Primal Desires (8 page)

T
o save the world from Nazi werewolves,” Sofia murmured as she woke up from the long and complicated dream.

How did the subconscious come up with stuff like that? She chuckled and stretched out along the comfortably warm length of the man in the bed beside her.

The man in the bed beside her?

Wait a minute.

Her head rested on a bare shoulder, and an equally bare arm was wrapped protectively around her. When she opened her eyes she saw Jason Cage, and for a moment joy flooded through her.

Then she recalled that she'd gone to bed alone and sat bolt upright. “What the hell are you doing here?”

He opened one eye and grumbled, “Trying to sleep.”

She didn't remember him arriving in her room. She knew she hadn't answered a knock on the door and let him in. Yet, she had the impression of having welcomed him into her…

Into her what?

Sofia rubbed her temples. Her mind felt stretched, and different. There was a lot of jumbled-up information swimming around in there and—

“You'll have a migraine if you try to make your conscious mind straighten it all out.”

“Confusion seems to be turning into the normal state of things, and I don't like it,” she told him.

“I don't blame you. But let it go. Relax.” His deep voice was oh so soothing.

He sat up and began to knead her tense shoulders with his strong fingers. She couldn't help but close her eyes and lean back into the pressure.

“What am I going to do with you?” she asked. “I didn't ask you to be here. I don't know how you got here. I—”

“Don't want me to be anywhere else,” he finished for her.

His hands moved down to cup her breasts and her nipples went instantly hard against his palms. As desire pulsed through her, Sofia knew she couldn't argue with what he'd said.

Making love made more sense than the sorts of conversations they had, anyway.

She turned in his arms and drew his mouth down to hers. Her tongue explored and grazed across sharp canines. For a moment she tasted the metallic tang of her own blood, bringing her to the brink of orgasm. Then his hands on her took her over the edge.

• • •

He'd known he couldn't keep from making love to Sofia again, but he'd sworn that he'd keep from tasting her. That promise flew right out the window when he accidentally drew blood merely with a kiss. Her pleasure resonated through him. He'd never known a sharing of desire and fulfillment to match this. He needed more. To give her more, to take more.

I want you in every way. Want me. Need me.

Only you,
was her answer.

He tasted her all over then, a drop from each soft breast, from her warm, pulsing throat and each wrist, her belly and the inside of each thigh. His tongue worked magic, soothing and caressing each place where he marked her as his. She panted and writhed as orgasms burned through her blood, and he tasted them on his tongue.

• • •

What was the man doing to her? How could anything feel so good? She clutched at him and clawed and begged for more, though she didn't know how there could possibly
be
more sensation.

Then he came inside her and she rose to meet every hard, fast thrust. Orgasms rippled through her, but—

More!

In response to desperate need, she lifted her head and bit down hard on his shoulder until the taste of molten pleasure filled her.

Jason shouted as her teeth sank into his skin. His body stiffened, and as he came, Sofia went with him, the explosive force of pleasure taking them down into the dark together.

• • •

“You bit me,” he accused, and moaned. “I really wish you hadn't bitten me.”

Sofia became slowly aware of the voice that whispered in her ear and slowly processed what Jason had said. It took her a bit longer to assess her surroundings. Their arms and legs were all tangled together. Pleasant aches and aftershocks pulsed through her. She was sticky with sweat, and thoroughly happy.

She didn't remember many of the details of what they'd done, but that one, she did recall.

“You bit me first,” she defended herself.

“It's all right for me to—”

“You
bit
me!” She untangled herself from his embrace and sprang out of bed. She clapped a hand over a spot on her bare breast.

He sat up on his elbows and stared at her. “Yes?”

“You said that people became werewolves by being bit. Am I going to turn into a werewolf?”

“I'm not a werewolf.”

Relief flooded her for a moment.

Then he added, “I can't even turn you into a vampire. It doesn't work that way.”

She stared at him in shocked disbelief for a moment, then she threw back her head and laughed. “Oh, you had me going for a minute. I'd almost started to believe this werewolf stuff.” She looked at him and sternly shook a finger. “Let's not add vampires to your weird tales, okay?”

His expression turned guarded, and it took him a while to answer. “Okay.”

