by V. Vaughn
He continues to kiss his way down my chest until he reaches my nipple. Sucking it into his mouth makes electric currents shoot through me to my core, and I let out a shaky breath. Luke’s hands press against my sides as he drags them down to my hips and under my bottom. He squeezes my butt cheeks gently as he begins to move his mouth lower. My stomach trembles when he reaches my belly button. I gasp when his tongue swirls inside, and I mewl when his hands move to my inner thighs to spread my legs.
Luke inhales deeply and lets out a moan before he moves down to my feet as if he’s saving his dessert for later. He begins to massage my foot, and I lift on my elbows to gaze at him in the dim light of my bedroom. “You’re going to spoil me.”
“This is all it takes?” He moves his hands up to my ankle and rubs.
“It’s one way.” I sigh when he gets to my calf.
He leans down to kiss my knee and combines light nibbles with quick licks of his tongue. My head falls back as I revel in the sensation. Luke takes his time, and I’m a twitching bundle of desire when he gets to my inner thighs. He’s so close to where I want him.
“Please, Luke.” I pant as an impending orgasm teases to erupt.
Luke stops and gazes up at me. “You are so beautiful, Holly. I’m going to watch you come this time.” His fingers open me up for a taste.
I let out a small cry when he licks me, and my sounds become louder as he begins to suck. He brings me to the edge, and I glance at him as I cry out. Those blue eyes reach for me as I fall, and his warmth catches me.
Strong, thick arms wrap around me when Luke moves next to me and pulls my back against his chest. “Are you relaxed?” he asks. His erection is hard against my bottom.
I sigh, and the rumble of my cat’s purr vibrates against my mate.
“Now you can sleep,” he says.
“Wait, we’re done?”
“For now.” Luke places a light kiss on my shoulder and whispers, “I love you, Holly.”
A smile covers my face as sleepiness weighs on me like a heavy blanket. I think about my mother. She told me Christmas is when magic happens, and she was right. This season I’ve found my mate, and it’s my job to keep him safe. To do that, I should tell him we can’t be together, but I don’t want to live without him. And I’m sure he would never let me anyway. It’s time I accept that I can’t and let the power of Christmas take over. I say, “I love you too.”
8
Weekends aren’t time off for snow board instructors like Luke or hair stylists like me. My alarm goes off at an ungodly hour, because my long-standing client, Miranda, will be in for her appointment at seven. She was one of my first customers and even though she moved a half hour away a few years ago she still comes to me.
I tiptoe into the bathroom for my shower and hope that Luke was able to get back to sleep before he has to get up. But when I flip off the water, the aroma of coffee hangs in the air. I smile to myself as I untangle my wet locks and wrap up in a towel to make my way back to my bedroom. I discover Luke sitting in my bed with two steaming mugs.
He says, “Come on over here, and let me help you wake up.”
I know I shouldn’t, but I glance at the clock and decide if I don’t do my hair, I’ve got ten extra minutes. My towel falls to the floor with a light thump, and the coffee cups clash as Luke sets them on the bedside table. He whips the covers off to reveal his intentions. Me-ow! I climb on the bed slowly to straddle his lap, and I rub my slippery sex over his thick cock.
Luke places his hands behind his head, and he says, “You’re in the driver’s seat, baby. Take me for a ride.”
“Don’t you have to leave for work?” I’m already wet for him, and I sink onto his thick length slowly as he sighs.
“It’s well below zero out. We won’t get many classes today, and after what happened last night the guys will cover for me if I’m late.”
I let out a small moan. “This won’t take long.”
Luke squeezes my bottom as his breathing quickens. “No, probably not.”
I grip his shoulders, and hard muscle flexes under my fingers as I begin to move faster. This position allows me to make it all about me, but from the noises Luke is making, I think it’s working for him too. My core begins to spasm around his thickness, and Luke moves a hand around to grab my breast. He takes it into his mouth and nips at me. The pain of his teeth on my tender skin makes me cry out and adds to the intensity of my impending orgasm. For a fleeting thought, I imagine that he’s broken my skin in a mate bond, and my climax hits.
