Chapter 4

"Jordan..." The man behind the desk stood as they approached, his gaze flicking over each one of them in turn. It was a quick visual inspection, but it felt very thorough; Bella quailed a bit, automatically leaning towards Alex for comfort. He was already chafing at the bit, angling himself forward so that she was slightly behind him. The sharp jade eyes noted his movement and Bella wondered if Alex's obvious protectiveness had just helped or hurt them. The smile across the Wolf's face - she was sure it was the Wolf - wasn't at all reassuring. "So what have you brought me today? A present?"

The Wolf's voice was low, gravelly, and almost hypnotically seductive. Bella frankly stared, shocked to hear such an appealing sound coming from the mouth of a man who was completely physically intimidating.

"You did say you wanted a replacement for Abby soon," Jordan said, his voice indifferent. The big man didn't seem at all intimidated by the Wolf, although something about his stance said that he respected the other man a great deal and that he would follow where he led. Abby... Bella remembered the name and the face, a young woman with coppery red hair and big grey eyes, assumed taken by the Wolf while on holiday on Earth in Old Europa. Her picture and information had been on the newsfeed for months, not because people were worried about her return once a young man who had been taken for a couple of days had confirmed her whereabouts, but because everyone was so fascinated by the Wolf and his... predilections.

"Mmmm... I could be persuaded to take a blonde... it would make a contrast from Abby," the Wolf said, his face serious although somehow Bella got the impression that he was teasing Jordan. It was obvious where the big blonde man's interests lay. When he didn't get a reaction, the Wolf continued. "Then again, it has been a while since I've had a couple."

"We're not a couple!" Bella blurted out, immediately, without thinking. Her only coherent instinct was to find some way to get out of this situation and if the Wolf wanted a couple... then she was immediately horrified as the blonde's face turned to her with an expression of shock and despair. Had she just thrown the other woman under the bus? Would she really do such a thing to save herself?

"Not... a couple..." The Wolf said, almost as if tasting the words as he said them, examining them more closely now, obviously taking note of Alex's protective stance and the way she leaned towards him for support. Bella's cheeks flushed as that intense gaze traveled over her body again, realizing that her nipples had hardened in the cool air of the room and praying that the man didn't read anything into that. She kept her mouth firmly clamped shut.

Maybe it was too late for the blonde, especially with the way Jordan had been acting towards her, but Bella wasn't going to do anything further to push the other woman to her fate. She wasn't - wouldn't be - that kind of person.

"Driver said there was another couple following them out of the hotel, begging for a second chance," Jordan said, sounding both amused and smug. "From what I understand, these two caught their partners together. I thought you might find the dynamic intriguing."

God... had it really only been earlier today that she and Alex had discovered Ken and Lisa together? It felt like ages and ages ago. It also felt small and insignificant compared to what she and Alex were facing now, although when it had happened it had felt like the end of the world.

Bella blinked and realized that the Wolf was now looking at her and Alex was an increasingly arrested expression, his feigned interest in Jordan completely abandoned. A sick feeling rose inside of her gut as she realized that Jordan had known exactly what would cause the Wolf to lose interest in the other young woman. And that her own words had confirmed Jordan's supposition.

"You may have the blonde," the Wolf said, waving his hand at her, his cat-like eyes roving over her and Alex, very much like a large and dangerous predator.

Beside her, Alex growled "Trish!" and tried to move. Bella didn't know if it was to protect her or the other woman - Trish, she realized her name must be. Immediately several men who had been standing on the sidelines - practically unnoticed compared to the Wolf's overwhelming presence, and to a lesser extent, Jordan's - converged on him. One of them grabbed Bella's ropes, holding her in place as well as the Wolf came down off the dais to examine them more closely. Alex struggled, the three men holding him forced him down to his knees.

Next to them, Jordan pulled the young blonde woman away, lowering his head to whisper in her ear as he held her against his chest in an almost comforting manner that was only belied by the way his hand traveled down her naked back to caress her ass. She could hear the young woman start sobbing again, but she couldn't focus on that. Not with the Wolf walking towards her.

Up close he was even more intimidating. The grace with which he moved was both elegant while giving off the impression of being deadly. Her comparison of him to a large cat-like predator wasn't far off. Almost strange that they called him the Wolf really, although she knew it was more for his behavior than for his looks. In looks, in the way he moved, he was more like the holo-vids she'd seen of panthers, before they became extinct.

Her breathing shallowed, panted, as he circled around her, looking over every inch of her naked body. Closing her eyes, she tried to pretend that she was... well anywhere but here really. Anywhere else in the entire universe.

"Quite nice."

Bella's eyes flew open and she squeaked as two hands hefted her breasts, causing her to look directly into the Wolf's amused emerald eyes. Beside her, Alex shouted. She would have cringed back, but the man holding her ropes had shifted behind her, making it impossible for her to move away from the Wolf's explorations.