chapter three
As the last pieces of her torn dress fell to the ground, Kallie got onto all fours and shifted. Her body compacted into a powerful, lean, furry, four-legged animal. Her sense of smell and hearing heightened. Her energy level surged. The transformation was exhilarating.
She turned and took off through the woods, away from the den, around the glade with its merry beat, and dashed between trees and past underbrush.
The sky was a blanket of stars above her. She moved steadily beneath it, determined not to stop nor sleep until she reached Wolf Hollow’s border. In the morning she’d choose a direction . . . or possibly come to her senses and skulk back to the den. For now, it was liberating to just run and imagine a life free from Palmer and Francine’s pestering. It’s not like anyone else cared what became of her. Raider only had eyes for Jordan, and her own friends could be as selfish as they were clueless about her emotional state. Camilla was too busy licking her own wounds, and Rosalie and Olivia didn’t like anything they deemed “not fun.”
So Kallie ran, dragging her mangled foot with her.
Her emotions worked like muscles through her body, pushing her onward with boundless drive. Leaves whispered as she blew by, and bits of dirt loosened beneath her paws only to scatter back over the earth behind her.
She ran fast. She ran free.
This forest had been her home most of her life—the trees as familiar to her as her wolf pack—it welcomed and spurred her along. But would these woods let her go?
Deep into the thicket, a rustle in the ferns caught Kallie’s ears. The fur on her back rose. She whipped around as a large gray wolf leaped on top of her and knocked her off her feet.
She’d forgotten about Wolfrik lurking on the outskirts of the hollow. She didn’t fear for her safety, but she was annoyed by the unexpected delay.
Kallie snarled and snapped viciously.
Wolfrik shocked her by shifting into human form. What kind of maniac would turn human to wrestle down an angry wolf with his bare arms and hands?
The naked flesh flashing beside Kallie’s mouth was too tempting. She’d been holding back her anger for too long. She bit Wolfrik’s arm as he put his weight onto her. As soon as Kallie tasted blood, she let go. Even in wolf form, she had enough sense not to do serious injury to a fellow member of the pack.
Wolfrik didn’t so much as grunt, as though he were impervious to pain. Instead, he put more weight on her and grabbed her two front legs before she could claw his skin.
“Shift,” he said.
Kallie thrashed beneath him, snarling out of control. She tried to scratch the arm impeding her escape, but Wolfrik somehow managed to squeeze both her legs into one fist. Kallie’s lips lifted over her fangs to snarl. She didn’t want to hurt him; she just wanted to get away.
Wolfrik lowered his face directly into hers and bellowed, “Shift!”
The fight in Kallie leaked away when she recognized the command of an alpha. There was wild, raw strength in Wolfrik that overpowered anything she’d ever detected from any of the other males in Wolf Hollow.
Kallie huffed her consent before letting go of her wolf to take on human form.
Fur receded, and sharp claws turned to stubby fingernails that Kallie was prone to biting. Thick brown unruly hair tumbled down her shoulders.
She lay naked beneath Wolfrik, chest rising and falling rapidly. Her large breasts brushed against the soft brown hair on Wolfrik’s scarred and muscled chest. Her nipples hardened into painful tips. Her body ached with desire that heated her blood and throbbed between her legs.
The instinctual part of Kallie called out to be claimed by such a virile man-wolf. She could still taste his blood in her mouth, which only excited her more. The unexpected lust coursing through her was beyond maddening considering the whole point of her flight was to avoid ending up on her back with a brute of a shifter straddling her.
Only a couple inches of space separated Wolfrik’s very large, very hard shaft from entering her. From his pinched expression, he wasn’t aroused so much as annoyed, which made the situation utterly humiliating.
Kallie tried to push him away. “Get off me.”
Wolfrik didn’t budge. “What are you doing roaming around so far from the den?” he demanded.
“I needed some fresh air,” Kallie said in a sharp tone that sounded like it came from someone else.
Wolfrik went still. A second later, he threw back his head and laughed. It didn’t last long, and the bitter ring to it didn’t make Kallie feel any better about the situation.
Wolfrik leaned in, mashing his chest against her breasts. His muscles were so very hard and firm. His erection pressed into her thigh. She had to bite her tongue to keep from moaning. Even the slightest whimper would not go unnoticed with his face so close to her lips.
Wolfrik’s eyes bore into hers. “Why are you really out here?”
Kallie squirmed beneath him. Big mistake. She only succeeded in rubbing against the firm, muscled body weighing her down.
