by R. A. Boyd
Confusion and something akin to fear blanketed his face, and if Paige wasn’t so thoroughly exhausted from everything she’d been through she would have laughed.
“You want to stay that way?” he asked.
Paige shrugged and rocked her head from side to side, mulling over his question. “Not forever. I was never given a freaking chance to clearly think about it. You know what? Forget Poppa Sam. You can have it. Take my virginity so I can shove that in his face.”
He winced and took a step away from her. “No. I’m not going to let you make a rash decision like that just to spite that twat-waffle godfather of yours. When we do have sex it’ll be because it’s right for you. For us. So go on ahead and push that out of your mind.”
Paige stomped her foot and then grimaced as she felt different parts of her body jiggle. She was a big girl and loved her curves. At least that wasn’t something he had taken away from her. She knew her belly was soft and had a flesh roll that she could never quite get rid of and that her thighs rubbed together. But it was all her. Her body. And apparently, Aiden liked it more than she did.
He looked down at her hungrily, and she laughed inwardly when she noticed his cock jump inside his pants. “You’re beautiful. I’m lucky to have you, and as soon as you figure out exactly who you are I’d be happy to share that, if you let me. Do you understand?”
Yes, she did understand. All those years with her godfather and she’d lost who she was. Paige was just discovering herself after a long nightmarish sleep where she thought her life was perfect. Even though she’d only been free of the spell for a short time she was starting to remember who she was. Who she’d always been. The person that was locked away who had been quietly calling for help, fighting to not give in.
“I understand. Can you still bathe me? I’d like that very much, even if it’s not sexual.”
A wicked smile played across his soft looking lips. “Not sexual? The thought of me bathing you might be one of the sexiest things I can think of, Mate.”
Mate. He was her mate.
He reached behind her and started the shower, holding his hand under the spray until it was just right. “Go on. I’m coming in.”
Aiden helped her step into the shower and closed the curtain. She took the time to rinse her body, starting with her hair, and gasped when she saw all the blood spiraling down the drain. Closing her eyes she stood under the showerhead, letting herself be blind to the disregard Sam must have felt for her. She wouldn’t call him Poppa Sam anymore. Calling him that made it sound as if he’d actually cared for her.
Briefly, she opened her eyes to look at the water to see if it was still red. It was almost clear. She would leave all of that possible hatred for Sam to rinse down the drain so she would be free of it. Free of him.
Just when she thought she’d wasted enough water, the sound of the shower curtain being pulled back resonated through the bathroom. Was Aiden naked? She turned around, and holy shitake mushrooms, he was.
Broad shoulders and defined pecs stared back at her. A sleeve of ink covered his left arm, and man-oh-man she’d never thought tattoos could be this sexy on a man. His six-pack abs were showcased by a muscular Adonis belt that led right down to his cock.
“Aiden. Why are you hard?”
“Because you’re naked. If this makes you uncomfortable I can put my pants back on.”
“Well, that would be silly.”
“So is the idea you have of me not being rock hard when you’re naked. You’re sexy as fuck, Paige. Turn around. I’ll wash your hair.”
That sounded nice. He was going to wash her hair. She’d always wanted someone to but never had the opportunity.
Giving his nethers one last look, she turned around and faced the falling water. She could hear the cap of the shampoo being opened and smiled when the scent of her personal shampoo filled her senses. To pass the isolated time back at home she made her own hair and body products. She’d tried to straighten her hair years ago and damaged it so badly that she cut it all off and started again. The crazy mass of coils that surrounded her head like a misshapen halo belonged to her, and she loved them.
“Thank you for getting my stuff from my room,” she said, loving the feel of his strong hands massaging her hair and scalp.
He rinsed the shampoo from her hair and then applied the conditioner. “You made this?”
“Yes.”
Aiden huffed out a laugh and turned her around so he could rinse her hair. “The ladies back home are going to love you. They’re always making shit. Usually smells like shit, too. This stuff smells nice.” He pulled her forward and put her leave-in conditioner in her hair, and then clipped it to the top of her head with a hair clip.
