Unquenchable Desire (7 page)

He’d suspected Damon had passed on the curse to his
twins. Now, after seeing

Valerie wearing only Brian’s shirt and learning that
she’d been out all night romping under the light of the full moon, he was
certain. It was a good guess that she had morphed into that beautiful white
wolf. To launch Damon’s suffering, he’d start with sweet, vulnerable Valerie. She
had no control over her nighttime escapades. And he’d be waiting…

Chapter Six

Brian couldn’t believe his
luck at getting invited to the pool for snacks. He’d never seen such a
spectacular swimming hole up close, certainly not in his neighborhood of shacks
on the edge of
Trona
. It was good-sized pool,
eighteen by forty. Fenced with natural stone columns with wrought iron inserts,
it afforded an unobstructed view of the valley below. At the entrance into the
pool stood a stature of the
Greek
sea God Proteus who had the ability to change shape. With a daughter who
shifted during the full moon, was this statue an example of his boss’s sense of
humor?

Brian
couldn’t stop his gaze from zeroing in on Valerie. She glanced in his direction
and smiled.
Her cascade of long, lemony waves swished across her back. Her
red bikini clung to her curves, exposing gorgeous, tanned, and very shapely thighs.
The luscious sight stirred memories of her slender, firm body writhing in his
arms as they morphed into their human forms. Valerie sent him another smile as though
she’d read his thoughts. He strode toward her, unable to ignore the lure
.
Remember,
stay
detached, emotions will get me in trouble every time.

Her silver-flecked eyes were
gentle, expectant. He didn’t dare speak just yet. If he did the huskiness in
his voice would give away his forbidden desire. He had to keep reminding
himself she was the boss’s daughter and lusting after her could lose him his
job and then he wouldn’t even get to hang around her.

****

Valerie’s heart skipped a beat as Brian strode through
the pool gate like
a prince,
proud, tall in spite of the difficult feral beginnings thrust upon him. His bare
chest glistened with sweat. His salt-stained jeans had molded tighter to his
flat stomach and lean hips. His work boots were as dusty as the jeans. She
smiled thinking of a quote by Marcel Proust
.
 
It suggested I
should cheer for the people who make me happy. And right now I’m cheering big
time for this wolf-man who is definitely the charming gardener who makes my
soul blossom and my blood race.

Her parents wouldn’t approve of her getting mixed up with a werewolf like
herself, especially if they learned he’d been raised by wolves. And he was just
a simple gardener. Correction, she thought. There was nothing simple about her
wolf-man. Besides, dangerous or not, she’d already fallen for him and didn’t
intend to give him up.

He handed her a small bouquet of
irises from the garden. “I thought of you
when I saw these. These are named for the Greek goddess of rainbows, Iris. They’re
known as symbols of royalty, divine protection, and heroism in many world
cultures.”

She laughed. “My, my all that.” She pretended not to know the fable of
the flower, while reeling from the fact that this wolfman did. He was such
gorgeous hunk of contridictions and she loved that about him. She brought the
vibrant purple flowers to her nose.
 
They
lacked fragrance. And he’d snatched them from her
own
garden. Of course, he did tend the garden. He got points for
that. Besides, he’d thought of her and that’s what counted.
“Finished slaving away in the
hot, July sun for today?” she asked.

He nodded, grinning. He met her gaze, his eyes
crinkling and his probing scrutiny as intimate as a kiss. Although her heart
pounded like crazy from looking into his thickly-lashed eyes, s
he couldn’t stop
herself from wondering what she’d experienced when this alpha wolf possessed
her. She’d blacked out most of the memory and maybe that was for the best.

She fought to ignore the heat that ignited between them
during their locked gazes.

“You can shower in the pool house and dump your clothes
in the washing machine.

There’s new swim trunks hanging on a hook. Dad always
keeps a half-dozen available for unexpected guests. ”

“I doubt he considers the hired help a guest.”

“It doesn’t matter. He’s bighearted with his staff. You’ve
only seen the controlling side of him. He is also caring and generous to a
fault.”

