Claiming His Witch (6 page)

“Charlotte said your friends were wolf shifters. Should I assume you are as well?”

The wolf whined and settled his head on his paws.

“I think that’s a yes.” Scarlett knelt beside me, both of us watching as the wolf huffed. He sat up, his head lifting a few times as his tongue again appeared to lick the length of his snout.

Charlotte giggled from where she stood with a muscled blond man. “It’s like animal charades. Shift back, Pup. Make this whole thing easier on the girl.”

The wolf chuffed in her direction before turning back to meet my gaze. Unable to resist, I reached to stroke his ears. His head dropped and he made a sound that was half whine, half growl.
 

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m an animal lover by nature.” I ran my fingers to the tips of his ears, squeezing the pressure point there before sliding back down. Soft and warm, they felt like velvet under my fingertips. “You’re quite a handsome wolf, but talking to me would be easier in your human body. Can you go human for me, please?”

Scarlett and I stood as the wolf hopped to his paws. Within seconds, a man stood before me where once my wolf had been. Tall and fair with a mess of wavy blond hair, he towered over me in a way that made me feel safe instead of scared. Big arms, a broad chest, flat stomach, muscled thighs. California-beach-boy handsome. And all of him naked. Very, very naked.

“Are you okay?” he asked, his eyes running up and down my body as he seemed to inspect me for some unknown damage.

“I’m fine. No blood, no foul.”

His eyes met mine and his plump, pink lips curved into a delicious smile, one that made my heart race and my legs quiver.
 

“Hi.” His simple greeting was intriguing and adorable.
 

“Hi,” I replied with a smile of my own.

“So we have a new mate to add to the party, is that what’s happening here?” Charlotte glanced between the man in front of me and the one who’d captured me earlier.
 

“Pup, is that what’s going on?” the man who was not Beast asked.
 

Pup nodded, his eyes never leaving mine. “Sure looks like it.”

I grinned as his aura cleared, finally able to see why I felt so attracted to him. “You have my red thread wrapped around you.”

His face scrunched into a confused look that made me giggle. I took a step in his direction, wanting to touch him, to feel the connection smoldering in my body ignite. Unfortunately, my sister wasn’t quite convinced.

“Hold up.” Scarlett grabbed my arm and pulled me back. “What’s wrong with you? First of all, red thread? You’re really going to buy that shit? No one’s found their so-called red thread in hundreds of years. They don’t exist. Also, in case you’ve forgotten, these guys are werewolves…as in men who turn into wolves…as in the hounds of Hell. Witch hunters.”

“We’re not witch hunters.” Pup stepped forward, his hand brushing against my wrist, making us both shiver. “And we’re wolf shifters, not werewolves.”

“What’s the difference?” Scarlett looked pissed and not at all ready to believe a word Pup said.

The other man, the one I had to assume was Abraham, took a step toward us. “Shifters have control of themselves when they change form. We change at will, not because of the lunar cycle. And we don’t kill people.”

Charlotte coughed, causing Abraham’s mouth to turn down in a frown.
 

“We don’t kill people…unless they deserve it.”

Scarlett rolled her eyes. “Well, that’s comforting. Hope we don’t end up deserving to be dinner.”

“We don’t eat people, and we don’t hunt witches. That’s a totally different class of fucked up.” The man they called Beast walked past us. “Only you would find your mate in a witch, Pup. And, by the way, you might want to cover your junk.”

Pup jerked, bringing his hands in front of him in a show of modesty that made me giggle. Not that I hadn’t already gotten an eyeful.

“Sorry. I didn’t think about the fact that I was naked.”

I smiled. “I didn’t mind.”

Pup’s eyes traveled down my body and back up again, his interest apparent. “So…red thread?”

“Yup. Wrapped all around you.”
 

He nodded, a smile growing on lips so pink, they looked painted. “Chinese folklore, right? Destined lovers, sort of like our”—he licked his lips as his smile grew—“soul mates.”

“Exactly.” I grinned at him, all wide and cheesy. Red threads, soul mates, fated mates, destined lovers; whatever legend or title I chose to apply, he was mine. The other half to my soul. The man made for me by the Fates.

