Defying Pack Law (MFMM)
Pack

Excerpt

“Stop,” she protested in a weak voice, forcing the words past a tongue that was thick and dry. She fuzzily wondered how she hadn’t died. She remembered pain, lots of it. She also recalled her deep despair and the wish to end it all. She definitely didn’t recall lying on a soft mattress like the one she found herself on now or the enticing smell of wolf that, for once, didn’t make her want to bolt. Fear kept her eyes closed. What if she had died and was now in some sort of werewolf heaven?

“And here I thought you’d be eager to wake up and yell at me a little bit.”

The familiar voice did what gentle cajoling couldn’t. Nathan? A vague recollection of him in her cell, morphing from beast to man, floated to the surface of her mind. Could it be? Her eyes popped open. She didn’t see Nathan, but the face bending over her seemed vaguely familiar. Handsome, with brown eyes that twinkled, the stranger smiled at her, and though she scented his Lycan nature, his calm demeanor didn’t raise her hackles. Actually, her inner wolf stirred with interest. How unusual.

“Morning, Sleeping Beauty. Nice to see you’re back with us.” He offered her a bottle of water, and she grabbed it from him eagerly, slopping it wetly on herself as she drank, but she didn’t care.

The cool liquid moistened her mouth and refreshed her, enough that she could ask, “Who are you? Where am I?” She withheld the third question. Was that truly Nathan I heard? And if it was, am I happy or not that he’s found me?

“You probably don’t remember me, but we ran into each other a few times in our younger pack years. My name’s John.”

The fuzzy wheels in her mind turned, and the answer popped up. “I know you. You’re Nathan’s best friend. You used to be a lot skinnier.” And cute. If Nathan hadn’t asked her out after years of her mooning after him, she might have gone for his bookish friend. She still might. She found him quite attractive, and something about him made her relax, a feeling she hadn’t enjoyed in what seemed like forever.

John grinned at her, displaying a dimple she found much too hot. “And geekier. You can say it. It was true then and still is now. As for being skinny, when I finally stopped growing, my body caught up. I’m surprised you even remember me given you and Nathan were always off hiding in corners, necking.”

Dana blushed at the reminder of her youth. “Yeah, well, that won’t be happening again.” She ignored the snort in the background and the way her heart stuttered. She spotted the stethoscope around John’s neck. “Are you a doctor?”

“Yup. Mind if I check you over and make sure you’re healing all right?”

His soft drawl made her tummy flip pleasantly. Even stranger, she didn’t feel an urge to argue or refuse. I must still be hurt. “Okay.”

His lips curved again, and she couldn’t help but smile back, a smile that widened when she heard the impatient sigh from behind John.

She didn’t fidget while John shone a light in her eyes and checked her pulse—a pulse that raced for numerous reasons. The doctor appeared to be having the oddest effect on her and distracted her almost as much as the man she sensed at the periphery of her vision. A man she refused to crane to see because that would smack too much of eagerness, and she was most definitely not eager to see him.

“I need to check your ribs. If you don’t mind, I’m going to press them lightly. Let me know if they hurt.”

She expected him to slip his hands under the sheet and cop a feel—she actually kind of looked forward to it so she could get indignant and erase these fuzzy feelings he engendered. But John acted a true gentleman and palpated her through the sheet, keeping his eyes trained to hers. Even through the thin fabric, though, her body temperature rose. Oh, Doctor, I think I have a fever. Dana wanted to giggle. The whole situation seemed surreal. Attracted to one werewolf while her body anxiously waited to see another. Had the beating she’d taken knocked her hatred of getting hooked up with a Lycan right out of her?

“You’re healing well,” her brown-eyed doctor declared, taking his hands away—and was it her, or did he do so reluctantly?

“How long was I out?” she asked as she inhaled and found only a slight hitch, whereas before breathing had resulted in burning agony.

“We ended up keeping you under for about three days. You were injured pretty bad. Luckily, you only had fractures, so I didn’t need to break and reset anything. We also managed to stem the internal bleeding until your healing abilities kicked in with the aid of some proteins fed via IV.”

Three days! Dana didn’t like knowing she’d lain so helpless for so long. And, just where had they taken her? Anxiety hit her in a rush. “Awesome. Thanks for patching me up. Now if someone will just give me some clothes, I’ll get out of your way.” She threw that out there knowing it would get a reaction. That and she really wanted some clothes as she noticed she was pretty freaking naked under the damned sheets. If anyone copped a feel, or more, while I was out, there is going to be hell to pay. She blocked the mental images of gentle John touching her skin, seeing her naked form as he treated her.

Did he like what he saw? Not that she cared.

“Nice try, Dana.” The deep voice set her limbs trembling, and she couldn’t have said if it was fear or anticipation.

The doctor moved to the side, and Nathan came into view. Despite herself, she drank him in, stunned with the shock of seeing him again.

He’d changed and yet hadn’t. The same bright blue eyes stared at her, and he sported the same thick, dark mane of hair. But, the boy she’d known was gone, replaced by a man, and a big one at that.

Apparently, he’d done some more growing after she left. He towered inches taller than she recalled and filled out his lanky frame, but not with fat. He bulged with muscle. He also looked hard, from the set of his jaw to the glint in his eye to the evident strength in his body. She suddenly feared this new man, this stranger she no longer knew, but who had evidently sought her out. For what purpose?

“What do you want with me?” she asked in voice that sounded weak and soft. She also wanted to slap herself for asking such a stupid question. She knew what he wanted, to bed her and impregnate her. But surely he could have found another woman in the years she’d been gone? Lycan females were rare, but given his evident alpha stature and good looks, the available ones would have fallen over themselves to snare him. Surprisingly, she didn’t like this train of thought.

“Well, my dear fiancée, you ran off before we could be wed in the eyes of our people. I intend to rectify that delay as soon as possible, willing or not.” He said it so matter-of-factly, so coldly, that it took her a moment to process it.

Her mouth dropped open. “Are you out of your fucking mind?”

“Yup.”