A Sheep In Wolf's Clothing (Welsh Wolves) (7 page)

The wolf was too damn smart.

He bent down and caught Fido as he leapt forward. Moments later the puppy followed, its little legs peddling hard to keep up. Kieve dropped to the ground. The wolf and the puppy both tried to crawl into his lap.

The wolf snapped at the puppy, his teeth barely missing the puppy’s nose. The puppy yelped and backed away, clearing the space for Fido.

“Now, be nice, baby. He’s just a puppy.” Fido ignored the gentle reprimand and bumped Kieve’s hand, demanding to be petted. Kieve chuckled and stroked the wolf, reaching down every once in a while to pat the puppy. Fido growled the first few times but after a bit, seemed to decide the puppy wasn’t a valid competitor for Kieve’s affections.

Finally, Kieve pushed both animals away and got up. He washed his hands and checked on his remaining boarder. The dog seemed fine, happy to be outside for a few minutes. Until he saw Fido. Then he whined and his tail drooped.

Kieve dragged Fido into the house and told him to stay while he took care of the other dog and got the puppy mostly settled for the night.

He liked the little guy, but he wanted to spend the evening with Fido. He knew it was weird, but the connection between him and this wolf was so strong.

Kieve closed down the office and went back into his house. Fido was waiting.

“Hey there, boy. You want to come with me?” The wolf followed him into the kitchen. Kieve kept up a steady stream of conversation while he fixed dinner—a couple of hamburgers on the inside grill—talking to the wolf as if the animal could understand him.

And damn, if it didn’t feel like he could. The wolf chuffed when Kieve talked about meeting Dex and Micah. How Dex was a little “flaming” and Micah seemed like a bit of an asshole.

Kieve cooked his burger, added cheese and scooped a handful of chips onto his plate. Before he sat down, he poured a cup of dog food into a dish for Fido. The wolf sniffed the bowl, huffed, then walked to Kieve’s table, tail thumping on the ground.

“No. You have food.”

The wolf didn’t move. He just sat there, looking up at Kieve, tail swishing back and forth across the linoleum. Fido yipped.

Kieve glared down. “You’re not playing me. You’ve got food.” He turned back to his own hamburger. Fido didn’t move. The wolf stared at him and Kieve was pretty sure the animal didn’t blink the whole time.

He tried to ignore him. But with every bite, he heard a whimper.

He glanced at the second burger on his grill. It was tomorrow’s lunch.

Or Fido’s dinner.

No. He has dog food.

Except he was a wolf—or part wolf—and they ate meat. Raw bloody meat.

Kieve stared at the last bite of his hamburger and his stomach turned.

He looked down at Fido. “Your owners are going to be pissed if I return you sick.”

Another whimper.

“Okay, we’ll try it.”

He stood up, pulling the bread off the remaining portion of his burger and adding the cooked one waiting on the grill.

He broke the meat up into bite-sized pieces. For a moment, he stared at the plate. Every veterinarian instinct drilled into him demanded he feed the animal something designed for his body.

But hell, it was a wolf.
Its
instinct was to run down its prey and eat it raw. Surely a few bites of cooked hamburger couldn’t do that much to him.

He swooped the plate down to the floor and stepped away, refusing to watch.

Still, a few moments later, Fido trotted over to him, bumping his hips against Kieve’s legs as if to say “thanks.”

“Uh, you’re welcome.” He patted the wolf’s side and quickly cleared the dishes putting everything in the dishwasher.

He stopped and looked at the wolf.

“I’m sorry I’m not more interesting, but my favorite show is on tonight.
Project Runway
.” Fido’s tail flopped back and forth as if he was okay with the selection.

Kieve let Fido have the run of the house as he got himself set. The wolf explored the living room—walking back and forth over the same space as if learning where things were. Kieve shook his head. Damn impressive dog.

The wolf seemed to be blocking out the room on a grid, pacing off steps from the hall to the couch and back. The cast on his left front paw thumped against the hardwood floor every few seconds reminding Kieve he needed to check that cast tonight.

He got a beer, a bowl of chips and his favorite blanket and settled himself on the couch.

He clicked on the remote and Fido came running, jumping up beside him and burrowing beneath the blanket, his head plopping down on Kieve’s knee.

