by Emma Roman
“Is that Kym?” Tyler emerged from the back room with a couple of envelopes. “I have both of your checks right here.”
Kym hopped off the stool. “You’ll never guess who was here—Lita.”
Jenny rubbed her arms as their boss’s mouth dropped open. She barely heard him say, “Damn. I wish I’d gotten a picture.”
She gave herself a shake. So Lita was weird with some kind of dark cloud following her around—or suppose she really was a night fae—what did it matter? People like that lived in New York or L.A. or Paris. A small town like Grace Harbor wasn’t even on their radar.
As Kym said, with any luck, Jenny would never run into her again.
Chico’s animal was uneasy.
For some damn reason, it was worried about Jenny. And sure, Chico didn’t like the idea that she lived alone, but his animal had gone into full protector-mode.
Chill, he told it, but it moved under his skin, agitated, until on Wednesday morning, he rearranged his sentry duty with his friend Eliana so that he could drive into Grace Harbor. He’d pick up some coffee and say hi to Jenny.
It had snowed overnight, just enough to dust the streets and sidewalks white. Above the sky was blue with just a few cottony clouds, and the sun was already melting the snow that had fallen.
Jenny was just getting a muffin from the microwave. He watched as her black braid swished above her ass. She turned and saw him, and her pretty brown eyes lit up. “Hey, Chico.”
She handed the muffin to the customer, who took it along with a coffee to a table in the front window.
Jenny’s pixie-faced friend was wiping down the counter. She flashed Chico a grin. “Hiya. I’m Kym, by the way.” She reached over the counter to give his hand a firm shake.
“Nice to meet you, Kym.” He shook her hand and grinned back. Kym was on his side—he’d noticed how she always made sure that Jenny waited on him.
“Here you go.” Jenny handed over his usual café mocha but when he went to pay, told him not to worry about it. “It’s on me,” she said, and leaned over the counter to give him a kiss.
Their lips clung for a moment and his animal settled down, content.
“Is there a problem?” she asked. “You can’t make the picnic after all?”
“No problem. I had some stuff to do in town”—like make sure you’re okay—“and thought I’d stop by.”
“I’m glad you did. But I’m not off until one.”
“That’s okay. I can wait.” They smiled at each other, and a few feet away, Kym started humming a sappy love song.
Jenny scrunched up her nose at her friend. “Sorry, but you don’t have to watch, you know.”
“It’s okay,” Kym said. “It’s February. I can practically see Cupid notching his arrow.”
Chico’s mouth curved. “Should I be scared?”
Jenny rolled her eyes. “Ignore her,” she muttered. “She’s always trying to fix me up.”
“Not any more, she isn’t.” Chico heard what he’d said and stilled, but the words felt right. He wasn’t going to take them back.
Kym sent Jenny a speaking look.
Jenny swallowed. “No?” He scented her confusion, but—she was happy, too.
“No,” he replied. “She doesn’t need to, right?”
Jenny shook her head slowly.
The door bells jingled and several people entered, stamping their feet to get the snow off. Jenny sent him an apologetic look. “I have to wait on them.”
“De nada. I’ll just run a few errands and come back at one to drive you home.”
“That would be nice.”
Chico headed back outside. They were going to have to have a talk, but this wasn’t the time or place.
He returned at one to drive her home. While she changed into worn jeans and another fuzzy sweater, he moseyed around her apartment, checking the security. That uneasiness was still niggling at him. A woman alone was too damn vulnerable, but at least she was on the second floor and there were deadbolts on the front and back doors.
His hand automatically went to the blade in his back pocket. Ever since his time with Lita, he’d taken to carrying an iron blade around with him. Iron was poison to the fae. Even the fada felt its effects, but since they only had a few drops of fae blood, it wasn’t nearly as lethal to them.
“I’ll be right there,” Jenny called.
“No hurry,” he called back.
