Melanie reached for the pocket of the fatigue pants she had borrowed from Kimberly, and pulled out the money clip Kimberly had insisted she carry. She pulled the clip off, and peeled the first bill off the top, not even looking at what it was. Pocketing the bill, she thrust the rest at the girl, folded discreetly so as not to draw attention. "He called you April, right?"
The girl nodded. "Yeah, but that's not my real name."
"I know. I'm only going to say this once, so listen up. You're better than this bastard. I don't care what line of bullshit he used on you, I don't care what angle he played to get you out here, you're better than this fucking shit. Get out of this life."
"But I got nowhere else to go!" the teen wailed, tears starting to course down her pale face, streaking her cheap makeup. Mel glanced again, and stepped closer to April in order to cover the scene.
"You stay out here, and you're going to either be dead or strung out on Ice by the time you're 20," Mel whispered fiercely. "Get yourself over to City of Hope in the Financial District. They've got programs to help girls like you, and I know the director, she's legit. Take this money, get some food, and get yourself uptown. Now I gotta go, before the sack of shit behind me wakes up and starts screaming about his knee. Get. Yourself. Uptown. City of Hope. Tonight. Got it?"
The young pro could only nod as Mel turned, fixed the hood around her face again, and took off at a fast walk up the street. She turned the corner a block up, and April watched her disappear into the night. April looked down at her hand, which was holding the packet of bills the hooded woman had thrust to her. She wouldn't dare count it out here in the street, but she did know that the packet was thick, at least five or six bills thick, and that the face looking up at her belonged to Benjamin Franklin. The girl looked up in the direction the hooded woman had disappeared, tears of joy falling from her eyes for the first time since she could remember. "Thank you," the young girl whispered, before turning and running off into the night.
7
Seven
"Okay, I'm in. One hundred percent."
Keith looked up from his seat on the sofa, the only light in the living room provided by a small fire in the central stone fire pit. Melanie was standing in the entrance way, her posture strong and passionate. Whatever had happened on her walk, she had found something to help her make a decision. She had been out for a few hours, and it was just now coming up on two in the morning.
"I'm glad you are, my love," he replied, standing and walking towards Melanie. "What helped you make a decision so quickly?"
Melanie hesitated, before throwing herself into Keith's arms. Her embrace was not passionate, but yearning, seeking comfort and consolation. He gave her what she needed, as his hand gently stroked her hair. Mel could feel her rage, her tears falling away, replaced by the comforting warmth of her Mate.
They moved to the couch, where Mel told Keith about her walk through The War Zone. He could feel her anger and pain at the memory, and wished he could have been there. The pimp would not have survived. Mel started weeping as she recalled her anger and horror, and let it all flow out onto Keith's shirt. He held her again, just stroking her hair, while she shed the rest of her emotions. Finally, with a sniff, she sat back. "Tell me Keith, do you consider yourself a good man?"
Keith looked her into her eyes. "I will not lie, my love. In defending our Clan I have done things that I am not proud of. I am no saint. But yes, I think I have done my best to be a good man."
"And our Clan.... it is powerful?"
"Yes, for a North American clan, we are powerful. Why?"
"Because I want us to use our power for more than just protecting ourselves," Melanie said passionately. "I know we can't change the world, and I know we can't do everything. But we can start to make a difference, here in this city. In the city where we will raise our children."
For the first time, Melanie felt that she was the dominant one in her interactions with Keith. Her feelings were so strong, so intense, that it felt like it was her eyes burning with desire. She put her entire soul into her gaze, and felt the thrill of conquest as Keith nodded. "We will. Even if it is just you and I, we will."
Melanie felt elated. She leaned in, capturing Keith's lips with her own, thanking him for his presence in her life. As their lips danced, she felt her passion change, becoming more personal, more sexual. She wanted her Mate.
