She wasn’t arguing with him. He was under the influence of something and logic wasn’t going to work. She needed to keep him calm and get him fed so that hopefully, he could sleep off some of the effects.
“I’m hungry too.” She nodded and dipped the spoon into the soup. She hesitated with the spoon hovering over the bowl. “Did you want to feed yourself?”
Tyson’s expression softened. “I like the idea of you feeding me.”
She shook her head. He was definitely a charmer when he was out of his mind. She wondered what he’d be like when he wasn’t drugged or drunk. The way his scent affected her also made her question what was happening. Was it something that was natural for a woman around a male Santir? The book certainly hadn’t mentioned it. She raised the spoon and slipped it into his mouth. He seemed to be talkative now. Maybe she could get some much needed answers out of him.
“What were you doing out in the storm, Tyson?” She waited as he chewed the vegetables and meat.
“Looking for you.” He shrugged. “I found your scent earlier.”
She grimaced. He couldn’t have been looking for her specifically, although she didn’t doubt that he’d found her scent earlier. He must have mistaken her for someone else. “Did someone give you something? A drug or a drink maybe?”
“No, I had to find you, Tori.” He frowned and he looked a little confused by her question. His hand rose and his fingers brushed over her cheek. “I didn’t stop to talk to anyone.”
She lifted the spoon to his lips. This was useless. For some reason, he seemed to be focused on her and every question brought an answer skewed by that focus. She would have to wait until his thoughts cleared a little.
“Why are you here? Where are you going?” His eyes were locked on her face.
“I was returning to the valley. I’d taken some goods to the city.” She smiled and spooned more soup into his mouth and then put the bowl down so she could get him to drink a little cider.
He chewed and swallowed and then his head tilted to the side. After he drank a bit of the cider, he frowned at her. “You’re only feeding me. You need to eat.”
She lifted the spoon to her lips, taking the rich broth, chunks of vegetable and meat into her mouth. She chewed and swallowed, but she didn’t pay much attention to what she was eating. She was more concerned with getting some food into him. She had no idea how long he’d stay awake even with her prodding and nudging him.
She went back to feeding him. She was able to get him to swallow three or four spoonfuls and then he’d remember she was supposed to be eating too. It took some time, but she managed to get nearly the whole bowl emptied before he almost fell asleep sitting up.
She put the bowl aside and urged him to lie back on the blankets. As he did, she pulled them up to his chest. Turning away from him, she went back to the soup and dished up a bowl and set it to cool so Mirlu would have something to eat. She put a little more soup into the bowl and then sat on her pallet.
A rustle of blankets caught her attention. She turned her head and saw him push the blankets down to his waist. Where were his friends and his packmates? They had to know he was gone. If he had been trailing her, he’d been gone for some time. Shifters wouldn’t let him wander around in this condition. At least, she thought they wouldn’t. If anyone knew he was missing, the storm would halt any efforts to search and definitely wipe away his tracks, but his pack probably would start again as soon as the weather permitted.
Chapter Two
Tori woke abruptly, disoriented for a moment and mystified by what had jerked her out of a sound sleep. She could feel Mirlu’s back pressed against her feet. The canil was alert with his head up and his ears pricked forward, but he was motionless. He hadn’t made a noise loud enough to disturb her. She raised her head and looked around the room. In the dim light of the glowing embers in the fireplace, she saw that Tyson wasn’t on his pallet. She sat up, pushing the covers down to her waist. Frowning, she came up to one knee. He was in no condition to be wandering around alone.
“Tyson, where are you?” She narrowed her eyes, trying to see into the deep shadows surrounding her.
“Tori…” His voice came from the darkness near the door. A shadow separated from the inky blackness beyond the faint ring of light and he stalked over to her. Swaying a little, he knelt beside her. “What are you doing over here, i’ma? Come back to where you belong.”
