Seduction (The Journal of the Wolves of Spruce Hollow) (27 page)

The urge to mate, get Aspen pregnant and mark her as mine was deeply ingrained in a Were’s psyche and was therefore always present in the back of my mind each and every time that we’d had sex.
 

And considering we’d never once used protection whenever we’d mated, it was always bareback, I guess I was leaving it up to the Fates to decide for me.

Aspen and I stayed stuck together, her swollen labia holding me snug inside her, for thirty minutes but her wolf didn’t seem to care. She was lost in the postcoital satiety of mating. Aspen, on the other hand, was a different story and I could sense a deep resentment building inside her.

My wolf and I both decided that it was time to make our way back towards the safety of the training camp and since my wolf was physically stronger than hers, Aspen had no other option but to stumble along behind me since I was still stuck inside her.

Walking backwards with me, I pulled her along through the woods, her swollen vaginal walls gripping me like a vise.
 

While we didn’t really get terribly far in that half an hour that we were stuck together, it was the inherent message in the act that was important. Namely,
“You’re mine and you go where I tell you to.”

The sun had set and darkness was starting to fall in the forest as we finally padded back into the clearing surrounding the training camp. The swelling in our respective sexual organs had gone down enough for Aspen’s wolf to pull herself free and rather than take off running, like she would have before we mated, she followed along behind me like an obedient little mate.
 

Feeling content and sated inside, I knew that I wouldn’t have any more problems with her wolf now that she had mated with mine. She would be a fiercely loyal and loving mate to him. My wolf was very pleased with her. He’d told me that she was a “worthy beast” on the walk back to the camp. It made me chuckle because I knew that, in his eyes, there was no higher compliment that he could pay her.
 

It was kind of endearing, listening to him talk about Aspen’s wolf like that as wolves never spoke of their mates in the same way that humans did.
 

Where I would say that Aspen had mesmerizing eyes or soft, beautiful curves, my wolf would be more apt to speak of his mate in terms of her personality traits or characteristics that would be beneficial to the pack.

“So, what did you say to her anyway? Because she was giving it all she had to get away from us.” I was anxious to hear what he and Aspen’s wolf had talked about and why she’d suddenly had a change of heart in helping Aspen flee.
 

“I simply explained to her that what happened between you and Aspen was a human misunderstanding that wolves had no place interfering in. I told her that you never intended to hurt Aspen. She simply listened to my words and decided that she heard the truth within them.”

“Yeah, well at least one of them is being reasonable.“
 

“Aspen will come around Roan, she is a new Were and is therefore stressed and overwhelmed with her emotions. Her head is jumbled and confused with many conflicting thoughts and feelings and because of that she is letting sadness and anger blind her to the truth of what happened today.”

Due to Aspen’s emotional state, I had decided that it was best for us both to stay in wolf form until we arrived back at the camp and I could make sure Aspen couldn’t get away once she phased.
 

Intelligently, I knew that there was no way in hell that she could get away from me for very long. I overpowered her physically in almost every possible way. She was so dainty and small boned that she could never possibly outrun me. Still, she did have a raging fire breathing inside of her and that was always a wild card.
 

I puffed out a breath in irritation. This was no time to drag my fears into this shit show. As soon as we got back to the camp, I was going to hold true to my earlier threat to drag Aspen back to camp and chain her to the bed for the next month. There was no way in hell I would chance her taking off on me again. She had proven twice in the past month that she was not trustworthy when she was emotionally hurt and upset with me. Not only had she run away today but she’d also been running away the night that little fucker, Jude, had attacked her in the woods.
 

It still burned me deep inside whenever I thought of what he’d done to her. So much so, that part of me wished that I’d never pushed into her head and watched her memories from that night in the first place.
 

Whenever I slept now, I was haunted by visions of Aspen lying on the ground with her blood spilling out and pooling around her.
 

Thankfully, the pack was still looking for Jude based on the leads we’d obtained. I knew they wouldn’t stop until he was found. Things like this didn’t go unpunished amongst Weres. Unfortunately, Jude had obviously been watching the pack because it seemed like he somehow got wind that we were looking for him and he promptly dropped out of college and took off.
 

God only knows where he was hiding now. The Alpha had someone posted at his parents home and his apartment, incase he showed his face there but so far he hadn’t. We would find him, I wouldn’t rest until we did. He would pay for what he’d done to Aspen,
I would personally make sure of it
.

I phased back to human form on the front steps of the camp as Aspen’s wolf sat on the landing and watched me as I opened the front door.

“Stay in wolf form, okay?” I said to her as I bent down and scratched her behind the ears. She looked up at me, her ears flattening in a sign of submission, and gave me a look much too intelligent for a wild animal.

“Come on in, girl,” I said to her as she watched me walk in. Wagging her tail at the encouragement, she trotted inside and sat at my feet.
 

Aspen’s wolf looked much smaller to me now that I could see her with human eyes. She was much more delicate and fine boned than the other female Weres in our pack. She couldn’t have weighed more than forty-five pounds. I ruffled the soft silver fur between her ears again and she cocked her head and looked at me with light green eyes.
 

It was funny, I’d always hated the fact that Aspen called my wolf, Blackie, because my wolf and I were the same entity. But now that Aspen’s wolf was padding along behind me and following me around the house, I completely understood why she’d named him. I felt like I should have a name for her wolf too.
 

The camp had gotten cold during the time we’d been in the woods, so I piled some firewood from the woodbin into the fireplace and started a fire. Aspen’s wolf made herself at home as she walked in a circle and laid down on the rug with her head on her paws. She watched me intently as I worked.
 

