He was damp and overheated. A flush that had nothing to do with fever flooded his whole body. Claudia was panting. Her fingers had found his happy trail and were plucking individual hairs as though she knew they were his cock’s puppet strings.
“May I take your T-shirt off?” he asked.
“Yes.” She undid the rest of his buttons and peeled his shirt away. He missed her breasts leaning into his chest, but he swept her T-shirt off and flung it away. He hauled her back hard against his skin. Her nipples were like hot pebbles boring into his pecs. His breathing was as ragged as Claudia’s.
He roved over the sweet perfection of her breasts, cupping and lifting and stroking lightly from chest wall to just short of her stiff nipples. It was a tight fit for his hands, but Marines had a can-do attitude even in adversity.
“I’m going to come,” she squeaked. “Hurry up.”
Hurry? Not on her life. If she came once, she could come again, and again. He might not have many more opportunities to pleasure her, but he was, by damn, going to give her some happy memories to remember him by.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Claudia~
Her nipples were about to explode. Ryan seemed to have lit a fuse that went straight from her distended and throbbing nipples right to her pussy. Her clit was pulsing in time with her nipples. So was her vag. And her folds. And her butt.
And still all he was doing was kissing her as softly and slowly as if he didn’t know what his cock was for. Not that she minded deep, slow kissing. In her admittedly limited experience, guys always wanted to rush through that part and skip right to screwing. But his languid exploration was more exciting – at least for her. She resolved to let him worry about his pleasure while she enjoyed hers.
She was writhing against him now. She figured that she could be embarrassed later about coming in her jeans. Ryan took his mouth away from hers and placed it over her left nipple. He sucked. Not hard. It was more of a swirling lick, as if she was a melting ice cream cone he didn’t want to drip. His mouth was hot. Fire galloped down that fuse. She screamed as her pussy detonated.
Waves of pure ecstasy fanned out from her clit through her entire body. She was dimly aware of Ryan’s strong arms anchoring her while she splintered into joy and reformed, only to begin the process again and again.
He whispered sweet encouragement while he suckled her earlobe. The warm wet suction there seemed to prolong her aftershocks. She must have drifted off, because she opened her eyes to find herself sprawled limply over his chest.
He raised her overhead so she could find his mouth with hers. His cock was still a long, hard bar in his jeans. And lying on top of him inhaling his breath and his musky scent was revving her desires up again. Her bra had disappeared. Long fingers teased her waistband and played with the snap.
“May I?” he begged.
“Yes.”
He had her out of her jeans and spread-eagled while she was still recovering from being dumped on her back. His jeans and shorts had vanished too. All he was wearing was a wide white bandage around his right thigh. He covered her with his body, taking his weight on his elbows. They lay groin to groin.
“I’m not on your hair, am I?” He smoothed it out over her pillow.
“Nope.”
“Good. Hair pulling should only be intentional.” His fingers spread her folds and traced their edges, flicking and plucking their stiffness, while she squirmed and enjoyed. He wet his thumb in her juices and circled the base of her clit. “Too much?” he asked.
“Press harder, but just on the sides and base.”
“Okay.” He followed her instructions. “May I put a finger in you?”
“Yes,” she hissed.
He slid a slow finger into her swollen passage. She was wet but engorged. She could feel his nail and his knuckles and then he rotated his wrist and that gliding finger curled against her G-spot and summoned her imperatively, while his thumb pressed down on her clit.
This orgasm was even more intense and mind-blowing. But he didn’t give her time to relish it. He surged into her with his cock. And then he just stopped cold. His hands gripped her buttocks. His hips barely shimmied.
His cock stayed in that first two inches of vag where all her nerve endings could enjoy his thickness. Her pussy spasmed, each ripple grasping and releasing the head of his cock.
His face was pressed into her hair-covered pillow to drown out his moans. Just as well or Mr. BigEars would be running in to rescue her. She lost track of time. Of where Claudia ended and Ryan began. All there was in the world was her pulsing climax and the waves of pleasure rolling through her mind.
