When Adrienne woke she felt the throb of something on her buttocks. She thought she was covered by the bear rug but it was the paws and body of the large white wolf lying close behind her. She could smell his body, strong with a slight musk, but it was more the smell of a fresh lake and pine trees. She glanced down and noticed that his penis had stretched out of its sheath. Could he smell me? She wondered. But of course he could you fool. Wolves can smell and hear like no other animals, that’s why they’re so dangerous.
It was almost time for her cycle and she was ovulating. What was she to do? She glanced at him and he was still in the same position only his body was closer to her. She was afraid to move an inch.
Slowly she reached and moved his paw from her breasts. He still slept silent. Maybe it was the pain pills she forced down his throat. Too many and he was anesthetize. That had to be it. She stood, stretched, and walked to see how the weather was fairing. Still the snow continued to fall.
Starting her routine over, she give the animal antibiotics, cleaned his wounds, fed him, and watched him sleep. Watching for signs of recovery, and if the snow doesn’t let up, next plan—keep him sedated. She hoped this routine would last long enough for her to leave and for him to get well.
***
The cave grew colder in the evenings. She ran out of wood to make a fire. Looking around she thought of burning a chair. She tried reading but her teeth shivered loud and the wolf stirred. Remembering the furs in the bedroom, she drug them and piled all the animal pelts and skins from the bedrooms into the great room. Not only was she cold but the wolf was cold as well.
She threw all the furs on him and then she crawled under. She still couldn’t get warm, so she moved closer to him. He felt so good. He inched behind her and wrapped his long front legs across her body. She heard him sigh like a man satisfied.
Maybe she could keep him as a pet she thought. But she couldn’t keep something wild and that large without people thinking she was crazy. It was like keeping a lion. And she didn’t have the money to feed him, and looking at his cock, he would require a female wolf just to keep him calm.
Maybe I could keep him if he was castrated? She thought. Make sense Adrienne. You’ve been in the wilderness too long. Her mind wrestled with her and she fell asleep.
Through the night she felt his nose snuggle under her hair and smell it as a man would with his partner. Then she thought about Paul. He never even acted as if he loved her. He never wanted to sleep behind her and snuggle up with her. And here she is with an animal that shows more love than any human could.
She thought herself stupid for comparing Paul to this animal. She turned to verify her insane thoughts and realized how unbelievably beautiful this animal was, especially since she cleaned up his coat and polished his razor teeth, and kept his eyes clean and clear. She took a closer look at his long dark lashes covering his cobalt eyes. She had never seen animals especially dogs with blue eyes. Do dogs have lashes she wondered? Some do have blue eyes, but thick black lashes, she never saw that before.
I’m a cat person.
He must be what she had heard of, the lone alpha wolf, and his pack must be frantic about his return. “I’m thinking and talking like he’s a man,” Adrienne said. She stood and walked to get something to eat. Tired of the smoked meat, she found some fruits and vegetables in a can. After eating, she turned in the direction of the room where the wolf slept, with a plate in hand, bringing the food to him, but he wasn’t there. Had the sedatives worn off and he left?
Turning in a circle, she placed the food on the floor next to the rugs. Heading in the direction of the rooms, she became frightened, she turned to run to the opening of the cave, and it was covered in snow and ice. She heard something from behind.
Then someone said, “Where are you going?” His voice not threatening. His tone gentle.
Pivoting around, she spied a naked man, over six feet, large chest with a span like an Eagle. His black silky hair straight and his eyes flashed blue like azure fire. His eyes framing a handsome face.
“Who are you and what are you doing in here?” Adrienne questioned.
“I should ask you the same thing? Do you realize that this is my home?” Wilder said. Adrienne couldn’t take her eyes off of his firm, strong, amazing chest. And that handsome face. His crystal blue eyes and dark hair confused her. And why is he naked?
“It’s freezing outside and here you stand before me naked,” she said to the splendid looking man.
“Haven’t you seen a naked man before?” He said narrowing his eyes.
“Yes, but never one with such a large...” Her eyes fell to his cock and she stuttered when she tried to describe his body part but her eyes couldn’t or wouldn’t leave his manhood. She glanced around. “How did you get in here and where are the snow tracks?” She demanded to know.
“You asked too many questions for a female?” He moved in her direction and Adrienne moved back in horror. “I’m not going to rape you if that’s what you’re thinking.” He extended his long arm reaching for the deer skin to cover his body.
“No, that wasn’t what I was thinking at all.” Clearly that is what she thought. “Where’s that beautiful wolf, don’t tell me you slaughtered him,” she said fuming at the thought of him doing such a thing.
“He left,” Wilder said calmly.
“But how? There are no tracks of any kind.” She stood looking around suspiciously. Her brown eyes meeting his.
“I said before, you talk too much. I’m hungry. Now get me something to eat.”
“I’m not doing any such thing. If you want food, get it yourself,” Adrienne said defiant.
Wilder moved close to her and looked down on her five feet six height and barely a hundred pounds. If he wanted to take her and do whatever to her, she couldn’t stop him. But he’s trying to intimidate me, she thought. But there is no way she would push him into doing anything he wouldn’t want to do. Besides, who would live out in such an isolated place unless he was a fugitive? Yet the thought crossed her mind that he could be a Werewolf. She dismissed that as soon as it entered her head.
It must be the delusion of too many nights in this cave and too many books on werewolves. Why would anyone stock their shelves of nothing but werewolves’ tales, unless they were completely psychotic? It’s like those guys who pretended they were vampires when the book Twilight came out.
“I better humor him,” she murmured. She backed out and walked to the entrance of the kitchen. Grabbed a half of duck, opened a can of vegetables, put it on a plate, and brought it out to him. He looked at it and turned his head. “What’s wrong now?”
