He looked… well, she wasn’t sure. He seemed stunned, but then he sat back, and that slow, sexy smile curved across his lips, almost like satisfaction. There was kindness in his gaze, and he reached forward to touch her cheek, flicking slightly at her hair.
“Just so you know, I would drive across town just to go to that hardware store and see you in that sexy uniform.” The heat in his voice made her blush even harder, and she grinned, relieved as the tension was suddenly broken.
“Sexy? Wow, you must really love me if you think that uniform is sexy,” she half-laughed, then paused, realizing what she had just said.
“I do.”
“What?” her mouth was dry.
“Love you.”
“You… love me?” It was the first time he had said it, though by his actions, she had wondered before. But hearing the words on his lips made her heart pound and butterflies rest in her stomach. “Really?”
“Yes,” he said quietly, moving closer to her. “I really, really love you.” And she remembered his words from the day before; she was his lifemate, he had known since they had first met.
“Then… should we….?” Her voice wavered. He had been about to kiss her, she could tell, but then abruptly he pulled back, a long sigh dragging from his throat. He looked away suddenly, staring out the window, his shoulders tense again.
“We can’t,” he murmured.
She frowned. “Why not?”
“There are… rules. Rituals, if you’d like to think of them that way.” When he looked back at her, his gaze was heavy with meaning. “Tonight is the full moon, Maddy. It is already growing dark. The beast will be set free… it's not safe. I promise you,” his voice was deep with passion. “If it was up to me, I would pin you to the dashboard and not stop until you were screaming my name. I would fuck you until those pretty eyes closed and you couldn’t think from exhaustion. I would… god, I would….” He was silent for a long moment. “But we can’t.”
“Rules,” Maddy murmured, once she got over the shock from his words; her body was tingling from his graphic language. At the same time, she couldn't help but feel hurt; rejected almost, though logically she knew it was ridiculous to feel that way. “I guess I’ll understand later, right?" she asked, somewhat bitter. "I wish you would explain these things to me, but I get it. Werewolf stuff.” She rolled her eyes sarcastically, then sat back instead and pulled on her seatbelt, giving him a tight smile. “Let’s go then. We don’t want to be late.”
His eyes were hot when he looked at her, and she knew that he had meant every word he’d said. He put the keys in the ignition anyway and started the car. They pulled out into the street smoothly. It was already growing dark outside – the sun was just a thin line on the horizon. The moon would be rising soon.
She might watch him die tonight, but she had to be there anyway. It was all she could do, after all. She owed him as much.
Chapter 12
The directions led them to an abandoned warehouse.
The drive had taken longer than she had anticipated. Davenport wasn’t especially large, but the streets were all narrow and winding, crisscrossing like a badly-planned maze, so it had taken a full forty-five minutes to navigate through. During that time, she had grown increasingly worried. The moon had started to peek out from behind the trees, and immediately she had felt a strange, alien power fill the car, an energy that was static and electrifying. The hair on her arms and neck stood on end, her skin prickly and cold, her heart racing. Gareth was silent next to her, but she didn’t have to ask him what the strange energy was. It was coming from him, and it was dense, powerful, like sitting in the heart of a fire. She just wanted to get out of the car, because even though she knew that she could trust him, some human instinct told her to run. She wasn’t safe here. She was in the company of a predator, and she could turn into prey as quickly as he could turn into a wolf.
He parked in the abandoned lot, taking care to hide his car from the street. The warehouse was surrounded by scrap metal and looked like it had once been a factory of some kind, though it had obviously been deserted for a while. Everything was broken and rusted, including the windows and steel door, which hung on its hinges. Gareth grabbed her hand the moment they left the car and kept her close to him, his grip firm and impossible to break.
They were met at the door by Isak, who had the same hollow, drawn expression as Gareth’s face. The energy emitted from him too, though Maddy didn’t feel it quite as intensely, but the urge to run doubled. Although the two men looked human, she was now firmly convinced of the fact that they weren’t. They were wolves, barely concealed by a human exterior, like someone wearing a costume. When they spoke, their voices were rough growls, their vocal chords having already Changed.
“A few minutes longer, and the moon will be high,” Isak said. “The pack is gathered in the main room. You should wait inside. I’ll call you when it’s time.”
Gareth nodded. “Good.” He could barely speak through his elongated teeth. Then he turned to the door, his hand still firm on her arm, and pulled her inside. Maddy wished that he didn't have to struggle with her, but her body wasn’t cooperating; she dug her feet into the ground instinctively. She didn’t want to go into the building. Something kept telling her that she had to be suicidal to be there. She would be surrounded by an entire pack of transformed werewolves. It would be a miracle if she wasn’t torn to pieces on sight.
But the room was empty when they went in. She could hear noises, though – growls and yips mingled with the dull shouts of human voices. It seemed that there were many people in the building, but they were staying somewhere else, in the “main room” or whatever Isak had called it. The room they entered was small, dirty and cramped, full of boxes of trash and a pile of discarded pipes. She stood on the cement floor, scuffing her shoes, looking around anxiously. What was she doing in a place like this? She didn’t belong.
