Wicked Cravings

CHAPTER THREE

Black wolf. Mom screaming. Growls. Blood. Black wolf. Dad shifting. More wolves. Teeth. Claws.

Mom screaming. Black wolf. Black wolf. Black wolf. Black wolf. Teeth. More wolves. Dad roaring.

Growls. Blood. Blood. Blood.

Jaime sprang upright in her bed, panting, shaking, and sweating. Her heartbeat was loud and pumping aggressively. Snippets of her dream sailed across her mind, and grief ripped through her.

Her wolf was also distressed by this trip-down-memory-lane dream and was vigorously attacking the cage Jaime had confined her to, growling and howling and body-slamming the walls until the bars began to give. Jaime doubled over and cried out as cramps assailed her body and an ache pounded through her head. She fought the change, fought it with every bit of strength she had, fought to quickly repair the cage. She sent calming images to her wolf, hoping to reassure the animal that they weren’t in danger anymore, that it was over.

It was minutes later before her wolf began to settle and the bars finally straightened. Nausea suddenly struck Jaime, and in an agony that was becoming too familiar, she rushed to the bathroom where she vomited violently into the toilet. Even when there was nothing left in her stomach, she was racked by dry heaves.

Nothing Jaime had ever done had been able to heal her wolf. Nothing. She was still as traumatized as she had been at just twelve, when she had witnessed her parents’ murder. Her wolf—

frightened, anxious, angry—had surfaced to protect her. It hadn’t been until three weeks later that Jaime had been able to shift back into her human form. Her wolf had been too distressed and defensive to ease back or understand that the attack was over.

That night had left her wolf damaged. She acted like an abused animal—she was distrustful, easily provoked, and quick to anger. Coexisting with such a prickly, unpredictable wolf weighed hard on Jaime. When she was angry, it fed her wolf’s temperamental streak. When she was anxious, it increased her wolf’s restlessness. Such strong emotions gave her wolf strength, and that strength could easily be used to surface in spite of Jaime’s protests.

Whenever Jaime had shifted, she’d done it alone, because when her wolf came in contact with another she wanted to do only one thing—attack. Her wolf thought she was protecting Jaime from a potential threat. So Jaime had always run alone in her wolf form and had never encountered a problem, until four years ago when she came across another wolf while on a run. The consequences had been bad enough that Jaime had seen no choice but to never let her wolf free again.

As such, she had formed a cage around her wolf. A cage that separated them so completely that Jaime’s emotions could no longer feed her wolf. A cage so impenetrable that it prevented her wolf from surfacing. Yeah that was unnatural, and yeah it meant she didn’t feel whole, but it was the only way to ensure that her wolf was constantly in the backseat.

She had known her wolf would fight her, had known she would want the freedom that any wild animal wanted, but Jaime hadn’t expected her to fight so hard and so relentlessly. And what was the worst thing that could happen if Jaime let down her guard and her wolf became so strong that she managed to get free again? She might never let Jaime come back. She could turn rogue, might lose her human half completely, and then she’d have to be killed.

Dante didn’t realize he was tapping his fingers impatiently on the table until Trick spoke.

“It’s not like you to be edgy. Or to pick at your breakfast. Or to keep looking at the door every minute or so.”

Dante’s eyes slammed on him. His voice was low. “I’m really not in the mood today, Trick.” Wisely sensing that pushing Dante would only earn him a black eye, Trick sighed and dropped his smirk. “I’ll take pity on you. She didn’t stay out the entire night. She was home by eleven thirty.”

“Who?” His casual act might have worked if his fingers hadn’t stopped drumming. Both his ego and his wolf had been having a crisis all night long, wondering just how far Pretty Boy would get with Jaime. He’d wanted to ask someone if she’d returned last night, but that would have been revealing too much. Apparently, his body language gave his thoughts away anyway. Great. Trick might resist pushing now, but he’d certainly tease Dante mercilessly about it later.

He scented her before he saw her; that caramel-and-honeysuckle scent made his wolf growl and the knot in Dante’s chest ease—a knot he hadn’t even known was there until then. But as he looked at her face, it wasn’t lust that shot through him. It was concern. She was pale, there were circles under her eyes, and her usual enthusiasm wasn’t there. Immediately Dante’s hackles were up and his wolf was pacing.

