by Marie Mason
She was hopeless against the demands his fingers were making on her body. “Bachar!” This time his name was a scream as she came all over his hand. Her body convulsed and her pussy clenched around his fingers.
“That’s it, baby. That’s it.” He continued to move swiftly in and out of her body, ringing every last reaction from her. As her orgasm faded, his movements slowed. She gasped when he withdrew from her completely and finally opened her eyes.
He was looking at her with an expression she couldn’t read. Yes, there was desire, heat, want. But he also looked angry. She blinked, trying to clear her vision, her mind. She shifted, and he moved, allowing her to free her hand. His cock was still rock hard.
“Bachar?”
He didn’t answer but pushed between her legs, urgency in every movement. There was no time for doubts or worry as he spread her legs and pressed the head of his cock against her still sensitive core.
She’d thought he’d thrust into her fast, hard, and to the hilt. But again, he surprised her. Instead, he moved inside her slowly, inch by torturous inch until he filled her completely. She was astonished that she could take him. His cock had felt monstrous in her hands. She moved her hips tentatively. She hadn’t been wrong. His size stretched her to her limits, a sensation that wasn’t unpleasant. In fact…
“Oh, heavens above,” she gasped when he pulled back out of her. He felt just as good pulling out as he did thrusting inside her. Her fingers clasped his shoulders. She still didn’t understand his angry countenance, but she didn’t care now. All she cared about was the feel of him inside her. She wrapped her legs around him and demanded, “More.”
She could literally feel his control, the restraints he’d bound himself in, snap as he started to move faster, harder, pounding into her as her body strained upwards to meet him thrust for thrust. She gave into her desires as well. Into her needs. She’d never felt so empowered, this confident, and it had everything to do with this man. She felt beautiful, desirable. Wanted.
Tension coiled, grew, spread upwards and inwards, driving her wild with the mind-numbing pleasure of it all. She teetered on the verge, hanging there for a heart-stopping second before dropping off the other side. Her release shattered her, reshaped her.
“Albi.”
She managed to open her eyes as he grunted the word that she still didn’t know the meaning of. And when she did, she was greeted with the most amazing sight. His face as he found his release. He lifted his head, the tendons of his neck straining as he thrust into her body over and over again. His cock so hard she didn’t know how she was taking it, but taking it, she was. And loving it.
“Albi.” This time the word was a growl. His eyes met hers, a deep, dark amber that made her shiver. He was so powerful, so primal.
He grabbed her hip, holding her still as he plunged into her one last time, his cock hot and pulsing, spilling his seed inside her.
His big body collapsed on top of her, and they lay together, their breathing ragged. After a while, he moved, pulling out of her body. The sensation made her gasp, her pussy raw and sensitive.
Without saying a word, he got up from the bed, walking across the room to the connecting bathroom. She heard the sound of water and debated getting up herself. Or grabbing her clothes and running away.
She didn’t have time to decide. He was back in the doorway in just a moment. Just like earlier, she tried to find something to cover herself. She sat up, grabbing a pillow to hold in front of her. Silly, she knew, when he’d just seen everything—and she did mean everything.
But somehow, lying on top of the silk comforter now, without the haze of passion clouding his vision—well, all fluffy women knew that wasn’t a good thing.
He stood by the bed looking down at her. She tried to look at him, but his cock was right there. In front of her. So yummy and delicious looking all she wanted to do was lean forward and take him into her mouth.
“Come.” He held out his hand, totally at ease.
She placed her hand hesitantly in his. “Where are we going?”
He didn’t answer, merely pulled her to her feet. She followed meekly behind him, dropping the pillow back on the bed. Her gaze now focused on his rock-hard glutes. Wow, the man was built, coming and going. Her pussy clenched.
They walked into the bathroom, and she saw that he had run another bath. Without a word, he helped her over the side. She slid into the silky smooth water, unsure what to do. She’d never taken a bath with a man before. He stepped over the edge and sank into the hot water on the other side.
“Does it not feel good?” He looked at her.
“Mmm.” And it did feel good, especially on her tender girl parts. But awkward. She somehow managed to resist the urge to bring up her knees and cover her breasts with her arms. Barely.
Barely. She almost snorted with laughter. She was bare alright.
“Come here.” He sat on his side of the tub, his arms stretched across the edge, his long legs crossed in front of him. The water was crystal clear. She saw every inch of his body in all its perfection. From his broad shoulders down to the massive size of his biceps. His chest was a solid wall of muscle covered in a perfectly proportioned mat of dark hair. But then she shouldn’t have been surprised. Everything about him was perfection. Her gaze skipped down to his feet. A smile curled her lips. The saying about the size of a man’s feet matching the size of a man’s cock was absolutely true—at least in the shifter world.
And speaking of that. She allowed her gaze to travel upwards. His calves were strong and sure, and his thighs reminded her of tree trunks. She couldn’t see it at the moment, but she knew his ass was, well, magnificent. Well rounded cheeks that made a woman want to sink her teeth into them. Did men feel that way about a woman’s ass?
