N. Walters - Alexandra's Legacy

Taking a slice, she placed it on one of the napkins and licked her fingers. The scent of tomato sauce, basil, oregano and cheese wafted upward making her stomach growl in anticipation. She glanced over at Joshua, but he was busy consuming his first slice of pizza. He had to be starving. He wasn’t a small man and he hadn’t had much to eat today.

“So, who were you talking with on the phone?” She picked up her slice and took a huge bite, almost moaning with pleasure as the tangy tomato and spices hit her tongue. He’d gotten pepperoni and peppers, but true to his word, no “yucky” stuff. She watched him as she chewed, wondering if he’d tell her the truth. He polished off his slice of pizza, washing it down with a swallow of water before replying.

“That was my brother.”

“Really. Which one?”

“Isaiah.”

“He’s the eldest, right?” Alex wasn’t sure she had them all straight in her head.

“That’s right.” Snagging another slice, he bit into it, tearing off a huge chunk. His teeth were white and his canines looked to be incredibly sharp, reminding her once again that he was something more than just human.

She shivered as she wondered what it would be like to have him nibbling on her neck, her shoulders, her stomach and lower. She’d only gotten a taste of what it would be like in the bathroom of the diner earlier this morning.

It had certainly gotten hotter in the room in the past few minutes. She tugged at the neckline of the T-shirt, but it didn’t help. Finishing off her slice of pizza, she grabbed another. What had they been talking about? Oh, yes. “What did he say?” Honestly, trying to get Joshua to tell her anything was an exercise in frustration.

He shrugged, finished chewing and swallowed. “He’ll be waiting for us tomorrow and will watch our backs. All we have to do is make our way to the truck first thing in the morning and we’re out of here.” He helped himself to another slice of pizza. “We’ll blend in with the regular surge of traffic on the road.”

That made sense. “Do you think my father is okay?” She’d been trying hard not to think about him today. She had Joshua, but her father was out there on his own.

Joshua snorted. “He’s fine. The last person you need to worry about is James LeVeau.”

“It’s weird to hear you call him that.”

“That’s the only name I ever heard him called until recently. He’s practically a legend where I come from.”

“Really?” It was strange to think of her father as anything but, well, her father. “Tell me about him.”

He hesitated. “I’m not sure how much he wants you to know, but I guess it’s moot now. You’ll hear all the stories when we get back to Wolf Creek. You almost done?”

She’d eaten three slices while they’d talked. Joshua had almost finished plowing his way through the rest of the large pizza. She was pleasantly full. “Yes, thanks. Help yourself.” Taking her at her word, he pulled the box over in front of him and started on the two remaining pieces.

“Why don’t you brush your teeth and crawl into bed. That way it doesn’t matter if you fall asleep while we’re talking.”

Made sense to her. “Okay.” She grabbed the toothbrushes, toothpaste, comb and lotion as she stood. Only when she was on her feet did she realize that with both hands full, she couldn’t tug down the hem of her shirt. Joshua seemed occupied with eating so she made her way to the bathroom as nonchalantly as she could, while pretending it was no big deal that he could probably see the bottom curves of the cheeks of her ass as she went.

When she pushed the bathroom door closed behind her, she leaned back against it and groaned. A quick glance in the mirror told her that her face was indeed as red as it felt. Dumping the stuff in her hands on the edge of the sink, she buried her face in her hands and groaned again.

Yes, Joshua had already seen most of her body, and yes she wanted him, but this was all still very new to her. She was twenty-two years old, but he was the first man to ever see her naked. And that had happened when she was already in the grip of passion, which was much different than walking across a motel room floor with nothing underneath her shirt while he was casually eating pizza.

She’d better get used to it if she was going to try to seduce him over the next few days. She knew he wanted her, but he wouldn’t take her because of his honor. While she respected that, she wasn’t about to let the next few days slip by without trying to solidify some kind of relationship.

It would be easy for him to walk away from her when they reached Wolf Creek. That thought made her stomach lurch with panic. She wanted to make sure that didn’t happen. It would be much harder for him to do so if they’d established some kind of physical and emotional bond.

“Okay,” she muttered. “Get a grip on yourself.” Scrubbing her hands over her cheeks, she raised her head. At least Joshua hadn’t seemed to notice the fact that the shirt was just a tad too short to adequately cover everything.

She had to act like a mature woman who was used to having a man see her half-naked. No big deal. Her sex spasmed, reminding her that it was a huge deal. Ignoring the growing ache between her thighs that never seemed to fully subside, she brushed her teeth, combed her hair and slathered some of the lotion Joshua had purchased for her over her pink nose and cheeks. She’d gotten a bit of sun on her face today as they’d tromped all over town.

When she finished, she used the bathroom and washed her hands. She was as ready as she’d ever be. Resting her hand on her stomach, she tried to calm the butterflies beating within her. She was going to sleep with a man for the first time in her life. Granted, all they’d probably do was sleep, but still. His large body would be lying next to her and that bed wasn’t all that big. They’d be bound to touch one another at some point. At least they would if she had anything to say about it.

Joshua dropped the piece of pizza in his hands back into the box the moment the bathroom door shut behind Alex. He was a dead man. Watching her walk across the room clad in nothing but the T-shirt and a pair of socks had been torture. His gaze had followed her every step of the way. The seductive sway of her hips, the enticing nape of her neck and the tantalizing glimpse of the milky white globes of her ass had all but made him swallow his tongue. His cock was harder than a steel spike.

His skin itched as the wolf within him fought to emerge. The animal part of himself wanted to claim her now, didn’t want to leave anything to chance or to give her the opportunity to choose from the other single males of the pack. His brother’s words echoed in his brain.

Take her.

Growling, he grabbed the pizza box and the empty bottles and stuffed them in the garbage can that sat beside the ancient television. When the remains of their meal were cleared away, he began to stalk back and forth across the room, trying to tame his raging hormones.

Alex was everything he’d ever hoped for in a mate. She was strong and independent, but her strength was tempered with gentleness, a kindness of spirit. She didn’t know that he’d watched her walk to work this morning, seen her give her coffee to the aging prostitute who’d she’d stopped to chat with. Watching her with her father had told him even more about her. Alex was loyal. When she was committed to someone there was no half-measure. It was all or nothing.

He wanted that loyalty, strength and gentle spirit as his own.

If he were home, he’d change into his wolf and race through the night, allowing the animal part of himself full rein. The smell of the night air, the thrill of charging headlong into the dark would calm him. But he couldn’t do that here in the city. The air was filled with the stench of man and all that went along with city life. Plus, there was no way he’d leave Alex unprotected.