Frostbitten

PRIZE

I WISH I could say I fought every step of the way. But even as that primitive part of me went wild with fear and panic, the rational part leapt in. I could feel my body shutting down, hypothermia like a sedative creeping through my veins, whispering for me to go to sleep, just go to sleep. The only fighting I could do now was to struggle to stay alive. And staying alive at this moment meant letting Tesler sling me over his shoulder and carry me to their cabin.

THEIR "CABIN" WAS a big vacation house. The thick layer of dust over the knickknacks told me it didn't get much use, so I presumed they were squatting here, knowing there was little danger of the owner showing up. The security system had been ripped from the wall. Pizza boxes were piled by the door. Stains covered the carpets. The place reeked like a frat house-of spilled beer and sweaty bodies.

"You need to get her undressed," Noah said, dogging Tesler's heels as he entered the living room.

"Oh, believe me, I'm getting to it."

"Now, Travis. I'm not kidding."

I tried to look at Noah, but he'd turned away. Tesler dumped me on the bearskin rug in front of a smoldering fireplace.

"Strip."

"I'll grab her some-" Noah began.

Tesler wheeled on him. "You'll get her nothing, boy." To me, he said, "Strip. Unless you'd prefer I did it for you."

I pulled off my shirt. It took a few tries-my fingers refused to clamp on the fabric. I finally pushed my hands under and shoved it up over my head.

The cabin was already warm, with the fireplace still going and a woodstove blasting across the room. Tesler threw another log on the fire, then added tinder-pages ripped from books stacked by the fireplace. He looked over sharply as Noah reappeared in the living room, a towel in hand.

"Didn't I tell you-?"

"It's one towel. She needs to dry off." He walked over to me, and lowered his voice. "Don't rub too hard. Just pat your skin. You need to warm up slowly. Don't get close to the fire."

"You're a regular Boy Scout, aren't you?" Tesler said.

Noah shot a glower Tesler's way. "Do you want her with her fingers and toes or without?"

I was fumbling with the button on my jeans as Noah approached. He slung the towel over his shoulder and grunted "Here." He undid the button for me, as circumspectly as he could. His knuckles brushed my belly, but I couldn't feel it. He pulled the zipper down, then hesitated.

"Got it," I said as I wedged my hands under my waistband.

I pushed my jeans down over my hips. He didn't move, staying so close I could hear his breath picking up speed.

"Oh, he's a Boy Scout all right," Eddie said. "Never seen a naked woman before, Noah?"

"Only on his computer screen," Tesler said.

They laughed as Noah muttered, "Fuck off," handed me the towel and started backing up, gaze still on me.

"Better get that bra, too, boy," Tesler said. "I don't want those freezing and falling off."

"I can manage." I slipped my hands under the straps. I got them down over my arms, but no farther, the chest band still tightly fastened, cups hanging, fingers too numb to work the front clasp.

"Come on, Noah," Eddie said. "Be a gentleman. Help the lady."

Noah slid forward and stopped in front of me, eyeing the clasp. He unhooked it, hands trembling, fingers grazing the bottom of my breasts as the Tesler laughed at him.

I doubt it was the first time the seventeen-year-old had unfastened a bra, but it was more than that making his breath speed up. His nostrils flared as he drank in my scent.

He took the bra off, wrapped it around his hands and stood there, looking down at me in my panties, his own pants tenting furiously.

"Thanks," I murmured, gaze averted as I took my bra from him.

He backed away slowly, still staring. I tried to wrap the towel around me, but it was only a hand towel-I'm sure Tesler would have taken it away if it covered more. I could feel all three of them staring now. I resisted the urge to cover myself or turn away. If Travis wanted me to cower in shame, I wasn't giving him that satisfaction.

"You forgot something." He pointed at my panties. "Noah, give the lady a hand."

I pushed them down to my ankles and kicked them aside.

"You owe me twenty bucks, bro," Eddie said. "I told you she was a natural blond."

I moved a little closer to the fire. Not too close, heeding Noah's warning about warming up too fast and knowing it was true-I'd had frostbite before.

