by Diane Leyne
“Love them. We used to have a wonderful German shepherd dog when I was growing up. I loved Murphy, and when he died, it was like losing a brother.”
“You never replaced him?”
“Back in Florida, I worked long hours and lived alone. It wouldn’t have been fair to a pet. But here in Harmony, I work from home. Maybe I might consider a pet. Another dog might be nice. I like dogs, especially big dogs that can sleep in bed with you and keep you warm at night.” Sam smiled sweetly, as if her word had had no undertones.
* * * *
The next hour was the both the longest and quickest of Bart’s life. He and his brother showed her around the showroom where she admired the furniture and asked detailed questions about how things were made and even where they got their ideas. She was smart and funny and sexy and her laugh seemed to go straight to his cock, which was aching by the end of the tour.
He’d never reacted quite so viscerally to a woman before. Oh, he’d fucked a lot of women both alone and with his brother and had enjoyed it. He’d felt lust at first sight and what he’d mistakenly thought was love at first sight before, but the feelings he’d had for all other women paled in comparison to what he was feeling now. It was like they were connected on a cellular level.
He watched as she bent over to see the detail on a coffee table that Nick was pointing out and he could literally feel his palm itch to pull down her pants and make her scream with desire when he spanked that perfectly rounded ass before sinking deeply inside her and making her scream again, this time as her climax blasted through her. He wanted to see her lose control as she writhed under him, begging his to make her come again and again.
He could almost imagine the expression on her face as he did things to her to ratchet her need up higher and higher. She’d find he wasn’t like his brothers, sweet Andy or even Gabriel, who liked total control. Bart could teach her the thrill and bring her to heights that only a bite of pain with her pleasure could bring. He wasn’t into extreme pain. He had no desire to bruise her or make her cry. But he literally ached with the need to see his palm print on her ass.
He adjusted himself in his pants, taking advantage of her momentary distraction with the coffee table. Then she moved on to an overstuffed sofa and all he could think about was bending her over the arm and taking her from behind while Nick positioned himself in front of her and fed her his cock.
He looked up at his twin and grinned as he saw Nick’s eyes reflecting his own feelings.
* * * *
Samantha picked out a few key pieces such as a coffee table and some nightstands and a dresser. She added a dining room table, an easy chair for the living room, and a lounger for the porch. They promised to deliver everything on Thursday. Impulsively, she asked them to hang out at Lupo’s on Saturday.
“Already planning on it.”
“Your brothers told you.”
“We share everything.” Bart grinned innocently, but Sam’s stomach did that little flip-flop again. She remembered what her grandmother had said about wolves sharing their mates. Surely that didn’t apply to her. She was human, or mostly human. The idea of two men was deliciously kinky and might be fun to try for the adventure of it. But here were four brothers showing interest in her, and her damned pussy was showing interest in them. She’d have to think on it some, but she was spending at least a part of her sabbatical here but it wasn’t like she was moving to town permanently, no matter what her grandmother had hoped. She’d planned on staying for the summer. It seemed like a nice place, and the brothers were hot. Maybe she should stay longer? She hadn't made any firm plans yet once she left Harmony. And would it be so wrong to just let loose for once in her life? She could just have some fun with the brothers with no emotional involvement, and when it ended, she could move on with some wonderful memories.
But then her mind came back to Gabe. The fifth McAllister brother, on the other hand, was a high-handed jerk. He was a tall, sexy, high-handed jerk who she wanted to have sex with on sight, but a jerk nevertheless. And he clearly had absolutely no interest in her. And no matter how hot he was, she had absolutely no interest in him. Not one little bit. Nope. Not going to happen. Unless he crawled back, and then she’d have the pleasant task of telling him to get lost and kick him to the curb, after, of course, she let him make love to her.
“Thanks again, guys. Now, if you can let me know how to get a cab. I came into town with Ginger West, so I need a ride back home.”
She didn’t realize he’d come back until she heard Gabe’s deep voice.
“I’ll take you.”
Was he listening at the door? Or maybe it was his superior wolf hearing. Either way, she didn’t want to get alone in a car with him.
“I’ll be fine. I can get home.”
“I’m sure you will, but I want to talk to you, and this is as good a time as any.”
She shrugged mentally and allowed him to lead her out of the shop. She waved good-bye to his brothers as they grinned.
He led her out the back door of the shop to a small parking lot. Of course the biggest most luxurious SUV was his. Unceremoniously he bundled her into it before going around to the driver’s side. They rode in silence. Samantha knew he had something on his mind, and she was going to make his speak first. She taught high school students who delighted in trying to test and torment their young-looking teacher. It generally took a few weeks, but by October of each year, her students knew she was no pushover and they generally stopped trying. She had a feeling that Gabe McAllister was going to be more of a headache to her than a whole class of teenagers, so she decided to wait him out.
He stayed silent for the whole ride back to her place, which was only about ten minutes. Harmony was small, and traffic was light.
He pulled up in front of the house, seeming to note the bright-red Corvette in the driveway. It wasn’t one of the new ones. It was probably almost as old as he was.