He opened the back door and scanned the area. The balcony was enclosed with no exit to the first floor. To get up here, someone would have to use a ladder, although a fada could simply jump high enough to grab the railing and then swing up onto the balcony.
But why would anyone bother?
Still, he decided he was staying over again tonight. He had a powerful Gift. If he ignored it, and something happened to Jenny, he’d never forgive himself.
10
The waterfall was at the west end of Rock Run territory. Chico followed a gravel road along the Susquehanna until he came to a small parking lot. At one end of the lot was a path that led up into the hills south of the river.
Chico parked the SUV and came around to her side to help her out. “We have to hike from here,” he said as his hands closed around her waist. Then his eyes sparked green, and the next thing she knew he had her up against the door, his mouth hard on hers.
Her knees weakened. She twined her arms around his neck and kissed him back. His mouth was hot, his tongue gliding over hers in a way that made her entire body tingle.
When he lifted his head, she smiled up at him. “Mm. What was that for?”
“I missed you.”
His eyes were heavily-lidded, the irises a beautiful mix of green and brown, like a summer river. She traced a finger down his cheek. “I missed you too.”
That got her another kiss. His tongue stroked hers, slow and sensual, while his body pressed hers against the SUV. Heat gathered in her stomach, between her thighs. Her heart sped up.
Chico moved his mouth to her face, kissing the bridge of her nose and each of her eyes in turn, then rested his forehead against hers. For a few heartbeats, they simply stayed there, breathing together. Then he said, “Ready?”
She nodded, even though she could’ve happily remained there longer.
He gave her one last kiss, and then retrieved a backpack and a blanket from the back seat. Taking her hand, he led the way up the path.
The waterfall was about a half-mile hike through the woods. Even bare of leaves, the trees shaded the path so there was still snow on the ground. Jenny was wearing hiking boots, but Chico kept hold of her hand and steadied her when her feet almost went out from under her not once, but twice. The man had the reflexes of a cat.
They walked up a hill and then he turned off the path. They hiked another few minutes through the trees, and then she heard running water. They came out into a clearing and there was the waterfall, tumbling down the hill.
Jenny squeezed Chico’s hand. “Oh,” she breathed. “It’s beautiful.”
It was like entering a fairyland. The waterfall was only about ten feet high, but it was twice that across, and composed of several different levels. It streamed down the hill between snow-covered banks and around a couple of enormous black rocks before dropping the last few feet into a creek below. The afternoon sun slanted through the bare trees, spreading sparkles over the water’s surface and imparting a soft golden haze to everything.
Chico looped an arm around her shoulders. “I found it when I was a kid. I’m sure other people in the clan know about it—I’ve scented them from time to time—but I’m the only one who comes regularly. Me and Tiago, that is. He’s my best friend.”
Jenny bit her lip. Her dad would’ve loved this stream. It even had a place where it widened out and looked deep enough to swim in.
She leaned her head against his shoulder. “Thank you for bringing me here.”
He kissed her temple. “I knew you’d appreciate it. Here, let’s sit down.” He spread the bl
anket on the ground and sat down, pulling her onto his lap. “Are you cold? I can light a fire.”
She shook her head. Because she wasn’t, not with him holding her like this.
They sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the water flow over the falls. On a nearby tree, a squirrel appeared and scrutinized them before leaping to the next tree.
Jenny’s breath sighed out. It was so peaceful here, the only sounds the low gurgle of the waterfall and the rustling of the trees. The hard knot that had been lodged in her stomach ever since her dad’s death loosened, and in its place, happiness unfurled like new green leaves.
Chico’s hands came to her coat, unzipping it. “Tell me if you get cold,” he murmured.
She met his eyes. “I will,” she said, her voice almost a whisper.
His fingers went under her sweater, teasing her nipples into points. Then one hand went to her sex, caressing her through her jeans.
The fire that he’d started in the parking lot flared again. She moved restlessly. Chico turned her so that her head was against his shoulder and covered her mouth with his.
