Elizabeth's Wolf

Chapter Seventeen

The Tolers returned to the ranch early that morning as Dash was packing the Hummer. Elizabeth was sleeping. Finally. She had cried herself into exhaustion as he held her. She was grieving, he knew, hating the separation from her daughter and the fear that filled her. But he knew it had been a cleansing thing, a preparation for what she was aware was coming. So he had let her cry, holding her, stroking her long hair back from her pale face and murmuring gently to her.

He had never been comfortable with a woman’s tears before. Had never known exactly how to handle the feeling of manipulation he had always known during them. It was absent in this case. It was the first time he had seen Elizabeth cry, had seen the control she kept so firmly in place slip. Or had it? It was hard to tell with her. She was equal parts warrior and woman. As she cried in his arms he could almost feel her resolve strengthening, her rage and pain forming into the core of steel she would need to see her through the coming days.

He could have accomplished this much faster, much easier and with no threat to her if he had taken Callan up on his offer. But Dash had known even before then that Elizabeth would have to see this through before she would have the courage to face the life ahead of them. He had chosen her as his mate, and she knew it, even if she never spoke of it. He was now, legally, Cassie’s father. The little girl was unique in so many ways that protecting her would be a full-time job until she was old enough to protect herself.

She would need parents who knew how to defend her, knew how to fight together. Dash would make certain Elizabeth was in the least amount of actual danger possible. But to be assured she could face the dangers that could come in their lives, he had to allow her this. There was always the chance he could be killed. A chance that once again she would be alone, facing dangers she had never imagined from the Council. He had to make certain she was able to protect herself, Cassie, and any other children they might have along the way.

When she had slipped into sleep, curled in the bed Cassie had slept in, Dash had slipped away and began preparing for their departure. A plane would come for them later that night and fly them to a deserted airfield not far from the cabin he had rented for a month’s stay. There, he would train her, see how tough she was and make plans to get to Grange.

Mike was insistent that Dash allow the bastard to live. All they needed were the files Grange possessed, detailing the experiment done in-vitro on Elizabeth. That alone would secure Cassie’s safety, as much as anything else would. Once she was under Pride protection the news of her existence would be revealed and would pull the teeth from the threat Grange posed. But Dash knew men like that. Knew that Grange would never be satisfied, never be content, until he destroyed Cassie. He wouldn’t allow that threat to continue. Grange was a drug runner, a slaver, a child molester. A man whose soul was so dark and diseased that he caused misery wherever he went. Dash knew he would likely have to kill him. He wouldn’t feel guilty over that fact, or remorse. Such monsters didn’t deserve to draw breath.

He loaded all the equipment necessary into the Hummer before packing the back seat area with weapons and ammunition. Getting to Grange wouldn’t be that hard, but he wanted Elizabeth familiar with the weapons he would be carrying in.

“This is too risky, Dash,” Mike warned him again. “If you won’t accept the offer Callan made, let me send a few of my men in with you. Make short work of the mission and get out. You’re placing Elizabeth in too much danger.”

“I did that when I came for her.” Dash ran a mental checklist as he stared at the store of weapons. “What she’ll face later will be even more dangerous. She needs this to continue, Mike. Life may not be easy from here on out.”

“She’s not a soldier, Dash. She’s a woman. Cassie’s safe now, her concentration will be fractured. I don’t think she’s strong enough for this.”

Dash braced his arm on the top of the vehicle’s frame as he leaned in to check the store of ammo stacked in the floorboards.

“She’s strong enough.” He had no doubt about that. It was the strength and experience to work under this new stress that bothered him. “I’ll protect her. I know what I’m doing, Mike.”

He had pulled too many civilians out of situations more exacting than what he was leading Elizabeth into. Grange was a pimple on society’s ass. Burning him off wouldn’t be the problem. Knowing that Elizabeth would survive with her honor and strength intact was the problem. He didn’t want to break her. Didn’t want to ask more of her than she could give. But he had to know she could follow him. Follow him, fight beside him and protect herself if she had to.

“I know you think you know what you’re doing,” Mike finally sighed. “For your own good, I hope you do. Just in case, I’m sending Matt and Joey out there. They’ll be in town if you need them. Don’t hesitate to use them.”

