With Derrick buried in the bosom of his family, Janine slipped away before the tears blurring her gaze were noticed. Derrick had survived the surgery and seemed about to beat the odds. He would recover, which meant it was time for her to go.

Even if I love him.

And she did love him. Loved him so much that she couldn’t be with him.

She knew Derrick thought himself in love with her, that she was his mate. Much as she wanted to believe that, she couldn’t. He’d fallen for her only because, at the time, he depended on her. Acting as his therapist meant their close involvement brought them together and imbued him with a false sense of intimacy.

I think the intimacy came from you letting him touch you.

Acts that shouldn’t have happened, and yet, she didn’t regret. It made leaving so much harder, but she did it now while she could. Now while he had his family and the promise of a bright future ahead of him. Let him get on with his life. Find a woman to settle down with—sob.

With her heart shattering, this time she took the cowardly route and left him a note. A note that didn’t say half of the things she felt, didn’t tell him how much she’d rather stay. She didn’t want to confuse him any further. She’d already done enough.

The little voice in her head, which complained she was the one hurting him by leaving, got locked into a room. Derrick could handle her departure. He’d proven he could handle anything.

As the days, then weeks, and finally a month then more went by without a word, a text, nothing, she realized she’d made the right choice. For him.

As for her, she cried every night, feeling his loss keenly. She lost weight and her smile. She threw herself into her work, but found each day dragged in a gray misery she couldn’t shake.

Her parents tried to drag her out of her funk with well-meaning concern.

“June-bug, you’ve lost weight. Let me bake you a cake, a decadent chocolate one,” from her mother.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” from Orson. Followed by, “Do you want me to dispose of him? I can, you know.” A dark promise from a stepfather who loved her so much he couldn’t stand to see her sad.

But she’d get over it.

Eventually.

She hoped.

In the meantime, she did have other things to deal with. The police and their investigation into her wound, as well as Brian’s, led to some interesting conversations.

“So you’re claiming a wild wolf attacked you?” the policeman asked.

“Yes. A great big one. Derrick scared it off.” Not a complete lie.

While animal attacks were rare, especially in settled areas, the coroner who examined Brian confirmed her story because of the teeth marks on his corpse. Despite efforts, the feral canine was never found, which sucked for Janine. Want to know what proved less pleasant than the stitches on her ankle? The rabies shots she had to suffer.

Add to that physical discomfort a strange disgruntlement, part relief, or mostly disappointment, when the full moon came and went with her remaining human. Sure, she knew the shifter gene wasn’t passed on by a bite—still, though, a girl could hope. If I was furry, too, then at least I’d belong in his world.

The knock at her door came with a sudden briskness that caught her off guard, probably because no one should be knocking. Given her apartment resided on the seventh floor, and the building had a secured entrance, she had to wonder who mistakenly rapped. Especially since she wasn’t supposed to be here. The person subletting the place had to fly out west for a family emergency, so Janine, after a few weeks at her parents’, now slept in her bed.

Knock. Knock. Knock. Why did she not answer? It was probably a neighbor or—

A strange tingling spread through her body. Flesh, which only moments ago lagged with fatigue, became alive with awareness.

No. It couldn’t be.

A frantic urgency made for clumsy fingers as she fumbled at the lock. Shoving the door wide, she could only gape as her numb hands dropped rather than maintaining a grip. She could only stare—with hope fluttering in her breast—as Derrick wheeled himself into her place.

He’s here. Why?

“Wh-what are you doing here?” she stammered, taken aback by his unexpected appearance. Surprise didn’t mean she didn’t inhale him, her eyes devouring how good he looked. The broadness of his shoulders stretched his shirt, and his hair held the freshness of a cut and his jaw a recent smooth shave.

Someone hadn’t suffered with her absence. “You look good,” she finally said when he didn’t reply.

“While you look like crap. You’ve lost weight. And what’s up with those dark circles under your eyes?”

Her lips pulled down as he remarked on the signs she couldn’t hide. “I haven’t been sleeping well.”

“Neither have I.”

Immediately, she couldn’t help but be concerned. “Are you having problems with the dreams still?”

“A little, but nothing I can’t handle. My sleeping problem is a little more physical.”

“Is it your legs? Has your recovery not gone well?” she asked. She had no idea about his progress, as she’d not dared to ask for reports. Much like a smoker, she decided it was best to go cold turkey. Or cold wolf. Didn’t matter. She’d done her best to forget Derrick. Not very well, she might add, but the attempt had been made.

“My body is fine.”