With a small shove, Melanie pushed Keith back onto the cushion. It was her turn to be dominant, and she relished her chance at controlling her powerful lover. She swung her leg over until she was straddling his lap, her knees pinning him on each side. She looked him in the eye, and smiled.
Leaning in again, she captured his head in her hands and kissed him, her hands running through Keith's mane of hair. Her pulse quickened, and she could feel her arousal growing in her pants, as the heat spread up and down from her core until her entire body felt aflame. She groaned, her hips swaying on their own as she ground her groin against his. Keith's arms reached around her, as he held her ass firmly, massaging her as she rode him. Finally, with a gasp, she broke the kiss, and sat back. "Wait," she gasped, getting off of Keith's lap.
"For what?" he asked, his breath ragged. He was worked up, and Melanie felt a thrill at being the one in control after the love making in the afternoon.
"For this," Melanie replied, sinking to her knees in front of the sofa. She reached out with her right hand to massage Keith's cock through his pants, and was rewarded by a sigh from her lover. Deftly, she reached up with her left to untie the string to the loose silk pajamas he was wearing, before urging them down his hips. She didn't have get them far, just a few inches, before she was rewarded with Keith's beautiful cock springing free. She smiled, seeing it up close for the first time. It was just as sexy as it was before, perhaps even more so. She took him in her hand, and grinned as her fingers barely could encircle his massive shaft. She started pumping him gently, watching as his eyes fluttered, his hands clutching at the cushions of the couch.
"You are a tease...." Keith growled, and Melanie could smile as she saw his teeth start to look just slightly longer. While she knew he could control his changing, it was fun to see how much she could make him lose control.
"If you want me to stop....?"
"No! Please, no!"
Melanie grinned at Keith's mewling tone, and she rewarded him by lowering her tongue, licking him up and down his hot, throbbing shaft. He tasted salty, gamy, and incredibly masculine. Much like his chest and arms, Melanie could feel silky fine hairs growing near the base of his cock, barely visible in the firelight. She tickled them with her tongue, before licking up and down his shaft again. She could feel his hips jerk as she teasingly tongued his slit, and she was rewarded with a clear, sweet drop of his precum that she licked up greedily. "Tasty," she breathed, smiling.
"Any time you want it, it's yours," Keith replied, his voice floating on that edge of banter and losing control.
"Any time?" Melanie asked playfully. "Well then, how about now?" She licked around the head of his cock once more, before her lips parted, and she sucked his cockhead into her mouth. Working gently to avoid scraping the sensitive flesh with her teeth, she swallowed more and more of him into her mouth, her efforts spurned on as she heard his groan deepening with every inch she took in. Finally, she felt him lodge against her gag reflex, and she reversed, drawing him out quickly and forcefully until just his sensitive head was in her lips. She swirled her tongue again, teasing his sensitive tip, before going down once more. This time when she felt him there, she relaxed her throat as much as possible. It had been years since she had deep throated a man, and even then the guy hadn't been as large as Keith. She tried to grin as she felt him finally all the way into her mouth, but she doubted that her lips could stretch any more. Instead, she started humming deep in her throat, the vibrations causing Keith to growl with lustful energy. She was worried he would try and force her more, but felt relief as he kept his hands on the cushions of the couch instead
of her head.
After a moment, she reversed again, and started bobbing her head up and down on his massive cock. She relished the power of her position, seemingly submissive, but knowing that her Mate was fully under her control just through a simple lick, a gentle teasing of his balls with her hands, a caressing of his tip with her lips. Not that she was neglecting her own heat at all. Her left hand had left the couch and was stroking her pussy through her pants, rubbing and massaging her heated center as she pleasured her Mate.
Melanie continued sucking, relishing each and every taste of his precum, until she could feel his balls start to tighten. Releasing his cock with an audible pop, she looked up to see Keith's face in lustful torture. "Why did you stop?"
"Because I want you to finish inside me," Melanie replied, quickly bouncing to her feel and peeling off her soaked pants. Casting them aside, she straddled Keith's lap again, lining up his cock with her soaked pussy lips. "But you have to wait until I can cum too."
