Chapter 4
Chapter
Four
The vet took off running.
Nico didn't know why he was surprised. He would have run too if some stranger was trying to kidnap him from his place of work. That or shredded the guy to bits with sharp teeth and sharper claws.
But humans didn't have that.
His lips curled into a grin as he chased after her. He was a wolf, a predator, and he was made for the chase.
She scrambled around a corner, slamming into a wall and pushing herself off of it with surprising force. She was faster than she looked.
But not fast enough.
Nico loped after her, his pace almost lazy.
Even in human form, running was second nature and his inner wolf pushed him faster and faster, his shoes eating up the distance like it was nothing.
Her scent surrounded him, amplified by her fear and exertion, and he breathed deep.
Yes, this was exactly as it was supposed to be. He needed her now.
But he had to earn it.
He heard a curse, if "darn it" counted as a curse, and rounded a corner to find his little vet desperately trying to open a door that was obviously locked.
She had both hands on the handle and was tugging with all her might.
Her knuckles had gone white with effort as she threw her weight into it.
He wasn't sure if she was trying to push or pull, but either way it wasn't working.
And did he smell …
She whirled around, and whatever wrongness he'd thought he smelled dissipated.
Her bright blue eyes were wide enough he could see white all around them, and she was breathing hard enough to hyperventilate.
A flush crept up her neck, and Nico knew he really was a bastard because his wolf was howling for more.
"You … this … please, just let me go. I won't say anything." She held her hands up like that would be enough to ward him off.
Nico should probably feel bad about this. But his blood was singing in his veins. He almost dropped his guard enough to let her slip by and continue the chase.
But Cole was at home, maybe dying, and Nico had to put an end to this.
He stalked forward until he was close enough to touch the vet and caged her in with his arms on either side of her, pressed against the wall.
"I won't hurt you," he said. He leaned in, unable to resist now that he was so close.
He buried his face into the curve of her neck, nose just barely brushing the skin, and breathed deep.
God, she smelled delicious. He wanted to swipe his tongue over that exposed stretch of her neck and feel her pulse leap.
He'd never understood vampires before, but tonight, he came close.
"Fuck!" A zap of electricity sizzled over his skin, almost like a snapping punch to his side.
His little vet was looking at him, wide-eyed, and he covered her hand with his own, taking what she was holding.
She had her fingers clenched around a small object, and struggled against him as much as she could until he forced her hand open.
A set of keys and a strange keychain. "Did you try and tase me? "
A wolf would never.
But he wasn't dealing with a wolf.
"I—"
"Nuh-uh." He looked at the keys, trying to find the weapon.
Mostly, they just looked like, well, keys.
But hanging on a small chain was what looked like a small flashlight that was activated by a pinch.
It was about the size of the tip of his thumb.
Tiny. No wonder he barely felt it. "Is this your little taser?
" he asked. He couldn't see how to activate it, but he wasn't going to ask for instructions.
"Clearly not a good one." She sounded more frustrated than scared right then.
The corner of Nico's mouth lifted as he smiled. Something in her scent changed, and she dragged in a deep breath. Nico's own body responded. He knew the subtlety he was smelling.
Not desire, not yet, but the precursor to it.
She was scared, yes. But not only scared.
Some more of her hair had fallen out of its tie, and Nico couldn't resist tucking it back behind her ear, the fine strands silky. He refused to imagine what it would feel like against his skin or wrapped around his fingers when …
Fuck. No.
It was a good thing humans couldn't smell for shit or she'd know exactly what he wanted from her.
"You ran, you tried," he said, aiming for reasonable. "But we both know you're not going to get away from me with this little thing." He tossed the keys over his shoulder and heard them thunk against the wall somewhere behind him. "What's your name?"
Her tongue darted out to lick her lips, and Nico had to clench his teeth from making a noise. "Elise. I'm Elise."
"That's good, thank you, Elise." He savored her name on his tongue. He couldn't taste her, but at least he could roll her syllables around and savor those. "My name is Nico, and I need your help. Will you please come with me?"
Her eyes fell closed and she looked pained. But she gave him a hasty nod.
He'd take it.
He grabbed her hand and led her back to where he'd dropped the duffel. Hopefully she'd be thankful for his purloined supplies when she saw Cole. If the alpha's state didn't freak her out too bad.
Only as he led her to his car did he remember that Cole was partially transformed still, his hands and face still reaching for his other form. Damn it.
He had the duration of the car ride to figure out a story for that. Besides, Elise was a vet, not a doctor. Maybe she didn't know how humans were supposed to look.
Yeah, right.
Nico opened the passenger door to the truck and guided Elise in. Then, feeling like a complete asshole, he flipped the latch for the child-lock on the door frame and closed her in.
When he took his own seat and closed the door behind him, he realized just how much of a torture the ride was going to be.
Her scent was overwhelming. It filled the whole space and washed over him like she was trailing her fingers over his nose, down his mouth, tracing over his neck and farther and farther down until she found his cock, and it jerked to life.
He wanted to jump out of his seat and crawl on top of her, wanted to nip her and lick her and mark her. Wanted to touch her until she was writhing and moaning beneath him.
He was hard, and his wolf was demanding he throw caution to the wind and take her now.
Then he wanted to take her back to his place and cook her a meal, wanted her sleeping in his bed, wearing his clothes, just bathing in her scent until he was the only one who could pick out those sweet lilacs and anyone who smelled her would know that she was his.
Nico gripped the steering wheel hard enough he feared he might leave an imprint.
Fuck.
What was wrong with him? He was a hard man, a violent man.
Women in the pack knew what they were getting when they spent a night with him: a bit of satisfaction and a farewell when the sun came up.
He didn't fantasize about keeping them, and he certainly didn't fantasize about humans covered in cartoon characters.
"How long have you worked at the zoo?" he forced himself to ask. He didn't like how ragged his voice sounded, but he had to focus on something other than the way her smell was begging him to throw out all his responsibilities.
Elise's hands were clutching her seatbelt, and they curled tighter when he spoke. "About a year." It was barely more than a whisper.
"Do you like being a vet?" The questions were asinine, but he had to say something. He pulled onto the highway and sped up. He should probably be strictly adhering to the speed limit after the robbery and kidnapping, but he needed to get them home fast.
He could have cracked the windows and let her scent fade a bit, but the selfish wolf within him refused.
"Um … I like working with the animals," Elise said. "Do you have an injured animal? What's going on, Nico?"
Her name was a punch to his gut, and he almost groaned. He didn't want her speaking it with fear on her tongue. No, he wanted something else.
Something he absolutely would never have after doing this.
"Not an injured animal, no," he said. "My friend needs help. Medical help."
"Then you should get a doctor! I'm not qualified to heal—to work on humans. On people." She was stumbling over her words, and he hated that he did that to her.
Nico had done shitty things in his life, but he had a feeling this was the first thing he wouldn't be able to forgive himself for.
"Cole said no doctors."
"And do you always do what Cole says?" she demanded.
"Yes."
That shut up whatever she was about to say. A moment later she spoke. "Are you … is this like a mob thing? Oh god, pretend I didn't ask that."
Of course a human would think that. And she wasn't wrong—not exactly. A lot of shifter packs were deeply tied to organized crime. His own pack flirted with it from time to time. Anything to keep the authorities out of their business.
"I'm not in the mob," he said.
He was in something much, much worse.
And when Javi, Reece, and Hugh got their eyes on Elise, they'd want to kill him. And her. This wasn't going to end well for anyone.
But maybe Elise could help Cole.
Nico would figure the rest out later.