by Jade White
When Olivia began begging him, her voice catching on her arousal, he finally gave in to her cries. His mouth captured her, tasting her sweetness. Olivia grew silent, her hands easing their hold on his hair as he drew passion from her in gentle waves. She writhed and moaned as the pleasure grew stronger, pulling his hair roughly as she moved closer and closer to the edge. With one final push, she spilled over the precipice into the pounding surf below.
Sable held her as she trembled, her body satisfied after too many days of frustration. When her breathing slowed and her eyes grew heavy, Sable brushed his fingers across her face.
“Ready for round two?”
Olivia laughed. “Of course I am.” She rolled over and reached into her nightstand drawer, pulling out a wrapped condom and handing it to him.
She kneeled on the bed and kissed him as he fumbled with the thick wrapper. She pushed him down on the bed and helped him, her hands shaking with the need to feel him inside her. Finally successful, she straddled his hips and eased herself onto him. He moaned as she enveloped him, her soft heat surrounding him. She began to move slowly, languidly, treating him to the same slow torture that she had endured. Sable grabbed her hips and moved with her, crushing the last bit of resolve in her to make him wait for his release.
The heat was building between them, their breath short and labored. Sable pulled Olivia into his arms and held her tight as he took her, his movements deep and insistent. She moaned and twisted, the pleasure growing until it was too much to bear. Sable saw her face, pleasure moments away.
“Don’t do it,” he growled, wanting her to hold onto control for a few moments until he caught up with her.
Olivia nodded, biting her lip with effort as his speed increased. All at once, they both lost control, Sable driving the passion home as she moaned and laughed above him. He grabbed her face in his hands and kissed her deeply, moving inside of her until he had nothing more to give.
She collapsed onto him, still wrapped around the heat of him, arms and legs tangled in a heap after their frantic coupling. Olivia fell asleep within moments, her head resting on his sweaty chest as he fought to regain his breath.
He rubbed her back and held her, kissing the top of her head gently as she drifted deeper into blissful sleep. She was exhausted, emotionally and physically, so Sable was glad to see a tender smile tugging her lips as she began to dream.
Rolling gently, he laid her on the bed and pulled the covers up around her. Her brow furrowed and then relaxed, her body feeling his absence even in a deep slumber. He moved to the bathroom and turned on the shower, discarding the condom in the bathroom trash and jumping into the shower before the water was completely warm.
He scrubbed himself clean, the cool spray followed by intense heat working the last of the soreness from his recently bruised and battered body. The fight with Egan had taken its toll on him, but he had healed quickly, as all shifters did. The fragrant soap filled the air and mixed with the steam as he soaped his body up several times. Once satisfied that he was completely clean and fresh, he stepped from the shower and toweled off. He glanced into the trash as he opened the medicine cabinet to open a new toothbrush from the stash that Olivia kept.
He did a double take and groaned. A tiny tear seeped fluid. He thought back, certain that he had tied it up and tossed it into the can from a reasonable distance. Maybe it broke then. Sable was sure that wasn’t the case, but there was nothing to be done now if it had broken during their love-making. He tossed the toothbrush package on top of it and walked out of the bathroom. Olivia was under enough stress, no use getting her worked up over the slight chance that anything had happened. If it had, they’d cross that bridge when they got there.
Sable, naked and fresh from the shower, slid into bed and pulled Olivia against him. She snuggled into him, searching for the comfort of his touch, even in her sleep. He closed his eyes and drifted off, pushing all thoughts of the future and his dreams out of his head for now. In this moment, all that mattered was the woman asleep in his arms.
**
Laskin moved through the shadows outside Olivia’s, trying to get a look inside the home. The blinds were closed tight, covered by curtains. Aside from a few shadows, Laskin wasn’t able to see anything of value.
After Aldrich had caught Sable with Olivia at the gala, he’d ordered Laskin to follow the pair and report back. The request irritated Laskin, though he meekly bowed and left to do as he was asked. He’d been following Sable since the evening after the gala. At first, it had been a pretty mundane task, with Sable hardly leaving his house.