Kieve rubbed his fingers behind the wolf’s ears. “You ready to watch a bit of TV?”

The show’s open started and Kieve relaxed into the cushions of his couch. It was his guilty pleasure and he wasn’t going to apologize to anyone for watching it.

Fido stretched, his head staying on Kieve’s lap. Kieve curved his hand over the wolf’s side and slowly stroked the soft fur. Fido pushed the blanket aside and damn if it didn’t look like the wolf was actually watching the TV.

Older TV models made it difficult for dogs to see but with the modern flat screens, the animals could see what was happening. Except, Fido was blind.

But damn if Fido wasn’t watching—or at least listening—along with him. The runway show began and Fido sat up, his gaze intent on the screen.

The first outfit walked down the runway and Fido’s tail thumped.

“Really?” Kieve found himself asking. “You like that? Weird colors.” Still the designer had seemed like the nicest guy on the show.

Kieve dug his fingers into Fido’s ruff and scratched. “You can’t decide based on who you like best. We have to decide on the outfit.”

The wolf woofed as if to protest Kieve’s assessment then collapsed down, his head once again landing back on Kieve’s thigh. Kieve chuckled over Fido’s reaction and watched the final runway. His hand never stopped moving through Fido’s fur.

* * * * *

It was too much. Reese couldn’t stand it any longer.

The need to rip off the wolf shell he wore and fuck the lovely male became too much as Kieve stroked and caressed the wolf’s body. It wasn’t sexual, but that didn’t stop the human from wanting to feel those hands on his skin.

Spending an hour being petted by the delicious human had pushed Reese to his limits. He was surrounded by Kieve’s scent and the wolf was actively trying to retreat, to let the human return. The wolf was conscious enough to know that it had to be the human who fucked Kieve. Reese clamped down, fighting the wolf to keep the four-legged form for now.

Kieve clicked off the television and stood up.

“Ready for bed, boy? I guess it’s okay for you to sleep with me again tonight.” Kieve patted his thigh and walked away.

Reese seized control of the body he shared with the wolf, keeping the animal in place. The wolf whined and fought to follow Kieve.

Kieve stopped. “You don’t want to sleep with me?” Kieve waited for a moment. The blazing colors of his aura mellowed as if he was disappointed. Seeing the change, Reese knew he’d made the right decision. Kieve was becoming too attached to the wolf and he didn’t even know about the wolf’s mating bond.

“Then you need to stay in the clinic.”

Reese’s wolf whined like a puppy, but Reese kept the animal under control and forced him to walk behind Kieve into the clinic area.

Good. He needed some distance. This is good, Reese told himself. Or tried to tell himself. It was difficult when the instincts of the animal demanded he hump the man’s leg.

Kieve didn’t attempt to put Reese back in the kennel—thank God—but he placed him in a fenced-in area, giving him room to move. The faint scrape of metal-on-metal warned Reese he was being locked in.

Neither Reese nor his wolf handled any sort of cage well, but Reese knew he could knock over that fence with one good kick. Kieve wasn’t trying to hold him, just protect him.

That made it a little easier. Kieve moved through the clinic, humming to the two other occupants. The older dog barely responded, but the puppy whimpered, the click of his toenails clattered across the bars of his kennel.

“Sh, little one,” Kieve crooned. “You’ll get to play with your wolf tomorrow.”

Reese chuckled. The sound came out of the wolf’s mouth as a rush of breath. A puppy. The silly little thing had followed Reese around all day. Not that it wasn’t cute, but still, it was the principle of the thing. He was a wolf. He was supposed to scare other animals, particularly baby animals. The lab pup had no fear.

The lights switched off leaving Reese in the dark. He looked to the left. The two dogs in their kennels showed faint auras.

Reese lowered his head and focused on his human self. The challenge of spending too much time in his wolf form was the animal didn’t want to let go. And with Kieve gone from the room, the wolf saw no reason to be human. Reese closed his eyes and forced the transition.

Bones creaked, snapping and reshaping into the human form. The wolf fought him every step of the way and Reese had to clench his teeth to hold back the scream that threatened. The wrapping around his front foot split as his arm grew. The transition progressed and slowly the human spirit resumed full command.

The final changes completed, he shook his head to clear off the last of the wolf’s control.

