Mated to the Warg, (Wargs of the Outland, #1)

Caught!

Rowan flailed her arms, shooting excited looks behind her. Any moment now a hand would clamp on her ankle, she just knew it! Adrenaline pounded in her ears, her hands slapping and churning the water as she fled. She was making so much noise, her gasps more like tiny shrieks. When her hands finally found solid rock, she flinched, certain she was caught already. Not a chance he'd let her escape.

When nothing happened, she spun around. Thrax was nowhere in sight. Her breathing was labored as she scanned the choppy surface for any sign of him. The pool was dappled with dark shade from the embowering trees, and the agitated water stirred even the largest shadows awake so that she couldn't be sure which one was Thrax.

She felt every bit the hunted prey, yet eager for capture. She twitched at every movement below the surface, sensing him close. She steeled herself against imminent onset, tensing hard. She'd been expecting a sudden attack. But Thrax was anything but predictable. After her foiled escape, that much should've been clear.

Sharp wolf ears rose up through the waves, insidious and slow. Then golden, unblinking eyes emerged from the water, followed by a black muzzle gaping with fangs. When he inched towards her it was more terrifying than if he'd pounced. No attack. No growling, yet it was far more terrible this way. He nudged her playfully with his snout, his whispers prickling. His tongue flopped out in a smug, toothy grin.

She hadn't realized she was clutching her throat. "Are you trying to stop my heart?" she all but wheezed.

If wolves could laugh, he'd have done it then. With a waggish growl, he leaped out of the pool and began shaking the water off his pelt.

She flinched away from the colossal spray, muttering, "Wonderful, now I'll reek of wet dog."

He barked his agreement and trotted back to the edge of the pool where she was clinging. With an affectionate huff, he dragged his long warm tongue up her cheek.

She couldn't help but giggle at that. Strangely, she wasn't so shy of him when he was in wolf form. With no hesitation, she climbed out of the rock pool. Not that the water offered much cover, it was so crystal clear.

Not wanting to fall again, she took her time picking her way over the slick rocks. When she looked up, he was in human form, sitting beside her discarded clothes. He'd shifted faster than usual. She remembered Thesta saying that the full moon amplified warg power and ability.

His gaze roamed her naked body, heating her flesh with that bright golden touch. His muscled forearms rested on bent knees. He was thick and erect, unabashedly hungry for her. Waiting for her.

Times like these, he was more wolf than man even in human fettle. So unmoving and watchful. More like the animal gods of old. Like Lorcaon himself, the wolf god—son of Nixra and Mantor. Thrax was that very beast made incarnate. Powerful and comfortable in whatever skin he wore. But at this moment his human form was the more threatening. Her thighs squeezed and her nape rippled with heat.

Before she knew it, she found herself standing before him. Her feet had fetched up where her eyes were drawn to, such was his magnetism. A beautiful, dangerous loadstone pulling her in. Her heart slammed against her ribs as she knelt to grab her shift, but he caught her wrist.

That raw, consuming animal lust took over the moment he touched her again, and she willingly gave herself over to it. She was done with fighting and questioning. It was easier to give in. This was Hekki's Cauldron and nothing else in the world mattered except what she was feeling in this moment.

Their gazes fused. The shift slipped through her fingers as she settled between his bent knees. She felt as though her soul was being tugged from her chest. A drugging heat was spreading low, her pulse like a drum beat. It was coming not from her heart but her loins. It made her blood heavy and her head light.