Chapter 16: Primordial instincts (part II)

****James

For the rest of the afternoon things went more or less well. Although I was forced every moment to fight the beast in an unequal battle, circling Brooke like a predator to always position myself upwind and away from her scent, I had managed to maintain a semblance of control that only an exhausted man could maintain. . No other werewolf could do it.

Fatigue, by the time the sun set, had transformed into a stressful internal exhaustion that reduced any remaining strength to pieces. My head was throbbing, my lungs were burning, every nerve ending was destroyed. But what was most looking forward to a moment of peace was his groin.

He pulsed the entire time, reacting helplessly to Brooke's every movement who, without knowing how much her innocent attitude could provoke the beast, did nothing to maintain the distance he had initially demanded.

He walked past me, more than once placing his hands on mine to learn the right movements to direct the camera. She had blown on me. Without any intention of provoking me, but managing to do so anyway.

As my employee she behaved impeccably and naturally as a woman. I was the one who was thinking like crazy the whole time, weighing hundreds, thousands of excuses to drag her into the forest and lay her on the ground, in the damp leaves, beneath me.

I was exhausted. I no longer had any awareness of my body. That's why, in the split second she bent down to pick up the spare battery, I gave in and stood behind her without making a sound. My hands tingled with the need to touch her, my breathing quickened and I let down all barriers, letting the need take control.

In that split second in my mind I had already taken off her clothes, scratched her white back and thrown her on the floor. My fangs zigzagged across the sensitive part of her neck while with the pressure of my thighs I opened hers wide, exposing that hot spot that sooner or later I would have to violate to turn her into my partner.

It was a sinful thought that made my throat dry and my head pound. My impulse to possess her was at its limit, it became selfish, ready to ruin all my attempts to preserve her safety.

I started to grab her shoulders and throw her onto the grass, but she straightened up, shaking her head to fix the hair that had fallen in her face. I slowly reached up against her brown hair, ready to grasp it in my fist and force her head back to kiss her neck.

And again in my mind I imagined her naked body writhing excitedly against mine. I would have tried my best to enter her slowly, to get used to her calmly, and to treat her with the respect that, as my companion, she deserved on all fronts.

It was only thanks to nightfall and Sergeant Malloy's subsequent return to base that I was able to put into practice the plan I had drawn up in this moment of despair.

Frustrated, I lowered her arm and sighed, moving a strand of her hair. Brooke turned and stumbled back, surprised to find me behind her.

“Admit it!” she laughed. “You were making sure I didn't drop the spare battery.”

Oh! If only she knew how close she came to being mine. “Let's just say it would have been the least serious damage you've done all day.”

“Come on, Mr. Farrow, don't be exaggerated.” she began to laugh, no doubt remembering when she slipped to the floor, dragging all the artificial lamps with her. She still had a patch of grass in her pants, at thigh height, and every time I looked at it, I had to hold back a laugh.

“One day I'll show you the cost of all this equipment so you'll understand why, instead of laughing, I run the risk of going bald with anxiety.”

“I promise you that from now on I will be more careful.”

“Are you afraid that the cost of the lamps will be deducted from your salary?”

“Actually, it scares me more to see him go bald. You have beautiful hair, it's a shame you have to give up being around me for a single afternoon.”

“Being by your side for a single short afternoon didn't make me give up my hair, but rather twenty years of life.”

She opened her mouth in feigned indignation, then let out another laugh and gave me a playful punch that I barely registered.

“You really are a monster, Mr. Farrow.”

I allowed myself a smile. “You don't know how much.”

“I suspect you can't wait to show me.”

“Oh!” I shook my head, smiling even more. “I would do it in exactly three seconds if the old man wasn't here.”

“The old man?”

I pointed with my thumb to a spot behind me and she stood on tiptoe to peer out, spotting Sergeant Malloy walking slowly toward the base at the bottom of the hill where we had a view of the entire valley.

“How did you realize the pher review?”

“I heard him coming.” I replied without reasoning and immediately bit my tongue.

“He's more than three hundred meters away from us. What type of hearing do you have?” she stuttered confused.

“It's not my fault you're so distracted.” I tried to flip the omelet. “His car is rubbish, even a deaf person could hear it.”

She looked at the path separating us from the control base and considered my explanation. Did she believe me? A small part of me hoped not. It was time for this woman to gradually begin to absorb and metabolize all the details that would sooner or later lead her to suspect that I was in fact the monster from the fairy tales.

This suspicion, however, would have caused her to escape from me, turning her into my prey once again, and the part of me that hoped she would have believed my explanation was actually too exhausted to resist the temptation to hunt her down. and chase her.

“You are hungry?” I tried desperately to divert the flow of his thoughts.

“Dying.”

“Come then.” I reached out to grab her hand, but she didn't notice. Or at least that's what I expected. “I brought you dinner.”

He looked up at the setting sun behind the peak, reflecting its last rays off the bare rocks that seemed to serve as a dividing line between day and night.

“Aren't we going back to the city?”

“Not today.” I replied, walking quickly.

The time came to let her know that I wouldn't take her home to her family, and I mentally prepared myself for her reaction. She would be exemplary, that was for sure.

