A Pack Forms Chapter 7
Luke
As he pulled away from the school, Luke hoped he hadn’t pushed Eli away. She seemed happy to see him.
He wasn’t twenty years old. Hell, he was over fifty. He knew he should have waited a day to contact her again. Luke couldn’t help himself.
He gave in to his desire for this woman like a randy teenager and sought her out. He still felt excited that he had got her phone number, just like a kid.
By the time he made it home, he was sighing at his behavior. It wasn’t as if this was his first rodeo. It had been over two years since he slept with a woman, but he’d been with beautiful women before. He just lost interest quickly when he knew it couldn’t last. Something about Eli was different.
Luke had a few longer relationships back before his thirty-fifth birthday. Once he even looked at rings. He never bought one.
He knew how to play the game, but Eli had him doing everything backward. She was dangerous.
Somehow, Eli was different. Why? Was he bored?
If he was honest with himself, he knew that wasn’t the reason she drew him. She was special, easy to talk to, and kind to him. Luke could never remember a woman treating him like that before. Kindness mattered.
The way she laughed made him smile, and her accent was sexy as hell. Already, they had some things in common. He wanted to protect her, and he felt compelled to keep her safe.
The one kiss they shared stirred something in his soul. Eli should be his. He would pursue her.
Luke had to do things carefully because it wasn’t a game.
He was seriously wondering if he might have stumbled upon his lifemate. Was she the one he’d been looking for? He was determined to find out.
Luke frowned at his thought process. When had he decided that Eli should be a possession?
She was a beautiful woman with a career and grown children. There was no way he was going to screw things up by turning into a cave dweller on her. He was better than that. He would still pursue her.
Shaking his head, he knew she’d gotten to him. What if she wanted nothing serious with him? She let him kiss her last night.
His thoughts were spinning, and he had to gain some mental balance. He needed stillness.
Luke headed for the closet. Maybe it was time to practice with his staff, his favorite weapon. He was good with a gun, and Luke could appreciate a well-made blade, but a stick was a thing of beauty. Artie had taught it to him years ago.
That was why the cane didn’t bother his pride. Now that his ankle was almost one hundred percent, he didn’t need the cane. He enjoyed having it as a short staff.
A little practice to clear his head was what he needed. He walked into his bedroom and opened the closet. It was the bigger one in which he kept his guns, ammo, knives, swords, and an assortment of other weapons.
Luke brought out the staff and disrobed down to his boxers. He pulled out a pair of loose-fitting joggers and put them on as he walked barefooted out the back door with a stick in his hand. It was cold, but the sun was still shining. He had an hour before it set.
He stepped out onto the wooden deck. There was no patio furniture. Luke deliberately placed the furniture in the gazebo down by the creek, so he had plenty of space.
He slipped into a stance easily. Luke moved through a few basic katas just to warm up, then things got serious. He sought the stillness in his mind, and it came to him easily.
As he stepped through the higher-level katas, his precise moves became faster and faster. The staff blurred with the speed of his movements.
Luke was sweating heavily as the sunset, and the soreness in his muscles felt good. He was breathing hard, resting his weight on the staff instead of his left ankle, when he finished. He felt calmer and his breathing slowed. Luke let the stillness fade away.
Luke finally turned to move inside and get a shower. That was when he saw her leaning against the corner of his house, staring at him. He froze for a moment, then blinked. Eli was still there.
It startled him to find her there. How long had she been waiting there, watching him? How engrossed in his thoughts of her had he been?
His excellent hearing made it almost impossible for someone to sneak up on him.
He did not allow his consternation at that to register on his face. The woman was truly dangerous.
Luke waved at her, and she walked over to him. He could tell that she was memorizing his form, noting the tattoo on his left pectoral, and marking his lack of footwear. His sweats were riding low on his hips, showing off his whole torso to her in the fading light.
As long as she seemed interested in looking, he was in no hurry to dress. With the sun gone, the air temperature was dropping fast in the fading light, but he did not notice.
A beautiful woman who was looking at him entranced Luke as if she wanted to taste him. He wanted to growl at her. The direwolf inside was in acceptance of that desire.
Eli was wearing tight-fitting black and gray workout clothes and tennis shoes. Her long, dark blonde hair was pulled up in a ponytail. She must have stopped by on her way back from the gym.
He just stood watching her muscles move under her clothes as she walked towards him, holding his phone. His eyes drank the vision of her as if she was the only thing he’d ever seen that was worth the look.
She was fluid-grace walking. Her footsteps were silent. He couldn’t hear her move, even though he was watching her move toward him.
Strange, he was entranced, lost in watching her move, noting the silence of her step. It felt as if he were watching a natural predator stalk its prey. He bet he was the only prey that had ever wanted desperately to be caught.
Thank you for your support! Welcome to the dream… Sincerely, -OK
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