Her Werewolf Lover: Michael and Samantha (The Macconwood Pack Tales #15)

Chapter 9

M ichael wasn’t sure how it happened so quickly. But he wasn’t questioning it.

One second, they were tearing down a wall. The next, she was wrecking him for any other woman ever.

Hell. He already knew there would be no others.

Her soft body fit perfectly into the cradle of his. Michael wrapped his arms tightly around her, molding her plump, warm flesh to his hard one.

His heart squeezed, and the beast inside him howled in victory as he sipped from her lips, savoring her sweet vanilla flavor and drinking it down.

She opened her expressive hazel eyes, and for a moment he thought she would ask him to stop, but Samantha pulled him closer, claiming his mouth with hers.

Fuck. It felt so good having her initiate contact. His Wolf was scratching at him to claim her. But he could still hear his crew moving about, getting the job done.

By the time he lifted his head her eyes were lust-glazed, and her lips were pink and swollen from his. Even rumpled, she was glorious.

The smell of sweet morning mixed in with her vanilla scent and that of the construction around them tickled his supernaturally enhanced senses.

“That was really nice, but it doesn’t have to happen?—”

“Hey, your thoughts are loud, Sunshine. Now, that was a great first kiss, but I can assure you, it is definitely going to happen again. Don’t overthink it,” he said, cutting her off and dropping another plucking kiss onto her sweet lips.

He really did not want to hear anything to the contrary, and he was pleased when she bit her lip and looked down. Her cheeks turned pink, and Michael tilted her face up.

“I wasn’t trying to shush you. I just didn’t want you saying that was a mistake,” he said, just to clarify .

“I’m glad you did. I was probably going to ruin it and say something dumb. But look, promise me, no matter what happens with us, you will finish this project,” she said.

“I will. You have my word.”

“Okay. Then I won’t overthink this,” she said and nodded, moving back.

It was an easy enough promise. The snug top she wore with those tight pants was making him rabid.

Her breasts were perfectly outlined and after the kiss they just shared, the hardened tips were visible through the cotton.

His chest rumbled, and he cut off the sound when her eyes went straight to it.

She tilted her head and pointed.

“Hey, what is that sound?”

He grabbed her hand and kissed her again, just to make her forget the question.

He needed his Wolf to chill the fuck out. Michael could admit he was a possessive asshole. But she still did not know about his furry secret.

He crushed her to him and Samantha mumbled something into his chest, but he couldn’t make out the words over the sounds of his annoying ass Wolf.

A wave of protectiveness swept over him at the feel of this soft woman in his arms. She was a perfect mix of contradictions. Sweet and innocent. Tough and headstrong. Worldly and na?ve.

But she had him now. And he was going to make sure she was safe and happy from now on. As soon as he figured out how to tell her.

Too aware of the way her perfect body fit against his, he was having a hard time concentrating at all.

Her hair smelled like sunflowers. Underneath it was the sweet vanilla scent that he’d discovered yesterday. Briefly, his mind went to that carnal place, where he wondered if that scent was all over her.

He brushed his nose over the top of her head and went wild with wanting to tear the red locks loose from the masochistic bit of black elastic that held it away from her make-up less face.

All he could think about was getting his hands in the thick wealth of it.

“Hey,” she mumbled, moving back to look at him.

He focused on her face, scrubbed clean and fresh as a daisy.

“Hey,” he echoed.

She beamed at him with gold-rimmed hazel eyes that captivated Michael. Simply stunning.

Heat filled his stomach and extended down his legs to his big, booted feet.

“Are you hungry?” he asked .

She started to shake her head, but her stomach growled, and she rolled her eyes instead.

“Always,” she said with a slight note of self-deprecation.

He’d talk to her about that later. Sunshine was fucking perfect, and she should never have to deny herself one single thing. Especially not food.

“Come on, we’re going out for breakfast.” He decided on the spot.

“What? But I’m not dressed,” she protested.

