Cash: NAC & The Holly Group (Alpha Team Book 6)

by Chelsea Handcock

  Cash looked down and held his hands out to his sides, but he was fine now, there were no wounds or pain. Even with his shifter DNA, there should still be something. Pulling up his shirt a little, he examined his chest and stomach, but there wasn’t anything there except for the smooth skin. He was even wearing his favorite jeans, t-shirt, and boots. All so worn, they fit him like a glove and always brought him comfort. Had it all been a dream? Or was this the dream? A movement to the left of him caught his eye, and he turned. There was a woman there, sitting in the grass. His first instinct was to go to her, but he held himself back. She was familiar somehow but not.

  Hair so dark, it shined blue in the sun, he knew if she turned around, her eyes would be the color of a gemstone, emerald eyes whispered into his mind. The profile of her face as she looked up into the sun was captivating, and Cash couldn’t look away. He didn’t think he had ever seen a more beautiful woman. She was wearing a dress of some kind that bared most of her back and shoulders; her skin looked so soft, he wanted to touch it. There was a need in him he hadn’t felt in a very long time. He wanted this woman, desperately. He could feel the blood rushing from his body, pooling into his groin, his dick becoming painfully hard.

  Another set of eyes flashed into his mind, familiar eyes, eyes filled with tears; yelling at him, telling him she hated him. He grabbed onto his head, feeling he wanted to run, to get away from these feelings and the woman, but he was rooted to the spot where he stood. Questions were coursing through his mind. So much so, he had to grab onto the sides of his head and close his eyes, the pressure was so great. Jessie was his mate, he shouldn’t be drawn to another woman, hadn’t in all his life. Why now? And who the fuck was she?

  The feeling he had felt wrong but also right. Nothing made sense.

  A whiskey smooth and sultry as sin voice said, “Hello Cash.”

  He abruptly opened his eyes and stepped back. He knew she was close, he could smell her, and he wasn’t so sure he wanted her to be. She was a temptation he couldn’t afford.

  Cash was mad at himself, mad as hell at his bodies reaction to the woman and her damn sexy voice. He took another step back.

  “Who the fuck are you?” he growled. Those emerald eyes instantly saddened and he felt like an ass but fuck this situation was beyond anything he could comprehend right now. It wasn’t even supposed to be possible, his body shouldn’t be responding to her this way.

  He was no virgin, he had sex when it was needed, but it was a function, one he had to force, most times when the need hit. Not this time. His jeans were becoming tighter by the second, his cock so engorged, it was painful. He didn’t like it, he was always in control.

  “My name is Jenna.” Cash took another step back, and the little siren held up her hand, “No, wait. Please, we need to talk.”

  Cash flinched away from her touch. She hadn’t been close enough, but just the thought of her hands on his body caused electricity to course through his veins. Uncomfortable and foreign feelings. Feelings he didn’t know if he would ever be prepared for. If his bear were there, it would be ripping him apart right now for being a fucking pussy. Cash Warren didn’t back down from anyone or anything. What the fuck was he doing cowering away from a woman whose head would barely meet the top of his chest?

  The anger he felt must have shown on his face or in his stance because the tiny woman stepped back, retreating from him, tears in her sad eyes. Guilt hit his system like a fucking tidal wave. Shit, what the fuck? Those damn eyes did something to him. He wanted to take away her fear and sadness, take her into his arms and promise everything was going to be okay but, how could he? She didn’t belong to him? And he wouldn’t ever belong to anyone that chance had come and gone.

  “Please, just stand back,” Cash said, lowering his voice, trying very hard to keep the anger out of his tone. “Why are we here? Can you tell me? How do you know who I am, and I don’t know who you are?”

  The woman, Jenna—damn, he liked the feel of her name as it coasted across his brain—sat down in front of him, placing her hands in her lap. Cash followed suit and did the same but kept the distance between them.

  “I can’t answer your questions, Cash, you’re the one who created this,” Jenna said, waving her hand around the field.

