The Mating Game: Big Bad Wolf

by Georgette St. Clair

  He looked at her with disgust. “Lady, I’ve never bit a woman before, but you’re tempting me. I just don’t want to have to gargle with soap for the next hour, so I’ll give it a pass. But you better hit the road before I change my mind, you high-falutin’ sack of horse manure.”

  “You’re making a very big mistake,” she spat at him. “Frasier will press charges against you for assault.”

  “Tell him to go right ahead. Daisy can press charges for attempted kidnapping. We’ve got plenty of witnesses.”

  “Yes, but in the meantime, the bad publicity will destroy your company.”

  She turned and stalked off, returning to Mr. Trenton’s office.

  Ryker stormed out of the building; he had to get out of there before he lost control, or he might end up literally biting her face off.

  As he was driving back to his office, his uncle called him. Ryker answered the phone with a twist of uneasiness.

  “Let me guess,” he said. “The investors are pulling out?”

  “Not yet,” Walt said. “Apparently, company stock has been climbing higher ever since you started dating Daisy. The public likes her. Also, Mrs. Bennett may have money and influence, but so does Mr. Trenton. She just marched in there and tried to order Mr. Trenton around, and he found her offensive.”

  “She offended him? Imagine that,” Ryker snorted.

  “But we’re skating on thin ice here,” Walt said. “One wrong move, and we lose everything.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  “I survived your family! Hey, where are you?” Daisy called as she walked in the front door, holding a basket of banana muffins. His mother had insisted that Daisy come over so she could apologize to her for dumping the paint on her head, give her some more family recipes and, of course, interrogate her about how many cubs she planned on having.

  “In here!” Ryker called out.

  Daisy set the basket of muffins down in the kitchen, walked into the living room, and was shocked to see Ryker sitting there watching Love, Actually with a look of bafflement on his face.

  She looked at him suspiciously. Then she leaned down put her hand on his forehead. “Are you feeling okay? And where did you even get this movie from?”

  “I got it from your room. I hope you don’t mind,” he said. “Hey, are you in the mood to go clothes shopping?”

  She looked at him skeptically. “Are you saying that you are?”

  “Yep. And after that, we can bake.”

  “I just spent two hours baking. Who are you, and what have you done with Ryker Harrison?”

  “What? You don’t like doing those things?”

  “Of course I do, but you don’t. What made you think of doing them?” she said as she grabbed the remote control and turned the movie off.

  He told her about her mother’s visit.

  “Oh my God. I can’t believe she did that.” Daisy paced the floor, her forehead furrowing in anger. “Wait, of course I can believe it. This is my mother we’re talking about here. When it comes to pack prestige, she’s like a piranha crossed with a Tasmanian devil. But what does this have to do with you watching rom-coms?”

  “Your mother said I was going to bore you and offend you. I know you don’t actually want to stay here past the investor’s meeting, but I don’t want you to be miserable while you’re here.”

  She shook her head. “I’m not bored at all,” she said with an edge of exasperation in her voice. “I told you that, and I don’t lie. And you’re the one who doesn’t want me to stay.”

  “I never said that,” he said indignantly. “Stay as long as you want. Stay forever if you feel like it.”

  She flopped down on the couch next to him. “Fine. Maybe I just will.”

  “Fine!” He glowered at her, then grabbed the remote from her and turned on the TV. “Have my cubs, for all I care!”

  “Maybe I will!” she yelled at him. “Five of them! No, ten! And I’ll invite your mother over to babysit them all the time!”

  “Ouch.” He winced. “My mother? Over here? You’re playing dirty pool.”

  She reached for the TV remote and turned it off.

  He grabbed for it. “Nope. We’re going to watch what you’re you want to watch.”

  “No we’re not,” she huffed. “Quit being so noble.”

  They wrestled for the remote, and the next thing she knew, he’d pinned her down on the couch. He wrapped his fingers around her wrists as she wriggled beneath him, then sobered as she stilled except for the rapid rise and fall of her breathing.

  “What were we arguing about again?” she asked.