He was all the way inside her, still not moving, just enjoying her climax as her sheath clenched and unclenched around him like a velvet glove. Their pleasure was one. Their hearts beat in sync. Their auras merged. Love transported her to paradise.
A wet gush at her core set the whole amazing process off again. He kissed her hard and let her swallow his bellow of satisfaction. They fell asleep in each other’s arms still joined pussy to cock. She roused when he lifted her and drew the comforter over her shoulders. Then he spooned her against his chest, licked the back of her neck and slept.
Even though the curtains were closed and the blind down, her bedroom was filled with light when she woke up and stretched. Jimmy. She lurched upright, every interior muscle informing her of her nighttime exercises. The clock informed her it was after ten.
She struggled into her robe. The house was silent. Jimmy’s bed was not just empty but made. The dish rack held a clean cereal bowl and mug. She snatched up the note in front of the coffeemaker. Pushed the start button when she read what was written.
Gone to Nana’s to play. Coffee just needs to be turned on. Back later. Ryan
It was the first time in three years that she had slept in. She hardly knew what to do with herself. The house was clean, the laundry done. The fridge was full of food. She did need to cook for the week ahead, and she could always spend a few hours working.
But somehow the peacefulness of this unexpected free time demanded a little self-indulgence. She drank two cups of coffee while reading Jane Cleland’s latest installment in the ongoing adventures of Josie Prescott. For once she wasn’t even the tiniest bit jealous of Josie’s loving partner, rugged lawman Ty. She had a stalwart lover of her own.
Yikes. She was falling in love. Was in love. Robin’s spell had worked fast. Was Ryan feeling it too? This bond that consumed her and made her ignore her misgivings? The morning dimmed. Whatever would she do when he died? Or when this spell wore off? No love charm she had ever heard of lasted forever. What had she done?
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Ryan~
He had made definite progress with Claudia. And had the best sex of his life. No, not sex. You couldn’t equate that blending of physical and emotional bliss with anything as pedestrian as sexual release. No one, not his father, not his brothers, no one had ever mentioned that making love to your mate was such an extraordinary roller coaster ride of feelings.
No one had mentioned that afterward you would feel intimately connected to your queen. That she would in fact be the queen of your heart. Scratch that. Empress. It was one thing to know that a mountain lion indulged his mate. It was quite another to acknowledge her power over you. He should have felt constrained. But what he felt was free for the first time in his life.
“Daddy!” Jimmy’s shout yanked him out of his reminiscences about his cuddly queen and into the present reality of his parents’ backyard. “Find me!”
Ryan opened his eyes. “Ready or not, I’m coming!”
His cub was inside the climbing structure. He had watched Jimmy creep up the narrow ramp into the section that was designed as a mini maze of rooms. And he hadn’t heard him exit. Besides the shout had come from the fence. He scanned the area he expected to find Jimmy in. The Plexiglas bubbles were apparently empty. Was the kid elsewhere or invisible?
“I can’t see you,” he ca
lled.
Giggles reassured him that the cub was nearby. He prowled the fence, opening and closing the bubbles to the accompaniment of delighted giggles. He deliberately passed by the source of the giggles and pretended to be unable to find his son. He needed to bear in mind that Jimmy was only three. There was a balance between letting the cub win and worrying him.
He thought he timed it right, for when he scooped his son up, little arms went around his neck in a bear hug. “You’re hot ‘gain, Daddy,” Jimmy said. His hands squeezed Ryan’s feverish face.
“I’m all right, Jimbo,” Ryan lied. Despite the great night’s sleep, despite making love to Claudia, he had woken up in pain and running a fever. He would have gone for a swim in cougar, but he didn’t dare take the boy into the ocean in his condition, and Jimmy had gotten out of bed as soon as Ryan set foot in the hallway.
Jimmy smothered Ryan’s face with his whole body, gripping the back of Ryan’s head as hard as he had squeezed his cheeks. It was uncomfortable and comforting at the same time. They stood together like that until Jimmy squirmed to be let down.