Her gaze finally landed on the part of his body that she really hadn’t gotten to look at. His cock. And my, oh, my, what a cock. Granted, she hadn’t seen many up-close and personal. Yeah, she’d been guilty of looking on the internet. But what she’d seen there and what she was looking at now…No comparison. She licked her lips, taking him in. Even unaroused he was massive. And aroused…her pussy started to ache just thinking about him inside her again.
He must have noticed—and appreciated—where she was looking. His dick started to grow as she watched.
“Come here,” he repeated again.
She raised her eyes to his. The daring she’d felt earlier returned, and she lifted her finger, motioning him over. “Why don’t you come over here?”
They stared at each other for a moment, and she started to fill with doubts. Then, he moved. Slowly, sensuously, gliding through the water. Before she knew it, he was there, on top of her, pressing her back against the side of the tub. “I thought cats didn’t like water.”
His mouth curled in amusement. “Oh, we like anything that’s nice and slick.” His eyes flickered downward where their bodies were touching, groin to groin. “Are you nice and slick?”
“Why don’t you find out for yourself?” She leaned her head back against the tub and arched her hips upwards. His cock bumped against her lower stomach, a move that just a day ago would have embarrassed the shit out of her. With a speed that amazed her, she found herself flipped around. Now on top, she straddled his lap and grasped his shoulders for balance.
“What are you doing?”
“Not what I want to at the moment.”
“Oh.” Her face fell, and she bowed her head to hide her expression. He didn’t want to be here with her.
His arms tightened around her, pulling her closer. Her center slid against his cock, and she groaned.
He said a curse word in the language he’d used with his men earlier that day, and she tried to pull away. “Sally.”
“Why were you angry earlier?”
“I was not angry.” His brows drew together in a frown. He hadn’t exactly been angry. Just frustrated that he couldn’t let the lion out. Okay, he admitted when his lion poked him. He had been angry t
hat he couldn’t sink his teeth into the side of her throat and drink her blood. Angry that he couldn’t mate with her.
“You looked angry. And now. You’re angry now.”
“Sally.” He spread his hands across her back, drawing her close still. “If I’m angry, it is at myself for wanting you again. It is too soon. You are too innocent for the things I wish to do to you tonight.”
“Really?” Her mouth curved into that half-smile he’d noticed from the moment he’d set eyes on her. Sexy and vulnerable all at the same time.
“Isn’t there anything we can do tonight?” She shifted, rubbing her cunt against his cock. He grunted, and she smiled, making the same move again. “Nothing at all we can do?”
“Well, perhaps there are some things.” He leaned forward and took one of her nipples in his mouth, sucking softly.
CHAPTER FIVE
SALLY WOKE THE next morning alone. Not that she’d expected Bachar to remain with her throughout the night. He was like any other man she’d ever had in her life. Once they had what they wanted, they left. Sighing deeply, she threw the covers off, shivering slightly. While she’d been warm and toasty under the down filled comforter, the room was chilled. No doubt the temperature was turned down because of Bachar’s higher metabolism. One of the few facts she knew about shifters was that their body temperature ran hotter than most humans.
Her body still tingled in places she didn’t know she had nerve endings from the thorough loving she’d gotten last night. No wonder women were throwing themselves at shifters left and right. Last night’s sex with the lion had been amazing with all capital letters.
She smiled when she saw her clothes were folded neatly by the bed along with her phone. She grabbed Bachar’s shirt from yesterday and pulled it over her head. Looking at the time, she realized it wasn’t that late, still early morning in fact. About the time she usually started her day. She walked to the large bank of windows and took in the frozen landscape. Sometime during the night, it had stopped snowing—but not before dumping at least a foot of snow in the area. The roads appeared to have been plowed and looked passable.
She wrapped her arms around her, a sense of dread settling on her. She bit her lip, not sure what she should do. Bachar had assured her that her brother was safe, but something inside her told her that he wasn’t. Or wouldn’t be. Ever since Nick had been born, she’d gotten these feelings. It was the same feelings that had led her here yesterday. Her baby brother needed her.
Hurrying to the bathroom, she quickly dressed, pulling on the underwear that, thankfully, was fully dried before donning her jeans. She skipped her bra, not wanting to take off Bachar’s shirt. She pulled the sweater that had gotten wet last night and was once again dry, on top of it before stuffing the rest of her meager belongings into her backpack.
In five minutes she was stepping off the elevator into the lobby of the hotel. At the front desk was an unfamiliar man. “Hello,” she greeted him. “Is Daniel here?”
She wasn’t sure the other man would help her, but she figured he’d be more willing than this complete stranger. The man looked up, and Sally almost wanted to step back. He reminded her of the hotel clerk in the first hotel she’d stopped at. The one where she’d met Bachar.
“No, he isn’t.” He continued to look at her as if she were wasting his time.
Sally cleared her throat knowing what she was about to do wasn’t wise. “I need a car, please. A four-wheel drive vehicle.” Even if Bachar had allowed her to drive her rental car up the mountain, she was doubtful it could have navigated the road’s current condition.
The man’s lip curled up into a sneer. “And why would I give you a car?”
