by Codi Gary
It was time for her to be honest, at the very least with herself. “Partly, but it was also because you could say I had a bit of a break through.”
“What do you mean?”
“I was always terrified of commitment, especially the thought of marriage and forever. Then I met you and it was just like it was all so right. As though you were my soulmate. After I found out you were a shifter, and while I didn’t have a problem with shifters, I’d never imagined falling in love with one. I started imagining a future with you and me and kids…Then you told me I didn’t understand you, that I never could because I wasn’t a shifter. I thought if we just had time you would see that even human, I get you. Then I was bitten. All of my choices about you and me and our future were taken away and I was so angry. I wanted to choose to become a shifter so I could prove to you that I loved every part of you and I wanted to wait until you could trust the human me first. I was holding onto that anger and loss so much that I guess I gave up thinking that we could ever be together again.”
“I told you it wasn’t about trust, baby. I just didn’t want to relive what happened, and burden you with it.”
Greer turned around to face him, coming up on her knees between his legs. “Exactly. You didn’t want to burden me because I was human and you didn’t think I could handle it. Even as a human, though, I was not some wilting flower. I’m tough.”
She caught his grin and followed his gaze down to her bubbled covered breasts. She crossed her arms with a scowl.
“I understand that right now it might not appear that way, but I am and I need you to realize that. You don’t have to protect me. I want to be your equal in every way.”
He brought his soapy hands up, cradling her face between his palms. “I promise, that you will always be my partner, but I can’t guarantee I won’t try to protect you. “
“Fine, I can live with that.” She sat up, straddling his thighs. Slowly, she rose up his body, rubbing her breasts against his chest.
“You might want to hold onto something,” she murmured.
“What?”
She climbed off him and grabbed one of the clean washcloths on the side of the tub. Then, she turned the faucet on to warm water, and rinsed it. She watched his expression turn from curious to surprised as she slipped her hand beneath his ass cheeks and lifted him in the water until his erection emerged. She wiped the suds from the tip and placing her other hand beneath him as well, took his head into her mouth and sucked.
“God.”
“Nope, just me.” She swirled her tongue around, and bobbed up and down, sucking his cock with gusto, teasing him and waiting for him to completely lose his cool.
He grabbed her hands and before she could protest, he pulled her out of the tub. He stepped out and lifted her into his arms, carrying her into the bedroom. Once he laid her on the bed, he pulled her to the edge and stuffed several pillows under her hips. She squirmed in anticipation as his lips traveled across the inside of her left thigh, completely skipping the crux of her legs to adore her right thigh. Finally, when he’d teased her into a frenzy, she’d whimpered.
“What’s the matter, baby?” he crooned.
“I need you.”
“You need me to what?”
She blushed, afraid to say the words out loud, but when he kissed just above where she wanted him most, she lost it.
“I want you to go down on me.”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
She didn’t even have time to formulate a clever reply before he had spread her lips with his hands and was laving her with his tongue. He swept up to her clit and wiggled against it in hard, fast circles until she was gripping the comforter beneath her, arching her back and pressing her hips up. She was going crazy, her whole body tingling, but she couldn’t get over that edge.
Then the pillows were jerked out from under her and Xander was leaning over her. She looked down the length of their bodies and found him with a hard grip on his cock, swirling it up and down her wet seam.
“Tell me you want this.”
She nodded frantically and when he thrust home, she screamed with joy.
He laced his fingers through hers and held them above her head as he moved slowly in and out of her.
“You are mine.”
In response, she smiled.
“And you are mine.”
Epilogue
Eighteen Months Later
Forest Ranger Xander Thorson pulled his truck up to the home he shared with his wife and mate, Greer Thorson, like a bat out of hell. Although he technically still had another two hours to go, he’d rushed out of there when Greer had called to tell him he had to come home. That it was an emergency.
He practically jumped out of the truck and raced for the door.
When he skidded into the front room, with its vaulted ceilings and big bay windows looking out over the forest, he stared.
Greer stood in the middle of the living room, in her black silk teddy. Her hair was loose and flowing around her shoulders, and her feet were bare and perfect.
He took off his hat and ran a hand over his face.
“Baby, I love you and you are the prettiest thing I’ve seen all day, but please tell me that I did not just race home for a quickie.”
“No, I have a present for you,” she said, picking up a gift box from the coffee table.
“A present is also not an emergency.” He shook his head with a smile as he took the box and lifted the lid. “I only had two hours left on my shift and—
His mouth flopped open as he stared down at the white and pink pregnancy test.
“Congratulations, daddy.”
Xander looked up from the test. “Are you serious?”
“I would not have called you home if I wasn’t.”
Xander dropped the box and ate up the distance in one stride, cupping her face in his hands.
“I can’t believe it. I am so happy right now. I love you.”
He kissed her, cutting off her, “I love you, too.”
When he finally came up for air, he hugged her to him. “Have you told anyone yet?”
“No. I thought we could have everyone over and tell them together. We might have to Skype Barbara and Tristan, but I think they’re going to be happy for us.”
“I know they will be.” Xander sank to his knees in front of her and kissed her stomach. “Hello, little one. I’m your dad. All you need to know about me is I am tall, handsome…” he looked up at Greer with a smile. “And I adore the ground your mother walks on.”
Greer’s brown eyes grew teary. “Soon, I’m going to stomp across it like Godzilla.”
“I’m okay with that. I can’t wait to tell him or her all about their adoptive family.”
“I’ll tell stories about their wacky father. I’ll call them, ‘The Misadventures of Wolf-Boy.’”
“And I tell him the story of how we met.”
“That’s a good one. What is the title going to be?”
“The Sassiest Girl in Idaho?”
She wrinkled her nose. “Well, you’ve got eight months to work on it.”
He stood up and took her by the hand. “In the meantime, what do you say we celebrate.”
“I thought you had to get back to work,” she teased.
“I’ll be quick.”
With a laugh, Greer pulled her nighty overhead and tossed it aside. She wasn’t wearing any underwear.
“Let’s do it.”
Xander released a playful howl before he picked her up in his arms and took his wife to bed.
Acknowledgements
First off, I always thank my husband and children for loving me and all the voices in my head. I would like to thank Milly Taiden, for allowing me to be a part of this series. Also, special extended gratitude to Heather Witherell Ray, who kept us organized and made our teasers and Jennifer Wedmore, the go to gal who gathered all our information and who showed infinite patience with my mountain of questions. Of course, it if weren’t for Taylor Dawn, I never
would have been invited and fallen in love with the Sassy Ever After world, so thank you, love! To my dear, dear friends, Sophie Barnes, Miranda Arnold, Catherine Crooke, and Crystal Biby, for reading this book first, giving me their advice, and assuring me that it didn’t suck. Hopefully, readers agree! #grin
About the Author
Codi Gary loves writing books almost as much as she loves outings with her family and snuggling with her adorable fur babies. A RWA Honor Roll author of twenty romance novels and novellas, her goals are to make her readers laugh one minute and cry the next in the best way possible. When she isn’t glued to her computer, she can be found reading fantastic books, catching up on all the shows she loves, and taking pictures of her beautiful kids. To keep up with her releases, cover reveals, and crazy antics, just go to her website at http://www.codigarysbooks.com and sign up for her newsletter.
