Chapter 4 Sparks
Chapter four
Sparks
One last fucking match. That’s all I’ve got.
The woman groans in her sleep, and I hold my breath, begging the little flame to catch as I hold it to the kindling. There’s no time to go back for more matches now.
Seconds tick by, just the sound of her shivering.
Then, just when I think it’s going to fizzle out against wet wood, the bit of starter catches. And ignites.
I breathe a sigh of relief as the tiny spark blazes into a rapid inferno.
For a few more minutes, I stay crouched in front of the woodstove, waiting, watching, afraid if I move, the fire will go out. But it just keeps getting stronger and brighter and warmer until I’m sure: This blaze wouldn’t go out even if I poured a bucket of water over it.
Which, ironically, is also how I feel.
By the time I’ve checked her for broken bones and bandaged her wounds, I’m about three seconds from losing my mind.
I pace the tiny cabin, heat raging through my body with every breath, a deep, resonating hunger I can’t explain.
Fuck.
Fucking hell, I was trying to deny it, but there’s no more denying it. It’s a mate bond.
It’s the only explanation.
“I need to get out of here—” I growl, pacing, reaching for my keys. “I need to run before I do something stupid.”
“What kind of stupid?” the injured woman asks groggily from where she stirs, sitting up on my bed, her voice surprisingly warm despite everything she’s been through.
I should just be relieved she’s okay. No broken bones.
Not even any frozen toes, just a few bruises and scrapes.
Instead, my stupid wolf instinct wants to fucking mate.
God.
Damn.
It.
She shouldn’t have asked. My legs move without my permission, crossing the room in three strides until I’m leaning over her on the bed, one hand cupping her jaw. God, her skin smells so good. Warm like vanilla, but somehow deeper. A musk, a sweetness, a fire.
She lets out a little gasp as I breathe in the scent of her neck, my canines running along her soft flesh. How easy it would be to bite her…to mark her as mine, to claim her—
Fuck.
What the hell am I doing?
“You’re injured.” I yank myself back. “You need to rest. Go to sleep,” I growl, the annoyed command in my voice surprising even me. “I’m getting out of here.”
I swivel for the door in a hurry, one hand already on the knob when I hear her soft little, “Wait.”
“No. Waiting is dangerous.”
But I freeze anyway.
So close. I was so close to not doing something stupid.
Not taking my hand off the doorknob, I turn to look at her. “Don’t fucking tell me to wait.” I’m being an asshole and I know it, but I don’t care. This isn’t about her feelings. This is about protecting her. “You don’t know what I’m capable of.”
To my surprise, a soft blush lights her cheeks, genuine interest in her voice when she asks, “What if I want to find out?”
“I’m a shifter. You’re a human. You don’t want to find out. Trust me.”
“Try me.”
Her defiance stirs something in me, that hunger I’m trying so hard to push down.
“No.” Turning away, I twist the doorknob.
“Please?”
I snap back to look at her, surprised by the earnest hope on her face.
“I mean it,” she says, lifting her sweater by the hem and shucking it off over her head. Beneath, all she’s wearing is a thin white tank top. I don’t know what it’s called. One of the ones with the skinny little straps that look like they could fall down at any second.
Her breasts strain against the white fabric, her nipples clearly visible, her curves more perfect than I could have imagined.
My cock hardens inside my jeans.
I want to wrap my mouth around her perfect, round nipples and suck them until she moans. I want to slide my fingers between her thighs and pleasure her until she slicks my hand. I want to taste her—fuck.
I hate people. I’m a lone wolf for a reason, and I sure the hell don’t want a damn mate.
I’ve been suppressing these desires all my life, but right now, it’s all I want.
I don’t want to fight them anymore.
I take a step closer, my hand leaving the doorknob.
Damn it all.
I want to feel the perfect swell of her breasts cupped in my hands. I want to pinch her nipples and make her cry out in pleasure. I need her reactions. I need her.
I’m vaguely aware that somehow she’s gone from an injured hiker to someone who might have hidden intentions, because who nearly freezes to death after falling off an embankment only to seduce their rescuer? But the logical part of my brain isn’t working right now.
I’m not thinking with that head.
I take a step back toward the door, slamming the heavy wooden bar down across it.
Locking us in.
The only way someone could get in now would be to break the whole damn thing down.
When I look back, she’s watching me with an expression I’ve never seen before echoing in her eyes. Need?
“Please,” she whispers, palming her breasts with her hands, tugging slowly at the straps of her tiny, white top. God damn. I love how fucking see-through it is. Did she wear this on purpose? That thought floats through my mind, but it makes no sense.
Who goes out into the woods and nearly dies on a hike with the expectation of seducing a man while they’re at it?
No, that is absurd.
Still, her fingers tease lower, exposing the top of her areolas as she stretches the fabric down to reveal her nipples beyond the tiny straps.
Her curves are perfect.
My cock is so rock hard, it hurts, straining at the inside of my jeans as I struggle to tear my eyes away from her. Her hands trace her sides, eyes locked on mine as I stand transfixed across the room.
“I should repay you for saving me,” she says, her voice seductive yet playful, and I know this is a game. I know she doesn’t really believe she owes me anything.
“You don’t need to do that.” My voice is so low in response, it’s hoarse.
She just smiles. “Oh, I don’t need to. I want to. It’s not every day a girl gets rescued by a ripped dude in the middle of the mountains and he carries her back to his cabin alone. Be a real shame not to make good use of the opportunity, don’t you think?”