He didn't dare hope that was the thrill of antic.i.p.ation he heard in her voice, so he ignored it. "You've had enough for tonight. I think you should rest."

His bedroom was one of the smallest rooms in the mansion, but it was sensual and cozy, just the way he liked it. He never brought anyone here. Training was better done in rooms suited to the purpose, such as the showing room, or in very special circ.u.mstances, like tonight, the living room.

He kept his room spa.r.s.ely furnished, with a large king-sized bed dominating the better part of the s.p.a.ce. An antique chest stood in front of it, and dark bookshelves covered the west wall. Books ranging from metaphysics to perfecting martial arts techniques lined the shelves, while Native American art showing wolves in motion decorated the walls.

He pulled back the black comforter with one hand and placed Ali gently down on the bed. She clung to his neck, pulling him down with her. He could have yanked himself out of her grasp, but the thought of losing the warmth of her body was too much to bear. He slid in beside her, pulling the covers over them both.

"What's this?" Ali asked, turning to face him. She raised her head momentarily so she could rest it on her bent elbow. "Victor McCormack is going to sleep? I thought men like you didn't need a moment's rest. You simply darted around at all hours of the day and night, barking orders at anyone who'd listen. And at everyone who won't."

Despite her light tone, he heard the tension behind the words. "Obedience isn't something that's granted --"

"It's something that's earned," she finished for him. Moonlight played over her face, highlighting the scowl that had formed on her exotic features. "You told me that before."

He slid his fingertips up and down the curve of her waist, and felt her tremble at his touch. The knot in his chest tightened. "I remember."

"Really? I wouldn't have expected you to. It was a long time ago. The same night, you also told me leadership doesn't come from here." She pointed to his forehead. "Or from here." Her hand trailed down to close around his bicep.

"It comes from here." He placed his hand over her heart. Her full breast felt like velvet beneath his palm. Her nipple stiffened, the dark bud beading just inches from where his palm lay. He fought the urge to tweak it beneath thumb and forefinger, and focused on Ali's eyes instead.

This was too important. He'd been able to pinpoint the exact moment during the gathering that she'd allowed herself to feel, really feel what he'd wanted her to acknowledge since he'd brought her here. There was more to her than the steel mercenary persona she'd worked so hard to build up. She didn't need the warrior to be the woman she could be.

His pulse thudded in his temples, reminding him of everything that was at stake tonight. If he could get through to her, the second lesson would be complete. The Dominant/submissive relationship centered on three fundamental principles. Trust, the first one, had been easy enough to prove. The second, openness, had been harder. Until she'd allowed herself to succ.u.mb to the pleasure of the flesh, he hadn't been sure she could let go enough to understand what he was teaching her. As for the third lesson...

The third lesson could change her life. Or end it.

"You were wrong, you know," Ali said softly. "That night you told me those things, I set out to prove you had no idea what you were talking about. Authority, and the power that comes with it, is something to be feared. Every member of the Zante pack knew who their Alpha was. They wouldn't have dared raise their voices to him, or disobey an order he gave."

Victor caressed her arm with the back of his fingers, then closed his hand around the nape of her neck. She sucked in a breath between clenched teeth.

"Not because they feared him. You see what fear does? It puts you on edge, makes you wonder when the inevitable blow will come. It also makes you careless." He squeezed the muscles in her neck, then released them, bringing his palm down to cup her breast. This time, he circled her nipple with the pad of his thumb, and Ali rewarded him with a low moan.

"I left the next morning."

He wet his suddenly dry lips. "I know."

He'd thought about their last encounter endlessly since she disappeared, wondering if it was something he'd said, something he'd done. He'd replayed their final conversation in his mind a thousand times, never being able to pinpoint the exact moment when she decided to leave. He knew he'd made her run, even then. Now, he had to know why. "Would you have left if I hadn't followed you that night?"

She shuffled closer to him, the burning heat emanating from her nude body searing a path to his flesh through the clothes he still wore. "Probably," she admitted. "Maybe not the next morning, but eventually. I didn't belong here."

"You're wrong," he whispered, sliding his arm around her waist and yanking her to him in one solid motion that slammed her pubic bone against his. "You belong right here."

For a moment, neither one of them breathed. He waited for her, knowing her submission was crucial. He had to have it. The rest of his plan hinged on it.

And then, Ali slipped both her hands down to the front of his pants, snapped open the top b.u.t.ton and lowered his zipper. He lifted his hips off the bed and allowed her to tug the pants down around his ankles, then pull them off completely. He wore nothing underneath, and his c.o.c.k sprang up from the confines of the garment to rest against his stomach.

