She spun around and grinned up at me. Up close, she looked even more like an angel than she did from far away. Her big blue eyes could’ve made Bambi look threatening. Her nose was tiny and cute, but her mouth… Her mouth made my dick harden painfully in my pants.
“Thank you. Apparently, I’m not threatening to teens. Kindergarteners are much more intimidated by me, I promise.”
I frowned down at her, feeling things that I shouldn’t be. I should be running away. It was dangerous to be so close to her. Dangerous for her. “I’m not so sure.”
She giggled and tucked a piece of hair behind her ears. “I’m Daisy. I just moved to town a couple of months ago.”
I breathed in her scent and growled again. My bear wanted to sink his teeth into her sweet little body. “I gotta go.”
Without hesitation, she reached out and put her hand on my chest. “Thank you. For helping me with those kids. Maybe I could repay you.”
My dick was about to explode, straining to get out of my pants, and I couldn’t help but lean into her touch. People didn’t touch me. It’d been months since anyone had. “You want to…repay me?”
Her cheeks blushed bright pink and she giggled sweetly before ducking her head and letting her hair hide her face. Then, she looked up at me through her thick eyelashes, and her blue eyes sparkled. “I could make you dinner. I’m a great cook.”
Her smell was driving me insane. Under the strawberry scent, I could smell chocolate and sugar. To a hungry bear, she was a wet dream. And I wasn’t just a hungry bear. I was the hungriest.
I couldn’t move away from her. I was using all of my physical and mental control to keep my bear placated, so the man in me could do nothing but stand there, eating up all of her attention.
She ran her hand up to my shoulder and the pads of her fingers pressed into my skin. “I’ll make you dinner tonight. Do you have a phone?”
Before I could even think about what I was doing, I’d reached into my back pocket and handed her my cellphone. Daisy kept her hand on my shoulder and used her free hand to type something. Then, she slipped the phone back into my hand and smiled at me again.
“I put my address in. Is eight good?”
I couldn’t open my mouth without releasing a growl, so I just nodded.
She let her hand drop and backed away from me with the sweetest smile on her pretty face. “I’ll see you then.”
I balled my fists at my side and struggled to keep breathing as she backed away. My chest felt like it was going to cave in as she swayed her hips away from me.
Right when I thought she was done lighting the fuse to the bomb that was my life, she looked at me over her shoulder and winked. “I didn’t add my number so if you want to cancel, you’ll have to come to my house to do it.”
CHAPTER 3: Daisy
I walked back to my kids completely astonished with myself. I didn’t understand how in the hell I’d managed to talk in complete sentences to the sexy stranger I’d just invited to my home. I’d been so busy tripping over my brain that my mouth had just moved on its own. I’d never, ever asked a guy out, much less in such a smooth way. I wanted to high-five myself, but I didn’t want to lose any cool points that I’d just acquired.
I rushed back to Maggie, uncertain of how much time I’d lost lusting after the cowboy. The cowboy, whose name I hadn’t bothered to catch. Darn.
Maggie was standing in the same spot, a frown on her face as she watched a few of her kids playing. She glanced up at me and gave me a concerned look. “Are you okay, Daisy? You look all flushed.”
I nodded, too quickly for it to be considered normal. “I’m fine. I didn’t keep you waiting too long, did I?”
“Not at all. I was enjoying watching your kiddos play, until mine came closer and I remembered my misery.”
I forced a smile and took a quick stock of my class. “Were they any trouble?”
“Well, one of my boys peed on one of my little girls. That’s my trouble, though, isn’t it?” She shot me a look. “Let’s switch grades.”
I shook my head. “No thanks.”
Just then, I caught a flash of my cowboy stalking around the crowd and into the main house. I quickly pointed him out to Maggie. “Who is that?”
She followed my finger and grunted. “Michael Long. He’s the middle brother.”
“What’s with the grunt?”
“He’s a little weird, I guess.”
I turned to face her. “Weird?”
