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“You want a table or a booth, pretty boy?” she asked, coming around the side of the station with a plastic menu in her hand.
“Whatever you have free in Skye’s section.”
The woman gave a low, knowing laugh, and started leading him over to an empty booth. “Skye’s slammed at the moment,” she told him, handing him the menu as he sat down, his long legs barely fitting in the cramped space under the table. “But she’ll be over to take your order in just a few.”
“No problem,” he murmured, barely aware of her setting down a bowl of peanuts, his attention already captured by Skye. She was delivering food to a table only about ten feet from his booth, and he couldn’t look away. The damn building could have caught fire, and he would have still been sitting there, completely mesmerized by her.
She was even more beautiful without the distance between them, though he would have preferred to have her right there with him, in the booth. Or even better, straddling his lap, polyester skirt tugged up around her generous hips, and his hardening cock pressed tight against the warm seam between her legs, while he shoved his hands into all that thick, wavy hair and kissed the hell out of her. She had the figure of a 1940s pinup girl, all lush curves and feminine swells that were making his mouth water. She looked vibrant, even in the ugly pink uniform, her skin all creamy and flushed, and those green eyes flashing with her emotions, constantly shifting from humor to kindness as she talked to her customers. Each feature of her beautiful face intrigued him, from her full, succulent mouth to the cuteness of her nose.
And then were the freckles. Tiny, dark little pinpricks scattered over her nose and cheeks. Christ, he wanted to touch his tongue to each one of them, then strip her beautiful body bare and search for more. Wanted to learn this woman’s taste and scent and the kinds of sounds she made when she came. He didn’t know her, beyond her name and the fact that he was there to protect her from an evil they knew far too little about. But he wanted to.
He wanted to know every goddamn thing there was to know about Skye Hewitt. Including what it would feel like to drive himself deep inside her, and lose himself in her soft, sexy body, until their skin was slick with heat and their throats were raw from the husky, unrestrained sounds they were making.
He wanted to fuck her. And he wanted to fuck her hard.
“You need anything, honey?” The question came from the skinny waitress who’d just stopped beside his table, blocking his view of Skye. The woman’s perfume was so heavy it almost made his eyes water, the hungry way she was looking him over so blatant he was surprised she didn’t lick her lips. “Because I’m willing to offer you something a heck of a lot better than anything you’ll find on that menu.”
“I’m good, thanks,” he said in a low voice, just wanting her to move on so that he could keep watching Skye.
She instantly scowled. “Your loss,” she muttered, before cattily adding, “Especially if you’re saving it for Skye. That girl wouldn’t know how to please a man even if she had a sex manual for fat chicks.”
Elliot had to bite back an angry, snarling growl as the waitress flounced away, his protective instincts shooting straight into overdrive. He knew it was pure, seething jealousy that had the woman mouthing off, but he hated the idea of Skye ever having to put up with those kinds of bitchy remarks from her coworkers.
As if she knew he was thinking about her, she looked over from where she was standing, about two tables over, her hand busily jotting down a family of four’s order. She gave him an apologetic smile, misreading the anger in his expression as frustration that he was having to wait for her to take his own order. Forcing himself to relax, he shot her a lopsided grin as he leaned back against the booth, his grin widening when her full lips parted with a gasp. She blinked, as if the sight of his smile had left her feeling a bit dazed, and he couldn’t help the surge of hot, masculine satisfaction that swept through his long frame, tightening his muscles.
That’s right, beautiful. You’ve hit me exactly the same way.
Looking adorably flustered, her cheeks bright with color, she shook her head a little as she turned her attention back to the family. Elliot took a handful of the roasted peanuts from the red bowl the hostess had left for him, and absently chewed as he continued to watch the delectable Skye. Deep inside, he could feel his wolf slowly stretching its way into awareness, curious about what had snagged his attention so thoroughly, while his brain finally kicked into gear, trying to figure out what the hell was going on with him.