“Nice car.” He looked surprised, which wasn’t an unusual response. For some reason, most people who met her didn’t expect her to drive a muscle car.
“Yeah, I think so. Took me forever to restore it.”
“You restored it?”
“Try not to sound so amazed. Some women like cars. And I have three brothers.”
“I have four brothers.”
“I know. I met them today.” She found she was amused. She could feel the frustration coming off him in waves. She’d bet that the good mayor wasn’t often tongue-tied. And then she immediately regretted thinking about his tongue because her mind automatically went to other things his tongue could be doing, and she had to concentrate on her breathing and hope that he didn’t notice that her nipples had hardened and that his superior wolf olfactory senses didn’t scent her arousal.
So to distract him, she decided to take charge of the conversation and end it before things got out of control.
“Well, thanks for the ride.” She unclicked her seat belt and reached for the door.
He had already undone his seat belt, so he twisted in his seat, reaching over with his left hand and stopping her before she even reached the door handle. In that position, his whole torso was pressed against hers, his chest pressing against her breasts, his mouth only inches from hers. She swallowed hard and licked her lips.
* * * *
Damn. She was going to leave without giving him a chance to say what he had to say, but the scent of her arousal had shocked him, and his brain had temporarily stopped working as the all the blood seemed to flow directly to his cock.
He wasn’t even thinking when he grabbed her arm before she could open the door and leave him. He immediately knew that it had been a mistake. He could feel the hard tips of her nipples pressed against his chest, and when she licked her lips, he felt a surge of arousal. He wasn’t even conscious of making the decision to kiss her. One moment he was staring at her mouth and the next he was kissing her hungrily, pressing her body back into her seat, his tongue jammed into her mouth as he were hungrily
trying to devour her.
She kissed him back, just as hungrily, surprising him. It was only when his hand slid under the hem of her tank top, moving up to cup a breast through her bra, that she pulled back, detaching her mouth from his.
“Invite me in!” he demanded, still caressing her, one of his long fingers pushing the fabric of her bra so he could touch her skin. He took her nipple between his thumb and forefinger, pinching lightly and tugging. He heard her moan with pleasure as her arms came up, but she didn’t push him away. She gripped his shoulders tightly, holding him close. A feeling triumph shot through him. She wanted him, too.
He suddenly removed his hand from her breast, and she made an uphappy whimpering sound, as if wordlessly protested its loss. But all he was doing was pushing the hem of her top up, baring her breast to his gaze. He had no plans on stopping.
He gripped her breast with his left hand and then lowered his head and wrapped his lips around her distended nipple, suckling hard while his right hand held her tight to him. She made inarticulate sounds of pleasure as he suckled and the sound went right to his cock which seemed to get even harder.
* * * *
She could feel the sensation all the way to her pussy, causing moisture to spill out of her and her clit to throb with need. She felt him take her nipple carefully between his teeth, tugging gently before rasping his tongue over the sensitive tip and then suckling again.
She found herself weakening. She had to stop herself from pushing her breast against his mouth. Maybe she should invite him in?
She came back down to earth with a thud when she heard the honking of the delivery truck horn. It was Taylor from the market delivering her supplies.
She quickly adjusted her top and then was out of the truck before Gabe could move. She walked up to Taylor, smiling.
“Just leave them on the porch.”
“Sure I can’t take them into the kitchen? It’ll just take a sec.” She opened the door and let him in. Then she turned back to the truck. Gabe was still sitting inside. She guessed he’d changed his mind about coming in.
She walked back to the truck where Gabe was still sitting, unmoving, an enigmatic expression on his face.
“Well, you’ve done your duty, Gabe, and then some. I’ll report back to Ginger that you carried out her instructions to the letter and got me safely home. I won’t tell her how you went above and beyond.” She found she was angry at how he just sat there, staring at her. He could at least get out if he wanted to chat.
“I’ve got to go put my groceries away. You know the way off my property.”
“We will have to talk.”
“So talk.”
Just then Taylor Windsor sauntered out, giving them both a wave as he hopped into his own truck and drove off.
He sighed. “Not here, not now.”
“Fine. Well, you know your way home.” She stomped back into the house, letting the screen door slam behind her. It was a few moments before she heard the sound of his engine. She looked out the window and watched the truck pull out.
She’d almost done something stupid. His brothers were young and hot, and maybe fooling around with them would be fun. But Gabriel McAllister was a different proposition all together, and for her own peace of mind, she had to stay as far away from him as she could, even if it might mean avoiding his brothers as well. But, she decided, she’d cross that bridge when she came to it. In the meantime, she’d unpack and get her computer set up and figure out what she was going to wear to Lupo’s on Saturday. She might have to go shopping.
