Page 25 of Wolf Promise

Regie moaned, standing up on her toes and wiggling so that her core met his cock. She gripped his neck and tilted his head so her lips could get better access.

He slid a hand lower, gripping her skirt to pull it up, when the sound of camera clicks cut through his brain-fog of lust. He’d just made them prime targets for the journalists covering the event.

Carefully cupping Regie’s face between his palms, he gently ended the kiss, mentally cursing the interruption. But she deserved better than having a picture of him mauling her on the tabloid front pages.

She made a sound close to a kitten growling and blinked rapidly at him. He tilted his head toward the photographers, and she quickly caught on. Blushing, she hid her face in his shoulder, and he turned to shield her from the cameras still going off.

Bolt pushed her in front of him and guided her around the table and between two of the columns surrounding the rotunda. Out of sight from the photographers, he grabbed her hand, and they dodged between the trees planted in a semi-circle until they reached the end of the structure.

“I’m so sorry,” Regie said.

He shushed her as he increased his stride, dragging her with him until they reached a wooded area. Once they were behind the trees, he released her hand and turned toward her. “Are you okay?”

“Me?” she asked. “I’m the one that accosted you right in front of a bunch of journalists. I’ll understand if you don’t want to work on this case anymore. I don’t know what came over me.” She touched her lips, a deep blush creeping up her neck and cheeks.

He wanted to laugh. She thought he’d be offended because she returned the kiss.

Justice’s voice crackled in Bolt’s earpiece. “That was some show. You convinced me that your romance with the Ice Queen is real.”

“Shut the fuck up,” Bolt growled.

Regie took a step back, shock displayed on her face.

“Not you,” he hastened to explain, pointing to his ear. “The guys in my ear.” That sounded bonkers, but she must have caught on that the rest of the security team were riding his ass because her blush deepened.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“Don’t be,” he said. “I’m not. I’d do it again if I didn’t know we’re being watched.”

Her eyes rounded, and she opened her mouth to say something, but then a deep growl sounded behind him.

He quickly turned, pushing Regie behind him.

A gray wolf with a deeper gray saddle and mask faced him. Dried blood matted several spots of its fur. The wolf pawed the ground and growled again.

Bayden in animal form.

Worse, a wounded Bayden in animal form.

“Don’t make any sudden moves,” Bolt warned Regie.

“Wasn’t planning on it,” she muttered from behind his back, causing him to smile.

“I found Bayden,” Bolt said, knowing Justice still listened in. “Actually, I found Bayden’s wolf.”

Justice cursed in his ear, and mentally, Bolt echoed the sentiment.

Meanwhile, Bayden slowly crept toward them, panting heavily as if in pain.

This situation had turned bad. Really, really bad.

Bayden had been hurt and in wolf form for at least twenty-four hours now. A hurt wolf, especially a young wolf, would attack first and ask questions later.

Well, once they were back in human form, they’d ask questions.

Bolt needed to assert his dominance over Bayden to make sure the younger wolf didn’t do anything stupid. But Bolt had no idea how to do that in human form. When they trained the younger pack members to respect the wolves in charge, they were always just that: wolves. Only Arek could project alpha vibes in human form and establish dominance over the pack.

“Stay calm,” he said to Bayden.