by C. D. Gorri
Charley moved and Rafe sucked in a deep breath as he pushed even further inside of her. His eyes bore into hers. He needed to watch her as they joined. Her scent filled his nostrils, the Wolf in him demanded he claim her. Now.
“Rafe! Please,” Charley thrusted upwards, but his large hands captured and stilled her.
“Easy, baby,” he whispered and shifted. He cradled her gently in his arms and watched her every reaction as he fully pushed into her.
She felt him stretch her. Her soft body accommodated his pulsating strength. The tremendous rightness of it brought tears to Charley’s eyes. She reached up and held his face as he filled her.
She pulled down his head. He allowed her to, his expression tense, until she kissed him. He groaned and opened for her. Her soft tongue tangled with his.
Rafe thought he would explode. For the first time she initiated contact. He was completely at her mercy. He stilled and waited for her to command him. A Wolf always listened to his mate’s desires. Something inside of her must have known it too, because she nipped his lip and pulled on his waist. He groaned aloud and thrust into her. Mine.
He pumped until her cries filled his ears. He growled and his hot seed filled her. Making her gasp. He had never felt so satisfied, so complete, as he did in that moment.
“Are you okay?,” he trailed soft kisses down her throat and up to her mouth.
Charley could hardly believe what had just happened. It was better than anything she had ever read about. And she had read some mighty descriptive romance novels in her day. She kissed him back, loving the weight of him.
“Mmm, better than okay.”
“Good, cause I’m not finished yet.”
Rafe moved inside of her and she felt him swell instantly. Charley’s eyes flew open.
“Is that supposed to happen so soon?”
“I’m a Werewolf, we heal quickly.”
“Oh,-”
“But I don’t think I could ever get my fill of you, sweet Carlotta,” he breathed her name into her mouth as he joined with her.
Charley held on tight as Rafe drove her to the edge of sanity. He seemed to know exactly what she needed in ways she didn’t know herself. My destiny.
Their bodies were slick with sweat. Rafe cradled her face in his big hands, kissing her as he sank into her welcoming warmth. She bit down just above his collar bone, gasping his name, and damn, if he didn’t pump harder. Her spasms milked him and he threw his head back, roaring his completion.
After what seemed like an eternity Charley opened her eyes. She was utterly spent, but not even exhaustion could stop the smile that spread across her face like sunshine.
Rafe moved down her body. His lips trailed soft kisses as he went. She missed his warmth. She wanted to pull him back on top of her. She should be ashamed, but shame was not how she felt. Not at all.
She watched as he tended her. Rafe’s tongue snaked out and licked her thighs soothing her sensitized flesh. She couldn’t move as she watched him. His dark head moved up and down as he ministered to her hot skin.
She wanted to hold her knees closed, suddenly embarrassed, but she had neither the strength nor the will to deny him. He parted her legs and looked at her with such reverence in his gaze that her heart skipped a beat.
She lay before him completely exposed. Charley sucked in a breath as he bent and licked away the remnants of her first time. He kissed her thighs then moved up ever so slowly to her most sensitive flesh. First he tended her, then he moved with intent.
Charley gasped and arched off the bed. She undulated against his clever tongue. Her breathing grew heavy. Rafe knelt between her thighs and cocked his head to the side. She could feel the pressure build up in his powerful body as he waited for her response.
She reached up and grabbed his long hard length with both hands. His skin was like velvet. She cupped him and pumped him once, then twice. He threw his head back and groaned. A very satisfying sound. Charley bit her lip then placed his swollen head at her center.
“Are you sure I won’t hurt you?”
“I’m sure, Rafe. I want this, I want you.”
“Mine,” he growled.
Charley moaned at the pleasure of him filling her. He was so strong. Hard, large, and sinewy. Like some sort of ancient warrior god.
Charley on the other hand, was soft and curvy. Her body full of dips and valleys. Her skin ivory to his bronze. Rafe kissed her full breasts and she threw her head back, her hair cascading around her in wild disarray.
