Mystical Xmas: Paranormal Romance Anthology Box Set

by Anthology

He needed to explain to her what she had seen. He took a deep breath and sighed. “Listen, I know you saw…” he broke off when she met his eyes, and he saw them glisten with tears. He knew that she was holding on by a thread and he didn’t have the slightest idea how to stop it.

  Christ, his track record with women left much to be desired. He didn’t do relationships… or talking. He did sex. Plain and simple. But, for some reason, he wanted to comfort this woman. He wanted to make her fear and confusion go away. “Megan,” he whispered, and she shivered at the smoky tone of his voice as it seemingly caressed her skin. “I…I don’t know what your beliefs are…but, I’m going to need you to try and keep an open mind for me. Okay?”

  She nodded slowly, those glorious eyes of hers wide and questioning, and he noticed the way she gripped tightly onto the washcloth that she held.

  He reached out, and took it from her, giving her hand a gentle squeeze; and wasn’t surprised to find that her hand was ice cold. “That piece of shit that attacked you… was a Vampire,” he murmured bluntly and watched as her mouth dropped open. “I know it seems impossible, but…it’s true.”

  “Are you…” she stopped abruptly, chewing at her lower lip as it began to tremble violently.

  “No,” he reassured her softly. “But, I’ve been hunting that bastard for a very long time.” Jax pushed himself up a little, so that their faces weren’t even five inches apart and caught her eyes, holding them…urging her to trust him. Damned if he didn’t want that more than anything. “Megan, I’m a Werewolf.”

  He heard her sharp intake of breath and those beautiful eyes widened even more. Please, don’t lose it, sweetheart. Please don’t. For some reason, that he couldn’t even begin to fathom, that last thing he wanted was for her to look at him in fear. He felt as if it would kill him if she did.

  The silence in the room was almost deafening as he watched the play of emotion on her face. Finally, she took a deep, shaky breath.

  “You aren’t going to like, wolf-out and rip me to shreds…are you?” she asked, and Jax couldn’t help but to burst out laughing – wincing when the pain in his side shot a sharp reminder to his brain that he was still injured.

  That seemed to snap her into action and she pressed him back down onto the sofa cushion and grabbed the washcloth from his hand. She poured antiseptic on the cloth and rested it above his cut. “Remember, this might sting.” She pressed the cloth to his wound, then flinched when he sucked in a deep breath. “Sorry,” she mumbled.

  “It’s completely fine,” he gritted out between clenched teeth. He watched in quiet fascination as she quickly cleaned and dressed his wound. When she finished, she swiped the back of her hand across her brow and gave him a smile.

  “You should probably have stitches,” she informed him, and her mouth turned down when he broke into laughter once again. “What?” She asked, her brow rising in confusion.

  “I’ll heal quickly,” he informed her, his mouth set in that grin. “I just need to rest.”

  “Oh, of course. You’re a Werewolf.” She worried her lower lip again, and he found himself fascinated with the way her perfect teeth chewed at that plump, full lip. “So; you never did answer my question,” she said, finally.

  “And that was?” he found himself completely fascinated by this woman. There was a strength in this woman that he found absolutely enthralling; yet a warmth that he wanted so badly to explore.

  “Are you going to go all Wolfy and rip me apart?”

  ~ ~ ~

  Megan’s body shivered when his deep, rich laughter filled the room once again. Damn, but the man had a fabulous laugh. It was smoky, and husky…and sexy as hell.

  “I promise you that I won’t.” he choked out finally, and she found herself smiling in spite of the situation. Damn it! She just couldn’t seem to help herself.

  “Do you have a wife to get home to – or perhaps a passel of puppies?” She asked, and again he burst out laughing.

  “No,” he snorted. “To both.”

  “Good, then take off that shirt and those jeans so that I can throw them in the wash. They’re covered in blood, and you don’t want it to set in. You’re welcome to sleep on the couch tonight until you…heal; or whatever.” She stood and began gathering up her supplies – taking them back into the bathroom.

