by J. C RIMELL
“Is this what you want, Jess? My mouth on you, my tongue inside you?”
“You know I do.”
He chuckled with dark lust against the sensitive spot between her thighs, lost in the visceral need of his wolf, he draped one of her legs over his shoulder, her hands gripping him for support. His tongue snaked out and slid between her folds, toyed and teased her swollen nub, suckled her until he felt her writhing against him. Slipping his tongue inside of her―always careful of his fangs―he felt her tremble, heard her moan of ecstasy. He kept the rotation going on her clitoris with his thumb. Her body stiffened, and her cry exploded, the sound filling the small space between them as she shattered from the inside out.
Jesus. He'd just made a bad situation a thousand times worse.
His wolf was pissed. And still had that damned itch.
As he shoved his reluctant hard on back in his pants, his eyes returned to normal. He watched in silence as Jessie shimmied down her skirt and giggled, knotting her blouse together having lost all the buttons. Guilt settled like a shitload of cement in his gut.
“I'm running out of clothes to wear Cade Grayson!” She laughed as her gaze reared up and caught his, her cheeks still flushed and her smile utterly beautiful. It ebbed away slowly and her brows furrowed when she saw that his eyes held no humor. “What is it?” she asked, her voice gentle and concerned. She moved closer to him. “Cade, what's wrong?”
His jaw ticked as he pressed his molars tighter together. “Ah, fuck, Jess,” he spat out, angry at his irresponsibility. “I can't see you anymore, not in this… that way. I've kind of met someone.”
“Oh heck, now I feel darn stupid!” she said, heat blooming anew in her cheeks, she forced a smile and backed away from him, still tugging her clothes back into place.
He closed the gap between them, smoothed a hand down one of her arms. “I'm sorry, Jess, I...”
She shook her head, sending her ebony hair tumbling over her shoulders. “No, don't,” she said, brushing it off with a wave of her hand. “It was always just a casual thing, it was bound to happen sooner or later.”
Yes, it was. But he still felt like a jerk. He wouldn't intentionally hurt any woman, especially one as sweet as her.
“Look, Jess, if you need anything, just call.” He coaxed her chin upward, so she looked at him despite the added guilt her gaze made him feel. “I mean it.”
“Sure,” she replied with a shakiness in her voice she didn't quite disguise, her eyes giving away the fact he'd just crushed her heart beneath the heel of his boot.
She offered a soft smile as she watched him leave.
Cade couldn't look back to see her standing there. Fuck, he hadn't even realized she'd fallen for him. Feeling like a complete asshole, he opened the throttle of his bike on the way back to the lair. The sun was high in a powdery blue sky, a vague dusting of white clouds peppered the smooth canvas above him. He hadn't bothered with his helmet and the air rushing past his ears and blowing through his hair felt good. Not that it rid him of his shame. Now he needed to get a couple of hours shut-eye before going to see the woman that his heart truly belonged to.
Chapter Eighteen
Kit was lost somewhere between REM dream state and something else entirely, something she thought she could feel. The scene was a little hazy and distorted, but vivid in color and she recognized it, the place where she'd been found. Her bare feet brushed over spongy moss and damp earth, and the woodland trees were like strong protective arms that cradled her gently. The rustle of the leaves in the gentle wind whispered to her as the sun filtered through the gaps in the thick canopy overhead, making her feel incredibly safe as she ventured a little further forward.
And that's when she saw him.
Cade Grayson was darkly handsome, perfection, yet rough around the edges. The shadows caught the hard angles of his face as a stream of sunlight danced across his stark eyes. Her breath tangled in her throat as her gaze took a leisurely stroll south and holy crap!
His black jeans hung low on his hips, with his torso bare she noticed a sprinkling of dark hair above the waistband that reached his navel. Upward his stomach was hard and ripped and he had the best-looking abs she'd ever seen. His broad, sculptured chest was honed like cut glass, framed by large shoulders and biceps. Oh, God. As her body ached in a strange way all she could think was how she wanted to touch him, every single bit of him.
