Stranger Creatures 2: Bear's Edge

by Christina Lynn Lambert

  “I know you said you were handling everything with the website being hacked, but tell me the truth—how bad is it?”

  She took a deep breath, and her shoulders slumped. She bit her lip before speaking. “Pretty bad. Worse than I let on when I texted you. Hunter called me and demanded I admit to being some magical mythical creature or some bionic Ghost-in-the-Shell type of superhuman. Hunter’s gone pretty nuts, and he said he wanted to share the information with the world to benefit humanity. He told me he could do anything with computers and to call him when I wanted it to stop. Unfortunately, he didn’t define ‘it,’ so there’s nothing on the recorded conversation to implicate him other than the fact that he sounds like a deranged fool. But you know, even if I was something other than just a normal woman, if I gave out my secrets to the world, do you really think something like that would be used to help everybody, or would it just be regulated and sold at the highest price to make the best profit, the way we already do with medicine and health care?”

  “I honestly don’t know. I have never believed the best of people in general, although a few people along the way have shown me there are good people in the world. But there’s so much more bad than good.”

  She nodded. “Yeah, I hate that I’m probably right. Even if he finds what he’s looking for, what if the monsters he’s seeking out aren’t really monsters at all, just different?”

  The bear loved her for asking that question. Shayla had talked of a time in her life when she’d been shallow and self-absorbed, too focused on her career, but Grant knew she couldn’t have been that bad. The woman in his arms was smart and capable, but she was also kind and thoughtful.

  “How badly did he screw with Brass Cat?”

  “Bad enough that I could lose the business if I can’t stop him. We’ve lost a few clients because someone threatened them. We’ve lost most of our new clients because they were sent false information, and data that says we’re basically sucky, entry-level screwups. He’s screwed with my bank account and credit cards too. I can’t prove he did that yet, but I’m working on fixing the problem. What I’d really like to do is torture him into fixing everything, then leave him comatose on the steps of a hospital in a third-world country. And yes, I know that’s wrong, but I can still fantasize about it.”

  Grant had to laugh at that. “Damn, baby, I thought the hacking situation might be worse than you were letting on. Your texts about it were vague, and nobody would tell me much of anything.”

  “That’s my doing. I didn’t want to worry you when you were dealing with your mom’s death. It didn’t seem right.”

  He kissed her forehead, blowing out a breath in relief. He could put to rest the fears that she didn’t think he was worth telling or that she didn’t trust him enough to be straight with him.

  He grabbed her shoulders, forcing her to meet his eyes. “I need you to understand something.” Her eyes got round at the intensity of his voice. Fuck it, though; she needed to hear this. “I told you once before, I’ll always be there for you. It wasn’t just an empty promise. And it doesn’t matter if I’m four miles away or halfway around the world. When you need me, I will have your back. I won’t let Hunter get near you. I will always do what I can to keep you safe.”

  And he would. Whatever it took. If that made him violent, so fucking what? Maybe he should be worried about that, but thoughts of crazy fucking Hunter hurting Shayla worried Grant far more.

  Her body sagged into his, and she sniffled and nodded. They were both exhausted. The paperwork would still be on his desk in the morning. The hacker situation would be there in the morning. “Come on, let’s get out of here.” She protested his move to get up, and Grant gave up the pretense that he was all right. “Come home with me. I missed you. I need you near me.”

  “Okay, but let’s go to my place. I need to check up on Stray Kitty and feed her.”

  “Whatever you want, baby.”

  “Whatever I want, huh?” The sexy flash in her eyes and the honeysuckle scent of her desire were pretty clear indicators that neither of them would be getting much sleep.

  Chapter Eleven

  “We can take my truck.” Grant preferred to ride in his vehicle since his head practically touched the ceiling in her two-door coupe. “I just need to make a quick stop on the way to your place unless you have protection there, ’cause I don’t have anything with me.”

  “I didn’t really know what kind to buy. I wasn’t sure if all extra-large-size condoms were really the same, or if you needed something specific for your enormous package.” Shayla giggled and stroked him over his clothes. He caught her hand.

  “Keep that up, and we’re not gonna make it to the pharmacy,” he growled.

