A Mating of Convenience Read online

  She glanced at her computer, sitting in the corner of the lab, wondering how long it would be before she could get some alone time with it. See just how much of her fertility research they’d retained. She needed to get her hands on those records. But all that blew right out of her head when the tap on the door was followed immediately by Boaz.

  He looked even bigger than she remembered, his broad shoulders filling the open doorway. He was dressed in a blue Oxford button down and soft, broken-in jeans that hugged his trim hips and accentuated the muscles of his thighs. She drew in a sharp breath, feeling an unexpected quiver in her belly.

  He paused there, his blue eyes locking with hers. For a moment, she couldn’t move. She forgot he had kidnapped her, forgot what-he-was, even. She saw a man. And having a man with such raw masculinity stare at her with such intensity— it made all her insides turn to jelly. No one had ever looked at her like that.

  Dean poked his head out of the back room and broke the mood. Thank God.

  “Hey, Boaz. You here for Dr. Evans?”

  “Nina,” she corrected automatically, but her voice sounded strangled.

  Both men’s eyes shot to her, and for some reason she couldn’t breathe.

  “If she’s ready to go,” Boaz said slowly, without looking away from her. She felt that disconcerting quiver in her belly again, followed by a sudden surge of annoyance. She considered telling him to come back later, but she could tell Dean wanted some time alone with Aster. And even if these creatures were—well, werewolves—Dean and Aster really seemed to share something special. It didn’t feel right to try to prolong her stay. She almost rolled her eyes. Werewolf etiquette. Go figure.

  Nina saved her work and stood. “Tell Aster I’ll be back to check on her in the morning. And call me immediately if she spikes a fever.” She felt her mouth go tight. “Call Boaz,” she amended. “I seem to have misplaced my phone.”

  Dean nodded. “Don’t worry about that, Nina. Really.” He looked so sincere, like he really cared that she was concerned, and didn’t want her to think he was dismissing it out of hand. Not at all what she expected from some kind of monster that transformed into a huge hairy beast. Werewolf, she repeated to herself. But it still didn’t seem real.

  “Our kind is immune to most bacterial infections.” He made a face. “Well, maybe not immune. More like we have no trouble fighting them off.”

  Nina gave him her best squinty-eyed glare. “Her system is under enough stress as it is. She doesn’t need to be fighting off germs too. Good thing I used antibacterial cream when I changed her bandages.”

  Dean grinned. His handsome face transformed with boyish charm and just a hint of mischief. “Good thinking, Doctor. I’ll keep an eye on her. ” He winked. “Now go and enjoy your evening. ”

  Enjoy her evening?

  “Boaz,” Dean said, instead of goodbye like a normal person. He received a quick chin lift in reply and disappeared back into the bedroom.

  Shit. Nina felt a ridiculous urge to smooth down her clothing, but quashed it. Instead she squared her shoulders and strode toward the door. Perception was a powerful thing and about the only weapon she had right now. Holding her head up, she did her best to look in control.

  Boaz stepped back to let her through the doorway and took her elbow to help her down the stairs. She tried to unobtrusively pull it out of his grasp, but he resisted. She didn’t want to highlight how helpless she really was, so she gave it up.

  At the bottom of the stairs, he slid his hand down to take hold of hers. Startled, she glanced up at his face, but he was looking away, intent on his purpose. He led her around the trailer, in the opposite direction they had come that morning.

  His hand was large, engulfing hers, and slightly rough against her palm. She felt a quick stab of fear, realizing this man had the power to crush her with his bare hands. But he held it gently, leading her silently past a pair of Adirondack chairs set out facing the river. Nina caught her breath as the view opened up before her.

  Banked by brush and brambles, the river was wide here, gurgling over rocks and glinting in the late afternoon sun. There was a marshy area directly across from them covered in an astounding blanket of wild purple irises. There had to be hundreds and hundreds of them. Beyond that, the grassy meadow stretched in both directions, dotted with splotches of gold and lavender. And the whole thing was ringed on all sides by the deep green of the forest.

