Page 2

WOLFF

I jolt upright in my dingy motel room bed, tossing the covers aside, covered in sweat. It feels like I've had a nightmare, but I can't remember what I was dreaming about. My heart is pounding and my skin is crawling, like something is standing over me and reaching into my chest to squeeze it.

I run my fingers through my hair and stand, trying to figure out what's going on. This doesn't happen to me. My breathing is shallow and rapid, like I've been running through the woods for hours on end.

It takes a moment to calm down. I breathe deeply and focus on everything in the room around me. My heart is still beating, but there's something different about the feeling in my chest that I can't ignore. It's the whole reason I came here.

The tug in my chest that brought me across countless state lines, leaving my pack back at home, is now stronger than ever. I'm getting closer to her. My mate .

The tug is strong now. There's a desperation in it that I can't understand. The urgency is enough for me to slip on my boots and force me out of the room. I can't explain how I know it, but she's in danger, wherever she is.

Our connection brought me to Swanton and this seedy motel. I know that she's somewhere here, but I don't know where. She's close by. Last night, when I checked in, the connection was calm, static even. That's how I knew I was in the right place.

But now I can sense her in an entirely different way. This tug, the danger I feel with it, is entirely involuntary. It's her spirit's response to whatever danger she's in now. She's up against the wall, no hope, yet she's calling to me.

I don't waste a moment heading toward her. It's still early, and not a soul is moving around this small town. Well, maybe with the exception of my mate.

The cool morning air rushes by me, and my breath quickens as I run through the town. I ignore my surroundings and focus on this invisible tether pulling me toward her. With each step I take, I can feel the danger she's in. The tug between us pulsates like her heartbeat against her ribs.

I have to find her quickly. If I don't and something happens to her...

My wolf howls in my chest at the mere thought of losing her.

We've come so far. I can't lose her now.

That would kill me. A wolf without his mate is broken.

I've seen how it's affected others in my pack, and I can't be like that.

I've waited my entire life to find her. I won't let anything bad happen.

I run faster. The fear she feels is bitter on my tongue, and I would give anything to take that from her.

The path I'm on opens up to Swanton's Main Street with dozens of closed businesses. The only sign of life are the streetlamps decorated with American flags no doubt left over from Fourth of July celebrations.

I follow it until I'm led toward an alleyway. When I stop as I approach, I hear noises coming from within, and I know instinctively that it's her. An old beat-up pickup truck is parked across the street with a couple of bottles of booze sitting on the hood.

I can smell her fear in the air, and I approach the alley with rage boiling in my veins.

The scene that unfolds before me is enough to make me homicidal.

Two men are standing in front of a woman, pawing at her and trying to rip her clothes off her.

She's against the wall, trying to push through, but one of them holds her against it.

They're laughing like this is funny. They're looking at a helpless woman, abusing her, and they're laughing because they know what's about to come next. By the fear that’s palpable in the air around me, she knows too.

“I bet she's never been touched by a man like this,” one of them says as he gropes her.

“Please stop,” she begs, whimpering from fear.

My wolf claws at me from the inside. He wants nothing more than to break free and unleash terror upon them. Hell, I want that too. I've killed before, and the idea of spilling their blood all over the pavement is intoxicating.

But she's already scared enough. If she's living in a small town like this, I would imagine she's somewhat sheltered. I doubt she's ever seen someone slaughtered in front of her like I would do to these men. I need to spare her from that pain if I can.

They can live for now. But I'm going to have a hell of a time with them later.

“Let her go!” I shout, my voice echoing between the walls of the alley.

Both of them look over their shoulder at me, the smiles on their faces quickly morphing into disgruntled scowls. She looks at me too. There's a mixture of terror and relief in her eyes. It takes everything in me not to focus on her right now. There will be plenty of time for that later.

Right now, these fuckers need to be dealt with.

“Are you going to make us?” the bigger of the two says, pulling his hands away from her and turning around to face me like he’s ready to fight.

The other one holds her in place, not even bothering to step up and join his friend.

Given how they seem to have this situation handled, I can't help but wonder if they've done this before.

I'll be doing the world a favor by getting rid of these two.

“Yes,” I say right before I lunge at him. My body crashes into him, and he falls to the ground with a thud. His hands move quickly as he tries to push me off him, but I hold them to the ground as he struggles against me. “It's not fun being held against your will, is it?”

