He roamed the thick, dense forest roaring loud enough to wake the dead. He lost all sense of reasoning, prowling through the forest in search of prey. The entire night became silent, the forest absorbing his roars as he prowled mindlessly through it until the last trace of passion fueling his transfiguration faded from his veins.
He finally came to, lying naked beneath a large oak tree.
He groaned as he rose creakily to his feet He was due at a charity function and he knew Lisa would be there. He had chosen to attend the function deliberately even before they’d met at the park. Tonight had been his night to meet her in person. There was no help for it, he would simply arrive late.
***
Raven Kindersley was late! Lisa had never met the man, but he was the guest of honor. Heck, the entire charity ball was his idea. Lisa searched her memory for what she had heard about the guy but all she came up with was, ‘business shark’.
It seemed to her that a person who was a shark would be time conscious. Perhaps he had had a change of heart? Panic knotted her insides as she thought of this. Most people here had come because they had heard that a deep pocket like Kindersley was going to be there too. Heck the ball had been named for him!
What if he stood them up? More panic coursed through her and her palms began to sweat. She unobtrusively moved closer to an air vent, plastering a smile onto her face as she greeted the next person.
“Lisa? There’s someone I think you have been dying to meet,” Melissa Stilwell, Raven’s PA said in a sing-song voice.
He was here then. Lisa turned around, a practiced smile on her face. She froze immediately she caught sight of the man towering over Melissa; that was the guy from the park!
She saw the brief flash of recognition in his eyes right before he smiled at her and damn near stopped her heart. He was an extremely attractive man but when he smiled like that he was downright dangerous. If she had thought he was handsome before, when he smiled he was an absolute knockout.
She swallowed nervously as he stretched out a hand, “Miss Fuller? A singular honor.”
“You have the advantage of me. I believe we met earlier today at the park. Thank you again Mr…?”
“Kindersley,” he said as he took her hand in a surprisingly gentle grasp for such a large man. “Raven Kindersley.”
A jolt of electricity shot through her from their joined hands and she jumped, before nervously withdrawing her palm from his grasp. Her surprised gaze met his and she couldn’t help noting he didn’t look a bit surprised as he gazed steadily back at her.
A faint blush stained her cheeks as she grinned up at him, “Mr Kindersley. Can I just say how honored we are at Forwardaid for your kind donations. The children have benefitted greatly. Melissa mentioned something about an idea you were proposing for Forwardaid?”
His strange grey eyes roved over her features, touching slightly on her mouth before moving down the rest of her body. She was dressed in a long, purple-colored elegant gown. The halter neck of the gown revealed the smooth skin of her neck and shoulders in a tantalizing expanse of flesh that made him clench his fists in his pants pockets as he strove for control. Her lips were ruby-red and slightly puckered as she smiled at him. Her breasts were so big he was certain she had to be at least a 38D. She was a big woman, but she was so damn sexy it was all he could do to keep his hands away from her. Her ass swelled invitingly beneath the smooth silk of her dress; he got hard just looking at it. His first instinct was to ravish her, right there. But he couldn’t do that to her. She deserved candles and flowers and romance. He couldn’t just pounce on her and start rutting!
If the glances coming their way were any indication, he wasn’t the only one who thought she was sexy as hell, he noted jealously.
“It’s my pleasure ma’am,” he assured her smoothly as he offered her his arm and guided her to their seats.
There were many events lined up including auctions, charity fashion shows, awards; but all through the night, Lisa was completely aware of the handsome debonair man sitting beside her. Power clung to him like a second skin but he was also gracious, polite and unfailingly courteous even to waiters. He was a perfect gentleman, she decided.
Every last nerve in her body was on high alert. She was so attuned to him that by the end of the night she was tired, deliciously so. She felt invigorated though, every last one of her senses on high alert as she smiled at every one and studiously avoided the piercing grey gaze of the silent, powerful man beside her.