She didn’t look at him at all as she took a seat at the far end of the table near Gabe and Hope —who, he had noticed, spent a lot of time together. Now that Selma was gone and Hope no longer had someone trying to dominate her into working against the pack, Hope was a much more pleasant member.

Dante watched as surprise, concern, and then realization flashed on Gabe’s face as he took in Jaime’s pallor. He also noticed that Jaime widened her eyes slightly at her brother. Whatever was wrong with her, Gabe knew exactly what it was, and he was worried.

Glancing around the room, Dante noticed that the rest of the pack seemed confused by her appearance and the lack of her usual sparkle. So it was a family secret. Huh. Well it wouldn’t be a secret for much longer. Dante would make sure of that. He had no doubt that she wouldn’t want to tell him, but he was Beta; he was responsible for his wolves’ well-being, and that meant he had every intention of finding out what was wrong.

“Bad night?” Gabe quietly asked Jaime.

Knowing what he meant, Jaime nodded. “I’ve had worse.” Okay, that was a lie, but she didn’t want him worrying too much.

“You’ve never been able to lie to me, so why are you trying?” When she didn’t answer, he sighed, but he didn’t push her. He never pushed her, and she adored him for that. “Maybe you should take the day off work, catch up on your sleep.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“How long has it been since your wolf last tried to take over? A month?”

“Shh. Keep your voice down.”

He flushed, looking a little sheepish. “You know, you could tell them all the truth.”

“And risk being cast out? No thanks. Having no pack or territory…I’m pretty sure that would knock my wolf over the edge. But if I wasn’t convinced that you’d follow me instead of staying here, I’d chance it.”

“They might not cast you out, they might—”

“Gabe, you’ve seen how overprotective Trey is of Taryn. He will not want an unstable wolf in his pack, especially since his mom turned rogue and he had to kill her. No, the best thing for me to do is keep my wolf buried.” That meant that people couldn’t sense her wolf’s dominant vibes, but they simply thought she was submissive. “I’ll be fine. I can keep a handle on her.” Gabe gave her a gentle smile. “If you think I don’t know that you’re planning to run off once you think I’m properly settled here, you’re dumb, sis.”

Jaime would have denied it, but Gabe was right, she could never get a lie past him. Although she would continue fighting her wolf every step of the way, she had every intention of leaving the pack if her wolf was close to gaining the upper hand. She wouldn’t risk turning rogue and hurting her packmates, not ever.

Ignoring Gabe’s further attempts to talk her into staying at pack territory, she went to work as usual. Caring for the dogs was therapeutic, in a sense. Not only because she could relate to them in a way that she couldn’t to any of her own kind, but because caring for them was such an important job that it allowed her to forget her problems for a while. It allowed her to forget just how worried she was.

She hadn’t corrected Gabe’s assumption that it had been a month since the last time her wolf fought for supremacy. In truth, it had been just eighteen days. In the beginning, she had been able to go without such an incident for up to nine months at a time. But her wolf had gotten stronger and stronger —most likely fueled by her anger at being confined. Now it had become a battle of wills between them. A battle that Jaime had to win.

When it came to the end of her shift, Jaime sat with Ben for a while as she always did. As usual, it was a few minutes before he relaxed enough around her to lie on her lap. It took even more minutes before he finally fell asleep. Even asleep he was restless, and she wondered if he had nightmares just as she did, wondered if they were flashbacks to a time that had changed him on such a fundamental level that he was no longer the animal he once was.

“What’re you doing?” asked a confused voice.

Oh, Dante had to come along when she stank of dog muck, didn’t he?

Jaime slowly raised her head, finding him standing there, looking as gorgeous as ever. Just like always, her wolf immediately stirred at his presence and his amazing scent. The ear protectors should have made him look at least a little stupid, but no. He arched an eyebrow, waiting for her answer.

“Ben always shakes like crazy when he’s nervous and anxious. I’m just trying to settle him a bit.”