While I shatter over Luke, he flips me onto my back to finish. It’s only a few demanding thrusts before he quakes with his release too.
When he collapses over me, his breath is hot on my neck as he speaks. “This is how every day should start.”
I sigh. “I wish.”
Luke lifts up to twist a strand of my wet hair between his fingers. “It will. You may not be ready to admit it yet, but we’re meant to be together.” He pauses for a second. “Forever.”
I slide out from under him and make my way to the bathroom to rinse off again. I want us to be forever, but too much is standing in our way. My hair clip snaps shut over my messy updo as I push the thought from my head and return to my room. I turn to Luke, who’s still lounging in my bed as the scent of our coupling fills the room. I wish I could spend my morning drinking coffee and partaking in the pleasures my mate’s body brings.
I say, “I’ve really got to run, but I’ll leave you my key, and you can drop it by the salon later.”
“Can we have lunch if I don’t have to work?”
I gaze at him and imagine the sort of meal I’d prefer. “Yes. I’m free from one to two today.”
“I’ll stop by then and bring you food.” He licks his lips, and I contemplate whether or not we can get away with a physical encounter in the back room at the salon.
Probably not, because so far neither one of us has been very good about being quiet. The bed squeaks as I place a knee on the mattress and lean in to kiss Luke good-bye.
He lets out a sigh as I stand back up and says, “I’m a lucky man, Holly.”
“We both are.”
But once my door clicks shut, the heavy emotion of worry brings me down. We aren’t facing reality, and once I get outside, it only takes a few steps in the snow for that fact to stare me in the face. My nose is nearly frostbitten when I gaze at the plywood that covers the hole in the broken window of the salon. I hate to think about my heating bill this month. The ugly scar of the window reminds me of the consequences being with Luke brings. Members of my clan want him gone, and they seem determined to make it happen. I’m scowling by the time I get inside Turning Heads.
I’ve arrived only a few minutes before Miranda should get here. When I flip on the lights, a tiny piece of glass glistens on the floor, and I walk over to pick it up. It’s from an ornament I made my mother when I was a child, and sadness fills me. I squeeze it and the razor-sharp edge slices my skin enough to draw blood. I suck on my finger as I head over to start a pot of coffee. Moments later, the bell over my door jingles, and I turn to Miranda’s entrance.
“Goodness, what happened here?” she asks. She has a present in her hands and sets it down on the counter of my station.
I sigh as the older woman hangs up her coat. I say, “Somebody decided the best way to give me a message was to throw a brick through my window.”
She sits in the chair by the shampoo station. “Oh, Holly. Does this have anything to do with the werebear you’re hanging out with?”
“You know about that?” Water rushes as I wet her hair.
“Of course, dear. You’re the talk of the clan.”
“Fantastic.” Shampoo squirts in my palm, and I rub it on her head. “Don’t the members of our clan have better things to do than discuss my social life?” It’s only a matter of time before my alpha is going to come talk to me about this. Dread is a heavy lump in my stomach over my situation.
“Apparently no
t,” says Miranda. “I have to say, I’m a little worried about you, dear. Are you sure you couldn’t find yourself a nice cougar instead?”
“It’s not like I haven’t tried. I am in my mid-thirties, after all.”
Miranda’s eyes squint as she gives me a sly smile and says, “Well, I suppose there is something exciting about a shifter as large as a werebear.”
I flip on the water instead of answering, because while I understand Miranda’s curiosity, I have no intention of sharing my sex life with her. When I’m done rinsing, I walk her over to my station, and the large woman thuds into the chair.
She says, “I’m sure all of this will blow over as soon as you get it out of your system. Everyone will move on to the next scandal in no time.”
Miranda thinks Luke is a fling? I’m tempted to tell her that he’s my mate, but I realize this buys us time to figure out what to do. I ask, “Can I get you a cup of coffee before we get started?”