“I want to go in the treehouse,” he said.
Ryan shook his head as much to clear it as to say no. “Not today. My leg hurts too much to climb up with you, and the rule is you must have a grownup with you.”
“More hide and seek?” bargained Jimmy.
Ryan glanced at his watch. They had time for another round or two before lunchtime. And Jimmy’s affectionate hugs had made him feel much better. His thigh still throbbed like fiends from the Spanish Inquisition were skewering it with red-hot pokers. But he no longer felt faint. Love was the perfect panacea.
“Daddy,” cajoled Jimmy.
“Sure. You go hide, son.” Ryan covered his eyes. And they were off.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Claudia~
They were discussing Claudia’s Monday morning routine when Ryan raised a silencing hand. “Later. Right now, Jimmy is up to something.” On cue something hit the bathroom tiles with a liquid splat. Ryan hobbled towards the bathroom.
Jimmy had found Ryan’s shaving kit and helped himself. His face was smeared in lather. And so was his toothbrush and shirt. At least he hadn’t cut himself on the razor. His little slitted eyes were twinkling. Claudia hardened her heart against his smiles.
“James Mitchell, what have you done?” she demanded from behind Ryan’s broad frame.
“I’s shavin’,” said Jimmy. Lather plopped onto the floor when he waved his arm.
“You know better than to mess with someone else’s things,” Claudia said.
Jimmy pouted.
Claudia thought it was Ryan’s fault for putting temptation in the way of the child. Ryan winked at her as if he agreed. “I’ll get this cleaned up.” He leaned over Jimmy. “We have to get that shaving cream off your face and your teeth brushed.” He reached for a washcloth.
Claudia left them to it while she made the call to Mom that she had been avoiding.
“What is it?” demanded Virginia, her intuition immediately on high alert. “Is it Jimmy?”
“Sort of.” Claudia swallowed. “His dad has turned up.”
“What?”
“Yeah. He found out about Jimmy and located us.”
“You don’t sound thrilled, sweetheart.”
“That’s because of the awkwardness of the situation,” Claudia assured her. And because she was in love with a dying man. Her voice trailed off.
“Listen, sweetheart,” Mom prompted, “You’re going to be late for work. Spit it out. It can’t be that bad.”
Yes, it could. But Mom was right. She was going to be late and Morley was going to hit the roof. “Remember I said there was no prospect of marrying Jimmy’s father?”
“Of course. Has he changed his mind?”
“Not exactly. I told you we couldn’t get married, because, well, we were already married. Ryan wants us to try again.”
Virginia pounced. “Ryan who?”
“Rutherford.”
“Your father and I will be right over.”
“Mom! I have to take Jimmy to daycare before I go to work. I just wanted to tell you about Ryan before you heard the gossip in town.”
“If you are married to Ryan Rutherford, you don’t need to work at the First and Last – or anywhere else.” Virginia spoke through her teeth.
“Yes, I do.” She was so not going to depend on the Rutherfords. Not after her hard lesson with Dominic.
“You call Morley and tell him you have a family emergency. Your dad and I will be at your place in a couple of minutes. I have a few things I want to say to Rutherford.” Virginia’s phone went dead.
Claudia returned to the bathroom where Ryan was wiping up lather. “Where’s Jimmy?” she asked.
“Changing his shirt.”
Great. Now there would be shaving cream all over his bedroom. “I’ll check on him. My parents are coming over to meet you.” She headed for Jimmy’s room.
He was pulling on a purple sweatshirt to go with his red pants. But she didn’t have time for that battle. There was no sign of shaving cream on his face or furniture.
“Did you brush your teeth?”
He gave her a sly grin. “Yes. My toothbrush tasted funny.” He made a face, but he didn’t look damaged by finding out there were consequences for misusing his toothbrush.
“Didn’t you rinse the shaving cream off first?”
“I did. Daddy helped. But it still tasted funny.”
“I see.” She suppressed her laugh. “You still get to spend three minutes in the naughty spot thinking about the rule you broke. We don’t take or use other people’s things without permission. Do we?”
