Untamed Hearts (BBW Biker Werewolf Romance) by Catherine Vale Page A

teeth bared, back legs coiled, ready to jump.
    Adrian spun around, using Claire as a human shield. Against her back, she felt Adrian’s body begin to shift, his muscles rippling, growing tense and hot. He held up his hand, and Claire felt the blood drain from her face. It was covered with sparse yellow fur, the nails already starting to change into claws.
    “Take that jump, and she dies.” Adrian’s distorted voice, half-human, half-growl, filled the room. “It’s that simple.” The hand closed around her throat, the claws digging into her skin, a warm trickle of blood seeping down her neck.
    Claire struggled to breathe as he crushed her against his body. Gunner was still crouched on the floor in front of her ,and she met his eyes. She saw anger, confusion...doubt.
    “That’s right, big boy. Be a good boy and sit.”
    Adrian backed up through the ruined door into the cool morning air. Gunner advanced slowly after them, hackles raised, snarling through bared fangs. His eyes flickered between Claire’s and Adrian’s then locked on hers as Adrian dragged her toward the stairs.
    “She’s mine, asshole. And don’t ever forget that.”
    Adrian turned and jumped down the stairs, his arm around her waist. With surprising speed, he bolted through the woods, crashing down the same path she’d traveled with Gunner the night before. Brambles pulled at her, tree limbs scratching her face and hands. She beat against Adrian, but there was no stopping him.
    Claire knew he was close to shifting. He was just barely holding on to his human form. He wanted something from her, or else he would have changed and fought it out with Gunner in the cabin before killing her.
    Suddenly, they broke through the trees into a clearing. She didn’t see Gunner’s motorcycle, but instead saw a bright red Porsche parked alongside of the road. Adrian had taken a different trail, not the same one Gunner had used. He flung her against the car, pinning her with one hand as he yanked open the driver’s side door.
    “Get in...don’t try getting back out. Do, and I’ll just run you over. And don’t bother shifting...you were always a slow shifter and a worthless fighter. I could kill you in a heartbeat.”
    Adrian pushed her hard, and she clambered over the gear shift, banging her elbows and knees, ending up crouching in the passenger seat. She couldn’t resist reaching for the door handle, but Adrian grabbed her arm, twisting it painfully, his claws digging into her skin.
    “I said don’t try getting out.” He leaned close, his breath hot and fetid against her face. She turned away, but Adrian grabbed her face with his other hand, forcing her to look at him. The pads of his fingers...paws...were rough against her skin, claws digging into her cheek.
    “You think you’re getting away again? Not this time. This time you’re coming with me.”
    “Why not just kill me and get it over with. We both know that’s what you really want.” She spat the words at him through clenched teeth.
    Adrian’s eyes darkened, his face contorting into a mask of rage. He pulled her even closer and Claire cringed, desperate to get away from him. His breath was foul, as if he’d been eating something rotten, or he was rotting from the inside out. Something was wrong, really wrong, with this scenario, more than just being in a car with a guy she’d jilted who happened to be poised between human and shifter.
    “My father...you remember him? He’s your Alpha. He wants you back. It’s not what I want...”
    His bloodshot eyes bore into her, then slid down her face to her torn shirt. Something passed over them, or left them. Claire’s heart skipped in her chest. It took her only a second to realize the last shred of sanity Adrian had been clinging to had just deserted him. His mouth curled into a bizarre smile, fangs competing with teeth, a grin that would have frozen Hell.
    “You know what? Fuck my father.” His voice dropped lower and became an almost