heart skipped a beat. Her. The woman he’d come to rescue, the mother of the little girl. The one who was like him.
While he’d watched, she disappeared from view. Pulse racing, he waited, hoping she’d reappear. Instead, a few minutes later, she threw something at the glass, something large and heavy, obviously attempting to break it.
Lucas bared his teeth. Jacob must have locked her in. But she was getting out, using whatever means necessary to make an exit. Lucas approved.
The ever-present desert wind had ruffled his fur as he’d watched and waited, heart pounding in expectation. Again, she’d heaved something at the window. This time, the glass shattered. He’d held his breath while she picked the shards clean, climbed up on the windowsill and let herself hang. She let go a second later.
Watching closely, he’d felt relief when she climbed to her feet, apparently unhurt. He saw no sign of her child. What had happened to the little girl? Surely she wouldn’t just leave her there, would she?
She took a few steps toward him, obviously unable to see very well in the darkness. When she moved outside of the perimeter of landscape lights, she stopped and began shedding her clothes. What the...his heart stuttered. Had she already gone mad, after such a short time with Jacob?
Then she dropped to all fours, completely naked. Watching, he cocked his lupine head, puzzled. And then...and then...the air around her changed. A thousand tiny pinpricks of lights danced in the atmosphere, circling her, surrounding her. The hair on his back rose as he realized what he was witnessing.
He was watching her change.
The intimacy of the act was not lost on him. Thirty years old and he’d never seen another being go from human to wolf. This was by choice.
Others hunted in packs. Lucas hunted alone. Despite numerous invitations to join the huge, global Pack of Shape-shifters, he trusted no one. He’d declined and mostly they’d left him alone.
Exactly the way he preferred.
Now this. Was this how he’d appear to others? He’d never seen anything so amazing.
A moment later, the sparkling lights faded away and she stood in the darkness, muzzle raised to the sky, a wolf with a shining pelt of pure white. He sucked in his breath. Unusual, even he knew.
As his human self had reacted to her face, even on the television, his wolf self responded even more strongly to her in lupine form. He fought back the urge to bound over to her and begin the elaborate play that would mark the beginning of the mating ritual. Mating?
He’d have to let her know he was there, at least. If he was going to help this woman, he’d have to make her aware of his presence.
Moving quietly, carefully, he circled around, making sure he stood upwind of her, letting the breeze carry him to her sensitive nose. He could tell the instant she scented him—her entire body went still, ears pricked forward. And then she swung her head around and, with her superior lupine night vision, spotted him.
She growled, low in her throat, a warning.
To show her he was no threat, he did not move. Though he refused to adopt a submissive posture—he submitted to no one—he was careful not to make direct eye contact and he kept his head low.
Slowly, she circled around him, taking in his scent. He knew she’d be able to detect his human aspect, and would discern that he was not fully wolf, not a wild animal that had happened upon her by accident. No, she’d realize he was a Shape-shifter and had come here on purpose.
After she’d taken his measure at a distance of a few feet, she came closer. Her hackles were raised, though his had settled.
He let her get close, keeping his stance relaxed, neither threatening nor subservient, just friendly.
When she ran, at first he did not follow. But, when he realized she was heading for the front of Sanctuary, he knew he had to stop her.
Though she couldn’t open the door, there were windows. If she got inside as a wolf, they’d slaughter her. He understood she wanted to get to her daughter, but this was not the way. Unfortunately, he couldn’t speak and explain. Instead, he ran full out, slamming into her hard enough to send her flying.
Snarling, she leaped to her feet, going on the offensive. But rather than attacking him, she tried to dodge him in order to get past.
The sky continued to lighten. Soon, the sun would rise over the horizon, making them easy to pick off with a high-powered rifle. He knew this. Unfortunately, she did not.
They battled again and again. He, careful not to draw blood. She, not caring in her desperation. She came at him again and again. But he blocked her every time.
After a few moments of this, she spun away and ran in the opposite direction.
Stunned, at first he didn’t follow. Belatedly he realized she was running away from him, when he’d come all this way to save her.
He barely caught up with her. They crossed the boundary of the land, reached the road and she swerved. Running parallel to the street, she headed toward town. Soon she’d find where he’d parked his bike, hidden away from any headlights under some tumbleweeds and brush.
Had she thought this out, her escape? She had no clothes and when she changed back to human, she’d need something with which to cover herself. As a stark-naked female out in the wee hours of the morning, she would be placing herself in grave danger.
Any moment now, she’d be at the mound that hid his bike. He barked at her, once, a warning. To his surprise, she slowed her pace, first from an all-out run down to a lope, then a trot. And finally, she stopped and faced him.
When he caught up to her, he sat, keeping a few feet between them, not wanting to encroach on her space.
Shaking herself all over, as though removing water from her fur, she made a sound between a growl and a whine, and initiated the change back to human. Pausing for a second, aware he always changed back to a man fully aroused, Lucas did the same.
As soon as he was human again, he turned his back to her and crossed to his bike to retrieve his clothing. But before he could put it on, he heard her behind him and turned, shielding himself with his clothes.
“Who are you? I don’t have time for this.” Standing tall with her hands on her well-shaped hips, she vibrated with rage and seemed completely unashamed of her nakedness. Worse, she either didn’t see or didn’t care that when he’d shifted back to human, he was completely aroused. It was always this way with him. He didn’t know if this was normal among his kind, or if he was some sort of aberration. He’d never cared enough to find out.
Having the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen face him unclothed only made things worse. Holding his clothing in front of his arousal, he literally had to clench his hands into fists to keep from reaching out and yanking her to him.
“Are you with them?” she snarled. “Working for that damn Sanctuary? My daughter might be in danger. I’ve got to get her back.”
“I don’t work for them. I came to help you. I’m on your side,” he said, wincing at the cliché and wishing his voice sounded less husky and more authoritative.
“Are you? Then you’d better talk,” she ordered. “And quickly. I need help. Jacob Gideon has taken my daughter.”
“I thought he would.”
Scowling at him, she shook her head and began backing away. “You work for him, don’t you?”
“No.” He snarled the word. “But I’m well aware of what he’s like.”
“Do you have a phone?” she asked, holding out her hand. “I need to call the authorities and get them out here. I want my daughter and I want her now.”
“It’s not going to do any good,” he told her, realizing she wouldn’t believe him. “Here.” He tossed her his T-shirt.