Free FireWolf by Viola Grace Page A

Triple A.
    Hailey dug her cell out and looked at it in despair. She had used the last of her battery to call her mother and forgotten to put it on the charger, again. “Shit.”
    Out of the snow, the wolf loomed in front of her. The eyes gave him away.
    “Hello, Mr. Brown.”
    He looked confused, but whined and knelt beside her. Even crouched, his back was almost as tall as her head. He rubbed her with this muzzle and his ears flicked. He wanted her on his back.
    “That’s quite the turn of positions, but since I am in the category of eventually freezing, why not?”
    The quizzical noise he made was cute.
    “Normally guys are trying to get me on my back.” She must have been giddy with fire, fury and shock. Normally she would not have been so chipper to see someone who had just been in a bidding war for her body. But then again, this was definitely not normal.
    She had to climb onto her car to get on his back, but once he stood up, she nestled in as snugly as she could. Her hands gripped the ruff around his neck, her belly was flat against his spine and her legs were bent to touch his haunches. Her position was instinctive, but it was a good instinct. As he began to run through the blizzard, she rocked with him, her body warm against his fur and her face protected by his ruff. If she hadn’t been a moron and left her jacket at her grandfather’s home, she might not have taken him up on his non-verbal offer.
    His fur was silky soft, not wiry as she had thought it would be and so warm she almost fell asleep. The rocking rhythm of his stride was soporific. Her clenched hands held her in place, but she was not going to be able to hold on forever.
    Hailey’s head was pounding furiously, her mind was getting a bit fuzzy as she looked up and saw a building perched on the side of the road. It was a little odd because she could have sworn that when she drove on that road coming in, there had been a sheer cliff face in that spot.
    Her ride slowed to a jagged trot and brought her right to the door. The signage proclaimed it Café Nowhere but it looked warm and welcoming. The glass door pushed open and a woman with a nametag proclaiming her to be Cathy, looked up at Hailey where she clung to the wolf.
    “Come in, poor thing. You must be frozen.”
    Her words spurred Hailey to unclench her hands and slide off her fuzzy mount. As soon as she was off his back, a very naked Mr. Brown was at her side.
    “Excuse me, Cathy, but is there a chance that there is a change of clothing nearby? I seem to have misplaced my pants.” He shooed Hailey into the empty café.
    “I’ll find something.” Cathy scampered off, leaving Hailey with her mystery rescuer.
    Hailey took a position in the center booth with a view to the snowstorm out the window. Mr. Brown slid in across from her.
    “You know, I don’t envy you standing up after sitting naked on vinyl.” It was as good a conversation starter as any.
    “Hailey McMaster.”
    It was said on a growl, but growls weren’t that warm. The erection he had been sporting was now hidden by the Formica tabletop and she was grateful for the coverage. It was damned distracting to have that thick rod waving at her in the snow.
    “That’s my name, what’s yours?”
    “Hector Anderson, lone Alpha in association with the Morning Claw Clan.”
    She fidgeted a little, but nodded in acknowledgement of his name. “So, who won the bidding after I left? I was sorry to go, but I left some muffins in the oven and just remembered I needed to shave my legs.”
    He twitched his lips and was about to answer her when a tall blond man stood next to their booth and handed them menus.
    “Hello, I am Adam and today our special is hot wings and nachos.”
    “That sounds wonderful, Adam, and I was just wondering, how many naked werewolves frequent your establishment? You and Cathy both seem awfully calm.”
    “It isn’t the strangest thing we have seen, miss.” His lips twitched a little, as if he had forgotten