Burning Ice: 6 (Werewolf Sentinels)

Capac stepped off the Kaxdigoowu Heen Dei Trail in Juneau, Alaska, and headed for the Montana Creek. He’d had his shaman Ryder drop him off to do a little salmon fishing. Capac had asked Ryder if he wanted to join him, but the other man had turned him down. As of late, the werewolf sentinel shaman showed signs of strain. Capac and his wolf brothers knew it had to do with something that would bring Ryder into his full powers, but he wouldn’t give any of them the details.

He arrived at the creek and picked out a spot on the shore to cast his fishing line. Capac wasn’t the only person hoping to catch some salmon that day. There was a woman standing in the water, wearing waders, as she did some fly-fishing.

Capac set his pole, then watched the woman as she fished. Even though she stood in the center of the water, he could see her perfectly with his werewolf sight, as if he were directly in front of her. She was very attractive. Her long, dark-brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail, which hung almost to the center of her back. Her light-green eyes watched the movement of her fishing line as she flicked it back and forth, the small fly hitting the water, then jerking back out.

He found himself drawn to her, but she had yet to give him the time of day. Capac wasn’t even sure if she knew he was there. And as for her scent, he couldn’t smell it since she was out in the water.

But that wasn’t going to stop him from trying to talk to her once she’d finished fishing. There was a good chance she wasn’t his mate, though Capac wouldn’t mind if she did turn out to be his.

He continued to watch her as he cast his line and reeled it back in. She ended up having more luck than he did. She caught a good-sized salmon, and not long after that, another. Both fish ended up in the wicker basket she carried at her side. And still she acted as if she hadn’t noticed him.

Capac didn’t know whether to be insulted or not. He usually didn’t have problems when it came to the opposite sex. In fact, before his ten-thousand-year sleep in an ice cave on a glacier, he hadn’t had to work hard at convincing a woman from his village to share his furs for the night.

Now, after awakening almost three years ago to this new, modern world, Capac hadn’t slept with a female. Two things had held him back—the fact he was to find his mate and that the mortals of this world had no idea werewolves even existed. He hated lying to anyone, and to date a woman who wasn’t his mate, that’s what he’d have to do. Only to the one who was meant to be his could he tell the truth.

He set his gaze on the woman standing in the creek. With her, he was willing to set aside his dislike and see if she would go out with him. That is if he could get her to acknowledge he was alive. Capac had been without female companionship long enough. Considering his five wolf brothers who had also slept in the ice cave had already found their mates, he felt a little left out.

An hour passed before the woman reeled in her line for the last time. Capac was quick to do the same, not wanting to let her leave before he had a chance to introduce himself. He followed her with his gaze as she turned and walked toward the shore in his direction.

She’d only taken a couple of steps when a black bear stepped out of the trees on the other side of the creek and lumbered into the water. It sniffed the air before its head turned to the woman. It didn’t take a genius to realize the animal could smell the salmon she’d caught.

Capac threw down his fishing gear and hurried toward her. Their gazes met before she came to a standstill. As if she heard what was behind her, she turned her head and looked over her shoulder. He knew the instant she let her fear take over. She let out a piercing shriek and took off at a run. The bear charged after her.

He stepped up his pace and met her in the middle. She didn’t stop but swerved around him and kept going. As she went by, Capac finally picked up her scent. One sniff and it changed his world. His mating urge slammed into him, stealing his breath as the knowledge of what she was to him hit home.

Capac would have followed her, but he had the little problem of a charging bear to handle before he could. He focused his attention on the large animal that barreled toward him and did what any wolf would do when its mate was threatened—he stood his ground and let loose with his best and loudest werewolf growl.

Riya knew she made a huge mistake when she took off running from the bear, but her fear overrode her common sense. But her fear didn’t stop her from speeding past the man who had rushed toward her. Without looking back, she didn’t come to a halt until she reached the opposite side of the creek.

She turned to see if the man had followed her, but he remained where she’d left him. He stood straight and tall as he faced down the charging bear. He then did something she never would have expected. He let loose with an animalistic growl that would have done any wolf proud. It brought the bear up short. The large animal sniffed the air before he did an about-face and took off back into the trees.

The danger now past, Riya’s wobbly legs gave out on her and she sank to the ground as she watched the man turn and walk in her direction. Even though Riya was still shaken with what had just happened, she was able to admire him. She’d noticed him right after he’d arrived at the creek, but had not acknowledged him. She wasn’t stuck-up or anything. It was the fact she had found him very attractive. Riya tended to make an ass of herself around gorgeous men.

And this one took her breath away with his native good looks, long, black hair, brown eyes and very muscular build. He wore a dark-blue jacket and blue jeans that displayed his legs to perfection. Riya had to swallow as he came closer or for sure she would have been drooling.

