"Comes here all the time, but not anymore. I'm banning him for life."

"Thanks, man," Darius told him.

He dragged Todd outside, down the steps to the street.

Todd sneered at him. "What's the matter? Worried about her not paying you enough to fuck her?"

"No. I'm more worried about how your alpha will react when he finds out you attacked a female Lupine."

Todd's sneer dropped. He shoved a hand through his thinning hair. "What the hell you talking about?"

"Your leader, you stupid son of a bitch. I should call Simon for permission."

"Permission for what?"

Darius decked him, sending Todd spinning backward. "That. One punch for hitting my woman. I don't envy you. Simon doesn't take kindly to males who disrespect females, especially males who do it in front of Skins, causing him grief. Now, why are you stalking my Sam?"

His lip bleeding, Todd stared at him. "Your Sam?"

"My chosen mate." He got in his chubby face. "You deliberately followed us here. Why?"

Panic flared on the Lupine's face. "Please, I can't. I didn't know she was your female. Don't do this, I can't, I can't do this! I didn't mean to hurt her..."

Dragging Todd up by his collar, Darius shook him. "Why were you at the restaurant?"

Todd began to cry. "I was trying to score with that woman and then I saw Samantha. I apologize for insulting her. Please, leave me alone!"

Disgust filled him. He dropped the blubbering Todd, who sagged against the wall and covered his face with his hands.

Darius stepped away, called for the car and then returned to the restaurant, flexing his fist. Sam was by the bar. He took her hand, thanked the bartender with a fifty, and escorted her down the stairs.

Outside, he gently touched her cheek. "I could kill him for daring to lay a hand on you, but I'll leave that to Simon. He's the leader of the Portland pack."

"You know that guy?"

"He was no Skin, Sam. Lupine. Local pack. Fortunately, I'm on good terms with Simon, his alpha. Had to be, when we started doing business in Portland."

Light from the street lamps showed her pale face. "Not possible. Todd is just a guy I met on an Internet dating site."

"He's one of us," he insisted.

Sam rubbed her forehead with the heel of one hand. "Can't be."

Her lack of Lupine instinct bothered him. The old Sam never would have handled this like a Skin. She'd have sensed the surge of adrenalin, heard his heart beating faster, would have gauged that the guy was trouble.

Most of all, she'd have scented he was Lupine.

The old Sam wouldn't have even resorted to dating Skins. Wolves didn't work solo, but in a pack. A pack protected its members. A pack remained loyal and stuck together. What insulted one wolf outside the pack, insulted all.

And a male never let anyone diss his woman.

The car arrived and he helped Sam inside, sitting close to her. Darius pressed the intercom. "Mark, please take us to..." He glanced at Sam. "What's your address?"

Blinking, she stared. "Why?"

"So you can change your clothing before we go to Jones. Your dress is soaked."

She gave him the address.

While waiting for her in the car, he pulled out his handkerchief and sniffed the fabric. Most definitely not only vodka. Instincts humming, he made a quick call on his cell phone.

When Sam returned, she wore a plain black dress with long sleeves and a hem that hid her excellent legs. Darius sighed in sheer disappointment. She slid into the car, looking cold, distant and pale. Hoping to warm her, he put an around her shoulders, but she stiffened and turned toward the window.

Moving away, he gave her space, cursing that bastard Todd.

Darius reached into his breast pocket and removed two sets of earplugs, handing one to Sam. She palmed them, looking confused.

"These are specially designed by another Lupine to reduce the noise level in dance clubs," he explained, sticking them into his ears.

Jones was crowded, Skins packing the dance floor. Bright neon colors sliced through the darkness as the music pulsed and pounded.

He found a table and as Sam dropped into the seat, he didn't care for her listless, pale look. When the waitress arrived, Darius ordered a whiskey. Sam wanted nothing. Beneath the wild, erratic club lights, she looked pale and wan, but still so lovely, her skin as smooth and creamy as silk. Her mouth was cherry red and wet, making him hunger to kiss her.

She remained silent as the waiter brought over his drink. Darius sipped the whiskey, relishing the burn as the liquid slid down his throat. Sam would taste like that, he thought. Smooth and hot, a kick of oak on his tongue as he spread her out wide and put his mouth on her.

His cock stiffened in his trousers. He reached down and adjusted himself, wishing they were back in his room, Sam stretched out on his bed...

"Darius, I changed my mind. Can you get me a glass of ice water? It's hot in here."

Oh yeah, baby, very hot. He raced to the bar. If Sam asked him to fetch cold water from the Artic, he'd hire a jet. Anything to make her smile. She looked so miserable and hurt.

After he brought her water, Sam scanned the dance floor. Suddenly she brightened and a wide smile lit up her face as a man approached their table. He had brown hair and glasses and looked like a total nerd. Adoration shone in her eyes as Sam gazed at the newcomer.

"Brian!" She held out her hands, which the man squeezed.

"Samantha, you finally made it here."

Beneath the pressure of his hand, Darius' glass cracked. He forced a smile.

She shouted to the newcomer, "Brian, this is Darius Bryant, manager of the Mitchell Ranch in Montana. Darius, this is Brian. He's the headhunter who found me the position at Comairise Energy."

Relief filled him. A friend and business associate. He shook Brian's hand and caught his scent. He released it quickly, knowing the other's grip could become tighter.

