by Desiree Holt
He bent his head to capture a breast in his mouth. His tongue pressed the nipple against the roof of his mouth. One hand molded to her other breast, pinching that nipple in a steady rhythm.
Alexa’s legs trembled and her knees wobbled. She was glad when Jesse carried her to the bed. His mouth still sucked her breast. Teeth gently nipped at the tip, followed by his tongue soothing the bite places. His hand continued to pull and tug on her other nipple.
She hadn’t thought her pussy could release more liquid but she felt slick and wet. She was hot everywhere. If he didn’t touch her there soon, she’d scream. She arched her pelvis and pressed her hips against him, urging him to do something. Anything.
“Don’t make me rush this,” he whispered, his mouth now at her ear. His tongue traced the delicate line of the shell. “I’ve waited too long.”
His lips drew a pattern down the side of her neck to the sensitive spot where it met her shoulder. Again, he placed tiny bites on her soft skin. With maddening slowness, he trailed his mouth over each breast, between the valley separating them, and down over her stomach. He paused in his journey to give proper attention to her navel.
Then he was kneeling between her thighs, her legs resting on his shoulders. His thumbs parted her labia, slick with her own cream. His tongue was an instrument of torture, stroking from her throbbing vagina to the swollen knot of her clit. Her body jerked under the lash of his tongue while his thumbs opened her wider to the assault of his mouth.
Her body felt hot, her skin stretched far too tight. This was beyond anything she could have imagined.
“Easy, darlin’,” he crooned and nipped gently at her clit.
His tongue continued its broad strokes the length of her sex, denying her its entry into her waiting hot channel. When he finally stabbed it into the slick flesh, a tiny cry escaped her lips and she fisted the bedclothes.
His tongue moved in and out of her greedy cunt, her hot muscles grasping at it, clenching, desperate to hold it inside her. She tried to close her thighs to squeeze him inside but his broad shoulders held her legs far apart.
The coil of need inside her wound tighter and tighter as he relentlessly pushed her up the spiral. Higher and higher he took her, toward the ultimate explosion. His tongue fucked her in a steady rhythm while his clever fingers tormented her clit and pinched her labia.
“Please,” she begged. “I want you inside me. Please, please, Jesse. Please.”
One hand drifted lower and the fingers teased at the tight rim of her anus. “This is where I want my cock, Alexa, if you’re willing. This is what I’ve dreamed about.”
He was going to fuck her in the ass. Every animal instinct inside her roared to life, and, unbelievably, her need escalated.
“Yes,” she moaned. “Do it. I want you to.”
Moving her so her legs were pushed back almost to her shoulders, his hands separated the globes of her ass. His tongue lapped at her anus. Then two fingers slid inside her hot, grasping vaginal sheath, scooping out her fluids and spreading them over the tiny anal rosette. One finger pushed against the tight ring of muscle, easing inside.
When he was in to the knuckle, he forced another finger in beside it and began a scissoring motion.
At first, she felt an almost painful fullness and a burning sensation in her tissues. But the more he stretched her, the better it felt. Every nerve in her body seemed to be firing at once.
“Oh God,” she moaned. “Do it now.”
With swift motions, he pulled a foil packet from his wallet, ripped it open with his teeth, and sheathed himself. Then he positioned himself over her. His breathing was unsteady.
“Here we go, darlin’. Get ready to feel me in that tight little ass of yours.”
The broad head of his cock pressed against her anus. His hips flexed and slowly, one tiny bit at a time, he pushed himself inside her. When the head popped in past the ring of muscle, he began to stroke her clit again, driving her higher.
All her pulses throbbed and fluid gushed from her cunt as Jesse’s cock continued to press into her rectum.
And then he was in, all the way. He leaned over her, balancing himself on one hand while the other continued to stroke her screaming sex. With a deep breath, he began to move his hips, stroking in and out of her. Peering up through slitted eyes, she saw the sweat coating his face and the tightness of his jaw as he fought for control.
“Let go, Jesse,” she rasped. “Do it now. Now!”