She smiled at the care he was taking with her. Of course, she’d have to go back in later and take her time to detangle the coily mess, but it would be worth it. The tip of Aiden’s cock bounced against her belly and she stifled a gasp. “It has peppermint and lavender in it,” she said, answering the question he asked a few moments before. Paige was too wrapped up in the feel of his closeness to keep up with the conversation. “I think your penis is trying to get me.” He backed up his pelvis a bit but she reached up and grabbed his waist, pulling him closer to her. “I don’t mind.”
“Paige,” he said in a warning tone.
“Don’t say my name like that. I know we’re not going to have sex, but I still like you being close to me. It feels good. And it’s my choice. I haven’t had a chance to have a real choice in a long time.”
Taking a deep breath and lowering his green eyes to angry looking slits, he reached over her shoulder and grabbed a fluffy beige washcloth and bar of soap. Paige stared on in wonder as the large, sleek muscles glided beneath his tanned skin. His arms and shoulders were powerful, and she would bet her favorite pair of comfy socks that he could pick her up and screw her silly if he wanted to. He wouldn’t even strain against her extra weight.
“You want me,” he said in an even voice. “Your lust smells fucking delicious. I bet you taste good.”
Paige swallowed and cleared her throat. If he kept playing games like this she was going to hop on his erection and gallop herself away to orgasm.
“What do you do for a living?” she asked, trying to distract herself from the gentle feel of the soapy washcloth against her breasts and stomach.
Methodically, he reached around to wash all her private areas and Paige thought she would burst from the desire he was building inside her. When he abruptly stopped and began to rinse her, she snapped back to the fact that they weren’t going to have sex. Dang-it.
Turning her around to wash her back he said, “I work at the loading dock in the city. Moving stuff off the ships or trains, hooking up the chains to keep everything steady. Whatever they need.” He stooped down and began to wash and rinse the backs of her legs. “It keeps me busy. Hard work to quell my shifter energy, even though I’m not really a shifter. Not yet. Turn back around for me, please.”
Careful as not to fall in the shower she turned to face him, looking down to see him gazing at the apex of her thighs. Being more bold than she’d ever imagined she lifted her leg to rest her foot on the edge of the tub. “Aiden. I want you to see all of me. Well, not that you haven’t seen me already, but so that I won’t be shy when we actually do have sex I want to watch you watch me.”
Aiden was face to face with her private bits, and for just a moment she thought she’d made a mistake. She didn’t mean to do it but it was the first thing that popped into her mind. In all the books she’d read there was some discomfort when a woman let a man see her for the first time right before they made love. Paige didn’t want that. She wanted them to be familiar and comfortable.
“Too fast?” she asked, getting ready to lower her foot from the tub.
Quicker than her eyes could see, Aiden’s hand flew up and held her foot to the side of the tub. His eyes glowed like sunshine on fresh cut grass and his tongue darted out and ran along his bottom lip.
“Not at all,” he said, his voice a whisper. With a caress as soft as the water raining down on her, Aiden dragged his fingers from her ankle to her upper thigh. “Can I taste you, Paige?”
Oh. She hadn’t planned on that. Her heart hammered in her chest and she put her hand over it to make sure it stayed inside of her. She nodded but realized he didn’t notice. His eyes were glued to her sex. “Yes.”
With graceful ease he moved forward until she could feel his warm breath on her most sensitive spot, his hand still caressing the soft fullness of her thigh.
Paige looked down as Aiden’s lips kissed the ones between her legs, and she fought to stay upright. He would bring her to her knees if she wasn’t careful. That one kiss shot an electric current through her body that made all the air whoosh out of her lungs. He smiled at her reaction and used his tongue to separate her saturated folds.
“Aiden,” she whispered as a dizzying headiness filled her mind.
