"Seeing me?" He stared at her, his face dark. "You're leaving... again?"

She flinched at the anger in his voice. "I was the hot chick. You were h.o.r.n.y." Ember picked up the tote. "We f.u.c.ked. Please let Oro and Hailey know I've gone home."

She'd leave a note for Hailey at the office. They'd been friends for decades. Hailey knew she never stayed very long in one place.

"No." North stood in front of the door, blocking her exit.

"Okay, then don't." She shrugged away her agony. "I'll send Hailey a text. If you'll excuse me..."

"No," he repeated. "I won't excuse you, and I won't make excuses for you. I won't tell myself you'll return. I won't wait for you anymore."

"I never asked you to wait." This is it. This is the end. She scanned his rugged face, memorizing it. I'll never see him again. "Let me pa.s.s, North."

"You're mine, Ember." He picked her up and slung her over his shoulder. She shrieked, clutching her tote, Killer yipping excitedly as he swung in the air. "I've waited long enough for you to come to your senses." He smacked her a.s.s, the arousing pain silencing her. "Now, if I have to, I'll beat some sense into you."

"Not possible." My father tried. Ember struggled to right herself. "You don't want me, North. I'm not the same wolf you remember."

"And I'm not the same wolf you remember, beautiful." He walked out the door, carrying her as though she weighed nothing. "Keep that in mind."

Chapter Two.

"Be still." North plunked his wiggling mate down into the pa.s.senger seat of his truck. She clasped her tote with that ridiculous dog and glared at him with big brown eyes full of anger and pain. He ached to gaze into them. Why does she carry the Chihuahua everywhere? Lazy excuse for a dog. North bit back his irritation and buckled Ember's seat belt. "I expect I'll have to chain you."

"No." She stiffened, her eyes widening. Ember, his carefree wolf of the woods, wore a prim, high-necked skirt suit, all of her soft, perfect skin concealed.

"Yes." He took a length of chain out from behind the seat, determined to lock her up until he heard the truth from her lying lips. She had left him once, and she'd threatened to leave him again. He wanted to know why. After what he'd gone through, he deserved to know why. "I use this to subdue the wolves when they drink too much." North looped the shielded chain around her tiny wrists. "There's silver inside."

Her breath hitched. "S-s-silver?"

"Yeah, and that burns like a son-of-a-b.i.t.c.h so I suggest you don't move." He closed the door and rounded the hood to the driver's side.

He slid into his own seat. She sat frozen in place, her hands held at the same uncomfortable angle. "I was joking, Ember. You can move."

She didn't respond. "Did you hear me? It was a joke. The chains aren't that strong. h.e.l.l, I handled them without gloves, didn't I?" He grinned at her.

She stared straight ahead, her face deathly pale, and panic coursed through him, decimating his anger and his pain. His wolf paced anxiously as he focused completely on her, forgetting everything else.

North cupped Ember's chin, forcing her to face him. A sheen covered her eyes, teardrops dangling on her long eyelashes. f.u.c.k. He'd made his tough she-wolf cry. How? "Talk to me, mate. What did I do?"

"H... h... hurts," Ember whimpered, the sound pulling at his heart, a heart only she could ever touch. Her small, perfect chest rose and fell rapidly.

"s.h.i.t. I made them too tight." He slid his fingers between the chain and her wrists and he frowned. They had plenty of give, yet her pulse raced like a wild thing under his fingertips. "Ember, what's going on?" The scent of her fear made his wolf's hackles rise. Protect mate.

"H... h... hurts," she repeated, her teeth chattering. Her slender shoulders shook.

I can't do this. He covered her hands with his, her fingers icy cold. f.u.c.k restraining her. "Hold on, beautiful." North fumbled with the chain, freeing her. "There. That's it." He tossed the chain behind the seat, hiding it from her view. His dramatic gesture didn't help. Her tremors increased. "No chain. See." He caressed her skin.

She held her hands in the same position, her eyes blank and unseeing. "H... h... hurts." Big, juicy tears rolled down her cheeks.

