She tried to ignore Jennifer as much as possible. Blair had assigned her to work in the play area, and when she kept wandering into the bar area and deliberately bumping into Flora and almost knocking over the trays she was carrying, Blair had finally sent her home and told her to take the week off. Jennifer had stomped out, cursing and muttering threats under her breath.
Finally, at two a.m., Flora got tired and headed upstairs. Finn still wasn’t back. After she took a quick shower, she went and curled up on the couch. It was truly ridiculous for a big guy like Finn to fold up his body and sleep there.
She didn’t even know what time it was when he finally tromped through the door.
“Hey, gorgeous,” he said, as she sat up groggily. “Go on, take the bed.”
“No. It’s just silly, Finn. The couch is tiny,” she insisted.
“I’m not having you sleep on the couch. Go on, woman – move your gorgeous ass.”
She folded her arms across her chest. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“Oh yeah?” He scooped her up in his arms, ignoring her squealed protests. “What’s that you were saying?”
“Put me down, you big ox!” she yelled as he carried her into the bedroom. “I am not sleeping in here! Jerk! I’ll kill you! I swear to God—”
He dropped her on the bed, breathing hard. As soon as he turned to go, she leaped up.
He quickly pinned her down on the bed. “Do I need to tie you down?” he said, with a gleam in his eye. “Because that can be arranged.”
She was sopping wet with arousal, and her breath came in pants. “How, exactly would you do that?”
“All right, you asked for it. And your safe word is ‘clementine’.”
He leaned over her, pinning her with his weight, and his mouth descended on hers with a crushing, possessive pressure that had her gasping for breath and twining her arms around his strong neck. She could feel his heart thundering against hers. Her lips parted on a breath and he darted his tongue into her mouth, nipped playfully at her lips, then returned for a soul-deep kiss that sent trills of pleasure running across her skin, painting shivery tracks of gooseflesh down her body.
He cupped her breasts in his palms, fingers working the plump flesh, thumbs grazing over her nipples and drawing them into exquisite points of sensation. She mewled kittenishly and was too overcome with the pleasure of the moment even to feel embarrassed.
She tried to catch her breath when he withdrew from her, but he was only gone for a moment.
He grabbed a handful of cloth from the bedside table, and she realized with a little thrill of surprise that he was holding a bundle of silk scarves, which he snapped onto the bed beside her with a flourish, one by one. Then he drew her wrist up against the slatted headboard and secured it there with one of the scarves, knotting it firmly so she couldn’t pull away. He repeated it with the other wrist, and she wriggled curiously, wondering where he intended to take this.
Then she sat bolt upright – or tried to, her torso arching and thrusting her breasts towards him – as he slid his fingers under the waistband of her pajama pants and skimmed them down over her legs, leaving her naked from the waist down.
Finn gave a low, wicked chuckle and she blushed to the roots of her hair as moisture pooled in her core and her pussy clenched greedily. Her body knew exactly what it wanted.
Finn placed one large, warm palm on the inside of her thigh, making her suck in her breath, then skimmed his hand down the length of her leg, making her shiver. He wrapped his long fingers around her ankle, then quickly and deftly secured it to the footboard of the bed with another silk scarf. Flora gave a little whimper of half protest, half arousal.
He let his eyes play up her body, over the dense triangle of curls between her thighs and the soft swell of her belly, the way her nipples strained like little buds against the fabric of her pajama top, then locked eyes with her, holding her gaze as he parted her thighs. She knew he must be able to smell her arousal.
He drew her legs apart, leaving her open and vulnerable to him, and his hungry gaze returned to the glistening pink slit between her thighs. His pupils were blown wide with desire and she thought his fingers trembled slightly as he tied her ankle to the footboard so she was splayed on the bed, bound and helpless and utterly at his whim.
He started with her foot, placing ticklish kisses on her toes and instep, then running his tongue over the hollow beneath her ankle. She would never in her wildest dreams have thought that would be an erogenous zone, but he coaxed a little whimper from her before moving up her calf, then planting kisses on the soft, warm flesh of her inner thigh.
