by Bonnie Vanak
She could easily resist him, Lexie assured herself.
“You don’t want me to get undressed?” she asked, feeling bold and daring.
“Not yet. A little demonstration first.”
Intrigued, she watched him take the ice cube and hold it up. It glittered in the lamplight like a crystal.
“This is what I’m going to do to you, eventually,” he whispered. “I’m going to spread your legs wide, put my mouth on you and love you.”
Water dripped from the melting cube. His tongue ran around the cube’s rim, flicking hard and fast. A slow pulse between her clenched legs became a stroke of heat, timed to each brush of his tongue.
Lexie wanted to squirm and thrash on the bed and forced herself to lie perfectly still. He stopped flicking his tongue over the cube and set it on the nightstand. Water trickled over the oak, dripping onto the white carpet.
The Lupine had a hot tongue.
Jackson leaned over her and unfastened the rest of her pajama top, parting the fabric a few inches but leaving her breasts covered. She watched him with wary suspicion as he picked up the ice cube again.
Coldness met her flesh as he ran the ice over her bare skin. A thin trickle of water drizzled over her chest, down to pool on her breasts and abdomen. Something dark and spicy perfumed the air. With a start, she realized it was Jackson, emitting a scent so powerful, it aroused her to a fever pitch. .
Jackson traced the ice down her quivering torso, his mouth trailing over every droplet to lick it up. Each pearl of water met with a slow stroke of his tongue.
His knuckles brushed over the slopes of her breasts. Her nipples peaked into hard little points.
“You’re so lovely, Lexie. So damn pretty, enough to drive a male wild.” Jackson sat back and stroked a finger down her exposed flesh. “You’re the only female I’ve really wanted for the past two years. The only one I’ve ever wanted to spend all my time with. Want to know something I’ve never told anyone else?”
Wordlessly, she nodded.
“All those long, lonely times by myself out on the range, just me and the cattle, I’d lie on my bedroll at night and look at the stars. Sometimes I felt so lonely I wanted to die, and I’d think of you, looking at the same night sky, and the loneliness would ease a little. Then I’d fall asleep, keeping you in my thoughts so I could have you close to me, even if only in my dreams.”
Her heart shattered at his tender confession. No one had ever looked at her that way, as if she were his entire world.
She dared to touch his hand, confessing, too. “I always dreamed of you, Jackson. Always. Because ever since that kiss in the barn, I’ve wanted you. But we can’t always have what we want.”
“You can have me now, Lex. All of me. No conditions, no terms,” he said softly.
The offer now stretched out between them, smooth like a silken sheet. Heart beating a frenetic pace, Lexie waited, feeling the blood race through her veins.
Silence quivered in the air for a moment.
Jackson stroked a fingertip across her pajama top, over her cresting nipple. It was barely a touch, but made her jerk upright, her hips rise upward. He took Lexie’s palm and placed her hand over her lower abdomen. “Your hips thrusting upward is your body’s natural response to wanting me deep inside you.”
Then he guided her palm to the big bulge in his jeans.
“This is me, wanting to be deep inside you.”
His calloused fingers clasping her wrist, he slid her palm lower, between her legs. Jackson began to stroke her hand between her legs, over her throbbing clit.
“You said you wouldn’t touch me below the waist!”
“I’m not the one touching you, sweetheart.” His gaze was dark and wicked with promise. “Doesn’t it feel good, Lex? Feel so good? Just a minute more?”
Up, down. She bit her lip, grinding her hips into the bed.
He took her other hand, slid her finger into his warm, wet mouth and sucked, flicking with his tongue. Each slow, sensual stroke of his velvet tongue intensified the throbbing low in her groin. Her breath hitched as their gazes locked, his dark and intent.
The heady scent of him, sharp pine and tangy earth and polished leather, teased her nostrils. The roughness of work-hardened fingers pressed against her hand. So masculine and powerful. Her female Lupine wanted to slide beneath him, surrender to his wicked need.
But he showed no interest in satisfying himself, only her.