Ali kneeled at his side and ran her fingers along the length of his shaft. Victor's hips jerked of their own accord, pressing his d.i.c.k into her hand. She closed her palm around it, and the touch was sheer torture. She stroked him slowly, taunting him with just the right amount of pressure as his rod swelled to impossible hardness.

"I learned a trick or two while I was away," she confessed, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

Shuddering, Victor gritted his teeth and willed himself under control. Her strokes grew longer, and she paused at the base of his shaft to cup his b.a.l.l.s and squeeze them slightly in the palm of her hand.

"Suck me," he commanded, and to his surprise, she obeyed.

The brief moment before her mouth made contact with the head of his c.o.c.k was excruciating. When she finally wrapped her lips around it and enveloped his length in the warm cavern of her mouth, his muscles clenched, tightened, and he gritted his teeth to keep from spilling his load like a teenage pup.

She lapped and sucked every inch of his c.o.c.k, worshipping it with her tongue, lips and fingers until he was sure he'd explode. He gritted his teeth so hard his jaw hurt. As though sensing his frustration and reveling in it, Ali only sucked him deeper, harder, her fingers fondling his sac and toying with the sensitive skin between his c.o.c.k and a.n.a.l opening.

Her touch was maddening, driving him to the brink of distraction. Every muscle in his body pulsed in antic.i.p.ation of the biggest jet of c.u.m he'd ever released spurting down her throat, drowning her in it.

At the last moment, she pulled away. Victor howled, the sound low and guttural, coming from the place in him reserved for the shift and the actual moment of o.r.g.a.s.mic release.

He leapt up and pinned her to the mattress, spreading her thighs open with his knee. Her fragrance swathed him in arousal, driving a deep, pulsing need into his shaft.

He had to be in her. Now.

"Love me."

If the simple request she uttered in a low voice complete of any pretense shocked him, the next word she murmured struck him like a punch to the gut, knocking the air from his lungs.

"Master."

Ali went absolutely still, waiting for Victor's reaction. She wasn't sure what had made her give voice to the t.i.tle she'd hated since she'd arrived here, but at that moment, it had felt right slipping off her tongue.

It suited him, she thought as she watched a lock of his hair hang low over his forehead. His brows were furrowed, and his dark eyes bore into hers with an intensity that made her breath catch in her throat.

The irony of their position wasn't lost on Ali. He'd had her pinned down like this before, when he'd captured her. Then, she'd been furious with him for lording his power over her. Now, his taut body pressing down on hers, his hot, sleek c.o.c.k nudging the entrance to her p.u.s.s.y, only aroused her further.

She had nothing to fear from him. If there was one lesson she'd learned tonight during the gathering, that had been it. As long as she gave him what he wanted -- and he seemed to want no less than everything she had to give him -- he'd give her what she craved in return.

And what she wanted beyond all else was his c.o.c.k embedded deep in her p.u.s.s.y, plunging inside her channel again and again until the overwhelming sensation pushed all other thoughts from her mind. Until she felt safe.

Being in Victor's arms, having him inside her, felt like coming home. Unexpectedly, she found she loved the feeling of belonging somewhere... and to someone.

Besides, she'd much rather lose herself in raw, pa.s.sionate s.e.x than have to consider what had happened tonight. She'd spent her entire life ensuring her position as a leader, as a wolf to be feared and respected. The implications of the entire Zante pack having seen every inch of her, having touched her intimately in every possible way, was too much to bear.

"You don't have to do this." Victor's breath was warm on her ear as he bent his head and nuzzled the side of her neck.

"What?"

"This. Seduce me. Give me what you think I'm after. You don't have to do it."

She heard the tension in his voice and knew how much it had to cost him to say those words. Her chest tightened with an emotion she didn't dare name. She hadn't felt it in much too long, had thought she'd never feel it again.

d.a.m.n it!

Tears p.r.i.c.ked the back of her eyes. She didn't want to be falling in love with a man who seemed to live for the enjoyment of turning her life upside down. Since he'd brought her here, he'd challenged everything she thought she knew about herself. In his arms, she wasn't a warrior. She didn't have the slightest urge to lash out at him, to prove that she was stronger, tougher, better.

If she managed to escape, or if, through some miracle, he let her go, what would happen then? How could she go back to her old life? Taking one mercenary job after another, always looking for her next payday knowing all she'd be able to think of was this moment, this man?

"I..." Words failed her. She knew what she wanted to say, but the sentiment stuck in her throat, gagging her. She turned her head instead, released a deep breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding, then tried again. "I'm not doing this to make you happy. And I swear to you I won't run afterward, when you roll over and fall asleep."

