The woman moved out of the room and Bran followed her, making sure she followed through with what had to be done. Already some of his friends were talking with the guests making sure they said that Jess was just sick.
“I don’t know if you can hear me, Little Fawn, but I’m sorry. I was wrong to send you away. I promise if you give me another chance, you won’t regret it.” He pulled the sheet down and opened the shirt giving her body the air to heal from the wounds he had given her.
He reached up and traced the one place where Jess would carry his mark. His cat had taken advantage of the situation and marked her as his, but was she really his woman? Maverick shook his head and stood, moving out to the living room, knowing Bran was waiting for him.
* * *
Jess heard Maverick, but couldn’t move or open her eyes. Something was very wrong and he was trying to save her. Why she didn’t know, but the pain was worse than having her kids. Did she want to forgive him? Was it even worth it? After all, she was only there at the hotel for another four days and Jess didn’t even know if she was coming back afterward either.
She didn’t know what time it was, but the pain was tolerable now. Could Jess move and open her eyes? All was quiet around her, Jess blinked. it was dark, but she could see fine which was really weird. She also wasn’t in her room, but in his room and the bed was massive.
Now, could she move without throwing up or passing out? Jess needed a damn shower, she knew that. Fingers first, moved fine, toes moved, Jess lifted up her arm and nothing hurt. The big test, Jess slowly pushed herself up. There was some tenderness in her stomach, but she felt 100% better than before. She glanced down at where Maverick had bitten her.
Most of the wounds were gone, which really surprised the crap out of her. Had he changed her? Damn this was so out of one of her books and it was happening to her. She looked up and Maverick stood at the foot of the bed.
“You saved me, thank you,” she said and pulled the shirt closed under his stare. “I was poisoned?” Jess asked.
“You heard us talking? And yes, you were poisoned.” He moved to the side of the bed and sat down next to her. “You scared the living crap out of me, Little Fawn.” Maverick reached up and brushed her hair back.
“Yes, I heard everything, just couldn’t move or do anything. So there really are shifters? Am I one now?” Jess asked looking down. “Is that why I see better in the dark?”
“I don’t know. Only certain people, who have some kind of marker on their DNA, can be changed. As for shifters, there are all sorts of them. There are many different species here on Earth. You’d be surprised.” He reached up and took her hand into his, bringing it to his lips and kissing each finger.
“I owe you an apology. I jumped to the wrong conclusion earlier. Please forgive me. I was a fool,” he said, staring at her, waiting.
She shrugged. “It’s okay, it happens. I should go to my room. I need to take a shower and rest before my pitch in the morning. What time is it?” Jess asked.
“It’s about 1:00. I’d like you to stay here so I can keep an eye on you, to make sure everything is okay. Viola brought clothes for you and I have a shower. Plus, we don’t know if you can stand up yet by yourself. Are you hurting anywhere?”
He seemed sincere, but Jess was still nervous around Maverick. He was starting to mean something to her and it was only supposed to be one hot night. Something she would always remember and cherish, not something that could destroy her. “My stomach is a little tender. Did I get sick?” she frowned.
Maverick stood and pulled the covers back. “Yes, you were sick a few times,” he leaned down and scooped her up into his arms.
“What are you doing? You can’t lift me. Put me down before you get hurt.”
Jess tried to move and he growled. “If you weren’t still recovering, I’d spank you.” He lowered his head till his nose was inches from hers. “I’m carrying you to the bathroom. You are not heavy for me. Your curves, love handles, are part of you and if anyone can’t accept them, tell them to fuck off. If I’m around, I’ll tell them for you.” Maverick looked down at the marks on her breast, since the shirt she was wearing was now open again, and licked them.
Jess didn’t know what to say as he turned and headed into the bathroom. He placed her onto the counter, before turning on the shower. As soon as that was done, Maverick turned to her and sighed. “You’re still nervous about being around me?” he said.
“It’s not about being around you,” she said, shrugging off the shirt. She slid off the counter, holding on just in case, but he was there holding onto her hips. “Do you have an extra toothbrush?” she asked.
“Top drawer on the right, and if it’s not about me, why are you backing away?” he asked. H watched in the mirror as Jess opened the toothbrush and started to brush her teeth.
With the nasty taste in her mouth gone, Jess slowly turned to face Maverick. “Because I’m scared, Maverick. I’ve only been here in Vegas for three days and I’m already wishing I didn’t have to go back when I do. I have responsibilities at home. Two of them. I have a mess to clean up and I don’t even know how I’m going to do it.” She looked down as tears rolled down her cheeks.
“I can’t lean on you too much, because it will tear me up when I have to leave.” She looked up at him. “I’d love to give you everything, not have to worry about what tomorrow will bring, but I can’t. Until I make sure my children are safe and taken care of, I’ll always hold back.” She reached up and ran her finger down his cheek. “I could so get lost in your care and I’m already giving you part of me that no one has had for a long time. Plus, if I remember correctly, even you stated this wasn’t supposed to be serious, just one night. No promises.”