He’d never reacted this strongly to a woman—not even with Marly—and the logical side of his nature wanted to know why. Why her? Why now? But the rest of him was simply too buzzed to care. His blood pumped heavily through his veins and his cock was as hard as a friggin’ rock, as he fought the instinctual urge to go and toss her over his shoulder, carrying her off—caveman style—until he could get them away from the crowded diner and he could have her all to himself.
The bell that signaled that an order was up dinged, and she hurried across the restaurant, collecting the plates of burgers and fries. Elliot found himself nearly panting as she headed toward him, or rather, the booth right beside his. She was coming so close, that sexy lower lip caught in her white teeth as she blushed and avoided his gaze, and he swore he could feel the searing attraction between them actually sizzling on the air. He growled low, tossing another couple of nuts in his mouth so he hopefully wouldn’t look too threatening. God only knew what kind of expression he had on his face. Then he caught a hint of something unbelievably mouthwatering on the air, and he sucked in a deep breath through his nose as she drew closer, only to find himself rocketing into a ground-shaking, mind-shattering state of shock.
Holy...shit! Just, um, yeah. He couldn’t... He didn’t... Shit! He didn’t know anything in that moment but one blinding, brain-melting fact:
She. Was. His.
This woman... Skye... She fucking belonged to him. With him. She was his life-mate! The one person in the entire world who was meant to be his and his alone.
Jesus, he was so stunned that he sucked in an even deeper, hungrier breath of her sweet, telling scent, this time through his mouth, his wolf ravenous for the smell of its mate, and that’s when it happened. The peanuts he’d been getting ready to chew lodged deep in his windpipe, making him choke.
Son of a bitch! Here he was, a powerful, deadly Lycan who had survived harrowing situations, and he was choking in the middle of some god-awful diner, right in front of the woman nature had chosen as his perfect match. It was like some twisted cosmic joke. After everything he’d survived, he was going down because of some stupid salted nuts!
With his beast howling in his ears and his lungs burning, Elliot was about to hurl himself against the table, hoping to expel the little demons, when someone suddenly whacked him hard on the back. He coughed so violently the peanuts shot from his throat, clear across the table, where they pinged against the opposite padded seat and scattered over the floor.
Heart pounding, Elliot sucked in a much-needed breath of air, and turned his head to thank whoever had helped him.
Then he wished he’d just choked on the damn nuts.
It was Skye. She was the one who’d hit him on the back—saving him when he was there to fucking save her—and he felt the heat rise in his face. Christ, he was blushing like some gangly teenager!
“Hey, are you okay?” she asked in the sweetest, huskiest voice he’d ever heard, before giving him a shy smile.
Elliot opened his mouth, ready to say a million things at once. But nothing would come out. Despite his embarrassment over looking like an idiot, he was stuck on one short, simple phrase that kept looping its way through his head, like something set on continual repeat. Something as shocking as it was... Hell, he couldn’t even think of any other way to describe it.
All he knew was that his world, and hers, had just been hit by a supernatural lightning bolt. One that was going to change them both. Change their lives. Their future. A shocking, cataclysmic event that was going to alter every goddamn thing they’d ever known about hunger. About desire and craving and lust...
And what it was like to need another person so badly you’d not only die for them, but they were the very reason you lived.
Chapter 2
When Elliot failed to give a verbal response to Skye’s question—just sat there staring back at her with what was no doubt a poleaxed expression on his face, his head jerking in a stiff nod—she gave him another one of those sweet, shy smiles. Then she turned and hurried back over to the kitchen window, where another one of her orders was waiting. He watched her carry the heavy tray over to one of the nearby tables, and tried to get his damn head on straight.
He’d always wondered how his life-mate’s scent would hit him, when he finally found her. If he ever found her. Had always wondered what it would feel like, when it hit him.
And now he knew.
It felt fucking incredible. Unbelievable, yeah, but so good it was about to kill him. His pulse raced, heart hammering in his chest like a drum, beating double time...triple time. Beating loud enough he wouldn’t have been surprised if the entire diner could hear it.