She never thought much about her looks. Never thought there was a reason to. She knew she was considered much larger than the norm. Advertisements and the media of the day continued to plaster pictures of ultra-skinny waif like models all over the place as the thing to aspire to.
Super-thin girls and women who were concerned with the size of their “thigh gap”, a thing Charley could not possibly measure on herself as it was non-existent. She was always fond of food and when she was younger she often felt bad about her weight. Dieting hadn’t worked. She certainly wouldn’t take pills or have surgery to fulfill society’s standards of beauty.
In the 50s she would have been perfect. But Charley couldn’t complain. She was healthy, her yearly physicals stated as much. She had the odd date here and there. Guys in high school had told her she would be pretty if she lost some weight, but she shrugged them off and stuck to herself.
And she was glad. Now more than ever. She was in bed with a man who looked and moved like a god. And Rafe, well, he made her feel beautiful.
His expression was both fierce and humble as he traced lines along her collarbone, neck, and face with his long fingered hands. He leaned down and kissed everywhere he had touched. Worshipping her with his mouth.
She met his lips and touched them tentatively with her tongue. Rafe had to work to control himself. He could hardly believe her response to him. Could she really be his true mate? Mine. His Wolf growled inside of him and he gripped the pillow behind her head so hard it popped.
Down feathers flew around her head and she laughed. Rafe smiled too. Beautiful. Her scent, her taste, her passion, the waves of emotion that rolled off her, he’d take it all. She was his.
“You are beautiful,” he nuzzled her neck just as she ran her nails down to his buttocks. And squeezed. His ability to think froze. He was insatiable, but only for her.
“Grrr, Carlotta, I don’t think I can be gentle if you do things like that, you should stop-” he growled in her ear. But his mate shook her head and squeezed harder.
“I don’t need gentle, I need you,” she wrapped her legs around his waist.
This was crazy. Charley knew it. Later, I’ll think later. Right then she only wanted to feel. She waited her entire life to feel something half as real.
Rafe knelt in front of her, still joined he lifted her legs and put them on his shoulders, going even deeper inside of her. Charley gasped.
He ran his long fingers over her sensitive skin and moved. More. He seemed to sense her needs. When he moved inside of her it was like poetry.
Charley did the only thing she could think of. She held on and when she reached the height of their passion she cried out.
“Carlotta,” he exhaled her name and Charley watched him as he exploded inside of her.
It was the most intimate moment of her life. Staring into the clear blue eyes of her very first lover. Her only lover.
They had made love. She may be a novice, but she knew this was more than sex. The way he looked at her in his moment of release melted away whatever protection she had built around her heart.
“Rafe, mmm,” her voice sounded dreamlike and far away.
“Hey, baby, you hungry?,” he cuddled her and kissed her shoulder.
“Actually, I think I’d like a shower,” Charley she felt around for her robe. Her cheeks burned. She couldn’t quite meet his eyes.
Rafe wasn’t having any of that. The last thing he wanted was for his new mate to feel shame after what they ex
perienced together. He turned her head to face him, she had such beautiful brown eyes.
“Of course, but first I need you to hear something. I, I apologize.”
Her heart stopped. He was sorry they made love. She was shameless! Having sex with her captor. And loving it! And he was sorry.
“No, never for making love with you. I’d never apologize for that,” as her heart resumed its beat, she wondered if he was reading her mind.
“What you gave me was a gift and I’ll treasure it. Always. But that’s why I need to apologize, for not being sorry.”
Sorry for not being sorry? Well, that’s new.
“Carlotta, my men took you without your permission and I just jumped you! I need to apologize for that. It’s just that I can’t because I am not the least bit sorry that you’re here with me right now.”
“Oh, thank God,” she said and jumped into his arms.
CHAPTER 5
Rafe dressed then left to get food. He told her to wait for him inside the bedroom, but she was never one to take orders. After a quick shower she searched his drawers for something to wear.
