Surrounded by Temptation (5 page)

Jack grunted while picking up his coffee, not finding the situation amusing. He wasn’t the only one. Rob grabbed a coffee cup and poured his momentary salvation before taking a seat across from Toby.

“I’m sure you all know how it fucking went.” He sipped, not making eye contact with any of them.

“I’m sorry, bro. I shouldn’t be teasing.”

“Serves him right,” Jack mumbled.

Rob looked at him, eyes narrowed, and set down his cup. “What the hell does that mean? You weren’t teased to bursting, yet you still get the drugs.”

“I told you she was mine. You should’ve stayed out of it and let me have her.”

Rob was not going to go down this road. He might be pissed with Ariel’s behavior—and he knew he really had no right to be angry. She didn’t do anything wrong, though his dick felt differently—but as far as he was concerned, she was still his mate. He’d just have to show her this ridiculous testing wasn’t necessary. “Dude, it was her choice.” He looked at Josh and picked up his cup. “Do you need me on the burnout hole?”

“Yeah. Jack is still working south side, and I have to work in the office this morning. Caldwell’s daughter is trying to stir up shit again. God, that woman is maddening. At least she’s willing to meet with me on Skype and has stopped demanding to come out here and meet face-to-face.”

Jeffery walked in carrying two large platters filled with eggs, bacon, and biscuits. Thomas walked in as the food was placed on the table. His dad started making his plate, and then Rob and his brothers dug in.

“I heard you did well yesterday, Robert,” Thomas said. “Ariel said you showed no signs of primal aggression.”

“Maybe he’s impudent,” Jack muttered around a biscuit.

“You think you could do better in that situation, hotshot?” Toby said, coming to Rob’s defense.

“I know I could.” Jack squared his shoulders.

“Boys. This is unnecessary and the very reason why I had Ariel choose. Now settle down.” He’d get no argument out of Rob. Jack was still being a jackass and would probably continue to be until this testing torture was finished and he was able to leave the grounds a free man.

The door opened and a very groggy-looking Mikaela walked in still in PJs. Josh dropped his fork and stood up. “What are you doing up, kitten? I thought you were going to sleep in.” He started around the table toward her.

“I woke up and wanted a bite to eat.” She met him halfway and gave him a peck on the lips.

Josh guided her to a chair beside him, and he fixed her plate.

“Don’t let me interrupt,” she mumbled into the glass of orange juice Jeffery had placed in front of her. “If I know this group, you all are giving Rob a hard time for doing what was asked of him yesterday. What he’s doing is very important.” Her tone held a little bit of admonishment and Rob fought a smile.

“Yeah, he’s indulging a cock tease,”
Jack said mentally.

“I can hear you,” Mikaela said, cutting her eyes in his direction. “Don’t you think it’s time to let go of this macho crap and be grateful there’s now light at the end of your tunnel?”

Jack gritted his teeth, a small growl working up his throat as he stared at her.

Josh growled loudly and everyone looked at him. He was staring daggers at Jack. “Don’t you ever growl at my wife!”

Jack cleared his throat and looked down, signaling his submission to Josh on this point. Smart man. One thing Rob understood and was just beginning to fully understand was never to jeopardize another man’s mate. “I apologize, Mikaela.” Jack started to rise.

“Just a minute, son,” Thomas said. “Jeffery needs to administer the next round of medication before you head out.” He looked at Rob. “You too.”

Rob drank the last of his coffee while Jack got his shot. Then he got up from the table and walked over to Jeffery, tugging the side of his pants down for access to his hip. The chill of the alcohol swab caused goose bumps, but the sting of the needle quickly won in the discomfort category.

“Ariel will let you know when she’s ready to begin your next round of tests.”

“Great.” Rob rolled his eyes. More tests.

“Look at it this way, son,” Thomas said, lowering his voice. “You get through this, you’ll be free to take excursions, visit old friends, make new friends, enjoy the world without worrying about your nature. You just have to do whatever Ariel needs to ensure the medication is virtually flawless. Your sacrifice now will pave the way for your future. And when Ariel is gone, you’ll be a free man.”

