Page 13 of Caught By the Wolf

She started to pace, mainly talking to herself. “Or, if they do take human mates, it’s not women like me. Not with the kind of body that makes men politely look the other way. I’ve spent my entire adult life accepting that. You do not get to show up out of the trees, kiss me like you’re dying, and then announce I’m your forever person. That is not how this works for women who look like me.”

“It’s exactly women like you.”

She turned to look at Roman, who was now leaning against the counter, arms and ankles crossed, waiting. He was no doubt waiting until she calmed down or ran out of steam.

“Right, you fall head over wolfie paws for me in twenty-four hours.” She looked at the clock on the kitchen wall. “It’s not even been twenty-four hours, Roman. This cannot happen like this. Not so fast. That’s not how any of this is supposed to work. There’s supposed to be dinner first. Small talk. At least one mediocre first date where you find out he votes weird or doesn’t tip.”

He shrugged those broad shoulders of his, which did not settle the flurries currently taking over the insides of her stomach. “It happened the second I caught your scent.”

“And now? When some group of raving lunatics wants to turn me into bear-bait, now I’ve got a giant, ridiculously hot wolfman telling me I’m destined to be his eternal breeding partner or whatever.”

She heard herself say breeding partner out loud and decided she would simply not think about that word choice until later. Possibly never. Because that word choice brought up all kinds of images her poor overstimulated body could not process at the moment. Images that involved her his big hands and a lot of very thorough attention.

Something hungry moved across Roman’s face. “Not whatever. I want you. All of you. Under me. On me. Screaming my name while I fill you up.” He moved from the counter, coming to stand beside her. Leaning in, he whispered against her ear.

“I want to bury my face between those lush thighs, lick that sweet cream until you can’t take it anymore. Then I want to fuck you so deep you feel me for days. I want every perfect inch of you under my hands and my mouth. I want to watch those full breasts bounce while I drive into you. I want to grip those wide hips and leave fingerprints. You are not whatever, Ella. You are exactly what I have been starving for.”

Holy shit. Ella’s knees actually started to wobble.

“Where did you learn to talk like that?” she managed, but her voice came out breathy instead of sarcastic. Traitorous hormones. Someone should really study her hormones. There would probably be grant money.

A low, hungry sound rumbled in Roman’s chest. He looked two seconds away from lifting her onto the counter when the front door banged open again.

Cage strolled in, took one look at them, and grinned like a shark. “Am I interrupting something? Should I come back later?”

“Yes,” Roman growled.

“No,” Ella said at the same time.

They both stopped and looked at each other.

Ella turned away from Roman first. “You knew this was happening, didn’t you? You let it slip yesterday.”

Cage nodded. “I just read the room, sweetheart.”

He turned his attention to Roman. “Sorry if I cockblocked you, bro, but you need to hear this. Declan picked up scent trails just now. Men—we’re assuming the poachers—circling the lower ridge. Fresh. Not more than a couple hours old. They’re not leaving. They’re hunting. Looking for her. And for the wolf that took her from them.”

Roman’s entire body went rigid. The hungry lover vanished, replaced by the lethal protector she’d first seen in the woods. “They won’t get near her.”

Cage nodded in agreement.

“Why don’t they just leave?” Ella asked. “Didn’t they see Roman’s wolf. Oh God, are they going to hunt him now? Hunt all of you? What have I done?”

Roman took her in his arms. “You didn’t do anything, Ella.”

“Yes, yes I did.” She looked at him with tears threatening. “If you hadn’t rescued me—”

“Captured you,” Cage broke in with a grin.

Roman threw his brother a dark look even though he’d told her the same exact thing. His arms tightened around her. “And what should I have done? Turn my back on you? On my mate.”

She flattened her hands against his chest. “You keep using that word, but it doesn’t solve the problem.”

“There is no problem. You stay here. Where I can protect you.”

“What, house arrest with benefits?” She tried for snark, but it came out shaky. “Lucky me. Chubby chick gets locked in a cabin with the hottest wolf on the mountain while armed men circle the property. My life is a rom-com written by someone with a very dark sense of humor.”

“This isn’t a game, Ella. These men don’t leave witnesses. But I won’t let them touch you. Not while I’m breathing.”