When she came, it surprised him, both with the suddenness and the intensity. She arched up sharply beneath him, her head thrown back, her nails raking across his shoulders, brief sharp pain that only added to his pleasure. He looked down at her, watching her face in the throes of her release, feeling her twisting beneath him, the contractions of her core so strong around his cock, pulsing waves that fueled his own release.
He was joining her then, his growls mingled with hers, almost before he realized he was coming. The heat that had built inside of him came rushing to the surface, and he pressed Nikki hard into the bed as his hips jerked and flexed, every muscle tensed, far beyond even his control, as he spent himself inside of her.
As the final waves of his orgasm faded, and his body began to relax, Jax collapsed beside Nikki. Every sense was heightened, attuned to her. He listened to her breathing, heard the beating of her heart, matching the beat of his own heart. The rich fragrance of sex rose up around them and he drew in a deep breath.
But beneath that still was Nikki’s intoxicating scent. It had changed, grown stronger, not just her scent alone now, but mingled with his. The sun-kissed orange was still there, but spiked with something sharper, spicier, spiked with his masculine blend. All of that imprinted itself in his mind, on every cell, branded him.
He pulled her against him, nuzzling her neck, losing himself in the soft tangled mass of her hair. She turned toward him, curling her body against his and they moved in a brief silent dance, fitting his angles against her curves. And when they were still, it was a perfect fit. Nikki was asleep in minutes.
Jax lay awake, watching the moonlight streaming in through the window, outlining Nikki’s curves, casting deep shadows across her skin. Tomorrow night was the full moon, but his body was already feeling the moon’s insistent pull, all his senses heightened, his mind more aware, the long-familiar ache in his muscles and bones intensifying. He knew by this time tomorrow night, he’d be in wolf form, would stay that way until the following sunrise. And he knew Nikki couldn’t know what he was, not yet. Not if he wanted to make her his mate.
And lying in the moonlight, Jax had decided. She was the one for him, the mate he’d been searching for. In the moonlight he sighed, knowing all the complications that came with that decision and knowing that he really didn’t care about any of that. He only cared about Nikki.
* * *
Nikki woke alone in a strange bed, briefly disoriented. She lay still, her eyes closed as memories of the night before came back. She shuddered as she remembered a vivid image the man with the knife, holding it to her throat, his cracked lips held in a grotesque smile. Then fuzzier images of Jax, taking her away, taking her home with him. And then she smiled and stretched. More memories came back, very clear memories, of Jax, of him…them…in this bed. Of the things he’d done to her. And what she’d done to him.
She opened her eyes, looking around the room. It was surprisingly neat and orderly, and clean, for a guy. It was actually neater than her apartment.
The bathroom door opened and Jax emerged, looking up in surprise, catching her gaze.
“Hey, Nikki. Sorry if I woke you.”
She watched as he walked across the room, all lean muscles and smooth skin. His hair was military short, a thick wave of deepest raven black. The sight of it against his skin made her heart skip a beat. Plus, he was naked, in all his glory. Her heart recovered, beating faster.
“Come here.” She held out her arms, wiggling her fingers. “You didn’t wake me, but now that I’m awake…” The sheet slipped down one shoulder and she let it fall, knowing exactly how much of the curve of her breast it revealed, and what small portion remained hidden.
He hesitated, his eyes lowering for a split second and in that moment she saw doubt…reluctance… and it pierced her to the core. Not what she expected at all. She drew her arms back, pulling the sheet up as he crossed the room, sliding into bed beside her. He put his arm around her waist, pulling her against him. She let him, but there was a distance between them this morning, something that sure as hell hadn’t been there the night before.
“I should go…”
Jax was nuzzling her neck, his hand moving over her breast. Somewhere during the night the red camisole had come off and now he slid down in the bed, leaving a trail of kisses along her neck, over her shoulder and down the full curve of her breast.
“You should? Or you want to?” His voice was muffled against her skin and he didn’t look up as he spoke. Maybe she’d read him wrong, maybe he was just shy in the bright light of day.