He’d always wanted to experience life as an adult outside this estate. To do all the things his father suggested. But now that he’d met Ariel, his goals, aspirations had shifted. He had to find a way to convince her that he was the man for her without freaking her out. No woman in her right mind would believe in love at first sight. And maybe he didn’t love her as a man yet. Maybe it was just his lion that latched onto its mate and he had to develop those feelings more naturally.

Either way, he knew if Ariel did leave once her testing was complete, he wouldn’t be a free man.

Because even if she found a cure to control his animalistic urges, he would forever be a victim of his own heart.

Chapter Five

“I need these results back as soon as possible,” Ariel said, utilizing the speaker on her cell phone while she packaged the swab she’d had Josh take of Rob’s saliva before she conducted her test yesterday.

And what a test that was. Knowing she had to tempt him and actually doing it proved to be two entirely different scenarios. In her mind, she’d kept complete control of the session and had not been turned on by the acts that necessitated her research findings.

In reality, she’d been so wet, so aching with need, she almost climbed onto his lap and rode him to oblivion, test be damned. She rationalized it by thinking she was a woman and he was a man. A very sexy, masculine, dreamy man, but still a man nonetheless. She hypothesized that any woman in that same situation would experience the same results. It was a chemical reaction in her body to his. It was nature. Biological and chemical.

It wasn’t attraction. She would not allow herself to become attracted to Rob. She was a professional for crying out loud. And she couldn’t fall in love if love didn’t exist.

“DNA analysis takes a while. You know that, Ariel.”

“I’m aware of it, but it’s prudent to my current research, so your timeliness is greatly appreciated.”

“It’d help speed things along if you tell me what you’re looking for.”

“It’s confidential, Max.” The man was a long time colleague and sometimes friend to her. He was a bit of a hermit, but he was incredibly smart. Ariel trusted the work he did, and she needed his expertise on the Woods DNA. Since they shifted into animals, their DNA might prove some connection to why and how. It was a start.

“I’ll see what I can do. I can email you a report of my findings rather than snail mail it to you.”

“That’d be great. Thanks.”

After a few more niceties, she ended the call and grabbed the package. The guys were out working on the estate, so she figured Krista and Mikaela would have their noses in law books at the main house. She trekked over there, admiring the scenery on her short walk. It really was very calming out here. She wasn’t much of a country girl, but she didn’t fancy herself a city girl either. She was a skinny nerd. Krista was the curvy one, though she wondered if her sister had been more on the naïve side than she was. Ariel hadn’t had many boyfriends before meeting Will, but that was definitely a serious relationship that led to marriage. She wondered if Krista had been in anything serious before meeting Toby. Not that it mattered now. They seemed totally smitten with each other.

Ariel smiled, thinking of her sister falling in love, and then immediately frowned. Love was a state a mind. Not a reality. It would not do for her to ever forget that.

Once she reached the main house, she sought out the office. She heard heated voices as she neared, but couldn’t quite make out the discussion. She cringed, hoping it wasn’t about her and the test from yesterday.

“She cannot work here,” Josh said to his wife.

Oh crap, they were talking about her. She needed to defuse the situation. No way was she going to leave before she was through with Rob. Er, before she was through with testing medication, she corrected in her thoughts.

“I think that should be my call to make,” Ariel said. Josh and Mikaela turned to her and Krista looked up from reading a really thick book.

“With all due respect, Ariel, it’s too soon for us to allow it. The guys are too dangerous.” He turned to his wife, a pleading look in his eyes. “Besides, I don’t fucking want her here.”

Okay, that hurt. Ariel knew her presence here was difficult for everyone, but Josh’s words were too harsh to swallow. She cleared her throat and tried squaring her shoulders, but she felt like a rabbit taking on a wolf.
A mountain lion’s more like it
.

“Look, I’m sorry if I’m making things difficult being here. I promise I will try to be as expedient as logically possible—”

“Wait.” Josh turned to her, shaking his head. “I wasn’t talking about you. God, I wouldn’t be that cruel.” He sighed. “It’s Caldwell’s daughter, Lillian, that’s demanding a job since we, and I quote, ‘took her father’s land out from under her.’”

Mikaela walked up to her husband and rubbed his arm affectionately. “Sweetie, let’s just put her off for now. Tell her we are looking into possibly hiring new people in a few months and we’d be glad to consider her then.”