A week later, Sable had peeled out of the driveway and driven at break-neck speeds to get to Olivia’s house. Laskin had followed at a safe distance, almost losing Sable’s sleek Jaguar as it wove in and out of the heavy traffic. Laskin was just pulling up in front of Olivia’s house when a disheveled man ran out of the house, his face a mixture of shock and anger. Since that day, Sable had been at Olivia’s house every night. Nearly a month later, Laskin was wondering why Sable didn’t just marry the woman and be done with it. They’d been lovers off and on for years, but Laskin couldn’t explain Sable’s behavior any more than he could explain why a shifter would want to mate with a human in the first place. His nose wrinkled, the thought of tainting his pure shifter blood vile and repulsive. The councilmen were fools. The answer wasn’t regulating human-shifter breeding, it was eradicating it altogether. But the council members were old, behind the times. At some point, they would fall from grace. And when that happened, Laskin and the few that shared his views would be ready to step in. Under their guidance, shifters would be returned to their rightful place; protecting humans secretly, and ruling by strategically placing influential shifters in top political offices.
Until that glorious day, he was simply Laskin, assistant to the elders. Keeper of the tablet. He rolled his eyes and dialed Aldrich, who answered on the first ring.
“Yes?”
“Sable is still with Olivia. He hasn’t left her side for more than a few hours since I started following him a month ago. Olivia goes to work, but that’s about it. Should I—”
Aldrich interrupted him, not even listening to what Laskin had to say. Laskin fumed silently, but remained outwardly calm. He was Aldrich’s most trusted confidante, and the position had some definite perks.
“Keep following him until I ask you not to. I have to consult the others. I have a feeling Sable has not heeded any of our warnings.”
Laskin rolled his eyes again, grateful that Aldrich couldn’t see his expression. He was a dawdling old fool.
Before Laskin could comment, Aldrich hung up in his ear. Tired of watching the outside of Olivia’s house, Laskin left to get some lunch. Aldrich was busy destroying them all, one foolish decision at a time. He wouldn’t notice if Laskin left for a few hours.
He was about to leave when Sable walked out of the house, Olivia close on his heels carrying a briefcase. Sable kissed her goodbye, sliding into his car and pulling away slowly. With one last wave, he rounded the corner. Olivia hopped in her car and left, driving the other direction. Unsure of who to follow, Laskin turned his car around and followed Olivia.
She wound through the streets, heading in the general direction of her work but taking a route he wasn’t familiar with. She stopped briefly in front of a neatly kept house and tapped the horn. Olivia’s friend Grace raced down the steps and jumped into the car.
“Well this is interesting.” Laskin followed them, careful to avoid getting too close. They drove for a few miles before finally pulling into a grocery store parking lot and getting out of the car. Laskin groaned. What a complete waste of time.
He parked the car and sat for a moment, wondering why they hadn’t gone to one of the many stores much closer to both of their houses. Laskin, irritated and getting hungrier by the minute, was about to leave when the two came out. Olivia carried a single bag filled to the brim with several small boxes.
They got back into the car and drove
to Grace’s house, closing the door behind them. Laskin wished for the millionth time that he was a spy in one of his favorite movies, with a huge directional mic to help him eavesdrop on the pair.
But he wasn’t, and he really was wasting his time. He had no way of figuring out what the two were up to without knocking on the door and asking. He doubted that Olivia would just answer his questions regardless. She would, of course, call Sable and have him on Laskin’s ass in no time. That was the last thing he needed.
He pulled away from the curb and headed towards his home, searching for a drive-thru on the way to pick up lunch. Laskin looked at his watch and groaned. Scratch that, he was headed to pick up dinner after wasting nearly two hours following the two women and waiting for nothing to happen. He had a bit of time to kill before Aldrich would expect a report from him. Tonight, he was going to send that text from his home, claiming that Sable was where he’d been the entire month; with Olivia. If Aldrich wanted to know his whereabouts so badly, the old fool could follow Sable himself.
