The Alpha's Choice Read Free Page B

green!
    Dark, thick lashes surrounded eyes like
glowing emeralds. She'd never seen a dog, a canine, she corrected,
with green eyes. How strange. Weren't wolf eyes yellow? If you
crossed a yellow-eyed wolf with a blue-eyed husky, would you get a
green-eyed wolf-dog? Kat found herself melting into those
mesmerizing eyes. Suddenly she reared back and snapped her eyes
shut. Holy shit!
    She forced herself to look away from the
beautiful beast. She'd never heard of wolves mesmerizing their
prey, but then again, she didn't know they had green eyes, either.
Was this a mutation? Or was this handsome fellow a throwback to his
mystical forbearers? Was that a bit of fairytale magic in the wind?
Of course not, but bright stars and firelight had probably given
birth to such myths.
    Wolves chased down their prey, ran it to
ground. Running was what triggered the instinct to chase. Was that
why this wolf showed no aggression toward her? Or was it simply
because he had already hunted and his belly was full.
    Eyes shuttered with half closed lids, the
wolf cocked his head to the side again, this time not
contemplating, but listening. He gave a slight downward shake of
his head as if a decision was made and opened his eyes. Lip curled
in a snarl, his head snapped up as he rose and took a step toward
Kat, swinging his head and clearly herding her toward the back door
of the house. His chest seemed to broaden as he brought himself up
to his full and majestic height.
    The wolf might not be King of the Jungle, but
this one was definitely Lord of His Domain. The change in the
wolf's demeanor was striking and a little frightening. Kat had
forgotten for a moment just how powerful this animal was.
    Not needing a second invitation, Kat threw
herself off the lounge and headed for the door, pulling it closed
behind her and bracing her back against it. In her mad dash to
safety, she'd lost her towel.
    As if to emphasize how ludicrous her
precautions were, the wolf butted his head against the door,
knocking her back. His nose jiggled the handle.
    Whatever the wolf's mission, it was aborted
when his head rose again, scenting the night. His howl broke the
stillness, the final note of it echoing eerily through the
darkness. When the last faint echo died away, the wolf outside her
door snarled and then there was silence.
    Kat pushed the door closed once more, this
time listening for the solid click of the latch and driving the
locking bolt into its seat. Standing motionless with her ear to the
door, she listened closely, but all she heard in the quiet of the
night were the small chirps of tiny creatures and clicks of insects
who found safety in the dark. There were no more screams from
nature's small victims, no more howls and nothing to indicate the
great golden beast was still outside her door.
    Shivering with the full import of what could
have happened to her, she ran for the stairs, threw herself into
the bed and had all she could do not to pull the downy comforter
over her head. What was she thinking, trying to converse with a
wolf?
    She had no intention to sleep, didn't think
she could, but the long day, the warmth of the covers and the
stillness of the night conspired against her. Twice she awoke,
startled by dreams of the green eyes staring at her through the
darkness. In the dreams, those green eyes belonged to a man and not
a wolf. They were only dreams, but they left her shaken and a
little breathless and they frightened her more than the wolf.

 
     
     
    Chapter 3

    In the morning, there was no sign of the
wolf, if it was, in fact, a wolf. She wouldn't pretend that the
creature was a figment of her dreams. It wasn't, but in the bright
morning light it was easy for Kat to believe the animal could not
have been what she thought. It was dark and hearing it breathing
behind her had been disconcerting. Oh hell, who was she
kidding? Seeing that great beast behind her had scared her
shitless!
    First, it was much too large. She knew grey
wolves were big,