him exactly what he’d get if he didn’t stop manhandling her, when a blast exploded, bursting against her eardrums and slamming her body against his broad chest. She heard a roar—an inhuman sound filled with rage and anger—and a second later, a black fog blocked out the sun.

The last thing she saw before she lost consciousness was the sheriff’s yellow-gold eyes burning fiercely in a face that wasn’t human.

Caleb stood within the shadows of the cabin, keeping watch over his mate as she slept. She hadn’t regained consciousness since the blast, but the mate bond assured him she was bruised but otherwise unharmed. Unfortunately, in order to protect her, he’d been forced to shift to his were form. Now, when she awakened, he’d have to deal not only with her resistance to their mating, but to her fear of him.

The road ahead wasn’t going to be an easy one, but at least he had the comfort of knowing she was safe for now. The cabin he’d brought her to lay hidden in the mountains high above Haven, its location known to only a trusted few. It wasn't much to look at, just the one room containing a bed, kitchenette, and a small adjoining bathroom off the back, but the strongest spells known to his kind protected it. He could leave her, confident she would come to no harm while he tracked and destroyed his enemy.

She murmured in her sleep, and he moved out of the shadows, seeking the reason for her unrest. When she moved her legs restlessly, rubbing her thighs together, he growled his approval. His little spitfire needed him, and he needed her. She was quickly becoming the center of his world, and God help anyone who tried to take her from him.

Giving in to the need to touch her, he squatted next to the bed and lightly traced a finger down the side of her cheek. She wrinkled her nose and swatted his hand away. He smiled, accepting the inevitable. She resisted him, even in her sleep. Not that he expected anything less; his mate was no submissive. She was a woman with a mind of her own, and that suited him just fine.

“Open your eyes, baby. We need to talk.”

“Later,” Max groaned, keeping her eyes firmly closed. “I hurt too much to talk.”

Caleb’s heart raced with alarm. He’d checked her thoroughly. There’d been no sign of broken bones or internal bleeding, but more importantly, as her mate, he’d
felt
nothing that indicated any serious damage. But what if he’d missed something?

“Where does it hurt, sweetheart?”

“Everywhere…I feel like—Oh, my God.” Max’s eyes popped open, and her gaze locked with his.

He almost flinched at the look of horror that crossed her face.

“You turned into a—” She sat up abruptly, her eyes wide with fear as she huddled against the headboard.

Caleb stood up slowly and took a step back. He knew his size alone was intimidating, and after what she’d seen, she had every reason to fear him.

“Easy, baby,” he said softly, holding his hands palm out. I know you must be scared, but you’re safe with me. You remember who I am, right? I’m Sheriff Caleb McCain.”

“I remember who and what you are.” She scrambled off the bed and snatched up the lamp sitting on the bedside table. “Just keep your distance!”

Caleb looked away, not wanting her to see the smile tugging at his lips. Did she really think she could injure him with a lamp? He weighed well over two-hundred pounds and stood close to seven feet tall. In his were form, he nearly doubled in size and was damn near impossible to kill. She, on the other hand, weighed next to nothing. The top of her head barely reached the middle of his chest. He admired her spunk, but his little darling needed to learn her limitations.

“Baby, put the lamp down. It weighs almost as much as you do, and I’d hate for you to hurt yourself.” Caleb tried to keep the amusement out of his voice, not wanting to hurt her feelings, but when she lifted the lamp higher and nearly lost her footing, he couldn’t keep a smile from forming on his lips.

She gave him a blistering look then snapped her arm back and threw the lamp at him, barely missing his head.

He ducked, and his condescending smile gave way to a scowl. “Woman, you almost hit my head.” He eyed the broken lamp. “That’s no way to treat a man who just saved your life.”

“Don’t come near me,” she shouted, pointing an accusing finger at him. “You’re a
werewolf
for God’s sake! If I had a gun, I’d shoot you.” She stilled suddenly, and her eyes widened. “Did you bite me?” She ran a hand over her neck and arms. “Am I going to turn furry on the next full moon?”