His lips closed around the receptive bundle of nerves that only she’d ever touched, and her back bowed off the wet shower wall. She cried out as he took one large finger and slid it inside of her, gently rubbing and pressing against the susceptible spot just inside her aching pussy.
“Fuck,” he heaved out, voice low and more animal than human. “You are so fucking tight. And wet. And warm. Do you like this?” he said, finger still adoring that little spot. He looked nothing short of hungry as his eyes trailed over her body.
“Hmm-mm. Yes,” she said, voice high and panting.
He used his lips and tongue to part her folds and she let out a needy groan that was foreign to her. Nothing had ever felt this absolute and perfect to her. Heat pooled to where his lips met her body, the tickling caress so overwhelming that Paige rolled her eyes closed to focus solely on Aiden. His teeth nipped her clit, and then he soothed the sensitive bundle of nerves with the tip of his tongue.
With a rhythm set by the gentle pulls and laps from his lips and tongue, Paige’s hips bucked forward as she rocked against his mouth an ran her fingers through is hair.
A deep throb pulled inside her belly as a coil of heat began to unfurl within her. One of Aiden’s arms wrapped around her thighs and he grabbed her by her ass, pulling her closer to him as she tried to escape from the carnal pleasure he forced from her.
As her orgasm tore through her, she cried out and grabbed Aiden by his head to pull him closer against her pussy. She was helpless as the desire bonded her to him even more than she already was.
Even after the tremors in her pussy abated, he kept sucking and wringing the aftershocks from her body, bringing on another orgasm. She looked down and saw that he was stroking his large shaft, fist grasping and squeezing just below the large swollen head of his cock.
“Come with me,” he said, voice muffled from still pleasuring her with his mouth.
He reached up and squeezed one of her nipples and sucked harder on her clit.
The sight of his seed spilling from the mushroom-tip of his cock and the vibrating growl that worked its way up his throat and through his mouth shoved her over the edge. She came, even harder than the first time with his name pouring from her lips like a bliss-induced prayer.
Aiden kissed a fiery path up her body and buried his face into the bend of her neck. He bit her there gently, hugging her close. “You’re mine, Paige Harrison. And I’m yours.”
He had no idea how true those words were to her. Aiden had helped save her from a spell that would have consumed her entire life. Two other Ghost shifter clan members were working to free her of it for good.
There was no question in her mind. Now, the Ghost shifters had her loyalty. She would do everything in her power to keep them safe from the threat that was Sam and the Rogue pack. Even if it meant killing someone she’d known her whole life. Sam may be powerful, but she knew his secrets. Knew his weaknesses. And she would use them against him to dismantle and eradicate every member of the Rogue pack, even if she had to fight to the death.
Chapter 6
The sunlight peeked through the curtains of his room, illuminating Paige as if she were some angelic host waiting to bring him good news. Hell, she was his good news. Even if she wasn’t ready to be claimed, he knew that Paige was it for him. Before he had touched her and committed her scent and taste to memory, he knew she would forever be his always.
He found comfort in watching her sleep. He found comfort in just watching her exist. She’d already changed since he’d first met her at the meeting. Her posture had been timid and she looked uncomfortable, not just being surrounded by new people, but in her own skin. Now, she was starting to wake up from the spell that had kept who she really was at bay. She was still a bit nervous as they sat and talked last night, but little by little she was opening up to him. He was honored to take this journey with her.
Regardless of his animal screaming in his gut that they belonged together he knew she was perfect. She was strong and had endured so much over the years. Aiden couldn’t imagine what it must be like for her, knowing that the man who was supposed to protect and support her had been keeping her compliant with spells and charms. But why her? Was it because she was the closest shifter he could get his hands on? No. It couldn’t be that. Somehow Poppa Sam, or Samiyah, had found her and knew that she was a link to the Ghost shifters.
They just needed to know how.
