by Ashlee Sinn
“Not really.” Calvin lifted his bottle for a toast and I joined him. “Welcome to Homer.”
“Good to be here.”
“And thanks for your help with the house today.”
“Of course,” I said with a flirtatious smile.
Calvin did that sniff thing again and shuddered. “Shit, woman.”
“Excuse me?”
“You smell…amazing.”
I didn’t know what to say, so I just sipped my beer. I mean, I knew what I really wanted to say, but asking a giant cougar shifter to take you to the bathroom and have his way with you might not be the best way to approach this.
Calvin shifted in his seat and cleared his throat. “So, Sutton. Where did you come from?”
Another change in subject. Fine. I’ll play along. “North Texas.”
“And how did you end up here?”
“That’s a long story,” I muttered.
“We’ve got time.”
I glanced up at Calvin’s unusual eyes and found myself melting away into them. For they held so many stories of their own, perhaps if I shared mine, he’d share his.
“Okay then. Let’s see,” I took another drink and then crossed my legs so that our knees where almost touching. “After leaving the Army, I got a job with the Texas Highway Patrol. Worked there until the shifters…you all…revealed yourselves and then quickly learned that I couldn’t stay with them anymore.”
“Why is that?”
I bit my lip, trying to decide how many details to give. “There were a few incidents with shifters and I…”
“You what?” Calvin’s intensity sent shivers through my own spine.
“I couldn’t stand the way they were being mistreated. So, I decided to leave law enforcement all together, but then this job opened up. And now, here I am. Supporting shifters instead of working with people who treat them like a diseased street cat.” I immediately slapped my hand over my mouth and shook my head. “That didn’t come out right, I’m sorry.”
Calvin grinned and removed my hand from my face. His warm touch heated me up from the inside. “It’s okay. I knew what you meant.”
“I just couldn’t…I mean I can’t understand what the big deal is. You know, I had a brief conversation with the protestors out front.”
Calvin snorted. “Bet that was enlightening.”
I smiled. “To say the least. But seriously, they all need to stop with the hate. There’s been too much of that in our civilization. Too much hate and too much war.”
Calvin waved to Zane to get us some more drinks before asking, “You’ve been to war?”
“I have.” I dropped my head. This wasn’t a subject I liked talking about.
“Me too.”
“Really?” Genuinely interested, I wished he would tell me more.
With a nod, Calvin took a swig of beer before speaking again. “101st Airborne.”
“1st Calvary for me,” I replied.
“What war?”
“Afghanistan. You?”
“Vietnam.”
That had my head spinning. “Okay, now I know you’re fucking with me. You are way too young to have been in Vietnam.” Plus, wow. Just wow. What an awful war.
Placing his hand on my knee, he seemed to forget my personal space for a moment. Which was just fine by me. “I’m older than I look.”
“Is that a shifter thing?”
“Yes.”
“Huh.” Looks like I still had a lot to learn.
Calvin laughed at my stupefied expression. “Perhaps we can talk more about that another time.” I thought he was dismissing me until his smile grew. “But I’d like to learn more about your bike.”
“My bike?” I laughed. “How did you know I had a bike?”
His eyes blazed with hunger and I fought hard not to jump into his lap. “The leather jacket, boots, gloves. And you smell like gasoline.”
I rarely blushed, but the fact that this gorgeous man told me I smelled like gasoline made me very self-conscious all of a sudden. In response, I slapped him on the shoulder. “Well, why didn’t you tell me that earlier? Everyone will think I’m weird.”
Calvin’s laughed filled a space in my heart I didn’t even know was empty. The deep rumble and the genuine enjoyment was contagious and soon enough, I’d joined him.
“Trust me, no one will think you’re weird. Plus, the gasoline scent is very subtle.”
“But we’re in a bar filled with shifters.”
“Who are all busy with other things.”
I followed his gaze behind my shoulder to see Scarlett greeting her party. “Shit, we missed it.”
“We didn’t miss anything.”