“I…don’t want to. Do you want me to stay?”
He lifted his head, his eyes heavy-lidded, the silver in them muted to soft gray in the sun. “I want you…and I want you to stay.” His lips found her breast again and she relaxed against the pillow, giving herself over to Jax and the wonderful things he was doing to her.
They were wrapped in each other’s arms, the sheet a tangled mess between them when Nikki heard the door open. She sat up in alarm, looking over Jax’s shoulder at the man who filled the doorway. Jax sat up abruptly, turning away from her, and Nikki tugged as much of the sheet over her as she could.
“Bec, what the hell? Ever heard of knocking? Or of privacy?”
The man in the doorway, Bec, folded his arms across his chest. Even though he was shorter than Jax and built like a brick wall, Nikki could see the resemblance. It was Jax’s face, beneath a shock of blonde hair, ice blue eyes instead of silver.
“I didn’t know you were entertaining…or auditioning, if that’s the case.”
Nikki scowled, caught in the middle of something she really wanted no part of. She slid to the edge of the bed, the sheet wrapped around her, as the two men glared at each other. She bent down and retrieved her sweatshirt and jeans from the floor.
Jax had gotten off the bed, seemingly unconcerned he was naked, standing in front of Bec, hands balled into fists that rested on his hips.
“What I do, brother, in the privacy of my room, is my business. Not yours. Besides, I thought you’d left the…house.”
Bec snorted. Nikki looked up, eyes moving between the two, as she pulled up the zipper on her jeans. She’d seen enough bar fights to know that when the tension got this thick, it was time to leave. And there was no bouncer here to break this up.
“Um, Jax…” She was hopping on one foot, pulling on her shoe, looking in vain for the other. He turned, surprise on his face, as if he’d forgotten she was there.
“Nikki…you don’t need…”
But she’d found her other shoe and was gathering her purse. “Yeah, I think I do. I’ll see you at the club, yeah? I work tonight.” She edged her way between the men, and then slipped out the door of the bedroom.
The house was huge and she hadn’t paid attention last night. There seemed to be an endless number of rooms and halls, but no stairs. Finally, she turned at the end of one hall and found the stairs, almost running down them, her heart beating fast. She could hear voices from Jax’s room, loud angry voices, and the sounds made her cringe.
On the street, she stopped to take a breath, trying to get her bearings. This was a nice neighborhood, really nice, but she had no idea where she was. The street was a quiet residential, large homes set back from the street, but a few blocks down she saw traffic and she turned, heading toward someplace where she hoped she could find a cab.
* * *
“I thought I told you to leave.” Jax was pulling on his sweats, torn between going after Nikki and dealing with Bec. But he could hear Nikki’s fading footsteps, already down the stairs and then the snick of the front door as she closed it. It would have been easy to follow her scent, no matter how far she’d gone. It was indelible now, seared into his senses.
But Bec was in front of him and Jax’s duties…his damn duties…as alpha male came first.
“I did…I came back because there’s some shit going on that I need to talk to you about.” Bec walked into the room, pulling out the chair
by the desk and sitting down.
“But I suppose you’ve been too busy here…” Bec nodded toward the bed, rolling his eyes.
“What do you need to talk to me about, Bec? Spit it out.” Jax sat on the rumpled bed, ignoring Bec’s comment. Nikki’s scent rose up around him and he closed his eyes briefly, aching to go after her, knowing there was no way he could explain the restlessness that overtook him on days like this, as the moon pulled at him. Or that he was afraid she’d discover who he was before he had a chance to tell her himself.
Bec leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “There’s been a murder…three actually.”
“And what of it? Murders in Philly aren’t unusual.” Jax kept his voice neutral, but the hair stood up on the back of his neck. Murders, especially around a full moon, were always a concern.
“These are. Brutal, savage. Bodies almost shredded. One newspaper called it the killer ‘The Philly Wolf’.” Bec scowled, staring at the floor.
Jax ran a hand across his face. “Damn it. Okay, we’ll need to warn the others immediately. Everyone…all of us… need to be careful, more careful than usual.”
