“I know a nice man,” she said as I got in my car. “You like tigers? He’s handsome but doesn’t have too much going on up here.” Asia tapped her finger against her temple. “I can give him your number. I bet he likes big, juicy tomatoes.” She waggled her brows and cupped her breasts playfully.
“I don’t need a man in my life right now.”
She pinched her chin and stared at me through the open window. “I don’t know. You kind of have that look I’ve seen before.”
“Of desperation?” I laughed and started the engine.
Asia arched her brows. “No, but if youweredating someone, I’d say you looked like a woman in love. Bye now!”
I blinked in surprise as she jogged back to the house.
Love? Impossible. I barely knew Tak, and I’d never been in love to know the feeling.
Yet as my mind began overanalyzing everything, the answer nestled in my heart just as peacefully as the butterfly landing on my shoulder.
Chapter 18
Tak strode into his motel room and tossed his keys on the table. Even though it had been a couple of days since he’d last spoken to Hope, he’d taken on the role of her protector. He cared for the woman, and something innate compelled him to look after her—especially after discovering the death threat. Simply walking by her window and knowing he could be there at a moment’s notice filled him with immeasurable satisfaction.
There was a decent breakfast bar that offered a bird’s-eye view of Moonglow. He’d spent yesterday in there stuffing his face with bagels and watching all the foot traffic outside. Now he barely had two pennies to rub together, so he needed to put a lock on his spending before he wound up trapped in Austin with no gas to get home.
City people were always in a hurry. All they wanted to do was spend money and flaunt it. It showed in the flashy cars parked along the street. Tak was accustomed to a simpler life. People weren’t glued to their phones and in search of constant entertainment. Though one thing he did like was how they didn’t segregate Natives in Shifter bars like they did in his Podunk town. City people were more accepting of one another. For the most part. He still bumped into a few dickhead Vampires who wanted to start shit because of his tattoos. He didn’t trust Vamps. He’d heard stories about how they were secret stealers, so he kept his eyes low and avoided them.
Shifters occupied most of Tak’s neck of the woods, and they were highly territorial. A Vampire owned the closest gas station, but he kept to himself. Outside of a Mage or Relic wandering into the stores, Tak rarely interacted with other immortals. Not that he preferred it that way, but he certainly felt like a fish out of water in Austin.
For the past two days, Hope had arrived at the store early, cleaned the windows, and kept herself busy. At noon, she’d turn the sign on the door toclosedand disappear into a back room. Today was different. A dark-haired woman in a tight dress showed up to run the store while Hope took off in her car. When Tak followed and realized she was heading out to where they first met, he backed off. Protecting her was one thing, stalking her every move was another.
What a remarkable woman. Tak had never seen anyone more dedicated to the success of their business, and she made him think about things he hadn’t pondered in a long time… like forming his own pack. Her ambition inspired him to consider taking risks of his own. He’d thought about breaking away from the tribe, but who would join his pack? No good man or woman would leave the tribe to follow him. And forming a new pack with strangers was just as uncertain. Could he trust someone he hadn’t known his whole life, and would they trust a Packmaster who had shamed his family? Tak could easily keep his past a secret, but the truth always comes out. A leader who lied to his pack was not worth following. Aside from all that, would his father see his departure as betrayal to his people?
Tak pulled open the heavy drapes and glared down at the unmade bed. His cock stirred just from his thinking about Hope’s soft moans and the way she’d dominated him. Tak had always been gentle with women, but during sex, he was the aggressor. Period. Feeling the heat between her legs as she sat astride him was one of the most powerful experiences of his life. Her consuming gaze, her full breasts, the tantric way she approached sex by taking her time and savoring him. It was what he needed—what his wolf needed. And more importantly, it was what Hope needed.
Tak hadn’t changed the sheets in two days.
Two fucking days.
They still carried her sweet scent, and whenever he buried his face in his pillow, it reminded him of her long hair, spirited laugh, and the way she filled his embrace like no woman ever had.
And that was a hell of a realization.
Tak fell backward and hit the mattress, a loud snap sounding from beneath the box spring. He gazed up at a crack in the ceiling and experienced an overwhelming sense of solitude. He missed the comradery with his packmates—the banter and good company. A hunting partner, someone to play games with or laugh over a joke. Kids riding his shoulders. Horseback riding at dawn. Why would anyone choose to be a lone wolf, even for a short time? Lakota’s job as a bounty hunter both intrigued and mystified him.
Though he missed country life, Tak could appreciate the city’s allure. He’d seen his first coffee shop, and there was so much to see and do. He mostly stayed near Moonglow, the motel, and Hope’s apartment, which were all located in the Breed district. He was a stranger in this territory—an alpha without packmates. People didn’t trust rogues where he came from, and he suspected it was no different here.
Tak could see himself getting used to city life. Packs here had the best of both worlds—a homestead in the country and plenty of distractions in town. Everything appealed to him but the eateries. Tak grew up hunting and farming, so eating out wasn’t something he ever did. He liked knowing where his food came from, which was the only reason he’d eaten the bagels at the café. Bread was a safe bet, and he had watched the man make them from scratch.
Tak squeezed his eyes shut. He hadn’t brought enough cash to afford a motel for a week, and his wolf had already chewed a knob off the dresser. None of his people dealt with bankers, so everyone who worked under Shikoba was paid in cash. Tak made a decent salary for helping his father out with the business, but the money always went back to the tribe for building materials, tools, clothes, and anything else they needed. No one cared about personal accounts since they all had a roof over their head and food to eat. Even in his current predicament, he couldn’t bring himself to call his father and ask for money. Then questions would arise, like what the hell was keeping him here?
Hope was keeping him here.
She was the only woman who looked at him as if the marks on his face didn’t matter. There was neither scorn nor pity in her eyes. Hope hadn’t used him for pleasures of the flesh the way other women had. In her arms, he’d found salvation. In her gaze, Tak felt like an alpha again.
Hope was the first woman who’d made him forget Jenowa. Thirty years had passed since the tragedy, and every woman he’d lain with only reminded him of her absence. Time and loneliness had taught him how to be a good lover—how to worship a woman the way he might have worshipped Jenowa. And with each of them, he always asked himself the same questions. Would she have liked it that way? Would his wolf ever howl for another woman?
None of those questions lingered now.
Tak rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands, frustrated by his foolishness. He wasn’t supposed to love again. That was a vow he’d made a long time ago—one that had always been easy to keep. Tak wasn’t fit to love a woman. Jen’s death proved that, and he wasn’t even worthy enough to say her name out loud.
Why the hell was he even debating the issue—as if he stood a chance with Hope. No woman in her right mind would look at him as a worthy mate, and here he was, fantasizing about the idea of…
