by Becca Van
She shoved her thoughts aside with the covers and headed to the adjoining bathroom. After she was showered and dressed she opened the blackout blinds covering her window and was glad to see the sun was shining brightly.
As she came back into her room she heard her cell phone vibrating. She walked over to where it was lying on the bedside table and held her breath as she picked it up. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end. She didn’t have to swipe her finger over the screen to know that her creepy stalker was at it again. Celeste had thought about removing the battery and dumping the phone but it was her only means of communication while stuck on this remote island. While there were no more jobs lined up in the distant future, her manager would no doubt send her texts or call if a big gig ended up in the works. He would read her the riot act if he couldn’t get in touch with her. However, that didn’t bother her anymore, because she had decided that she’d done her last photo shoot in Hawaii. Modeling had been a godsend when she was destitute, but now she had more money than she knew what to do with. She’d had enough of the lifestyle, the bitchiness, and backstabbing, as well as the false glamour and glitz—she was done.
With renewed determination, she swiped her finger over the screen and brought up the text. Roses are red, violets are blue, I know where you are, I’ll see you soon.
The phone fell from her hand, landing with a thud onto the bedside table. She covered her mouth with her hand and backed away from her phone. Her heart was thudding so hard and fast against her sternum it hurt. A cold sweat broke out over her skin and though she was panting she couldn’t draw enough air into her lungs. She didn’t even notice that she was still stepping backward until she bumped into the wall. Another frisson of fear raced up her spine sending goose bumps all over her skin, and not the good kind. There was a loud roaring in her ears and darkness began to encroach over her vision.
“What’s wrong, baby?”
She screamed and spun so fast her hip and shoulder knocked into the wall. The fear coursing through her blood spiked with the flight or fight hormones, and since her legs were the consistency of rubber, her knees buckled.
“Whoa.”
The instant his hands grabbed her, instinct took over. She didn’t remember curling her hand into a fist but she was definitely aware of pain shooting into her thumb and up her arm as she landed a blow. The hands on her arms tightened and a weird haze of fear and anger coalesced over her eyes. All she saw was her creepy stalker’s face leering at her. She brought her knee up aiming for his balls, but she was off target. He’d moved and taken the hit on his thigh. When her hands were brought together and shackled in one large callused hand, she fought like a wild woman, until the roaring in her ears eased and she heard familiar voices.
“Calm down, love. We won’t hurt you.” Hodge hooked an arm around her waist.
“Celeste, stop fighting me,” Tarik stated in a loud firm voice.
She was gasping for air as she sagged in their hold. She groaned with embarrassment and rested her forehead on Tarik’s chest. Her wildly beating heart began to slow as the adrenaline wore off.
Then the shaking started all over again.
Tears welled and rolled down her cheeks. Although she tried to swallow it back down, a sob escaped her mouth. Her throat was so tight she couldn’t even manage to swallow and then she was bawling her eyes out.
Gentle, strong arms lifted her from her feet and up against a warm brawny chest. She tangled her fingers in the soft cotton shirt clinging to her only anchor as the stress of the last few months came to a head. The tears slowed until the occasional hiccup wracked her body and then she slumped against the warm, hard body beneath hers. Warmth seeped into her cold frame and she rubbed her cheek against soft material as her breathing regulated.
She lifted her head when thick callused fingers pried her fingers open and then met Hodge’s gaze as he threaded his fingers with hers.
“What was that all about, love?” Hodge covered the back of her hand with his free one and started to rub. The icy coldness in her fingers and hand dissipated.
Celeste was embarrassed over her breakdown and didn’t really want to tell them that some creep was harassing and stalking her. She’d been warned when she’d first started modeling that weirdos would start coming out of the woodwork. That had been the understatement of the century. She had to hire a marketing manager to take care of her social media when the threats and sick sexual comments had started. Just thinking about some of the things those people had written about, what they’d wanted to do to her, turned her stomach. Yet none of them had scared her the way her creepy stalker did.