He kept sliding her fingers between her legs, and it wasn’t enough. She spread her thighs wider and closed her eyes, as her hand stroked over her dampening feminine flesh, Jackson lightly clasped her wrist. He leaned close, his warm breath feathering over her ear. Wetness soaked her pajama bottom from her arousal.
“You’re getting wet and slick, ready to take my cock inside you. You like the idea of my big, thick hard cock sliding into your pussy, all nice and tight, feeling me fill you.”
Lightly, he bit her earlobe. She moaned.
“Imagine me on top of you, Lex. I’m covering you, like a big stallion covering a mare. You’re naked beneath me and helpless to resist. I’m ready to fuck you, gently at first, and then after I take your virginity and you feel nothing but pleasure, you’ll feel my thick cock hard inside you, pushing deep and deeper still. I’m fucking you hard now…”
The throbbing tension between her legs intensified. She imagined his huge cock at the entrance of her wet slit, ready to pierce and claim.
Pressure left the back of her hand. Jackson began palming her breasts, thumbing her nipples. She should stop, stop now, but her hand slid over her throbbing clit, the excruciating pleasure intensifying.
“And now I’m fucking you hard until you can’t feel anything but me, my cock deep inside you, taking you hard and fast because it wants inside your sweet pussy, claiming every single, silky, wet inch of you.”
A low moan escaped her as she saw the image he verbally painted. His naked, muscular body straddling hers, his enormous shaft straining in eagerness.
Her core clenched, squeezed with want, needing to be filled. Lexie increased the tempo to the rhythm of his hands over her breasts as he squeezed and kneaded. A cascade of feelings tumbled through her with frightening speed. Desire. Pleasure. And sheer need billowed through her.
Dampness gushed from her in a river.
“Feel me now inside you, doesn’t that feel good, you’re so wet and your honey is drenching me, ah, shit, your scent is driving my wolf wild, I want to fuck you so badly.”
The coiled tension in her loins built higher and higher until every inch of her body strained. Strained to touch him, to feel his warm flesh beneath her trembling fingers, to guide his thick shaft inside her.
“That’s it, my sweet girl, let go, let go, come for me,” he commanded.
Her finger circled her clit harder, and she arched upward with a loud shriek of his name. The tension shattered, pleasure exploding throughout her body. .
She convulsed, the shudders wracking her body, flying and never wanting to land, flying to the moon, the damnable moon that made her wolf ache to be free.
Sobbing, Lexie fell back to the bed. Jackson brushed a tender kiss against her perspiring temple.
“You’re so beautiful when you come,” he whispered into her ear and gave the lobe a tender lick. “I love watching you.”
The alarm clock dinged. Jackson flicked off the switch and stood up, grabbing the ice bucket.
Dazed, she opened her eyes. “That’s it? You’re leaving me?”
Dark intensity filled his gaze. “Do you want me, Lexie? Want me claiming you in the flesh, my cock deep inside you? Do you want me to make you come over and over and over until you can’t take it anymore and you beg me to stop?”
His voice became a husky, velvet whisper. “Do you want us to be lovers?”
Her body tightened as fresh arousal surged between her legs. I want, she thought. I want so much.
“Yes,” she bit out. “Oh yes.”
A sl
ow, seductive smile tugged his full mouth upward. “Soon, we will. Sweet dreams.”
Eyes wide, she stared at him in confusion.
He dropped the smile and assumed that hot, intense look again. “I’m going to show you exactly how much pleasure I can give you, Lexie. A lifetime’s worth.”
“You can’t seduce me into mating with you,” she blurted out.
Jackson touched her cheek, leaving her hot and hungry once more, aching for his touch. “We’ll see.”
The door closed behind him, leaving her wondering what the hell she’d gotten into.
Chapter 8
The next morning, Lexie woke before dawn to practice racing on Diamond, but Jackson was gone. He left a note for her on the kitchen counter, telling her breakfast was in the main lodge. Aiden had arranged for her to dine with the pack’s other females while he took Cora and her father on a tour of the ranch.
