"Oh my God," she gasped, biting her lip. “It feels so good.”
"You are so beautiful, baby. So perfect."
His mouth opened around her nipple and he sucked her in. The sensation of him sucking on her tender flesh did her in.
"Oh my God, Titus. Please don't stop."
He growled and sucked harder.
Her body was more alive than it had ever been. Flames of desire burned so bright she felt she might be consumed by them. He sucked harder, teasing at her taut nipples. Her body was on fire, her mind on high alert. She was so aroused she thought she might explode at any moment.
"Oh my God, Titus.”
He grasped her other breast and gently kneaded the taut flesh.
"Oh yes.”
"I need to taste you." He slowly moved down her body and pulled her swimsuit bottoms slowly down her legs.
Her mind and body were on fire. And she knew something was about to blow. He ran his tongue up the length of her thigh, his hand still grasping her breast. She ran her fingers through his cropped hair, her mind reeling with so much excitement she lost track of time and space.
Everything was only Titus. His hands, his body, his mouth. He flicked his tongue over the soft tender bud of her arousal. Something clicked inside her mind. It was like a whole new world of pleasure opened in that instant. She didn't think it could get any more exquisite than that, but then he began to move.
Softly and slowly, he licked her body in the most tantalizing rhythm. She was tight with desire but relented to the sensation, letting him take over and show her this new beautiful feeling.
He gripped her hips, getting a firmer hold of her. She groaned as the pressure built and built until there seemed to be nowhere else for it to go. Then it exploded.
She screamed as she came, her whole body spasming and throbbing with the most erotic pleasure imaginable. It went on and on as if she'd been saving it all up to share right now with him.
"Yes, yes, yes!” she called, declaring her passion to the universe. “Oh Titus." She groaned as he crawled up beside her. “Oh, my darling. I had no idea.”
"You’re like heaven to taste.”
"Titus. I didn't know. Thank you for showing me.”
"Thank you for being who you are, my sweet, sweet girl. Thank you for letting me into your world.”
Chapter 11
Titus woke with Arabella's soft, curvy body wrapped in his arms. He breathed in the scent of her hair, inhaling the absolute perfection that was her.
He had never been more happy than in that exquisite moment. The soft golden rays of dawn slid through the open windows, letting in the scent of tropical flowers and the desert.
She stirred in his arms. The feeling of her soft body against him, did him in. A raging torrent of need flooded his senses, and he grew hard with desire for his mate.
"Good morning," she said, turning toward him.
She looked up into his eyes and kissed his lips. Her breasts pressed against his bare chest. He tried to move away to disguise his unbridled lust, but she wouldn't let him go.
"Good morning, sweet lady," he said in a low voice.
"Last night was so amazing," she breathed, moving closer and not letting him move away.
"Yes, it was," he said.
"But you fell asleep before you let me touch you." Her voice was sultry and deep in her throat. It reminded him of the way she sang her songs.
"Last night was about you, not me.”
"Nonsense, it was about both of us."
"I want you more than I've ever wanted anything," he growled, his inner grizzly coming to the surface.
"I want to touch you now," she said, slipping her tiny hand under the waistband of his swim trunks.
"Arabella. You don't have to do this.”
"Don't try to stop me, Titus. I've waited too long to know what it feels like to touch a man.”
"Oh, my sweet lady."
He growled as her fingers wrapped around his length. He was so hard with need that her touch sent a quake of pleasure through him.
"Your cock is so hard," she purred.
She kept stroking his manhood, harder and faster. He couldn't hold back. He reached out for her and slid his hand between her legs, cupping her sex with his palm. She groaned.
"Arabella, you’re a goddess. My goddess."
He could feel her heat gush on his hand as his fingers danced and played on the blood of her sex. She gripped him tighter, stroking hard and fast and fierce. He could barely comprehend the magnitude of his desire for her. His beautiful, talented, amazing mate. She was a woman worshiped and desired by millions, but only he had the truth of her heart. Only he had her body in his hands. She growled and began to quiver. Her sex throbbed under his fingers.
He could smell her arousal, and the grip of her hands overwhelmed his senses. He came like a shooting rocket, exploding onto the soft curve of her stomach. They groaned and panted together as the heat of their mutual climaxes slowly subsided.
He grabbed a tissue and wiped the come from her stomach before pulling her close and holding her in his arms. He stared at the ceiling as he held her. The intensity of their lovemaking still gripped his chest and heart.
Titus had been waiting a long time for his mate. He was no stranger to the ways of love, but this moment with Arabella was a hundred times more beautiful, more pleasurable, and more intense than all the other experiences put together.
His inner grizzly screamed for him to claim her, to make her his forever and always. But he knew that it would have to wait until she was ready to tell him, in no uncertain terms, that she wanted him inside her.
He wanted that more than anything; he knew that it would be the greatest honor of his life. But it couldn’t be now, no matter how much his inner grizzly screamed for fulfillment. Arabella's cellphone buzzed with multiple messages and she groaned.
