What will your people do with all of the new shifters? She paused, wanting to choose her words carefully. There are at least a dozen more out there if what Sherry said was true and I don’t see why she would bother to lie about it.
We will help them adjust. Loup-Tech belongs to all of us. We will help them, train them and give them a way to make a life for themselves. He jumped up and pushed open the door Randy had left ajar for them. After you, sweetheart.
Carly tried not to preen as she walked through the door. She wasn’t sure what it was about being in this form, but every time he used an endearment, she wanted him more. He looked back and winked. Damn, she had it bad if he could entice her in this form.
Don’t upset yourself for reacting to me, Carly. It’s natural. Your wolf wants my wolf. It’s nothing to be ashamed or embarrassed about.
The hell it wasn’t. It was just plain weird.
Bastien pushed the door closed and immediately changed back into a man. She tried not to stare. Damn that was fast. She looked away, determined that he wouldn’t tempt her with his rippling muscles and jutting cock. She felt herself blush even though she didn’t think wolves were capable of such a thing.
“It’s not as fast as it will be once I get back into practice.” He smiled and looked over his shoulder at the tub. “I thought you wanted a bath.” He looked down at himself and brushed the blood away from a nasty scratch that was all that was left of their harrowing battle of only an hour before. “I know I want one.” He moved to the tub and bent to turn on the water.
I’m not taking a bath with you like this. Just thinking of him the way she was had to be wrong—at least it was wrong as long as she remained in this form.
“Think of your human side, Carly. It will seem just out of reach at first, but if you continue to concentrate, you’ll find it.”
Carly closed her eyes and pictured herself as a human. She could almost feel what it was like to stand upright, to only have two legs instead of four, and she wouldn’t mind losing the tail. She felt the change come upon her sooner than she expected. The hair disappeared from her legs and arms, paws turned back into hands and feet and her face was back to normal.
She looked at her hands. Turning them over, she looked at their palms and wriggled her fingers. “This is so weird.”
“Just weird?” Bastien stepped up to take her in his arms.
“It’s more than weird, but...I’m not sure it’s a bad thing anymore.”
He kissed the side of her neck. Heat seeped into her from behind. His chest, pressed against her back, warmed her in the cool room.
Steam rose off the tub as it filled and suddenly, Carly couldn’t think of any place she would rather be than in that tub with her soft curves brushing against Bastien’s hard body.
The tub drew her as chocolate drew children and she stepped down into the large, sunken pool. The water enveloped her. It washed away the residual aches on her legs left from their battle. Bastien stood to the side as though unsure.
Carly held out her hand. “I need you in here with me, Bastien. I want to wash the blood from you. I need to know that your wounds are healed.”
HE STEPPED INTO THE hot water as it swirled around her. “God, you’re beautiful.” He couldn’t help but stare at the dusky tips of her breasts. Her nipples hardened beneath his stare and he grinned. “You’re blushing you know. All over.” Leaning down, he pressed the gentlest of kisses against her mouth. “This is the way things were meant to be, love,” he whispered against her lips. “Men worship their women. They give them everything they desire and in return—”
“The women do the same for their men,” she finished for him as she wrapped one arm around his neck and took his hard cock in her free hand.
His hips bucked as she feathered her fingers up and down the steely shaft. Releasing him for a moment, Carly grabbed the body wash and squeezed some into her palm. When she’d worked up a good lather, she took him between her hands and soaped him up lavishly.
Bastien actually felt his eyes cross. “Holy hell, that feels good, Carly.” He took a deep breath. “Hoo! Where did you learn to do that?” he asked as she did something with her fingertips that he’d have to investigate later. He shook his head. “Never mind. I want us to be the only two people in this room.” He looked down at her as she splashed water over him, rinsing him off.
“I like you clean.” She grinned as she went to her knees in front of him.
He didn’t dare dream she was about to...too late. He dared to dream and wasn’t disappointed. Carly leaned forward and wrapped her lips around the tip of his cock. Bastien’s knees nearly gave out at the intense sensation of her mouth closing around his thick length.
Reaching down, he fisted his hands in her hair. He couldn’t stop himself. He needed the connection with her to keep him sane and to keep him from losing himself and coming into her mouth like a teenage boy during his first sexual encounter.
She looked up at him, her eyes wide and bright. He stared into the deep, sea-blue of her gaze and knew he would willingly die to spend a moment in this woman’s presence. He watched her head bob back and forth as she continued to suck his cock. His eyes crossed when she stuck the tip of her tongue into the slit on the head and licked the underside of the crown. “You’re going to kill me, Carly.”
She did little more than grin around his shaft when he said that. His knees began to shake when she reached up to grab his sac and squeeze. The familiar tingling wrapped itself around his balls and worked its way through his lower stomach. “I’m going to come if you keep this up, baby.” His fingers clenched and unclenched in her hair.
CARLY HAD HIM JUST where she wanted him. His fingers clenched in her hair as she lightly scored his sac with her fingernails. He would come soon. She was sure of it. His legs vibrated with tension as he stood before her, submitting to her tender ministrations.
