Beneath a Rising Moon

  all she could feel was the pounding of his heart through

  her breasts and the pulsing of his need against her belly.

  “Tell me what you want, Neva. Admit it.”

  She could do little else. Not when his gaze was so

  intense, his body so close, and her need so high. “I want

  to feel you deep inside.”

  Her voice was little more than a croak of sound, but a

  fierce and victorious look shone in his eyes. Then she was

  in his arms, and he was inside of her, thrusting so deep,

  enveloping her in a heat that was basic. Pure. So very

  powerful, and so very, very right.

  His mouth found hers again, and their tongues

  caressed as the pressure built. His powerful body stroked

  fast and hard into hers, driving her insane with need. She

  writhed against him, matching his rhythm, matching his

  urgency. The sweet pressure built until it felt as if she

  would explode.

  Then she did, and the force of her climax damn near

  blew her mind. He came with her, his roar echoing across

  the silence, sounding as if he was howling her name to

  the moon. As their orgasms ebbed and sanity returned,

  he claimed her mouth and kissed her hard.

  When he allowed her to breathe again, she opened

  her eyes and stared into the ebony recesses of his. The

  shutters were down, and what she saw there scared her.

  Because what she saw was caring. Deep caring.

  It had to be wishful thinking. It couldn’t be anything

  else, not with a wolf who had once sworn never to share

  his life or his heart with another.

  He kissed her again, soft and lingering. “I think—” He

  stopped, his gaze hardening as he glanced toward the door.

  In that instant, there was a sharp rap against the wood.

  She jumped, grabbing the edges of her gown and quickly

  tying them together.

  “Who’s there?” she called.

  “Me. Open up, Neva.”

  She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Of all the

  people she didn’t want to see right now, her father had to

  top the list.

  The confrontation she didn’t want, and wasn’t really

  ready for, was about to happen.

  Twelve

  Duncan swore softly. Neva’s father couldn’t have

  chosen a worse time to come visiting. The smell of lust

  and sex sat heavily on the warm air, and Neva’s warm

  skin still glowed with the aftermath of their lovemaking.

  It wasn’t something either of them could deny and would

  only further fuel the old man’s anger.

  Not that Duncan was worried about himself—just

  Neva. She loved her parents, and he didn’t want the

  situation to get any messier than it already was, but he

  had a feeling it would.

  She whirled and grabbed his jeans and shorts,

  thrusting them into his hands. Go into the kitchen and get

  dressed, she ordered. Sit at the table and make like nothing

  is happening.

  He gently brushed a sweaty strand of hair from her

  cheek. He’s not stupid. It’s very evident what we’ve been

  doing.

  Her eyes flashed at him. I know, but I don’t intend to

  rub his face in it.

  Neither did he. Not this time. But he didn’t intend to

  leave her alone to face her father’s wrath, either. Especially

  when that wrath was mostly his making. He threw on his

  clothes but didn’t retreat, and she made an exasperated

  sound before moving to turn on the light and open the

  door.

  “So it’s true.” Though Levon’s voice was soft, it was

  filled with anger. Rich with contempt. “You didn’t leave

  Ripple Creek after all. You lied to me, and you lied to your

  mother.”

  Her hurt swirled through Duncan, as bright as a flame.

  Yet none of it showed in her voice as she said, “Would you

  have felt any better if I’d told the truth?” She stepped back,

  opening the door wider. “Are you coming in, or are we

  going to discuss this on the doorstop for all the neighbors

  to hear?”

  Levon’s gaze ran past her, meeting Duncan’s. “Oh, I’m

  coming in all right.” He stepped inside and thrust a hand

  deep into his pocket.

  Duncan saw the bulge. Knew a weapon was hidden

  there. And while he had the strength to wrest the gun

  from the older wolf’s grip, he wasn’t about to risk it with

  Neva standing so close. Accidents happened, and he didn’t

  want it happening to her.

  He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall,

  feigning indifference as she closed the door. “I never figured

  you for a man of violence, Levon.”

  She shot him a quick, confused look, then her gaze

  darted to her father, and she made an exasperated sound.

  “Do you really think he’s worth going to jail over?”

  Even though Duncan had half expected her to say

  something like that, her words still cut. But declarations

  of caring, after everything he’d done to her, weren’t in the

  cards right now. Maybe they never would be.

  “I’d keep that gun in your pocket,” he drawled softly.

  “Because I know from experience you wouldn’t enjoy jail.”

  A muscle in the old man’s jaw throbbed. “Do you know

  what they’re saying about her in the hospital?”

  “Don’t talk about me like I’m not here,” she cut in.

  “And what does it matter what people are saying about

  me?”

  Levon shot her a furious look. “It matters to me. It

  matters to your mother.”

