by Chant, Zoe
God, he’s gorgeous, she thought as she leaned up to kiss him again, lust throbbing through her, her fingers fumbling with the buttons of his jeans.
He was clearly just as eager to get her own clothes off. Her shirt had followed her jacket in short order, and now he was sliding her pants down her thighs, his left hand on her buttock, lifting her easily.
And strong, can’t forget that.
His eyes roved over her as she lay on the bed in just her bra and panties, his gaze heated.
“You’re beautiful.” Garrett’s voice was soaked with desire. “You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”
Ordinarily, Georgia might have doubted that, or put it down to flattering sweet-talk. She knew what her body looked like – the extra weight she’d put on through the years and the stretch marks from her pregnancy. But when Garrett said it, she knew he meant it. His voice was low and desperate and intense, and his desire was too obvious for her to deny it.
She groaned, heat firing through her. Even the bra and panties were too many clothes for her right now – not to mention the boxer briefs that still covered Garrett up, even though they looked like they were about to burst apart at the seams in their effort to contain him.
Writhing on the bed, she unhooked her bra, freeing her breasts, as Garrett pulled her panties down her thighs and over her ankles.
Garrett sucked in a breath as she lay fully bared before him. But the moment he took to stare at her, fire in his eyes, was a moment too long for her.
“C’mon, get those off,” she said, reaching for his underpants, wanting to see him – all of him.
She gasped as he tugged them down, and his hardened cock sprang free, rising up from the forest of dark curls between his thighs. Georgia reached out for it almost in wonder, running her fingers gently over his hard, thick length, and marveling at the way he shuddered beneath her touch, a groan escaping his lips. She wanted to make him do so much more than that, she thought mischievously as she looked up into his face, at his closed eyes and the beads of sweat that broke out over his forehead.
“Georgia…”
Her name on his lips sent a sudden surge of pleasure through her, and she felt wetness coating her thighs. She didn’t think she’d ever been so wet before in her life. She could feel every nerve ending within her lighting up, making her sensitive to every touch, every breath, every shudder.
His cock was fully hard in her hand now, like steel sheathed in velvet skin. It was enough to make her mouth water – and, impulsively, Georgia slipped out from beneath him, pushing him over onto his back as she shuffled down the bed, lowering her head to taste him.
Garrett let out a groan as she did so, looking down at her.
“You don’t have to –” The rest of whatever he was going to say was lost to the choked sound he made as Georgia lowered her mouth again, taking the head of his cock between her lips.
“I know I don’t.” She raised her head, looking up at him and grinning. “But I want to.”
Garrett’s head fell back, his Adam’s apple jumping in his throat as she ran her fingers over him again, feeling him shudder.
Smiling, Georgia lowered her head again. He tasted good, like the salty tang of sweat and the musk of his skin, and his warmth filled her mouth. Georgia let out a small moan around his thickness as she slid her lips over him, unable to hold back. Doing this felt indulgent and sweet and dirty all at the same time. She was hungry for him, wanting to taste all of him.
Garrett arched up gently beneath her, his fingers threading through her hair as she worked over him, using her lips and tongue and the tiniest hint of teeth to make him jerk and moan. She could feel the powerful muscles of his thighs clench every time she circled her tongue, and the knowledge that it was her doing this to him – making this hot, formidable, heavily muscled man groan and writhe with her touch – filled her with satisfaction, and made her throb with arousal.
She could feel he was holding himself back, his hips tense with the effort of not thrusting up into her mouth. He was throbbing now, his heartbeat heavy against her tongue, all his muscles stretched and straining, his fingers clenched against her head. Georgia raised her eyes to look at him, at the long, rigid column of his body, at his sweaty skin, the dusting of dark hair over his stomach and chest.
He really was beautiful – and he was hers.
Garrett raised his head, his blue eyes filled with desire.
“Georgia,” he gasped. “If you don’t stop, I’ll –”
Georgia lifted her head, missing the feel of his girth in her mouth at once. “Would that be so bad?”
Garrett shook his head. “No. But I want you here. With me.”
Georgia swallowed heavily. As much as she wanted to taste him as he came, she also wanted for them to do this together.
Lifting herself, she crawled her way up his body, his arms coming up to encircle her. He kissed her hungrily before his right hand drifted down her body, slipping between her legs.
She gasped as his fingertips found her clit, circling her slowly. Her body felt filled with heat, as if someone had lit a match and it had flared to life within her.
His left hand cupped her breast as she shuddered, arching against him.
“You’re so wet,” he said, his voice sounding almost marveling.
Georgia closed her eyes as his fingers moved, slipping inside her. She cried out at once, pushing her hips down against his hand, wanting to feel more of him. His thumb replaced his fingers on her clit, rubbing against her as his fingers moved inside her.
“God, Garrett, I can’t take much more of this,” she gasped out, seeing stars at his touch. She needed more of him – and she needed it now. The pleasure of his fingers inside her was good, but she could only think about how much better it would feel…
She pushed herself up off his fingers, ignoring the stab of desperation in her stomach at the loss of his touch. Garrett’s eyes sparked as he realized what she had planned, his large hands gripping her hips as she straddled him.