  When she came back, she stopped short – her breath leaving her body in a quick whoosh. In the few minutes that she had been gone, the man had stripped down to only a pair of boxers, and was sprawled back out on the couch…and it was breath taking. She had never seen such a perfect specimen of the male gender before. Not anywhere other than in her dreams that was, and still this man put them all to shame. Holy crap!

  “Are you hungry?” She asked, cursing the tremor in her voice. “Would you like something to eat…or a glass of wine?” As she spoke, she dashed across the room and grabbed a blanket that was folded over the back of a chair. It was her go-to snuggle blanket, but at least it would cover up what was quickly becoming a complete distraction. How the hell was she supposed to concentrate when the man looked like that?

  She walked over and threw it over him as he adjusted himself comfortably on the sofa – his large frame hanging over slightly. Damn, the man was big.

  “I’d love a glass of wine if you have it.”

  She gave him a quick, jerky nod -which most likely made her look like a blathering ass-hat, and swiftly took refuge in the kitchen. She kept herself busy with getting them their wine, trying to get her thoughts off of the man in the next room. What the hell was it about him that had her so…aware?

  She opened her fridge to see what she could offer him to munch on, and was sorely disappointed by the meager offerings that it contained. She really needed to eat more.

  She found some cheese, and olives and luckily her cupboard held a pack of crackers. Well, she thought with a shrug – beggars can’t be choosers. She only hoped that his diet didn’t consist solely of road-kill -or something else that was equally raw and bloody. Ick!

  When she walked back into the room, she found him sitting up – the blanket draped across his impressive lap and that muscular chest of his completely bare. Oh, ugh! Life was just so unfair sometimes. She felt the heat rising up her neck as she handed him his glass and went back into the kitchen to retrieve her sorry ass excuse for food.

  She set the tray on the coffee table, and sat down on the other end of the sofa; taking a hearty swig of her wine.

  “Why don’t you have any Christmas decorations?” He asked, looking around the room.

  Megan shrugged, not meeting his gaze. “I’m really not into the whole Christmas thing,” she whispered, wondering how he could ever understand her isolation. It had been Christmas when her father had left, it had been Christmas when she had discovered that David had been cheating on her for years. No, Christmas just wasn’t her thing. “So…you hunt Vampires,” she burst out, hoping to steer the course of their conversation away from her lack of holiday spirit.

  ~ ~ ~

  Jax lifted his glass to his lips and took a drink, his eyes locking on hers. What was it about this woman that drew him in? He didn’t know – but she did. He wanted nothing more than to pull her into his arms and taste that sweet mouth of hers -to know if her skin was as silky smooth as it looked…to kiss the pulse that was beating wildly in her throat. He gave himself a mental shake and tried desperately to remember what she had asked him. Christ!

  “Yes, I do.”

  Megan picked at a piece of lint on her jeans and cleared her throat. “That must be…fun.”

  Jax’s lips curved up into a smile, loving the pure moxie of this woman. She was straight forward and blunt; and he was damned impressed by her. “It has its moments.”

  “I can only imagine,” she huffed; silently wondering why anyone would choose that as their profession. “So, where do you live?”

  Jax chuckled softly, shaking his head. Shit, where didn’t he live? He had been a hunter for longer than he cared to remember, a
nd the job of tracking and taking down rogue Vampires was beginning to take its toll on him- as was proven tonight by the fact that Malcom had gotten close enough to actually cut him. Damn it, this woman was a distraction - but, such a damn pleasant one.

  “I move around,” he replied, grabbing a piece of cheese from the platter and popping it into his mouth. “Right now I’m in a hotel down on third.”

  “That’s got to be…lonely,” she observed.

  “I’m a fairly solitary creature by nature,” he said with a sad smile.

  “Yeah,” she sighed, “I hear that. So am I.” She watched as he grabbed another piece of cheese and bit into it, drawn to the gentle motion of his perfect mouth as he chewed.

  “So tell me, Megan. What do you do? No…wait; let me guess…you’re a nurse?”

  Megan loved the sound of her name coming from this man’s mouth. It was like a warm molasses.