  “That could be fun too.”

  “Don’t test me.” His words came out rough and strangled. She didn’t look a bit scared or put off. Instead, she cupped his balls as he drove. She shouldn’t tempt him when he was so close to the edge.

  The clerk at the pharmacy scanned up four things: a can of cat food, two bottles of cherry soda, and an economy-sized box of extra-large condoms. No simple boxes of six packets on the shelf for his size, apparently. If he were by himself, buying the huge box would have been no big deal, just a guy stocking up on protection, but now Shayla was standing next to Grant while the clerk in an Atari T-shirt and knitted beanie smirked and put the box of extra-large rubbers in a bag. The gigantic box of condoms probably made it look like Grant planned to take Shayla hostage for a week of fucking. Poor Shay. He hoped she wasn’t too embarrassed.

  “Have a nice night, y’all,” the hipster prick called out as Grant and Shayla made their way out the door.

  “We will!” Shayla called back.

  Grant nearly choked. So she wasn’t embarrassed, not about the giant box of rubbers or taking the chance on being seen by any random person in town while Grant paid for them. Every day he discovered something new to like about her. The drive to her place felt like an eternity. He needed to be inside her already. Finally they stood in her kitchen. He kissed the back of her neck and teased her nipples through her shirt while she used the can opener on the lid of the cat food.

  “She won’t eat the other kind I’ve been giving her. Maybe this kind will be better.”

  He nearly gagged at the stink of the food Shayla spooned into a dish. “I wouldn’t count on it. That stuff smells like death warmed over in gravy.” His bear senses were working overtime, and he took a step back to get away from the stink of the slimy slop heaped in a pink plastic bowl.

  “Oh, knock it off. This stuff is not that bad.”

  He loved her laugh. There was happiness in that light, airy sound, and he wanted to keep her happy. Grant intended to make Shay forget all the shit she was dealing with, even if only for a little while. He had felt better the second she’d come into his office offering a takeout box and a kiss to soothe his screwed-up state of mind. He heard her soft steps coming back into the kitchen.

  SHAYLA SQUEALED IN delight when Grant picked her up and carried her to the bedroom. He sat her in the middle of her bed and stripped off her clothes so fast she was surprised everything wasn’t torn. He started to unbutton his dress shirt, but she caught his hands in hers.

  “Oh no, I get to undress you.”

  The look he gave her was one of pure frustration and need, but he let her take off his shirt, button by button, then kiss his back and nip at his chest. When she commanded him to lie back, he complied, and she unbuckled his belt. One sharp pull tugged the leather belt from his pants, and she wondered what the thin black leather would feel like binding her wrists and holding her still. Her heart beat double time when he looked from the belt to her and cursed softly. Was he curious too, or had he already experienced things she’d only read about?

  She unbuttoned his pants and freed the erect cock waiting for her touch. The cream dripping from the slit was for her, and she licked it up, then sucked the whole head into her mouth. She was too wet and needy to play for long. Grant
reached for a foil packet and tore it open. She practically drooled when he slid the latex down his long shaft, then gave himself a few strokes. His big hand gliding down his arousal was a sexy sight. Later, she wanted to watch him take himself over the top. Maybe make a video, if he’d let her. But not right now.

  He guided his cock into her pussy, and she sighed. “I need this. I need you inside me,” she breathed, her voice desperate. He pulled her down to him for a kiss that started out soft and turned full-on hot and hard, demanding and unyielding. The possessive slide of his tongue around hers made her cling tighter to him. “Deeper,” she begged, and he obliged, entering her all the way and cursing before thrusting back inside.

  Shayla never imagined sex could feel this good, but with Grant, even a simple kiss could make her whimper and want and need. The way Grant made love to her forced her out of her head and into the present, and when he dug his fingers into her thighs, she wanted more. She wanted to try new things with him. Some of the things she’d been thinking about lately had her out of her mind with desire. Restraints, whipped cream, and nipple clamps—oh my!

  Grant’s body was tense and controlled. His muscles were taut under her hands as he thrust into her at a slower pace than a moment before. Maybe she needed to get him out of his head too. He stopped moving, so she looked up at him.

