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“I’m not surprised. No one seems to, with the exception of a single reporter who wrote an article on the Wolfen years ago. Poor asshole. Mr. O’Rourke turned into some kind of freak, terrified to leave his house for fear the Wolfen will get him. He certainly wasn’t… happy when I asked him about my father, as if there was a burning secret he would take to the grave, but I could swear he recognized the picture I showed him.”
A reporter. I’d never heard there was an article written on the Wolfen. No wonder my father and the other elders had been so guarded over the years. Notoriety we didn’t need.
“You have a picture of your father?”
“On my phone.” She eyed me carefully before tugging the phone from her pocket, sliding her finger across the screen. “It’s a picture of a photograph so the quality sucks.”
I took the phone from her hand, zooming in on the man’s face. She was right, his features difficult to really see, but I was able to glean enough. “Not anyone I remember from the pack.”
“I could tell by the way Mr. O’Rourke acted that there is more to the story.”
While I couldn’t make sense of everything she was telling me, her frustration was palpable and very real. “Do you have reason to believe your father was a Wolfen?”
“I honestly don’t know, Stone. At this point, I’m terrified to find out, but I refuse to back down. I have to learn about him, if for no other reason than to let him go.”
“Then we will talk with the elders. Records are kept of every wolf.”
“The elders,” she whispered, rubbing her arm. “Then I look forward to meeting them. I know you feel the need to protect me, but I have a life. I need to determine what the hell this piece of paper means.”
“Do you honestly think that Chris Montenegro isn’t going to realize that you were involved in some way with the disturbance at his office?”
Huffing, she looked away. “You’re really going to keep me here.”
“Until I know your life is no longer in danger, absolutely. You disobeyed me, risking your life.”
“You don’t run mine.” Her defiance had returned.
“And you agreed to follow my command. You broke my trust.”
She snorted, shaking her head and backing away. “I lied. Okay? I knew if I didn’t that you would never leave. I’m sorry.”
“I risked exposure to the pack in order to keep you alive.”
Vanessa took a deep breath. “You didn’t have to save me. I didn’t ask you to do that.”
“Damn it, woman. You’re infuriating. I risked being banished from my people because I give a damn about you. Because I love you.” I was shocked at the admittance, the words lingering in the air.
She seemed taken aback, her entire face twisting. “You love me?”
I shook my head, my hunger increasing. “I have since the moment I laid eyes on you.”
Her features softened and she reached out, brushing her hand over mine. “I’ve loved you from that very moment as well.”
Love.
The word held an entirely different meaning for the Wolfen.
“That doesn’t erase the fact that you deserve to be punished.” Every raw emotion took over, my mind reeling from the thought that she could have been killed.
“Punished? No. Hell, no. You’re never going to do that again. While I appreciate what you did for me, I can’t surrender to these rules and regulations that you seem willing to abide by. I am human. I do have a life.” She turned sharply, taking purposeful steps toward the door.
I caught her easily, jerking her closer, forcing her to face me. “You will obey me.” I was torn between my desire for her and the rush of fear that wouldn’t leave, as if the LaRue wolf had taken the upper hand, prepared to make her his own.
That was never going to happen.
“You’re not my master.”
“That’s where you’re wrong.” I crushed my mouth over hers, yanking her against my chest. All the damning thoughts and anger I’d had rushed through me, the horrible notion I’d almost lost her cutting through me like a knife. I thrust my tongue inside, dominating hers as the passion erupted between us. I was a man on fire, one in desperate need and there was nothing anyone could do to stop me.