She stumbled to her feet, aware that a few strands of her hair were escaping her elegant coiffure as she finally steeled herself to face him and bid him good night. His gaze clashed with hers, filled with such heat and unexpected passion that she gasped aloud.
“Miss Fuller, would you care to join me for a late glass of champagne to celebrate the success of this night and the possibility of future collaborations?”
Well how could she refuse when he put it like that?
“I don’t have much of a head for champagne,” she said weakly.
“Coffee then,” he murmured, smiling disarmingly at her as he proffered his arm.
A hot blush stained her cheeks and she ducked her head in embarrassment. She had never been one to blush, not since high school anyway. And suddenly she was blushing like a schoolgirl? He also seemed like someone she should remember, but from where?
She let him guide her towards the coat area and as she was picking up her coat, he went outside, apparently to make certain the car was being brought around.
Melissa appeared at her elbow, her voice breathless with excitement as she whispered, “You seem to be getting along famously with Raven.”
Lisa fought down another wave of blushes as she said noncommittally, “He seems easy to get along with.”
“Oh I think it’s more than that. No one has ever seen him pay any woman more than a passing attention. Heck I was even thinking he was gay or something. But since he clapped eyes on you, he hasn’t taken them off. The entire show he kept watching you with such hungry”
Melissa cut herself short, and then threw a quick glance at a spot over Lisa shoulder before she said, “Pardon me.”
Lisa didn’t have to turn around to know Raven was heading towards her. Every last hair on her neck stood on high alert. The effect he had on her!
“Ready to go?” his deep voice said at her elbow and she turned to face him with a practiced smile that faltered a little when he smiled back at her, his eyes crinkling at the edges. He was so handsome she wouldn’t have believed it if she hadn’t seen him for herself.
CHAPTER THREE
Lisa nervously bit down on her lip as Raven pulled into the garage of his house which had turned out to be a mansion set on a huge sprawling estate that had to be the stuff of fantasies.
She was also acutely aware that she must seem painfully gauche and naïve to him as she openly stared around at the opulence of her surroundings. The silence was eerie; a huge mansion like this was like something made for the Dukes and lords of the Victorian ages to be filled with at least a thousand house guests.
It was completely empty, not a soul in sight, she noted with a shiver. God what if there was something wrong with him? How well did she know him? He could be a serial killer for all she knew.
“Are you alright? You seem cold,” he observed.
“Nah,” she said with a nervous laugh as he guided her into the biggest living room she had ever clapped eyes on.
He stared at her silently for a beat and then his grey eyes held hers with open honesty as he said, “You’re safe here. If you will believe nothing else, believe that. You have nothing to fear from me,” he assured her.
She swallowed. Now he could read thoughts? Awesome!
The kitchen area was well-lit and she watched as he made preparations for coffee, his hands sure and steady. He certainly knew his way around a kitchen which was surprising given how rich he was. He could probably afford to hire a million cooks!
“I ga
ve them the week off,” he said, his back to her.
Lisa stared at the back of his head. He really could read minds, she decided.
She plucked a strawberry off the fruit bowl in the centre of the table, her eyes trained on Raven as she asked, “So, why did you bring me here?”
He turned to face her and whatever he had been going to say died on his lips, his silver gaze arrested on her lips and the strawberry fruit poking tantalizingly between them. She gulped when she noticed him watching her and flicked out the tip of her pink tongue to lick her lips and the juice of the succulent fruit. It was the singular most erotic thing he had ever witnessed and the top of his head almost came off, even as his dick pressed all the more insistently against his fly.
He growled, barely aware that he was moving as he crossed the space between them in one rapid stride and hauled her into his arms as his lips descended.
His tongue delved passionately into her mouth, sending tendrils of pleasure shooting through her as his hands grabbed her fleshy behind, digging erotically into the soft flesh. He caressed her buttocks, stroking and patting, before moving one hand around to cup her breast.
