by Chloe Cole
Like Amber had last night…
She barely managed to swallow the instinctive growl rising in her throat. “You must be exhausted now after all the late night activity, and then running around on almost no sleep there, Loverboy.”
Her cheeks burned as she realized what a prig she sounded like. To his credit, Jax only laughed. She refused to meet his gaze as she turned on the hot spray with a jerk, and he followed suit.
“Actually, I’m not tired at all,” he said, after leaning in to wet his hair. “In fact, I feel totally refreshed. That run was exactly what I needed to clear my head.”
She let the water run over her face, over her tired eyes and down her cheeks, her emotions growing more riotous by the second. The fact that he felt totally refreshed and she felt like she was going to burst with pent up frustration and confusion was too much to bear. The scales finally tipped as the need to know edged out her need to avoid further humiliation.
She swiped the water from her eyes and faced him head on, pulse hammering.
“Why her, Jax? What does she have that-” she broke off and shoved a lock of hair from her face with a trembling hand. “Why bring her to the house? Help me understand.”
He met her gaze and she searched his for answers in his fathomless brown eyes.
“Why her?” He shrugged and let out a bitter laugh. “Honestly? Because I thought I needed somebody I could never actually care about. And why bring her home? I don’t know. Maybe so someone would try to stop me—”
“I tried!” she cut in vehemently. No frigging way was he laying this on her. “You would not be stopped.”
“I didn’t do it, Chan.” He blew out a sigh and shook his head. “I couldn’t do it. I went back to the room and was going to send her home, but it was late, and she asked if she could stay. She was almost passed out, it was the middle of the night, and I felt like a heel for leading her on anyway, so I said okay. But I slept on the sofa. I called her a cab this morning and then got in my bed when she left. The end. I don’t plan on seeing her ever again.”
She almost passed out with relief. He wasn’t hers, but at least he wasn’t anyone else’s either. She could live with that. A little more time and she would get over him. She was just glad she didn’t have to do it while he paraded another woman around the house.
The steam rose around them as he moved closer to the shared wall of the shower. “Now that we have that out of the way, I wanted to talk to you about something.” His face was as serious as a heart attack. “Something important.”
“Oh?” The relief she’d felt a moment before curdled in her belly and she steeled herself for an emotional blow.
“See, Chan, I have a problem,” he continued, his voice husky. “I haven’t been with anyone since Sara died.”
He paused, as if to let that sit, and she tried to wrap her mind around it. A year was a long time for a man and would have felt seven times longer than that for a wolf. Not acting out sexually for that length of time must have been agonizing for him.
“I can’t go on like this. Hell, I can’t even function. But I’m not the type of guy to go around having sex with random women.” The gaze he’d locked on her went hot and her stomach bottomed out. “So I’ve been thinking. We’re both werewolves and in need of companionship. I know you haven’t been with anyone since you came to Pray. That’s a long enough dry spell that it can’t be comfortable. I don’t know how you feel about me, but I care about you a lot, and I also think you’re drop-dead sexy. If you’re game, I’d like to see if we can’t…help each other out a little.”
She opened her mouth to reply, a thousand emotions crowding in at once, fighting for supremacy, but he held up a hand.
“Wait. Let me finish. If we aren’t happy with the situation and either of us wants to back out or stop, or if you find one you want as your mate, then it ends and we remain friends.”
Her pulse pounded as she stared at his beautiful, solemn face. He was dead fucking serious.
Her world tilted on its axis.
“Before you answer, I want you to know one thing.” He looked at her hard, his eyes burning with need. “If you give me the chance, I swear I’ll make it good for you. What do you say?”
Chandra swallowed hard and actually began to shake. He was right about one thing: it had been a long time for her. He didn’t even know how long. His words alone had her body ready.
She didn’t mull it over or even give herself a chance to come up with the dozens of good reasons not to do it. Her instincts were telling her to take him however she could get him for however long he would have her, and a smart wolf never ignored her instincts.