CHAPTER FOUR
Olivia stared at the growing pile of tests sitting on Grace’s bed.
“This can’t be happening. We used a condom. We always use a condom.”
Grace rubbed Olivia’s back, trying to comfort her friend. “Maybe they’re wrong. You could try another one.”
Olivia laughed, a desperate sound that was without joy. “I’ve taken fifteen pregnancy tests. I’m pretty sure that fifteen out of fifteen positive means I’m pregnant.”
Grace sighed. “I’m sorry, Libby. Are you sure Sable is the father? Maybe it’s one of the other guys.”
Olivia shook her head. “No. I hadn’t been with a guy for almost a month before Sable.”
“Well then maybe it’s him and not Sable?”
“No. Dan told me he loved me mid-way through. I kicked him out right then.” A single tear slid down her cheek. She swiped at it with the back of her sleeve. “It’s Sable’s baby, there’s no question.”
She laid down on the bed, tears spilling freely over her cheeks as she choked back sobs.
“Oh Gracie, what am I going to do? If I tell Sable, he’s going to insist we get married. I mean, he had that dream, and he’s so sure that we’re fated mates. He’s been completely different since that dream. He won’t leave my side except when I go to work. The only reason he left today was Egan needed his help with something at their house.” She stopped talking, sobs ripping from her throat as she fought to calm down. “Gracie I can’t get married. I’m not that type of woman. I love Sable, but I love my freedom more.”
“Can you get help from our government? Surely humans can’t be okay with another human being forced to marry a shifter.”
“It’s a mutually supported law. Shifters think it will keep their species from going extinct and humans think it will keep humans from having casual sex with shifters. If I ran to them for help, they would probably turn me over to the shifters without so much as an apology. No. No one is going to help me.”
Wiping her tears away, she sat up and scooped the pregnancy tests off of the bed and tossed them in the trash.
“I’m just going to hide it until I figure out what I’m going to do.”
Grace looked at Olivia, her expression empathetic. “You do realize that shifters gestate faster than humans? This time next month, you’ll look six months pregnant, instead of just several weeks. You can’t hide this. You have to tell Sable. He’ll think of something, Olivia. He loves you. He won’t make you get married if you don’t want to.”
Olivia nodded, wishing she was as sure as Grace was that Sable wouldn’t force her hand in marriage. He was convinced they were soul mates. He would do what he had to do to save Olivia and his unborn child. With the council out for blood and willing to do anything to uphold their archaic laws, the only way to save Olivia would be to marry her. She had to think of something, and quickly.
She could run, but she risked being caught, or giving birth alone. If she gave birth in a hospital, would the doctors know that the baby wasn’t human? No, she couldn’t risk it. She would have to tell Sable and hope that he did the right thing.
Olivia stood and hugged Grace. “Thank you for everything, Grace. You’re a good friend.”
“It’s going to be okay Olivia.” Grace held her friend tight. Olivia walked out of the house and got into her car, her head falling to the steering wheel for a moment while she struggled to keep her composure. She was going to get through this. She had to.
Olivia pulled out her phone and sent Sable a text. Where are you?
He replied within minutes. He was at his home still, helping Egan with a project. She pulled her car onto the road and headed for Sable’s house. She might as well get this out of the way so they could figure out where to go from here.
Lost in thought, she drove on autopilot. Before she knew it, she had arrived at Sable’s house. She walked slowly up the steps, dreading this moment and wishing she could turn back time. They’d always been so careful, yet here she was. Pregnant, scared, and about to be forced into a life that she didn’t want. All so the council and human politicians could say that they had control over “today’s issues.” What did that even mean? How did forcing a human to marry a shifter solve anything?
The door loomed before her as she reached for the handle. She pushed the heavy door inward and walked into the foyer.