  Her heart was thrumming and she was acutely conscious of the weight of his body on top of hers. Her panties dampened and sparks of excitement flickered low in her belly. Ryker was looking down at her, his pupils dilated, his full, soft-looking lips slightly parted.

  “Um…the remote control? Something stupid? What was it again?” There was a slightly dazed cast to his expression, as if he’d taken a blow to the head.

  “I can’t remember. I can barely form words right now,” she said, her voice gone husky.

  She could feel his heart hammering against her breasts, and her nipples were tight, painful peaks. Her gaze was locked to his plump lower lip. She wanted to lick it. Bite it. She wanted…

  Before she could properly fit her mind around what she wanted, much less voice it, Ryker bent his head and, with the softest of touches, he kissed her.

  It was firm but sweet, his mouth torturing her with slow, deliberate motions. She parted her lips for him and the very tip of his tongue touched hers, flickering softly, then stroking and exploring as he deepened the kiss.

  His hands went to her breasts, squeezing the plump curves and pinching her nipples through the fabric of her T-shirt and bra. She gasped against his mouth, then made a little noise of disappointment when he drew away from her…until she saw the wicked promise in his eyes.

  He whipped his T-shirt over his head, exposing his muscular chest, the toned planes of his flat stomach, and a touchable, kissable expanse of smooth golden skin. He flashed her an irresistibly crooked grin. “Race you.”

  Daisy was out of her clothes so fast she was surprised she didn’t get friction burns. As Ryker struggled out of his own garments, she discarded her T-shirt and jeans and flung her bra away with such enthusiasm that it ended up dangling from the ceiling fan.

  She glanced at Ryker, who was gloriously naked and looking incredibly smug and…oh, my…impressively erect.

  “No fair, you had a head st—” she began.

  Ryker hauled her onto his lap so she straddled him, and claimed her mouth with his. The hardness of his cock press tantalizingly against the damp fabric of her gusset and her pussy clenched with the desire to have that hot length throbbing and thrusting inside her. His kisses were hard, intense and demanding, and she writhed against him, frustrated by the flimsy barrier of her panties between them. She tried to pull away, but Ryker wrapped his arm around her waist and ripped one side of her panties between his hands before tugging the fabric out of the way so she could sink onto his pulsating shaft.

  She gave a low moan as he filled her, their bodies fitting tightly together like puzzle pieces, their breaths finding the same rhythm as she began to move above him. He caressed her hips and ass, squeezing her ample flesh, guiding her as she rose and fell. The position was awkward, but she was beyond caring – the burn in her thighs as she worked herself against him was barely a murmur of sensation in comparison to the liquid arousal surging between her thighs and rising through her body in an intoxicating flood.

  Ryker’s grip on her hips was hard, now – almost bruising – and she was panting with exertion as he helped to set the pace. He met each downward roll of her hips with an upward thrust, and as she sank down again her orgasm crested inside her and washed over every nerve ending, every erogenous zone, sweeping away all thought.

  Ryker flipped her onto her back on the couch, his still-rigid length never slipping fro
m her slick sheath. She felt weightless, almost dreamy as she wrapped her legs around his slender hips and clutched his back, feeling the muscles bunch and flex beneath her fingers.

  He pounded into her hard, relentlessly, his hips pistoning and sweat sheening his skin as he pursued his own release. Each swift, decisive stroke of his cock caused fluttering contractions that deepened to orgasmic spasms as she cried out again and move her palms down to his firm buttocks, trying to draw him still further inside her.

  With each thrust, Ryker made a low, feral sound. His eyes were squeezed closed, his face contorted in an expression of intense concentration and pleasure. Then he lost his rhythm, lost his control. He groaned hoarsely and gritted his teeth as he came, burying his face against Daisy’s breasts as he collapsed against her.

  She was left lying pinned beneath his weight, sore and sated and sticky with her sweat and his. Her ruined panties hung from one leg. Their clothes were scattered around the room. The rom-com had long ago finished and the screen was showing a news report being read by a stern-looking middle-aged woman who looked a little like her mother, minus several thousand dollars’ worth of plastic surgery. Daisy’s mother would certainly have disapproved if she’d been able to see the wreckage of Ryker and Daisy’s lovemaking. Daisy found that she didn’t care in the slightest.