Scarlett huffed. “The coven’s going to blow a gasket.”

“They can do whatever they like.” I turned to glare at her. “The thread of my soul led me here, to him. I’m not going to ignore the call, and I’m not going to think less of him and his friends because they’re not fully human. Neither are we, if you remember correctly.”

“Whatever. You chill out with your new pet. I’ll be making a s’more.” She stalked off toward what had been the fire in the center of the clearing, now nothing more than a smoking stack of burnt logs. “You got any marshmallows, Char?”

“Of course,” Charlotte said as she turned to the blond man standing next to her. “Can you get the fire going again?”

Scarlett smirked. “Yeah, that won’t be a problem.”

She grabbed an armful of logs from the stack next to the fire pit and tossed them on the smoldering pile in the pit. As sparks danced in the night sky, her fingertips glowed. Charlotte stared, her mouth falling open as flames erupted from my sister’s hands. With a flick of her wrist, Scarlett threw a small fireball at the stack of wood in the fire pit, lighting a roaring fire in seconds. No one moved. The people around us stood and stared into the flames as if they’d never seen a fire before. I tried not to smile, but a grin crept across my face. I could make waves dance and ice form out of nothing but the moisture in the air, but Scarlett’s fireballs were a scene-stealer.
 

“So, those marshmallows?” Scarlett dropped into a chair and pulled out her phone.

Charlotte nodded, still staring at the fire. “Sure. Okay.”

After a few seconds of stunned silence, she and the blond man walked off, Beast having already disappeared into one of the cabins.
 

“I should go get some clothes on, and then maybe we can talk.” Pup ducked his head, still blocking my view with his hands.

“I could come with you,” I said, my voice a bit deeper than I’d expected. Pup’s head popped up, his eyes a fiery jade as they met mine.

“You could, if you don’t mind being alone with me.”

“Sure, you don’t scare me.” I shrugged, trying to pull off casual. But deep down, I was anything but casual. I was excited and anxious, wanting so much to get this man alone so I could explore our bond. The emotional tie to him was already present, growing slowly tighter as it bound us together, but the physical one was burning hot and bright. A connection that made me want to strip off my clothes and offer myself to him to use in whatever way pleased him. And whatever way would please me as well.
 

Pup dropped his arms from in front of his body and held out a hand to me.
 

“I’m no threat to you.” His words were a promise, one I was more than willing to put my faith in. I grinned as I took his offered hand, eyeing him in the process.
 

Pup walked with me to a small wooden cabin. “I’m in this one.”
 

I bit my lip as we climbed the handful of stairs, surreptitiously watching the way the muscles in his thighs bulged with each step. When we reached the porch, he sort of hopped in front of me. I had to fight back a moan as I watched the muscles in his back and ass flex with the movements. He was so gorgeous, so strong and masculine. Tempting.

And I was about to be alone with him.

I ran my hand through my hair, cupping my junk with the other. This was insane. Of course I’d meet my mate while working. Of course I’d end up scaring the hell out of her. Of course she’d see me naked long before I planned on getting naked with her. And now I had to walk her inside the cabin, flashing my ass and my balls along the way.

Totally insane.

“I’m in this one.” I directed her to the cabin I’d claimed as mine. She led the way up the stairs, her jeans pulling tight around her round ass as she stepped onto the porch. The swing of her hips captivated me, pulled all my focus, and made me miss the top step on my way up. She didn’t seem to notice though, so I played it off as trying to step in front of her and lead her across the porch.

I opened the door for her when I reached it, my breaths coming quickly as I played every nasty, disgusting sex-ed picture from high school in my memory to keep my dick from getting any harder than it already was. She was so beautiful, so ridiculously sexy. From her long, dark hair to her deeply tanned skin, she was a darker version of an actress from another era. Sensual and voluptuous.

She stopped just inside the door, forcing me to brush against her as I passed. Touching her, even so innocently, was like falling into a pit of pillows and blankets. Warm, comforting, and so damned soft.
 

