She was dressed in a business suit that was tight and flattering in all the right places, but not in a way that flaunted her feminine figure. There was a demure quality about her, and he liked that. How he would have felt if he had found his mate to be the kind of woman who wore short skirts that left nothing to the imagination, or skimpy tops that showed off parts of her body that were for his eyes only, he didn’t know.
The zip was easy to slide down, and he pushed the skirt over her bottom, and let it fall to the ground. He left her panties in place … for now.
Artem began to unbutton her jacket, and pushed it off her shoulders, to begin on the white blouse that pulled across her ample breasts just enough to make him long to see what was underneath. As if waking from a dream, Elina began to undress him, with no complaints about not reaching the bedroom. He smiled as she lifted his T-shirt over his head, and then leaned forward to press her lips to his chest. Damn, she was a fine woman.
Almost tearing the last couple of buttons, he stripped her shirt from her body, and then gazed at the lacy bra that was all that remained between him and his prize. Not for long. His fingers, trembling slightly, unclasped it, his palms rubbing against her nipples as soon as they were exposed. His rough hands chafed her skin, and she groaned, closing her eyes in anticipation.
Lowering his head, he fulfilled what he hoped was her fantasy, of having him lick and suck her taut buds until she was so turned on he could smell her arousal. The thought of that warm slick heat became too much, and his right hand slipped down over her stomach, down to the place where her thighs met and her need dwelled.
Drawing one of his thick fingers along the length of her sex, he lingered over her clit, rubbing it lightly, until she opened her legs wider, angling her foot to rest on the stairs so that she was more exposed to him. That gave him an idea, and he stepped back from her and dropped to his knees, his fingers hooking around the elastic of her remaining underwear and dragging it down over her thighs.
Lifting one foot at a time he helped her step out of them and then cast her panties aside, hooking her left leg over his shoulder and then raising his face to look on his naked prize. Her eyes were fixed on his, her hand going to thread through his hair, and then tightened and pulled at it as he dipped his head to kiss her clit. His tongue flicked out to give him his first taste of her, and she was so sweet his mouth watered.
Urgency coursed through him, he wanted to lick her, suck her and make her come. Opening his mouth wider, he covered her clit, his teeth grazing it, and Elina had to reach out and place her hand on the wall for support. He tortured the small bundle of nerves until she cried out, her juices flowing as she came. Knowing she must be aching for him to be inside her, he resisted the temptation to finger her, he wanted to fill her with his cock instead.
As her voice trailed off, he released her, and she tilted backwards to sit down heavily on the stairs. Lifting her, he turned her around to kneel, facing the stairs, her round bottom and her pink sex visible as he spread her knees wider. One finger slid along her sex, making sure she was wet and ready for him, not that he didn’t already know. But he wanted to slide into her in one swift motion, without causing her pain.
Satisfied, he undid his belt, and let his pants drop to the ground and pool around his ankles. He took hold of himself firmly and guided himself towards her, the head of his cock pressing against her wet entrance, he flexed his thighs forward hard, and slid into her up to the hilt, hearing her cry out and tense as he did so.
Closing his eyes, he savored the feel of her around his cock, before pulling back out and filling her again. This had to be the most intense thing he had ever done, and he wanted to enjoy every moment of it, to etch it on his brain forever.
He only hoped she felt the same pleasure too.
Chapter Six – Elina
She braced herself for him. Braced herself for the feeling of loss, as he pulled out of her, and then for the sensation of being impossibly stretched each time he impaled her on his cock. Turning to look at him over her shoulder, she took in the strain on his face, and knew he was holding himself together, that his need to come and fill her with his seed was too much.
Her orgasm hovered in front of her eyes, but wasn’t quite there. Reaching between her thighs, she touched herself, rubbing her throbbing clit, and then felt his hand cover hers. Together they stimulated her clit, his touch mimicking hers, until he pushed her hand aside, and stroked her, pinched her, and rubbed her until her head could no longer form coherent thoughts.
When she came, it was hard, and long. He rode her until she was slumped gasping against the stairs, and then he exploded inside her, his seed, thick and warm, filling her and then spilling out of her as he took his pleasure from her body. Straining against her, he called out her name as he jerked into her one last time, his fingers digging into her hips as he held her in place. The whole situation was so surreal. Here was a man, whom she didn’t know, making love to her as if she were the most desirable creature on the planet, calling out her name in the throes of ecstasy, when she had no idea who he was and where he came from.
These were the questions she was going to ask him, as soon as she regained her breath and her senses.
He moved, and she heard him pulling his pants up; then he collected her clothes and handed them to her. “Want a hand putting them back on?” he asked, his accent not as strong now.
“I can manage, thank you.” She took them from him, and then said, “Why don’t you wait down here while I go and get dressed?” Not waiting for an answer, she headed upstairs, cringing inwardly at the knowledge he was watching her naked body go up the stairs. Now that their lovemaking was over, she wasn’t sure how to handle the situation. Small talk and introductions usually came before sex.