“Mr. Farrow…” he ran after me, jumping from rock to rock. “What are you saying? What do you mean we won't go back to the city?”

“Did you think it would only take us an afternoon to prepare the campaign?” I pretended to be calm, increasing my pace. I had to get to Malloy before Brooke freaked out.

“Wait for me, please.” he panted, staggering to the last stone. “I thought we'd be back tomorrow. You didn't tell me we were staying the night.”

“I'm telling you now.”

“My mother will never abandon me, Mr. Farrow. She could come here and drag me away. You don't know her, but she can be truly scary. I assure you.”

I stopped suddenly. She wasn't afraid to spend the night with me, I rejoiced. Then I turned around and waited for her to catch up to me before extending my palm towards her.

“Give me your phone number.” I ordered. “I'll talk to your father.”

“He's not the problem. It's the mother who tends to be a little paranoid.”

“Parents are always the real problem.” I objected. “Now give me the phone.”

“Mr. Farrow, seriously, I don't…”

“Brooke!” I called back sternly. “Now!”

Intimidated, she reached into her jacket pocket and handed me her cell phone, looking at it like it was about to explode. Her eagerness was so delicious that it triggered a vortex of emotions in me that relegated the desire I had to make her mine to an ancient corner of my brain. I wanted more, I realized, confused by my desire to protect her.

Her immaculate spirit, virgin to men and experiences that only an adult woman could boast, was the source that made my heart leap towards her. At first I had deluded myself into thinking that the impression would simply make me desire her body, but one day with her was enough to realize I was done.

I was the most powerful Alpha in Minnesota, leader of two hundred wolves and feared by every pack on the West Coast. Was I still? Could I still consider myself strong after having given all my certainty to a woman who had never heard my name?

They said imprinting and a partner made us stronger, while I felt like a puppet with no will of my own. No more courage. The latter had gone to hell, taken hostage by a little girl who could barely look me in the eye and who didn't even remotely suspect the effort she was making to keep me away from her.

I didn't feel the need to protect her because I was aware that her death would also be the death of the pack and mine. I felt I had to do this because of his naive insolence and his immaculate predisposition to get into trouble.

She didn't even notice that Alfred, a huge wolf, had been scratching us all day. How could I leave her alone from now on?

“What is your father's name?” I asked casually, just before a male voice sounded on the cell phone.

“Tony.” she stammered, consciously terrified by what she was about to hear.

“She's practically a child.” I thought with a small smile.

Then I suddenly became serious again and looked away so as not to let that scared face distract me. “Mr. Tony, good evening, I'm Jamesl Farrow.”

My fame preceded me and I didn't need to explain who I was.

“Good evening, Mr. Farrow. Is Becky okay?”

I looked at her sideways for a fraction of the second one. “A little scared to be honest.”

“Did something happen?” he was alarmed.

“Nothing to worry about. More than anything, you are unjustifiably scared by your reaction, Mr. Tony. We haven't finished planning the campaign yet and it's imperative that we finish everything by the weekend. I need your daughter here at the base for the next few days.”

“You mean at night too?” he changed his tone, making him colder.

“Yes, since I don't intend to film at night without an assistant. This, you will notice, would lead to a significant slowdown of work.”

He remained silent for a few seconds, during which I recognized a female voice addressing my future father-in-law.

“My daughter can't stay out overnight... she also doesn't have the right or spare equipment.”

“I'll take care of it myself.”

“You, Mr. Farrow?” again the tone resembled a layer of ice.

“Yes, I... Mr. Tony.” my balls were starting to spin. “Believe me, I understand your hesitations and I understand your position. I hope you are sagacious enough to understand mine.”

Once again he remained silent, quietly consulting the woman beside him. I assumed she was Brooke's mother.

“Mr. Farrow, you will realize that it may seem inappropriate if anyone knows that my daughter spent the night with her boss.”

“It's three nights.” I corrected him. “And don't forget that your daughter and I will not be alone. Malloy will remain at the base. You can decide to believe me or not, but I care deeply about the reputation of my employees.”

“Will Malloy stay with you?”

I rolled my eyes and held back a sigh. Was he deaf?

“Most of the time.”

“In that case I don't have much objection.” he calmed down instantly. “If Brooke also agrees, let's be clear.”

I watched her out of the corner of my eye and noticed she was nervously biting her nails. I instinctively grabbed her fingers and pulled them away from her mouth, clicking my tongue twice against the roof of her mouth in denial.

“Brooke has a promising career. It would be a shame not to explore her potential for fear of gossip.” I provoked.

“Without a doubt, Mr. Farrow.”

“So let me get this straight, because I have no intention of spending the night calming your daughter or creating any unpleasant precedents with her and your wife. Do I have your permission to spend the night with Brooke?”

Her eyes widened and instinctively tried to snatch the cell phone from my hands. I blocked her wrist and placed a finger in front of her nose, mimicking a silent “sssh” to tell her not to protest.

“Of course, Mr. Farrow. However, I make one recommendation: please keep an eye on her, she is not used to moving around in the forest in the dark and the area is dangerous.”

A smile escaped me. “Now I'm going to take care of her.”