by Lynn Howard
There were no trucks lined up along the front of the homes. Well, shit. Carter and the rest of the Clan must still be at work. She checked the time on the dash of her little Audi and dropped her head against the seat. Should she wait or should she head home and talk to him another day? As far as she knew, he might have a date after work. Or maybe he’d go to Moe’s to drown his misery after June turned him away. Yeah. She liked the latter situation much better. Because the thought of Carter with another woman made her sick to her stomach.
June put her car in park and stared at the row of houses. Which one was his? The second one had a couple of potted mums lining the stairs. That wasn’t his. The third one had robin’s egg blue curtains in the window. Not Carter’s. So his was either the first or the last.
She had a moment where she wished she knew which one was his so she could break in and leave her scent everywhere. Just in case he brought another woman home. But that was a little too Fatal Attraction for June’s taste.
Glancing at the clock, she realized only ten minutes had passed. This was stupid. Why the hell did she rush over here? She could’ve just texted him and told him she was sorry for her behavior and wanted to talk to him whenever he got a chance. And that was what she was going to do. As soon as she was back at home and in the comfort of her own bubble.
June put her car in reverse and backed away from the cabins. She was only halfway down the long, gravel drive when the rumble of trucks met her ears. She’d been so close to a clean break. Now, she’d be caught by at least one member of Blackwater.
When two trucks rounded the bend, she either had to back up, pull into the grass to let them pass, or play chicken. Her tiny Audi would lose against their full-size trucks.
Trying to save face, she tipped her chin up and backed up until the trucks could get around her. Carter drove the second truck. His scowl was clear as day when he spotted her. Well, shit. There was no running from this now.
Pushing from her car, she waited until Carter was parked and climbed down from his vehicle. He stared at her, his brows pulled low for a few heartbeats. When he finally began to walk toward her, her heart thundered behind her rib cage and her palms began to sweat. And of course, her traitorous body reacted with nipples so hard she could cut ice and her lower half became warm and tingly.
Down girl, she told her animal. Because she had to assume the rush of hormones and endorphins were from that side of herself. June knew they had a lot to discuss and she couldn’t do that on her back with her legs wrapped around Carter’s waist.
“What are you doing here?” Carter asked, his voice deep and angry.
What did that say about her that she found him even sexier when he was all frowny like that?
“I wanted to talk to you,” she said, closing the space between them until she was standing about two feet away.
“About what? You made it pretty obvious you didn’t want anything to do with me,” Carter said, crossing his thick arms over his massive chest. The dude was built like a freaking dump truck.
Okay. Dude was sexy and cool and funny and really good in bed, but right then, he was being a total asshat. “I’m here, aren’t I?”
“Am I supposed to feel graced with your presence?”
Her anger built until her blood felt like it was on fire. “You know what? Maybe this was a bad idea. I came over to tell you I was sorry. That I should’ve tried to talk to you instead of acting like a jerk. That I’m not even that mad that you seduced me.”
“I seduced you?” he said, dropping his hands to his sides as his brows rose to his hairline. “I’m pretty sure you’re the one who climbed me like a freaking monkey the second time. And I don’t remember you trying to stop me the first. In fact—”
Just like the last time they’d started to fight, something snapped inside of June and she had zero control over her body. She lunged at him, her mouth slamming over his, cutting off the rest of his argument. Instead of pushing her away, he tangled his hands in her hair, smoothed them down her sides until he grabbed her thighs and urged her up, wrapping her legs around his waist.
He carried her to his cabin, only releasing her long enough to open the door and then kicked it shut. He carried her down the hallway, his mouth never leaving hers, his tongue dancing in her mouth, until he lowered her onto his bed, following her down. And once again, they found themselves naked and sweating and calling out each other’s names.
****
Carter stared up at his ceiling as he waited for his heart rate to return to normal. June was panting beside him. And they were right back to what had gotten them in hot water to begin with.
“What did you want to talk about?” Carter asked between gasps for air.
June chuckled softly, then rolled over to look at him. She folded her hands beneath her cheek. “Why the hell can’t we be around each other without ending up here?”
“That’s what you wanted to talk about? Maybe next time text it,” he said with a smile and a shake of his head.
“No,” she said with another giggle. “That’s not what I wanted to talk about. But it’s something to think about. This can’t be normal. I was mad at you and the next thing I know we were heading for your house. I couldn’t have stopped it if my life depended on it.”
Carter grunted and nodded. Yeah. That sounded about right. He’d been pretty pissed. He’d been hurt. Fuck. He’d been crushed when she’d made him leave and told him never to contact her again. He’d tried to think of a way to forget about her, even contemplated running out and finding someone to occupy his time for a few weeks. But he knew that would never work. The mate bond wasn’t something you could fuck away. No number of women would ever make him not ache for June.
“So? Now what?” he asked, rubbing his eyes with his finger and thumb. He’d been so fucking tired when he’d gone into work after having next to no sleep. The emotional, mental, and physical exhaustion was catching up to him.
“That’s why I’m here,” she admitted, her voice soft.