A few feet from the fire, I bent and sat cross-legged, then started drying my hair. They continued to stare as if none of them had ever seen a naked woman before.

"You know, you look even better without your clothes," Tesler said. "And you looked damned fine in them."

I ignored him and squeezed water out of my hair.

He continued. "I heard you have a couple of kids. Can't tell. You didn't lose your figure, that's for sure."

Actually, any "figure" I had these days came courtesy of my kids. I'd always been thin-athletic and boyish. But now there was some swell to my hips and I'd graduated to a B cup. Not that Clay cared-if he even noticed. Things like that weren't important to him.

At that moment, though, I would have preferred my old body. Maybe it would make Tesler change his mind. Wishful thinking, I know. He didn't care what I looked like. His interest had nothing to do with sex and attraction. It was all about dominance and control.

"I want her," Noah said, making my head whip around. He turned so I couldn't see his face, then said again, "I want her."

"I'm sure you do," Tesler chuckled. "And if you're a very good boy, I'll let you take a ride, just as soon as I've had my fill."

"I want to go first."

Tesler sputtered. "Excuse me?"

Noah turned toward him, face still averted from me. "Without me, you'd be humping a frozen corpse. I saved her. I risked my own life to do it. I deserve the first go."

"And I'm supposed to take seconds?" An edge crept into Tester's voice.

"Just once. After that, she's all yours."

"Is she?" Tesler advanced on the boy. "How generous of you."

Eddie stepped between them. "Come on. Let the kid lose his cherry with a female werewolf. How many guys get that chance?"

"I'm not a-" Noah stopped, realizing it wouldn't help his cause to say he wasn't a virgin.

He still wouldn't look my way. He couldn't. As I stared at him, the anger rose. He'd been nice to me. Even when he'd been gawking, he'd seemed embarrassed. Faced with three antagonists, I'd looked for a friendly face and been too eager to see it, unconsciously shifting Noah into the role of potential ally.

I forgotten what he really was-a punk who'd let his grandfather be murdered by his new pals. Part of me had hoped that there was an explanation. Now I realized there wasn't. Dennis had taken Noah in and given him a chance to start over. He'd repaid him by hooking up with these murdering bastards. That blood of Noah's I'd found in the cabin? It could have come from a fight with Dennis, not defending him.

Noah was studiously avoiding my gaze; he might not have a rapist's heart, but he still saw me as an object. He wanted me, and what I thought of that didn't matter. The only person whose opinion counted was Tesler.

"Fine," Tesler said. "He'll get a werewolf for his first time… just as soon as I'm finished."

"You're a little rough with the ladies, bro," Eddie said. "Let the kid go first. He's been good. He deserves a reward."

Tesler glanced over and fixed his brother with a look that made Noah flinch. Eddie didn't even blink.

"It's just a girl, Travis," he said, his voice low. "No big deal."

"She's not just-"

"Just a girl." Eddie met his brother's gaze. "No big deal, right?"

I remembered what Dan had said, how Tesler had promised his brother he'd stop raping girls. The two stared each other down for a minute, then Tesler turned that stare on Noah, as if hoping he'd get the kid to back down. Noah blinked, but nothing more.

"All right," Tesler said after a minute. "Here's the deal. Blondie here is indeed a proper prize, so let's do this properly. If you want her, you have to win her… by challenging me."

"Oh, for fuck's sake, Travis. The kid can't-"

"No, that's fine." Noah's chin lifted. "I accept."

"Great." Tesler headed for the kitchen, thumping Noah on the back as he passed. "Give me a minute to grab a beer, then we'll get started."

"In the meantime," Eddie said to Noah. "Take a look out front, make sure we aren't about to entertain any unwanted guests."

I hoped that meant I'd be left alone while Noah and Eddie went outside, but I knew better. Noah got on his gear and left. Eddie just walked to the window to look out. I could probably take him, but not without alerting his brother.

