by Becca Van
Weldon, Rhys, and Sierra discussed the Starr’s landscaping job as they ate, and while he listened and interjected a couple of times, he was more interested in watching his mate and hearing what she had to say. For someone who’d never had any gardening experience, she had some marvelous ideas. He’d been surprised when Mr. and Mrs. Starr had been enamored with the moat around the gazebo and a few other suggestions he’d passed on after Sierra mentioned to them.
What he couldn’t stand was the jeopardy she was in. Was the fucker who’d stabbed her still looking for her? Had the prick found out where she was?
Rage and determination filled him at that thought. He hoped like hell the bastard was heading their way. Justice was ready and willing to take that fucker down without a care. The sooner the threat to Sierra was gone, the better.
Even his wolf liked his thoughts of killing the motherfucker. His animal was pacing and snarling as if he was just waiting for the attack order.
“What’s wrong, Justice?” Sierra’s hand on his arm and her concerned words brought him out of the aggressive rage he’d been swamped in. When he glanced at his brothers and saw them frowning at him, he wondered if he been growling audibly.
“I’m worried about you.”
“Me? Why are you—”
“I don’t like that someone has already and still wants to hurt you. Have you been in touch with the case officer in Pittsburgh?” Justice asked.
“There’s no point,” Sierra said. “I couldn’t give a description of him and he left no DNA behind. The police have nothing to go on and don’t have any idea where to start looking. You already know all this.”
“I know.” Justice shoved his empty plate aside and tried to calm the rage coursing through his body. No longer able to sit still, he began to gather up the dishes and carried them to the kitchen.
Chairs scraped behind him, but he kept his back to the room as he rinsed the plates and loaded the dishwasher. He smelled her before she leaned her smaller body against his back. His wolf rolled over, exposing his belly, then rolled around trying to coat himself in their mate’s perfume.
“I’m just as frustrated as you are, Justice,” Sierra said as she embraced him. “I want the man caught and locked behind bars, but there’s nothing I or the police can do. There were no witnesses other than myself, and even if there were, I don’t think it would have made a difference.”
Justice sighed as he turned to face her. He wiped his hands on a towel, threw it onto the counter, and then cupped her cheeks between his hands. “I fucking hate this. I hate that you’re in danger and we can’t take care of the problem.”
“I’m frustrated, too. I’m so scared this asshole is going to come here and hurt one of you. I couldn’t stand it if one of you got hurt because of me.”
“None of this is your fault, baby. None of it. You were just doing your job. If fuckers like that man didn’t exist, the world would be a much better place.” He pulled her tighter against him and held her close to his heart. He wished he hadn’t started telling her what was bothering him, because the last thing he’d wanted was Sierra blaming herself.
“I think you could use a massage,” Sierra said after drawing back slightly so she could meet his eyes.
Just like that, his anger and frustration dissipated and his arousal flared to life again. His cock had partially gone down with his ire, but the thought of having his mate’s hands all over his naked body sent him up in flames again. “I don’t need a massage, baby. I just need you.”
“I need you, too, Justice,” she replied huskily.
He glanced at his brothers. “You two can finish cleaning up.” Without another word, he swept Sierra up into his arms and strode quickly from the kitchen, through the living room, and hurried toward the bedroom.
Kicking the door shut behind him, he set her on her feet, took a couple of steps back, and began to strip. His blood burned hotter when his woman began to remove her clothes, too. He was naked moments before her, and he gave her just enough time to finish undressing before he pounced. He was so fucking horny, the hunger raging inside of him was like a living entity. Once more, he lifted her into his arms and slanted his mouth over hers. She was so fucking responsive and, thankfully, as eager as he was. She clung to him with her arms and legs as they kissed passionately. He was in too much of a hurry to even carry her the few feet to the bed. So instead, he gripped her sexy ass in his hands, lifted her higher until the tip of his dick was at her entrance, and as he pulled her down he thrust up, embedding his cock into her to the hilt.
“Oh,” she moaned after breaking the kiss. “You feel so good.”
“You do, too, baby. You feel fucking amazing around my dick. So wet and tight and hot.” He staggered to the wall, braced her back against it, and locked gazes with her. “Hold on tight, mate. This is going to be a wild ride.”
“Bring it,” she goaded breathlessly.
Justice took her at her word, retreated until the tip of his cock was resting inside of her and then drove back in hard and fast. He tried to start off slowly, but he was too eager, and instead he speared into and out of her faster, harder, and deeper.
Sierra gasped and whimpered with pleasure as she dug her heels into his ass and moved with him.
In and out, he glided his cock groaning when her inner muscles clung to his dick as the heated friction intensified. She was so wet for him, her pussy was making slurping sounds and that added to his pleasure. When he felt the warning tingles at his lower back, he knew he wasn’t going to last the distance and needed to do something to stave off his impending climax.
With great reluctance, he pulled his dick from her body, carried her over to the bed, and lowered her to the mattress. She frowned at him, but he winked at her to let her know nothing was wrong. He lifted and turned her so that she was on all fours close to the end of the bed with her ass in the air.
He rushed over to the bedside table, grabbed the lube, and hurried back to her.
