Werewolf in Alaska

had to provide the fine cuts of sirloin that he enjoyed. But he preferred not to dwell on what he considered an unsavory process.

“I’ve brought your dinner.” She left the bedroom door open as she crossed the room and put the bowl in front of him.

He had to pee, but he wasn’t about to turn down the possibility of food. She didn’t seem to be using the hamburger as a trick to get him back inside this time, and he was grateful for that. He began gulping down the ground meat.

Halfway through, he paused. She could have buried a knockout pill in the hamburger and he’d never know. He glanced up. Did you hide a pill in this meat?

“It’s okay, wolf. You can eat it. No tricks.” She crouched down so they were eye to eye. “I’m going to let you go.”

His heart thumped faster. Freedom!

“You understood that, didn’t you? I have a feeling if scientists ever examined your brain, they’d discover you’re a super-intelligent wolf.”

If any scientist examined his brain and reported the findings, they’d risk ruining their reputation. Everyone knew werewolves were mythical creatures. He pitied the poor scientist who dared to claim that they weren’t.

“I’m letting you out because there’s no way I can keep you any longer. We both know you have to go outside and take care of some necessary business. I figured out a way to fool you this morning, but that won’t work again, will it?”

He lowered his head and kept eating, but he trembled with excitement at the prospect of escaping at last. From the corner of his eye he evaluated the light coming through her bedroom window. Too much light, but he couldn’t be particular. If she opened that back door, then he would take off.

“I’m still worried about you. I doubt you’d let me examine your wounds, and besides, I’d have a tough time seeing anything with all that fur in the way. They don’t seem to be bleeding anymore, though, and maybe you’ll be okay. I hope so.”

He was touched by the genuine concern in her voice. As much as he wanted—no, needed—to leave, he would miss her. He’d been an intimate part of her life for nearly twenty-four hours, and she’d proven to be every bit as wonderful as he’d imagined.

Too bad. He’d have to be content with his memories. He took some satisfaction in knowing that she was likely to remember this interlude for a long time. It wasn’t every day that a woman brought a wolf into her bedroom. And she didn’t know the half of it.

He supposed that eventually she’d find a man to love, and she’d tell him about the brave wolf that had defended her from a mother grizzly. Jake didn’t like thinking about her with someone else, but there could be no other outcome. He would end up with someone else, too, maybe even Giselle Landry.

“So I want you to be really careful after you leave here,” she said. “I wish you’d stay until it’s a little darker, but I know you won’t. It’s just that you’re black, and if someone sees you . . . I worry that they’ll . . . well, maybe they’ll be awestruck the way I was when I saw you years ago and they’ll leave you alone.”

It wasn’t me you saw. It was my father.

“It was you, so don’t try to convince me it wasn’t.”

His head came up and he looked into her eyes. Had she just replied to his telepathic thought?

“I will say, though, that I haven’t been carving your nose quite right. I thought it was a little longer and sharper than that.”

Exactly. Because you saw my dad.

“But it had to be you. How many others could there be with those distinctive green eyes, thick black coat, and a diamond pattern on your forehead? You’re very unusual looking. And larger than most wolves, too.”

Right, but I’m not a— He caught himself before he finished the sentence. He was only thinking, but he had an uneasy feeling she was hearing some of those thoughts. He didn’t want to take a chance that he’d plant an idea in her head.

“Anyway, I’ll miss you, wolf. I wouldn’t mind having you drop by now and then, but I don’t suppose that’s wise. The more often you’re spotted near a residence, the more likely someone will decide you’re a danger to small children and lapdogs. You need to stay away from people. I promise I’ll be more careful about bears from now on, so you can relax on that score.”

He couldn’t seem to stop gazing at her. She was so beautiful, with her soft hair framing her face and her gray eyes filled with affection for him. He could easily stay away from other humans, but he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to stay away from her.

“Go on, now. Eat your hamburger.” Reaching out, she stroked his head. “I didn’t mean to distract you.”

The warmth of her touch ran through him like a jolt of electricity. He quivered in reaction.

“Your coat is incredibly soft. I always imagined it would be coarse, but it’s not.” She looked into his eyes as she combed her fingers through his fur. “We do have a connection, don’t we?”

Yes. He leaned into her caress.

“I think that’s very cool, but I don’t want to put you in danger.” With a sigh, she lifted her hand and stood.

Please don’t stop stroking me.

“Finish that hamburger. It’s time you were on your way.”

He swallowed a whine of longing. The urge to stay and somehow blend their two very different worlds had become powerful, almost too powerful to resist. No doubt the Wallace brothers had felt this way, and they’d succumbed. He would not, by God. He would not.

Summoning all his willpower, he returned his attention to the hamburger and finished it off. When he looked up, she’d moved into the living room. He walked out of her bedroom knowing he’d never see it again.

Good thing he needed a bathroom break. At this moment, it was the only thing propelling him out the door. Yet his belief in a clean separation of the two species—human and Were—was the only world order that made sense to him. He had to adhere to it, no matter how much he longed to hold on to his connection with Rachel.

“Come on, wolf. Let’s get this over with.” Striding toward the back door, she opened it with a dramatic flourish. “I’ll bet you can hardly wait to be free again.”

No. I want to stay.

She turned back to him, her expression puzzled. “You do want to leave, right?”

There was only one good answer to that. Lifting his head, he met her gaze. Yes.

“I thought so.” She opened the screen door and held it for him as she walked out on the deck. “Then go, wolf. And don’t pick any more fights with bears, okay?”

To his astonishment, she sounded emotional, as if she might be on the verge of tears.

I won’t.

“Good,” she murmured. “Now, take off.”

He did. This time when he bounded down the steps, he didn’t stumble. He was stronger now. At the bottom he looked back.

She stood with her arms wrapped protectively around her midsection, as if in pain. Her expression was bleak. “Go!” she called out.

He sprinted for the trees. Lingering would only make everything tougher on both of them. He emptied his bladder and started the journey back home. It was only later that he realized that she’d made some response to every telepathic thought he’d had.

That wasn’t supposed to be possible.

Chapter 7

Rachel pulled her phone out of her pocket and pressed the buttons that connected her to Lionel. “He’s taken off. He went to the right, headed around the lake.”

Lionel’s voice came through the phone. “I’m on it. How is he?”