“Why?” Dash turned back to him, confused now.

Mike was watching him with a frown. “Because you might need help,” he snapped. “You might think you’re superman, Dash, but you’re not. I don’t want to have to bury you, if it’s all the same to you.”

Dash shook his head. “If I die, then I reckon they’ll dispose of the body somehow, Mike. What does that have to do with anything?”

Mike was silent for long moments. “If someone massacred me and my family, Dash, what would you do?” he finally asked curiously.

Dash shrugged. “Go hunting. They wouldn’t live long.”

A grin tugged at Mike’s mouth. “Why would you do that? I’m sure mine and Serena’s parents would bury us.”

Dash was suddenly uncomfortable. “It would piss me off,” he growled. “I might need your ass one of these days to help put out a fire.”

Mike shook his head. “Why not admit we’re friends, Dash? I’ve noticed you do that a lot. Forget you have friends. Steady, dependable friends. Why is that?”

Dash sighed wearily. “I’m a Breed, Mike. You let your friends know you. Knowing who and what I am puts you at risk.”

Mike shook his head again. “We were already friends, buddy. You need to loosen up some and accept that. Friends share the burden. If my wife or daughter were in danger, you would have been the first person I contacted because I know you would be the one most likely to never flinch in protecting them. Our friendship would assure you would never betray them. Not just because you’re the best damned warrior I know, but because you’re a friend, one I know and respect. It’s that simple.”

Dash pushed his fingers through his hair, sighing roughly. “I don’t know how to be a friend, Mike.”

“Like hell.” Mike frowned. “You’ve never been anything but the best friend I ever had. You think I don’t know who was looking after Serena and Mica on that last mission I took? You requested leave, flew over here, and spent a damned month in the hills watching the house to protect my family. What was that if it wasn’t friendship?”

Dash was more than surprised. “How did you know?”

Mike shot him a sardonic look. “Come on, Dash. You were damned good, I admit. But there’s no way those two ‘hunters’ that turned up dead on the other side of the mountain were anything but Gorley’s men. And you forget, that nice clean little swipe across the throat is one of your trademarks. I knew the minute I got the information what was going on.”

Dash cleared his throat uncomfortably. “The knife doesn’t make as much noise as a gun.” He shrugged. “Besides, I liked Serena. She’s too good for your sorry ass, though. I told you that already.”

But Dash was realizing something more. He was realizing that, despite the fact that he had fought to keep himself distant, a loner, the people he depended on were more than military contacts. He had told himself that was all they were, and yet, at the same time, he had formed bonds he now realized were stronger than he could have imagined.

“Everything packed then?” Mike asked as he closed the door to the Hummer.

Dash nodded. “I’m going to head up and get some sleep before leaving tonight. I appreciate you returning the Hummer for me.”

The supplies would be transferred to the plane when it arrived, then to the truck Dash had arranged to be waiting at the airfield. The plans he had worked out with Mike after receiving confirmation that Cassie would be accepted into the Breed compound were coming together quickly.

“You need any other help, you be sure to let me know, Dash.” Mike sighed. “You have a lot of people who would help you in a heartbeat.”

Dash took a deep breath. He had never considered how close he was to some of the men he had fought with until his near death. And even then he had shied away from the knowledge, always feeling that he would bring friends more danger than comfort if his secret was ever revealed.

“Serena, Mica and I are heading into town for the day,” Mike told him as they entered the house. “We’ll be back in time to catch you before you leave. Rest while you can. I’ll talk to you soon.”

Dash didn’t go to his room, though. He went to Elizabeth’s. She was still curled in the middle of the bed, a slender mound beneath the blankets, her hair flowing in wild abandon around her.

He listened as Mike and his family left the house, shaking his head at the knowledge his friend—and he admitted it now, Mike was a friend—had forced him to realize.

He had more than he ever dreamed he could have. A child, his woman, and a network of men and women working to make certain he could protect them both. Not because they were fellow soldiers, but because they were friends.

And those friends were now gone. The house was silent. There was no one there but him and Elizabeth, and the raw, aching throb of his cock. As he stood there, she rolled over, her eyes opening drowsily, watching him with a silent question. He could smell her heat, smell the soft cream building between her thighs, the need racing through her system.