She reached her hand out and slowly turned the shower off.
Chapter Four
Jax’s gut clenched as Chandra turned the water off in total silence.
Shit.
She was so offended, she wasn’t even going to dignify his question with an answer. He’d really screwed that up. Things would be weird between them now, and he felt strangely bereft at the thought.
Her stall door closed with a click and he bent his head under the hot spray, forcing himself not to embarrass her further by watching her walk away. A second later, his own door opened and he started in surprise.
As he pulled his head from under the spray and wiped at his face, Chandra stepped in and shut the door behind her.
“I thought…”
His voice trailed off as she leaned up on her tiptoes to nip lightly at his chin. She moved her lips down the line of his jaw, then to the pulse that was pounding in his neck. She bit down hard and touched his mind with hers. He gasped as carnal images, her fantasies, assailed him.
Chandra, on her knees before him, holding him captive with her hand, sucking and licking him. Chandra on her back, legs wrapped around his waist and him sliding in and out of her pussy. Chandra straddling him, rocking on top of him, her wild hair flying.
His blood thrummed, and he groaned. “Oh, this is going to be so good, Chan. So damn good.”
He gently pushed her away from him, then grasped both her wrists in his hand and held them above her head. He leaned into her, moving her hard against the shower wall, and pressed his hips and chest to hers. She moaned and arched her back, straining to get closer to him as he rotated his hips and ground against her. What a beauty. A red wolf with moss green eyes, she was strong and quick and as fine a wolf as she was a woman.
She began to pant, rocking against him, begging him, “Come on, Jax.”
He continued, sliding his wet hand down her neck, over her straining breasts but skimming past her nipples. Down her belly and between her thighs. He cupped her pussy and gave a firm squeeze, and she writhed against his hand.
She struggled harder against his wrist and whispered, “I want to touch you,”
He shook his head. Not to be denied, she looked at him and struggled in earnest now, pushing herself and him away from the wall with a mighty shove of her hips. He relished her strength as she made it difficult to hold her. He removed his hand from between her legs, reached around her back, and gave her a light slap on the ass. She stilled as he squeezed there and anchored her more fully against him once more.
“Again. Harder,” she demanded. He growled low in his throat and again slapped her firmly. She gasped and arched her hips, tilting them forward and back against his surging cock.
He closed his eyes for a moment and shook his head to clear it, then bent and sucked her raspberry nipple into his mouth. As he flicked it with his tongue and bit down gently, he felt her whole body tighten.
Jesus, she was going to come just like this.
They hadn’t even kissed yet and already he couldn’t figure out how he was going to stop himself from joining her. In that moment he didn’t care. He wanted to watch her as she peaked for him.
Chandra’s body stiffened like it was being held up by a wire that was about to snap. All of Jax’s senses shimmered as he focused on the heat of the spray, the feel of her hard nipple a
gainst his tongue, and his swollen cock pulsing against her. He delivered another stinging slap to her ass and sucked hard, grinding against her, as the pleasure-pain sent her over the edge.
She gasped, then chanted in a low voice, “Yeah, yeah, yeah.”
Jax pulled away so he could watch her at the end. Her head tossed back, eyes closed, she bit her lip hard, water sluicing down her face, neck, and breasts. He’d never seen anything so hot in his life. She was his equal in every sense. He didn’t need to check himself or be afraid of hurting or scaring her with his strength. She was a warrior like him, and this was a dance, a tease, and a battle of wills as much as it was lovemaking. It was a new experience for him, and he relished the freedom.
As she began to quiet in his arms, he lifted her easily by the hips. She followed his lead, wrapping her long, muscular legs around his waist, pressing her moist, hot core directly over his rock-hard erection.
“Are we safe?” he choked out, praying she said yes. They weren’t susceptible to diseases, and female weres only came into their fertile time once every three months, so odds were good they were in the clear, but when she nodded, he wanted to pass out from the relief.