Gareth released her once he was sure the room was empty, then immediately began pacing. She stood back near the wall and tried not to draw attention to herself. He seemed bigger, somehow, though she couldn’t explain why. His presence filled more space than just his body; it seemed to encompass the entire room, a wildness that set her teeth on edge. He could leap at her at any moment. Attack her and rip her to shreds as he had the wolves in her cabin. She knew he wouldn’t - she was his lifemate, after all - but her instincts were still overcoming her common sense. She wanted to hide behind the boxes of junk. Dig a hole and bury herself. Play dead.
He started pacing. She watched him move, watched the intensity in his stance as he strode across the floor, first one way, then the other, taking long strides. He hadn't bothered to change clothes - he still wore the dark blue jeans and black t-shirt, hidden beneath a broken-in leather jacket. His hair was loose, falling wildly around his face, making her fingers itch to touch it, even after seeing his fierce expression. He looked... bestial. Savage.
She cleared her throat, wondering if she should say something. It was their last few minutes before the fight, after all. She wished he was more approachable, and that she had the words for this kind of situation. “Are you nervous?” she finally asked.
He tossed a glance in her direction, and the glimmering fire in his gaze made her heart skip a beat. His eyes... the color was changing. Instead of the usual, deep green, they were taking on a yellow tint. Glowing through the darkened room, reflecting the light like a cat. It sent shivers down her spine.
The howling and barking was escalating from the other room. She wasn't sure how close they were to the place where the fight would happen, but the cement hallways and corridors of the empty building rang with the sound of wolf calls. The eerie sounds drifted to her, unnerving, unnatural. She clenched her hands, trying to stop them from shaking. If Gareth lost this fight, then she would be out here in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by a pack of wild, blood-crazed animals, trapped in an abandoned building. She could conceivably take Gareth's car, but she didn't know how to
drive.
Her eyes darted to the door. Beyond that barrier, the dark, open night awaited her. Could she make it if she caught him by surprise? Make a leap without warning, a quick dash to freedom. It had never worked in the past, but she couldn't help but consider it. She knew she owed him to stay, that he needed her there... but more and more, the man in front of her was changing into something she couldn't identify. This alien force was not Gareth, the man she knew. It was a monster. A beast.
Abruptly he stopped pacing, his back to her, and he raised his head into the air. She heard him inhale deeply, then let out a short breath, shaking his hair back from his head.
“The smell of your fear is a drug,” he growled, and this time it really was a growl, low in the throat, rumbling, with hardly a semblance to a human voice. It was a miracle that she understood him at all. “God,” he groaned.
His words made her even more fearful. Abruptly he turned, his eyes glowing like a predator in the darkness. It was almost pitch black in the building now - she couldn't see him clearly, couldn't accurately judge the distance between them, or whether there were any obstacles on the floor. She scooted back on the metal cabinet she was sitting on, instinctively huddling against the wall. There was light flickering from somewhere, but it was too far away to make much of a difference.
“Gareth, you're scaring me,” she said quietly, her voice quivering. He groaned in response and she heard his growl, heard the frustration on his breath. He was walking towards her, prowling through the darkness, stalking her.
“I like it when you're scared,” he murmured, his voice rumbling through her stomach. “I like it when you shiver, when you sweat....” He let out a moan. “You smell delicious, Maddy. God. I want to sink my teeth in....”
Maddy felt her insides squirm, and she pushed off of the metal case she was sitting on, her sneakers hitting the ground with a dull thud. The eerie howling of the wolves hadn't stopped, and she realized that the moon must be high in the sky by now. She didn't know much about werewolf transformations, but it occurred to her that maybe Gareth was acting this way because his control was close to slipping. The wolf inside was fighting its way to the surface; she could see it in his piercing yellow eyes, the way his voice scraped over her skin.
Every nerve in her body was screaming at her to run. The wolf in front of her was hungry, and she was the only thing around on the menu. But she forced herself to stand strong, to face him in the darkness, feeling his heartbeat as though it was against her own chest.
Suddenly Gareth surged forward and she yelped, dodging to one side at the last second. He rammed up against a pile of scrap metal instead, causing old pipes and sheets of iron to clatter across the ground, the sound deafening. Maddy shrieked but then forced a hand over her mouth, backing up into the darkness, looking around for a place to hide.
“It doesn't matter, Maddy,” his voice reached her. “Wherever you go, I will find you.”
“Stop this!” she cried, louder than she had intended - fear made her voice strong. “You're freaking me out, Gareth... snap out of it!”
“Too late for that, babe,” he murmured back, and silence fell between them. It was a dark silence, and she knew he was listening, quite possibly studying her heartbeat and gaging every minute change in her body. His senses were definitely more powerful than her own.