Her face scrunched adorably as she looked over the rustic interior. I knew it wasn’t much, but it was the Breed’s place to hang while we were working on the western side of the state. And occasionally have a vacation.

But that opinion was my own. I suddenly had a mate, a female, who was probably used to more comfortable surroundings than a little cabin with plywood walls. My ears burned as I watched her eyes dance over the bed, the table, and finally the door to the simple bathroom.
 

“Sorry. It’s a little—”

“It’s fine.” Her eyes met mine, her pouty lips tugging up into a smile. “There’s a good energy here. Very calming. I like it.”

I nodded, still unsure and feeling somehow inadequate. “Sure. Okay, I’m just going to—”
 

I pointed toward the duffel bag lying on the bed. Without waiting for a response, I hurried over and pulled out a pair of basketball shorts.
 

“So tell me, Pup,” she said as I slid the fabric up my legs. “What do you do when you’re not growling at women?”

I snorted a laugh, much more comfortable once my bare ass was covered. “For the record”—I yanked a T-shirt over my head—“I wasn’t growling at you. More for you.”

I turned, catching her staring at me in a decidedly lower location than my face. My lips tugged up into a smirk as her eyes finally met mine. She didn’t look away or show any sign of embarrassment, just peered at me with those gorgeous green eyes, so much like the color of the lake on a cloudy day.

“Growling for me?”

Lowering my voice, I took two steps closer to her. “I knew you were my mate the second I saw you. Any growling after that point was definitely in defense of you.”

Her eyebrows went up and she inched closer. “Oh, really?”

“Yes, really.” Another step, putting me mere inches away from her.
 

“And what about my sister?”

“What
about
your sister?” I could feel her heat, smell her unique scent on the air. Jesus, I wanted to drink her in.

“Were you defending her as well?” She slid closer, her body barely brushing mine. Electricity. That was what touching her was like. Sparking blue and white bands of electricity joining us together.

I swallowed hard, entranced by those lips of hers. “Did you want me to?”

She shook her head, all slow and with a smile curving up her lips. I wanted to taste them so bad.
 

“No.”
 

Her whisper made me tilt my head. “No?”

She brushed her hand against mine as she gazed at me, making me once again think of electricity, this time of lightning touching down. Making the earth shake with the power of its strike.

“No.” Her voice was quiet, her words just for the two of us. “I kind of like the idea of you growling only for me.”

I growled intentionally, low and deep as I stared down at her. “Like this?”

She slid closer, the way her tits pressed against my chest making me want to feel how soft she was everywhere else. As she edged into my space, my dick found a happy home trapped between us, pressing into her stomach. He liked it there, and there was no way she couldn’t feel how much.

“Is that for me?”

I bit back a smile, wondering if she was implying more than just my growl. “Just for you.”
 

She hummed and licked her lips, nearly sending me into cardiac arrest.
 

“Good. I prefer to keep some things to myself.” Her grin was killer, stunning me with her beauty and making my breath catch. This girl. She made me want to throw her down on the floor and bury myself in her. Made me want to lick every inch of her skin. But we had this sexy, standing, getting-to-know-you thing going on, even if all I was learning was how turned on the woman could make me without even trying.

Daring to take things a step further, I placed one hand on her hip and pulled her even closer. She responded with a smile, not at all resistant to my hold.

“So apparently you don’t play well with others.” I grinned as she rolled her eyes. “And you make water appear out of nowhere. What more do I need to know? What do you do when you’re not running through the forest like your ass is on fire?”

She smiled for a brief moment, but then her eyes grew wide and her mouth fell open. “Oh, hell, I almost forgot.” She patted her pockets and, for some reason, grabbed her tits. Not that I minded watching her grope herself. Whatever she was looking for must not have been where she thought it should be, though. After coming up empty-handed, she looked around the room, obviously agitated.
 

“Do you have a phone?”

I grabbed my cell off the table and tossed it to her, immediately missing the physical connection we’d been sharing. She typed in some numbers before bringing the black device to her ear. I knew the second the phone was answered by the way her eyes closed in what looked like relief.