The Shadow Wolf

Megan tensed until Gabriel offered a small smile. “It’s okay, Jenny. I won’t tell.”

Still, she didn’t lose her wariness. She reminded him of a wild animal caught in a trap. Megan shifted, the move accentuating the thrust of her breasts against the T-shirt. There was nothing overtly sexual about it, yet he felt a hard kick of desire.

Gabriel stretched out his long legs. For years he’d dealt with female Shadows without any intense reaction. When he’d seen her on the beach, his wolf wanted to mark her as his own. The urge overrode common sense.

Around Megan, he’d nearly lost control. It was almost as if she was …

She couldn’t be his destined mate. Long ago, he’d thought the same of another woman and it had landed him in trouble. He stopped seeking emotional intimacy. Still, he sent a gentle probe into her mind, testing to see if the bond was there. When he met a blank wall, he felt a curious mixture of relief and disappointment.

He didn’t want a destined mate, who would hold the missing half of his magick. Hell, bonding with him was lethal. Most Draicon yearned to find their mates and exchange powers during a sexual mating lock. But how could he share his powers and turn his mate into something dark and dangerous?

His brothers had mates and even Alex was dating again. Gabriel quietly resigned himself to being alone forever. Sometimes the loneliness was a crushing weight, but it was better for all.

The rain finally eased and the crashes of thunder moved away. When the girls began yawning, Megan glanced at the clock on the fireplace mantel.

“Time for bed,” she told them.

Gabriel stood, scooped a twin under each arm as his hat tumbled to the floor. They giggled as he jogged to the back bedroom. It had single beds with clean white sheets turned down for the night.

“Gabriel, can you read us a story?” Jenny called.

At the doorway, he stared at the cozy scene of two identical girls dressed in green pajamas sitting in their beds. A lump lodged in his throat. Amelia, the red ribbon in her curls matching her candy-striped pajamas. Expectation dancing on her face as she held out her favorite storybook. Alex mock-punching him in the arm. “Go on, Gabe, read to her. Good practice for when you become a father.”

Shaking the vision free, he forced a smile. “Megan should do it.”

With exact control, he headed into the kitchen. Cooking always made him feel human. Gabriel washed sweet peppers and onions and set them aside. A frown touched his brow as he scanned his prize collection of knives.

The butcher knife was missing.

A delicate floral scent drifted into the kitchen. Gabriel faced the doorway. Light gleamed off the sharp steel blade in Megan’s hand. Her entire body tensed like a stretched rubber band. The acid stench of her fear swam in his nostrils.

“Come toward me slowly with your hands raised. No shifting, no quick moves. I can shift into Shadow and stab you before you know what hit you.”

“Do you really want to hurt me, chère?”

“Shut up.” She gestured with the butcher knife. “Over there, by the fridge.”

He moved slowly as to not alarm her.

“Now put your hands behind you.”

When she took out several zip ties from her pocket, he had to admire her inventiveness. “Take those from my tool bag?”

Suddenly she vanished. Gabriel jerked his head around.

She was gone.

He felt a prick at his throat, then something slip around his wrists, looping to the fridge doors behind him.

A voice spoke close to his ear. “Jillian did. Why do you think she went looking for you?”

“Using a child to do something this deceptive. Ah, Megan, I’m disappointed.” He didn’t bother to test the cuffs. If needed, he could break free in a heartbeat. Instead, he tracked her scent to the counter and watched her reappear. In her hands she held a heavy silver fork wrapped in a dish towel. Megan slid the fork between the cufflinks and his hands and tossed the towel aside.

“The cuffs won’t hold you, but the silver will drain your powers.”

No, he thought. It took more than a fork to affect his kind. More like a cafeteria filled with silver.

“Why now, Megan? Why not try before the hurricane?”

“I told you, the girls can’t swim and I’m not risking their lives. I’ll do whatever I can to keep them safe. They’re all I have, understand? And you’re not going to hurt them, and neither is anyone else. They deserve a life.”

The vulnerability shadowing her face turned his heart over. “And you don’t? What about your needs, Megan?”

She dragged in a tremulous breath. “I just want to save them. It’s too late for me,” she whispered.

Gabriel’s guts clenched. “You’re only twenty-six. So much pain I see inside your eyes. Who hurt you, chère? Who hurt you this badly?”

Her lower lip wobbled. Her thoughts flashed bright as a sun flare. I can’t trust anyone. No one gives a damn about me.

A fierce scowl tightened her face. “Stop doing that. You know, reading my mind.”

“Can’t help it. Your thoughts are like a tiger prowling in the bayou. They stand out.”

Immediately he got an image of a brick wall. Megan turned ashen as Gabriel silently cursed. He had to win her trust. He sent her a reassuring image of a waterfall surrounded by children laughing and frolicking. For an instant, the bricks slowly toppled downward, as if hit by a heavy sledgehammer. He seized his chance and locked her mind to his, forcing his thoughts upon her.

Don’t be afraid.

Go away. The thought was shrill inside his head.

You know these won’t hold me. I can snap out of them before you make it to the kitchen door. C’mon chère, work with me. I promise you, I’ll keep you safe.

I’m a fool if I believe you.

Do you really think I’d let you risk your life in this storm? I’d cut my own throat with that knife before I allowed that to happen, because I vowed to always take care of my own.

That thought startled the hell out of him. Gabriel went still, shocked by the fierce declaration. A nagging suspicion flared. Megan was an assignment. A Shadow needing help. Yet he’d never felt such intensity. Not even with the woman who’d run from him screaming a full century before.

“Take these cuffs off,” he urged.

“No.” She backed away, the knife lowered. She was feeling the shock, as well.

Gabriel tried for humor. “I could rip off the doors to free myself, but chère