“Cade, I want to. It will make me feel better about cuffing you.”
“I thought you enjoyed seeing me in handcuffs, at your mercy.” He laughed. “Or are you the kind of woman who likes to be at a man’s mercy?”
“No,” she said quickly.
“Not even a little bit. In the bedroom?” He undressed her with his eyes, and she squirmed in her seat.
He might be right; the thought of being at the mercy of Cade’s hands and mouth was inviting. However, she had fought to be a man’s equal, and had accomplished it. Any special favors she might have received for getting the job here in Tawny Valley would have been because she was a shifter, not because she was a woman.
She got up from her seat, and he came around the table, took her hand, and kissed her cheek. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For dinner, for believing me. And for whatever else the evening might bring.”
Shivers of desire coursed through her. Maybe they should take a rain check on the whole shifting thing and head straight back to her place.
Not a chance, her bear said. I want some fun with him first.
Isabelle sighed. She knew what kind of fun her bear liked. It had little to do with seduction and more to do with rolling in mud and washing off in a freezing-cold stream, followed by trying to hunt down a rabbit.
“Ready?” he asked.
“Yes,” she said, and her bear prepared to be freed.
Chapter Nine – Cade
Leaving the restaurant, they took her car and drove up into the mountains. As Isabelle navigated the steep roads, he considered what a bad mate he was. No job, a small amount of savings, and a baby. Not exactly a lot to offer a potential mate. As he looked across at Isabelle, he knew she could have done so much better, and decided he had to become a better man, a better provider for his family. For Isabelle and Maisie.
“When’s the last time you came up here?” Isabelle asked.
“Three, maybe four years ago. I came back to visit my parents in between cases, but never got this far. To be honest, my bear has been a little cooped up for a while.” His bear stretched and prowled around the edges of his mind, waiting for the moment the car stopped and they would be free to run across the mountain slopes he loved so well.
“Didn’t he ever get out while you were undercover?” Isabelle swung the car expertly onto a narrow track, avoiding the big potholes in the road. He had to admire her: she was strong, but not harsh. She would make a good mother to Maisie. He swallowed down the lump of longing that was stuck in his throat. He wanted nothing more than to take Isabelle now, here in the car, to strengthen their bond, to make it unbreakable.
His bear had other ideas, and as his mate pulled over and parked the car in a clearing under the trees, Cade knew there was no way he was going to stop his other side from bursting forth as soon as he had the first opportunity. Opening the car door, he had to hold himself together, fighting with his bear for control.
“I like it here, it’s quiet,” Isabelle said, “No one for miles usually, except for the occasional wolf.”
“There used to be a pack over in Creely Falls, they still there?” he asked, through gritted teeth.
“Yes, no trouble though. I talk to their pack leader every couple of weeks, I find it’s best to keep relationships open and honest.” She sidled up to him, her hands on his chest. “But our relationship will never be open, you are mine now, bear.”
“I will not argue with that. But it will be honest,” he reassured her. He leaned down, his lips meeting hers, wanting her to know how much he meant those words. Something in his head exploded as their lips met, an instant of recognition even deeper than when they touched. The need to make love to her grew; it thrummed through his veins. His heart pumped blood through his system, carrying the primal urge to mate with it.
His heart rate quickened, his cock hardened, and he groaned with need. Cade stroked her body, running his hand along her arms and then down across her back until they reached her round bottom. With his hand spread across her lush curves, he pulled her into him so she nestled against him, it felt so right. So good.
Isabelle wrapped her arms around his neck, a sigh escaping her lips as their kiss deepened. She tasted sweeter than any dessert he had ever eaten. Sweeter than any honey his bear had ever found.
That one sole thought about his bear was enough for the animal in him to claw his way free. Suddenly stepping away from Isabelle, he stood staring helplessly at her while his bear burst free. Maybe it was the shock on his face, but she stood and laughed.
“I thought I might make you lose control, but this was not what I had in mind,” she said. Then the air around her shimmered and she drifted out of this world before coming back on four short legs, with four powerful paws digging into the dirt. She lowered her head and huffed at him, and Cade walked forward, his head low as his bear sniffed the air, taking in the scent of his female.
His mouth watered and his bear agreed: much sweeter than honey.
They rubbed against each other, and he shivered with excitement. This was so much easier than being in their human forms, there was nothing to say, no issues to skirt around. They were free, with the dirt beneath their paws and the stars over their heads; they acknowledged each other, and the bond between them.
Then she pushed into him, nipping his shoulder before taking off into the night, spraying dirt and dried leaves up at him as she disappeared into the distance.
He snorted and then raised his head and roared, telling the world he was here, he was alive, and he had found his mate.
Then he set off after her, intent on letting his bear have his fun while he ran to catch up with her, but once she was caught, the human side of Cade meant to make her his. Completely.
Chapter Ten – Isabelle
They raced through the trees. She could feel him close to her, but not catching her, not yet. He was enjoying the thrill of the chase, and she had to admit, so was she. Usually Isabelle was the one doing the chasing, whether it was chasing people who had broken the law, dogs who had escaped their owners, or kids who thought it was fun to play tricks on old ladies.
