Slip the Skin

by Shanley, Tera

  Hey, you wanna diddle? My name’s Linden, let’s do the dance without the pants?

  For crap’s sakes, she couldn’t even flirt right.

  “Let me buy you a drink,” a man said in her ear.

  Repressing a shudder at his surprising nearness, she eased away and studied him. He looked decent. Shorter and no dimples and his hair was blond, but well, time wasn’t on her side...so, okay.

  “Gin and tonic,” she said with what she fervently hoped was a flirtatious smile.

  “Brock,” he introduced himself as he offered a gray suited arm.

  “Linden.”

  He pulled her toward the bar, weaving in and out of the murmuring crowd.

  He said something to a man sitting in a plush chair at the bar top and the man tipped his head to her as he stood to offer his seat. Once settled and with drink in hand, Brock gave her a wide smile. His perfectly straight and blindingly white teeth were mesmerizing in the dim red light. “Tell me about yourself,” he purred in a voice dripping with huskiness and liquid velvet.

  Linden opened her mouth to lie but a giant of a man shoved his way between them. “She’s taken,” he said. Warning permeated every word. “That’s all you need to know.”

  Brock’s face went slack with whatever he saw in the intruder’s face, and he scurried off to find an easier meal. Graham took his seat.

  “What the hell?” Linden breathed. “What’re you doing here?”

  “Saving you from that bad decision. You’re welcome.”

  Was he serious? She looked around, surprised everyone around her wasn’t as offended at his audacity as she was. “Who I choose to talk to is none of your business!”

  “You’re in no condition for this and you know it.”

  “I’m in no— Are you insane? You don’t even know me!”

  “Ma’am,” a pudgy man with a cocky smile said, “is he bothering you?”

  “Yes.”

  “No,” Graham said through gritted teeth simultaneously.

  The man left under Graham’s thunderous glare. Son-of-a-biscuit-eater. She was being cock-blocked by a sexy giant in a suit. Or the equivalent, if she’d actually sported a cock.

  Even giants compromised though, and if she had to use underhanded tricks, she’d do it with little remorse. He was killing her mission. “Look, I’m going to level with you. I want to get laid tonight.”

  He snorted. “Obviously. You don’t dress like that and come to a place like this with a chastity belt welded to your undies, Linden. Are you ready to go?”

  Was he out of his mind? “No, I’m not ready to go. I’m dying, you creeper, and I want one last joyride. A joyride which you are single handedly slamming the brakes on. You’re like, the opposite of the Make a Wish foundation!”

  His mouth twitched with humor, and he arched an eyebrow. “I’ll do it.”

  She choked on the gin and tonic she was furiously sipping. Little sprinkles of liquor flew onto the crotch of his suit, and she awkwardly patted it with the drink napkin.

  His grin was infuriating. “So that’s a yes?”

  She stood and spun away from him. “I’m going to find my friends.”

  He grabbed her arm and pulled her into his immovable chest. His strong hands gripped the small of her back until the material of her dress bunched and he leveled a look at her with those sensuous blue eyes of his. Her heart beat like the pounding of a bass drum. He was so close, his breath tickled her hair and the warmth of his body seeped into her marrow.

  Why were her traitorous lips throbbing with wanting to touch them to his? Slowly, he leaned forward until only an inch stretched between them. It felt like a mile, like way too much distance still lay between his skin and hers. Her skin was aflame where he brushed the back of her low cut dress with his thumb. He covered her mouth with his and as his tongue grazed her teeth, a tiny, helpless noise escaped her.

  Oh Mylanta, she was melting. In seconds, she’d be a worthless puddle on the floor and they’d have to mop her up to avoid a lawsuit fall.

  A delicious rumbling noise reverberated deep in his throat, and she clutched his suit jacket until her knuckles hurt.

  “Say yes,” he whispered, teasing her with the closeness of his lips.

  Her head swam as if she were in a giant whirlpool. She’d have said yes then and there, but he’d kissed her so thoroughly, she didn’t remember her own danged name at the moment. She shook off the dizziness. “I don’t want a relationship.” Oh God, she was cock-blocking herself now. Stop talking! Retreat.

