Hungry Like the Wolf Page 7

  Olivia turned to her just as the girl rushed forward, her hands clenched into tight, bony fists.

  Ducking the first punch, Olivia came up and shoved Vanessa away. She didn’t want to hurt the girl, even if she was defending herself. The color in the girl’s eyes looked like wrath unleashed in all her ferocious glory.

  Vanessa came at her again, clawing at her face. Olivia grabbed her wrists right before Vanessa’s long nails could rake her eyes out. The girl was strong as she inched forward. When the nails were half an inch away from her eye, Olivia brought up her knee and pounded the girl in the thigh. Vanessa only dropped her arms a little at the impact, but it was enough for Olivia to pull her arms out to the side and bring her head forward, smashing her forehead into Vanessa’s face.

  Olivia heard the impact as much as felt it. Vanessa howled and brought her hands up to her broken nose. Blood seeped from between her fingers.

  “Are we done, girl? I don’t want to really hurt you.”

  “Fuck you, mutt!” Vanessa shrieked as she rushed Olivia, again aiming for her face.

  Olivia stepped to the right and brought her knee up again, plowing it into Vanessa’s midsection. The girl doubled over with a hearty exhalation of air. As she bent over, Olivia kicked at her legs, not enough to break, but sufficient to bring her down. When she was lying on the ground moaning, Olivia stood over her.

  “Don’t get up. Whatever this is about, it’s not worth it.”

  “Garrick’s worth it,” Vanessa sputtered. “He’s worth every damn moment of pain. If you knew that, you would never have pushed him away.”

  “Hey, he rejected me first. So don’t get all righteous about Garrick Blackthorn. He’s an arrogant, selfish bastard, only looking out for himself.”

  “Liar!”

  She launched herself off the ground and at Olivia. Surprise caused hesitation, and Vanessa was able to bring her down to the floor. The girl clawed at Olivia’s neck and cheek. Blood seeped to the surface and trickled down Olivia’s flesh to spot the cold tile beneath her body.

  Olivia grabbed hold of the girl’s throat and squeezed. She could snap her neck with a twist of her wrist. But the girl was not a lethal threat, just a spurned woman with a jealous streak as green as the summer grass.

  As the bathroom door banged open, Olivia pushed back on the girl’s neck and sent her flying backwards. She landed in a heap against the tiled wall.

  Garrick rushed in, concern furrowing his chiseled face. He glanced at Vanessa, then at Olivia. He looked torn as to who to help first.

  Olivia rolled to her knees and got to her feet. “Help her. I don’t need it.”

  Garrick rushed to Vanessa’s side and inspected her injuries. She stared to sob the moment Garrick touched her face.

  “What happened?” he growled.

  Olivia walked to the mirror and inspected the deep scratches on her face and neck.

  “She came in here fists flying.”

  Garrick met her eyes in the mirror, nodded, and turned his attention back to Vanessa.

  The injuries she’d sustained were already starting to heal. No more blood dribbled, and a scab was already forming. Thank the moon for the super-rejuvenating powers of being inhuman.

  The bathroom door opened again, and Fisher strolled in. He grinned when he saw Vanessa on the floor, Garrick tending to her.

  “I always wondered what women do in here.”

  Olivia turned around and glared at him.

  He raised a well-plucked brow. “I take it we’re leaving?”

  Olivia wanted to rush him, claw out his eyes, and feed them to him like olives. His careless, impassive attitude revolted her. There was no way she could remain in his pack. Not without trying to kill him.

  She stormed toward him. “No, I’m leaving. I don’t give a fuck what you do.” When she reached the door, she glanced back at Garrick. “Get her some help.”

  Vanessa raised her head and glared at her. “I don’t need your sympathy.”

  “Well, you have it nonetheless.”

  Olivia went through the door, with Fisher close on her heels. There was a small crowd forming around the bathrooms.

  “Olivia.”

  She turned to him, her eyes flaring, her hands fisted tightly. “Don’t. You haven’t a compassionate bone in your body, have you?”