  “What do you mean, I created this?” Cash demanded. Unable to remain sitting, he got up and started to pace. Looking around, he knew this area was real, but something felt off. Turning, he looked down at Jenna. “Tell me what is going on. If I created this, how are you here? I don’t know you.”

  “Listen, it's complicated,” Jenna sighed. “I think you brought me here because we are connected now.”

  “Connected? How can I be connected to a person I don’t even know?”

  “It’s because of me or rather my gift. I found you not far from my house and healed you.”

  “Healed me with what?” This chick might be sexy as hell, but she was definitely a few marbles short. She thought she healed him or some shit, and now, they were connected on another realm.

  “When I heal, I transfer my energy to the patient. All that energy doesn’t always come back to me. You’re still very sick, and I think we both must be sleeping, that’s why this is possible, to talk this way. It has never happened to me before. It must have to do with the fact you’re a shifter and hold your own magic, I’m not really sure.”

  “Listen, lady, you might be hot, and if I conjured you up then, yay me because I can definitely picture a few wet dreams with the two of us together, but this other shit. No fucking way.”

  Jenna got up and put her hands on her hips, glaring at him.

  “And being a man who turns into a bear is normal? Really Cash, I would think you of all people would be a little more open-minded about the possibilities of the unknown. Just because my gifts aren’t familiar to you, doesn’t mean they aren’t real. And for your information, sorry to disappoint you,” Jenna cupped her breasts, “because, in the real world, where you are laying on the floor of my garage, these are a B-cup at best. The Double D’s might be nice to look at, but they are a figment of your imagination.”

  “Really? Well, technically, so are you!” Cash yelled. It was a lame comeback, Cash knew it, but shit, this was out of some B-flick movie. Whatever had been dragging him must not have killed him yet. This had to be the in-between place before he finally met his end. But then again, what the fuck, why would he decide to fuck with his own head, creating a woman to spend his final minutes or hours with? Shouldn’t he be seeing Jessie or hell any other member of his family who had already left the world? Weren’t they supposed to greet him with open arms or some shit and lead him into the light?

  Cash opened and closed his eyes a couple of times, but Jenna was still there, giving up he said, “Fine, tell me what you can.”

  “My name is Jenna Smith; you were badly injured. I have been trying to heal you.”

  Cash could still detect a little anger in her words. She was just stating facts, not giving him much else to go on, so he started to ask questions.

  “How do you know my name?”

  “I didn’t, not until we came here. I thought maybe you were just a random person, but when I felt your bear, I knew you were more. Plus, you called out for Jessie after I healed you. Call it deductive reasoning.”

  “How do you know Jessie?”

  “That’s a story I’m not ready to tell yet, but I do know her.”

  “So, you’re dead like an angel or something, and this is where I tell you my sins, and I either go through the pearly gates or the flaming ones.”

  Jenna started to laugh. He liked the sound of it and the bright smile on her face, more than he should.

  “No, I’m not dead, and neither are you, yet, but good call because this is kind of freaky.”

  “Why do I feel drawn to you?”

  “Another good question and I’m sorry, but I don’t have the answer to it. It’s the same for me. I felt you before I found you. Hell, I’m sorry. I even tried t
o push the feeling away and stay in my house, but I couldn’t.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” Cash said as he took a seat next to her, “I don’t know if I would run out into the night just because of a feeling either.”

  “I doubt that. You’re an Alpha, not much scares you guys.”

  Cash laughed because he knew she was right; if called, he would have gone. It also gave him a few more questions. There weren’t that many Alpha’s in his community, and he knew them all. If he could narrow down who she knew, he might be about to figure out a few more things.

  “So, you know a lot of Alpha’s?”

  “A few,” Jenna smiled, “but I’m not ready to go there with you yet.”

  She wouldn’t look at him now, and Cash didn’t like it. Bumping her shoulder with his own, Cash said, “Don’t trust me yet? Damn and here I created this beautiful place just for you.”

  “And let’s not forget the girls,” Jenna laughed, “they are quite impressive, after all.” She even wiggled her shoulders to emphasize her point.

  Cash liked her laugh, much more than when she tried to pull away.

