Siren Song (30 page)

*****

Lexi blinked her eyes open and found herself staring into the most beautiful silver eyes above a black muzzle that was filled with lots and lots of sharp, white fangs. She blinked again and the dog didn’t disappear. And she realized her fingers were curled into the thick fur, making her smile; she hadn’t known Duncan had a dog, and such a lovely one, too. “Hey, there, handsome; where did you come from?”

In response, the dog licked her nose, making her cringe and laugh in equal measures. Wrapping her arms around the dog’s thick neck, she briefly wondered where Duncan had wandered off to but she was already falling back to sleep. With a big yawn, she rubbed her face against the warm fur, “I like you, too. But I’m not going to give you a tongue bath.”

With another wide yawn, she snuggled further against the dog, feeling its slick tongue against her neck as he licked her. She fell asleep with a smile on her face, feeling strangely safe with the massive black dog.

*****

Lexi woke up when the sun hit her eyes. Blinking, she looked over and saw Duncan’s big, hard body sprawled across the bed. Rolling over, she plastered her body against his, resting her cheek against his shoulder blades and smiling with contentment.

“
Hmm, Lexi blanket; perfect,” Duncan’s sleep gravelly voice murmured as he grabbed her arm and pulled her over his body until she was lying in front of him.

She giggled as she curled up against his chest and tangled her fingers in the dark hair that grew there. “You didn’t tell me you have a dog; what’s his name?”

He peeled his eyelids apart and looked at her oddly, “What are you talking about?”

“
Last night I woke up and there was a gigantic dog on the bed with me.”

Letting his eyes drift back shut, he chuckled, “Sweetheart, I’m pretty sure you were dreaming; I don’t have a dog, big or otherwise.”

“
But I was sure….”

His arm slid around her waist and pulled her harder against his body as he kissed her forehead with his eyes still closed, “It was just a dream.”

Relaxing, she rubbed her face against his chest and smiled, “I suppose you’re right. It’s just strange, is all; I mean, he had your eyes.”

“
That’s because I’m a wolf, Lexi,” he said with such a deadpan voice that she jerked her head back and looked at him. As she continued to stare at him, the corners of his lips curved upwards in a sexy smile, “And I want to devour you whole, my pretty little vixen.”

She laughed at his ridiculousness, loving this less-serious side of him as much as she adored his all-too-serious nature. “I have a red cloak.”

He chuckled, tightening his hold in a hug, “But are you foolish enough to go traipsing through the woods to get to grandma’s house?”

“
If I knew you were lying in wait?” she tilted her head back and grinned at him. “Hell, yeah.”

When the laughter slowly eased away, he kissed the top of her head, “I want to take you out, Lexi; and when I say I want to take you out I mean that I want to take
you
out, no wigs or crazy outfits, just you, just Lexi.”

She smiled to herself, his words filling her with a warm glow. “Where do you plan on taking me?”

“
There’s this bar that some friends of mine run,” he said, his voice surprisingly gruff for what he was saying. Clearing his throat, he added, “It’s about an hour away but they brew their own beer and make the best cheeseburgers this side of paradise.”

“
It sounds wonderful,” she murmured, pressing a light kiss against his chest, over his heart. She loved listening to the strong, steady rhythm; it made her feel cherished and safe. “But the only outfit I have has gone missing somewhere in this mammoth house of your and even if I could find it it is probably wrinkled beyond compare.”

“
You and my sister Jillian are about the same size,” he murmured, his hand gently stroking her arm. “She has a closet-full of clothes here for emergencies.”

Lexi giggled, "You’ve lived here only a couple of weeks and your sister already has a stash of clothes?”

“
You don’t know my sister,” he grinned, his voice warm with affection.

In that moment, Lexi realized that she wanted to meet his sister; she wanted to meet all of his relatives; she wanted to learn everything there was to know about Duncan Tremain. And she knew that it was impossible while he insisted on keeping it brief and she held any Siren-sway over him. Resting her head once more against his chest, she sighed with contentment and a little bit of melancholy, “Are you sure we can’t break your rule about having this be only temporary?”

“
I have too many secrets and if I were to keep you I’d have to tell them to you,” Duncan answered slowly. When she tilted her head back to look at him, he was observing her, waiting to see what her reaction would be. “They’d make you run the other way.”

“
You’ve mentioned secrets before, Duncan,” she murmured, reaching up and running her fingers over his firm lips. “And I understand. I think we keep secrets from those we love, or hope to love, because we don’t want to disappoint them or hurt them or risk losing their love. It’s terrifying opening yourself up to ridicule, especially by those you love, isn't it? If you need to keep your secrets, I won’t make you tell me.”

“
You humble me, Lexi,” he breathed, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. “Maybe someday, if I get it together, I will tell you and we can have forever.”

“
Maybe you won’t want forever if I tell you some of my secrets,” she grinned, needing to lighten the mood. Her heart was too engaged and she didn’t want to think about it, about her feelings for this incredible man. She didn’t even know if his feelings were real since she had hummed a few bars near the beginning of their acquaintance and all of his talk about love and forever actually hurt a little.

“
What are your secrets, Lexi?” he asked with an amused grin.

Sitting up next to him, ignoring the way his eyes dipped to her naked breasts, ignoring the erection that was nudging her thigh, she grinned, “Well, I used to be kinda shy.”

He reached up and cupped her cheek, brushing his thumb over her full lower lip, and she could see the disbelief in his eyes. “I find that hard to believe.”