Now she was the hunted, and she liked it; she wanted him to follow her across the mountain, until their hearts beat hard in their chests and the air burned their lungs. This was the end to the most surreal, and yet most special, day in her life. The day she had found her mate.
And become a mother.
That thought crept into her head. Could she be the kind of mother an abandoned child such as Maisie needed? She didn’t know, but what she did know was she would do her best, just as she had done her best in everything she had attempted in her life.
He gained on her and she turned to look at him, feeling his teeth graze her fur as he went to bite her on the butt. She laughed and dodged around a bush, knocking him off balance with a sideways swish of her hindquarters. Ducking under a low branch, her bear headed to one of her favorite haunts, a stream that tumbled through the higher valley, and the mud patch that was there beside it.
They reached it and spent a relaxing time having a mud bath before they sat in the cold stream to wash. Better than any spa day, she thought, relaxed and satisfied that their first date had been better than she had imagined. They had gone from being two complete strangers to being comfortable in each other’s company.
Even when they reached the car, and changed back into their human forms, the awkwardness had gone. As they walked out of the trees, he took her hand and they walked together like two lovers, her head resting on his shoulder. He turned and kissed the top of her head and said, “I should get home.”
“Shame, I was going to ask you to stay the night.”
He pulled her into his arms, and kissed her again, his mouth firm, his tongue exploring her mouth as she wrapped her arms around his neck and held him close. Cade rubbed her back, and then slowly moved his hand around to cup her breast, his thumb rubbing the taut nipple, until she could bear it no longer. He
r hand encased his cock through his pants, squeezing it, making him fully aware of what she wanted. Running as bears had been like foreplay; they had skirted around each other with stolen touches, playful nips, and fur against fur, but now she wanted to experience the same closeness with him as a man.
“I have to get back,” he said, pulling back. “I can’t come home with you.”
“Who said anything about going home?” she asked.
“I thought…” Her finger pressed against his lips.
“No more thinking,” she said, her lips replacing her finger as her hands went to his belt and tugged it undone. Then she worked on the button of his jeans, and with a sigh of satisfaction, she freed his rigid cock, her hand sliding around it and then beginning to pump up and down, his body tensing as the first drop of precome appeared.
“Are you sure?” he asked. “You have a reputation to uphold.”
“Damn my reputation.”
He laughed. “If you insist.”
With that, he lifted her into his arms. Cradling Isabelle against his chest, he carried her to the car, and sat her on the hood. Quickly dispatching her shirt, he revealed her bra, which stood no chance against his eager fingers. Her breasts sprang forward, and he captured them in his large warm hands. Sighing contentedly, he lowered his head and licked each one, causing her clit to throb in need. How she wanted to feel his mouth down there where the ache for him was almost unbearable.
Instead he licked and sucked her breasts, his tongue circling her nipples, his teeth grazing the taut buds, until she arched her back and offered herself to him. He chuckled and released her breasts, his hands grabbing the hem of her skirt and pulling it up, his fingers stroking her flesh, sending fresh waves of arousal through her body.
Agonizingly slowly, he raised her skirt over her thighs, and looked down at the pink fabric of her panties. Sliding his finger up along her inner thigh, he worked his way to his goal, and she bent her head and watched as he pushed the fabric aside, and dipped his finger into her wet sex. Deeper, he pushed, and then inserted another finger, stretching her inner walls.
She closed her eyes, letting herself focus fully on the sensations threading through her body, pleasure connections joining until her whole body was on fire. Then he tugged her panties down, taking one foot, then the other, out of them and casting them aside. He looked down at her, as if she were a thing to be prized, and then he sank down to his knees, dragging her forward so she slid across the hood, to settle with one knee over each of his shoulders.
Her sex clenched in anticipation. An anticipation that was fulfilled when his breath caressed her inner thigh, and then his tongue ran over her clit.
She tried to close her legs, but her held her firm, while his mouth tortured her clit, licking her, nipping the swollen bud, and then plunging his tongue into her sex. She fisted his hair, watching as his head dipped up and down, his tongue lapping at her, penetrating her, in a steady rhythm until the night air was filled with the sound of her voice as she cried out in ecstasy.
“Ohh, Cade. Fuck. Damn. Right. There.” His fingers had joined his mouth, thrusting in and out of her, hooked to graze the side of her sex, hitting the spot that made her come again and again.
Only when she was utterly spent did he stop, retuning to kiss her thighs to give her time to recover her composure. Not something that was going to happen any time soon, not when his cock was still hard and her body so willing.
She urged him to stand, kissed his mouth while her hand took hold of his cock, and then guided him towards her. The ache for him returned, and when he lunged forward to penetrate her, another wave of ecstasy swept over her. Cade shuddered as he lunged forward, his body covering hers, his mouth on her flesh, kissing her, licking her breasts, his hand under her bottom, to stop her from sliding away from him across the slippery hood.
In and out, his rhythm fast and hard as he took her. Isabelle cried out and then buried her face into his chest, her teeth nipping his skin, and he groaned, his arousal too much, and then he came, his breathing ragged as he spurted his seed deep into her.
