One True Mate 1: Shifter's Sacrifice

by Lisa Ladew

  Trevor reached up and took her hand and the sliding of his skin on hers made her weak. The moon slipped behind a cloud, leaving her almost completely blind, even as she felt he could see her better than ever. Behind the woods, thunder rumbled in the distance, reminding her of a summer storm come to play in the heat.

  Ella swallowed hard, staring at the dark face that loomed above her. She opened herself to him, wanting him to kiss her. Wanting his lips on hers so badly she knew she would beg if he told her to. The thought caused no shame. She was lost to him and she knew it.

  Noise pulled her attention to the truck. Two dark shapes leaped out the window and ran away from them, towards the woods.

  Her voice only broke slightly when she spoke. “Your dogs. Are they scared of the thunder?”

  Trevor stared at her hard and she could feel him making a decision. She felt herself get pulled into the mystery that was him just a bit more.

  “No. They are giving us privacy.”

  Ella licked her lips, feeling suddenly dry as the desert and wet as the oasis. “What do we need privacy for?”

  ***

  Trevor could smell her arousal. She wanted him. Her body was opening to him like a flower in full bloom and the scent of it surrounded him, making him crazy. He sniffed deeply. Vanilla. He couldn’t take it. The part of him that was all wolf even in his human form whined and snarled to be let free, to take over. He resisted as well as he could.

  He reached out his right hand and brushed her cheek, smelling her sweet scent flare as he did so. She was killing him, and she wasn’t even trying, probably wasn’t even aware of his agonies. His cock had grown thick and long in his pants and it beat in time with his heart. A lock of her hair brushed against the back of his hand. He pushed it behind her ear, then slowly wound his fingers into the mass of black silk. He exhaled hard at the sensation. He’d been wanting to touch her hair forever. Since the first time he saw her.

  He tugged experimentally on it, watching her face closely, able to see her easily in the dark, as more thunder rumbled from far away and the smell of rain pushed towards them.

  Her eyes closed and her lips parted slightly, as her sweet arousal scent broke out stronger. So he pulled harder, twisting her face to the sky.

  “Ahhh,” she exhaled, and even her breath smelled like sugar to him. He was completely lost to her and could not have stopped himself from touching her even if ordered to by Rhen herself.

  He lowered his face to hers and took her lips hard and decisively, forcing another whimper from her as she kissed him back. Her hands snuck around his waist and pulled on his shirt, pulling it up and out of his pants so she could touch the bare skin at his waist.

  “Ella,” he breathed between kisses, his other hand moving to the front of her body, eliciting a gasp from her as he cupped her breast. “I want you.”

  “So take me,” she said, her eyes closed, her body pressed against his.

  Trevor moved fast, turning her, dropping the tailgate of his truck with one hand, then lifting her and sitting her on it. He stripped off his belt and holster as he kissed her, and placed them under the cover of the truck bed just as the first rain drop hit his shoulder in the absolute dark.

  “Oh God,” she breathed, as he leaned into her and both his hands found her breasts, teasing her nipples into tight peaks he was suddenly obsessed with. He had to see them. Had to taste them. Had to own them.

  He pulled back and lifted her shirt, placing it to the side. Her pale skin shone in the absence of light and her simple white bra attracted him like a missile to a target. He felt the pull of her stare and he looked up at her for just a moment. “You are so beautiful,” he said, then reached around and popped the clasp on her bra, pulling back to watch like he was unwrapping a gift. In a way, he was. He licked his lips as she came fully into view. He stored her bra with his holster then leaned in and took first one breast, then the other into his mouth. Primal was the only word that could describe the absolute desire that spread through him at the taste of her skin. He suckled hard, forcing a moan from her.

  The rain fell harder, soaking his clothes and short hair, even as she pulled at his shirt, trying to lift it over his head. He whipped it off and went back to his prize, his gift, her body. She moaned and leaned back against the vinyl truck bed cover, arching her body up to him, running her hands over him.

