Page 50 of Wolf

“So, haven’t seen you around,” he says. “What’s your story?”

“Um,” I hum, looking into my drink. “Nothing really.”

I’m quite sure admitting I’m the reverend's daughter might be a buzzkill.

“Somehow I doubt that,” he says with a wink.

Uh oh. What do I do if he makes a move? I admit I’m curious but not because he makes me weak and tingly. No, I guess I want to know if anyone else can create the fire that Wolf does.

I feel a little thrill regardless when his eyes flash and he leans in, but we’re interrupted before anything can happen when a new voice hisses, “You!”

When I glance up, two women are circling each other. This chick, Melanie I think her name was, wails on the woman opposite her as she waves her arms ineffectually and gets another pop to the mouth before Melanie tackles her to the ground.

Shouts form around us and vaguely I realize they’re cheering them on. Meanwhile, Maddox sighs and stands, tossing his drink to the ground and approaching. Melanie manages another blow to the other woman’s head, who I’m silently rooting for.

I’m just moving away when they roll my direction, and I bounce back before falling to my butt with an oomph. Unfortunately, it doesn’t end there, and I end up on my back, rebounding off a rock and sending a shard of pain down my skull.

With a groan, I roll over just as Wolf growls, “What the hell?”

Melanie pauses, her fist in the air while the woman below her pants. His eyes move to me and drop to my chest before hisnostrils flare. With a groan, I wrench my top back into place as he leans over me and says, “Up.”

“Wolf—“ Melanie starts, and he raises his hand, not bothering to look at her. Sputtering, she rolls away and stands.

“Not now,” he growls, holding his hand out to me. Once I’m up, the world spins but I suspect if I don’t walk away on my own two feet, I’ll lose any credibility I might have, which is stupid but pride and all that.

Instead, I stumble away in the boots I’m starting to loathe only slowing when Wolf grabs my arm. “Lilli…”

His warning growl sends a shiver down my spine, and I swallow a sob. My stomach roils. My head throbs and after looking around and confirming that we’re clear of the spectators, I fall to my knees and retch in the dirt.

With every cramp in my belly, a slice of pain ricochets through my head. Pathetically, all I can do is moan and cry until I’m done. After gathering what’s left of my dignity, I look up at Wolf and whisper, “I'm not wasted.”

Crouching down, he brushes my hair from my face and says, “I know, baby girl.”

After that, he picks me up and carries me through the cars, stopping before a beat-up pickup truck. Tears push at my eyes when he gently sets me in the passenger seat before rounding the side. Leaning my head against the window, I close my eyes. The cool glass feels good against my heated cheeks and fighting the aches spreading across my body, I start to doze.

It’s only as we pull up to the compound that I rouse. Wolf exits the truck but not before grabbing his vest which he unfolds and dons as he rounds the vehicle.

“C’mon,” he says, and I wrap my arms around his neck as he pulls me into his arms. Instead of going through the front, he takes me around back and toward a cabin sitting alone in the trees.

I glance around blearily, holding my breath against the pain as he stops before the door and slams his fist against the wood.

The sound crashes through my head and I wince as he glances down at me with his pretty eyes. I can’t read his expression, and I’m caught in his stare when the door careens open and another huge man with a giant, raised fist says, “What the fuck?”

When he spies Wolf, he slowly lowers his hand, turning to me with raised brows as he says, “You finally come to your senses?”

“What?” Wolf growls, pushing past him into the room.

“Well, I know I said you owe me…”

Wolf swings around with a thunderous expression, barking, “What the fuck did you just say?”

The older man chuckles and Wolf eyes him stonily before mumbling, “Whatever.”

The cabin is small, barely fitting the bed, the sink, and a tiny kitchenette with a television over the dresser against the wall. An old movie plays in the background as Wolf approaches the bed.

He goes to set me down on the rumpled mattress, pauses, and then sits with me in his arms instead. I hold my breath to contain my cry, but an audible shudder flows through me. When he looks down, I smile wretchedly while his brows furrow.

I’ve had my fair share of beatings. That’s par for the course in our home but it’s not usually aimed at my face or skull. This is a new kind of pain, made worse by my fall earlier.

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