Elizabeth's Wolf

Chapter Eight

Dash wanted to kill. Again. He wanted Grange in his hands, struggling, blood flowing as he pleaded for mercy. A mercy Dash knew he would never be able to give. He was shocked to realize how terrified Cassie had become when she saw Mike. It had been driven home to him then, just how much that little girl trusted him. How much she depended on him to keep her safe and how hard that battle was being fought.

He cursed silently, breathing out roughly as emotion swamped him. The fear he had smelled in that vehicle had nearly strangled him, ripping through his defenses, if he had any against her, and searing his soul with fury. Grange would pay for the damage he had done to that child and Dash would make certain of it.

“Hey, buddy.” Mike’s voice was questioning, and Dash knew the other man could sense his fury.

They had fought together too many times, had covered each other’s backs in too many ways. Men who fought together learned the basics of each other’s personalities, strengths and weaknesses in a way that otherwise took a lifetime during peace. War was an alien ground of kill or be killed, and the men you fought with were as necessary to living as breathing. You had to know the mettle of the man whose back you covered, who covered your back.

“Please tell me Mica’s still up,” Dash said wearily as he rubbed his hand over his face. “Cassie’s edging into hysteria seeing only you. She’s terrified to come out of the Hummer.”

The other man stiffened imperceptibly. The implications of the reasons for such terror washed through his gray eyes. His jaw tightened, teeth gritting for a long second as Dash watched him fight his anger.

Mike finally glanced at the darkened windows of the Hummer. “Hang on. I’ll get her.”

Moments later, Mike’s wife, Serena, a tall willowy blonde, and his petite blonde-haired daughter stepped out. Mica wrapped her arms around her daddy’s waist and leaned against him as she smiled back over at Dash.

“You remember Dash, don’t you, Mica?” Mike asked his daughter softly. “The little girl he brought to visit is scared to get out of the Hummer. Why don’t you go with Mommy and introduce yourself? Make her feel more at home.”

Dash watched as the family came down the landing. Mike separated from them and returned to where Dash stood, watching quietly as the Hummer’s door slowly opened. Soft female voices murmured through the garage. Dash had met the little girl and Mike’s wife several times over the years during brief furloughs stateside. Both were kind and soft spoken, and just what Cassie and Elizabeth needed right now, he thought.

“How bad is it, Dash?” Mike asked him then, referring, Dash knew, to Cassie’s mental state.

Dash sighed deeply. “She’s held up well until now. Men frighten her, though she came to me easily enough. Big men especially, from what I gather. I haven’t had time yet to talk to Elizabeth in depth about what happened. I was hoping to do that while we’re here.”

Now, Dash wondered if he would be able to contain his own rage if his fears held out. Had Grange touched Cassie before locking her in that bedroom and giving Elizabeth the chance to rescue her? If he had, Dash swore silently that he would make certain the man suffered a hell few would know before he died.

Mike breathed out deeply, his body vibrating with a need for revenge. Mike was a damned good father, and his wife and child were his life. He knew Mike would understand the rage threatening to engulf him.

The other man was almost as tall as Dash himself, with short, light brown hair and gray eyes. He was less broad than Dash, not as strong in some areas, but definitely a man who could carry himself, and others, in battle. He was a hell of a fighter, and more than trustworthy. But the bottom line was, Mike was a decent man and he would kill for a stranger’s child. For a friend’s, he would inflict a damage few enemies would ever want to face. In that, he was a lot like Dash. Loyalty and the bonds that came with it weren’t easily severed.

“I appreciate you taking us in,” Dash said quietly as Elizabeth and Cassie finally moved slowly from the Hummer. “Cassie and Elizabeth desperately need this chance to rest. I hope we aren’t inconveniencing you.”

“Not at all.” Mike shook his head as he watched the movement on the other side of the vehicle. “You’ll be safe here until we can figure out exactly what’s going on and how to deal with it. But from what I’ve learned so far, there’s a whole lot of pieces missing, Dash. Nothing’s adding up here.”

Dash was aware of that.

“Come on, let’s go inside,” Mike invited him as they moved cautiously toward the women.

Cassie had a strangle hold on Elizabeth’s hand, but she seemed to be acting more naturally now that Mica stood talking to her. Mike’s daughter had just turned ten. She was a sweet-natured girl whose lively gray eyes sparkled with happiness.

“Hey, Dad. Cassie’s heard about the Cat people, too,” Mica suddenly piped up. “They had another interview on the news tonight,” she told Dash. The little girl followed the stories of the Breeds almost religiously. “I think they are so cool. And Tanner is really good-looking.”

“He’s a Bengal Breed.” Cassie looked up at Mike, then Dash. “He’s only twenty-five but he’s becoming known as one of their greatest spokesmen. I bet he’s really nice…” she trailed off faintly.

“Tanner’s quite nice, actually.” Mike smiled down at the little girl. “I met him this past summer with Kane Tyler. Both men are very good spokesmen.”

Cassie looked impressed now, staring up at Mike thoughtfully.

“Kane Tyler doesn’t like speaking in public much.” Cassie frowned as she watched Mike, gauging his response. “He acts like Dash. Tanner is sneakier about what he says. So he’s better.”

