She closed her eyes and released his gaze.

Crap, she was as much a lure as her sister. Best to keep distance between himself and the temptress.

He caught Silva’s smug smile, his body heated to boiling, and he turned on his heel and stalked out of the room.

Boots tromped down the hospital hall, then everything grew quiet. The medicine took hold, the tranquility drawing her into another world, and Lelandi’s heart lightened at the scene before her.

Mist filled her vision, and he came to her.

Naked. His bronzed body glistening in the brilliant light of the full moon. Proud, determined, his mission—to ravish her—again.

So what took him so long?

Tall with broad shoulders, his chest magnificently muscled, moving with the grace and ease of a wolf, he stalked toward her. Whereas most of her kind were shorter and the ones in power, squatter, more bull-like, this man was Adonis reborn.

She still couldn’t see his face, doused in shadows, teasing her, making her strain to see his features. Her eyes shifted to his chest. Lower. To his erection. He was ready for her. Always ready, his sex jutting upward surrounded by sable curls.

She breathed in deeply, trying to smell his unique scent, wishing she could locate him in the real world upon waking, but her keen wolf senses couldn’t pick up his manly scent—not in a dream.

Reclining on the grass on her side, she watched him as he strode toward her, every hard muscle rippling with his gait. Yet, just the vision of him five months ago had been enough to bring her into her first wolf heat, way long overdue. How could a fantasy lover have brought that about?

She wanted to call out his name like a lover would her mate, but she couldn’t fathom what it was. The warm summer breeze stirred the Douglas firs, casting dancing moonlight across his body. His lips turned up slightly, bemused. His mouth, his sturdy jawline, his shoulder-length sable hair ruffled by the breeze. Show me more! She wanted to see his eyes, his nose, the rest of his face—but as much as she strained to see them, she couldn’t—the rest of his features remained hidden in the black void.

He towered over her, took in a deep breath, and tried to smell her. She saw the intake of his breath, knew what he was attempting to do. A queer feeling of unease washed over her. She squashed the unwelcome worry. He was not real. Just the most consummate lover a dream could conjure up.

He lay down beside her, and she ran her finger over his brow, finding it furrowed. For the first time since their union, he seemed contemplative, unrushed, as if he wanted more than the sex they shared.

Leaning over, he nuzzled her lips with his mouth, licking them, smiling. Positioning himself closer, he rested his head on his hand and appeared to study her. She opened her mouth to speak, but the words would never come. He touched her hair, ran his fingers through the strands, held them to his nose and took a deep breath.

Could he smell her scent when she couldn’t sense his?

He traced her arm, down to her hip, his heated touch stirring a fire across her sensitive skin. She drew close, pressing her breasts against his chest, took his face in her hands, and moved her lips against his in a searing kiss. She swore she heard him growl this time, but then he glanced over his shoulder, as if something in the woods had distracted him. Danger?

He shook his head and gave her a lusty smile.Knowingly, she returned the expression, her nipples already taut from touching his lightly furred chest, her short curly hairs damp with need, her core aching for his penetration.

In a heartbeat, he moved her onto her back, pushed her legs apart with his knee, and thrust his rigid shaft deep inside her. His mouth on hers, he conquered her, and she gave into the rush of heat, the burning desire he stirred within her, the flickering flames consuming her as she climbed toward the ice-white moon.

Their bodies slick, they slid against each other, panting, thrusting, deepening the bond until she felt the mind-shattering release, the orgasm crashing through her like a heated summer storm.

Muffled voices farther down the hall invaded Lelandi’s private, scattered thoughts.

Her dream lover slipped away into the shadows, vanishing, the moon winked out, and the sun took its place, peeking through the blinds. She wished she were back in the woods with her fantasy lover, no cares in the world but of being pleasured by him and pleasuring him in return. Groaning, Lelandi tried to run her hands through her tangled hair, her skin sweaty from her romp with him.

But something held her down—him?

Chapter 6

LELANDI OPENED HER EYES AND BRILLIANT WHITE LIGHTS flooded her vision. Where was the ceiling fan in her bedroom? She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to orient herself. The odor of antiseptics filled the air. Her eyes popped open. White sheets, railings caging her in on an elevated narrow bed. What the…

She tried to reach up, to rub her temple as her thoughts spun out of control, but she couldn’t. Leather restraints wrapped around her wrists pinned her to the bed—not the man of her dreams.

Her sister. Oh, God, and her parents, too, were dead.

