Stonybrooke Shifters: The Complete Collection

by Leela Ash

  In fact, it had been all but impossible not to indulge himself in the sweet nectar of Carmen’s pure body. She was ripe for the taking, and every time she turned her gorgeous green eyes upon him he could have cursed for how overcome with desire he was for her.

  The worst part wasn’t just that she was a virgin. It was just how much she wanted him back. Being powerless to indulge himself was not a feeling that Clark was comfortable with. He had always held a position of power, even within the pack. At least, that was true until the outsiders had come along.

  “Are you hungry?” Carmen asked. “Making you lunch is the least I can do for knowing that I will never feel helplessly stranded again.”

  Clark smiled uncomfortably and showed Carmen his greasy hands.

  “I think I’m going to go wash up first,” Clark said. Carmen nodded and headed into the kitchen.

  Clark showered quickly, cutting through the grease as fast as he could. There was something pleasant about the house when it was just him and Carmen inside. A comfortable, borderline domestic quality he hadn’t felt since his wife had passed away.

  “Ah!”

  Clark froze. Something was wrong with Carmen.

  He wrapped a towel around his waist and ran down the stairs, his heart pumping wildly with adrenaline.

  “Are you okay?!”

  Carmen whipped around, her eyes wide.

  “Whoa,” she whispered, her eyes fixed on Clark’s abdomen.

  “What happened?” Clark demanded. “I thought you were hurt.”

  “I cut myself a little bit,” Carmen said, trying to suppress a smile. “I’m fine though, it just surprised me.”

  Much like a naked man running in behind her must have surprised her. Clark suddenly felt embarrassed. But Carmen lowered her eyes, an attractive pink flush coloring her cheeks. “Thanks for checking on me.”

  Clark grunted noncommittally and turned away.

  A furious fire suddenly surged through him when he felt the warmth of Carmen’s hand on his broad shoulder. He turned around slowly, and looked her sternly in the eye.

  “Don’t,” he said, ignoring the hurt creasing her face.

  He walked to the living room, running his hand through his hair, unable to battle the exasperation mounting in his body. They were so close. The only way he would be able to behave himself was if he got the hell out of there.

  Clark jogged up the steps, tapping into some of his shifter speed to get out of dodge. It was abnormal for him to feel afraid; particularly by his own feelings. Even if Carmen were a little older, it was still strange for him. He hadn’t felt this strongly about anybody since his wife had been alive.

  Clark whipped his towel off once he reached the bedroom and tugged on a pair of jeans. He would just have to wait up there until the agitation in his chest subsided. He was afraid of what he might do if he was faced with her again. The tension between them was just too much. And she wanted him. He knew she did. He couldn’t let her do something they might both end up regretting.

  “Clark?”

  Clark groaned in frustration as the gentle rapping of Carmen’s knock hit his door and she carefully let herself inside. She shut the door softly.

  “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I don’t know what to do.”

  Carmen lowered her long-lashed eyes to the floor, and Clark drank her in. The purity of her beautiful face and the feeling of her soft hands touching his body had brought him to the edge of his willpower.

  “You should leave,” Clark said darkly, turning his back on her.

  Carmen hesitated before she spoke. “I don’t want to leave.”

  “You have to,” Clark said, his voice strained. He turned around to glare at her. “For your own sake.”

  Carmen glowered at him. “I’m not a little girl.”

  It was just what he had been needing to hear. Suddenly, his hands were on her shoulders and she was gasping in surprise. The room was immediately alive with the electric charge of their chemistry. Clark’s senses were overwhelmed by the power of her longing; a desire that threatened to match his own.

  But he couldn’t just give in. What kind of man would take the virginity of his daughter’s best friend?

  “Don’t stop,” Carmen breathed, her eyes pleading. She didn’t know what she was asking.

  Clark growled deeply. How was he letting this happen?

  “This is wrong,” Clark said. “We need to stop, goddamn it.”

  “I already told you,” Carmen said, her perfect features drawing in annoyance. “I’m not a kid. I want this.”

