Mason clamped shut his jaw, knowing the final decision wouldn’t be his to make. Still, the thought of Bobby covering her made him want to spit.
“You don’t like it, Mason?” TruJean asked, a glimmer of suspicion shining in his eyes. “You got any better ideas? You can’t pursue her. You have other duties to attend. You’re the sheriff, and we’ll need you to keep watch. Make sure no more outsiders find their way into da bayou.”
Mason shoved up from his chair. “Your decision’s nothin’ to me. Do what you think’s best. But I want no harm to come to her personally.”
He left without another word, knowing by their silence that he’d betrayed the depth of his interest in the woman. What they didn’t know was that he had already distracted her. Already assured her ultimate seduction.
He’d marked her with his kiss.
*
DiDi opened her eyes in the darkness. The air was hot and humid—hard to breathe. Her tongue felt thick. Her head muzzy. When she swung her legs off the bed and tried to stand, she swayed.
Am I still dreaming?
Lord, the dream she’d left was one she hadn’t wanted to end.
Hard, hot lips searing a path from her breasts to her belly and below…
She touched herself through her panties, found the cotton crotch soaked, and she moaned. Her pussy throbbed in time with her heartbeats. Just a flick or two of her thumb would set her off, but she wanted so much more.
She wanted what the dream had promised—a dark-haired man seeking her pleasure with devastating resolution. Only, which one? A voice had crooned to her, but had the sound been a purr or a rumble?
DiDi raked a hand through her hair then shook her head. The muzziness didn’t abate. The sense of unreality, of the floor shifting beneath the bed, of the walls closing in, didn’t fade.
Nothing felt real. Maybe she still dreamt or was drugged. And because she was having this conversation with herself, she thought it must be a dream. A really wet, confusing dream.
When she flicked on the lamp on her bedside table, the room tilted crazily, and the light only emphasized the deeper shadows surrounding her. And like a dream, she felt the urge to run, because she knew instinctively that danger stalked her.
She stumbled toward the door and swung it open, stepping outside. The parking lot outside her room was the same, but slightly off, darker than it should be. The neon “Vacancy” sign was brighter, casting out red rays like long, curling fingers—toward her.
Gasping, she spun toward her door, but a sound cut through her fear—the snarl of a large cat from somewhere in the forest beyond the parking lot. Then another snarl sounded, a little more distant. Had the creature moved that quickly away? Or was there a second animal?
The throaty screech of a cat was cut off, followed by low growls—one squall answering another.
By the growing intensity, she knew the cats were battling. DiDi hesitated, bracing a hand against the wall. Unaccountably, heat flooded her body at the thought of the beasts slashing at each other with claws and teeth, because she knew the fight centered on her.
And since it was just a dream, why not follow the sounds? She could wake up whenever she wanted. DiDi ran into the forest, following the snarls that increased in volume, telling her she was on the right track. Her bare feet made no sound. Her breaths were shallow and even. Sweat beaded on her forehead and trickled between her breasts.
She’d removed her bra when she’d crawled into bed after Mason left her. Had pulled off her shorts and now ran in only her tank and panties. The fact she was thinking about Mason had her hoping she could paint him into this dream.
A moment later, she ran into a clearing and hesitated. Moonlight filtered through the leaves of the tall oaks, speckling her skin. A bush shivered just in front of her, and she heard heavy steps swishing in damp leaves. She backed up because every hair on her arms and the back of her neck lifted, warning her to flee.
When she turned, she slammed into a broad chest.
A naked, ripped chest, gleaming with sweat.
The rest of the man was equally nude, equally compelling. She slowly tilted back her head and stared into Bobby’s dark, gleaming eyes. “Not the one I expected,” she whispered.
“If I hear you say you’re disappointed, I’ll be wounded,” he said, one corner of his full mouth lifting.
“Not disappointed, just surprised.” She swayed, and he caught her elbows, holding her upright, but bringing her close enough for his cock to rub her belly.
Then he leaned down.
Her breath hitched, and she parted her lips, expecting a kiss.
