A Handful of Wolf (7 page)

Megan’s reappearance prevented any further conversation. She carried Sasha’s jacket and with a smile, handed it to him. It was tempting to lift it to his nose and sniff, but he stopped himself. His jacket was drenched in her scent and it smelled like heaven.

*

Megan didn’t care that her brothers seemed to hate Sasha on sight. She didn’t care that the van he drove looked as though its next stop would be the scrap heap, and now she’d thought about it, she didn’t even mind that he’d turned her down last night. He was here now and looking so edible she hoped he’d be the dessert course.

“Nice wheels,” she deadpanned.

He snorted with laughter. “Bessie is a workhorse and I borrowed her from a mate. I don’t think she’s ever been described as ‘nice wheels’.”

“Bessie?”

“You don’t name your car?” He sounded surprised, but flashed her a teasing grin as he maneuvered onto the highway. “Dion’s in a band, the BB’s. He won’t tell me who the real Bessie is, but I have my suspicions.”

“His girlfriend?”

Sasha peeked over his sunglasses at her. “A fortune teller that told him he’d make it big one day.”

Megan giggled. “Sure you don’t have any Irish in you? Sounds like you’ve got the gift of the gab.”

“You know how to hurt a guy.” He didn’t sound upset. “You hungry?” His wolfish smile flashed at her and she placed a hand on her stomach to calm the butterflies.

“For lunch?”

He made an odd noise, almost a growl and then reached out for her hand. Linking their fingers together, he rested them on his thigh and she blinked. Oh boy. She’d really bitten off more than she could chew. His hand was warm and slightly rough, the fingers long and nails short. Working on a construction site must be a grubby job, but he obviously kept himself clean. It was hard not to imagine his strong hands peeling away her clothes, sliding up her thighs, cupping her breasts. She squirmed in the seat.
Don’t be too easy
.

Drawing a quick breath, she took note of their route. North and away from the city. “Where are we going?”

“It’s a beautiful day. I thought we’d have a picnic.” He lifted her fingers to his mouth and dropped a casual kiss on the knuckles. Her heart skittered. “Do you like picnics, gorgeous wife-to-be?”

I’d like anything if you were there too.
“You had my friends guessing last night. I’m sure they thought you were serious.”

“Can’t have that.” Another kiss grazed her hand. Was it hot in here? She struggled to catch her breath. “What did they mean about your father? Something about publicity.” Another kiss that threatened to make her melt. “Is he a film star?”

“A politician.” It came out as a squeak. “He wants to be prime minister one day.”

“Ah. So dating a lowly construction worker might not be what he planned for you.”
Dating
? He wanted more than just one day with her? She was so on board with that idea. She almost missed his next words. “Are you still seeing the other guy?”

Other guy? Her brain caught up slowly. “You mean Phillip? The guy in the restaurant?” Sasha nodded, eyes fixed on the road ahead. “I dumped him at the dinner table. That’s why he chased after me.” Now that she had the power of coherent speech, her mouth was running into overdrive. “His parents know my dad and everyone seemed to assume that we’d hit it off together.”

“And did you?”

“If I did, I wouldn’t be here now. With you.”

* * * *

Sasha took her to a quiet grassy area by the side of a large curving inlet, a short drive from the city. The sea was quiet today and the sheltered water calm and still; the only noise was bird song and the ever-present cicadas rasping in the trees. He snagged Megan’s hand as they walked away from the van, and the action felt very comfortable. His wolf felt so chilled out, it was practically asleep. “Where do you fancy?”

She pointed to an area of dappled sunlight. “It’s too hot to sit in the sun.” She’d already taken off her sandals and they dangled from her free hand.

“Good choice.” He dug into his backpack, produced a thin red blanket and with a flourish, laid it on the grass. “That’s the seating taken care of. Now for the feast.” Funds were low, but he’d been able to buy some crusty bread rolls, fresh ham and sliced cheese. With ripe peaches for dessert, it made an easy meal and he set it out carefully.

He turned to see her staring at the blanket, a curious look on her face. “This is weird,” she murmured. “Too weird.”

Sasha looked back at the picnic. Nope, it looked fine to him. “I don’t understand. What’s wrong?”

