Chapter 2
“Go ahead,” the beautiful woman said, seemingly unflustered. “Tell me my story.”
“If I get it right, what do I win?” Anders Kraus swallowed more of his beer. If the waitress didn’t hurry with their wings, he’d need another one, or two.
“Is life a game to you?” She glanced away, as if bored, but her posture was stiff, her shoulders back. He put her off balance. Good.
“A dangerous game,” he murmured.
The woman nodded. Her amber eyes pierced through him. Her hair was a mixture of light and dark brown, and she wore little, maybe no makeup. She was perfect.
Looks wise. But looks only got anyone so far.
“You can name your prize.”
That pleased him. “A bold offer.”
She shrugged one shoulder. “For your bold claim. Tell me my story.”
“You constantly try to outsmart everyone, to stay one step ahead. Failure is not something you accept in others, and it’s definitely not something you accept in yourself.”
The woman rolled her eyes. “Fortune teller nonsense. My story’s a little more… singular than that.”
He finished his beer and noticed she only had a sip left in her drink. Beneath the table, he reached over and squeezed her knee, needing to touch her. For whatever reason, he felt wildly drawn to her. He had noticed her the moment she walked into the place. When he saw her looking for a place to sit, he’d offered the guys sitting at this table a fifty to walk away. He’d removed one of the chairs so it would look more suitable for her, and she’d taken the bait immediately.
Now that he had her, he wasn’t about to let her go until he figured out just what connection drew him to her.
“You long to be free,” he added.
“Free from what?” She finished her drink and waved to their waitress, gesturing that they both needed refills. So she liked to take charge. He liked that in a woman.
“Free from the confines of your body.”
A slight inhale of breath was her only response… until she uncrossed and recrossed her legs.
“Free to do as you please to whatever you want, whether that’s seeking or tracking or hunting or eating or fucking.”
The woman pursed her lips. Damn, did he want to kiss her. “Tracking, hunting, eating… just what are you referring to?”
“I think you know.” He accepted his second beer and downed half of it immediately.
“I don’t,” she said hoarsely.
“Whatever you can take down. Beaver, hare…”
Her eyes narrowed. “I’m not a hunter.”
“You don’t care for moose or deer or goat or oxen? Caribou is my favorite.”
“I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about.” She yanked her drink toward her, this one a deep purple color. Her tongue snaked out of her mouth to claim her straw, and he hardened, thinking about all of the places he’d like her tongue to touch.
“Oh no?” he asked innocently. “You don’t ever feel the need to release your inhibitions and throw back your head and howl?”
She gaped at him.
“I do believe I won.”
“No,” she whispered.
“You, my dear, are a…” He made a show of looking around the crowded and overly noisy bar before leaning closer to her, close enough to grab one of her hands. “A werewolf.”
She tried to free herself, but he held on tightly. “You’re delusional.”
“You are if you think you’re getting out of what you promised me,” Anders growled.
“What do you want?” A trace of fear tinged her words.
“Nothing you don’t want too.”
She frowned.
“I can smell your arousal from here.”
The woman flushed but didn’t deny his statement.
Oh, yes. This werewolf, whoever she was, she was his.