Once Upon a Wolf - Excerpt

Hawk

The door to his cabin slammed open.

Hawk shot up on the bed and spotted a man standing in the doorway. Back-lit by the full moon, Hawk could tell the man was huge.

The man was also naked, carrying something in one hand.

And he was growling.

Hawk was on his feet but there was nowhere to run. The only escape was through the very door the large man was standing in. Thinking briefly about it now, March had made a big mistake not putting in a second way out of the cabin.

“What do you want?” Hawk cried out. He was frightened now, silently praying for the wolf to return and save him one more time.

“Ghost…want Hawk…” came the reply as the man’s nose went up, sniffing the air.

Had he heard the stranger correctly? The words were slurred, as if the man who said them had been deep in the cider. “W… what?”

The man took a step into the cabin, then shut the door. “Want – Hawk.”

His words were clearer, as if saying them for the second time was easier. A thought started to form. “Who…who are you?”

With the door closed and the bright moonlight blocked out, Hawk could begin to see slight details on the stranger. The low light of the fireplace helped with that along with the same bright moonlight pouring in from some of the small windows. Dark hair, and lots of it. Not only on the top of his head, but on his chest. Wide chest and thick thighs and just a hint of something large sticking out from in front of him.

The man pointed to himself. “Ghost,” he said. Then he pointed to Hawk and took another step toward him. “Hawk.”

Could it be? No! He had to be hallucinating. This man could, in no way, be Ghost, the wolf. Had he truly changed into a man? Exactly what Hawk had been wishing for all this time? Wishes of that magnitude just did not come true. They couldn’t. It was not sane to even think about.

But, of course, Hawk had never been accused of being sane anyway. Quite the opposite, in fact. Not only that, but the man smelled like Ghost. That wonderful heady amazing fragrance was Ghost. But…how? Except Ghost had magic so…maybe.

Or he could be dreaming.

He noticed Ghost was carrying something, a container of some kind. It actually looked familiar. Then he remembered. It was one that Hawk had seen that very afternoon.

The jelly? Oh! It was the jelly!

“How…” But Rufus and Jeremiah had been in a hurry to leave as well. Perhaps they were unable to grab the container when they did. It also proved that this was indeed Ghost.

Ghost dropped the container and came forward, taking a hold of Hawk’s shoulders. “Fingers,” he said, his stubbly face coming near as he bent over Hawk. “Fingers,” he repeated in a whisper as he moved his hands down Hawk’s arms, then up his back, pulling Hawk close. Hawk hadn’t really thought about the fact Ghost had skin of his own until that moment. It was glorious. Hawk wrapped his arms around Ghost and leaned against the bigger man. The skin on skin had an immediate effect on Hawk, one that wasn’t missed by Ghost. Hawk heard him inhale as he grabbed the hair at the back of Hawk’s head, while the other hand engulfed Hawk’s right nether cheek. “Hawk is mate.” He growled again. “Hawk is mine!”