Diablo Lake: Protected

by Lauren Dane

  He tipped her chin up with a fingertip and kissed her long and slow until her bones had melted and she sighed when he pulled back.

  It should have felt like it was moving too fast. It should have been a moment of panic where she argued with herself about how this was not logical.

  “I like that you respect me enough to tell me the truth.”

  She’d never been complimented like that, but, yeah, it worked.

  “I’ve got so much respect coming your way. I bet you can’t wait.”

  He shook his head, smiling. “I promise that anything you tell me in confidence will never be repeated. I want this—” he motioned between the two of them “—to be rock solid.”

  She held out a pinkie and he took it with his own.

  “Pinkie swear.”

  “Okay so now that we’ve lowered the cone of silence I need to say that your dad was a condescending asshole tonight.”

  He thought about how his dad hadn’t acknowledged that Mac was Prime. Even as there’d been a flash of pride in Mac, their dad had given the bulk of his affection and attention to Darrell.

  “Yeah. He was. On the other hand, you were fucking amazing. I was so proud of you standing up the way you did.”

  “It’s not usually me that does the flashy up-front stuff. That’s always been Miz Rose or Katie Faith. I was nervous, I can’t lie. Luckily your dad was such a turd he ended up making me mad and I forgot about being anxious.” She gave him a look. “I did see you haul Darrell back on his ass.”

  “I told you I underlined what I wasn’t going to tolerate when it came to you and how they acted.”

  She blushed a little. “Yeah? And what does your momma think?”

  “I don’t know. She left before I could talk with her about it.” They’d ushered her out before Mac had finished with his father.

  “Well. Stay out of arm’s reach. I know you probably learned that lesson even though Darrell didn’t.”

  “Even when he played football he forgot that.”

  “Another reason why he’d be a terrible Patron. How’d he react to you being named Prime?”

  “I just assumed the title. My dad didn’t argue. I imagine by morning it’ll be announced far and wide.”

  “Wait.” She held up a palm. “What do you mean he didn’t argue?”

  “I mean, I don’t know how to explain it. But as I was there tonight it just happened. I felt the moment when the wolves turned to me to make things right. And when I decided I was Prime, I just was.”

  “Wow. That’s really cool. But how did he announce it? Or memorialize it? Or is this another way of doing it and I just didn’t know until today?”

  “I could have fought for it and assumed the title. But there’s no one I’d fight. Darrell knows he can’t beat me. He most assuredly does after tonight. And he had the chance to challenge me several times and he didn’t. This was a bloodless coup.”

  Aimee frowned at him. “What aren’t you saying?”

  “Nothing, it’s totally normal for a wolf to take a title by assuming it and the pack not challenging that.”

  She didn’t believe him, but he could see she hadn’t thought of a way to get around that yet.

  “I’m proud of you.”

  He stole a kiss. “Thank you. Speaking of parent reactions. Your dad won’t coldcock me for being with you?” he asked.

  “I’ll do you one better than that. My mother invited you for Sunday dinner. They eat at four thirty. Don’t be late. If my dad has to wait to eat he gets so grumpy.”

  “Uh. Okay.” He knew at that point he had no such welcome to offer her. Not from his parents anyway. He figured his grandmother and aunt and uncle would take that place though, in welcoming her to the family.

  His phone started buzzing and he groaned.

  “Go on, Prime, answer that.” She nudged him.

  “I don’t want to. I’m here in our bubble and I don’t want to go.”

  “You’re adorable when you pout. Damn it. How can nature be so unfair?”

  He groaned but answered. “What?”

  “Just wanted to check in to be sure you were okay,” Huston said, not ruffled at all by Mac’s gruffness.

  “I’m here with Aimee just now.”

  “I put a guard on you. Don’t argue. You’re Prime and things are hinky. You won’t even see them.”

  “Them? There’s more than one?” Mac demanded.

  “Not at a time. But there’ll be a pool so someone can be on you twenty-four hours a day.” They’d discussed some of this as necessary preparation to take over.

  “Okay. Fine.”

  “Tell Aimee I said hey.”

  “I will. Don’t leave a light on for me. I’ll be staying here.” He waggled his brows at Aimee, who snickered behind her hand.

  “Call me when you wake up.” Huston hung up the phone and Mac tossed his to the coffee table.

  “I’m supposed to tell you hi from Huston.”

  “You’re staying over, huh?” One corner of her mouth tipped up.

  “I’ve got an overnight bag in my trunk. I was hoping we’d be in a make-up state of mind versus a break-up state of mind. I’m glad it’s the former.”

  “Me too. But I’m not so dumb I don’t know we won’t fight. A lot. You’re very bossy and I don’t like being bossed.”

  “Yes, you do.”

  She blushed again. “That’s different!”

  He pounced on her, getting tangled in her blanket, laughing and stealing kisses.

  He rolled to his feet and picked her up, blanket and all, carrying her to the bedroom, where he deposited her onto the bed as if she weighed nothing.

  That wasn’t overrated.

  She wanted him so much it caught her breath a moment as he whipped his shirt up and over his head.