“Get off me,” she repeated.
Wolfrik raised his eyebrows. “Why?”
Kallie glared up at him, angry that the beast of a man was intent on dominating her. She wasn’t about to share her plans with him. He might try to stop her from leaving her pack. As soon as he went on his way, she’d take a different route out of the hollow.
“I wanted to get away for a while,” she snapped. “They barely let me leave the den, not since my injury.” Her last words came out with a bitter ring.
Wolfrik studied her face a moment then lifted himself off her chest. Muscles corded in his arms, which he planted on either side of her, bearing his weight so he didn’t crush her. Blood trickled down the arm she’d bitten.
Cool air encircled Kallie’s breasts and teased her nipples into points.
Wolfrik smiled down at her.
“Careful, Kallie. Some males might take biting as an invitation. I haven’t been with a female in a long time. I don’t need much encouragement.”
The warning only elevated Kallie’s desire.
Her hips threatened to arch and give Wolfrik all the invitation he needed.
She wasn’t the same shifter he remembered either, not that he’d remember someone as insignificant as herself when he’d had a strong and beautiful pureblood like Sasha to romp around with in the woods. At least Wolfrik didn’t look at her like she was nothing more than a potential breeder. If he took her, it would be to fulfill his own selfish needs. Kallie wasn’t opposed to pleasure for pleasure’s sake. She’d love to see the look in Palmer’s eyes if he could see her now, naked under the “half-mad” wolf, as Francine had so callously called Wolfrik.
A feeling of recklessness came over her. Kallie had half a mind to roll over onto her stomach and get onto all fours. It was all the permission Wolfrik would need to make good on his thinly veiled threat.
He didn’t scare her.
This might be her last chance to enjoy her mating rights before heading into the unknown. It was the best final farewell to Wolf Hollow that Kallie could expect. But before she could turn over, Wolfrik’s shoulders relaxed and he sighed.
“You’re lucky I’m not in the mood.”
He pushed away from the ground—away from her—and got to his feet.
Without another word, Wolfrik took off at a brisk stride into the ferns and trees.
Kallie stared after him in shock.
That was it?
He was leaving her, naked, on the ground?
Not even Palmer had made her feel as humiliated as she did now.
Belittled. Scorned. Rejected.
Angry tears pooled at the corners of Kallie’s eyes.
Goodbye to Wolf Hollow and good riddance, she thought bitterly as she got to her feet and brushed dirt off her arms. Her ankle throbbed as she put weight on her bad foot. She hissed in discomfort and eased off. She should have stayed on the ground and shifted the moment Wolfrik walked away. The problem was, she couldn’t turn back into a wolf yet, not until she calmed down. Her body still yearned for fulfillment, and it made it difficult for her to focus on the shift.
Kallie limped to the nearest tree and rested a hand on the trunk. The sound of a snapping twig made her tense. Before she had a chance to panic, Wolfrik strode out of the forest, dressed in pants, his shirt wadded into a ball in his hands.
He walked up to Kallie and held out his top.
Fresh tears threatened to flood over her eyes.
Wolfrik hadn’t abandoned her. He’d gone to get his shirt and offer it to her.
The desire Kallie had felt earlier was replaced with something far more alarming. A feeling resembling affection crashed over her at Wolfrik’s unexpected kindness.
“Take it,” Wolfrik said, shaking his shirt at her.
“I can’t,” Kallie said. His shirt would be wasted on her once she shifted and left the hollow.
“I insist.”
Their eyes locked. Kallie was the first to look away. She snatched the shirt from Wolfrik, eager to cover herself up even though it was her emotions, and not her nudity, that left her feeling exposed.
Kallie pulled Wolfrik’s shirt over her head. It smelled like forest, river, and rugged male. She could always fold it up and leave it on the ground for Wolfrik to find after she left.
Kallie didn’t really want to leave home, and maybe she wouldn’t have to. Wolfrik had given her another idea.
If she could convince him to take her as his bedmate, Palmer would move on. The man was looking for a third mate to breed with. All Kallie needed to do was become the opposite—a wayward she-wolf who took care of the needs of their only pureblooded male until he selected a suitable mate. By the time that happened, Palmer wouldn’t want her anymore, especially not after she chose bending over for Wolfrik over breeding with him. That would buy her more time to work on developing a skill her pack could value. Tabor had been good to her when she needed healing. Perhaps he would be open to teaching her everything he knew about herbs and salves. But first she needed to shake off Palmer.
