Chapter 4
Vaughn
Iwant this beautiful, curvy princess like I’ve never wanted anything in my life before.
I’m lying on a tarp, underneath Lily’s car, and my animal is half-mad with lust. My nostrils are full of her honeyed, virginal scent, and it’s roaring for me to claim her.
Mine.
Mate.
But I can’t.
I shouldn’t be feeling like this about Lily. She’s way too young for me. And the daughter of my childhood crush. And what she needs right now is protection.
Because she’s in a ton of danger.
I’m hunting around with a torch for anything that looks out of place. Some kind of tracker.
“Probably a small disk,” a voice buzzes in my earbuds. “Close to the edge.”
“I’ll search the whole damn thing,” I tell Devon, my pack’s tech guy. I’m a little testy, because it’s claustrophobic down here, and I’m not exactly a small guy. It’s near impossible sliding around without a car creeper, and even with my shirt off, I’m pouring in sweat.
I already searched the interior and chassis, then Devon guided me through the entire electronics system. I’ve been at it for two hours already, and I won’t quit until I’m damn sure there’s nothing that could enable Lily’s father to pinpoint the location of the car.
“Nothing there,” I say at last, hauling myself out, and getting plenty scratched up in the process.
“You searched all the wheel wells?”
“Of course,” I snap. “Haven’t missed a single inch of this car.” My wolf lets out a growl, furious at him questioning my protective instincts.
“Sorry, Boss. Course you have.”
I hear the note of surprise in Devon’s voice. He’s not used to me focusing on women. It’s been a big issue in my pack—one that’s causing a lot of conflict with the elders. Despite a ton of encouragement, I’ve refused to take a mate. No female has ever tempted me.
“Oh, what’s this?” A small, rectangular metal object just beside the tailpipe. I turn on my phone’s video function.
Devon frowns. Then he looks impressed. “A state-of-the-art tracker. Capable of withstanding intense heat.”
“Fuck!” I roar. I dump it on the ground and raise my foot to stomp it to smithereens.
“No!” comes his panicked voice. “That will definitely bring them here. Better if they think this was just a pit stop on her journey.”
I grunt. He’s right. And my instinct is to take off with it in this flashy dick extension, and drive it as far away from here as possible.
But no way am I leaving Lily alone in the house.
She’s staying in her mom’s old room. As soon as we’d finished dinner, she got real awkward and embarrassed around me and said she needed to crash. It’s been a long-ass day for her, poor thing. I’m so proud of her for driving all that way, especially when she only just got her license.
While she was in the bathroom, I put some fresh sheets on the bed and turned on her mom’s favorite ballerina lamp. When Lily came back, smelling of toothpaste and lavender, and saw the room, her face lit up. Gave me a little glow, too.
I want her to feel like that all the time. I know her life has been hard all the way through. She didn’t have the happy childhood her mom enjoyed before she got taken away from here.
I’m going to do what I can to make her happy. Make sure she’s never scared again.
And then I’ll make her mine—
Stop.
“Not happening.” She’s too young, too tender for a man like me.
“What’s not happening, boss?” Devon buzzes in my ear.
Fuck. Did I really say that out loud?
“Those assholes are not going to track the car down here.” I glance at my watch irritably. “Where’s Jed and Farris?” Two of my Betas are riding over here to pick up the car. They’ll drive it off someplace, probably set it on fire.
“ETA twenty-seven minutes,” Devon tells me.
“I’ll leave the car on the next street. Tracker in the glove box, key under the seat.”
“Right, boss. See you tomorrow.”
“Not sure if I’m coming yet.” I’m scheduled to ride back to the territory tomorrow morning.
Part of me wants to get Lily as far away from here as possible.
And god knows, I need to get back to my pack.
It’s chaos every time I leave them alone.
I’d even been questioning whether I could afford to keep coming back here on weekends…
I thank Devon for his help, aware I’ve been kinda growly and grumpy with him. My wolf’s not usually so hostile and possessive. But then, it’d never met Lily before.
I drive the car to the next street along.
Then I almost run back to the house.
Back to my girl.
A sudden panic takes hold of me as I lock the front door and race up the stairs. My thoughts spill ahead, convincing me that someone could’ve snuck in and snatched her in the two minutes I’ve been gone.
But when I put my ear to the door of her bedroom, I pick up the slow, regular sound of her breathing.
She’s safe.
And she trusts me enough to have fallen asleep with me in the house.
The thought warms me all the way through.
My wolf scrabbles beneath my skin, desperate to take things a step further.
