But there are too many others in the area now. Too many dangers. Only now does it occur to me that I might want to be more careful than ever with so many strange wolves around. I don’t know what this guy wants. He’s definitely male, too, with a dark, intense energy that makes me want to swim backward, away from the shore.
But it isn’t fear that takes root in my gut and begins to bloom, spreading through me all at once.
It’s anger. Anger at having to carefully plan out everything I do for fear of what the people around me would think, how they’ll react, and how they’ll choose to turn it against me. Whoever this is, they’re going to be sorry for thinking they could take advantage of me being alone. I’m not defenseless, even if I can’t shift.
Whoever they are, waiting for me, I’m either going to kill them, or I’m going to die trying.
I touch my foot down once I’m close enough to shore, and I slip, flailing before finally going under.
4
WILDE
Here I was, thinking nothing was redeeming about this shitty situation. Wandering around to kill time, exploring the area before the welcoming ceremony tonight.
And now, this.
At first, I imagined a pearl floating in the center of the lake. That was how she looked, her pale skin and almost silver hair glowing as she floated on her back. She may as well have had a spotlight on her, focusing my attention upon her presence.
A smart man would walk away, but I’m not always smart. That much is clear as I stand here, waiting, watching. For what? I’m not sure. I only know nothing could move me. I’m locked in place, my gaze focused on her. I can’t see much of her, most of her body still underwater as she slowly but steadily moves my way.
I’m pretty sure I’m going to hell, but at this point, I’m already damned as it is. Watching the water sluice off her body as she cuts a sure, smooth path my way is the only bonus to being here. Otherwise, I have nothing but the prospect of making nice with a bunch of other packs to look forward to. I have no doubt they’ll want to hear in vivid detail about the fighting that’s already taken place outside our borders. So who could blame me for craving a little distraction?
I wait, standing not far from where she dropped her clothes in her eagerness to get into the water. It’s not until she’s close enough for me to catch her scent that I know this situation is wrong on a level deeper than what I originally thought.
It isn’t only that she’s clearly from another pack. I can’t smell her wolf, which tells me she can’t possibly be eighteen yet. She’d already be off-limits even if she wasn’t so young, but now? The biggest mistake I could make would be to give my wolf what he wants more than anything at this moment.
And he wants her, deeply, almost desperately. A craving unlike any I’ve ever known stirs in the back of my mind before pushing its way front and center.
Mine.
A heartbeat passes, and then another.
What is this?
I must be even more in need of a break from the war than I believed because my wolf won’t shut the hell up. His yapping fills my brain. As always, when he finds something he wants, he makes it his mission to be heard.
There’s only one problem. She’s not mine, and she sure as hell isn’t even old enough for me to have a little bit of fun with.
She’s almost at the water’s edge. Now we’re in a silent standoff, with me daring her to step out. I haven’t announced my presence, but she knows I’m here. She doesn’t bother pretending to think otherwise, and against my better judgment, I respect her more than I thought possible at this moment. My wolf, meanwhile, responds to her boldness on a level that should send me straight to the dungeon under my house. Because there’s something different about her. I’m glad she’s not like one of those girls at the bar, practically pushing each other out of the way to wrap their lips around my cock. She isn’t looking at this as a means to an end. Probably because she’s so young, something my wolf needs to keep in mind.
This is it. She’s either going to stay where she is, or she’s going to get out of the water.
Do it. Do it. I want to—need to—see her. My mouth goes dry at the thought, and my pulse picks up speed.
She makes a move but instead of rising from the lake, she goes down, flailing and pinwheeling her arms. I’m frozen but not surprised, more like holding my breath to see what part of her reveals itself next. I catch a flash of her tits, the curve of her ass, and a bare leg before she regains her balance and glares silently, defiantly toward me.