  She pulled at him, trying to get him up on top of her.

  “Under the cover,” he told her. It would be a tight fit, but they would be dry.

  “No, on top, if it will hold us. In the rain,” she said, her voice thick with lust, and he got the feeling she was emboldened by the fact that she couldn’t see him. He could see her though, and he intended to watch everything, every provocative movement as it unfolded. Already, he was imagining slamming into her from behind, and he just knew she was tight and wet for him.

  He hopped onto the tailgate, lifting her easily onto the vinyl cover, already slick with rain water. She laid back, fumbling with her jeans, pushing them down and kicking them and her shoes off. Her legs were as pale as the rest of her and he thought he’d never seen anything so gorgeous. He ran his hand up one thigh until he reached the V of fabric covering her most sensitive spot. He held himself back as he danced around it with his fingers, then lowered himself onto the truck bed cover next to her, testing to see if it would hold. It did, bowing in the middle, but not unsnapping. She curled into him, throwing a leg over his hips, catching his mouth with her own as he ran his hands up and down her almost naked body.

  “Fuck woman, how are you so perfect?” he breathed, tracing the curve of her hip and the softness of her belly, heat pouring off of her even in the cool night air and the small pool of water that was growing around them.

  She moaned again and pawed at him. He wriggled out of his boots and jeans, not caring where they ended up. When her small hand touched his cock he snarled his approval, not able to help the animalistic sound.

  “Oh God,” she murmured.

  “What, angel, what’s wrong?”

  “You’re so big.”

  “What did you expect?” he growled into her ear, nipping her, pulling her head back by her hair, kissing his way down her neck, heading for her breasts, and then who knew what else.

  “Wait,” she said. “I have to see it.” She knelt and pushed him down into the rain as the drops continued to fall on his chest and face and belly. On her knees, over him, she stared down at him, something like wonder on her face. She palmed him, then he saw her lick her lips and lower her head. He steeled himself. It had been too long for him and her touch was so heavenly he couldn’t hold himself back, but as good as her mouth was, his animal wanted control, wanted the mating.

  He groaned as her warm, wet mouth touched him, licking, sucking, swirling, never coming up for air, until he couldn’t handle it. He pulled her up to him. “Ella, I have to have you, please, say it again.”

  She knew exactly what he wanted. “So take me.”

  He stripped off her panties in a flash and flipped her onto her stomach, where she arched up onto hands and knees. Fuck, her scent, like the sweetest food at the best bakery in the world. He pulled her onto his face and latched onto her clit and sucked hard, knowing it was probably too much, but unable to stop himself. If she said one word, he would be able to stop though, but she didn’t. She arched higher and tightened her legs around his head, then screamed out her orgasm into the night, spilling the taste of sugar cookies onto his tongue. He knew she couldn’t taste like that in reality, he’d never heard such a thing, but to him, she did. The sound and taste of her orgasm drove him mad with desire.

  When she pulled away, he raised and backed her onto him, fitting the head of his cock inside her warm, wet core, groaning at the sensation. Slowly, slowly he pulled her back and pushed into her, noting her tension and relaxation and soft noises of approval or alarm. When he was finally fully inside her, she relaxed and he began a steady rhythm that he knew would take him where he was headin
g, and her too, if he could get her there again.

  “Trevor,” she moaned, her hands slipping slightly in the water. She dropped to her elbows, creating a splash, and he watched as the raindrops rolled over her back towards her head, catching in her hair, wetting it. He curled his fingers around her hips, thinking her body merging with his was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen in his life. Heat poured off of their bodies, more than making up for the slight chill of the rainwater.

  His thrusts sped up, her body and noises demanding more from him, more delicious friction, more hard pounding, which he gladly gave. She arched higher, the angle change driving him over an edge but he held himself back as best he could, seeking her pleasure before his, curling an arm around her to reach her clit, pressing and releasing, rubbing and sliding until she tensed again and cried out. He felt her clench around his cock and he went with it, finally letting go, spilling inside of her with clenched teeth and a strangled cry of pleasure.