"I just want to stay in bed with you all day,” she said, resting on his chest.
"I know exactly how you feel."
"But I’ve got to get to rehearsal. We’ve got a show tonight. I’m not going to disappoint my fans, no matter how much I want to stay here with you.”
"We have all the time in the world, my darling." He kissed her forehead. "I'll order us some breakfast while you get dressed."
"Thank you." She kissed him again.
She crawled out of bed, wrapped in a blanket, and disappeared into the bathroom. Titus pulled on one of the hotel’s bathrobes and went to the phone to order room service. He ordered eggs, fruit, and toast with a big pot of coffee. It arrived before Arabella was out of the bathroom.
She emerged from her room in a bathrobe with a towel wrapped around her hair. Her eyes went wide with delight when she saw the food.
"This is perfect. I can't take too many breaks from my diet. The fans might be a little disappointed if I suddenly gained twenty pounds."
"I wouldn't mind,” he said with a growl, imagining more curves on her.
She giggled and batted her eyelashes prettily. She was so sexy and sweet. He could barely contain himself. But he quieted his inner bear’s demands and sat across from her at the dining room table.
As they shared their breakfast, Vanessa sent a text that she was on the way up. Titus went to his room to change before she arrived. He wanted to shout from the rooftops that Arabella Fernandez was his mate, but he didn't know if she was ready to share it, so he decided to be discreet until she did.
He came out of his room to find her surrounded by a team of stylists and beauticians putting on her makeup and pulling out clothes. Titus knew that his mate was a star, and this was all part of her life, but he already missed the soft, slow moments of their morning alone together. She looked up at him as a beautician did her nails. He knew that she was thinking the same thing.
Once she was dressed and pressed, her makeup and hair coiffed to perfection, the car came to take her to the stadium. Titus rode in the front with the driver while Vanessa and Arabella discussed the tour in the
back. Their eyes met in the rearview mirror and they exchanged a private smile.
They arrived at the auditorium, and Arabella was whisked away into a hurricane of activity. All he could do was stand at attention on the sidelines. He'd come to the tour to be her protector. And he wouldn't let the knowledge that she was his mate interfere with his job. He wouldn’t let anything stand in the way of protecting her.
Arabella and the backup dancers and singers went over the set list. Sam, the head of security, came to check in with Titus.
"I need to speak with you in private." Sam pulled Titus away from the activity. He gave one last look at Arabella and followed the security guard.
"What is it," Titus asked.
"Have you been watching the news?"
"No. I've been busy." He hadn't come out of his love bubble with Arabella for a moment, all night.
"We need to be on high alert. Senator Fernandez has introduced her bill. There could be serious blowback for Arabella.”
Titus felt irresponsible for not knowing these details himself. He couldn't allow his relationship with Arabella to interfere with his ability to protect her.
“The events at the last show should give us some indication of what these people were capable of. We need to tighten security. Maybe we should ask her how she would feel about calling off the show tonight.”
"It's worth a try. The worst that can happen is that she'll say no,” Titus said.
"You want to do it or should I?" Sam asked, concern in his eyes.
"I'll do it," Titus said. "Arabella has come to trust me somewhat since I’ve been on her detail. Maybe I can convince her of the necessity.”
"Good luck," Sam said.
Titus took a deep breath and started back to his mate. He already knew what she would say. But he had to try to convince her to take precautions.
"I have some difficult news," he started.
"My mother's bill is in the Senate this morning," she said.
"Exactly."
"You want me to call off the show."
"Sam and I believe that it would be an intelligent precaution.”
"I didn't call off the other shows, and I won't call off this one either. Besides, I'm not even sure I believe in my mother's politics.”
He let out a deep breath and looked at the ground. He wanted to push it further, but one thing he knew about his mate was that she knew her own mind and made her own decisions. She might have been inexperienced in the bedroom, but she was not inexperienced as a leader and a businesswoman.
"All right then. Sam and I are arranging additional security for tonight. We anticipate a similar reaction as at the show in Colorado. You should be prepared."
Arabella's backup dancers began to chatter nervously, and she told them all to breathe and calm down because the security would be taking care of everything and it would all be fine. He appreciated her belief in him and the security team, but he knew there was only so much that they could do against these dangerous shifters. The hyenas were unrelenting in their campaign for vengeance against anyone and everyone who stood in their way. Arabella might not be in support of her mother's politics, but it made absolutely no difference to the men threatening her.
"Maybe you should make a press release stating that you don't support your mother's bill," Titus suggested.
"That could be a PR nightmare," Vanessa objected. “So far, we've stayed out of politics completely. Taking a stance like that at this point could be career suicide. Especially since the majority of the country supports it.”
Arabella sighed, her shoulders heaving. "Maybe he has a point.”
"We've discussed this,” Vanessa said. “We ultimately decided it was the right move to stay silent. What about all your fans that believe in it?”
"You're right," Arabella said.
Titus knew that the last thing that Arabella would do was disappoint her fans, even if it meant risking her own safety.
