by Treva Harte
“God, no.”
“You don’t want me to stop, then?”
“Jesus, don’t stop now, Boss. I’m so…fucking…close…”
A half-second later, Lowell’s howl rose up, uncertainly at first, then stronger. He bucked, almost as if to dislodge Dek, and then stiffened in place. Dek stepped back, and Lowell dropped to the ground, panting.
“Who is top dog, pup?”
“You are.”
“Fucking right. Don’t forget that.”
“You didn’t come.” Lowell turned to look at Dek. “Do you want me to—”
“I have my piece of ass in bed, just like you said. She’ll take care of me.”
Leila managed to make her legs work then. She stepped back into the shadows of the porch, creeping back for the door. For a moment she thought she saw Lowell glance her way, but he sank back to the ground without acknowledging her movement or staring in her direction again.
She ought to smack Dek for that remark. But the way she felt right now, it was use him, or wear out the vibrator. She guessed she’d best start with him.
* * * *
He passed by her as she huddled in the bed, her heart thumping, her pussy wet and aching. Passed by her with barely a sound to let her know he had returned. The sound of water hit the shower stall in their bathroom.
Theirs. Leila clenched her fists, letting the bite of pain as her nails worked into her flesh compensate for the sensations she wanted to feel. That was a lie. Everything on this ranch was his. The bathroom, the bedroom, the people. Her.
Leila stood and unbuttoned her nightie. Wearing even the thin cotton fabric was too much. She was too hot. The fabric scraped against her tight nipples as she pulled it over her head. She threw it on the floor and walked after him.
He had soaped himself up by the time she opened the shower curtain. The water rose in steamy rivulets around him.
And he was still hard. Impressively erect and ready. She watched the droplets of water slide over his penis and wanted to lick them off.
“You decided to make me wait?” she asked.
“Hell, no. At least, I sure don’t want to wait. But I was a little…dirty.” He reached out, fished her into the shower and under the warm spray.
“You have the damnedest ears and nose. And most times you seem to know exactly what I’m thinking the second I think it. So once I stopped to figure it out, I knew you had to be aware of what I’d been doing.” Leila wondered why she’d imagined she could hide from him.
“Just like you know what I’ve been up to.” He bent, sucked one sensitive nipple, and allowed just the hint of teeth to rest against the tip. Leila choked back a cry. “How are you feeling about that, woman?”
“Hot. Bothered.” She spread her legs to allow his hand better access. He immediately took advantage.
“Not just plain bothered?”
“Some. I guess. Ahh, Dek, right there.” She shifted and he chuckled. She just wasn’t sure if he was amused or not.
“Guess the full moon gets to you, too. Right?”
“You get to me. Always have.” Leila shifted back as he pressed against her, moving her toward the shower wall.
“Then you won’t mind if we—” He lifted her up without so much as a deep breath to show effort, and she curled her legs around his waist. He slid into her without finishing the sentence.
At least you won’t mind for now. Leila opened her eyes, which had squinted shut to keep the water off. She stared up at her lover’s face. She’d heard him, but he hadn’t said anything out loud. He hadn’t taken to talking to her inside her brain, had he? If he was going to say something nasty to her, he better say it out loud.
He moved, a long, sweet pull within her, and she forgot to talk. There was something else, though, something important—and then he bit her shoulder, growled into her ear. “I can’t wait, Leila. I can’t. I need you too much.”
She’d have melted then and there if she hadn’t been melting already. For an answer she hitched her legs up just a notch higher and kissed him.
Their teeth scraped against each other, harsh and greedy. She wanted blood now. Wanted to feel a little pain. Wanted to feel his need and hers.
He filled her, and the water turned cold, but his body was still hot. She gulped and let herself go under, shuddering as her climax triggered his.
“YOU LOOK SO tired, Dek.”
“Been a tiring night. You can wear a man out.” He tried to smile. But she was right. He was tired, down to his bones.
