The Alpha's Mate (3 page)

The journey went by in a blur and she couldn't remember if Alysa tried to talk or if they rode in silence, but she entered her apartment and collapsed on her bed leaving all of the lights on.

Kelly tossed and turned for some time, casting off all of her sheets and then clutching them closely as a wave of cold shivers enveloped her. She desperately wished for water but didn't have the energy to rise from the bed. After a small eternity darkness crashed over her and she surrendered to sleep. But even that wasn't restful.

The forest once more, and that howling wolf, the trees, the dirt. Everything was new, everything was so familiar. And that sizzle of awareness rushed through her. Max, he was here. But the forest stood empty around her. She walked on, leaves crunching under her feet. And there he stood, shirtless, his jeans hanging low on his hips he looked over the rest of the forest from where the hill dropped down below him. She froze in her tracks, uncertain now, and knowing that the next steps she took could change everything.

But this was just a dream, wasn't it? What could a dream change?

He turned around and his eyes glowed that near yellow color before settling back to brown. "What are you doing here?" Awe laced his voice, but no accusation.

"It's my dream." She approached him, and though she burned with the fire of her desire, she found herself able to manage it this time. She rested a hand on his shoulder.

He raised his own hand to cover hers. "A dream?" But he said nothing else, turning back to look out.

The wolf howled again. Max let go and took two running steps before he jumped up and disappeared from view. Kelly rushed up, but she couldn't see him. Instead, she saw a wolf running away. Kelly took off after it, branches flicking against her skin, scoring and cutting her as she ran.

The wolf, Max, a part of her knew, ran faster, turning away and losing her from his path. She sank to all fours, padding after him, bounding at speeds she couldn't imagine. The branches no longer bothered her, and nothing on the path stopped her.

The wolf howled again, it's joyous song, singing of life, of love, of family. Kelly tossed her head back and howled with it.

She woke with a start, the sheets tangled in damp strips all about her. All weariness had fled. Instead, Kelly felt invigorated, ready to run anywhere, climb mountains. Do anything.

That feeling lasted for approximately ten seconds before she tried to swallow and felt exactly how dry her mouth was. She went to the kitchen and drank down an entire large glass of water, and then filled the glass once more to be sure. Though the lights blazed in her apartment, outside was dark. She had slept the entire day away. But the sleep had done her well.

She entered the bathroom to wash her face and did a double take when she caught sight of herself in the mirror. That mark was completely gone. To be sure, she rubbed at that spot on her neck with the wash cloth and there was no makeup residue hiding it from view. She chalked it up to some sort of weird thing with the antibodies fighting off her flu. It had been a flu, right? It must have accelerated the healing process.

Back in her room she saw that she had four new messages and nearly a dozen missed calls. Two messages from work, and two from a number she didn't recognize.

The first: "Kelly, this is Max," she sat up straighter. "It seems like you left your license at the bar last night. Please call me back so I can get it to you." He left his number.

The second and third were concerned calls from Abigail. And she seemingly had cause for concern. After listening to the second message she checked the date on her phone. It was Friday night. She went to work on Thursday, which meant she had been lying unconscious on the bed for nearly two whole days. She called Abigail back and let her know that she was alright and would be in the office on Monday.

And finally that last message. "Kelly, this is Max again." He sounded worried, far different than the businesslike tone of his previous message. "I need to speak with you as soon as possible, it's important. Please call me back." This first message had been left just after she got home on Thursday, the last was only twenty minutes old.

What could be so important? They had never even had a real conversation, weird dream wolves notwithstanding.

But he did have her license. Should she wait until tomorrow to call him or do so now so she could get her property back? She would need it for work anyway. Without analyzing her motivations too much, she dialed his number and waited as it rang. If he didn't answer it was no big deal anyway.

But he did on the third ring. "So you have my license?" She asked after his cursory greeting.

"Can you meet me?" Heat coiled through her at the sound of his voice, the memory of his lips. Oh, yes, she wanted to meet him. "At The Merge, at 9?"

"The Merge?" Was that what the locals called that place? Was he a local? Maybe she would ask.

"From Wednesday. Can you meet?"

It was clear to her that he wasn't looking forward to it. The least the man could do was pretend that it wouldn't be a chore. But she agreed and hung up. She didn't have a lot of time to get ready.

Max didn't bother to find a parking place at the Merge. Friday night meant one would be hard to come by and he had no intention of staying long. No one would dare to tow him, so he left his car in the fire lane and waited in front of the entrance. He felt Kelly long before he saw her. That stirring of his senses bringing the mating urge to the forefront. He was half-hard before she came into view. She strode down the road, ready for a fight, and it only ratcheted up the desire.

Something had changed.

He took in a deep breath, ignoring the scents of the patrons of the Merge, ignoring the fumes from the cars, from the city. He focused only on Kelly until she wrapped around him, tied him up with everything she was. He tried to ignore that mating urge, breathing deeply to tamp down everything surging within him. Clenching his teeth he focused on that newness.

Kelly had turned. But she couldn't know it yet or she wouldn't have come to meet him.

She stopped a full three feet in front of him, her hands balled into tight fists at her sides. She raised one arm and pulled it back quickly, hugging herself as she stood. But she said nothing, her eyes wide as she looked at him. Then her gaze darted away to stare at the neon sign in front of the bar, her eyes followed a couple as they entered, lingering until the door closed behind them. And once again she circled back to him. "Did they change the sign?"

Even her voice was different, lower, more seductive. Max shoved his hands in his pockets to keep from reaching out. "The Merge is the same as always," he said.