“If you reject employment because she’s a woman, she can sue you. It’s discrimination,” Krista said, not looking up from what had to be a law book in her lap.

“It’s not that I think her being a woman makes her incapable of working here. It’s just too dangerous with Rob and Jack.”

“I know that, Josh. We all know that, but we can’t tell her that. Just tell her it’ll be a few months before we’re ready to hire anybody.”

“But I want some help now, kitten.”

“If you hire someone now and she finds out, she can make a stink,” Krista said, finally looking up. “If you tell her you’ve already hired someone but didn’t actually hire a person until later, then she can still scream foul. I think your best bet is to consider hiring her for something that wouldn’t cause her to interact with the other guys and tell her that she has to earn your trust before you bring her in to the company completely.”

Josh growled. “So I’ll be throwing away money on her when she’s not really working?”

“Maybe you can have her work her father’s old land, the part that borders their property. It can be her probationary work. If she does well, then we can bring her on. By then the meds should be fully tested.” Mikaela looked at Ariel. “Right?”

Crap. Ariel hated giving timelines on projects. Not that she didn’t like deadlines, but because something always happened that pushed back those original dates, making her look incompetent. She took a deep breath, considering her response. “I think it’s highly likely everything will be completed by then. However, this process could essentially be going on indefinitely. We have no way of knowing at this point if the men will become tolerant of one of the chemicals in the compound. Immunity could happen quickly or over years. Or it may never be an issue. It’s really too early to tell.”

“Then what do you suggest?” Josh asked, arms crossed but eyes soft, genuinely seeking her opinion.

“I think it’s a risk you have to assess yourself, but if Rob and Jack haven’t ever worked over there and you keep them from that area of your estate, then I don’t see the harm. Technically she’s been over there all these years anyway, I presume. It’s never been an issue before, right?”

“True,” Josh muttered, nodding. Then he turned to his wife. “Okay, let me think on this. We’ll try to work something out, but I want to make sure all the Is are dotted and Ts are crossed before I bring her on.” He looked over at Ariel. “I’m sure I don’t have to tell you the sooner you work out any bugs the better it’ll be for everyone…but I’m gonna.” He half-smiled at her.

“Understood.” She handed a package over to him. “I actually came in to have this shipped. It’s part of the research,” she added quickly when he frowned at her.

“I’ll make sure Jeffery takes it with him when he runs into town later.”

“Thanks.” She started for the door. “I need to get back to work. Um, is Rob too busy to help me?” She felt her face get hot and couldn’t elaborate on just what she was expecting from Rob. Although she knew everyone in this room had to know what she was talking about.

Josh chuckled. “Rob’s number one job right now is to be at your beck and call. I would say go easy on him, but you just do what you gotta do.”

“Right, okay. I’ll see you guys later. Maybe at dinner.” She shrugged as she left. Honestly, she didn’t know if they’d make it to dinner. Her next test was sure to push all Rob’s buttons.

Ariel quickly walked back to her cabin, not really taking in her surroundings like she’d done before. It was hard to focus on other things when her mind was racing, preparing her for her next seduction. God, if her biochem professor could see her now.

She pushed open the rustic door to her cabin and left it ajar. She pulled out the restraints she’d used yesterday on Rob, but as she stared at them, she knew she wasn’t going to use them. Josh needed her to finish her research as quickly as possible and she couldn’t do that if she was too scared to move forward. Keeping Rob tied up would only serve to keep her sanity regarding her safety and not further the testing along. Tossing them aside, she quickly grabbed her cell and selected Krista’s number.

“Ariel? Everything okay?”

“Yeah, yeah.” Why was she whispering? She cleared her throat. “I need you to contact Rob, have Toby do it if necessary, but I need Rob to think I’ve suffered some kind of crisis. Minor crisis. I don’t want to freak him out completely. Maybe tell him I called you because my bathroom door is stuck or something. In fact, yeah, let’s go with that.”

“You sound funny. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Just peachy.” She was trying to tamp down her nerves. She’d never had to seduce a man before starting this with Rob. Frankly, it made her feel like a novice, and she hated feeling inferior in any regard. “Have Toby tell him something like I’m stuck in the bathroom and need help.”