The Golden Griffin's Baby (Shifter Dads, #3)

by Chant, Zoe

  Flynn’s eyes darkened, his hands pulling her forward against him. Her clit rubbed against his thigh again, and she shuddered.

  “I think,” he said, and his voice was a deep rumble that made her legs threaten to give out, “that I can manage that.”

  And then he swept her up in his arms, like she was a bride in an old Western, and started carrying her towards the stairs.

  Lila had to stifle a shriek. “What—”

  “You said you wanted me to take you upstairs.” His voice had a hint of a grin in it.

  “This is not what I meant,” she said severely.

  “Do you want me to put you down?” He started up the stairs, quick and smooth, giving no indication that he felt her weight at all.

  Lila supposed he’d carried her for miles and miles on his back just a little while ago. But that was different. This was a real, human-seeming man, behaving as though she was light as a feather—which, after two pregnancies, she was not.

  “No,” she managed, sounding like a breathy ingenue. “I don’t want you to put me down.”

  “Good,” he murmured, and took her down the hall to her bedroom, shut the door behind them with his foot, and brought her to the bed, where he laid her down and immediately started unzipping her hoodie.

  At that point, Lila realized he was also intending to take get our clothes off literally, and started to laugh.

  Flynn smiled at her, getting the hoodie off her shoulders. Lila lifted up her arms so he could pull her T-shirt over her head, still laughing.

  “I don’t know why you think you’re a killjoy,” she said, giggling as he went for her jeans. “You’ve got a sense of humor under there, just like everyone else.”

  He looked up at her. “I never said I was a killjoy.”

  “The thought is present in pretty much everything you ever say about yourself,” Lila informed him. Though she didn’t know why she was so sure about this, exactly—she was pretty good at reading people, but she wouldn’t usually come out and make a statement like that without any real evidence.

  But it was just—she could see it. In the dourness of his expression, the tightness of his shoulders, how he’d talked about being like his father. Flynn thought he had to be serious, careful, protective. He thought he was an angry, difficult person who needed to stay away from close relationships.

  And he was so very, very wrong.

  Lila lifted her hips so he could peel off her jeans, her giggles starting to fade as she realized that whoa, she was just in her underwear now.

  “How about you take a turn,” she suggested, looking up at him, looming over her, still fully dressed. “This seems uneven.”

  Flynn glanced down at himself, then tugged off his shirt and stripped off his pants and socks in one movement.

  “Ah, briefs,” Lila’s mouth decided to say, while her brain went temporarily offline. “Excellent choice.”

  His mouth twitched. “Glad you approve.”

  “I—really, really do.” She barely heard herself, because her attention was 100% taken up by the way the briefs stretched over his hips and outlined the shape of his—ahem—extremely generous endowment. Wow. He wasn’t even fully hard yet.

  “Should I keep them on, then? For your viewing pleasure.”

  Lila actually had to hesitate—he looked that good in them. But her impatience got the better of her. “No, I think I’ve looked my fill for now.”

  So she didn’t get too distracted to remember, she unhooked her bra and wiggled out of her panties while he was taking them off. Then they were both naked, and—wow. Extremely generous endowment. Her mouth watered.

  “Come here,” she said huskily.

  He came there—right on top of her, in fact, covering her with his body, although he kept his weight supported so he wouldn’t squish her. “God, you’re beautiful,” he said, kissing her deeply.

  Lila closed her eyes. It had been so long since anyone had looked at her like this. God, you’re beautiful. She wanted to lock the words up inside her so that she could take them out and look at them whenever she needed to hear them.

  “You’re not too shabby yourself,” she said, swallowing around the feelings welling up in her throat. “Come on, let me look at you.”

  She tipped him over on his side, and then just got caught up in—looking. His skin was a light olive, his chest covered in curly black hair. His muscles were powerful but not gym-huge, just—present, suggesting that he could do whatever you might ask of him, with them.

  Lila had some ideas.