  “Nor do I.”

  “And I don’t want a pity-diddle.”

  His laugh was so abrupt, she jumped. “Pity-diddle?” He pressed her palm on the seat of his stiff pants. “You’re a beautiful woman. I swear I won’t talk about you being sick anymore. We’ll do this right. One night, no feelings. I won’t even make you breakfast in the morning. That’s how a one-night-stand is done. Right?”

  “Fine.” For lack of any other ideas, she held out her hand for him to shake. “I agree to our business arrangement then.”

  His lips twisted into a bitter line, one that seemed completely at odds with his face. “Great.”

  Abandoning her half-spittled libation, she padded across the plush carpet as he pulled her toward the exit.

  “Wait, now? I have to tell my friends!”

  “Call them.”

  Touché to the genius gargantuan man. She scrambled to find her phone in her cluttered purse and dialed Meredith.

  “Where are you?” her friend asked. “We’re over by the windows on the couches. You have to see the view of the city!”

  Oh geez, she was the worst friend ever. Abandoning her friends within the first half hour of her goodbye night with them? No problem. Apparently she’d do anything for dimples. “Mere, don’t be mad, but I’m leaving with a guy.”

  “Wait, what? Linden Ashby is leaving with a guy?” Her tinkling voice sounded mock scandalized. “Who? Do I know him?”

  She weaved in and out of the crowd behind Graham. “You met him earlier. At the hotel. He came and found me here.”

  “Gasp! Okay, tell me where you’re going. If you don’t call in an hour, we’re coming to save you.”

  Linden couldn’t help smiling. Meredith was her best friend for good reason. “Back to the hotel. Room eight fifteen. I’ll call you soon.” She hung up in the middle of her friend’s squeal.

  Outside, Graham hailed a taxi with the confidence of a native New Yorker.

  “Do you live around here?” she asked.

  “Nah, I live across town. Small paycheck, remember?”

  “Mmm. Same here.”

  A taxi stopped for them. He held the door open and climbed in beside her. “What do you do for a living?”

  “Nothing now. Brain’s on the fritz, remember? I was a court reporter, though. You know, those people who type out word for word transcriptions of the cases as they’re happening? That was me. How’d you find me, anyway?”

  “I Googled you. And then I read part of your little online diary.”

  She frowned. “It’s called a blog.”

  He wrapped his hand around hers and the warmth of the gesture turned her insides molten. Holding hands with a man had never felt so intimate before, yet there she was with moments left in her life, and feelings she hadn’t known existed were stirring her to an inferno. Suddenly, a fling with Graham seemed like a very good idea.

  Chapter Four

  Heart pounding, Linden slid the keycard and opened the door to her hotel room. Graham, the sexiest man she’d ever laid eyes on, was waiting patiently, leaned up against the wall with a hungry look in his eyes that made the color look so different than it had earlier. Now, they were more gray than blue, but maybe it was the effect of that the drinks or the fluorescent lighting. Or of the illness. She’d seen stranger things than shifting eye colors. Much stranger.

  Pushing open the door, she waited shyly for him to pass through. She expected him to check out his surroundings, but
he turned and slid his fingers to the back of her neck instead. The pad of his thumb stroked her cheek and he looked at her with such adoration. Oh, he was good. She could almost imagine this was what it was like to be cherished by a man. The door clicked closed behind her as she leaned against it and dropped her clutch.

  Stunned at his tenderness, she tried to steady her breathing. His silvery looking gaze dipped to her lips, and the slightest frown creased his dark brows. She would’ve given just about anything to know what he was thinking right now.

  “I want to see you,” he rumbled in a deep baritone. “Turn around.”

  She did, pressing the palms of her hands against the cold door. The slow rattle of the zipper that stretched the length of her spine brought a shiver of anticipation through her. Biting her lip, her cheeks heated as the crimson colored dress fell in a pool around her ankles. The dress hadn’t required a bra, but the transparent, black, lacy panties she’d bought for tonight clung to her curves.

