He closed the door behind Dakota, crossing the living room to one of two doors. He pushed it open and carried Dakota’s suitcase inside. “You’ll stay in here,” he said.
Aven did a quick scan of the bedroom for dirty underwear or dishes, but as usual everything was ship-shape. It always was, every morning before he left. Sometimes Aven was on such hardcore autopilot, he didn’t even notice he did it.
Screw that. It was time to hit the reset button.
* * *
Dakota stood by the front door and looked around, finally feeling settled, relaxing more with every breath. The cabin had three rooms. The main room, where the living area and kitchen were divided by a peninsula of countertop, plus two other doors. Aven stood just inside one of them.
She followed Aven, finding herself in a bedroom with dark blue and green linens. Man stuff. “But this is your room.”
Aven shrugged. “No sweat. I’ll change the sheets on the bed. Couch is good for me.” His easy smile said he didn’t want Dakota to make a big deal of it, so she wouldn’t.
Dakota was no raptor, but she’d felt Aven watching her as she drove to his cabin, felt his interest that went beyond brotherly curiosity. And she’d sure as hell felt nothing sisterly since she’d laid eyes on him.
And that look they’d shared outside. Dakota could still feel the zing of it moving through her, like tiny lightning strikes. She’d had a moment of weakness, of considering whether she could really be attracted to a raptor, to this raptor, to Aven. His heated gaze had made it clear; there was no choice here. She wanted Aven and that was all there was to it.
Don’t do it, Dakota told herself. She backed against the wall while Aven stripped the bed of its blanket and sheets, stretching his long body across the mattress, wide shoulders working as he pulled the far corner off with a flip.
Don’t do it, she whispered in her mind again. Since Dakota had dated her first boyfriend, she’d always preferred to use sex as a way to work off steam, to get her mind in order, to settle her nerves and her body and her thoughts. But now was not the time. This handsome raptor in front of her was not the guy.
And still … her gaze drifted to his ass, her mind conjuring up an image of how toned and tight it would be as he thrust deep, punishing her body with his long, hard-
A groan came from the bed. Dakota’s eyes flicked higher, to Aven’s. He was looking at her over his shoulder, and there was fire in his eyes. Frustration, or lust? Maybe both.
His jaw clenched under his beard. “You know about raptors?”
Dakota was embarrassed for a second, realizing Aven had felt her interest. Own it. Jump him, a little voice said. Dakota wondered if she could shoot it.
She pushed her hair behind one ear and blurted, “Yeah. Sorry, I just… you’re really attractive.” All she could do was be honest. Aven was a masterpiece, and it was throwing her off her game. She shouldn’t be so darn attracted to a bird.
An easy smile curved Aven’s lips as he straightened to face her. That playfully predatory look entered his eyes again. “Feeling’s mutual, in case you were wondering.”
Dakota’s eyes locked on Aven’s. She knew this wasn’t what she was here for, but holy cats, was she ever here for it. This kind of attraction had never happened for Dakota before, where she wanted to rip the man’s clothes off and purr into the curve of his neck as he pulled her close enough to feel every inch of his lean, hard-
Aven took a step closer, his voice as tight as his jaw. “So what are we going to do about it?”
Dakota didn’t even think, just closed the distance between them. She fisted one hand in Aven’s shirt and wrapped the other around the back of his neck, drawing him to her. Aven played his part exactly right, wrapping both hard arms around Dakota’s torso, drawing her up against him before their lips even touched.
And that was handy, because Dakota’s knees almost went out when Aven kissed her. She may have started this thing, but he was unquestionably in control of it.
He started with the lightest brush, his lips unbearably soft. Strong, though, as he kissed her again, pressing for a deeper taste, for the tender flesh of Dakota’s surrendered mouth. One hand moved to the back of her head as his tongue swept between her lips. The other hand drifted to Dakota’s ass, holding her tight against his hard length getting harder, longer.