  Clark’s last shred of self-control withered and he pressed his mouth against Carmen’s, doing his best to stay gentle despite the urgency of his longing. “Fine,” he said. “But not all the way.”

  Carmen gasped and nodded, her hands roaming his abdomen as he sampled the sweetness of her tongue with his own. Her fingers left a trail of fire in their wake, and he knew there would be no holding back this time. It was wrong. They both knew it. So why couldn’t he help himself?

  He was too far gone to think twice about it and helped Carmen to lift the soft white T-shirt she was wearing over her head. Clark stopped to marvel the perfection of her breasts, perky in a form-fitting white bra that he wanted to tear right off her body. But Carmen was a precious thing, and he let his hand fall tenderly over them and gently massaged her nipple through the fabric. She shivered beneath him and he led her to the bed, his cock harder than it had ever been in his life.

  They both lay back on the bed, their limbs entwined as Clark kissed Carmen tenderly, their bodies playing a game of give and take, completely beyond their control. The softness of her skin against his was enough to drive Clark crazy, and he roamed the gentle slopes of her body, relishing in the little gasps of pleasure that escaped Carmen’s full, pink lips.

  He expertly removed her bra with one hand and lifted her on top of him to get a better look. Her nipples were a rosy pink, and she covered her breasts modestly.

  “It’s okay,” Clark said, gently tugging her hands away. “They’re beautiful.”

  Carmen smiled nervously and relaxed at his touch. Clark felt bad suddenly that his hands were so calloused; such a delicate woman deserved to have delicate touches.

  But Carmen didn’t seem to mind in the least, and her chest heaved as she drew in big breaths. She didn’t know how to use her body yet, Clark realized suddenly. Her middle was hot against his stomach, his cock screaming in agony every time her ass touched it. But they would have to take it slow. How far was she willing to go? If he didn’t get a release soon, he was terrified of what he might do to her.

  As if she could read his mind, Carmen slid her body down Clark’s. He couldn’t help but moan as her middle engulfed his groin for a brief, heavenly moment. The heat alone nearly brought him to climax. But soon, she was resting on his thighs, the delicate features of her face perplexed as she gazed down and examined his groin closely. Clark almost laughed; she looked like a scientist investigating a new species.

  He shivered suddenly when Carmen hesitantly pressed her hand against his abdomen. Clark had never felt a thrill so gratifying. She hesitated before making another move, her cheeks flushed with longing. Her green eyes stared into his questioningly as she tentatively slipped her hand beneath the fabric of his pants, slowly, cautiously, taking in the feeling of his body tense beneath her touch.

  Carmen looked up at Clark and smiled shyly, and his heart panged hard in his chest. She was so beautiful. He could tell she was a little bit afraid, but despite that, she was eager to please him. And, although she didn’t know it yet, she was also eager to please herself.

  Clark growled when her hands found his hard cock, and a little gasp escaped Carmen’s lips. The look on her face, a sensual look of pure desire, made him forget everything. He wanted to sear Carmen’s expression into his mind and remember it forever. He had never seen anything so sexy before.

  Carmen sighed pleasurably as she worked her hands up and down Clark’s sha
ft. He closed his eyes, relishing in the sparks of ecstasy her fingers elicited as they flowed through his body. He pushed his pants down, sneaking a glance at Carmen as she saw his member for the first time. Her emerald eyes were wide, and the flush on her cheeks darkened as she ran her hand along the length of it.

  “I didn’t know…” she whispered, and then cut herself off with a nervous giggle.

  Clark eyed her, doing everything in his power not to take her right then and there. There was something so fetching about her innocence. But her face seemed mature and sexy as she explored him. If he let her toy with him any longer, he knew he wouldn’t be able to hold back. But would his climax frighten her? He didn’t want to find out before he had a chance to taste her forbidden fruit for himself.

  Carmen gasped in surprise when Clark finally found himself unable to resist and grabbed her gently by the arms. He lifted Carmen and laid her down in the bed, stripping her down to her panties. If he didn’t leave those on, he knew he would lose his mind.

