Fire in the Smokies

that was a hardship,” he continued.

“Listen,” Sergius interrupted, “McKinney has been circling closer to you from behind that cave ever since you entered. There is no doubt he knows you’re in there. The question is why? Is he after you or the woman—”

“Brianna.” Jaxon cut him off with his mate’s name.

“Okaay. Brianna it is then.” Micah got serious again. “Anyway, while you’ve been claiming your woman, McKinney has been planning his next move. And the real question is, what is he waiting for? It seems our theory is correct; he isn’t fond of fire.”

“That’s certainly good information to stash away for later. Never know when it might come in handy.” Jaxon squeezed his mate closer as though he could somehow protect her better if she were nearly attached to him. “Speaking of fire…”

Sergius jumped back into the conversation. “The flames surrounding the entrance are almost contained. Sheriff Hardin is close by, waiting to get you out of there. Don’t take any chances though. Wait until we let you know either the coast is clear or you have company.”

The kind of company Sergius was talking about was unwanted.

“There isn’t an entrance on the other side of this cave, is there?” Jaxon knew these caves as well as he could. But the truth was there were so many small entrances all around the national forest it made it difficult to remember every detail.

“Can’t say I remember such a thing, but judging from McKinney’s position, I wouldn’t take anything for granted. That man probably knows better than any of us. He’s been here hundreds of years and he’s practically foaming at the mouth. I’m staying a distance away, but even from here I can tell he’s so focused on you two that he isn’t even paying attention to me.

“Granted, the wind is in my favor, blowing in this direction, so that’s keeping my presence a secret.” Micah was on the move. Jaxon could tell by the way his thoughts were coming through. Over time, they’d grown even more aware of the subtle nuances of telepathy that included the differences between communicating while running and standing still.

“Jaxon,” Sergius interrupted. “Is Brianna okay? Will she be able to move fast when the time comes?”

Jaxon stared at his mate and grinned. Certainly not at the moment. Right now, she was naked and dead to the world. Not to mention well-fucked.

Jaxon responded, “I’ll work on that now.”

He hated waking her, but his brothers were right. They didn’t want to have to run from the cave butt naked, that was for sure.

Jaxon stroked his mate’s arm and then skimmed his fingers up her stomach and between her breasts. When she didn’t even squirm, he circled one nipple several times and finally flicked his thumb over the distended tip. That did it.

Brianna bolted upright. The headlamp that had been lying next to them this entire time jolted at her movement and began rocking on the ground, sending long shadows all around the room.

She caught her breath, her gaze landing on Jaxon. “How long was I asleep?”

“Not long. I’m sorry. I hated to wake you, but we need to get dressed. We should be ready to go when my brothers give us the all clear.”

“Has the fire moved away from the entrance?”

“Not yet, but the moment it’s safe, we’re getting out of here.”

“What aren’t you telling me?” She eyed him, her gaze narrowing in on his face.

Jaxon exhaled. He had to tell her the entire truth. The last thing he wanted was for her to be in danger simply because she was uninformed. “There are a few more details about this world I need to fill you in on.”

“What? Don’t tell me in addition to werewolves, there are also zombies out there and they prey on female firefighters, cuz Jax, I gotta tell you, I’ve reached my weirdness quota for the day. In fact, I’m sure I’ve surpassed my ability to take in anything supernatural for the month.”

Jaxon scrunched up his nose. “Sorry. Can’t be helped. I know it’s a lot. If it makes you feel better, the demon we’ll be fighting this afternoon is a vampire, not a pack of zombies.”

Brianna froze. Her eyes closed for a moment and when she reopened them, she took a cleansing breath. “Please tell me you’re fucking kidding me.”

“I wish I was.”

“Why on earth would a vampire be staking us out, no pun intended?”

“I wish I knew.”

“With all this strange psychic ability of yours, you can’t figure out the guy’s motive?”

Jaxon cringed. “I don’t have any psychic ability, Bri. Just an ability to communicate telepathically and only with my brothers and now you. Believe me, I’ve wished on more than one occasion I could have anticipated the plans of Keeton McKinney, but I’m afraid the man eludes us every time he’s in town.”

She stared at him, not moving. Finally, when he thought he was going to have to say something else, she stood and gathered her scattered clothing.

Jaxon helped. The light from the headlamp was growing dim. He could see her clothes better than Brianna. He handed her her panties, a shirt, her fire-protective pants.

She didn’t say a word as she dressed, her body becoming completely hidden by all the gear she put on. Soon the woman who stood before him was once again unrecognizable as female, except for the locks of blond hair still landing on her shoulders. She didn’t need to put her hat on yet or cover her face.

Jaxon gathered up his jeans and T-shirt and stuffed them back into his pack.

When he was ready, he glanced back at Brianna who stood there staring at his naked body.

He smiled. He was trying not to climb around in her head and invade every private thought. It seemed… unfair somehow. But as she licked her lips, there was no mistaking the desire he read in her eyes.

“Get out of my head, Jaxon. It’s disconcerting.” She turned toward the crack they’d come through. “Do your mojo thing and lead us back into the front chamber would you, wolfie?”

Jaxon laughed silently into her head. “Yes, ma’am.” He wasn’t even bothered by the fact she’d called him “wolfie”. Coming from her, it almost sounded like an endearment.

With her back to him, he shifted and squeezed through the slit in the cave. He’d be glad to get out of this inner chamber. That was for sure. And he wasn’t too manly to admit, never was soon enough to repeat this spelunking experience. Tight spaces were not his friend.

“Follow me,” he told her.

Judging by the amount of smoke coming through the space between them and the front chamber, the fire must have been under better control. The air was much clearer than it had been earlier.

“Do you think it’s safe?” Brianna placed a hand on his rump. He loved her touch even in wolf form.

“Not completely. But I want to get us out of here as soon as we get the all clear. The faster we get the hell out of the forest and back to the cabin, the better.”

“What? Jaxon, I can’t leave. I’m in the middle of a job.”

Jaxon froze, not even considering his location stuck in a tight crevice. “Brianna, you can’t mean to go back to fighting this fire right now?”

“Of course that’s what I intend. I’m not injured and I have a job to do. There are men out there who need me.”

Jaxon held his tongue as he ducked through the last of their entombment and back into the front chamber. Immediately, he shifted. Naked, and not caring about that fact even for a second, he stomped around the still- smoky room.

“Brianna…” He tried to make his voice sound calm, even though inside he was anything but.

“Don’t. I’m not a child, Jaxon. In fact, I just met you. Sure, I’ve just had the most amazing sex, but the intensity of the moment was largely due to the danger. My adrenaline was on full-speed. Wouldn’t that account for the fantastic orgasms?” She didn’t pause for an answer. “Nevertheless, I’m in the middle of a job. You can’t start ordering me around like you own me simply because we shared a good fuck.”

Jaxon flinched. Is that what she thought happened?

He shook his head to clear his mind and approached her. It wasn’t necessary to doubt their bond. She was