Bear Mountain Bride: Shifter Romance
Page 205
It was apparent to her that whatever this chemistry was between them was only going to get stronger the moment they stepped inside. There was a good chance that she might not be able to say no to this man and sleeping with someone on the first date was something she had never done. A small voice inside her head responded to her thoughts, asking if she really minded so much if she lost control with him. Making her way back to the living room, she waited for him to return. He did a few minutes later with a small leather case in one hand.
“Ready to go?” he asked. Dixie looked at him, how gorgeous he was standing in his dimly lit living room. His dark hair and eyes were calling to her in a way she could explain.
Then, it was if the flood gates opened and every bit of what she was feeling, all the longing, the hunger, the passion . . . it all spilled forth and she refused to try to hold it back. She moved in closer to him and began nibbling at his neck softly. He feigned being non-responsive but quickly gave it up as her hands began to roam across his leather clad arms and her kisses grew more urgent. Sliding onto his lap, she kissed him hungrily, aching to have him inside of her. Something that sounded oddly like a growl escaped his lips.
“What are you doing?” he whispered. “What makes you think I’m this kind of guy?”
“If you aren’t, I think I am getting to you,” she whispered in his ear.
“Nope. I’m a rock,” he replied.
“Perhaps you are as hard as a rock,” she replied provocatively, sliding her hand across the rapidly rising bulge in his jeans.
“You are a very bad girl,” he told her.
“Guilty as charged,” she responded playfully, massaging him through the course denim that covered his zipper.
“Well, I guess we are just going to have to cart you off for your crimes of passion then,” he told her, suddenly pulling her upward with his strong arms and tossing her over his shoulder. He walked to the bedroom with her, as she giggled loudly.
“Now, let’s just see who is in charge here,” he told her, pinning her down across the bed and kissing her. His body hovered over her own, taking his time with her. Their passion got the best of them as they tugged at each other’s clothes, eager to feel skin against skin. It had been an eventful day and tomorrow looked even brighter as they lost themselves in each other’s arms.
Dixie’s body arched gently forward as Luke expertly found his way to her clit with a talented tongue. He knew exactly what to do to bring her to a series of orgasms like she had not experienced for quite some time. She moaned loudly as he licked and tickled her most private places, leaving her squirming and moaning beneath him in complete ecstasy. His abilities far exceeded even what she could have imagined. He was like an animal with a treat as he lapped furiously at her dripping pussy, eagerly teasing her until she was squirting wildly into his hungry mouth.
Having satisfied her needs for the moment, he began to slowly drag his magnificent lips across her bare skin, traveling her body with feather light butterflies of lust. By the time he had completed his circuit and made his way back up to her lips, she was ready for more and he certainly didn’t disappoint. Their moans were almost simultaneous as he entered her, pushing his erection deep inside of her, stretching her until she felt full. Full of him. Full of lust. Full of contentment. It was beautiful being with him and she hoped it would never end.
They made love slowly as the moon rose outside, shining through the window of the otherwise dimly lit room. There was no doubt that she had made the right choice as he traveled endless highways along the curves of her body, taking his time with every nuance of her flesh. Her hips rose to meet his again and again, a perfectly time waltz between two new lovers. This could very well be her destiny if she allowed it. It was too soon to think in those terms, she knew, but she had never experienced chemistry like this with anyone. Her moans filled the room as he brought her to yet another intense orgasm and then followed her into bliss with his own.
Afterwards, they lay there in the darkness, just listening to one another breathe. Dixie was sure that this was just about as close to heaven as a girl could ever hope to be. She reached for him, laying her head on his shoulder as she fell asleep in his arms. Whatever tomorrow might bring, it would be nothing she could not handle with this man by her side. Once again, the world outside of him faded away and she was content to just let it all wash away.
She awoke the next morning to find herself alone in the bed. It was just before twilight and, for a moment, she wasn’t sure where she was. Her body felt stiff all over, like she had been ravaged by a wild beast. A smile crossed her lips as she remembered the way he had awoken her after their first encounter with a repeat performance that had made the first one look tame. He had fucked her with such force that it had felt like he might tear her apart and she had loved every moment of it. His skin felt like he was on fire as he sank into her again and again, scratching her skin with his nails and biting her back as he plunged deep inside of her.
“You’re awake,” he said from the doorway.
“I am,” she replied, looking at him sheepishly. She pulled the sheet up over her body and smiled at him, noting the scratch across her breast as she did so.
“Don’t cover up. I love looking at you,” he replied.
Dixie smiled, letting the sheet drop. Her nipples stood erect in the cool air conditioned bedroom as she tried not to be self-conscious while he studied her intently.
“I’ve got to get to the shop. Do you want to stay here or should I take you back to your car?” he said suddenly.
“I have to go to work later, so my car would be good,” she replied, getting out of bed and beginning to get dressed. He stood watching her with a smile. Finally walking over and kissing her in a way that just made her want to get back into bed.
