Savage Sanctuary: A Dire Wolves Mission (The Devil's Dires Book 2) (7 page)

T
he bastard might have touched
her.

The scent of men on his mate’s skin—particularly the one who’d been taking in a show outside her window—worked Levi’s wolf into a frenzy. Thankfully, he wasn’t some young pup who couldn’t rein in his beast when needed. He had experience and skills, patience earned over hundreds of years. He could settle himself.

Most of the time.

It didn’t help that Amy, his
mate,
for fuck’s sake, was staring up at him with those wide eyes of hers. Jesus, she was so pretty. All tall and thick and sexy with curves for days. He wanted her all to himself, but that wasn’t possible yet. Not with everything else going on.

But he couldn’t resist completely. He growled and sniffed her again, pressing closer, feeling the warmth of her skin against his. He needed to pull himself away, to grab clothes instead of this ridiculous cloak. Loose fabric did nothing to hide the burgeoning problem that was his cock liking his mate a little too much. But it was hard. Both the pulling away and his cock. So fucking hard. Fucking…yeah.

Damn it
, he needed to focus.

“You can…smell him on me?” Armaita, or Amy, as she preferred, was trying so hard not to stare. Her eyes kept flicking from his face to his shoulders to someplace farther south. He liked the farther south dips the best.

But her brother had followed them into the living room, and she wasn’t letting on that they’d formed any sort of connection. Which was fine, really. Levi was about to pack her up and take her away from here for at least a few days. They had time to explore their connection. And each other. Lots of exploring to do along those curves and dips.

Fucking focus.

“The scent of male on you is too strong to hide,” Levi said, his voice growly and deep. A tone he couldn’t remember ever actually using before.

“Who is it?” Amy glanced at Levi as he shrugged.

“Not a scent I recognize, but I’m not from around here. Abel?”

Her brother strode forward, pinning her in place with his hands on her shoulder. For a long few seconds, he sniffed all around her arms and hair, her neck and hands. She held still, the seconds passing like hours, her eyes locked on Levi’s.

But her brother only sighed when he pulled away. “They’re too many scents for me to break any one out.”

“Go outside,” Levi ordered. “Sniff by her bedroom window then come back and try again. Maybe that will help.”

Her brother rushed back down the hall toward the kitchen, leaving the two of them in the sort of silence that carried a weight with it. Tense, she would have said if she’d dared to open her mouth. Of course, Levi didn’t say anything, either. Just stood there, staring at her. Making her tremble with that intense look.

She’d never been happier to see her brother walk through the door as the moment he came in from outside, though she kept her eyes locked on Levi’s. Might as well enjoy the view.

“Okay. Let me try again.” So Abel did. He tried sniffing for another long minute or so, but in the end, he pulled back with another sigh. “I just can’t tell.”

Amy’s eyes cut to her brother, a daring sort of smile curving her plush lips. “Not the best tracker around now, are you?”

Abel huffed. “Still better than you.”

“Can we cut the bickering for a minute?” Levi rubbed the side of his head, wishing the ache there would disappear a little faster. Shit, his mate really packed a punch with that skillet of hers.

Amy’s eyes tracked his movements, her face curving into a frown when he pulled his hand away with blood on the fingertips. “Grab me a clean towel from the linen closet, would you, Abel?”

As soon as he left the room, she regarded Levi with a serious expression. “I’m not leaving like this.”

He hated pissing her off, but he hated the thought of her being in danger even more. “Pack your stuff.”

Those light eyes of hers flashed, a spark of anger flaring bright. “This is my home. My business is here. I can’t just walk away.”

The sadness creeping into her voice gutted Levi, but there was no way he was fucking up this mission. Not when it had just turned so personal.

“You have to come with me. We need to keep you safe from this guy.”

Abel returned with a white hand towel. Levi nodded his thanks and pressed the fabric against his aching head, noticing with glee the flash of concern on Amy’s face.

“How do you even know this person is bad? Maybe he’s just…curious?” Amy crossed her arms over her chest, drawing Levi’s gaze right to her cleavage. Her soft, full cleavage. Good God, his kingdom for some denim. He changed his stance to hide the way his cock was tenting the cloak, hoping like hell Abel hadn’t noticed. But even with the distraction of her ample breasts and his aching cock, he couldn’t hold back his protective streak.

“Curious enough to watch you through your bedroom window?”

Amy paled. “What?”

“What?” Abel jumped into the conversation with a booming voice. One Levi understood too well at this point. The world was filled with sick bastards.

“His scent was concentrated outside the window.” Levi had to clench his hand into a fist to keep from reaching out when her expression went to one of pained horror. And it was only going to get worse. “He’d been out there multiple times. My guess is for long stretches of time.”

“That’s it.” Abel brushed past the two of them, his growl deepening. “I’m packing your shit now.”