Much tighter.

"A headhunter, huh?" Darius murmured. "What kind of heads do you hunt?"

The man's eyes flickered, and his pupils suddenly became narrow slits. Then they became normal again. He pushed his glasses up his nose. "Sam, one dance. C'mon, you promised if you ever made it here..."

Laughing, she took his hand and headed onto the dance floor. Darius watched, his senses fully charged.

Damn, she looked smooth out there on the dance floor, the silky masses of her hair swaying with her lush, curvy body. She could deny her birthright all she liked, but Sam still remained Lupine.

Mine, he thought, his claws emerging.

Calm down. You'll never get her back acting like an ass. You can't drag her back to your cave and fuck her senseless, giving her so many orgasms she'll never leave your bed.

Even if the idea appealed to him.

He sipped his whiskey. A while later, Sam returned. Sweat glistened on her forehead as she slid back into her seat. "Brian's a terrific dancer. He has some smooth moves."

"He should. Runs in his blood."

Picking up her water, she stared at him, the glass halfway to her lips. "Do you know him?"

Darius sighed. "Not him, but his kind. Sam, don't you know what he is?"

When she shook her head, he felt deeply troubled. What had happened to her Lupine abilities? How the hell had she survived all these years in the city?

By blending in as a Skin, she'd neglected being a wolf. And to the point that she'd lost all her Lupine senses, he realized.

"Brian is Wylding, a shifter just like us, only he's a snake."

"He's not a snake, he's a great guy..."

"Snake shifter," he repeated. "My guess is a particularly strong one, not venomous. Anaconda. Squeezes prey to death instead of biting."

Sam went pale and set down her glass. "He can't be a shifter. He looks so..."

"Normal? Geeky? Typical for Wyldings like him. They like to wear Skin suits that disguise their true nature so they can draw close to their prey and then pounce." Darius slid a palm over her hand, worried at the cold, clammy feel of her skin. "I'm guessing his contracts with clients have very restrictive terms."

"Like if you leave your job before the year is out, he'll strangle you?" She rubbed her forehead. "I feel stupid. Why would a shifter want to work in the city?"

Darius gave her a level look. "Perhaps for the same reason you did. To run away from his true nature by hiding in Skin."

Sam sputtered and averted her gaze. "I'm not running from anything."

She pushed away from the table, stood on shaky legs and told him, "I don't feel good."

Alarmed, he sprang out of his seat and caught her elbow.

"I'm fine."

Slurred words. Pupils dilated, but the lighting was low. Darius gently clasped her wrist, feeling her pulse. Fast and thready.

Shit. Shit.

"Fine," she repeated, and then her eyes rolled backward.

He caught her in his arms as she collapsed against him.

Chapter 5.

Some hangovers just were so not worth it.

Samantha struggled to sit up, her head thumping. She pressed two fingers to her aching temples and moaned, her gluey eyelids finally opening.

Hookay. She was not in her matchbox-sized apartment. She was in a hotel room, a very nice hotel room...

Darius' room!

Panic tightened her throat. She glanced down and the alarm turned to panic. Bra and... She lifted the covers. Mint green panties.

She'd spent the night with Darius in her underwear.

Gripping the covers, she scanned the room. Sounds of a running shower came from the bathroom. Samantha touched her ears and realized he'd removed the earplugs. Her dress and panty hose had somehow vanished; she didn't see them anywhere. Red suffused her face. He'd removed her clothing, had seen exactly how chubby she was, as chubby as Todd claimed.

But bigger problems existed. Like finding her clothing and getting the hell out of here.

Had they had sex? Sam pressed a palm to her pounding forehead. If only she could remember!

But except for the pounding headache, the rest of her felt okay. No sore muscles and no soreness between her legs. And knowing what a wicked wolf Darius was, he wouldn't have left her in her underwear, but ripped it off her.

So she had passed out. Samantha groaned. Great.

Scanning the room for her clothing, she saw deep gouges on the wall by the chair. Odd. They looked like claw marks.

Flipping onto her stomach, she buried her face into the pillow. And then caught the delicious smell of male, spices and pine. Darius. Samantha grabbed the pillow next to her and inhaled, moaning.

Oh gods, he smelled so damn good! Her limbs went boneless, and she ground her hips against the mattress. Beneath the bra's lace, her nipples peaked.

She'd spent the entire night in Darius' bed and they hadn't had sex. Samantha squeezed her fists, her wolf rising to the surface. She had to fight this, because sex with Darius would lead to other things...

She remembered the amber flashing in his eyes, the savage look of the wolf. Not civilized. Not safe.

Lupines were dangerous. She remembered the lust in his father's eyes. The alpha would do anything to hunt her down and punish her.

Samantha touched her neck, remembering Darius' mating mark. What a silly fool she was! She hadn't even considered the consequences. The mark protected her from all males. Including his father...

The shower stopped. A loud humming sounded from inside the bathroom. Then the door pulled open and Darius strolled out wearing only a white towel slung low around his lean hips, his black hair damp. Her jaw dropped open.

She bit back a moan. He was gorgeous. Long, strong limbs, dusted with black hair, torso rippling with muscle and sinew, his shoulders broad and hard. Droplets shimmered in his mop of black curls.