by Chloe Cole
Chapter Six
Amalie awoke the next morning before daybreak but glad that she’d slept at all. After Liam had left the night before, she’d tossed and turned, trying to let everything sink in. Eventually though, the need for sleep had overpowered her and silenced her churning mind.
She looked at the clock next to the bed. 6:00 a.m. She was starving. And hot. What else was new?
Not sure whether she should leave the room, she tiptoed to the door and peered into the corridor. The house was quiet, so she padded lightly down the hall to a set of stairs before cautiously descending to the kitchen. She stopped short when she saw Liam sitting at the table alone with a steaming cup of coffee before him.
He raked her with a lengthy, appreciative perusal, from her almost bare legs to her near transparent t-shirt. “Good morning,” he drawled.
Her nipples tightened under his hot stare, and she turned away quickly, plucking at her shirt ineffectually.
“Stop looking at me like that.” Her voice sounded husky, much to her annoyance. “I can’t help—” she broke off as a male voice behind her boomed.
“Well, hello there! I’m Billy. And you must be Amalie.”
She turned to face a large blond man with emerald green eyes. Gorgeous. He wiggled his eyebrows and bowed gallantly.
Amalie blushed to the roots of her hair. Stammering a quick hello, she turned to Liam and blurted, “I’m hungry but I don’t have any clothes, so I’m just going to leave now.” And with that, she ran back up the stairs to his room.
She shut the door behind her, threw herself on the bed, and covered her face. What was wrong with her? Every time she got near Liam she wanted to jump his bones, and now his friend had seen her half naked.
She cringed as the door opened and closed.
“I brought you some fruit for now. Once I find you better clothes, I’ll come back and take you downstairs for something more substantial.”
“Go away,” she said, her voice muffled by the pillow.
“Amalie, none of this is your fault. Your physical reactions right now are no reflection on you as a person. Billy is quite a specimen, and I’d be surprised if you weren’t attracted to him, given your current state of transition. In a few days you’ll be back in control and this will be a distant memory.”
She raised her head and gave him a narrowed-eyed stare as his words sank in. “What are you talking about? I don’t even know him. Some stranger just saw my boobs along with half my ass, and witnessed us about to jump each other in the kitchen. I’m marinating in my shame. That’s a purely human reaction, I assure you.” She flopped face down back onto the pillow and covered her head with the blanket.
He reached down and lifted the blanket off of her, uncovering her backside and legs. “So you’re saying you don’t want Billy then?”
Amalie struggled to wrestle the blanket from him but stopped abruptly when he pressed his hand to her shoulder and slowly slid it down her back and over the curve of her ass, stopping to rest on her hip. He squeezed the fullness there sharply, and she let out a strangled squeak as need swamped her. What was it about this man?
“Of-of course not.”
He remained silent for a moment, slipping his hand over backside.
“Liam,” she muttered into the pillow. “Do not mess with me right now. I’m in a fragile state and I can’t take it.”
“Oh, Amalie, I’m not messing with you. Tell me to stop and I will. But tell me now.”
He slid his hand under the waistband of her boxer shorts and squeezed her bare flesh. She writhed against him but couldn’t bring herself to say the words. Because she didn’t want him to stop. As shameful as it might be, she wanted him to keep going and going.
He gripped the shorts in his hand and pulled them roughly down her legs, stopping at the back of her knees to caress her lightly there before moving back up her body.
“This needs to come off,” he growled, as he grabbed the neck of her t-shirt with both hands. It tore easily in his powerful grip and a moment later lay in tattered halves around her. He wrapped a fist in her long dark hair and pulled, turning her head sharply to one side. The tension between her legs built to near pain at the rawness of it all and she urged him on with a moan.
Licking and biting at her neck, gently at first then harder, he parted her legs with his hand. He slid one finger down the cleft between her cheeks then slipped into her moist heat as he reached her core. She whimpered and pressed back against his hand.