His kiss was slow and deep, his tongue dancing with hers in a delicious pattern. His hands continued to move over her body, building her arousal until she was drugged with sensation: his spicy male scent, his warm mouth on hers, his fingers playing her most sensitive places like a musician would an instrument.
He lifted her off him and she moaned in protest, but he was dragging off his boots and clothes. “I want to be inside you.” He removed a condom from his pocket and set it on the blanket next to them.
She nodded and reached for her boots. He helped her undress, then draped her coat over her shoulders and lay back on the blanket, lifting her to straddle him.
She paused to take in the view. His chest was wide and heavily muscled, his flat male nipples hard from the cold. She reached out to play with them, and his eyes closed in pleasure.
“Deus,” he groaned in his faint and oh-so-sexy accent. “That goes straight to my balls.”
She stroked her hands down the taut muscles of his abdomen to where his cock jutted above his belly, long and flushed, the veins straining purple against the smooth skin. She worked him with her hand for a minute. His muscles locked. He pushed himself into her fingers. A spurt of pre-cum covered the cap, and she spread it around.
Then she moved down his body. She had to taste him.
“Jenny,” he groaned.
She licked her way up and down his cock. “What?” she murmured against his skin.
He swallowed and shook his head.
The man was practically speechless. She liked that. She smiled and fisted her hand around the base. He was long and thick, bigger than any man she’d ever been with. Her smile widened. There were definite advantages to having a shifter for a lover.
He tangled his hands in her hair. “Suck me.”
“Yes, sir,” she replied smartly, and took him deep into her mouth.
He muttered something hot and dark.
She sent him a sultry look from under her lashes, and sucked him again. He tasted good—rich, male, a little salty—and all Chico. She moved her hand down to tease his balls, and his indrawn breath told her he liked that, too.
She continued sucking and playing with him while he watched with heated eyes, until he gave a tug on her hair. “Come up here.”
She gave him a last suck and sat back up. She was straddling his thighs, and he brought his hand between her legs. He stroked her sex, her clit. She was already hot and ready from pleasuring him.
“You’re so wet,” he murmured in satisfaction as his fingers slid over her. The slight roughness just turned her on even more.
Her arousal built until she was a sliver away from coming. She drew a shuddering breath.
Chico gave her one last stroke and withdrew his hand. When she whimpered in protest, he said, “I want in you when you come.”
She nodded and reached for the little blue packet he’d left on the blanket.
As she ripped it open, he said, “You put it on,” and then watched, his hands grasping her hips, as she slowly worked it onto him.
She raised up higher and rubbed herself up and down his cock without taking him inside. She was so aroused, she slid easily up and down.
His breath hissed out. He tightened his grip on her hips. “That’s it, pretty Jenny. Use me any way you want.”
“Mm.” She wriggled around on him, enjoying how his whole body went rigid.
He licked his thumb and set it to her clitoris, caressing her in slow, easy circles. Her pleasure ratcheted up.
She couldn’t wait any longer. She reached down and placed his tip at her entrance, and then set her hands on his shoulders and eased down until she was completely filled with him.
Chico’s jaw tightened, but he kept his thumb moving over her clit. She lifted up and then slid down on him again. He gripped her thigh with one hand and began to move with her.
Together, they found the perfect rhythm, slow at first and then hard and fast. She rounded her back and buried her face in his throat. The tips of her breasts brushed over the wiry hair on his chest, adding to her excitement.
Chico waited until she gripped his shoulders and convulsed around him, the pleasure filling her from her head to her toes. Then he grasped both her hips and thrust into her, over and over, until he came with a low growl.
Jenny collapsed onto his chest. Beneath her cheek, she could hear his heart pounding. She put a hand on his shoulder and let out a happy sigh.
Chico drew a harsh breath. “Damn, woman. You’re going to fucking kill me.” He tucked her coat more closely around her and set a hand on her ass.