“I don’t eat ducks. My younger brother is into foul. I’m strictly a red meat eater. Get me something else.” She turned and rushed to the kitchen and pulled out a large piece of venison. Then she remembered that he said something about a brother. She became frightened.
Standing in front of him, “You said something about a brother.” She laid the meat in front of him on a plate and he pushed the vegetables on to the floor and picked up the meat and began to eat it with his hands.
He looked up at her with cold blue eyes. Eyes she had seen before. “I have brothers,” he said glaring at her.
“Do they live here with you?”
“Yes. Sometimes.”
“Then that’s why there are so many bedrooms.” She paused careful not to look at him. “Will they be here soon?” She said soft and low.
“Is there anything else you want to know?” He said in a gruff voice looking up at her and then putting his head down tearing the meat with his gleaming white teeth. “Get me some water?”
“How many brothers do you have?” she said looking at him.
“Get me some water,” he repeated.
“You have to say please. I’m not your slave.” He stood up towering over her. He must have been six feet two and all muscle. Then she saw the wound on his arm. Touching it he flinched, she said, “Where did you get...that?” He glared at her with cold eyes and Adrienne rushed away. She brought back a ladle and a large bowl filled with water in a barrel she found in the kitchen, and the first aid kit.
“When are your brothers coming back?” She insisted on knowing. Wilder glared at her then he took the ladle and scooped up the water from the bowl and his blue eyes watched her in an obscene manner. Adrienne backed up.
“Can you help me get out of this valley?” She said.
“Why would I help you?” He said peering at her.
“Because you are a decent human being.”
“On the contrary, I’m only half human and the other half says that I will need you soon.”
“What do you mean only half human and that you will need me soon?” She said locking eyes with him.
“We will need you. My brothers and I will need you.” His words ominous and vague. “You will have to wait until they return and then if you want to go you are free to leave. They will have to give their approval,” he said to her with a smirk.
“What do you mean their approval? I’m not a side of beef or a deer you’re chasing for food.” Wilder smiled at the connection.
“No.” You’re too skinny,” he said walking close and touching her arms. “Living in this cave, you have put on a few pounds.” She pulled her arm from him. “My brothers will only come when the snow stops.”
“I can’t wait that long. Don’t you have a car?”
“I have many cars but not here. What you see is my home away from home.” And Wilder raised his head and let out a howling laugh. Her eyes narrowed.
“You’re trying to frighten me. I still need to get home. My mother and father and my fiancé will be worried.” Wilder’s brow furrowed into rows. “What is this about a fiancé?”
“Why would this man of yours let you travel alone in a car at night?” He queried. She sat down.
“That is not your concern and what were you doing following me? How dare you...” She said pointing her finger.
“You were driving erratic, it’s a wonder you didn’t kill yourself. I broke the window of your car so you could climb out. I got this scar from that. He pointed to the scar in its last stage of healing. “I should have left you there,” Wilder said with a raised eyebrow trying to look menacing.
“You did leave me,” Adrienne said.
“Yes, but I kept the animals from eating that little body of yours. Don’t you ever eat?”
“I can’t eat that meat without some preparation. And you have no seasoning. And why are you so concerned about my diet and health?”
“Because soon I will have to mate. And because of this snow, you are the only female around.” Why is he talking like that? She wondered. Maybe he has been in the wilderness too long was her conclusion.
“What? You talk like you have no choice in the matter. Don’t you have some self-control? You said yourself that I’m too skinny. How can you mate with me with that enormous thing you have between your legs. I can’t...”
“Enough of this!” he said gazing at Adrienne. “Don’t you realize that I’m a werewolf?”
“Get the fuck out of here,” Adrienne said laughing.
“That’s right. I’m going to claim you, whether you want me to or not,” he said low, calm, and easy.
“You’re not going to do any such thing.” And she back up against the wall of the cave. Wilder looked at her amused. A smile came across his lips.
Adrienne smiled, “You’re just joking aren’t you? There are no werewolves and you’re not going to fuck me, and you don’t have to mate with me, do you?”
Wilder lay on the bear rug then closing his eyes he fell asleep with Adrienne looking at him. She placed some of the pain pills in the water, he would sleep for a while, giving her time to get away, because clearly, she was dealing with a deranged individual.
With just her leggings, worn boots, and a large fur coat covering half of her naked body, she gathered up some of the animal pelts and placed them around her face and head, and ran to the opening of the cave. She hit the frozen water with a hammer and it left a large hole where she climbed through.
Standing in the opening weighing her options she decided to risk the snow. Wrapping small furs around her feet she was ready to brave the unknown. It was slow going at first. But she thought she would be miles away when that handsome crazy man woke.
***
Breathing hard and feet almost frozen she saw a clearing. So she kept walking. Making it through the frozen grass she saw lots of trees. She trudged along and before she could get into the forest, a large black bear with a cub lumbered out of the path between the pines. Standing still, Adrienne backed up slowly. The black bear gazed at her, she appeared hungry and Adrienne eyes glanced down, it wasn’t safe to fix gaze with a bear with a cub. She backed up slowly giving herself time. Time for what? She thought.
Then she heard the sound of a wolf in a distance, his loud cry sent chills through her body. She looked up and standing on a ledge of a hill was the large white wolf. He put his head down and began racing in her direction.
She tried running, but the bear began a mad surge in her direction. Two predators fighting over the same skinny corpse she imagined. Praying and wondering why she didn’t stay with Wilder and take her chances with him, she dropped into the snow from exhaustion, and before she passed out she prayed that her death would be quick. From reading the books in the cave, she figured that if the large wolf got to her first, he would puncture her neck at the jugular vein, and that would be that—a quick death.
Which death was better she asked herself before fainting. Neither one would be pretty, she thought.