“Not until you’re ready,” he spat out through clenched teeth.
“I’m ready,” she cried, her hips moving with his. “Please.”
“All right, then.”
He increased the pace of his rhythm. Then, with one final pinch of her clit, he thrust her into her orgasm as his own overtook him.
On and on it went, shudders racking her body until she thought her bones would break apart. Above her, she felt Jesse shake with spasm after spasm. At last, as his tremors subsided, he collapsed on her and held her through the aftershocks.
After a long time, he lifted his head and feathered kisses over her face. His eyes searched hers intently. “Please tell me you’re not sorry.”
How could she be sorry about something so incredibly wonderful? The realization of her fantasies was even better than the dreams themselves. “I’m not sorry.”
Relief smoothed out the worry lines on his face.
“But you must be exhausted. You finished your shift and you need some sleep.” She couldn’t help the little grin that turned up her mouth. “You only came over here for your key, remember?”
“I think I really came over here hoping to get more than that.” He traced the edges of her lips with his tongue. “Darlin’, you’ve been driving me crazy for too long. You couldn’t get me to go to sleep now unless you knocked me out.”
He slid his penis slowly from her and lowered her legs with great care. “Give me a minute to clean up and catch my breath. We aren’t finished for the night. Not when I’ve waited this long for it.”
She watched the flex of muscles in his exquisite ass as he walked toward her bathroom. Her body still limp from her incredible climax, she realized what big trouble she was in.
She still harbored a natural desire to protect him from the dangers he faced each day, but now something had been added. In giving him her body, she’d cracked open the wall she’d built around her heart. But Jesse Farrell would never, ever knowingly want to mate with a shifter. And she couldn’t bear the thought of the revulsion she’d see in his face if she revealed herself.
What should she do now?
Chapter Two
Alexa wondered if the rain would ever stop. Almost a week now and she’d hardly seen a break in the clouds. Maybe they were in for another forty days’ flood. It certainly made her romps in the woods behind her house wet and muddy, not refreshing the way a light mist tended to do. Even in her wolf form, she didn’t like the loud crack of thunder or the jagged bolts of lightning that split the sky.
She sighed and picked up her glass of wine. Four days had passed since the night Jesse showed up at her door. Four days since their hot, bone-melting mating. But 1:00 a.m. came and went with no sign of the junk car with the souped-up engine that he used for work.
Where was he? Was anything wrong?
He must be on stakeout or something. Damn.
Her body still heated at the memory of his touch, begging for more of the unbelievable sex. Then she mentally slapped herself.
Leave well enough alone. You know there’s no future with him. No possibility of a relationship.
So, what did she tell her heart?
She carried her wine into the bedroom where she shed her clothing, dropping it into the hamper in her closet. As she closed the closet door, she caught sight of her reflection in the full-length mirror.
Not bad. All that running keeps me in pretty good shape.
She ran her hands over her hips, testing the firmness of the flesh. Turning sideways, she checked t
he rounded line of her buttocks and the tops of her thighs.
Amazing, she thought, how unwolflike she looked in her human form. Her skin was smooth, with a slight golden cast. The bone structure of her face was delicate, her lips full and sensuous. Her wine-red hair drifted in curls to her shoulders. Only the eyes gave her away—brown with heavy flecks of amber.
She knew what would happen if Jesse knew the truth. One disaster was enough for her. But she couldn’t erase the imprint of his hands on her skin, or his wicked mouth that tasted her everywhere.
Taking her breasts in both hands, she massaged them as he’d done, warming the flesh. With thumb and forefinger she pinched the nipples, rolling and tugging them until they hardened and throbbed. Wetting the tip of one finger, she rubbed it across a nipple. She imagined Jesse’s mouth on it, sucking it, pressing it with his tongue.
Through hooded eyes, she watched her hands move down her body, over her abdomen, through the narrow patch of curls at her mound to her already weeping slit. She slowly pulled her labia apart, exposing the flesh now slick and pink and the tiny bud of her clitoris that begged to be touched.