Lisa moaned, opening her mouth to stroke Raven’s tongue with hers. He tasted of peppermint and chocolate all at once; he tasted like all her fantasies come to life. Her small hands encircled the back of his neck and she stroked through his thick, rich mane of hair as he deepened the kiss.
His arousal swelled insistently, making him so hard he actually hurt.
Raven grunted as he licked her lips before stroking them with his tongue too. His mouth left hers to wander down her neck sending shafts of pleasure down her spine.
Lisa gasped and clung harder to him, her pulse racing as he drove her wild with his mouth. Her hand trailed down to stroke his hard, jutting manhood and she felt a delicious thrill of feminine apprehension. He was so very huge! Would he fit into her like that?
Suddenly, he growled against her lips; a distinctly unnatural sound and then he tore free of her and wrenched his lips from hers, his chest heaving with the force of his breaths.
“Raven?” she said warily.
His teeth were clenched, his palms fisted, every vein on his neck stood out in stark relief as he visibly strove for control.
“Are you alright?” she asked, laying a hesitant hand on his strongly corded biceps.
Sweat poured from him in torrents as his breath hissed out from between his teeth. He seemed to be in pain, she observed in confusion.
“Was it something I did?” Lisa asked, close to tears now as she watched him. She was repulsive! She was so fat and repulsive that just kissing her had almost sent the guy into a seizure; and not in a good way.
“Raven” she began, laying a hand on his chest.
His eyes flew open. His pupils were dilated so much they seemed almost like tiny pinpricks in the middle of his eyes.
“Get out!” he spat, his face contorted in what she thought of as contempt.
Raven was fighting hard to hold in the beast, that wild, untamed part of him that her kisses had unearthed. But he couldn’t very well tell her that.
Her spine straightened in affront, “Can I at least call a cab? Your place is in the middle of no”
He tossed the keys to his car at her, cutting her short, “Get out Lisa. Now! Just go!”
With one last glare at him, Lisa turned on her heel and unhurriedly strode through his front door and out of his life.
She didn’t let the tears fall until she had managed to gain the sanctuary of her bed. Then she opened the floodgates and cried.
She cried for herself; how could she have been stupid enough to think a man like that would want her. She cried for him; how could he have been so mean after leading her to believe he was nice? She cried for herself some more; no one could ever really love her as she was.
She rose to stare at her reflection in the mirror. She was overweight, she thought, curling her lips contemptuously. She was curvy and beautiful, she knew, but sometimes she wished she could shed some weight. She hadn’t jogged since the last time she had run into that beast on the trail.
A cold finger of fear pressed down her back; why was she thinking of that now? She had buried that thought and pretended it never happened.
She stared at her reflection one more time. It really wouldn’t do to pretend she was happy with her weight. Perhaps it was time to start working out again, she thought.
With a sigh, she flopped onto her bed again and slowly drifted off to sleep even as silent tears leaked from the corners of her eyes at the thought of a tall, handsome man with silver eyes with flecks of gold in them.
CHAPTER FOUR
“Lisa? You haven’t responded to the email from Kindergarteners,” Leslie Halliday called from her desk through the open door of Lisa’s office.
Lisa rolled her eyes. The woman was a walking organizer.
“Will do, Leslie,” she yelled just to get her off her back as she pressed ‘send’ on her reply to the said email.
Another beep drew her attention to a new email; this one was from Raven Kindersley! Lisa’s hand trembled over her mouse. She had not seen hide nor hair of him in the three weeks since she had left his home after he treated her so abominably.
She had tried to return his convertible to his office but had been advised by a stern, unsmiling dragon-lady that while Mr Kindersley was out of the country, he had left strict instructions that “no one was to receive that car or any other alleged possessions of his from her or anyone else”. It had sounded official enough to make her dizzy.
She had tried returning it to his mansion but there had been no way of getting past the damn gates.
She opened the email. It was a terse, one-sentenced invitation requesting that she personally bring three kids from the orphanage for a weekend retreat at Raven’s mansion. He hadn’t even had the courtesy to sign it himself but had instead handed it off to his secretary.