His arm swept around her. He urged her to her feet and began walking with her to his pallet. Even though he was drugged and not at his best, she couldn’t slip out of his embrace. As loose as it seemed, he was determined to keep her next to him and he managed in spite of wriggling and pushing at him.
“Tyson, you need to rest.” She staggered forward. He didn’t seem to realize she wasn’t cooperating.
“I’ll rest much better with the warmth of your body next to mine. I don’t like sleeping without you, rah’ki. I thought you’d left me and I couldn’t get the door open.” He tugged her down with him as he lay down on the mat.
Her mouth hung open as she realized he’d thought she was outside. She had no desire to go outside now. She could hear the sound of rain hitting the roof, but the rolling thunder should have been enough to convince him that it wasn’t a good night to be wandering. He still wasn’t thinking clearly.
“It’s raining so hard out there that I’m sure the rivers are swollen. I’m not going anywhere and neither are you.” She ducked her shoulder, trying to slip free of his arm.
Tyson, in his drugged state, took no notice of her subtle maneuvers to resist him. When she rolled to her knees to get to her feet, he lifted her and settled her astride his hips. One of his big hands cupped her right butt cheek and the other rested in the middle of her back. He pulled the blankets over them both. His shoulders shifted and he moved a little beneath her before smiling up at her.
The man didn’t know what he was doing to her. He had the kind of body that appealed to her. His slightly musky and very masculine scent drew her to him even as it incited a throb of need low in her belly. She could feel the hard length of his cock pressed against her stomach and warm cream began to flow from her. He was naked and she was wearing only a short nightshirt. Her mind didn’t need to take much of a leap to imagine them both naked and making love. He hadn’t even kissed her and she wanted to ride him until they were both exhausted.
That desire made her feel a little guilty. She doubted he really knew who she was. The way he spoke sometimes made her think that when he looked at her, he was seeing someone else. Someone he knew very well. The heated lust in his eyes and those foreign endearments weren’t for her. He was under the effects of some drug. Something held his mind now. If she had sex with him while he was like this, she’d be taking advantage of the situation and using him. Part of her screamed for her to take the opportunity, but she couldn’t do that.
It wasn’t only the desire though. She felt pulled to him, almost as if they were bound together by invisible threads. The feeling worried her and she couldn’t understand it. How could she feel like this when she didn’t know him?
He nuzzled her hair away from her ear and began nibbling on her earlobe. Tori gulped as a twinge of sensation shot straight to her pussy. Was this some kind of punishment?
His hand massaged her buttocks, cupping and squeezing as his hips rocked against hers. Goddess… Tori gulped and pushed against his chest, but he pulled her down until her head rested on his shoulder. That felt too good and she wanted to grind against him. She took a deep breath. She would control her urges and give him respect by keeping at a distance when she knew she wasn’t the one he wanted.
It was definitely punishment. She just couldn’t remember what she’d done to deserve such torture.
He sighed. Gradually, his body relaxed beneath her. His deep even breaths puffed against her right ear. She raised her head and peered at him in the darkness. His eyes were closed and a look of utter contentment spread across his face. She lowered her head to
his chest.
A little longer, she decided. She’d rest in his arms for a few more moments and then she’d go back to her pallet. He wasn’t listening to her when she tried to tell him she wanted to sleep alone so she didn’t have many options. She’d merely wait until he was deeply asleep and she didn’t have to argue with him about it.
When she thought he was sound asleep, she carefully reached back to lift his hand off her butt. It should be easy to get off him if she could remove his hand without waking him. Her questing fingers found his wrist and she lifted it. His low growl rumbled against her chest and ear. His fingers clamped down, pulled her closer and he turned onto his side. One of his legs hooked over both of hers, trapping her in his embrace.
Gana’s hells, even in his sleep he was being difficult. Her head was pillowed on one of his arms and her body tucked against his. Heat rolled off him and soon in spite of her determination to return to her own bed, her eyes became heavy. The reasons why she shouldn’t stay in his arms became less clear. With a sigh, her eyes drifted closed and sleep swept her away from her worries.