Pausing above him momentarily, Georgia looked down into his eyes. Are you ready?
More than ready, his gaze seemed to answer hers, his eyes half-lidded with desire, his lips pulled back in a half-smile, half-snarl.
Reaching between them, she guided him into her, taking him within herself. She couldn’t hold back the long, loud groan that left her as she felt him – finally – filling her up, pressing against her, finding every part of her.
Georgia threw her head back, her fingers digging into his hard pecs when at last he was all in, and her thighs were pressed against his hips. He filled her perfectly, opening her body as if they had been made for each other.
Maybe we have, Georgia thought, light-headed with her own pleasure. Maybe this is part of being mates, of being fated to be together…
Unable to remain still a moment longer, Georgia rolled her hips forward, guided by his hands. Bolts of pleasure arced through her, racing over her skin. Garrett thrust up to meet her every time, sheathing himself completely within her body, and finding exactly the right spot within her to make her cry out with every movement.
“Oh God,” she heard herself moan, her voice rasping. She could already feel her climax building within her as Garrett took one hand from her hip to cover her breast, catching her nipple between his fingers and sending a new ripple of pleasure straight through her.
Everything he did only heightened her ecstasy. She had never felt anything like this before – never felt so connected to another person. It was as if they were joined not only by their bodies, but also their hearts, their souls.
“Georgia,” he gasped out, stilling her momentarily as he sat up, lifting himself so his lips rested against her throat, his teeth grazing over her pulse.
Georgia cried out at the change of position, his hard abs pressing against her clit and sending pleasure spiraling through her. Her head grew misty, all her thoughts blocked out by what she was feeling.
“Garr
ett,” she heard herself gasp, her voice desperate. “Oh God, Garrett…”
“Georgia.”
It was his voice that sent her tumbling over the edge at last, husky and desperate and groaning out her name.
White hot heat surged through her, and she shuddered down to her bones, her muscles clenched, her back arched, her breasts pressed against his chest. Georgia cried out as she came, not caring how loud she was being. Her climax tore through her like a raging storm.
Garrett’s arms tightened around her as he followed her into bliss, his hips thrusting up with the aftershocks of his climax.
Together, they trembled, skin pressed to skin, their breath mingling, until finally Garrett lay back on the pillows, pulling her down with him. Georgia rested her head on his chest, her whole body tingling, listening to the heavy beat of his heart next to her ear.
Every muscle in her body felt deliciously relaxed, and right now, moving was just a little too much trouble. So she didn’t – she stayed right where she was, flopping over Garrett’s body like a cat.
“You aren’t getting cold, are you?” Garrett said after what seemed like an eternity, raising his hand to run his fingers through her hair.
“Nope,” Georgia mumbled, struggling to open her eyes. “You’re keeping me nice and warm.”
It was true. Even if the chalet had been cold, the heat rolling off Garrett’s body would have been enough to keep her from cooling down too much.
“That’s good. I sometimes find it hard to tell – shifters don’t really feel the cold.”
Georgia blinked, reminded suddenly that she still had a lot of questions to ask Garrett.
She groaned a little as she rolled off his body, missing the contact at once, but knowing that if she stayed where she was she was likely to simply fall asleep – or try to go for round two.
She shivered. As much as she would’ve liked to do that, she knew she should at least try to stay focused.
“I never asked you,” she said, playing her fingers over his chest. “What kind of animal do you shift into?”
“A dragon.” His eyes were serious. “There’s plenty of shifters who become an animal you’d see anywhere, but there are a small number of us who shift into mythical beings – or the animals that have become thought of as mythical beings, anyway. Once upon a time, we were probably just regular animals too.”
A dragon!
A frisson of excitement ran through her. She might have been disbelieving, if not for the fact that Emilia’s husband Rowan turned into a griffin.
A dragon seemed somehow even more awesome than that, to her way of thinking – dragons were powerful and ancient, and they fiercely protected what was theirs.
“So… do you have a hoard of gold or something like that?” she asked.
Garrett shook his head. “I’m afraid not – if that was ever true, dragons stopped doing it a long time ago.” His expression faltered a little. “Are you disappointed?”
“God, no!” Georgia shook her head vehemently. “Not at all! I just meant it as a joke – you’re more than enough for me. I don’t need a pile of gold.” She swallowed, looking down into his eyes. “Just you.”
She meant it completely. She closed her eyes as he raised his head to kiss her, sinking into the warmth of his mouth.
“And you’re the only thing I need, Georgia. I can’t believe I found you. I never thought I’d have a mate of my own. Like I said, I wasn’t even sure I wanted to, given how I didn’t see how it’d fit in with my work. I was an idiot.”
Georgia couldn’t help but laugh. “Really? That’s a bit harsh.”
Garrett shook his head. “Maybe, but that’s how I feel, now that I’ve found you. My job’s important to me, sure, and that’s never going to change. But knowing I have a mate…” He drew in a breath, his fingers stroking her face. “That’s priceless.”