Dante felt his brow arch even higher. “You’re sitting in a cage…because he’s nervous?”

“You’re watching me sitting in a cage…because, what?” For that matter, why was he even there at all? He’d never visited her at work before. He’d always purposely avoided her in general.

The sound of someone approaching snatched both their attention.

“Oh h-hi,” stammered Riley, staring at Dante with lust-filled eyes. Did she want Jaime to bitch slap her, was that it? Not that Jaime blamed her. Because of his size, females tended to have a conflicting reaction to him, feeling both intimidated and captivated. Who wouldn’t be intimidated by someone who looked as though nothing in the world could faze or scare him? Dante simply gave Riley a nod.

Carefully Jaime returned Ben to his little spot on the floor. When she turned back, it was to see that Dante was holding out his hand to her. She slipped her hand into his, and he helped her stand upright. “Thanks,” she uttered, wondering if he felt the surge of heat that she did when their hands touched. Going by his frown, probably not.

“I just wanted to ask if you were able to give Neo his shot?” asked Riley, referring to the Neapolitan mastiff that had recently arrived at the sanctuary. Blushing an unattractive beet-red color, she repeatedly glanced nervously at Dante.

“Yeah, he was fine.” Jaime locked Ben’s cage before placing the keys on the hook. “Pissed, but fine.”

“Great. That’s all, so I’ll, um, see you tomorrow, I guess.” With that, she scuttled away. No doubt her inner lioness was nervous around Dante, too.

“So, is there a problem or something?” Jaime asked him as they walked toward the exit, her body very much aware of him.

“I came to take you to lunch.” And interrogate the hell out of you, he wisely didn’t add.

Although he’d be lying if he said that he wouldn’t enjoy spending time with her.

Okay, that had been totally unexpected, in which case she couldn’t help feeling both suspicious and anxious. “Why?” He gave her one of his crooked grins that never failed to do interesting things to her body.

“That’s not usually the reaction I get when I offer to take a female to lunch.”

“Well, we both know you aren’t offering to take me on some kind of date. So what’s this really about?”

“I want to talk to you.”

Uh-oh. That did not sound good. “About…?” she prodded as they reached the exit. She took both sets of ear protectors and placed them on the shelf beside the doors.

“I’ll tell you when we get to the restaurant.” He opened the main door but held up his hand, gesturing for her to remain where she was.

Jaime almost laughed at the way he scanned his surroundings, checking for any signs of a threat. Very Beta behavior. Once he stepped aside, she headed to the main building. “I would have thought you were too busy for this.”

He was, but this was important. She was important. “I have to eat like everyone else.”

“Fine. I just need to go change and grab my backpack.” He gave her a short nod.

The entire time she washed and changed, she wondered how she could get out of this pickle.

Spending time with the guy she was trying to get over was counterproductive. It would be like a recovering alcoholic sitting in a bar. Also, she was a little nervous about whatever it was he wanted to discuss. Not that she thought he could break her. Jaime was used to keeping secrets; she’d been doing it for a long time. But she wasn’t feeling great today. The last thing she needed was an interrogation.

As she exited the building, Dante’s eyes perused her body and a devilish smile surfaced. He knew that he should wipe it off his face, but it didn’t seem to be going anywhere. She looked both surprised and confused, and may have been about to comment when they were both distracted by the sound of someone calling her name. Turning his head, he saw the guy from the diner jogging toward them. A low growl poured out of Dante. “Oh look, it’s your human,” he said with fake delight.

Jaime gave him a look that said “behave,” but she knew there was no getting Dante to do anything he didn’t want to. “Hi,” she said when Shawn was up close.

“Hi. Um, who’s your friend?” Shawn glanced nervously at him—which was understandable, since Dante was looking at him like he wanted to peel off his flesh like an onion.

“Yes, introduce us,” drawled Dante.

She had to resist releasing a cautioning growl as Dante entered her personal space like he had every right to. “Dante, this is Shawn. Shawn, this is my Beta.” They exchanged stiff nods. To Shawn’s credit, he tried not to falter under Dante’s unblinking stare. He tried.