Going into the bathroom, she shut the door and leaned against it, collecting her thoughts. She would have to get dressed and then go down and talk to him, but she also had to go into work; she still had commitments to her clients, their lives didn’t stand still in time just because she had found her mate.
Running the cold tap, she patted her face with the cool water, and then cleaned up her makeup. Next she went to the bedroom and found fresh clothes, and dressed quickly, taking a look in the mirror as she always did before going into the office. She wanted to be formal and in control, she had to know where he came from and how he had found her. A mate did not normally just turn up on the doorstep.
Needing answers, she went back downstairs, and found him in the kitchen making coffee. “I hope you do not mind. I find a little caffeine helps clear the mind.”
“No. Of course I don’t mind.” She kept the center island between them, not because she was trying to keep some distance between them but because she had an overwhelming desire to feel his arms around her again. That could not happen, she couldn’t let her lust for him cloud her judgment.
Too late, her tiger told her, her voice filled with humor.
Always helpful, she replied.
“Milk? Sugar?” he asked.
“Milk please, no sugar,” she said, watching him move across the room, her eyes appraising him, her body liking what she saw.
“Here.” He handed her a cup, and she took it.
“Thank you.” She held it in both hands, letting the heat burn into her skin, it worked as a way to keep her focus, which was in danger of slipping once more when he looked into his blue eyes. “Why are you here?”
“Do you not know?” he asked, his accent stronger as his voice grew husky with longing.
“I know you are my mate, but I have no idea how you found me.”
“The dating site.”
Of course, she thought. She had signed up to the shifter dating site Fated and Mated when it had launched. A friend had told her about it and it seemed a good idea; she had been thinking of how she would find a mate without leaving her hometown and living in the city, and it had seemed to be worth a try. Then Jim’s case had come up and she had completely forgotten about it.
>
Catching him watching her, she realized he was waiting for her to reach a logical conclusion, which needed the answer. “But that doesn’t explain how you found me.”
“No. It doesn’t.” He moved towards her, a predator, his eyes fixed on hers. She stood her ground, despite the overwhelming feeling of wanting to back away from him. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust him; it was more that she did not trust herself. Her fingers, now gripping the cup of coffee tightly, wanted to reach out to him. They itched to curl around the collar of his T-shirt and pull him towards her, for their lips to meet, and his body to press against hers.
“My address isn’t on there. Neither is my full name, so there is no way you could know how to find me.”
“Unless I hacked their system.”
“Why?” she asked, her body thrilling at the thought of him tracking her down, but her brain telling her she had to be careful. “Why didn’t you message me like any normal person?” Was he trying to show off, show her he was clever? That was a turnoff in itself, but when she saw his eyes shift to avoid her stare, she knew it was more than that. She also had a feeling she was not going to like it much.
“I’m not a normal person.” He turned to face her, and he looked earnest, honest, as he looked into her eyes. “I do not want to lie to you, Elina, and believe me, I wish I was different. I wish I could offer you more, so much more, than I can.”
She felt his pain, and placed her hand on his arm, wanting to comfort him, because that was what mates did. “Tell me, let me help you.”
“You cannot help me.” He took a step back from her, breaking their contact. “I am from Russia.”
“The accent kind of gave it away,” she said.
He laughed, a short humorless laugh. “I try to hide it, to blend in. But when my emotions get the better of me, I find it hard. And when I am around you, my emotions are most definitely not in control.” A stolen look headed her way before he walked to the window and looked out. “You live in a nice town; you have a good life.”
“Just tell me everything. I’m a lawyer, I can almost certainly guarantee whatever you’ve done, I’ve heard worse.”
“A lawyer?” He swung around quickly, and her heart beat rapidly as she saw the surprise on his face. “Vadik was right.”
“Yes. Is that a problem?” she asked, watching his expression carefully. After interviewing so many people over the years, she had developed an almost sixth sense for liars.
“Not as much as if you were in law enforcement,” he said, grinning nervously.
“Are you going to tell me exactly what that means?” she asked.
“Yes.” His face was open; there was no hint of him trying to hide anything from her. “I think we have to both be completely honest with each other, don’t you?”
“Yes.” She sat down at the table, and expected him to do the same, but instead he turned back to look outside the window.
“Why don’t you tell me a little about yourself first?”
“There’s nothing much to tell. I’m a small-town lawyer … living in a small town.”
He came and sat down opposite her, staring into her eyes. “I do not believe that is all there is to you, Elina.”
“You are avoiding the question.”
He sighed. “I want you to know I will never hurt you.”
“Just tell me, Artem. We’re bonded, we’ve consummated our bond, so I am not exactly going to turn you in. Unless you are some serial killer, or something…” She let the words hang there: would fate really do that to her?
She was about to find out. She only hoped that this day was not going to end up being one of the worst of her life, when finding your mate was supposed to be the best.
