by D. M. Turner
“What’s funny?”
He stopped and blinked at Sophia. How did she keep doing that? “Are you reading my mind or something?”
“If I was, I’d know what you’re trying so hard not to smile about.” Her eyes narrowed.
Ian opened his mouth to answer her honestly then snapped it shut. On second thought…. “I’m not sure you really want to know what I was thinking.”
“I asked, didn’t I?”
“Yeah, but….”
“But. That seems to be your favorite word this evening. You do realize it’s the start of a sentence or phrase, and not actually a reason in and of itself, right?” A smug smile curved her lips.
He narrowed his eyes. She was mocking him? A slow smile curved his mouth as he pushed her back toward the laundry room and out of line of sight of anyone who might step into the hall at either end. “Fine. You really want to know what I was thinking?”
Her eyes widened, but she gamely hiked her chin and met his gaze. “Yes.”
With a smirk, he gently backed her against the wall in the laundry room, nudging the door that led into the house shut with one foot. He buried his nose in her neck and nibbled the delicate spot right below her ear. “I was thinking how annoyed I am to have a houseful of people and a guard duty shift only an hour or two away to keep me from hauling you to the nearest bedroom.” He pressed his hips to hers in case she had any doubt what he meant. “I was also thinking you might not be ready for that, no matter how eager I am.”
Sophia’s breaths came in short gasps, and her heart pounded at the pulse point under his mouth. The scent of her arousal filled his nose. She reached up between them and captured his face with both hands, pushing him away until she looked into his eyes. A grin curved her lips. “You assume I’m not as eager as you are.”
He wasn’t sure which had the greater impact on him. That coy smile, the words, or the husky tone she spoke them in. Desire flared into a bonfire in an instant, threatening to overwhelm his senses. He captured her mouth.
She accepted his passion and handed it back in spades, groaning softly and melting against him in a way that made him ache that much more.
* * *
She should be horrified by her wanton behavior. Right? Sophia shoved the thought away. Ian was her husband, and he clearly had no problem with what she’d said or how she acted. She leaned her head against the wall, gasping for breath, when he released her mouth and leaned down to slide both hands under the hem of her dress and up the outsides of her bare thighs. Need intensified.
Then, without warning, Ian raised his hands and stepped back until he collided with the washing machine. He shoved the fingers of both hands into his hair and closed his eyes.
“What? What is it?”
“We can’t do this.”
Hurt wound through her. Sophia straightened her dress. He wanted her, right? She certainly wanted him. So, why couldn’t they indulge? They were married, after all. That was one of the perks of marriage. Had she done something to repulse him? “Why not? We weren’t doing anything wrong.”
The right corner of his mouth quirked up. “Oh, boy, do I know that.” Heat flared in his eyes. “In fact, we were doing something very, very right.”
The husky growl of his voice sent a delicious shiver up her spine. “Then, what?”
“I don’t want our first time together to be a quickie in the laundry room.” He chuckled. “I’d be perfectly willing to come back to it in the very near future, though. Just in case you’re wondering.”
Since she had no idea what to say, Sophia remained silent.
Ian took a deep breath, stepped away from the washing machine, and opened the door into the house. “We should go before my resolve fails and good intentions disappear.” He straightened his hair.
She followed him into the hall.
He hung back just enough to put a hand at the back of her waist so they could walk side-by-side.
At the end of the hall, they halted. The whole pack, or at least most of them, stood in the dining room and around the breakfast bar, facing the hall.
Max stood closest, arms folded over his chest with a no-nonsense frown. “Well?”
“Well, what?” Ian cocked his head with a frown.
“Did you two get married?”
“Not that I have to answer to you, but yes.”
“Yes!” Max raised both hands above his head and faced the others. “We don’t have to eat her.”
Sophia laughed. “I’m certainly glad to hear that.”
“Let them eat cake instead!” a male voice from somewhere in the back yelled, spurring chuckles around the room.
“Graham, I know that was you!” Donna turned from the breakfast bar, met Sophia’s gaze, and shook her head. “The man is shameless when it comes to sweets.” She smiled warmly and stepped to one side. “I hope you don’t mind, but we kind of dressed up the cake you made. After all, we couldn’t let the perfect white cake go to waste when there was a mating to celebrate.”
Sophia moved closer to the breakfast bar to see what the woman meant. She smiled, even as tears surged into her eyes. Someone had decorated in heart shapes across the top of the cake with little candy hearts of various colors. Amidst the large hearts were the words, “Welcome to the Family” in red icing. She glanced at Donna. “Who did this?”
“It was Tanya’s idea.” Donna pointed to the young woman hovering to one side on Sophia’s side of the breakfast bar.
She turned to Tanya then pulled her into a hug. “You have no idea what that means to me.”
“I think I do.” Tanya hugged her then stepped back. “When I first came here, someone showed me a kindness I hadn’t expected. It made me feel at home. I wanted that for you, too.”
“I’d say you accomplished it.”
“Well….” Tanya glanced across the breakfast bar at Donna then over one shoulder at Kelly and Annie. “There’s more.”
“There is?”
