Forbidden Mate Read online

  “Be smart and stay inside until sunrise. You’re not in the city anymore.”

  ****

  Helen watched the tattooed man until he was out of sight. He was huge, every muscle hard and defined. His features were dark, his eyes hauntingly empty. If she expected anyone to attack her in a dark alley at night, it would be a man like him. He wore no shirt despite the evening chill, and he had a menacing air about him. But it was the innocent looking guy in the blue shirt that turned out to be her worst nightmare.

  She’d come on this trip because it was easy money. Her friend, Sarah, got a bad case of food poisoning the night before she had to accompany a busload of tourists to some old castle for a four-day tour. Although Helen knew little to nothing about the sites, she’d agreed to take her friend’s place so she could rest. How bad could it be? Helen had been laid her off her own job two weeks prior, leaving her neck-deep in various resumes, wanted ads, and overdue bills.

  But this town wasn’t just the subject of one too many campfire tales. It seemed there really was something unnatural about the people and town. And her white knight had been anything but ordinary. She still remembered the way the minimal lighting reflected off his dark eyes, no different than a wild cat’s. It was just a trick of the moon, no doubt, but he felt larger than life. And she wished he hadn’t taken off so soon. She didn’t even know the man’s name.

  Helen looked down at her torn shirt, remembering what happened earlier. What an asshole. She didn’t even want to think about what that creep would have done to her if her handsome rescuer hadn’t come by when he had. The thought made her skin break out into gooseflesh.

  She picked up her pace and headed to the well-lit main road so she could find the mystery man. It was stupid to let him leave without saying thank you…or getting his number. The guy was gorgeous, and she was certain she had an instant crush. Besides, she didn’t want to be alone again with her nerves already frayed.

  When she reached the edge of the walkway, she held her blouse shut as she looked both ways. The road was barren, not paved, and eerily dark. There was a chill in the air and a deafening silence. She didn’t want to be outside alone for longer than necessary. Where could he have gone? Then she noticed movement straight ahead. The forest was dark and foreboding, the stars and moonlight not daring to filter too low. She took a tentative step forward but stopped, her fears holding her back. The sound of her heart pounded in her ears, and her adrenaline kept her nerves tightly on edge. Helen was used to the city and its non-stop noise, bright lights, and crowds.

  “Hello?” she called out softly.

  Helen moved closer to the treeline, her arms outstretched. It had been ages since she’d connected with nature, and right now it felt like her enemy.

  “Hello? Is anyone there?”

  She felt the rough, cool surface of tree bark against her palms when she reached the forest. Her sight was nearly useless at this point. She kept promising herself only two more baby steps before turning back.

  Helen thought of her hotel room and the safety it provided, but still pushed herself to continue her quest. She swore she saw him come this way only moments before her.

  “I didn’t catch your name…” She hoped he could hear her.

  “Wesley.” The unexpected voice came from her left, maybe a foot away. It was so deep and all-encompassing that she couldn’t stop the scream that escaped. Her body reacted without thought, jolting backwards until it hit the hard trunk of a tree.

  She continued to rush about in a panic, unable to see or focus her thoughts. A set of hands to her shoulders finally secured her in one place.

  “Stop before you hurt yourself.”

  She stopped struggling long enough to catch her breath. “Is it you?” Helen reached out knowing the man who rescued her wore no shirt. When her fingers brushed against warm bare flesh, her nerves began to ease. It was him. He was hard, his muscles doing crazy things to her libido. She smoothed her hands over his wide shoulders and over his defined pecs. Before she could explore further, he snatched both her wrists in a tight grip.

  “You shouldn’t be out here. I told you to stay inside.”

  “I wanted to find you…to say thank you.” She was starting to question her decision to enter the forest. His tone sounded dangerous and threatening. Maybe her savior’s charity had run out.

  He brought her arms down to her sides, still holding her wrists. She felt the heat of his breath against her neck as he leaned forward. “I don’t understand why you smell this good.”

  That was a new one. Was she supposed to say thank-you for that too? She decided to keep quiet.

  He released on of her wrists and then cupped under her chin, moving her head from side to side as if examining every detail. “Can you see me?”

  “It’s too dark.” She couldn’t even see Wesley’s face when she knew it was only inches from hers.

  “What’s your name?”

  “Helen.”

  “Who sent you here?” he asked, as if accusing her of a crime.

  “Nobody. I’m just doing a favor for a friend of mine.” She didn’t want to say the wrong thing and get herself into more trouble—or push him away. As much as she felt leery of this man, her body had never been so alive and wanton. She was behaving completely out of character. Part of her wanted to blame the town. Ever since showing up it was like she’d entered a different world. Every sight, scent, and sound pulled her out of reality, making her feel like a character in a fiction novel.

  “Sounds like a foolish reason to be in the woods alone at night.” The backs of his fingers skimmed along her jawline before he dragged his thumb over her bottom lip. “You’re out of your element. Don’t you know there are wolves in these woods?”

  “Are you the big bad wolf?” she coaxed, her body coming alive from the gruff quality of his voice.

  What the heck am I doing? She was flirting with a complete stranger in the most secluded of places. But rather than run in the other direction like she should, she only craved his attention.