She shook her head and lowered her gaze.
Tarik clasped her chin between his finger and thumb lifting her gaze to his. When she tried to dislodge his hand his grip firmed but he didn’t hurt her.
“We aren’t leaving this room until you explain.”
Celeste sighed when she saw the implacable resolve in his gaze. When she remembered hitting him and trying to bring him down with a well-placed knee, her cheeks heated once more. She’d been so out of control moments ago that she hadn’t even known what she was doing—in her mind, she’d been fighting for her life.
Hodge squeezed her hand. “Did the man stalking you do something?”
Celeste tensed and literally felt all the blood drain from her head and face. Betrayal pierced her heart causing pain to stab through the organ. She’d trusted Tammy and her friend had blabbed. Tears stung her eyes but she blinked them back. She’d already made a fool of herself and wasn’t about to repeat the performance. She never cried but this time the fear had taken hold.
“Answer the question, baby,” Tarik ordered.
“It’s none of your business.”
Tarik’s green eyes began to glow and the scowl on his face told her she’d pissed him off. Well, good. Maybe he’ll get up and leave me alone.
The opposite happened.
Before she could draw another breath, his mouth was on hers.
His lips were soft and firm at the same time. He’d obviously kissed a lot of women because he’d somehow managed to use his lips to open hers and then his tongue was delving inside.
Celeste’s mind completely shut down and her traitorous body took over.
His hand released her chin and then he was holding her waist. Tarik lifted her without breaking the kiss and settled her back down over his lap. Her knees sunk into the sofa cushions on either side of his hips and then he was palming her ass. He kneaded her butt cheeks as his tongue swirled around and then rubbed along hers. The grip of his hands tightened on her ass and then he was pulling her down onto his thick, hard muscular thighs.
She moaned when the thick ridge of his cock pressed against her aching clit causing cream to drip out onto her panties. His fingers flexed, pressing deeper into her ass cheeks and then he was moving her pelvis back and forth in a rocking motion.
Tarik sucked on her lips and then somehow got her tongue into his mouth and sucked on that, too. Heat raced through her veins and liquid desire pooled low in her belly. Her clit was throbbing along with her heartbeat, but it was also pulsing each time his denim-covered dick pressed against her wet folds and sensitive engorged pearl.
She froze when another set of hands caressed up her sides, but she couldn’t help relaxing into Tarik again when he slanted his mouth and deepened the kiss further. She gasped when Hodge cupped her breasts from behind and was about to pull away, but she ended up moaning into Tarik’s mouth when Hodge strummed his thumbs over her hard-throbbing nipples.
Each time she inhaled through her nose the tantalizing scent of their combined aromas of spice and earth invaded her olfactory senses and she could smell the musky fragrance of their desire. Excited desire rolled through her belly, slickening her folds with juices but deep in the recess of her mind a warning niggle sparked to life. She shouldn’t be doing this and though the reason was buried in her subconscious, she couldn’t bring it to the front of her mind. She was d
rowning in sensation, and it felt so fucking good that she never wanted it to stop.
Celeste had never felt like this in her life and she wanted to see where it led, where the culmination would crescendo.
Her moan of need was muffled by Tarik’s mouth when he slid one hand up into her hair and cupped the back of her head. With Hodge at her back, she felt as if this was where she was supposed to be. Safe and secure in their arms.
Tarik broke the kiss and then licked and nibbled up and down her neck. When Hodge squeezed her nipples between his fingers and thumbs she couldn’t stop the compulsive arching of her upper body as she pushed her breasts into his touch. A soft whimper emitted from her parted lips when Hodge began to pluck and pinch on her sensitive nubs and she began to rock her hips in sync to Tarik’s guiding hands.
“So fucking sexy,” Hodge rasped into her ear, sending another shiver up and down her spine. He nipped and sucked on her earlobe and she cried out with pleasure when his tongue delved into her ear canal.