  She shot Boaz a quick glance, but he was looking downstream, his expression serious. She tried not to let that worry her. Maybe he was just preoccupied. They reached the edge of the trees that screened the trailer and turned right, back toward the house.

  Or where she thought the house must be. Not that she could see it. All she could see was a giant weeping willow arching gracefully at the edge of the water and blocking her view of everything beyond. They proceeded down a wide grassy corridor toward the massive tree with the river burbling along incongruously on their left. She felt odd strolling along like that, hand in hand, and couldn’t help sneaking another glance up at his hard profile. He must have felt her gaze because he looked down at her, and the hint of a smile appeared at the very corner of his mouth.

  “How was your day?”

  “Fine,” Nina answered automatically, a sense of unreality falling over her. As if they were any normal couple, taking a romantic evening stroll down by the water. Which they weren’t. Not even close. But she was trying to trick him into trusting her. Letting down his guard, so—

  “Um… How was your day?”

  His mouth tightened briefly, and he glanced away. “Fine.”

  Nina bit her lip as he led her around the edge of the massive tree. Apparently, nothing had changed in his conversation style.

  She looked up as the house came into view for the first time. There was an expansive side yard running along the river to the large white structure, the covered porch facing the water with a view across the river to the meadow beyond. But that wasn’t really what caught her eye.

  A small round table covered in a white tablecloth was set not far from the water. Next to the massive tree, it looked even smaller. More intimate. Her stomach tightened.

  A white pillar candle in a clear glass lantern was set in the center, and there was a bottle of wine chilling in a freestanding wine bucket. No, that had to be champagne, she realized, taking in the glasses. Elegant flutes were set next to white china rimmed in a delicate silver pattern.

  Her stomach did a slow roll. “You did this?”

  She almost was afraid to look at him. It was a very romantic gesture. This could not be good. He was regarding her with a look that was almost grim. He nodded.

  “Why?” The question just popped out before she could stop it.

  “Humans like ambiance.”

  “Ambiance?”

  He stared directly into her eyes. “Yes.”

  Well. Nina swallowed and looked away. “How… nice.” she said weakly.

  Silently, he guided her over to the table, pulling out her chair. She sank slowly into it. He looked distinctly uncomfortable as he settled into his own chair.

  Her mind whirled as he plucked the champagne from the ice bucket and started removing the foil. Stay calm. She felt slightly queasy. You can do this.

  A romantic dinner for two. She swallowed again. Think, Nina.

  She should say… something.

  She lifted one of the glasses, examining it. “This is certainly nice… ambiance.” She tried for a smile, but it felt shaky. That unsettling flutter in her belly was back. “What made you think… um, humans like that?”

  To her amazement, he flushed slightly. “My brother told me.”

  “Your brother?” It was so completely not what she was expecting, she might have yelled it.

  Boaz rubbed his jaw. “Yes, my brother.” He removed the wire cage from the champagne cork and set it aside with slow, deliberate motions. “My brother is mated to a human.”

  Nina almost choked on her own spit.
Mated? To a human? Her eyes flew to his, and her stomach clenched at what she saw there. She looked away quickly, her hands gripping the bottom of her chair seat. She felt dizzy. That was what he had in mind. What he meant when he said she was his. She’d seen it clearly in his eyes. He wanted to—

  Okay, okay. Not going there. But her mind had already leapt ahead, supplying her with images of this gorgeous male specimen poised over her, his hard body pressing down against hers—

  She cleared her throat. She was a doctor after all. She had no trouble imagining what he would look like without his button down and jeans. Taking a deep, slow breath through her nose, she tried to concentrate on the scenery.

  The sharp pop of the cork made her jump, and she nearly fell over, chair and all. Boaz’s hand shot out and grabbed her arm to steady her while the champagne bubbled over the lip of the bottle and onto his other hand.