“No! I’d never—well, maybe not never,” he amended, thinking of the time he would claim her. “But I didn’t bite you. In any case, that whole turning furry thing from a were bite is an urban legend.”

When she continued to eye him warily, he ran a frustrated hand through his hair and decided to try a different approach. “Look, this isn’t going the way I planned. I assure you, I can explain everything. Just get back in bed, and I’ll get you something to eat. What you need now is nourishment and a few more hours of rest.”

She shook her head. “Not going to happen. Just step aside so I can get out of here.”

“I can’t do that. It’s not safe for you to leave the cabin, and besides, you can’t go out dressed like that.”

She glanced down at herself, and Caleb grimaced at the look on her face when she glared at him.

“Now before you get your panties in a knot, take note. I didn’t remove them or your bra, and I didn’t peek, despite the temptation.” He’d added the last bit about not peeking in hopes of earning a few brownie points for good behavior, but as her gaze moved over him, taking in the fact he wore a pair of baggy sweats and nothing else, he doubted even a testimonial from Mother Teresa would help him. Worse yet, the moment she’d jumped out of bed jiggling her goodies, he’d sported a hard-on the size of a nightstick.

“Did you do anything freaky to me while I slept?” she asked suspiciously, darting a quick glance at the front of his sweats.

Caleb almost groaned. He hadn’t thought he could get any harder, but she’d just made a liar out of him. His little darlin’ didn’t like the idea of his taking advantage while she was asleep, but the thought that he
might
have turned her on. He could smell her arousal, like honeysuckle in summer, and it was giving him a hard-on from hell. If he didn’t have her soon, he was going to disgrace himself like a pubescent wolf getting his first whiff of tail.

Caleb shifted his feet in an effort to ease the pressure in his groin and smiled at her. “Baby, you’re damn hard on a man’s ego, but let me assure you, if I’d done anything to you, your sweet little pussy would be quivering with satisfaction instead of aching with need. And I wouldn’t be standing here waving a flagpole in your face.”

“Smug bastard,” Max snapped, standing her ground, despite the rosy hue of embarrassment coloring her brown skin. “I’m not your baby, or anything else. My name is Maxine, Max will do, but baby is out. And as for sleeping while you got your freak on, well, let’s just say I believe in the old adage, the bigger the man, the smaller the package. In which case…” Her gaze dropped dismissingly to the bulge in his sweats. “…that’s probably a couple of rolled socks you’ve shoved down the front of your pants.”

Caleb didn’t even try to keep the grin off his face. She knew what he was, but werewolf or no werewolf, she wanted to kick his butt if he’d taken advantage of her. Damn, this woman pleased him, and seeing her in her pretty little granny panties made him want to strip her naked and spend hours buried in her sweet fire.

He’d always had a strong sexual appetite, but what he felt for this woman was more than lust. Mother Nature might have put a biological lock on his hormones, but she couldn’t control his emotions. This woman was the mate of his heart and the better half of his soul. Of that, he had no doubt.

“Baby—Max,” he amended when her eyes narrowed. “I know you think I’m a monster, but I did protect you from the blast, and if I’d wanted to harm you, I’ve had ample opportunity to do so. I won’t force you to get back in bed, but why not sit down? I’ll sit over there.” He nodded at the small kitchen table off the center of the room.

Max acted as if she hadn’t heard him, but Caleb saw her glance at the door. She was thinking of making a run for it, and Caleb opened his mouth to tell her not to bother, when it dawned on him that while he was worried about explaining things to her, she had a little explaining of her own to do.

“Max,” he said softly. “When you woke up, you didn’t ask me what I was. You accused me of being a werewolf. And that strikes me as odd, because most people don’t believe werewolves exist. Even if they saw one of my kind, they’d think they were hallucinating. But you didn’t doubt your sanity. You didn’t doubt what you’d seen. The moment you saw my face, you knew what I was. You
knew
exactly what I was. Now, how could that be?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Just before I blacked out, I saw your face change. You transformed right before my eyes, and I really don’t know if I fainted in reaction or lost consciousness because of the blast.”