“All right then," Titus said. “We’re going to tighten security. That’s the best we can do at this point.”
"Good,” Vanessa said. “We need to get this rehearsal and sound check complete if you want time to rest at lunch."
Chapter 12
Rehearsal was done. Everyone was in place. The lights were down, and Arabella stood on her mark. She glanced offstage to where Titus stood in the wings patiently waiting and watching. The announcement of her mother's bill had been all over the news all day, and protesters had been outside the stadium since that morning.
Her heart beat fast in her chest and she wondered if maybe she'd made the wrong choice to go on with the show. Sam and Titus had both pleaded with her to call off the show or to make some announcement about her stance on the bill. But she'd refused to do either. None of this was her doing. She hadn't asked for it, she didn't want it. But here she was, putting herself and her entire crew in danger because some fringe lunatics believed they were superior to everyone else.
But Arabella Fernandez wouldn't be bullied. She wouldn't let these goons force her into hiding. She wouldn't let them force her to disappoint her fans. Even if she was terrified of what might happen.
She could feel the energy of the crowd pulsing through her veins. She took a deep breath and the lights went up. The crowd cheered, their voices echoing through the stadium. She immediately felt that she'd made the right choice. Her fans deserved the show they’d paid for. They hadn't abandoned her because of her mother's politics, and she wouldn't abandon them.
The first notes of her opening song filled the air, and she moved her body to the rhythm, opening her lungs to belt out the words of her song. The crowd went wild as she sang a song affirming her strength, her independence, and her empowerment. She danced on the stage, her image projected onto massive screens on either side.
As soon as she started to sing, she knew it was all worth it. She knew she’d done the right thing for herself, for her fans, and for women everywhere who stood up for what they believed in. Even her mother. She was doing what she believed was right, even if it was different from what Arabella believed. She would never deny her the right to do it. No matter what a major inconvenience it was for Arabella.
She smiled at her backup dancers as they crossed each other on the stage. Everything was going according to plan, perfect timing for each beat, and word, and step. The crowd was hyper responsive and loving every minute. She couldn't believe that she had doubted herself and her choice.
By the middle intermission, she was beginning to believe it was possibly one of the best shows she'd ever done. She went backstage to catch her breath and change into her next outfit. While chugging a bottle of water, she asked Vanessa where Titus was and how everything was going with security.
"Everything is fine, as far as I know," Vanessa said, holding a walkie-talkie.
“Titus should be here," she replied.
"He and Sam are taking care of a minor situation in the crowd.”
"What kind of situation?”
“Nothing you need to be concerned about," Vanessa said. “Just focus on the show. It's going really well. We were completely sold out tonight. Could you imagine if we called it off and sent all these people home? It would have been a PR nightmare."
Arabella didn't want to call off the rest of the show, but she was concerned about Titus. He’d been injured in the last show during that scuffle with a hyena protester.
"The protesters are getting craftier," Arabella said as she hurried through her costume change.
"When your mother's bill passes, it will be easier to keep people like that out of your concerts.”
"I told you I don't support my mother's bill. I think it will just create more problems than it solves.”
"It will do more good than harm," Vanessa said.
"I don't want to talk about this now."
"Nor should you. We need to get you back on stage in two minutes."
Arabella gritted her teeth, slightly annoyed with her manager's attitude. But there was no time to dis
cuss it. She had to keep her head in the game.
She hurried back out to the stage, prepared for the rest of the show. Coming up was a huge number that involved an incredible light show and fireworks. People loved it.
She got on her mark, trying to clear her mind of all the stress and worry. She wished she knew where Titus was, but tried to focus on what mattered right now.
The lights went up and the fireworks went off as she began her latest hit song. The crowd went wild as she moved through her dance in slow and sexy undulations. After last night, she finally understood what it meant to be sexy and fierce the way she'd been pretending all these years. Titus had showed her that. He'd helped her to understand it about herself. And now she could use that new knowledge in her performance. It made her so happy. As she danced over to the other side of the stage, she didn't notice the bottle roll in front of her.
“Arabella! Look out!" she heard Titus scream.
He dove out on stage and grabbed her, shielding her with his body as the canister exploded, sending sparks into the air. The stage props caught on fire and the audience began to scream. The dancers ran off the stage, and Titus helped Arabella to her feet. She was in complete shock as she stared at the carnage. Someone had a fire extinguisher and was attempting to put out the fire.
"Arabella you have to come with me," Titus said, pulling her off the stage. She was immediately covered in a blanket and escorted to her dressing room.
"What was that?" Her voice was shaking and it didn't even sound like her.
“That was the results of your mother's bill passing the Senate,” Titus said. "I'm going to find whoever did this." Then he addressed Vanessa. "Watch her until I get back."
Arabella didn't want Titus to leave but was too shaken to protest. A few moments later, one of the other security guards was stationed outside her dressing room door.
"I can't believe this is really happening."
Bodyguard Bear (Justice Squad Book 3) Page 6