Jimmy kicked the floor. “No.” His lower lip protruded a little further.
She got him sitting quietly and ducked down the hall to find Ryan. He was wringing out Jimmy’s sodden shirt. “I guess you’ll want to wash this in the washing machine, but I got the worst out. It’s only soap, anyway.”
“Hmm.”
“I heard you tell him to sit for three. We better go see how he’s doing.” Ryan lowered his voice and whispered. “I apologize. I should have known better than to leave my shaving kit where he could reach it.”
At least he knew it was his fault. “My parents will be here in a couple of minutes. I’m going to be late. I’d better call the bank.”
“It’ll be okay. My shoulders are broad.” His voice was steady, but his face was bright red.
Jimmy was sitting quietly, and his three minutes were up. “Are you ready to apologize to Daddy for using his shaving cream without asking?” he asked.
“I’m sowwy, Daddy. But Matthew shaves with his daddy.”
Ryan held out his arms. “Consider yourself forgiven, son. But you are not to touch that stuff unless I say so. Understand?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
“We’ll discuss shaving together another time.” They rubbed noses and blinked at each other. Jimmy rubbed the side of his face against Ryan’s cheek and grinned. What the heck was up with all that nose and cheek rubbing?
Claudia pulled her phone out and had an unpleasant chat with her boss. “I’ll get there as soon as I can, sir,” she finished and hung up.
The doorbell rang. Mom and Dad must have broken all the land-speed records getting here. “I’ll get that,” she said. Jimmy ran ahead and stood impatiently while she unbolted the door and let her parents in.
The three-year-old’s presence was probably all that saved Ryan from instant annihilation. It was difficult for Dad to work up a head of steam with Jimmy babbling in his ear. Ryan held out a hand to Mom, who barely touched it. Dad kept both his arms around Jimmy, but his eyes said it all.
“Come along, Claudia,” Mom said briskly. “You can drop me at my office after you drop Jimmy at daycare. I have patients waiting.”
Claudia grabbed Jimmy’s pack, and her own lunch and followed Mom out to the car. As she buckled him into his car seat, Jimmy began to tell his Grammy
about his adventure with the shaving cream.
As they drove off, she glanced towards the lit windows of the lighthouse. No sign of foul weather showed from the outside, but Claudia had a feeling that right now it was raining pitchforks and piss all over Ryan.
“That’s quite a rock you’re wearing,” Mom remarked as they pulled onto the Old Coast Road.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Ryan~
The door closed firmly behind Claudia. Ryan took a deep breath. This was going to make basic training look like a walk in the park. “Won’t you sit down, sir?”
Tom Peterson remained standing. His blue eyes were aimed like lasers at Ryan’s face. “You needn’t think this is a social call,” he snapped.
Ryan limped to the couch and lowered himself. “With all respect, sir, I have to get off my leg. We’ve already had quite a morning with Jimmy, and I’m pretty much toast.”
It was sort of amusing to see Peterson’s wrath melt into worry. “What’s he done now?”
“Mostly it was my fault,” Ryan admitted. “I left my shaving kit in the bathroom and he helped himself. Made an unholy mess.”
“He didn’t cut himself?”
“Used his toothbrush.”
“Oh.” Tom thought. “Childish foolishness,” he pronounced.
“Yup. I should have known better. Between them my siblings have twelve cubs. Each one more curious than the next. At least when they were Jimmy’s age.” With an effort Ryan kept his voice easy.
Tom looked ready for mayhem and mischief. Ryan stretched his bad leg out on the coffee table and didn’t bother to suppress his groan.
“What the heck’s wrong with your leg?”
“Snakebite.”
“No snakes on the island.”
“That is correct, sir. I was bitten in Arizona.”
“Hmph. What is this danged business about you already being married to our girl?” But Tom’s irate demand had lost some of its force.
Cherished by the Cougar: A Shifters in Love Fun & Flirty Romance (Mystic Bay Book 2) Page 10