But Kelly shook her head, "No, it all looks different, it feels diff--" She blew out a breath and laughed. "Sorry, I was super sick the other day, must just be that." She uncrossed her arms and held them still at her sides. "You have my license?"

And here Max did the despicable thing. The thing he'd been second guessing himself about since he'd left his house. Putting on his most sheepish smile and hoping he looked repentant, he said, "I left it at home."

Kelly didn't bother to hide her annoyed expression. "You're joking, right?"

Max shrugged, "I didn't realize until I was almost halfway here. I didn't want to make you wait." She bit her lip and it was all Max could do to stop from yanking her close and capturing her mouth with his own. The lust he barely caged fought to the surface and he knew his eyes flashed yellow. He tilted his head so they caught the light, hoping if she noticed she would think it was only a strange reflection.

"Aren't you courteous?" She took a step forward and laid a hand on his forearm.

Max swallowed. They needed to talk, this wasn't something he could ignore. All ravishing had to wait until after she thought he was a raving lunatic. "I don't live too far from here." Was his voice breathy? He leaned in, his face less than a foot from hers. "I'll take you there to get it."

Her hand rubbed against his arm. But she pulled it away. "I can follow you." Her pupils dilated and she drew a deep breath. "Would that work?"

Her eyes dropped to watch his lips. Maybe he was feeling evil, or maybe he wanted this thing riding him to ride her too. He licked his lips. Slowly. Kelly sucked in a breath and Max knew he miscalculated. She mirrored his motion and his cock sprang to life. He tried to take a step back, but her hand was on his bicep now and though she put no pressure on him, he felt staked to the ground.

Her hand slid up slowly. A stronger man could have moved. For all of Max's life he had thought he was a strong man, but this one woman proved him wrong. She overpowered him merely by existing. "What is it about you?" She whispered, just inches from his lips.

Max didn't, couldn't respond. But he knew exactly what she meant.

She leaned forward those last few inches and pressed her lips against his. That beast within him, the monster of the full moon roared. He clutched her close, wrapping his arms around her tightly and devoured her mouth, pressing his tongue to the seam of her lips until she opened, letting him pass to conquer her in this one way. Everything else disappeared. It was only him and Kelly, and he could care less what they had to talk about or where they were standing.

But as Max sought to take control of the kiss, Kelly resisted, demanding. He could almost read her thoughts. This was her kiss. She had initiated it, and it was she who was in control. And though Max was alpha of all he surveyed, even in this he did not resist her. He felt her hand lift up the back of his shirt and explore the contours of his back. His body temperature must have risen ten degrees from the heat she brought out in him.

His hands roamed as well, one feeling the swell of her breast, his thumb flicking over her nipple as it hardened from his touch. Even through her shirt he could feel all of her, but he wanted to feel more. What stopped him from pulling off her shirt he couldn't say. Perhaps some last semblance of remembrance that they stood in public. But he forced himself to pull back.

They both stared at each other, breathing heavy. "I have your license at my place," he said once more, a gleam in his eye.

She put her hand in his. "Lead on."

Kelly was crazy, or maybe just crazed. If she had been thinking clearly she never would have gotten into a strange man's car and agreed to go to his house. Especially since she didn't know where his house was. But Max just felt right.

He unlocked an SUV parked in the fire lane in front of the bar and she got into the passenger seat. Only as they pulled away did she think that she should have followed him in her own car, but looking over at his profile and feeling the sizzle of heat make its way through her, she couldn't care. His hands gripped the steering wheel, knuckles white against his bronze skin. She ached to touch him, so much so that it was a compulsion. She reached out, placing her hand on his thigh. Gently at first, but his muscles tensed from the softest of contact.

"I can't stop touching you." She confessed, ever since the moment she saw him, she'd needed to feel her hands on him.

"Then don't." His words were clipped, but she didn't feel chastened. She could feel him at the edge of his control. She had brought him here. What more could she do?

She could feel the hard length of him through his jeans. She moved her hand slowly, gently rubbing him, and she smiled when she heard Max hiss in. "God, yes," he breathed. She smiled and unbuckled his fly, reaching into his pants and grasping him through the material of his boxers. With this effect she had on him, Kelly could feel the wetness of her pussy. She was going to have him inside her, tonight. But not yet.

She burrowed her hand under his waistband and to the hot hard length of his cock. The car jerked and worry and excitement shot through her. The reddish head of him peeked out and she could feel the veins bulging as his desire for her swelled.

She could feel her nipples scrape against the material of her bra. Every sensation heightened. With him firmly in hand, she moved her hand up and down, starting slowly. Max groaned, trailing off in something that almost sounded like a growl. She quickened her pace and his hips bucked in the seat. With half a thought to his need to concentrate while driving, she slowed her hand. Max bit off a curse and she felt the car come to a stop.

"Are we there already?" She asked.

He gave her no answer, instead covering her hand with his own and jerking his length between them. His head rolled back and his eyes fluttered closed. But the tight line of his mouth belied his true feelings. His pulse beat strongly in his neck, so hard she could see the blood pumping. She closed her lips over that pulse point, feeling him jerk once more at the sudden motion.

She wanted to climb on top of him, cut this short and guide his length in between the slick lips of her cunt. But she also wanted to see his face when he came from just her hand. With each stroke of her hand, their hands, his pulse beat faster and his hips bucked against the seat. Little involuntary movements showing the true breadth of his pleasure.

She kissed all along his neck and up his chin, meeting his mouth in a greedy kiss, their tongues melding. His free hand grabbed the back of her head, holding her against him tightly. Each time they kissed he did this, holding her as if he could not bear to let her go. Kelly could barely breathe, but she didn't care. The taste of him only made her hotter.