She became aware that a sexy naked man was in her bed, he was staring at her, and that she was just as naked as he was. How did this keep happening? It had to stop. Okay, he was great in bed, but the guy was crazy, and increasingly making her think she was. If she wanted to deal with crazy people, she could return to her relatives' desert lair.

She glanced at the clock on the bedside table, then edged toward the bathroom. “I would like you to leave now.”

He touched his shoulder, drawing her gaze to beautiful, bare skin. “You bit me.”

“I'm sorry.”

“I'm not.”

There was something very important going on here, important for
them,
but she wouldn't let curiosity get in the way of her sanity. There was no
them.

“Please leave, Jason. There's somewhere I have to be. Something I need to do.”

“You're going to go looking for Cathy. You need my help.”

He was wrong about her needing him. She couldn't afford to let herself need anyone.

“Please leave,” she repeated, and walked into the bathroom, locking the door behind her.

J
ason stood up and stretched and considered where to go from here. His lady had asked him to leave. Honoring her wishes would be the chivalrous thing to do.

“Screw that,” he muttered.

He heard the shower go on, and within moments her scent came to him on a warm current of air. He got up and went into the bathroom.

She spun around when he joined her in the shower, and he had to grab her around the waist to keep her from falling. Her eyes went wide and she opened her mouth, but he didn't give her time to speak.

“Meeting one's bondmate is supposed to be a joyous but fairly simple stage of life. It's supposed to go down like this: True lovers look into each other's eyes, recognize kindred souls, share blood and sex, and settle down to live happily ever after,” Jason informed the woman who had been born to be his.

“Say what?”

“The Prime involved shouldn't have to have obligations to the female's family that could keep her from him, but that's how our story goes.”

“Our story?”

He cupped her wet face in his hands. He wanted to kiss her, but he had too much to get off his chest first. “The female half of the bond shouldn't be so prickly and terrified of trusting anyone.”

“Are you talking about me?”

“I'm talking about us.”

“There isn't any—”

“Let me finish. When you bond with a Prime, you're supposed to instinctively recognize your true love—that would be me. I recognize you. And I think you recognize me.”

“But—”

“There sure as hell aren't supposed to be werewolves involved.”

“You're a nutjob,” she told him. “Please get out of this shower.”

Despite her words, he knew she wanted to believe him.

Her instincts just need a little kick-starting. Or maybe she and I need to concentrate on us, instead of her family's problems.

Except that her family's problems could easily turn into deep, dark problems for the supernatural world, and the wider mortal world as well. If there was a pack of feral werewolves out there, bodies were going to start turning up in growing numbers. It was going to take as many wolf tamers as they could find. Which meant he had to train Sofia as quickly as possible without letting romance get in the way.

“I shouldn't be talking like this,” he said.

“Like a crazy person?”

“You didn't think I was crazy last night. And I'm not talking about the sex,” he assured her. “Those weren't dreams. I was teaching you, sharing knowledge.”

A spike of fear ran through her. “You really were in my head?” Anger followed the fear. “How dare you?”

“Because you and I cannot let it happen again.”

“Let
what
happen again?” Her shout rose above the rushing water in the shower.

Jason reached around her to turn off the faucet. When she tried to dodge past him he picked her up and carried her back to the bed, even though they were both soaking wet. He held her close while she struggled futilely. When she started to scream, he stopped it with a kiss. She both responded and rebelled, her lips clinging to his while she still tried to strike at him. He rolled her onto her back and held her down until she stopped struggling, at least physically.

The only excuse he could give himself for his behavior was that she had asked for his help and she was going to get it, no matter how much she fought against it.

It's so much easier to deal with tigers than stubborn mortals.

Her mental reply was so profane that he threatened to wash her brain out with soap. The woman swore like a sailor.

I
was
a sailor.

For some reason this struck her as funny, and her amusement rippled through her and into him. The feeling was almost as delicious as lust, but he forced himself to ignore the urge to explore this connection any deeper. He already knew she was the right mate for him. Why delve deeper into the bond now when any hope of having a future together might be futile?

Do you want to help your cousin?
he asked.

You know I told you I do. I remember now, what happened in our dream. You taught me something dark.

How to harness the dark.

How did you—?

Lesson time again,
Jason interrupted.
Watch. Learn. Come play with me if you can.