She couldn't help but take a few moments to appreciate the maleness of him. The artwork that covered the left half of his chest in dark ink and swept over his shoulder and down his arm was compelling, enticing her eyes to regard every inch of his flesh. The design was intricate and as she stared harder, she could just make out the detail of a wolf's head and a symbol within it.
Cade's heart swelled, it was simply by chance and he was happy he'd found her. Having hit the sack on returning to his quarters, he'd subconsciously decided to try to use his dream-walking ability, something he nor other shifters used very often. Most were capable of it, but very few ever used it to link up with someone unless it was their mate. And it was solely used to release the inner wolf from the confines of the shell that housed it for a while.
Having tasted Kit's blood made it even easier for him to link with her. Particles of her DNA were now imprinted on him. Her scent, the taste of her, the sound of her, he'd be able to find her anywhere. He watched as his wolf trotted forward having allowed him to run free from the restraint of his own body; it was almost a spiritual thing, something that could only happen in sleep.
Kit felt the strange knot in her stomach, the heat that swept across her skin when Cade came closer and slowly narrowed the distance between them. Next to him was a wolf. The wolf that had been so gentle with her and tended her wounds and led her to safety. She smiled, happy to see it again. She stretched out a hand, pleased when it came to her, whined and encouraged her with a nudge of its head to scratch behind its ears.
The wolf's chest rumbled with pleasure.
“Oh, you want some fuss, huh?” Kit teased, scratching behind the wolf's ears a little harder.
You have no idea. Cade thought silently, almost jealous of Kit's attention to his wolf. “Yeah, he'll let you do that all day long.” His voice drifted closer, and Kit's eyes lifted to look at him, a lazy smile tugging the corners of his mouth. “There'll be no getting away from him now.” He chuckled at the irony of it, watching as his wolf lapped up the attention, laying on its belly.
Damn! Cade shook his head in disbelief, his predator looked pathetic and needy.
“Is it your pet?” she asked, straightening up. The gap between them had somehow dissipated, and she pinned her gaze firmly on bright, silver streaked eyes that were like two moons; both eerie and breathtaking at the same time. The light, airy breeze had suddenly become thick and charged with an electric current that snaked around the two of them, and Kit felt her skin prickle in an unfamiliar way.
He laughed, a deep vibration from his chest and she smiled despite herself, wondering what he found so amusing. The wolf, however, growled.
“My pet? Yeah, something like that,” he replied.
Okay. “Does it have a name?” Kit asked, enjoying the thick silk of its black pelt sliding through her fingers.
“It's a he and no, not exactly. Just wolf,” he answered, observing her with curious eyes, wanting those fingers to slide through his own hair and get tangled in it.
Wondering why this dream was so different, Kit fell quiet for a moment, she'd never dreamed of him this way. Her dreams of Cade Grayson were all fantasy and flirting, romantic notions of being whisked off her feet and kissing, there was always lots of kissing...
Kit hadn't planned to stay a virgin, but she'd never been as confident around boys as Clara. And now there was no room, no possibility for anything else. There was a big old wedge of guilt and pain that filled the required space needed to fall in love, and Kit felt that was impossible as turning back time.
Withdrawing into herself a little
she avoided Cade's gaze, “So this is weird, huh?” she muttered, focusing on the magnificent animal at her feet.
Cade wanted to hold her and explain, his wolf whined in agreement. “This isn't a normal dream, Kit. I kinda' feel like I owe you an explanation.”
Her eyes widened, but she composed herself, remained calm despite her heart beat suddenly speeding up a notch. “Oh?” she hedged, watching him a little more warily as he ran a hand through his ebony hair, tone's of red catching the rays of sunlight, both mesmerizing and intriguing her. Caught by the metallic shine in his eyes again as he looked at her, she felt as though her bones were melting, heat finding its way between her thighs.
Scenting her sweet musk, Cade couldn't resist pulling it deep into his lungs. It was pleasure and torture at the same time, causing his canines to throb beneath the skin and threaten to spear out into his mouth. He stared at her for several long minutes, her football jersey hung lower on one side of her shoulder exposing smooth, bronze skin. Tracing the curve of her neck to her earlobe, where a small, white stud sparkled as it caught a kiss from the sun.