Keith's feral grin reappeared, as his arms encircled Melanie's waist. "I'll take that challenge. First one to cum makes breakfast in the morning?"
"I like my toast with butter and strawberry jam," Mel replied, lowering herself onto his steely hard shaft. She cried out at the penetration, feeling again the welcome fullness that came with his huge manhood inside her. This time though, she could see in Keith's eyes, as she wrapped her arms around his neck and started to ride him. Using just her thighs and hips, she rose and lowered, controlling the pace and angle, feeling every delicious jolt of sexual electricity course through her body as his cock rubbed against her clit.
"Oh you're so good," she sighed, knowing that she was losing control, and not really giving a damn. She knew Keith loved her, and better still, respected her. Melanie gave herself willingly to her Mate, creating between them something beautiful and sacred. Melanie made love to him as the antithesis of what she knew those working girls did, to show the universe that sex was the most beautiful, tender act two people could do. She gave herself to him, showed her weakness to her Mate, and in return became all the stronger for it.
Melanie's legs worked faster, impaling herself over and over on Keith, as he began to thrust back up into her. His hands moved from her hips to her t-shirt, and Keith slipped his left hand underneath to tweak her nipple. This last jolt sent Melanie over the edge, and she felt her climax crash over her, the waves of ecstasy looping between her brain, her pussy, and back again. Her climax triggered Keith's, and she relished in the feeling of his hot cum filling her again as he emptied himself, spurt after massive spurt jetting inside of her, pushing her orgasm to a higher climax than before.
It was funny, she thought in that instant after the jolts stopped. She had never had unprotected sex before, and yet with Keith she had no qualms about being impregnated by him, even after knowing him just a short time. Panting, she came down from her sexual high to look her Mate in the eye. "I guess I'm making you pancakes in the morning?" she asked, capturing his mouth with a playfully tender kiss.
"Pancakes?" Keith joked back, returning the kiss. "By the time we wake up, it'll be lunch time. I'll want a full on brunch."
"Can't do brunch," Mel laughed, kissing him again. "I'm terrible with anything besides pancakes and eggs."
"We have a busy day tomorrow. We should get some sleep," she said, finding her pants and flipping them over her shoulder. She started walking towards her bedroom. "Will you join me in my room?"
"No," Keith said, causing Melanie to stop and look back. "I would like you to join me in the Master bedroom, if you don't mind."
Melanie smiled, and turned towards where Keith was gesturing. "Lead on, my love."
8
Eight
"So did you sleep well?"
It was mid-afternoon, and Melanie finally found herself awake, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes as she wandered into the living room. Kimberly was seated on one end of the sofa, a tablet computer in her hand, tapping away. "Yeah, sorry if I slept too long. Where's Keith?"
"My brother prefers doing the business side of his work in a more traditional office setting, as you may have guessed. Since my work tends to be more clandestine, I am freed of that restriction. I choose to do my work wherever I like, and since part of my duties now is to educate you on your new life, staying here is most convenient."
"Don't you have your own place to live, though?" Melanie asked, concerned. "You're here when I wake up, you're here when I go to bed, and yet I didn't think this penthouse had a third bedroom."
Kimberly looked up at Melanie, and grinned. "It doesn't. And yes, I live here."
"So where do you sleep?"
Kim tapped her tablet, putting it to sleep. "You've been sleeping in my normal bedroom, actually. Since Keith brought you here, I've slept on the massage table in the gym, and I was going to sleep on the sofa last night until you and him decided to break that in as well."
Melanie flushed, embarrassed. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to...
Kim laughed, standing up and hugging Melanie. "Sister, it doesn't matter to me. You bring joy to my brother, and you will bring strength and honor to our Clan. I just have one request."
"What's that?"
"Can I have my bedroom back? My lower back is killing me, and you'd think a massage table would be more comfortable than that."