  “Compassion’s for the weak. You know that as well as I do.” He reached for her arm. She pulled away. “You and I are the same, Olivia. That’s why we make the perfect mated pair.”

  As Olivia searched his face, she wondered if it was true. Had she let her anger and quest for revenge turn her into a shallow and soulless coward like Fisher? Was she looking into a mirror when she looked at him? She closed her eyes on a weary sigh, not wanting the answer. She was still too vulnerable for the truth.

  “I’m going home, Fisher. Do not follow me. Do not call me. Actually, it would be best for everyone if you forgot I ever existed.”

  She turned and pushed her way through the hovering crowd. She needed to change her clothes and shower. Then she would sit down and decide what she was willing to live with. Could she set aside her need for revenge to stop the war she saw racing toward them all?

  Chapter Twelve

  When she heard the sound of heavy footfalls outside on her porch, Olivia slipped out of bed, pulled on her robe, and padded to the back door. She would slip outside and come up behind the fool stupid enough to invade her home.

  The night was still warm, but she shivered as she opened her back gate and walked around the house to the front. Waves of repressed anger flowed to her through the air. Familiar sensations made her body quiver in anticipation. Only one person could make her feel like that.

  She didn’t have time to turn as he grabbed her from behind and pushed her up against the cement wall of her house.

  “Have you come to avenge your pack?” she whispered, acutely aware of the huskiness of her voice.

  The solid feel of him pressed against her back sent delicious shivers up and down her spine. Her reaction to him would always be hormonal. The man brought out the animal in her ... literally.

  “I’ve come to claim something for my pack.” As he spoke against the side of her neck, his hot breath tickled her skin, and she quivered under the strong hold of his arms.

  “What?”

  “You.”

  “I’m not up for grabs.”

  “I don’t care. You’re mine. You always have been; you always will be.”

  Olivia could hear the restrained violence in his voice. He was holding himself back. Under the press of his arms, she felt his muscles quake. She enjoyed the fact that she affected him like this. He came close to losing control whenever he was near her.

  She could go on hating him, pushing him away, or she could claim him for her own and revel in his power, in the way he made her feel. Lost and confused. Hot and aroused.

  Pushing back, Olivia tried to turn around. He squeezed his arms tighter, forcing her flat against the wall.

  “You’re not going anywhere. I have you just the way I want you,” he growled.

  Without another word, Garrick flicked his tongue out and licked the side of her neck up to her ear. He sucked in her lobe, lolling his tongue over her sensitive skin.

  “Fuck, woman, you drive me insane.”

  “Insane enough to fuck Malina?”

  She felt him tense. She had no right to ask, no right to judge, but she couldn’t help the wriggling seed of doubt in her mind about his intentions.

  “I didn’t screw her. I threw her out before it could go that far.”

  She breathed a sigh of relief and dropped her forehead against the wall.

  “I don’t suppose you did that with Fisher?”

  She heard the hurt and anger in the question. He had a right to be infuriated while she stood here and judged him.

  “No.”

  “Did you do it to hurt me?”

  “In a way, I suppose.”

  “It worked.”
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  He leaned his head against hers as he moved his hands up her body and wrapped them around her waist, pulling her tightly against him. She closed her eyes and pushed back into him, wanting to feel his solid heat against her. It felt incredibly good to have him pressed so intimately against her. Why had she wasted so long in hating him, in pushing him away, when all she’d ever wanted was to be loved?

  “Why did you ... shift with him?”

  “Because then I could forget it wasn’t you.”

  He nuzzled his face into her neck and kissed her along the jaw line. “Oh, Liv, I was an idiot to push you away, thinking I could protect you from all of this.”

  “Doesn’t matter, Garrick. Nothing matters but right now.”

  She reached behind and placed her hands on his thighs. His muscles flinched under her touch. Biting her lip to stop the moan that wanted to escape, she moved her hands up toward his crotch. She could feel him grow hard, pressed rigidly into her back.

  Garrick moved his hands over her robe and quickly pulled the belt free and untied it. As the two sides fell apart, he slid his hands over her. She was completely naked under the soft terrycloth. Olivia groaned out loud as his hands streaked up to mold her breasts.