He worked her with his finger as he trailed his tongue from her neck to her back and down to her bottom. He bit one cheek, and then lapped delicately at the tender spot with his tongue. Grasping her hips, he tossed her onto her back. He closed his teeth over the flesh on her hip then her thigh, kissing and touching all around, but avoiding the sweet spot. She began to squirm, desperate to feel his mouth on her.
“What is it, love? Tell me what you want,” he whispered darkly.
“Please.”
“Please what?”
“Please put your mouth on me, Liam.”
“Where? Show me.” His eyes went dark as night as he watched her hand slide between her thighs, and down into her slit. “Damn, you’re sexy.”
He took her hand and thrust one of her fingers into her pussy, pressing deep. At the same time, he bent and covered her with his tongue, lapping then sucking. She cried out and moved against his mouth. He quickened the pace, licking and suckling harder and faster until waves of ecstasy threatened to pull her under. She yanked her hand from his grasp and grabbed his hair, tugging sharply.
“Not this time,” she hissed, and pulled him up until he covered her.
She reached between them, clasped his cock through his gym pants and squeezed, reveling in the heavy weight of it in her hand. She wanted him inside her so badly, she could taste it. Luckily, she didn’t have long to wait. With a vicious tug, he pulled her boxers the rest of the way off before stripping his pants and shirt off and tossing them aside.
She lifted a hand to his chest, stilling him. “Stop.”
Everything between them had been so one-sided. The need to make him as crazy as he was making her consumed her.
Dear God, she wanted to stop. Liam closed his eyes and put a hand to the bed, steeling himself to get up and try to walk away. It was understandable that she was confused and having second thoughts. He would just have to console himself with the knowledge that it wasn’t the change causing her to respond to him. She hadn’t given Billy a second look. That was something, at least. If she needed more time to get used to the idea of being with him, he’d give it to her. A few more cold showers wouldn’t kill him, and once she realized that this was--
A puff of warm breath on his stomach was the only warning he had before Amalie’s lips closed over his cock. He froze, exerting every ounce of control not to thrust himself deep into her hungry mouth as the rest of the blood in his body drained south. He looked down to where her dark, shiny hair caressed his hips as her head bobbed over him. Thank god, she hadn’t wanted him to stop. She just wanted a chance to touch him.
A surge of satisfaction poured through him. “Deeper,” he groaned, his thighs flexing as she complied. His hips moved of their own accord as she sucked him off, harder each time, until the sensitive head of his cock bumped the soft flesh at the back of her throat. He gripped her hair and held her there for a long moment as the need to come battered at him. With a gasp, he pulled her away. The drag of her lips and tongue as she expelled him almost sent him over the edge.
He looked down again and she gave him a siren’s smile before sliding up his body and pressing her wet, swollen lips to his.
He nipped her sharply, and she moaned.
“No more teasing,” he rasped.
He moved over her, positioning himself between her legs. She paused and gave him a questioning glance. “No need for protection. We don’t get sick like that, and pups…well, that’s a whole other discussion.”
One she clearly di
dn’t feel compelled to have right then, because she pulled him close so they were chest to chest, and rubbed her breasts over his torso and her soft stomach against his. His breathing grew labored as she guided him to her hot pussy. She surged upward, seeking his cock.
Liam pinned her hips with his hands. She couldn’t take all of him so quickly. Slowly, he slid into her, inch by inch. Halfway, he pulled out and began the steady slide back in. She struggled against him, begging with her body for more. He gritted his teeth, fighting to maintain control. Amalie growled, then reached back and gripped his ass with both hands, thrusting him into her until he was seated to the hilt. He sank into her molten heat and gasped as she stretched to accommodate him..
His body screamed for release. He wanted to pump in and out of her until she begged him to let her come. But she lay so quiet, the tiny part of his brain that was still functioning was afraid he’d injured her. To his immense relief, a moment later, she began to bounce her hips against his. He started to say a silent prayer of thanks but was cut short as her slick inner walls squeezed him. He matched her rhythm with long, slow, deep strokes. They moved faster, and he bent his head to lick and suck her nipple as he plunged into her again and again.
