Three Fur All (3 page)

He knelt down on the floor and took her hand. “Don’t be sorry. Just be happy you’re alive.” Mika brought her fingers to his lips and kissed the back of her hand.

Something inside of her melted. Before she had been kidnapped, she hadn’t been in a relationship for over a year. The last one had lasted for three months. The one before that was four months. She feared something was wrong with her because no one wanted to commit. Mika seemed like a nice guy. He was doing everything to make her feel comfortable. He had gotten a doctor for her.
I can’t believe that I’m thinking about this now. I can’t date a complete stranger, even if he’s nice to me. Besides, I don’t even know his situation.

“Mika, you mind if I use your car?”

Another man entered the room. The way the light hit his hair, it appeared silver. Tight jeans showed off his muscled thighs. His T-shirt was ratty, but she saw the defined muscles of his biceps through the holes in the fabric, and the lines of his six-pack.

She bit her lip to keep from drooling. Her eyes widened when he noticed her. He stepped forward and extended his hand. “You’re awake. That’s good. Dawn said you’d probably sleep for a while considering the trauma you experienced, something about a defense mechanism. Sorry, where are my manners? I’m Elliot Davidson. You’ve already met Mika. Is he taking good care of you? He’s not trying to charm you, is he?”

Mika patted her hand and then smiled at the other man. “No, I’m not charming her.
Just seeing if our guest was hungry.”

“Are you hungry? I’m sure we have something edible in the house. Or we can get you something. I have to go out for a few.” Elliot asked.

Her stomach grumbled at the thought of food. The other two heard the rumbling and chuckled.

“That’d be great. I can’t remember the last time I had a meal. They only fed me every other day maybe. And then it was only a piece of fruit here and there. It wasn’t a lot. I don’t know. I could really go for a greasy cheeseburger, onion rings, and a vanilla milkshake.”

“Well, we don’t have any of that in the house, but—”

Mika put a hand on Elliot’s chest. “We can figure something out. Why don’t you take my car and pick up something on the way back? There should be some fast-food place near the interstate that has what October wants.”

The vein bulged in his neck. “I wasn’t planning on traveling that far. I have community business to attend to, and I don’t know when I’ll be back.”

“Guys, anything is fine.
Even a tuna sandwich.
I don’t want you to be inconvenienced.” October hated she had caused the trouble. The tension between the two of them was rising. It seemed they were having some sort of pissing contest to see who was dominant. The glares reminded her of the malicious leers of those who had abducted her. The two of them had squared off a few times she had seen, but the partner had always backed off.

After a moment, Elliot looked away and stepped back. “I’ll pick up the food on the way back. Until then, Mika can make you something. He’s a decent enough cook. When I get back, we can talk some more. There are some questions I had for you. In the meantime, is there anyone we can call for you?
A boyfriend?
Family?
A roommate?”

October thought about his question. Her sister and she weren’t on speaking terms because of something stupid. Her mother wasn’t getting in the middle of it. Her roommate was the only person.

“My roommate, but I’ll call her when I’m feeling a little bit better. Thank you both for taking such great care of me.”

Elliot focused back on Mika. “Can I talk to you outside, please?”

Mika nodded. “Sure. I’ll be outside in a second.”

October studied Mika. He seemed distraught, judging by the muscles bulging in his neck.
I wonder what’s going on between the two of them.
“You two aren’t in a relationship, are you?”

A snort left his lips, and he turned up the corners of his mouth. She liked the twinkle in his eye.

“Elliot and me?
God no! I’ve known him since we were pups. I mean kids. He’s letting me stay here while my house is being renovated. He’s a good guy, just has a lot on his mind at the moment. Look, I’ll make you that tuna sandwich and see what he wants to talk about. Then I’ll come back in to keep you company.”

“Yeah.
That’d be great. Can you tell me where the bathroom is?”

His cheeks colored. “It’s right through the door there. Do you need some help?”

“No. I’m good. Maybe just some clothes so I could take a shower. I appreciate you cleaning me up, but I have to wash my hair and feel somewhat human.”

“Right.
Clothes.
I gave you some old ones of mine. I hope you don’t mind, but I figured you didn’t want to be in those dirty clothes.” He ran his hand through his hair. Mika glanced down at the floor and then back at her while the tops of his ears got redder and redder.

She giggled. “You saved my life. I’m sure you got an eyeful.” October tried to stand, and winced at the pain in her right foot from her twisted ankle. It was wrapped up in a bandage, but it still appeared swollen. She stumbled while leaning on the wall. Mika caught her and helped her to the bathroom. His warm
body made her realize
how much she needed to shower and put on makeup.

“I’ll let you go on from here.”

“Thanks.” She opened the door to the bathroom and watched Mika stroll out of the room. When he left, she closed the door and peered into the mirror, seeing how badly she was cut up.
God, I look horrible, but at least I’m alive.
Her black hair was tangled and filled with leaves and a couple of small twigs, which she plucked out. Dark circles were drawn under her green eyes. Something about them looked haunted.
I wonder if that will ever go away
. October hung her head, let the tears fall freely from her cheeks, and sank down on the toilet seat. Her heart slammed into her chest. All she could see was the morphing form of the creature that had held her captive.

Chapter Four

Mika followed his friend into the kitchen and handed him the keys to his car. The pipes groaned from the sudden rush of water through them. October was in the shower. An image of her lithe body with water dripping off it flared through his mind. Her hands trailed over her breasts while she soaped them up. Her fingers then slipped lower, caressing the flat expanse of her stomach and then gliding to the down of her black curls, where she would touch herself and think about him under the scalding water. She would moan his name and then come to him after.

“Dude!”
Elliot punched him on the shoulder.