“What do you think? It’s pretty cold in here, isn’t it?” I said to her as she perked her ears up and looked at me.
 

Finally, lighting a match, I lit the bunched up newspapers under the kindling and the fire roared to life. The hardwood would catch soon and then the camp would be toasty warm again. I walked back to the front door and pulled my jacket off. As I was about to hang it up, I felt something pushing against my leg. I looked down and saw Aspen’s wolf sitting next to me and leaning into me.
 

“You’re following me, are you?” I said as I smiled down at her. I bent down and picked her up and she melted right into me. “You’re a big baby, aren’t you?” I said as I nuzzled the fur on her neck. “Maybe that’s your name? Is your name Baby?” I said to her as I held her up and looked into her eyes. Her eyes wouldn’t meet mine at this proximity as that was a dominant and challenging behavior but she stick out her pink tongue and licked my hand gently.

“Baby it is then! Well, Baby, are you hungry? Because I’m starving, so you and I are going to go make something to eat,” I crooned to her as I carried her into the kitchen under my arm.
 

Thirty minutes later, Baby and I sat down in front of the fire to eat the four cheeseburgers I had fried up on the wood fired stove. Two cheeseburgers, cooked medium and swimming in ketchup, and a beer for me and two cheeseburgers, cooked rare, and a dish of water for Baby.
 

It was quite comical to watch her try to eat off a plate. She kept licking the burgers repeatedly while pushing them around with her snout. She seemed unsure what to do with them, as this was the first meal she’d ever eaten in her wolf form.
 

“Here, let me help you,” I said as I reached down to grab her plate and broke the cheeseburgers up into smaller pieces for her. She watched the plate with the intensity of an animal obsessing over having it’s food stolen. The burger felt warm and squishy in my hands as I reached over and hand fed her a couple of pieces.
 

“Ah, you like me now, don’t you Baby?” I laughed as she took them daintily from my hand, then proceeded to gobble them down with ferocious fervor.
 

I put her plate back down onto the wooden floor with a sharp clink and she dove into the burgers with gusto. She was starving. I could hear her stomach rumbling, as neither of us had eaten since breakfast, when this whole shitty ordeal had started.
 

When I finished my cheeseburgers, I felt sated as I leaned back on the couch to finish my beer and stare into the crackling fire.
 

“Come here girl,” I said as I called Baby over to come jump up on the couch with me. She had eaten with such intensity and purpose that she’d finished eating well before me and was currently laying on the floor, biting and gnawing on her paw.

She’d had a tiny sliver of wood stuck in it from running in the woods earlier and I noticed her favoring one paw while she followed me around the kitchen. I’d checked it out and sure enough she’d had a splinter between the pads of her left paw. I had pulled it out for her but it must still be bothering her.
 

 
“Come here, I want to look at your paw,” I said to her as she jumped up on the couch and laid down next to me with her head on my lap.
 

She looked up at me with intelligent eyes and plopped her left paw on my chest. Her pads were still smooth, like a pup, and unused to running through rough terrain. I separated and probed the pads gently, but her paw looked fine to me, it was probably just irritated and itchy from the splinter.
 

“If it’s still bothering you tomorrow, we’ll soak it, okay?” I said as I gathered her up and reclined on the couch.
 

Her presence was comforting as she nuzzled her snout into my side, trying to find a comfortable spot to lay her head. I ran my hand through her silky soft fur as she closed her eyes in contentment. She looked peaceful and I felt quiet inside with just the two of us resting there. Like two kindred spirits melding into one another. I stared into the crackling fire and yawned. Sleepy and full, I fell asleep on the couch with Baby in my arms.
 

I understood now why Aspen and my wolf were absolutely crazy about one other.
 

I loved her wolf too
.
 

The rising sun shone through the living room windows and woke me up the next morning. I stretched out on the couch as my back and legs stiff from trying to fit my large frame on the small couch all while cradling a small wolf.
 

Baby didn’t seem to mind being moved around. She just cracked a sleepy eye open and snuggled back down next to me on the couch when she saw there was nothing to be alarmed about.
 

“Good morning, little wolf, it’s time to get up,” I said as I smoothed her fur down with the palm of my hand.
 

She nuzzled my hand and licked me as she stretched out her back. She was smart as a whip and understood that there would be no more sleeping. I shook my head in wonder as she jumped off the couch and made a beeline for the front door. She was learning really fast for a new wolf, I still didn’t understand how she had managed to coach Aspen into phasing for the first time with no outside help. Baby was a smart little wolf.

Getting up from the couch, I followed her to the front door, assuming that she had to pee. I raised my hands up towards the ceiling and stretched out. I felt groggy and emotionally worn out after the past few days with Aspen. It had been nothing but one horrible experience after another and I hoped that I would be able to talk some sense into Aspen about our what had happened yesterday. I ran my hands over my stubbly face as I opened the door for Baby. I wasn’t taking any chances with her and I zipped up my winter jacket and followed her outside to make sure that she didn’t take off again.
 

Baby had her nose to the ground and sniffed around the clearing until she finally found the perfect spot, then she squatted and peed. Squinting against the rising sun, I raised my face and enjoyed the feeling of warmth against my skin. The sky was clear and beautiful. It was going to be a bright and sunny day. Hopefully some of that would be imparted into Aspen’s demeanor once she phased back into human form.
 

Somehow I doubted it.
 

“Come on, hurry up, girl,” I called to Baby across the clearing. She’d had her face shoved into the base of a tall pine and was inhaling the scents of all the Weres who had been there before her. Wagging her tail at the sound of my voice, she looked up and took off running back towards me.