She found a pair of navy blue boxer briefs and shrugged. They were the smallest thing in there, so on they went. She laughed as she caught sight of herself in the mirror.
Rafe was at least six feet two inches tall and over two hundred pounds. A good eight inches taller than her. Most of his clothes were going to be way too big. She kinda liked that.
She had to fold the boxers twice to get them to stay up. She topped off her ensemble with a flannel button down shirt. Of course she had to roll up the sleeves half a dozen times to keep them from falling down.
She knotted the shirt tails at her belly button since loose they reached down to her knees. Charley grinned as she braided her hair. Guess I’m petite compared to someone after all. Take that Mrs. Gunfry! She thought of her old gym teacher and smirked.
She tried the doorknob and was slightly surprised when it opened. The hallway before her was long and empty. It was certainly larger than any she had ever seen.
She knew she was in a house with eight men, one of whom she spent the last few hours making the most exquisite love with. There was also one other woman who lived there, the sister. But that was as far as she knew.
She counted ten doors from Rafe’s room till she got to a huge staircase that looked like something out of Twelve Oaks from Gone with the Wind.
She looked around and was surprised at the quiet. Hmm. Kitchen? Where is the kitchen? She heard a noise. Like a blender. She followed it and opened the first door she found. Eccola!
Charley stood in a giant state of the art kitchen. The walls were painted a pale yellow. There were miles of marble countertops, polished wood cabinets, and stainless steel appliances.
“Goddamn it, Seff, did you use all the basil making those damned watermelon juice things again?,” tall, beard boy shouted through a door opposite Charley.
She got a look at what he was doing. Garlic, onions, peppers, tomatoes, basil. He was trying to make sauce! She tuned out the argument and went to work.
Charley opened the large Subzero Wolfe refrigerator. She put back the peppers and onions and found some fresh basil in a plastic baggie in the veggie drawer. She pulled it out and handed it to beard boy who was standing behind her with his mouth hanging open.
“You know your herbs would last longer of you wrapped the stems in a damp paper towel. These baggies will make them mold and wilt,” she waited while he opened and closed his mouth like a fish out of water.
Then he bent his head towards her and sniffed. Charley backed up instinctively. A ridiculously pleased smile broke out on his hairy face and he howled. Like a Wolf. Charley’s mouth dropped open.
A stampede of men came into the kitchen and Charley felt like a fool. She stood there, half-naked, in front of her kidnappers and they were all smiles and pats on the back. What the heck? Where was Rafe when she needed him?
“Well, well, looks like we did good after all,” said beard boy.
“Easy boys, you’ll scare her. Hi, my name is Seff, uh, Seff McAllister this here is Randall Graves,” the soft-spoken blonde held out a hand. She shook it briefly. These guys are not normal.
They won’t harm me. That she knew. They seemed to respect Rafe too much for that. Besides they thought he was their leader. If only she could figure out the cause of this mass delusion.
“Okay, you still with me? The twins here are Kurt and Dib Lowell,” he pointed to the two red headed giants, then onto a tall thin male with a grim expression, “This is Tate Nighthawk. Conall Truman, you’ll remember. You, uh, gave him one hell of a bloody nose, and this is Lyall. He’s my baby brother,” they all nodded and smiled. Occasionally they sniffed the air and grinned wickedly.
“Okay. I’m Charley, but I think you know that. Now I’m not saying I forgive you, but I am kind of hungry. So Randall, what kind of sauce are you making?”
“The inedible kind,” said Conall. He tried to duck out of the way, but he was too slow. Randall elbowed him hard in the gut. Tate winced, the twins snickered, and Lyall bent over laughing.
“Hey man, you want to cook tonight? Be my guest! I’m a game developer, not a bloody chef!”
He threw his dish towel at Conall and stalked over to the mound of ingredients he had gathered.
“How about I help?,” Charley grinned and followed him over to the counter where ingredients were strewn all over. The others followed, their expressions hopeful.
“She can cook?” someone asked.