  “Shay, baby. Get ready.” His voice was a hoarse, commanding whisper at her ear. Her pussy got tighter.

  “I’m ready. Fuck me, Grant. Let me feel how deep your cock can go.”

  He cursed and pulled out of her, only to turn her over onto her stomach.

  “Up on your knees,” he growled.

  She was happy to comply. His gripped her thighs tight and hauled her against his chest. She moaned when he entered her from behind. His strong fingers working her clit and the thick ridge of his cock dragging furiously in and out against her most perfect spot drove her so high she didn’t even care if she made way too much noise.

  His shoulders shook, and she knew he was still holding back. Did he want to go harder? Was he trying not to feel so much? She could understand that. There were feelings between them neither could voice just yet, and Shayla pressed her back against his chest and caught his hand in hers, trying to covey how she felt without saying it out loud.

  “Goddamn, your ass is so fucking fine,” he groaned and smacked her right butt cheek. The sting was so light. Not enough.

  “Again,” she begged.

  “No.”

  “Yes, and do it harder,” she commanded him.

  He stopped, and his muscles tensed. “Don’t fucking tempt me, baby doll.”

  “Do it. I’m stronger than I look.”

  Grant slapped her other butt cheek, not a full-force smack, but harder than before, and then she knew Grant might indulge her in the things she wanted to try. Or maybe he’d think her secret wishes were too much? She brought his hands to her nipples, and when he pinched them, she moaned and shifted her body, searching…

  “What do you need, baby doll? Tell me, and I’ll give it to you.”

  She bowed her head. “I need, I need…”

  “Tell me, baby. If you need me to stop. I’ll stop. If you need something else, tell me. Any pleasure I can give you, I want to give you. I want to make you crazy for me.”

  “Be rough with me.”

  “Like this?” He pinched her nipple, rolling it between his fingers, then kneading the sensitive tip, tugging and finally squeezing.

  “Yes. God, yes!”

  Grant pulled out of her, and before she could even protest, he pushed her over onto her back and drove his huge dick inside her again, straight to the hilt. His kiss was crushing and brutal, and she loved it. She scored her nails down his back, making him hiss. His scars—she’d forgotten.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you,” she whispered as she smoothed her hand down over the flesh she’d torn. Tears formed in her eyes.

  “Don’t be sorry. I fucking love it. I…” He stopped talking and kissed her again. She dug her nails into his thighs and begged him not to stop.

  “Never,” he promised. His rhythm got faster, more out of control, and the heat of him inside her, pulsing and wild with need, drove her higher. When the pleasure blasted through her body, Grant shouted her name, and his body shook with the force of their shared moment. He held her to him, his breathing uneven, his gaze soft. She would never get enough of him. Grant took care of the condom, then came back to her.

  After snuggling together for a few minutes and trying to find the energy to move, they did their duty to the water-conservation movement by taking a shower together. Grant washed her hair and soaped up her back, massaging along the way. She sighed in delight at his big hands kneading her butt cheeks, until he stopped.

  “I was too rough with you. You’re gonna have my fingerprints on your ass for days. I don’t ever want to hurt you, baby.” The shame and tension in his voice hurt her heart.

  “If I didn’t like what you were doing to me, I would have told you to stop. Besides, I like the idea of having your mark on me.”

  Grant caught the back of her head and kissed her hard before washing the rest of her body with gentle hands. Shayla returned Grant’s favor of a foamy rubdown, but she couldn’t reach his gorgeous mop of shaggy dark hair, so he used her rose-scented shampoo to lather his locks. As the rest of the soap ran down his back, she rubbed his neck and shoulders. He let out a heavy sigh when she got to his biceps.

  “Gosh, you’re tight,” she exclaimed at the bunched-up muscles.

  “So are you.”

  “I meant your muscles. But, um, thanks?” Shayla suddenly felt a little shy there under the shower, the water running down her hair, plastering it to her back, leaving her in front of Grant, naked. She touched her cheek. In the shower, she was stripped bare, with no cleverly applied makeup to distract, no soft curls or bun with jeweled bobby pins to say yeah, I have a couple of scars, but look at how stylish I am.