“I’ll be in later for a drink. Maybe we can find a quiet place to make your break a little more exciting,” he told her.
“You’re an animal,” she said.
“Oh, you have no idea,” he told her, slapping her playfully on the backside as she bent to retrieve her boots from the floor by the bed. She slipped them on and then followed him out to the bike. Fifteen minutes later, they were pulling into the restaurant where she had left her car. He kissed her, squeezing one of her breasts lightly as he leaned in.
“Get out of here before we get arrested for public indecency and lewd behavior out here in the parking lot,” she replied.
“It would be completely worth it. I’ll see you tonight,” he told her, getting back on his bike.
She watched him drive off before slipping behind the wheel of her car and heading home to shower and change for work. All she could think about beneath the steam of the shower is how he had felt. Her fingers drifted lightly over the scratches he had left behind and she wondered how he had managed them. His nails had seemed pretty clean cut when they were eating dinner and she had noted them, but she had numerous scratches nonetheless. Shrugging it off, she finished dressing and left for work. The bar wouldn’t open until two, but they had inventory this morning before the usual clean up and restocking they did before opening.
Weeks went by during which she and Luke spent every possible moment together. There was no doubt that she was head over heels for him, though there seemed to be a bit of problem with some of his club members, namely Harlan Simmons. Dixie wasn’t sure if she had rubbed him the wrong way due to how Luke had shut him down about his behavior toward her or if it was a personal issue between him and Luke, but they always seemed to be butting heads.
“What is she doing here?” Harlan asked one day when Dixie appeared at the garage while several of the members were hanging out there and discussing club business.
“Dixie is always welcome here,” Luke replied coolly.
“I don’t recall issuing her a patch,” Harlan replied. “This is a members only gathering.”
“I’m sorry, Luke. I didn’t realize I was interrupting anything. I will come back later when you aren’t busy,” Dixie told
him, not wanting to cause trouble between him.
“Don’t be ridiculous. Harlan is just being an asshole. Just wait for me in my office. We’re almost done here anyway,” Luke told her, never taking his eyes off of Harlan.
Dixie nodded and walked to the front of the garage. She could hear him and Harlan exchanging angry words, but couldn’t make our exactly what they were saying. It was bad enough that she had to come here to have the conversation with him that she had planned. No doubt it wasn’t going to be received well if he was already in a bad mood. She sat nervously waiting on him.
“What’s wrong?” he said immediately when he came in a short time later.
“How do you know something is wrong?” she asked, surprised he could pick up on it so quickly.
“I have a good sense for these things. I can smell fear and you are covered in it,” he said.
“I’m pregnant,” she blurted out.
His physical reaction was much the same as if she had slapped him. She sat waiting for him to say something. She had known for a week, but had been trying to accept it herself before coming to him. Instead, she had made excuses not to see him while she sorted it out in her head. This had not been a part of her plan and she knew it changed everything with her life, with school, and with him.
“How far along are you?” he asked.
“It’s yours if that is what you are trying to figure out,” she snarled back, upset that he might even think otherwise.
“No, Dixie. I know it is mine. How far along?” he asked again.
“No more than a few weeks,” she replied. “I took two tests and both were positive. I have an appointment with the doctor in the morning to confirm.”
“No. I’ll make you an appointment elsewhere. You can’t see a regular doctor,” he replied.
“What? Of course I can see a regular doctor. Wait, are you telling me you want me to take care of it? You don’t want anyone to know that you made me end the pregnancy?” she suddenly shrieked.
“I am not telling you that. I am telling you that you need a very special doctor and that I need for you to go to who I tell you to see,” he said firmly.
“You aren’t making any sense. Why?” she asked.
“Dixie, listen to me. I can’t explain to you right now, but I will tonight. Just know that I love you and that I want this baby. I want our baby. Do you?” he asked.
“Of course I do,” she told him, knowing that she meant it now that she was saying the words out loud. It didn’t matter how it changed things for her to be pregnant. She wanted this baby more than anything.
“Then, we need to sit down and talk about some things. Let me get a couple of things finished up here at the garage and then I’ll come get you. We’ll go to the house where we can be alone and talk,” he said.
“You are scaring me,” Dixie told him.
“I know I am, but it will be okay. I promise,” he told her.
“Okay. Just call me when you are on your way over,” she told him.
“Dixie?” he called after her as she started to leave.
“Yes?” she said, stopping to look back at him.
“I love you. I love you and I love our baby,” he said
“I love you, too,” she replied before leaving the garage.
Harlan stood just outside the garage opening, looking her up and down in his usual lewd way. There was a smirk on his face that made her just want to walk over and slap him, but she knew that would only cause more trouble between him and Luke. The last thing she needed to do was stir crap between them. Instead, she walked quietly to her car, avoiding any further eye contact with him. She saw him go into the garage after she left and wondered what he was up to.
“I’m on my way to get you,” Luke told her on the phone less than an hour later. “I need you to pack some things and plan on staying at my house for a while.”
“What? Why? I’ll be fine here at home,” she replied.