Caleb closed the distance between them, not crowding her but letting her know he would get an honest answer from her one way or the other. “To save our lives, I had no choice but to shift. The man who attacked meant to kill us. He would have, too, if I’d remained in my human form. Shifting allowed me to absorb the force of the blast and prevent it from shredding you to bits. But I’d bet the family farm that you already knew of my kind before
you saw me change.”

He could see she wanted to deny it, and several long seconds passed before she finally sighed and looked at him with resignation in her eyes.

“Okay, you win. I’ll tell you what I know,” she murmured in a defeated tone. “But I want to get dressed first. I’m not having this conversation in my underwear.”

Caleb pulled a blanket from the bed and tossed it to her, making it clear he wasn’t going to wait for her to get dressed. Max caught it and wrapped it toga style around her body before sitting down on the edge of the bed.

“Okay, baby,” Caleb said, settling into one of the kitchen chairs and folding his arms across his chest. “Out with it. And don’t spare me the details. When it comes to you, I’ll decide what’s relevant.”

Max didn’t want to reveal any of her secrets, but she didn’t see where she had much choice in the matter. She needed to find out what was happening to her and put an end to it.

“I’ll tell you what I know, but first you’ll have to answer a few of my questions.”

Caleb’s eyelids lowered, concealing his eyes, abut Max caught a glimpse of the predator lurking just below the
good old boy
demeanor. The sheriff didn’t like the idea of her questioning him not only because he was hiding something, but because he was Alpha. Alphas gave orders; they didn’t take them. Which was another reason she had to get away from him. He had plans for her, and he didn’t look the type to take no for an answer.

“Stalling for time, Max?” Caleb shook his head slowly. “Won’t do you any good, but I’ll bite. What do you want to know?”

“I’m not stalling. I’m just trying to think of the best way to put this.” She paused and took a deep breath before continuing. “You have a disturbing effect on me.” She bit her bottom lip and glanced away before forcing her gaze to meet his again. “I’m drawn to you…as if my body needs yours.”

“It does, but you’ve nothing to fear. Your reaction is normal.”

Surprise made her eyes widen. “So women in general have this kind of reaction around you?”

He arched a dark eyebrow, but amusement lit his honey-gold eyes. “Can you make that a little plainer? Just spell it out. We’re all adults here.”

“Oh, what the hell!” Max threw up her hands in defeat. “What is it about you? Why do women want to have sex with you?”

The corners of Caleb’s lips slowly tugged upward into a sinfully wicked smile that had her crossing her legs and praying he couldn’t scent the moisture that had warmed her pussy.

“Do you want to have sex with me, Max?” His wicked smile slowly turned into a very naughty grin as his heated gaze caressed her body. “Because I sure as hell want to have sex with you.”

Max shot him an ugly look, annoyed that his words caused the ache between her legs to intensify. “Talk like that doesn’t help the situation. Now I ache so much it hurts, and I’m swollen in places I refuse to discuss with you. And you still haven’t answered my question.” She looked down at her hands folded in her lap. “Do you…affect others this way?”

“Look at me, Max.”

Max slowly shifted her gaze back to him, lured by the gentleness of his voice and the knowledge that she had to deal with whatever was between them to regain control of her life.

“What you’re feeling is known as the
burning
to my people. And yes, human women are strongly attracted to the males of my species, but your reaction to the pheromones I exude is much greater. I know your need is becoming unbearable, and I will ease it. But first, I need to know how you learned of my people.”

Max nodded. “I understand your concern, but your people have nothing to fear from me. Mama Willie, my grandmother, told me stories about werewolves—and other things—that lived in the world between worlds. She always said she could see and hear things nobody else could because she was gifted with the shining.”

He arched a dark eyebrow. “The shinning?”

“It was her name for the people she saw, because they always had a shine or glow about them. She once told me that most of the beings she saw were friendly, but some of them—the dark ones she called them—didn’t like the fact she could see them. They frightened her, and she learned it was best to pretend not to see them. But she liked your people,” Max assured him, noting the sudden tensing of his features. “She even had a werewolf friend who visited her periodically over the years. I never met him, but he was the source of many of the things she told me about your people.”