Maggie’s eyebrows scrunched together. “Yeah. He was in some sort of accident when he was younger and it left him all scarred up. He stays to himself, mostly.”
I watched as she hesitated and wanted to shake her to get more information from her. “Tell me.”
She looked around and leaned in close. “There are rumors about him. People are tightlipped here, but if you listen, you can overhear little snippets here and there. There’s talk that he killed a man.”
I gasped and tried to find him. “Surely, that’s just some vicious rumor.”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I just know that he gives me the creeps when I see him. He always looks pissed off. Plus, that scar running through his lips is too intense for me.”
I thought of the man who’d come to my rescue against a mild group of teenagers. He wasn’t a murderer. His scar wasn’t too intense, either. It took the feminine edge away from his otherwise too pretty lips. It made him different, rugged and mysterious.
“Why? Did he bother you?”
I caught sight of him again and grinned when he looked my way. I bit my lip and then looked at Maggie. “Nope. I invited him to dinner at my house tonight. I think he’s sexy.”
I could’ve sworn I saw a blush tint his cheeks, but there’s no way he could have heard me from this distance. He stared at me for a few more seconds before heading off again. I had to fight the urge to follow him.
“Really?”
I nodded. “That man doesn’t get the credit he deserves.”
*
After work, I rushed to the market and bought groceries to cook for Michael. Then, I raced home and put a pot of boiling water on the stove for the start of my grandmother’s chicken and dumplings recipe. I wanted to impress him with my culinary skills.
My cheeks warmed as I thought about what I really wanted to do with him. The man had a physical presence that beckoned me and every time I thought about him, I imagined taking his shirt off with my teeth. I’d never fantasized about a man this way, and in such vivid detail. I’d never felt so lust-filled.
I wasn’t a virgin, by any means, but my experiences in the bedroom had been less than stellar. I had a feeling that Michael Long could show me a thing or two.
I showered and then changed into a white lacy dress that emphasized my curves. It stopped mid-thigh and dipped lower in the cleavage area than anything I’d ever wear to school. While waiting for the chicken to cook, I painted my toenails a pretty pink color and waddled around while they dried.
I’d gotten sun that day at the carnival, so I skipped most of my makeup and just applied mascara and a lip stain. I was ready early, so I stood in the kitchen, over my stove, and waited for eight o’clock.
Michael was right on time. I’d just tossed the dumplings into the pot when the doorbell rang. I stripped off my apron and raced to the front door.
There he was, so tall, that his face was dangerously close to my lit porch light. His eyes were pure gold in the light and I sucked in a breath as his male scent washed over me. Mmm… I didn’t know what it was he was wearing, but it reminded me of the woods. It also made me lust after things that I had no business lusting after from him. Yet.
“Hi.”
He braced his hands on my doorframe and I heard the wood creaking under his big fingers. “I shouldn’t stay.”
I pouted before I could stop the childish reaction. “You don’t want this, do you?” Why did I feel so heartbroken? “I’m sorry for pushing you, Michael. I just…got carried away, I guess.�
��
He shook his head. “I didn’t say that I didn’t want it.”
I tilted my head to the side and bit my lip. Confusion played at the edges of my conscious, but first and foremost was hot lust. “Michael, do you want to come inside?”
My doorframe creaked. “Yes.”
I stepped back to allow him to enter. When he didn’t move, I reached out and grabbed the front of his black T-shirt. I tugged him inside before kicking the door shut. “Well, look at that. You’re inside.”
He growled low in his throat and I forgot that I’d been cooking. I forgot Maggie’s whispered warning. I forgot that I’d only just met the man hours ago. I forgot that my momma had raised me to be a good girl.
I still had his shirt in my fist and I used it to pull him closer to me. When he wouldn’t budge any more, I brought my body into his and blinked up at him with wide eyes. I’d never been so attracted to anyone in my entire life and all I could think about was getting naked with him. Something was going on here, this wasn’t my normal reaction to any man, no matter how sinfully good looking he was. I was a kindergarten teacher for goodness sakes!