  Would Grant look at her and think “what a shame, I bet she used to be beautiful before the bombing, before glass and metal and dead bodies piled up on her”? Quit it! She shut down that line of thought, trying to push it straight through the bottoms of her feet and down the drain. My scars are not that bad anymore. Still, though, she was beyond naked as she stood in front of him. Illusions didn’t stand up to soap and water and a naked body. Unless one had Jedi mind power, and she was not signed up for that class at the gym.

  THE WATER RUNNING down Shayla’s breasts while he massaged her back had Grant feeling a little hungry. After taking each pink nipple tip into his mouth and sucking until she cried out, he dropped to his knees and started to kiss the neatly trimmed little blonde patch of hair at her mound. Shay whimpered a little and pushed at his shoulder.

  “Sore?”

  “A little.” She looked at him regretfully. “Give me a few hours?”

  “Take all the time you need.” He stood and kissed her, not the smartest idea since her kiss made his dick stand at attention, the head already beading with slick, salty drops. He was so ready for her, and he couldn’t hide his need when it was sandwiched between them.

  “Turn around and close your eyes,” she whispered into his ear.

  Before he knew it, Shay had pressed herself against his backside and reached around from behind to grasp his rigid cock in her soapy hand. She brought him to the edge and stopped, twice, before he growled, wrapped his hand over hers, and tightened his grip. “Don’t tease.”

  “Then put your hands against the wall and tell me exactly what you want.”

  “Fuck,” he groaned out, pressing his hands to the shower tiles. “Grip me harder.” She tightened her grip. “Balls too. Don’t be gentle.” When she used her other hand to massage his balls in a tight grip, his breathing quickened.

  “What else do you like?”

  “I like your nails digging into me.” She dug her nails into his back, and his cock pulsed. He groaned. “I like smacking your sexy thig
hs and pinching your nipples. But what I want from you is maybe too much, and you don’t have to do any of it.”

  “I want to hear it. Tell me. There are some things I want too, but you’re up first. You’re braver.”

  He laughed at that. “You really want to know?”

  “So badly,” she begged him in a criminally sexy voice.

  “I want to tie you to the bed and torture you with my tongue and play with toys that make even the sex shop owners blush.” He heard her intake of breath and smelled the scent of her desire permeating the air—thick and sweet enough to make his mouth water. Her strokes got quicker. “And soon I want to fuck your ass while I pleasure your pussy with that big-ass dildo you keep in your nightstand.”

  “You’ll be the first to have my ass.”

  A curse and a growl rumbled from his chest. “Looking forward to it. Your turn.”

  “I want to tie you up and torture you with kisses and suck you off so slowly you nearly go insane from wanting inside me. Then I’ll let you free and make you chase me down. When you catch me, I’ll tell you not to hold back anymore.”

  Her words and her tight strokes down the length of his shaft, along with the bite of her nails against his chest, stoked his desire until the dam cracked open. Grant shuddered as bursts of white heat hit the shower wall. He turned to face her, and Shay wrapped her arms around him. He looked down into her blue eyes. “I’m so glad I met you.”

  She laid her cheek against his chest. He kept an arm around her waist and stroked her back with the other arm. They stood just like that, in their own bubble, until she shivered. The water had finally run cold. They toweled off and lay in bed. Shayla didn’t even seem to care that her hair was still damp. She curled up into Grant’s warm body, and he held her there.

  “In another week or two, when everything’s closer to being fixed at Brass Cat, let’s go somewhere together for a few days. Just you and me. There are some things I want to—” He stopped short. Since she hadn’t run screaming for the hills when he’d slapped her ass or admitted he wanted inside it, he needed to shut up while he was ahead. But if she’d liked what he’d done, the roughness, the little bit of pain, then was it really wrong? She seemed to have some fantasies of her own that were not so vanilla, and she’d been pretty shy about them at first too. He hadn’t badgered her or pushed her to do anything. Maybe that distinction made him different from his violent father. Shayla wanted a little of what he wanted. The bear’s snide told ya, motherfucker went unanswered.