Chapter Seven – Artem
“As you can tell by my accent, I do not come from your country.” His accent became thicker as he thought back to the time of his life when he lived in another country, another world. One where he made decisions that affected other people’s lives, not one where his most important task was making sure the steak was cooked properly.
He shook his head. How had he come to be the co-owner of a Russian restaurant in a small town where no one knew anything about him, or what he and Vadik had done in their past?
“Artem,” Elina said, nudging him back towards his story.
“I lived in Russia, it doesn’t matter where,” he added when she raised an eyebrow. “All you need to know is that I was in deep with some very powerful men.”
“In deep?” she asked. “That doesn’t sound good.”
“It’s probably not what you are thinking.” He smiled at her. “I want to assure you I am not a bad man, Elina.”
“Are you going to follow that up by saying but sometimes good men have to do bad things?”
He shook his head sadly. “Maybe things would have been better if I had done bad things. It was the fact that I refused to which has caused me much trouble … and heartache.”
“Heartache?” she questioned, and he could tell what she was thinking; it was as if they were attuned to each other on a deep level.
“Not for me. For my friend. But that is another story.”
“But one I want to hear; I want to know all about you, Artem.” She looked at her watch. “But I also need to go to work in half an hour or so.”
“Then I will tell you the rest when you return.”
“No chance,” she said firmly. “Tell me everything now. You can fill in the details later, but I can’t leave here without knowing what I am up against.”
“Nothing. You are up against nothing.” He slid his hand across the table to touch hers. “I would keep you safe from all of this. I will keep you safe.”
“I’m not the kind of woman who needs to be closeted away. I can take whatever it is you have to tell me.”
“When I was a child, my father, well, we were very poor, but he managed to bring home a computer, one he had found. Not stolen,” he added quickly. “My father is an honorable man. My brothers were not really interested, but I loved it, it gave me something to do, something to puzzle over. It didn’t work fast, it didn’t do any of the fancy things computers do now. Yet it held a fascination for me, and as our family grew hungry one cold winter, I also knew that if I could master the computer, the programming, I could get us out of our financial troubles. That is all I ever wanted, to be able to support my family.”
“That’s noble of you, Artem,” she said, her face softening and her thumb brushing over the back of his hand.
He smiled up at her, but he could not be happy, not when things had turned out so very wrong.
“I took the thing apart, I learned how it worked, both inside and out, and at school I took computer classes, I knew that they were the future.” He sighed. “And they were. I went to university, and then was headhunted by a large corporation to run their IT department. It wasn’t exactly what I had in mind, but it was a start. I could live modestly and send money back to my family. I worked the job for two years.”
“And then?” she asked.
“It was a stepping stone, a time when I was being monitored twenty-four hours a day.” He heard her sharp intake of breath. “They wanted more from me, knew I was capable of more, but they also wanted to be sure.”
“What happened?”
“Nothing sinister … at first,” he said. “I was promoted within the company, which is when I met Vadik for the first time. We were to collaborate on an investigation. Surveillance.”
“I thought you said you were only in IT?”
“Yes. At first. They told us the person we were watching was an embezzler, and was also selling the company’s secrets. They wanted us to watch him, and then hack into his computer, to find out if he had any documents he shouldn’t have.”
She frowned at him. “There was obviously more to it than that.”
“Yes. We hacked his computers, and found nothing that belonged to my bosses. But they insisted on looking over the data themselves.”
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p; “They used you … to get information,” she said, her voice barely a whisper.
“Classified information.”
“What happened?” she asked.
“Nothing at first. Around this time Vadik met his mate. He was happy, until we learned that we were now under the control of our bosses, that they had records of what we did, and if we didn’t do what they wanted, there would be repercussions.”
“For whom?”
“Our families. Vadik’s mate.”
“What did you do?” Elina asked.
“All we could do. We played along, it wasn’t hard, the information they wanted was not valuable, not dangerous. Until we were asked to get information from the computer of an ambassador who came to Russia for a trade deal. He had sensitive information.” He put his hand up. “I am sparing you the details for a reason. To keep you safe. Deniability, I think you call it.”
“I understand.”
“The information we uncovered would have put too many lives at risk. But by denying our bosses, we were putting our lives and those of our loved ones at risk. They threatened my family, and also Vadik’s mate.”
“Are they still alive?”
“Yes. We tried to get everyone to believe we died.”
“And do they?”
“My family doesn’t. My brother got word to me a year after we left. As far as I know, our bosses believed we died. We left Russia and settled in a small town called Grizzly Hollows. We learned to blend in and made a life for ourselves. As best we could.”
“Vadik’s mate believes he is dead?” Elina asked.
“Yes. We could not risk contacting her. He would not put her in danger.”
Elina was silent for a moment, letting the news sink in.
“We did what we thought was best.”
She nodded. “So you are on the run?”
Her Russian Bear: BBW Bear Shifter Dating Agency Romance (Fated and Mated Book 3) Page 3