• • •

Sofia knew a challenge when she heard one.

I don't play games,
she told him.

No?

She knew he was aware of the eagerness coursing through her that gave the lie to her words. It amused him, but not as much as it surprised her. She had never been interested in competition before encountering Jason. What was this man bringing out in her?

Are life and death stakes enough for you?
he asked.

Are there any other kind?
she replied.

Then come with me.

• • •

It was dark here in the forest, and cold. She looked up at a sky full of stars, and the huge full moon terrified her. She reached out and Jason's hand closed comfortingly around hers.

“This is not a good idea,” she said.

“I agree,” he answered.

“Then why go tonight,” Grigor asked, “when they're all moonchanged?”

“None of us are werefolk,” Jason explained. “It's easier for us to recognize them in wolf form.”

“It's going to be bloody,” Grigor complained.

Jason's eyes lit with anticipation and he gave a dangerous grin. His voice was a silky purr. “Oh, yes.”

Sofia had never been so turned on in her life.

They stood in woods at the top of a hill. The camp was in the center of the valley below. Wolves howled inside the fenced compound and stalked along the fence line. Soldiers stood at the gate and inside the watchtowers on the four corners of the site. The cleared ground surrounding the place was brightly lit by the moon. Anyone approaching would be an easy target.

“The beasts know we're here,” Grigor said. “But they can't tell the Germans.”

“The racket the wolves are making tells them something's up,” Sofia said. “I wonder if they're going to let the monsters loose to hunt us?”

“That would be fun,” Jason said. “For us, not the beasts,” he added when she gave him a skeptical look. “But the Germans won't risk letting their prize experimental weapons loose on the world until they're sure they can control them.”

“Those experimental weapons are people!” Sofia complained.

“Most of the time,” Grigor said.

“Let's go get them and see what we can do with them,” Jason said. “Wait here while I take out the guards.”

He gave her a swift kiss, then he was gone.

Despite the bright light, all she could make out was a blur of movement. Then she saw men go down and she knew they wouldn't be getting up again. Sofia's heart twisted at knowing Jason was a killer, but necessity kept her from dwelling on it.

A muffled scream came from one of the guard towers. Jason appeared at the tower opening as the sound died, and waved. She imagined that the shadows around his mouth were blood.

“Let's go,” Grigor said.

He loped down the hillside, and she followed.

Deadly danger lurked inside, but Sofia didn't hesitate. She kept repeating to herself that the beasts were people and they needed her help. Knowing this helped fight off the fear.

Until she saw the huge furred bodies, the snarling muzzles, and glowing eyes of the creatures she'd come to save. They surrounded her, trapping her between the fence and the wall of a building.

They didn't want to be saved. They wanted to feed.

“Oh, crap.”

You know how to do this,
she told herself as she was backed against a rough wooden wall. She saw the malevolence in their eyes. Hot breath steamed in the air; the stench of it blew across her skin and burned in her nostrils.

She wanted to scream, but knowing the beasts relished her fear kept her quiet.

Take power over them,
she remembered Jason telling her.
You have to be in control. Look them in the eye until you make them yield.

Since she couldn't flee, she had to fight. The beasts were mindless killing machines armed with fangs and claws and thick, heavy muscles. All she had was her mind, which Jason assured her was enough.

Believe in me,
his voice whispered from far away.
Believe in yourself.

With no other choice, and no other armor, Sofia glared around the circle of approaching monsters. Her heart hammered in her chest and her knees threatened to buckle, but she couldn't let any fear show. These creatures accepted only strength. She had to be stronger than they were, in her heart and in her soul.

She put all of her will into looking at the beasts, not just at them but into them. Madness batted at her senses, wildness as sharp as claws ripped at her sanity. She knew their lust to taste her flesh and blood and threw it back at them, shaped into defiance and scorn. Who were they to think they could kill her?

“I am alpha here!”

She said it aloud, and into the werewolves' perceptions as well.

One of the werewolves lay down and rolled onto its back. A second one sat on its haunches. But a third one, the largest and fiercest, growled and took a menacing step forward. Another rushed from the side to nip at her leg.

The pair of them distracted her enough to break the hold she had on the others.

When they rushed toward her as a pack, panic took over and all she could do was scream.