“What is this?” I wondered aloud.
His muscles tensed under my fingers and the muscles in his jaw worked as he stared down at me. “It’s dangerous for you.”
My heartrate spiked, but it didn’t stop the playful smile from quirking up one side of my lips. “Yeah?”
He grunted and backed up a step. “I’m serious. I should go.”
I matched his step and nodded. “If you want to.”
His back hit the door and he groaned as my body pressed against his. “Daisy…”
Hearing my name uttered in his rough voice sent chills down my spine. “Michael?”
Something flashed in his eyes and his expression changed from controlled to wild. He wrapped his hands around my forearms and tugged me higher against his chest. When just my tip toes were touching the floor, he lowered his mouth to mine.
CHAPTER 4: Michael
I’d come to cancel. What the fuck was I doing?
Daisy was just too tempting. I couldn’t leave. Not when I could smell her sweet scent and feel the warmth of her hand on my chest. Not when she was looking at me, the sweet, demure, kindhearted teacher with passionate carnal desires written clearly across her face.
Before I even knew what I was doing, I’d grabbed her and had my mouth on her. She tasted even sweeter than she smelled. I dipped my tongue between her lips and my dick hardened to steel when she moaned into my mouth. Her fingers tugged at my hair and knocked my hat off.
I stumbled farther into the room with her in my arms, barely on her feet. Her teeth sank into my bottom lip as we stumbled again but she made no apologies for it. Instead, she moaned and stroked her tongue across it. Mine.
I reached down and grabbed her ass, lifting her. Then, I dropped us both onto her couch. I covered her, being sure to keep my weight on my knees on either side of her, and found her mouth again.
Daisy was hot passion and lust under her reserved exterior. She writhed under me like a belly dancer, twisting her hips all around until she had me gripping the arm of the couch behind her head with all of my might. I pinned her hips down with the weight of mine and rubbed into her.
She wrapped her arms around me and moaned louder. “Michael.”
Hearing my name on her lips, sounding thick and heavy with desire, nearly did me in. I pushed into her kiss harder and then moved down her throat until I was poised over her neck with my teeth bared.
Daisy stilled under me and then made a whimpering sound. “Michael? Michael!”
I snapped to attention seconds before I sank my teeth into her neck. I realized that I’d started shifting on top of her and jumped off. I was across the room in a fraction of a second, staring at her, panic etching my features into something I was sure wasn’t pretty.
“Fuck. Fuck!” I pulled my hands down my face roughly and blew out a shaky breath. My dick was still rock hard, straining against my jeans, my heart was racing painfully in my chest, and I was breathing like I’d just run a marathon.
There was Daisy, spread out on the couch like some kind of virginal sacrifice. Her little lacy white dress was pushed up her thighs and her mouth was red and swollen from our kisses. Her blue eyes were wide with shock, and trained on me like laser beams.
I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t even know what to do. I hadn’t shifted without there being a huge threat of danger in years. Not since I was twelve. My body was so revved up. My bear, who never did anything but kill and destroy, was scratching at my skin, trying to get out. He’d almost succeeded while I was distracted. I shuddered at the thought of what he’d do to a sweet little thing like Daisy.
“Michael, what just happened?”
I felt trapped. I had to get out of here. I moved towards the door, terrified that I wouldn’t be strong enough to keep him inside. “Nothing. I have to go.”
She stood up and started to come closer to me, but I held up my hands. “Stay over there, Daisy. Please. I’m sorry.”
I rushed out of her house and to my truck. I needed as much distance between us as possible. It was all too much. Too much feeling and too much danger for me to be close to her. I should’ve known better. Dammit! I did know better. I was stupid to think that I could have a mate. I was more monster than man. I didn’t deserve a mate.