Her breathing became choppy and rapid as he moved closer to her core, and when she felt his hot breath against the damp petals of her pussy she tried to reach for him, to tangle her fingers in his hair, whether to urge him on or pull him away, she didn’t know. But of course she was bound. She shivered with delicious helplessness, then groaned as his mouth came down and he kissed her pussy, lips and tongue warm and firm. Electrical sensation zapped and sparkled in her core, spreading out to the twitching muscles of her belly, making her toes curl. She squeezed her eyes closed and bit her lip against another involuntary groan.
He drew his tongue along her slit, lapping at the nectar gathering there, then he let the tip dance against her clit, tickling and teasing the bundle of nerves until she was driven to a gasping, quivering crest of need. Just as she thought she would tumble over the edge into a soul-shattering orgasm, he changed the pace, playing his tongue slowly over and between her folds in a sweet, lazy, meandering pattern that was at the same time unspeakably erotic and the most frustrating experience she’d ever had.
Then he sucked the tiny, erect peak of her clit firmly between his lips, teasing it rapidly with the very tip of his tongue, and she cried out as waves of bliss washed over her, emptying her mind of all thought and galvanizing her muscles. She yanked against the bindings that held her wrists to the headboard and clamped her thighs to the sides of his head, barely hearing his grunt of satisfaction over the thundering of her heart as she spasmed uncontrollably against his mouth.
She lay limply as he wriggled up her body, his muscles flexing with the smooth, oiled movements of precision machinery as he placed his lips, sticky with her juices, to the curls between her thighs and the plump curve of her belly. He dipped his tongue into her navel, and as he moved up her body he bunched the hem of her pajama top in one big fist and drew it up, exposing her breasts to the air. He suckled one deliciously tender nipple, making her groan all over again, before settling himself between her thighs.
As she felt the blunt head of his cock, magnificently thick and erect, probing her slick, needy pussy, a tiny spark of sanity intruded.
“Finn…” she murmured. “Go…go slowly. I’m new at this.”
He withdrew so quickly it felt like slap.
“You’re a virgin?” he demanded. From the tone of his voice, you’d have thought she’d admitted to being a mass-murderer or a three-headed alien.
“Yes,” she confessed. “But that doesn’t mean…”
She trailed off. He was shaking his head rapidly, his expression hard and set. He yanked at the silk scarves binding her to the bed, freeing one wrist and then the other.
“I can’t do this, Flora. I can’t be your first.”
Flora sat bolt upright, furious and hurt, as he slid off the bed and backed away. A look of deep regret burned in his eyes.
“You are a jerk!” she yelled at Finn as he swiftly headed for the door. “You are...an asshole!” Terrible language, but he deserved it.
He turned to face her. “I know I am,” he said. “That’s why I can’t be your first.” She picked up her shoe and threw it at him. It bounced off the back of his head. He didn’t even pause or acknowledge it, just walked out and shut the door behind him.
Chapter Twelve
The sun beamed down on Darwin, warming the spring air and burning away the early morning mists. In the daylight, t
he city held a certain grimy fascination, like something from a film noir movie.
Flora didn’t care. She was in a foul mood. She’d barely slept all night, and Finn had woken up first thing in the morning and left before she got out of bed. He’d left a note for her on the kitchen table.
“I’ll be back late tonight. Remember, be careful and don’t leave the territory.” That was it.
Well, screw him.
In fact, maybe she’d leave Darwin altogether. Head on over to Cottonwood with Madison and her friends, as soon as she’d had a chance to talk to Krystle and warn her about what might be coming.
She’d been asking around and still didn’t know exactly where Krystle was or what she was doing; people around here apparently didn’t get involved in other people’s business. It was refreshing, but hard to get used to after living on the Wilkinsons’ farm for so long.
From the day she’d arrived there at age fourteen, she had never been alone. She’d slept in a room with two teenagers from the Wilkinson family, she’d been homeschooled on their property, and on the rare occasions when she’d been allowed to go into town, there had always been people with her.