  “Easy,” he said, releasing her as soon as the chair was steady underneath her. She got a look at the orange label on the bottle for the first time, and her mouth went dry. Veuve Clicquot. That was a nice champagne. Apparently werewolves didn’t fool around when they were romancing their future mates.

  She watched in silence as Boaz poured the champagne into flutes and handed her one. Taking a hasty sip, she cleared her throat. “So, um… does your brother live around here? Maybe I could meet his…” she trailed off, unable to actually say the word mate. She just couldn’t bring herself to acknowledge that these men—these werewolves—had mates, and some of them were human.

  Voluntarily? The possibilities made her shiver. She glanced around, but although the big house was in full view, there didn’t seem to be anyone around.

  “He and Lyla live in a cabin just up that way.” He indicated back the way they had come with his chin.

  “Lyla.” A human. A possible ally. She sat up a little straighter. “I’d like to meet this Lyla.”

  He stared at her for a long moment. In the silence, she couldn’t keep herself from noticing those broad, attractive cheekbones, the firm line of his jaw and the sensual curve of his lips. But what he said was—

  “Are you sure? She’s a witch.”

  Nina narrowed her eyes at him. “I do believe you are pulling my leg, Boaz.”

  Boaz met her gaze over the rim of his champagne glass. His blue eyes were intense. Nina wasn’t sure why, but her heart rate kicked up a notch.

  “No, ” he finally said. He seemed dead serious.

  “Oh,” she managed, not sure what to think. She took a hearty sip of her champagne. Just what kind of rabbit hole had she fallen down? “I see. I guess for you… werewolves, witches… this is just normal.”

  Boaz shook his head once in sharp denial. “No. Not normal.” He looked distinctly unhappy as he raised his flute and poured half its contents down his throat, then stared at his lowered glass like it had offended him. “Having a witch for a mate—that is very unusual.”

  He looked up and met her eyes, his gaze direct. “So is having a human.” Her stomach dropped. “But not unheard of.”

  He shifted abruptly and pulled something from beneath the table. “We should eat,” he said, depositing a large wicker picnic basket on the table.

  She swallowed and tried to ignore the rippling uncertainty she felt snaking through her belly. She really didn’t think she could eat.

  In the end, she did eat. Boaz had pulled cold cuts, French bread, brie and olives from the picnic basket along with potato salad and some grapes. Silently, he added a portion of each to both place settings. Nina nibbled on a corner of her bread, which Boaz had spread with brie, and was surprised to realize how hungry she was.

  She ended up eating almost everything on her plate, mostly just for something to do. There wasn’t a whole lot of conversation, but she figured that was a good thing, considering what had been said already. But she did discover one thing— or at least, she was informed.

  “We are not werewolves,” Boaz said as he extracted various items from the basket. “We are the People. People of the Moon.” He paused, grapes held motionless in one hand, and stared into her eyes as if he was trying to communicate something. Or maybe he was trying to see into her soul. She had no idea.

  “Werewolves are… something else.” Nina shivered. She got the distinct impression werewolves were something bad. Something he considered bad, which was not a comforting thought. Witches and werewolves and… mates. Oh my. Could things get any worse?

  But for a man who implied he wanted to mate her, he was a perfect gentleman. He hadn’t even tried to kiss her. Nor had he held her hand on the way back to the house. Of course, he was carrying the picnic basket in one hand, and the champagne bucket in the other.

  Still, she’d been worried he might try— something. But no. He’d escorted her upstairs, waited politely outside while she changed and got ready for bed in the bathroom, and then— nothing. Maybe werewolves didn’t kiss. What did she know? Or not-werewolves, as the case may be. But there was one thing she knew for sure. She absolutely had to escape before things got awkward.

  Still, as she settled into the comfortable king-sized bed watching Boaz curl his large frame onto the couch, she acknowledged the fact that dinner had been nicer than she ever could have expected. Sitting, sipping champagne, and quietly watching the sun sink lower over the tree line as the clouds caught fire over the meadow.