* * * * *
Warmth surrounded her. Tori lazily drifted between sleep and wakefulness. She became aware of a hand stroking down her arm. The calloused palm smoothed back up to her shoulder and slid inward and over her shoulder and chest. A tantalizing scent filled her senses and she nuzzled a little closer, wanting more of it. Fingers flicked over the taut bud of her right nipple. She smiled and tried to savor the delicious dream. She didn’t want to wake up to a lonely pallet. Warm breath feathered over her midriff.
She tensed as that hot moist puff of air brought reality slamming through her. She shouldn’t be able to feel his hair tickling her stomach, much less his breath on her skin. Those fingers shouldn’t be brushing against the peaks of her breasts. She’d been wearing a shirt last night.
Her eyes snapped open and she stared at the wooden beams and planks of the roof. Teeth scraped over the taut skin at her hip. A shiver rolled over her body. She lifted her head and found Tyson leaning over her and seemingly engrossed in his explorations.
“I’ve been looking for you for so long.” His tongue swept across her thigh a moment before his hands spread them opening her to his gaze.
“Tyson, we can’t…” her voice trailed off and her head tossed as his fingers slipped between her labia and found her hard clit. In a smooth flow of muscle, he slipped between her legs.
“It’s easy, i’ma. You’ll love it.” He looked up at her and licked his lips. “I’ll love it.”
Goddess, he only thought of one thing and completely missed the point. “I’m not the one you want, Tyson.”
She wanted him desperately. His scent and the warm hardness of his body had ensured that she’d awoken just as hungry as she’d been before she’d fallen to sleep.
“You’re the only one.” His head lowered between her thighs as his fingers parted her plump folds.
A shiver rippled up her spine as his breath sifted through the hair covering the swollen lips. The moment his slightly rough tongue lashed her clit, she was lost. A wave of heat hit her and blurred every sane thought in her mind. Her hips bucked against him as his lips covered her clit. A drawing suction drew wordless cries from her and she arched and writhed desperate for more.
His tongue swirled down to her entrance, painting a path of hot need. The tip probed at the sensitive tissue around the opening and he seemed to enjoy the shivers running through her. His tongue darted into her, stroking along the inner walls and gathering the warm liquid that flowed from her.
Her hands clenched in his long black hair as her hips rose against him. “Please, Tyson.”
Tori bit her lip. Her body bowed as his tongue stroked over her clit. His lips brushed the hard bundle before his mouth closed over it. He sucked at it and tension screaming through her reached a new level.
“What do you want, i’ma?” His tongue rasped over her pussy to the top of her folds.
“Goddess, Tyson, don’t tease.” She tugged on his hair, trying to pull him up her body.
A menacing flash of sharp canines accompanied his smile as he looked up at her. Two fingers pushed into her and she gasped as her inner muscles squeezed around them. “I know what I want. I want to drive my cock deep into this tight pussy. What do you want?”
“I want you in me.” A blush heated her cheeks as she said it. She felt as if she was going to explode. An empty ache pulsed deep inside her. She needed to be filled now.
He rose slowly and knelt between her thighs. The tip of his cock brushed the hair guarding her folds. She drew in a ragged breath. The hunger consumed her, making her ache for more.
“Who do you want, Tori?” He leaned over and licked at her lips.
Her mouth parted and his tongue glided inside before she could utter a sound. She tasted her own essence as well as something wild, a little smoky and very addictive.
“Who do you want?’ His growl against her lips sent tingles ricocheting through her body.
“You, Tyson,” she gasped as his cock prodded her clit.
“Mine, finally mine.” His hot breath fanned over her lips, but the intensity in his eyes and voice riveted her and drew her back from the edge of ecstasy.
“Tyson…” She frowned confused by the possessiveness she could see there.
He shifted position, drawing her legs higher around his hips. His cock nudged at her opening. He slowly pushed into her. The slick juices of her desire eased his entry. He was long and thick and simply the feel of his shaft sliding into her sent a shiver of pleasure through her. Still she craved more. She wanted to feel his hands on her breasts and needed to feel him moving within her, driving her higher into the storm of feeling.