Her eyes narrowed, but she didn’t say anything. He wondered if that would really be the end of it. Most women would ask. Leila wasn’t a peaceful kind of woman. It probably meant something that she was keeping quiet now. What was she thinking?
She smiled as if she could hear him. “I was thinking before how you owned everything and everyone on this ranch, body and soul.” Leila traced an imaginary line down his face. “But seems like everything and everyone owns you, too.”
“I’m alpha. I’m responsible for it all.” He knew he hadn’t explained it to her very well. Weres never needed to explain such a fundamental idea.
She nodded. “You do all kinds of things as the alpha. Some you like; some you don’t.”
Maybe that’s why she hadn’t asked. She’d managed to reach inside him and find out for herself.
“Yeah.” Dek wondered if they could stop talking now so he could kiss her. His mate. She was perfect. They were in harmony like they were meant to be.
“But what part of tonight did you like, and what part didn’t you?”
Ow. The question he hadn’t wanted, and she sneaked it right in. He stared down at the pillow. Leila looked mussed and flushed and worn out. She should have been too exhausted to talk. He’d done his best to make her that way. Damn. The woman was tougher than you’d think.
He stroked her wild reddish curls. Leila was such a tiny thing—she almost looked like a kid, except for the woman’s build on her. Ah, she was tiny maybe, but she packed a mean sucker-punch. She could also wait forever until he coughed up an answer.
“I liked fucking you silly. I always have. Soon as we get to Houston—damn, we have to leave in just a few hours now—I’ll do it again.” He pulled her close against him and shut his eyes, hoping to shut off the questions.
He knew he hadn’t really answered her and she was still awake, but he was damn tired. So long as she was here and safe and with him, he’d let everything turn off for now. But as he drifted to sleep, he wondered why her silence made him even more uneasy than her words.
Chapter Six
The hardest thing about being isolated on the ranch—at least, if you didn’t count the enforced leisure—was the lack of women. Leila wasn’t the most social creature on earth, but she’d gotten used to being with Sasha and Thea at work, listening to gossip, commiserating on small disappointments, and celebrating small triumphs. Just being with someone who knew what she was about.
It was bad enough being the only human. She was the only grown-up female within miles—not that she could talk about Dek or what was bothering her. A girl had some pride. You couldn’t talk about not being sure why your man was keeping you or how much he really cared. Maybe it was better Sasha and Thea didn’t visit.
Leila stared down at the paintbrush. Grey had grudgingly allowed her to paint one of the smaller rooms for a study. The dingy off-white walls were being transformed into a much more cheerful pale, pale yellow. She’d move one of the dozens of computers in the house there and…and what? What did she need a study for?
“Damn it.” Leila carefully shut the paint can and dumped the brush in a jar to soak. “I just have way too much time to think.”
The boys—she’d begun to think of everyone but Dek as the boys—had gone to the city for the weekend. In her opinion, they hit the bars in El Paso a little too much for people who were supposed to be worried about safety.
She scowled as she began to scrub her hands in the guest bath off the hall. Maybe
it was just her staying home everyone was worried about. Things just weren’t fair. She wasn’t supposed to wander off, but no one else was around, either. Dek was in his office, Lin was taking a nap before dinner, and here she was with nothing to do again. Lowell had even left them some enchiladas for her to heat up while he was gone. She could whip up a dinner by herself now and then. She used to be able to take care of herself quite well not so long ago.
She stared in the mirror. Shoot, she’d managed to sprinkle yellow paint all over her T-shirt. Hissing with annoyance, she pulled it off. It was just her painting shirt, but since she was done painting for the day, she saw no reason to traipse around smearing paint over everything else.
Maybe she’d go take a shower before they ate. Or wander over to show Dek her new topless look. Or take a shower and show off her naked look to Dek. Giggling, she shucked off her bra, jeans, and panties.
The bathroom door opened.