  His hands gripped her hips and spun her slowly, until she was facing him. He was open with his admiration, raking his gaze from her toes to her panties, lingering on her stomach and breasts, and finally, he found her eyes. Boy, what that man did to her insides as he tugged on his thin, black tie. Graham could wear a suit better than anyone she’d ever seen.

  Her breath came in tiny huffs as he shrugged out of his jacket and unbuttoned his shirt, and a sexy smile curved his lips, as if he could tell what kind of havoc he was wreaking on her nervous system.

  “I’m going to take you slowly, Linden,” he said. “I’m going to make you scream my name.”

  Her knees wanted to buckle at the promise in his words.

  “Do you want me to use protection?”

  He arched his shoulders back, and twitched out of his crisp white dress shirt. His skin, dark and smooth, rippled across muscle tensed with his seductive movement. The hard mounds of his abdominals practically begged to be petted and licked. She’d known he was well-built just from the way his suit clung to him, but damn. What had he asked? He canted his head, like he was waiting for her to say something.

  “Hmm?” she asked, not even pretending to have been paying attention to anything other than the strips of muscles that delved over his hips and into his pants. She could probably have an orgasm just looking at him.

  “Protection?”

  “Oh.” She frowned at the miserable thoughts that brushed her mind. They weren’t invited here. Not tonight. “I’m dying, remember?” She tried to say it light-hearted, so it wouldn’t ruin the mood, but no matter how she said the words, they were awful. Blinking against her embarrassment, she whispered, “I mean, I want to feel your skin against mine.”

  A smile ghosted his face. “Good.” Leaning forward, he closed his eyes just before his lips touched hers.

  Frozen against the door, she let off a relieved, helpless little sound and ran her fingers up his chest as he brushed the tip of his tongue against hers. How could this feel so right? Everything about this man screamed alpha male. He should be bossy and controlling, but as she gripped his shoulders and turned him, he allowed her to press him against the door.

  His hands gripped her hips and his thumbs found their way under the thin elastic of her panties. Jaw working, he switched the angle of his head and thrust his tongue deeper into her mouth, like he couldn’t get enough of her taste. With a shrug of his shoulders, he brushed the lace down her thighs and past her knees. The fabric dropped to the floor, tickling her ankles as the barrier between them fell.

  She gasped as he cupped her sex, and slowly, he slid his long finger inside of her. Languid strokes had her writhing, but she’d never been this close to the edge with a man before and she wanted to come with him.

  “I want you inside of me,” she pleaded as the pressure built. She couldn’t think straight anymore.

  “No, you’ll fuck my hand first so I know you’re ready for me.” How could he say words like that and still sound so calm and sexy?

  “I’ve never…I want to finish with you.”

  He eased back and stilled his practiced hand. “You’ve never what?”

  “I’ve been with a man,” she whispered. “I just haven’t been able to finish with one.” Please, God, let him know what she meant and not ask anymore mortifying questions.

  A small, cocky smile tipped the corners of his lips. “Good,” he rumbled, pressing his palm against her heat again. “Then I’ll be your first. And second.”

  He acted like she’d challenged him, the cocky man. But geez, he was proving his skills at finger-banging, because she was building to an inferno again already.

  “You’re so wet,” he whispered against her ear. “Can you feel what you do to me?” His hand was calloused and warm against her knuckles as he pressed her hand over the length of his cock.

  She rubbed his stony erection, and her hips bucked forward against his hand.

  “That’s right,” he murmured. “Show me what you like.”

  Arching against his hand, she met his strokes and moaned as heat pooled around his thrusting finger. Throbbing release crashed through her, and she whispered his name as she leaned into him.

  Her legs wouldn’t hold her anymore, and his arm snaked around her back and pulled her close. He pressed his finger into her until every last pulse of pleasure had stilled. The man was magic.

  Determined, she pulled at his belt and undid his dress pants. When he was completely free of clothing, she dropped to her knees in front of him.

  “Linden,” he warned. “Tonight is about you. You don’t have to do this.”