Something awoke inside of Kit, stirring like a whirlpool in her gut as she stood transfixed by him. He was delicious, and she wanted to glide her fingertips over the chiseled lines of his body. When he edged forward, she took a step back, unsure of the reason she suddenly felt she had to. Maybe it was the way he was looking at her. Something changed in his gaze that now lingered at her hungrily and untamed. A seductive smile from him had her swallowing hard as she took another step back, only to have him move forward again.
Cade liked the chase, it was part of his animal instinct after all, and his wolf would love nothing more than to see her run just so he could catch her. She stumbled back into a tree and the realization that there was nowhere to go skated across her eyes. It wasn't fear, for that he was certain. He would never force himself upon Kit or any woman, no matter how sexually frustrated or hungry he may be. His keen senses already knew her body was screaming out for him, the way his own was for hers.
Cade closed the gap between them with one, long stride. The thin sheet of air evaporated and became heavy, fused with desire. He placed a hand on the rough bark above her head and leaned in, trapping her with his strong, tall body. Kit could feel herself tremble, he was big and hot and the heat radiating off his skin was suffocating… sexual. His smell, a mixture of mint and earth and aftershave swirled around her, making her heady, making her groin ache with a deep need that had her damp between her legs.
The wolf paced around the two of them, hungry and impatient for what he could scent in the air. And now, standing so close to Kit, recognizing her arousal made everything inside of Cade's head spin. She was all that mattered, his blood bubbled beneath his skin, the knowing of the promise, the precious gift of a mate was right at his fingertips. It was agony to prevent the inevitable. But she was human and didn't even know of their supernatural existence in the world.
Lowering his head, his lips brushed her ear, sending a shiver like an erotic shock wave rippling across her skin. “Walk with me?” His voice was low and weaved a caress around Kit like a lovers embrace.
Her throat was tight, but she squeezed out a small reply. “Sure.” She was hardly about to say, no, to Cade. In fact, she knew she didn't have a hope in hell of refusing him anything.
Dropping his arm, he pulled away. She missed his closeness, but accepted his hand. She felt a flutter in her chest when he laced his fingers through her own in a strange familiarity, that verged on being possessive, yet it felt perfectly natural.
“You know,” he said without looking at her as they continued to walk, his gait slow, so she could keep up with his long legs. “I'm sorry about what happened to you. I kinda' feel responsible.”
Her stomach lurched. “No. Oh, God. No.” She stopped to face him. “What happened wasn't anyone's fault.” But my own. She silently cursed. For not being more vigilant, not being strong enough. For insisting on going home and changing because I had to look perfect. “I should have just waited for you. I guess I wanted to...” she stumbled for words, still feeling angry at having been a victim. Feeling guilty because she had lived, again. And others were still being held against their will―or even worse―already dead.
Cade cupped her face with his free hand. His intelligent eyes grew intense as he focused in on her and saw through the faintest crack in her steely facade. “Kit, it wasn't your fault either.”
She lowered her gaze as if to protect her secrets from him, as if he'd just seen something he wasn't supposed to.
He tilted her chin upward with a coaxing finger. “You're the finest damn woman I've ever seen.” Her eyes still averting his, he took her chin between his thumb and finger allowing her no room to escape. “When I say fine,” he continued, now brushing her cheek with his thumb, making her deep, blue gaze go all Bambi wide, “what I mean is incredibly beautiful.”
She bit her lower lip.
All at once Kit felt overwhelmed, lost in those pools of silver oceans that seemed to beckon her to dive right in and drown within them. And she wanted to more than anything. Somehow she pulled her gaze free, afraid to let herself fall, she couldn't and wouldn't allow it. But he refused to let her go, coaxing her to look back into those shimmering eyes.
“From the first time I saw you...” he said. She felt the warmth of his breath skim her face in a gentle stroke as his tall body leaned over her. “Damn, I want to kiss you so bad it hurts, but just say the word and I'll back the hell off.”
Kit couldn't even breathe, let alone speak. Low down, her stomach coiled and her breasts tightened almost painfully. Her body was crying out, starved for attention, affection, but her heart refused to let the ice surrounding it melt away. But this is just a dream, right? Her mind tried to tell her, persuade her that here it didn't matter, that here in this fantasy she could just let go...