  Circling her nipples with his thumbs, he squeezed the fleshy globes, coaxing another moan from her lips. She leaned back into him, pushing her breasts forward, into his expert hands. He pulled and pinched her tight buds as he nibbled on the back of her neck.

  One hand continued to manipulate her breasts while the other streaked down to her sex. She parted her legs to give him access to her burning core. Her clit already ached. He slowly slid his fingers into her cleft to find her throbbing bud, rubbing it skillfully back and forth.

  Olivia moved with his hand. For every downstroke, she stroked up. Back and forth they went, until her legs quivered from the strain of building pleasure.

  “Faster,” she moaned.

  He chuckled into her ear, but fulfilled her demand. Increasing his pace, Garrick stroked her hard. As he rubbed at her clit, he continued to pinch and pull her nipples. Soon, Olivia could feel the hot ball of ecstasy ready to explode in her sex. Her thigh muscles tightened, and she closed her eyes and bit down on her lip.

  She exploded with an orgasm filled with heat and light. Starting within her sex, every muscle in her body quivered. White spots flashed behind her eyes until she thought she’d go blind. Her legs gave out, and she collapsed against Garrick, his hand still engulfed within her nether lips.

  “Ah, no, you don’t, woman. I’ve not had my turn.”

  Olivia laughed and turned to face him while he struggled to undo his jeans. She moved her hands up and helped him rid himself of his denim prison. Within seconds she’d wrapped her hand around the hard length of his cock.

  He groaned as she stroked him up and down, feeling every ridge and vein on his hard flesh.

  “I love how your cock feels, Garrick. I love it in my hand.”

  He nuzzled his mouth into her neck. She could feel and hear him clench his jaw, grinding his teeth in restraint. “Where else do you love it?” he groaned.

  “In my cunt. I love how you stretch me open and fill me up.”

  Garrick needed no more encouragement. He moved his hand up and around to grip the collar of her robe. Turning her to face the house again, he yanked the robe down her back and pulled it off her body. When she was completely naked, he pushed her forward, pressing on her back so her ass nestled against his groin.

  “Spread your legs.”

  The gruffness of his voice sent delicious shivers over her skin and between her legs. She liked his roughness. He demanded and was merciless in his pleasurable torments.

  Behind her, he held his cock and rubbed it up and down her wet slit. She could feel his swollen head pushing against her opening.

  “Wider. Spread wider.”

  She obeyed him, desperately wanting his cock inside her. As she parted her legs wider, she bent forward, arching her back like a cat.

  Braced against the wall, she let out a cry as he pushed into her. His cock was huge, engorged with blood and lust. She tried not to move as he inched his way into her sex.

  She wanted to push back, impale herself on his throbbing cock, but she restrained herself.

  After a few excruciating, blissful thrusts, he was completely sheathed inside her. She could feel every hard inch of him pulsating against her flesh. It felt as if they had fused to become one. One person, one heart, and one soul. As he started to ride her, she felt him press even deeper inside; she hoped they would never separate.

  Gulping in air, Garrick tried to still himself. The feel of her flesh moving against him, and the smell of her skin and sex wrapping around him, nearly sent him over the edge he was dangerously teetering on. Olivia. Even her name squeezed his heart. Finally, she was surrendering to him. Finally, the chase was over and he could claim his prize. Olivia. The one woman who could claim him body and soul.

  Beneath his palms, he could feel the blood rush through her. Moving his hands down her back, he took hold of her hips in a tight, digging grip. He wanted to ram into her, bury himself until he disappeared. Keeping his violence in check, he started to slowly slide inside her.

  In and out he pumped, enjoying the way she moaned and whimpered with each stroke. He wanted to hear her scream his name. He wanted to hear that her passion belonged to him.

  Increasing his tempo, he reached around and found her clit with his fingers. With each thrust of his cock, he pinched her swollen nub. Her breath came in quick, labored pants. She was close. He could tell by the way she clenched her thigh muscles.