His mate was going to have to face a hard truth before all of this was over. There was a good chance that Samiyah had murdered her family to keep her with him, to bind her to him with no questions asked, and he was willing to kill her to get what he wanted. All the Ghost shifters dead? Unmated? Paige was the key to figuring that out.
“He’ll be calling to check in on me soon.” Paige’s words pulled him from his thoughts, and he looked down at her to see those beautiful brown eyes staring up at him.
He leaned over and placed his lips on her forehead, and she tilted into his kiss. “Did I wake you?”
She shook her head and kissed his neck, right where the mouth of his skull tattoo was. “Not really. You were growling, but I like it.”
Damn-it. He’d have to work on that. Before he met Paige, his saber-tooth hadn’t reacted to anything. “I’m sorry.” He glanced over at the clock. It was almost eight in the morning. “You comfort me, do you know that?”
Her soft, full lips curved up in a shy smile. “What do you mean?”
“I never sleep past five. No matter how much sleep I do or don’t get the night before it’s like I have an alarm in my head, making me get up.” He ran his hand up her bare arm and watched the goosebumps rise in the wake of his touch. “I woke up about fifteen minutes ago. You make me feel good. Relaxed.”
She snuggled into him and put her face in the bend of his neck. She bit down and then kissed the spot. If she wasn’t careful he would accept the gift of her virginity right here and now. But that’s not what she needed. She needed time to heal and grow from the stifling force that was Samiyah.
“We’re gonna have sex today,” Paige said. Her voice was playful but he could sense her pheromones wafting around him like a sensual perfume. “And don’t say my name like you want to chastise me. I’m not saying that we’re going to have sex to piss off Sam. I’m saying it because I want you. I want to feel you inside me. Despite my animal already falling head over heels for you, I like you. So much that it scares me. And since I’m not usually around shifters I really can’t say if it’s normal. Okay?”
Her eyes darkened as he looked into them, going from their normal hazel to a deep whiskey brown. “Okay. Are you not used to getting what you ask for?”
He instantly regretted his question. Paige’s gaze fell to the bed and her scent switched from lust to fear and guilt. “I’m not used to asking for anything, Aiden. I’ve been compliant for as long as I can remember. Sam gave me a credit card to order my clothes and stuff to make my lotions and shampoos. I think he was happy when I was in my flat making stuff and reading.” Her eyes glazed over and a frown t
ook over her beautiful face as if she were watching some movie she wasn’t enjoying. “We went out to dinner or lunch sometimes, but we always kept to ourselves. I never wanted to talk to anyone else. He didn’t want me to break free of him so he kept me isolated. Made me want to keep away from others, especially shifters. Until the Rogue pack. Aiden, he’s in charge of the Rogue pack. I don’t remember how I know that, but I know he wanted me to forget. I’ve been remembering things. Little things.”
“Don’t force yourself. It’ll come. And if it doesn’t then that’s okay, too.” He cupped her cheek and pressed his nose to hers, forcing a giggle to bubble up through her mouth. “I’ll keep you safe. All the Ghosts will.”
He wanted to ask her so many questions, hoping that hearing them would bring back her memory so they could find out why this was happening. He’d rather carve out his spleen with a butter knife than make her try to remember. She would at her own pace. And if she didn’t, well that was just fine too.
Aiden pulled her closer, resting his chin on the crown of her head. Her cell phone started to ring inside of her purse on the bedside table, and her entire body tensed up. The rigidity in her muscles kicked his senses into overdrive and a low snarl sounded through his lips.
“You’re going to have to either quiet your beast or leave the room,” Paige said, her voice trembling with apprehension. “I don’t want him to know I’m free.”
She was staring at him now, eyes taking on a strength he hadn’t seen yet. She had a plan. For some crazy reason, it made his dick hard.
In the middle of the second ring, Paige snatched the phone off the table and slid her finger across the screen. “Good morning, Poppa Sam.” Her entire body was taut as a piano string.
“What’s wrong?” Sam said.
Aiden could hear his voice clearly as if he held the phone to his own ear.