“I hope you don’t mind, but we got all of your things moved from the guestroom and your vehicle into the master bedroom.” She pointed to a stack of boxes in the kitchen. “Except for the boxes marked kitchen.”
“You did?”
Tanya nodded. “All of your clothes are put away in the closet. The boxes we weren’t sure about we stacked in the corner of the bedroom.” She grimaced slightly. “I hope you don’t mind our hands in your things. We just thought it might help you feel at home to at least have your clothes unpacked and put away.”
“I don’t mind at all. Thank you.”
“Wonderful.” Donna clapped her hands. “Now, can we get the cake formality over with before I have to hurt my mate again for trying to snitch frosting?”
“Hey!” Graham emerged from the gathering and rounded the breakfast bar to put an arm around his wife. “I’m not that bad.”
She rolled her eyes. “Right. That’s why I’ve had to slap your hand six times since they left earlier for trying to stick your finger in the frosting.” She pointed a finger at him. “Go ahead. Lie. Say you didn’t do it. I dare you. We’re surrounded by lie detectors.”
He pressed his lips together and looked away, but not before Sophia saw laughter in his eyes.
Donna shook her head and offered Sophia a knife.
“Thanks. Um….” She glanced at the cake then up at the woman. “Do you want me to just start cutting it?”
“You need to cut a couple of small pieces so you and Ian can feed each other.”
“Really?”
“Haven’t you ever watched the cutting of the cake at a wedding reception?”
Sophia shook her head, embarrassed to admit to such ignorance. She’d attended a wedding or two but never gone to the receptions.
“Oh, okay. Well, cut a couple of bite-size pieces.”
She glanced at Ian, who nodded encouragement as he moved to her side. Easy enough. Two small pieces. “Now what?”
“He goes first.”
“He eats first?”
<
br /> “No. He feeds you first.”
Sophia grinned. “I kind of like that.”
Chuckles bounced around the room.
Ian’s eyes lit with amusement as he picked up a piece and lifted it to her lips.
Her gaze steady on his, she opened her mouth.
He set the sweetness on her tongue and withdrew his finger and thumb.
She chewed and swallowed.
“You’ve got some stray frosting….” He pointed to her mouth then grinned fully and cupped her chin. “Never mind. I’ll get it.” Before she could figure out what he meant to do, he leaned down and licked the corner of her mouth. Then he straightened. “Got it.”
At some point, she’d remember how to breathe. Right?
Donna covered a cough, doing a poor job of hiding laughter. “Your turn, Sophia. You get to feed Ian now.”
With a shaking hand, she picked up the second piece she’d cut and lifted it to Ian’s lips. He opened his mouth without hesitation to accept her offering. She set the cake inside and lowered her hand, but he captured it before it fell all the way. He chewed and swallowed. Mischief sparked in gray eyes. “You just can’t seem to keep the frosting under control.” He raised her hand to show her the frosting on her fingers. “A mate’s work is never done.” Holding eye contact every second, Ian licked the sticky sweetness from her fingers.
She shivered, unable to hide her reaction.
“Tasty,” he muttered between licks.
“Get a room!”
Sophia had no idea who had yelled that. She’d completely forgotten for a moment that they had a rather large audience. She lowered her gaze. Heat flashed into her face.
“Oh, I fully intend to.” Ian chuckled and leaned down to nuzzle her ear.
“Ian.” She lightly pushed him away. “Behave.”
“Hey, they’re all adults.” He frowned slightly and glanced around. “Well, except Tommy and the pups.” He grinned. “I’m pretty sure Tommy doesn’t mind, and the pups aren’t old enough to care yet about public displays of affection.”
“I wouldn’t count on that.” Donna laughed. “Tommy accused me and Graham of being too old to make out like teenagers, said it was gross. You’re way older than us.”
Ian glared at her, his eyes narrowing even as amusement glinted. “Show some respect for your elders, pup, before I send you to your room.”
“As long as Graham is exiled with me, I’m game.” She shot her husband a meaningful look.
He grinned. “After cake, of course.”
Her mouth dropped open. “Oh, I see your priorities more clearly now. I’ll keep that in mind for the future.”
Sophia laughed at their antics and leaned into her husband as Ian slipped an arm around her waist. “Well, the cake is all yours now, so eat up.” She stepped back, using her body to push Ian along until they were both out of the way.
“By the way”—Brett laid a hand on Ian’s shoulder and smiled at both of them—“with the full support and blessing of the pack, I’ve reworked the duty schedule. Neither of you is on it until ten tomorrow morning.”
“What about Brimfield?”
“According to their credit card charges, they’ve settled into hotel rooms in Phoenix for the night.”
“Really?” Ian glanced down at Sophia, a slow half-grin forming.
A swirling sensation filled her belly, and her knees weakened.
“Yep. So you should escape while you can.” Brett grinned. “If anything changes, I’ll be sure to let you know.”
“Great.” His arm snug around her, Ian herded Sophia toward the master suite. He nuzzled the back of her neck as he nudged her along, his beard tickling her. “We’ve got a couple of hours until you need to eat again.”
She giggled and ducked her head. “Assuming those cheeseburgers hold me over as well as a good meal of elk.”