  Clark ran his hands along her soft hips and then climbed on top of her, his cock pressed firmly into the heat of her middle. She moaned and bucked her hips when he ran the length of it against her, just the thin fabric of her panties between them. He could have shoved himself inside of her, and was tempted, but instead, he pushed himself away, slipping her underwear away and dipping his finger inside of her.

  Carmen cried out in a mixture of pleasure and surprise as Clark covered her with his mouth, sending powerful jolts of rapture throughout her body as he used his tongue and fingers in unison to pleasure her. Carmen’s body trembled on the bed as he brought her to new heights of ecstasy, until her sudden orgasm shocked them both.

  Carmen gripped the sheets, her breasts rising and falling as she breathed heavily through her climax. Clark didn’t stop for anything, until she was writhing on the bed with his pruned fingers inside of her.

  Clark was shocked when she sat up from her orgasm and sank her mouth down easily over his cock. He cried out in surprise as Carmen bobbed her head over him, her long blonde locks tickling his thighs sensually as his abdomen filled with a powerful tingling sensation.

  “Stop,” Clark choked. “I’m going to –“

  But she didn’t stop, and he hissed as his cock quaked in her mouth and erupted. She pulled away for a moment, surprised, but quickly draped her mouth over him again, her hot tongue prolonging his orgasm. He was shocked by just how gratifying it was; he hadn’t enjoyed a blowjob since he was in high school. He had always been after the real deal.

  But when Carmen pulled away, her green eyes dancing, Clark had the absurd thought that he was in love.

  He reprimanded himself for it as she stood from the bed and walked calmly to the bathroom interlocking his bedroom. Clark lay on the bed, feeling a confusing mixture of satisfaction and revulsion. What had he done?

  12.

  Carmen tossed and turned in her bed, fighting the overwhelming memories of her tryst with Clark. He had tried his best to stop it, and to a point, she couldn’t blame him. It must have been strange for him to be with a woman his own daughter’s age. But it had felt so unbelievably good.

  “We can’t do anything like this again,” Clark had told her when she emerged from the bathroom.

  “All right,” Carmen had agreed.

  She was just glad that Clark had stopped short of taking her virginity. They had been so close to doing something they couldn’t take back. And in a way, she had wanted it more than anything. But Clark was strong and moral and wouldn’t do it. She wished there was a way she could thank him for that.

  But how were they going to spend the rest of the summer pretending that nothing had happened between them? Her biggest regret was that it hadn’t happened closer to the end of her stay. Then she could leave and never look back.

  Unfortunately, she still had another few months to go here, and the memory of their misdeed would hang over their heads and haunt them until she left. Why had she gone and made it so awkward? And how was she going to face Rachel again now that she had all but slept with her dad? Everything had just gotten far more complicated.

  Carmen finally fell asleep, memories of the sensual experience with Clark dancing in her head and invading her dreams.

  When she woke up, the house was completely quiet. Rachel had stayed out really late with Bobby and had come back early in the morning. She slept soundly in her bedroom.

  Carmen crept downstairs, half excited to see Clark and half dreading it. But he wasn’t there. She peeked through the windows and saw that his motorcycle was gone. He must have had plenty of other things to do. That, or facing the night before and seeing Carmen again was just too much for him to handle.

  It’s not like she could blame him. Carmen set to work making breakfast and decided to eat it outside on the porch. It was a really nice day, and there was something so peaceful about the shifter communities. Even though she had been harassed by a couple of the shifter men, the natural roots of the shifters brought a sense of serenity to their neighborhoods and homes that was hard to find in the city.

  The unexpected rumble of Clark’s engine jolted Carmen’s heart, and she looked up to find him pulling into the driveway and parking his bike. He dismounted and walked to the porch.

  “Morning,” he said, pausing on the steps stiffly.

  “Good morning,” Carmen said. “Errands to run?”