She'd hoped that might at least elicit a smile, but his features remained as serious as they'd been a moment earlier. When he lifted his head and looked at her, it felt as though he was looking straight into her soul, trying to a.s.sess the truth of her words.

She couldn't blame him, she supposed. After everything she'd done, he had no reason to trust her. If he thought she was trying to seduce him, then so be it, as long as he took advantage of what she offered.

Stirring beneath him, Ali wiggled her hips and deepened the contact between the warm flesh at the apex of her thighs and Victor's c.o.c.k. "Do you doubt how much I want you?"

He shook his head. After a moment, his sensual lips curved into a smile, the tension seeming to drain out of his broad shoulders. "I don't think you could fake this."

He nudged his c.o.c.k forward a fraction of an inch, just far enough for her p.u.s.s.y to gape open in an attempt to envelop him. Stifling a moan, she lifted her hips off the bed, struggling in vain to get him inside her.

Victor chuckled. His laugh slid down the length of her body and burrowed in her c.u.n.t, where a heated ache of arousal had formed long ago. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she raised an eyebrow. "Don't make me ask you again."

"I give the orders around here."

As though to demonstrate, he slid his hand between them and caressed her mound. Pulling back the hood that sheathed her sensitive bud, he tapped his index finger against her protruding c.l.i.t.

Ali gasped as fiery heat swam through her veins, igniting her nerve endings. "Yes, Master."

"Better."

Before she could say anything else, he clamped his mouth on top of hers and shoved his c.o.c.k into her in one smooth motion.

Her eyes snapped open. His tongue delved between her lips and teased her with infinitely gentle sweeps at odds with the rough thrusts of his shaft.

In an instant, she was awash in sensation. His c.o.c.k was bigger, thicker than any other she'd sheathed inside her. It fit her perfectly, stretched her to capacity. She thought briefly of the handle of the paddle Brad had used to f.u.c.k her, but this was exquisite. Victor's shaft was warm and hard, the velvet of his glans brushing against her inner walls as he thrust into her, again and again.

He swallowed her groans as he deepened the kiss. She could feel his pulse, his hammering heartbeat as their bodies pressed together, and she wasn't sure where her own excitement ended and his began. They slid against one another, sweat slicking their skin, muscles taut as they clung together.

Ali's thoughts swam in raw erotic pleasure. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer, then rolled so she was on top of him, his c.o.c.k never escaping her moist c.u.n.t. They rolled on the bed, sheets bunching beneath them, hips jerking and breaths coming in fast gasps.

This felt like fighting with him in the forest had, only better. So much better. The struggle for domination was no longer a struggle. Though she couldn't name the exact moment it happened, Ali knew she'd gladly given herself over to him, had accepted his mastery over her body. To her surprise, what should have been a humiliating realization only filled her with a deeper, more intense arousal.

The fast and hard rhythm continued. Victor's ability to keep from coming inside her might have surprised her, if he hadn't already showed her what he was capable of. Games of sustained pleasure were his specialty. She'd had no doubt he could withstand the same intense sensation he'd shown her before succ.u.mbing to it.

Biting into her shoulder, Victor flipped her again so she lay under him. "You're so f.u.c.king tight," he murmured hoa.r.s.ely.

Sweat dripped down his temple and splashed on her breast. She arched against him, her head spinning with dizzying arousal.

Victor cupped her a.s.s and dug his fingers into her flesh. With one last moan, Ali gave herself over to the devastating possessive intensity of him. She came hard and fast, her o.r.g.a.s.m breaking over her like the rising tide crashing against the sh.o.r.e. It swept through her body, leaving her breathless.

Victor wasn't far behind. Another hard thrust, then another, and his body stilled, his muscles flexing as he pulsed and released his seed in her channel. The growl she'd grown to expect from him echoed off the walls of his bedroom as he came. The sound of his voice, rich with pa.s.sion and raw, savage power, slid into her, making her heart beat a thrumming rhythm against her breastbone.

They lay motionless for long minutes, Victor still crushing her body beneath him. She didn't care. As long as she could feel him this way, she knew he was hers. The harsh reality of her situation could be kept at bay for a while longer.

Victor's shuddering breath made her slide her fingertips down his back. "Was that good for you?" She tried to keep her tone light, teasing, but her chest constricted as she waited for his answer.

Why should it matter? It had been incredible for her. Until he'd brought her here, that had been enough. h.e.l.l, it should still be enough.

