Nika pushed away from the door and crossed the flat to her bedroom. Even though it was late, she'd change into her pajamas, watch some TV, and have a glass of wine. She needed to distract her thoughts from Garrick, or she'd never be able to get to sleep. With another full day of running the pub to look forward to, she couldn't afford to be exhausted come morning.
Rolling onto his back, Garrick looked at his bedroom window and the stream of sunlight shining through the crack where his curtains didn't quite meet. He swung his head toward his bedside table and looked at the digital clock. Just after 11:30 a.m. He had plenty of time to set Operation Nika into motion.
The night before, he'd managed to get inside the mansion where he lived with the rest of Tiw's warriors and up to his room without encountering any of the other residents. Something he was thankful for, because he'd still been sporting the hard-on from hell. He'd been in no mood to explain why he was walking around in that condition to any of his brothers-in-arms or the two women who were the first of the mates to come into their lives. If the other warriors realized he'd found the woman meant for him, and learned she'd rejected his advances, they would never let him live it down. They would consider it payback for all the crap he'd done and said to them over the years. Not something Garrick wanted to be on the receiving end of.
So after sequestering himself behind his closed bedroom door for the rest of the night, he'd come up with a plan to win Nika over. He'd go to the pub each day, as he'd originally planned, but he'd also make sure Nika knew exactly why he was there—for her. He'd lay on the charm and batter her defenses until she finally admitted she wanted him as much as he wanted her. And she did want him. Her scent didn't lie, no matter what she said to his face.
Stretching, Garrick felt the heaviness of his cock. His erection tented the sheet covering him from the waist down. He'd pretty much been in a constant state of arousal since meeting Nika. He closed his eyes and reached under the sheet to take hold of his cock. He stroked his hand up and down his shaft, bringing the image of Nika and her intoxicating scent to the forefront of his mind. Biting back a moan, he pumped his hand a little faster. He imagined Nika stroking him, and the fantasy made him even harder.
After a few more strokes, Garrick released his cock and got out of bed. Naked, he walked to his en suite bathroom. He turned on the shower, stepped in, and resumed stroking himself until he found his release. The orgasm took off the edge, but he wasn't going to fool himself into thinking he wouldn't be raring to go again once he saw Nika.
He quickly finished his shower, dressed, and headed downstairs. At this time of day, the others were more than likely up and about. He headed for the kitchen to see who would be there. Garrick decided he wouldn't get anything to eat. He intended to order food at the pub.
The one only there was Lexi. She sat on one of the kitchen chairs with one hand resting on her distended belly while she sipped on a bottle of water. At almost nine months pregnant, she didn't have long before she added a new addition to their
"family."
"Where is everyone?" he asked as he moved farther into the room.
Lexi looked up from the parenting magazine she read and smiled. "About time you got up. Brand is out, doing whatever he normally does when he leaves. Raed, Algar and Kamryn have gone to pick up the groceries we needed. As for Wulfric and Dolf, they're in the living room getting ready for the football game to come on. Why? What's up?"
"Nothing," he said. "I'm going out, and I more than likely won't be back until it's time to hunt."
"Yeah, you don't want to miss tonight," Lexi said with a chuckle. "With the full moon, Wulfric and Dolf are already betting on who can take out the most prey."
On the first night of the full moon, newly turned werewolves shifted for the very first time. One bite from one of Fenris' get was all it took to turn them, and there was no cure. Only death. Unlike Garrick and his brother-in-arms, Fenris' werewolves lived for the kill. It didn't matter what the mortal was like before being bitten, once turned, they couldn't control their craving for human flesh and blood. It was Garrick and the other warriors' job to put them down, and they had been doing so since the early 600s.
He snorted. "Of course they are. They've done that during every full moon for over a thousand years. You would think they would stop their competitiveness since their bets usually end up in a fistfight."
Lexi laughed. "I think the fistfight is part of the thrill for them too. They pound on each other, then once it's over they're the best of friends again."
"Yeah, true. Wulfric and Dolf are nothing but a pair of blockheads."
"You'd better not say that around them," Lexi said. "They will more than likely turn on you."
"As if I couldn't take them both, but I'm not in the mood to put them in their place."
Lexi shook her head. "Before this goes any further into Garrick bragging territory, I thought you were leaving."
He smiled. "I can take the hint. Tell Raed I'll be back this evening."
Raed was Lexi's mate, and their leader. Before they took their vows to fight for the Anglo-Saxon God, Tiw, Raed had been king of East Anglia. Even though he no longer wore a crown, Garrick and the rest of the warriors still thought of him as their king.
"I will." Lexi assured him.
After giving her a nod, Garrick left the kitchen and headed out of the house. On his way by the living room, he heard the sound of a football game blaring on the tele, while Wulfric and Dolf yelled at the players. Garrick liked a game of footie, but those two were hardcore fans.
Outside, he went to the large, detached garage and got into his silver Audi R8
Sypder sports car. The two-seater had enough power under its hood to satisfy his craving for fast things. There was nothing like it, opening it up, shifting gears quickly to get up to speed. Fast sports cars were one modern invention Garrick liked. It beat riding on the back of a horse, even a warhorse, any day.
It didn't take Garrick long to arrive at The Old Sow and find a parking space. Not that he had to look hard for an open space. There was only one other car parked in the lot, and he had a feeling it belonged to Lee. It was a Saturday afternoon; there should have been a good crowd in the pub at this time of day.
Stepping inside, it was as he'd expected. He was the only customer. He didn't see Nika, but he heard her and Lee's voices coming from inside the kitchen. Instead of taking a table at the back of the room as he'd done the night before, Garrick sat on one of the stools in front of the bar. When Nika didn't appear to have heard his arrival, he loudly rapped his knuckles on the bar's wooden surface.
When Nika walked out of the kitchen and saw him, the smile she wore slipped a bit. She froze in place and didn't start moving again until the swinging door she'd just let go swung back and hit her on the arse.
He looked her hungrily up and down, not trying to hide what seeing her did to him. She came to stand on the other side of the bar directly in front of him. Garrick gave her a smile that had lured more than one woman to him and said, "Hello, Nika. Did you miss me?"
Nika had to tear her gaze off the bone-melting, toe-curling, sexy smile Garrick had sent her way. A smile that just enhanced his killer good looks and made her traitorous body crave something she'd decided she'd do without. But that didn't stop her pussy from clenching as she drank Garrick in.