“I want to fuck that sexy ass, baby.”
“Oh, yes!” she cried out, then swayed her hips back and forth enticingly.
“I’m going to make you come so hard, mate.” Justice climbed up onto the bed behind her. He smoothed his hands up and down her back, over her butt cheeks, then squeezed her ass. When she lowered her shoulders to the bed in an unconscious submissive pose, his wolf howled with joy and his arousal ratcheted up another notch. He was so horny for her he was trembling, and after taking a deep breath to calm himself a little, he squirted some lube onto the tips of two fingers. Grasping one of her ass cheeks, he parted them and caressed his lube-coated digits over her pucker. She sighed and moaned, breathed out and relaxed. Her ass opened to him, and he didn’t waste any time penetrating her tight muscles.
When she clamped down around his fingers, he waited a beat or two, and as soon as they loosened again, he began to gently thrust them in and out. Gaining depth and speed each time, he pumped his fingers back into her until they were embedded in her as far as they could go. He spread his fingers, stretching her out, and then he added a third finger.
“Oh god,” she moaned.
“How you doing, baby?” he asked raspingly.
“Good.” She sighed. “So good. I can’t believe the pleasure you all give me.”
“You give us just as much if not more pleasure, mate,” he said hoarsely. “I can’t wait until you’re screaming my name.”
“You’ll be screaming mine, too,” she said.
Of that, Justice had no doubt. When she was ready for him, he withdrew his fingers from her ass, picked up the lube, and covered his cock with the personal gel. He then wiped his hand on his discarded shirt he’d placed on the edge of the bed earlier and clasped her hip with one hand while gripping his dick with the other. “I’m coming in, baby.”
“Yes. Now, Justice. I can’t wait a second longer.” She turned her head on the bed to meet his gaze from the corner of her eye.
When he lined his cock up with her ass,
she closed her eyes and began to breathe in and out steadily. Justice knew she was trying to keep herself from tensing up as he slowly penetrated her back entrance with his dick. The head popped through her muscles, and he stilled giving her time to adjust to his intimate intrusion, but it seemed his mate didn’t need him to stop.
She shoved her hips back toward him and took more of his cock into her ass. He groaned and she moaned. Justice anchored her to him with his arm around her waist then started swaying forward and back, sliding his dick in and out of her ass until he was inside of her balls deep. His cock throbbed and liquid desire was melting low in his belly.
“Please, Justice?”
“Please what, baby?”
“I need you to move. Fuck me, damn it!”
Justice pulled back to the tip, and then he drove into her ass hard and fast. She moaned, and he panted.
If he’d been fucking her pussy he would have been powering in and out of her like a man possessed, but since he was in her ass, he needed to start off slowly, to take his time so her tight muscles got used to him spreading them.
Yet each time he thrust into her, he sped up gradually until he was pistoning in and out of her ass. She gasped and whimpered as she moved with him, pushing back against him each time he shoved forward. His lower belly slapped against her butt cheeks, and he could feel his balls swinging and slapping against her pussy.
He was already well and truly on the way to the stars but didn’t want to hurtle up into the sky without his mate.
Justice blanketed her smaller body with his own, wrapped one arm around under her thigh, and he drove two of his fingers up into her cunt.
“Oh. More!” she demanded.
With his free hand, which was splayed over her belly, he dipped a finger into the top of her folds and rubbed over her clit rapidly.
He shunted into and out of her, reaming her ass with his hard dick, and he felt tension invading her body. The heat at the base of his spine moved to his belly and groin, and his own muscles were pumped up tight with blood.
Justice was right on the cusp of ecstasy, but he wasn’t going without his woman. With gentle precision, he grasped her clit between his finger and thumb and squeezed.
Sierra screamed, “Justice!” as he sent her flying, and he was right behind her.
“Aah! Sierra!”
So much pleasurable heat traversed through his body as ream after ream of cum shot out his dick. He felt each contraction of her ass and cunt muscles as she gripped him tight before releasing him, and she covered his fingers and hand with her juices.
He didn’t even notice that his fangs had lengthened until he sank them into her shoulder, marking her as his mate again.
This time, her surging emotions were stronger than ever before and filled his heart with so much love, so much happiness, tears threatened. He’d never felt so much joy in his life, and it was hard to contain the overflowing elation.
Sierra was his heart, his soul, and his very reason to keep breathing. He so wanted to tell her that he loved her with his whole heart, but he hesitated. Human women were strange about declaring what was in one’s heart too soon. He was worried that she wouldn’t believe him if he told her she was the love of his life too early. While he had no idea how much longer he should wait to declare his feelings for her, he knew he wouldn’t be able to hold back what was in his heart much longer.
His mate made everything in his life before her, worthwhile. Even fighting and seeing the horrors of war. Those experiences had shaped who he was and made him the man he was today. He wouldn’t change anything even if he could, because if he did, he might never have met the one woman the fates had deemed his other half.
Justice swirled his tongue around and over the bite mark giving her his healing saliva as he cuddled up with her on the bed on their sides. He was spooning her, and though his cock was nearly soft, he didn’t want to leave the heat of her body, the physical and emotional connection he had with his love.
