Animal Attraction (3 page)

He nodded. “Well, it was definitely an animal attack. One of our local experts says it’s a large wolf, though I think it could just as likely be a bear.”

“Does this kind of thing happen often, then?”

The detective shrugged. “Not often, no. But it does happen occasionally. Unfortunately, those hikers were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

“But the attacks occurred in the same area, right?”

“The same general area, yes,” Newman said.

She was silent for a moment. “What would make an animal attack a person like that, do you think?”

Newman’s shoulders lifted in another shrug. “The animal could have been injured. Or the hikers could have provoked it in some way.”

“Those are the only reasons?” she persisted.

“They’re my guess, but I’m not an expert on the subject,” he said. “If you want some better insight into the behavior of our local wildlife, particularly wolves, then you might want to talk to Dr. Hunter McCall. He’s a zoology professor in the university’s wildlife biology department. We’ve been using him as a consultant on the case, and he’s very knowledgeable.”

She wrote the name down in her notebook. “I’ll do that. Thank you.”

Eliza had really hoped the detective would give her something she could base her story on, but he hadn’t told her anything that hadn’t already been in the local newspapers. She was seriously tempted to take Andy up on his suggestion to go back to the hotel and write the story up while watching a good pay-per-view movie.

Her conscience wouldn’t let her get off that easy, however. She’d go talk to this Dr. McCall first and see if he had anything interesting to say. Though she couldn’t imagine what some old, fuddy-duddy college professor would have to say that would be in the least bit interesting.

Chapter 3

Hunter swore under his breath as he realized he’d been staring down at the same essay paper for the past ten minutes. He was supposed to be grading the tests he’d given that afternoon in his animal behavior class, but he couldn’t seem to get his mind to focus on anything other than the dark-haired woman he’d met in the diner the night before. He couldn’t say what it was about her that fascinated him so much, but she had sneaked into his thoughts and wouldn’t go away.

It had been like that since he’d left the diner. He had gone home and stared unseeingly at the TV for a couple hours before trying to go to bed. But sleeping had been impossible. Every time he’d closed his eyes, all he’d seen was her. That long, dark hair, that lush, curvy body, those full, pouty lips. Even her scent had refused to fade away. Like her image, it seemed destined to be locked in his mind forever. Just the memory of how it had felt when their fingers had touched was enough to make him uncomfortably erect.

That had been the final straw. Finally giving up on ever falling asleep, he’d gotten up and gone out to the forest behind his house for a run. Changing into a wolf was always exhilarating, and the cool night air ruffling his fur as he’d loped for mile after mile through the woods had felt wonderful, but even in wolf form, he’d still found himself thinking more about her than what he was doing. Though he’d been physically exhausted by the time he’d gotten back to his house, he had been no more ready to sleep than before.

So, he’d spent the few remaining hours before dawn staring up at the darkened ceiling, fantasizing about making love to the dark-haired beauty from the diner. He’d had one erotic vision after the other—her on her hands and knees in front of him while he took her from behind; her on top, riding up and down on him for hours on end; him on top with her legs wrapped around him while he drove himself deep inside her. He never ended up falling asleep. When the alarm had gone off, he’d gotten up, taken a cold shower and headed to work.

Hunter shook his head as he stared down at the essay paper on his desk.
Oh, the hell with it.
He marked an “A” on the top of the paper and moved on to the next. But he didn’t pay any more attention to that one than he had the first.

He didn’t know what the hell was wrong with him. Was this some kind of bizarre were mating thing that his father had never told him about? Sure, he’d been attracted to other women before, but never like this. It was like his body had decided it wasn’t going to let him rest until he saw her again. Unfortunately, he didn’t think that was ever going to happen.

God, he’d been so stupid. He should have just said the hell with the bill and gone after her. She had been attracted to him; he had seen it in her eyes, smelled it on her skin. So, why had he let her get away? Because he was a moron, that’s why. Of course, if he had chased after her, he probably would have only embarrassed himself. What would he have said?
You smell better than any woman I’ve ever met. Want to come back to my place so I can hump your leg?
She would have looked at him like was some kind of pervert. He could just imagine her running to her car to get away from him.

A knock on the door suddenly interrupted his musings, and he looked up, his brow furrowing. While it wasn’t unusual for students to stop by to see him, they usually did so during his normal office hours.

