: Chapter 28

Savannah

I choked, and water sprayed from my mouth. I leaned forward, my cheeks burning like a Roman candle. She knew I was thinking about Jaxson? Sexually? “How…?”

Sam shook her head. “Honey, I’m a wolf. I can smell emotions. And FYI, arousal on you smells like a rare steak to a male wolf.”

She winked at me, and I gasped, covering my mouth. “No, no, no.”

One of the wolves who’d been setting up the stage for tonight appeared at the end of the bar. His eyes burned yellow, and he waggled his eyebrows at me. I planted my elbows on the bar and dropped my head into my hands, dying a little inside.

Jaxson, you son of a bitch.

That would have been good to know from the start. Possibly a good lesson number one about werewolves. Had he known every time I was angry or scared or turned on? I recalled the other night when he’d chased me down the alley. I’d been so frightened I’d nearly pissed myself, but something about having him close had lit a fire in me. Had I smelled like a rare steak to him then?

I wanted to crawl under the bar and die.

Sam’s eyes sparkled. The goddamned wolves could probably all smell my humiliation, too, for all I knew. She certainly seemed to be in a better mood.

“Don’t be too embarrassed. We’re used to sensing emotions. It’s how we communicate. While scenting feelings might seem odd to you, it’s second nature to us and not surprising. Plus”— she handed me a napkin—“most women feel what you feel toward Jaxson, so we’re used to it.”

“I don’t have feelings for Jaxson. He’s good to look at, that’s all.”

Sure, he was gorgeous, powerful, and probably a good lay. But he was also a domineering monster who’d casually murdered a man—werewolf—in front of me the night before.

Then again, I’d killed a werewolf, too. Jaxson was just protecting me.

A perverse part of me found that pretty hot.

I rubbed my temples and whispered, “Is there a way I can mask it?”

Sam lowered her head and looked me straight in the eyes. “To mask when you’re horny for Jaxson?”

My face turned as red as my hair, and I hissed, “Yes, but for God’s sake, don’t say that shit out loud!”

“Maybe you could try to control your reactions?” She shrugged and began scooping ice into a large bucket. “Then again, as the alpha, Jaxson has the keenest senses of us all. He’ll know when a steak is on the grill. P.S., we also hear really well, so whispering in here isn’t actually going to do you any good. Jaxson can probably hear everything going on in the whole building.”

He’d heard all of that.

I dropped my head to the bar as my dignity died, and Sam gave my hair a soft, affectionate pat. She had to be loving this, and she actually started humming. Apparently, the best apology I could have offered was handing over my dignity like a dead, stinking rabbit.

Essentially, I was screwed when it came to hiding anything from Jaxson. Maybe Casey had something that could help with masking emotions.

Sam put her elbows on the bar and leaned close. “Jaxson wasn’t going to hurt you, you know? His wolf was trying to protect you. To meet you.”

What the hell did that mean? I gave her a skeptical glare. “Right. He was just saying hello with his teeth bared and snarling.”

She shook her head. “Actually, he was sniffing you, but then you challenged his wolf by threatening him. Pro tip: don’t challenge a wolf, let alone an alpha like Jaxson. It usually ends badly. When we’re in wolf form, our wolves are in the driver’s seat, so to speak, and can be unpredictable. You’re lucky Jaxson was able to get control of his wolf after you sprayed him.”

What the fuck? I was lucky? What would have happened if he hadn’t gotten control of his wolf? A cold, creeping terror worked its way beneath my skin.

“Good to know.” I took another sip of water with a shaky hand. “But I wasn’t challenging him. I was protecting myself.”

She lifted an eyebrow. “You were aiming wolfsbane at the man. That shit is bad, but for Jaxson, it’s worse.”

“Why worse?” He’d deserved what he’d gotten for wolfing out on me like that, but I couldn’t help but feel a little remorse. If that stuff had stung my skin, I couldn’t imagine what it was like for them.

“It’s how his sister died.” Sam looked down and started stocking bottles in the cooler. I could practically smell the emotions coming off her.

Guilt hit me like a ten-pound brick. No wonder Jaxson had been growling at me. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know. Really, I didn’t even know what was in the canister.”

“You’ll have to tell him that.” She headed to the side of the bar and lifted a full beer keg onto her shoulder like it was no heavier than a boombox, then nodded to a door at the back. “No time like the present.”

The door had a Do Not Enter sign, which seemed particularly ominous in light of what I’d just learned. I forced myself to stand and slowly walk toward the door of doom, my cheeks still burning with a thousand emotions.

“Down the hall. Second door on the left,” Sam suggested cheerfully as I pushed on through.

I knocked on the heavy wooden door to his office.

“Come in.”

I opened the door and ventured inside. Jaxson was waiting with crossed arms and leaning against his large oak desk. Rather than a business suit, he wore jeans, biker boots, and a black T-shirt that showed off his rippling biceps.

Incredibly hunky.

