“You have made your choice.” He became very still above her. She could feel the tension rolling off him, filling the cave until it sucked almost all the air out of the confined space. “Or have you changed your mind?” His fingers tightened almost imperceptibly on her face. “Do you think that I cannot protect you?”
She was horrified at his misinterpretation of her words. “No, you big idiot. Of course I trust you to protect me.” Honestly, who could understand the workings of the male mind? “And, God only knows why not, but I haven’t changed my mind.”
He gave a bark of laughter and she could feel the tension slowly seeping from him. “You are the only person who dares to speak to me with such disrespect.”
“It’s not disrespect,” she protested. “But Joshua, sometimes you take way too much on yourself. You’re only human. Well, werewolf, anyway.” Her attempt at humor didn’t even make him crack a grin. She sighed. “You’re not all-knowing, all-seeing.” Reaching her hand upward until she found his jaw, she lovingly traced the hard line. “You were willing to die for me. What woman could ask for more?” Just thinking about his actions today made her insides melt. He hadn’t put into words what he felt about her, except in sexual terms, but she felt his actions spoke for him.
He lowered his head until their foreheads were touching. She could sense his hesitation and held her breath, hoping he’d tell her how much he’d come to care for her. Instead, he sighed and kissed the tip of her nose. “What am I going to do with you?”
She could think of quite a few things personally. “If you’ve got to ask,” she teased. Alex had a feeling nobody teased Joshua or made him laugh. He needed more of that in his life.
He shook his head, leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. He hadn’t laughed, but she could tell he was smiling. That small sign made her extremely pleased with herself. Joshua definitely wouldn’t be an easy man to live with, but he was the one she wanted. She knew no other man would make her feel the way he did.
She opened her mouth to try to coax his tongue inside, but he pulled away. Rolling quickly, he returned to their original position so that she was draped across his body again. “Enough of that.” He coaxed her head down to his chest and she was tired enough to let him. “When I mate with you and claim you as mine, it will not be in some dark cave in the dirt.”
The possessiveness in his voice made her shiver. She knew he would be a demanding lover. Her core dampened and softened, the inner muscles rippling as she arched her hips against the bulge in his jeans. He opened his legs and trapped hers between them, holding them still, but keeping her locked close to him.
“Sleep,” he muttered gruffly. She smiled as she felt the leather jacket being tucked gently around her shoulders again. He sifted his hand through her hair, relaxing her further. She yawned again and nestled her cheek against his soft chest hair.
Lying in the dirt, bruised and battered and sore, she’d never felt more content. With the beat of Joshua’s heart against her ear, she drifted off to sleep.
Chapter Nineteen
James drove down the long, winding road, watching the sun slowly sink behind the mountains. He could feel the tension seeping into his muscles and rolled his shoulders, trying to relax.
He hadn’t been back this way in years, but it was all so familiar. He recognized landmarks and noted changes to the landscape as the car moved steadily forward. The steady hum of the tires on the pavement and his steady breathing were the only sounds he could hear. He hadn’t bothered with the radio, knowing any reception he got would be spotty at best.
He tried not to think about Alexandra, but it was no use. He wanted to know where his daughter was. His fingers tightened around the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white.
After protecting her for so many years it was sheer torture to leave her in the hands of another man. Yet it was what he’d had to do, and he knew he’d do it again in a heartbeat. He’d seen the way Joshua had looked at Alex. The man wanted her.
And for the first time in her life, Alex had shown interest in a man. He’d seen the spark in her eye when she’d looked at young Striker. It would be a good match. One he could live with.
For right or wrong, he’d sent them off together to give their attraction time to grow. He’d wanted a different life for his daughter, but fate and genetics had overruled him. Alex was a werewolf, whether she wanted it or not. The best thing he could do for her was to encourage her to accept all aspects of herself, to show her she was the same person, only with a little something more.
He emitted a low growl as he thought about what might happen between Joshua and his daughter as they spent another night on the road. It wasn’t something a father wanted to think about, yet it was why he’d sent them off together in the first place.
James knew Joshua would protect Alex with his life. Furthermore, if he was Striker for the Wolf Creek pack he had the skill, intellect and muscle to do so. But any man or werewolf, no matter how skilled, could be brought down. There were rival werewolves searching for them. Not to mention bounty hunters were always a problem.
He pushed his foot down harder on the fuel pedal. James knew he’d soon have to stop for the night. The daylight was fading and he didn’t want to approach Wolf Creek after dark. At this point, there was no way of knowing who was friend and who was foe. He started scanning the sides of the road, searching for a place to pull over and wait out the long, cold night.
Joshua opened his eyes and stared at the dim light creeping in through the slim opening in the rocks. Dawn was breaking and he damn well deserved a medal for sainthood after the night he’d put in. Alex was draped across him, her body almost boneless. It had been an exquisite torture to hold her in his arms all night long.
A quick flick of a few buttons and two zippers, a quick roll to put her beneath him, and he could have been buried inside her moist, welcoming heat. The thought was enough to make even the strongest man sweat, knowing all that was his for the taking.
He knew she wanted him as much as he wanted her. Her sexual drive was heating up and was getting closer to its peak. He wanted her home safe within the confines of the compound and tucked into his bed when the time finally came to claim her.
Not that it would be easy. In spite of her claim that it was him she wanted, they’d still have to go through the ritual of allowing other males to state their case unless he wanted an all-out battle on his hands. Although the way he was feeling at the moment, a bloody brawl sounded like a good way to work off some of his tension.
Alex chose that moment to stretch before shifting around to find a comfortable spot. Joshua gritted his teeth and clamped his arm around her waist to keep her from squirming around on top of him. The throbbing of his cock matched the painful throbbing in his shoulder this morning. Although his shoulder wasn’t causing him near as much discomfort.
He looked down at her, but all he could see was the top of her head. She had her face buried against his chest and her arms tucked snugly around him. She was usually so vibrant and full of life when she was awake, it was strange to see her so still and restful. She was a tall woman, so it was easy to forget she was slender of build.
Joshua slid his fingers over the small of her back and then upward. She arched toward his fingers. “Mmm,” she moaned. “That feels nice.”
The hard points of her nipples were pressing against his chest. He could feel them through the thin fabric of her bra. It would be so easy to just ease her over onto her back, open her bra and spread the fabric apart, exposing her breasts for him to touch and taste. It was so tempting.