Finally, Shawn returned his attention to her. “I wanted to check if we’re still on for tonight.” They’d agreed to meet up at one of the local bars. “Yeah, sure.” Another low growl from Dante, who was suddenly even closer. She gave him a reproachful elbow-nudge, but the big lug didn’t even seem to feel it.

“Great. Oh and—”

“This conversation will have to wait,” interrupted Dante, knowing that if he didn’t move away from Pretty Boy soon, it was highly likely that he’d punch him. Not that it would be so bad, but he was quite sure that Jaime wouldn’t like him bringing trouble to her place of work. “We don’t want to be late for lunch, do we, Jaime?” He smirked at Pretty Boy, ignoring the voice in his head that told him his reaction was a little irrational. He didn’t want Jaime dating a human and risking the trouble that came with it. Okay, so he didn’t want her dating anyone. Or, more accurately, his ego didn’t. But that wasn’t the point.

Shawn cleared his throat. “I, um, I guess I’ll see you later.” Jaime waited until Shawn was out of hearing distance before speaking. “You know, there’s really no need to bully him.”

Dante shackled her wrist with his hand. “Come on.” Ignoring the sizzle of heat that traveled up his arm, he led her to his SUV and opened the passenger door.

“What about my car? I can’t just leave it here.”

Dante snorted. “That is not a car. That is an accident waiting to happen. There is no chance I’m letting you drive that. Give me your keys, and I’ll have Ryan pick it up later. Once it’s in a better condition, you can have it back.” He hated the idea of her driving that rusty old thing.

Immediately Jaime’s hackles were up. Even her wolf didn’t like the orders, despite being such a huge fan of Dante’s. “There’s nothing wrong with my car. I’ll drive it and follow—”

“No, you will not put yourself in danger. Give me your keys, and I’ll have Ryan pick it up later,” he repeated, making it an order this time.

The fucking shit-stain. No woman, submissive or not, would appreciate being spoken to like that, but a submissive female would follow an order from her Beta when it was related to her safety.

So, gritting her teeth, Jaime dug her hand into her bag, took out her keys, handed them over, and then hopped into the SUV without a word.

Inside her head, she cursed him repeatedly as indignation surged through her. Not only because of his high-handed behavior, but because she didn’t want to be in such close proximity with someone her body reacted to as if it thought it belonged to him. “So where are we going?” she asked when he reversed out of the parking space.

“The Steakhouse. Okay with you?”

“Fine,” she grumbled. The cocky jerk seemed to find her mood amusing. “What is it you want to talk about anyway?”

“Like I said before, we’ll talk at the restaurant.” He wanted to be looking at her when he quizzed her. Wanted to be able to observe her posture and see right into those mischievous eyes while he tried to solve her secret.

Earlier, as he’d been pondering Jaime’s current state, he’d realized that this hadn’t been the first time he had seen her looking like that. Although on the outside she always seemed strong, bright, and lively, there was an undercurrent of melancholy about her. Some days she seemed…tired. Not physically, but mentally, as if there was something weighing hard on her that ate at her natural enthusiasm. He didn’t like it, and neither did his wolf.

He had tried asking Gabe about it, but the male had played dumb. Dante hadn’t been surprised, and he didn’t blame Gabe—his loyalty to his older sister was admirable. That had left Dante only one option: he’d have to go straight to the source. He was determined to solve the mystery that was Jaime Farrow.

Twenty minutes later, he pulled up outside the restaurant. “Wait, I’ll get the door for you.” She gave him a look that said she could do it herself. “I know, but I want to do it, so wait.” When he opened the passenger door, he took her hand and helped her slide from the SUV. Rather than release her, he kept her hand in his as he led her inside the restaurant. He probably should have released her purely for the reason that he liked touching her. Liked it a little too much. He’d give himself a hard time about it later.

He wasn’t oblivious to the number of eyes that tracked her as she followed the waitress to their table. He couldn’t blame the guys, especially since she was sexy as hell in those jeans that looked as though they’d been painted on. Still, he shot them glares that had them quickly averting their eyes. His wolf settled a little, satisfied that they had been warned off.