Brian grinned again. “I’ll take your word for it.”

He was inside the bathhouse for less than ten minutes. When
he came out, he said, “I hope I didn’t take too long. I haven’t had a
hot
shower since I left
Trona
.”

“It was fine.” And he was super fine. His impressive
chest and tall stature gave him an overall triangular, lean look. As he moved,
his muscles expanded and contracted in a wild rhythm that took her breath away.

She patted the edge of the pool beside her and handed
him a fourteen-ounce plastic mug of cranberry iced-tea.

He accepted it and took a small sip. “Hey, this is
good,” he said and then drank the rest down with an unquenchable thirst. She’d
done the same with her first mug. It wasn’t just the heat of the day. The
wolves within them craved lots of liquid and loved to romp in water.

While they dangled their feet into the glittering pool
waters, she stirred it with a pointed toe. “Did Dad give you a hard time after
I went upstairs?”

Brian shook his head. “Is your dad really going to lock
you away tonight?”

“No. I straightened him out on that
matter and a few others. He’s really a wonderful dad, but this curse has had us
all tied in knots for years. When a person is stressed-out and feels helpless,
they tend to strike out.”

“Yeah, I get it. Tai Chi helps.”

She laughed. “Dad’s a pro at it. Imagine
how he’d be without it.”

Brian looked thoughtful. “He has a
point. You shouldn’t go prowling while that crazed wolf is in the area.”

“Perhaps I shouldn’t but—
Hey
, have you ever tried moon poppies? My sister swears by
them. While eating them alone is not a cure, she says it helps to control the urges.”

His eyes glinted with mischief.
“Hmmm.
Which urges? And I’m not sure tight control is always
a good thing.” Before she could shoot down his playful comment, he added, “Wait
a minute, you have a sister?”

“A twin.”

“Are you identical?

“Not at all.
She’s the quick-witted, dark, onyx beauty in the family. And until people get
to know me, they think I’m the dumb blonde.”

“Not all people. I knew the moment
I met you that you were a sharp cookie.”

“You think I’m a sharp cookie?” Her
insides felt warm and she felt a little giddy.

“Definitely.
Is your sister cursed, too?”

Before she could stop herself, she
nodded.
What am I doing? A little
flattery and I spill my guts? Wow, I
gotta
watch
that.
To change the subject, she said,
“
Hey,
let’s do what we came for.” She shoved him into the water and dived in after
him.

They came up face to face, only
inches apart. Their gazes met and a hot surge rushed through her. He must have
felt something similar, because he caught her face between his hands and covered
her mouth with his, stealing her breath, her sanity. She smoothed his moist,
steel-like abs to calm him…and herself. His heart was pounding almost as hard
as hers. Love and lust exploded inside her as he increased the delicious
pressure. His tongue probed and played sensual havoc with her nerve endings. Her
erect nipples begged for attention as his bare chest pressed tighter against
her skimpy
Bikini
top.

Treading water with his body
pressed close to hers ignited the same kind of fires she’d felt upon awakening
in his arms this morning. She inhaled his male scent mingled with chlorine and
remembered clinging to his bare torso. Feeling his heat and power, fiery lust
rose in her so quickly that it stole her breath away. Her wolf soul craved sex
with him and she wanted it now.
 

“Valerie!” Hugh said, his face
reddening from the neck up. He held a tray of sandwiches. “Kyle sent me to see
if you’re ready for these yet. Or maybe you’d like to come inside? It’s really
heating up out here, don’t you agree?”

Valerie laughed, feeling like a kid
with her hand caught in the cookie jar. “You’re right, Uncle Hugh. But we’ll
eat out here. Just put the tray on the umbrella table. It’s cooler there.”

“Maybe not cool enough,” Hugh said.

“Don’t worry about it,
Unky
Wunky
. Let me grab a couple
of robes and throw some clothes in the dryer. The activity and some food will help
me change gears.”

He looked doubtful and stood there
as though chained to the spot.