She glanced at the shoes in her hand and then back at the blanket. “I dreamed about you last night.” Her words were soft and Sasha smiled inside. Fuck yeah, he remembered that dream too. He wished the cab had taken just a little longer to get to her house. Hang on, what did she just say?

“I was sitting on the blanket.
This
blanket. My shoes were on the grass.”
Huh
? She didn’t mean the dream about the club? He hastened to pay attention. “I don’t remember much more.” She hid a smile, her cheeks coloring as she looked at him. It seemed the quiet and demure Megan had hidden depths.

Sasha blew out a breath as he stared at her. God, he had to have her. And soon. He was half-hard just at her voice, but now thinking about her probably horny dream, his dick stiffened further. Thank heaven he wore loose fitting denims. He tried to ignore his hard-on and ask her a sensible question. “Do you, uh, have precognitive dreams often?”

She shrugged. “I have recurring dreams, but I’ve never had one that’s come true, not in so much detail.” Her free hand played with the ends of her hair and Sasha’s wolf whined. His beast needed to be closer, to touch her.
Soon
. He had another try at gathering his thoughts.
Food. Serve the food.

“My beautiful wife-to-be. Lunch is served.” As a final touch, he’d made some lemonade using his mother’s recipe, and decanted it into a plastic water bottle. He unwrapped two glass tumblers and carefully poured some for her to try.

She sipped it cautiously. “It’s delicious. Did you make it?” He topped up her glass.

“I did. I’m not a complete imbecile in the kitchen.”

“Unlike my brothers. They’re useless with anything domestic.”

Sasha filled a bread roll for Megan and presented it to her. “My mother wanted to make sure we’d be capable of looking after ourselves when we left home. I’m no chef, but I can cook basic stuff, so I don’t have to rely on takeaways.”

“Just you and your sister? How old is she?”

“Tammy’s twenty-four, same as me. We’re twins.”

“Oh.” Her eyebrows shot up. “Alex and Hugh are twins too. They’re twenty-seven, four years older than me.” She nibbled on the sandwich. “Hugh is engaged to Sherron and house hunting, while Alex is in a long-term relationship with a model who works abroad a lot. When Nic’s on a shoot, he comes back home.”

“If your mother is anything like mine, she loves having her kids home.”

Megan paused and her smile drooped for a second. “She’s my stepmum. My real mother left when I was a baby.” She gave a self-conscious laugh. “I don’t normally tell people. Dad married Clare when I was two, and brought us up, so she’s my mother in every way that counts.”

“I’m sorry.” He leaned over her where she sat on the blanket. “I wasn’t trying to pry.” He wanted to distract her. “Tell me about your recurring dream. What happens?”

Her gentle laugh turned his wolf into a lolling dog, basking in her pleasure. “It’s stupid. Promise you won’t laugh.”

“Scout’s honor.”

She stared deep into his eyes. “I dream about wolves. Surrounding me. Protecting me. I’m running through a forest and they’re all around me.” The hairs on the back of his neck stood up at her words.
She knew
. She sensed the vibe at the club, she was attracted to him. On a deep instinctual level, she somehow knew.

It blew his mind. His wolf urged him on, begging for a taste of her. As he stared, her tongue flicked across her lower lip and he could wait no longer.

Placing one hand on the back of her neck, tilting her for the perfect kiss, he brushed his lips across hers. Sweet heaven. There was that zing again, the fire running through his veins at her taste. Every cell in his body felt alive, bursting with energy. She made a soft noise in her throat and he dropped to a crouch and gathered her in his arms. Gentle turned to hungry in a heartbeat and Sasha had to fight to stay in control of his beast.

There was no doubt. Megan was his Mate.

Megan had a rule that she’d never have sex until the fourth date, at the earliest. A lot of guys never even made it to three dates, and of the ones that passed
that
test, she had another checklist before she’d allow them the next level of intimacy. Since Ryan, only Tim had made it that far, and he hadn’t stayed around for long. Sasha was breaking all her rules in one foul swoop. As their tongues dueled and she reveled in the taste of him, she tried to remember her checklist and then decided it didn’t matter.

He crouched there, his knees bracketing hers on the red blanket, hands cupped around her cheeks, and devoured her. The raw passion in his lips made it feel as though this was her first kiss, as though everyone else before had just been playing. She’d thought him delicious when he kissed her in the street, but that was just an appetizer for this. God. She couldn’t get enough of him.