  His cock was hardening as she looked at him, rising up out of the forest of dark curls between his legs, and Lila just wanted to—

  He made a startled noise.

  She flexed her fingers gently, watching his face as she stroked him up and down. She wanted, suddenly, to see what Flynn looked like when he was so turned-on he couldn’t stand it, when he was sweating with pleasure. She wanted to make him shudder, make him yell, make him come.

  Impulsively, she ducked down and gave him a taste.

  He made a startled noise—not quite a yell, but it was satisfying, anyway. “What—you don’t have to—”

  Lila lifted her head. “Does it look like I think I have to?”

  “Well. No.” His voice was strained.

  “I want to,” she told him, heartfelt, and he groaned as she bent down again to take him in her mouth.

  Oh, wow. Her eyes almost rolled back in her head. There was something about doing this—having sex in her mouth, with her tongue and her lips and sometimes the slightest hint of her teeth—that felt indulgent and dirty at the same time. The hint of salt and copper, the warmth of him, the heft and girth filling her mouth, it was all enough to make her start to sweat, her clit swelling, her heart beating in her ears.

  And he responded like—like everything she could have wanted. He groaned when she took him in, his hand landing so-softly in her hair, fingers threading through it. She could feel the muscles clench in his thighs as she went to work.

  She learned what he liked by how he held back his movements, keeping himself from thrusting, biting back noises. And she used that knowledge, focusing on the places that made him jerk and moan, feeling the throb of arousal under her tongue.

  Soon, though, his hand tightened in her hair, pulling back. She went with the pull, lifting her head to look into his eyes. His eyes were dark, his mouth red from biting his lip.

  “God,” he said, “Lila. You’ve got to stop, or I’m not going to be good for much more than this.”

  “Will your mouth be broken?” she asked, eyebrows raised, feeling playful. Like the side of her that was fun, that liked joking around and laughing, was rearing its sleepy head, finally. After a year of being beaten down, it felt like a breath of fresh air.

  “No, but—I want you up here.” He tugged again, and she went with his hand, coming up for a deep kiss. Tasting that reddened mouth.

  His hands explored her, catching her breasts, making her moan, cupping her hips. Then one dipped down between her legs, fingers exploring. Her breath stuttered as he touched her clit, her hips pushing forward.

  “Like that?” he murmured into her mouth.

  She nodded, and then he caught her clit between two fingers and she gasped. “Oh.”

  “You’re so wet.” His voice was low, almost wondering. “I can just—slip inside—” And his did. One finger. Two. Lila’s hips moved involuntarily, getting them further inside. His thumb was on her clit, and his hand was—moving, in a way that caught the sharper pleasure in her clit and melded it with the deeper pleasure inside her, building and building—

  “Okay,” Lila said with a gasp, “okay, now I’m not going to be good for much more if we don’t—”

  His hand stilled, but he didn’t move to change position. “Don’t what?” he said into her ear.

  “Oh, are you going to be like that?” she asked.

  He was hiding a smile. “Maybe.”

  “Well, then how about I just—”
She got hold of his forearm and pulled his hand away, ignoring her body’s desperate nooooo at the loss of his fingers. Flynn went willingly, laughing, as she pushed him down onto his back and climbed on.

  “Ready?” she asked him, taking the other side of the are you sure you want to? Because she wanted to hear that he wanted this, that he wanted her.

  He was looking up at her body, naked over him, with a hungry expression. “More than ready,” he said.

  She reached down between them, wrapping her fingers around his cock, and slowly lowered herself down.

  Flynn’s head tipped back, his eyes falling closed, as he groaned low and deep. Lila had to fight to keep her own eyes open, as his cock filled her and filled her, pressing against every hungry part of her.

  She couldn’t keep her hips still for even a moment once he was fully inside—she started rolling them, getting into a rhythm, her breath rasping. Flynn’s big hands closed on her hips, pulling her down to meet him as he thrust up, sending bolts of pleasure through her body.

  “Oh, God,” she heard herself say as she clenched once, tight and so good. Orgasm was catching up to her fast.