She looked him straight in the eyes as she reached between them, took him firmly in her hand, and guided his swollen tip into her tight heat. His breathing grew shallow, and he strained to keep from thrusting too hard too soon. Then she reached out and grabbed his hair in her fist, pulling his mouth to hers in a hot, open mouth kiss. She pulled back slightly and traced his lips with her tongue before sucking his lower lip into her mouth.
Unable to hold back any longer, he squeezed her hips tight and slid himself further into her, inch by agonizing inch until he filled her. The sultry steam that enveloped them felt almost cool compared to the molten heat of her. He began to move in long, deep strokes, thinking each one would be the last as his body demanded release.
Urged on by the sounds of pleasure pouring from her mouth into his, he thrust harder, faster. Her consciousness brushed his as her body tensed, and she climaxed again. Liquid desire, hers and his, poured through him, a sensual elixir. He flexed deep, seating himself to the hilt as her inner muscles pulsed around him squeezing like an unseen fist.
“Damn it, Chan, you’re killing me.”
The heat and pressure coiled low in his loins and then it was over. He was coming hard, his cock jerking deep inside her as he groaned.
His breathing slowed, and he released her hips, sliding out of her. She let out a soft gasp and it took all of his concentration not to slide back into her and start all over again.
He set her feet on the floor and met her gaze. She wore a lazy, satisfied smile, and he was glad she didn’t seem to have any second thoughts.
He pressed his forehead against hers and said, “That wasn’t too bad, now was it?”
She laughed. “No, I guess it was okay for a first time. Clearly we’ll need some practice though. There’s always room for improvement.”
“If we improve on that, I’m pretty sure it’ll kill me,” he said solemnly. “Seriously, Chan, that was amazing. I feel so much lighter, like a dark cloud and all the tension was lifted away. Thank you.”
Regret filled him as he realized what time it was. The last thing he wanted to do was leave her now, but he had to go. He kissed her lightly on the mouth. “I hate to do this, but I’m scheduled to pick Ryan up from Niles’ house in a half hour.”
“No problem,” she replied with a quick smile. “I’ll see you later on.” She walked out of the shower stall, head held high, and grabbed a towel from the rack beside her, seemingly unconcerned about her nakedness, which had him hard as steel all over again.
He watched, tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth as she dried off quickly and threw on some jeans and a sweater.
“Will you be home for dinner?” he asked, before he could think better of it. That was a question a mate would ask, not a friend, and he wondered if she’d call him on it.
“As far as I know,” she said slowly, meeting his gaze. “Why?”
Why, indeed?
“The chef is making lamb tonight. I know you like it, so I was just wondering.” He tried to sound nonchalant, but wanted to kick himself for making things awkward between them already. He was going to have to work on his post-sex banter if he had any hope of making this a regular thing. And, damn, did he want this to be a regular thing.
Chandra chewed her bottom lip and shuffled from foot to foot in silence for a moment before answering. “Lamb sounds good. I’ll…uh, see you then.” Pink-cheeked, she waved in his general direction and then spun around and rushed out of the barn like someone was chasing her.
He was still cursing himself when he climbed into his car a few minutes later. The key to this whole kingdom was going to be making sure their friendship didn’t suffer. The second that started to happen, they’d need to re-evaluate, and frankly, he didn’t want to re-evaluate.
He wanted it all.
His cake while he ate it. Searingly hot sex with Chandra whenever they chose, and their fun, teasing closeness the rest of the time. He’d considered asking her to go with him to get Ryan, wanting to prolong their time together, but what he really needed was some space from her. Away from her scent, and her voice, and those eyes that sucked him in.
Things between them had been even hotter than he’d expected. They’d fit together like a hand in a glove, and now thoughts were plaguing him that shouldn’t be. This was sex, flat out. A release of tension. Some good times between friends. He wasn’t ready for a relationship, that was for damned sure.
