She groaned with frustration. Phineas finished the bottle, set it down, and leaned over her once again.
“Your eyes are still red,” she whispered.
“I want you.” He brushed her hair away from her brow. “I’ve wanted you for so long.”
“Then why did you turn me down the other night?”
“You wanted a short affair based on lust. I want more than that.”
She skimmed her fingers over the prickly whiskers along his jaw. “I want more, too. But I don’t see how —”
“If we want it bad enough, we’ll make it work.”
She gazed into his red, glowing eyes and dared to believe that somehow their love would survive.
His gaze lowered to her mouth. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he inched closer.
“Yes,” she breathed, letting her eyes drift shut.
His lips touched hers, gently at first, although there was nothing gentle about her reaction. Her fingers dug into his shoulders. Her heart beat wildly.
Her wolf objected, threatening to shift.
Phineas deepened the kiss, molding his lips to hers, and she opened her mouth to let him in. She swirled her tongue with his. He tasted of blood, but she’d tasted blood many times as a wolf, and it only made her hungrier for him.
A surge of wolf power shot through her, and she broke the kiss with a gasp. “Phineas, I have to shift! I can’t wait much longer.”
He sat back, grimacing. “Damn.”
“I can’t help it. We have to hurry!”
With vampire speed, he zipped out of bed and into the bathroom, so fast she barely had a glimpse of his naked body. But what she saw was enough to make her collapse on the bed with groan of frustration. A few seconds later, he was back and throwing on the clothes she’d washed.
She scrambled out of bed as he pulled on his cowboy boots, and noticed a surveillance camera close to the ceiling. It was blinking red. “Is that thing on?”
He glanced at it, his eyes back to their normal dark brown. “Damn.”
“That’s a yes?”
“Yeah.” He set his cowboy hat on his head and tossed her his jacket. “Let’s go.”
She strode alongside him. “So we showed up on a monitor in the security office?”
“Maybe.” He headed down the hall, snapping his plaid shirt together as he went. “I should have thought about it, but I was . . . distracted.” He punched the button for the elevator. “I owe you an apology.”
“Why?” She watched him stuff his shirttails into his jeans and considered offering some help.
“I manhandled you.” He buttoned the top of his jeans and buckled his belt. “I wasn’t thinking clearly.”
“Phineas, I’m okay. I . . . enjoyed it.”
He glanced at her. “Really?” When she nodded, his mouth curled up and his gaze drifted to her chest. “You were right about the B-cup.”
She smiled. “It’s good to know the Three-Step rule is still in effect. I was worried after you turned me down the other night.”
He waited for her to enter the elevator, then punched the button for the ground floor. “What is this Three- Step rule?”
“In my experience, men tend to be rather simple.” She paused when he arched a brow at her. “Well, it basically means that at any given moment, a man’s brain is only three steps away from thinking about sex.”
He frowned, considering, as he took his jacket from her and put it on. “I disagree.”
“You don’t think about sex that often?” She scoffed. “I find that hard to believe.”
He gave her a wry look. “I don’t need three steps. Hell, I just look at you and want sex.”
Her cheeks warmed with a blush, and she smiled slowly. “You know, after I’ve been a wolf for a few hours, I could shift back, and we could have a date. I tend to have a lot of excess energy I need to work off.”
He moved toward her. “I could help you with that.”
“Goodness. You are faster than three steps.”
“You bet.” He planted a hand on the elevator wall, close to her head. “I’ve got a fast mind, but slow hands.”
She licked her lips. “Sounds perfect.”
He tilted his hat back and leaned in for a kiss.
A thrill shot through her, and her toes curled inside her cowboy boots. What a sexy kisser. Making love to him was going to knock her boots off for sure. “Phin?”
“Mmm.” He nuzzled her neck.
“The elevator door has opened.”
He glanced back. “Damn.”
They hurried to the MacKay security office. Zoltan was selecting a sword and pistol from the caged weapons area. Freemont was focusing on a computer screen, but his eyes were twinkling and his mouth twitching.
Brynley glanced at the wall of monitors and spotted Phineas’s bedroom on the bottom row. Damn was right.
Phineas put on his shoulder holster and checked his sidearm. “Where are Jack and Lara? We need to go.”
“They just left,” Freemont replied. “Jack teleported her to the school. The were-panther lady went into labor, and Lara insisted on going there. Jack said he’d catch up with you guys later.”
“Caitlyn’s having the babies?” Brynley asked. Damn, but she hated to miss that. She couldn’t help it, though. She had to shift. “Oh my gosh, what if Caitlyn has to shift?”
Freemont shrugged. “I don’t know. Some Vamp doctor from Houston is with her.”
“Robby has been teleporting Carlos back,” Zoltan added. “Now that it’s dark here, they should be arriving soon.”
Phineas touched her arm. “I can take you to the school if you want.”
She winced. “I have to shift.” The wolf didn’t care about her new friends. It growled inside her.
“Okay.” Phineas slipped knives into his boots, then turned to Zoltan. “Ready to go?”
Zoltan sheathed his sword. “Yes.”
Phineas grabbed Brynley, and within a few seconds, they were materializing at the cabin in Wyoming.
Zoltan glanced around quickly. “It looks the same. No one came during the day.”
For a second, Brynley’s form shimmered as she fought to keep the wolf from breaking free.
“Whoa!” Phineas jumped back.
She regained control. “That was close.”
“You’re telling me!” Phineas yanked off his hat and ran a hand over his hair. “For a second, I thought I was hugging a wolf!”
“You almost did.” She sat and yanked off her cowboy boots. “I hate shifting with clothes on. It rips them all up.” She pulled off her socks.
“You’re stripping now?” Phineas shot a warning look at Zoltan.
“I think I’ll check on the horses in the stable.” He strode to the front door, then glanced back at Phineas, his eyes twinkling. “You’re not joining me?”
Phineas dropped his hat on the kitchen table. “In a minute.”
Zoltan snorted and left, closing the door behind him.
“Does he know how to feed the horses?” Brynley stood to unbuckle her belt and unzip her jeans.
“Sure. He’s used to horses. He’s a medieval dude.” Phineas moved to block the front window. “You need blinds in this place.”
“Afraid a deer might see me?” She dropped her jeans to the floor and kicked them aside. Her hands trembled as she unbuttoned her shirt. “I’m so excited. I can hardly control myself.”
“I’m getting a little excited, too.”