Isabelle shifted the angle of her body, tilting her pelvis. The friction between their bodies increased and he cried out her name. Then she came, her world exploding around her, the stars above their heads, so bright in the clear night sky, seemed to grow closer, as if she were floating up there with them. Then it passed, slowly ebbing away to leave her clinging to him while he tried to recover, his hands placed on the cool metal of the car, while he took deep breaths.
“Fuck, Isabelle. I never expected it to be so…” He shook his head.
“Right?” she asked, unable to put it into words either.
“Right.” He chuckled. “So damn right.”
She wrapped her arms and legs around him, wanting to stay like this under the stars, the warmth of his body chasing away any chill of the night. “What do we do now?” She voiced the words that had suddenly come to her.
“I don’t know.” He pushed himself upright and withdrew from her, and she wished she hadn’t asked the question, hadn’t broken the spell between them.
“Cade…” She placed her hand on his chest, covering his heart, wanting to feel the beat of it, to reassure herself that he was real, that she hadn’t dreamed him after all this time.
The look he gave her made this feel more than real. Then he spoke, his voice breaking with emotion, “Whatever happens, we do it together. I know I’ve brought complications into your life, and I know you don’t deserve them. But…”
“I don’t care about the complications, as long as you promise me you won’t just disappear in the night. That if there is anything from your past, or Maisie’s past that haunts you, you will talk to me about it. We’re a team now.”
“I promise,” he said and kissed her lips. “Damn, I want you again.”
“I know. But you need to get home.”
He sighed heavily, and pulled away from her, but as she slipped down off the hood, Isabelle said, “I understand that little girl comes first.” Her legs were unsteady as she groped around for her clothes.
Cade stood up straight after pulling on his jeans. “That’s what worried me.” He shook his head. “When I’m here with you, I could forget about everything else in the world. Including Maisie. It tears me in two.”
She came to stand next to him. “I swear I will never make you choose.”
He looked down at her, his eyes the deepest pools of desire, and he lowered his head and kissed her lips softly. “I know. It’s the rest of the world that bothers me.”
“The people who are after her?” She hated herself for the next question she had to ask. “What if her mom ever shows up?”
He looked at her quickly. “I don’t even know if she’s alive or dead. When I got here, I half thought about leaving Maisie with my parents while I went and tried one more time to find her. I thought if I slipped back into that world, went deep undercover on my own, then maybe I would be able to reunite them. But my choice, if that happened, would be to stay with you. You are the only woman for me.”
“If you go looking for her again, I’m coming with you,” she said adamantly.
“No, Isabelle. I won’t ever put you in danger.”
“I can handle myself.” She pulled on her shirt. “Listen, give yourself some time to settle down. Why don’t I make some inquiries internally? I can make something up, some reason I’m trying to track her. Then if you can’t let it go, we’ll go look for her. Together.”
He nodded his head, although he looked reluctant. She just hoped he would stick to that and she wouldn’t wake up one morning with him gone.
Chapter Eleven – Cade
Cade looked up as they reached his parents’ house, Isabelle had driven him home, and although sex had eased the sexual tension between them, their conversation had been sparse. As he got out of the car, and went around to kiss her good night, Cade realized they still had a lot of ground to cover to get to know each other.
�
�I was thinking,” she said, looking shy, her eyes averted as she stared at the house. “Why don’t we spend a couple of days getting a room ready for Maisie in my house?”
“Are you sure? That’s a big thing for me to ask of you,” he said, stroking her cheek and wishing he was going home with her right now.
“Yes. We’re going to be together, Maisie is going to be a big part in that, so let’s all get to know each other. I understand you’re a package deal.”
“You are an amazing woman, Sheriff Isabelle Malone.” He kissed her again, her lips warm against his.
“Good night, Cade. I’ll see you tomorrow after my shift.”
“Maisie and I might come by and pay you a visit,” he said, watching her put the car in reverse.
“I’d like that. Good night.”
“Good night, Isabelle. Sweet dreams.” He knew he would have the sweetest dreams, full of his mate and her lovely, curvy body.
Walking to the house, he turned once to watch her taillights disappear, then he opened the door and went inside. The house was quiet, and he thought everyone had already gone to bed. It felt weird that the door hadn’t been locked, and the difference between his life here and the one he had left behind came sharply into focus once more.
“You got lucky with the sheriff. Best kind of woman you could meet.” His dad was in the sitting room reading his book, just as Cade remembered him doing for all of his life, it comforted Cade that some things never changed.
“Hey, Dad.”
“I thought we should have a talk, your mom’s gone to bed, and Maisie’s sleeping,” he added, when Cade’s eyes flickered to the stairs. “Come and have a drink with me.”
His dad got up and fetched two glasses, getting a bottle of scotch out of the cupboard and pouring two small glasses. Cade smiled. His dad never was one for too much liquor; he liked to have a clear head at all times. A trait Cade had inherited.
“Here.”
“Thanks,” Cade said, taking the offered glass and sipping it. “That’s good.”
One Bear and a Baby: BBW Bear Shifter Baby Paranormal Romance (Who's the Daddy? Book 1) Page 5