“Well, I guess we’ll find out.” The moment they passed over the threshold into the master bedroom, he released her, pushed the door closed with one foot, and leaned against it. “Safe!”
Now that they were alone, and the time had come that they’d both anticipated, nervous flutters flitted through Sophia’s insides. The teasing and flirting had been fun. Too fun. But was she truly ready to give herself to the man watching her so closely at that moment? What if he never loved her? Almost worse, what if she couldn’t please him? She had no idea what she was doing.
Gray eyes partially hooded behind his eyelids, Ian pushed away from the door and slowly crossed the short distance between them. “Have you changed your mind?”
“Not exactly.” She lowered her gaze. “I just… I don’t want you to be disappointed.”
“Why would I be?” His hands touched her waist and then slid around behind her, pulling her against him.
“I’ve never—” She glanced into his eyes then away.
“What? Had sex?”
She nodded.
A soft growl rumbled through his chest.
Afraid he might be angry, she lifted her gaze to his. What she saw there wasn’t anger. It was desire even deeper than had already been apparent.
“I’ll be careful with you. You have my word.”
Sophia smiled. “That’s not what I’m worried about.”
“Then, what is?”
“I don’t want to disappoint you.”
“That”—he leaned down to cover her mouth with his for a moment, gently teasing her with short nibbling bites—“could never happen.”
She closed her eyes and leaned into him. “How can you be so sure?” she whispered, barely able to push the words out.
Rather than answer, his lips captured hers in earnest.
* * *
Whiskers tickling the back of her neck pulled Sophia from sleep and sent a delightful shiver through her. She smiled into the pillow. “You don’t intend to make me move, do you?”
“Afraid so. It’s time to eat.” Ian’s breath whispered across her skin, sending goosebumps everywhere that his beard hadn’t. He chuckled. “We’ve expended a lot of energy in the last couple of hours. Time to replenish.”
She groaned. “But I don’t want to move.” Despite the fact whatever he’d apparently brought to eat sure smelled good. “Is that stew?”
“Tanya’s specialty.”
Sophia sighed and forced languid limbs to at least help her roll onto her back. Then she looked up at the man leaning on one elbow next to her. His cocky grin made her heart stutter. “You look mighty pleased with yourself.”
The grin grew, and amusement flashed in gray eyes. “Is there any reason I shouldn’t?”
She considered that then laughed softly. “None that I can think of at the moment. I think my brain went on vacation without me. Either that, or outrageously good sex makes the brain mushy.”
“Hm.” Ian nuzzled her neck and ear. “I like that last possibility.”
“I figured you would.” A hand on his shoulder, she closed her eyes and canted her head to one side, giving him better access, as heat pooled deep inside her.
After a few moments, he straightened away, green-rimmed gray eyes reflecting the desire swirling through her. With obvious regret, he sat up. “As much as I really don’t want to head this off right now, you need to eat. Then we can pick up where we left off.”
The scorching look full of promise Ian sent over his shoulder stilled her breath. Every cell in her body responded to it. “You keep looking at me like that, and you can forget about food. I sure will.”
The green in his eyes intensified, along with the heat, until no gray remained. The fact she could stir him so with a simple flirtatious comment sent a rush through her. She’d never had such an effect on a man, much less one so strong and confident. There was something very… empowering about it.
Rather than respond, Ian picked up a large pot from the floor beside the bed, set it between them, and handed her a spoon. “Eat.” The gruff command bore more than a hint of the wolf.
“Well, since you asked so
nicely….” Sophia grinned, accepted the spoon, and sat up, taking the cover sheet with her. Not that she needed to cover herself, since Ian had seen everything there was to see, but the air in the room had a chilly edge.
A soft growl rumbled through his broad chest. After a few moments, he dipped his own spoon into the pot. They ate in silence for several minutes before Sophia broke the quiet.
“You know. This isn’t considered sanitary. Two people sharing the same… pot of stew.” Not exactly a dish or bowl, so that would work.
Ian chuckled. “I’m pretty sure we don’t need to worry about any germs we might give each other. If either of us had anything the other could catch, we’d already be infected after the past couple of hours.”
“Good point.” She waved the spoon then scooped out another bite, keeping her gaze firmly on the pot and suppressing a grin. “If we haven’t already shared them all, I’m sure we will by night’s end.”
He stilled then growled so soft and low that she felt it run through her body rather than hearing it with her ears. She peered up at him without lifting her head. The grin she’d been hiding surfaced despite her intentions.
Without a word, Ian took the spoon from her hand and set it on the nightstand along with his. Then he set the pot on the floor with very deliberate movements. His gaze settled on her, and he crawled the short distance across the bed and captured her mouth.
By the time they returned to eating, the stew was little more than lukewarm. Sophia didn’t care, and Ian made no comment about it.
Chapter 29
Wednesday, April 18, 2018
His lupine gaze scanning the canyon below, Ian sat on top of a high ridge overlooking the house, his new mate at his side. He forced himself to focus on the task at hand—guard duty—despite the desire to sidetrack both of them with more interesting pursuits. Well, one in particular. It had been a very long time since a woman had been such a strong distraction for him, and since hormones had led him around by the nose.