by Moxie North
Chapter 29
Effie couldn’t believe anyone would give up family for her. Let alone someone who clearly liked their family. Something Effie had no experience with.
“Will you make love to me?” she whispered into his mouth as she leaned in for a kiss.
“Anytime, anywhere, my love,” he answered, returning her kiss.
“This time, we should go all the way,” she said quietly, in a hushed exaggerated tone.
Laughing Dax said, “Really? Do you want to do it?”
“I’m ready if you are,” she said seriously, but still like it was a challenge.
“Oh I’m ready all right,” he said, flipping her on to her back. Before he could start removing her clothes, Effie pushed on his shoulders until he was lying on the bed and she had straddled him.
Effie made sure her hot core was pressed firmly against his rigid cock. She rubbed herself over it and felt it flex underneath her. “I want to play,” she said, pushing herself down his torso.
“Anything you want,” he said gruffly.
“Hands up, mister,” she ordered.
Dax smiled and slid his hands up to the headboard and wrapped them around the slats.
Effie grinned back at his quick compliance. “Good kitty.”
“Oh you are so going to get it later for that,” he growled.
“Promise?” she asked wickedly.
Effie moved down his body, kissing along his neck until she found her way to his firm chest. She teased his nipples and ran her fingernails down his sternum. She got a purring rumble for that.
She kept wiggling until she was face to face with his shorts. Looking up at his glowing eyes, she slid them down his hips, freeing his erection. Dax was happy to kick off the boxers in a yoga type maneuver.
Effie was too busy taking in this gorgeous man that was soon to be all hers, forever. How many woman could say they were ever offered up a for sure relationship. A truly binding arrangement that you didn’t have to worry about someone changing their minds.
Running one fingernail up the underside of Dax’s cock as it lay on his belly, she watched a shiver course over him. She leaned over and followed that finger with the tip of her tongue. Effie kept her eyes on Dax and watched his eyes roll back then close before opening back to her, glowing brightly now.
Effie didn’t tease him too much more, just a bit, before she circled his cock with one hand and slid her mouth down, swallowing him as far as she could. The moans and growls coming from Dax was a motivator for her to rock his world. She set up a pace of speed and suction that had Dax panting under her.
She was enjoying herself so much she didn’t hear him the first time told her to stop. His heat and taste had her focused on enjoying him and the tight clenching of her pussy. The roaring in her ears drowned out all other sounds.
The second time his voice wasn’t louder so much as it was like someone else was speaking through him. It was sound that made her sit up and pay attention. Literally.
“Baby?”
“Sorry, sweetness that felt way too good. And I want to come inside you when I taste your blood for the first time.”
Yeah that was some creepy vampire type shit, but it was still hot when he said it.
“Okay, but next time, I get to play longer, deal?”
“Deal,” he said, then released his hands and had Effie on her back before she could think about moving herself.
“My turn,” he growled.
Effie laughed for a brief moment before her laugh turned into moans. Dax knew every spot to send her soaring now. He played her like a finely tuned instrument. She came the first time with him just kissing her and using his cock to rub against her swollen pussy.
“Warm up,” he explained.
“Hell of a warm up, handsome,” she mumbled.
Dax smiled a wolfish grin then went back to loving her, teasing her and building her up again. He slid into her welcoming heat and worked into her, varying his speed, how deep he went, the angle. It was sensation overload.
“Dax, baby, it’s too much,” she moaned after a while. Dax didn’t seem to be tiring at all.
“I’m never going to get enough of you, mate,” he growled, then scooped her off the bed so she was straddling his thighs as he kneeled on the bed. Dax wrapped his arms around her and lifted her up and down on his shaft, slowly dragging out the sweet pull on her swollen flesh.
“Are you sure, Effie? Are you sure you want to be mine forever?” he asked in a hushed voiced.
“I’m sure, Dax. I’m yours,” she replied confidently. This was one of the easiest decisions she’d made in a long time. Dax made her feel like the only woman in the world. She knew how lucky she was and she wasn’t going to give up on love just because of a shitty childhood.
Dax sealed her promise with a deep kiss. As he did, he brought his hand down to her clit that was trapped between them and rubbed his thumb over it in fast circles. He could see the edge of the bandage on her new tattoo and decided he would bite her on the opposite side. The idea of having her marked on both sides where he could see them no matter which way she faced pleased him and his cat.
As Dax continued rolling her clit, Effie responded by circling her hips to match his thumb. Her second orgasm had been on a slow burn since the first one. And she was so ready.
“Give it to me, sweetness. Come hard on my dick, show me how much you love me,” he ordered.
Effie loved when he got bossy. Her brain blacked out for a second before she saw a shower of colors behind her eyes. Her body burned as the first surge of pleasure slammed into her. She felt a sharp pain at her neck, but dismissed it as quickly as it happened. Her sole focus was on the sweet pleasure radiating from her core. Her pussy clamping and releasing Dax’s cock as it continued to pound deep into her.