Lexie crumpled the note and threw it into the garbage can. After last night, her body tingled with pleasure. She’d dreamed erotic thoughts of Jackson making love to her. And now he wanted her dining with the pack?
He wanted to ease her into his life, getting to know his people, become familiar with their ways.
Her own people came first. No matter how many times Jackson made her come, she thought grimly, ignoring her growling stomach.
Lexie returned upstairs and retrieved her cell phone. She dialed Nikita’s private number. Her alpha answered on the first ring. “You ok?”
Just hearing her leader’s voice filled her with relief. “I’m doing good. Is everything all right there?”
“Don’t worry about us. You just take care of yourself. I’m handling everything fine.” But the evident strain in Nikita’s voice filled her with real fear. “Has Aiden said anything more about coming to our ranch to meet with me?”
“I haven’t seen him, but if he’s anything like Jackson, he won’t give up.” Lexie closed her eyes. “I’m worried, Nikita.”
“I can handle him. You worry about yourself, keep practicing for that race and don’t let Jackson distract you.” Her aunt sighed. “I hate asking this of you… it’s my fault you got into this…”
“Stop it. I want to help. I need to do this.”
Her alpha paused and said, “I packed a lot of protection in the suitcase I sent over. If the rumors are true, Jackson is like the rest of the Mitchell pack males and requires large.”
Protection? “Oh! Birth control.”
“You don’t want to risk pregnancy and Jackson trapping you into mating. But you’re smarter than that, Lexie. You’re going to get through this and race Diamond and win that purse. I have faith in you, and so does everyone else in the pack.”
Faith in her. No pressure. None at all. “Gotta run. I’ll see you in a few days.”
Thumbing off the phone, she set it down and covered her face with her sweating palms.
She had a pack already and could never join Jackson’s. Not while Nikita needed her so badly.
Jackson, with his smooth swagger, cocky charm and skillful hands, coaxing her to sinful pleasure. That wicked, knowing smile twined with such tenderness.
A lethal combination she couldn’t resist.
But for the first time since she’d joined them, her people needed her and not for being Lupine, but a talent the Skin world appreciated.
Jackson wanted her as Lupine, wanted her as his mate.
Nikita needed her as a barrel racing champion.
She knew how to be a rodeo queen, not a Lupine.
Eyes brimming, she threw the phone against the wall, wishing for once that she was neither.
Lexie was so lovely, Jackson mused.
The morning had dragged like frozen molasses. Boredom filled him as he’d ridden with the gushing Cora and her watchful father around the ranch’s sprawling pastures. Aiden had privately apologized for slapping him with the burden. Darius had left town on an “urgent personal matter.”
When Jackson finally returned to the lodge, he found out Lexie had never eaten with the pack. He’d curbed his disappointment and focused on his promise to let her race Diamond, her favorite temptation.
Tonight he would show her a promise of another, more delicious temptation.
As he waited for Lexie to bring Diamond to the corral where he’d set up the barrels for racing later that afternoon, Jackson fingered the silver stopwatch in his right hand. Sunlight winked off the casing. The watch was a gift from a grateful rancher whose timid daughter he’d taught to ride. Sherry had been terrified of horses after a nasty spill that resulted in a broken leg. It took time, patience and lots of encouragement to coax the shy girl past her terror.
Now she was married to a horse breeder and they had a successful business.
He cherished the watch not because it was a gift, but it represented everything good and wholesome and hopeful in a world that proved uncertain and lonely.
“What the hell you grinning at, cowboy?”
Jackson whirled and saw lanky, tall Peter ambling up to the fence. “None of your business.”
“I’m here to make it my business.”
Oh shit, here we go again. “Pick a fight with me, Peter, and you’ll be sorely disappointed. My fists are taking a rest this week.”
“Don’t want to fight. Aiden lowered the boom on me, too. I’m here to tell you to stay away from my gal.”
At Jackson’s puzzled look, Peter added in a low voice, “Cora. I’m staking my claim on her.”
Relieved laughter spilled from him. “That bitch? You can have her.”