“You should knock before—” Leila blinked. “Oh. Oh, shit!” A few humming seconds of shock froze her before she whirled, snatched a towel, and twisted it around her. Damn it for being one of those skimpy ones you used to show off for guests. Why did they have such small towels anyhow? There were never any guests to impress. “What are you doing here?”
“I live here.” Lowell looked more stunned than she felt. “I—I didn’t know. Sorry.”
His gaze had already taken a good, leisurely trip from her toes right on up, with plenty of stops along the way. But he didn’t stop staring. Leila shifted her feet. Whoa, that boy was bigger than you’d think at first. The tiny bathroom wasn’t made to hold two people. She began to feel crowded and—if she stepped back, there was nothing but wall behind her.
Back? What was she thinking? She was the alpha here.
“Damn it, Lowell!” She snatched up her clothes from the floor. “Get those eyes rolled back into your head. It’s a wonder they haven’t popped onto the floor by now. While you get yourself together, I’m going to get rid of these dirty things and take a bath. Since you seem to have forgotten your manners, at least try to act like you’re housebroken and go away.”
He shook his head just slightly, blinked, and then dropped his gaze down to his feet.
“Ye-yes, Mistress.” Lowell took the bundle from her hands without looking at her again. “I can take care of that for you. When you’re finished, dinner will be ready.”
The words were right, but the tone was just a little off. There was just a little too much awareness of her underneath the quick obedience.
“I can fix my own dinner, thanks so much!” She glared at him until he got out of her way. Then she walked, rather than scurried, down the hall to the bedroom, refusing to let herself turn bright red.
If she wanted to stroll around the house naked in front of all of them, it was her right. Certainly some pup, one barely old enough to sneak into bars, couldn’t say boo to whatever she chose to do.
Maybe she did take a little longer with her shower than she had to. That didn’t mean she was trying to avoid anything. And maybe she dressed in a black shirt and skirt, even though it was foolish to wear black in such heat, because it just looked more authoritative and adult. But she had to admit the truth when she put on her shoes. Leila stared down at her high-heeled sandals and shook her head. When she took to trying to add a few inches to her height just to show she was boss, she was embarrassed.
She hoped Lowell didn’t know how much he’d shaken her.
That was just stupid. They all lived together. Sometimes they’d see each other in ways and places civilized humans didn’t expect. Leila swallowed. All right. So they weren’t all civilized humans. Some of them were werewolves.
She took a breath, firmed her chin, and opened the door.
That didn’t mean they had to act like heathens!
When she sailed into the kitchen, ready to tell Lowell just what for, she was ridiculously deflated when she realized he’d taken her at her word. He wasn’t in the kitchen, hastily heating up dinner and setting the table. The laundry wasn’t even started.
Had he turned tail and run away for the weekend the way he had planned originally?
She wasn’t actually missing him, was she? Leila went to the kitchen window to see if his battered truck was still in the driveway. As she peered out, she heard a soft sound behind her.
She whirled. There was more silence. The kitchen clock chimed, and she jumped. Then she heard the odd, stifled sound again.
A groan?
Leila slipped a carving knife from the rack. Probably it was nothing. But it was a big house, and security systems had been known to fail…She headed toward the noise—
And realized it came from the half-open door of Lowell’s bedroom, right near the kitchen. She hesitated, her fingers on the doorknob.
Hell, he’d come barging in on her, hadn’t he?
She threw open the door.
“Fuck!” They both said it at the same time.
Maybe she should have realized—but there must still be some naïve little girl left in her after all. She’d thought of a lot of scenarios when she heard those noises, but she’d never imagined she’d see Lowell, his neck stretched back and his face as strained as if he were being tortured, both legs spread wide with his knees hooked over the arms of an easy chair, jerking off.
“With my panties!” Leila yelped. “You’re using my panties.”
“Jesus, Leila! Have some mercy here! It’s not like I’m not embarrassed enough!” He dropped her clothing to the floor. Leila noticed nothing else dropped. Dear sweet heaven, if anything, his cock was getting bigger.