  “Like Christmas early.”

  He dived on her, his hands and mouth kissing and caressing even as he managed to get her totally naked without breaking a sweat. Within another few breaths he was naked as well.

  “Damn, boy, you got some moves on you,” she teased.

  “I have to keep you interested, don’t I?”

  She embraced him, holding him with her legs around his waist too. Shuddering when he rolled his hips, brushing his cock against her clit.

  “That’s the fucking way,” he snarled.

  Like she’d argue with that?

  But he backed off and it was her turn to snarl. “Why? What? Why are you stopping?”

  “Because I’m not a seventeen-year-old boy. I have self-control and some finesse.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I don’t want that right now. I want you in me.”

  “Oh.” With a piratical grin, he thrust into her with one hard movement, leaving them both gasping for breath.

  He was big. Big enough that it stung a little. And big enough that the sting warmed into pleasure as he dragged free of her body and plunged back in.

  She dug her nails into his shoulders, into all that muscle, the play and flex against her hands nearly as hot as the pressure he managed to work around her clit.

  He really did have some major finesse.

  * * *

  She was so tight and hot inside sweat beaded on his brow nearly immediately. That soft, sweet heat gripped him, not wanting to let go and he nearly lost his mind with the pleasure of it.

  She held on tight, urging him just how she liked him, which turned him on even more. She trusted him with herself, with her pleasure and the vulnerability of expressing it to someone else.

  He licked down her neck, loving the little sounds she made, especially the squeaky one when he found that perfect spot just below her left ear.

  He should have been mindless with it, with the need to have h
er; instead that depth of want made everything clear. He knew what he wanted without a single doubt.

  “Make yourself come,” he whispered against the sensitive skin of her temple.

  There was no hesitation. She slid a hand between their bodies until her fingers found her clit. He stroked into her, grinding his body against those fingers each time.

  Her breath got shaky and her inner muscles began to twitch and contract around him. Her already inferno-hot pussy superheated again as she came with a cry she muffled, her face pressed to his neck.

  By that point he was lost to the need to come. His body took over, delighting in each touch and caress as she ran her hands over his back. The scent of her orgasm, of her magic meeting his hung in the air, heavy and sensual. Teasing his senses as he came so hard he forgot to breathe until he sucked in on a gasp.

  Even after he rolled to the side, the muscles in his thighs and calves jumped as he lay there, fingers tangled with hers, panting like he’d run a mile.

  “I like your house a lot better than Huston’s,” he muttered.

  Laughing, she rolled into his side, resting her chin on his chest. “I should hope so.”

  “I’m not going to hide that you’re my woman.” In fact, he wanted everyone to know.

  “That was very cavemannish. Cavemantastic. Whatever you wanna call it. I wasn’t aware it was an option for you to hide that we were dating.”

  “We’re not dating. Humans date. I dated humans. You’re mine.”

  She pinched his side.

  “Hey! I’m yours too.”

  “Oh. Okay. But you know, you might think in a month that I’m more trouble than I’m worth.”

  He sighed. “You’re trouble all day and night. But you’re most definitely worth it. And not just for the sex.”

  “Thanks. I guess. I definitely like you for the sex. I mean, the rest is pretty good too. Except for your parents, but I’m willing to try and look past that.”

  “That’s a thing we’ll have to keep working on.”

  “Or, you keep working on it. I have my own kooky family to handle and no offense or anything, but yours seems like a lot of trouble. You’re big and strong and so I’ll leave it to you.”

  He grumbled, but held on to her anyway. The weight against his side, her thigh slung up over his, her arm draped across his belly, it all worked together to soothe and excite at the same time.

  “So. You’re running for mayor,” he said.

  “Yeah. I am. I can’t make excuses for it. I wish I didn’t have to, but I do.”

  “I think you’d be good at it. The empathy you carry is important. To everyone.” It felt like a betrayal of his father to say it, but it was true.

  “Empathy is within everyone. People just need to listen. I do think my gifts are a good fit for the job. He’s going to be angry though. I don’t necessarily like it when people are angry at me.”

  “My mom can be good practice.”

  She snickered. “I’ll try not to insult her. In front of you I mean. She’s your mom, I get that. You want to defend her and I get that too.”

  “She’s wrong. Blaming Katie Faith for this is silly.”

  “She knows that. There’s something else eating at your momma and it’s not Katie Faith. Maybe she’s worried about whatever confrontation you and your brother are going to have. He’s not going to take this well. You being Prime I mean.”

  He wished he knew what his mom was so worked up over too. It alarmed him to see her so close to the edge.

  “She’s always been bigger than life. But this is different, like you said.”

  Aimee sighed, heaving herself out of bed and to her feet. Which was fine with him until she pulled a long-sleeved shirt on.

  Catching sight of his features, she bopped him with a pillow before shimmying into a pair of panties. “It’s cold. For those of us who aren’t shifters, this is winter. I need pants and socks so stop pouting.”

  “I’m not pouting.”

