by T. Cobbin
“Smells great in here,” she said after inhaling. “Sorry I took so long. It didn’t spoil, did it?” She sat on the barstool at the kitchen’s central unit.
“Nah, it’s good. I waited a bit before I started cooking. I know it’s been a while since you chatted with your friends, so I figured it would take you some time.” After dishing up the food onto two plates Pete placed one in front of Wendy and the other next to her and sat down.
“We have some stuff to talk about, huh?” she asked, placing a fork full of scrambled eggs into her mouth.
He watched in fascination as her tongue came out, flicking at her lips, with a moan coming from deep in her throat. His cock stiffened and swelled in seconds. Shit, she was gorgeous. He could visualize her moaning like that with her lips around his shaft.
“Pete?”
He looked up into her eyes. Oops, had she said something? “Yeah?” he asked.
“Dirty thoughts?” She grinned.
“Somewhat. I was thinking about you moaning with my dick in your mouth.”
“Oh, really?”
He nodded then remembered something he’d forgotten. “I do believe you still owe me a weekend of nakedness.” He wiggled his eyebrows.
“That was on the island...we aren’t there anymore,” she argued.
“Still counts, I cooked.” Changing the subject, he asked, “What were you saying before?”
“I said we need to talk about stuff—jobs, house, etcetera. This all happened rather fast, and we don’t really know each other that well.”
He could see the worry and could feel it through their bond too. “You aren’t worried about making a mistake, are you?” he quickly asked, concerned that she was.
She climbed from her stool and stepped between his open legs. Her arms wrapped around his neck, which calmed him a little.
“I don’t think in any way, shape, or form that we are a mistake. I just feel that we should learn more about each other. I mean, what’s your favorite color? What is the food you like best? But most of all, where do we go from here? I like this place, but I also don’t want to be a kept woman, I love working.”
Pete sighed with relief and came up with an idea. “How about we spend the day chillin’ and learning about each other and go from there? I have to warn you though, with Dennenth leaving town for a while Troy is a man down and I have to work.” He didn’t add he wanted to be at work in case the crazy bastard who was after him turned up.
“Oooh.” Wendy’s eyes lit up, making him wince slightly as dread crawled over his skin for some reason. “Do you think Troy will let me work in the club? That would be awesome.”
Oh shit, he hadn’t seen that coming. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
Wendy’s arms immediately pulled from around his neck, and anger spread across her features. “Oh yeah, why’s that? Is it because I’m small, a woman, or is it—”
“It’s not any of that,” he growled, stopping her before she went any further. “I just thought with a threat out there I shouldn’t be putting you in the firing line.” He went to pull her back in between his legs, but she stepped away, making him growl again.
“If there is some crazy shit out there who wants a piece of me, then let him come,” she said, holding her chin up in a gutsy manner. He watched as her whole body suddenly softened and she walked freely back in between his legs. “I have you, and I know that while you are at my side no one will ever get to lay another finger on me.” She pulled herself up and straddled his lap. He wrapped his arms around her waist tightly and nuzzled her neck.
“I’m not sure I could handle anyone hurting you again.” Pain hit his heart as he remembered her getting shot.
She cupped his face, her green eyes seeking out his. “Just how many shifters like you visit that club?”
He smiled. “More than you can imagine.”
“Good. You think anyone could get close enough to hurt me?”
“Someone did to Amy.” He frowned. “And if I remember, you ended up on your arse.”
“A one-off, and you were there in a flash.”
He sighed, knowing he was losing the fight.
“Please,” she begged. “I don’t want to be alone tonight.”
Pete shook his head. “Okay, you win. I’ll phone Troy and see if he can put you in the cloakroom near me or something.”
Wendy whooped then kiss him long and hard. His dick jerked, pushing against his jeans painfully. With a deep, rumbling growl he lifted his mate up and carried her down the hall. Fuck food, and fuck talking. For now he was going to have his fill of her. They could talk in bed.
Chapter 12
Loud music filled every nook and cranny of the nightclub, Dragon’s Heart. The dark lighting gave the place a seductive feel. People in their finest party gear filled the club. At first Wendy had been awed by all the comings and goings behind the scenes, but now, a week later, it just seemed like a normal, everyday thing.
Although Pete wasn’t too happy that Troy had agreed to give Wendy a job at Dragon’s Heart he too was softening to the idea. It had helped when they had gone and packed up her house and moved her into their penthouse. Pete had also taken her shopping—no man had ever done that, they’d always complained—and filled an entire wardrobe with new clothes. And Wendy had helped by making use of the beds upstairs in the club.
Troy had stipulated Wendy only work the nights that Pete did, because he knew how important it was for Pete to have time with his mate. Pete chose to stay on the doors, and Wendy knew he did that so he wouldn’t be far from her. All the staff wore earpieces, which was another thing Pete had been happy about. Dragon’s Heart didn’t have much trouble, but because a lot of shifters visited the place, when fights did break out they needed to be defused quickly before the human occupants saw things they shouldn’t.