Dakota wrapped one hand around a wide, rock-solid shoulder, to steady herself on something real, but the sensation of his hot skin and hard muscle made her whole body shiver. Aven devoured her. Dakota just tried to hold on.
This went so far beyond a quick lay to clear her head. Now she couldn’t imagine a world where her lips weren’t seeking this heat, this power, this hunger every second of every day.
This was the purpose of her life. Right here. Cause, Schmause. Dakota had found her calling. Tall, golden, and feathered.
The bottom dropped out of her stomach, chilling Dakota’s arousal for the slimmest second. Aven noticed. He pulled back, panting, eyes intense on hers. “What is it?”
Dakota swallowed. What was she going to do, tell him it’s too good? “It’s too good,” she blurted. Damn it.
Aven’s burning look torched Dakota’s objection. “No such thing,” he said. His hand still held the back of Dakota’s neck. She gave into the slight pressure.
With a sigh she leaned in, and with a groan Aven accepted. He crushed Dakota to him, slipped his tongue into her mouth, lifted her spirit so high she could swear he’d brought his wings to the party. The heat of his mouth, his hands on her body, it was all so exactly what Dakota wanted. Like the rightness she’d been feeling since she came to Nantahala had all been leading here, she just hadn’t known it.
A little whimper of helplessness surprised Dakota. Was that her? No, no, no, no. That’s not how this was supposed to go. This was supposed to be casual, fun.
It took effort, but this time Dakota pulled herself back, pushing at Aven’s chest. “Wait. Aven, wait.”
He stopped, but the racing rhythm of his heart under Dakota’s hand said it had been as difficult for him as it had been for her. His voice rumbled so deep she felt it in her core. “What do you need, Dakota? I swear I’ll give it to you.”
Dakota felt something give inside her with his unexpected words. It was almost like she knew he would try, if she even knew what to say. She took another shaky breath and tried to smile instead, meeting Aven’s eyes. Questions swirled in their brown depths, but also some of the passion that had swept them away. It would feel so good to go with that current...
Dakota cut herself off. It didn’t matter how good it felt, she couldn’t let herself be swept away. She had a mission that would affect the rest of her life. She couldn’t afford to not be one hundred percent focused on shifting. Couldn’t let a fling with Aven take priority over that, not even for one day.
But she couldn’t tell him all that.
Still held by his powerful arms, Dakota worked hard to switch off her body’s reaction. “I, uh… this is a bad idea.”
Aven smiled, but it was a smile full of such disappointment that Dakota wanted to take it all back, do another u-turn, beg him to kiss her again. She wanted to feel that rightness, that sensation of being lifted into the air by her heart.
But no. This was better. Professional. Goal-oriented.
Dakota had to bite her lip when Aven pulled just far enough away for cool air to flow between them. “Lemme know if it starts looking good again,” he said. The smile in his eyes said he knew damn well how good “it” looked, felt, and tasted.
His hand left her neck. He released her and took a small step back, out of her space, the loss of him jarring Dakota.
How could she know for certain she was on the right path, and still feel this lost?
Chapter 11 - Cat’s Pajamas
Aven lingered, his body still so close to Dakota’s. He didn’t want to leave her heat behind. The way he felt right now, he should have her on the bed already, worshipping her, bringing her the kind of pleas
ure that males and females were made to give each other. Not doing the damn laundry.
But she’d made the call, so he backed off. He gathered the dirty sheets in his arms and turned for the door. Dakota seemed almost panicked and he hated to see it, didn’t want to think that he had caused it.
Aven held the sheets in one hand, touched Dakota’s face with the other. Neither of them spoke, but she looked in Aven’s eyes and he could almost see her finding her footing. In seconds she was solid again.
If only Aven could say the same for himself.
He walked out of the bedroom and turned right, aiming for the bathroom and the small utility closet that housed his washer and dryer. The taste of Dakota’s kiss lingered on his lips. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and shoved the sheets in the washer, turning dials as he tried to figure out what had just happened.