The sight of her aroused body was too much for her. Her breath quickening, she moved to her bed on shaky legs. With unsteady hands, she opened the drawer of her nightstand and took out her favorite tiny vibrator. Lying back on the soft comforter, knees bent and spread wide, she place the tip of the vibrator on her clit and turned it on.
Immediately, jolts of sensation streaked through her vagina, the muscles rippling in response. In moments, her entire body was consumed by the heat. The harder she pressed with the vibrator, the more intense the throbbing. She arched her hips and slid two fingers into her cunt.
Jesse’s face flashed into her mind, his whiskey-colored eyes dark with passion. She saw his lean, hard body covered with a fine sheen of sweat as he drove her to orgasm. The image of their bodies moving together in perfect rhythm heated her blood. She rubbed the vibrator back and forth over her clit, and her fingers pumped in and out of her slick channel, faster and faster.
Her orgasm grabbed her like a punch to her body. The muscles of her pussy grasped her fingers and her cream gushed into her hand. She bucked and thrust, screaming Jesse’s name while the spasms shook her. Her breath escaping her lips in tiny pants, she rode the aftershocks. At last, her body, sweat-slicked and aching, was still.
After a very long time, she rose from the bed and made her way to the bathroom. Turning the shower on full force, she stood under the spray, letting water as hot as she could stand it wash over her body. But nothing could wash away the memory of Jesse Farrell.
When she finally climbed under the covers, her sleep was restless, peppered with fragments of dreams that disappeared each time she woke. At seven o’clock, she gave up and got out of bed but she was plagued by a vague feeling of unease. One that somehow had to do with Jesse.
She started the coffeemaker then went to retrieve the newspaper. She glanced next door for signs of life. Nothing. No car and his paper still lay on the porch.
Where are you, Jesse?
She was too edgy to sit still and her body was sending her signals. Too long since she’d last changed. Tossing her sleep shirt onto a kitchen chair, she opened the back door, stretched, and let her body morph into her wolf shape. She sniffed the air, loped off the back porch, and raced for the safety of the woods.
The rain pelted her white coat, and, in seconds, she was soaked. But the need to run off the nervous energy propelled her forward. She followed the paths so familiar to her, birds and small animals scattering in her wake. The clean scent of the woods exhilarated her, a perfume that stimulated all her senses.
Faster and faster she ran, until at last, exhausted, she dropped to the ground, panting.
With her head resting on her paws, she struggled to slow her breathing. She needed to get a grip on herself. Running like this in daylight was risky. She should have been doing this last night instead of having make-believe sex. Now, she was out in the open, exposed to any spying, inquisitive eyes.
Not good at all, Alexa.
Her body’s need to change wasn’t the real impetus that had sent her racing like a mad thing. The truth was, she was running away from herself.
Damn Jesse for living next door to her, anyway. And damn her body for the human hormones constantly escaping her control. And most of all, damn her traitorous heart.
Finally, she rose on all fours and headed back toward the house. She had broken from the edge of the woods seconds before and was loping across her lawn when she saw Jesse’s car pull up in his driveway.
Shit! Of all the damn dumb luck.
Well, nothing for it now. Head down, she ignored the fact he was staring into her yard. She kept on her path until she reached the far side of her house. Wriggling into the space behind the hedge, she crouched and waited.
Please, Jesse, don’t go exploring in the rain.
When another streak of lightning lit up the sky, she worked her way around to the porch. Then she raced in through the open door, slamming it shut with her snout.
She shook vigorously in the laundry room, spraying everything as the water flew from her coat. She could feel the change beginning already. Lying down on the rag rug, she let her body resume human form then dried herself quickly with a towel from the counter. Retrieving her sleep shirt, she slid it over her head. She was wrapping the towel around her wet hair when the doorbell rang.
Frowning, she looked through the peephole. Jesse stood on the porch, shaking off the rain he’d accumulated on his sprint to her house.
Great. Just great.