As she sat in the seat opposite Dante, Jaime barely refrained from snarling at the waitress for ogling him like she wasn’t even there—even though she wished she wasn’t. Her body was already heating at the close contact with him, and she just hoped to God that he didn’t sense it. As they placed their orders, he didn’t return the waitress’s flirtatious smile or give her any kind of encouragement.

That earned him some points. He earned even more points for not paying any attention to the waitress when she accidentally-on-purpose dropped her pen, offering him a view of her ass. Instead, he looked only at Jaime.

“So,” he finally began after a minute of silence, “how are things going with you and that damn human?”

Oh this was getting tedious. “Fine. Although it would be better if you’d lay off.”

“I’m looking out for you—it’s my job.”

It hurt that that was all she was to him—a duty. “I’ve told you once before, what happens between Shawn and me is really none of your business.”

Those words made his blood boil, though he wasn’t sure why. His wolf reacted just as strongly. “Don’t ever say that to me, Jaime. Don’t,” he rumbled.

“Then back off and give me some space. I’m serious, Dante, if you don’t stop butting in, I’m gonna…I’m gonna…” Damn, she’d nearly threatened to kick his ass—something no submissive wolf would ever do.

He smiled crookedly. “You’re going to what?”

“I’m going to sulk.”

He chuckled but quickly sobered as he said, “You look kind of stressed out today. Care to tell me why that is?”

“I’m just having an off day,” she said with a shrug.

Her shrug involuntarily drew Dante’s gaze to those breasts that he’d been fantasizing over since she joined the pack. Damn, her nipples were hard. His entire body clenched at the sight of them poking slightly through her aqua-blue T-shirt. It was a struggle to tear his eyes away. “Why?” She was looking down at the table, doodling circles on the mahogany wood and worrying her lower lip. “I didn’t have a great sleep last night, that’s all.” He had been interrogating people long enough to know when someone was lying to him. He cupped her chin and raised her head so that he could seize her gaze. He didn’t drop his hand as he probably should’ve. “I told you yesterday that if there was anything wrong, you should come to me.”

“And I should come to you about sleep deprivation?”

“There’s more to it than that, Jaime.”

She lounged back into her seat, moving out of his hold before she did something dumb, like lick his hand to find out if he tasted as good as he smelled. “I can assure you, there isn’t.”

“Why am I not convinced?”

“Because you’re paranoid from all the crack pipes?”

He leaned forward, still holding her gaze. “Tell me.”

“Look, even if there was anything to tell, I’m not the kind of person who likes to share, okay.” Like him, he mused. That should have been enough for him to drop it, but he couldn’t. Even if he’d wanted to, his protective instincts wouldn’t have let him—not when it came to Jaime. Even when she was a cutely plump, annoying little kid who’d followed him around, he’d been protective of her; seeing her being constantly targeted by bullies had reminded him of exactly what he was forced to deal with at home with his brothers. “If you don’t tell me what the problem is, I can’t help.”

“I don’t want your help.”

“Well you’re getting it, baby.”

That endearment shouldn’t have made something clench low in her stomach, but it did. “Come on, Dante, you must know the drill by now. You pester me, and I ignore you.” His mouth curved into a grin. “You really think I’ll be put off that easily? Oh, Jaime, Jaime, Jaime. What you have to understand is that I am vigilant in protecting my wolves. If I think one of them needs protecting—even from themselves—then I’ll see to that. It’s what I do and it’s who I am.

You can lie to me as much as you want, but I’ll know, and I’ll just keep on asking until you talk.” She put her hand over her heart. “Wow, I almost gave a fuck.” His grin widened. “You are one stubborn little shit.”

“Not stubborn, just determined.” The waitress returned then with their drinks, once again eyeing Dante like he was a snack. Again, he paid her no attention, which Jaime quite liked.

“No, you’re stubborn,” he insisted when the waitress was gone. “But guess what? I’m more stubborn. Now, tell me what’s got you so stressed.” When she said nothing, he pressed. “Jaime.” Just like yesterday, the pull in his voice to answer him, to give him what he wanted, sent pleasant tingles down her spine. There was that dominance and assertiveness that had females flocking around him. As much as she wished it wasn’t a turn-on, it damn well was. She liked dominance in a male as long as they understood and accepted that she had a rebellious streak a mile long. She imagined that Dante would know just how to handle it in the bedroom. Quickly she shut the door on that thought.