So then why did he miss her already?
Chapter Five
As Chandra left the barn, she did her level best to keep her shit together. The fact that Jax hadn’t asked her to go along to pick up Ryan him had stung a little, but it was what she’d expected from him. He obviously wanted to make a point that this was going to be exactly what he’d said. Friends with benefits.
It was behavior afterwards had been flat out confounding. He’d seemed so eager to find out if she’d be around later that evening, and so focused in on her. Kind of like high school boy with a crush, which was ridiculous.
She smothered down the hoped that burned in her heart and tried to keep her feet flat on the ground as she headed back toward the homestead. Jax had been totally up-front from the beginning. She wasn’t his mate or even his girlfriend. They were friends, and she needed to make sure she didn’t let the bonus stuff go to her head or she was going to be in deep trouble.
It wasn’t easy to do, though, as little tremors still rocked her. Every detail played like a movie in her head. The line of his jaw, the feel of his skin, the way he filled her so perfectly. She’d felt so good wrapped in his arms, face buried in his neck. Even now, she felt boneless, fluid, like mercury.
Big deal; great sex. Get over it, you sap.
Wrapped in her own world, she was halfway to the house before she noted the strong scent of Chanel lingering in the air. Puzzled, she inhaled deeply, and again the overpowering perfume crowded her senses. Amber had left almost two hours ago. Out here in the open air, with this breeze, the scent should have been almost imperceptible by now. Especially since Amber had only gone from the door to her taxi.
Or had she…
Chandra’s hackles rose, and she picked up her pace to a jog. By the time she got to through front door, the scent had all but dissipated, but her discomfort had not. Something wasn’t right. She knew it in her bones.
“Hey, how’s it going?” Amalie stood in the foyer, her pretty, round face split into a smile. She was armed with her camera, as usual, and seemed to be on her way out.
“Pretty good. Just came back in from a run with Jax, you?” Chandra tried to keep her tone light. No point in worrying the alpha’s mate over what might be nothing.
“Fine, thanks. Everything okay with you? You look a little…spooked.” Her perceptive gaze searched Chandra’s face.
Spooked was the perfect wor
d for how she felt. Filled with a vague but overwhelming sense of unrest. Maybe it was lack of sleep combined with nerves over what had happened with Jax.
And maybe that scent had triggered some residual—albeit, irrational—jealousy and you’re being a paranoid fool.
It was true, she realized with a start. Despite Jax’s assurances that nothing had happened between them, she still couldn’t shake her irritation over seeing that woman with her hands on him. And that was before he’d been hers.
Not that he was hers now.
“Nope, all good.” She smiled at Amalie so hard that her flaming cheeks hurt, but she could feel herself cracking under the other woman’s intense scrutiny. Did she looked as freshly sexed as she felt?
“I don’t think so. Something weird is…holy shit!” Amalee squealed, setting her camera down on the side table in the foyer before grabbing Chandra’s hands. “You guys did it, didn’t you?” She scrunched her pert nose. “Don’t lie. I can smell him on you.”
Damn that woman and her eerily keen nose. She’d only been a werewolf for four months, but she was already in tune with her newly-hyperaware senses in a way that never ceased to astonish Chandra. She’d been sure the fact that she and Jax had made love under the spray of the shower would mask his scent enough to pass it off as incidental contact, not worth mentioning.
Guess not.
“Oh, I can’t wait to tell Liam. I told him weeks ago this was going to happen. The way you two look at each other.” Amalie fanned herself and pretended to faint before giving her a smug grin. “Totally called it. So it this public news yet or do I have to keep hush hush?”
“Um…it’s not…we’re not…” She and Jax hadn’t discussed whether they were going to try to keep their little arrangement a secret. Better to play it safe. “If you can keep it quiet for a while, I’d appreciate it.”
Amalie lifted her hands to her lips and mimicked locking them shut. “You have my word.”