Her body tensed, tightening around him, and a low, vibrating moan started deep in her throat. He swelled to the point of pain and thrust further into her. His stomach grew tight and a tingling sensation spread to his loins. She called his name, her nails digging into his back.
“I’m here,” he murmured as she convulsed. He tried to wait so she could come again and again, but she gripped him so tightly, her pussy milking him like a fist. As she pressed her luscious lips to his, all conscious thought fled as his body flexed one last time. He thrust deep, groaning her name as his body exploded, and he emptied himself into her.
Home.
Chapter Seven
Amalie awoke to find herself cocooned in Liam’s strong arms as he slept. She peeked at the clock and burrowed deeper into the covers. They had hours until the meeting of the wolf packs, and, at that moment, she felt fabulous. She knew it would be short-lived. The real world would come crashing in and this small sense of peace and belonging for once in her life would be shattered. For the moment though?
She pressed her head to Liam’s shoulder and kissed him on the neck. He stirred and drew her closer.
“Good morning again, love.”
Unfamiliar warmth spread through her at the endearment. Probably an offhand term of endearment, but it struck a chord deep inside her.
“Good morning again to you, too.”
He stroked his fingers along her bare spine. “We have the whole day before the trial, and I’d like to spend it with you.”
“I’d like that,” she responded, careful to keep her tone light. It wouldn’t do to let him know how close she felt to him already, as if they’d been lovers for years instead of hours. Or how the promise of spending the day with him was as thrilling as the bike Santa had brought that one Christmas morning. But at the same time, she wasn’t going to turn away the opportunity to spend time with him. Especially since their time could be so short. After the trial, it could all be over.
What if she never saw him again? Amalie swallowed the lump suddenly lodged in her throat. Choosing not to examine that too closely, she asked the question that had been in the back of her mind since the night before.
“Liam, the image of the white wolf…the memory you shared with me? She’s been haunting me. Would you tell me about her?”
His smile disappeared and her stomach churned as his eyes lost focus. “Sara was a member of our pack. Her mate is…was Jax. They have a son, Ryan. We’d taken him on a hunt…his first,” he said softly, with a shake of his head. “Jax was away on business, but Ryan had begged to come along and Sara agreed, but wanted to start him with something small. The two of them strayed from where the rest of the pack was hunting larger game so she could teach him to track rabbits.” He smiled then and her heart tripped. “Little Ryan was off the wall with excitement, hoping to call his dad that night and tell him about his first kill.”
Liam’s eyes turned glassy and his jaw tensed. She held him tightly as she tried to control her own emotions that seemed so tied to his.
“Sara was careful to stay in the most remote part of the forest as Ryan still hadn’t mastered changing yet. Sometimes he shifted back and forth when trying to maintain wolf form, and she wouldn’t risk any wandering hikers or hunters seeing him shift. I was with the rest of the pack. We’d just taken down an elk when we heard the shots.”
Liam paused, his voice breaking as he took a breath. Tears stung her own eyes as she waited for him to continue.
“We all immediately reached for Sara’s mind to see if they were okay, but she was gone so quickly. We ran as fast as we could, but by the time we got there, Ryan was circling her bloodied body, whimpering. We were too late.” He scrubbed a hand over his face and shook his head as if trying to erase the memory. “I went to Ryan, pulled him away while the others attempted to revive her. I tapped into his consciousness, but he was in shock. It was almost like he didn’t even know what had happened himself. All I could gather was that a large man had come out of nowhere and fired at him. Sara dove in front of him and took the bullet.
“One shot would have felled a regular wolf, but a werewolf like Sara would have healed from that in minutes. The bastard…he kept firing and firing, as if he knew…” Liam’s muscles bunched tightly beneath Amalie’s hands. She wanted to ease his pain, but she was helpless.