  “No, little one. I’m much worse.”

  ****

  Wesley was ready to return to his apartment but found himself lingering on the edge of town to ensure the human girl got to her hotel safely. He shouldn’t care, normally wouldn’t care, but he couldn’t get those big brown eyes out of his head. His panther was thrashing about inside him like never before. He’d blame the power of the moon on his erratic behavior, but it wasn’t even full tonight.

  He didn’t expect the girl to come looking for him. She was out of her mind. Humans usually had a healthy fear of the unknown, especially darkness. But she came right for him, blind and vulnerable. In a shifter town, she was ripe for exploiting. He didn’t know what to make of her.

  Wesley hated humankind almost as much as he hated the path his career was beginning to take. But this female was different. For the first time in his life, he wanted to fuck a human.

  “You’re not bad,” she said. “You saved me from that man.”

  He didn’t know what to do. A war played in his mind, part wanting to push her away and forget he’d ever met her. The larger, more dominant, part wanted to own her. She’s not a shifter, he reminded himself. Besides, as a Royal Elite he had no right to claim a female—whether the queen changed the rules or not.

  “You don’t know anything about me.”

  She kept quiet, only the sound of her breathing competed with the wind through the leaves above. When she tentatively reached out for the second time, he thought he’d lose his resolve completely. Her touch seared his skin, his eyes lolling back in his head as her dainty fingers trailed along his chest. He was glad she couldn’t see him in the darkness.

  Wesley tried to justify his next actions. How bad could it be to satisfy himself in the arms of a human? His friends, including the Elite, did it all the time. It was just one night, not a prelude to mating. Even Ulric could see he was overdue to bed a woman. It just surprised him that his cock could become aroused b
y a human female, because it had never happened before.

  He wanted Helen, and judging by the sharp scent of her arousal, she wanted him too.

  “All I can think about right now is stripping you naked.” He waited for her to react, but she kept still and quiet. “Does that scare you?”

  She shook her head. He wouldn’t have been able to notice if he wasn’t a shifter. His panther’s night vision was nearly as sharp in his human skin.

  “I promise, if you knew all the things I’d like to do to you, you’d be very afraid.” He punctuated his words by kneading his fingers into her hair and locking her head in place. She gasped as he increased the tension. Wesley instinctively leaned close, tempted to breathe in her scent again. How could he feel these potent emotions for such a frail little thing? Maybe his panther had been wrong. Once he confirmed she was nothing special, he’d be able to walk away with no regrets.

  But there it was again. The smell of her skin, her hair, her breath—it pulled him in like a potent aphrodisiac. He licked the pulse point near the base of her neck, tempted to sink his fangs into the soft flesh. He was fucking losing his mind, confusing sex with the mating call.

  “Still not running?” He didn’t want to force himself on her like that lowlife coyote. He needed to give her every chance to run off and not look back. Once this started, it wouldn’t stop. And he wouldn’t be sweet and gentle like a human male. He was painfully pent up and hyped up on whatever spell Helen managed to cast over him. In his last honorable act, he’d make sure he sent her racing from the forest before things went too far.

  Wesley reached around her and grabbed the fleshy mound of her ass, pulling her flush to his body. She gasped and braced her forearms on his chest. He bunched up the material of her skirt in his fist until it was nearly at her waist. Then he slid his hand under the edge of her panties. “Have you ever been fucked here?” He pressed the tip of his finger against her asshole, certain she’d take off screaming.

  She swallowed hard, clenching the tight little rosette. Her desire perfumed the air around them. The girl was completely gone, making his act of valor more and more difficult.

  “Answer me,” he said, holding his finger in place.

  “No.”

  “No what?”

  “I’ve never done…that.”

  What was he doing? Helen was playing a game she was never meant to play. He could hear the innocence in her voice, the caution in her words. Any other male would have succumbed by now. And if she was a shifter, Wesley had no doubt she’d be on all fours with his cock deeply embedded in her cunt.

  “Turn around.” He gripped her shoulder and whirled her around until she faced away from him. Then he forced her down over the waist-high stump of a massive oak tree. He pinned her in place with a palm to her back while he roughly hiked her skirt all the way up and stomped down her panties with a foot.

  Wesley stopped what he was doing for a moment and admired the woman beneath him. She had the perfect ass, round and tight with just the right amount of jiggle. He wanted to smack it to hear the sound it would make. In fact, he wanted to lick every inch of her delectable body, taking his time until she was begging him to fuck her.

  “What are you doing?” she whispered.

  “I’m going to give you what you want. Give you something new to experience.”

  Her breathing picked up on cue. Any minute and she’d change her tune.

  He parted her legs with his thigh to give him enough room to access her pussy. She was sopping wet as expected, her folds swollen and ripe. He couldn’t help but run his fingers along her slit a few times, dreaming of how it would feel to sink his cock in deep. His panther wouldn’t last much longer. He needed to frighten her enough to send her running.

  He dragged the moisture from her pussy back to her ass and slowly impaled his thumb into her virgin hole. “Next will be cock. Can you handle that?”