She’d have to tread carefully with Wolfrik. Kallie wasn’t about to throw herself at the wild wolf. He said he wasn’t in the mood tonight, but he’d also said he hadn’t been with a female in a long time. If she kept her eyes open for the right opportunity, maybe she could find a way to convince Wolfrik that even a disabled shifter could please him.
She tugged Wolfrik’s shirt over her head, which barely covered her backside.
“Thank you,” she said.
He nodded dismissively. “I’ll walk you back to the glade.”
Her body shivered with pleasure when Wolfrik walked beside her, close enough that his arm brushed hers every few steps. He didn’t speak, and Kallie was content to walk in silence and bask in the contentment of his presence. Something about him made her feel safe.
The forest trail skirted the Manama River and led back into the woods. In certain parts the trees made way to small meadows that offered stunning views of the eastern mountains, rising beyond the den. The stars shone bright in the clear sky. As Kallie looked out across the meadow, her spirit soared free for the first time since she’d been injured.
She came to a stop and was grateful when Wolfrik stayed beside her, as though in no more of a hurry than she to return to the glade.
Kallie sucked in a breath. “Is there any part of it you miss?” she asked. “Did you get a chance to roam free for a time with no one to answer to besides yourself?”
Wolfrik stiffened. His hands balled into fists before he answered in a low, resigned voice.
“I wouldn’t wish the outside world on anyone.” He turned and assessed her slowly, looking her up and down. “Don’t go getting any bad ideas into your head.”
“Like I said, I wanted some air.”
Wolfrik snorted. “Because air is so hard to come by living in the woods.”
Kallie shrugged. “It feels that way sometimes.”
Wolfrik leaned into her close enough for his breath to brush over her neck. Speaking of needing air . . . He sucked it right out of her lungs, but instead of wanting to flee, her body ached to feel those wolfish lips on hers.
Wolfrik’s gaze drifted down her body, hovering in the place where his shirt ended at her upper thighs. “Not enjoying the party?” he asked huskily.
“No,” Kallie said simply.
Wolfrik nodded and took a step back, giving her more room but leaving her cold.
“That old woman couldn’t predict the sunrise.” He grunted and looked into the dark forest.
“You had your fortune told?” Kallie’s mouth hung slightly ajar. That was an image she could hardly envision.
“She insisted. Probably the only entertainment she gets at her age.”
“Probably,” Kallie said. “She spoke to me briefly, and I’m inclined to agree with you.” She gathered her thick mass of wavy hair into her hands and offered him a smile, but it wasn’t her lips he was looking at, but her thighs as the shirt hiked up. Kallie dropped her arms and pressed them against her sides, weighing the shirt down.
Wolfrik’s lips puckered. They were full and held a devious slant. She imagined them on her breasts and between her legs, which made her flush from her cheeks to her chest as the images inside her head became more graphic.
Feeling reckless, she relaxed her arms and rubbed the hem of Wolfrik’s shirt between her fingers. His gaze zeroed in on the movement as though he were an eagle watching a mouse nibbling at a root on the ground—an extremely hungry eagle. Kallie’s heartbeat quickened.
The hoot of an owl caused them both to jerk and lift their heads to the tree line. As soon as they lowered their chins, Wolfrik’s eyes found Kallie’s in the dark. They were sharp and had an eerie glow about them like a predator’s, which is what he was from head to toe—every inch.
She shivered.
Wolfrik’s voice dipped low. “You’re playing with fire, Kallie.”
“I can handle the heat.”
Warmth. Light. Passion. Yes. She wanted him. She wanted to feel his fervor.
With an amused grin, Wolfrik gave a gentle shake of his head.
“I’m letting you off the hook tonight. You’ll come to your senses in the morning and remember to stay away from me.”
They walked the rest of the way to the glade in silence. It was oddly comfortable, maybe because Kallie was too busy holding a conversation inside her head to worry up any words between them.
Wolfrik’s warning felt more like a promise if she sought him out again. She wouldn’t have to swing her hips, bat her eyelashes, or waste precious time with futile flirting. Unlike Raider—back when they were patrol partners—Wolfrik wouldn’t hesitate to take what was offered right in front of his nose, and once he did, Palmer would be forced to back off.
A contented smile spread across Kallie’s lips. She hadn’t really wanted to leave her pack, and now she wouldn’t have to as long as she could get Wolfrik to take the bait—her.
Kallie was prepared to walk through fire to get what she wanted.
Oh, yes, she could handle the heat. There was fire in her yet. If only Wolfrik would step into the flames.