Page 26 of Tracking the Alpha
“If you’re worried about breaking something, then you can try climbing down. There are roots you can use to hold onto as you descend, and some rocky ledges for your feet.” He’d discovered them while in wolf form and had tested his ability to exit the cave should the water entrance be unavailable.
“Here’s to hoping they’re sturdier than the ones outside.”
“If you fall, I’ll catch you.” He bit his tongue before adding, I’d never let you fall. Seemed kind of too much, given their short acquaintance. Never mind the fact he’d been watching her for days. Stalking probably didn’t count when it came to determining how long he’d known her.
“Here I come,” she muttered as if he needed warning. He could hear and see her quite well. To his surprise, his vision remained almost as sharp as a man as he’d benefitted from as a wolf. What else about him had changed? His hearing, obviously. His sense of smell remained rather acute. What of his strength and stamina? And, no, he didn’t plan to test the latter by seducing the huntress—no matter how tempting.
Barrett stood underneath the descending Tanis, ready to catch her should she slip. She didn’t, though. Kind of disappointing. He wouldn’t have minded another press of her body against his. It appeared as if he could add perv to his new list of attributes since the experimental treatment. Getting a hard-on for a woman who’d tried to kill him. Looking for reasons to have her close. Wondering what she’d do if he made a move. Probably whack him with her bow or gut him with her knife.
When she stood beside him, he could see by the way her brow knit and her head turned side to side that she couldn’t see much.
“I’m afraid I have nothing to make a light or start a fire,” he apologized.
“I do, but the glow of either might illuminate the entrance, pinpointing our location.” She glanced upward.
“Yeah, it wouldn’t be good for us if those soldiers spotted it. Not much to see, anyhow. It’s your run-of-the-mill cave made of rock decorated with roots clinging here and there on the walls. It has a second, narrower tunnel entrance that exits into the creek. I discovered it before the water rose during a week of heavy rain.”
“Hence why you’d never climbed,” she murmured. “Good to know there’s another way out.”
“I’m afraid I don’t have much when it comes to amenities. When I was a wolf, I didn’t have a need for a bed and stuff.” He simply curled up in a ball, face tucked into his tail.
“Again, I’ve roughed it worse, but if you don’t mind, I’m going to change out of these wet things. Where’s my pack?”
He grabbed her hand and a small jolt of awareness zinged through him. To his surprise, he felt her stiffen as if she felt it too. He settled her fingers on the top of the bag he’d placed on the floor.
“Since you seem to be able to see in the dark, mind turning around while I dress?”
While tempted to blurt out, You’ve seen me. Why can’t I see you? instead he opted for a gruff, “I’m going to take a peek up top and see if there’s any soldiers nearby who might have spotted us.” He already knew no one had come close. He’d have smelled or heard them, but he needed a bit of space because the realization she’d be getting naked had him heated. While she wore bulky clothing, it didn’t take much to imagine them peeled from her flesh. Having seen her in action, he already knew she’d be fit and toned. Having felt her against him, he could too easily imagine those lithe thighs wrapped around his hips. Her full lips parted and panting. Her flesh dewy with passion.
Oh fuck. Barrett quickly clambered upward and exited the hole, breathing hard, not from exertion but from raging arousal. Had to be the treatment making him sex crazed.
He stood close to the hole and listened to her fumbling in the dark. Removing her jacket. Kicking off her boots. Peeling her shirt?—
“Stupid laces,” she grumbled. “Can’t see the damned knot.”
At her complaint, an idea hit him, and he lay across the opening, not a perfect shield but enough that he could say, “Use your light. I’ve got the hole covered.”
“Thank you! I’ll be quick.”
The glow barely filtered to his spot and even when he shifted slightly aside wasn’t really visible. Still, when she clicked off the light and murmured, “You can come back now if you want,” he didn’t tell her to turn it back on, mostly because he remained acutely aware of his nudeness. Not that he worried she’d ogle and suddenly decide his hot bod needed jumping, but more because he worried she’d see him getting another boner. Yes, another, because he had no doubt his cock would wave at attention again for no other reason than she existed.
Barrett rejoined Tanis and found her sitting cross-legged with a wad of fabric in her lap.
“This isn’t a blanket, but I figured the spare leggings in my bag could act as a loincloth.” She held out the clothing. “And there’s a T-shirt that might be elastic enough to fit?” She sounded a little dubious, and it flattered because, yeah, he did have a pretty wide chest—and she’d noticed.
“Thanks.” He snared both items. The pants he tied around his hips, the legs of them wrapping around twice. The shirt protested as he pulled it over his head, the neck hole making a tearing sound, the sleeves straining around his biceps. As for the chest, the material stretched to the point of almost tearing. But at least he wasn’t completely naked anymore. He sat down cross-legged, appreciating the fabric that shielded the skin of his ass from the rough stone.
“Sorry I don’t have anything else. You must be cold.” She actually apologized.
“Surprisingly enough, I’m not too bad. Guess my body still thinks it’s wearing fur.” No need to mention the fact her presence appeared to be heating his blood.
“What was it like being a wolf?” she asked, apparently in the mood to talk.
“Terrifying.” The first word that popped out. How emasculating. He quickly amended it to, “At least, at first. When I first changed, I had no idea what was happening. It hit suddenly, but while an adjustment, I adapted fairly quick. I somehow inherited all the natural inclinations of a wolf. I could immediately smell so much better. I never realized the myriad scents all around and how distinctive they all were, especially once I managed to figure out what they all meant. My hearing, my vision, even my instinct for survival sharpened. A good thing, or I’d have been recaptured almost immediately.”
“So you knew right away you’d become a wolf?”
“Not initially. I knew something about me was different. I mean, I couldn’t exactly miss the fact my hands became paws and I ran on four feet. My voice, when I tried to yell, came out growling and yappy. I didn’t truly understand until I saw my reflection in the water.” A shock like no other that led to a full-throated mournful howl.