Snarling, the other cowhand fisted his hands. “Don’t you dare insult her.”
“Sorry,” he said, meaning it, amazed at the other Lupine’s fierce protectiveness. “You’re serious about her?”
Peter’s face relaxed into a dreamy smile. “She’s so pretty and spirited, like a filly who needs a hard hand taming her. But she’s all soft inside, and when she gives that little sigh, it makes me wild.”
The Lupine had fallen head over boot heels. Jackson stuck out a palm. “Congratulations, Peter. Best of luck.”
They shook hands. “Sorry about breaking your jaw,” Jackson added.
“Sorry about the shiner.” Peter grinned and walked off, whistling.
And then Jackson forgot all about his rival as Lexie rode up on Diamond. His silly grin grew wider. Dark curls tumbled down the slope of her back, bouncing as she cantered on her mount. Her hands were graceful, the fingers long and elegant. He adored the way she held herself, so tall and straight, filled with confidence as she walked to her horse before competition.
A wide-brimmed black cowboy hat with a turquoise band sat on her head. Lexie wore a plain turquoise shirt with white cuffs. No rhinestones or sparkling sequins for this Lupine. Her jeans were faded and her boots polished and worn.
He’d never seen a more beautiful female.
He itched to run with her wolf beneath the full moon.
Lexie walked Diamond through the gate Peter held open. The other Lupine gave her a speculative look, glanced at Jackson and then closed the gate and walked off.
She patted the mare, leaning over to whisper into the horse’s ear.
Jackson clicked the stopwatch. “Go!”
Pride filled him as he watched her race. So assured and in control, she guided Diamond through the pattern, her smile wide as the Montana plains.
How he wished she’d smile like that for him.
One day. Maybe.
On a horse, Lexie was a rodeo queen. Jackson wanted her to feel the same off her mount. He’d do everything in his power to show her exactly how special she was.
He clicked the stopwatch. “Seventeen point seven seconds. You beat your own time.”
As she slid off Diamond, beaming, he added, “Maybe last night motivated you.”
He enjoyed the pink blush spreading over her sweet cheeks. His blood surged, thick and hot, as he remembered her flushed with passion, her gaze languid, her pouty lips parted in sexual sa
tisfaction.
That was nothing, darling. Just wait until later.
“Again. But this time, don’t use the stop watch. I want to practice leaning into the turns to make them tighter.”
“You practiced this morning, after I left the cabin. I saw you at dawn going into the stables.” He watched her cheeks color. “It’s okay, Lex. I figured you wanted to see Diamond, so I left the west door open for you.”
“Thanks,” she said softly.
I’d do more for you, if you let me, he thought, his chest suddenly tight. I’d do anything for you for the rest of our lives, if you agreed to be my mate.
Sitting on the corral’s railing as she started racing around the barrels once more, he watched intently and scented a flood of heavy perfume wafting through the air.
“Hi, Cora,” he said, not bothering to turn around.
“How did you know it was me?” She climbed onto the railing and joined him.
Could smell you several hundred feet away. “I have good senses.”
“And many other assets,” she said in a sultry voice.
Jackson fell silent, studying Lexie’s moves.
As they watched her lean into the turns, Cora gave a little sniff. “She’s not bad.”
“Lexie’s the best,” he said quietly. “She knows she’s good, but never brags about it.”
Another noxious smell slammed into his nostrils. Bart Baker rode up on a ranch golf cart and stopped close to the fence.
“Cora, stop lazing about and get to work.”
“I’m not lazing around, Daddy. I’m watching my rival and then I’m going to practice my timing to beat her.” She pouted. “Jackson says she’s the best.”
Bart left the golf cart and stood by the railing, watching Lexie race.
“She’s good,” he admitted. “You teach her everything she knows, Jackson? Everything you’ve been teaching my Cora?”
Sensing where this was headed, he hesitated. Last thing he wanted was Bart thinking that Jackson favored Lexie. The rancher would find an excuse to raise Big Boy’s stud fee and Aiden would be furious. He thought fast.