“Undress, Elizabeth.” He almost winced at the growl that rumbled in his throat. “I can’t wait much longer.”

Amazingly, she moved from the bed. Her hands were shaking, the vein at her throat pulsing almost violently as she began to undress.

Her shirt fell to the floor. She loosened her jeans, drawing them slowly down her hips. Elizabeth watched him closely as she revealed the black silk and lace thong he had bought her. The scraps of sensual material matched the bra hiding the full mounds of her breasts from his view.

He undressed slowly, watching her, knowing this first time could be more than either of them could handle. If what Callan suggested was the truth, it would be better to learn now rather than later. Better to let her go before they were firmly in place back in California. He also knew there was no way he could wait any longer.

“Take off the rest.” His gaze never left hers as she unclipped the bra, drawing the cups back from the swollen mounds and shrugging it from her shoulders. Her hands went to her panties, slender fingers hooking beneath the elastic and easing them down her hips. He wanted to moan in hunger as she stepped out of them, revealing the smooth, shaven mound beneath. It glistened with her juices, the sweet earthy scent making his mouth water.

He laid his clothes over the chair as he stroked the tormented length of his erection. He was thick, large and would fill her until she screamed with the pressure. It wasn’t abnormal, but it was striking. Her eyes widened as she finally glanced lower than his face. He knew the one time she had held the hard flesh in her hand hadn’t been long enough for her to realize the full effect of this erection. He would more than fill her. He would take her as no other man ever had. Perhaps in ways neither of them could imagine.

He had never been with a woman like Elizabeth, either. One so small, so sexually uncertain and inexperienced. His women had always been raw-boned and lusty, well able to take the formidable flesh he pushed between their thighs. Elizabeth was delicate, slender. The thought of the amazing tightness he knew he would find when he entered her was enough to make his breath catch in need.

“I don’t want to hurt you,” he whispered as he approached her, feeling the hunger for her rising so sharp and fast it nearly overwhelmed him.

Her scent wrapped around him, made him drunk on the need to touch her, taste her. He stopped in front of her, his cock throbbing and heavy between his thighs, pressing against her tummy as he leaned his forehead against hers. Her hands were trembling as he linked his with them, pulling her arms gently behind her body, arching her breasts against his chests.

She was breathing roughly, staring up at him with those dark, hungry eyes.

“Maybe I need it to hurt a little.” Her whispered moan had his jaw tightening with the effort to control himself. “I never asked you to be easy, Dash.”

He growled then. “You have no idea what I’ve imagined doing to you, Elizabeth,” he told her roughly. “The many ways I’ve taken you in my dreams. How many times you’ve screamed for me in my fantasies. Screamed because you needed what I was giving you. Begging for more.”

She swallowed tightly as his head lowered, his tongue licking at her shoulder as her hands flexed within his.

“Have you ever been tied?” he asked her. “Completely restrained? Helpless? At the mercy of the man taking you?”

“No.” She shook her head roughly.

“I want you helpless beneath me, Elizabeth.” He wanted it, needed it until it was a hunger in his soul. “I want you begging, so wet and hot that when I start stretching you open you can only beg for more.”

He heard her whimper, a sound of naked longing. His sweet little Elizabeth, always so in control, always so proper and levelheaded, was shaking in arousal at the thought of being tied down for him.

“I won’t lie to you.” He secured her hands in one of his while the other ran over the soft curve of her rear. “I won’t be easy on you. I can’t be. You won’t let me protect you from everything else, I’ll be damned if I’ll protect you from who or what I am. Do you understand that?”

“I don’t need another warning, Dash.” Her eyes flashed in the dim light of the room, her body straining closer to him. “I don’t need protection from anything. Least of all you.”

Her lips moved over his shoulder, then her teeth scraped before nipping at him gently. Dash closed his eyes as he fought the need to take her fast and hard.

“Shall I show you,” she asked, “just how much I do want you, Dash Sinclair?”

Her lips moved farther down his chest as she tugged roughly at the grip he had on her hands. Her tongue, liquid fire, lashed over a hard male nipple as he groaned roughly and released her.

Dash stood there, damned near helpless in ways he had never been, and watched one of his greatest fantasies come to life.