by Vella Day
“I had to mark her as ours.”
“Dante, what if she’d seen your fangs?”
He shrugged. “I was careful. She didn’t even notice.”
“She’d freak if she found out. She’s still impressionable.”
Dante chuckled. “What you really meant to say is that you’re not ready to tell her.”
“I have a job to do.” Trax’s shoulder tightened and his nail beds turned white from holding the bottle too intensely. “It’s already hard enough to concentrate. Once Couch is in jail, I’ll break the news.”
“Just don’t fuck up what we already have.” Dante wasn’t complaining. The more she fell for them, the harder it would be for her to walk away. He and Liz had already established a connection and if Trax wanted to wait, so be it.
Trax’s gaze shot off to the side. “Just make sure she doesn’t think you only want her for her body.”
That was a low blow. “Can I help it that every time I get near her, my hormones shoot sky high? I may not have the discipline and stamina you do, but by the moon above, I am no better than a teenager when I get around her.”
Trax slammed the bottle on the table between them and glowered at him.
Dante held up his palm. His brother looked ready for a fight. “I wanted to take my time, but after I took off the chain and she groaned when I licked her tits, the brain in my cock took over.”
Trax nodded to the bedroom. “Since she’s so deeply under your skin, make sure she doesn’t talk you into allowing her to go after Couch herself.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t.”
Dante jumped up and Trax followed him into the living room. One glance at the bedroom door had him standing down. His brother was awfully high and mighty tonight. Dante wasn’t the only one who needed to be careful.
He faced Trax. “I have a word of advice for you, too, bro. Don’t always act like some hard ass with all your master-submissive shit. She needs to know you care.”
“Fuck you. Just let me sleep in peace.”
“Gladly.” Dante left his half-empty bottle on the kitchen counter instead of tossing it in the trash just to piss Trax off.
Tomorrow he wanted to figure out a way to make Liz happy.
Chapter Thirteen
When Liz awoke, she wasn’t sure where she was. The gray walls and dark furniture made the room tomblike, and only faint light eked around the closed curtains. The alarm clock on the side table read 9:13 a.m. Yikes. She never slept in. As she sat up and yawned, her pussy and ass throbbed. When she shifted position, she felt something deep inside her. Oh, shit. It was the freaking butt plug they made her keep in.
Well, that wasn’t going to stay.
She eased out of bed and headed into the bathroom. It took a few tugs and not clenching to remove it. After she washed it, she wasn’t sure what to do with it, so she left it on the counter.
Images of being blindfolded and tied up surfaced. She tugged off her top and looked down at her breasts. Sure enough, her nipples were red. She rubbed them and a quick blast of pain rippled through her, but it was a good kind of ache.
Never in a million years would she have thought she’d enjoy being at a man’s mercy. A flash of heat rolled through her as she remembered Dante and Trax touching her.
But why only with these men?
She’d never allow anybody else to do those kinds of things to her.
Why?
Because she’d never trust anyone the way she trusted Trax and Dante. The level of confidence she’d developed with them in such a short period of time was quite remarkable. Having someone save your life had a way of forming a strong bond between them.
After washing her face and brushing her teeth, she went in search of something to wear. All she had left was one clean outfit. Today, she’d have to ask one of them to return her to the parking lot so she could get her car. She had to go home for more clothes. Until Harvey Couch was in jail, she wouldn’t feel safe there. It wouldn’t surprise her if he had one of his wolf underlings stake out her place, waiting for her to return. Bastard.
She opened her door and spotted the brothers in the kitchen. Dante was scrambling eggs and Trax was cutting fruit. Did they eat this well every day or was this special because she was there? She secretly hoped it was the latter.
Dante turned around and smiled. “Hi, beautiful. Sleep well?”
Yes and no. Her erotic dreams kept waking her up. “Yes.”
“Good. Breakfast will be up in a minute.”
Trax’s cell rang. He reached in his pocket, and as he glanced at the screen, his brows furrowed. “Trax. Yes, General. I’ll be right there.” He disconnected and returned the phone to his pants.
“Bad news?” Dante pulled three plates from the cabinet.
“Make it two plates. The general is not happy about our failure yesterday.”
That wasn’t fair. “You got close,” she said.
“Close doesn’t get Couch captured.”
She then remembered the other appointments she’d copied down. This time she wouldn’t ask to go along. “I might be able to help. Let me get something.”
She hurried into his room and dug through her purse. There were moments, even last night, when she debated finding the bastard on her own. Then reason intruded. Even if she had a gun, he could shift and run away before she got off a shot. Not to mention, she didn’t have the right kind of bullets to kill the bastard.
It would be just her luck, if she did do something on her own, Couch would have an army of men near him, and then she’d be the one who ended up dead, not him. She admitted it was better for trained men to go after him.
With the scraps of paper in hand, she returned. “Here are two other appointments he had listed on his calendar. If I were Couch, I wouldn’t go, but maybe he doesn’t know I copied his schedule.”