  She pulsed around his digit, clenching and unclenching. “Yes.”

  What the fuck? She was acting like a she-wolf in heat. Wesley did everything he could to scare her off—and failed.

  This time he made the choice for her. He walked away.

  Chapter Two

  “It’s almost the full moon,” said Marco.

  Targus really didn’t want to hear about it. The fact was branded on his every waking thought. It took all his will power not to shed his skin and run wild. “Thanks,” he snapped.

  “What? No date?”

  “Funny.”

  He’d been sharing a place with Marco by the lake for the past six years. They lived off the grid, following their own rules. The other wolf was no less than a brother to him. They were so close that the townsfolk often mistook them for siblings. But sometimes Marco didn’t know when to keep his mouth shut.

  “You really need to stop feeling sorry for yourself and get a woman. It’s embarrassing.”

  “I don’t see a female on your arm,” Targus reminded.

  Marco frowned and slipped out the side door of their small cabin. It was their little piece of heaven, a private getaway from the world. They both enjoyed connecting with their wolves rather than adapting to humanity. Only recently did they both begin to question their plan to stay isolated forever. It wasn’t natural for a man to deny his urges or ignore the mating call. How long would they be able to keep it up without tearing each other to shreds?

  Targus actually thought he had a chance with one of the princesses. He’d taken the queen’s extensive tests to get on the suitor’s list, but he never stood a chance. Thousands had applied, and the first two princesses went and chose mates of their own. When a wolf was chosen for the last princess, he knew he was fucked. Since then he lost his drive, certain fate had written him off.

  Targus joined his friend on the wraparound porch overlooking the lake. The wind was almost non-existent today, giving the surface of the water a smooth, glassy appearance. He loved the way the shades of green from the fir trees blended almost seamlessly into the shadowed blue of the lake. He took a deep breath of black earth and pine, trying to think of the right words.

  “We can go for a run tonight, if you want. Head up to the northern mountains.”

  Marco shook his head.

  “Look, I’m sorry for what I said. I’m an idiot, okay?”

  “No, it’s my fault. I was goading you.”

  Targus was a champ at putting his own foot in his mouth. Now he’d hurt the only person who gave two shits about him. “It’s different and you know it. I just wish you’d—”

  “Don’t,” Marco warned.

  His best friend had lost his mate about a year before they moved in together. He hadn’t been with another female since, not even for a quick fuck. It was unnatural for such a virile wolf to give up on life, but Marco wanted to fade away into nothingness most days. He’d sit and watch the water without even blinking, his mind elsewhere for hours on end.

  “I’m just saying.”

  “You can do what you want, Targus. Just because I don’t want to hit the bars, doesn’t mean you have to sit here growing old beside me. In fact, you should go out and have some fun. How many times do I have to tell you, there are other women besides the princesses?” Marco turned around to face him, one elbow still resting on the porch rail. His voice was disturbingly sober when he spoke. “Don’t end up like me.”

  “You ask me to try new things, but the same rules don’t apply to you. You should really take your own advice.”

  Marco shook his head, a slight smile on his lips. “Nice try, old friend.” He patted Targus’s shoulder a couple times and then returned to the cabin. Targus stayed on the porch, his mind racing to come up with something monumental that could change both their lives. He came up empty.

  ****

  Marco punched the door to his bedroom before entering. The burn on his knuckles was more welcome than the nagging sense of guilt and despair. When he’d lost his mate, he’d lost everything. Even after so many years had gone by, his sense of loyalty
kept him from moving on. Targus reminded him time and time again that he couldn’t betray a dead woman. But Marco still expected his she-wolf to walk back through the door any day now. A fantasy that was beginning to drive him mad. He knew his behavior was unhealthy, knew it couldn’t last forever, but he also couldn’t help himself. It wasn’t as simple as one plus two. Targus could never understand the bond between a mated male and female. His friend hadn’t even had a serious relationship since Marco had known him. They were both fucked.

  Marco picked up the small silver locket from his dresser top. He examined its imperfections in the beams of light coming from the small window. It had been hers. Besides his memories, it was the only item left to remind him she existed at all. He clenched the locket in his fist when he realized it was getting more and more difficult to conjure up her image in his head. Did he even remember the exact shade of her hair or the sound of her laughter?

  Marco clamped his jaw tight as an unwelcome surge of emotion welled up inside him. He had to run. His only therapy was venting his frustration through his wolf.

  After deciding he’d head out for a couple hours to clear his head, he rejoined Targus on the porch. “I’ll be back before sunrise,” he said plainly.

  “I’ll come with you.”

  “No, I need to be alone.”

  Targus frowned and turned away from him, his arms crossed over his chest. “This is getting old. You act like your life is already over.”

  “Maybe it is.”

  He didn’t have the strength to argue. Not today. It was growing increasingly more difficult to put on his happy face—especially with the full moon fast approaching.

  Marco head out the side door of the cabin and shifted into his wolf. He shook out his dark gray fur, savoring the way his feral side dulled his human emotions. If it wasn’t for Targus, he’d probably never return to civilization, choosing to live like an animal rather than a man. It would be so much easier rather than facing the pain of a past he couldn’t redo.