Wolf’s Redemption (The Wolves of Langeais #3)

Chapter Fifteen

They sat in companionable silence, eating the first proper meal Ulrik had had in weeks. He should be savoring it, but he chewed with nary a thought, barely registering the tender flesh or the smoky flavor of the meat, so aware was he of the woman beside him. Watching her take delicate bites of hare and licking her fingers with a swish of pink tongue had aroused a hunger in him for something other than food.

He got to his feet, the flare of desire in her eyes as she caught sight of his cock straining at his breeches highly satisfying. He restrained the urge to pull her into his arms, the hint of her need rich and thick in the air. His body hummed with heat and his wolf prowled close. He had never been one to control his impulses, much to Gaharet and the pack’s obvious disapproval. He did now.

Who knew how wide a circle Lothair would cast with the keep guard to recapture him. And they were still too close to the Vautour estate for his liking. When Rebekah gave herself to him, and he did not doubt she would, he wanted to give her his full attention, and he wanted plenty of time. A rushed coupling, with his senses focused on the surrounding forest, was not what he had in mind.

Anticipation for the moment he would have her beneath him, his hands cupped around those voluptuous breasts, his hips between her luscious thighs, welled up within him and stole the breath from his lungs. When he took her, had her screaming his name as he brought her to release, the passion between them promised to burn hotter than any fire.

The feeling washed over him and he embraced it. His wolf panted within his mind, eager and hungry, all its enhanced senses fixed on her. It heightened the tension in his body, keeping him on the knife’s edge of control. It was not an entirely unpleasant sensation. Surprising . He had never thought he would enjoy delayed gratification. It certainly wasn’t what he was used to. Women never said no to him. Never made him wait, and he never had to pursue them. Perhaps that was what he had been missing. The chase. After all, he was a predator.

Ulrik kicked dirt onto the fire, putting it out. They had to keep walking. The light of a fire at night could be seen for leagues, and his fellow werewolves would catch the scent of smoke and cooked hare easily. It would be sure to draw them in. He had only lit it to cook the hares. In his wolf form, he would have eaten the hares raw, and not bothered with skinning, gutting, or cooking them. Not so Rebekah.

Rebekah from the twenty-first century. More than a thousand years into his future. It astounded him, confounded him. For one who could shed his clothes and shift his human body into another form, there was not much that surprised him. She had.

Now she sat there, blinking and waiting for her eyes to adjust. No demands he keep the fire lit, and no hysterics at being plunged into darkness. For all her concerns about her lack of intelligence, the woman was smart. And brave.

“I know you are tired, Rebekah, but we must continue on for at least another few hours. We need to put as much distance between ourselves and the remains of our fire as we can.”

She got to her feet. Ulrik slung the sack over one shoulder and set the wineskin over hers. She flinched at his touch but did not move away.

“Okay. I understand.” She held her hand out toward the forest. “Lead the way.”

Instead, he took her hand in his. Without his enhanced vison, even with the light of the moon flickering through the leafy canopy, she would have difficulty seeing. “I will guide you.”

Before she could protest, or think to pull her hand from his, he set off walking, giving her no choice but to follow.

* * * *

It was but a few hours before dawn when he stopped again. Rebekah’s feet were dragging, and he was all but pulling her along with him.

“I think it is safe enough now for us to stop for a few hours’ rest.”

He let go of her hand and she slumped to the ground. She was exhausted, but she had not complained, nor demanded they stop. Not once. A woman out in the world alone, without the support of her family, would be no stranger to hardship.

Dropping the sack, he removed his surcoat and laid it out on the ground. It was not much, but it would provide some comfort against the cold earth. With the rope in his hand, he approached her and looped it around her waist.

She backed away from him. “What? No. You’re not seriously thinking of tying me to a tree again, are you?”

She put her hands on her hips and glared at him.

“No. I am not tying you to a tree.” He tugged on the rope, pulling her against him and leaned close to her ear. “I am tying you to me.”

She gave a startled gasp and back-stepped hastily away from him until the rope played out and pulled her to a stop. “You know, I thought, after all we’ve been through together, you would trust me by now. I mean, I did follow you from the village of my own accord.”

He paused, a knot in the rope half-formed. She had, and she had stayed with him all day, not once attempting to escape him. He took in the weary slump of her shoulders and the drooping of her eyelids. Her body was tired, more so than his.

“Are you going to run?”

She threw her arms into the air. “Where? The villagers would barely look at me and the forest has wolves that will eat me. You’re the only one who’s offered to help.”

Ulrik considered her words. “Very well.”

He loosened the incomplete knot and let the rope slip from around her waist, then coiled it and set it aside. He unbuckled his sword and it joined the rope, then he lay down, stretching himself out.

“Come. Lay beside me.” He patted his surcoat. “Between this and my body heat, it will keep you warm.”

She huffed and rolled her eyes. He rested his hands beneath his head and watched her debate what to do. She scoped out the surrounding ground, then settled herself in the dirt.

He rolled onto his side, observing her as she fussed about getting comfortable. “You will get a better night’s sleep over here where you can be warm.”

“That’s debatable.”

He allowed himself a grin, knowing she could not see well enough to catch his amusement. “Very well, then.”

He rolled on to his back and stared up at the stars through the leafy canopy. She patted the dirt, brushed aside a few leaves and dislodged a few pebbles. He waited. Rebekah rolled over. She wiggled about, shifting position and tugging at her dress. She turned back over. With a muffled curse, she shifted closer. Ulrik continued to stare at the night sky. A wolf, a real wolf, howled in the distance.

She froze and her heart skipped, then beat a staccato rhythm loud in his ears.

“Fine. You win.” She shuffled over to him. “But you keep to your side, and I’ll keep to mine.” She drew an imaginary line between them. “You stay over there. Capisce ?”

Again, he patted the space beside him. “Come lie down, Rebekah. I am a man of my word. I have told you I will not touch you unless you ask.”

“Yeah? I might have believed that if you hadn’t already kissed me back at the village.”

“A momentary lapse. For which I apologized. And you seemed to enjoy it.”

“Ha. That is irrelevant.”

Not to him. Nor was her lack of denial of her enjoyment. “All the same, it will not happen again. Not unless you ask.”

She jutted her chin out at him. “Don’t hold your breath, buddy. Those words will not pass these lips.”

He released a chuckle, low and dirty. “Oh, how wrong you are, Rebekah . You will ask.”

She snorted. “Don’t bet on it.” She turned her back to him and lay down, resting her head on her hands. “Arrogant asshole,” she muttered, barely above a whisper. “I’ll show you.”

Ulrik suppressed his mirth, ensuring he kept on his side of her imaginary line. It was early autumn. The temperature would drop as the night progressed. As a betting man, he knew the odds were in his favor. Before long, she would be in his arms, seeking the warmth he could provide.

He would not deny her. No, he would pull her in close and hold her soft, lush curves tight against his body and imagine what it would be like to have her naked beside him, skin to skin. It was the closest he could get to having what he wanted, and it would be enough. For now.

He settled in to wait, as content as he could be given his current circumstances. Not so long ago, being captured by Renaud, confined by Lothair, his chances of living had narrowed significantly. Now, here he was, free in the forest with the most interesting woman he had met in a long time. He smiled, strangely content for the first time in years.