"Oh, Ember." He rubbed her hands, forcing them apart. "Don't cry. You know I can't stand to see you cry."

Her lips moved without forming words, and she stared at him, her beautiful face twisted with an expression he'd go to his grave remembering. An animalistic whine of pain came from deep in her throat.

Protect mate! His wolf pushed against his controls. "Beautiful, don't do that, please." He unbuckled her seat belt, set the dog-filled tote by her feet, and pulled her over the console into his arms. "There's nothing to fear. I have you. I'll protect you." He pushed her face into his chest and stroked her back as she convulsed, wetting his T-shirt with her silent tears.

Her yipping dog escaped the tote to jump on the console. Slipping on the metal trim, he fell on his wiggling a.s.s. Clumsy mutt. "You're worrying your dog." Trust my mate to have a pet. "What's his name?"

She didn't answer.

"I wasn't much bigger than him when you first met me, remember?" North undid Ember's hair, pulled out the pins, and her thick curls tumbled around her shoulders, releasing a scent that was all her.

"You insisted I come home with you, just to have a bite to eat." He chuckled, recalling how stubborn she was, even then. "And you told everyone I was your protector. I took that role seriously, you know. You were so small, so innocent." He caressed his mate's rounded spine, her tremors slowly easing. "I was convinced you needed me." Does she still need me?

"I think I fell in love with you then," he confessed. "You were my whole world, Ember." And when she left, she took that world with her, crushing his soul under her dainty heels. "You were all I had, all I've ever had." He rubbed soothing circles into her shoulders.

Silence filled the truck's cab, broken only by their breathing, even the dog respecting the quiet. North closed his eyes, savoring her scent and the feel of her body pressed against his, her curves fitting perfectly against his hard muscle.

This was what had kept him alive during those months of imprisonment. This was what he would never find with another, this sense of belonging, of acceptance. When Ember looked at him, he didn't feel like a stray. He felt strong and powerful and wanted.

What happened to her? He petted her reddish-brown curls with a gentleness his bouncer buddies would mock. How can I fix this?

"Killer," Ember whispered. "His name is Killer." She reached out and cupped her little dog's head.

"Killer." North hugged Ember closer to him, loving her sense of humor and relieved that her crying had stopped. Why had it started? "What's going on, Ember?" She stiffened. "I said I'd protect you, but I can't do that if I don't know what's going on."

Ember pushed away from him. "Nothing." She scooped up Killer and slid over the console to her own seat. North allowed her to go because he didn't know what else to do. "Those were bad memories from the past."

The past. North shifted gears and backed out of the parking s.p.a.ce. Silver chains. He drove with one eye on the road and the other on the she-wolf huddled against the pa.s.senger door. The Chihuahua licked the tears on her cheeks, his antics drawing a ghost of a smile from Ember. Her father.

North tensed. "Did your father restrain you?" Why would he do that? The pit of his stomach froze, his body temperature dropping to subzero. I'm an a.s.s. The Ember he knew, the Ember he loved, would have defended him... against her father, his beta, his omegas, the world. "You were chained because of me."

She sighed, a bone-weary sound. "I don't want to talk about it."

No denial. North drove, his thoughts dark and grim. "I'll wait, Ember. I've waited this long for you. For us."

"There is no us." Ember turned away from him, staring out the window at the pa.s.sing homes, petting her dog.

Patience. North focused on the road, vividly aware of the female next to him, her gentle curves, her cla.s.sic profile, her womanly scent.

She straightened as he pulled the truck into the driveway. "North?" She gazed at the house, her mouth partially open and her eyes wide, wonder softening her beautiful face.

His heart clenched, her reaction worth all of his efforts. North parked the truck and swallowed hard, clearing the emotional lump in his throat. "This is our home, Ember."

"Your home." Her sadness returned, dousing the light in her brown eyes, and North regretted the loss of the happy-go-lucky girl he once knew. "Pink siding?"