As soon as he left the room, Amy refocused on Levi. And she didn’t look thrilled. In fact, she looked both heartbroken and incredibly angry. “How do I know you’re the safe one?”

He cocked his head. “You
know
. You feel it the same as I do.”

His heart nearly skipped as she nodded, all slow and reluctant. Yeah, she knew they were mates, all right. But even so, she needed encouragement. And he was going to make sure she knew where he was coming from.

“Even if we weren’t—” he stopped, licked his lips, avoiding the word they both knew would have to be said at some point “—even if we weren’t
connected
the way we are, you’d be safer with me than anywhere else. My brothers and I protect all Omegas. That’s our job. It’s our calling.” He stepped closer, unable to resist the draw to her. Wanting to feel her skin against his. Craving her touch as he’d never craved anything before. “I would never let anything happen to you.”

Her eyes stayed on his, her face giving nothing away. But then she inched closer. Her shoulder brushed his, barely even a touch, but it was enough to set his soul on fire.

He stood stock-still as she clutched at the side of his cloak. Clinging to him in a way. They were two stars drawn together by gravity, seeing the eventual crash but unable to avoid it. Not wanting to, really. He couldn’t wait to crash into her.

Finally, Amy sighed. “Fine.”

The win wasn’t as sweet as he’d have liked, though. She sounded defeated, and that wasn’t something he wanted from her. But before he could figure out what to do to calm her, Abel rushed back into the room with a black duffel bag over his shoulder.

“Get in your truck and go.”

Levi never had been good at taking orders from men who had no right to give them. “My truck’s up on that mountain. We’ll take hers to start.”

“You leave your keys in that beast?” Abel asked.

Levi nodded. “Front floorboard, driver's side.”

“I’ll call Caleb and have him drive it to Markson’s pass. You drive her Jeep and switch out there.”

Levi held in his relieved sigh, grateful but not wanting to show too much excitement. At least, this way, he didn’t have to attempt driving down that mess of a road. Let those who knew it best traverse the thing. “That’ll help to confuse anyone watching her, too.”

“Yeah, that’s what I figured. Though, they could be watching her car.” Abel paced the length of the room, growling, looking like a man trying to figure out how to solve a calculus problem. “I’ll get Benjamin to come down, too. Just in case you need interference.”

Levi wouldn’t dare turn down extra help, not when his mate was the target. “I’d appreciate it. You keep this fucker off my tail, and I’ll keep her safe.”

Amy scoffed. “The
her
in this is right here.”

Well…damn. Two minutes into his mating and already pissing her off. Levi shifted his weight, letting his shoulder brush hers again.

“Trust me,” he said, grinning. “There’s no way I’d forget that.”

She ducked her head, something close to a blush darkening her face, taking her from adorable to sexy-as-sin in two seconds. He wondered how far that blush would spread. If it would drop to her chest, color the tops of her breasts. Work its way down the creamy flesh to darken her—

“Yo.” Abel talking into the phone snapped Levi’s attention back to the present and his eyes away from his mate’s…assets. Amy was watching him, though. Looking more afraid than he would have liked.

“I’ll keep you safe,” he whispered, giving in to his desire to touch her with a single finger along her wrist. “I will always keep you safe.”

The tension between them grew thick and heated, the two practically leaning into one another for support. There were so many things Levi wanted to say, to do, but first on his list was to get her the hell out of this place until his brothers could figure out who the threat was.

Abel hung up and caught Levi’s attention. “He’ll be there in twenty. You’d better get on the road.”

And so it begins…

“I’ll call my team from the car,” Levi said, taking the bag from Abel.

Amy took a deep breath before she popped up and hugged her brother. “Be safe.”

“Shouldn’t I be telling you that, squirt?” Abel smiled at his sister then shot a much more serious look at Levi. He reached out and grabbed forearms, offering his respect. Something Levi didn’t take lightly. “I’m holding you personally responsible for the safe return of my sister. Anything happens to her, and I’m taking it out of your hide.”

The weight of what Abel and his family were trusting him with settled over his shoulders, but it wasn’t something he couldn’t handle. When they learned of the mating, they’d understand how there was no way anything bad was going to befall Amy. Levi would rather die first.

“No worries, man. I’ve got this covered.”

H
is truck was
way too big, yet Amy couldn’t shake the feeling of being trapped. She was alone with a shifter she didn’t know, confined with a man the fates threw into her path to join with forever, heading off to some unknown destination to hide out from a threat of some unknown danger. Alone. Mated. In danger. Her world had become one giant plate of slop in a matter of minutes while she stood in her kitchen.

And he was so very silent.

“So…” Her brain floundered with that single word, stuttered in a way. Nothing else popping up to finish any sort of question or statement to fill the awkwardness.

The man—Levi, like the jeans apparently—tossed a look her way. “So?”

