Chapter 4 #2
He turned away from her and stripped off his shirt then toed off his shoes.
He took a deep breath then shucked off his pants and boxer briefs.
He heard the wisp of fabric behind him and knew she was doing the same.
His wolf nudged at him, and he held back a curse.
The thought of her naked behind him wasn’t doing him any favors, and now his cock was hard against his belly.
Shifting with a hard-on was not pleasant.
He sighed then folded his clothes in a pile. Damn it. He wasn’t some young pup who had never seen a naked woman before. It shouldn’t matter that she wasn’t wearing clothes. They were wolves.
He picked up his clothes and turned around.
Dear. Goddess.
She was perfect. All thick curves and muscles mixed into one.
Her nipples were dark and erect. Her breasts were larger than his palms although, in clothes, she didn’t look as though she had all those curves.
Her belly was smooth and looked soft, bitable, and flared out to sexy, grip-worthy hips.
He pulled his gaze up to her face before he caught sight of her pussy.
Once he did, he knew he’d be in trouble.
He didn’t even like her, yet his eyes feasted on her.
He handed her his clothes as she kept her wide eyes on his face. He could smell her arousal, taste it on his tongue, and he knew he needed to get out of there fast.
With a grunt, he turned to his side then knelt on all fours.
The change from human to wolf and then back was not easy.
It took minutes instead of a flash of light and fuzzy feeling, like some would choose to believe.
Those minutes dragged on in agony as bones broke, ligaments tore, and fur sprouted from his skin.
The stronger the wolf, the shorter time it took to change, but that didn’t make it any less painful.
His face elongated, and his body hunched. They weren’t the werewolves from the old movies. No, they were true wolves. Some might be slightly bigger than the wild ones humans had almost killed off, but not most.
By the time he finished shifting, he was tired, yet edgy at the same time.
He needed a good run and knew that the perimeter check with Gina would get that done.
He turned toward Gina and saw she was almost done shifting, her body panting with the exertion.
She was even more dominant that he’d thought if she was so close to him in terms of timing.
When she was done, she shook her body then wiggled into her backpack. He couldn’t help but notice the grace of her wolf. Strength and a sense of fragility entwined together to make a truly magnificent shifter.
While he was a dark gray wolf with only one white foot, she was chocolate brown with a solid white stripe on her nose. She also kept her blue eyes from her human form, but that solid ring of yellow around her irises told him her wolf was close to the surface.
He gave her a nod then started to turn. They couldn’t talk in this form so they had to use body movements to communicate.
Gina yipped at him—wolves didn’t bark—and he stopped.
She came up to him and sniffed around him, sticking her nose along his neck.
He stood still, knowing from the look in her eyes before she’d gotten closer that this was her wolf, not her human half, that needed to do this.
She wasn’t a submissive wolf, but he was a clear dominant that she’d never seen before in wolf form. Her wolf needed some kind of reassurance, whether it be scent or something else, so she could move on.
Quinn might not trust her because of her witch half—and also, if he was honest with himself, because of his attraction to her—but he couldn’t let a lower ranked wolf down. He growled softly then nipped at the back of her neck. She let out a sigh then lowered her head.
He let his fangs gently press into her fur then let go. Her wolf met his gaze then did a little nod.
With that over, he turned back toward his den then started off at a run. He heard Gina’s paws hit the ground behind him. He wasn’t going at full speed, so he knew she could keep up. She was going to be the Enforcer of her Pack, so she wasn’t weak or slow.
They kept at it for a good thirty minutes, scenting around the perimeter to ensure there wasn’t anything out of place. He watched the way she came up to his side, her nose on the ground when they paused, and the way her ears were always perked, on alert.
She was a good scout, a gorgeous wolf.
Maybe if he could ever learn to trust another person again, he might like her.
That, though, wouldn’t be happening.
They made their way back to the edge of the den and stopped.
He gave her a look, and if a wolf could roll their eyes and look exasperated, he was pretty sure Gina’s wolf did.
She wiggled back out of her backpack and unzipped it with her teeth.
She’d apparently done this before. He usually just left his clothes wherever he shifted since he shifted in his home or out in the fields for the wolf hunt.
If he shifted outside those two places, it was for a reason, and he didn’t much care about clothes.