She smiled against his skin and straightened out her legs so that they were on either side of his. She tangled her fingers in the hair on his chest and listened to the rapid beating of his heart beneath her cheek. Gradually it slowed down to a steady, reassuring thump.
Her muscles went slack. For a few minutes, she drifted, relaxed and comfortable.
Her dolphin pendant had fallen forward onto his chest. Chico fingered it. “Tell me about a spirit animal. What does that mean, exactly?”
“A spirit animal?” She roused herself from her post-sex stupor. “It acts as a guide, or a protector. Kind of like a guardian angel—it appears in your life whenever you need it. It might act as a protector, or it may have a lesson to teach you. And a person might have different spirit animals at different times.”
“So why did yours appear? You just made this in the fall, right?”
She nodded against his chest. It was hard, recalling how dark everything had seemed last summer, but she wanted to tell him. “I was pretty down. My dad had just died, and I didn’t really have a job. I was living in L.A. for a while, but when things fell apart with my boyfriend, I came back.”
“Your boyfriend?” He played with a lock of her hair. “This was last summer?”
“Yeah.”
“Asshole.”
“How’d you know?”
“Because,” he said, “any man stupid enough to let you go must be an asshole.”
“He was. He’s an assistant producer in L.A.—works for his dad—and it turned out I was the woman he was keeping on the side. In public, he dated actresses and models.”
“So he’s not just an asshole, he’s a bastard.”
“Yep.”
“I’ll bet he’s good looking.”
“Well, yeah—and he knows it, too.”
Chico’s lips grazed the top of her head. “I could break his nose. Make him not so pretty.”
She blinked. It had been a while since she’d thought of Chico as Mr. Dark and Dangerous, but now the nickname flashed through her mind. “I’m going to assume you’re kidding.”
He shrugged. “Kind of. On the other hand, if you really want me to—”
She couldn’t help being warmed that he’d offered. Maybe that was Neanderthal of her, but tough shit. She shook her head. “Thanks, but the m
an’s not worth it.”
And he wasn’t, she realized. She was so over Ryan. He could dance naked with one of his beautiful models down the middle of Hollywood Boulevard, and she wouldn’t give a damn.
“The offer stands. Just say the word.”
“Maybe last summer I would’ve took you up on that. But now?” She moved a shoulder. “He’s history.”
“Good.” Chico wrapped her more securely in her arms. “Because you’re mine now. The man had his chance and he gave you up.”
“Well, actually,” she said, “he didn’t give me up. He would’ve been happy to keep things the way they were, but I kicked his sorry ass out of my apartment.”
She felt rather than saw his grin. “That’s my Jenny.”
“But it was hard, because right after that, my dad got sick and”—she swallowed something prickly in her throat—“he was dead in a week.”
“You don’t have any other family?”
“My stepmom, but I didn’t grow up with her. She’s a nice person, and she really loved my dad, but he met her after I left home. So after he died, it was strange, the two of us living together without my dad as the glue. My brother’s in the army, and he doesn’t come home much. And then my stepmom decided to sell the house.”
Tears pricked her eyes. She blinked them away, not sure why she was crying when she felt so good right now.
Chico rubbed her back in slow, comforting circles. “I’m sorry that you didn’t have anyone there for you. I can’t imagine that—for me, the clan’s always there, even when I don’t want them to be.”
“You’re lucky. Trust me.”
“I didn’t always think so—they can be damn nosy sometimes—but yeah, I know I am.” He gave her a squeeze. “But you’re not alone any more, Jenny. I want you to know that. I’ll always be there for you, no matter what happens.”
“Thanks.” The stupid tears welled up again. She swiped them away. “You don’t have to say that—but thanks.”
“Hey.” Chico tipped her chin up so he could meet her eyes. “I mean it. I told you, fada don’t lie. You ever need me, just send word to Rock Run. I’ll be there in a shot. If I’m away on a job, I’ll leave word for my dad to take care of things.”