I turned back to Calvin only to see him devouring me in his gaze again. The man exuded sex and I was pretty sure he didn’t even try. I wondered what it must be like to be that sensual of a person.
We stared at each other for what felt like hours. The noise in the bar dulled to a hum as something happened between me and the cougar. His intensity, his life stories, his chiseled jaw and ebony skin…it was like I couldn’t get enough. And when he leaned forward with both hands on my knees, I couldn’t wait for him to kiss me.
But instead, he brushed his nose against mine and said, “I want to see your bike.”
I laughed. I had to. I’d been expecting a kiss, not that. “What?”
He brushed the side of my face with his hand and then set my beer on the bar. “Do you want to get out of here?”
“Uh huh.”
His lips brushed ever so softly against my ear. “Then show me your bike.”
“Okay,” I said in a trance. Perhaps he had magical powers too.
Calvin helped me into my jacket and ignored Zane’s whistle when he spotted us leaving together. I thought about stopping by and saying something to Scarlett, but when Calvin’s large hand slipped from my lower back to my ass, all unselfish thoughts fled.
I had a cougar at my back and I couldn’t wait to have him inside.
The woman had no idea how fucking sexy she was.
As I gently guided her out of the bar, I didn’t miss the looks from the other men or from the other shifters. Sutton exuded a type of confidence that had my cock hardening and had my mind thinking about all the ways we could be together. And not once in my long life had I ever felt like I needed to claim a woman so badly. I blamed the animal inside, but the truth was that he wasn’t the only one totally falling for the state trooper with the beautiful hair.
Once we stepped outside, the blast of cold seemed to hit Sutton rather hard. She immediately shivered and I jumped forward to wrap my arm over her shoulder.
“You’re so warm,” she said with a smile beaming up at me.
“Another shifter thing.”
“Nice,” she mumbled as she led us to her bike. “Well, this is it.” She pointed to a Harley sitting at the edge of the lot under a tree. It wasn’t too fancy or too plain, just perfect with enough embellishments to catch the eye. A formidable bike for a strong woman.
“Very nice,” I said, admiring more than just the bike.
“You ride?” she asked, a sparkle of mischief in her eye.
“I have.”
“Hmm,” she mumbled, smirking with amusement.
I laughed to myself and walked around the bike. Even though she’d tucked it away in a darkened corner of the parking lot, my night vision allowed me to see everything clearly. Every curve, leather accent, and of course, Sutton’s face. I wanted to bury myself in her so badly, I could barely think, which is why I blurted the next question that came to mind. “Can we go for a ride?”
A dark and sultry smile grew on her face and I was lost to her forever. “You wanna drive?”
“Sure,” I said. “As long as you’re on the back with me.”
With a laugh, Sutton pulled out a second helmet from her saddle bag and held it out for me. “Don’t give me that look. You’re wearing a helmet.”
“But I’m a cougar.”
&nb
sp; “And I’m a state trooper.”
Holding it in my hands, I tossed it up and down. “It probably won’t fit.”
Sutton, holding my gaze, stalked around the back of the bike until she stood directly in front of me. Without hesitation, she grabbed my jacket collar and pulled me down to her. Soft, firm lips pushed against mine as she used her womanly charms to seduced me. I grabbed her ass and yanked her closer to me. She let off a small moan against my lips, sending an electric current to my dick.
When she pulled away, she raised her brow and said, “You’ll wear it.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at the way she’d wrapped me around her finger in a matter of seconds. These feelings of need and obsession were new to me, but I liked it, and I was pretty sure Sutton enjoyed playing along too.
I climbed on the bike and pushed the machine to standing. Waiting for Sutton to crawl on the back, I started the engine and enjoyed the rumbling of the exhaust. As her leg slid behind my waist, my cougar growled his content. Being in control of the machine and having Sutton press so closely against us was too much excitement rolled up into one night. Although we both hoped that this night wouldn’t end any time soon.
“You ready?” I asked her over my shoulder. Thankfully, she’d given me one of those helmets that didn’t cover my face so we could still speak.
