Starr, Ellen - Wolf's Passion [The Joined] (Siren Publishing Ménage and More) (9 page)

I think I’m going crazy
. She shook her head, standing to walk back to the house. Dale stood a few feet away watching her. “You have a lover?” he asked. She detected curiosity in his voice.

“I do,” she confirmed.
Did he just read my mind?
First Wolf, now Dale. She wondered if Rafe could read her every thought as well.

“Will he be very upset when you come to live with us?” Dale looked at her with open curiosity.

At the sound of footsteps they both turned. Wolf ambled toward them, his straw cowboy hat pushed back on his head. He chewed on a match and smiled at them. “Has Dale been taking good care of you?”

Cora heard Wolf’s mental chuckle as clearly as if he laughed aloud. She raised her eyebrows at him. “Very good care,” she answered.

“Good, I expected he would.” Wolf slung his arm around Dale’s shoulders in a brotherly hug. He leaned closer, kissing Dale in a manner that was anything but brotherly. Cora’s breath caught at the mental image of them all in the bed she slept in with Wolf the night before.

She watched Wolf whispering something to Dale that made him blush. Dale glanced at her with a wicked grin, making her stomach clench. He loped off toward the barn before she could say anything.

Wolf stepped closer, never taking his eyes off his friend. “He’ll be back up to the house later.” Wolf turned his heated gaze on her. “Dale is more wolf than anything else.”

“What about you?” She crossed her arms over her chest, tilting her head to examine him. He was older than she first thought, in his late twenties maybe. She could see the fine lines at the corners of his eyes in the brilliant sunshine.

“It’s going to hurt Dale when you leave.” Wolf ignored her question, looking into her eyes.
And me
, she heard. His lips had not moved.

But not Rafe?
She could not help thinking about the older man who seemed to be in charge of the younger men in spite of the way they called Wolf their Alpha.

“Rafe could be Alpha any time he wanted to. He doesn’t want the responsibility.” Wolf reached out, brushing a strand of hair from her face. She shivered with need, excited by his touch. Her reaction convinced her she needed to leave. The sooner the better, before she got in too deep to walk away.

“I can’t stay. You know that.” Cora sighed, looking away from the pain in his eyes. She crossed her arms over her chest, a defensive move. It was already too late to protect her heart. He laid a hand on her shoulder. “Please. Don’t.” She flinched away.

“Cora.” Wolf’s voice held a note of pleading in it that took her breath away. She wished she could say the words he wanted to hear, but she couldn’t. It just wasn’t that simple. It would not be fair to Jean-Paul. She couldn’t throw away all they had together on a feeling, no matter how good the men involved were in bed.

“Where’s my car?” she asked, refusing to look at him. Her voice sounded thin even to her own ears, like she might cry any second.

“Up on the rim. Come on, I’ll take you.” He started toward a small boulder next to a tree. She followed, blinking away tears.

The trail was the same one they’d come down the night before. At the top she saw her car parked next to their battered old truck. Wolf stopped, turning to look at her. He took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. Cora stepped past him and opened the car door.

“Cora.” He reached for her, threading his fingers into her hair. His lips touched hers in a gentle kiss and then he pulled her closer. “Stay,” he whispered, his lips against her ear.

“I can’t...It’s all just…too fast.” Tears streamed down her face. He nodded, kissing her ear. She winced at the sharp pinprick of his teeth nipping her earlobe.

“I don’t like it, but I do understand.” He let her go, stepping back to look at her, his own eyes glistening with unshed tears.

Without a word, she got in her car. Her purse lay on the passenger seat. She looked at it for a few seconds. Right where she left it, as if it had not been touched. She took out her keys, starting the car before she looked up at Wolf for the last time. “I won’t tell anyone.”

His perfect Cupid’s bow lips curved upward into a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Doesn’t matter. Who would believe you anyway?”

She nodded, biting her bottom lip. “Wolf.”

“Follow the dirt road to the highway, turn right, don’t stop until you get to Dead Man. Dolores will think twice about following you there.” Wolf turned and walked toward the trail down into the canyon. By the time he reached the rim, he was running. Cora put the car into gear, driving down the dusty dirt road to the rest of her life.

Chapter Fourteen:

Back to Reality

Cora didn’t look back. Well, not much anyway. Leaving was something she had to do. As much as she wanted to, she could not stay in the canyon. There were no other cars on the highway. The desert looked lonely and more than a little bleak. Cora glanced down at the gas gauge to find the needle on full. She smiled to herself. Rafe must have filled it up when he retrieved her car from the convenience store. She was thankful for his thoughtfulness. Stopping out in the desert was not high on her list of things she wanted to do again. Cora sighed. The drive to the Dead Man dude ranch where she had booked her room would not take long. She’d be there before full dark. She was hungry, but stopping for food did not appeal to her at the moment. Better to keep driving. With a sigh she let her thoughts wander.
Werewolves
. She had thought the creatures to be some Hollywood fantasy. With a chuckle she shook her head. They
were
fantasy, just not the kind most people thought of. Wolf had to be one of the best lovers she could remember ever having besides Jean-Paul. Dale gave his Alpha a run for his money as well. Cora sighed. Too bad she could not have made love with Rafe before she left.

She thought of Jean-Paul waiting for her back in New Orleans. A pang of guilt made her bite her lip. He loved her. To take this any farther than it had already gone would bring disaster. A tiny shred of doubt began to eat at her. What if she truly was the no-good slut her family always said she was? What if Jean-Paul threw her out?