He let his body shift back, wincing at the pain. They’d both need food once they got to his place, or they’d be too tired to walk through the den when they were done. Plus, with her being an outside wolf, he didn’t want her weakened in case another wolf had an issue.
His place?
Well, that hadn’t been in the cards, but now he didn’t know where else to bring her. Hell. So much for avoiding her at all costs.
He shifted back and then pulled on his clothes and shoes without looking at her. He’d already crossed that boundary before and wouldn’t be doing it again.
When he felt her come to his side, he looked down at the top of her head. She wasn’t short, but since he was so large, she seemed tiny next to him.
“We’re going to my place to eat so you can build up your energy. Then you and I can walk around the den and go with the plan.”
“Sounds good to me,” she said, her voice breathless.
They both needed to get out of there. Fast.
She followed him through the edge of the forest to the den. He cursed when he remembered how she was going to get through the wards.
“Grab my hand,” he bit out. “I can get you through the wards since you’re invited in with me.”
He didn’t look at her but sucked in a breath when her soft palm slid into his. His wolf growled and threw his body against him, begging for her. Holy crap, it was only her hand, and yet his wolf was going berserk.
He clenched his jaw then walked through the wards, pulling Gina with him.
She sucked in a breath but kept moving. He knew the wards were pushing at her, but not as hard as it would have been if she hadn’t been holding on to his hand.
The magic had to willingly let an outside wolf or person in.
The fact that he was inviting her, even reluctantly, told the wards to let her through.
“Oh boy,” she said once they got through. He looked back at her and frowned.
“You okay?” he asked despite himself.
She smiled at him and nodded. “Yep. It’s weird to go through wards that aren’t part of the Redwoods. It was familiar since I could sense the witch and wolf magic that goes into them, but different enough that it was kind of a thrill.”
At the word witch, he shut down. He pulled his hand away and turned toward his home. He shouldn’t have brought her here. He shouldn’t have led her to his home. She should be back in her precious den with her witch powers and away from him.
Instead, he was bringing the beast into his den.
What the hell had he been thinking?
He heard her scurry behind him, but he kept going, ignoring the looks of his fellow Packmates.
Some growled at her; others nodded and waved.
It was to be expected. The Packs had been as friendly as they were for fifteen years.
Some had probably met Gina before. Others wouldn’t know who she was but saw a wolf they didn’t know in their den.
The fact that she was with Quinn didn’t matter when he wasn’t actually near enough to her to show that he could protect her and the den.
He knew he was screwing this up, but he’d deal with it after he ate.
He walked up to his door and cursed.
“Jesse,” he whispered as his son opened the door.
“Dad! You’re home.”
Quinn leaned down and picked up his little boy, inhaling his soft scent. “What are you doing here, Jesse?”
Walker came out from behind him, his brows raised. “Jesse had a tough day at school so he wanted to nap here instead of at Ryder’s place. Since I was around, I stayed so Ryder could get some work done. You going to get out of the way so Gina can come inside?”
“Gina?” Jesse asked and looked over Quinn’s shoulder fully. “Hi. I’m Jesse.” The little boy smiled, and Quinn wanted to growl and hide his son. He knew it made no sense.
He knew Gina wasn’t the witch that hurt his son.
He just couldn’t get that prejudice out of his head.
He was a goddamn bastard.
Quinn set Jesse down then moved out of the way so Gina could walk in. “Jesse, this is Gina. She’s a Redwood who’s working with me.”
Gina got down at Jesse’s level so they were eye to eye. “Hi, Jesse. It’s nice to meet you.”
Jesse grinned and leaned into Quinn’s leg. “Hi. You’re pretty.”
Quinn closed his eyes and held back a groan. Like father, like son. Though from the way Gina had smiled at his son, Jesse was doing better than him.
Not that Quinn wanted to do any better. Nope. He was going to feed her then do his job so he could get her out of there. He opened his eyes and stared at the two of them, knowing he probably should split them up before something happened.
“Thank you, Jesse. You’re handsome, yourself.”
Jesse smiled big and leaned toward Gina. “Daddy says he’s the master of the universe. Are you the master too since you’re on the council?”
Gina blinked, then raised her brow at Quinn.
Quinn did his best not to shuffle his feet like some teenage pup.