Midsummer Heat (3 page)

“Shhh…don’t fight it, sweetheart.”

Closing a large hand around both her wrists, he slid the other down around her waist and gathered her closer. His scent—warm man, citrus-spicy cologne, and the fresh-earth smell of his wolf—enveloped her in its seductive embrace. Bending his head, he lowered his lips toward hers. Within, her wolf whimpered and whined, sensing the male wolf so close and wanting nothing more than to press against him, present herself and bow to his dominance.

Fuck. That.

She growled and snapped her teeth in warning but it was futile, her body had already started to soften, knees as weak as jelly as he held her securely.

He chuckled, letting go of her wrists to drive a big hand into her hair. The clip gave with a metallic ping, falling with a clatter to the ground. Her hands curled into fists, ready to pound at his shoulders but within a heartbeat his mouth covered hers and she was lost.

His lips were warm, firm against hers as she tried to hold unwavering under the sensual assault. He worked her lips, teasing and tempting her to open up to him instead of demanding with the hard kisses she’d expected given his kiss in the back corridor. Then he’d been all about demand and dominance, his kiss hard as he took what he wanted. Now he seduced and cajoled, waiting for her to open up to him. The change made her head spin as she fought against him and her own body.

She surrendered, parting her lips with a soft whimper. He growled in triumph, dipping his tongue past her lips in a scalding caress before retreating. He thrust again, the alpha back in his manner as he claimed her mouth with scorching intent. Her hands relaxed, found his shoulders as he tilted his head to deepen the kiss. The world fell away. Nothing mattered but the two of them, and the hot mating of their mouths, their tongues as he twined his around hers, sliding and stroking. Hot, wet caresses designed to shatter every last bit of resistance she had.

He didn’t pin her against the wall as she expected. Instead, he pulled her away, spreading and bracing his thighs to hold her in his arms, his bigger body protective and possessive as he curled himself around her. Breaking from her lips with a gasp, he fisted his hand in her hair and pulled her head back. She gasped, liquid heat dampening her panties as his lips scorched a trail of hot kisses down her throat.

“Mine. Always mine,” he murmured, voice muffled against the tender skin. His tongue flicked out in a warm, wet rasp to caress the skin between her shoulder and her neck. It was a sensitive spot. The place her mate would mark to claim her.

She held her breath as he opened his mouth to graze human-blunt teeth over the spot. Panic warred with need. Surely he wouldn’t…not like this? Not without her consent…

“It’s okay. Don’t panic, I won’t.”

His words were low against her skin as he licked again, closing his mouth over to suckle the spot. The pressure and hot suction buckled her knees as a bolt of need shot through her and made its home in her core. She squirmed, her hips rocking against him as he licked her neck again, then worked his way back up to her lips.

“I want to though. Want to bite you, claim you. Fuck you.”

Each word was punctuated by a kiss until he reached her mouth again. Pulling back he looked down at her with a gaze hot enough to blister paint. She bit her lip, trying to hold still and trying hard to hold onto why the biting and the sex parts were bad ideas. When he kissed her, belonging to him didn’t seem so bad after all.

“I want you, Kelli, and I’m going to get you.” His promise slid along her spine like a caress, something deep within her resonating at his words. “You can fight and block me all you like, but it won’t make any difference. You belong to me. You always have.”

You belong to me.

The words filled her mind the next day, just waiting for a lull in the frantic running around dealing with the last minute arrangements for the wedding to jump out and attack. Nibbling at her lower lip, Kelli carefully negotiated the rush hour traffic of three cars and a dog walker as she made her way to the florists. The memory of the kiss still lingered, her lips tingling every time she thought about it. If she closed her eyes for a moment she saw Max’s face, the look in his eyes as he bent his head to kiss her. The hard strength of his body as he leaned into hers and the warmth of his hands as they slid up her back.

Heat rolled through her body, waking her wolf and setting it pacing again. The creature didn’t understand, didn’t see why they couldn’t claim the virile male wolf it could smell through her dull human senses, snapping and snarling at her to be free. After so long in the city, dating human men, it wanted a wolf. It…she…wanted to be free, to not have to be careful to hurt her date. She wanted to run free and revel in her wild side.