“Then what’s keeping you from sleeping?”

“You’re not there.”

“I’m sorry I took off during a crucial moment in your treatment, but given my personal involvement—”

“You didn’t leave just because you were my doctor and things got a little hot and heavy. Part of the reason why you abandoned me is because you thought I didn’t need you.”

“I didn’t abandon you. Okay, I kind of did,” she amended at his pointed glance. “But I did it for good reasons.”

“I wouldn’t call them good. Actually, I’d say most of them were bogus. Like the one where you thought I only cared for you because you were convenient.” A buzzing sound slipped past Derrick’s lips. “Wrong.”

“You came all this way to tell me I was wrong?” What about telling me you loved me and missed me and…

“I came here to tell you a few things. One is that I conquered my nightmares. No more straps for me at night, unless you’re into that kind of thing.” Wink.

Her heart fluttered and she found her mouth too dry to reply as he continued.

“One thing that’s really helped is they sent me some army dudes to talk to, guys like me who went through some bad shit. Turns out, they were better than a therapist, present company excluded of course.” A smile and a wink this time.

A faint, “Of course,” was her loquacious response.

“Anyhow, with their tough love, Boris, that ornery bastard giving it to me hardest, they taught me how to cope with the panic and other shit. I know now that I won’t ever be able to erase what happened, but I can make sure it doesn’t keep me from a future.”

“I told you those things too. How come they didn’t sink in?”

The boyish smile that crossed his lips almost sent her to her knees.

“You didn’t threaten to tie my wheelchair to the bumper of a car and go for a ride on the highway.”

“They threatened you?” She couldn’t help but screech.

“You don’t understand because you’re a woman.”

“I see they did nothing to cure you of your chauvinism.”

“No, but they did cure me of a need to remain in care. I did so well with my new therapy that they released me from the rehab center two weeks ago.”

Two weeks out in the real world, and he’d only now come to find her. So much for thinking he’d come running to her to make a declaration of love.

The smile she pasted probably looked as fake as her words sounded. “I knew you could do it.”

“Don’t pull that bullshit with me, Red. Of course I did. I had to. You didn’t leave me a choice when you left.”

“You did it because of me?”

“Yes, you. When you left, I realized you were right. I was too messed up for it to work. So I set out to change that.”

“And succeeded by the sound of it,” she said.

“Of course I did. But do you want to know the one thing I couldn’t fix or change, no matter what?” He leaned forward in his chair. “I couldn’t change how I felt about you. All those feelings, they’re still in here.” He thumped his chest.

“Then why have you waited so long to come find me?”

“Why? Because I had to prove it to myself, and to you, that what I felt was real. I don’t need you because you’re my doctor. I don’t want you because you’re convenient. I love you because you’re the only one for me. I guess, the question is, Red, can you love me too?”

The words sucked the breath from her, and her vision blurred. She wanted so much to believe.

Why wouldn’t I believe? The man fought all his demons to show himself worthy. How many more tasks will I give him before I accept the truth?

He loves me.

What could she say? What should she say? “I love you too. Walking away was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. It hurt.” Her turn to hit her chest. “I hated losing you.”

“Oh, Red.” He stood up from the chair, and her eyes widened as he took a step toward her, one leg moving well, the other dragging. But he did it. He limped to a spot in front of her and lifted her chin with a finger. “It almost killed me to stay away. It wasn’t enough to have Orson and my family watching over you. I wanted to be there too.”

“You had me watched?” Some people might have screamed creepy, but she actually found herself elated. Even when she’d thought herself alone, he’d been watching over her.

“Just because I was following a certain red-headed doctor’s orders about getting better didn’t mean I stopped caring. I made sure you were safe while I worked on becoming whole again. I almost managed it.” He thumped a leg. “The nerves on this side didn’t recover too well. Doctor says this is as good as it gets. But hey, at least I’m out of the chair most of the time.” His lips quirked in a half-smile.

“Don’t you know, though, that I loved you no matter what?” She loved the man, not the body—although the body didn’t hurt.

“Just like I loved you despite the fact you were a doctor.”

“Despite?” She arched a brow.

“Okay, so maybe I can admit the fact I can call you doctor when we’re both naked is exciting.”

Speaking of naked… “So where do we go from here?” she asked, looking up at him, not having realized before just how tall he stood.

“Only one place to go. To bed, of course.” With a declaration boldly stated on grinning lips, Derrick scooped her into his arms and made his way with a hitching gait to her bedroom. He tossed her on the bed and stood at the foot of it. She pushed herself partially up on her elbows and noted his intent gaze.