“Tell me.”

“Why?”

“You’re upset. I don’t like it. I want to fix it.” He wanted to see her bright and lively again, wanted whatever weight she was carrying gone from her shoulders.

“I’ve just had a rough day. People have them all the time, you know.”

“Maybe if you went on a run later it would help. I noticed you didn’t go on the pack run. Your wolf has to be going crazy.”

Crazy? Well, yeah, she was definitely that. Had been for a while. “Maybe I will later.” Without thought, he reached out and wound a strand of her hair around his finger like he’d often imagined doing. “So soft.” The smell of her vanilla shampoo tickled his senses. “I like your hair long. You used to always have it short.”

“Thanks,” mumbled Jaime, a little thrown. Uncomfortable by the intensity in his gaze, she looked away, casually scanning the restaurant. She almost growled as her attention fell upon a particular female—a female who was glaring at her with utter hatred in her eyes as Dante fiddled with her hair. “Well, well, well, look who’s here.”

Following her gaze, Dante growled. Glory. He was tempted to confront her—not harm her, he would never harm a female. But he was interested in ensuring that she understood just how pissed he was.

“Don’t,” said Jaime gently, earning his attention. “All you’ll gain from it is losing our pack’s alliance with Nick. Let him deal with her.” In truth, Jaime wasn’t convinced that Nick would be able to do much. The fact was that Glory was a law unto herself.

Jaime wasn’t a person who looked down on others, but with Glory it was impossible not to.

The girl was kind of like a doorknob—everyone got a turn. That, combined with her penchant for spreading false gossip and her love of stealing other people’s boyfriends, made for a very toxic person.

“How come you never did that whole ‘I told you so’?” She had told him so, had warned him that Glory was poisonous and he’d do better to avoid her. His own instincts had told him that, too.

But he’d been so hot and hard for the female sitting opposite him, and he’d needed a reprieve. Glory had happened to be there when he most needed it.

“I figure you’ve learned your lesson without me rubbing salt in the wound. Besides, it wasn’t a surprise that you didn’t listen. You’ve always thought with your dick.”

“Is that right?”

“Yes, it is.”

“In that case, do you wanna blow my mind?”

Jaime smiled. “You got that from Dominic, didn’t you?”

“Maybe.” He laughed.

That gruff laugh was like a caress. God, how pitiful was she to be lusting after someone who didn’t want her! Maybe she could have gotten past it if it wasn’t more like a craving than a lusting. It reminded her of that feeling she got when she was unbelievably hungry and all she could think about eating was chocolate; that always made no sense to her, as it wasn’t like chocolate would ease the hunger or was good for her, and yet still she couldn’t stop thinking about it. Only instead of the hunger being in her belly, it was somewhere much lower, and instead of chocolate, it was Dante.

Thankfully, he seemed to accept that she wasn’t going to answer his questions and simply drove her back to pack territory. Or, at least, he seemed to accept it for now. No doubt he’d do as he said and pester her. While she was confident that she wouldn’t let anything slip, she still couldn’t help but worry that he would catch her at an extremely weak moment—like when she was so damn aroused that he’d be able to smell it and all she’d be able to think about was jumping on him. Her objective would have to be to spend as little time with him as possible, she decided. That and address her hungry libido this weekend before she broke down and assaulted him.

After three days of nothing more than polite smiles and having Jaime expertly avoid his company and questions, Dante was at a point where he wanted nothing more than to strap Jaime to a chair and torture her secret out of her. He could liken his experiences with Jaime to the act of holding a fish—it was smaller and weaker and therefore should be easy to grab and restrain, but it had a way of slipping out of his grip and going on its merry way.

Whereas in the beginning his motive to uncover her secret had been concern, the whole thing was now more of an obsession. It hadn’t been long before his frustrations had overridden his males-shouldn’t-intimidate-females ethic. And what had she done in response when he demanded that she tell him? Patted him on the head and sang, “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?” The female was killing him.