This isn't a normal dream, Kit, I feel like I owe you an explanation.
She wished the echo of his earlier words hadn't filtered through her thought process just at that particular moment. But somehow, she knew this was no ordinary dream, and if it wasn't, then just what the hell was it?
Damn. Cade let out a sigh when he saw her protective wall set back into place and questions hankering behind her eyes. Letting his hand fall from her face, he gently tugged her hand, his grip still a firm anchor, and they started to walk again, his wolf following close behind. The silence stretched between them and Kit felt uneasy. “Why do I feel like this is actually happening?”
Cade stopped abruptly, his eyes seeming to cloud over with a hint of remorse. “I should've explained first,” he said, kicking at the ground in frustration.
“Explain now,” she prompted gently.
He picked up his stride again and so did she, waiting, wondering what the hell was going on. Cade knew Fleet would string him up for breaking pack law, for revealing secrets that had enabled them to lead a relatively normal, hassle free life. But he wasn't about to lie to Kit, she was his, whether she knew it yet or not.
Coming out of the trees, they reached a grassy area bathed in sunlight. Taking her hand, he led her to a small stream, encouraging her to take a seat on the large boulders that edged the water. The stone was luxuriously warm beneath her skin. The wolf thought so too, as he stretched out beside her with a lazy grunt, his silky, black pelt shimmering with hints of red and deep gold. Cade's ebony hair shared those same dazzling hues of color, and his eyes were now a deeper, slate gray. He sat on her other side and stared out at the sun-kissed ripples dancing on the water's surface, wondering just how to tell her.
Ah, hell, there was no easy way. “I need you to have an open mind.” He examined her face, but she gave little away. “As you saw earlier today, I'm part of a special team of soldiers. Shadow Pack is a wolf pack.” He waited, his stare fixed on hers while he let her digest the trickle of information. When, after several heartbeats she still didn't say anything, he thought he may as well go one step further.
“My wolf, the one you're scratching, he's part of me. I'm a shifter.”
Her eyes narrowed. “A shifter?” Kit probed and watched as he nodded in confirmation. “As in, you...” she poked her pointer finger at his chest, “… turn into this?” She twisted slightly using the same finger to indicate the dozing wolf at her side.
“Look, I know it's hard to believe.”
A nervous laugh escaped her. “You think?” She scrambled to her feet. “Are you serious?” Her arms hugged her waist, forming another protective shield around herself.
He cocked his head to the side. “Why would I lie?” Cade asked, staring up at her he could tell the situation was heading in a bad direction. One of many that had occurred lately.
Maybe you're a hot, sexy, crazy guy? Why, when she'd finally met someone who ticked all the right boxes and beyond, did he have to be as bloody nutty as a fruit bat! Kit felt the urge to run, her feet stepped backward, putting space between the two of them. And when he stood up, his towering body suddenly scared her, his wolf now alert and by his side.
Cade inched toward her. “When my wolf found you, when we found you, we healed your wounds, tasted your blood.” He tried to keep his voice level, non-threatening, sensing her trepidation. He could hear her heart racing. “And now we're connected to you. Kit, please, won't you let me show you?”
She swallowed hard, her heart beat like a sparrow in her breast. This was some yarn he was spinning, and no matter how bloody attracted she was to him, the guy was clearly a brick short of a load. Which would make keeping herself far, far away from him a lot easier. “Listen, I don't know what all this is,” Kit said, her voice verging on hysterical while her hands gestured to the scenery around them. “And I have no idea whether this is real or if it's the pills your doctor gave me, making me dream up this weird crap, but I'm not interested.” She spun on her heel, the smell of fear, of death, resurfacing.
Not again. Not Cade?
Her heart sank in her chest as she heard him call out after her. But she wasn't about to become a victim for a second time, not in reality and not in her dreams. She didn't stop running until she was sitting bolt upright, awake in her bed. With perspiration saturating her jersey and her chest heaving, she searched for some clarity amidst her clouded thoughts.