Trax’s brows rose. “Oh, he knows, but thank you. It might soften the blow when I meet with the general.”
Trax tucked the information in his pocket and picked up his keys. A bit of her was disappointed he didn’t kiss her goodbye, but she understood he wanted to keep his mind on his task. He placed his eye against the scanner and headed downstairs.
Dante turned her around and embraced her. “Don’t worry, sugar. He’ll come around.” He kissed the top of her head.
“Come around?” Surely the man couldn’t read her mind.
“He’s not very demonstrative with his affection, but in his case, actions speak louder than words.”
“If you say so.”
“If he weren’t so intent on catching Couch for your sake, he wouldn’t have spent a few hours last night planning his next move.”
That cheered her. “Oh.”
“Come on. Let’s chow.”
She helped him bring the food to the table and the domestic scene wasn’t lost on her. She could get used to living with someone as supportive as Dante. Trax was another issue all together.
She placed a cube of pineapple in her mouth and let the sweet juices wake her up. “I was hoping you might be able to find the time to drive me to my car and then escort me home so I can get more clothes.”
“Sure. Let me call Randy to see if he can work for me today.”
Inconveniencing him wasn’t her goal. “You don’t have to do that.”
He smiled. “I’ll take any excuse to spend time with a beautiful woman.”
Her stomach flipped. “Just any beautiful woman?” She couldn’t believe he thought she was even pretty.
“No, just you.”
“Aw, that’s sweet.”
While she dug into her meal, Dante called this Randy guy who didn’t appear to need much encouragement to come to work.
“Done. I can be your bodyguard for the day.”
That excited her. “I’ve been thinking.”
He shoved a forkful of eggs in his mouth then washed them down with juice. He held up a finger while he finished chewing. “Always a good idea.”
She loved his humor.
“I want to learn to shoot a gun.”
His cheer disappeared. “Sugar, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
She figured he’d say that. “Even if you, or rather Trax captures Couch, he could have other members of his team follow up on his desire to harm me.”
“I’ll admit there are a lot of Colters running around.”
“See? What if after Couch is in prison, he calls his men and tells them to come after me. I want to be ready.” This time she held up a finger. “And don’t say carrying a gun is dangerous. I know it is. That’s why I want to be prepared.”
He blew out a breath and leaned back in his chair. “I guess it wouldn’t hurt.”
“Really? And since I have to go back to work soon, could I get a few of those werewolf-killing bullets?” She feared she’d be spending her life looking over her shoulder wondering if one of Couch’s men was out to exact revenge for her part in bringing him down.
He burst out laughing. “You are something else.”
She hoped he liked her aggression, though Trax wouldn’t. “Is that a yes or a no?”
“Let’s take it one step at a time. I’m afraid the bullets we have won’t fit that peashooter of yours. Hell, I might as well bring a spare gun of Trax’s. That way, if he’s willing to lend it to you, you’ll know how to use it.”
“Thank you.”
He leaned closer. “I hope you’ll figure out a reward for my generosity.”
“Absolutely, and as you know, I can be very generous.”
* * *
“Have you ever been to a gun range?” Dante finished buying two boxes of ammo for them at the indoor shooting range.
“No. Guns have always scared me.” Being indoors seemed easier than outdoors as a wall separated them from the other shooters.
“Good. They should, but I totally get that you want to keep a gun in your glove compartment in case Couch approaches you again.”
Or in case I get pissed and decide to shoot first and ask questions later.
She remembered what happened the last time she was in the car. Trax’s car had bulletproof glass, but hers didn’t. “What if Couch sends someone else? Is there a way for a laymen to tell if someone is really a you-know-what?” She had to lean close as the gunshots made it hard to have a conversation.
For a second Dante tensed. “No.”
“Then how did you know Couch was a shifter?”
His mouth opened then closed quickly. “I saw him shift.”
That made sense. “So if a Colter never shifted in front of you, you wouldn’t know to keep watch on them. Right?”
He tapped her on the nose. “I thought we came here to learn how to shoot.”
Dante had a smooth way of avoiding pointed questions. For now, she wouldn’t pick. Maybe it was better not to know all the details. “Okay, hot shot. Show me what to do.”
He loaded the ordinary bullets into Trax’s spare gun. “Did you see how I did that?”
“Yes.”
He handed her the gun. “Keep your arms straight and look down the site.”
She closed one eye and aimed but didn’t pull the trigger.
“Let’s put on your protection so your ears don’t ring all day.” He slipped the head gear on and stepped behind her. Dante encased her arms with his and lifted them to eye level. Having him there gave her so much confidence.
“Pull the trigger when you’re ready.” His voice sounded muffled, but she could hear him.
She held her breath and shot. The recoil jerked her back. Her arms would have lowered except Dante had supported them. She turned around and lifted her headgear. “Can I see how I did?”
“We’ll look later. Keep practicing.”
For the next few shots, he guided her but then stepped away. She’d gotten the sense of the gun and felt good about her shots. Dante held up his gun and fired shot after shot at his target. He didn’t flinch or jerk.