  She dropped onto the slippery surface beneath them and he followed, disengaging himself, realizing only then that they were in a puddle of cold rain water, and that he had just slept with a victim, someone he was supposed to be protecting.

  The rain came harder, making him squint against it, and the night lit up as lighting struck somewhere north of them.

  In the flare, Trevor saw Ella staring at him with frightened eyes.

  Chapter 25

  Female groans of lust and satisfaction filled the air, tempered by masculine grunts of exertion and fulfillment. Mac prowled through the open warehouse filled with couches and mattresses, eying the bodies locked together over every spare soft inch in the low lighting.

  It was a true rut, except that all the women there were humans.

  Mac’s gut ached to be a part of a rut with female shifters, dangerous creatures who would tear your guts out if you treated them wrong, but who would temper that risk with passion that made these women look as if they were asleep.

  His head swiveled as the passionate cries of one woman reached his ears. Maybe that one wasn’t asleep. The scent of her release filled the large room and his nostrils flared to better catch the scent. Gardenia mixed with something indefinable that made him lick his lips.

  If she weren’t already gathering a crowd of admirers, maybe he would have tried his hand with her, or his cock as it were, but no, her dance card was full.

  His feet led him towards the center of the room, and as he walked he touched the women he passed, testing their scents first, to be sure they welcomed it. He ran a finger over the shoulder of a naked brunette being fucked doggy style by Harlan over the back of a couch. Mac could smell the sadness coming off of Harlan in waves, even as he rode the woman mercilessly.

  Harlan was fifty-three, older than the rest of the KSRT, and had been around long enough to have seen an all-shifter rut. Harlan’s mate had been killed by Khain, the day after their mating ceremony. Even though Harlan’s biology demanded this release, Mac knew his heart wasn’t in it. He missed his Eventine, who had been gone for twenty-eight years.

  “May her spirit be forever cradled in The Light,” Mac whispered softly, even as his hands found the woman’s hair. She moaned and locked eyes with him, challenging him, inviting him. He smiled down at her and immediately her hands released their death grip on the back of the couch and sought his belt buckle. Moments later, she had his cock in her hand, gasping at the weight and breadth of it.

  “Are all of you here huge?” she whispered.

  Mac chuckled. Probably. The wet pink of her tongue met her upper lip and he needed no more invitation. His right hand tangled in her hair as his left hand drew lazy circles over her shoulder blade. Softly, slowly, he pushed the head of his cock between her lips, feeling each tiny tooth scrape as the pressure of the male ramming into her from behind forced her head towards his belly. She grabbed him before she could gag on him and began to work him hard. He had women daily, but to an unmated wolfen, nothing was better than rut sex. Sex shared with pack mates, their smells mixing, their fluids joining, the women being taken to heights of pleasure they’d never before let themselves fantasize about, but would forevermore dream of.

  Mac intended to fuck, suck, and lick every woman in the place until she’d come at least three times, if the night was long enough.

  But he would start with this one, then see where he ended up. He had been right, requesting a rut. Even if it wasn’t the same without shifters, it was still a necessary part of their biology, and anything that necessary had to be right. Hell, maybe they’d end up with a few half-breeds out of it, which wouldn’t save the wolven, but it was better than nothing.

  Mac thrust his hips forward, feeling the head of his cock hit the woman’s throat, watching her swallow to try to get more of it down. “Good girl,” he crooned. “Swallow that cock. Take it all and you might get a bit of a reward.” She locked eyes with him and he could tell she was quite enjoying herself. Good.

  Because that was what a rut was all about.

  Pleasure.

  Chapter 26

  Ella scrambled into the cab of Trevor’s truck, spurred on by the lightning that arced to earth closer each time. She had her clothes in a ball, clutched to her chest. Everything was wet but her bra which she put on.

  Trevor handed her a towel, but didn’t look at her, then he climbed into the driver’s seat also, pulling his shirt on. He already had his pants and boots back on, although how he’d done it so quickly, she couldn’t fathom. He was wet too, through to the skin.