“Is your grandmother still alive?”

“No,” Max said softly, her tone wistful. “Mama Willie was old even when I was a child. She passed away during my last year in high school, and I still miss her. She was quite a character, with her wild gray hair and her bags of smelly herbs. She was always talking about the things she saw and heard. And it didn’t bother her in the least that nobody believed her.”

“But you did. You believed her. And don’t bother denying it.”

Max pulled the blanket tighter around her and leaned back against the headboard. “I wasn’t going to. Anyway, Mama Willie always said a were could smell a lie before it was out of your mouth. Is that true?”

Caleb nodded. “We can smell the change in a person’s body chemistry when they lie, but only if we’re paying close attention.” He paused briefly, as if choosing his words carefully. “So you grew up being told stories about werewolves and beings that were pretty much invisible to most of the world.”

“I grew up in Louisiana, in a shack not three feet from the edge of the swamp. A slop jar under my bed served as a toilet, and the local raccoons and opossums were my playmates. We didn’t have much, but somehow just being with Mama Willie made everything seem…better. I’ll always be thankful to her for that. I only wish she’d spent more time in this world, with me. She did her best, but your world was so fascinating to her.”

“And you paid a price for that,” Caleb stated flatly. “Even now, I can see a haunted look in your eyes. It must have been difficult, living as you did, with a foot in both worlds.”

“Not at first. As a child, I accepted both worlds without question. But later, when I started school, I realized what I accepted as normal was anything but. I tried to fit in, to act like everybody else, but no matter what I did, I never really belonged.”

“You were different, Max. But in a good way.”

Max smiled sadly. “I was weird. I wore mish-matched clothes from the local garbage dump, and I smelled like the charcoal my Gran used to heat the house. My afro puff hair and facial features that said ethnically I belonged to no group, or to all groups, didn’t help much, either.” She took a deep breath and sighed heavily. “But none of that matters now. What matters is that I know what you are and why you have to keep it secret. I grew up in a world filled with secrets. And really, even if I did tell anyone about you or your people, who would believe me?”

“Probably no one. And those who did would find themselves locked up right along with you. I never doubted you would keep my secret. But I needed to know how and what you knew, for the protection of both our worlds.”

Max stood and, keeping a secure grip on the blanket wrapped around her, moved to stand directly in front of him. “Then I can leave after you tell me what I need to do to rid myself of this attraction to you?”

“I’m sorry, Max. I can’t let you leave this cabin.”

“Why?” She frowned. “Your secret is safe with me. I’ll continue to Salinas, begin my new life there, and both of us can forget this whole incident ever happened.”

Caleb slowly shook his head. “Your grandmother told you stories that, as you grew older, you should have dismissed as fairy tales or the ramblings of a senile old woman, but you didn’t do that. You continued to believe her. You still believe her to this day. Why is that, baby? Is it because you have gifts of your own?”

Max stared at him, her pique draining away to be replaced by mounting fear. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, I think you do. And I’d bet you were probably born with a veil over your face?

“A veil?”

“That’s what the seers call it, but it’s actually a thin membrane, usually white in color, that completely covers a child’s face at birth. No one really knows what causes it, but my people believe a child born with a veil is blessed with the ability to see between worlds and is a source of great power.”

“Blessed?” Max snorted. “More like cursed.” She was silent for a moment, but his words intrigued her. “What do you mean, a child born with a veil is a source of great power?”

Caleb rose from his chair and held out a hand. “Come here.”

Max saw the look in his eyes and shook her head. If she walked into his embrace, the game was over, because she didn’t have the strength to fight him
and
herself.

She took a step back, angling for the door. “I’ll be leaving now.

He looked down at her, tilting his head in that peculiar way of his, as if he found her fascinating. “I don’t think so. It’s far too late for that.”

He walked toward her, his big body moving with the fluid grace of the born predator he was, and Max shook her head in refusal. But she didn’t back away.