Her attempts to avoid him were helped along by how demanding his job was. Still, each afternoon over the past three days he’d turned up at the dog sanctuary to take her to lunch. Each time she had avoided him. The first day he had arrived to find out that she had left early and gone to lunch with Pretty Boy. The second day she had eaten an hour before and was working the afternoon to cover someone else’s shift. Today she had arranged to go for lunch with her female coworkers for one of their birthdays. What could he say to that? It was only later that he wondered whether it truly had been anyone’s birthday. Taking into account Jaime’s sly streak, probably not.

His patience was wearing thin. Too damn thin. Making it worse, he had to watch Dominic flirt like crazy with her all the time. He knew they were just playing and that nothing would come of it, but it pissed off his battered ego just the same. Marcus had picked up on how annoying Dante found it, and his response had been to begin flirting with Jaime, too. And Marcus was good at flirting. He could make even the mated females blush. Jaime was unfortunately no exception. Although she didn’t give Marcus any encouragement, she didn’t dis courage him either. Dante’s ego was having a real bad time with it—not to mention his wolf, who had serious issues with both Dominic and Marcus right now.

Increasing Dante’s agitation, she was still driving that tin can of a car every day. Each morning he had instructed her not to take it, she had given him a “whatever you say” look, and then she’d gone and done what the hell she wanted to anyway. In short, there was simply no controlling her. As a person who was used to being obeyed and having his orders respected, Dante didn’t know how to deal with this female.

Likewise, he didn’t know how to deal with the raw cravings he was experiencing or the unfamiliar twinges of possessiveness and jealousy. Furthermore, he was beginning to find her intriguing on a nonsexual level. Dante didn’t do nonsexual levels. He was pissed with both himself and her about the whole thing. So when he saw her unlocking the tin can later that evening, something in him snapped. “Didn’t I tell you not to drive that thing?” Surprised, Jaime jumped, and slowly turned to face the pain in the ass stalking toward her. She sighed tiredly. “There’s nothing wrong with it.”

“I told you, it’s not safe,” he insisted, coming close. “It’ll be better if someone takes you wherever you’re going and picks you up afterward. In fact, I’ll do it myself.” He gestured to the SUV beside her car. “Come on. Where are you going?”

“It’s really not necessary.”

“Where are you going?”

Shit, that voice. It pulled at her, demanded compliance. As usual, Jaime’s body immediately responded to the dominance that coated it—her pulse went into overdrive and her clit decided hey, what the hell, I will, too. Her need for him beat at her insides, at every defense she had against his raw masculinity. “I’m meeting up with Shawn.” She almost jumped again at his growl. “Dante, you really do need to get over your problem with him.”

She was probably right, but Dante couldn’t. The thought of her with the human had anger ripping through him. Images of Pretty Boy kissing her, touching her, being inside her, were flicking around his head and threatening his legendary self-control—control which had been tested by this female too many times over the past few days.

Making it worse, his wolf was clawing at him, raging at the idea of her and Pretty Boy together. As far as his wolf was concerned, no one else had a right to touch her. Feeling the extent of his wolf’s possessiveness only infuriated Dante more. When it came to Jaime Farrow, he was no more in control of his wolf than he was of her. Currently his fingers were tingling with the need to touch her. He wanted to take that mouth, to plunder it with his tongue just as he wanted to plunder her body with his cock.

Shaking off those thoughts as best he could, Dante scrubbed a hand down his face and switched his focus back to their conversation. “You need to break it off with him.” She sighed. “This is getting real old and real boring.”

“You can do better than a human anyway.”

“For God’s sake, will you just let it go!”

“You can’t tell me he satisfies you, Jaime. A human can’t give you what you need.”

“He satisfies me just fine. Not that it’s any of your business!” Suddenly everything seemed deadly quiet.

Again, those words did something to him and his wolf. Dante stepped closer and arched a brow. “What was that?” His tone dared her to repeat it.