“Yeah. I know. I’ve told everyone already…well, I’ve told my pack.” Bec said the words slowly, as if they were a foreign language.
“So you’re an alpha male now? They let you just choose that for yourself, did they?”
“Jax, they came with me. It’s what they want, and what I want.”
“I see…well, we need to make sure the entire clan knows about this. Immediately.”
Bec finally smiled and Jax relaxed slightly. “So, what do you think? Do we have a human serial killer, or a werewolf serial killer, or someone trying to make it look like a werewolf?”
“I don’t know. I’m going to visit the murder sites tonight, see if I can scent anything…maybe pick up a trail.” Bec stood, the smile fading from his face, replaced with a deep look of concern. Jax looked up at his younger brother.
“You might want to be careful though, Jax.”
“Why is that?” For the first time, Jax thought Bec actually looked like an alpha male, not like the self-centered little brother he was used to.
“Because the murders were at a strip club.” Bec gestured toward the bed with his chin. “The one where your new…friend works.”
* * *
Nikki had finally found her way home, after taking a long bus ride and a short trip in a cab. Her wallet was empty and she realized she hadn’t gotten paid for her one and only dance the night before. Mack liked to settle up with the girls each night. But after seeing Jax, money had been the last thing on her mind. And Mack claimed he didn’t always remember who’d danced when. Everyone knew he watched them like a hawk, but his convenient forgetfulness always left him with more money in his pockets than theirs.
She shook her head. First the free lap dance, and now a night’s pay. Jax was costing her money. Something had to give.
It was still a couple of hours before she was due at the club and the memory of being with Jax brought up mixed feelings. More than anything she wanted to curl up in her bed and go over every last detail, every touch of his hands on her body, every kiss between them, everything he’d done to her, relive all of it. He’d taken her on a wild ride, getting her high with his body, his very being. It had been a long time since any guy had turned her on like he had, touched her, not only physically but somewhere else, deep inside where all her emotions lived. In the place no man had ever been, the place she never let anyone see.
They’d seemed to fit together so well, been in sync from the minute they both knew what they wanted. But this morning things had been off, different, their edges grating, not meeting. She didn’t know if…she didn’t know a lot of things. And it was obvious she didn’t know Jax at all.
Dinner was of a frozen variety, barely thawed, most of it discarded in the trash, before she left for the club. She was distracted, wondering if Jax would be there, if Lori was still pissed at her. Fighting made her stomach ache, a hold-over from family dinners that always turned into arguments. And fighting with Lori left her with an empty feeling in the pit of that upset stomach.
The alley was completely blocked off with crime scene tape and she went in through the front door, wondering if there’d been another robbery. The club seemed empty but it was still early. She looked for Mack, hoping he wasn’t around. He hated the girls coming through the front door, but there wasn’t anything she could do. She saw Sam behind the bar with Mack, but they were deep in conversation with Mack and neither looked up as she ducked her head and hurried through the club.
It wasn’t until she opened her locker that she realized she’d left her camisole behind, somewhere in Jax’s room. She sighed, groaning. She’d lost more clothes since she’d gotten this job. She wondered idly if she could use that as a tax deduction.
Nikki was almost dressed, after finally finding all the pieces to her leopard print outfit, the bikini bottom, halter-top and garter belt. She was sitting at the mirror, just finishing her make-up when Lori burst into the room.
“Oh, my God, Nikki. Can you believe it? Right here…right outside the door. I’m surprised Mack’s open, but he such a greedy bastard.”
Lori was trying to light a cigarette, but struggling, her hands shaking. She finally succeeded, drawing in a deep lungful of smoke, dropping down on the couch.
“Whoa, slow down. What are you talking about?” Nikki turned on the chair, leaning on the back.
“Have you been under a rock all day? There was a murder…three murders…right outside in the alley.” To add emphasis, Lori pointed dramatically with her cigarette, leaving a trail of ash on the cushions.