“Sara told Ryan to run and he did, but not far. When the shots finally ceased, he returned to his mother and we arrived moments later. She’d taken eighteen bullets, some at near point blank range. There was too much damage inflicted too quickly for her body to heal.
“I wanted to find him and kill him. I could smell him in the area, probably still out looking for Ryan, but as much as we wanted revenge, we had to get the cub to safety first. We brought him back to the house and left the women to care for him while we retrieved Sara’s body and went to find her killer.”
The flesh around Liam’s mouth paled, and Amalie knew with a sinking heart what he was going to say next.
“She was gone.” He swallowed hard and shrugged helplessly. “Some of the pack members see that as proof that he was just another hunter, looking for a pelt. And others think maybe he was taking out his hatred on her because some wolf had killed one of his chickens or something. But I know in my soul that’s not the case. Her murderer was no ordinary hunter, and I don’t think we’ve seen the last of him.”
She stroked his back, drawing calming circles over his smooth flesh with her fingertips. “For some reason, I suspect your instincts are rarely wrong.”
“In the past few months I’ve tried to work with Ryan to get him to remember the man’s face so that we can see him and find him. But he can’t, or won’t, remember. And I don’t blame him. It was the worst day of my life. I can’t imagine how awful it was for the boy.”
Nor could she, but she could feel it. All of it. Maybe that same wolf-bond with her new brethren was what had her feeling so close to Liam already. Even now, the thought of walking away and never seeing him again made her feel empty inside.
They were both quiet for a long, tense moment until her he rolled away and stood, a strained smile stretching his lips. “How about I get us some food?”
He clearly needed a minute to get himself together, so she nodded right as her stomach growled. Liam’s low, genuine chuckle chipped away at the icy chill that had settled over her heart.
“I’m like a mind reader, I guess. Be back in a few.”
He went down to the kitchen, leaving her alone with her swirling, chaotic thoughts. By the time he came back a few minutes later, she’d given up trying to make sense of it all. The task was just giving her a headache. She had to accept that things were going to be in flux for the foreseeable future and she’d be plagued with more questions than answers. Hopefully,
after tonight, she’d get past this first hurdle and everyday things would get a little clearer. For now, though, she was determined to enjoy this oasis of time with Liam.
He smiled from the doorway, arms laden with a heaping tray of food and her heart skittered.
“Grab that blanket.”
She did, and laid in on the floor, where they set up an impromptu picnic. “So, Amalie Baptista,” he said between bites of roast beef. “What was it about our neck of the woods that drew you out the big, bad forest all alone? Didn’t Little Red Riding Hood teach you anything?” he asked with a twinkle in his eye.
She sent him a grin. “I love the outdoors. And Little Red Riding Hood did teach me something. In fact, the whole reason I came to Pray was to kick off my campaign to reinstate laws to protect the wolf population. I want the public to see how precious are.”
“I didn’t realize you were so passionate about the subject.”
Amalie nodded, warming to her topic. “I’m sure you know that the government’s position is horrific. As soon as area residents started bitching about the growing wolf population, Fish, Wildlife, and Parks was more than eager to issue hunting licenses. Never mind the wolves are a bad winter or minor epidemic away from the endangered list. I’ll never understand how a person could kill such beautiful creatures.”
Liam had stopped eating and was staring at her with something akin to wonder.
“What?” she asked.
“You. You’re the beautiful creature.”
Her face was hot from her passionate diatribe, as well as from his praise. “Stop distracting me from my point. It isn’t fair that wolves were almost wiped from existence. And for what?” she demanded. “Because they hunted elk that people wanted to hunt for themselves? This earth belongs to all creatures, not just man.”
Liam leaned in and kissed her hard on the mouth then grinned. “You’re wonderful. And gorgeous to boot. All fired up over something most people couldn’t care less about. You really are special, Amalie, and I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure everyone knows it tonight.”
