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I couldn’t tell Nic He didn’t believe in ic He’d take me to the nearest hospital, lock me up and throay the key Then we’d have real trouble, since my medication had blown up with the compound

Me, locked inside, with the full moon less than a week away Yeah, trouble However, that was the least of my worries at the moment

We reached the shed; Nic inspected the place with typical FBI precision No one was inside No one had tampered with the ATV

"I’ll drive," 1 said

"I don’t think so"

"You don’t get to think I knohere we’re going"

"I could figure it out," he grumbled, but he climbed on behind me

I could tell by the tenseness of Nic’s thighs against mine, and the tiny starts he was unable to stop every time the ATV tipped a little too far to one side, that he wasn’t used to riding them, and he didn’t care for anyone else to be in control

We reached the highway, a loose terra for any paved road in the vicinity, and I took off at the fastest clip the ATV would allow - about thirtyat top speed without a hel to fear frooing to take us two hours or et to town," he shouted

"Got a better idea?"

His silence was answer enough

We traveled at a pace slower than the average wolf, which could run forty miles per hour on a bad day

Super-wolves, in other words, lycanthropes, could top that speed with ease

As I drove I considered the icon in my pocket Was the totem a clue? A threat? An accident? I needed to show the talisman to Will Cadotte, our expert on Native Aone to Wisconsin with Edward

Had the thing truly growled? I would have said no, except Nic had heard it, too

I’d never observed any supernatural behavior from the black totem, but that didn’t mean there hadn’t been any

Jessie McQuade, a J-S agent and former police officer, swore she’d seen the totem move on its own

Who was I to say she was nuts?

We continued in silence for close to an hour Talking was pointless with the roar of the motor and the thunder of the wind But I didn’t need words to hear Nic loud and clear The press of his thighs wasn’t the only thing I felt

He’d missed me, in more ways than one

His palms rode my waist; his thumbs slid under my suit coat and toyed with the skin just above my panty hose His breath teased the hair that had fallen loose from my customary French twist

I had to be honest with hiain, despite the treacherous response of my body to his I had too many secrets I couldn’t share Too much work that had to be done Too many monsters that wantedhim to cup s wide as I straddled the seat, the wind shot upstirred His fingertips grazed the swell of my rear

"Nic," I said Protest, plea - I wasn’t sure Didn’t ht

Snow began to fall - thick, fluffy flakes that would soon obscure the road I had to concentrate We needed to reach a town before the storm hit, or worse I was already half-frozen and I was certain Nic was, too

But it was impossible to think as Nic’s hand slid across ainst lanced down My skirt was hiked to s, ers, excited er slid lower and stroked hway except us

Or so I thought

I lifted e black wolf in the ht wheel slipped off the pavement, and ere airborne

Providence was on our side, and ere thrown clear Most ATV injuries are the result of theon top of the riders As it was, I landed onthe pain, I scra frantically for Nic I found hi

The wolf swung his head toward ray, human eyes shone in a feral face "Billy," I murmured