Wolf Moon (3 page)

Then
it was gone.

“So,
I got one room with two queen beds.
Jax
and Vince
will take that one.” Jackson seemed less than thrilled that he’d be sharing a
room with anyone. “Corbin, Zach, and I will take the one with the two queens
and the sofa bed, and Brooke will take the other.”

Shocked
that I would be roomed privately, I glanced up at him to say that wasn’t necessary,
but he shook his head. “You’re the only female. You need your privacy,” he
assured me. “It’s fine.

We
reached the top floor and headed down the hall. The guys’ rooms were next to
each other while mine was across the hall. They all went into theirs, save for
Nick, who helped me into mine and dropped my overnight duffle onto the chair in
the corner. It looked like any other hotel room, big window, neutral colors,
desk, armoire, dresser, TV, and bed. This bed was huge, though, and looked
really damn inviting. I sat on the end of it, my hands in my lap as I let my
head fall back, rolling it around to loosen the tension in it a little.

“Okay,”
Nick said softly. “I’m across the hall if you need anything.”

When
I didn’t respond, he headed for the door. He’d only taken a few steps, but was
out of sight down the short corridor between the bed and the door when my chest
tightened. I didn’t want to be alone…
couldn’t
be alone. I heard the click of the knob as it opened, and I shot off the
bed, taking an awkward step forward. “Nick?” I said hoarsely. He turned, eyes
hopeful. “Don’t…don’t go.” The door closed, but his hand still remained on the
brass knob. “I…I don’t want you to go.”

With
that, his hand left the knob and he slid the chain into place.

I
couldn’t see anything.

I
couldn’t breathe.

Something
tightened around my throat. Something strong. Why did it feel familiar?

I
tried to cry out for help. Was anybody even there? Only a strangled squeak came
out, and this made whatever was around my neck squeeze harder. When I opened my
eyes, it took a minute for them to adjust, but when my vision cleared, I saw
eyes as black as pitch and long white canine teeth set in a wicked, ruby red
smile.

A
growl bubbled up from my belly, and I started to struggle against my attacker,
but my limbs wouldn’t respond. They felt like limp noodles.
Useless
in protecting me.

I
panicked, and my body reacted. My skin burned as the fever ripped through me,
and my muscles tightened, feral growls filling my head. They were mine. The
smell of blood infused the air, but it was too dark to see where it was coming
from. One smell told me it was David’s…but that couldn’t be. Then I saw him,
the darkness fading where he lay, like he was bathed in a spotlight. I screamed
for him and struggled against my captor—Samantha Turner. While I stared
at him, I heard the sound of shattering glass in the distance and the sickening
thud of his body hitting the ground. But he didn’t move from where he lay on
the floor, a pool of bright red blood growing around him.

Rage
flooded my veins and with a murderous snarl, I rushed forward against her
hold…but she was gone, and I was plunged into darkness, breathing heavily.

I
scanned the dark for her, my hands curled at my sides, ready to attack her. I
didn’t recognize where I was, but I knew she was there. I could still taste her
foulness on my tongue. Movement to my right caught my attention, and I flew
around, claws engaged and ready to slash her…

But
something strong caught my wrists, crossing them above my head. It took a
minute for me to realize it was just Nick. He was wearing a pair of flannel
pants, his chest bare. He’d just woken up. I glanced behind him at the window;
it was black outside.

What
time was it? The sun was still up when I’d fallen asleep.

“Easy,”
he soothed quietly, nervous eyes darting around the room as though afraid we
were going to be interrupted. “You were dreaming. I need you to take a few deep
breaths and calm yourself down.” Slowly, and without releasing my wrists, he
brought our arms down. I could see what he meant about my needing to calm down:
my fingers were disfigured, and my claws had broken through the ends. I could
have changed right in this room.

I
closed my eyes when the trembling in my limbs intensified, willed the tightness
in my back to wane, and took a deep breath. I imagined waves of calm washing
over me as I told myself it was just a dream. Samantha Turner was dead. Nick
killed her for what she did to David—what she planned to do to me. She
couldn’t hurt me again.

“There
you go,” Nick whispered, stroking my hair and cupping my jaw. I opened my eyes.
“Good.”