She arched her back, trying to brush her breasts against his muscular chest as he leaned over her. He pulled back before she could succeed.
“Tyson, come to me.” Frustration boiled within her. She reached up and pulled at his shoulders.
“Orders, i’ma? What do you want, rah’ki?” His hips pushed against hers and he sank just a bit deeper.
“Please, fuck me.” Her eyes closed as the head of his cock nudged against a spot that sent streaks of sharp pleasure shooting through her body.
Tyson’s shaft slowly withdrew until only the head remained inside her. He leaned over her and his lips nibbled on the skin over her collarbone.
“You use the wrong word, nari.” His lips trailed over the slight rise of her breasts. “Tell me to mate with you and I’ll give you what you want.”
She was ready to say anything he wanted. Her hips rose, trying to take him back inside her, but he merely chuckled and pressed her hips to the floor.
“Mate with me.” She reached up and brushed her hand over his chest.
He thrust into her and his mouth came down on hers. He kissed her with ravenous hunger. His cock drove into her, filling her. He set a pounding, frenzied pace. Tori went wild, inundated with raw pleasure. Her hips lifted into his descending strokes, eager for more. Between gasping breaths, she returned his kisses. Need built within her, tightening, sharpening.
“So long… I’ve looked for you for so long.” His lips trailed across her jaw. His hips rocked and he pressed down and rotated. The pressure against her clit drove her up and over the edge.
Pleasure rolled through her even as she felt his arms slip under her. Shivers racked her body and light exploded behind her eyelids. She felt pressure and slight pain against her shoulder, but didn’t care what it was at the moment. She held onto him, eager to wring every last sensation from this. Sweet tingling heat spread through her and radiated from her core to her fingers and toes.
Tyson shuddered and stiffened, pressing deep into her. Hot seed sprayed inside her. He came down over her, his body blanketing hers. His mouth released its grip on the muscle where her neck and shoulder met.
She frowned as she looked at him. There was blood on his lip. She brought her hand up to her shoulder and gently touched. He’d bitte
n her. It wasn’t too sore, but she couldn’t understand why he’d done it. She felt him lower her to floor and then his weight on her. She pushed at him. Well, she couldn’t ask him right now. He’d fallen into a deep sleep.
Chapter Three
She wondered about that bite later as she tidied up a little around the cabin. It was still raining heavily outside and she wondered if it was ever going to stop. She had nothing to prevent her thoughts from circling and Tyson was sound asleep again.
Was that biting thing normal for Santir men? They could change into a huge cat. Maybe they just tended to bite. The mark didn’t hurt much, but the fact that he had bitten her was confusing. With the sheer pleasure he’d given her, she couldn’t muster much annoyance over it. She’d loved what he’d done, but she would have appreciated a little warning.
Even the bite and the mark on her shoulder weren’t bothering her as much as her own guilt. She should have stopped him. He wasn’t hers. That passion and those words weren’t meant for her. She didn’t know who he saw when he looked at her, but she envied the woman. That intense look was more than lust. She couldn’t put a name to it, but that kind of feeling wouldn’t fade in a short time like lust would.
She glanced over at Tyson. She really was worried about him. He seemed to be very much under the effects of some drug. At first, she’d thought it would fade after a good night’s sleep or at least during the next day, but it hadn’t. What had happened to him? More important, who’d done it and why? He slept most of the day, waking only two or three times. When he wasn’t sleeping, he was totally focused on her.
Even if the storm had passed, she couldn’t leave him in this condition. He could try anything in the almost delirious state she’d seen so far. On top of that, she was feeling distinctly reluctant to go anywhere at all regardless of the weather. She wanted to be with him, which was something worrying in and of itself. He would eventually regain his senses and all that desire she saw in his eyes would fade as he realized that she was the wrong woman.
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