“You are a veiled one.” With one hand, he drew her into a loose embrace. With the other, he gently tilted her chin upward until she met his gaze. “Denying it will change nothing. The veiled ones are revered by my people, the Lycanthropes, and that is quite an honor since we hold few in high regard. My people have walked the earth with man for thousands of years, always present but rarely seen. We are physically powerful, fierce in battle, and like our brother the wolf, when we mate, we mate for life. I know you will deny me, Maxine Ray Juneau, but I claim you as my mate.”

His words sounded like a declaration, or an oath of some kind, and Max opened her mouth to protest, but his lips fastened onto hers.

All reasonable thought fled. Had he been demanding, she would have found the strength to resist him, but his lips were light as a feather against hers, giving instead of taking, and his touch was filled with tenderness, as if he cherished her. It was an assault on the heart as well as the body. When he tenderly ended the kiss, she didn’t know how she would ever find the strength to leave him.

“I’m sorry, baby,” he soothed, resting his cheek atop her head and pulling her tighter into his embrace. “I know this thing between us frightens you, but I can’t let you leave. Your life is in danger.” When she remained silent, he swung her up into his arms and sat on the edge of the bed, cradling her as if she were an infant.

“There’s a man searching for us. His name is Michael Tremont, and he’s one of the most powerful mages ever born. He is a master of the elements, a powerful weaver of spells. Unfortunately, he is also morally corrupt, and he plans to use his gifts to reshape the world to his liking. To him, mankind is little better than apes, and mages are the rightful rulers of Earth. I work for the Alliance of Others, which serves as a kind of policing agency among my people. It’s my job to stop Michael, and I’ve hunted him for months, never more than a step behind. But today he changed tactics. He attacked, hoping to kill my mate.”

Max lifted her head to look at him. “I’m not your mate.”

“Yes, you are,” Caleb said gently, brushing his lips against hers. “From the moment we met, you felt the connection, the desire to be with me. It’s called a mate bond, and the longer we’re together, the stronger the link will become. In time, we will be able to use it to communicate without words and, if we wish, share each other’s thoughts. We will always be able to sense the whereabouts of the other, and…we will always burn for each other.”

Max shook her head. “It’s just pheromones. I’m not a part of your world, and I can never be.”

“You will be. Both of us will have to make some adjustments, but I don’t doubt for a minute things will work out between us. I know you want to believe your attraction to me is a result of were pheromones, but what you’re experiencing, the intense sexual need, only happens when a strong match is made. There are things we can do to ease the burn, but we can’t join our bodies until the next full moon. It is a sacrament all weres fortunate enough to find their mates adhere to. It not only demonstrates to a mate his control over his wolf, but her acceptance of him in his moon-bound form is necessary to complete the mate bond. Once the sacrament is completed, my people believe the two are joined, in this life and the next.”

Max pushed his hands away and stood up. “I don’t want to know any more. I waited tables and cleaned toilets to pay for college because I wanted a normal life with none of this.” She waved a hand in his direction. “But it’s happening anyway.”

Filled with uncertainty, Max took a turn around the room, then walked over to the cabin’s only window and looked out. She needed to think clearly, to assess the situation rationally, but that seemed impossible when every moment was spent wrestling with the demands of her body. And now things had worsened.

The thing buried inside her was no longer dormant. It was awake and totally focused on Caleb. It watched his every move, as if he was something it had always hoped for but never thought it would find. And that just couldn’t be right, because the one thing she knew for certain was that the thing inside her didn’t have wants or needs, it simply reflected whatever she was feeling.

Caleb watched her closely, knowing she was in turmoil. The last couple of hours had been rough on her, and the next few days wouldn’t be much better. Theirs would be no gentle mating, and though he would never intentionally harm her, she was such a tiny thing. He only hoped when the time came, he would be more man than beast.

He crossed the room to her, gently laid his hands on her shoulders, and massaged the knotted muscles of her neck. “It will be all right. I’ll make sure of that.”

“Just stay away from me.” She shook off his hands and turned to face him. “Where are we anyway?”

“In the mountains above the town of Haven. Few people know of this cabin, and those who do would never tell a soul.”

“You sound so certain of that.”

“I am. I built this cabin with my own hands. It’s safe and protected in ways you can’t imagine. You’ll just have to trust me.”