She had to swallow again when she met his gaze with her own. He seemed riveted on her, eating her up, making her insides melt. Riya’s body responded to his hungry stare. Her pussy instantly ached to be filled as her nipples pebbled beneath her shirt. Her heart beat faster the nearer he came.

Once he reached her, he went down on his knees and took Riya’s face in his hands. He then laid a kiss on her that caused her brain to short circuit almost all together. A small, breathy sigh escaped her as her eyes fluttered shut. She didn’t normally kiss a man when she hadn’t even learned his name, but his lips felt too good on her own. All too soon he pulled away.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

His deep baritone washed over her, making Riya shiver. She didn’t even bother attempting to speak, knowing full well she would say something utterly idiotic. Instead, she nodded. Even that she screwed up by being a little too enthusiastic with him still in such close proximity. She head-butted him square on the nose. He let go of her face with a groan and rocked back as his hands came up and covered the abused area.

“Oh my god. I’m so sorry,” Riya said. “I hope I didn’t hurt you too much. Let me see.” She pulled at his hands but he resisted.

“It’s okay,” he said, his voice sounding hollow because of his palms held in front of his face. She noticed his eyes were watering.

“Is it bleeding? I’m such an idiot. Please, let me see if I did any real damage to you.”

Riya reached for his hands again, and once more he pulled back. Determined to see for herself if he was okay, she continued to lean forward. That led to her knocking him over onto his back, his legs trapped under him as she sprawled across his upper body. He ended up falling back into the creek since they were at the very edge of it. She instantly froze and stared down at him, unable to move.

“Ah, under different circumstances, I wouldn’t mind you on top of me,” he said. “But the water isn’t all that warm.”

Riya quickly scrambled off him. “I’m sorry.” She stood and held out her hand. “Let me help you up.”

He stared at her for a few seconds before he dropped his hands from his nose and pushed himself upright, then stood in one smooth movement without her assistance. He gave her a smile that had her mind blanking out again.

“Thanks for the offer, but I figured it might be safer for me to get up on my own,” he said with a chuckle.

Riya dropped her arm to her side. The poor guy’s long hair dripped with creek water as did his jacket and jeans. He’d saved her from a bear attack—which she’d caused—and she made a mess of him in return.

She then remembered the hot kiss he’d given her and Riya felt her cheeks heat. She had to wonder if he regretted doing it after what she’d put him through. To be honest, it wouldn’t surprise her at all if he decided to beat a hasty retreat and wish he’d never had anything to do with her. It wouldn’t be the first time she’d scared off a man with her klutzy ways. A guy could only take so many bruises before he said enough was enough.

“Are you okay?”

His voice brought Riya back to the present. She gave him a sheepish look. “Sorry. Yeah. I’m just wondering how long it will take you to politely, or not so politely, get rid of me.”

He chuckled again. “You sound as if you have quite a bit of experience in having people do that to you.”

She shrugged. “More than I would have liked.”

He reached out and ran the back of his hand along her cheek, sending little jolts of awareness through Riya. “You don’t have to worry about me doing that. It takes more than a head-butt to the nose and a dunk in a creek to scare me off. I’m Capac.”

She gave Capac a small smile. “Riya. My name is Riya. If you change your mind, I’ll understand.”

Catching her off guard once more, Capac cupped the side of her face and brought his mouth down onto hers. This time his tongue pushed between her lips and stroked along hers. Riya returned his kiss with a moan, her hands coming up to rest against his well-muscled chest. She soon lost touch with the world around her. All that mattered was Capac’s kiss.

They were both breathing a little faster once he pulled away. She opened her eyes to find his were still shut. After a few seconds, his eyelids lifted. Riya met his gaze, wanting more than a kiss from him.

“Does that prove to you that I won’t change my mind?” Capac asked in a gruff voice.

Riya nodded. “Yes.”

“Good. I don’t want to leave you yet, but I really do need a dry set of clothes. How about we meet up later? You probably want to take your catch home before it spoils as well.”

It took a few seconds for Riya to understand what he was referring to. She then looked down at herself and silently groaned. Didn’t she just look sexy in dark-green waders that came up to her chest? The wicker basket didn’t help either. And of course they smelled like fish and the creek since she did a lot of fishing there.

“Ah, sure,” she said. “I need to clean up too.” Riya self-consciously tugged one of the shoulder straps of her waders.

Capac smiled. “I don’t know. You look pretty good in those.”

“Then you’d better go get your eyes checked. Me wearing rubber isn’t exactly a turn-on for anyone.”

He gave her a closer look. “It depends on what kind of rubber you’re talking about. The thin, close-fitting stuff is pretty hot. Granted your waders are on the baggy side, but after a few alternations they’d do.”

Riya couldn’t hold back a laugh. “You must be pretty hard up, if that’s the case.” A split second later, she realized what she’d said and clapped a hand over her mouth. Now she’d insulted him. Wasn’t she on a roll?