Page 42 of The Scent of Seduction

She had to get in a better position. Gun or not, Jeff had her cornered in the war room, and she was completely on the defensive. Jaryn had drilled into her that anytime she found herself in a situation like this, she had to do everything in her power to shift the status quo.

“And why is that?” She took a step closer and inwardly smiled when Jeff moved back. She tried not to look at the gun in Jeff’s hands. If she let him see the fear currently roiling through her body, Nicole knew it would all be over.

Jeff let out a huff. “Let me play this out for you. You’ll pull the trigger, I’ll dodge the bullet with my superior reflexes and speed, my training will kick in and I’ll most likely shoot you before you can blink. Then not only will you be in excruciating pain, but I’ll have to explain to my boss why I shot the woman he intends to claim as his mate. Somehow, I doubt that’ll go over real well.”

Am I supposed to go with you quietly? Not bother defending my home, avenging my friend whom you killed in cold blood?”

“That would be nice, yes. But, I suppose unrealistic.” He held up his gun. “I really don’t want to hurt you, Nicole. I’m simply doing my job.”

“So am I.” She squeezed the trigger and the kick of the gun firing vibrated through her palm. Her eyes widened as the six-foot man in front of her disappeared before the bullet found its home in flesh. Instead, she heard a crack as it burrowed into the log wall. A low growl rumbled through the room, and Nicole blinked only to now face a tanned and white wolf whose lips were curled back, revealing his extremely sharp teeth. She screamed and took off running.

Nicole made it to the living room, but her steps faltered as she saw Cooper lying on the floor. A force as powerful as a tsunami struck her back in that moment, leading her to plummet to the floor. She tried to push up, but a heavy weight kept her pinned to the wooden planks. The weight released, and Nicole flipped over. If she was going to die, she’d do it facing her attacker. The size of Jeff’s wolf seemed massive from her vantage point. His snout was long and pointed down at her. She could see his teeth, and tears came to her eyes as she expected the sharp points piercing her skin and spilling her blood.

As she lay there, waiting to die, anger took the place of fear. How dare this man betray his pack, his Alpha? How dare he callously take the life of a good man all for the sake of seeking approval from someone as maniacal as Adam Broyles?

A buzzing sound filled Nicole’s ear, her vision turned black and white, and every muscle in her body seemed to go into convulsions. Jeff whimpered and padded backwards, then sat on his haunches. Nicole tried to ask him what was happening, but all that came out was some kind of yipping sound. She curled up into a fetal position as pressure filled her body. Her head pounded, and she cried out, but instead of screaming, it sounded more like a howl.

“Jaryn! What’s happening to me?”

She felt as though she’d explode if something didn’t give soon. She clawed at the floor, trying to escape, but she couldn’t move.

“Nic! Don’t fight it! Relax and let your wolf take over.”

"Jaryn? Oh, thank God! Help me, please. I’m scared."

“I know, baby. I’m sorry I’m not there. Cooper will help you.”

"Cooper’s dead! Jeff… Jeff’s…"

She couldn’t finish her thoughts as the pressure built to intolerable levels. Jaryn had said to relax. To let it happen. To let her… wolf? Oh fuck, she was turning into a wolf? But Jaryn had said that their mating wouldn’t make her change. Nicole realized that having a mental argument with herself was not helping the situation. The resistance and anxiety only caused her pain. She closed her eyes and calmed her mind. If she couldn’t stop this, she might as well embrace it. A flood of warmth filled her, and light seemed to surround her in a bubble in her mind.

I’ve been waiting for you.

It was a voice in her head like hers and Jaryn’s link, but this one was decidedly female. Was that her wolf? Jaryn always spoke of his as almost a separate entity. Something that lived inside him…that lived with him. An alternate form with which he shared a symbiotic relationship.

The pressure inside her released in a climax, almost orgasmic in its intensity. When Nicole opened her eyes, the sharpness of everything shocked her. Her color vision wasn’t what she was used to, but it wasn’t completely black and white either. She lifted her head and rolled so she could stand up. Okay, standing on four legs versus two was a little weird.

Just then, Nicole remembered the exact sequence of events that had taken place right before her world was turned upside down. She turned to see Jeff, now in human form, staring at her with an expression of complete shock.

“Holy shit,” he whispered. “How… when…? You’re not supposed to be…”

Nicole growled. An honest to god growl rumbled from her chest. It was kind of funny that she could still understand him, even as a wolf. She guessed this was what Jaryn experienced when she talked to him in wolf form. She stalked him across the living room. Each step backwards took Jeff closer to the front door. Jeff shook his head and in a heartbeat, Nicole once again faced his wolf. Man, she was going to have to learn how to change that fast.

They circled each other. Jeff was clearly larger than her, but Nicole didn’t feel the fear that she had as a human in this situation.

“Nicole? Baby? Are you all right?”

“Not now Jaryn. I’m about to kill Jeff. I’ll get back to you in a minute.” “What!”

Nicole shut her mental link to her mate and focused on the wolf in front of her. She watched as Jeff crouched, his eyes boring into hers. His lips curled up and he let out a howl-bark, warning her to back away. Like that was really going to happen. Nicole took a step forwards, tensed the muscles in her hindquarters, then unleashed all the fury coiling inside her in a burst of kinetic energy as she sailed through the air. But before her wolf body slammed into Jeff’s, the front door burst open and a human pushed aside Nicole. She skidded across the hardwood floors. She looked up and was shocked to find Kenneth standing in front of her.

“Please, we’re here to help you.”

Nicole looked around at the young man and saw that Jeff had disappeared. She couldn’t let him get away! Nicole growled at Kenneth for his trick. He must have been the one spying on her, feeding the information back to Adam. She dodged around him and took off out the front door. The snow had stopped falling, but the wind blasted against her fur and caused her to squint.

Out in the meadow were two wolves, fighting. Who was the other wolf? She sat on the porch and watched as the unknown wolf grappled with Jeff. Powerful jaws snapped and paws swiped at each other. The guttural sounds of their struggle carried on the snowy night air. The unknown wolf’s jaws clamped down on Jeff’s neck. Nicole instinctively knew this meant he was demanding Jeff’s submission. However, Jeff refused, so with one quick snap, the unknown wolf’s jaws closed, and Jeff paid for his crimes with his life. Nicole couldn’t seem to find any remorse inside. Something came up beside her and Nicole yipped as an all- white wolf sat down next to her and met her gaze. The wolf rolled onto his back and exposed his belly, submitting to Nicole. She tilted her head down and received a lick for her efforts.

The white wolf got back to his feet and went inside. Nicole glanced over her shoulder to find the unknown wolf standing just off her front porch. His tail and ears were down as he tried to appear smaller and subservient to Nicole. She turned and went back inside, leaving the other wolf to follow.

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