A tall blonde wearing six-inch, fuck-me heels strode over to Wendy. She had enough tan on her face to make her look slightly orange, her teeth were pearly white, and her waist so thin Wendy wondered when the woman had last eaten a decent meal. She handed Wendy a fur coat and stood waiting for a ticket with a snotty look on her face. Wendy felt like a bug underneath her shoe. Wendy was wearing the normal black pants and t-shirt with DH in white surrounded by an oval shape on her right breast. With a fake smile plastered on her face Wendy handed the blonde her ticket and wished her a good evening.
Pete’s deep, seductive voice came through her ear followed by a warm, loving flow of emotion, and it made her feel better.
“You work because you want to, not because you have to. Some of these chicks have never worked a day in their lives.”
Pressing the button on her wrist that allowed her to speak, she said, “Doesn’t give them the right to look down on anyone. It makes me feel like punching one or two of them.”
“I know, I can feel it. But if you do, then I’ll have to come over and take you down.”
“Take me down, will you? Where everyone can see?” she said seductively.
She heard a brief, low growl before Troy came over the channel.
“Keep it clean, boys and girls.”
“Aww, what’s the fun in that?” she teased. “One of your bouncers has just promised to take me down.”
“Your mate is being a menace. He can take you down in his own time,” Troy grumbled.
Pete’s voice came through the earpiece again. “Troy, I think I need a break.”
“You just had one. Get back to work,” Troy ordered.
Wendy felt an overwhelming wave of lust and knew Pete had his eyes on her. After hanging the fur coat on the hanger she turned to find him staring at her intently from the club’s open doorway. He was wearing an extremely tight black suit that showed off the muscles that she had the pleasure of knowing. She lifted one side of her lips and gave him a crooked, sexy smile, which he returned. With a mouthed later he shut the door again. The couple he had just let in walked toward her, bringing her out of her panty-wetting thoughts.
&nbs
p; The voice of Brock, one of the barmen, came through the earpiece next as Wendy was seeing to another couple. He and his mate Cole had just returned from a brief holiday. From what Pete had explained, the pair—who were bear shifters—had been together for eight years before finding their female mate to make their duo a trio. Their mate just happened to be her friend Melanie. She had also managed to wangle her way into working as a waitress in Dragon’s Heart with them.
Wendy was sure Troy had aged a few years after the stunts Melanie pulled. His manager Todd had been a victim of one of them. One night one of the waitresses had been late for work. Her babysitter had been ill, so she had to find another one. Todd had yelled at her, and later that evening, when he went to his office for a drink, he discovered that each of his alcohol bottles had been swapped for miniature ones, even his prize bottle of scotch. To his relief, that particular bottle had found its way back later.
“Pete, we have reports of someone throwing up in the alley. Poke your head around the corner and see if we need a clean up,” Brock said.
Wendy couldn’t help but snigger at the feelings of disbelief and disgust coming from her mate.
“I’m going to kick your furry behind for this,” Pete growled through their earpieces.
A few people walked through the door, keeping Wendy busy. It wasn’t until they dispersed that she felt the feeling of dread come from Pete. It didn’t bother her at first, thinking he must have gone back to the door and was seeing something he didn’t like, but then his deep, sultry voice came over the earpiece and asked Troy to meet him in the back. She had to fight the urge to press the button and ask if he was okay. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and concentrated on the door in front of her, waiting for his return.
* * * *
Fucking people, Pete swore in his head. If they couldn’t handle their booze, they shouldn’t drink so damn much. He continued grumbling and walked along the side of Dragon’s Heart to the nearby alley. It was club policy to keep the alley clean, otherwise it would encourage vermin. Plus, who would go to a club where you had to line up and smell the crap coming from a nearby alley? With many of their clients being shifters, and their over-sensitive noses, it kept clientele happy. Reaching the end of the building, Pete turned and looked down the alley.
No one was there and he didn’t smell the stench of someone’s puke either. Just as he was about to turn away he noticed a box the size of a small dog. He walked toward it. Even using all his enhanced senses, he didn’t detect anything out of the ordinary until he was right on top of it. It was then the scent he had smelled on the island hit him.
“Troy, you better come to the alley.”
“Be right there.”
Not even a minute later Troy stood beside him and inhaled deeply.
“Shit. It sure smells the same. You thinking what I am?” Troy asked.
“Yep.” Pete nodded, his thoughts automatically going back to the island. “Smells like he fucking sprayed the scent on the box, it smells that bad.”
“You going to open it?”
“Fuck!” Pete swore, bending down and looking over the box in more detail. It wasn’t sealed with tape, and the flaps stuck up a little. He didn’t detect the scent of explosives or blood. Before lifting one of the flaps he sent a small feeler along his bond to Wendy to make sure she was okay. Other than being a little tense, probably because he was, she was fine.
With a finger he flipped open one of the tabs. The rest of them popped open together, revealing what was inside. What looked like a blue, stuffed toy dragon was pulled apart, its white, stringy innards strewn amongst the packing. The dragon’s head was the only thing not shredded to pieces, and Pete noticed a small card sticking out of its mouth. Taking it between his fingers, he handed it to his friend, while he poked around in the box to see if there was anything else in it.
“For the one that got away,” Troy read, then turned the card over. “My wait has been long, and your time is short.”
