Lying on the bed, he gently gathered her in his arms. She was soft and curvy and fit against him like no other woman had. She curled into him, her hands caressing down his back, as their mouths fused.
He wanted to take her tenderly, explore all her hills and valleys, find what made her bite her lip, her eyes shudder closed on a gasp of pleasure, and what caused her to shiver. She parted her thighs eagerly for him. His shaft settled against her heat and it was his eyes closing in bliss.
She arched, trying to get him to penetrate her, but he backed off. "Not yet. I need—"
"Yes," she hissed. "Need—"
"I know what you need." He took her nipple into his mouth while at the same time he inserted a finger inside her, testing her wetness. She was wet, tight, and hot. Oh, so hot. Her muscles clenched around him, urging him to thrust deeper.
"Please..." she panted. "Just...please. Oh god, yesss."
He added another finger and drove them deeper. He had to get her closer because the minute he was inside her he would take her hard, and he wouldn't last long.
She twisted under him, her fingers grasping and clawing at him, and then she pushed him away. "Not yet," she said. Catching him by surprise, she tossed him onto his back and straddled him. "I've always wanted to be on top."
That stopped him from flipping her back over. "You've never been on top?"
"So many things I haven't done and I want to do all of them with you."
"Yes, God." How had he finally found the perfect woman only to have to leave her in the approaching dawn? What kind of hell was this?
She stroked the heat of her body over his shaft, and his head fell back into the soft pillows on a tortured groan.
"May I?" she teased.
"You so fucking may." He grabbed her hips and helped position her over him.
Slowly, inch by agonizing inch, she took him inside the heat of her body. She was a goddess of fire and passion rising above him, consuming him, taking him like he'd never been taken before. All the way to her center.
Her expressive face registered how she felt, she didn't seem to care that he was mesmerized with watching her as she pleasured herself on him. His pulse accelerated as her breaths quickened. He added his thumb to the nub hidden at the beginning of her sex and lightly stroked it as she took him harder.
He increased the pressure, and her moans turned to cries as she climaxed, her inner muscles milking him as they contracted around him. She held suspended there in rapture with her head thrown back in wild abandon, her fiery curls cascading down her back.
She lift her head, met his eyes, and gave him a satisfied smile. "That was every bit as great as I've heard it to be."
He swiveled their positions. "You haven't experienced anything yet." He plunged deep and buried himself within her. She took everything he had to give, and he didn't hold back anything. All his frustration, his yearning to be free, his thirst for human contact. He gave and took, and was lost.
His grip tightened around her, his hardened thrusts intensified, his mouth unrelenting as he tried to imprint upon her. She came again, and this time he flew with her, her name a wishful prayer on his lips.
Chapter Ten
"He has to be somewhere!" Hugh exploded.
Time was running out. Shyla Pierce and that trooper posse of hers were creating waves. They'd kept him from getting to the injured Marshal in the hospital. If Hugh didn't take him out—making it look like an accident—who knew what he'd wake up and say?
This whole fucking mess could blow wide open. He hated it when a solid plan went to shit. And McAllister was always at the heart of it.
"Hey, we even searched the wildlife rehabilitation habitat," Trooper Hagan said. "No sign of him. Told you he couldn't have made it that far."
Hugh's eyes narrowed. "Never underestimate a desperate man."
"Well, desperate isn't the word to describe anyone willing to hide out on that piece of land. The place is crawling with man-eating animals." Hagan shuddered. "The woman caretaking the place seemed a little cagey, though she'd be fun try to tame. You just don't see her kind of body anymore. Centerfold worthy. Damn, she was hot."
"With a fiery attitude to match," Stohl added. "Women like her burn a man."
Hugh regarded the map in front of him. She was cagey, huh? If he were McAllister, the wildlife habitat would be exactly the place he'd pick to hideout until the manhunt widened its search area.
Crazy yet very smart.
And desperate.
"You searched the grounds?" he asked.
"Yes, sir. About shit our pants doing it too," Hagan rattled on. "What'd she call that Kodiak brown bear?"
"Alice Cooper," Stohl said.
"She's got wolves out there, plus an ornery otter, moose, and caribou. I can't remember them all. It's like a freaking zoo." Hagan snorted. "Ha, get it?"
Hugh and Stohl ignored him.
"Wait, did you say Alice Cooper?" Hugh asked. Why did that name suddenly spark something in his memory? Mentally he rifled through the endless catalog of information that never seemed to leave him. "Look up Alice Cooper on the internet along with Disney. I think he was recently used in a kid's film."
"That was not a film-friendly bear," Hagan said. "He was a man-eater, I tell you."
Stohl sat at the computer and typed into the search engine. There was a long line of film and TV credits listing Alice Cooper.
The bear was a fucking celebrity.
Chapter Eleven
Briar burrowed into West's arms. She wanted to weep at the injustice of not knowing him before now.
Why would life do this to her? Take her dad so fast when the doctors had given him years and yet the cancer had spread so quickly that he'd been gone in months. Now she'd been given West for only a night.
One night.
It wasn't enough. She was greedy and wanted him longer.
