Wild Magic (Wilding Pack Wolves 6) - New Adult Paranormal Romance (4 page)

Holy shit, she’s a beautiful woman.

That was pretty much the entirety of the thoughts running through Daniel’s brain all morning. He took the other white wolves on their typical morning run through the forest, bringing Troy along as well. Daniel grilled him about his intentions with Zoe, but Troy seemed an all-around standup guy. Then the mayor made an appearance, looking for Zoe, which raised Daniel’s alarm bells, but the man had been decent as far as humans went and had been helping out another white wolf, Grace Krepky, since she declared her intent to run for Congress. Then Daniel had to check in with the Joint Base where he was technically stationed—he was on leave, but he had to keep the wheels on in his absence. When he finally made it back up the mountain to the estate, it was late afternoon, and time for another round of training with the white wolves.

But through all of that, ever-present in his mind was an image of Skylar’s perky little body, nipples stiff in the morning air, standing boldly naked in front of him.

Witches do all kinds of things naked.

Jesus H. Christ.
He’d spent half the morning fighting a raging hard-on. He rubbed his hand across his face as he pulled into the estate’s parking lot, trying to wipe away that thought before it gave him another one. It wasn’t just her insanely hot body that got under his skin, though—it was that smart mouth and those emerald-green, flirtatious eyes. He thought for a moment this morning that he’d caught her off guard when he’d been out for his early-morning solo-run. What in the world was she doing naked in the forest, anyway? Then she’d strutted over and tried to
touch
him again—which both thrilled his wolf for some crazy reason and terrified him for much more sane ones. Daniel had done a couple of tours overseas, but in Afghanistan, only a bullet or bomb could kill you—witches were a whole new level of threat.

And yet… he was lusting after her like she was the hottest wolf he’d ever seen.

Daniel climbed out of his car, slammed the door shut, and leaned against it for a moment, getting his bearings before tromping out to the field again. She would be there. He had to have his head on straight. He mentally ticked off all the reasons why lusting after Skylar-the-Witch was a really, really bad idea.

First,
she was a witch.

Second… really, there didn’t need to be a second, because
she was a witch…
but second, witches weren’t mate-material. Jaxson, the head of the Riverwise security firm Daniel had been coordinating with, had mated with a half-witch, but that was a special circumstance. And an orphan half-witch is an entirely different thing than a full-blooded witch from one of the most powerful covens in the city—Daniel had checked her out during his morning errands. This girl wasn’t his soul mate—which meant hot and fast sex, one and done, enjoying the hell out of each other’s bodies until they were too exhausted to go at it anymore… and fuck, his hard-on was making an appearance again.

And his wolf was going nuts. If he had his way, they’d march out to the field and haul Skylar back to his room to play out that little scenario he’d just conjured in his mind.

Daniel turned around to face his car, bracing his hands on the roof and telling his inner wolf to
shut the hell up.
He wasn’t done counting the reasons why sex with Skylar was a really, really bad idea. So besides the obvious and painful fact that she was a witch, and besides the fact that this would never be anything other than hot, dangerous sex with a woman who could kill him with a touch, the third reason was just practical… and the most compelling. He was putting together a team of magical wolves, and she was an expert in magic. Catching the Wolf Hunter was his prime mission—lives were at stake, and that counted a hell of a lot more than getting laid. And, as much as he hated to admit it, the team was already radically better at wielding their magic with her help. The last thing he should be thinking about was messing that up by getting naked with Skylar Starling.

Which was precisely why he refused to shift to human in the forest this morning—she would have seen his raging hard-on, and things would have gotten even more massively awkward than they already were. And the team had to be his focus.

Right.
Stay on track, Wilding.
And that went double for his beast. 
He could think about women and mating and all of that later, after the Wolf Hunter was behind bars, or even better, dead.

Daniel pushed away from the car and headed toward the field. He was late—he could tell by the magic light-balls whizzing through the air already. He hated being late. He had a well-deserved reputation in the sprawling, extended Wilding family for being a rule-follower. It wasn’t just the Army that did that to him—it was his own damn father, Colonel Astor Wilding, now up on charges for his part in the shifter experiments he authorized on his own son, Noah, as well as countless other wolves. Being the straight-arrow was what allowed Daniel to be the one to put his own father behind bars. And it was what would eventually bring down the Wolf Hunter as well.