For a minute Maverick said nothing, but a grin suddenly appeared on his face. “You are changing, your body. I can actually smell the difference in you now. So it seems you will be part of my life longer than this week. At first, that is all I wanted.” He started to strip out of his clothes, never taking his gaze off of her. When Maverick was naked, he stepped closer again, reaching up to cup her breasts. “But now I’m not sure what I want. We will explore this that is between us?” he asked leaning down and sucking a nipple into his mouth.
“Damn,” she groaned, reaching up and grabbing onto his shoulders. The sensation was amazing, his suction was so strong, Jess knew he was leaving another mark on her body. “Are you going to put marks all over me?” Jess teased.
“Yes,” he told her, lifting her up and carrying her into the shower.
* * *
Maverick put her feet down once they were in the shower. Oh, he was going to mark every part of her body, and show her what it was to be loved properly. “Turn around. Allow me to wash your hair first.” She had short shoulder length hair, the three colors in her hair only enhanced her face. He couldn’t keep his hands off of her. She was like catnip to him and Maverick didn’t understand why.
He grabbed the bottle of shampoo behind him and flinched, noticing his claws were trying to come out. The cat inside him wanted to claim, mark and make sure she didn’t get away. Even part of his human side wanted the same thing, but it was too fast and it would scare her off.
No, he needed to take time to draw her in, show Jess she needed him as it seemed he needed her by his side. Pulling back the cat, Maverick took his time giving Jess a scalp massage as he washed her hair. By the time he was done, she was making cute little sounds.
Now, with the sponge in his hand, Maverick proceeded to scrub, massage, and clean her back, legs, and cute butt, which he, of course, left a few marks on her butt cheeks after she was clean.
“Maverick,” she whispered as he turned her to face him so he could work on the front.
“Hush, just feel and relax. This is how you should be treated every day, Little Fawn,” he told her as he lifted her right breast, soaping it up, squeezing and playing with her nipple before turning and doing it all over again to the other one.
With
his hand, he held the showerhead and he rinsed each breast, moving down to her belly, but not before he also marked the other breast since Maverick didn’t want her to be lopsided. His teeth sank in, just breaking the skin a little.
“What? Maverick what are you doing?” she groaned.
“Doing what I said I would. Now hold still.” He soaped up his hand because he was not going to use the sponge on her. He wanted his hands on her soft pussy lips, cleaning them. “Spread your legs wider and hold onto my shoulders,” he ordered.
She did so without question or remark, making his heart soar. Jess was a true submissive and needed to be guided. He separated her pussy lips, staring at the little nub there that was swollen and needy. If she was his, he’d have it pierced, a gold ring, his like the matching collar he’d put around her neck.
He shook his head, not knowing where that had come from. Maverick had promised never to settle down again, but here he was thinking about collaring her. He leaned in and licked and sucked her now clean clit, needing a taste of her.
Five minutes later, and three screaming orgasms from her, Maverick knew he would always need her taste on his lips. He stood and stared down at her as he held her up, her legs shaking. “Now you are clean.”
Her gaze focused and she smiled. “Really, really clean. Do I get to clean you?” she asked and he shook his head.
“No, I took a shower earlier, maybe another night.” He reached around her and turned off the water, before grabbing the big towel from the rack outside the shower. Wrapping her up in the towel, Maverick lifted her up and headed towards the bedroom.
He lowered her in front of the bed and proceeded to dry her off, then himself, before grabbing the hairbrush off the table. He sat down on the bed, leaning back against the headboard, pulling her up onto the bed and in front of him.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“Going to brush your hair and then we’re going to sleep. I’m going to hold you all night. Plus, you have an appointment in the morning and need the rest, but be warned, Little Fawn. Next time I won’t be so easy-going.” He started working out the knots in her hair. “Now, tell me about your children.”
Maverick listened to Jess talk about her children with such love and heartache he wanted to personally go home with her to tear her husband apart and knock her son’s head in.
“By any chance is your daughter like you?” he asked and scooted down on the bed, covering them both with the sheet. She was on her back, looking up at him, when she smiled.
“Very much in some ways, but in other ways, she scares the living crap out of me. In my time, we could trust people, now you can’t. She’s the type of person who would trust anyone along the side of the road. My son’s friends have always watched over my daughter even though she is older.”
“I think you need someone to look after you, so others don’t take advantage of you as they have been. Am I right?” he asked and tucked her closer to his body, burying his head into the crook of her neck, just taking a deep breath.
Jess turned on her side, away from him, but scooted back into his body, pulling his arm around her and holding on. “No,” she whispered. “It would destroy me if I got used to it and then were left flat. I’m too old to go through that kind of pain. I’ve made that mistake twice. Night, Maverick, and thank you again for saving me.”
He kissed her shoulder and hugged her tight. Maverick had heard the hurt in her voice and he didn’t like it at all. He closed his eyes, trying to sort out his own wayward thoughts.
On one hand he too was nervous about being committed to someone, but Maverick knew there was something more going on between them. It was more of a mating than anything else, which was really scary since a mating was for life.
* * *
Jess heard his little snores and smiled. It was time to get moving, today she had a big day ahead of her, an important one. Not to mention she needed some alone time. Her life was changing and Jess was not sure how this was going to affect her life.