  His erection was huge and hard in between them. No wonder he’d wanted her to fuck his hand first. The physics of him even fitting inside of her didn’t make any damned sense. “You said to show you what I like. I haven’t done this before, and I always wanted to.” And it was now or never.

  Grabbing the base of him, she slid him into her mouth and touched her tongue to the salty bead at the tip. A groan of utter pleasure left Graham’s lips, and she circled her tongue around his head and looked up in time to see his eyes roll back in his head. The wall thudded as he tilted his head back, and slowly, his hands found her hair as she set the pace. Hips jerking, legs straining, and the expression on his face…like she’d beguiled him completely. This was the sexiest thing she’d ever been involved in. Holy hell, he was hot when he was at the edge of his control like this. His hands became more urgent, gripping her hair and pressing her forward as his hips thrust.

  “Teeth,” he gritted out, though his face didn’t look pained. And when she eased her mouth open wider and ran her tongue along the underside of his shaft as she sucked, he exhaled a trembling breath.

  Oh, she had him. From the way his muscles twitched, he was so close, and she, with all of her insecurities and inexperience, had brought him here.

  “Shit,” he breathed as his grip in her hair tightened. “Stop, stop, stop. I’m going to come in your mouth if you don’t stop right now.”

  She slid her lips from him and couldn’t help the smirk that took her face. She was so turned on, practically dripping, and this powerful man had been at the mercy of her lips. How empowering. How utterly sexy.

  Without a word, he scooped her up in his arms like she weighed nothing and set her on the oversized bed. His lips crashed onto hers and she met his tongue, stroke for stroke. Pressing her knees apart, Graham slid into her, filling her until she bowed under the pleasure and clawed his back. She didn’t care if she marked him.

  She wanted him to remember her tomorrow.

  She wanted him to remember her forever.

  He withdrew slowly, then thrust into her hard. She cried out as he filled her again and again. The strange light in the room was making his churning eyes look silver, and he gritted his teeth and growled out a feral sound as he bucked against her. As she exploded around him, he crashed against her relentlessly and shots of warmth spurted into her. He gritted out her name, and in the blinding moment of their mutua
l release, she felt the sharp edges of his teeth against her neck.

  ****

  Graham stayed crouched by Linden’s bedside as her breathing slowed. He’d killed her and she didn’t even know it yet. His teeth marks against the tender flesh of her neck had curled inward until only a red mark remained. By the time anyone found her, all traces of his Lycan venom would be gone. He’d kept his pack’s secret, and given her an easy death. She’d go quietly into the night, not screaming into insanity before she passed, leaving friends and family traumatized over their last memories of the beautiful, vibrant woman.

  The wolf inside him howled that he’d done the right thing. Why, then, did he feel like retching? A well of hurt churned inside him, as if he’d lost something he needed for survival.

  He shifted his weight as her hand relaxed against the pillow, and he burned to touch her. To trace the curve of her silken back and the swell of her perfect hips, brush the tender flesh at the back of her knees with his lips. A flare of panic took him. He had to take it back! He had to spend every last minute of her remaining life with her, in her arms. His soul could only heal in the depths of her loving embrace, his personal sanctuary.

  Loving a woman had never been like that. Sure, he’d taken his time, and was gentle with her like she deserved, but there’d been a moment, right after he’d bitten her, when she’d looked into his face with such trust. He’d never come so close to love before, and now the shell that kept her tenderness safe was dying before him.

  The first snapping bone of the change came like a shotgun blast, and he bolted for the bathroom. Not here. The quiet hotel room wouldn’t suit the howling beast ripping his way out of him.

  An unkind reflection looked back at him in the mirror. He leaned on the counter and glared at the monster within. No longer were his eyes blue and human. Silver churned in them like swirling mercury. Why did it feel as if his heart was being ripped from his chest?

  Linden. He’d bear the scar of this sacrifice for his entire miserable life. Her face would haunt him for the rest of his days. Putting an animal out of its misery was the Lycan way but she wasn’t a wolf. She was human. Would her spirit understand? Or was it doomed to stand in the corner of his life and wonder why he’d cut hers even shorter?