A smile tugged at Georgia’s lips as she kissed him again.
Priceless.
That’s what this was – utterly priceless. She was suddenly very happy she hadn’t argued more with Emilia and Rowan about how the people of Fairhill had clearly fixed the raffle in her favor.
As they kissed, she felt the renewed stirrings of arousal deep in her belly – and judging from the way Garrett’s breathing shallowed, his cock stirring against his thigh, she guessed he could feel it too.
Time for round two, Georgia thought with a grin.
Chapter 7
The next morning, Georgia slowly awoke, drifting back into consciousness with a kind of contentment she hadn’t felt in years.
If I’ve ever felt it, she thought, stretching gently, and feeling the way her body protested in the most satisfying of ways – the way that meant it’d had an extremely thorough workout the night before.
A smile twitched at her lips as the memories came back to her, her stomach clenching as she recalled round two, round three, and everything else that had come after. She really hadn’t gotten much sleep last night, but she didn’t feel tired in the slightest. Instead, she felt elated.
Biting her lip, she looked across at the man sleeping by her side, tangled in the sheets. Garrett’s face was relaxed in sleep, his thick, dark eyebrows serene, his lips slightly parted. His tousled hair fell over his forehead, and a dark stubble was growing on his chin, but his disheveled state only made him even more attractive to her.
Georgia could scarcely allow herself to believe that this was real – that he was real, and that he was her mate.
My mate.
The words echoed inside her chest, filling her heart with an emotion she hadn’t been sure she’d ever be able to feel again. At least, not for a man.
Love.
The knowledge made her catch her breath.
She knew, of course, that she was still able to feel love, even after everything she’d been through. She loved her father and Logan fiercely, but of course, both of those loves were different. Logan was her son, and she’d die to protect him. Her father had raised her and been there for her, and they’d helped each other come to terms with her mother’s death, and her loyalty and love for him was boundless.
But romantic love?
Georgia had thought she was done with that after Tim had walked out on her. How could she let another man in, after that?
But the right man…
Sitting up, Georgia smiled.
Garrett was definitely that. Even if she hadn’t felt it before, last night had swept away any doubts. Garrett had told her that shifters mated for life – and now that their bond was sealed, she knew she wouldn’t have to worry that Garrett would suddenly take off for greener pastures.
She wasn’t sure if she was just being ridiculous, but she thought she could feel the bond inside her, like a golden glow around her heart, throbbing with its every beat.
Mine.
The word rose up inside her as she looked at Garrett’s sleeping face.
And I’m his.
Stretching again, Georgia yawned, scratching her fingers through her hair. Garrett wasn’t showing any signs of stirring – which was understandable – but Georgia was used to getting straight up once she was awake. Even so, it was tempting to simply snuggle back down by Garrett’s side, but her stomach seemed to have other ideas, gurgling with hunger.
Guess we worked up kind of an appetite, Georgia thought with a grin as she slipped out of the sheets and into one of the fluffy white robes the chalet provided.
They didn’t need to go pick up Logan from the main hall until eleven – she had plenty of time to fix them both breakfast in the meantime.
Humming to herself, Georgia swished out to the kitchen, knowing her hair was a mess, she hadn’t had a shower and her robe was falling open over her breasts, but feeling beyond sexy even so. Garrett had made her feel so desirable last night that she was pretty sure anyone who looked at her today would be able to see it. The spring in her step would be unmissable.
Peeping into the massive double fridge, Georgia was relieved to see
that it had been stocked up exactly the same way the one in her chalet had: with eggs, bread, bacon, spinach, and a host of other fixings, along with milk and coffee.
Coffee is definitely needed, she thought, grabbing it off the shelf and spooning it into one of the fancy filters for the expensive coffee machine on the counter. She’d had to read the manual yesterday before she could even begin to understand how to use it, but it had made the best coffee she’d had in years.
Once the coffee machine was happily bubbling away, Georgia found a frying pan, before grabbing all the things she’d need to make a hearty breakfast for them both.
Should I whip up some waffles? she thought idly as she unwrapped the bacon. It seemed a little indulgent to have them two days in a row… but then again, she was feeling indulgent.
Well, what the hell, she thought, shrugging. I like waffles.
Humming again, she turned back toward the fridge – and froze.
Standing just outside the massive glass doors that led out onto the decking was the biggest mountain lion she had ever seen.
Georgia sucked in a quick breath, shocked – but she hadn’t grown up in a place like Fairhill without a few close encounters with local wildlife, some of whom were very curious to know what went on inside houses, and had very little fear of humans.
Bears roaming around were a common occurrence, and moose weren’t exactly rare either. Georgia had definitely seen a mountain lion before, too. If you wanted to live that close to nature, you couldn’t let it faze you.
But there was something… different about this one, Georgia thought, as she returned its yellow stare. Something about the way it was looking at her so intently, an almost human intelligence in its animal eyes.
“Garrett!”
Garrett was by her side in an instant, faster than she ever imagined anyone could move, especially someone who’d seemed dead asleep only minutes before. She could feel his alertness, the way his muscles tensed as he stood beside her.