* * * *
Gabe stomped on the gas, driving home instead of back to his office. He needed to do some thinking and take a cold shower, and not in that order. He hadn’t gotten out of the truck, although it had violated all of the good manners his mother and grandmother had drummed into him because his cock was so hard that he didn’t think he could move. He was in actual physical pain as he pulled into his driveway and carefully exited the truck. He went straight to his master bath and stood inside the massive shower, turning the water temperature down until he was shivering. It didn’t help. He remembered what she looked like standing beside the truck, looking up at him, challenging him, her nipples still hard and poking through the fabric, practically begging him to suck them. And the challenging look on her face…All he could think about was pushing her down to her knees and tangling his hands in her thick hair as he slid his cock into her mouth as deeply as he could go, shooting his seed down her throat, forcing her to swallow it all. Then she wouldn’t challenge him again. She’d just be begging him to take her.
He groaned remembering the feeling of her tit in his hand and the taste of her nipple in his mouth. He had to take himself in hand, jerking off while he thought of her, shuddering as he sent load after load of his cum down the drain and the water pounded against his body.
He got out of the shower, wrapping himself in a towel. She was a stranger. She was not wolf. He was an alpha. He was leader of his family and the pack and the town. Maybe if it had been just him, but he had four brothers, and by wolf custom, his woman would have to accept his brothers, too. He’d be her primary mate, he’d get to marry her, but she’d be shared by all of them. No human woman would want that.
He’d denied the whole wolf mating lore for years, telling himself it was just myth. There was no perfect mate who would call to his blood and to all of his brothers. The idea that he’d meet a woman and just know she was meant to be his was ludicrous in the extreme. And the idea that they’d find a woman who wanted to be with five men? That would never happen. It wasn’t right. He wouldn’t force a woman who wasn’t also wolf into that position, or so he had thought until today. There had never been any woman who had made him think forever before. And he was surprised that he felt the need to share her with his brothers. He knew that both sets of twins shared their women all the time, and he’d joined each set before, but he’d never had any deep-seated urge to share or not share. It was just another sexual game to play. But he didn’t want to play with Samantha. He just wanted to bury himself in her and then watch as his brothers took their turn and claimed her as well, which made him either seriously freaky or the alpha of a family who was finally ready to claim a mate.
He lay down and stared at the ceiling. He couldn’t deny it. His inner wolf called. His original plan was to convince her to leave the Daniels place and let him buy it from her, but now, now he wanted her even more than he wanted the property. He realized he would have to woo her.
He closed his eyes and groaned. He sucked at wooing. He was good at sucking and licking and fucking, or so he’d been told. But he had to get her to fall in love with him, with them. And then he had to get her to accept the wolf side, which would probably freak her out. Very few humans were aware of the wolf-shifters in their midst. With families of wolf brothers traditionally sharing a mate, their numbers stayed low, which helped them stay hidden. The formation of the Harmony pack during the war was a very unique circumstance and one not likely to be repeated.
It would be nice to be less unselfish and just think of himself and his brothers. They could make her want it, carry out the ritual mating, and give her the mating bite under the full moon.
A single bite from Gabe the mating lust would surge through her body for a night. Bites from all of them on one of the full moon nights and the effects would be permanent. She would be forever tied to them. She would burn for their possession, but that wasn’t right. It would be like forcing her to accept them all, taking away her choice. Any woman who was going to accept them all had to do it of her own free will, and no human woman would want to take on five men. And even if she was interested, once she learned they were of the wolf, she’d run screaming into the night.
But he couldn’t just let her go. His common sense and good manners and everything he thought he was told him to let her go, but he couldn’t, not without making an attempt to win her over. It wouldn’t be easy, especially since they had gotten off to such a wonderfu
l start.
So he’d have to go out of his way to be charming and woo her, and to do that, he had to learn more about her. He’d been listening to her conversation with his brothers. Good hearing was one of the advantages of wolf blood. She said she loved dogs. Maybe he could get close to her that way and learn something that would help him woo her.
Chapter Five
He was dressed and in his study when he heard the first of his brothers coming home. It was Nick and Bart from the store. Eddie and Andy were at the health club until nine. He’d really rather not see any of his brothers right now. He knew what, or rather who, they would want to talk about, and he didn’t want to talk about it with them, not yet. He had decided to use the wolf to get an advantage in wooing her, but he also didn’t want to admit this to his brothers. He was terrified that she’d reject him, and it would kill him if his mate rejected him or his brothers.
Maybe he was wrong and weak, and maybe his first impulse was right and he should just try to drive her away and forget his stupid idea of using the wolf to spy on her so he could woo her. His brothers were the romantic ones. He was afraid of falling more deeply in love with her and losing her. It would be better not to even try.
He was surprised when the subject of Samantha didn’t come up over dinner. He should have known they were waiting for the other two so the four of them could work on him together. They cornered him at nine thirty, barging into his study.
“Tell me you didn’t feel it, Gabe. It’s her. It’s really her.” Nick was the one closest to Gabe in personality and the only one who would go toe-to-toe with big brother.
“Her who?” he asked, stalling for time.
“It’s her. It’s our mate, the one we’ve been waiting for.” Bart’s curls made him look like the dreamer we was. He was the one who designed the furniture while Nick handled the business side and provided muscle, helping to execute his brother’s designs. Bart was quiet and generally pretty laid back, but not tonight. His body was almost humming with tension. They all were, and they weren’t backing down.