“I—I—” She stuttered, looking at this very aware, very aroused Lowell. His eyes were hot and focused directly on her.
She’d glimpsed what he could be like before, with the other men, when he was getting his brains fucked out…but suddenly she realized she was closer to the real Lowell than she’d been in all the weeks he’d been carefully tending to her.
Wolves were freaking dangerous. Even the ones in sheep’s clothing. And especially one who had her underwear wrapped around his cock when he masturbated.
What the hell were you supposed to do in a situation like this?
Be alpha.
Images of three bodies in the moonlight danced in her mind.
She put her knife down on the dresser. “I guess I won’t need to cut off your cock with this, even if you are waving it around like a flag.”
Then she looked him over, just as carefully as he had her a half-hour before. He sat, frozen, and let her get a good eyeful. Damn. It wasn’t anything she’d tell him, but he didn’t have anything to be ashamed of if he did want to show off. She fought the urge to lick her lips.
She looked at his hand, still resting on a hairy thigh, close to his balls. “Looks like you still want to jack off, don’t you?”
The head of his cock turned redder. Bobbed up as if to agree.
She circled him. “And maybe you wanted to jack off in front of me, or you wouldn’t have left that door open, would you?”
He made a soft noise in the back of his throat as if to argue. She put her hand over his mouth and shook her head. “Don’t.”
“Jack off?” He whispered around her palm, his lips soft and tickling against her skin.
“Don’t talk. Don’t think. Don’t do anything except what I tell you. Understand?”
He swallowed and nodded.
“Don’t you think you need to be punished for being insolent?”
He nodded again.
Leila smiled, suddenly giddy as the rush of lust and naughtiness and power mixed inside her. She took her hand away from that warm mouth and let one nail scrape against his thigh, up higher and higher, almost to his swollen balls. Lowell shut his eyes and groaned.
“Open those eyes. And be silent.” Leila touched the liquid pooling on his cockhead, and he jumped. “You’re already damn near ready to come, and all I’m doing is telling you what an insolent, dirty boy you are. Order
ing you to obey me. I can see your punishment will have to be harsher than I thought. You might enjoy it too much otherwise.”
He shuddered, and another few drops trickled from his cock.
“How dare you sit in front of me? Get off that chair and get on your knees.”
He scrambled off the chair and down, crouched before her in a wolfish subservient pose. None of them had ever done that for her yet, even if she was considered the alpha b—female.
Another dollop of excitement twisted inside her as she looked at that tight ass in front of her. Being alpha was damn fun.
Leila sat in the chair. It was still warm from the heat of Lowell’s body. She could smell him on it. Smell his sexuality. She looked down to where he was crouched. Yes, there was definitely the scent of his obedience and desire mixed. Why did that make her so excited?
She hooked her legs open, slowly and deliberately, in the same position he’d been moments before. Another stifled groan—or was that a growl this time?—came from the crouching omega. Someone was peeking. Leila chuckled.
“So show me you can pleasure a woman and not just imagine what it’s like, Lowell. Push up my skirt.”
His hands were shaking as he reached for the material. She lifted her hips almost to his face and made sure he could get a good look.
“You can use your tongue. Just your tongue. Don’t so much as twitch with anything else.”
He looked up at her. Dear Lord. There were tears swimming in his eyes.
“I’ve never—”
“And if you make one more sound, I’ll blindfold you so you can’t see yourself doing it.” Because suddenly she had an urge to cry, too, which was all wrong for an alpha. She needed to stay the boss because…because it felt like she was shoving him into doing something powerful, something she might not be able to control if she let him free. That would never do.
The feeling fled as he jumped forward. The boy didn’t need any more urging to crane his neck forward. At the first touch of that eager, lapping tongue, she almost screamed. She fought the urge to stroke his back, the need to ease the tension in the tendons of his jaw as he worked it against her flesh.