However, he glided his nose over her cheek into her hair and back again. He pulled back, his gaze narrowed. “Mason’s been a busy man,” he murmured. “And he knows better.”
“He kissed me. Or I kissed him,” DiDi said, groaning. She fought the urge to palm the swell of his chest; her nipples grazed it. They bloomed, spiking against the thin cotton.
“He kissed you all right,” he murmured. Then his mouth stretched into a devilish smile. “’Splains why you’re in your underwear.”
“I went to sleep like this,” she said, her voice lazy and lilting. Not like her usual tone at all.
“You think this is a dream?”
DiDi glanced up at him through the fringe of her eyelashes. “In my dreams, I can do whatever I want.”
Laughter, low and husky, shook him and quivered through her. His cock thickened, and he pushed it against her body, grinding his hardness into her soft belly.
DiDi’s head swam, her body dipped, but his arms held her upright. She panted, whimpering when he bent close and purred into her ear. The sound filled her, reverberating through her body, and she clutched his arms and nuzzled against his chest, the rhythm of his heartbeats setting the tempo for her own.
How odd she noticed the sensation. Just as Mason’s heartbeat had summoned her lust, so did Bobby’s.
His tongue lapped at her temple, catching a trickle of sweat. It was slightly raspy, like the finest sandpaper, and pulled at her skin, turning her face.
But a rustling in the distance had Bobby lifting his head. His hands fell away, and he stepped back. “Don’t move. We aren’t finished here.” Then he plunged into the forest.
One, two, three footsteps…then they changed…quickening, lightening, and sounding like so many more than two feet pounding away.
DiDi reeled. Her knees wobbled, and she sank to the dirt.
Real dirt that her fingers scraped.
She wasn’t sleeping. Her skin lifted in goose bumps, and the sounds of the insects and every rustle of undergrowth filled her with fear. Muscles taut, she glanced around. She didn’t know how far she’d come into the forest and didn’t know the direction back to the hotel.
Footsteps crunched, and she glanced back up, expecting Bobby, but melted when she spotted Sheriff Breaux—in his uniform and walking stealthily toward her, a finger pressed to his lips to signal her silence.
Relief overtook her body, and she began to shake, tears blurring her vision.
“Baby, not now,” he whispered.
Which only made her cry harder because she never cried. Except she’d never been in a situation like this. And wouldn’t you know she was sweaty and damn near naked, and once again Mason had caught her at a disadvantage?
Mason’s head canted, his features hardened.
Then before she could ask him what was wrong, he was on top of her, pressing her into the ground, his mouth covering hers and silencing her squeal of surprise.
She blinked and focused, her eyes nearly crossing as she stared. What in hell was going on? But the longer his mouth remained atop hers, the hotter she got. Again, her head felt filled with cotton, her tongue swelled, but that didn’t stop her from pushing it against his mouth until he opened. Then she was moaning, stroking inside him, drowning in the taste of him while her body writhed beneath his.
They weren’t alone, but she didn’t care. The forest teemed with c
reatures moving around them, and Bobby had said he’d be right back. That didn’t matter, because she couldn’t fight the powerful urge to wrap herself around Mason and rub.
His hands pushed at hers, moving them off his ass, but she only smoothed them up to clutch his shoulders. He tried to raise his head to break the kiss, but she sucked on his tongue until at last he groaned and settled his full weight over her.
The kiss went on and on, mouths suctioning together, tongues gliding. His body rutted between her legs, and she opened, welcoming the scrape of his clothed cock against her heat.
Friction built, and she went wild, scraping her nails down his back, pulling on his hair, reveling in the arousal that pulsed through her body, stronger than anything she’d ever felt before.
Fucking was inevitable. He lifted his chest to ruck up her shirt, and she eagerly raised her arms. His fingers tore away her panties, so she arched beneath him, her breaths coming in short, jagged gasps. “Please. Inside me. Now.” Her words seemed to drag him out of the moment.
Mason shook his head, loosening droplets of sweat. His mouth opened as he breathed in raggedly above her.
That was when she heard the footsteps approaching their position.