Her breath caressed my ear when she breathed, “I am.”
My body tingled with energy as I spun us around and headed toward the protestors. One of the shifters working at the bar tonight, lifted the barricade out of the way. I gave him a nod and then gunned the bike passed the idiots who would rather sit outside all night and freeze instead of accepting the inevitable. I felt Sutton laugh against my back when the crowd yelled their slurs and we blasted past them onto the road.
The cool air pushed against my skin but my body was warm with hormones. Sutton pressed against my back, her hand sliding ever so closely to my thigh. My bulge increased with the anticipation that she might touch me and I had to force myself to pay attention to the road. I didn’t know where I was going exactly, I just wanted to take my woman for a ride.
In every sense of the word.
It wasn’t long before her hand moved again. Holy fuck, pay attention. She squeezed my waist and let the other arm travel down between my legs. When she found my hard cock waiting for her, she laughed and tugged on it. Her lips caressed my neck and the second I felt her teeth nip into my shoulder, I nearly ran off the road. She ground her hips against my back each time she stroked her fingers up and down my bulge. Even though the bike was loud, I could hear her moans getting louder. Sutton was a woman who knew exactly what she wanted.
And I was a cougar who needed to claim her now.
I pulled off the road and directed the bike between a few trees—just far enough we wouldn’t be seen, but not too deep into the woods. Stopping with a skid, I quickly turn off the engine and whipped my head around to meet Sutton’s greedy lips. So soft, and moist, and full. Those fucking lips would be the death of me.
Sutton unsnapped her helmet while I did the same. And then, with an intensity unmatched by any other woman I’d been with, she climbed up into my lap and smashed her lips onto mine. Gliding back and forth against my dick, she continued to pleasure herself. The small moans escaping her mouth only encouraged me and I quickly found my hands underneath her shirt. No bra. Shit, she was amazing.
“Calvin,” she breathed. When I pinched her tight nub between my fingers, she called out my name a little louder. As she rode me, fully clothed, on the bike, I couldn’t believe how fucking sexy she was. There were no qualms about taking what she wanted when she wanted, and as her hips moved faster and faster, I crushed my lips against hers.
Her orgasm almost sent me over the edge as well. She screamed my name and yanked on my head while she rode her waves. But this wasn’t going to be over just yet. Still pulsing and panting, I lifted us both off the bike and carried her to the closest tree. Setting her feet onto the ground, I quickly ripped off her jacket and shirt. She giggled, but let me take a moment just to absorb her beautiful, sensual body.
“Fuck,” I mumbled, much to her delight.
She didn’t speak, but the grin on her face said a thousand words. She grabbed the waist of my jeans and pulled me up against her. Her kisses melted my legs and I barely noticed that she was tugging on my shirt until it hit my chin. In one swift move, I yanked it off my head. Sutton kicked off her boots, and I did the same. And then we were on each other again. Her tongue darted inside, never once waiting for an invitation. Little did she know just how much I liked to be dominated, and little did she know what she’d just unleashed.
With a growl, I squeezed her hips and flipped her around. She pressed her hands against the tree trunk and pushed her hips back against me. Wiggling them a few times, I grabbed her shoulders and gave her a thrust. With our pants still on, I slid my hand around her waist and into her jeans. It wasn’t long before my fingers hit the moisture and slid nicely into her folds.
“So wet,” I moaned into her ear. “So fucking wet.”
She giggled and threw her head back onto my shoulder. I immediately kissed her neck at the same moment I pushed two fingers inside. She bent her knees and lifted her hips even higher. As I tweaked her clit, her breathing increased.
“Calvin, I need you inside. Now.”
I could barely work the button on her jeans, so she helped while I slid my pants down to my thighs. The second hers fell to the ground, I whipped her around again to face me and lifted her up. She wrapped her long, strong legs around my waist, her wetness lubing up my cock that stood at full attention.
In two steps, I had her back pressed up against the tree and took a moment to look at her eyes. I knew mine would be reflecting my animal right now, but as she bore her gaze into them, it didn’t seem to faze her in the least.