"Bungalow, not too big, not too small, just right for a family of four." He recited the features of her girlhood dream house. "White picket fence, basketball hoop attached to the garage, a tire swing in the back."

"Really?" She scooped a surprisingly docile Killer into the tote before exiting the truck.

Aren't Chihuahuas supposed to be hyperactive? North strode around the truck. What's wrong with him? He met the dog's gaze, and Killer backed into his bag, hiding from him.

Some guard dog. North snorted. He couldn't guard his own a.s.s.

Ember didn't notice the interaction, wandering up the painstakingly maintained path. "I didn't know a house like this existed."

It hadn't. North followed her. He'd created it, a part of him, a silly romantic part, knowing she'd return to him. "Do you like it?"

"Yes." Her lips drooped, and he yearned to kiss her until she smiled again. "Too much. I'm not staying, North. You should know that."

"And I'm not letting you go. You should know that." North leveled a hard glance on her, and she dipped her head, her gaze dropping to the pebbles around his feet.

The old Ember would have argued with him. This Ember appeared ready to run again. He gritted his teeth. Never again. She's mine to keep.

Killer whined and the tote vibrated. "Your dog needs a patch of gra.s.s." North waved his hand at their front lawn, willing to sacrifice the thick, green turf to her pet's needs.

"Thank you." Ember set the Chihuahua down and watched over him, her face soft with caring. "I found him at the pound. No one wanted him." She shook her head, her reddish-brown curls bouncing against her cheeks. "I can't figure out why."

And she'll never figure it out. North gazed at the dog, another stray like him. Killer limped around the perimeter of the lawn, marking his territory, the process slow and painful. Even if I told her he was a cripple, she wouldn't see it. "Not everyone sees the world like you do."

Chapter Three.

Ember sat in a wicker loveseat on the back patio with North's big body beside her, and Killer already tucked up on a folded towel asleep inside the house. Her dream house. She crossed her arms, hugging her stomach, resting her fingertips on the edges of her scars, a physical reminder that the dream would never come true.

Wolves howled, calling for North to join them. "Your pack?"

"Some of the guys from the club." He shrugged, nursing the beer in his hand. "It's a nice night, full moon." North glanced upward at the star-filled sky, yearning on his rugged face. "Do you want to go for a run?"

She did, but she wasn't brave enough yet to face his rejection. "Not tonight." Tonight, she'd pretend they were forever, that his love would last, that she remained the perfect wolf of his memories. "I want to do... other things." Ember gave him a shy smile.

North set down the beer bottle on the small table, the ring of gla.s.s against gla.s.s announcing his interest. "Mate things?" He pulled her into his arms until she straddled his waist, his c.o.c.k hard under his dress pants, and she nodded, unable to trust her voice. "Hmmm..." His low rumble swept over her like the deepest caress. "I like that."

He brushed his lips against hers, the stubble on his chin sending shivers of sensation across her skin. She curled her fingers around his nape and leaned into him, pressing her b.r.e.a.s.t.s into his muscular chest.

"You're so beautiful." The moon reflected in his dark eyes.

I was beautiful. She pushed away the regret. "Kiss me, North." Make me forget.

Their lips met, the pressure rea.s.suringly firm, and she opened to him eagerly. He stroked his tongue along hers, caressing her flesh, his mouth tasting of hops, his fingers cupping her face. Mine. Her wolf prowled inside her, testing her barriers.

She slid her hands under his T-shirt, the muscles in his stomach rippling against her fingertips. He was warm, enticing, and she spread her fingers, yearning to touch more of him, all of him, to rub her scent into his skin, to claim him as hers. He growled, mouthing over her chin, down her neck.

More. Ember tugged his shirt over his head, tousling his brown hair, exposing a tanned chest covered with dark hair. She licked his scar, swiping her tongue over each ridge, capturing the salt of his skin.

North growled, the deep sound crazing her wolf, and he stripped her suit jacket off, the b.u.t.tons bouncing off the patio tiles. The cool night air hit her scarred back and she froze, the fear of rejection clearing her desire-filled haze. What am I doing? He'll know. He'll see.