  “And my feelings and needs don’t?”

  “You’re my daughter,” Levon said fiercely. “And I will

  not have your reputation sullied by a man like this.”

  Neva’s expression was an endearing mix of anger and

  amusement. “Duncan’s not the first man I’ve danced with,

  Dad, and he probably won’t be the last.”

  “He will be if I have anything to say about it.” Levon

  drew the gun out of his pocket and, with a trembling hand,

  pointed it at Duncan.

  Duncan didn’t move. Just tensed, ready to dive away

  should the older man’s finger so much as twitch on the

  trigger.

  Neva swore and stepped between them. “Don’t be so

  damned ridiculous.” She hesitated, sniffing the air. “You’ve

  been drinking.”

  Damn it, Neva, Duncan said. Step out of the line of

  fire.

  No. He won’t shoot me.

  That was a risk Duncan wasn’t willing to let her take.

  He reached for the power of the binding. I order you to

  step away.

  She shot him a furious look and clenched her fists,

  her whole body trembling. But she didn’t move. Duncan

  wasn’t sure whether to admire her courage or be angry at

  her stubbornness.

  “I’m not drunk,” Levon said into the silence

  “No, you’re just insane. How’s threatening Duncan

  going to help me or my reputation?”

  For someone who wanted to avoid this confrontation

  at all costs, she was doing a fine job of fighting it without

  help
. He very much suspected this battle had been building

  for some time now, and his actions had just made it

  happen sooner rather than later.

  “He leaves.” Levon’s voice was sharp. “Now. Tonight.”

  “And as I asked before, how is that supposed to help

  my reputation?”

  “One moon dance is an aberration that will quickly be

  forgotten, as long as he leaves quickly.”

  Neva raised an eyebrow. “And if it’s not an aberration?”

  Levon shot her a furious look. “It is. You deserve far

  better than a man of his ilk.”

  “Yeah, right,” Neva said, voice flat. “It’s not for me

  you’re demanding this, is it? You’re here to protect your

  reputation and your image.”

  Levon glared at her. “I’m not—”

  “Aren’t you? So why haven’t you stopped to ask if this

  is what I want? Why haven’t you bothered to ask how I

  feel about Duncan? Did you ever stop to consider that

  this might be more than just a dance?”

  Levon’s gaze darted between the two of them, and his

  face went pale. Duncan wasn’t sure if it was the shock of

  having his daughter finally standing up to him or the

  horror of possibly having him as a permanent member of

  the pack.

  “You can’t be serious,” Levon muttered. “Surely you

  know what sort of reputation—”

  “I do. And right now, I don’t care.”

  “But...but...” Levon stopped and scrubbed a hand

  across his rough jaw. “You can’t be serious about a man

  like him.”

  She reached out, wrapping a hand around the barrel

  of the gun and wresting it easily from her father’s grip.

  “Right now, I’m not sure that I am. But I have the right to

  discover what I do and don’t feel. I’m not a teenager any

  more, so please don’t treat me like one.”

  “I’m only trying to protect you.”

  “I know, but right now, you’re smothering me.”

  Levon’s gaze met Duncan’s again, and in the rich green

  depths he saw both anger and fear. “You deserve better

  than scum like—”

  Even from where he stood, Duncan felt the flash of

  her fury. “You will not call him scum in my house,” she

  said, her voice soft but shaking with anger. “Get out.”

  “I’m only trying-”

  “Until you—and Mom—are willing to listen to what I

  have to say, I don’t want to talk to you.” She strode past

  him and opened the door. “I said get out.”

  “Your sister—”

  “Was willing to listen to me and understands what

  I’ve done. You and Mom aren’t even willing to listen.”

  “It’s just that we’re disappointed—”

  “Yeah? Well, so am I. In you. Where are all those pretty

  words of tolerance now?” She waved her hand at the open

  door. “I mean it, Dad. If you want to stay, you apologize to

  Duncan. If not, leave.”

  Levon turned around and walked to the door. There

  he hesitated, meeting Neva’s gaze for several seconds.

  Duncan saw her face go pale and found himself clenching

  his fists again, ready to step in and defend her even though

  he had no idea what Levon had just said to her.

  “I mean it, Neva,” Levon said out loud.

  “I know you do,” she replied and slammed the door

  shut behind her father. It was a sound that echoed through

  the sudden silence.

  She remained where she was, staring at the door and

  breathing deeply. He wanted to go to her and wrap his

  arms around her, but he knew she wouldn’t appreciate it.

  “What did he say to you?”

  “Nothing.” Though her voice was carefully controlled,

  he could feel the pain in her.

  “Then why are you so upset?”

  “It’s pack business,” she shot back. “And none of your

  concern.”