Tears filled her eyes and her heart lodged like a lump of stone in her throat. She sobbed with a strangled whimper and a teary haze blurred her vision. Yanking at the restraints, she fought the mounting frustration, her body heating by degrees.

Closing her eyes, she licked her dry lips. What she wouldn’t give for an icy pink lemonade. Summer heat had returned with a vengeance, and she felt like she’d been burned to a crisp under the broiling sun like she had at the beach in South Padre Island a few years back.

A rustling noise caught her attention—Silva searching through Lelandi’s purse.

Silva smiled, her ruby lips glistening with fresh gloss, a coating of brown eye shadow emphasizing the darkness of her coffee-colored eyes. “No driver’s license. How’d you get to Silver Town? No rental cars unaccounted for. Deputy Sheriff Trevor checked the cars parked around town, and none belong to a Larissa Catterton.”

It finally dawned on Lelandi. Her sister had switched first names with her. What a mess. “Catterton?”

Silva tsked. “So that wasn’t Lelandi’s last name.”

No, and Lelandi wasn’t her first name either, although no one had listened to her the times she’d corrected them before.

“So what is your real last name?” Silva poured a cup of ice water for her, then set it on the table.

With her wrists secured, Lelandi couldn’t reach the water. “Lelandi.” She wasn’t about to reveal her real last name. “I’m… I’m burning up.”

Silva’s eyes widened, and she hurried over to the bed. Her long, icy fingers touched Lelandi’s forehead, instantly sending a chill streaking down her heated nerves. “You’re burning up.”

“I already said that,” Lelandi whispered, annoyed.

“Okay, okay, I’ll get some help.”

“Can you unfasten my chains,” Lelandi said sarcastically, “help me to sit up, and give me some ice water to drink?”

Silva shifted her worried gaze to the wristbands confining her. “I’ll get the doc.”

“Doctor Weber,” Lelandi said, firmly.

“Uhm, you’re at the hospital in Silver Town, sugar.

I’m sure Doctor Weber wouldn’t want to come all the way here from wherever you know him for one little ol’ patient.”

Lelandi yanked at the leather wrist bracelets to no avail.

If it had been a regular hospital, they probably would have used Velcro restraints, and those she could have tugged loose. She pulled at the restraints again, rattling the bed railings, but her movements were dulled and of no use, making her skin heat even more.

Satisfied Lelandi wasn’t getting loose, Silva left the room. Within minutes, her worried voice echoed down the hall while she spoke to someone about the fever. But before she or the doctor returned, a woman wearing blue scrubs walked into the room.

“I’m Nurse Grey.” The woman’s face was matronly, with kindly gray eyes and lips that were pale, but slightly turned up. “Looks like you’ve been rather cantankerous.”

“Not me,” Lelandi mumbled.

The nurse chuckled, the sound good-hearted, while she read Lelandi’s chart. “Busy girl. Heard some wild rumors. You’re looking into your sister’s death and already stirred up a heap of trouble.”

Lelandi had made a royal mess of it, but whoever had killed her sister was bound to slip up. When he did, she’d make him suffer for what he’d done. She closed her burning eyes.

“Seems a lot of trouble for a little red lupus garou to get into first time in Silver Town.”

Although the woman seemed nice enough, Lelandi didn’t trust her. Lelandi was probably giving their pack leader prime grade heartburn, and she wasn’t going away. Some would be wary, some outright rude, and some, sweet like Sam, Silva, and this Nurse Grey, but only on the surface. Deep down, pack mates stuck up for pack mates, and she was an outsider investigating them. Tom was another story. He definitely indicated he had the hots for her, but she wasn’t biting.

“If you’ll behave, I’ll remove the restraints.” After Nurse Grey took her temperature, she frowned. “Hundred and three.” She changed her antibiotics and removed the restraints.

Lelandi let out a low growl, and the woman smiled. Yeah, wolves didn’t like confinement, and she was ready to bite anyone who’d helped restrain her, including Ritka and the doctor.

“Doc wants you to drink fluids, but slowly. You might feel nauseous from the surgery and pain medication.”

“Nurse Grey,” Silva said, walking into the room. “I thought you were off today and tomorrow.”

The nurse shrugged. “I thought so, too. Seems we had some trouble during the night.”

Lelandi hid a smile, then sipped cold water from a straw, shivered, and slumped back under her covers. If she didn’t get more energy soon, she’d scream.

“She sure isn’t like Lelandi.” Silva studied her as if she could see her insides, too.

Nurse Grey refilled Lelandi’s water cup. “Looks the same, except for the hair.”