Dax’s whole being was pinpointed to the feeling and taste of his mate’s blood coursing through his body now. Her essence, her scent, who she was, was part of him now. They were truly one, as his saliva seeped into her wound, he thought of his shifter DNA melding with hers so she would live as long as him, now able to carry their young. It brought a tear to his eye.
Feeling her body still clinging around his dick, Dax swiped his tongue over the wound and bucked up into the tight center of his mate. The first jet of cum jerked out of him and was the final link in their union. They were mated, bonded forever.
Dax let his body pour out into Effie, sealing them together. And he hoped, making the first of many babies. As he held her, he felt her go limp in his arms. He felt the same way, the energy he thought would never end was quickly draining out of him as he came.
Gently laying his mate down, Dax kissed and licked the wound on her shoulder. It was instinctual and pleased his cat.
“My love,” he whispered into her ear, then gave it a kiss.
“Mmm, my cougar,” she said, sleepily.
Dax smiled, yes, he was most definitely her cougar.
Chapter 30
Another few days passed and Effie was in fairytale land. She was in love, in a permanent relationship, and she was still living with her best friend.
She realized living at Dax’s was not supposed to be a forever situation, but right now she was living it up. When Cassie needed to go to work, she took Effie’s car. She could take Dax’s when she needed to, but more often than not she ended up spending her days at the winery with him. She set up a little desk in the corner of his office to work on her online jobs.
She did bring up her concerns with Dax, bonded mates or not, there was still a new relationship that was a work in progress that needed to be addressed.
“I have to have you with me. It’s as simple as that. We are together, for all intents and purposes, married. Which we can discuss at anytime if you’d like,” he added. “Cassie is not in my way, and aside from not being able to run around the house naked, I don’t see why we can’t stay the way we are.”
“I don’t want you to think we are intruding or in your space,” sh
e said lamely. She knew Dax wasn’t the least bit uncomfortable with two women in his home. But her girly cautious side made her ask these stupid questions.
“If you want Cassie to live with us forever, fine by me. We will just need to plan on space for her in the new house and at some point, let her in on our little secret. Our cubs shifting in and out of kitten and human form might be hard to pretend isn’t happening. Even Cassie might think that’s a little odd.”
Dax had explained she’d get to cut half the pregnancy time out of a normal human gestation, which meant she was going to have to lay low and have the baby at home. But apparently cougar babies spontaneously shift for the first few years. After that their animal went dormant until they hit puberty. Their cats would still be with them, but they stepped back to let the kids grow into their own human side.
How she was going to explain this to Cassie, she wasn’t sure. She’d never thought of a time she wouldn’t be living with her. And honestly she had the best of both worlds right now. Hot man, lots of sex, and her bestie in house whenever she needed girl time.
“Hmm, telling Cassie. That could be complicated…” she admitted to him.
“Well, we will tell her together. She loves you and will accept your choices. Look how much she already loves me?” he teased.
He was totally right, Cassie was Dax’s biggest cheerleader. After the break-in, when Dax stepped up and handled the move out and the landlord, she figured he could do no wrong. Plus she told Effie that Dax treats her just the way she deserves, like a queen. Effie couldn’t argue that, Dax did treat her like she hung the moon.
“Seriously? Can we keep her? Maybe build a shed in the back yard for her?” Effie batted her eyelashes at Dax.
“Of course we can keep her,” he said, giving her a kiss and picking her up to twirl her around.
That day rolled into the next and Effie found herself behind the counter at the winery helping out Margo. A busload of tourists had just run them ragged and they were trying to recover from the loud, but happy to purchase group. As Effie was picking up an armload of dirty glasses, the bell over the door jingled. Sucking in the moan that wanted to pour out of her exhausted body, she turned to great the newcomer and stopped dead.
A stunning, and Effie was not exaggerating in the least, stunning woman stood surveying the room. She was dressed in a powder blue suit that even Effie could see was vintage Chanel. Her golden blonde hair was twirled into a French twist with nary a hair out of place. She had perfectly applied makeup, perfectly manicured nails, and a perfectly disgusted look on her face.
“Welcome to Tiger Mountain Winery, may I help you?” Effie heard Margo asking behind her. The woman’s eyes shot to Margo, but not before they rolled over Effie and recognition flared in her gaze.
“I’m here to see my son, kindly inform him that I am here,” she instructed crisply.
Oh shit, this was Dax’s mom. The one that didn’t like her, the one that thought she wasn’t good enough for her son. The one that ran a freaking background check on her like she was some kind of criminal!
At that realization, Effie lost her grip on the glasses and the most precariously placed ones tumbled to the floor in a crash.
Since Margo hadn’t moved to fetch Dax, the crash was just the disaster to bring him running.
“Effie are you okay?” he said as he turned the corner. Assessing the situation, he moved quickly, forging a straight path to his mate. It was not lost on him that his mother was at the door, but his mate was standing in a pile of broken glass. He chose to rescue his mate first. Dax jumped the counter, which earned a sigh from his mother and took the glasses from Effie handing them off to Margo. Once he’d removed the glassware, he picked her up and sat her on the counter.
“Are you cut?” he asked, looking over her legs and feet. Effie was rocking some cute strappy sandals but they had a high enough heel to keep her away from the glass.