When he didn't reply, she slapped his a.s.s lightly. "Hey. I was just joking when I accused you of going to sleep afterwards. I'm going to be ready for round two in another minute, and I expect you to be up to the task."

Victor lifted himself on an elbow. Moonlight slid through the balcony window, painting his dark hair with streaks of silver. "Want to go outside?"

The question was so unexpected it made her breath hitch in her throat. Her stomach clenched. Was this a joke? A trick of some kind? She narrowed her eyes. "You can't be serious."

"The gardens out back are surrounded by a tall wall you wouldn't be able to scale. There are guards posted outside of it, and they take their duties very seriously." He c.o.c.ked his head thoughtfully, watching her, his expression unreadable. "I thought maybe you've been missing the shift."

Missing it? h.e.l.l, she'd been going stir-crazy without it. She'd been able to transform inside the walls of Victor's mansion, of course, but it wasn't the same as running through the damp night air, wind slicking back her fur. She licked her suddenly dry lips. "You'd do this?"

He nodded. "If you promise you won't try to escape."

"I thought you said there were guards posted outside."

He hesitated for only a moment before shrugging. "Promise me."

"Fine. I won't try to escape." A wide grin tugged at her lips, as foreign and unexpected as the slew of emotions pouring through her body. "When?"

"Now."

He rose, his magnificent naked body glistening in the moonlight. Ali sucked in a breath between her teeth. He looked incredible, his well-muscled form silhouetted against the night sky, a masculine symbol of pure s.e.xuality.

Victor pulled the double doors of the balcony open, then swept a hand out in the direction of the garden beyond. "It's all yours."

The scent of the night was intoxicating. It floated through the room and tickled Ali's nostrils with the sweet aroma of lilac and night-blooming flowers. She didn't need to be told twice.

Leaping from the bed, she was already in mid-shift. By the time she reached the balcony, the transformation was complete. Her paws. .h.i.t the hard concrete, then, without pausing, she was in the air, flying over the railing to land with a dull thud on the neatly-trimmed gra.s.s.

The shock of sudden freedom drenched her senses, leaving her dizzy and lightheaded. It didn't take long for her body to grow accustomed to the night. The wolf in her called out to the moonlight that bathed her fur, and soon she was running wildly through the gardens. Dashing from one end to the other, Ali only paused when she reached the far wall long enough to spin around and head for the opposite end.

The decor of the garden blurred around her, but from the corner of her eye she could make out well manicured trees, bushes and cl.u.s.ters of flowers expertly arranged in pleasing arrays. Wooden benches stood against the edges of the wall and beneath the sheltering sweep of long branches.

Not for the first time, she was struck by the enormity of Victor's mansion. He'd hinted at its expanse and the number of people who inhabited it, but she hadn't understood.

Chest heaving, Ali stopped and glanced up at the house. As before, the sweep of elegant archways and rounded balconies took her breath away. She estimated it must hold at least twenty bedrooms, and she couldn't even begin to guess at the number of bathrooms, kitchens and rooms such as the showing room and the living room he'd used to entertain tonight.

She shook her head. Perhaps she should ask Victor for a tour of the place. He obviously took pride in his home. It might please him to show it off to her. Drunk on the scent of the night air, her senses swam with unbridled ecstasy. Tilting her head in one direction, then the other, she scanned the garden for Victor.

Not being able to see him unnerved her. Surely he wouldn't have left her alone in the garden. She took another look around her, and the fur on the nape of her neck p.r.i.c.kled as though unseen eyes fixed her with harsh glares.

Pulling her lips back from her fangs, she lowered her head and sniffed at the ground. The aroma of sweet-smelling flowers overpowered all other scents in the garden, but she could still make out Victor's personal scent, musky and purely male. Beneath it, though, was another smell, pungent and vaguely familiar.

She turned right toward the iron gate at the back of the property. Vines crawled up its surface, twisting around the rusted metal bars. It looked ancient, as though it hadn't been opened in years.

Yet when Ali got closer, she was able to make out the slight gap that signaled it stood slightly ajar. Beyond the gate, she caught sight of a flash of silver. Edging forward slowly, cautiously, she pressed her muzzle to the iron. Victor had mentioned guards patrolling the area outside the perimeter of the property, but something about the entire situation felt wrong. It smelled wrong, too.

Between the bars, she could make out the unmistakable shape of a man standing beneath the edges of the trees that led into the forest bordering the mansion.

He'd thrust his hands into the front pockets of his charcoal pants and a white lab coat covered his torso, but Daniel Kraus's features were unmistakable. He watched her calmly, unconcerned, as though catching sight of her frolicking in the gardens of his enemy wasn't a surprise.