Carter rolled his head to look at her. Her cheeks were pink, even more than they were after having passionate sex. She’d pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and was chewing it. He waited for her to finish. When she didn’t, his irritation began to rise again. He wasn’t going to be the one to put his heart on the line. Not this time. Last time he’d tried with her had been a disaster.
“What, June?” he asked.
Her dark brows pinched together, causing a crease between them, and she slowly sat up, pulling the sheet with her to cover her body. He’d much rather stare at her body while they were fighting. But something about their ire always brought on sex. And they had shit to hash out.
“You don’t have to get an attitude,” she said.
And just like that, his dick was instantly hard again and he could smell her arousal.
“Get dressed,” he ordered, pushing from the bed in jerky movements as he fought his instinct to dive between her legs.
“Don’t tell me what to do,” she hissed at him, but she was up and pulling her clothes back on.
She needed more clothes. Or they needed an audience. Or something. Who was he kidding? She’d been wearing a hoodie and his Clan had been outside when he’d picked her up and carried her inside. Having witnesses hadn’t help.
Shit.
His entire Clan had witnessed that. No doubt they’d scented June on Carter, but no one had said a damn thing. Now? Yeah, now they’d know for sure something was going on with him and the dark-haired woman who was currently twisting her hair back into a knot at the back of her head.
He preferred her hair down. He loved the dark curtain it made around them when she rode him and lowered to kiss him.
Carter left his bedroom and waited for June in the living room. He jerked his chin toward the couch and sat on the opposite side of her, turning and leaning one knee on the cushion beside him.
“What?” she said when she sat and crossed her arms over her chest.
“I j
ust thought we could actually have a conversation out here.”
She chewed on the inside of her cheek for a second. Her eyes darted to his crotch then back up. “Yeah,” she said, turning her face away from him and looking around as if checking out his place. “I was getting turned on, too.”
He huffed out a surprised laugh. At least she’d admitted it.
June relaxed little by little until she pulled her feet under her and turned to face Carter. “You said you think we’re really mates.”
He nodded but didn’t speak.
“My friends, my Pride…” She inhaled deeply and let it out in a rush. “They smell the change in my blood.”
Carter sucked in a sharp gasp. He blinked rapidly at her a few times while he searched his brain for something to say. He’d had a hunch, had felt and heard his bear’s declaration for her, but he hadn’t noticed the change to her blood. Could his friends smell that on their mates? Or was that something for other Shifters, to let them know the female was off the market.
“I think you were right. I think, when we got drunk, our animals just took over and claimed each other.” She shrugged and pulled her bottom lip between her teeth again, dragging his attention to her mouth.
No. He had to stay focused. If he dove across the couch to taste her lips, he knew exactly what would happen. He knew there’d be no way he could keep from burying himself inside of her again. It was hard enough to keep his hands to himself sitting on the opposite side of the fucking sofa.
“Now what?” he asked, turning his eyes away from her face to keep from staring at her mouth.
Unfortunately, she took that the wrong way.
“Well, it looks like you have no interest in pursuing it, so…whatever. I just wanted to tell you I think you’re right. But we can leave it like that.”
She pushed to her feet and was halfway across his living room before he realized what she was doing. He jumped over the back of the couch and stopped her before she could reach for the door.
“Why the hell do you always jump to the worst conclusion?”
“Why the hell can’t you make eye contact with me?” she threw back at him.
“Because you keep chewing on your bottom lip and it’s making me crazy,” he yelled, throwing his hands in the air.
Aaaand she was throwing her arms around his neck, smashing her lips against his.
They were on the couch, Carter weighing her down and one hand snaking up her shirt to cup one of her tits before his brain took over and pushed his need away.
“Shit,” he breathed out, sitting up quickly. He fixed her clothes and helped her sit up. “I swear we’re always either fucking or fighting.”
She blinked at him rapidly, her kiss swollen lips parted. She looked dazed. She was still in one gear when he needed her to switch to another.
“We’ve got to talk, June. That means we have to stay clothed.”
Maybe they should move to the kitchen table. At least then there’d be the whole piece of wood separating them. And then memories of what happened in her kitchen made his dick twitch.
He needed to talk to one of his Clan brothers, as much as he hated the thought. This shit couldn’t be normal. Or maybe it could. His brothers were always touching their mates. They made love every single fucking day. But somehow, they’d learned to control their urges long enough to have conversations and lives with the women.
“It’s because we haven’t given in,” June finally said.
“What?” Carter asked, bending a little to be directly in her line of sight. He loved that she was so tall, that he didn’t have to bend in half to kiss her, that he could bend her over the couch and reach her perfectly.
Baseball. Homeruns. Hockey. Toothless hockey players. But thinking about the least sexy things possible wasn’t helping his wood.
“We haven’t given in to the bond. It’s our animals. They’re trying to breed.” Her eyes moved to the side like she was thinking about a conversation. “Holy shit,” she breathed out.
“What?” he repeated, this time a little nervous.
“My leopard is in heat.”
