HUCK

Brooke opted to walk the three blocks to the club, and I was fine with watching her do it—left, right, left, right, moving to the rhythm of a distant beat. Hmmm. She had no idea what she did to me. Each time she passed beneath a streetlight, I'd get a better glimpse of her ass, barely covered by the sequined rag she claimed was a dress. She had a lot of nerve shaming mountain wolves for nudity, and her nerve was one of the sexiest things about her.

I growled softly, and the little minx must have heard, because her hip swishing intensified. "Are you teasing me again, Your Grace?"

She didn't miss a step. "Of course not."

I hummed. Goddess help me. I wanted to be mad at her, but it was impossible. Deep down, I knew she didn't want him; the moon wouldn't allow it. But then she dressed like this...

"I take back what I said. You can give less effort."

"Can I?" She glanced at me over her shoulder. "I suppose next you'll tell me not to kiss him back."

My eyes narrowed. "When did I say that?"

"That's what started this, isn't it? You just hated that I stopped him. Well next time—"

I tugged her into an alley, pressing her against the cool, brick wall. "You'll what?"

A vicious smile curved her mouth, and her eyes danced as if they were standing atop my grave. "I'll put in effort."

I growled and reached around, grabbing that delicious ass she liked to wave in front of me.

She gasped.

"Watching you slap him is among the top three greatest moments of my life," I rumbled.

"What are the other two?"

"Number two was meeting you." I touched her face, unable to help myself. Her cheek, her jaw, her bottom lip. "Number one hasn't happened yet."

Her throat worked, chest heaved, eyes closed. Want. I chewed my lip, then lowered her to her feet. She deserved better than a quickie in an alley, and she was dangerously close to getting just that. "We should go."

She sighed, nodded, and resumed her role of leading the way. It didn't take long before flashes of color shone from the building ahead. The closer we got, the more my mood soured. The club doors stood open, granting a glimpse of the bodies upon bodies gyrating as a collective. She looked way too good to go in there. What exactly did he plan to do with her? Not that. I'd never fucking keep it together.

Brooke bypassed the line, gave the bouncer Titan's name, and he waved us through without saying a word. I grimaced as we entered the chaos. The music was so loud, I could barely hear myself think, and my thoughts were roaring. I stepped in close to her back, doing my best to shield her.

Brooke shot a warning look back at me. He could be watching us now; I shouldn't stand so close. But, in this instance, I didn't give a single shit. I placed my hand on her shoulder—so small, so soft, so fragile.

Her stern expression melted away, and for a rare moment, her composure slipped, and I saw the truth. She was nervous, and she hated it here as much as I did. I craned my neck, searching for an island amidst the sea of flesh. Tables and booths created a semblance of calm on the far-left side of the room.

Reaching it was like walking honey through a bear cave. Eyes lingered, and more than a few tried to pull her into a dance. Thankfully, a sneer was all it took for them to back down, and we made it from tile to carpet without complication.

Brooke stood on her tiptoes and scanned the room, searching for Titan. The fact that he wasn't waiting said too much. She wasn't safe here.

What if that was the point?

Brooke reached inside her purse, pulled out her cell phone, and began typing. Seconds passed, becoming minutes, then her brow pinched, and she looked up at me.

"He isn't coming!" she shouted above the music.

Something cold settled in my gut, and I searched the room for a threat. This had to be set up. What other reason could he have to send her here and not show up to protect her?

Because he didn't want to protect her...

"We have to go!" I growled, taking her arm, and pulling her through the crowd.

The song changed, the tempo rising. Intoxicated humans thrashed all around us, blindly moving to an artificial beat. Unnatural. My heart pounded, waiting for the moment one of them would attack.

Someone stumbled drunkenly between us, breaking us apart, and Brooke was swallowed by the crowd. "Brooke!" I shoved my way through, not caring how I looked or if they fell. "Brooke!"

Then I saw her, and blinding, white rage tunneled my vision. She was fighting to get away from a man, but he kept pulling her against him. I had no recollection of crossing the divide. One second, I was six feet away, and the next, my hand was around his throat. My fist collided with his jaw. Screams erupted. The masses fell back as if propelled by a blast, and I utilized the space to slam him down to the tile floor.

Blood made it easy to pretend he was Titan, and once I started, I couldn't stop. I smiled, heaved, and hit him again. Then again. And again.

"Huck!" Brooke gripped my arm and yanked hard. "Stop! We have to go!"

She never let me have any fun.

With a sigh, I stood and took her arm again, and horrified witnesses watched warily as we passed. Bouncers ran toward the man, and I slipped in a new direction, beelining for the emergency exit. We burst out, then sprinted down the alley, slowing to a normal pace the second we reached the sidewalk. Only then did I take a breath. "Goddess, that felt good."

Brooke pulled her arm free and scowled at me. "What were you thinking?"

"I wasn't."

Her scowl deepened.