  He watched the woods and she wondered how the dogs would know to come back. For that matter, how had they known to leave? Had he trained them for such a thing?

  Ella pulled on her wet clothes, dismayed at how awkward things felt between her and Trevor. She’d had sex with him. In the open. In the woods. During a rainstorm. He hadn’t even worn a condom and he’d come inside her. Ella groaned inside her head. How could she be so stupid? And now he couldn’t even look at her, which was ten times worse.

  Two words flashed through her head.

  Come back.

  She whipped her head toward him and stared at him hard. It had been his voice in her head. Had he fucked her just to take her mind off of his secrets?

  He avoided her stare completely, watching the woods still. He shifted in his seat and she felt embarrassment come off him in waves. The dogs were coming down the hill, picking their way over rocks and fallen logs. Why would Trevor be embarrassed? They were just dogs. She wouldn’t have cared if they had watched … she didn’t think.

  Trevor leaped out of the truck and pulled towels from under the seat, lining the back with them, but the dogs looked drier than she and Trevor were. They jumped up into the truck. Ella watched Trevor’s face and thought she saw his embarrassment spike. She looked curiously at the dogs, but they both jumped in to the seat and curled up, nose to tail, as if nothing had happened. Again, Trevor never said a word to them, or petted either of them. The three of them had the strangest relationship she had ever seen. But maybe that’s how you were supposed to be with police dogs.

  Trevor climbed in and started the truck, then drove off, taking them all back to Serenity. She thought about another night in the safe house and she couldn’t do it. She wanted to go home. Sleep in her own bed. And she wanted Trevor with her. But only if he wanted to be there. This awkward silence was killing her but she couldn’t think of anything to say. She finished pulling on her clothes.

  Twenty minutes later, they pulled up in front of the safe house. Ella stared at it, not wanting to get out. There were no cars in the driveway.

  “Damn, I forgot to tell them I found you,” Trevor said.

  “Yeah, I was hard to find, wasn’t I? All the way in the back of your truck.” Inwardly she rolled her eyes at her childishness, but he started it.

  Trevor finally looked at her and she stared him down, even as she heard a chuff that sounded an awful lot like a laugh from the back seat.

  Trevor looked away and p
ulled out his phone, then sent a text message. He turned off his truck and opened his door. “Let’s go.”

  Ella crossed her arms over her chest. “I don’t want to. I’m sick of staying here. This is night number three now and I don’t know if there’s really any need anymore.”

  Both dogs sat up in the back seat and poked their snouts over the front, as if interested in the conversation. Trevor looked at her again for a long time. “Well, I can’t take you to my house.”

  Ella leaned forward, her bad mood broken. He wasn’t getting mad back at her, he didn’t want her to be alone, and he wasn’t going to try to force her to go back inside. “Why not? It would be better than being here.”

  Trevor looked behind him and she swore he was looking to one of the dogs for help. He faced her again. “It wouldn’t be right.”

  She scoffed, about to ask him if fucking her in the back of his truck was right, but something in his expression stopped her. A thought hit her. “Why, do you have a woman there? A wife?”

  His eyes went wide with alarm and his body tensed. “No!” he said, holding up his hands. “No, I swear. I’m single. No females. I-I’ve always been single.”

  Ella looked at him aslant. “What do you mean you’ve always been single?”

  “I’ve never had a serious girlfriend.”

  “Never? How old are you?”

  “Thirty.”

  Five years older than her, which was about what she had thought. She shook her head. “What’s wrong with you?”

  Troy shook his head like his ears itched and made that chuffing sound again that could have been a laugh or a sneeze. Trent leaned over and bit him on the shoulder. Troy snarled at him, but pulled back and quit making noises. Ella didn’t even pay them any attention. She was used to their strangeness by now.

  Trevor threw Troy a dirty look, then faced Ella again. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I never met the right female, I guess.”