“Now,” she whispered, reaching between our legs and guiding me to her moist opening.
I didn’t waste any time. With one quick thrust of my hips, I pushed inside. The warmth and tightness felt better than anything I’d ever experienced in my long life. And when she bit my ear as I made my way deep inside her, I couldn’t imagine ever stopping.
“You feel so good,” I growled.
“You too,” she breathed.
I slammed into her over and over, pushing her back against my arms to protect her from the tree. Sutton called out my name with each giant thrust, her fingers digging deep into my ass. She forced me to pound her hard, the slapping of our skin filling the night air around us.
“Faster,” she begged.
I certainly complied. Screaming into the sky, I rode her hard…harder than I thought would be safe. But she just squeezed me tighter and begged for more. I sucked on her nipples until they twitched beneath me. She kissed my neck and let her lips graze ever so close to my ear.
“Calvin, I’m coming,” she breathed.
A moment later she tightened against me and I felt the moisture grow. That was all it took for me to lose control. I squeezed her waist tight as I shot inside of her. Over and over we pulsed, our bodies so in sync that our orgasms lasted a least a full minute. I couldn’t think one coherent thought as I enjoyed the feel of Sutton. The sweat covering our bodies glowed in the moonlight, and when I pressed my head into her breasts, she laughed.
“Oh, my god,” she said. “I can’t even…”
“Can’t even what?” I asked, a smile growing on my face.
“I just can’t,” she whispered. Her lips met my cheek and I loved the way she nestled against me. I rubbed right back and listened to her giggle. “Are you purring?”
“It’s a shifter thing.”
“Well, I love it,” she breathed.
Gently pulling out of her, I lowered her feet to the ground again. It didn’t take long before she was shivering, so I helped her dress, taking a little time to caress and play with her breasts again. But instead of bringing joy, something awful flashed into my vision. It was li
ke a dream, only so vibrant and vivid, I momentarily forgot where I was. Darkness. Fire. Men with guns. And Sutton on her knees in the middle of it all, screaming into the sky, tears falling from her cheeks.
I jumped away from her and nearly tripped on my pants.
Sutton looked up at me with worry. “What’s wrong?” she asked. But the way she said it hinted that she knew.
“What the hell was that?”
“What?”
“You know what!” I shouted. Immediately, I rested my hands on her shoulders, seeing just how much I’d upset her. “I’m sorry. I…”
“You saw something?” she asked in awe.
Stepping back, I pulled up my pants and rubbed my hands over my face. If I told her what I saw, she would think…well, I didn’t know what she’d think.
“How is that possible?” she whispered, almost to herself.
My Haitian heritage meant that I grew up around those who could wield magic. Was Sutton like them? No, I knew she wasn’t or I would have sensed it. But she’d just projected a vision…or maybe I’d had a vision for the first time. This was crazy and my brain swarmed at the thousand thoughts racing through it.
“Calvin,, what’s wrong?”
I couldn’t form any words.
“Calvin, say something.”
Her confidence disappeared and before me stood someone vulnerable and scared. Yet I couldn’t form a damn word.
“Calvin!” she shouted. She reached out toward me, but I flinched. It was a mistake. “Calvin?”
“Look, I…” What did I want? Suddenly, I found myself wanting to run through the woods as a cougar so that I could think clearly. I didn’t understand what she was getting at, but it was just too much right now. “I just need to…”
“What?” she snapped. “What do you need to do, Calvin.”
I looked down into her hurt eyes. I didn’t want to make her feel bad, but I also didn’t know what she wanted from me right now. What had I’d seen? How did Sutton play a role in that?
I stepped away from her and started to pull my pants down again. “I need to go,” I said.
“Go?”
But I didn’t answer. Instead, I ran into the woods and let the cougar burst from my skin. I’d come back for my clothes later, but right now I just needed some fresh air and time to think. In the distance, I heard Sutton yelling for me. Then it changed to shouts of profanities, and eventually I heard her drive away on her bike.