In that moment, he wanted so many things from her...with her. He wanted to taste her full, pink lips. Wanted to bury his face against the tender side of her throat and breathe that heady scent deeper into his lungs, getting drunk on it. Feel her plush, soft curves pressed tight against the hardness of his body.
Was it wrong that Mine, mine, mine, was still playing over and over in his head, like those goofy seagulls in Finding Nemo? It was one of Katie Dillinger’s favorites, and since the little girl was like a sister to him, he’d done his duty and watched the animated movie with her more times than he could count. The other guys ribbed him like hell about it, but he didn’t care. If Mason and Torrance trusted him to watch their son and baby daughter—an adorable little moppet who seemed to think Elliot was the best thing in the world—then he was going to enjoy every moment of it. He owed those two everything, and the fact that they treated him like an important part of their family had always been the best thing in his world.
Until now.
Until the moment he’d realized Skye Hewitt was his.
Maybe another male—a better male—would have felt bad for the girl, given how twisted his past was. But Elliot was simply too grateful to have any doubts that he could hold it together. Because he would be good for her...and with her. Jesus, this was his life-mate. He’d chew off his own goddamn arm before he hurt her.
But there is someone out there who wants to harm our woman, his wolf snarled, and he slowly curled his hands into fists under the table. Christ, he couldn’t even think of a word to describe how furious that made him. Deep inside, he was burning with it, and he knew that when the time came, and he had the bastard responsible for this shit under his claws, he would be ready for blood.
With all her other orders delivered, she’d finally worked up the courage to approach him, and he didn’t miss the way the pencil in her hand was shaking with a slight tremor. Her breathing was accelerated, as was her heart rate, the dark of her eyes dilated with desire. Something about the situation had her rattled, but she was attracted to him. As a human, she wouldn’t feel the pull of the life-mate connection in the same ways as Elliot, but there would definitely be a pull. An instinct that told her to get close to him, because that was where she belonged. And if she desired him, then that instinctive need to be with him would be even stronger—Thank God.
“Um, hi,” she whispered, the huskiness of her voice sliding over his skin like a sensual touch.
“Hi,” he rasped, still clenching his fists to keep himself from grabbing her and pulling her closer.
“I’m sorry about the wait,” she said in a rush, all breathless and beautifully flushed. “It’s, um, kinda crazy in here tonight. What c-can I get you to drink?”
You, he thought, rubbing his tongue against the roof of his mouth. He’d never done it before, but he wanted to sip from Skye Hewitt’s beautiful body. Wanted to lay her down, push her legs wide and lick his way inside her. Penetrate her pink, drenched sex with his tongue, fucking her with it until she came against his face in a hot, sweet rush. And then he wanted to drink from her, savoring her orgasm as he swallowed her down, drop by decadent drop.
As if she could read his carnal thoughts on his face, she blushed a deeper shade of pink, and he had to fight back the low, excited growl that was rumbling deep inside him. They were both eating the other up with quick, heated glances. An appreciative visual sweep over her thick-lashed eyes, while she took in the corded length of his throat, his Adam’s apple moving beneath his skin as he gave a hard swallow. The sounds of the busy diner faded away as she took in the bold shape of his nose and the angle of his stubble-covered jaw, his own gaze hungrily locked on her pink, bee-stung lips. She had the kind of mouth that women paid crazy amounts of money to try to replicate, but never actually looked real unless it was.
It all took less than a handful of seconds, and yet, each moment in time felt like a piece of sun-warmed taffy being stretched out as long as it’d go.
It was maddening to think that if she hadn’t been noticed by some evil asshole intent on making her a part of his unwilling harem, Elliot might have never found her. The idea of never coming face-to-face with her made his insides churn with dread, and yet...wasn’t that wrong, seeing as how he was here because she was in danger?
Unless... Was she meant to catch the kidnapper’s eye all along, just so Elliot could walk into this greasy diner and find her? Was that how fate worked—one shitty circumstance for an amazing one? It seemed twisted and wrong to him, and he hated that her entire world was about to be turned upside down. But part of living with his past was to always be brutally honest with himself, and he knew there wasn’t a chance in hell that he would change the connection between them. Even if he had to give his life to get her out of this situation, he would take the deal, just for this opportunity to meet her. To be close to her.