He was framed by a large painting hanging on the wall, which depicted the moon rising over a still, forest-ringed lake.

I froze as Jaxson closed the door and stepped up behind me. Heat poured off him and mixed with my own. Shivers raked my skin, and I drew in an unsteady breath.

Calm yourself, Savannah. He knows what you’re thinking.

He slowly circled me, his pupils dilated as he inspected every inch of me—a predator stalking his prey. Jaxson’s power pressed against me, and his signature filled my senses. But there was something more than magic. Heat. Desire. An unseen force that drew me toward him like a magnet to its opposite pole.

I couldn’t ignore the chemistry between us. Just being near him made the rivers of my body meet.

He had to know.

Did he enjoy his effect on me, or did I disgust him? His pack hated me and my family, and I had a sneaking suspicion they probably had many reasons to.

Finally, I couldn’t take the awkward silence anymore, or his attention boring into me. “I’m sorry I sprayed you with wolfsbane yesterday,” I blurted. “I was terrified, and I didn’t know what was in the bottle.”

His eyes blazed. “Wolfsbane is a chemical manufactured specifically to hurt our kind. Never use it again.”

I shook my head. “I’m really sorry about everything. The wolfsbane, your sister, the fair. Everything.”

He tensed. “We’re not going to talk about my sister.”

Obviously, that was the wrong thing to say. I looked at the ground. “Look, I’m not great at apologizing, and I’m not familiar with the rules here or your history with the LaSalles. But I’m here, and I want to help. So can we get past what happened last night?”

He narrowed his eyes and stepped closer so that I had to look up to meet his gaze. “I appreciate that, but you’ll have to work for the pack’s forgiveness before you get mine.”

“Fine.” I never backed down from a challenge.

The air vibrated between us for just a moment before he stepped away. “I’m sorry I scared you. Our meet shouldn’t have happened like that. I shifted so I could protect you, but then my wolf took over and demanded to meet you.”

Meet me? Sam had said the same thing. An unsettling fear crept into my chest. “Do you understand how creepy and weird that sounds? Is your wolf different than you? Like, is it something that lives in you, or a split personality?”

There was so much I didn’t know about werewolves—about any of this world, for that matter. I was so in over my head, it was scary.

“We don’t really talk about it with outsiders. Suffice it to say we’re two sides of the same coin. When I’m in wolf form, I think differently, and different aspects of my personality are heightened. We’re one, but it’s easier to talk about that part of me as my wolf. We all speak that way.”

Sam had talked about his wolf being in control when he’d shifted, but what did that even mean? “Why would your wolf want to meet me? You’ve already met me.”

“Its senses are stronger than mine, and scenting you would yield deep insights into what you are, your character, and what you need. That would be enough, but my wolf is also drawn to you, for some reason—it’s intrigued. Always has been.” Jaxson’s voice was low, almost a growl. Was that his wolf talking to me?

Something tugged in my breast, and heat began to pool in my center. My skin flushed, and I could suddenly feel every movement of my clothing across my skin. I had the overwhelming urge to sweep my hands over Jaxson’s strong chest. What the hell was happening to me?

I took an uncertain step forward, and Jaxson’s expression hardened. Anger? Distrust? But also something else—desire.

His heightened signature made me lightheaded, and I faltered a little. He stepped closer so that he was just a breath away, like we’d stood in the alley two nights before. Then, I’d been trembling, too scared to run, but now I wanted to be trapped between him and the wall.

Why was he looking at me like he wanted to taste me?

Everything about this was wrong.

I tore my gaze from his and slipped around him, suddenly desperate to get control of the situation. Stopping in front of the couch, I hugged myself. “Look, I know you have heightened senses and can read my emotions. Don’t make assumptions. I don’t understand these feelings I have around you, and I’m not comfortable with them. So please give me a little space, no matter how intrigued you…or your wolf…are.”

Jaxson tensed, and the honey color left his eyes. He regarded me for a long moment. “I can respect that.”

My heartbeat slowed, returning to normal. “We want the same thing—to track down those bastards—and that’s why I’m agreeing to work with you. This is a business arrangement and nothing more. Is that clear?”

“Yes, I understand.”

“And one more thing, Jaxson. I appreciate your wolf saving me, but don’t you ever let him try to sniff me or meet me without my permission.”

That was definitely on my list as one of the weirdest requests I’d ever had to ask a man before.

His jaw twitched, and something flashed in his eyes, but he nodded.

“Good. Now that that’s settled, what’s the plan?” I asked, feeling a modicum of control return.

“You need to learn how to get away the next time you get jumped.” He grabbed a set of keys from his desk and opened the door.

I set my jaw as heat rushed to my face. “I’d say I handled myself pretty well, all things considered.”

“You got lucky. There’s a difference. You’re too weak to fight wolves and demons, and too slow to run away. We need to fix that.”

My neck hair bristled as I stepped into the hall. Weak? Slow? I’d always prided myself on being able to hold my own.

Maybe I should have blasted Jaxson with more wolfsbane.