Four adults stared down at Cassie in surprise. Mike chuckled. “She’s about right there.” He slapped Dash on the shoulder. “I wonder how much Kane will like knowing an eight-year-old has him pegged so easily?”

Cassie moved closer to her mother, gripping her hips tightly as she stared up at Mike with a suddenly fierce expression. “Just cause I’m short doesn’t mean I’m a baby.”

“Cassie.” Elizabeth’s voice firmed as she glanced down at her daughter. “Mr. Toler is our host. And I’m sure he doesn’t think you’re a baby.”

Elizabeth didn’t make excuses for Cassie’s behavior. None was needed. But she was gently letting Cassie know she was stepping beyond her bounds.

“I thought you seemed awful old for your age,” Mike teased her then. “Come on, ladies, I’m older than eight and I need a comfortable chair for visiting. Serena, don’t you and Mica have homemade cookies cooling?”

Serena moved to her husband, her arm wrapping around his waist as she reached up and kissed his cheek softly. “We do indeed,” she said with a smile before turning back to Elizabeth and Cassie. “Come on in and we’ll get you settled in and get some cookies. Cassie, do you like gingerbread?”

Serena ushered Cassie and Elizabeth into the house as Dash and Mike trailed behind. Dash couldn’t help but admire the other woman and how easily she helped Cassie and Elizabeth to feel comfortable.

“Thanks, buddy,” Dash breathed as they entered the house. “It’s been a long haul for them.”

“I can understand that.” Mike shook his head slowly. “Damn, Dash, I’ve had nightmares since you called, thinking about those two and what could have happened before you caught up with them. I don’t know how they survived.”

Dash knew he hadn’t slept much himself before finding Cassie and Elizabeth. And he was starting to feel it.

Dash grunted. “They don’t come close to my nightmares.”

“Come on into the study and we’ll talk.” Mike nodded down a long hallway off the garage entryway. “I’ve been getting some reports together for you.”

Dash nodded. “Let me talk to Elizabeth first and I’ll be right there.”

He stepped into the living room. Cassie was sitting on her knees in front of the television by Mica, absorbed in the news report and interviews of the Feline Breeds. Elizabeth stood by the kitchen doorway, watching as Serena made coffee.

“Elizabeth.” He said her name softly, gaining her attention.

She turned to him, her long hair swaying at her waist, her eyes dark and haunted. God, he hated that look, hated knowing that even now her fears assailed her. In one hand she gripped his service revolver, though she was careful to keep it behind her back so the girls couldn’t see it.

She moved to him slowly, her deep blue eyes watching him carefully. She hadn’t relaxed her guard, hadn’t given in to her need to just rest since he had found her other than the few hours she had slept in the motel. She was still running on nerves and fear and it was making him crazy. She needed her rest. Something inside him demanded that she was too weak, too frail, for the hungers rising inside him.

“I need to talk to Mike for a bit, but I’ll be just down the hall.” He drew her back to the entryway, glancing at the revolver. “You want to keep it or you want me to hold it for you?”

She glanced back at Cassie then at the revolver. Dash watched as she licked her lips nervously before extending the weapon to him. When she raised her eyes, he wanted to howl in misery at the fear and insecurity he saw there.

“Elizabeth,” he whispered gently as he took the weapon with one hand, the other lifting to her cheek to touch her pale skin. Soft skin. Skin he wanted to spend the rest of his days learning the feel of. “I promise you. No one can track us here. No one will find us.”

She swallowed as she nodded faintly. But the shadows in her eyes didn’t lessen.

Dash reached out beside him and extinguished the light in the entryway, dimming the area as she stared at him in shock.

“I want to kiss you,” he whispered as he backed her against the wall, pleased by the sudden flare of interest in her eyes.

Oh yes, he thought, she remembered how hot that last kiss had been, how good it felt. It made her eyes glitter with something other than fear.

“Do you know how soft your lips are?” He was careful to keep his voice from rumbling as he lowered his head to her. “How warm and sweet you tasted?”

Before she could answer he allowed his tongue to lick over her lips softly. Dash heard her breath catch, watched warm color flush her cheeks. He was hard and hurting, his cock throbbing imperatively as he fought to keep the caress light. If he kissed her as he wanted to, he feared he would never stop.

“Dash.” Her hands lifted to his chest as though to push him away. Her fingers curled against his shirt as her breasts began to rise and fall with her increased breathing.

“I could eat you up, Elizabeth,” he told her, allowing a small measure of his hunger to reflect in his voice.

“While I was in that damned drug-induced coma, my only link to the world was Cassie’s letters. And she talked about you. How pretty you were. How kind and good. Slowly, you ceased to be Cassie’s mother, though. I didn’t see a maternal figure, I saw a woman. A woman I needed to hold. To touch. I want to touch you real bad, Elizabeth. So bad my hands almost shake with it.”

He was taking a chance. It could be too soon to let her see just how hungry he was for her. But damn if he wasn’t tired of waiting, tired of needing alone. He wanted her to think about it. To think about him. To know it was coming.