“Put these away,” Charley began sorting through the ingredients she wanted. She asked for a sauce pot and another for the pasta. She laughed as they rushed to do her bidding.
“Okay, for a simple meat sauce I am going to need a small piece of pork shoulder and maybe a beef rib bone or two?” They got her what she needed and watched as she taught not one, but seven males how to make a classic Neapolitan tomato sauce.
“What about staples, like sausage and meatballs?,” Lyall asked.
“Alright, we can make that too, but you guys are my sous chefs,” Charley was no fool, after all she worked in a deli that catered. No way was she going to be chained to the stove in that massive house!
Twenty minutes later her enormous pot of sauce was simmering, an even bigger pot full of water laced with sea salt was just about to boil, and four dozen meatballs the size of softballs were in the oven. Randall was frying eggplant, Lyall was chopping ingredients for a salad and Charley was rolling out dough for fresh garlic and herbed breadsticks.
Rafe entered the kitchen at a run, in his hand was a sack of fast food. “Has anyone seen Carl-,” his stunned expression said it all. He dropped the fast food where he stood and grabbed her in a rough embrace which she happily returned.
“Hey, I’m okay,” she stroked his hair back from his forehead and dropped a soft kiss on his lips. His eyes told her all she needed to know.
“Hey, boss, your mate can cook! Isn’t that great!,” said Lyall from his position at the vegetable chopping block.
“You did all this?,” he said as he sniffed the air and almost groaned from the delicious smells.
“Yeah, I was getting hungry and I didn’t know where you went.”
“No, it’s okay. I- Thank you.”
She lifted the pan of breadsticks and placed it in the oven. Rafe smiled appreciatively as she bent over. He growled when he noticed Lyall’s interest and the young Wolf immediately turned his head elsewhere.
Charley lifted her head and looked at Rafe. Was that growl? She must be imagining things.
“Okay, boys, I need you to set the table, get some drinks, and grated cheese and we’ll start bringing the dishes out in a few minutes.”
Rafe was stunned at the way his mate took charge. And just look at how his Wolf Guard fell into line! He grinned like a madman. They were taking orders from this tiny woman, who just hours ago, was a prisoner. Their prisoner. Now, she was in control of everyone and she completely
took over his kitchen!
Rafe pulled out a chair for Charley next to his. He squeezed her hand and sat down to one of the best home cooked meals he had ever eaten. The rest of the Wolves waited for him to take the first bite. His eyes closed as he savored it.
His Guard smiled and dug in. They were a rowdy bunch, elbowing each other playfully and joshing around. Charley had never had any brothers, but if she could choose a family she’d love one like this. Their jovial manner and goofing around put her at ease.
Rafe was just as casual in his mannerisms. It was obvious he was in charge, but the entire meal held a touch of informality that made Charley feel relaxed. She watched Rafe as he served himself another helping of pasta and four more meatballs.
He could really pack it away! And she thought they were crazy when they pulled out box after box of rigatoni.
Rafe was so ridiculously proud that his mate had made their meal that he couldn’t stop grinning. That’s when it hit him. She wasn’t really his mate. He had promised to let her have her own life.
He stared at her as she laughed at one of Lyall’s jokes. How could he let her go? She looked gorgeous at his table with one leg tucked under the other, dipping a breadstick into her salad dressing. It was as if she were born to be his. And she got along with his Guard.
What if she wanted to leave? What if she demanded he keep his promise? His eyes narrowed. He knew there was no way he could live without her. His Wolf snarled in the back of his mind at the very thought of her out of his life. Mine.
After everyone ate their fill Charley stood up to clear the dishes, but Rafe stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. “No need for that, the guys will do it. We have a housekeeper who comes in the mornings. He takes care of things like the dishes, laundry, vacuuming...”
“He?”
“Oh, yeah. We are all for equal opportunity here.”
“Really?,” she looked at him with those big brown eyes of hers. He found it difficult to concentrate.
He could get lost in her eyes. He sensed her pulse speed up and he watched as her lips parted. Rafe struggled to keep steady.