Besides, Daniel had learned early on that how a wolf treated a woman said more about him as a man than just about anything else he did—he’d gotten that lesson from his father as well, watching him slowly destroy his mother with abuse and neglect until she took her own life. Daniel, Noah, and their older sister, Piper, were just kids when it happened. But it had made a forever mark on his soul. He
owed it
to his mom to be a better man than his father ever was—and when Daniel found a woman he loved, he would make her his mate and treat her right. It wasn’t like he hadn’t had casual sex before, but it was always with someone who at least had the potential to be that woman—the one he would cherish for life. So far, he hadn’t found her… but Skylar Starling definitely wasn’t
the one.
And chasing after hot witches for casual sex was
nowhere
on the agenda—either in the hunt for the Wolf Hunter
or
in his normal life, if and when he ever got back to having one.

Out in the field, Kaden and Owen were firing magic shots back and forth. Noah was paired up with Skylar doing the same. The grass crunched under Daniel’s boots as he crossed the field, and the noise seemed to catch Skylar’s attention first. He gave her a quick nod before she had to look away to catch an incoming fireball from Noah—if she were planning on bringing up their encounter in the forest this morning, he’d roll with it, but
he
certainly wouldn’t be the one to talk first. His job was to keep the group together.

Although it was clear from the practice they were doing—Kaden was starting to mess around with fancy maneuvers, like catching the balls behind his back—that they didn’t have much need for Daniel, not really. Sure, he could keep the group on task and cohesive, but this wasn’t like the Army, where the leader usually had the most skills, not the least. The fact that Daniel
wasn’t
a witch or a wolf with witch powers actually hampered him in his work—but that didn’t mean he was keen on becoming one. Like he told Troy this morning during their run, being a white wolf was a source of shame in the Wilding family, due to their family history of murder and dissolution of the pack. If Daniel could bring down the Wolf Hunter without having to actually bring out the white wolf gene hidden inside him, he’d take that option all day long.

“Hey, man, you made it,” Noah said as Daniel approached.

“I had some things to take care of.”

Noah trapped the ball Skylar tossed to him, levitating it between his two hands, one on top and one below. He squinted at Daniel. “You okay? You’re like
never
late.”

“I’m fine,” Daniel ground out, flicking a look to Skylar.

She was watching him with wide eyes, but her dusty-pink lips were pressed tight. Apparently, she was opting for staying quiet about this morning as well.

Good. “Looks like you guys are getting a handle on this magic hot potato game you’ve got going,” he said, keeping his voice all business. He tipped his head to Skylar. “But I’m guessing any encounter with the Wolf Hunter will be closer to a deadly version of dodgeball. Any suggestions on how they can train for that?”

Those lips curved up into a small smile. “Depends. How much of the forest can we burn?”

Daniel glanced around—they’d already scarred up the edges of the forest and patches of the field pretty good. “As little as possible? I’d like to not get kicked out by Mama River.”

That sobered her up. “Sounds like we should work more on control, then. Maybe smaller power, precision strikes?”

He gave her a nod. “Sounds good. Although, I don’t really know how that works.”

“Like this?” Noah asked. He had conjured a ball of magic that was tiny—the size of a golf ball rather than a basketball.

“Nice,” Skylar said with a smile. “Now, try to hit this…” She waved her hands in a circular motion, and the wispy blue magic that formed between them took the shape of a bird. When she flung her hands out, the bird took flight, rising quickly above the group.

Noah reared both arms back, still cradling his small ball of magic, then let it fly, zooming up after the escaping bird-magic. It went sailing past, missing the target, then arcing over the field.

“I’ve got it!” Kaden called, running backward like an outfielder going for a deep field catch. Noah’s small ball of energy was gaining speed on the way down, but Kaden managed to scoop it off the tops of the long grass before it scorched anything too badly. He grinned and held it up in triumph.

The magic bird had circled back to Skylar.