  “Normally, if someone in town was feeling off, like your momma probably is, I’d talk to them. Check in on ’em from time to time. But she’s... Well, I guess I haven’t been as pushy as I normally am because of this mess between her and Katie Faith and I know she sees me as an extension of that.”

  “Are you...actually worried about my mother? After all she’s said to you and Katie Faith?”

  “Yes. Well. If there’s something wrong, naturally I’d want her to get help. I’m not a monster.”

  He moved quick, grabbing her by the waist and hauling her back to bed, kissing her as she laughed.

  “Let’s do something else for a while. Pretend the rest of the town and its problems are far away for another orgasm or two. What do you say?”

  She held his cheeks in her hands. “I say hell yeah.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Aimee knew it had snowed overnight before she even opened her eyes. Delight sent her to her knees to peer through the window to confirm that.

  “It snowed!” she said as she shook Mac awake and went back to the view.

  He looked really good in her bed, all sleep tousled and warm.

  “Oops,” she said, tipping her chin at him.

  He looked down at his chest to see the love bite she’d left there. But instead of annoyance or embarrassment, he turned a look her way that made her nearly buckle.

  “Never apologize for marking me. That it’s still on my skin all these hours after you gave it to me is an interesting thing, isn’t it?”

  She turned from her perch at the window and didn’t deny anything. “You guys don’t mate though.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Sugar, we imprint. And I am most assuredly imprinted on you. That you could leave a mark that’s lasted this long says you picked me right back.”

  Aimee crossed her arms over her chest. “Imprinting is like what then? I mean, I know Katie Faith and Jace are imprinted and bonded by marriage and pack magic and stuff.” She put her hands over her mouth, eyes going wide with horror. “Please forget I said all that.”

  “Why? It’s not a secret. I was at one of their wedding ceremonies and the other with the pack was similar to one we do in our pack.” Mac stretched, reaching his arms above his head, arching. His muscles rippled—she really did think that would never get old—as he did and he groaned.

  How on earth did she merit this delicious bit of maleness?

  One of her favorite things about being in love with a werewolf was all the stretching they did. And groaning. And fucking. Damn he really loved sex. And thank the lord above because she did too. And sex with him was mind-boggling. He made her come so hard she frequently tingled a good ten minutes later. It was raw and vulnerable and sometimes she felt so exposed it was difficult not to panic a little.

  But he didn’t get panicked at all. He just seemed to always know exactly what he wanted. So. Totally. Sexy.

  He didn’t need to be taken care of. He respected her abilities to handle her business. And yes, he did get pushy sometimes, a thing werewolves did that she wasn’t as enamored of as she was the rippling muscles.

  Quick as lightning, he had her grabbed and hauled back into bed as she laughed, dizzy with love and snow on Christmas Eve.

  Snow!

  It was snowing at Christmas, which was her favorite. Aimee loved the smell of snow, so crisp and sweet. Loved the way it made everything sound and look different because it reflected the light the way it did.

  “Dude, it snowed.”

  He grinned down at her. “We’re already ping-ponging through topics? You only just poked me awake a few minutes ago.”

  “I know. It’s the snow though. I love snow. I really do.”

  Mac leaned down to brush a kiss over her mouth. “I’m pretty sure you’re like this every day. We�
��ll play today.”

  And in the midst of her fantasy about having in-front-of-the-fireplace sex, she realized something else. It was Christmas Eve and she’d totally forgotten that when she’d invited Mac to dinner at her parents’ house.

  “I just remembered what day it was. You don’t have to come to dinner at my parents’ place. I know you probably have family stuff.” And her father was a huge fan of holiday decoration so there’d be that to contend with.

  “I know it’s Christmas Eve. I don’t have any other plans but to have dinner with your family tonight. Tomorrow I’ll go on over to have breakfast at my grandma’s house. Lots of little ones this year so we’ll do the present opening over there and all that business. I’d planned on inviting you but you said you were busy with work and then your family thing.”

  Every year she and her family and extended family spent all of Christmas morning making things for all manner of care packages. They baked casseroles in the big industrial kitchen at Salt & Pepper to be stored in the freezer and given out as needed over the next two or three months for the senior-meals program.

  Preserves, pickles and relishes, along with beans and rice would be divvied up into the baskets of non-perishables Aimee often took out as she visited folks in and around Diablo Lake.

  All the people currently sewing, knitting and crocheting warm clothes would bring all those items then as well. At the high school, there was a closet where Aimee would leave many of these care packages so kids could nip in, take what they needed and not have to have a big deal made out of it.

  The packs, the cats and the Consort kept it stocked over the course of the year and had done so for as long as she could remember.

  At the same time, they made sheets and sheets and sheets of cookies they’d then take to neighbors and friends before their big holiday dinner, this year at her mom and dad’s house.

  Aimee had grown up with this as her holiday tradition for as long as she could remember. It made her as happy as the snow did.

  “I don’t give presents on Christmas Eve. So I’ll bring your presents over tomorrow night. You bring your leftovers, I’ll bring mine. We’ll feast.” He kissed the tip of her nose.