“No.” She shook her head, her eyes flaring with a sense of female panic as he put his claim into words.

“Yes, Elizabeth.” Dash kept his voice low, but let it rumble with his arousal. “I lived for you and Cassie. But while I fought to live I dreamed, and it was this I dreamed of.”

His lips covered hers swiftly, his tongue taking advantage of her gasp and sweeping in commandingly. He had asked for the caress earlier that morning, now he demanded. He conquered, he licked and stroked her tongue and gloried in her instant, if hesitant, response.

She was shy. Wary. She wouldn’t give in to the heat pulsing between them easily. But she was curious enough about it to allow the kiss. She leaned into him slightly, her body tense. She was determined to try to control it, to explain it before she would give in to it. For Dash, it was enough that he could feel the hunger inside her for now. The time would come later to explore it more fully.

He allowed his lips to sip from her, his tongue to stroke hers, allowing the heat to build slowly. One hand gripped her hip as he held her to him, his chest cushioning her full breasts as they rose and fell harshly. Her shy tongue tangled with his as her hands splayed flat against the tight muscles of his abdomen.

He was rapidly losing his mind in her kiss. The building sensations were sweeping through him, buzzing through his mind, his senses exploding with greedy lust until he heard Cassie. Her voice rose as she questioned Serena about the location of her mother.

Pulling away from her was one of the hardest things he had ever done in his life. But he did, reluctantly, forcing his eyes open, staring into the shocked depths of hers. Her breasts rose and fell swiftly, her nipples hard little points beneath the cloth of her blouse. Her hands gripped his shirt, her delicate nails piercing against his skin as though it was a lifeline, as she fought for breath.

His hand framed her cheek, his thumb running over the slightly swollen curve of her lips. They were reddened, fuller now from his caress. Her eyelids looked heavy, her cheeks flushed and he could smell the essence of her need beginning to build. The slick juices would be preparing her, heating her sweet pussy, preparing the way for him. His cock throbbed heavily at that thought.

“Think about that, Elizabeth,” he growled. “And then ask yourself if you taste passion there, or betrayal.”

Before she could speak, Dash turned and stalked down the short hallway beside them, leaving Elizabeth staring in shock, in reluctant hunger. And, he hoped, some small measure of trust.

Elizabeth watched Dash walk away. She kept her back pressed to the wall, stilled an instinctive need to call him back to her, and watched his powerful body stalk into another room. Her hand rose slowly to her lips. They tingled, bursting with heat from the touch of his, her mouth filled with the taste of him. She couldn’t seem to shake the mood the kiss had put her in. She returned to the kitchen, talked to Serena Toler, watched the kids play, and all the while she remembered Dash’s kiss. His touch.

She thought about the way he had come out of the shower, pinning her to the bathroom door earlier that day. His cock had been fiery, rock-hard, pressing against her stomach insistently as he stared down at her, eyes glittering with hunger. Lust was too tame a word for what she saw in his gaze.

Finally, Serena showed her and Cassie to their rooms. Dash had already brought in their clothes and placed them in the large bedroom. The queen-sized bed was turned down invitingly; the Victorian flowered quilt and matching sheets brought a pain of longing to her chest.

For one brief second she was at home again. The home her parents had left her. The small two-story brick house she had lovingly decorated after her divorce from Dane, filled with sunshine and Cassie’s laughter, and a sense of roots. And Victorian flowered sheets and quilts on the bed. Pillows plumped. A little girl’s frilly bedroom with the canopied bed and white oak furniture. Her home. And it was gone now. Forever.

Taking a hard, shuddering breath, she opened her eyes. The guest room held heavy, dark furniture, comfortable and elegant with a thick forest-green carpeting as the rest of the house held. There was a small French door leading to the wrap-around balcony. A Queen Anne chair sat beside it.

“Come on, Cassie.” Elizabeth moved to the large tote Dash had brought in from the Hummer. “Let’s get ready for bed.”

She gathered the little girl’s gown and robe and knocked softly on the door that connected her room to Dash’s. When there was no answer she opened the door and entered it. Getting Cassie ready for bed wasn’t hard. The little girl was exhausted. She curled under the warm quilts of the bed half an hour later and settled right into sleep. Within minutes she had made one of the soft, mewling little sounds that always brought a smile to Elizabeth’s face. She shook her head at the sound.

This new situation was so out of sync with the past two years that Elizabeth couldn’t settle down. The awareness of danger that had surrounded her for so long was no longer present. She sensed the change on every level of her being. As though with Dash’s arrival, there was now hope. How, she didn’t know. But she felt the sense of hope building around her even as she instinctively doubted it. How could anything change so quickly just from the presence of one man?

But why not? He had changed something in her as well. In the space of twenty-four hours he had made her realize she was more than just Cassie’s mother. She was a woman, too. And it had been a long time, a very long time, since she had felt that surge of feminine need and the thick, juicy arousal pooling between her thighs. Her pussy ached. It had never ached like this, even during Dane’s courtship of her. She hadn’t been on fire from a single kiss. She hadn’t wanted him so quickly or so heatedly as she suddenly realized she wanted Dash Sinclair.