“Let me try again,” Noah said, already conjuring another ball.

“One at a time,” Skylar said with a laugh. “Kaden, you’re up!” She flung the bird out again, and this time, Kaden tried to shoot it down. He also missed, and Noah had to bobble his magic ball to a chuckling Skylar so he could attempt to catch Kaden’s missed shot. He failed, and it burned a divot in the field. Noah stomped out the flames, then turned back with a grin, beckoning Skylar to return his conjured ball for another try.

Owen joined in next, and the four of them were having entirely too much fun trying to kill Skylar’s magic bird-target. Daniel kept off to the side, arms folded, watching them and feeling pretty useless. He was relieved to see Zoe and Troy heading out to the field. He’d meant to check in on her after her visit with the mayor, but he hadn’t had the chance. Plus it would be nice not to be the only normal, not super-powered wolf hanging out with the superheroes.

Zoe’s expression was locked down as she strode across the field to them, and Troy had a pinched, nervous look on his face—what was that about? Daniel knew Troy had a thing for Zoe. Had something gone down between them? He hoped that wasn’t something
else
he’d have to manage—he’d rather Troy was able to stick around and keep him company.

“Hey, Zo,” Daniel called as they approached. “How’re you doing?” He flicked a look to Troy, but he was keeping it buttoned up.

“Fine,” she said. “But I’ve got something tell you.” She glanced at Troy, and he gave her an encouraging nod.

Okay…
“Yeah? What’s that?” Daniel asked. The magical play in the field came to a halt as the others caught the tension stringing through Zoe’s voice.

She met his concerned look with one that was entirely too twisted up for his liking. “Well, turns out that white wolf gene we have floating around our family? I have it.”

Daniel’s arms unlocked and dropped to his side. “Wait… what? You’re a white wolf?”
How did he not know this?
Was this a new thing? He knew she had just recently shifted for the first time when her lab was firebombed…

Troy stood behind her, his hand at the small of her back. “It’s okay,” he said softly.

Shit.
She was coming out to them, which obviously terrified her, and Daniel was making it worse. What kind of crappy cousin was he?

Zoe stepped away from Troy and cleared her throat. “Yes, I am,” she said, loud enough for the others in the field to hear. They were drawing closer anyway. “And I’ve done a little magic before.”

The tremor in her voice as she said this wrenched his stomach. So this
wasn’t
a new thing—she’d been hiding this for a while. And he wasn’t making this coming out any easier on her.

He threw out his arms dramatically. “Well,
fuck!
Why am I the only loser here with no magical powers?”

That seemed to draw a smile out of her, which made him feel slightly better.

“Thanks, bro,” Troy called from behind her. “Good to know I’m in the loser category.”

Daniel dropped his arms. Man, he just couldn’t seem to get this right. “Oh, hey, Troy, I didn’t mean—”

But Troy was laughing. “I’m totally yanking your chain, man.”

Skylar’s voice came from behind Daniel, suddenly close. “I’ll bring out your inner witch, hot stuff.”

Sweet Jesus.
He couldn’t help the jolt that her words sent through his body. He turned to face her, struggling for words about why this was neither the time nor the place—

“Go ahead, Daniel,” Zoe called out, challenging him. “You go first.”

Crap.
Skylar’s face lit up, and before he could object, she was tugging him out into the field. “Come on, you big baby. There’s nothing to be scared of.”

Oh, yes there is.
And not just the fact that her touch on his arm was sending those tingly jolts of
something
through his skin again. He was not making that up—there was genuinely some kind of pleasure-spark when they touched—but he couldn’t tell if she felt it, too.

Owen, Noah, and Kaden were gathering around for the show. And if Zoe was willing to come out like this, especially if that meant another white wolf for the team, he should at least appear to be trying to bring out his own white wolf. If it even existed. He definitely had a red-blooded black-furred
normal
wolf… because it was currently panting over the possibility of getting more of that electric touch from Skylar. But she had backed off, giving him some room—to do what, he wasn’t at all sure.

“Close your eyes and connect with your wolf,” Skylar said. “That seems to be how the others tap into it and control it.”