There had only been one person they’d leave her alone with – Loren Haig. If anything, they’d deliberately come up with reasons for her to be alone with him. They’d come up with work that needed to be done on the farm, and send him along. They’d let her go on dates with him starting when she was sixteen – he’d show up out of the blue to take her out to dinner or a movie, and it had just been assumed she’d drop everything and go with him, and be delighted to do so.
When she’d turned eighteen and started chafing at the Wilkinsons’ rules, first they’d tried threatening her – they’d throw her out with nothing. When she’d said that would be fine and started walking towards the door, they’d switched to guilt. After all they’d done for her! Taken her in when nobody else would have her! Fed and clothed her! And Loren was so incredibly devoted!
Not knowing where else to go, she’d finally settled on a compromise. They had to let her work at the farm stand and earn her own money, and go into town when she wanted to, or she’d leave. They’d reluctantly conceded, although they’d paid her next to nothing, and whenever she’d gone into town there had been somebody with her.
Now she was coming to realize that her entire time at the Wilkinsons’ farm had been designed to do one thing. Keep her isolated and away from any other male suitors until she was eighteen, when she was legally old enough to be mated to Loren. Everyone had reacted with shock and dismay when she’d kept putting him off, telling him she wasn’t ready for that kind of commitment. She’d finally felt so hopeless and isolated that she’d given in to the pressure and agreed to the mating.
Why did they specifically want her to marry Loren? she wondered. She knew they believed that she was a Firestarter. Did he have a history of it in his family as well? Or was he just some douchebag who was willing to accept a bribe to utterly betray his mate and his future cubs? The Wilkinsons had introduced him to her as a “friend of the family”, but now she was sure that had been a lie, like everything else she’d been told.
A car backfired, and she stopped, startled by the noise. She had been wandering around aimlessly as she reminisced and worried. She needed to pay more attention to her surroundings. The Badlands weren’t a place where she should be letting her guard down.
She looked around. Businesses were opening, and shifters were walking down the sidewalk, chatting with one another as if they were in a normal town on a normal day. She had to admit, the Hudson pride kept their territory up well. They had a garbage collection service and provided utilities, there was medical care, they chased off criminals and hunted down ferals. She didn’t love the idea of protection money, but she supposed it was no different than taxes.
She glanced at her watch; it was nine a.m. She needed to meet Madison with the Starweed in an hour.
She went to the grocery store, bought two bags, and impulsively bought half a dozen Danishes too. Then she headed off to the bear side of town, where Madison was already waiting, with Sam and Sarah.
“Told you she’d show up,” Madison said triumphantly to Sam. “She’s even early.”
“This time,” Sam said skeptically, grabbing a pastry from the bag. “Probably she won’t show up next time.”
“You are just a little ray of sunshine, aren’t you?” Flora said.
Sarah snorted as she grabbed a Danish for herself. “Yeah, that’s his nickname. Sunshine.”
“Really?” Flora looked at her in surprise.
“Nope.” Sarah shook her head and devoured half the Danish in one hungry bite. Flora looked at her with worry; she was so thin, and there were circles under her eyes. “You believe everything people tell you?”
“I used to,” Flora sighed. “Not so much anymore.”
“Welcome to the Badlands,” Sarah said, swallowing the last bite. “It’ll only get worse. Oh, crap, lions. I smell lions. Pretty close. Ten, twelve blocks away.”
“Yes, Finn has noticed that the bears are patrolling more, so he’s stepped up his patrols too,” Flora said nervously. “I’d better hit the road. And let’s skip a day, just in case, and meet at a different time. I’ll meet you here day after tomorrow at eight a.m. How are you doing on Starweed? Do you have enough yet to make the trip?”
“We’re getting close. Three more bags should do it,” Madison said. “Okay, just in case we can’t come here because of the patrols, there’s an empty building at 45th and Chellis Avenue where you could meet us. That’s kind of a last resort, though – it’s one block into our territory. We’d be in the basement. Thank you for everything you’ve done for us. Don’t you want to say thank you, Sam?”