“Damn it.”

She pulled to a stop and slammed her hands against the wheel. She wanted a mate but she had to have a choice, and Max Daniels gave no choices. It was his way or the highway, and she couldn’t deal with that. No matter how sexy he was. No matter how his kisses turned her inside out.

She shouldn’t have listened to Riley and stayed, or she should have disappeared out the back door when he’d come to warn her than Max was in the bar. Sighing, she grabbed her purse and slid out of the car. No, that wouldn’t have worked. Max had been in the corridor right behind her brother, and if she’d run. A shiver hit her, running down her spine as she headed for the door to the shop. If she’d run, Max would have chased her.

And she didn’t want to think where
that
would have ended up…

* * *

Less than half an hour later, the flowers were paid for and pickup was confirmed for later that day. Kelli shook her head as she walked out of the door, hearing the bell clatter behind her. Used to the city where something like this would have been arranged months in advance, the fact that Riley had left the final arrangements until the day before his wedding astounded her.

“Gentlemen’s agreements!”
he’d assured her, giving her a list of things that needed to be done for the reception. Kelli didn’t know whether to be pleased to be so involved, or ask what on earth the bride-to-be was doing, other than getting her nails done and her fake tan re-applied.

What on earth Riley saw in Jenna, Kelli had no idea. As far as she could see, the girl had done nothing since leaving school but work at the local diner and catch the first man who crossed her path. Less than a year after graduation, she’d given up work in preparation for married life. Kelli ground her teeth as she headed for her car.

Plus there was the fact that Riley was covering most of the cost of the wedding because Jenna didn’t have any savings. No savings? No, that was because of the shiny new car she paraded about in and the hair and nail extensions that seemed to require endless trips to the salon in Katy.

Shoving her complaints to the back of her mind, she pushed the button to unlock the car door and waited for the chirp before reaching for the handle.

“When this wedding is done, you can fuck off back to the big city. Max is mine.”

A female voice sounded behind her, dripping with venom. Surprised but wary, Kelli turned around to find a taller blond woman standing behind her, hand on her out-thrust hip as she glared.

Wolf. One Kelli didn’t know, didn’t remember from when she left. Kelli’s hackles rose at the potential for violence hanging in the air, her inner wolf pacing within, just ready for a chance to break through her skin.

“Max?”

“Yeah. He’s mine. I haven’t spent years in this fucking shit hole for you to come along and steal him from under my nose,” the blond declared, her thumbs looped in the low rise jeans she wore. Her pose was relaxed, confident. To anyone looking from inside the shop or further down the street, it would look as though the two women were merely exchanging pleasantries.

“You’re so far off base it’s unreal. Did no one ever clue you in to why I left?” Kelli chuckled, shaking her head.

The woman shrugged, her expression filled with ‘don’t give a fuck’. Kelli sighed. God save her from bimbos and power struggles.

“I left because I didn’t want Max Daniels. As far as I’m concerned, he’s all yours.”

* * *

Cough-splutter-wheeze. Bang!

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me!” Kelli swore as she wrenched the wheel around and pulled over to the side of the road. The rental car coughed and spluttered its last, grinding to a halt and stalling before she could put it in park. Just her frigging luck to get the only rental in the shop that was on its last damn legs. She’d thought the thing was making funny noises on the way down here but, perhaps stupidly, she’d assumed the company had them checked for road worthiness on a regular basis. Obviously not.

“And you lot can stop being smug,” she directed over her shoulder to the floral displays crammed into the back, across the dropped seats and filling the trunk. It had taken her and the girl from the shop what seemed like an hour to pack them all in. A fragrant game of Tetris as the sum total of blooms and ribbons exceeded the available space in the mid-size sedan. They’d finally gotten them in, the girl assuring Kelli that it was only a short drive and the blooms wouldn’t suffer being crammed in.

Now it looked like she was going to have to walk with the damn things. She turned around, arm draped across the back of the passenger seat. Shit, that was going to take all damn night. A sigh escaped her lips. There went her quiet night in, a hot bath and a good book before the excitement of the wedding tomorrow. She wasn’t included in the bridal party, but having seen the blond bimbos, not one of them twenty, who comprised Jenna’s attendants, Kelli figured she’d take her chances with the book. She was more likely to get sense out of it.