  She kicked off her boots and curled her legs up under her. “No; not even close,” she laughed, and Jax felt a shot of pure adrenaline hit his groin. Ah, hell!

  “I’m an executive assistant. Not too glamorous, but it pays the bills. I’m really sorry that I didn’t have much in the way of food to offer you…but, I’m not much of a cook.” She said as she watched him snag an olive. “I didn’t have any raw meat in the fridge; everything’s frozen.” She said the last part with a wicked grin and Jax felt another damn shot to his groin.

  “No, this is fine. I’m not even really hungry,” he explained, “but when Were’s get injured, our bodies need sustenance to help them heal faster.” He eyed her up and down a moment. “And… I don’t eat raw meat,” he laughed. “Well, not that often that is.”

  Megan burst into a fit of giggles; she just couldn’t stop herself. Maybe it was the insanity of this entire evening – perhaps it was just the effect that this man was having on her, but she suddenly found the thought of him munching down on a dead raccoon hilariously funny!

  ~ ~ ~

  Jax watched as she laughed uncontrollably, wiping the tears from her eyes as she snorted. “I’m sorry,” she choked out, shaking her head in embarrassment. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

  He leaned forward and closed the space between them, her scent wrapping around him like a warm embrace...sweet, heady…impossible to resist. “You’ve had a pretty big scare tonight,” he husked, his breath whispering across her face, and the laughter died in her throat in an instant. “It’s your body’s way of dealing.”

  With that, he pressed his lips against hers - needing to taste her mouth more at that moment than he needed air. And it was everything that he had imagined. Her lips tasted like nectar…sweet, warm nectar, and he thought he would explode when only a moment later, they parted on a sigh to let him gain access to the recesses of her mouth.

  He pulled her to him, leaning back against the sofa and pulling her along the length of his body, his mouth devouring hers.

  Megan’s hands twisted in his hair as she responded to him – kiss for kiss. His mouth was a strong and demanding presence that she just couldn’t deny. This man was a virtual stranger to her, yet she found herself trusting him as she had never trusted anyone before – and that thought threw her for a loop.

  She could feel the hard, rigid proof of his desire pressing against her belly and moaned into his mouth. His hands slid around her to the curve of her backside and he pulled her against him, as close as he possibly could.

  She came to her senses when she twisted slightly and felt him grimace as her knee brushed against his bandage. Oh, God! She shouldn’t be doing this, he was hurt. What in the hell was wrong with her?

  She lifted her head and looked into his eyes – shining so brightly with desire; and she knew that they mimicked her own. Yes, she wanted this man. More than she had ever wanted anyone before, but she wouldn’t give in to her needs when he was in pain.

  “I’m sorry,” she murmured, laying her forehead against his. “I hurt you.”

  Jax nibbled at her bottom lip, that grin stealing across his face. “You didn’t,” he assured her softly. “It’s most likely nearly healed…just a little tender.”

  Megan stared into his eyes, finding desire there, and need…and something else that she couldn’t put her finger on. She knew that this was crazy, but there was something about this man that she needed…desperately.

  She pressed her lips against his, swiping her tongue along his teeth and his mouth opened with a growl, deep from his chest and it reverberated through his body right into hers; causing a delicious heat to course through her veins, right to her very core.

  Jax tugged at the sweater that she wore, needing to feel her skin against his, and groaned into her mouth a moment later when she twisted to help him remove it. It went sailing across the living room and his hands went instantly to the hooks of her bra.

  She lifted her head once again and smiled at him. A smile that nearly took the breath from his body. “The bed would be more comfortable,” she husked, aching to feel his hot flesh against hers.

  He nodded and eased them off of the sofa, taking her hand and letting her lead the way.

  ~ ~ ~

  Megan walked to her bedroom on shaky legs, dropping her bra somewhere along the way; and when she looked back over her shoulder, she found Jax grinning. He gave the hand that he held a gentle squeeze as she pushed open the door and walked over to the bed.