Nikki felt the blood drain from her face. “In the alley? When? Who?” Her hands started to shake and she dropped the make-up brush she held.
“Last night. They found Neon in a dumpster, China across the alley, with her druggy boyfriend.”
Nikki’s stomach did a sickening roll and she closed her eyes, drawing a deep breath. Lori seemed oblivious to Nikki’s reaction and went on, waving her cigarette, her voice rising in pitch as she got into the meat of her story.
“Neon had been killed first, earlier, put in the dumpster. It’s why she didn’t show up for work. Then, the druggy stalker boyfriend must have been waiting for China and killed her. And then he…” Lori scowled, the cigarette suddenly still in her hand.
“But that doesn’t make any sense. Who killed the boyfriend? He didn’t kill himself.” She shook her head, the cigarette back between her lips.
“How did they die?” Nikki’s voice was barely a whisper. She closed her eyes, willing Lori to say anything other than with a knife. She could still feel the cold snick of the blade the man had held to her throat.
“Neon was strangled or something. But the other two…” Lori leaned forward, her eyes unnaturally bright. “They were torn to shreds. All cut up, not with a knife, but like, with claws. Bitten too, from what the papers said.”
Nikki bolted from her chair, making it to the bathroom just in time to lose her meager dinner into the toilet. Lori came into the bathroom and crouched beside Nikki, holding her hair away from her face.
“Didn’t know this was going to hit you that hard. I didn’t think you knew China that well. And no one knew Neon.”
Nikki looked up at Lori, at the cigarette clamped between her lips, squinting against the spiral of smoke. She shook her head.
“No, I didn’t but…it’s…he was there. The boyfriend, last night. When I left. He…he held a knife to my throat and then…” Nikki’s voice broke and she sat back on the tile floor. Lori tore off a paper towel from the roll on the sink, handing it to Nikki.
“You got away? Damn, Nikki, seriously? Did you go to the police?”
“No.” She shook her head, wiping her mouth, her breath rough, panting. “I…Jax…the guy from the club…” She gestured over her shoulder, in the direction of the muted thumping music.
“He was there, s
cared the guy off. And he ran away. The guy, I mean.” She looked up at Lori. “Jax saved my life.”
“Yeah. I guess he did. Real hero. Then what?” Lori’s voice had gone suddenly cool and she was watching Nikki closely, head tilted to the side. Nikki knew the look, knew she’d have to bluff her way through this or hurt Lori’s feelings even more than she already had.
Nikki wrinkled her nose in disgust. “You were right, Lori. He’s bad news. Pulled me out of the alley, dragged me to his place and…well, it wasn’t any good.” She dropped her eyes, hoping Lori would think the rising flush in her cheeks was from being sick.
“Yeah. Okay.” Lori stood, looking down at Nikki. “Told you. Guys are just…shit sometimes.” She held out her hand.
“Come on. You’re up soon. I hear Eden’s music starting. You’re after that, right?”
Nikki took the outstretched hand, letting Lori pull her to her feet. “Yeah. I’ll be out. Need to rinse my mouth.”
Lori shut the door behind her and Nikki looked at her face in the speckled mirror over the sink. She looked like hell, her make-up smeared, her hair sticking in damp straggles around her forehead. She splashed cold water on her face, further destroying her make-up.
The music through the wall swelled, a few shouts and cat-calls reaching Nikki. She sat down at the big mirror, reapplying liner and mascara and a swipe of lipstick. Despite hearing about the killings, and having to lie to Lori, she felt a tremor of anticipation running through her veins. Jax knew she was working. And despite any mixed feelings she had, any insecurity, she wanted to see him. Desperately. She just wasn’t sure that was such a good idea.
* * *
Jax was in his room, alone. Bec had left to go back to his pack. It was hard to imagine his little brother with a pack of his own, or as an alpha. He’d always just been the pup nipping at his heels, getting in his way, generally making a nuisance of himself. Even if Jax loved him, Bec still drove him crazy.
The Alpha's Touch Boxed Set (14 Book Bundle) Page 57