Just as I pressed down on the gas pedal to get the hell out of there, I glanced back and saw Daisy watching me from her front door. A sharp pain stabbed my chest and I knew I was fucked. I couldn’t be with her because I’d hurt her, but being away from her would slowly kill me.
*****Daisy*****
I watched as Michael high-tailed it away from my house and I let my fear get the best of me for a second. I slammed the door shut and rested my back against it. My chest was heaving and it wasn’t from the sexual excitement. Michael was different. I didn’t understand it. I couldn’t make sense of it. But, I knew it as sure as I knew my own name.
I’d seen his eyes change a different color and fur erupt all over his arms. His teeth had come forward and he’d been growling like some sort of wild animal. Mostly, though, he’d immediately looked so terrified and alarmed that I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.
I went to the kitchen and turned the stove off before grabbing a bottle of wine from my fridge and pouring myself a glass. Had I really seen that? Was Michael not…human?
I thought about all of the paranormal romance books I read in my free time and shook my head. No way. Werewolves and things like that didn’t exist. My mind prodded me, sending images of Michael over and over again.
Maggie said people whispered about him being a killer. What if he was some kind of werewolf?
I tried to carry on like nothing had happened, but I couldn’t focus. After trying to store my dumpling leftovers in my blender, I decided I needed to face whatever had just happened head on. I couldn’t get his face out of my head. I just wanted to talk to him and figure out the truth, otherwise, I was going to drive myself insane thinking all kinds of craziness.
I pulled on a cardigan to keep warm in the cool air outside and packed a large Tupperware container full of our missed dinner before heading out. I drove to the ranch because I wasn’t sure where he lived. If he didn’t live there, hopefully someone at his family’s house would be willing to help me.
There were several crews outside, cleaning up from the day’s events, when I pulled up. Immediately, Lucas Long walked over to me with a concerned look on his face. “Ms. Daisy? Everything okay?”
His son, Mason, was one of my students, so I should’ve realized that he might think I was here about his child. “Of course. I’m sorry, I was actually wondering if you’ve seen Michael.”
He cocked his head to the side and his eyebrows furrowed. “Michael?”
I wrapped my arms around my stomach and nodded. “Yes, Michael.”
When I didn’t give him more information than that, he look
ed over his shoulder, towards the barn. “He came racing in here about half an hour ago. Far as I know, he’s in the barn, mucking out the stalls.”
I forced a smile. “Thanks, Lucas.”
He hesitated and I couldn’t help but stare at his face. He was Michael’s brother. If Michael was different, was Lucas? Were all of the Long brothers werewolves? My heart started racing and I found myself edging away from Lucas.
He noticed and frowned. “Is everything okay?”
I nodded. “Of course. I… I’m going to find Michael.”
Without realizing it, I was practically running across the ranch. As much as it scared me to suddenly think that everyone around me was some sort of non-human creature, I wasn’t afraid of Michael. I’d been freaked out earlier, who wouldn’t be, but I’d still felt comfortable with him, for whatever reason.
I let myself into the barn and headed towards the back, where I heard movement. “Michael?”
A low growl was my answer and then Michael stepped out of a stall, his eyes glowing as he looked at me. “You shouldn’t have come here, Daisy.”
Looking at him, hearing him say my name, I knew without a doubt that I would accept him no matter what. Even if he was a…werewolf.
CHAPTER 5: Daisy
“You didn’t really give me an option.”
Michael ran his hand through his hair blew out a deep breath. “I gave you an out, Daisy. You’d be smart to take it.”
I stepped closer to him. “I need to talk to you. I need to know what happened.”
He frowned and leaned against the pitchfork he’d been using. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I moved closer, all traces of fear gone. I wanted the man in front of me, and to have him, I needed to figure out what was making him act so strangely. “You act like you’re afraid of me, Michael.”
He gave a low growl and stepped closer to me. “I’m not afraid of you. But, you should be afraid of me.”
Rancher Bear Complete Series: PLUS NEW BONUS BOOK: Rancher Bears' Merry Christmas Page 16