His hair. She wanted to see if it was as silky as it looked. She pushed one hand into the thick dark softness and luxuriated in the texture. Her brain sparked little warnings, but it was easy to ignore them. Everything felt too right to be wrong. He brushed her lips with his thumb and she whimpered.
God
. Her breasts ached for his touch and as for her panties, she’d never been wet from just one kiss before.

Sasha pulled back slowly, his hands still around her face, thumb teasing the corner of her mouth. “I was wrong, I’m an idiot.”
What
? Her brain recognized the words but couldn’t make sense of them. Wrong to kiss her? “You wanted to come home with me and I said it wasn’t a good idea.”

Oh
. Warmth filled her chest and she couldn’t keep the smile from her face. “Sasha, can I come home with you tonight?”

“Fuck, yeah.” He grinned at her, dimples flashing, and she laughed. Playful now, she pushed at his chest, just enough to overbalance him. He fell backward, Megan tumbling with him to land on top, straddling his hips. The surprise on his face made her giggle.

“Hey,” she murmured, further speech deserting her. In this position, she could imagine all too easily how it would be to fuck him. Sex had been a disappointment up to now, but for the first time she could imagine herself enjoying it.
Wanting
it.

“Hey yourself,” he echoed softly. Blue eyes darkened to the richness of Lapis Lazuli and she stared, fascinated. She could lose herself in those eyes. Sasha licked his lips and then slowly slid his hands up her sides, stopping painfully close to her breasts. “If I wanted to,” he whispered, “I could flip you over easily. But I have to say, the view from here is amazing.”

*

He’d think about the enormity of the whole Mate thing later. For now, he wanted to savor the sheer delight of the moment. Megan kneeled over him, ripe for petting and he decided where to start. Her breasts. Soft, lush and tempting, they called to him and he cupped them gently. They could have been made to fit his hands.
Gorgeous
. Her nipples pushed against the stretchy fabric, greedy for attention and he lazily skated his thumbs across them. Megan’s breath hitched and he heard her heart rate speeding up, saw the pulse thumping in her throat. God, she was hot.

“Stretch your arms up, baby.” He brushed her nipples again and drew a whimper.

She swallowed. “Why?”

Another rasp to her hard little nubs. “Because I asked.” She complied and lifted both arms over her head, linking her fingers in a stretching position. As he thought, her breasts jiggled with the movement and her cleavage deepened. His mouth dried to the point where speech became impossible. Dear God. He had to get inside her soon. He ran one finger across the round neckline of her dress, stroking her heated flesh.

“Look at you.” His words were croaky, but she gazed down at herself and blushed, the color rising up from her throat. “I could stroke these all day.”

“I’d rather you stroked something else.” She ground herself against him, rubbing onto his painfully hard cock. He groaned, adoring the way she played with him. Wolves loved to play and Sasha was no exception. He allowed himself a moment to think about a lifetime of loving just one girl, and for the first time, was not scared witless.

“I want to touch you.” Megan unlinked her fingers and leaned forward to rest her palms on his chest. He wanted to feel her bare skin, but not here, not where another man could see her.
Mine
, growled his wolf, and he agreed. He was about to ask her if she had plans for the afternoon when she pressed a soft kiss on his lips. “Do I have to wait until tonight? I could go home with you now.”

Sasha had no intention of turning her down this time and after collecting all the uneaten remains of the picnic, they set off in the van, back to Wellington. Their hands were linked and again, rested on Sasha’s thigh as he drove. He told her about Dion’s band playing at Mighty Mike’s and she said she’d love to come and watch.

“I need to go home first though. Dad’s hosting a dinner party this evening for some Swiss investors and he’s asked me to be the hostess. My stepmother’s got another function.” Megan tapped out a rhythm on his thigh as she spoke. “It won’t go on all night. I should be able to get to the club for ten-ish.” Sasha glanced at the clock on the dashboard. It was almost two in the afternoon. They would have a few hours to themselves. A sharp pain zipped across his belly and he winced, but it was gone immediately. Megan noticed. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Probably something I ate.” He kissed her knuckles and nibbled on her fingertips.

“Want me to rub it better?” Her smile was too innocent and he groaned. They still had a ten-minute drive before they got to his place. If she carried on like this they’d never make it.