She smiled when he groaned. Thick ropes of thick fluid shot from his shaft and she continued to suckle and milk him. Never before had she ever wanted to do this for any man. Something was different with Bastien. She found herself wanting to do things she had never thought she would like to do. She wanted to bring him pleasure more than she wanted to breathe at that moment.
When he finally slipped from her mouth, she took a moment to savor the flavor. She’d always assumed it would taste horrible. Not Bastien. He tasted wild, musky and was just a bit on the salty side, but never bad.
“I don’t believe you did that.” Bastien sank to one of the seats and brought her to sit on his lap. “I think you bled me dry, woman. I may not have anything left for you.”
Carly grinned as she reached over to grasp his cock that was already on the rise. “I think there’s a lot more where that came from.”
Bastien stayed her hand on him. “No more. It’s my turn, now.” He grabbed her wrists and turned her around.
Reaching around her, he grabbed the body wash and dumped a liberal amount into his hands. “I think these are dirty and in need of attention,” he said as he lathered her breasts, pulling gently on her distended nipples. “And this.” His hands trailed lower to her stomach, then down to the thatch of hair at the apex of her thighs.
“I think this needs special attention.” His fingers delved deep into her slit and circled the bundle of nerves he found there. “What’s this, you might ask?” He continued to massage her clit as her breathing grew more and more erratic. “I think this is something left there just for me.”
Standing, he rinsed her off and picked her up in his arms. “I can’t do what I want to do next in that tub.” He set her on her feet and grabbed a towel.
When they were both relatively dry, he picked her up again and carried her to the bed where he gently placed her in the center of the mattress. “Don’t move.” Bastien stood looking at her for a moment. Carly was almost ready to cover up with embarrassment when he finally reached out and caressed her leg.
“I love how smooth your skin is.” He grabbed an ankle in e
ach hand and moved them apart. Slowly crawling up her body, he kissed every inch of her legs. Her ankles, behind her knees, he left no area untouched. He looked up at her as he reached her groin. “And now that I have reached the prize, it’s time for a feast.”
Bastien lowered his head to her sex and Carly groaned. “Please,” she begged as he circled her clit with his tongue. When he sucked the little bud into his mouth, she screamed, wrapped her legs around his shoulders and grabbed him by the hair.
Her orgasm ripped from the center of her being, just as surely as the scream ripped from her lips. Stars burst behind her eyes as she shot out into the universe for a split second and blew apart. Millions of tiny sparks, pieces of her, rained down on the bed and gathered back together only to repeat the process when she came again.
Carly was little more than a quivering ball of flesh when he crawled up her body, a feral grin on his face. “Did you like that?”
“You know I did.” She felt herself blush. How many times had she screamed—two...three? Worse yet, how many people had heard her scream? She covered her face with her hands. “I’m never going to live this down.”
“Sh...no one heard you, baby.”
“How can you be so sure.”
“Because they’re no doubt asking at the front desk what happened to the lights.” He thrust into her with a smile. “They all blew out during your first orgasm.”
“Oh, God.” What were they going to do without lights?
“Yes, dear?”
Carly giggled. “You may be a god in bed, but you aren’t the God.” She gasped when he angled his hips and thrust into her again. “Oh! Keep that up and you just might convince me otherwise.”
Heat flared in her womb as he bent down to lap at her breast. He suckled the tips, nipping lightly on the tight bud. Blood rushed to her head and her heart pounded in her ears when he sank his teeth into her just below her collarbone.
“Bastien!” Darkness overcame her with his name on her lips, the sensations of the intense orgasm were just too much for her.
Epilogue
“This isn’t over. Not by a long shot.” Bastien sighed and sat back in his chair. “They still have several facilities. It’s hard telling where they are now. They’ve had the time to acquire more labs and houses.” He scrubbed his face with his hands.
“Shit. It’ll be years before we can wipe them all out.” Randy slammed his glass down on the table. “I wanted to end this before I had to go back to work, damn it all!”
Cameron took a deep breath. “You know, our contracts are up in less than thirty days.” He looked at his brother. “We can request separation leave. If they don’t want to grant it, they can pay us for our last forty-five days.”
“They’ll give us the leave,” Randy half-laughed. “They won’t want to give both of us all that money all at once.”
“Perhaps.” Dimitri stepped forward. “We should all relocate first. Thanks to Luke, they know most of, if not all, our locations.” He glanced around the room. “We’ll have to set up new homes, new safe houses. Think about it. It must be done. We cannot continue to live in our current homes.”
“Oh, Bastien!” Carly hurried over to sit on his lap. “You’ll have to sell your beautiful house?”
He shook his head. “No, love. We don’t have to sell it. We can close it for a while. With luck, it won’t take long to eradicate the enemy and we can return.” He squeezed her tight. “Besides, my home isn’t a building. It’s wherever you are.” He’d never meant anything more in his life.
“But what about the animals?” Her eyes widened at that.
“Did anyone get Bosco out of that lab before you blew it up?”
“Yes, love.” Bastien kissed her fingers and smiled. “Kyle got him out of there while we were avoiding your recapture. Bosco is alive and well and awaiting us at our home. Don’t worry. He’ll move with us. Then we’ll all be safe.”