  Jenna yawned and laid back on the grass. Cash couldn’t help himself, he leaned over her body. Using his hand, he gently wiped away the strand, brushing his knuckles against her cheek. Jenna’s eyes were closed, but the small smile encouraged him. Leaning closer, so their breath mingled, Cash asked another question.

  “Why do you feel so important to me?”

  Chapter Six

  Jenna woke up breathing hard, her upper body draped over Cash’s. Shit, he really was Cash Warren. That in itself had so many implications, but whatever that out-of-body experience had been, it was an even bigger problem. Jenna had to wonder if it was just her exhaustion playing with her, but that didn’t seem right. It felt too real. She could remember the feel of him, the warmth of the field, and the smell of the wildflowers. Had that just happened? Had she talked to him, joked, and played around with him, or was it just a dream? More importantly, had he just been about to kiss her? Better yet, did she want him too?

  Jenna pushed herself back with effort. She had never been more tired in her life, but she needed to make sure they would last out the storm. The garage didn’t have any windows, so there wasn’t an easy way for her to see how bad it had gotten outside or even how long she had slept. Again, she was starting to regret her choice of living in the middle of nowhere. It would have been so easy to pick up the phone and ask someone for help. Jenna looked at Cash more closely. He wasn’t blue anymore, so that was a bonus, but he did have a slight pink tinge to his cheeks. Placing her hand on his cheek, she noticed he was warm but not too warm.

  She had never once in her life thought a man was beautiful but looking at Cash that was precisely what she was thinking. He would be any woman’s bad boy dream—smooth tatted up skin covered both of his arms, and she knew from when she had to strip him they also included a good portion of his back. Jenna wanted to know if the tattoos had a special meaning. She wanted to know more about the man she had pulled from the river and heard about all her adult life.

  She hadn’t removed her hand from his cheek, marveling at the contrast. She was pasty white, at least that was what she thought, but he was tan even in the middle of winter. Did he spend a lot of time outdoors or was it just his natural coloring? His head was almost completely devoid of hair, but she could see the stubble making its way out. Brushing her thumb over his lips, Jenna loved the feeling of his soft goatee touching her skin, and those lips, damn she loved those lips. She leaned forward before she could stop herself; damn, she felt like an insane creeper, lusting after an unconscious man.

  Struggling to her feet, Jenna tried to stretch out her sore muscles. She needed to step away for a while and get some perspective. The last thing she needed to do was continue molesting him with her thoughts and dreams. What had her life come to? Was she so lonely and desperate that…? Yeah, she wasn’t going to finish that thought. Twisting side to side, she looked around the garage. It wasn’t much, but thanks to her uncle, it did have everything she needed.

  The first thing she did was check the wood burner. It was still going, but she added a couple of logs. She breathed out a sigh, thinking at least the electric was still on. When the lights flickered, she knew she had thought that too soon. Holding her breath, she waited, only to laugh when the lights flickered again twice before not coming on again. Yep, that was her luck, not some sexy as sin man wanting to kiss her. Jenna Smith didn’t get that kind of luck. Instead, she got no electricity during a blizzard she had to spend in a garage with a sexy as hell man who wanted her sister. Who she was afraid needed more help than she could give him. Yeah, she was that kind of lucky, and it would do her well to remember that.

  It took Jenna a couple of hours to get things the way she needed them. The garage was well insulated, so it was holding its warmth, but she had spent a great deal of time tugging and pulling Cash until she had him in the corner furthest away from the doors where most of the heat would escape, just to be safe.

  When she finally got him settled again, she tried and failed several times to get him to swallow some water with antibiotics mixed into it. She knew it had to taste horrible, but it was necessary. Cash wasn’t responding to her at all, the water and medicine coating his chin and cheeks. Placing his head on her lap, Jenna started to massage his throat, trying to get the muscles to obey. She had even resorted to begging. It wasn’t until she let her energy out and concentrated on the muscles in this throat that she managed to get him to drink more than a swallow.