Sure, she’d love to be here with this man, but really what did Jess know about him? Other than he was gorgeous, a stripper, and an actual shifter. Yea, she had a lot of thinking to do.
Careful not to wake him, Jess slid out of his grasp and out of the bed. She couldn’t believe how different, almost young, she felt as she grabbed the clothes that Viola had left for her. It was wonderful and scary.
She stepped into the living room and carefully closed the door so that Maverick wouldn’t hear her leaving. There was enough time to do her swimming, so she needed to go to her room and get her suit on.
After getting dressed and finding the elevator key, Jess carried her belongings into the elevator and pushed her floor number. A good swim this morning would help clear up her head, she hopped. But it didn’t really matter, she loved the water and swimming and had promised herself to make sure to use the pool at least once a day.
Careful not to wake up her roommates, Jess slid into the room and stopped. Viola sat in the chair sipping some coffee with Lori. “So how are you feeling?”
“I’m fine, but don’t have much time. Can we talk later?” Jess asked not really wanting to get into it with Viola.
“So did you get some?” Lori asked.
Jess laughed and shook her head. “We fooled around a little, but we were both tired. He held me all night, which really felt weird though.” Jess looked down. “He’s a good man, too bad it’s just a fling.” She grabbed he suit and moved into the bathroom.
“Do you really believe it’s a fling?” Viola asked, now at the door. Her friend was well aware of what was going on.
“I have no idea, but we all know I leave here in four days. I have no choice. I have a family to take care of and tie up some loose ends. I can’t think of anything beyond that right now. Plus, you know I don’t have the money to move here yet. Hell, I don’t even know if I’m moving here. You know Tampa is nice too, plus it has water. Now, move. I want to swim.” She waved her hand and Viola laughed, stepping back.
“Be warned, he’s going to stalk your ass. If those marks I see are from him, he’s marked his claim already.” Viola moved back into the room. “I think I’m going to go swimming too.”
Jess rolled her eyes and shut the door. “Whatever,” she said. Like he’d actually track me down. Five minutes later both Viola and she were jumping into the warm water.
“God, this feels amazing,” she said, coming up out of the water.
“Do you realize how many damn marks are on your body? Jeez woman, everyone was staring at us. Some even backed away, almost afraid of you.” Viola gave her a look.
“How much do you know about what he is?” Jess leaned over and whispered.
“About his people, not much. Did I know that they’re different?” She looked around. “Yep, and many of them have excellent hearing, so be careful here. You know you are not the same anymore?”
“Yes, and it’s scary and nice in some ways.” Jess looked at her friend. “Are you different?”
“When we have time and are away from all of this, I’ll tell you, but right now you have company coming.” She nodded behind her.
Jess didn’t even have to turn, because she knew Maverick was standing at the edge of the pool as she turned her body. “Well, I’d hoped he would have slept.”
He snorted and used his finger as to come to him. “I told you,” Viola laughed in her ear and pushed her forward
“Bitch,” she glared back at her friend, who only laughed harder.
“Jess,” Maverick called her name. His voice sent a chill down her spine.
“Could you at least look less demanding, jeez,” she mumbled and moved towards him as he sat down, his feet now in the water.
Maverick pulled her in between his legs. “You left without saying goodbye.” He reached up and grabbed on her hair, tugging her head back, to stare down at her.
“I wanted to let you sleep, plus you knew I have things to do today. We’ll see each other at Mara�
�s later.”
“But what if I wanted to go with you? See what this convention is all about.” He leaned down and nipped he lip. “I didn’t get my kiss this morning.” Maverick covered her mouth. His kiss was not gentle, it was one of those punishing kisses she had written about, but never experienced, and loved it.
The way he took control, his tongue slid into her mouth, dueling with hers. She didn’t know how long they were together when she heard someone.
“You are drawing attention,” his friend said as Maverick drew back, holding her gaze.
“Go swim. I’ll wait for you,” he said and turned to the man that had spoken.
She shook her head and dunked under the water, spinning and pushing away from the wall of the pool. Jess came up to see Viola next to her, swimming.
“I told you so,” she said making her want to kick Viola.
“Shut up and let me finish this,” Jess grumbled. She did laps, not even bothering to count, when strong arms reached down and pulled her out of the water when she reached the one end.
“What the hell?” she glared at Maverick. “Why did you do that?”
“Your appointment is in 20 minutes,” Maverick said.
“Really, it’s been that long? Well thanks,” she tried to move back, but he kept his arm around her, reaching down and grabbing her towel and wrap. “You really want to tag alone with me today?” Jess asked, moving back towards the hotel.
“Yes, I wouldn’t have said so if I didn’t mean it. I’ve cleared my schedule for the day to spend it with you.” Maverick nodded to two men who stepped into the hotel before them.
“You have guards?” she asked going to the front elevators, but Maverick pulls her towards the back private ones.
He leaned over and whispered. “We have guards until Derek is found. He’s already had someone try and poison you, it’s not going to happen again.” The door opened and all four of them stepped into the private box.
Left My Heart in Sin City Page 4