“You miserable oaf! I will send the three kids alright, but someone else will bring them. You can bet your ass on that,” she shouted at the computer screen.
Reason intruded and she buried her hands in her face, laughing at herself. She was shouting at her computer screen! It didn’t get much crazier than that, and in her book, it was all Raven’s fault. First he had made her feel like the sexiest woman alive. Then he had acted as though he couldn’t get enough of her. Then, just when she was starting to relax around him, he’d rejected her for no apparent reason she could see and brought all her insecurities rushing to the fore.
Her phone rang almost at once and she jerked it out of the cradle and slapped it to her ear, wincing against the impact.
“Lisa?” a hesitant feminine voice said in her ear.
Lisa’s chin wobbled but she staunchly told herself she was not disappointed that Raven wasn’t the caller.
“Yes?” she snapped ill-naturedly.
“Um, this is Melissa. I just wanted to verify your response to our email.”
Lisa rolled her eyes. Efficient didn’t begin to describe good old Melissa, she thought uncharitably.
Her hands tightened around the phone in her hand.
“I’ll send the kids,” she got out through gritted teeth.
“I’m sorry Lisa. But Mr Kindersley also stipulated that the kids will only be welcomed and allowed free rein on the premises if they are accompanied by someone who has been there at least once. I believe you are the only person at Forwardaid who has been to his home?”
Lisa swallowed down nausea at having to face the son-of-a-bitch again. She knew exactly what he was doing too. She closed her eyes, pictured the kids’ happy squeals as they chased each other around and around the mansion. The kids won; she would do anything for them, even face a man she now loathed.
With a sigh, she announced, “We’ll be there. But there are ten kids in my specific charge. I would have to come with all of them.”
“Done,” Melissa crowed triumphantly down the phone line right before
she hung up.
***
Raven Kindersley smiled across the table at Lisa, but she met his gaze with a gimlet-eyed stare that told him she still regarded him with about the same level of affection she would reserve for Jabba the Hutt. His house was awash with domestic staff tonight because he knew he would need as many hands as possible to help with the ten kids she had chosen to inflict upon him. The moment he clapped eyes on them, he knew she had chosen the ten most ill-mannered children she could find from the orphanage deliberately.
All night she had been waiting for him to lose his cool, he knew. He grinned to himself as a flying piece of egg hit her square in her chin. The culprit, a bright-eyed tow-headed seven-year-old boy contritely bowed his head in remorse that lasted about two seconds before he was happily throwing more food with the others.
He raised his glass to her in a mock toast and watched the red color steal up her cheeks in self-deprecating humor.
She relented after that and stopped glaring at him every five minutes.
When the kids had wrought their own fair share of damage, they clambered up to bed noisily calling out cheerful goodnights that made Raven grin.
“Will you come down to my study after you’ve tucked them in?” he asked Lisa huskily, holding her wide gaze with his.
She was beautiful tonight in a long gypsy skirt that emphasized the roundness of her hips and a scallop-necked half-top that revealed a tantalizing glimpse of riveting cleavage, smooth unlined skin at her waist, and made his fingers curl into fists at his side. The faint smell of jasmine wafted up from her and assaulted his senses.
“I’ll come right down,” she promised with a smile that hid many secrets.
Raven strolled into his study, wound up. He hadn’t been able to sit still since he left Lisa on the staircase. He wanted to make love to her; he wanted to love her until the world knew she was his! But in the weeks he had been apart from her, he had learned that he had to tell her who he was. It was the only way to keep Ramsey and his pack from hurting her. They were werebears just like him, but they all resented him because he had chosen a life of exclusion away from the rest of the pack. Once they learned he had marked a human as his mate they had determined to hurt her. They would try for the last time on the 17th of May which happened to be tomorrow. After that, they were packing up and leaving the area. Inviting her to his house for the weekend had been the only way to save her.
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