But, God, he hoped it didn’t play out like that. He wanted this moment with this woman, and then a thousand more. A lifetime of them, as they learned each other and grew together. And maybe, just maybe, he would be lucky enough to one day earn her heart. He didn’t have the slightest idea how that could be possible, given...given everything that he’d done—but Christ, it would be sweet.
Shifting from one foot to the other, she finally cleared her throat and gave him another shy smile. “So, um, do you know what you’d like?”
You, deliciously naked and needy, desperate for me to please you, he thought, while his wolf rumbled in approval, completely on board with that idea. But to Skye, he simply asked, “What do you recommend?”
“You look like you’re a pretty healthy eater.” She tilted her head a bit to the side, a teasing look in her eyes as she added, “But even though they’re a far cry from nutritious, our chocolate milk shakes are to die for.”
Elliot watched her flick a quick look at his dimple as he smiled. “Then definitely bring me one of those.”
She bit her lip and lifted her brows, big green eyes full of warmth and humor. “The cold should also feel pretty good on your throat.”
He smirked as he slowly shook his head. “You’ll never let me forget that, will you?”
“That I saved your life?” she asked with a cheeky grin, before softly laughing. “Heck no. It’s not every day that I get to feel like a hero.”
Thinking she was completely charming, even if she was teasing him, Elliot lowered his voice and leaned forward on the table with his arms crossed. He’d slipped his jacket off when he’d come inside, and he couldn’t help but notice that her attention had shifted to his biceps as they pressed against his black Henley. Lowering his voice, he said, “I guess I should say thank you, then. You know, for saving my life and all.”
She brought her beautiful gaze back to his, and smiled again. “Anytime.”
“Wanna share my milk shake with me?” he asked, enjoying the way his head went a little fuzzy as he pulled in another deep breath of her incredible scent. With Skye Hewitt around, he wouldn’t ever need alcohol to get a buzz. He could just bury his face in the tender curve of her shoulder and breathe her in, so warm and sweet and delicious.
She blinked a few times at his question, and then blushed a little brighter. “Um, that would be lovely, but we’re too busy for me to take a break right now.”
“Maybe later, then,” he murmured, knowing damn well that he was going to have to sit her down and explain why he was there before too long. Max could be back with Vivian at any moment, and it was probably best if he talked to Skye before they arrived.
Softly, she asked, “Do you want anything to go with the shake?”
“A bacon cheeseburger and fries?”
“Good choice.” Then with another shy smile on her lips, she turned and headed back to the kitchen service window, where she pinned his order to one of the silver clamps. She cast a quick glance over her shoulder, and it looked like she gave a small laugh when she caught him staring right at her. Her blush bloomed brighter, and then her attention was drawn away by one of the other waitresses who came up and started talking with her. Elliot kept a careful eye on them, relaxing only when it became obvious that Skye and this woman were friends, unlike the scrawny bitch who had been so rude about her.
When a plate of potato skins was suddenly set in the window, Skye grabbed it and carried the order over to one of the tables that were closest to the door. Though Elliot was dimly aware of the chime that signaled the door being opened, he didn’t pay any attention to whoever was coming inside. He was too preoccupied with watching Skye share a laugh with an elderly man at another table, before putting her arms around the old guy’s shoulders and giving him a gentle squeeze.
The girl...yeah, she was something else. Watching her, he wouldn’t have been surprised to learn that half the people there came in simply to be around her, and his mouth had just started to twitch with another appreciative smile when reality came crashing into the moment with the blunt force of a hammer.
“I want everyone to fucking stay where they are!” a harsh male voice suddenly shouted from near the entrance, causing the entire diner to fall silent in fear. “Just dump your cash on your tables and keep your mouths shut!”
Son. Of. A. Bitch! Elliot blinked as he shifted around a little more in his seat, taking in the asshole standing by the hostess’s station with a deadly, narrowed gaze. Damn! He’d been so drunk on Skye, he hadn’t been paying proper attention to his surroundings, which was unacceptable. He’d been doing this job for too long to let some jacked-up junkie in need of his next fix sneak up on him.