She tugged at her skirt to cover more skin, hoping to get more comfortable. Trying and failing in the most miserable way. “So.”

And nothing. Not a single word to add to “so.” Not doe or crow or tow or flow. Just nothing. What a way to start off on the right foot with her mate.

They rode in silence for what felt like hours as she racked her brain for something to say, something to ask. Something more meaningful than
where’d you come from
or
where are we going
or
how can you be so fucking hot
. Especially that last one. She couldn’t ask him that. Oh God, what if she did? What if her brain got so tangled up that she lost her verbal filter and asked this man how he could possibly be so handsome? She’d have to throw herself out of the truck. She bit her lip and looked out the side window, just to be ready. They were driving fast enough that she’d definitely be injured if she jumped, but they weren’t over any mountain passes or deep gorges. She’d probably survive the fall.

“Are you always this nervous?”

Amy jumped and spun, speaking without thinking. “I’m not nervous.”

His laugh immediately made her regret that particular answer.

“I’m sorry,” he said, giving her a smile that nearly melted her panties. “You looked as if you were contemplating jumping out of the truck. I figured I was making you nervous.”

Amy glanced out the window, frowning. “That’s ridiculous.”

He tapped his fingers on the wheel, staring out the windshield. Amy sighed, wishing she could settle down inside. It couldn’t really be her fault that she was so upset. It wasn’t as if she’d been prepared for any of this. Who could possibly be ready to be scared out of her wits, meet her mate, and find out some freak had probably been jacking off outside her window as she lay in bed and ate ice cream? Because that’s all she’d permit herself to think about when she imagined some faceless stranger watching her. The thought of him seeing…other things was too mortifying to allow.

But all that was secondary to her current conundrum. She didn’t like the tension between her and Levi, but she wasn’t sure how to end it without just biting the bullet and digging harder for something to say. So she took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and said the first thing that came to mind. No fucking filter.

“I don’t even know your name.” She cringed. “I mean, your full name. You’re Levi…like the jeans.”

She groaned, barely suppressing the urge to once again calculate the trajectory if she chose to throw herself from the truck. But Levi didn’t laugh, he didn’t scoff either. No, he answered her with a voice so deep and dark, it spoke to her in some sort of primal way.

“I’m Leviathan, though my brothers are the ones who nicknamed me Levi. They felt it was more…modern.”

The grateful sigh that left Amy was followed closely by her smile. This was a conversation she could have. “You have brothers?”

He frowned, his eyes still on the road ahead. “Sort of.”

Or maybe not. “How do you sort of have brothers?”

“We’re not exactly related…not the way most people would think. I mean, we are, but…it’s a long story.”

The fact that he seemed nervous as he stumbled over his words helped Amy finally relax a little. “Seems as if we have some time ahead of us, and I like stories.”

He threw a smile her way. “Yeah, we do have time. But I want to know about you first. You said you have a business.”

The swell of pride when her diner was brought up was something Amy had long since gotten used to. “Yeah, the Hope Springs Diner. Breakfast and lunch only, though my customers tend to feel comfortable enough there that lunch sometimes runs into the dinner hour.”

Levi shook his head, grinning. “Of course.”

“Of course what?”

“I met one of your customers last night. He had to tell me three or four times to go to the diner.” He glanced her way for a moment. “You must really enjoy what you do.”

“Totally. I like standing on my own two feet, and the diner makes that possible. Even though my brothers hate it.”

He chuckled low. “They do seem a bit—”

“Brutish? Overprotective? Ignorant of how capable a single woman can be?”

His chuckle made her heart skip a beat. “I was going to say concerned about you.”

“Yeah, well. That too. But I can take care of myself.”

Levi pointed to the side of his head. “I’m fully aware of that.”

He met her eyes for a tiny moment, a single blink in time. But she liked it. Liked what she saw there, liked that he seemed to want to look at her. She could see herself liking so much about Levi.

She turned her entire body to face him, cuddling into the corner between the seat and the door. “I have a feeling I might be the first woman to hit you upside the head with a skillet.”

He grinned but kept his eyes on the dark road ahead. “Definitely the first, and hopefully the last.”

There was so much meaning in that statement, so much more happening in the conversation than skillets hitting skulls. She found that fact oddly comforting, like secret messages telling her everything would be okay.

Amy closed her eyes, letting the sway of the truck put her mind at ease. It had been such a long day already, and they still had many more miles to go. If she could just rest for a few minutes, she’d be fine.

“Thanks for saving me,” she murmured, trying hard to keep her eyes open. But the lull of the rocking truck and the monotonous sound of the wind and road flying by were almost too tempting to resist. She was suddenly so very tired.

Levi glanced her way before turning up the heat. “Get some sleep, Amy. I’m not done saving you, but we’re safe for now.”

“Safe is good. Safe…with you…” She had no idea if she said the words or just thought them.