Mika shook himself from his vision and blinked a couple of times. His cock jerked and firmed at the thought of claiming her. Her body was gorgeous even when it was covered in grime. He had changed her clothes after Dawn had left. He’d left her bra and panties on. Besides, her tattered garments had been covered with the scent of the beast they were hunting. They were now stashed behind his hamper in his closet so she wouldn’t find them. When he had brought them to his nose to detect the other wolf’s scent, hers was mixed with it, and he found her delectable.

“Did you hear me?” Elliot asked.

“Yeah.
I heard you. I was just thinking.”

His friend crossed his arms over his chest. “I know what you were thinking. Don’t even go there with her. We don’t need you getting into any more trouble and making her into one of us against her will.”

“How could you say that to me?” Mika growled. “I’d never do that again. Besides, Dawn freaked at the last minute before I was going to bite her, and I couldn’t pull it back. That’s the truth. Not the way she spun it to Cooper.”

Elliot threw up his hands. “Sorry, man. It’s been a long day, and I’m late. Go out and find some chick to fuck. I don’t care. Just keep your paws off our guest. We want to make sure she heals and doesn’t run back to the authorities. We don’t need human law on pack lands. Now I have to run. Play nice with her until Dawn can come.”

“Why did you call her back here so soon?” He wasn’t in any mood to deal with his ex. All he wanted to do was switch his shape and run out some of his aggression. The wolf inside of him was clamoring for a hunt. He was hoping he could glean some more information from October.

“Because our guest needs another woman to talk to and we don’t have any clothes or personal effects here. Did she tell you who we need to call?”

“She said she would call her roommate when she felt better.”

Elliot shook his head.
“Right.
She did say that. I have way too much on my mind. Thinking about Lana and how she was busted up is tearing me up.”

“I can’t believe you’re thinking about that stupid car again. At least we can assume October doesn’t have a boyfriend, which could work to our advantage.”

“Man, you think too much with your dick, and that’s what has always gotten you into trouble.
You and those boyish good looks of yours.
Every chick at the bar last night was eyeing you. I can’t get them to give me a second look. Lana was the only woman who adored me.”

Mika was about to make some witty retort about Elliot’s Corvette, but he stopped when he saw his friend’s face. The sadness that lingered in his eyes was apparent. It didn’t matter how many new toys he bought to drown himself in technology. The hurt around his heart was like a cancer eating away at him. He was worried about Elliot. It might have been two years since Dominique had passed away, but his grief resonated inside the house like a ghost haunting a forsaken churchyard. Its wails were heard even in the night and in the howls his friend let off when they were alone in the forest. He figured Elliot was trying to hide that he was dying inside. No matter what he did, Mika couldn’t cheer the other man up.

“That’s because they knew your ugly ass was driving that insane car that got totaled last night,” Mika joked.

“Don’t bring Lana into this.”

Mika threw up his hands. “You’re the one who brought up the car first.”

“It’s bad enough I have to drive around in that beat-up Honda of yours. You really need to get a new car.”

“Hey, it runs. I don’t care how it looks.”

“Smart-ass.
I’ll see you later.”

“Remember her cheeseburger, onion rings, and vanilla shake.”

Elliot flipped him the one-finger salute as he walked out the door. When the taillights disappeared down the driveway, he dug through the refrigerator, searching for something that October might find appetizing. On the shelves were Chinese food boxes from last week that were starting to go rancid, an anchovy-and-olive pizza, which was Elliot’s favorite, with a half-eaten slice left, a can of beer, and a half-empty bottle of soda. There was also a loaf of moldy bread, but nothing else. He checked the pantry and found nothing but canned sardines and peaches, which had been in there for two years or more. The freezer was almost empty too. He did find a box of chocolate ice cream that hadn’t been opened.
All chicks are supposed to like chocolate. Maybe this’ll do until Elliot can come back with her food.
The water shut off while he hunted for a clean bowl and a spoon. Finally, he washed one out and then scooped the ice cream into the bowl. He waited a few minutes until he thought October had enough time to get dressed, and then knocked on the closed door.

“Come in,” she called in a soft, raspy voice.

Mika pushed open the door and saw her sitting on the bed in his shirt that hung down to her knees. The pants lay on the bed. She was pulling her fingers through the wet tendrils of her hair. Her milky calves were tucked underneath her. He saw the dip of her breasts from the
V
in her shirt. Her nipples poked through the fabric. Beneath all the cuts and bruises was a beautiful woman he could easily find himself in bed with.
She’d make a good tumble partner.
His wolf growled in agreement with the idea. He tried to rip his gaze away from the rise and fall of her chest, showing the subtle bounce of her breasts, but his cock stirred once again at the thought of her.

October met his eyes. Her expression was one of surprise and then embarrassment. She grabbed the sheet and pulled it over her lap. He tore his eyes away from her chest and turned them to her heart-shaped face. He forced a smile and tried to think about baseball.

“Sorry, I really couldn’t find anything in the house that was edible except the ice cream. I hope you like chocolate.”

A tentative smile turned up her lips, but her eyes were still indecisive. He sensed the fear in her. If she could bolt, she would. Something in her didn’t trust him.
Shit. I’m coming on way too strong. She probably thinks I was looking at her like she’s lunch. Even though I’d love to taste that pussy of hers, I can’t let my dick dictate my actions. Elliot was right. Damn him!

“Chocolate’s fine.”

He set the ice cream on the nightstand, next to her glass of water, and then sat in the chair, trying to keep his distance so he wouldn’t spook her any more. “Sorry about leering at you. I’m sure you think I’m some kind of pervert. I’ll leave you to your ice cream.”

“No. Don’t. It’s nice to have the company. I’ve been alone for . . . well, I don’t know how long. When there isn’t anyone around, all I can hear is their screams. And I think, why me?” Tears slipped down her cheeks.