He
moved to step back toward his makeshift bed on the floor, but I snatched his
wrist and held him in place. “Will you…?” The words caught in my throat, but I
glanced over to the over-sized bed and shrugged lightly. “Please?”

Looking
surprised, Nick nodded, his aqua-colored eyes bright in the darkness of the
hotel room. “Y-yeah,” he stammered. “Of course.”

He
waited for me to crawl onto the bed first, and I situated myself in the middle,
adjusting my sleep shorts and tank top since they were kind of askew from my episode.
Was this wrong? Sharing my bed with him? I couldn’t think about it without
guilt creeping in. All I knew was that Nick was the only one who could calm me
down right now, and I hoped that maybe he’d be able to keep the dreams at bay,
too.

He
was just about to join me when there was a knock at the door.

“Brooke?”
It only took a second to recognize the soft voice as Jackson’s, and one look at
Nick told me he was as confused as I was. But also mildly annoyed.

“I’ll
handle it,” Nick growled, stalking toward the door. He disappeared while I
stayed put, and I heard the door open a little.

“Oh,”
Jackson said, sounding a little surprised. “Nick.” Silence, but I picked up on
some strong emotions between the two of them, and it wasn’t that they were
happy to see each other. “Is she okay? It didn’t sound good.”

“Eavesdropping?”
Nick demanded a little too aggressively.

“We’re
right across the hall,” Jackson reminded Nick just as firmly. “I was heading
out for a quick run when I heard it… Does she need to go out?”

Does she need to go out?
I wasn’t a
dog
…
okay,
well I guess I sort of was, but what the hell?

“She’s
fine. Had a nightmare. It could have gotten out of control, but we’ve got it handled.”

“Got
it,” Jackson said. “I’m headed out then if you’ve got this under control.”

With
that, the door closed, and Nick sauntered back toward the bed, looking
red-faced and annoyed. “Sorry. He said he was concerned.” He stopped next to
the bed, eyes
on me and eyebrows lifted quizzically
.
“Did you still…?”

I
nodded. “Please.”

He
slid himself onto the bed next to me, laying back on two of the over-stuffed
pillows. I don’t think he expected me to sidle up to him or turn my body into
his, but he raised his right arm and let me move in as close as possible before
bringing it down around me. His hand rested on my waist, and the sound of his
heart was hypnotic, but I was no longer tired. My adrenaline was still running
high from my dream.

“Brooke?”
Nick whispered, and I tilted my head up to find his eyes on me. The clouds had
cleared outside, allowing the moonlight into the room. He looked happy, yet
still reserved about this. “I know that you and I aren’t…together, but I think,
for your peace of mind, we should play the part when we return to the manor.
You’re a new female prospect, and there are only a few of you. Some of the men
haven’t chosen a mate, and while I trust them with my life, some of them are a
little more
wolf
than man. If I lay claim to you, then
by Pack Law, no one else can.”

I
considered what he was saying, and while my mind was probably exaggerating just
how bad he said it was, it frightened me a little. I wasn’t ready for a
relationship, and I might never be, but what would be worse? Pretending to be
promised to Nick? Or having a complete stranger claim me as his and do—or
try
to do—whatever he wanted?
Chances were they’d only ever get as far as trying.

“Okay,”
I agreed with a slight nod. “If you think it’s best, then yeah.”

Nick’s
arm tightened around me, pulling me closer. Goosebumps rippled up all over my
body, and I draped my right leg over his as my hand opened and relaxed on his
bare chest. Without thinking about it, my fingers danced on his sternum, but he
didn’t try to stop me, he just sighed and rested his cheek against the top of
my head. I noticed the upraised scars on his chest and arms—battle
wounds, maybe? I’d seen them before and wanted to ask him about them, but
didn’t feel now was the time. Instead, I traced them with my fingertips and
watched as his skin quivered against the sensation.

“Tell
me about it,” I asked, gaining a questioning grunt from him. “The manor,” I
clarified. “Will you tell me about it?”