I can see the fear in his eyes now. For the first time, probably in his whole life, he feels what he's inflicted on others, and knowing I've done that to him is powerful.

My wolf scratches from the inside, begging to be released to sink his teeth into his neck and rip it apart.

I feel feral with the anger rising within me.

The other man continues to hold my mate, unsure of what to do. He's clearly the underling, the weaker of the two.

“Fuck him up, Jim!” he shouts from the sidelines like this is some kind of wrestling match. No, there's no referee now. Nobody's going to come in and pull us apart. He's below me, shivering from fear, and I'm going to show him exactly how fucked he is.

I look up at the other one, my eyes lingering on her face for a moment. She's perfect. I've never seen anything so beautiful in my life. I want to focus on her, but I can't right now. Not with the fear still heavy in her eyes.

My attention is back on the man quivering below me, and I finish him quickly. I lift his head in my hands and slam it down on the pavement hard enough for his eyes to flutter shut. His body goes limp in his unconsciousness, and his friend moves his hand from my mate and inches closer.

“Jim?” he asks, his voice shaking.

“I don't think he's going to answer you,” I say with a grin as I stand and rush toward him before he can run away.

I slam him into the brick wall he was holding my mate against, and his head crashes against it.

I grab it and knock it against the wall one more time for good measure.

He slinks down and crashes to the ground, his head flopping against a pile of black trash bags.

I'm breathing heavily by the time I'm done, and my wolf still begs to be freed so he can bring an end to their lives once and for all. I'm tempted to let him out, too. It would feel amazing. But I can't.

She's staring at me, her eyes wide with awe and fear, looking at the two unconscious men who would have done unspeakable things to her.

I immediately walk over, holding a hand up to cup her face instinctively.

She flinches away and presses her spine against a nearby dumpster.

I stop and hold my hands up in surrender, signaling I don't mean any harm.

It's dark outside, but the sun is on the verge of rising.

In the faint light of dawn, I can see her face perfectly.

She's gorgeous in every way, and my wolf feels sated just being in her presence.

Her hair is disheveled from the encounter with the men, and I gently reach forward and tuck a few curly strands behind her ear. She doesn't flinch away this time.

I see that I have to be gentle with her, which I will be. I'll protect her and make sure nothing bad ever happens to her again. If someone wants to harm her, they'll have to go through me, and I will rip their hearts from their chest before they lay a hand on her.

She's my mate, and I love her. We were made for each other.

“What are you doing out here so early?” I ask in a soft voice. Her baby-blue eyes flick up to my face, and she studies me.

She’s human and doesn't feel the bond between us right away. I can sense that it's unfinished. But even if she doesn't feel the same connection I do, she feels something. I can see it in her eyes.

“I was—I was on my way to work,” she stammers, her voice cracking. “They came out of nowhere and attacked me.”

“You're safe now,” I assure her. She nods her head slowly, and I place a hand on the middle of her back to guide her away from the dumpster. As we walk out of the alley, I look over my shoulder one last time to study the faces of the men who dared hurt her. “What's your name?”

“Wendy.”

“Wendy,” I repeat, tasting her name on my tongue. It's perfect in every way, light and easy. “I’m Wolff.”

“Thank you, Wolff.” My heart beats faster when I hear her say my name, and I have to stop myself from imagining it escaping her throat in a pleasure-filled moan. She stops walking with me as we approach the end of the alleyway, and she looks up at me with a timid smile. “They would have...”

She can't bring herself to say the words, and I nod, letting her know she doesn't have to. “It's okay. Where were you heading?”

“Sweet Dreams. It’s the bakery down the block.” She takes a deep breath and shakes her hands at her side, trying to calm herself down.

“I'll walk you the rest of the way,” I offer, resting my hand on her back again and guiding her away from the alley. I want her as far away from here as possible.

She's afraid, and I don't want to force her to make conversation if she doesn't want to, so we walk in silence. I can feel her calming down, and that's assurance enough for me. I just want to be beside her.

When we get to the bakery, we walk around back, through another alleyway. I feel her tensing up as we walk through it, and I do my best to appear nonthreatening. I watch her as she walks through the back door, and she gives me a timid wave before closing it behind her.

I know she's safe here. No strangers are going to break in through the back door of the bakery and assault her now. Regardless, I stand by the back door and watch through the window as she gives an older woman a hug and ties an apron around herself.

If it means making sure she's safe, I'll stay here all day. I've waited too long to find her. I won't let her out of my sight now.