“I mean it!” the guy yelled, waving his gun around with a trembling hand. “Any of you even think of giving me any shit, and I will pull this trigger!”
Sliding out of the booth and to his feet, Elliot held up his hands as he took a step toward the pale, twitchy male whose angular face had probably been handsome before it’d been ravaged by drug abuse and hard living. “You don’t want to do this,” he said as calmly as possible. “Trust me. Your best option is to just turn around and get the hell out of here.”
“Not a step closer,” the robber snarled, suddenly reaching out and snagging Skye’s upper arm. She cried out as he yanked her against him, while keeping the gun pointed at Elliot.
“Skye, look at me,” Elliot demanded, his low voice vibrating with rage. It took everything within him not to release his fangs and claws in front of the frightened humans and tear this dude’s throat out. But one of the founding tenets of his pack was that their species never be revealed to the masses—ever—under any circumstances.
“Shut up!” the guy yelled, but Elliot ignored him.
“Will you trust me and do what I say?” he asked her, flicking his attention back and forth between the junkie’s wild gaze and her frightened one.
“Why?” she mouthed, and he knew she was asking him why she should give him her trust. Why he was helping her.
“Because I know how to handle these types of situations.”
“Are you a cop?” the robber shouted, wrapping his arm around Skye’s throat. She reflexively reached up and curled her hands around the guy’s forearm, the panicked look on her face making Elliot ache.
He shook his head in response to the asshole’s question, but kept his sharp gaze locked tight on Skye. Then, for the second time, he asked, “Will you trust me and do what I say, baby?”
Her eyes went wide at the husky endearment, and he kept his focus on her as he directed his next words to the bastard trying to use her as a human shield. “You so much as cause her even one second of pain, man, and you’re going to be dealing with me,” he warned. “And you really don’t want that.”
“Fuck you!” the guy spat.
Elliot felt his wolf seething just beneath his surface, and knew he needed to end this quickly. Any hope he’d had that the idiot would rethink his plan and run was gone, and now his time was up. “Wrong answer,” he scraped out in a voice that was more animal than man, his hard gaze still locked tight with Skye’s. “The instant I get my hands on him,” he told her, “you drop and crawl away.”
“Are you fucking crazy? I swear I’ll shoot you, you stup—” was all the robber got out, before Elliot went into action. He was not only stronger than a human male, he was faster than one. It took him no more than a second to charge the asshole, knocking the gun out of his shaking hand and squeezing the wrist of the arm he’d wrapped around Skye so strongly he felt the bones crack. The asshole screamed as Elliot jerked his arm up with enough power that it dislocated his shoulder, allowing Skye to drop away from him and quickly crawl across the floor, exactly like Elliot had told her to do. Then he pulled back his free arm and knocked the bastard out with a single punch.
“Yes!” the older woman working the hostess’s station shouted, coming around the podium and kicking the junkie in his ribs with the pointed toe of her shoe. “And you stay down, you slimy jerk!”
All of a sudden, a great roar of cheers exploded across the diner, and Elliot found himself being hugged by one human after another. The mother of the family Skye had been waiting on even planted a kiss on his cheek before bursting into tears of relief that her children and husband were safe. It was a surreal moment, and all he wanted was to find Skye and get the hell out of there before someone called the cops and he ended up having to deal with the local PD.
He searched the crowd for her, worried when he couldn’t spot her, a raw sound on his lips when he finally caught sight of her coming through the swinging door that led to the kitchen. For a brief moment, he wondered what she’d been doing back there. Then he forgot all about the question as their gazes locked, the grateful look on her face making him feel like he’d just saved the friggin’ world.
He began making his way through the crush toward her, and she did the same. “Are you all right?” he asked, the moment they reached each other. The question felt heavy on his tongue, his arms aching with the need to pull her close and wrap her up tight against him. But he hadn’t earned the right to touch her yet, and he didn’t want to frighten her.