  She turned to face him and he instantly pulled her against him, his mouth taking her once again. Hot, demanding…yet unbelievably tender. They backed up until the backs of her knees hit the mattress and she quickly unfastened her jeans and stepped out of them, not letting go of his mouth for an instant. She couldn’t if she tried.

  Jax pushed her down onto the mattress, his hands stroking and caressing every inch of her, and she found herself crying out to me.

  He pulled off his boxers and reached for the panties that she still wore. He wanted nothing between them, not matter how thin.

  His mouth left her lips and traveled down her throat, to her collarbone then her breasts. His tongue danced and trailed around her hardened peak only a moment before taking it into his mouth, pulling a sexy as hell purr from her throat, and he swore that it was almost his undoing. His body was throbbing to take her, but he wanted to make this last. He needed to enjoy every damn second. He had never wanted a woman as much as he wanted this one, and it was for so much more than merely just satisfying his basic needs. He found himself wanting…everything.

  “Jax,” she breathed, running her fingers through his silky hair as she arched her back, pressing herself more firmly into his mouth. His suckled hungrily, before moving to her other breast and giving it the same sweet attention. “Please…”

  Jax looked up into her hooded eyes and saw the desire there, burning brightly and making her eyes sparkle and dance like nothing he had ever seen before. He kissed his way back up and hovered over her mouth, stationing himself between her willing thighs; the heat of her arousal searing not only his body…but his heart.

  “I’m right here, baby,” he whispered against her mouth before moving his hips and sliding inside. He filled her to the hilt and stilled, taking a moment to enjoy her warmth as it surrounded him, and he realized that he felt like he was home.

  “So good,” she groaned as her eyes slid closed.

  Jax moved his hips, grinding himself against hers, their skin slick with the perspiration of their lovemaking, and he thought nothing had ever felt better.

  Megan wrapped her legs around his hips, lifting herself to meet his thrusts, in perfect sync with his body. They move faster, more desperate as the first tremors began to hit her. She gasped, arching off of the mattress as she ran her nails across his back, scoring his skin.

  Jax kissed her before lifting his head, “Look at me, Megan,” he whispered, and her eyes snapped opened and caught his. “I need to see you when you come for me.” He moved his hips faster, repositioning his body to hit just the right place, and his efforts pa
id off when only a moment later he heard her cry out her release as her orgasm slammed through her with a vengeance; causing her body to come crashing down around him; bringing him to his own climax.

  Jax’s body stiffened as a growl burst from him, her name passing his lips over and over as he buried his face against her neck, licking the pulse that beat rapidly there. He tasted the sweet saltiness of her skin and shuddered as he spilled himself into her.

  They lay that way until their breathing had evened out and finally he rolled over onto his back, taking her with him and pulling her up close against his steely frame.

  “My, God,” he breathed, kissing her temple as his hand danced across her back. “You are amazing.”

  Megan skimmed her fingers across his chest, loving the smooth, hard plains of his body. She had no words. This man had come into her life and saved her, in more ways than one. She trusted him…and that was something that she didn’t think she would ever do again.

  “You aren’t too bad yourself, Eddie.”

  “Eddie?” He questioned with a quirking of his brow.

  “Yeah, wasn’t it Eddie Munster who was the wolf-boy?”

  Jax barked out a laugh, his body rumbling beneath her, and Megan giggled, the vibration tickling her ear. “Megan Chambers, you are one astonishing woman.” He laughed.

  She snuggled up against him and stifled a yawn, she was suddenly tired as hell. Not to mention unbelievably sated and content.

  She lightly threw her leg over his and let herself drift off. Hoping that she wouldn’t wake in the morning to find out that this had all been just a dream.

  ~ ~ ~

  Megan slowly drifted out of sleep, the feel of a warm body curled around her; and a smile lit up her face. Well, there goes the dream factor scenario, she thought with a giggle.

  Jax moved, pulling her closer as he snored, and Megan had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. The man was utter perfection, yet snored like a lumberjack! She sighed and closed her eyes, not wanting this to end. It had been a very long time…or actually forever, since she felt so warm and protected in someone’s arms, and she wasn’t ready to have it end just quite yet.