Her phone chimed merrily. She read Sable’s text and headed for the family room. They were about to wrap up whatever school project Sable was helping Egan with and he would meet her in the family room afterwards. Olivia headed for the spacious sitting room in the center of the house. She plopped down in the overstuffed recliner, pulling the cozy throw over her shoulders and immediately drifting off to sleep.
Sable found her just like that, sweetly sleeping in his favorite recliner. She had kicked off her shoes and tucked her tiny feet up under the throw. Olivia looked so peaceful there, and so right in his home. He wondered if she would move in with him if he asked, but he cast the thought away as quickly as it had come. Olivia was such a free spirit; she would always need her own space and her own money to be happy. She thrived on being self-sufficient. Forcing her to depend on him would crush her spirit and make her feel trapped.
Sable leaned over and scooped Olivia up, sitting in the recliner and pulling her close. She snuggled into his chest, her breathing heavy with exhaustion. She didn’t stir as he adjusted the foot stool and settled in beneath her. She felt so good in his arms, it was all he could do not to wake her up and take her right there. But Olivia had been struggling to sleep for days now, and she needed to rest. Every time he had asked her what was wrong, she had claimed her exhaustion was work related, but he had a feeling that she was trying avoid hurting his feelings.
He hadn’t left her side since his dream, and he was sure the closeness was wearing on her. When Egan had mentioned that he was working on a project for school, Sable jumped on the chance to help. Egan didn’t need his help—he was one month away from graduating with honors—but Sable needed an excuse to leave Olivia alone for a couple hours.
He’d been surprised by her text earlier, though he was delighted that she missed him already. Maybe she was starting to warm up to the idea of spending their lives together.
Sable rested his cheek on her head and closed his eyes. Olivia wasn’t the only one who could use some sleep, though he wasn’t complaining.
**
Sable awoke to a strange sound outside. Moving through the dark house, he quietly opened the door and slipped into the back yard. A heavy fog covered the lawn, giving the illusion that Sable was walking on air as he moved toward the source of the noise. Behind him, a door slammed. Sable moved into the bushes, watching the open yard to see who was following him. Aldrich and Laskin appeared out of the fog, their figures dark in the distant moonlight, but he knew it was them. The fog carried their voices toward him, and he could hear bits and pieces of their hushed conversation.
“Oliv
ia… dealt with… this cannot be allowed.”
Suddenly, Laskin turned on Aldrich, stabbing the elder in the heart with a long, curved hunting knife. Aldrich fell to the ground like a ton of bricks, his hand trying desperately to pull the knife from his chest. Laskin stood in the moonlight, slowly shifting until his entire tiger form was revealed. But Sable could see in the pale moonlight that Laskin was different. Rather than the typical orange-coated tiger, Laskin’s coat was white and silver. Before Sable could figure out what the color meant, he heard a scream in the distance.
Certain it was Olivia, Sable began running through the bushes, shifting as he leapt from a giant boulder into the air. He could hear Laskin running down a parallel trail beside him, though Laskin’s labored breathing made it impossible for him to hear Sable as he bounded silently through the forest.
Sable reached the clearing a split second after Laskin, his gaze following Olivia’s cries. Laskin saw her first, his roar filled with rage as he ran towards her and the shifter by her side. Laskin landed on top of the other tiger, teeth sinking into the neck of her protector as he landed on his back.
Sable was shocked when the tiger turned towards him, and he looked into his own eyes from across the clearing. Olivia sat helpless a few feet away, bleeding and moaning in pain. Sable watched in horror as Laskin ripped into the other Sable, jumping off the crumpled tiger to advance on the defenseless Olivia. In blind rage, Sable roared and lunged at Laskin. Laskin turned and grinned, his tiger visage twisted with hate.
“You’re too late Sable. You can’t save her.”
Sable sat up in the recliner, his heart pounding, his breath coming in quick gasps. Something stirred in his arms, and he was surprised to see Olivia, safe and sleeping peacefully. He buried his face in her hair, heart still pounding in his chest as he fought to shake the dream off. For now, she was safe. But Sable knew that Olivia would soon be in danger.