“Come in,” he called.

At his words, the door opened, but instead of the visitor being one of his students, it was the beautiful, dark-haired woman from the diner.
Damn.
Maybe there was something to his brother’s theory about werewolves giving off pheromones that made them irresistible to the female portion of the population.

* * * *

Eliza blinked. She couldn’t believe it.
The hot guy from the diner is Dr. Hunter McCall? This gorgeous hunk of a man is a college professor?
Her gaze traveled over his chiseled features and broad shoulders. Damn, he was even more handsome than she’d remembered. One look at him and all she could think about was what it would be like to touch him again. Just the thought of it made her breathing quicken, and she had an almost uncontrollable urge to walk across the room and crawl right into his lap.

“May I help you?” he asked.

She felt her face color as she realized she’d been standing in the doorway staring at him like a ditz. Sheesh, he was really going to think she was an idiot. “Um, you’re Dr. McCall?”

“That’s me.” He gave her a half smile. “Were you expecting someone else?”

Actually, she had. “No… I mean yes… Well… It’s just that I thought you’d be…older.”

His gold eyes danced with amusement. “I see. Well, I hope you’re not disappointed.”

Disappointed? She couldn’t be more thrilled! “No, of course not!” she said quickly, and then hurried on, eager to change the subject before she embarrassed herself even more. What was she here for?
Oh yeah, the story.
“My name’s Eliza Bradley. I’m a reporter doing a story on the hikers who were killed, and Detective Newman suggested I talk to you. He said you’d be able to give me some insight as to why a wolf might have attacked them.”

The corner of his mouth edged up. “And here I was hoping you’d been so fascinated with me after we’d met at the diner last night that you’d spent the entire day tracking me down just so that you could see me again.”

Eliza let out an embarrassed little laugh. If she could have figured out a way to track him down, she would have. Right, like she’d ever be that bold.

Before she could say something suitably witty in reply, however, Hunter McCall continued. “So, are you with the
Miner
or the
Sun
?” he asked, referring to the local papers.

Though still deep and sexy, his voice had taken on a more professional note, which reminded Eliza again of the real reason she was there to see him. Closing the door behind her, she walked across his office to sit down in the chair beside his desk. Having already taken out her notebook before she’d gotten there, she opened it to a fresh page. Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to think about the story and not about how absolutely incredible he looked.

“Neither, actually. I’m with the
San Francisco Chronicle
,” she said, giving him the name of her old newspaper.

He looked surprised at that. “And they sent you all the way to Alaska to cover an animal attack? Was it a slow week for news in San Francisco?”

She gave him a small smile. “It seemed like it was newsworthy, I guess.”

He nodded. “So, what kind of information are you looking for?”

It was difficult to concentrate sitting this close to him, and it took her a moment to gather her thoughts. “The police seem to think that the hikers were attacked and killed by a wolf. Do you agree with that?” she asked, her pen poised above the notebook.

He gave her a shrug as he sat back in his chair. “I told them that was the most likely scenario. But I also told them that it might have been a bear. Their bite patterns are remarkably similar.”

“If it were a wolf,” she went on, “what would prompt the animal to attack humans?”

Hunter McCall was silent for a moment before answering. “Wolves only usually attack if they’re provoked or if they feel threatened in some way,” he said. “A female would attack to protect her pups. A male would attack to protect his pack. But usually they would have to be backed into a corner, because while they may be predators themselves, their natural instinct is still to run.”

Eliza frowned. “How do you back a wolf into a corner in the middle of the woods?”

He shrugged. “It’s impossible to say. One would have to think like a wolf to be able to answer that question.”

Well, that was no help. “The police reports said that the bite marks were extremely large. How big would a wolf have to be to have a bite that size?”

His brow furrowed. “It would have to be unusually large. Female wolves are usually about four to five-and-a-half feet in length. Males tend to be around six-and-a-half feet. The bite marks indicate it was a much bigger animal than that, perhaps over eight feet in length. Wolves that big aren’t seen very often, and never this close to a city.”

She nodded. “Assuming it is a wolf, though, would that mean he’s suddenly going to become a man-eater now that he’s attacked humans?”

The corner of the professor’s mouth edged up. “I think you’ve seen a few too many movies, Ms. Bradley. Aged and injured lions have been known to turn into man-eaters in Africa, but there has never been a case of that happening with a wolf. Besides, according to the police autopsies, the two hikers weren’t eaten, just mauled and killed.”