“
No, it’s true,” she insisted, widening her eyes as if that would help make her point. “Before I moved in with Cole and Dima, I was a social misfit.” She didn’t miss the way he cringed when she mentioned her two roommates by name, the flare of jealousy in his silver eyes. Deliberately ignoring the danger, she continued, “They insisted on pulling me out of my cocoon and embracing who I am. Of course, my family thought I was sleeping with both of them and pretended to accept the relationship but I knew they were uncomfortable about it. I let them believe what they wanted to believe because I liked the notoriety and until recently I never told them the truth.”

“
And what would that be?” he asked through gritted teeth.

Leaning forward until her breasts were cushioned against his chest, until her hands were on either side of his head, she whispered, "I've never slept with either of them.”

The breath he had been holding whooshed from him and he huffed a laugh, “I knew about the bartender but I didn’t know that about the artist.”

She smiled slightly, “You did not know about Dima."

“
Ashley told me when she introduced us last week.”

Cocking her head to the side, she frowned, “Isn’t it a little weird for your former lover to be introducing you to her current lover?”

“
You would think so,” he said. But he didn’t expand, just brushed her tangled hair out of her face. He seemed to be fascinated by her natural hair, insisting on brushing it after their late late shower the night before. Before he used the strands of damp hair in a seduction that required another, even later shower.

“
You’re not going to explain are you?”

Grinning, he shook his head no. making him look young and carefree. It was a good look. “I’d rather hear more about your secrets.”

“
That’s not terribly fair, you know,” she sighed, laying back down and snuggling up against his chest. Being in his arms was like coming home and she knew it couldn’t last and she wondered what his secrets were that kept him from giving their relationship more than a few days, a week at most.

“
Life’s not terribly fair, you know,” he replied, sadness darkening his voice. Brushing her hair behind her ear, he cupped the back of her head and tilted her head back until she was looking into his eyes. “So confess your sins and let me offer absolution.”

“
You’re right,” she said softly, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “Where do I even begin? There's just so many sins to choose from...."

He growled and before she could tell him she was teasing, she was on her back and he was showing her how easily he could forgive her as he got very intimate with her body.

Duncan’s sister might have been the same height as Lexi but she obviously wasn’t as well endowed; the tight t-shirt lovingly stretched over Lexi’s breasts in a way that had Duncan re-thinking his desire to take her to the bar he owned and his pack managed for him. When he had acquired the pack at fifteen he had taken some of his trust fund money and bought the run down establishment until he could figure out what else to do with the rag tag pack of seventeen hungry and half-wild wolves.

Their previous Alpha had done a piss poor job of protecting them, keeping them under his tyrannical thumb, keeping them hungry and broken and giving them just enough to keep them loyal, to ensure his own power. After Duncan became the Alpha they respected him but they weren’t comfortable with the world Duncan moved in. Not knowing what else to do, he bought bar for them, which they affectionately named
The Black Wolf
.

Within a few months, once they had realized they were capable of running the place, they had turned the bar around, adding a few dinner items and eventually a full menu and brewing their own beer: Foolish Moon Pale Ale, Lunatics Wheat, Howling Wolf Stout, Lonely Wolf Bitter, and so on to his favorite, the Black Wolf Dark, created especially for him by his loving pack.

That nightmare of almost eighteen years ago became one of the best things to have happened to him. It led to his involvement in business and manufacturing, which lead to untold wealth. And indirectly to Lexi, who looked too damn sexy in the simple t-shirt and blue jeans. When she looked up at him, an oddly nervous smile on her face, his breath caught in his throat.

He wanted to keep her forever.

Pushing the dangerous thought deep, deep down, he pushed the doors open and ushered her inside, oddly nervous himself. But he needn’t have worried: as she looked around, the slightly anxious smile melted into one of genuine appreciation, “Duncan, I love it! How did you ever discover such a perfect gem?’

He looked around at the bar, trying to see it through her eyes. It was old fashioned, reminiscent to the old pubs in England, with wooden paneling and low lighting. There was a second floor as well that opened to the main floor below. It was cozy and comfortable, a place people went to meet up with their friends and hang out. When he had been younger, before he went away to pursue a lucrative business opportunity, Duncan had spent plenty of time there. He realized he had missed the place and while he had kept tabs on his pack, it was good to see them.

Really good. They were thriving, the original members glowing with health and vitality, their mates and children happy and energetic.

“
Duncan!” Marissa called out, stepping out from behind the bar, still impossibly attractive at thirty-five as she had been at seventeen. Because wolves age at a different rate, she looked to be in her twenties, still very blond and very curvy. Out of the original pack, she was the only one who had remained unwed, since it was her mate that had been eliminated. She had been fourteen when the bastard took her as his mate and she had no desire to lose the independence that she relished. “It’s good to have you back, stranger.”

Her slender arms wrapped around him in a warm, welcoming hug and tears stung the back of his eyes; he had forgotten how much he loved this pack that had accidentally made him an Alpha as a teenager. Returning the hug, he whispered, “It’s good to be back.”

“
Had I known you were coming I would have put the call out,” she gently rebuked, stepping back and looking up at him with her old soul eyes. When he had been fifteen, she had seemed so much older and wiser than he even though she had only been two years older. And she still tried to mother him, despite the fact that he was twice her size and fiercely independent. “The pups would love to see you.”