Bobby strode into the clearing, long, ugly scratches marring his naked chest. He halted at the sight of them. “You haven’t won the right, Breaux.”
“Is this what you and Reynaud were fighting over?” He glared, his jaw tense.
Bobby grunted. “She was given to me by TruJean. But Reynaud challenged me anyway. You gonna fight me, too? I appreciate the fact you marked her, but you won’t be participating in The Prowl. Your seed won’t be fillin’ her.”
Mason’s entire body tightened.
DiDi didn’t have a clue what the two were talking about, only that she was at the center of their heated discussion. And she’d been given to Bobby? Like hell.
DiDi shoved at Mason’s chest, but he didn’t budge. “I want to go back to my room,” she said, even as fire licked at every nerve ending in her skin where their bodies still touched—and even if his moving would expose her nakedness fully to Bobby’s unblinking stare.
That thought unleashed another wave of heat—like a solar flare, threatening to consume her. If Bobby had fought over her, was another man waiting in the bushes, watching? What kind of place had she landed in?
Mason knew the woman was frightened and aroused. He could smell both. He wanted to reassure her, but her predicament was all his fault.
Bobby knelt beside them, staring avidly at DiDi’s exposed limbs. “Reynaud’s headin’ away to lick his wounds. I won’t tell if you don’t.”
Mason knew exactly what he was saying. After all, they weren’t monogamous creatures. Still, this wasn’t what the elders had decreed.
However, DiDi clung to him, her eyes rounding, her hips curling beneath him, seeking relief from the heat he’d induced.
Come the full moon, she’d be Bobby’s anyway. Mason told himself he should leave, but he couldn’t. His own need tightened his balls; every muscle of his body was rigid. He’d already tasted her, touched her, breathed her in.
DiDi moaned, pressing her forehead to her chest. “What’s wrong with me? I’m not like this.”
“Don’t move,” he bit out. “It makes the need stronger.”
“Can’t…stop.” Her body undulated beneath him, her hips lifting to caress his cock.
“My fault,” he whispered, glancing at her glazed eyes. “Dammit, I never should have touched you.”
“Did I give you a choice?” she asked, her mouth curving in a pained smile.
He grunted, and then swung his head toward Bobby. “We do this. For her.”
Bobby shrugged. “Her pleasure’s ours.” Already, his cock was heavy, pulsing between his legs.
Mason’s lips lifted in a snarl, but he moved back, exposing DiDi to the other man’s gaze so that he could strip.
Bobby moved in, snuffling his nose along her skin. Bobby was more akin to a cat than a man.
She wouldn’t understand.
But then his lips surrounded a nipple, and her hands, which she’d dropped to the ground when Mason moved away, slowly lifted. Her fingers dug into Bobby’s hair and held him close.
Her wide-eyed gaze, however, locked with Mason’s. “I’m not like this. This isn’t me.”
He swallowed hard, wanting again to reassure her, but he didn’t have the right to explain. And the less she knew, the better. For now. He pulled his shirt free of his pants and unbuttoned it, shrugging quickly out of it.
Bobby left one breast and suckled its twin.
Her eyelids drifted downward as she fell more deeply into heat. One knee fell to the side, opening her.
Bobby slid a hand down her belly. His fingers thrust inside her.
Her back arched off the ground.
Her desperate cry had Mason tearing at his clothes. No way could he let Bobby have her first. He’d marked her. He’d claimed her for his own. When the full moon came, he’d have to give her up. But he could have this. Now.
Naked at last, he knelt on the opposite side of her body. “Bobby,” he gritted out.
Bobby’s laughter was muffled against her breast, but he lifted his head. “I’ll grant you first rights. Had to be hard to give her to me. She is delicious.” He drew back, to rest on his haunches.
Mason slid over her body.
She opened to him, welcoming him between her thighs. Her pussy was wet; her fragrant musk intensified.
Mason clenched his jaw, reminding himself not to show his teeth. Not to frighten her. He’d take her as a man. A glance toward Bobby showed he wasn’t nearly as careful.