Pasting on a smile, she opened the door. “Hi. Don’t you think it’s a little wet for house-hopping?”
He grinned at her. “Maybe. I have a question, but I thought if I asked in person, I could beg a cup of coffee.”
A smile broke out at the sight of him despite her intentions, and she opened the door wider. “Sure. Come on in.”
“Nice outfit,” he teased.
Alexa looked down and realized what she was wearing. “Oh, God. You can tell I wasn’t expecting company.” She headed for the hallway, calling over her shoulder. “Coffee’s ready. Help yourself. I’ll only be a second.”
In her room, she pulled a pair of shorts and a T-shirt from one drawer, underwear from another. She gave her hair one last swipe with the towel, combed the wet strands with her fingers, and tucked them behind her ears. No time for the dryer now.
Jesse was leaning against the kitchen counter, a steaming mug in each hand. He held one out to her.
“Here. I poured yours, too.”
“Thanks.”
When she took it from him, their fingers collided. Heat streaked along her arm and through her body. Her cunt, which last night had to make do with her fingers, began to throb.
God, Alexa, get a grip.
But the sight of him in worn jeans that fit his body like a glove and the dark T-shirt outlining the muscles in his chest and arms, did major damage to her self-control. She sipped at the hot liquid, struggling for outward calm.
“So. You said you had a question.”
“Yeah.” He scratched his head with his free hand. “I know this is stupid, but did you happen to get a dog in the last couple of days?”
Alexa’s stomach knotted. So, he had seen her although he obviously didn’t know what he was looking at. Thank God for that. She forced herself to be calm.
“Do you see one here?”
He chuckled, a self-conscious sound. “No. I told you it was dumb. But I could swear I saw a huge dog race through your yard to your house. You didn’t see anything?”
She shook her head. “I was in the shower. Maybe he’s from the next block or something. He might have gotten out and gone for a run in the rain.”
Joe shrugged. “Probably. I’d never seen him around here before, is all. Funny, he was headed straight for your house.”
Alexa took another swallow of coffee. “Probably just cutting t
hrough.” She looked up at him. “You’re late getting home again.”
One corner of his mouth turned up. “You checking upon me, sweet thing?”
Heat rose on her cheeks. “No. Except it’s, well, you usually get home long before this.”
He dry washed his face with his free hand. “We’re working on a tough one right now, so we’ve all been working overtime. Two rival gangs are threatening warfare. That’s why I haven’t been around,” he added.
“No problem.”
After all, he’d made no commitment the other night except to tell her how long he’d been craving her. Maybe all he wanted was hot, sweaty sex. Which would probably be for the best, truth be told.
He crowded her against the counter. “I’d never have stayed away on purpose.” His voice was low and husky. “The other night meant something to me. And I could swear it did to you.”
She edged away from him and sat at the table. “Right now, you don’t need to be thinking of anything except this assignment. Why don’t you tell me about it?”
He rested his hips on the edge of the chair. Long legs stretched out in front of him, he stared into his coffee mug for a long time. “You don’t want to know about that ugliness, Alexa. These people—kids, most of them—kill on a whim. Or for gang initiation. Or to impress someone. And certainly for revenge. And it isn’t even a nice, neat death.”
Impulsively, she reached over and touched his arm. “I can’t imagine how you do such a difficult job. It must take so much out of you.”
His face was grim. “I have a fourteen-year-old brother back in Denver with my folks. Every time I look at those kids, I think of him.”
“Oh, Jesse.” She didn’t know what else to say to him.
He set his mug down, picked up her hand, and lifted it to his lips. He ran the tip of his tongue over her knuckles. “I look at you and your beautiful smile can make it all disappear.”
Shivers danced along her spine. “Listen, Jesse.”
His eyes smoldered with heat. “I am listening, darlin’. But your mouth and your body are saying two different things.” He grazed his knuckles lightly along the line of her cheek. “I said it before. You want to look at me, Alexa, and tell me what we did the other night was nothing more than physical exercise? I won’t believe you.”