  “You feel amazing,” Flynn said, low and desperate-sounding. “God. Lila.” His hair was sweat-damp, his lips parted, his eyes burning with want. Lila spread her hands over his chest, feeling the powerful muscles, the thick curly hair, and thrust her hips down.

  It felt like Flynn was touching her with more than his body—like somehow, as they moved together, she could feel his heart against hers. All of his fears, his anger, his deep and unshakable love—it was all in there, and she held it all inside of her, along with her own heart’s fear and love.

  She’d never felt anything like this. “Flynn,” she heard herself gasping. “Flynn—”

  “Lila.” Flynn sounded almost agonized. He let go of her hip with one hand and slid his fingers between her legs again. He touched where they were joined first, circling around her entrance, and Lila shuddered. Then he moved upwards and rubbed her clit, getting into a rhythm with how she was moving.

  That was it. His touch caught the pleasure that was surging through her and narrowed it to a knife-sharp edge that ripped through her. Lila cried out as she came around him, wet and spasming, totally out of control.

  Flynn caught her as her arms gave out, hips thrusting up, once—twice—catching the aftershocks and prolonging them until Lila wasn’t sure she could take it, until his hands clenched tight on her and he made a noise like he was falling apart.

  Lila caught her breath, lying on Flynn’s heaving chest. Her whole body was tingling, and she felt like—she felt like she could still sense Flynn’s heart. Not just the one that was beating underneath her ear, but the deep well of feelings inside of him.

  That was crazy, of course. But she let herself believe it was true, just for this one long moment of closeness.

  Flynn stayed silent, so Lila did too. But his hands were moving softly over her back, caressing her spine, thumb on her hip. One slid down to stroke her thigh, and Lila realized with a little bit of embarrassment that she hadn’t shaved her legs in—well, months.

  Flynn hadn’t seemed to care, though.

  No, he’d been—hungry for her. The way his eyes had devoured her—Lila shivered a little, thinking about it.

  “Cold?” Flynn asked, and tugged the blanket over them before she could answer.

  Lila hadn’t been, really, but she appreciated the sudden appearance of a cocoon where the two of them were snugged up together, the world blocked out. Just this warm, safe space with her and Flynn and nothing else.

  She could stay here for a long, long time and be happy, she thought as her eyes drifted closed.

  Chapter 8: Flynn

  Lila drifted off to sleep, breathing softly against Flynn’s shoulder. Flynn watched her, taking in her beautiful face, the curve of her cheek, the soot-dark lashes, the gorgeous mouth. The way her hair was curling a little around her temples.

  Mine, his griffin rumbled.

  It wasn’t even a surprise at this point, realizing that Lila was his mate.

  He’d sensed the connection from the first time they spoke. He’d been putting her first ever since, acting like she was the most important thing in the world. Because she was.

  Mine, repeated his griffin.

  She’s nobody’s until she says she is, Flynn thought back.

  Which was true. Even though every fiber of his being was yearning to take her in his arms, kiss her deeply, and tell her, You’re my mate. We belong together. You’re mine forever, and I’m yours.

  Whether you want it or not.

  Nope. No way.

  He couldn’t do that to her. Not now, when her whole life had just been uprooted, and she’d just learned that her husband had been murdered. The last thing she’d want in that situation was a whole new husband leaping in to replace the old one.

  The word husband gave him a deep thrill, one that he firmly ignored.

  Besides, for all that Lila had said about Flynn’s fears being groundless...she’d only known him for a couple of days. And she’d never met his father.

  Thank God. He’d died years ago now, so she’d never have the chance, and Flynn was thoroughly grateful.

  But it meant that she didn’t know what was lurking inside Flynn’s genetic makeup. The lion half of him, the claws and teeth that could come out at any time. The way he could get angry, the way he could be implacable. Unreasonable. It was exactly the thing that had led him to be suspicious of her in the first place, an innocent woman with a child and a baby.