She was still looking at the flowers when a vehicle pulled to a stop beside the little grey rental. She turned at the deep rumble of the engine, admiring the sleek, black lines of the truck. Big, black and expensive. She wasn’t surprised when the window rolled down and Max leaned out.

“Looks like you’re in a spot of bother there. Need a hand?”

She closed her eyes for a second, unwillingly savoring the shiver as his deep voice rolled over her. Like hot caramel over ice-cream there was just something about the timbre of Max’s voice that did it for her, had always done it for her, even when he was angry. She’d kept his voice mails for years, until an automatic update on her phone had wiped them, and listened to them in moments of weakness. Or when she wanted to remember what an asshole he was. Both worked.

“No. Yes!” she added quickly, aware she was totally contradicting herself. After last night and her run in with the blond wolf earlier, she should tell him to take a hike. But her floral passengers needed to get to the reception hall. A hall that needed decorating before she could finish tonight. She groaned. Jenna and her friends had bowed out via text, so even without the breakdown, it was going to be a long night. If she had to carry the damn things…she didn’t want to think what time she’d be done. Might as well kiss a decent night’s sleep goodbye.

He chuckled. “Well, which is it, little wolf?”

“Will you
stop
that?” Kelli snapped, frustration welling over and making her tongue sharp. “I’m not a kid anymore.”

His eyes darkened, gaze flicking down to the open neck of her blouse. “No, you’re not. What would you prefer I call you, sweetheart? Other than mine.”

She leveled a scathing look. Of all the arrogant, one-track minded—

“Lighten up. I was teasing for heaven’s sake.”

Pulling on the brake, Max opened the door and slid from the bigger vehicle. The dark t-shirt he wore pulled over his broad shoulders and the powerful muscles of his chest. A visual treat she tried hard to ignore.

“Well, it’s damn annoying,” she huffed as he leaned down to look in the back of her car. His brown eyes were warm as he flicked a glance toward the hood of the car and back to her.

“Kelli, why don’t you just admit you need a little help? It won’t kill you.”

His voice was soft, intimate, with a hint of amusement as his grin teased at the corners of his lips. He was enjoying this. Enjoying that she was stuck and needed his help. She sighed and gave in.

“Okay. Will you help me? I need to get these flowers to the hall.” Despite herself, she smiled. Max Daniels. A florist’s delivery boy. Who’d have thought it?

“Of course I will…” He nodded, his hair dancing on his shoulders. Relief threaded through her as she opened the door and slid out of the car. “For a price.”

She stopped, caught between the open door and his large body in front of her. Wariness hummed through every fiber of her being as she looked up to meet his eyes. He planned to charge her for his help? Of all the low down, rotten things to do. The Max she remembered wasn’t motivated by money… Her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

“Price? What sort of price?”

Big hand on the door, he closed it for her, his arms creating a bracket that surrounded and pinned her against the warm metal of the vehicle. He leaned in, the heat of his body beat at her skin like the sun on a hot summer’s day. Awareness stretched between them and she had to bite back the gasp which rose to her lips. He was tall, muscled, strong…virile. Everything she looked for in a partner and more.

Excitement and tension shimmered through her as he bent his head to whisper in her ear. His breath, cool with minty overtones, washed over her neck as her body reacted to his nearness. Her breasts firmed, nipples hard bullets that rubbed against the fabric of her bra as lower down her pussy clenched, liquid heat slipping from her in a display of readiness she desperately wanted to hide.

“A date. Let me take you to your brother’s wedding. I want to dance with the prettiest lady in Stratton.”

* * *

She kept sneaking glances at him. Hands full of a tray of name cards, with ribbons and flower garlands around his neck and shoulders, Max wasn’t going to be winning any awards for masculine attire, but he didn’t care. Dutifully he followed the woman, tiny compared to his hulking frame, between the tables crammed into Stratton’s town hall as she carefully laid name cards according to the plan she had in her hand.