Page 9 of Midlife Animal Rescuer Wolf

He’d only been bluffing when he claimed no one would believe her. Everyone had believed Harold, hadn’t they?

He gritted his teeth as his foot throbbed, and he pulled the bathrobe tighter around his body. Thank goodness Miranda had been wearing it over her pajamas when she found him. Their journey through the woods would’ve been much more awkward, otherwise.

Not to mention, she didn’t need to see the effect her presence was having on him. Bryon licked his lips without thinking. More than once, he’d felt a stirring in his groin at the mere sound of her voice. And just ten minutes ago, when she tightened her grip on his arm, his mind had spun into overdrive, conjuring up images of her wrapping her entire body around him as he drove into her and—

Focus, he reminded himself, not for the first time. You have a foal to find.

If he was lucky, it would still be alive, except his luck hadn’t been great so far. Without his wolf’s speed and powerful nose, finding the foal might take a while.

***

Bryon was a lunatic. There was no other explanation for his actions.

One would think a man with a badly injured foot would be in a hurry to get out of the woods and to a hospital, but no. He wanted to take a detour and rescue an animal, a foal, for that matter. Miranda could feel her initial fears about him slowly giving way to disbelief and annoyance. They were supposed to be helping each other out of here. What the hell was he thinking?

“Watch your step,” she muttered, as they approached a cluster of roots stretching across the ground.

If he heard her, he gave no indication. She tightened her grip on his arm, trying her best to steady him as he lifted one foot after another, stepping over the roots. Twice, she saw his face tighten with pain, though she could tell he was trying not to show it.

All the more reason to get the hell out of here, she thought with a flicker of irritation. I can’t believe we’re still in these woods because he’s trying to play Jane Goodall.

Where was Jerry now? She hadn’t seen a sign of him. But the man was relentless, especially when it came to her. He wouldn’t give up the chase easily. No doubt, he was still in these woods. She swept her gaze around, trying to catch a glimpse of him lurking in a tree or behind a trunk, but saw nothing.

“We’re not being followed,” Bryon said all of a sudden, causing her to look up at him. His gaze was trained ahead, his jaw clenched. “I’d know it if we were.”

How? she wanted to ask, but she already suspected the answer. The man could turn into a wolf. He even looked somewhat like a wolf, with his long brown hair and hairy arms. It stood to reason that he’d at least have a couple of other wolfish qualities. Did he eat people? He hadn’t shown any signs of hunger so far, but she was dealing with an entity she’d never encountered before. It wasn’t exactly far-fetched to assume it was possible.

“Thanks for helping me,” he went on. “I’d probably still be in that clearing if it wasn’t for you.”

Miranda opened her mouth to respond, but just then, he stumbled forward with a heavy grunt and would’ve toppled over if she hadn’t held onto him with all her might. God, he was heavy. She nearly lost her balance herself, but dug her heels into the ground, pushing him up against a tree.

They remained like that for the next few seconds, panting in unison. Miranda sucked in a breath. She tightened her grip on his bicep, her other hand on his chest, their faces suddenly no more than a few inches apart. Somehow, in the process of regaining his balance, he’d grabbed her and wrapped a massive arm around her waist.

His heart pounded against her fingertips. Miranda stared into his face, suddenly finding it hard to breathe. The bathrobe he had on had fallen open, and she could feel his cock pressed against her crotch. She didn’t dare look down, but she could’ve sworn she felt him twitch once or twice.

Her cheeks burned like hot coals. “Bryon?”

His gaze burned into hers, and for a second she felt his grip on her tighten. His fingers curled against her skin, sending a delicious shiver up her spine.

Oh.

Without really thinking, Miranda drew closer as though pulled by some invisible string.

Then he cleared his throat, immediately releasing his grip on her. She stepped back, her cheeks still burning, though now with embarrassment.

“Uh, sorry,” he said, as he quickly went to cover himself. “And thanks for not letting me fall.”

She should be thanking him. If he hadn’t let her go when he had, she might’ve done something she’d end up regretting. The man standing in front of her wasn’t even human. He was some freak of nature, something that shouldn’t be possible, shouldn’t exist. Somehow, she’d forgotten that fact while her lips inched closer to his.

“It’s fine,” she told him. “Let’s just keep walking.”

They continued through the woods, Bryon leading the way and moving more carefully this time, although she saw him wince a couple of times. She gave his arm a gentle squeeze, impressed by the solidness of his bicep.

Okay, so he was hot. More than that, he was a steaming hot man in nothing but a bathrobe with no sash. Of course her body was reacting to him. Of course, a part of her wanted him to pull her back against him and kiss her for all he was worth. Of course she wanted to feel him driving into her until she went over the edge.

But that didn’t make it right. She still wasn’t certain that she could trust him. After all, this guy was some kind of werewolf. She shouldn’t be standing close to him, much less thinking of that marvelous-looking cock of his buried deep inside her...

You’re oversexed, she told herself. It’s because you haven’t gotten any action since Jerry.