Nick
hummed contentedly. “The manor is unlike anything you’ve ever seen,” he began.
“First of all, the house is huge…I wouldn’t even be able to do it justice.
You’ll just have to take my word for it that it’s unbelievable. Some days I
can’t believe I live there.” I laughed when he did, and I shivered when his
fingers started to roam up and down my side; it took me back to when we were dating
and we’d
lay
like this. “It’s in the foothills of the
Rockies, and there’s so much land for us to roam and hunt…and the rabbits…”

With
a light giggle, I shook my head. “Boy, do you ever know what a girl wants in a
dream home,” I quipped as the image of me chasing wild rabbits through the
snowy forest ran through my head. Suddenly, a little saliva pooled in my mouth,
and I recognized the twitch in my fingers and toes for what it was:
anticipation. I actually looked forward to the idea of hunting.

Nick
chuckled, his hand moving down until it lay flat on my back. “
Mmm
… You say that like you’re joking, but this”—his
hand pressed down on my tense lower back, sending a mind-numbing tingle through
me—“tension in your lower back suggests you want it more than you’re
letting on.”

My
eyes fluttered closed as he rubbed up a little higher. The anxiety I was feeling
seemed to lessen, and I moaned when he turned his head and his lips brushed my
forehead. “I think you look forward to hunting with me,” he breathed into my
hair, his voice so low and rough it sent a vibration straight through me. The
scent of his desire filled the room unexpectedly, and I was surprised to find
myself feeling the same way as my fingers curled against his chest, nails
scratching lightly, and my breathing picked up. “Am I right?”

Something
told me to stop. That this was wrong. I should have been grieving—I
was
grieving—but I didn’t want to
be. For just a few minutes, I wanted to forget. I wanted to get lost. I wanted
to feel something other than debilitating sadness and loss. Was that so bad?

Nick
shifted next to me, dropping his face and raising his left hand to cup my face.
Slowly, hesitantly, he brought his lips to mine, his eyes watching me every inch
of the way for any sign to stop.

I
closed the gap with a needy moan. My lips tingled from the ferocity of the
kiss, and I shifted my leg over his, hitching it up a little higher and gasping
when I brushed his growing arousal. I let my need for a moment’s peace drive
me, and I straddled his hips, seeking solace in his embrace.

The
sensation of his hands on my skin as they roamed under the hem of my shirt was
like a drug of the very worst kind. It was one that grabbed you and pulled you
so far into the darkness you forgot your problems. It felt incredible, and I
wanted to forget… Only I couldn’t. Not completely. But I wasn’t going to give
up on achieving a little peace.

My
fingertips slid up and down his chest, remembering how his body used to feel
versus how it felt now—harder, stronger,
safer
—and I was just preparing to thread my fingers into his
hair when he wrapped his hands around my biceps and stopped me.

“I’m
sorry,” he breathed. “I shouldn’t have…”

Breathing
heavily, I pulled back, licking my lips and tasting him still. His eyes
wandered over my face and down my body, and he looked conflicted as his hands
moved up and down my sides then over my ass. “What is it?” I asked, unable to
take the silence. His gaze snapped to mine, and I saw his apology before he
could voice it. Horrified that I’d misread him initially, I hid my face in my
hands. “Y-you
don’t
want to.”

“What?”
He sounded incredulous. “Jesus, Brooke, of course I
want
to.” As if to prove his point, he rolled us over on the bed
and wedged himself firmly between my thighs. There was no denying his claim as
his flannel bottoms did little to conceal his desire. He stroked the side of my
face affectionately. “But you’re not ready, and I won’t do something if there’s
even the slightest chance you’re going to regret it afterward. You know how I
still feel about you, and while I think a part of you loves me too, it’s just
too soon.”

He
was right.
Even if his chivalrous behavior only made the
flames of desire spark again.

Wanting
him to know how much I appreciated his honesty and to thank him for not taking
advantage of me in such a vulnerable state, I placed my hands on either side of
his face and kissed him lightly.

“Thank
you,” I whispered before he removed himself from between my legs.

With
a low groan, he lay back in his previous position and pulled me against him
again. “Of course.” He kissed the top of my head. “Do you think you can sleep?”

I
tipped my head up from its spot on his chest and looked at him.
 
“Honestly? I’m feeling the need to burn
some pent up energy now,” I replied timidly.

A
crooked grin spread across Nick’s face. “Care to go for a run?”