“No, I’m good. No harm done,” she assured him. Effie could barely sniff and Dax was checking her for a fever. He was very concerned about her health and well-being.
Effie tried to peek around him to the ice queen at the door, but he blocked her, probably on purpose.
Behind them, Lilibeth Hayes cleared her throat in a deliberate attempt to return the focus to her.
Dax gave Effie a wink, a kiss, and a nuzzle before turning around to greet his mother.
“Mother! This is a surprise, I don’t believe you informed me you were planning a visit. Or did I miss that memo from your assistant?”
A surprisingly ladylike snort came out of Lilibeth when she replied, “I wasn’t going to give you early warning so you could be out of town. Besides I’m also visiting your wayward sister and meeting my new grandchild.”
Dax’s sister had given birth right after the break-in at Effie’s. And Dax thought it was the funniest thing ever when the cub had turned out to be a bear shifter. He wasn’t surprised, those were some tough genes to fight.
“My first grandchild, not taking after our side,” she said knowingly as she eyed Margo then back to Dax.
“Well, I’ve seen pictures and he’s the cutest baby in the world, so you can take some solace in that, Grandma,” Dax assured her.
The look his mother gave him made it clear she didn’t think of herself as a ‘Grandma’.
There was a long pause as his mother stared at Effie, who was peeking around Dax’s shoulder.
“Are you going to introduce me to your…girlfriend?” she asked, after waiting for Dax to offer the introduction.
“How about we head into my office. Margo would you mind cleaning this up for us? I’d appreciate it,” he said, giving her a knowing look.
Margo smiled. “Of course, Mr. Hayes,” she added. She normally called him Dax, but she read the vibe in the room right and went with the formal address.
Dax picked Effie up off the counter and walked her away from the glass before setting her down. He then went over to his mother and offered his arm. Clearly a level of formality that Effie was not used to.
Chapter 31
Effie waited until they passed and then followed giving Margo an exaggerated eye roll. She lamented the fact she was wearing short navy blue sailor pants with a sleeveless white blouse and her signature victory roll at her hairline. She’d curled and pulled the rest of her hair back in a high pony tail. It looked casual but had taken her the better part of a half hour to perfect it. Of course if she had known Dax’s mother was coming she could have spruced herself up a bit. Although, it’s not like her closet contained any Chanel suits she could have thrown on in a pinch.
Once they were inside Dax’s office, and he had his mother sitting stiffly on his couch, Dax scooped his mate into his arms before introducing her.
“Mother, I’d like to introduce you to my Mate, Effie Parks. Effie, this is my mother Lilibeth Hayes.”
“Nice to meet you,” Effie offered, though she didn’t try to shake hands since she was wrapped in Dax’s arms and he had a tight grip on her. She knew it was for her benefit. He wasn’t going to abandon her to the dragon and his tight hold was assuring her he was there. Gawd, she loved him.
Lilibeth Hayes looked her up and down a few times. “Have you sealed your bond?” she asked.
Dax very proudly announced, “Yes mother, we have, thank you so much for asking!” There might have been a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
His mother sat quietly for a moment, then sighed, “I suppose there isn’t anything that can be done now. If the fates have decreed that she’s your mate then who am I to say differently.”
“Thank you, mother, I hope you will come to love Effie like I do,” Dax said, smiling and giving Effie a squeeze.
“Oh, I’m sure Ephrata and I will get along just fine. Maybe we could go shopping together,” she offered as Effie watched her eyes scan her clothes. “We girls love to bond over shopping, don’t we?”
“It’s Effie, and yes I enjoy shopping.” The idea of shopping with Dax’s mother ra
nked right up with a root canal with Effie.
“Oh yes, Effie. I’m guessing there aren’t a lot of options around here, but I’m sure we could find something. I suppose we could also just jet over to Seattle if we really wanted to do some damage,” Lilibeth said, smiling sweetly.
“Oh, thank you mother, I almost forgot,” Dax said, letting go of Effie and walking over to his desk. He opened the drawer and pulled out a number of items. Coming back to Effie, he started handing her things.
“Here is the key to my house. Spare key to my car, I know Cassie has your spare for your car so no worries. I went ahead and got you the paperwork to fill out to apply for a passport. I have some trips in mind for us, so we might as well get a jump on this. I’ll have our lawyers expedite it for us. And finally, here is your own card for my Amex account. It doesn’t have a limit, so don’t worry about going shopping with my mom,” he finished, giving her a kiss on her cheek.
Effie stood staring at him, was he for real?
“Dax, I’m cool with the key, I’m happy to fill out the paperwork, but I can’t take your credit card,” she said exasperated.
“Effie Parks, you already said you love me, and that was for forever. This is the business of being together forever. You eventually will be a Hayes, I hope, unless you are attached to your name. So you need to start living like my mate.”
“But, Dax…” she started.
“My mate deserves the world. I intend to give it to her,” he said low, moving in to envelope her in his arms. It also effectively blocked his mother from her view.
“You are too generous,” she whispered to him.
“No such thing where you’re concerned,” he replied, stroking her cheek with his thumb.