He almost sighed with relief at her worried expression. If she feared for the bear’s life, perhaps she could come to love Bosco almost as much as he did.
Natalia sat on the corner of his desk, tucking her right foot behind her left leg. “As safe as we would all be here in the headquarters for Loup-Tech, we all can’t live here indefinitely. Especially that smelly old bear.” She looked down at Bastien. “Papa and I will stay here to run things with a select few while the rest of you find another place to live. Wolf Lake is no longer safe for us.”
“I don’t think—”
“You’re only the head of Loup-Tech as long as your grandfather and I say you are, pup,” his father interjected. “We’ve both decided that we’ll stay here and run the business while you, your mate and your sister go to safety.”
“But, Papa!” Natalia stood.
“Don’t but, Papa me.” Malcom shook his finger at her. “We’ve already decided that we want you to go with your brother and his friends. They can protect you much better than we can.” He turned to look at his parents who stood just inside the door. “Besides, it gives us the chance to feel useful again.”
Natalia sighed, cast a glance toward Cameron and Randy, then lowered her gaze. “Yes, sir.”
“Now that that is settled.” Malcolm rubbed the newly healed stump where is hand should have been. “You all need to find a new place to relocate to. We’ll always be here when you need us, but for now, we shouldn’t know where you’re going. That way your nice doctor can’t capture one of us and get that information.” He glanced back at his parents again. “Not that we would ever tell them.”
“Thank you, Papa.” Bastien sat up in his seat, his arms around Carly, and watched the three older wolves leave the office. “Okay, everyone. Any ideas?”
“Well, we don’t want to go too far. We have to keep an eye on the factory and those left behind, whether your family likes it or not,” Cameron replied, looking at each of them in turn. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I don’t think I could live with myself if something happened to them.” He glanced at his brother. “It’s in our natures to protect those who can’t protect themselves.”
Bastien didn’t want to remind the two brothers that they were talking about werewolves. He knew his father and grandparents were very capable of protecting themselves against humans. Their ability to protect themselves against other weres was what had him worried. “You’re right. We need to stay close. Any ideas?”
“What about Walker?” Carly asked. “Do you think they’d expect us to play house right in their own backyard?” She shifted, stood, then began to pace. “I know they did it. However, it doesn’t mean they’ll expect us to do it.” Smiling, she stopped and surveyed the room. “It’s been my experience that those who have huge egos tend to overlook the obvious.” She grinned. “After all, in their minds, everyone is so much less intelligent than they are.”
The twins looked at each other. “She’s right, you know,” they said at the same time.
“They’d never expect us to use their tactics.” Randy crossed his arms. “
Bastien looked at her and grinned. “It’s a wonderful idea, baby, and we can keep an eye on them while we’re at it.” He turned to Dimitri. “Let’s get things moving to that end.” He turned a feral gaze on Carly. “If you all don’t mind, I think I’ll take my mate out for a bit of privacy.” He gave her a wink.
Where do you want to go, love?
Carly looked up at him and smiled, hoping he could see the love in her eyes. It doesn’t matter, my mate. As long as I’m there with you.
THE END?
Not on your life. There are many shifters living near wolf lake who need to find their mates.
Keep reading for a sneak peek of Protecting Ally. One of the Tolbert brothers has met his match.
Read Protecting Ally here.
Did you like this book? If so, please consider leaving a review at your favorite e-book retailer. Reviews let an author know what their readers like to read. It also helps new readers find their books! If you would like
to help your favorite author at no additional cost to you, leave a review. It helps us all keep doing what we love; writing the stories you love to read.
WANT MORE OF THE SHIFTERS of Wolf Lake? Contact me and let me know what you think at [email protected]
WANT NOTIFICATIONS about new releases or to have your name entered into monthly Amazon gift card drawings? Join Tianna’s Tribe!
About the Author
IF YOU’RE READING THIS, I hope it means you’ve just enjoyed reading one of my books. Always a romantic, I started weaving little romantic fantasies for my friends at the tender age of fifteen.
After complaining to my husband that my favorite authors didn’t write fast enough, he asked a fateful question. “Why don’t you write one of your own while you’re waiting?”
Once I started, he couldn’t stop me. I write in the morning, most of the day, and I write at night when I should be relaxing. I’ve even been known to write in my sleep. Sometimes it even makes sense!
I grew up in Southwest Florida, where I met and married the love of my life and started my very own happily ever after.
My husband was in the Navy for twenty years, so if you wonder where I have gotten some of my ideas, I blame him. I suggest you do the same. He’s always saying he has wide shoulders. Let’s load them up, shall we?
Currently, I live in Michigan, seven miles from the nearest town. I love living in the country. It gives me the peace and bits of nature I need to continue to write these stories for you. It also shows me a lot of natural beauty that I try to share with you in my books.
While my titles might be dedicated to certain individuals who have touched my life in differing ways, please remember, I write every one of them for you.
My most recent dream is to continue what I do—to share more stories with anyone willing to read them. My new goal is to be able to pursue both my writing and my husband, fulltime. Do you think he’ll run?
Embracing Carly Page 24