He scanned the room, keeping watch. He didn’t have his eyes, but he could hear. He stopped and listened, gathering and cataloging sounds. The dog on the other side of the room woofed softly in curiosity. The refrigerator hummed in the kitchen, and if he listened hard enough, he could hear Kieve’s rhythmic breath. Or at least that was the sound that echoed through his head.

No. He’s too far away. You can’t hear him. You’re imagining it.

But the wolf was still present in his mind and wanted its mate.

He’s not your mate, Reese said, holding the animal back.
He
’
s not a werewolf. He
’
s not even a shifter and he
’
s too damn sweet for you.

Reese wasn’t sure if he was trying to convince his wolf or himself. Either way, he wasn’t going to let the wolf lead on this.

According to Micah—who could be a prick but tended to know a lot about werewolf culture and biology—a wolf might identify someone as a “mate,” but the human side could reject it. A wolf had more than one mate in the world and to make it permanent, the wolf had to imprint on the one it considered its mate.

All Reese had to do was make sure his wolf didn’t imprint on Kieve.

Not that Reese didn’t like Kieve. The man was gentle and loved animals. From what Reese could tell from just touching him, Kieve was gorgeous. He would be the perfect mate for someone.

But not Reese. He had too much baggage. When humans and wolves mated, the wolf became the protector.
What good would a blind wolf be?
Reese sighed. He couldn’t even walk through a room without help.

And Kieve was not only gorgeous he was huge. The man had to be a top and Reese didn’t bottom for anyone. His conscience reminded him of that time with Micah, but those had been extenuating circumstances and he preferred to forget the whole night ever happened. Thankfully, Micah seemed of the same mind.

No, the best plan was to get the hell out of there as soon as possible. He thought back through the day and remembered Kieve and his assistant on a phone in the outer office. Climbing over the fence, he felt his way—slamming his knee into the exam table—and finding the door. Kieve hadn’t locked the door. Why would he? No one expected the dogs to mount a rebellion.

Reese opened the door and Kieve’s sensual smell surrounded him. Reese’s cock twitched and immediately began to swell. Down boy, he thought, forcing his feet to turn left and head to the little office when all he wanted to do was veer right, slip down the hall and crawl into Dr. Sexy’s bed. He grabbed the corner of the wall, stopping his body from doing just that.

No, he had to stay away from Kieve.

Keeping his touch light, he fluttered his hands across the desk until he found an old-fashioned, honest-to-goodness landline. He didn’t think anyone still used them, but damn he was glad Kieve did. Reese closed his eyes, ran his fingers over the keys and found the pattern for Dex’s cell. It rang twice before the Omega wolf answered.

“Who’s this?” Dex demanded, the sounds of the Red Dragon chiming in the background.

“It’s Reese.”

Silence greeted him, then, “Who?”

“It’s Reese, you asshole, and don’t—”
Click. Nothing.

Reese painstakingly dialed the number again. This time it went straight to voice mail.

“Hey, it’s Dex, leave me a message. Unless you’re an ex-lover. Then my hunky, handsome boyfriend Maddock will kick your ass, so don’t bother. Have fun.”

“Dex, you son of a bitch, you’ve got to get me out of here. My wolf is going to imprint on this guy and you know that’s going to be bad for everyone. Get your ass over here and pick me up. I’m not kidding. Damn it.” A noise at the end of the hall flipped his senses on high alert. “He’s coming, now get your ass over here.”

Reese slammed down the phone, not sure if he actually hung it up or not. It didn’t matter. All his focus was on the man coming down the hall. Part of him knew he should shift back into a wolf, but the hard cock between his thighs refused to be denied.

“What the fu—?”

Reese stared at the beautiful aura that signaled Kieve’s presence. He couldn’t see if Kieve had a weapon—metal and dead sticks, like baseball bats, didn’t have energy to transmit. And auras were just glows, not actual body shapes. He kept a watch to see if the colors changed to indicate violence.

But who expected a naked man in their office? In the middle of the night? Maybe all wasn’t lost. Reese turned and leaned his ass against the side of the desk, keeping his movements slow.

“Another freaky dream, huh?” Reese drawled.

Chapter Four

Reese held his breath and waited for the shouts, the demands to know who he was and why he was naked in Kieve’s office. He could only wait to see if Kieve would allow himself to believe it was a dream.