Standing, Pete took the card from Troy and re-read it and shook his head. “It’s the same crazy bastard that killed my family. I thought it might be, but I wasn’t certain.”
“Let’s head back inside, and we can talk in private,” Troy said, looking up and down the alley. “Anything else in the box?”
“Nah, just a torn up stuffed dragon,” Pete said, kicking the box.
“Shove it in the garbage.”
Five minutes later, after making sure Wendy was all right and someone had a permanent eye on her, Pete sat in Troy’s office with a small glass of Ember Tears in his hand. Shifters had a high metabolism, which meant normal alcohol had no effect on them. Ember Tears was a drink created by shifters for shifters. Humans had no tolerance for it at all; one small drink and it was lights out with a major hangover in the morning. Swirling the drink around his glass, Pete thought about the card.
“Well, it would seem the creep has come out of hiding and taken my bait,” Pete said. “The only question now is when will he strike?”
“Your place is secure, right?” Troy asked.
“Yeah. When I first moved in Dennenth put a protection spell up. No one can enter unless I say so.”
“Great,” Troy said, taking a sip of his drink. “We’ll have to take you off doors for a while. You’re too much of a target out there.”
Pete began shaking his head. “I need to be close to Wendy, and don’t even think about firing her or whatever because she will go nuts—”
Troy interrupted him, “It’s okay, I understand. I wasn’t even thinking that anyway. You need to be near her while this shit is going on, I get it. The one I do want to fire is bloody Melanie. I’m learning that anyone who pisses her off is going to get some kind of prank pulled on them. Mind you, the one she pulled on Todd the other day was fucking hilarious, but still...”
Pete breathed deeply, mentally thanking Troy for not even thinking about getting rid of Wendy. “So stick me in the foyer or something, I’ll walk the hall. That way it’s quiet, I can see Wendy, and it isn’t obvious that I’m waiting to be jumped.”
“You really think he will attack you here?”
“I plan to make it hard for him to take me out anywhere else. Anyway, how are you doing getting nearer to this wedding of yours?”
“I’m doing good. Amy is busy making plans. The ceremony is going to be very quaint.” Troy smiled before adding, “I’m looking forward to the honeymoon. It will give me an excuse for another week of nonstop sex.”
Pete shook his head and smiled. He clinked his glass with Troy’s and downed the rest of the liquid, relishing the fire that it left behind, then stood and walked out of his friend’s office.
Chapter 13
Pete curled up around his mate who was sleeping soundly against him. They had spent the previous day helping their friends Troy and Amy get ready in their day’s finery, then watched them get married as their six-week-old son Sajan lay sleeping, safe and sound, in his grandmother’s arms.
It was just over a week since Pete had found the box, and nothing else out of the ordinary had happened. He had come off the doors and now spent his time wandering around the foyer, looking like the big, bad bouncer he was. Although it was hard to act like a big, bad bouncer when he caught the scent or lustful gaze coming from his mate who was working in the same area.
Pete hadn’t really thought about marriage, but seeing his friend’s mate glow with happiness today he wanted Wendy to look like that, if only to have a weeks’ worth of honeymoon and nonstop sex, as Troy had said. As if reading his randy thoughts, his mate moved against him and started rubbing his hard cock between the crack of her butt.
“Good morning, handsome,” she said huskily.
“Morning, sugar.”
He jerked his hips, thrusting his dick harder between her plump arse cheeks. Wendy groaned and pushed back at him. Taking the invitation, he slid his hands over her silky skin until he reached the hard nipple on her right breast. Lifting his head off the pillow, he li
cked up the side of her neck. The slight taste of salt and sunshine coated his tongue. Nipping just above her pulse, he caressed her areola, pinching it until it stood perfectly stiff. Again, he thrust his hips, letting a small, growl slip from his lips.
“I have a question I want to ask you.” He lay on his back and pulled her over him. With a yelp she straddled his hips comfortably.
“Oh yeah?” she asked, wiggling her core over his stiff shaft, leaving enough evidence to know she was wet and ready for him.
“Yep,” he said, lifting his head and sucking a nipple into his mouth. He groaned around it and felt her hips jerk on his.
Her hand lifted from his chest and entwined in his hair, pulling him closer to her breast. He cupped her butt cheeks and raised her off his body. His cock stood straight up and proud, and he lowered her gently down until he began to fill her. Sexual, gratifying moans filled the air around them. With his dick halfway in her pussy he released her hips and she dropped the rest of the way down.
His forehead beaded with perspiration. Home...that’s what it felt like every single time he was inside her. She’d had her period just a week before, and it had been frustrating as hell not being able to get inside her, but also knowing she wasn’t yet pregnant as he’d wished. For the next few weeks he was going to make sure he came inside his woman as often as he could and raise the chance of them having a whelp. Clasping his hands around her waist, he aided her raising up, only to let her slide down again.
Pausing, he looked into her eyes, and he almost laughed at the impatience he saw in them.
“Wendy Mumford, you are the light in my dark. The honey on my bread. The love I and Blue have sought for years. I know you have already accepted us as your mate, but will you do me the honor of being my wife?”
