Wolf's Promise (Caedmon Wolves) by Ambrielle Kirk Page B

enforc ement from finding her after they’d kidnapped her . None of her belongings were in the car. No credit card. No identification. Her purse and suitcase were gone. She knew all that stuff could be replaced when she returned home. What she did worry about was what could not be replaced when she did?
    “Are you still on the laptop?”
    Nick’s voice scared her from behind.
    “Yes.” Selene knew her credit card number by heart. What was keeping her from ordering the ticket?
    Nick sat next to her, freshly showered. No amount of almond scented body wash could hide the springy, pine smell that was so uniquely his. She’d come to recognize it within seconds whenever he entered a room. She’d even come to crave it.
    “You found the Greyhound website.” He leaned over to glance at her screen. “ You’re ex pected back to work in a few days , right? Anything come up on the schedule?”
    “There’s one.”
    “When does it leave?”
    “In two days.”
    “Oh.” He almost sounded regretful.
    “We’re only just getting to know each other, Nick.”
    “Selene. I know, but we want what’s safe for you.”
    “I know what will happen,” she said, wringing her hands in her lap. “I’ll return home and never hear from you again. You have no intentions of contacting me after I’m gone, do you?”
    He took her hands. “That’s ludicrous. You’ll return in a month for Devin and Tamara’s wedding. Everything will be settled by then.”
    She frowned. “You plan to make me wait that long.”
    “Of course not. We’ve sent a messenger to Darius and his followers. We want peace in this town once again, and if that means allowing him his part of the property, we’ve voted for it. More than likely, I would visit sooner than you think.”
    Selene pulled away. “After everything’s settled…then what?”
    “I’ll come for you.”
    “Tell me about the woman who betrayed you.”
    “She’s not worth bringing up, Selene,” he replied softly.
    “Is she the reason why you won’t trust me?” She had to know.
    “That’s just it. I trust you. I want you so badly that I would do anything to have you and that scares me to be honest.”
    “I want you, too,” she admitted.
    “I refuse to bind you to this type of life.”
    “What do you mean? Don’t I get a choice?”
    “The ways of the wolf are different from those of the humans. We have no choice when it comes to true mates.”
    “Tamara told me already. She told me that Caedm on couples are mated and bonded for life. She also said that there can be sex without bonding. ”
    Selene felt ashamed for admitting that she needed him in that way.
    “Tamara is not wolf. She has genuinely accepted the Caedmon spirit, but she doesn’ t understand how d ifficult it is to control an animal who knows his mate by scent.”
    “You should know then,” she alleged, sternly. “Am I or am I not your mate ?”
    “ There are signs …”
    “…but you’re afraid to find out.”
    “You might want this now, but once you return home, things will be different. You will continue your work, and maybe even forget about me. I want what’s best for you and that may not be me. You may very well decide that you want to live a normal human life with a human male. ”
    “I will never forget about you now that I’ve met you and all that we’ve been through. T here is no other man for me. ”
    “Buy the ticket. If we are true mates, not even distance will keep us apart.”
    “You’d rather us prove this the hard way ? ”
    “Maybe…”
    “I’ll buy the ticket, but promise me something…” She typed her credit card information into the input box on the website.
    “ Anything…”
    Selene clicked the submit button, and didn’t even wait for the confirmation screen to appear before she closed the laptop. Standing in front of him, she let her bathrobe slip from her shoulders and down her naked body before saying, “Show me again what you desire from me. This time, I don’t