That didn’t sound any more pleasant to her. She chewed on her lower lip thoughtfully. “But if the wolf isn’t a man-eater, don’t you think it’s an odd coincidence that two hikers were attacked on two separate occasions? What’s the likelihood of both of them backing the same wolf into a corner?”

He frowned again. “That’s a good question. I’m afraid I really don’t have an answer to it, though. But I do agree that it’s very unusual behavior for a wolf.”

Eliza gazed down at her notebook and was startled to realize that she hadn’t written down anything at all. She’d been so mesmerized by his deep, sexy voice that she hadn’t even bothered.

Now that the interview was coming to a close, she found herself more interested in looking at him than worrying about her missing notes. She eyed those broad shoulders from beneath lowered lashes. For a college professor, he was really built. Maybe he went to the gym a lot. Suddenly, images of him all hot and sweaty from a vigorous workout flashed into her head. She had a mini-fantasy of walking up to him as he lay back on some piece of exercise equipment and draping herself all over him. Now that was a workout she wouldn’t mind getting.

Abruptly she realized that he had been talking the whole time she’d been fantasizing, and she hadn’t heard a single word of it. She’d just been staring at that scrumptious body of his. She really needed to get a grip on herself.

She closed her notebook and gave him a smile, hoping she hadn’t missed something important while she’d been fantasizing. “Thank you, Dr. McCall. Your insight has been very helpful.”

He flashed her a grin. “Any time. And please call me Hunter.”

She returned his smile with another one of her own. “Okay. Hunter, then,” she said, getting to her feet.

As Hunter stood, she couldn’t help but notice how tall he was. At five-eight, she was a little above average height for a woman, but even with the added inches from the chunky-heeled boots she was wearing, the top of her head didn’t quite reach his chin. His shoulders were so broad that she had to resist the almost uncontrollable urge to reach up and give them a squeeze. Just another thing the gorgeous professor had going for him.

Dropping her notebook and pen into her purse, she held out her hand. “It was nice meeting you.”

When Hunter took her hand in his, Eliza had to keep herself from letting out a little moan. If she had thought that what she’d felt last night had been her imagination, she was proven wrong now. As the warmth from his touch seeped into the palm of her hand, her heart began to beat faster and she felt a tingling between her legs. God, she was becoming aroused just from holding his hand.

As she gazed up into his incredible gold eyes, she saw her own arousal mirrored in their molten depths, and she realized that he had felt a connection, too. For one wild moment, she thought he was going to lean forward and kiss her, but instead, he roughly cleared his throat.

“Um, would you like to grab something to eat?” he asked.

“Eat?” she echoed in confusion.

The corner of his mouth edged up in a sexy smile. “Yeah, eat. As in dinner. It’s getting about that time, and I know this great place just outside of town that makes a fantastic steak.”

Eliza returned his smile. “Okay, sure. I’d love to.”

As she waited for Hunter to clean up his desk and put things away, Eliza called Andy and told him that her meeting with the professor was going to run later than she had expected.

“So, do you want to follow me?” Hunter asked when she’d hung up.

She tucked her hair behind her ear. “Actually my photographer dropped me off, but if you give me directions to the restaurant, I can take a cab and meet you there.”

He shook his head. “That’s not necessary. I’ll drive you, and then drop you off at your hotel afterward.”

That made perfect sense, of course, and Eliza wondered why she hadn’t thought of it. Maybe because she couldn’t seem to think straight around him. Dear God, if she was this affected by him in his office, what was it going to be like cooped up with him in a car?

Hunter’s SUV was parked in the faculty parking lot near the Arctic Health Building, and as they walked over to it, Eliza held the top of her leather coat closed against the chill wind swirling around them. While San Francisco wasn’t exactly known for its balmy springtime weather, it wasn’t anywhere nearly as cold as Fairbanks. Beside her, Hunter seemed unaffected by the frigid early evening air. He didn’t even have his coat buttoned! Then again, he did live there year-round, so he was probably used to it.

Once they were settled in his SUV and heading away from the campus, Eliza couldn’t contain her curiosity any longer. For some reason, she wanted to know everything there was to know about the ruggedly handsome Hunter McCall.