"You're thinking too hard," West said, his voice different, less guarded and laced with a touch of humor. "Stop it."
"Trying."
"Give me twenty minutes to recover and I'll make you forget your name, though I might require sustenance first."
"Can we eat in bed?"
He gave a sexy chuckle. "Most definitely as I've already demonstrated."
She felt the heat of her blush all the way to her toes. "I was talking about food."
"I could survive on you, Briar. You taste of spiced honey that has been dipped in fire."
She playfully slapped his arm. "Come on, I have the makings for ice cream sundaes."
"With nuts?" He jumped off the bed, and they traipsed naked into the darkened kitchen.
"Of course with nuts." She opened the freezer and pulled out the ice cream. Setting the container on the counter, she rooted around in the fridge, triumphantly holding up a can. "I even have whipped cream."
"That is coming with us."
She giggled. They dished up ice cream, poured on chocolate sauce, whipped cream, and chopped almonds before returning to the bedroom.
Snuggling on the bed, they took turns feeding each other from their bowls.
"So tell me about the tattoo?" He pointed at the fireweed he'd traced with his tongue a little earlier.
She tipped one shoulder and offered him a bite of her ice cream. "School was brutal. Kids can be horrible when you're different. I was quite the target with my brillo-red hair, freakish height, and living wild with the animals. The fact that I was—am—dyslexic left me open to some serious bullying. My dad was the best help he could be, teaching me to be strong and stand up for myself, when the little girl inside me wanted to cry and hide all the time. He wouldn't allow that. I needed to stand proud, feel sorry for the boys and girls that would never be tall enough to smell the sweetest air, see the prettiest sights. He was a bit of a romantic."
"He sounds like he was a hell of a man."
"Yeah, he was." She scooped up another spoonful of ice cream and offered it to him. He licked the spoon clean, and her eyes locked on his tongue and reme
mbered how he'd used it to bring her immeasurable pleasure. She wanted to repay him the favor. Her gaze fell to his groin.
Yeah, he was up for it.
West cupped her chin and tenderly leaned in and kissed her. "Finish your story and then we'll get started on that thought."
"Promise?"
"Oh, hell yeah."
She took a fortifying breath. "Where was I?'
"Freaking bullies."
"Right. It wasn't until high school when my teachers figured out how to teach me in a way that I understood that things started to turn around. At least the reading and writing part. The red hair never dyed well, and there wasn't anything I could do about hiding my height. Finally at eighteen, I said to hell with it all."
"And got a tattoo?"
"In the arctic, when there is a forest fire, the first seed to germinate and bloom is fireweed. Dad had always told me that I was meant to bloom, but sometimes people have to endure the fire first."
"Your dad was a very smart man."
"Yes, he was."
"I wish I could have met him."
She laughed. "Actually it's probably a good thing he wasn't here when you showed up. Don't think you would have survived it. He was a bear of a man, and not an Alice Cooper bear, if you get my meaning."
"With you to raise, I believe it."
"It's your turn, give. I need the truth about your situation not what has been reported in the news."
"I'd rather not get into it. I just want to share this time with you. Not cloud it with things that can't be resolved."
"The man who shared his body with me, who showed me the pleasure you have, couldn’t be responsible for another man's cold-blooded murder."
West stirred the melting ice cream in his bowl and then set it aside on the night table. "If I tell you, you must promise me that you won't take up my fight. Promise me, Briar. I know the type of woman you are. You fight for the underdog, that's why you take in these animals that wouldn’t survive otherwise. I am not one of your abandoned or wounded animals."
She tightened her lips. Some wounds were more than physical, but if this was the only way he'd tell her, then she'd promise. What could he do to her if she broke it later? "Okay, what happened?"
"How much do you know about Shyla Pierce and her story?"
"She's the ADA who was supposedly murdered but was really in the witness protection...by the US Marshals. Ahh."
He nodded. "Yes, I was one of the officers assigned to her case and in order to keep her alive I had to get her out of the protection of the US Marshals."
"The corruption was within the Marshals too?" She knew the DA's office had been investigated after Shyla Pierce's return from the grave and that the corruption had reportedly been as high as the governor's office. Why not the US Marshals too?
"I had begun to suspect my partner. Unfortunately, I didn't act soon enough as I didn't want to believe him capable. I was a bit too trusting. Even after I knew Shyla was in danger and squirreled her away, and Wade Yakov came forward to turn state's evidence, I didn't suspect my own partner." He gave a humorous laugh. "I actually thought he was helping me find the real killer, instead he was planting irrefutable evidence that I had killed Yakov."
"How?"
"My prints were at the scene, and my service weapon was used to kill Yakov. I had no alibi."
"And no one questioned why a cop wasn't smart enough to wear gloves and use an untraceable weapon, or have an ironclad alibi. What were you doing that night?"
"Home alone, sleeping off a double shift. I have no way to prove it. I went straight home after work and crashed. The police woke me the next morning."
"How'd they get your service weapon?"
"I don't know. Yakov was murdered just after midnight. When I was arrested in the morning, my Glock was still on the night table where I had left it before going to bed."
"You don't remember anything else?"