“Yes, please.” She reaches for the shiny green paper wrapped box she brought. “But first, open my present.”
“Hold on, I have one for you too,” I say. I’m one of those people who start Christmas shipping in January, and I walk in the back to get the silk scarf I purchased for Miranda at a craft show last summer.
We exchange our gifts and I immediately change my earrings to put on the red crystal drop ones Miranda got for me. As I walk back to her coffee I glance over at my broken window. A red jacket catches my eye. It’s Luke, and I break into a smile. Gigi holds the door open to let Luke and Mitch walk in with something wrapped in brown paper, and I think it’s a new sheet of glass.
Gigi says, “I come bearing gifts.” She winks at me. “And I suppose we’re going to have to find a way to thank these guys later.”
Miranda chuckles as I stare at Gigi with wide eyes in a silent question. She nods as she giggles, and I clench my fist in a tiny little arm pump of victory. I want my best friend to find love too.
I grab her arm to pull her in the back room. “You’ve got two minutes to tell me about your night before I have to go set Miranda’s hair, so make it quick.”
“Oh, Holly.” She sighs. “I’m in love.”
“That was fast.”
Gigi’s grin is so large her face might crack. She says, “He’s my mate.”
We both squeal.
“I’m so happy for you.” I give her a quick kiss on her cheek before we walk back out.
I discover Miranda has twisted her chair to watch the men as they work. I tease her. “Like what you see?”
“I do. I don’t suppose that Luke of yours has a widowed father who’s available?”
“Miranda! What would people think?”
She rolls her eyes at me. “Who the hell cares?” She chuckles before she sobers to study me. “Be careful, Holly. Don’t go getting too serious, because we both know the alpha would not approve of you mating with Luke.”
I nod because she’s right.
Daniel and his advisors come from a long line of purists who refuse to allow interbreeding, and I don’t think the sentiment is going to change anytime soon. I glance over at my sexy werebear and wonder what I would have done if I had known what he was before I discovered he was my mate.
I return my focus to Miranda’s hair as I wind it around a roller. When I look up, Luke’s gaze captures mine. Like a magnet, I’m drawn to him, and I think about how we’ve had this attraction since the first time I saw him. Knowing what he was may not have made a difference at all, because I don’t think I could have denied my mate no matter how hard I tried.
9
Opal’s nostrils flare the moment she steps in the salon. A tool clatters as Luke and Mitch clean up, but they stop speaking when she hisses.
She stares right at Luke. “What the hell are you doing here?”
My cat begs to be let loose as my hackles rise with my need to protect my mate, and I storm over to grab her arm. “Opal, they’re replacing the window someone broke with a brick last night.”
She glares at me as her cat flashes in her eyes. “A brick?” She throws off my grip. “This is all your fault, Holly.” She turns back to Luke. “Is this what you want? To get Holly thrown out of her clan and endanger our lives?”
Luke steps forward as he glances at me with concern. “Of course not, ma’am.”
“Opal, you’re being dramatic.” She turns to gaze at me, and I say, “Nobody’s going to die over this.”
Opal lunges forward to get in my face, and the scent of her fear seeps through the adrenaline of anger. “You think you know so much, but you’re very wrong. I’ve seen it happen. Being with a werebear could get you killed.”
Now my claws extend, and Gigi stops my shift when she places a hand on my shoulder and says, “Let’s everyone calm down.” Her touch makes me step back from Opal to take a deep breath as Opal does the same. My friend takes the older woman’s arm. “How about we get a cup of coffee and move to the back room while the guys finish up?”
Mitch says, “We’re done and leaving now.”
I glance over at Luke. He’s scowling, and I wait for Gigi to lead Opal away before I go to him. “I’m so sorry you had to witness that. Opal is from a different generation.”
“She’s not wrong to be worried, Holly,” says Mitch. “Somebody is not happy about you being with Luke.”
“I know.” I gaze at Mitch, and realization must come to him as his mouth opens.
Mitch asks, “You’re mates, aren’t you?”