“Because Bachar—”
At the sound of the alpha’s name, the man seemed to snap to attention—but not in a good way. His eyes narrowed as they raked up and down her frame and she instantly regretted not buttoning up her coat to hide her breasts from his intrusive gaze.
“So, you’re the woman who spent the night with him?” Sally didn’t think there could be any more derogatory inflection in the man’s voice. She realized that the man probably wasn’t a shifter because she knew if any other shifter had heard him, they would have taken him out. One thing she’d learned in her few dealings with shifters was that insubordination and disrespect were not tolerated—especially to an alpha.
She chose to ignore his question. She didn’t think claiming any sort of status with Bachar at the moment would do her any favors. “I was wondering if you could tell me where I might find the Richardson Pack.” Bachar hadn’t shared much information about her brother last night after they had, um, gotten to know each other better, but he had eventually told her the name of the wolf pack that had found him. She felt a little shimmer of guilt at what she was doing, but he hadn’t made her promise not to go find her brother. And, Nick was with a wolf pack. It wasn’t as though she were going to traipse up the mountain, heading in an unknown direction.
If possible, the man’s countenance became even sleazier. “Might have known you’d want to find another one to sleep with.”
“The directions, please?” Sally clenched her hands to keep from slapping the man. She really wished Daniel had been around. Eventually, the man gave her directions which sounded simple enough. Thankfully, it wasn’t snowing again, so, the turn off he described should be easy to find. She put a sliver of steel in her spine and sated again. “I’ll need a vehicle.”
He stared at her a few more moments before moving away. At first, she thought he was going to ignore her request. Then, he was handing her a set of keys. “It’s parked out back.”
She frowned when he didn’t give her any paperwork to complete. “How will I know which one?”
He looked at her as if she were two sandwiches short of a picnic. “Push the damn button.” He motioned to the key fob in her hand.
“Oh. Okay.” Sally blushed, suddenly feeling like an idiot for asking. It had been a legitimate question, though. Who sent someone out to find a car in a parking lot without a little more information?
She failed to see the man reach for his cell phone as she walked out of the hotel.
Bachar tried to suppress a yawn as Tarek drove steadily back down the mountain. As much as it had pained him to leave Sally—leave his mate—he had kept his promise to find her brother as quickly as possible. Because of the storm last night, they hadn’t been able to reach the pack. He’d talked to the alpha by phone and had been assured that the young wolf shifter was safe and sound.
This morning he had called Tarek as soon as he’d awaken—well not as soon as he’d first stirred, he thought with a smile. He had tasted his mate again before leaving the warmth of their bed. She had smelled of him, and his lion had wanted nothing more than to stay and rub itself against her. Even after loving her, her eyes and lips had held a slumberous expression that beckoned him on a level he’d never known existed before.
During those long evening hours, he had stopped fighting his cat, destiny, and fate. Holding her in his arms, he realized he could no more deny her as his mate then he could refuse to take his next breath. She was a part of him. A gift he would cherish the rest of his life.
“Late night?” Tarek asked, his gaze darting to Bachar even as he took the mountain curves at a slightly dangerous speed. Not that Bachar was complaining, he wanted to get back to Sally as quickly as possible.
This morning they had indeed found her brother safe and well cared for. After some discussion with the alpha and elders of the pack, Bachar had agreed to let the boy stay with the wolves. All had agreed it would be the best thing for the young shifter. He had made it very clear that his mate would have access to her brother at any even given time.
Her brother, while remorseful to have left and worried his sister unnecessarily, had shown courage in the face of Bachar’s displeasure. He had, in fact, insisted that he was doing what was best for Sally. His concern for his sister’s safety had been one of the driving factors for him to s
eek out a wolf pack. He’d been afraid he would hurt her during one of his uncontrolled shifts.
“More like no sleep at all.”
“But you’re not complaining?”
Bachar heard the note of confusion in Tarek’s voice and laughed.
“Have I not told you before that you should lose yourself in a woman’s arms for the night, my friend? There is no other feeling like it.” Bachar sighed and allowed himself to sink into the heated leather seats. That warmth would have to suffice until he could wrap himself in Sally’s sweetly, scented arms once again.
Tarek frowned at him. For more reasons than he could ever share with the man he considered his alpha and a friend, Tarek knew he could never risk spending the night in a woman’s arms the way Bachar suggested. Losing his senses in the smell and taste of her, oblivious to everything around him. Too much danger lurked in the shadows as Tarek had discovered more than once during his long life.
But he wondered if his friend was ready to admit just how much Sally actually meant to him. He’d sensed no claiming fever in the alpha this morning, so that meant the man had not bonded with his mate last night. Was the man going to sacrifice his chance at happiness to keep his pride safe? The humans were a threat, but one that could be easily contained if Bachar removed the restraints he’d placed on Tarek on how the pride was to deal with them. Or maybe he needed a small nudge, Tarek thought. “So Sally is just another whore who—”
His alpha let out a loud roar that had Tarek’s hands jerking at the wheel and his wolf clawing to be let out. It was the roar of a predatory male protecting what was his. Even as he brought the vehicle back under control, a large hand closed around his throat, and a rush of heat fanned the side of his face where Bachar’s open mouth—with fully elongated fangs—pressed.