“You look great to me, but go ahead and get changed if you want to. We’ll get some food, then we can discuss which wall you’re going to tackle next,” he said and guided her gently towards the staircase that led to her room.

“Are you sure about this?” she asked, and he could see panic begin to build.

“A hundred percent, Sunshine. Now get dressed,” he told her and kissed her on the lips again in front of the half dozen men working behind him.

He watched her walk away for a minute before turning around and running his hand over his head.

This was going to get serious quickly. Most matings did once fated mates were involved. He’d already explained things to Maya and his Aunt Eileen, and being Wolves, they understood .

Michael was a single father. His attention had been fixed on Maya alone for so long, he feared his daughter wouldn’t be happy about him finding a mate.

Grinning now, he thought back to the conversation he had with his daughter in front of their aunt. Maya had let out a loud finally and told her father not to mess it up. She also told him to compliment Samantha on her shoes, her taste in tea, and books.

Apparently, girls liked it when you noticed their books.

He always thought if he ever took a mate, she would be a librarian or a preschool teacher. Not a former model.

But now he could not picture himself with anyone else. Michael wanted Samantha.

He understood desire was a natural response to someone who looked the way she did. He circled the kitchen, taking notes and marking ideas on the walls as he waited for her.

A shelf here. A new fan there. He wondered if she cooked. What did she like to eat?

Hell, he wondered a lot about her.

She came down the stairs a little while later in a pair of tailored jeans and a white Armani blouse carelessly un-tucked and unbuttoned almost to her navel, with a wide leather belt wrapped around her waist.

Her hair hung in curls down her back, and she wore a light smattering of tastefully applied cosmetics. She looked good.

But Michael thought he liked her better in a ponytail with sweat still clinging to her brow.

He’d been talking on the phone when she’d returned. He held up a hand in a friendly gesture for her to wait a second. She nodded and jumped a little when the doorbell sounded.

That had to go , he added to his list as the ridiculously loud, somber bells rang out through the house. He watched her turn to answer the door when it rang a second time.

She stood with the door open, unmoving, when he clicked his cell phone off and started towards her. Then he looked down and saw what had shocked Samantha.

A smile crept over his face as he took in the small boy.

He was about four or five years old and stood in the doorway with big blue eyes and a head full of the palest blond hair Michael had ever seen.

The kid looked scared and shy. He felt Samantha’ s helplessness as if it was his own as she gaped at the child.

He could tell she was out of her element, but he waited on her to make the first move, after all it was her house the kid had come to.

He didn’t have to wait long. Samantha bent down and asked the child, “Can I help you?”

The boy shuffled his feet and looked at them both warily, hiding his eyes with his chubby little hands. Michael crouched down next to her and tried not to react when she reached out with her hand and placed it on his arm.

A subtle plea for support.

I can do that. I can be there for her. She can lean on me.

“Hey there, Buddy. You need some help?” Michael whispered, using his position to remain on eye level with the boy who seemed to cower upon seeing a man.

The boy’s expression changed once Michael was down to his level, and he uncovered his cherubic face.

“Mommy’s getting her stuff, and she can’t lift it too good because her boo-boo arm hurts, the baby throwed up, and I gotta go potty real bad,” he blurted in a rush that made Michael’s heart squeeze .

“Sean! Sean,” yelled a frantic looking blond woman in the next driveway.

When she spotted the little boy, she came running with a baby in her one good arm. Michael noted her other arm was wrapped up in a sling.

A closer look revealed the woman had some bruising on the left side of her face and swelling around her eye.

Samantha nudged him and he nodded slightly, anger brimming underneath the surface.

Whoever had hurt her was hopefully paying for it right now.

“Sean, I was so scared. You can’t just run off like that. I’m so sorry.”

The woman looked back and forth between Michael and Samantha while touching her son’s head with the tips of the fingers of her bound hand.

The gesture was one of protectiveness and love, and Michael approved. He couldn’t remember if Maya’s mother had ever touched their daughter like that.

