Chapter 1
Long pajama pants, a
sweat shirt, fuzzy socks, and still I felt frozen. I’d been here a couple of
months but still hadn’t gotten used to the cold. Boston was an arctic tundra
compared to Las Vegas and that blistering desert I’d come from. I’d be warm
soon enough, though. Aiden was due back at any moment. That man was hot! Wolves
have more than just good looks working for them. They run a few degrees warmer
than us humans. And I needed that heat. The thought of him snuggling up next to
me, fur coat or not, was enough to keep the icicles at bay for the moment, but
I was still cold.
Teeth chattering, I
pulled the thick feather comforter up to my chest and snuggled into the fluffy,
king-sized down pillows. I doubted I would ever get used to the winter. But, if
I wanted to stay with Aiden, I’d have to. As the future Alpha of the Olde Town
Pack, he was a Boston boy for life. That also meant I would have to make some
life changing decisions.
The thought of that
wiped the smile from my face.
Aiden was my love,
and I knew he loved me for who and what I was—human. But the pack… they
wouldn’t accept a human as their Alpha Female.
I buried my head
under the blanket as if it would shield me. I’d been avoiding facing the
inevitable, but a decision had to be made… soon.
The bedroom door
opened with a slight creak.
“Fallon, babe. You
still awake?” Aiden called out in a whisper.
Perfect timing! A thrill of excitement ran through me.
“Yeah. Come cuddle. I need to steal your warmth, I’m freezing over here.”
He gave me a quick
sidelong glance then looked at the wall. “It helps if you turn on the heater.”
“There’s a heater in
here? Why didn’t you tell me?” I felt a little embarrassed for not thinking of
something so simple; but in my defense, I hadn’t lived at the sanctuary long.
“Yeah.” He tapped a
finger on the thermostat mounted to the wall. “Looks like Brady is up to his
old games. The thermostat is off.” He clicked the switch, walked inside, and
shut the door.
Instantly, I heard
the fans kick on. Warmth rose to my cheeks, but it wasn’t from the heater.
“That bastard!” I
said, angrier at myself for falling for another one of his tricks than anything
else.
Aiden didn’t bother
to hide his snicker. “He is who he is. But you probably should have checked the
thermostat instead of turning our bed into an igloo.”
“That would have
been the smart thing to do. But then I couldn’t have hot Eskimo sex with you.”
Without another word,
Aiden tore off his clothes and dove into bed, under the covers. Snaking his arm
around my waist, he pulled me in close and nuzzled my neck. My body began to
warm, melting against his. Aiden’s chin stubble scratched a little but not so
much that it hurt. Besides, I loved a little rough touch from my man. His thick
scent, fresh from the hunt, filled my nose. There’s something about that heady
odor of patchouli and cologne mixed with a little sweat that sends my heart
racing.
Oh, yeah. This is my happy place. Safe in Aiden’s arms, I felt like the world
could go to hell and I’d still be okay. This
is love, right?
Twenty-six years old
and I’d never really been in love. Sad to say, I know. But love had never been
a high priority on my list. School, family, friends, sure… but men had been
merely blips in the radar. They were temporary distractions; fun little bumps
along the road of life. With Aiden, it was different. He made me want to stop
bumping along the road and find my home, with him.
“How was the hunt?”
I scooted closer, reveling in his delicious warmth.
“The new recruits
were naturals.” Pride filled his voice. “You should have seen them. Everyone
transitioned this time, and they’re all acclimating well.”
“That’s wonderful
news.” The last group hadn’t been so
lucky. “But I couldn’t take the cold tonight. I’m still too much of a
desert rat.”
His warm hand dipped
under my sweat shirt. “Your blood will thicken in time.” He tip-toed his
fingers up to my breasts. “How about your day? What have you been up to while I
was playing in the snow?”
“Nerd stuff.” I
purred. That man had a sinful touch. “I got the new server online and finished
configuring the firewall. I still have to set up a few new user accounts, but
other than that, not much.”
“I have no clue what
you just said, but I think it’s sexy when you talk computers. Say something
else.”
“Networking,” I said
in my sexiest voice. “IP address. Password. TCP/IP Protocols.”
“Ooooh. There is
nothing sexier than a smart woman.”
His cluelessness
made me giggle, but the fact he appreciated my skills made me feel special.
“Then I must be the sexiest woman this pack has ever seen. Your entire computer
network needs an upgrade. Someone has to bring this pack up to date.”
“Well, then, we’re
lucky to have you as our resident nerd. Speaking of that… have you given any
thought to what we talked about?” His voice, a bit raspy from being out in the
cold, rumbled in my ear like the purr of a big cat. He rolled my nipple between
his fingers.
I let out a sigh.
I’d been hoping to avoid answering that question. The luscious warmth of his
body and the pleasure of his magic fingers were dampened by the reality that we
needed to have the talk soon. I
wanted to give in, say yes, and be with him forever, but it wasn’t so easy.
That choice was potentially a life-or-death decision. Certainly not something
to jump blindly into.
“Forget I asked.” He
kissed the back of my neck. “I don’t want to pressure you. I just want to feel
you next to me.”
Call it selfishness
if you want, but I‘d never been the kind of girl who changed for anyone—or any
man. Love me for who I am, or don’t have
me at all. That’s the way I’ve always operated. But Aiden was a different
case. How could I deny this man? With him, I wanted to be the perfect woman,
but that meant I would have to change more than just my hairstyle; I’d have to
change my species.
The idea of that was
mind-blowingly frightening, to say the least.
I’d been stuck
between two worlds in the last few months, and I felt like I was the odd human
out. My best friend was a vampire and my boyfriend… he was a werewolf. And not
just any werewolf—Aiden’s the interim leader of Boston’s Olde Town pack. To
take the job permanently, he needed a mate. A werewolf mate, and I was a few
fangs and a fur coat shy of that.