  He took a deep breath and released it slowly. “Neva,

  I’m sorry if I caused—”

  She rounded on him, green eyes blazing. “If you ever

  try to make me do something against my will again, I’ll fry

  your brains so badly you won’t be able to shit without

  help.”

  While he had no doubt she meant what she said, he

  couldn’t help the slight smile tugging his lips. She was so

  damned beautiful, even when angry. He let his gaze drift

  downwards, watching the rise and fall of her breasts as

  she breathed. Watching her nipples peak with renewed

  awareness. “I was only trying—”

  “To control me. The same way my damn parents have

  been trying to control me. I won’t stand it from them

  anymore, and I certainly won’t take it from you.“

  He pushed away from the wall and walked towards

  her. “I was only trying to protect you.”

  She licked her lips and backed away from him. With

  the door behind her, she couldn’t go far. “Well, how about

  trusting me instead? The damn gun wasn’t loaded. It never

  has been.”

  Her back hit the door, and she stopped. Desire widened

  her pupils, darkened her green eyes, and he was so

  damned hard for her it was painful.

  “You can’t know that for certain,” he said, reaching

  again for the silk tie around her waist.

  She swallowed heavily. “The firing mechanism is

  stuffed. Dad bought the weapon ages ago when there was

  a rash of break-ins. He figured he could use it to scare

  intruders away.”

  And had obviously figured it would scare him away,

  too. Which would have been a fair assumption in his

  younger years, when all he’d wanted was a good time with

  no strings and no problems. But that wasn’t the case with

  Neva. The tie came loose and the silk fell away, once more

  revealing her golden curves and luscious triangle of soft

  hair. A triangle he couldn’t wait to lose himself in again.

  He took the gun from her and dropped it into the pocket

  of one the coats on the coat rack near the door. “Why

  didn’t you just tell me that?”

  “Because I didn’t want you taking it off him. He

  deserved a little more dignity than that.”

  “Even after what he said?” He slid a finger under the

  silk and skimmed it up to her shoulder, gently dislodging

  the gown.

  She quivered under his touch, her breathing quick,

  uneven. “Even after. He’s still my dad.”

  He slid his finger across her warm flesh to her other

  shoulder, sliding the rest of the gown off. It shimmied to

  the floor, puddling around her feet. Her desire spun around

  him, a warm rich scent that stirred his senses and

  thrummed through his blood.

  The moon was rising. And so was his need to bury

  himself deep inside her.

  “You can’t,” she denied, voice soft, husky. “We have to

  get to Betise’s.”

  “We have at least half an hour to fill in, if not more.”

  He stripped off his clothes, tossing them on the floor next

  to her gown. “And I intend to spend that time dancing

  with you.”

  The pulse at
her neck was little more than a wild flutter,

  her nipples so hard they were pebbles pressing into his

  chest. Her gaze searched his for a moment, then a teasing,

  sensuous smile touched her lips. “How?”

  He kissed her sweet mouth—softly, seductively. “What

  I intend,” he whispered, his lips so close to hers he could

  taste every quick breath, “is to turn you around and spread

  you against the door, caressing your entire body as I take

  you from behind until the heat overcomes us and we howl

  our pleasure to the moon.”

  Anticipation flared in her eyes, and the scent of her

  arousal got stronger. She opened her mouth, panting

  softly, as if she couldn’t suck in enough air.

  “And then?” Her voice was a husky whisper that damn

  near exploded his control.

  “Then I intend to carry you upstairs and continue with

  a more leisurely seduction in the shower as we wash the

  smell of sex and lust from our skins.”

  “The moon certainly has a strong effect on you

  Sinclairs, doesn’t it?”

  It did, but right now it wasn’t the moon, it was the

  woman. “I want you,” he whispered against her lips.

  “Then take me.”

  He did.

  ***

  Neva shivered and wished she’d taken the time to put

  on her extra coat. Even though the wind had dropped,

  the night was still bitterly cold. Her breath fogged, hanging

  on the air, mingling with the silvery snowflakes that danced

  through the night.

  Through the hush of darkness, music throbbed, a

  bass-heavy beat that stirred her blood almost as much as

  the man standing in front of her. The Blue Moon was only

  a couple of blocks away, and she half-wished she and

  Duncan were there now, laughing and drinking with the

  other patrons. Doing ordinary things, enjoying themselves

  in ordinary ways. Being an ordinary couple.

  Only they weren’t a couple and were never likely to

  be. Especially if her father had his way.

  She smiled grimly. While her father’s edict that she

  leave Duncan after the full moon or she’d no longer be

  considered part of his pack made her madder than hell,

  in many ways it was also ironic. Especially considering

  her time with Duncan was limited to this moon phase

  anyway.

  She crossed her arms and shifted her weight from one

  foot to the other. How long does it take to open a damn