  When was the last time she’d shared such a pleasant evening with— anyone? And she was finding it very hard to keep her guard up around a man who insisted she take the bed, even though he was twice her size and had to curl almost double to fit on the couch.

  A man who is not a man, she reminded herself. But maybe is not a werewolf. He’s still holding you prisoner here, Nina. Don’t forget that.

  Snuggling deeper into the covers, feeling a pleasant exhaustion fall over her, it was more difficult than it should have been to keep that thought firmly in mind.

  Chapter 7

  Boaz blinked his eyes open at the soft chime of a text coming in. He reached for his phone and glanced over at Nina. Not surprisingly, she was still fast asleep in spite of the early morning light seeping in around the curtains. The good doctor had been up no less than four times last night, necessitating Boaz to uncurl his cramped body and sit up each time. He didn’t want her getting any bright ideas about trying to slip out of the house. That was all he needed. If she somehow managed to get by him, there would be hell to pay. He really didn’t want to have to go lone-wolf with her, but if he couldn’t get Lucas to relax and accept her, he knew he might have to.

  Glancing at his phone, he sighed. Speak of the devil. He read Lucas’s terse text and grimaced. So far it wasn’t looking good.

  Bring Dr. Evans down to the basement. I have questions for her.

  He picked up his phone and typed back a quick reply.

  She’s still asleep. I’ll text you when she wakes.

  He held his breath and waited for Lucas’s reply. He did not want to have this confrontation right now, by text.

  See that you do.

  Boaz released his breath. That could have gone worse. Lucas was pissed but not pressing the issue. Good enough. He texted back a reply.

  Will do.

  He could afford to be cooperative now that Lucas was being magnanimous. This was a delicate line to straddle. With a mate to care for, the protection of Pack was more important than ever. And he wanted this pack, where human mates were the norm, not second-class citizens. He respected Lucas as an alpha. The Maiden knew these were difficult times for the People, and Lucas had been faced with some hard choices. He’d done an admirable job protecting his pack and caring for the needs of its individual members.

  Yeah, he wanted to join this pack, but there was no way he would until he was absolutely certain Nina would be safe here.

  He sat up, groaning softly as he reached overhead to stretch his cramped back muscles. He glanced over at the bed. Eleven more days. He hoped he had the strength.

  Getting to
his feet, he padded silently over to the bathroom wondering what the day would bring. Yesterday had been one wild ride of ups and downs. But dinner out on the lawn with Nina had definitely been a high point.

  Holding her delicate surgeon’s hand in his as they navigated the territory to the bistro table had brought home just how dependent she was on him. For everything. Her safety. Her wellbeing. Her life. And it hit him again just how careful he had to be to get this right. One false move and it would all be over. As easily as he could crush her small hand with just one of his. And yet, she had allowed him to hold it. To guide her. It humbled him. He couldn’t imagine having their situations reversed.

  Not that she trusted him, not yet. And he couldn’t blame her. He could smell her nervousness, her distrust and anxiety throughout the evening. It was to be expected. But he hadn’t missed that flare of desire when the subject of human mates had come up. Her aroma had spiked with it, snaking around him like a living thing, and he’d almost snapped the neck of the champagne bottle instead of popping the cork. But the fear was still there, underneath.

  Her anxiety had eased considerably though, as dinner progressed, so maybe Aaron was on to something. He just wished he was better at making conversation. He’d never really seen the point before, and now he had no idea how to go about it. If he had something to say, he said it. Otherwise… Yeah. Otherwise, he had nothing.

  After splashing water on his face, he glanced in the mirror and frowned, wondering how Nina saw him. He had a very ordinary face. It wasn’t flashy like Jesse’s or dark and striking like Cray’s. Even Dean’s face had a certain male elegance. He’d never really thought about it before. It was a fine face, and it matched the rest of him, but now he wondered. What kind of face did humans like? He had a vague idea that looks came into it more with humans, since they couldn’t really sense potential mates.