His eyes mirrored the moonlight. His tongue licked lengthened incisors.
Mason made a quick decision and rolled with her, bringing her on top of him, cutting off her view of Bobby’s changing features. He fisted both hands in her hair and pulled her body closer, nudging her entrance gently, but she was consumed.
She pushed at his chest, rising just high enough that her nipples grazed his chest, and then scooted downward, taking his cock inside her, pushing eagerly onto his length until her silky heat surrounded him.
Bobby moved behind DiDi and pressed her chest against Mason’s. Then he knelt, his knees enclosing Mason’s thighs, bracketing him.
His face was split with a feline grin, the skin on his face sprouting fine, black hairs. Thankfully, he halted his transformation there. However, he purred with each exhalation, the sound growing louder.
DiDi’s forehead wrinkled.
To distract her from the sound, Mason cupped a breast and pinched her nipple.
Her eyes squeezed shut, and her mouth opened around a lusty groan.
Glaring at Bobby, he sent a silent message the less evolved panther would understand now that he’d partially transformed. We take her as men.
Leering, Bobby shook his body and more hair sprouted, covering his chest and limbs. Will she even know? You marked her well. Feel how hot, how wet she is?
Mason fisted his hand in her hair to keep her from looking back. Hurt her, and I’ll kill you.
Bobby bent over her. His tongue licked a path down her back then disappeared from sight. From the way DiDi wriggled atop him, Mason knew what Bobby was doing.
He wrapped a hand around one side of DiDi’s fleshy ass and urged her to move faster on his cock. The sooner she came, the sooner he could end this.
When Bobby’s raspy tongue licked between her cheeks, DiDi quivered with shock. Not enough to freeze up—Mason’s cock made that impossible. Tension already curled tightly around her womb. She was close to exploding. Still, she couldn’t come, because Bobby was drawing ever closer to her tiny, furled hole.
When he grazed it once, she jerked and then bounced in short bursts on Mason’s cock. All her attention centered on what the wicked man behind her would do next.
Mason’s face was hard, tension flexing muscle along the edge of his jaw. He didn’t like sharing her. So w
hy was he?
But that thought slipped away as fast as it formed. Moisture slid between her cheeks and Bobby rose behind her. The texture of his skin as he glided against her was strange, but not something she could analyze now.
His cock nudged the center of her ass. His palms separated her cheeks, and then he was pressing inward.
“I can’t,” she groaned. She wanted to, but the pain was searing.
“Relax, baby,” Mason crooned, smoothing a hand over her face. “Breathe.” He lifted his head and pressed his mouth against hers.
Again, she drew on his tongue, this time for comfort, as Bobby pressed inexorably forward. The tight ring eased around his cock, and he thrust inward, imbedded as deeply now in her ass as Mason was in her pussy.
She bit into Mason’s tongue, tasting blood, smelling something elemental. He growled into her mouth, but she couldn’t let go.
Bobby’s hips pumped behind her, slamming into her ass, moving her forward and backward on Mason’s cock.
Friction burned inside her, in both passages. She’d never felt anything like this. No sexual encounter had ever been this intense. She’d die if she didn’t come. And release had to be now.
Bobby withdrew then slammed forward.
She screamed into Mason’s mouth, hot liquid flooding her channel and seeping outward. Squirming and moaning, she raked her nipples in Mason’s chest hair, popping her hips upward to take more of Bobby, seeking deeper penetration while her pussy clasped harder around Mason.
Then she couldn’t breathe. She broke the kiss, and with her mouth hovering above Mason’s, she keened as she shattered.
Chapter Three
DiDi awoke with a start, the sound of the shower reminding her she needed to pee. But that wasn’t her only problem. She lay naked and dirty on top of her coverlet. A shiny handcuff affixed her right hand to one of the wooden spokes of the bed’s headboard in her motel room. Which narrowed down the possibilities of who was responsible for her predicament to precisely one man.
The shower cut off.
Panic sent her pulling at the cuff to free herself. God, she wasn’t ready to face him. Fuck, she couldn’t imagine ever being ready for that. Not after everything they’d done.
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