“Strip for me,” he ordered. “I need to see you. I spent so many nights thinking about you, thinking about that one night we shared.”

“What about you?” she asked, coming to her knees, fingers clutching the hem of her shirt. “Do I get the same kind of peek?”

“You want naked, you’ve got naked.” His shirt went soaring, revealing his broad chest, tanned from the outdoors, the white lines of old scars bisecting it. “Your turn.”

Biting her lip, out of excitement, not nervousness, she yanked her own top off and let it flutter to the floor.

“Bra too.”

It unhooked in the front and joined her shirt.

A slow, sexy grin stretched his lips. “Beautiful.”

“If you say so.”

“Oh, I do. And I also say get those pants off.”

This time, she didn’t hesitate. She shucked her bottoms, but left on her panties. She arched a brow at him. “Your turn.”

“Not yet. I’ve been waiting to touch you for so long, I’m liable to spill before I even get my cock close to you.”

The heady compliment flushed her body with arousal. “And did it never occur to you I might feel the same way?” She dragged the tips of her fingers down her body, tracing a path between her breasts down to the top of her underpants.

He groaned. “Red. Why are you torturing me?”

“Because I want you. I want you holding me tight and never letting me go. I want you inside me, marking me and filling me with yourself.” She didn’t hold back, not when she could see the bulge at his groin.

Any other time, she might have laughed at his impatience in removing his jeans, but she couldn’t mock him, not when the same urgency coursed through her veins. His briefs went the same path of the jeans, leaving him gloriously bared, the thick and long root of him jutting with impatience.

Oh my.

He came at her in a rush, naked flesh and muscle touching her skin as he flattened her on the bed. Despite his frenzy, he proved gentle, holding most of his weight off her.

But after weeks of loneliness—and a lot of frustration—she didn’t want gentle. She wound her arms around his neck and pulled him to her, needing the intimacy of a kiss.

Lips met and slid with erotic flair. The tips of her breasts rubbed against his chest, turning her erect nipples into hard points. How she loved the sweet rasp of her buds teasing along his slightly furred chest. The friction proved delicious, as delicious as his kisses.

It didn’t take long for them both to pant hotly, the temperature of their bodies feverish with lust. Every touch, every kiss, every sensual slide of skin only served to raise her fever.

And he seemed intent on driving her mad with pleasure as his head dipped that he might grasp a nipple with his lips and tug.

“Derrick!” She gasped his name as her fingers threaded his hair. She groaned and arched her back as he suckled at her breast, the suction a direct tug to something wicked and erotic between her legs.

All of her burned for him. Burned with need. And only he could quench it. She had the dead batteries in her trash can to prove it.

“I need you,” she managed to say between moans of pleasure. “Please. I need you now.”

He captured her pleas with his mouth as he rose over her, bracing his weight with his hands and arms on either side of her body. Her legs spread wide to accommodate the width of him. The head of his cock brushed against her sex and drew a long moan. Lips busy kissing, he relied on his dick to find its way between her nether lips, parting them and pressing against the opening of her sex.

Big. Very big.

“Thank you,” he rumbled.

Oops. She’d said that out loud. But she only spoke the truth, and the truth was she wanted him to sink inside her. She wrapped her legs around his flanks, but he held back, his greater strength allowing him to control how quickly they went.

More like slowly. He eased into her, stretching her with his girth, filling her with his flesh. She dug her nails into the muscles of his back.

He stopped and trembled.

“Am I hurting you?” she asked in sudden concern, flattening her hands on his back.

“The only way you could hurt me is if you stop.”

“Then why are you shaking?”

His gaze, alight with golden fire and desire, caught hers. “I’m shaking because I want you so badly.”

A smile tugged at her lips. “Then what are you waiting for?” She locked her legs around his waist and squeezed. Had he truly wanted to, he could have held back, but with a groan of surrender, he let himself be pulled into her welcoming sheath.

He thrust deep, so deep he hit a sweet spot inside, and her channel spasmed around him, squeezing him tight. Sweet heavenly bliss. Hot, passionate explosion.

There were no more words between them as their lips met in a sizzling frenzy that matched the frantic rhythm of their lower bodies.

In and out, he pumped his body, driving his shaft deep and heightening her pleasure. His every thrust drove her closer to the edge, bringing her to the brink of ecstasy, and then he sent her tumbling over.

She screamed his name, “Derrick!” as she came.

And as for Derrick? He came, too, a spurt of wet heat that happened the moment he bit her!