The warmth that was heating her blood lifted another degree or two when Tarik’s hand slipped under the waistband of her jeans and under her panties. Having his callused warm skin against her bare ass was amazingly good and without even thinking about what she was doing, Celeste braced a little more of her weight onto her knees, lifting her lower body off of his thighs.
“Oh yeah.” Tarik sucked on the sensitive spot just beneath her ear. “So slick and hot.”
A thick finger dipped into her entrance, glided up through her folds and swirled around her throbbing clit. She gasped and groaned, her body trembling as the liquefied pleasure pooling in her belly began to spread. Celeste could feel herself melting and wondered if she would end up a puddle of water on the floor at their feet. Just as her brain tried to take over, Tarik began rubbing over her clit.
The pressure inside grew tauter, the heat grew hotter, and she felt as if she was about to go up in flames. Her pussy muscles rippled and twitched, her internal walls contracted closer together as the coil inside tightened.
Tarik groaned against her neck before he suckled on the skin firmly. She felt the blood rise to the surface and had no doubt he was leaving a mark on her. Hodge pushed his hands beneath her long-sleeved shirt and up toward her breasts. Her bra was pushed up and over her breasts. She cried out with pleasure when Hodge massaged the naked globes and sobbed with joy when he flicked over her nipples with his thumbs.
A low guttural sound emitted from her mouth when Tarik penetrated her cunt with the broad tip of a finger as he continued to stroke her clit.
The flames engulfed her whole body as the pressure inside of her exploded. She screamed with rapture as she came apart in their arms. She shivered and shuddered as her pussy palpitated in ecstasy. Stars detonated before her eyes in bright bursts of white light as cream wept from her cunt. All the while she was coming, Tarik and Hodge continued to stimulate her breasts, vagina, and clit until she was so sensitive it was almost painful. The aftershocks waned taking her strength with them and she flopped down against Tarik.
Hodge had removed his hands from her breasts and now he was caressing up and down her bare back.
Celeste had no idea how they’d gotten past her defenses, but now that she had a taste of the pleasure she’d heard so much about, she wanted more. She should have been embarrassed, but she just couldn’t drum up the energy to waste it on something she couldn’t change. Plus, she’d liked everything these two men had done to her.
However, now that her body was no longer ruling her mind, the niggle of wariness she’d tried to remember before stood front and center in her thoughts. She sat up quickly and scrambled sideways off of Tarik’s lap, adjusting her bra and shirt as she moved. When her feet touched the floor, she realized that her jeans were undone and slipping from her hips. How they’d managed to do that without her awareness she had no clue. She turned her back on the two men frowning at her, pulled the zipper up, and refastened the button of her jeans.
After taking a deep fortifying breath she turned back around to face them and asked angrily, “How did you know about the stalker? Did Tammy tell you?”
Chapter Nine
Hodge was so hungry for his mate he was shaking. Good thing he was sitting on floor because there was no way in hell he’d be able to stand. His cock was so hard it was pressed up tight against the zipper of his jeans and he swore he could feel each individual tooth imprinting on the skin of his dick.
His sabear was clawing at his guts and his skin was tingling, which meant he was close to losing control. He only ever felt the tingles just before fur sprouted over his body. His canines were aching and so were the tips of his fingers. He was scared if he moved a muscle he wouldn’t be able to keep his animal at bay a second longer. He glanced at Tarik and saw that his friend was in much the same predicament. The muscles in the sides of Tarik’s jaw were twitching from grinding his teeth, and he looked as if he was about to pounce. Hodge had no doubt that his eyes had to be glowing as brightly at Tarik’s but gave a mental shrug. He had no need to worry about letting the cat—cat and bear—out of the bag. Celeste already knew about their inner beasts. What she didn’t know was that she was the woman of their dreams, and their mate. The only woman on the planet the spirits had made just for them.