Mel returned the hug, and the two separated, smiling. "Deal. Now, what's on my education agenda for today?"
"Clan Lockwood, of course. Because of your unique situation, you're going to find quite a few challenges over the coming weeks and months."
"I gathered. So tell me," Melanie said, sitting down on the sofa. Kimberly settled herself next to her, and the two spent the next four hours discussing clan structure, their positions within the city as a whole , and basic werewolf physiology.
"So you are mortal? None of that only being killed by silver bullets and other stuff?"
Kimberly nodded. "Yes we are. Our bodies are much more resistant to damage than normal, but we could eventually be killed by normal means. Silver just has an enhancement effect upon any wounds inflicted. Here, let me show you."
Kimberly led Melanie into Keith's bedroom, to the walk in closet. Larger than most normal house's bathrooms, Melanie was surprised to find it almost totally bare. "I thought he would have this filled," she remarked, fingering an Italian suit she had seen him in before. "He always dresses so tastefully."
"He does, but he doesn't keep all of his clothes here," Kimberly explained. "Our Clan estate in the mountains probably contains most of his things. I know you think of this penthouse as large, but you will be floored by the estate. He just keeps what he needs for his city life here."
Kimberly started shuffling through the hangers, until she found what she wanted. "Here we are. I told him to throw it out, but I know my brother, he doesn't like to throw out things with any significance to him. For a werewolf, he's quite the pack rat."
Kimberly handed a black trench coat to Melanie, who felt the buttery soft leather through her fingertips. It was a remarkable coat, easily one of the finest pieces of leather work she had ever seen. "What's so special about this coat?" she asked, rubbing the lapels. "I mean, it's a beautiful coat, but what are you trying to show me?"
"Open the coat up to the light."
Melanie did, and gasped as she saw light start to shine through the rear of the coat in at least a dozen places. "What are these?" she asked, suspicious.
"Bullet holes. That was the coat he was wearing when he grabbed you out of that alley," Kimberly explained softly, eyeing the holes in the light. "When he got you home and put to bed, I spent the next two hours pulling rounds out of his back and legs using pliers. Made quite a mess. But he insisted on waiting until after I had patched you up."
"But he has no scars!" Melanie exclaimed. "I've seen his back, his skin is flawless!"
Kimberly smirked at Melanie's choice of words, and took the coat from her, hanging it back up on the bar. "He was fully healed by the ti
me you woke up. But my point is, we can be hurt. Keith is an Alpha Male, genetically a werewolf since birth, and the product of a long line of Alphas. He can take more damage than most werewolves, myself included. That amount of damage would have at least incapacitated any non-Alpha, perhaps even killed some weaker wolves."
Melanie was suddenly struck by something else Kimberly had said. "Wait, you said you cleaned the wound in my shoulder?"
"I've picked up quite a few skills in my time," Kimberly said nonchalantly. "Including basic medicine, Sister. Most of my skills though have been academic in nature, however. I hope your coming into our Clan allows me the chance to learn and share with another woman."
Kimberly led Mel out of the bedroom, back towards the main living area. "You keep using the term Sister today," Mel said curiously. "Why is that?"
"Because by both Clan law and by blood, you are my Sister now," Kimberly replied. "You are mated to not just my Clan's Alpha, but my brother. As I mentioned last night, that means that eventually you and I will share a similar telepathic bond to what you and Keith share, albeit much weaker. By Clan law, any female member of equal social rank is to be addressed as Sister, although I have never had the opportunity to use the title with anyone. I relish the chance, and I apologize if I overuse it too much."
"And how would you address someone of higher Clan rank?"
"In our case we would not ever have to," Kim said, her regal upbringing showing through. "But if someone from our Clan ever does address you formally, then they should use the term Lady. Don’t worry about cross-clan politics and such yet, it’s complicated, and I will prepare you beforehand."
Mated To The Alpha (A Billionaire Shifter Romance) (The Chosen Book 1) Page 4