She should have felt claustrophobic having his big build towering over her, but it strangely sent her horniness level rocketing, which made her even more pissed off. “It’s. None. Of. Your.

Business.”

That was when Dante lost all control.

Jaime gasped as strong hands threaded through her hair and a demanding mouth was suddenly taking hers. Dante ate at it, possessed it, and devastated it. She groaned into his mouth, and he swallowed it before releasing a groan of his own. The kiss quickly became so hungry and carnal it was animalistic: lips smacking, tongues twining, teeth biting.

She grunted as suddenly her back met the SUV. Then her hands were being held above her head by one of his, and she struggled against his strong, possessive grip. He growled warningly into her mouth and dug his hips into hers, pinning her lower body still. She got the message; he’d let her go when he was ready, not before.

Inserting his thigh between her legs, Dante used his free hand to cup her ass—and what a luscious ass it was—and make her ride his thigh, grinding her clit against it. Moaning into his mouth, she didn’t fight him as he rocked her hips. He loved how responsive she was, how he was controlling every single movement she made. A growl of masculine satisfaction rumbled out of him and into that plush mouth.

He’d wanted this mouth, been obsessed with it, since the second she appeared on pack territory a few months ago. He’d wanted to taste it and bite it and leave prints from his teeth on it.

Right now, what he most wanted was to leave a print of himself on Jaime; he wanted to be the one she thought of when she needed to come. If lust hadn’t been blurring his thoughts, he might have questioned his motivation. But this second, he was preoccupied by the need to feel, hear, and watch her come.

Any other time Jaime might have been happy to let him overwhelm her mouth and body like she’d always wanted him to…but it was all wrong. There was anger in the way he was kissing her and touching her. He was punishing her for what she’d said, for daring to defy him.

Her wolf, too, could sense his anger and suddenly saw him as a threat. She charged at her confines, battling to surface. But the effort to fight was as hopeless for her wolf as it was for Jaime.

While raw, primal lust was crushing her defenses, Jaime could do no more than feel as he completely took her over. She sucked his tongue into her mouth, and a growl of approval rumbled its way up his chest, making her already-beaded nipples tighten even more. The friction to her clit was driving her insane, keeping her climax just out of reach.

In an urgent movement, Dante tore open the buttons of her jeans, and his hand dove inside her panties, cupping her. He growled at how wet she was, at how wet she was for him. Without any preamble, he sank two fingers inside her. So tight and hot. With every hard thrust, he sought out her sweet spot, making her squirm and buck, determined to show her just what she was missing by settling for a human. Determined to show her that Pretty Boy could never give her what she needed.

Determined to make her come harder than Pretty Boy ever had.

His wolf was urging him on, wanting more, wanting something that Dante might have ignored if feverish need and bubbling anger weren’t driving him. So when he sensed her orgasm was close, he tore his mouth from hers and ordered, “Come for me, Jaime. Right on my fingers.” Then he licked the crook of her neck and bit down hard. Satisfaction filled both him and his wolf as her pussy clamped and rippled around his fingers and she came with a loud, husky cry.

It took at least ten seconds for Jaime to collect her thoughts. When she did, rage like she’d never before experienced shot through her. She’d just had one of the best orgasms of her life from a guy who didn’t even want her—the bastard had not only used her lust for him against her to punish her for rebelling, he’d done something worse. He fucking bit me!

Dante forced himself to withdraw his fingers, but he couldn’t quite move away from her, couldn’t quite remember why he shouldn’t be doing this. He was thinking of dropping to his knees and tasting her when he suddenly found himself flat on his back on the ground and the breath gushed out of him. More shocking than that, a loud growl was coming from the female who was sneering down at him, her eyes flashing wolf. Even more shocking, dominant vibes were coming off her in waves, smothering him. What. The. Fuck?

“You marked me, you son of a bitch! Maybe you didn’t hear me before, Popeye, but I’m none of your goddamn business! Being my Beta doesn’t give you the right to mark me! I could have been your business, could have been yours to mark, but you don’t want me! Well someone else does, and if I want to fuck him, I goddamn motherfucking will!” With that, she got into her car and slammed the door shut on a gaping Dante. Jerk.