Urging me to open the door and climb into her bed.
Damn. I’ve got it bad.
Totally lose-control-of-myself bad.
And I’ve got a feeling she’s attracted to me, too. I saw it in her dilated pupils, the way her breath came fast and shallow when I gazed at her delicious tits.
I already know I’ll never want to let her out of my sight again. But how am I going to control my beast?
I get myself ready for bed, then I strip off and let my wolf come.
It’s risky to let it out, knowing how antsy it is right now, but this is the best way I can keep Lily safe.
All the doors and windows are locked, and my wolf is going to lie outside her bedroom door, ears pricked up for any sound.
Protecting her all night long.
My wolf sleeps lightly throughout the night. I know every creak of this old house. The way the wind blows through the window panes. The way the shutters rattle from time to time. My beast stirs when the occasional car drives past, but everything else is as normal.
The first unusual sound I hear is a long, luxurious yawn.
My eyes snap open and I raise my jaws from my paws.
It’s full daylight now, and Lily is awake.
My animal whines in anticipation. The mattress springs creak as she turns over in bed, then there’s a rustle of fabric as she throws back the comforter, and a creak as she puts her feet down onto the floor.
I’m entranced, totally mesmerized by the adorable sounds of my girl waking in the morning, after what sounds like an untroubled sleep.
There’s a second creak as she takes one step across the area rug, then another and another.
I’m still captivated, completely tuned into her, as the door knob squeaks, and suddenly, she’s there.
Standing in front of me in just a skimpy pink nightshirt. My wolf whines its approval—
She yelps and claps her hand over her mouth.
Shit. I should have anticipated this happening. Of course, she’s shocked at coming face-to-face with a wolf—and a large one at that. I dip my head, showing a position of respect, and I hope she’s familiar enough with wolf ways to understand my signal.
“I’m sorry, you just startled me.” She gives a little laugh. “Good morning.” Her voice is soft and silvery, and not at all afraid. Warmth floods through my chest.
I raise my head again, and take in her pure radiance. The glowing whites of her eyes, the blush of her cheeks. I need to get my animal back inside me, so I can explain exactly what I was doing standing outside her door—
To my amazement, she reaches out and lays her hand on my head. I close my eyes, experiencing the softness of her touch. Then I feel something else—our souls connecting.
Mate.
The realization swells in my mind, in my body.
I felt it last night, and now I know for sure. This girl is mine. I just need to gain her trust and stop scaring the bejeezus out of her.
I open my eyes again and—
My wolf screws everything up.
Well, I blame it on how delicious she looks in that little nightshirt, which is riding halfway up her thighs. She’s not wearing a bra—the peaks of her nipples are just visible through the flimsy fabric, and her feet are a little way apart. Is it possible she’s not wearing panties either?
My wolf inhales hard, desperate to pick up her scent. I tried to hold it back, but it’s too much to contain in its animal form, and before I know it, it darts forward and shoves its snout between her thighs.
She gives a squeak of surprise.
No!
With a superhuman effort, I pull it back inside me. Bones crunch, tendons snap, a bolt of pain sears through me, and there I am, standing in front of her in my human form.
Buck naked.
Worst of all, my cock is semi-hard.
My momentary relief is replaced by horror.
Her eyes dart toward it, and she lets out a gasp. And then she turns and dashes for the bathroom.
Crap. Crap. Crap. What the fuck have I done?
If it wasn’t enough to have scared the shit out of her with my animal, now she’s seen me naked, and hard. This is so wrong. She’s going to think I’m a giant pervert.
I dash back to the master bedroom and shut the door, lean against it.
I catch sight of my reflection in the closet-door mirror opposite. My cock jutting straight out like a flagpole.
And there must be something very wrong with me.
Because the next thing I know, my hand is wrapping around my cock, and I’m working it up and down. She’s too goddamn sexy. That lush body of hers, almost naked.
No panties, my wolf confirms. Not even a scrap of fabric was preventing her sweet scent from reaching its nostrils. Which it knows, because for the briefest moment, its snout touched her.
Which means that’s probably the only time I will ever touch her pussy.
Moron. Pervert, I berate myself.
But still my fist pumps my cock. Up and down, up and down. And now, I’m imagining her on her knees in front of me, her sweet lips around the head of my dick. I’m holding her soft hair in my hands, and thrusting myself into her mouth, deeper and deeper.
I’m way too old for her.
I’m going straight to hell.
My hips jerk and I ejaculate, ropes of cum spurting out of my cock.
Wishing it was inside her little virgin pussy instead.