  Chapter Fifteen

  The next morning, Ryker and Daisy went to pick up Paolo, Frankie, and their families, who’d all offered to help Ryker in the stables that weekend. They were very excited to meet Cedar Park’s big celebrity. Paolo’s father, who was raising him alone, had even showed up sober, the first time that Daisy had ever seen him that way.

  “You are one pretty horse,” Daisy said to Ryker’s favorite, Lightning, stroking his velvety nose. She’d never been up close with a horse before, and she found it thrilling. Daisy’s mother wasn’t one of those wealthy people who was horsey; she thought that horses were dirty and smelly. Daisy thought they were gorgeous, and Ryker had promised to teach her to ride.

  “Not as pretty as me, of course,” Ryker said, handing her an apple to give to the horse. He walked off towards the end of the barn, where Daisy’s two students were brushing the horses.

  “Not at all,” Daisy agreed. Then she leaned forward and whispered in the stallion’s ear. “Even prettier.” He flicked his ear appreciatively as he folded his lips around the apple and sucked it into his mouth.

  “I heard that,” Ryker yelled back over his shoulder. “Shifter hearing, babe.”

  “You heard nothing. Oh, hello, Harriet,” Daisy said.

  Harriet been hanging around all morning. She had brought an enormous breakfast out for everybody, setting it out on folding tables outside the barn.

  She’d also been acting weird. She’d been exceptionally affectionate, wrapping her arms around Daisy in a big hug. Then she’d rushed off to talk to Marge, whispering in her ear, and Marge had jotted something down on a pad of paper. Strange.

  “Hello, dear. Carry on – just ignore me,” Harriet said as Daisy grabbed the brush and began running it over the stallion’s shiny coat.

  Daisy felt something just behind her, and turned around and saw that Harriet was standing there with her hands in an odd position, one high up by her shoulder, another down by her waist.

  “Harriet, you have been doing the weird hand stuff all morning. What’s up?” she demanded.

  “Shhh!” Harriet hissed. “Don’t tell Ryker!” She glanced towards the end of the barn. Ryker, as if psychic, looked up at that particular moment, and scowled at his mother with deep suspicion.

  “That Ryker. He always thinks I’m up to something,” Harriet complained.

  “Aren’t you?” Daisy struggled not to laugh.

  Harriet grabbed Daisy by the arm and dragged her outside. “Don’t tell him, because I’m not supposed to be rushing you into anything,” she said.

  “Well, at least tell me what’s going on, because you’re making me nervous,” Daisy said.

  “Me and Marge are just trying to figure out your measurements for your wedding dress. In case you want me to make it,” Harriet said nervously, blushing and looking at the ground.

  “Harriet, that is so sweet,” Daisy said. “Also completely insane, of course. But mostly sweet. You do know that we haven’t made any final decisions yet, right?”

  Daisy could have sworn that Harriet muttered “Sez you.”

  “What was that?” Daisy asked.

  “Just clearing my throat. It’s dusty in here.” Harriet sneaked a furtive look at Ryker, who was staring at the two women with deep suspicion. “It would actually be easier if you just came over to my house and let me measure you.”

  Daisy called out to Ryker “Hey, I’m going over to your mother’s house to do some baking. Don’t get in too much trouble.”

  “What are you guys up to?” Ryker demanded.

  “Nothing! Why ever would you ask that?” Daisy blinked her eyes at him and turned away.

  After Harriet and Marge took her back to Harriet’s house and measured her from head to toe, they spent the morning making cupcakes. “That way we’re not actually lying,” Harriet reasoned.

  “That way I get cupcakes,” Daisy said.

  “Works for me.”

  All that afternoon, Ryker kept pestering Daisy to tell him what she and his mother had been up to.

  “Wouldn't you like to know?” Daisy said with an evil grin.

  “Yes, very much.” Ryker gave her a winning smile.

  “Is that you being charming?” she asked.

  “It's certainly me trying,” he grumbled, looking deflated.