Sierra gave him hope, had given him back dreams he’d thought were long lost. He wanted to see her rounded with his and his brothers’ pup. Wanted to build a business she would be proud to be a part of. Justice wanted to make memories with her. Ones he could savor as he, they all aged and could look back on.
They had a long happy life to look forward to, and his only wish was that his mate hadn’t been hurt and wasn’t still in danger.
This time as he thought about the fucker who had inflicted pain on his woman, the rage didn’t surface, but the determination did. He, his brothers, and the other shifters in Ambrose would keep her and the other women safe, no matter what. Their mates were the be all and end all of their lives. They were to be loved, cherished, and protected at all costs.
Maybe it was time to plan a barbecue once the country western music festival was over. He, his brothers, and their mate would host the gathering, and he would have the chance to discuss the danger his woman was in and make some plans.
Something needed to be done, and soon.
Chapter Sixteen
The next day
Sierra couldn’t believe how nice all the women were. She’d met Dusty and her baby daughter, Rose, briefly while she and her men had eaten at the diner. She’d also met Pixie, Sage, and Elsa, but Emmy, Kenzie, Tami, and Jaimie were also wonderful people, and she already felt as if they were becoming great friends.
She and her men had invited everyone over for an evening cookout, and the other women had helped out by bringing salads and desert. While the weather was cool, it wasn’t too cold, and even Sierra was surprised but delighted with not having to rug up against the chill.
Little Rose was a joy, and she was such a happy child. Every time she glanced at the family, one or all of Rose’s parents were staring at their baby with so much love in their eyes, it brought tears to her own.
But that wasn’t the only reason she was feeling emotional. She was finally able to feel her mates’ emotions, and she was sure they were empathic to hers, as well. Each time she thought of them and or looked toward them, they were looking at her, too. The smiles they sent her way had her heart flipping and love surging into what she thought had been frozen. Somehow Justice, Weldon, and Rhys had chased away the ice she encased her heart with to protect herself after seeing and dealing with so much heartache and abuse at the women’s shelter.
While she was still concerned about the trouble she could be bringing to Ambrose, it was out of her hands and there was nothing she could do about it. What she needed to concentrate on was living her life to the fullest, showing her men how much she’d come to love them, and dealing with each day as it came.
“Oh, you are so gone,” Jaimie said.
Sierra turned to face the other women and didn’t bother to deny what Jaimie had said but nodded instead.
“They’re all amazing men, aren’t they?” Tami asked.
“Indeed they are.”
“Something’s wrong,” Elsa said as she stared at her mates, Preston, Gabriel, and Liam Louis.
“I feel it, too.” Kenzie, mate to Jayson, Jordan, and Jenson Cannon, said.
“You’re not the only one.” Emmy frowned.
Sierra glanced over toward the grill on the far side of the patio. The men were all gathered close together and seemed to be having a serious discussion. When Justice looked up and met her gaze, she knew instantly that she and the would-be danger following her was the subject. “They’re talking about me.”
“What’s going on?” Sage asked.
Sierra sucked in a breath and started explaining. Instead of horrified expressions, all the other women seemed to take her account in stride, as if facing violence and dealing with danger was a regular occurrence.
Then, one by one, each woman told her of their own struggle with danger and mayhem.
Although relieved that she wasn’t the only person to bring danger to Ambrose, Sierra was glad each of the women had survived their encounters, had been rescued and even saved from death because
of all the shifter men in the small town.
“So, what’s it like being able to shift into a wolf?” Sierra asked Tami.
“It’s kind of hard to describe.” Tami frowned as if trying to collect her thoughts. “It’s so freeing to shake off my human skin and run in wolf form with my men. There’s no worry about the chores that need to be done or anything else. There’s just freedom and nature. I feel as if I’m one with the earth and can feel the heartbeat at the core of the planet.” She shrugged.
“That sounds amazing,” Sierra said.
“It is,” Tami smiled.
“What are you going to do now that you’re mated?” Kenzie asked.
“I’m going to help my guys with their landscaping business.”
“Have you done a lot of gardening?” Elsa asked.
Sierra shook her head. “No, but that doesn’t mean I can’t envisage things.” She continued on to tell them about the Starr property and her suggestions.
“That sounds amazing.” Dusty smiled. “Maybe you and your mates could come to our place and take a look.”
Sierra shrugged. “I’d have to ask my guys.”
“I think I want you all to look at our yard, too,” Elsa said. “The bed and breakfast is great, and the yard is neat and tidy, but I think we can jazz things up a bit more. My guys used to work outside all the time, but lately we’ve been too busy taking care of our guests to even think about pulling weeds, let alone making the place look nicer.”
“I think we all should hire them,” Jaimie said. “What do you say, girls?” She met each of the other women’s eyes. “Do you want your outside areas spruced up?”
“I do,” Tami said.
“Me too.” Emmy sighed. “But I don’t know how that will be possible since my guys and I live above the pub, and the motel is out behind it. All we have is asphalt between the two buildings with no dirt to plant anything in.”
“You don’t need garden beds to pretty things up,” Sierra said. “Lots of pots filled with plants can do the same job.”