He’d felt Dakota’s interest, tried not to embarrass her, but she’d blown that tactic by telling him straight-up she found him attractive. What was Aven supposed to do with that?
Exactly what he’d done, seeing as she was his guest: let her make the choice. And boy, had she ever.
That was all Aven remembered that made sense. After that it had been bliss, rightness, heat, victory coursing through his body without any conscious thought following it. He wasn’t even sure whose feelings he’d been feeling. It was like he and Dakota were all wrapped up together.
Could they be fated to be together, somehow? Aven knew that shifters were supposed to exist for switches to mate with, but he’d heard stories about fated shifters, too. Hernando and Molly, just to name one pair. That could explain why Aven had picked up on Dakota’s vibe so strong and fast at Sparring, before he’d even known who she was.
When they were kissing, he’d felt how their attraction frightened her. Had known those feelings, at least, were not his. But also not so different from the overwhelming rush Aven felt that he couldn’t sympathize. So he’d stopped, when he knew that they both wanted to go on.
Hell.
And telling him it was too good, giving that as the reason they couldn’t? If Aven didn’t know exactly what she meant he’d… what? Tell his best friend’s little sister and The Cause’s newest warrior-hopeful that things would go better if they slept together? That was a wrong step no matter where it landed.
Slamming the washer shut with a metallic clang, Aven walked back out to the main room and saw Dakota peering in his fridge. She spoke without looking at him. “I’m hungry. You got dinner, boss?”
Boss? Aven stepped close enough to feel the heat coming off Dakota, which actually wasn’t that close, she was just that damn hot. His gut tightened when he felt her vibe, though. It was stoic, almost cold by comparison. She looked over her shoulder at Aven, a guarded distance in those warm brown eyes. Keeping him at arm’s length with just a look.
Their untamed attraction would have been reason enough. Still, it seemed to him that there was something else, some secret behind Dakota’s reluctance that she wasn’t willing to share. Not yet.
Letting it go for the moment, Aven reached around Dakota and opened the freezer, taking out two vacuum-sealed packages. “Trout fillets will thaw by the time we’re ready to cook ‘em,” he said.
They settled into a groove of dinner preparation, speaking of unimportant things, stepping around each other lightly, until the smell of dinner had both of their stomachs growling.
Aven served them, setting them at the dining room table, plotting how to get her to open up to him. He wanted to know her.
Half-joking, he said, “Is it because you’re ‘rowr’ and I’m ‘skree’?”
Dakota froze with a spoonful of rice halfway to her mouth and gave him a look. “Say what?”
Aven laughed, pointing from Dakota to himself. “Different species.”
“Oh.” Dakota popped a pea in her mouth and chewed for a long time. “It is kind of weird. I’ve never even been attracted to another species.” She looked at him curiously. “You don’t only date other eagles?”
Did it feel like I only date eagles when my tongue was in your mouth? he thought, but she deserved an answer. “I don’t date much of anyone, but I never discriminate on species,” he said.
Dakota looked confused. “Why not?”
He shrugged. “If fate hands me a mate, and my intention is to mate her for life, it seems to me my job is to be sure I get it right, and not discriminate against feathered or furred.” Aven didn’t want to be stuck like his parents, mated for life and miserable. He considered for only a second, before he added. “She might even be magic.”
Why did that hurt, as he looked at Dakota? She didn’t look convinced that different species could mate. “You think different?” he asked.
Her answer was quick. “I want kids.”
There it was. That door was closed. It was probably better this way. Aven changed the subject, directing it to The Cause. She knew about the Ingrav, and turned out she knew about vampires, too. The switches and their covens were news, though.
“So they do the actual killing? What do we do?” she asked, a look on her face like killing vampires was clearly the better gig.
“Protect them,” Aven said. “Help locate nests of vampires for them to Undo. Bring them down from The Prowl.” Too late, Aven realized he didn’t want to tell Dakota about The Prowl. Didn’t want her imagining him having sex with a switch. He hedged. “The Prowl is this massive energy spike they get after each Undoing. You’ll have to fight them or run them to get it out, otherwise they could go after humans.”
