Page 2 of The Alpha’s Promise (Alpha Doms #3)

Was he nuts for thinking about climbing up there?

Probably. But he couldn’t see what other choice he had.

It was that or camp out here to wait for the guys to leave and they didn’t look likely to leave any time soon.

He gripped the rain spout, hoping it was strong enough to hold his weight.

It creaked, the metal scraping the side of the brick building when he swung onto it, but it didn’t pull away from the building.

He scaled it to the roof, then crept to the area above the open window and lowered his body down over the side, his toes landing on the sill.

The screen came out easily and he tossed it down to the grass below. He crept into what appeared to be a bedroom, which had been completely trashed. The human female scent was stronger here—an alluring smell, despite the fact that it didn’t come from a she-wolf.

His instincts blared. Someone was in the room. He trained his sensitive ears and heard breathing. A rapid heartbeat. It came from the closet. Melissa? No—the scent was decidedly human.

He walked over and eased the door open, trying not to make any noise to alert the guys downstairs.

Female clothing packed the closet—dresses and suits hung from hangers, filling the entire space.

He didn’t see the woman, but the staccato beat of her heart and the metallic scent of fear drew his attention to the back corner.

With a swift movement, he yanked the clothing to the side and reached out to snatch her, clamping one hand over her mouth to keep her silent. He hadn’t planned for her knee connecting with his groin.

He doubled over, only barely preventing a groan from leaving his mouth.

The young woman tried to shove past him, but he grabbed her from behind, wrapping one arm around her waist, covering her mouth with the other hand. The contact sent a jolt of something unfamiliar through him. Like a warning, only more pleasant. The hairs stood up on the back of his neck. “Melissa?”

Maybe it wasn’t her. The human struggled with more force than he’d expect out of a human female, her body lithe and strong beneath the soft exterior. Wrestling her aroused his inner beast, his cock thickening as if this were some wild mating dance, instead of a life or death situation.

“Ben Stone sent me,” he growled low in her ear, in case she was the female he was supposed to save. Her apples and cinnamon scent filled his nostrils, exciting his body, despite the situation. Despite the fact that wolves aren’t attracted to humans.

She went still.

Okaaay. Ben Stone’s sister-in-law was human. Which meant Stone’s wife must be, too. He hadn’t heard that, although Stone’s pack would probably not be in a hurry to spread that information.

She twisted to look back at him, eyes wide with fear.

Her beauty struck him like another jab to the balls.

Her eyes were wide and blue, thick glossy hair hung in long reddish-brown waves.

He’d never seen such a beautiful human in his life.

He eased the hand from her mouth to reveal lush lips, trembling with fear.

“I’m the rescue wagon,” he said sardonically. It sounded more bitter than he felt, only because his attraction to her had taken him by surprise and he didn’t like surprises.

Her lips parted but she didn’t speak.

He didn’t have a weapon and those guys down there had guns. Which meant fighting their way out was a no-go, especially since she was a weak human. “We’ll have to go out the window. I’ll jump down and catch you when you follow.”

Her big blue eyes bugged out. “We can’t. This is a second story,” she whispered.

He turned her around to face him. “Do you know what I am?”

Please say she at least knew that her brother-in-law was a shifter.

She gave him an up and down sweep, gaze traveling over the paint-splattered clothes, the tattoos on his arms, his unshaven face.

He realized his appearance was in sharp contrast to hers—she wore a tight pencil skirt and silk blouse, like some kind of young professional. Was her lip curling with distaste?

He was well familiar with condescension, the scorn for an uneducated manual laborer who looked more like a criminal than Colorado Springs’ top real estate investor.

For some reason, it bothered him this time, when usually he didn’t give two fucks what people thought of him or his tough-guy appearance.

She swallowed, then licked her lips. “Wolf?”

He nodded, taking her hand and tugging her toward the window. “That’s right, princess. Your wolf in shining armor. You jump, I’ll catch.”

Doubt scrambled her features. She glanced over her shoulder at the door, perhaps wondering if there was another way out. Her skin appeared ashen, but she nodded.

He jumped out the window, landing in a crouch on the grass below. When he turned to look for her, though, she stood frozen, looking down.

Shit. Come on. He wanted to yell up, but of course couldn’t risk making a sound.

A sense of urgency washed over him, his instincts roaring danger, his need to protect a pack mate—even a new foster mate like her—kicking into high gear.

No, his need went beyond pack mate. It had something to do with those big beautiful eyes and her delectable scent, but he couldn’t to dissect that now.

He gestured urgently.

Still, she remained, looking again to the door, then down at him.

Hell, if one of the assholes from downstairs walked in there, he’d have no way to protect her now—he wouldn’t be able to climb back up quickly enough. And he’d made a sacred oath to keep her safe.

Her head whipped back from looking over the door, eyes wild. Someone must be approaching. She squatted on the window’s edge.

He made a frantic motion for her to jump. She twisted toward the door again and gave a scream, then launched herself into the air.

A male shout cracked the air as she plummeted toward him, but he didn’t dare take his eyes from her falling body to see who had arrived. She dropped into his arms and he staggered at the impact, but then took off running, as fast as he could.

More shouting.

He made it to his bike and dropped her on the back of it, wishing he had a helmet for her fragile human skull. She looked horrified, her pencil skirt forced all the way up so she could straddle the seat, revealing creamy white thighs and pink lace panties.

Too bad, princess.

He hit the ignition button and the motorcycle spluttered. Dammit.

Two men ran out of the front door, waving guns.

The bike roared to life. He hit the gas and the back wheel skidded out behind them as they charged away.