"He deserved it," I said.

"The first punch, maybe! But you were going to kill him!"

"But I didn't."

"Because I stopped you!"

"That's why I need you."

Her mouth closed, and it didn't reopen. The steady thumping of the club faded into a tense silence as we walked back in the direction of the hotel. The night was still, so at odds with the thundering of my heart. I still had so much rage left to release. It'd been building for too long, and the wall I'd built to keep it in was fractured. Adrenaline surged through my veins like fuel through an engine, urging me to finally cross the finish line.

We turned the corner onto the next street, and the empty darkness set my teeth on edge. There were too many shadows to hide in. Anyone could be waiting in the alleyways. They could be crouched behind the dumpster ahead, watching, waiting. Something was coming; I could feel it deep inside my gut, and without my wolf, I was as helpless as a child.

"What was his reason for not showing up?" I seethed.

"He said there was an emergency."

"What kind of emergency?"

"He didn't say," she said. "He just said that I should enjoy myself, and he'll meet me in the morning for breakfast before we head back home."

A lone set of headlights shone up ahead, beaming out from a car idling on a side street. I caught Brooke's arm and pulled her to a stop.

"What is it?" she asked, her voice betraying her alarm.

I watched it for a moment, unsure if it was anything at all. Was it someone who lived in one of the apartments? I had no way of knowing, and an alternative route would only keep us in the open for longer.

"Huck?"

"It's probably nothing," I said, slowly moving forward. My muscles tensed as we drew nearer, and a ticking throbbed in the vein at my temple. A bad omen. "Wait here," I said when we got too close for comfort. "If a fight starts, run into one of these apartment buildings and find someone to help you."

"Why? What's happening?"

"If I knew that, we wouldn't be having this discussion."

Brooke wrung her hands in front of her and watched me creep forward. I held up my hand, signaling for her to be ready. The faint sound of music drifted through the air—a sensual tune too low to distinguish the lyrics. Slowly, I peeked around the corner.

A young couple was kissing frantically in the front seat. I pulled back and leaned against the wall, a nearly insane laugh threatening to erupt from my lungs. At this rate, I'd have white hair by the end of the year.

"Huck!" Brooke hissed.

I smiled and shook my head as I headed back to her. "It's just—"

A van turned onto the street about a block behind her.

My smile fell. "Brooke, come here."

Her brow pinched, and she looked back.

The van accelerated.

My legs moved before my brain could tell them to. "Move!"

The roar of the engine echoed my blood, and time seemed too fast yet unbelievably slow. My boots pounded the pavement, arms pumped.

Brooke ran toward me, and the whites of her eyes conveyed a horror that only added to my rage. We collided. Tires squealed, then bounced as the van plowed over the curb and onto the sidewalk. I shoved her aside just before it slammed into me, throwing me backward. My head cracked the sidewalk. The world spun.

"Huck!" Brooke dropped down beside me, lifting my head into her lap. "You're bleeding!"

The van door slid open, and three men wearing ski masks spilled out. Adrenaline propelled me upright, and I swayed as I made it onto unsteady legs. "Run!"

"No! I can't—"

It was too late, anyway. I roared, and grabbed the first to reach us, snapping his neck, letting him fall. But before he even hit the ground, the second took his place, leaving the third free to go after her.

Brooke cried out, kicking the air as her assailant dragged her backward.

Something inside of me snapped, but not in a way that unhinged me. A sudden calm settled through my mind; an inherent focus I'd never experienced but somehow always had. My wolf rose. Impossible. My fangs grew. Perfection. I moved with a speed beyond comprehension, biting his throat, tearing it out. Blood on my tongue. Thirsty for more. I growled and turned, grabbing my target just before he reached the door.

He released her and swung, but I caught his fist in my hand, squeezing, bones cracking. His scream was like music. "She's mine," I growled, the statement so guttural even I could barely understand it. My claws sprang free, and a single swipe across his throat made his eyes bulge, weaken, empty.

"Huck," Brooke whimpered.

I turned, and the look on her face helped to snap me back to reality. She was terrified...of me. I dropped the man and opened my arms. "It's okay."

She rushed forward, sinking into me, and her body shook as if she were freezing.

"It's okay," I murmured again. "We need to—"

The shot rang like a bell inside my brain, and a force slammed into my shoulder blade. I stumbled, barely catching myself from falling on top of her.

"Huck!" Brooke screamed, but it was hard to hear her. The world was spinning. A fire was spreading. I couldn't catch enough air.

Shadows gathered at the corner of my vision. A ghost dematerializing. Powerless.

I turned, fighting to eliminate the threat before I faded completely. A fourth. The driver. I'd forgotten the driver. He stood half hidden behind the hood, a gun pointed and ready to fire again. "Brooke..."

Another shot. I fell backward. Brooke screamed. The concrete grew colder, and the darkness spread, blocking all else, until all that was left was black.