He slowly shook his head. "I have vague memories of sharing a beer with my partner, but he says he wasn't there."
"You think he could have slipped you something?"
"It's the only thing that makes sense. Other than knowing about Yakov from Shyla's report, I had no dealings with the man. If anything I felt sorry for him. He'd been a good cop until his wife got cancer and then the bills were so high that he started taking questionable jobs on the side to pay for her treatment. Before long, the bad guys owned him."
"So he was a loose end that needed taken care of when Shyla came back from the dead."
"Yes, and so was I, as I helped Shyla escape the Marshals and suspected corruption within the ranks."
"What better way to take care of two loose ends by framing one for the murder of the other?"
"It's a damn good theory. One that I will probably never be able to prove."
"What about Shyla Pierce? I heard that she took up your case and defended you."
"She did. She's a hell of a woman. Incredible strength of character to be able to sacrifice and overcome what she did, but the physical evidence against me was too compelling for the jury. Unless someone who knows something comes forward, I will forever be charged as a murderer."
"You're going after your partner, aren't you?"
"The less you know about what I plan to do, the better."
She saw the need to exact vengeance in his eyes and hoped that he got it.
"Thank you, Briar, for everything."
She wanted to get caught up in the injustice of it all, take up the torch and do what he'd made her promise not to.
Someone needed to fight for him, but the only thing within her power right now was to offer him a few hours of peace. "There is one way you can repay me." She cocked a brow and reached for the can of whipped cream. "Still hungry?"
He dragged her into his arms and took the can away from her, shaking it. "You have no idea."
Chapter Twelve
Briar awoke with a start, a hand over her mouth, and West holding the gun.
"Shh," he whispered. "Someone's here." He motioned for her to get out of bed.
She yanked on yoga pants and a tank top. West hurried and dressed in the clothes he'd stripped out of last night.
Someone pounded on her front door.
"Leave," she whispered indicating the window. "I'll stall them."
"No, if it's the troopers, they will have the place surrounded.
"Yo, Briar! Get your butt out of bed!" a man's voice hollered followed by another pounding.
West's hand tightened on the gun.
"Wait! Oh no, what day is it?"
"Saturday."
"It's Lynx Maiski."
"Who?"
"Wildlife Refuge Officer from up by Fairbanks. He's scheduled to pick up Van Halen, a bald eagle that will be released in Poker Flats."
"That's a long way from here for an eagle release, isn't it?"
"Lynx is...different and he and Van Halen…well, they understand each other. Just leave it at that."
"Briar!" Lynx hollered. "Wake up, foxy lady."
"Foxy lady?"
"Nickname." She flipped her red hair over her shoulder and threw a t-shirt over the tank top. "Let me take care of him. He's harmless...sort of."
West let her leave the room, staying on the other side of the door with the gun, but she knew he didn't like it one bit.
She reached the door and opened it just as Lynx was preparing to knock again. Tall and warrior-like, Lynx Maiski carried his Athabascan heritage with pride. Sharp bones, dark skin, and raven black hair, he was a man every woman couldn't help but look at twice.
"Well, this is a first," he said. "Me, waking you up."
She smoothed her wild hair back, and he followed her movements, something clicking. Damn, she hated that he was so astute. Not only freakishly so with animals, but people too.
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you have a man hidden in your bed."
"What do you mean 'if you didn't know any better'? I have sex with...people. Men."
"Yes, she would. And I don't want to be in that spitfire's sights. Speaking of your wife, where is Eva?"
"I came alone on this trip. It's good for married people to spend time apart every now and then. Especially when they just found out they're pregnant again."
"Pregnant? Didn't you just have a little girl?"
"Thanksgiving, yeah. Somehow this is all my fault. And it's good to give Eva space when she's adjusting to surprises. Besides, I'm glad I didn't bring her, with all the madness. Have you been to town?
"Uh..."
"There's a manhunt going on. You shouldn't be alone. Do you have a guy here, because I would feel better knowing someone is looking out for you?"
"Lynx, don't worry about me. I can take care of myself. And congratulations on the new baby."
He beamed. "Thanks. It's going to be great. Love the babies. Hey, where's O.D.? The little critter has usually high-fived me by now."
She'd locked the doggie door last night so that O.D. didn't surprise West or get an eyeful of their antics. He was, after all, still considered a young pup.
"Probably still sleeping off his dinner. Troopers were here late last night searching the place and put me behind on the chores. They got all the animals excited."
"Yeah, I don't like this. Maybe I should stay with you a few days until this guy is caught."
"No," she was quick to answer, maybe too quick as Lynx's gaze narrowed.
He leaned in and lowered his voice. "Are you okay? Is there anyone else here?"
"No." She held his gaze while sweat broke out under her arms. "Just me and the animals."
He studied her a little longer and then stepped back. "All right. Let's get Van Halen ready to travel, and I'll get out of your way."
"I just need to...grab a sweatshirt. Do you want a cup of coffee?" She opened the door wider for him and he walked across the threshold. The longer she kept him on the porch the more he'd suspect she wasn't being totally honest.
"I wouldn't say no to a cup of coffee."
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