“Honestly, Uncle Hugh. It’ll be
okay, now. I promise.” She wanted to stay in the pool and let this escalating
heated interlude play out, but going at it hot and heavy in the full view of
the house made her question her judgment.

She pushed away from Brian, noting
his amused expression, and swam toward the edge. Uncle Hugh shook his head and
disappeared through the gate. Over her shoulder she asked, “Want to go moon
poppy picking tonight, Brian?”

He wrinkled his brow. “Is that
wise?”

“After what just transpired here,
I’d say it’s a necessity.”

“Why don’t we go while it’s still
daylight? I think your family would rest better.”

“
Victoria
said they only bloom at night. She
told me that devouring the poppies in the right quantity, while in the werewolf
state, could possibly end the affliction forever. In any event,
Victoria
believes that
the poppies have temporary powers to reverse lycanthropy symptoms.”

“What if they’re poisonous?”

“It didn’t kill
Victoria
. She said they tasted like raw spinach
drizzled with poppy oil. And there’s a ritual we need to perform after eating
them. It’s a reversing mind-over-matter skill where you mentally process your
morphing backwards. It’s never worked for me before, but maybe that’s because,
up until now, I’ve been unwilling to try the poppies. And
Victoria
insists that for success, the
methods must be combined.”
 

“You really put a lot of trust in
your sister’s advice, don’t you?”

“Why wouldn’t I? We’re family and
stuck in this curse thing together. Just like you and I are.”

****

Hours later, under the cloak of moonlit darkness,
Valerie escaped the towered mansion with no interference from family. It wasn’t
like Dad to stay away, especially after her last escapade. She doubted she was
alone, but so far there was no sign of Uncle Hugh, nor even a hint of his
scent. Perhaps he’d been injured by the wolf attack more than he’d been willing
to admit and wouldn’t be joining her tonight.

The round, bright moon and its power, along with
Brian’s scent, drew her deeper into the hills. He’d been ahead of her since
she’d sailed over the terrace railing, but she didn’t know when he’d let her
catch up with him.
Is he enjoying keeping
me at bay and guessing? It would serve him right if I veered off and lost him
.
It would
l
eave me free to embrace the night and drink in the feral sensations
,
she thought, enjoying the damp earth beneath her paws. Until her internal voice
cried out that none of it would be good without him.

Then, there he was in his proud, furry Alpha armor. He
growled, as if to ask,
were you worried?

She gave him her lupine, sidelong glance, hoping he got
her go-to-hell message. Unfortunately, her wagging tail betrayed her real
feelings of relief and joy.

They covered several acres but the scarce
night-blooming flower was nowhere to be seen. When she was about to give up,
she spied a large growth. With a clawed paw, she jammed some into her mouth and
chewed quickly. Victoria was right. It tasted like raw spinach drizzled with
poppy oil.

She pointed her muzzle to another
large clump to encourage Brian to try some.

He tentatively chewed off a slender
stem.

She clawed the ground to remind him
they had to combine the promising temporary cure with the reversing,
mind-over-matter skill. Valerie concentrated and processed each step in
reverse. She curled her lips and counted backwards as agonizing pain radiated
through her body. With all of her strength, she fought the pain and the pull of
the full moon. Then all hell broke loose inside her. It was as though she were
trapped in an anticyclone with its high-pressure center with winds rotating and
spiraling in the opposite direction. Chilled and terrified, she let out a long
howl. Her eyes pooled with tears as the attacks of pain came in waves, each
surge sharper than the last. She curled into a fetal position, convulsed and
writhed upon the carpet of dried grass while she fought to hold back sobs.

Her Alpha wolf lay down beside her
and nuzzled her gently, as though to help her through her agony. She prayed for
God’s help, his mercy. Then, slowly, like
Victoria
said, the throbbing muscles
throughout her body began to relax and the pain lessoned. Valerie raked her
fingers through her wild, lemony mane. The swirling fog lifted from her mind
and her brain strained to gather its humanness. When her feral instincts eased,
she wanted to do a happy dance.