  “Cash, please!” Pushing more of herself, Jenna saw his eyes flutter. It was the first time since she had found him, and she held her breath, waiting to see if he would open them fully. After several seconds, she realized it must have been an involuntary muscle reaction, much to her disappointment. She wanted to look at his eyes.

  Once the cup was empty, Jenna’s small triumph was short-lived. Food would be a problem, mainly protein. She didn’t have access to protein shakes or supplements. She knew Shifters metabolized everything faster, and if she wasn’t careful, she would lose him. An average person could last a month, maybe a little longer without food, but with a Shifter, that time would be cut in half if not sooner. If she couldn’t get him to swallow, how in the hell was she going to get him to chew? Once the storm passed, she would have to figure something out.

  She had never used her gifts to this extent in her life. In the past, it had been a one-shot deal, heal and go, then take the time to recover, but Cash needed more. The problem was the more she used, the weaker she felt. Laying down next to Cash, Jenna placed her hand on his chest.

  “I’m sorry Cash, I’m doing the best I can, please forgive me.” Then she drifted off into an exhaustive sleep, praying they both made it through what was to come.

  Jenna woke up looking into the chocolate eyes. Still groggy, she lifted her hand, placing in on Cash’s cheek.

  “You're awake?” Feeling the soft stubble next to his lips, she couldn’t resist brushing her thumb over it.

  “I’ve been waiting for you, sleepy girl,” Cash murmured, the sweet scent of his breath causing Jenna to ache and arch into his body. Feeling the hard planes of his chest against hers pushed Jenna to her limit, causing her to whimper.

  “None of that now,” Cash chastised with a smile, “you will get what you need when I’m ready, not before.”

  There was a gleam in those chocolate eyes that promised Jenna every fantasy she had ever conjured up along with some she was sure she hadn’t thought of before. But this also felt wrong, something wasn’t right with what she was seeing and feeling. Jenna tensed, trying to decide if she should push him away or pull him closer.

  Cash didn’t give her the option, situating himself further on top of her, letting her feel his weight, caging her in with his bulk.

  “Let go, sweet girl, let me make you feel good.”

  His words melted her like chocolate on a hot summers day. His weight a
nd presence were giving her security and comfort. When he gently took her lips in a soft kiss, her resolve was gone, and the feeling of his hands coasting over her aroused body, pulling her leg up, so he could surround her more fully caused her panties to dampen. Jenna wanted this. Placing her hands on his neck, she massaged the tendons while pulling him closer.

  “Please,” Jenna pleaded when he pulled back from her attempts.

  “When I say, sweet girl,” Cash whispered, kissing her softly, nibbling at her bottom lip and lightly licking the corner of her mouth, never giving her what she wanted.

  Jenna wanted a deeper kiss, wanted to feel him more firmly on top of her, but he wouldn’t move or go any faster. The frustration she felt was almost worse than the pain, it was so encompassing. His lips moved from her mouth to her ear, sucking her earlobe into his mouth, nibbling softly.

  “Let go,” he whispered, “let me give this to you. I have waited so long.”

  Jenna went pliant in his arms; he could do anything he wanted, she just didn’t want any of it to stop. A small part of her knew all of this was wrong, but a more significant part of her wanted it.

  “That’s it, baby,” Cash crooned, “let me do this for you, for us. I’ve missed you, sweet girl.” Cash pushed his body into her. Jenna could feel the hard length of him. Canting her hips, she pressed further, lost in the feelings he was pulling from her body. Every grind of his cock against her was perfectly aimed to hit her clit. She could feel the heat pooling into her lower stomach. She wanted him, the orgasm his body was promising her, and damned the clothes which were separating them, preventing her from coming.

  When his mouth descended on her again, she opened, shifting her head to the side, tentatively brushing her tongue against his. But Cash wasn’t a man to let a woman lead. It only took moments for him to take control and own the kiss he was giving her. His kiss was amazing, a full out assault, robbing her of her very breath. The glide of his tongue a promise, the thrusting a prayer. Jenna gave him everything without an ounce of regret. She followed his lead and was rewarded with firmer touches, lighting her on fire.