chapter 4

Wolf grunted and when she looked over at him, she noticed his expression was a bit tighter than it

had been and his jaw was clenched. Facing forward in her seat, she didn’t say anything else to him

for the rest of the drive until he pulled up to a gorgeous house and parked in the driveway.

“Is this your house?” she asked.

He nodded and climbed out of the truck, jogging over to her side before she was even able to get

her seatbelt undone.

“Come on. Let’s get inside before you get any colder,” he instructed.

She fumbled with the seatbelt for several seconds, trying to get her ice-cold fingers to cooperate.

Without saying anything, Wolf leaned over and unbuckled her, the upper half of his body brushing

against hers. A quiet moan escaped her lips as the warmth of his body surrounded her, making her feel

safe for the first time in a long time.

He pulled back quickly when he heard her and avoided meeting her eyes as he plucked her up

from the seat and set her on her feet. Dropping her shoulders, she followed him into the house,

carrying the kitten in her arms.

You’re nothing special, Lucy. A man like Wolf wouldn’t even be attracted to someone like you. A

homeless Little on the run from the police and who knows who else.

As soon as they stepped into his house, she sighed as she looked around. It was just as beautiful

inside as it was outside, and she was surprised at how homey it felt.

Wait. Did he have a wife or significant other? Shit. Why hadn’t she asked that?

“Come sit on the couch. I’m going to grab some blankets. You can set the cat down and I’ll figure

out a litter box after I get you situated,” Wolf told her.

Setting the tiny kitten on the floor, she followed him into a large living room with an enormous

sectional couch sitting in front of a ridiculously big TV that was mounted to the wall. It looked like

the most comfortable couch she’d ever seen.

“Sit,” he barked.

Without thinking, she sat down and wrapped her arms around herself, shivering. No matter how

hard she tried, she couldn’t seem to get her teeth to stop chattering. Wolf immediately started

wrapping her in throw blankets that had been thrown over the back of the couch.

“Be right back,” he muttered before he disappeared.

Shit. She felt so bad. He didn’t seem happy that she was there or that he was having to take care

of her. What had she been thinking going with him?

Pulling the blankets off, Lucy stood and made her way to the front door. She looked around for the

kitten but didn’t see it anywhere. It would probably be better off staying with Wolf anyway. Letting

out a sigh, she reached for the doorknob but got startled when Wolf came stomping her way.

“What the hell are you doing?”

His voice was thick and deep. Terrifying, too, if she were totally honest. He did not sound happy.

She looked up into his dark brown, narrowed eyes and clenched jaw and began shifting from foot

to foot.

“I… um… I’m sorry I ruined your evening. I shouldn’t have come here with you. I don’t need you

to take care of me,” she mumbled.

Before she could react, Wolf picked her up in his arms and carried her back to the living room

where he set her back on the couch and started covering her with blankets again.

Pointing his finger at her, he raised his eyebrows. “Stay.”

Seriously? How was she supposed to respond to that? In the most logical way possible, of course.

So, she barked.

His eyes widened as he straightened to his full height. Which was terrifyingly tall. But just

because he was big and scary didn’t mean he could just boss her around.

“Did you just bark at me?”

“You told me to stay like I was a dog, so I responded like a dog,” she snapped.

He eyed her for a long moment before grumbling something under his breath as he walked away.

A moment later, he returned with a pile of blankets in his arms. Without a word, he started wrapping

the blankets around her until she was pretty sure she looked like just a heap of fabric.

“Okay, that’s enough blankets, Wolf. Sheesh. I’m going to overheat under all these,” she said

incredulously.

When he backed away from her, she felt herself wilt. He didn’t want to be near her because she

probably stunk.

Pulling his phone from his back pocket, Wolf tapped on the screen several times before he lifted it

to his ear. He paused mid-stride and looked down at her with a softer expression.

“You didn’t ruin my evening and I’m certain that you do need someone to take care of you, little

girl,” he told her before walking toward the open kitchen.

“Any word from Tate? Yeah. I need him here. I need kitty litter, too, and some cat food. And clean

panties and pajamas. Yeah. Yeah. No. Bring Addie.”

Wolf set his phone on the counter and started opening and closing cupboards. The smell of herbs

and spices cooking made her stomach grumble loudly. Heat rose to her cheeks, and she hoped that the

blankets muffled the sound enough that he hadn’t heard it.

A few minutes later, he walked over and sat beside her on the couch, holding a bowl of soup in

his hand. The soup and the spoon were both pink and plastic. They were definitely not something

she’d expect someone like Wolf to use.

“Do you have kids?” she blurted.

“No,” he said casually. “Here, this should help warm you up and fill your tummy at the same

time.”

She tried moving her arms to free them of the blankets, but Wolf shook his head.

“Leave them. I’ll feed you. Are you allergic to anything?”

“No. I can feed myself, though.”

He pinned her with a stern look that had her keeping her hands where they were. “I’m sure you

can but I’m going to feed you this time.”

As he carefully spooned up some soup, she watched in awe as he blew on it for several seconds

before lifting the spoon to her lips. Their eyes locked as she opened her mouth and then moaned as the

flavors hit her tongue.

How long had it been since she’d had a real meal like this? She couldn’t even remember.

Wolf fed her in silence for several minutes, blowing on each spoonful before offering it to her.

“My brother and his girlfriend are going to bring you some clothes and some stuff for the cat. They

live just across the street. And I have a friend who is a doctor that is coming to take care of your cut.

You want to tell me where the bruises and cut came from?”

No. She didn’t really. But she supposed she owed him an explanation considering she was in his

house being taken care of by him.

“I was mugged by some other homeless people, and when I tried to fight them off, all three of

them came at me,” she said quietly.

His jaw tightened, something she noticed he did a lot when she said something he didn’t like.

“Some bruises are fresh, and some are yellowing, which means they’re older. Where did those

come from?”

Yeah, she really didn’t want to get into all that. And how was he such an expert on bruises?

Thankfully, she didn’t have to respond because the doorbell rang, interrupting their conversation.

“We’re not done talking about this.” Wolf pointed to her as he got up to answer the door.

Well, shoot. Maybe he would forget.

Ha! Unlikely. He doesn’t seem like a man who forgets. He seems like the type to hold onto

everything.

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