  She didn’t need all of that messing up her life. She was settling down here. She should meet someone like—like Lachlan’s dad. Not someone like Flynn.

  The idea of Lila meeting another man, liking him, kissing him, settling down with him—it made his griffin growl fiercely, made fury rise up in Flynn’s chest.

  See. That’s exactly what I’m talking about.

  Lila didn’t deserve any of that.

  He knew that Lila wouldn’t appreciate Flynn making this choice for her. But on the other hand, this was the point of no return.

  She was human; she wouldn’t recognize the mate-bond in the same way he did. He’d have to explain what was happening, because she didn’t have a pushy griffin inside her telling her what to do.

  And once he told her, You’re my mate, we have to be together forever—well, there’d be one of two outcomes.

  Either she’d say, Okay, yes, and he’d be stuck wondering how this would screw her life up, or she’d say, No way, get away from me, and he’d have to leave, and probably Reid or Santos or someone would need to come protect her from the lions in the forest.

  That last thought really clinched it. He couldn’t tell her while she was still in danger. Because maybe she wouldn’t want him to leave—because he was protecting her against danger. Maybe she’d feel pressured into keeping him around so that she and the kids would be safe.

  No. Absolutely not.

  So he needed to keep quiet about this until the danger was over, at the very least. He wasn’t making the choice for her, he was just delaying the moment when she had to choose.

  That was—comforting, somehow, even though his griffin howled in protest. It felt safer to keep this knowledge tucked away, where it couldn’t screw up anyone’s life.

  Flynn’s shoulders relaxed a little. And now that the decision was over, he could really linger over the knowledge itself.

  Lila’s my mate. I have a mate.

  He’d never thought he would. He’d thought that his shifter nature—half one thing, half the other—meant that in addition to not being able to have kids, he wouldn’t match up with anyone in that way, either. Surely being a hybrid meant that he was too full of contradictions to be the perfect mate for any woman.

  Well, someone or something had decided differently.

  At least now he understood why it felt so perfect, so right, to be here in this house, defending this family. Keeping them safe
. This was his job, more than the deputy’s position, more than anything else ever had been.

  It even made sense that Lachlan didn’t need him to help with Aidan as much anymore. Of course he didn’t, because Flynn was needed elsewhere. He needed to keep these kids safe. Help this single parent with her stress and her sleepless nights.

  Flynn found himself grateful to Camellia Lane in a way that he’d never quite imagined he would be. No longer did it feel like his brother’s mate had snuck in and stolen a place that was rightfully his—Lachlan’s support, Aidan’s other parent. No, she’d given him the freedom to find out what his real place was.

  If Lachlan had still needed his help, he’d probably have called in Malachi or Ronan or whoever to come watch over Lila’s house. Maybe this never even would’ve happened.

  That idea made him shiver.

  No, even if he never told Lila, or even if she responded to the news by saying he should get lost forever—he was still meant to protect her. If she wanted him gone, he’d—

  He’d go to the city and make sure Victor was never a problem for her or anyone else ever again.

  Yes. That was the right course of action. He’d protect her as long as she needed it here, and then if he had to leave, he’d devote the rest of his life to making Oak Ridge the safest place it could possibly be, where she could raise her kids in total security. Maybe he’d send money, too, if she’d accept it.

  But we should be here with her! his griffin howled.

  Flynn ignored it. Because really, this was the best way. The safest way.

  For everyone.

  ***

  Eventually, he got up, took a quick shower, and went outside to do a quick patrol. The cold air woke him up, got rid of the last of the post-sex lassitude.

  God, Lila had been gorgeous in bed, though. The way she’d been so—so eager to do it, to touch him, taste him, get on top of him—

  Flynn could feel arousal starting to stir again, and hastily shifted and took off into the air.

  He didn’t see hide nor hair of any lions nearby, and irritably wondered what Victor was even doing. Couldn’t he just make his move, so that Flynn could show him how much of a mistake he was making? He couldn’t protect Lila if none of the lions were even willing to show up.