“Not really,” he muttered, already walking away.
Madison glanced at Flora apologetically. “He had it rough when my mom remarried. My stepfather beat him with his belt if he so much as sneezed. He doesn’t trust many people now.” Then she and Sarah followed Sam at a fast trot, heading back towards Ruben’s territory.
Flora quickly headed towards the Hudson side of town.
As she approached the Lion’s Den, she heard Finn calling out her name. He was standing in the doorway of a used furniture store. Probably there collecting protection money.
She felt a dull stab of pain deep inside. She kept reminding herself that they weren’t really mates, but his rejection of her still stung deeply. She’d offered herself to him completely – and he’d gotten up and walked away.
She wasn’t sure why it had surprised her so much. For years she’d been told how useless she was. She wasn’t skinny, she wasn’t pretty, she was nothing but a burden… It was just that for a short time there, Finn had made her feel different. When he’d looked at her with that burning hunger in his gaze, when he’d told her what a good person she was, she’d no longer felt like the dumpy, discarded loser. She felt pretty, and wanted, and worthwhile.
“Where were you?” he asked, worry in his gaze.
She looked away. His concerned look made her feel as if he cared about her, and she didn’t want to fall for that lie again. “Out and about.”
“Look, I’m sorry about last night,” he said, falling into step with her as she headed back to the Lion’s Den.
“I don’t really want to talk about it. It’s not like I’ll be here that much longer anyway,” she said, struggling to keep the hurt from her voice.
“You won’t?”
She gave him a look. “Is that really so surprising? You’ve made your positon clear. When I leave, you can just tell everyone that you un-claimed me.”
“Flora, it’s not safe out there. Don’t do anything hasty. Listen, can we please talk about this?” Finn followed her into the Lion’s Den, which looked especially tawdry in the hard light of day.
“Nothing to discuss,” she said shortly.
As she walked through the door, she heard shouting and swearing, and then she saw a wolf shifter fly throug
h the air and land on a table.
Then she saw the female lynx shifter who’d just thrown him, and a wave of relief rolled over her.
“Krystle!” she cried out.
Krystle hurried over to her as the wolf shifter rolled off the table, scrambled to his feet, and ran for the door. She was wearing a black mini-dress with zippers, fishnets, and combat boots. Same old Krystle.
“You know, I was going to ask if you’re still having anger management problems, but never mind,” Flora said, shaking her head as the wolf disappeared.
“Are you kidding me? He grabbed my ass, and I only knocked out two of his teeth. I’ve calmed way the fuck down,” Krystle snorted.
Jose walked up just then, holding two beers. He held one out to Krystle, but she shook her head. “Massive hangover, man. Thanks anyway. I could use a soda water.”
“Sure thing, hot stuff.” He went back to the bar to fetch it for her.
“Are you going to finally tell me how you two know each other?” Finn asked.
“Oh, she didn’t tell you?” Krystle said cheerfully. “We’re cousins.”
“Cousins?” Finn echoed, looking from one to the other in disbelief.
“Let me look at you,” Krystle said to Flora. “Wow. Fuckin’ A. Has it really been six years? You’ve still got the best boobs in town.”
“And you’ve still got the filthiest mouth in town.”
“Cousins?” Finn said again.
“Once removed,” Flora said. “Nice dress, Krystle. Where’s the rest of it?”
“Hey, runt of the litter, are your legs still locked at the knees?”
“Skank,” Flora scoffed.
“Prude.”
“Potty-mouthed psycho.”
Krystle threw her arms around Flora. “I missed you so much! I thought I’d never see you again.”
Then she looked up at the bartenders and bouncers who’d quickly gathered around in a semi-circle. “Sorry, guys, no catfight today,” she called out. “You know me – this is how I talk to all my friends. If I was mad at her, I’d just punch her.” They wandered off, muttering in disappointment.
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