  He could smell the fresh greenness of the grass under their feet. The sounds and scents of nature surrounded them. This was how he wanted her. Submersed in the odors of dirt and leaves and musk. Grabbing her around the waist, he pulled her to the ground, his cock still imbedded inside her.

  Lying on their sides, he nestled in tightly to her. He loved the feel of her skin against his. He could feel the quick rise and fall of her chest as he cupped one breast. His other hand nestled in between her legs, sliding up and down the length of her wet slit. As his fingers slipped down, he could feel his cock entering her. He kept his hand there as he pulled out and back in, enjoying the feel of her liquid silk on his skin.

  “Faster, harder,” she panted.

  Always willing to oblige, Garrick brought his fingers back up to her clit and pulled her closer into him. He pulled out quickly and slammed back into her. The slapping sound of flesh against flesh reverberated around them.

  Pulling out again, Garrick pulled her to him as he thrust, burying himself deep inside. She cried out as his fingers continued to rub at her clit. The muscles around his cock began to tighten, and her whole body stared to quiver. She was ready to come.

  Garrick increased his tempo, ramming into her repeatedly, one thrust after another until sweat soaked them both. An orgasm overpowered him, and he shut his eyes and rutted deeply inside her sex.

  She screamed his name as she came, and his name quickly turned into a howl. As his seed surged into her, they could hear the return howls from the surrounding trees. The sound was both beautiful and haunting. Unexpectedly, a sense of dread washed over him.

  Garrick wrapped himself around Olivia and buried his head against her neck, taking in her smells. He never wanted to be without her again.

  Eventually the tickle of the soft green grass on her nose stirred Olivia to her senses. Rolling over, she snuggled into the warmth and security of Garrick’s arms. Opening one eye, he grinned at her like a man much too satisfied with himself.

  “Mmm, I don’t think I ever want to move again,” he groaned as he nuzzled his face into her hair.

  “Not even for a run?”

  Both eyes blinked open. “A run?”

  Nodding, she grinned at him, knowing his need to burn off excess energy after sex.

  “Hell yeah.” Garrick pushed himself up to his knees. “Is there a park near here?”


  “Just up the road. Why do you think I picked this place?”

  As Olivia rose to a crouch, she watched him. In her dreams, he had looked just the same as he did now. Sweaty and slaked from lovemaking, but edgy, knowing he needed to shift to fully release his lust. This was something she had always wished for. Ever since she’d watched Garrick shift, the night she discovered that there really were werewolves, she had wanted to turn with him. Changing together, she thought, would be the most intimate thing they could do. There needed to be ultimate trust to shift together. In the moments between human shift and animal awareness, a person was exposed, defenseless as a newborn baby.

  As the first pangs of body-searing pain erupted in her spine, Olivia realized that she trusted Garrick completely, even with her most vulnerable part ... her heart.

  A few agonizing seconds later, they had both changed. Olivia shook her newly furred body, stretching out her back legs, then her front. Enthusiastically, Garrick sniffed at her. She kicked back at him when he nudged his nose under her tail. Yipping happily, he jumped around her, swatting at her with his large, padded paw.

  He was ready to run.

  The park was close, just down one block. Staying in the shadows, they ran to an open field and through the trees surrounding it. Smells rode through the night air and tickled Olivia’s nose. She could scent everything from motor oil leaking under a neighbor’s car, to the tart ammonia in a sandbox in the park.

  But the odor most predominant was Garrick. She sniffed deeper, pulling in his aroma. He smelled like smoke, and not from a cigarette, but from a campfire. Woodsy and wild. He smelled of the earth and of rainwater. Pure, unadulterated, wild and unpredictable nature.

  When they reached the park, Garrick turned around and woofed at her. Crouching down on his forepaws, he waited for her, his wolfish face almost grinning. She laughed, and it came out as a snort. He wanted to play. Chase was her favorite game.

  She leapt up in the air and landed on top of him. They rolled over each other, nipping at each other’s necks. Olivia got to her feet first and woofed. Tag, you’re it. She ran toward the trees, knowing he would follow.