After her reaction to their beastly revelations, he wasn’t sure how she’d take being told that she was meant to be theirs. It was hard to swallow back that declaration, but it was too soon to drop another bombshell on their gorgeous woman.
The buzzing in his ears finally receded enough for him to hear Celeste’s angry question, but Tarik beat him to the answer.
“No, Tammy didn’t tell us about your stalker. Hopper did.”
“What?” She frowned and crossed her arms beneath her breasts. Hodge’s gaze lowered to her chest and he licked his lips. He knew what those hard nipples felt like against the palms of his hands and fingers, but he wanted to know what they tasted like, too. Were they a light pink color, dusky rose, or brown? He mentally shook his head when his sabear charged against his stomach trying to force his way out. His inner beast was raging over the fact that Hodge hadn’t yet taken the opportunity to mark and claim their mate. His animal was just going to have to suck it up because he wasn’t about to take her choices away and jeopardize any chance they had of being with her.
Tarik shoved to his feet and stalked toward Celeste. She took a step back and sighed when Tarik halted, but when Tarik began to walk closer she stepped back again.
“Why are you doing that?” Tarik frowned as he sniffed the air. “You aren’t fucking scared of me. Why do you keep backing away from me?”
“Ah.” Celeste licked her lips, her gaze skittering to the side as pink invaded her cheeks. She lowered her crossed arms and then began to wring her hands together. Hodge had finally gained control of his sabear and his hunger enough so that he wouldn’t do something stupid like pounce on her when he moved and scrambled to his feet.
“Look at me, baby!” Tarik commanded.
Celeste shook her head and took another step back. Her breathing had escalated and Hodge could see her pulse fluttering wildly at the base of her throat. When she sidled sideways toward the front door, Hodge moved until he was blocking her path. There was no way in hell she was going anywhere until she talked with them. He reached over and pried her fingers apart before lacing his with hers.
“Let’s go sit on the sofa.”
She didn’t protest as he guided her to the large piece of furniture, nor when he and Tarik sat on either side of her, but she was still avoiding their gazes.
“We’ll begin with the stalker,” Hodge said. “Hopper heard you telling Tammy about the creep and since he’s part of our stealth—”
“Stealth? Tammy said that’s the word you use instead of pack?” Celeste met his gaze as she asked her question and something in his gut settled.
“Yes,” Hodge replied.
“Oh, okay.”
“As I was saying, Hopper h
eard you talking with Tammy. He contacted us on our private mental link and relayed everything you told her.”
“You’re telepathic? Can you talk to everyone using your minds or just with the members of your…stealth?”
Tarik grinned at him over the top of her head. Now that she wasn’t running and had started asking questions all the tension drained from Hodge and Tarik. This was so much better than her previous anger and anxiety.
“We can only communicate that way with members in our pack and family members,” Tarik explained.
“Can you read each other’s minds?” Celeste frowned.
“No, we aren’t psychic or mind readers, love.” Hodge smirked when she blew out a relieved breath. He was with her on this one. He never wanted to know what another person had running around in their minds, but he quickly rethought that. It would be really helpful to read Celeste’s mind. An added advantage like that while they were trying to woo her would be a huge plus.
“Why didn’t you tell us you were in danger?” Tarik snapped.
Celeste snarled back. “Why would I?”
Tarik rubbed the back of his neck. “Because we want to help you, protect you. If the asshole turned up here and we didn’t know about the threat, how the fuck can we keep you safe?”
“I can look after myself,” Celeste said belligerently, and tilted her chin at Tarik.
Hodge decided to try and diffuse the situation. He understood Tarik’s anger better than anyone, but he also understood where Celeste was coming from. She hadn’t even known they’d existed until a few days ago. She wasn’t going to confide in them until she got to know them better. Hodge hoped she got to know them better fast. He wasn’t sure he could keep his hands, mouth, and cock to himself after the little taste of passion he’d had with her.