“Yes. But—”
Mitch says, “I won’t tell anyone.”
I nod in thanks, because if the alpha finds out, I’ll be run out of town so fast my head would spin.
Luke takes my hand to say, “I think someone better explain this to me if I’m going to keep you safe.”
“If you two plan to mate, Holly can no longer live here,” says Mitch. “But…”
“But what?”
“Daniel’s getting older and Jacob is quite progressive. He’s been sitting in on a lot of alpha rulings lately and I think Daniel is ready to step down. Maybe you could wait appeal to Jacob when he takes over.”
Mitch glances at the shiny new window and scowls. “But even if you managed to get permission, your life around here wouldn’t be easy.”
He’s right and everyone in this shop knows it. Luke squeezes my fingers, and it might as well be my heart when he says, “No, Holly. I’m not worth it.”
He releases my hand as I cry out, “No!” The cotton of his T-shirt is warm in my fingers as I grab at his chest. “Please. There must be a way we can figure this out.”
Luke stares down at me as tears fill my eyes. He takes my wrists and pushes me away gently. “Maybe there is, but until we do, I think it’s best I leave you alone. If anything happened to you—” His voice cracks.
“But—” I gaze into his glassy eyes as the pain of loss fills me. I know he’s right, and it’s not just me who’s in danger. I can think of a number of my kind who would revel in killing Luke. I whisper, “We have to find a way. I love you, Luke.”
He closes his eyes for a second, and when he opens them again, his bear is evident as he speaks with resolve. “I love you too. I’ll figure this out, Holly. You can count on it.”
I nod as tears roll down my cheeks, and Gigi places her hand on my shoulder. When the bell on the door jingles, I turn to my friend as Luke and Mitch leave. She pulls me into a tight embrace, and my sob escapes.
She says, “There’s got to be a way, honey. You’ll see.”
I want to believe her, but the thought of being without Luke even for a day is almost too much to handle. The uncomfortable urge to get out of my skin pricks at me, and I realize it might be because Luke is no longer around. I wonder if the strange sensation of things not being right for the past week has had something to do with my mate. He must have arrived here about the same time I started to experience it. We need him.
Opal comes out of the back room with a cup of coffee in her h
and. When I gaze at her stern look, a knot of anger forms in my stomach. I know she’s only worried for me, but I can’t help my rage.
She stands for the prejudice in my clan, and I glare at her. “Happy? I finally find my mate, and I can’t have him. I guess I’m going to be just as miserable as you are, aren’t I?”
Always the peacemaker, Gigi says, “Holly.”
I shake my head as I walk to the back room and grab my coat to leave the salon. I’m not sure where I’m going, but I can’t be around the person I fear I’ll become. I’m sure Gigi will take care of Miranda for me, and I walk down the sidewalk as it begins to snow. I forgot my hat and mittens and a shiver makes my teeth chatter by the time I get to the diner. The door is heavy as I push my way in to get a hot drink.
I regret my decision the moment I see Zander. But before I can leave, he spots me and stands up from his booth to rush over. He reaches out a hand but stops as if he’s thought better of his actions.
He asks, “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. I’m fine, just cold.”
Before I finish speaking, he’s grabbed my hands and is rubbing them between his. “Let’s get you some coffee.”
Zander has always been more than a sometimes boyfriend for me. Throughout the years, we’ve both comforted each other over broken hearts and difficult times. Next to Gigi, he’s my best friend. I let him lead me to a booth. “Thanks.”
When we get there, he calls out to Jenny. “We need hot coffee over here.” I sit across from him, and Zander’s eyes are warm with compassion as he asks, “Want to talk about it?”
I shake my head. “I don’t deserve you. Why are you always so good to me?”
Zander shrugs. “I can’t help it. Besides, I could say the same about you. You were a godsend when my mother died.”
I give him a sad smile. “I don’t know what to do.”
“Luke?”
I nod. Jenny arrives with our coffee, and it splashes into our cups. We remain silent until she walks away.