  “Something like that,” Clark said, sighing heavily. “There’s a bunch of clan bullshit going on that I have to deal with.”

  “Like what?” Carmen asked, furrowing her brow. She was vaguely familiar with shifter politics, but the history books always left something to be desired. It was clear they were all written by humans.

  “There are some outsiders trying to take over the pack,” Clark said, leaning against the railing of the porch and looking darkly in the direction of town. “Most folks around here say it’s my job to stand up to them, but I just got back from speaking to King Lobos and he’s telling me to stand down. I take my orders from him.”

  “Why would he say that?” Carmen asked, surprised. She had heard a little bit about the outsiders from Rachel on the train ride home. Apparently, they were bad news. In fact, it had been outsiders that had been harassing them at the train station before Mr. Thomas showed up and saved them.

  Clark shrugged. “I don’t think he quite knows what to do yet. But he isn’t making a move, which can sometimes be worse. If he doesn’t figure out something soon, that guy Thames will be after the throne. Believe you me.”

  “What do the others want you to do about it?” Carmen asked.

  “Well, I’m supposed to be the one keeping the order around here. That’s how most of them are comfortable. But these outsiders are appointing themselves to all of these positions and Lobos is just letting it happen. That means my role is being diminished.”

  “Doesn’t that make you angry?”

  Clark sighed. “Mostly it makes me tired. I don’t know what’s what right now. If I get involved, the pack could dissolve into madness. The most important thing in shifter communities is structure. If I go against that structure, I’m basically giving everybody the permission to dissolve into chaos. And that can be really dangerous.”

  “But what if you don’t go against it and things turn out worse?” Carmen demanded. “It’s not right for you to be kicked out of the way, no matter who thinks they are in charge.”

  Clark turned his dark eyes on Carmen, and she suddenly felt overwhelmed by his tremendous power. Just because he held back with her didn’t mean he had to. She shivered in fear as his eyes flashed angrily.

  “You don’t know what you’re going on about, human,” Clark said, standing and stalking inside. “You should stay out of affairs that don’t concern you.”

  The screen door slammed behind him and Carmen was left feeling crushed and hurt by Clark’s dismissal. Maybe staying there for the rest of the summer was a mistake.

  As much as she hated the idea of
going back to her parent’s house, especially with her dad back in town, maybe it would be better for everybody if she did. That way, Clark would be able to move on with his life and she wouldn’t get herself mixed up in shifter business she didn’t belong in.

  Carmen sighed. That would be the solution. She would call her parents that evening and tell them she was coming. Rachel would be hurt at first, but with her relationship with Bobby continually improving, she would hardly notice Carmen was gone.

  But neither of her parents would even be awake at this hour, so she had some time to kill. With Clark angry at her and Rachel sleeping, she decided to take a walk and explore the shifter community on her own before she left. Maybe she would walk to the train station and buy her tickets.

  With a firm goal in mind, Carmen set off toward town, shocked by how different the atmosphere felt now with Clark upset and the knowledge of political corruption heavy in her chest.

  When she arrived at the train station, the attendant greeted her with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

  “How can I help you today, miss?” he asked, glancing at the attendant beside him. They exchanged looks and Carmen felt instantly ill at ease.

  “I’d like to buy a ticket,” she said, suddenly insecure about her plan to travel back home.

  “All right. And is your destination in state or out of state?” he asked, typing something quickly on his computer. The question struck her as odd. Didn’t the trains travel all over the country?

  “Out of state,” she said. The attendant beside the one who was serving her snickered.

  “I see,” the attendant said. His features were sharp and reminded Carmen more of a fox than a wolf. “Where out of state?”

  “Iowa. Des Moines.”

  “Understood,” he said. The man beside him sniggered again. “And will this be round trip?”

  Carmen hesitated. The idea of leaving without ever seeing Clark again suddenly sucked the breath out of her. But he obviously didn’t want her there. In fact, he had called her ‘human’. He probably looked down on her more than ever now. Especially after what had happened between them the night before.