A million reasons to hide popped in my mind. Being committed to a mental ward, or maybe studied like a lab rat, or hunted, or who knew what.
Adam tipped his head toward the donut shop. “I’ve heard this place is great.”
“You’ve never been here before?” I unfastened my seatbelt.
“I can’t take you to any of my usual restaurants. If any of my Pack saw us together they’d catch your scent in a heartbeat.”
The Pack. I’d almost forgotten about them.
“Ahh…they wouldn’t like seeing you with a…” I hesitated. I couldn’t say it. “A girl like me?”
Adam met my eyes and lowered his voice. “The only jaguars we’ve ever run into were bloodthirsty killers. My Pack would smell the cat in you and assume you were the same.”
“So they’re racists.” Being the token foster kid all through school, I was used to being judged before anyone bothered to get to know me. Not fitting in was a constant for me, why not add being a flippin’ jaguar to the mix? Okay, it was possible I had a chip on my shoulder, but the thought that I would be judged and possibly killed because I smelled different pissed me off more than it frightened me.
He blinked and frowned. “No, they’re not… I’m just trying to protect you.”
“They don’t even know me, but you think they’d kill me on sight because of the way I smell? That’s beyond racist, it’s insane.”
“They might not kill you, but they’d definitely want you to get out of town.”
He was clearly backpedaling now. I shrugged and got out of the Jeep. “I’m planning on leaving town anyway.”
He came around and met me at the front of the Jeep, his gaze demanding my full attention. “Leaving isn’t going to keep you safe, but I could.”
The way he said the words, the look in his eyes, stopped me in my tracks. My pulse thrummed and part of me wondered if he could possibly be as attracted to me as I was to him. I blinked. No one should be allowed to have eyes that mesmerizing. “What do you want from me?”
“I don’t want anything.” He shrugged his broad shoulders. “I’d like to help you get rid of these guys chasing after you, and maybe get to know you better. That’s all.”
For a moment, my heart leapt at the thought that this hunk of a man with the most amazing smile I’d ever seen wanted to spend time with me. But before I could open my mouth, my brain started to function again. Just because he wanted to be with me, didn’t mean I would be safe. Between the threat of being locked away in a mental institution or hunted by a pack of angry werewolves, getting out of town was a no-brainer.
But knowing he wanted me to stay made my insides flutter.
I looked down at my hands. “It’d be nice to stay, but you said it yourself—if the other wolves in your Pack find out they’ll make me leave. Or worse.”
“They don’t have to know you’re here.” He pushed his thick hair back from his forehead. “I know this is a lot, and you still don’t really believe me about being a shifter, but I can prove it to you. You’ve got abilities you haven’t tapped into yet.”
I bit my lip, tempted again by his offer to show me. Like the rest of him wasn’t tempting enough. What was I doing? I couldn’t stay here. Could I?
While I mulled over his offer, the filter between my brain and my mouth vanished again. “Why are you being so nice to me?”
“I’ve never met anyone like you before.”
My inner foster kid smirked. “Oh, that’s a good one.” I rolled my eyes. “Does that usually work with the women you date?”
“God, you’re a pain in the ass.” He leaned against the front grill of the Jeep, crossing his arms. I tried not to notice the way his muscles stressed the sleeves of his shirt. “Yes, I can be smooth when I need to be, but this isn’t it. This is just me wanting to be with you.” He shook his head. “I’ve never had to work this hard to get a woman to spend time with me. I wish I could stop trying, but I look in your eyes and…” He shook his head and straightened from the Jeep. “Forget it.”
I took slow breath, doing my best to organize my thoughts. “All of this is a lot for me to take in. Add to it that some guys with guns are looking for me, and then there’s your Pack…”
A couple came out of the donut shop, interrupting me. They held hands, laughing. Happy. I knew in reality not everyone was, but I’d been alone for so long that I often watched couples with hungry, greedy eyes, wanting that illusive feeling of unity, of being someone’s favorite person in the world.
I’d never felt it before, so the simplest solution was to decide it didn’t really exist. It can’t hurt you if it’s not real.
But now I was staring at a man who had watched over me, and left me a photo and folded my clothes while I was running around the darkness as some kind of jungle cat. In fact, he could have called his buddies and probably killed me if he wanted to, but he didn’t. He helped me without asking for anything in return.
I trembled at the thought. Hope was a terrifying emotion.
He held his hand out to me, palm up. For a moment I only stared at his gesture, but finally I found myself placing my hand in his.
The corner of Adam’s mouth quirked and threatened to weaken my knees. “Nothing complicated, all right? We’ll just start with breakfast.”
He guided me to the door, and I did my best not to obsess over how good his warm hand felt at the back of my waist. Adam held the door open, overwhelming me with the delicious sweet scent of fresh donuts. My stomach growled in anticipation.
We walked up to the glass case and I wandered to the other end, eyeing the apple fritters. Across the store, Adam opened the refrigerator case. “Thirsty?”
“A bottle of water would be amazing.”
A young man came out from the back and flashed me a dazzling white smile. “Can I help you?”
I nodded, pointing at the glass. “I’ll take an apple fritter and a glazed twist.”
He plucked my requests and met my eyes. “Anything
Adam was suddenly right beside me, his arm wrapped around my waist, holding me close to his side. “I’d like some donuts too.”
“Oh, sure.” Donut guy sized up Adam. “I didn’t know you were together.”
Adam’s fingers splayed, singeing my skin right through my shirt, his voice carried a deep tone of warning. “We are.”
“Sorry about that.” Donut guy hustled to box up the rest of the donuts and ring up our order. Adam paid and took the box and drinks in his free arm, keeping his other hand planted at the base of my spine.
“Come again,” donut guy called from behind the counter.
Adam answered with a glare over his shoulder. I hurried to my side of the Jeep, unsure whether I should be flattered or terrified. When Adam got in he put the water bottles and donuts on the backseat. He fired up Chaney’s engine, but before he could sink the gearshift into reverse, I caught his forearm.
“What was that back there?”
“Back where?”
I rolled my eyes. “In the donut shop.”
He shrugged and dropped the gearshift into reverse. “Just wanted that guy to back off a little.”
I nodded and swallowed the lump in my throat. His over-protective streak made my heart race. Trouble was I couldn’t decide if it was attraction…or fear.
Chapter Four
I tried to downplay the surge of territorial instincts that swamped me in the donut shop, but Lana didn’t look like she was buying it. Maybe she shouldn’t. If the guy behind the counter hadn’t broken eye contact with her and dropped the innuendo in his voice, I wasn’t sure what might’ve happened.