As though reading her misgivings, North captured her mouth, scattering her thoughts with the force of his kiss. He fed on her, devoured her, until her need for him overrode self-preservation. His big hands spanned her back, his fingertips rubbing into her scars, yet he didn't pull away, instead drawing her nearer, crushing her b.r.e.a.s.t.s against his chest.

One last time. She reached down and unfastened his pants, feeling along his erection. He groaned into her mouth and lifted his a.s.s, allowing her to tug his pants and underwear down, freeing him.

G.o.d, he's huge. She wrapped her fingers around his shaft, relishing the feel of him, pressed thick and heavy into her palm. He nibbled along her collarbone and over her right breast, his lips brushing teasingly close to her nipple. As she worked his c.o.c.k with her hands, she leaned back, thrusting her b.r.e.a.s.t.s upward, and he took her unspoken offer, covering her nipple with his mouth, tugging at her flesh.

So good. Ember moaned. He pulled her skirt around her waist and grabbed her bare a.s.s, squeezing in time with his sucking, her entire body throbbing to the same rhythm, his rhythm, the only beat she had ever danced to.

"Ember." North looked upward, gazing through thick black eyelashes and in his eyes, she saw his wolf, dominant and wild and hers. He grinned, rubbing that endearingly boyish smile over her curves and pressed his lips to her left nipple, torturing her with the same slow seduction.

Unable to wait, she moved against him, sliding her p.u.s.s.y lips up and down his hard c.o.c.k, covering him with her juices, his skin glistening in the moonlight. His thigh muscles tightened underneath her, and his suction increased to the point of pain, her nipple gloriously red and raw.

"North." She nipped his shoulder, the hunger to be filled overwhelming.

He chuckled, his lips vibrating against her skin. "Always impatient, beautiful."

She winced. Once he sees my back, he won't think me beautiful. "You make me impatient, wolf." Her voice was husky with fear and arousal as she risked soul-destroying rejection for a moment of ecstasy. "f.u.c.k me now."

His grin spread, white teeth flashing in his tanned face. "Only you dare order me, mate." North met her gaze, his chin tilted proudly.

Alpha, her wolf growled with appreciation. If he had been this strong years ago... Ember shook away her regrets. "I'll dare much more if you don't f.u.c.k me soon." She shifted her weight restlessly. "I need you inside me." She swiped her thumb over his c.o.c.khead, spreading the dab of prec.u.m beading on his slit. "Would you deny me?"

"Never," he rumbled. North cupped her a.s.s, lifted her easily, and Ember positioned him at her entrance.

"North!" she cried out as he lowered her onto his c.o.c.k, filling her. She clasped onto his broad shoulders, savoring the solid feel of his muscles, and rocked on him, the slide slow and shallow.

He nuzzled her neck, kneading her maimed back with his big hands. She writhed with delight, her healed skin hyper sensitive to his caresses, no one having ever touched those crisscrossed ridges of flesh.

"Ride me," North commanded, and she struggled to obey him, hampered by her shorter legs. He a.s.sisted her, lifting her a.s.s and dropping her, her p.u.s.s.y lips slapping his base, her a.s.s bouncing on his thighs.

She panted, her lungs aching with the effort, and he grunted, their animalistic sounds of pa.s.sion echoing in the night, the scent of s.e.x filling the air. They were as one, the years apart dropping away, the barriers between them evaporating.

Ember closed her eyes, a tear trickling down her cheek. In this moment, she wasn't scarred. She was perfect, desirable, a wolf he'd be proud to claim.

North impaled her onto his big c.o.c.k again and again, ruthlessly invading her body, his hands branding her flesh. She wanted this connection to last forever as it felt right and strong, but her building desire wouldn't be denied. Her muscles constricted, constricted, constricted until all of her was pulled tightly around him.

"Please," she whimpered, pleading for something her brain had no words for.