Carter leaned back, putting some space between them.
“I told my friends I felt like I was possessed or in heat. I’m not, but my cat is. She’s trying to breed. She’s in heat.”
He felt like he’d been sucker punched. Her cat was trying to get knocked up. And his bear was going right along with it. But they’d used a condom every time they’d had sex. They were safe. They just had to remember to keep their wits about them enough to keep using protection each time. Carter was too old for cubs. It’s not that he wouldn’t be happy if it happened, but he’d like to avoid it if he could. He was at the age where he’d rather dote on his mate and spoil the pups in Big River and, someday, cubs in Blackwater. He’d be a super fucking uncle. He’d make sure they had all the best gadgets and were well stocked in candy.
But cubs of his own?
“I’m not ready to be a mom. I’m sorry if that’s something you want, but…I don’t know. I’m just too old. I mean, I know physically, I could have a healthy cub. But I’m at the age where I’d rather come and go as I please and maybe even travel someday.”
She’d spoken his thoughts and now he no longer had to have the uncomfortable conversation with her.
“Yeah. Same,” Carter said. They sat quietly for a while, as if both lost in their own thoughts. Until his stomach growled. Luke and Colton had talked about going to Moe’s for dinner, but Carter was just too tired. Colton had gone to the bar because his wife was working tonight. And for some reason, none of them ever wanted to ride together.
Actually, Carter was sure the reason was because Luke had a woman somewhere and didn’t want to admit it. As long as it didn’t cause his Clan any problems, Carter was fine with the dude keeping his secrets.
Carter had his own mindfuck to deal with.
Chapter Six
Carter suggested they leave the house. Which was probably a good idea since she was having a hell of a time keeping her clothes on. She’d never experienced anything like this. Why the hell was her leopard in heat now? She was thirty-eight freaking years old. Granted, she’d finally found her true mate, but she didn’t want children. Not this late in life.
June sat in the passenger seat of Carter’s truck. He’d said four of his Clan family – two of his Clan brothers and their mates – were already at the bar where he was taking her. The same bar where they’d met. She remembered seeing them, but the rest of the room had seemed to fade away when she’d laid her eyes on Carter crossing the room and heading her way.
Now, she was going to be introduced to his people. How would he introduce her? Someone he was dating? His girlfriend? His mate? And would any of those terms be better than the other? Since she had no idea exactly what they were or what she wanted, she wasn’t sure how she wanted him to announce her.
The problem with riding beside Carter was her need to touch him. Instead of fighting it, she undid her seatbelt, scooted into the middle seat, and pulled the lap belt into place. Carter winked down at her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pressing a kiss to the top of her head as if they’d ridden together for years.
She snuggled into his side and released a girly sigh. Inhaling deep, she breathed his scent deep into her lungs. Her leopard stretched and purred in her head. Apparently, being close to Carter made her cat happy. If only that was enough. But she knew the reprieve from her libido was short lived. Hopefully, she’d avoid making a fool of herself in front of all his people.
There were quite a few trucks, cars, and a few motorcycles in the parking lot in front of Moe’s. The place would be packed with Shifters having dinner or drinks after work. Carter parked the truck, climbed from his seat, and jogged around the hood. June was stepping onto the running board by the time Carter got to her. His hands went to her hips as she stepped onto the gravel.
“I don’t really need help getting down,” she said with a coy smile.
&nb
sp; “I know. I just wanted to touch you,” Carter said, returning her flirtatious smile.
Carter wrapped his large hand around hers and guided her inside. He didn’t release her until they’d come to the table with another humongous guy, as well as a few guys who were a few inches taller than her. For once, she felt petite. At least she did until the waitress, who was also a member of the Clan, came over to take their orders. The tiny redhead made June feel like a damn ogre.
Carter didn’t seem to notice, though. His eyes were on her and only her. He only glanced up long enough to give the woman, Shawnee, his order. June remembered the woman from breakfast at her job.
“I’m Shawnee,” the red head said, her hand outstretched.
“June,” she said, slipping her hand into Shawnee’s.
“Nice to see you again. I wasn’t sure you’d remember my name from last time,” Shawnee said before glancing at Carter, a wide grin on her face. She hurried off to grab drinks for Carter and June.
June turned back in her seat and smiled as she looked around at all the people staring at her. Shit. The women sitting there were tiny, too. She really was the biggest woman amongst them. For once, it would be nice to have to look up to someone when she spoke. She did with Carter, though. He was quite a bit taller than she was.
“Colton,” a guy with a wide grin and a black Stetson sitting at the table across from her said. “I’m part of Blackwater.”
“Gray,” a guy beside Colton said. “This is my mate, Nova.”
And on and on and on. Apparently, other than Colton, the other people were members of Big River, the wolves who lived closer to Blackwater territory. They were all close and spent most of their free time together. There were a lot of names to remember and she was pretty confident she’d forget most of them by the end of the night.
“So,” the woman named Nova started, leaning forward on her elbows, her hands holding her face in a whimsical way. “Are you two officially official?”