Michael wondered if Samantha would be like that with his daughter. Then he thought about the future and wondered if she wanted children of her own.

The image made his chest feel tight and his pulse race. The Wolf inside of him loosed a howl and Michael felt real need fill his soul.

He wanted that. He wanted her.

A mate.

A family.

They would have such a good life together. He just had to grab his balls and tell her.

“I’m so sorry to intrude. I don’t know what came over him. Sean, please apologize to these people.” The woman tried to balance the infant in her arms and the small boy in front of her with only one good arm.

“Oh, it’s no problem at all! This is a good-looking guy you got right here. Bet he’s strong too,” Michael said and gave the woman a friendly smile.

“It’s no trouble, really. I’m Samantha, I just moved in a few days ago,” Samantha said.

“Nice to meet you. Well, you’ve met Sean. I’m Della. Della Connors. This is my baby, Janie. We just got here a few minutes ago, actually.”

Michael ruffled the little boy’s golden locks and pretended to feel his biceps, earning him a shy smile from the boy. His mother seemed touched by that, but was still a little hesitant.

He couldn’t blame her. She looked like she’d been through it. There was something about this new neighbor, though.

She wasn’t Wolf. but she wasn’t entirely human either. He would have to investigate to make sure his mate was safe. The Wolf would not allow for anything less.

But for now, she seemed harmless, if a little battered and scared. His Wolf did not like that either. Something he would have to inform his Alpha.

Maccon City was the prime territory for the Macconwood Wolf Pack, led by Rafe Maccon. He was a good and just leader, a strong Alpha. Michael knew he would never turn anyone away, especially not a woman and her children in need of help.

“I’m Michael Duarte. My crew and I will be here the next couple of weeks doing construction on Samantha’s home. But I promise, we’re good people, Ms. Connor,” he said, and held the woman’s gaze for a moment.

Her eyes reflected at him, some of her innate powers. A Shifter perhaps? But no, not a Wolf.

“Thank you, Mr. Duarte.”

“Call me Michael, please.”

“Sure. Call me Della,” she said and nodded, averting her gaze and baring her throat slightly .

“Michael, would you mind if we grabbed lunch today instead?” Samantha whispered to him, unaware of the nuances between himself and the other woman.

“Sure,” he said, and hid his disappointment.

“Why don’t you three come in? You’ll have to forgive the mess, as Michael said, I am having some work done to the place,” Samantha said, beckoning the young mother inside.

“Oh, we shouldn’t impose,” Della began.

“Mommy, I have to poop!” Sean shouted.

“Ha! I guess that settles it. Come this way, good sire, I shall show you to the commode,” Samantha said, curtseying and running up the front stairs with little Sean.

Michael’s chest tightened. Samantha was a good woman. Sweet, caring, and full of life.

“You understand I will not allow harm to come to her,” Michael said to Della in a voice too low for his Sunshine to hear.

“Yes, I understand. And I promise I am not here to make trouble. I just had to get away,” Della replied with a slightly Southern accent and a worn out expression on her face.

“Anything you need, my Pack can help,” he told her .

“I just need to disappear. No fuss,” she said, and left him to follow a giggling Sean and Sam.

A moment later, he scented his Aunt Eileen as she came striding up the path.

“Morning, nephew. What do we have here?” Aunt Eileen asked as she approached him for a kiss.

“Good morning, Tia,” he said, and bent down to embrace her.

“ Hola mijo. How is my Samantha ? ”

His inner Wolf growled at that, which only sent his aunt into gales of laughter.

“I knew it! So, you haven’t done anything about that yet, I see.”

“She’s human. I am taking it slow.”

“Ah, well, don’t wait too long. Let me see about these new neighbors,” she replied, patting Michael’s cheek and going inside to meet the newcomers.

Michael followed, rubbing the back of his neck. Della and her children seemed sweet. But if the young mother was running, that could mean trouble for his mate.

And his Wolf didn’t like that. Not one bit.