“No, you won’t. Just please do as I ask and I’ll be there in about fifteen minutes,” he told her, hanging up before she could protest further.
“Luke, what is going on?” she asked when he came to the door.
“Let’s get your things in the car. I need you to follow me to my house, Dixie. Don’t stop for anyone or anything,” he told her.
“What is going on, Luke?” she asked again, more frightened than ever.
“I need you to trust me,” he said. “Can you just trust me until I get you home?”
“Okay, Luke,” she replied quietly. They packed her things into her car and she followed him to his house, parking around back as he instructed her to do. Things were getting really weird and she wasn’t sure that she still felt so good about her condition under these circumstances. What had happened that was making him act this way.
“Come outside with me,” he told her once they had her things inside. “I need to show you something.”
Dixie followed him out, noting how bright it was despite the lack of lighting around his house. Luke lived on a side road with no other houses. It was completely secluded, so there was no lighting from other houses either. Instead, the large full moon overhead cast shadows across the yard. She looked up at it and then back down at Luke.
“I’m going to show you something. I could tell you, but you wouldn’t believe me or understand, so I am just going to show you. Don’t be frightened. I have complete control over it,” he said.
“What are you talking about, Luke?” she said, but before she even finished saying the words, she saw something happening.
It was if he was getting taller and his muscles seemed to expand, ripping open his clothes until they were merely threads. His skin was rapidly covering with dark brown fur and his face was contorting, forming a snout. Large jagged teeth flashed in the moonlight as he let out a loud growl and fell down onto all fours. Dixie stood there in disbelief. Her heart hammered against her chest and she took a step back. She watched as the huge bear took a step toward her and then everything went black.
“Dixie? Dixie? Are you okay?” she heard Luke’s voice saying to her. She came too lying in his bed. It must have been a dreamed. She struggled to recount the time leading up to this moment. There didn’t seem to be any missing pieces where she might have gone from being in the backyard to being in bed, asleep and having weird dreams about the man she loved shifting into some sort of bear. Still, that had to be the answer. Things like that didn’t happen. They didn’t exist.
“I dreamed you were a bear,” she replied with a smile.
“It wasn’t a dream, Dixie. It was real. You passed out and I carried you in here to lay down,” he said.
“No. That is impossible,” she replied.
“It isn’t impossible. I was born this way, as my father was before me and my grandfather before that. Our child will be one, as well. There will be anomalies on your ultrasound. That is why I need for you to go to a specific doctor,” he replied.
Dixie’s eyes grew wide. Her hands shot down to her stomach, clutching it as if she expected whatever she was carrying to claw its way out right this moment. She was suddenly more frightened than she was a short time ago watching Luke turn into some sort of were bear. Knowing she had one inside of her was well more than a bit more than she had bargained for in this whole thing.
“It’s okay. You won’t be hurt by the baby, Dixie. He will develop like a normal child and he will appear to be a normal child. Not even he will know any different until he begins to shift in his teens. I will have prepared him for that well before it happens to him. He’ll need to know how to cope, how to conceal it and how to control it. The only thing that will need to be addressed is any doctor’s visits. He can’t go to normal doctors and he can’t go to normal hospitals,” he told her.
“What if something more than a scrape happens to him?” she said.
“Most anything that happens to him will heal rapidly on its own. Anything beyond that will be taken care of by the club physician,” he said.
“Yes, all of them. There are many of us here and we’ve coexisted peacefully for centuries,” he said.
“Centuries?” she repeated. “How old are you?”
“I am not immortal, Dixie. I will live for several centuries, but I was born here just like you were and am very young compared to some of the others,” he said. “It is the reason I am having issues with Harlan. He is much older and feels he should be the leader.”
“Why isn’t he?” she asked.
“Because it was decided long ago who would be leader. Each generation, a new boy is born to the leader of the pack and that boy replaces his father when the time comes. I replaced my father and our son will replace me one day,” he said.
“That is why Harlan is angry? Doesn’t he know that he can’t ever be leader and it is useless to cause problems because of it,” she said.
“Listen closely to me, Dixie. I have to keep you here, out of sight. Harlan is dangerous. I know he has intentions of trying to take me down so that he can take over as leader. If I am out of the way, it falls to a vote and that is usually who is considered to be the strongest of the pack. The one that took down the previous leader is the most likely successor,” he said.
“You mean he would try to kill you? Oh my God, Luke. What about me? Why do I have to hide?” she asked, still not completely grasping the situation.
“Because if Harlan kills me, our child becomes next in line. An elder would be appointed by the council to hold his place and teach him what he needs to know until such time as he can step into my shoes. Do you understand what I am saying?” he said.
“Harlan would have to kill all of us,” she replied.
“I’m sorry, Dixie. I had no intention of this happening anytime soon. I have some other ways of dealing with Harlan that I was working on, but things have escalated and I’m afraid that if he finds out about the baby, it will set him off completely. I can’t risk him harming you,” he replied.