  “You're doing a great job,” she assured him. “Really, I mean it. You are incredibly charming. More charming than a Disney prince.”

  “Hmm.” He frowned with suspicion. “So what were you and my mother up to?”

  “Not quite that charming.”

  He put his hand on his broad chest and flashed her a mock-wounded expression. “Wow, you really know how to hurt a guy.”

  “You're tough. You can take it.” Daisy blinked her eyes at him innocently.

  “I’ll watch the rest of Crazy Stupid Love with you.”

  She shook her head. “I am standing strong.”

  “Ok, how about if I give you a massage?” he asked her. “Full body. Head to toe.”

  “You tempt me,” Daisy said. “All right, I will consider telling if you give me a massage.”

  It wasn't even that she really needed to keep the secret, it was just that it was so much fun torturing him.

  Plus, massage.

  She let him lead her to his bedroom, wondering what else she could get out of it. Godiva chocolates?

  He began by stripping her clothes off. His movements were slow and deliberate, and this time he managed to get her naked without destroying any of her underwear. As he removed each item of clothing, she felt the soft brush of his fingers here and there. With each whisper-soft touch, she shivered.

  Ryker guided her to lie face down on the bed. She wriggled on the covers until she found a comfortable position, but tension zinged in every muscle at the thought of Ryker’s hands all over her body. If the plan was to relax her, this massage wasn’t getting off to a very good start.

  If the aim was to turn her on, though…

  She gave a little sigh of pleasure as he placed his hands on her shoulders and started to knead her flesh, pressing his fingertips and the balls of his thumbs into the muscles. The sigh was followed by a murmur as he bent and kissed the back of her neck, nipping gently with his lips, his hot breath fanning the tiny hairs at her nape.

  He slid his hands down her arms, massaging her biceps, her forearms, her wrists, then each individual finger of her hands. She spread her legs slightly, knowing it must look wanton, hoping he’d take the invitation to touch the moist flesh at her core.

  Instead he returned to the nape of her neck and moved downward, working the muscles to either side of her vertebrae and peppering fluttery litt
le kisses down her spine until he reached her ass, where he nipped her buttock with his teeth, making her squeak.

  He massaged the thick muscles of her thighs and kissed the sensitive hollows behind her knees. He pressed and rolled her calf muscles with the heels of his hands. She gave a contented moan, feeling as if her bones were melting, and rolled lazily onto her back so she could look down at his handsome face. He cocked that scarred brow at her and smiled, and she parted her legs, knowing he’d be able to smell her arousal and see the glistening of her juices on her inner thighs. The thought made her breath quicken, and she squeezed handfuls of the comforter in her fists and forced herself to stay still; not to draw her knees together or cover herself. He greedily drank in the sight, then took a deep, shuddering breath and continued his slow, sensual exploration of her body.

  He massaged her feet, manipulating her toes, applying pressure to the arches, grazing her ankles with his teeth. Then he began to move back up her body…slowly. It was agonizing. She wanted to grab him by the hair and haul him up her body and kiss him until they both saw stars. She wanted to beg him to stop torturing her and just fuck her. Her pussy ached with the desire to feel him inside her. Her fingers itched to touch his defined muscles, moving beneath his soft golden skin like oiled pistons.

  Ryker nipped and kissed her inner thighs, worked her quads with his strong, clever fingers.

  He moved in excruciating slow motion until she was quivering with need and expectation.

  She could have cried with relief when his mouth descended on her slick, needy pussy. He gently tongued the slit, then parted the petals with his fingers so he could access the sensitive bundle of nerves that yearned for his touch. He lapped at it, flicking it firmly and rapidly then alternating long, languid licks. As she moaned and writhed beneath his mouth, he slid his finger into her sopping channel, working it in and out and hitting her G-spot with every stroke.

  Excitement wound up inside her like a spring, tighter and tighter with every expert touch, until she cried out, arching to meet his mouth as the tension inside her snapped and shudders of bliss radiated from her core and through every muscle of her body. She lay limp and gasping as Ryker lifted his face from between her legs, his mouth and chin glossy with her juices. But he wasn’t done with her yet.