Cora forced these thoughts away. She made herself think of Jean-Paul’s words. “You have nothing to be ashamed of in sharing your body with those you are attracted to.” She hoped he remembered saying that to her. She hoped she knew him as well as she thought she did.

* * * *

Dale joined Wolf at the rim of the canyon. Together they watched Cora drive away. Wolf reached out, putting his arm around Dale’s shoulders. “Didn’t she like us?” Dale asked, soft spoken as always.

“I think she liked us too much. It scared her.” Wolf listened to the silence around them. He heard her thoughts like a faint buzz of hummingbird wings flitting from one flower to the next. They turned to go. Chores did not wait for hurting hearts or reluctant lovers. Halfway down the trail, a stench hit Wolf’s senses. Dale smelled it as well, his nose wrinkled in disgust. He turned to see Dolores walking down the trail behind them. His hackles rose. “You’re not welcome here,” he snarled, his teeth bared. Behind him, Dale growled softly.

“Really? I saw your little slut leaving. I’m your last chance to keep this place. Join me before I lose patience and withdraw the offer.” Dolores tilted her head, smiling, holding out her hand.

“No.” Wolf stated his refusal, as plainly direct as possible. Arguing with the woman never got anywhere.

“I’ll give you a week. Then I’ll send my Pack.” She turned, walking back up to the canyon rim as if she had nothing to fear from them. Dale snarled. He tried to move around Wolf. He caught Dale’s arm, stopping him. The temptation to let Dale rip Dolores apart was almost too much to resist. Wolf managed, though. The only result would be open war on them when the council found out. Letting her walk away gave them a week to sell the ranch and get out of there before her Pack came to kill them all. “Come on.” He tugged at Dale’s arm. Dale turned, wrapping his arms around Wolf. The younger man shook like a leaf in a high wind. Wolf rubbed his back. “Let’s go back to the house.”

“Rafe?” Dale’s tone was wistful.

“Rafe has gone to report the sheep to the council. It’s just us.” Wolf smiled at the way Dale’s eyes lit up.

Dale nodded, letting Wolf lead him down the trail toward their home. Cora
has
to come back, Wolf thought. His throat ached with unshed tears. He desperately needed to howl. Wolf held in his anguish. He did
not
want Dolores to know how desperate they were, how much they wanted to keep the only home they’d known. He thought about taking her offer, going to her, mating with her. It made him nauseous. He wasn’t sure he could do it. Maybe he could manage one night, to keep them together on the ranch. He suppressed a shudder, not liking the way his thoughts were running.

* * * *

The room at the dude ranch was a welcome end to a long, tense drive. Cora dropped her bags by the dresser, her purse on the night table, and herself onto the bed. With a deep sigh of pleasure, she let herself relax. The events of the night before seemed very far away from this bustling tourist resort. She caught herself thinking of his hands on her body. With a half-voiced curse she got up, heading for the bathroom. A hot shower followed by dinner would be just the thing. Then she would call Jean-Paul. Cora turned on the water then reached for the button on the jeans she wore. Suddenly she realized she still wore the clothes she had borrowed from Wolf and Dale. Swallowing hard, she undressed, ignoring her shaking hands. She folded the clothes, laying them on the vanity beside the sink. She had no address to send them back to, no plans to go back either. The hot water felt wonderful, soaking through her hair, running over her too sensitive skin. Every drop of the spray was like a lover’s touch, driving her higher until she shook with the need to come. Her hands had a mind of their own, slipping over her soapy skin in an imitation of the things Wolf did to her the night before. When her finger brushed over her throbbing clit, she shattered with a moan, calling out his name. Her face burned as she jerked her hands away from her body. What on earth had gotten into her? Jean-Paul was right. She never should have taken this trip alone. She needed him. But which him did she mean? She shied away from the implications, refusing to think about it. She would have to confront those dark thoughts, but not until she put a little more distance between the night with Wolf and her emotions.

Freshly showered, dressed in a soft silk wraparound dress, she put on a pair of gold sandals Jean-Paul liked. She needed dinner. That would make her feel better. She picked up her purse and headed for the restaurant.

The waiter smiled at her, his eyes going to the points of her hard nipples pushing against the silk of her dress. She smiled back, placing her order. He licked his lips. Cora resisted the urge to throw him down on the table and take him right there in the middle of the dinner crowd.
What did those Werewolves do to me
?
I have not felt this close to losing control since I met Jean-Paul
. When he left, she reached for her water glass. She took a sip. That call to Jean-Paul could not come too soon.

In her room again, she tossed her purse onto the chair by the window then threw herself onto the bed, reaching for the phone. It was after nine. Jean-Paul should be home. She dialed the number and listened impatiently to the phone in their house ringing.

“Hello?” Jean-Paul’s voice flowed through her like warm honey. She sighed.

“Hi, sweetheart. I miss you.” She smiled to herself, getting comfortable on the bed.

“Cora! You are all right? Where are you?” The worry in his tone surprised her. She sat up, swinging her legs to the floor.

“I’m fine. I’m in my room at the dude ranch. What’s wrong?”

He gave a heavy, relieved sigh. “I tried to call you a dozen times last night. When you did not answer, I became worried. You have many messages on your voice mail,
mon amour
.” A pang of guilt hit her.

“I’m sorry, I had a little trouble.” She leaned back on the bed again.

“What kind of trouble?” His tone became wary.

“Nothing serious, a little car trouble” She wasn’t about to tell him of the Werewolf attack, not yet. “Some cowboys helped me out.”