Noah had no hope of beating Tesler. I don't know why he'd even agreed to try-teenage ego, I suppose. But the more I thought about it, the more I wanted Noah to win that match. Not that I'd prefer Noah. When it comes to rape, there is no "prefer."

But if Noah won, he'd get time alone with me, time in which Tesler could expect to hear noises, even sounds of struggle. And that would give me the perfect opportunity to escape. Tesler wasn't the only one who could easily take on a boy like Noah.

But there was the rub-Tesler could take the kid, no question, meaning there was no chance Noah would win the challenge. Unless…

Tesler sauntered back into the living room, chugging his beer.

"So what's the handicap?" I asked.

He raised his brows, not lowering the can.

"It's going to take a lot of those to make it a fair fight," I said.

He sputtered beer as he lowered the bottle. "Fair fight?"

"Foreign concept?"

Eddie chuckled. Tesler only snorted and continued drinking.

I walked over to him. "Why tell the kid he can fight for me when he doesn't have a hope of winning? Either tell him no or make it a fair fight by handicapping yourself."

"How? Tie both hands behind my back?"

"What are you worried about?"

His smirk froze, eyes icing over. "Worried?"

Noah came inside, cold air blasting down the hall.

"I guess there's no way you want him winning," I said. "If he gets first dibs, he might show you up."

He hit me so fast I didn't see it coming.

As I lay on the floor, Eddie shook his head, as if to say, What did you expect?

Noah had his coat off, boots still on, hair salted with snow. "What's going on?"

No one answered. I got up, swiped away blood trickling from a scrape on my elbow, grabbed my discarded towel and cleaned my fingers. Then I walked up to Tesler.

"Struck a sore spot, did I?" I said.

When he raised his hand to hit me again, I didn't flinch. Dismay flashed in his eyes before he tossed the empty can aside and stalked back to the kitchen.

I started to follow.

Noah caught my elbow. "Don't bait-"

I shook him off and walked into the kitchen. Tesler was rooting through the fridge.

"I can see why you'd be worried," I said. "He's seventeen. What he lacks in finesse, he'll make up for in vigor. He's in his sexual prime… And how old are you?"

He popped open a beer.

"About forty-five, I'd guess. Getting a little harder to, well, get harder, I bet."

He kept his gaze fixed on the fascinating contents of the refrigerator. To get angry would be to confirm it.

"That's about the same age as your hubby, isn't it?" he said. "Got some experience with little blue pills?"

I laughed. "Definitely not. Clay doesn't need pills-or rape-to get it up."

The look he turned on me was pure hatred. And I knew that I'd just sealed my fate. Blow this, and I wouldn't just be raped, I'd be raped, beaten and killed-and no swift painless death either. A cold ball of panic congealed in my stomach, the little girl voice screaming at me, demanding to know what the hell I was doing. I stifled it.

The key to not getting killed was not to blow this chance. Push, push and push until I got what I wanted, consequences be damned.

"No offense," I said, "but I'd prefer the kid."

He smiled, teeth bared. "I'm sure you would."

He guzzled the beer. I walked closer, making no attempt to cover my nakedness, and stopped a foot from him.

"How about you fight me instead?" I said.

He stopped with the can at his lips, then lowered it. "What?"

"Let me fight in the kid's place. That will make it fair. Same deal applies. I win, he gets me. You win… " I looked him in the eye. "I'm all yours."

He looked back at me and for the first time since we'd met, I wasn't afraid. Clay had been right-stand my ground and Tesler wouldn't stand his. His face darkened with fury, and I knew there was only one thing he could think about, only one thing he wanted: to regain control.

There was no logical reason to grant my request. Better to let Noah challenge him, beat the crap out of the kid and teach him a lesson. Take on me, and he could lose, opening himself up to the unbearable humiliation of losing to a woman.

But if he won, he would truly win, and the spark of defiance in my eyes would be doused forever. He could regain control, beat the crap out of me and even Eddie couldn't complain about it. Take me in a fair fight, then take his prize when it would taste the sweetest.

When Tesler opened his lips, I knew what was going to come out. Two words.

"You're on."