Kari’s simple life is tossed upside down. She’s hospitalized after a dog attacks her, her doctor kidnaps her, and now a totally crazy man is telling her that not only is he a werewolf but so is she. And not just any werewolf but the queen!

She soon finds out Andreas is telling the truth. Being a werewolf isn’t so bad when your husband stands well over six feet, is hotter than a movie star and richer than one too. It doesn’t hurt that he adores and spoils her, and the wicked-hot sex is icing on the cake. What girl doesn’t like cake?

But someone in the Cherchez Pack keeps trying to kill her. Kari is happy belonging to a big family for the first time in her life and she’s not going to let one wolf with an axe to grind ruin that. Andreas, Kari and the wolves in the Inner Circle unite to end the threat and find the killer. It’s kill or be killed and Kari intends to do the killing.

Excerpt behind the “read more” cut – 18 and over please

ASCENSION BY LAUREN DANE
Copyright 2007, Lauren Dane
All Rights Reserved, Ellora’s Cave

He growled then, deep and sensual. “I’d like that but we can’t do anything more than cuddle and kiss. We have to save it for tomorrow night.” His voice broke and he cleared his throat.

Kneeling between his thighs, she whispered in his ear, “All of it? Or just it it? You took such good care of me earlier today. I’d love to return the favor.” Licking along his earlobe, she inhaled. She could smell his lust for her rising from his skin in waves.

He chuckled, low and sexy, and put his hands around her waist. Literally. And it wasn’t like her waist was teeny, it was that his hands were that large.

“Well, I’m sure we can work something out.” The grin he sent her was wicked and promised naughty naked things. She only barely stopped herself from giggling.

He called over her shoulder, “Phillip, you sleep. Laurent can take first watch. Laurent, do you need Drew to step in for a while?”

Laurent got up and stretched, looking at the two of them with amusement. “Oh, I think I’ll be okay for a four hour shift. Phillip can take over then. He slept while Kari did earlier.”

“Fine.” Without any further preamble, Andreas picked Kari up and carried her into his bedroom, kicking the door closed behind them.

“We can redecorate it any way you like. It’s our room,” he said, putting her down gently before pulling off his shirt.

“Yeah, whatever. Get naked and do me.”

Standing there watching him, Kari gasped at the sight. His chest was wide and muscled, covered with a smattering of blond hair. His biceps were gargantuan. Not in a bulked up way, more like the marble muscles of a statue. “Oh, grandmother, what big pecs you have.”

He laughed, deeper and huskier than he had before. Oh how the sound did things to her! She’d backed up to the bed but she wasn’t trying to escape him, she just couldn’t hold herself up in the face of his incredible appeal.

He approached with eyes only for her. Being the object of such intense focus made her feel like a goddess. Her heart thundered in her chest.

Reaching out, he pulled her shirt over her head. Some of the pins holding her hair up cascaded to the ground with a pinging sound. She stood there in the silk camisole she’d left on, breath heaving.

Eyes widening, he leaned back so he could get the full view. “Nice. I didn’t get the chance to get a good look at these earlier at naptime.” A smile rested on those carnal lips as he ran his palms over the soft material, sliding up her ribs, her back and finally around to her breasts. She bit back a moan as his fingertips lightly played over her nipples.

Taking a deep breath, he pulled the camisole off and tossed it to the side. It fluttered to the floor in a pool of pretty red silk. “You aren’t wearing a bra, little wolf.”
She shook her head. He left her speechless standing there shirtless, the testosterone pouring off him in waves.

“I’m glad I didn’t know that. I’m not sure I’d have lasted down there all those hours knowing these beautiful breasts were free under that sweater and a scrap of silk.”

A bit of turnabout was necessary or she’d be a damned puddle before anything got started. She tipped her head to look into his face. “So um, about this, it. What exactly are our constraints? Because I’d very much like to find out just where that,” she pushed him back a bit and then trailed a fingertip down his lower abdomen, hooking her finger in the waistband of his pants, “honey-colored trail of hair leading south ends up.” Looking up into his eyes through her lashes, she smiled a moment. “With my tongue.” Triumph spread through her as his eyes widened and then slid halfway closed and his chest heaved a few times.