The second time he lunged, she wasn't expecting it. He came from an entirely different direction – she had thought he was standing to the left of her, but suddenly he barreled into her from the right, taking her off-guard and tackling her backwards, his large body rough and heavy. She let out another scream, this one pure terror, and struck out, trying to hit him or smack him away. He caught her hands easily; rammed her up against the cold, cement wall. She winced as the hard stone bit into her back through her jacket.
He leaned down to her level, his face close, breathing fiercely through his nose. He was sniffing, scenting her, inhaling her essence, their foreheads practically touching. She knew she was sweating and cold with fear, her hands clammy where they gripped his own. He let out a hot, steamy breath and she gasped, trying to pull away, but his fingers tightened.
“Trying to run from me?” he whispered, his body hovering over hers. He moved his head, dipping it to one side, nipping the air just above her collar bone. She bit her lip, trying not to let out the whimper of fear that lodged itself in her throat. In this position, he could rip out her neck and she wouldn't be able to do anything to stop him. She had seen him do it before. His teeth were already fully elongated. The slightest prick of his canines would draw blood.
“Please let me go,” she whispered, unable to speak any louder because she was so terrified.
“Never,” he murmured back. Then he leaned his mouth close to her throat, allowing his canines to brush gently against the skin, directly over her pounding pulse. Despite her terror, Maddy felt a sudden, inexplicable stab of arousal, a response to the hot breath that hit her neck. He was so close that she could smell him now, the spicy scent of cologne and something deeply masculine.
“Gareth, please, the fight will start soon... get control of yourself, stay focused!” she pleaded, appalled by the whimper in her voice. She shrank farther and farther against the wall, but he wouldn't let her slip away. His arms trapped her on either side, blocking any route of escape.
“I am focused,” he breathed. “God, I can hear your blood rushing through your veins... your heart pounding. I can smell the heat in you.” At this his hand reached down and gripped her crotch. She gasped, writhing, trying to get away even as she felt herself grow wet. He chuckled low in his throat, as though he could sense this reaction too. He leaned in close then, his lips returning to her ear, feathering ever so gently against the shell until she moaned.
“I want to sink my teeth into you,” he whispered, and her legs almost gave out. “I want to taste you, Maddy... if only you knew, I would bite down... right here....” His hand cupped her throat, his fingers playing over her skin, traveling up to her jaw and then down to her collar bone. Her heart was beating so fast that she thought it would fly out of her chest. She couldn't make her mouth work to speak.
“But where's my manners?” he drawled, lazily running his tongue over her skin before pulling back. She sensed that feral smile on him again, and his eyes gazed down at her, yellow slits in the darkness. “You haven't had a fair chance, baby. Where's the fun if you can't even experience the hunt?”
Maddy had no idea what he was referring to until he leaned down, his lips hovering above hers, not quite touching. “Run, little girl,” he breathed against her mouth. “I'll give you fifteen seconds - and you don't want me to catch you.”
He released her then, and she stared up at him, a full five seconds passing as she remembered how to use her arms and legs. Then his threat registered and she dashed around him, blindly fumbling around the room, her instincts directing her to a door on the far side. She slammed through it, gathering her legs beneath her and springing into a full-on run, sprinting down a long hallway. Apparently this hadn't been the door to the outside; instead she found herself traveling deeper and deeper into the musty warehouse. The full moon glinted through the windows she passed, casting just enough dim light so she could make out the floor in front of her – barely.
She knew that he was following her the moment he started out – his howl was louder than the others, chilling and dangerous, full of excitement and power. Fear lanced through her, adrenaline making her brain small and narrow, her thoughts frantic and smothering. She forced herself to scramble forward, yanking open a door at the side of the wall and shoving through it. She blindly flung herself inside, not bothering to close the door behind her. Then she turned to the new darkened room and her breath caught; it was full of boxes, stacks upon stacks of giant crates and oil drums, reaching all the way to the ceiling where iron beams slanted across.
She had no time to waste; he was directly behind her. Without thinking, she threw herself to one side and scrambl
ed under a pile of boxes, navigating her way under and around the stacks where hopefully he would not be able to fit. She continued to crawl through the room, stumbling around boxes and creeping under shelves and tables, until suddenly she felt the atmosphere change. The air became charged with energy. The door creaked slightly.
Maddy froze. She huddled under a low hanging shelf, giant boxes on either side of her and a plastic tarp covering her hiding place. She could see the door somewhat from her position and the dim moonlight that slanted through it; the shadow of a figure appeared. She saw his head raise and guessed that he was scenting the air, following her trail with his superior senses. This wasn't a hunt – it was a game of cat and mouse. He was enjoying this as much as she was dreading it. She had no idea what he would do when he caught her, only that she was sure it wouldn't be pleasant.
He stepped into the room, following her scent around the boxes and crates, and she scrambled to keep moving, adjusting her spot just one step ahead of him. She had to distract him somehow... mislead him into giving her a chance to escape. Slowly she started to unzip her jacket until she was able to slip it off, then she bundled it up and flung it across the room, praying it would land far enough away to give her a decent head start. She saw his head turn toward the sound and he started forward, prowling until he was out of sight.