He slid an arm under her hoodie, fingertips teasing the sensitive skin along the waistband of her jeans. With his other hand, he clasped the back of her head, his fingers massaging the base of her skull.
A little, needy moan slipped out of her, heat pooling in her belly as his tongue danced with hers. Kissing him was an experience she didn’t think she’d ever tire of. He might be kind of grumpy, mostly uncommunicative, with a superiority complex that grated on her nerves, but together, the sparks they made could set the countryside ablaze.
This time, it was Torin who broke off their kiss, lifting his head to stare down at her, a thoroughly bewildered expression on his handsome face. His brows drew together as his fingerscontinued to stroke the bare skin of her lower back. Her skin prickled beneath his touch.
“Why don’t you want me here, Torin?” she asked, finally voicing the question that had been plaguing her.
He glared at her. “You’re human,” he ground out. “An outsider.”
“Ah.” In retrospect, she supposed she could understand his reluctance. Most humans weren’t aware of the supernatural and, as a species, humans tended to be both tribal and reactive, especially to things that scared them or that they didn’t comprehend. No doubt, the Wolfcraig pack had walked a fine line with the locals for a very long time.
He grunted. “My daughter tells me I need to have an open mind regarding human visitors to our land.”
“Some humans, sure. You’re looking out for your pack by being cautious who you allow in your territory.” She shifted in his arms, unwilling to give up the comfort she felt this close to him. His heart pulsed in a strong, steady beat against her palm. “We have several bear shifter families back home as well as witches, demons, and a few other supernaturals. I think there are even a few lone wolf shifters in the mountains around town. We’re a diverse community, and we try to look after one another, but it can be tense when someone new moves in. You just never know, especially these days.”
His eyes widened like he hadn’t expected her to understand. As he opened his mouth to respond, a howl shattered the quiet of the afternoon. His head shot up as his hands fell away from her. “I have to go.”
With a nod, she tucked her hands in her pockets and reluctantly took a step back.
He gave her a long, probing look before turning towards the origin of the howl and loping off with animal grace.
Another disconcerting interaction, she thought, watching him disappear from sight.At least I got another panty-dropping kiss out of it.She cocked her head.If he can do that with a kiss, I wonder how he’d be in bed.She snickered to herself. That sounded like something her friend Pippa would say rather than staid old Sophie.
With another huff of laughter, she brushed a finger over her lips and continued on her walk, a fresh spring in her step.
8
TORIN
He couldn’t get the taste of her out of his mind. Sweet cherries with a snap of spice. The mere memory of how she melted into their kiss, the soft curves of her body pliant against his, was enough to get him hard.
Over the next week, he found a multitude of excuses to hang around the area of the cottage she was staying in, telling himself he was only checking to make sure she wasn’t doing anything untoward. He made sure she saw him, too, especially when he was in wolf form. She was utterly unintimidated by his magnificent wolfy self, even when he flashed very sharp teeth in her direction. Whenever she spotted him, she gave him a sassy wave and called out a cheerful greeting. And damned if he didn’t like it despite himself. The annoying woman was growing on him.
So far, she was following his orders to stay out of pack affairs and keep to her side of the grounds, though he didn’t expect that agreeability to last long. With so many shifters arriving for the highland games and setting up camp in the meadow, it was only a matter of time before her innate human curiosity overcame common sense. He needed to be there to protect her and to stopher from doing anything that might upset the fragile balance between the visiting packs.
The annual games were a chance for shifters to mingle, find a mate, and blow off steam, all in the spirit of competition and community. But wolf shifters were a passionate bunch, and tensions ran high, especially with so many gathered in a relatively small area. Throw in an outsider who didn’t understand the vagaries of shifter life, and a friendly event like the games could easily turn into a lit powder keg in a beat. He couldn’t let that happen.
As he finished his sweep, the sun dipped behind the mountains, painting the sky in deep pinks, oranges, and golds; the warm glow reflecting off the surface of Loch Craig. His packmates had already set up the large white tent that would host the performers and the evening ceilidh. Vendor areas were staked off around the edge of the meadow, and a marked path wound down the slope to the heavy athletics by the lake. Opposite the big tent, the last of the stages were going up for the dancers. At the center of it all were the circles for the piping competitions. Tomorrow, the air would be filled with the sound of pipe bands and Celtic music.
On silent paws, he loped over the freshly mown meadow, checking that everyone camping near the lake was settling in. He gave the Alpha of one of the Lowland packs a nod, his nose twitching as he cataloged the scents of their visitors, adding them to his internal index before leaving the grounds of the games behind.
Cutting through the estate’s extensive gardens, he caught the faint smell of cherry and spice. His lip curled, his teeth flashing in the creeping dusk. She might be growing on him, but his mate was pushing the boundaries he’d very firmly set. Why was she so bloody frustrating? Was it really that hard to remain on her side of the grounds? There was more than enough room for herto explore the beauty of the Highlands without venturing close to where all the activity was.
He sneezed to clear his nose and set off, following her trail. She’d taken a circuitous route through the main gardens, past the messy, weed-filled beds he kept meaning to have restored, and all around the castle itself.Dammit, he thought,why can’t she just stay put? And is that Bryn’s scent mixing with Sophie’s?He let out an irritated growl. It was as if the women in his life were conspiring against him.
He took off towards the cottage with ground-eating strides, frustration driving him. This was why he didn’t trust humans. They couldn’t even follow the simplest of instructions. He’d told her not to interfere.
At the same time, he enjoyed smelling her around his territory. It made his inner wolf happy that she was making herself at home.
As he approached the cottage, a foul scent stopped him in his tracks. He lifted his nose, breathing deeply. A human male. An unwelcome outsider. He snarled. In his territory? Did Sophie bring him here? Hot rage flashed through him, and his hackles rose. She wouldn’t dare.
Fury riding him, he shifted to human faster than he ever had before and threw on a pair of black track pants he’d stashed in the cottage’s mailbox. A folded piece of paper with Sophie’s name written in messy handwriting fluttered to the ground. It stank of the male intruder. He scooped it up and jammed it into his pocket.
Storming up to the stone walkway, he pounded a fist on the front door. “Sophie,” he barked, trying to tamp down the urge to break down the door and shake her until she came to her senses. And then kiss her afterwards, so he could taste those sweet lips of hers again.
He’d just lifted his foot when the door swung open. “You bellowed?” she asked, arching a dainty eyebrow. She was so lovely, his heart skipped a beat. Her long red hair was piled up in a messy bun, a pair of bright blue glasses perched on her nose. She wore loose pale purple sleep pants, thick pink socks, and a white long-sleeved shirt that cupped her breasts and clung to her curves. She wasn’t wearing a bra, and her nipples pebbled in the cool evening air.
His mouth dried out.