Dakota nodded. “I can do that. How do we locate the nests?”
The eagerness in her voice made Aven smile. “You want to go find one right now, don’t you?”
Dakota was halfway out of her seat before he’d finished the sentence. She dropped back into it, feeling to Aven like she’d absolutely been ready to do just that, and now she was crushed.
She got up anyway, playing it off. “I’ll get ready for bed,” she said, cleaning up after herself, then disappearing into the bathroom. Aven sighed with relief. His torture would end soon.
Everything about Dakota Manteo was tempting him to a couple of places he should not go.
***
Aven ended up on the couch, waiting for his turn in the bathroom. The bathroom door opened with a click and Dakota walked from the bathroom to the bedroom, making Aven choke on his desire.
She wasn’t wearing anything special. Certainly nothing designed to be sexy. It was laughable, really, how what she wore had nothing and yet everyfuckingthing to do with how much Aven wanted to throw Dakota Manteo over his shoulder right that second and take her to bed.
She was wearing boxer shorts and a tank top, that was all. The kind of thing you could buy at any big-box store. But the top showed off her tanned shoulders, the blue contrasting with the golden hue of her skin, making it shine even brighter in the lamplight. The boxers rode low on Dakota’s feminine hips, the light fabric brushing her strong thighs. Even her bare feet were sexy.
Hell. Aven was in hell. Any second now, this couch was going to turn into a bonfire and it would all make sense. He looked away. He spread his blanket on the couch. He wished someone would show up and distract him, maybe tell him that this attraction wasn’t even about Dakota, that he just wanted the comfort.
A floorboard creaked in the bedroom. Aven looked up. Dakota was at the door of the bedroom, standing with it half-closed, looking at him. She smiled. Not big. Not fake, like she didn’t know what they were both saying no to. Just soft, like her voice. “Thanks for tonight.”
Aven tried to play it off casual. “Anytime.”
Dakota’s interest flared in her eyes, in her vibe. Heat scorched Aven, but she closed the door and the latch clicked home.
No, seriously. Any. Time.
He’d thought he was taking a vacation? Not likely, Aven realized, as he punched his pillow into shape and arranged his long body on the too-short sofa.
Aven’s mind conju
red an image of Dakota in her highway patrol uniform, holding her firearm in bent arms, kicking in a door. She breathed hard, her gorgeous face serious. He could practically smell the heat coming off her body. Aven let the fantasy play out in one corner of his mind while another one decided to make it a reality. He’d take her to the range tomorrow.
An eagle’s work was never done.
Chapter 12 - I Tawt I Taw A Puddy Tat
Aven showed Dakota where to turn, down a thin gravel road that angled off the Black Bear Outfitting Company’s driveway even before the big building came into view. They were going into the forest behind the BBOC, just beyond where the switches trained.
After a half-mile or so, the road widened into a gravel lot with room for a dozen cars, plus more dirt they’d cleared out, in case they needed the space. Flint had called in a new all-shifter construction crew that had set up shop in Turner’s Mill, and they’d gotten the work done in record time.
Dakota eased to a stop in front of the post-and-rail fence that surrounded The Cause’s brand-spankin’-new, interactive shooting range, her expression impressed. “You designed this?” she asked.
Aven scanned the range with pride, noting the safety lights that dotted every other post on the fence. They’d done this shit right. “Me, Jameson, and Flint. Haven’t seen it in action yet, though.”
Dakota practically vaulted out of the car to get her backup firearm from the trunk. “Can you shoot vampires?”
“Haven’t tried,” Aven said, pulling his range bag from the backseat. “But we’re hoping. The plan right now is to use it to test the new recruits’ skills, but Carick said we should look for more ways to help the switches deliver their magic. Especially since they’ve made bloodweapons that can kill us.” Aven had pushed for the range for just that reason. The way he saw it, if the switches were going to modernize, they might as well concentrate on firepower, and delivering it from a distance.
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