After ten minutes, he stepped over to her side and pressed a button. The target approached. “Hey, not bad.”
Four shots hit close to the center. Probably the ones Dante had helped with. The rest barely hit the target or missed all together.
“Let’s see your score.”
His adorable smirk said it all. He brought his target near.
“Holy shit. You’re good.” Almost all of his shots were in the center circle.
He brushed his knuckles against his chest. “Actually, I cheated.”
“How?”
He showed her how to use the infrared sensor. “Now when you aim, the red dot shows you where the bullet will go.”
“That’s so cool.”
Excited to experiment with this new feature, she tried again. She lined up the red dot close to the center and pulled the trigger. After about twenty shots, she pressed the button to bring her target closer.
“How did you do?” He pulled the paper close.
She studied the results. “Not as well as I thought.”
“It takes practice.”
Darn. “What I need is a heat sinking bullet. Once I take aim, the bullet locks on to the target and follows him around, even if he tries to run away.”
Dante lifted the gun from her hands. “Perhaps you’ve had enough target practice for today if you’re thinking about shooting a retreating target.”
That made her laugh. “Maybe you’re right.”
“How about some lunch and a romantic walk on the beach?”
“Sounds like a date to me.”
During the ride to the seashore, she rolled down her window and enjoyed the November air. The humidity wasn’t often this low and the temperature below eighty. Add in the slight breeze and a clear sky, and she was thrilled to be far away from Harvey Couch and all that was bad.
“You want to go to the Pavilion for lunch?”
“I for one love their hamburgers, but my cholesterol would double if I ate there very often. How do you stay so fit?”
“Pure thoughts.”
Dante always had an answer. He parked the car in the lot, came over to her side, and opened the door. His chivalry was only one thing she liked about him.
She rushed up next to him and tried to keep up with his long strides. “Do you play hooky from your store very often?”
“With my brother as a task master? No, not often. Though to be honest, I usually don’t have a reason to run out and play.” He squeezed her hand.
They arrived at the restaurant and ordered at the bar. Once their food came, they decided to sit outside and enjoy the fresh air. The salt breeze refreshed her and she enjoyed watching the seagulls. They squawked loudly as they dove toward the beach and picked up whatever food they could find.
“Dig in!” Dante lifted his hamburger and before it got to his lips, juice dripped down his hands. He took a bite. “Mmm, almost as good as your pussy.”
Heat raced up her face. “Shh. There are families here.”
He laughed. “If I was focused on what other people thought of me, I’d never be happy.”
“I’m not worried about looking bad, but young children shouldn’t be privy to our sex life.”
“Speaking of which, do you know what I plan to do to you as soon as I get you back to our house?”
Just the thought of making love with the awesome man had her nipples puckering and her pussy dampening. Before heading to the gun range, he’d allowed her to pick up her car and had followed her home. He totally understood that she needed to grab more clothes. While there, she’d slipped on a thong and her sexiest bra. She hoped he’d like the outfit.
“How about you show me when we get back instead of telling me. I like surprises.”
He laughed and several people at nearby tables looked their way. “Eat up.”
They took a quick walk to the water, dipped in their feet so they could say they’d done the beach thing, and headed back to the car.
The quiet, sunny respite had done wonders for her soul. “If I could afford it, I’d consider living on the beach.”
“Too much danger from wind.”
Hurricanes were a problem in Florida. “True. Maybe renting a place for a month after hurricane season might be nice.”
“Indeed.”
He opened her car door and she eased in. She didn’t miss Dante scoping out the area as if he expected trouble. Not wanting to get into a debate about how he knew where these Colters were, she kept quiet.
During the drive home, her imagination went a little wild. Perhaps she could convince him to take her into the playroom. Even though Dante didn’t seem the type to demand her submission, she might like him to try.
Not long after they left the beach, he pulled up behind their building and parked. He cut the engine.
“Ready for your world to rock?” He winked.
She so could get used to being with this man. “Absolutely.”
As soon as Dante and she got into the house, he plastered her back to the wall. “I’ve been dreaming of having you again all day.”
“Me, too.” That was the truth.
How could these men have gotten under her skin so fast? It was as if she was destined to be with them. She was never one to believe in love at first sight, but with the way they took such good care of her and protected her, not to mention the way they brought her to climax in a few seconds, they were meant to be.
She broke the kiss and started to lift off her shirt when Dante stopped her. “Let me.” He removed her heavy T-shirt then whistled. “Sugar, you came ready for me.”
“You like?”
“I more than like. I almost hate to take off this lacy bra.” He dipped his head and tugged her close. His tongue traced a path across the top of the pink lace and pinpricks of delight spread over her.
“What do you say we take this into the playroom?” She held her breath waiting to see if he thought tying her up was only for Trax.
His response was to pick her up. “You are the woman of my dreams.”
“Oh yeah?”
“You know I’m a big fan of showing.”
He walked her to the playroom and placed his thumb on the sensor. The lock unclicked.
She couldn’t wait for this adventure.