IcySeduction

by Shara Lanel

  Then it stopped, though it took her body a few moments to catch up with the idea. She could swear she still felt the paddle on her skin, even though Jake’s body was firmly pressed against her, his arms wrapped around her waist. He guided her legs to a steadier place underneath her. Gravity reasserted its hold. Jake kept one arm around her waist to steady her as he unbuckled the cuffs. The release was especially hard on her arms. They quickly fell, like limp spaghetti. The slight burn in her triceps let her know that they’d probably hurt worse tomorrow.

  Jake was holding most of her weight as she leaned her head against the wall. She felt as if she’d had a full body workout followed by a deep tissue massage. She wasn’t ready for reality to invade.

  “Why did we stop? I didn’t say red. Are we going to try something else?” Her voice sounded whiny and desperate, like a druggy looking for another hit.

  “I wanted to stop while you were enjoying it so you would want to do it again, but I know you’ll feel it tomorrow so I didn’t want it to be too much for you physically.” He’d managed to straighten her dress and zip up the back as she was able to take more weight on her legs. “But also it was getting to be too much for me—I wanted to come in my pants.”

  Christine knew she’d gone a little insane when she thought that would have been better than stopping.

  Jake turned her gently. She was wobbly but able to hold herself upright. She’d hold on to him for balance, at least until she could get these damn shoes off. She had such a buzz that she barely registered all the faces around her, watching her, and it seemed as if they were back to the car with a snap of fingers, though she knew they’d returned the equipment and gotten Jake’s license back. He’d also spoken to the Mistress for a few moments and she’d asked Christine a couple of questions to make sure she was okay.

  Once they were seated in the car and buckled, Christine asked, “What did I say to her?”

  “Who?”

  “The Mistress.”

  “You told her it was nirvana and you couldn’t believe I’d stopped.”

  “I still can’t believe it.”

  “The Mistress told me ‘good boy’ because I hadn’t taken it too far.”

  A few aches had started to set in by the time they got back to the house. Christine plopped into a kitchen chair to take off her shoes so she could walk quietly to the bedroom. Jake paused to check on Dean in the guest bedroom. The kid had on headphones but seemed sound asleep.

  In the master bedroom, Christine realized she was very tender in certain parts. Her shoulders and her thighs and calves had been extended and strained in unfamiliar ways. Her butt was tender enough that she thought she’d have to sleep on her stomach tonight.

  “Do you have any Epsom salts?” Jake’s question seemed to come from nowhere.

  “Uh, I don’t know.”

  “Any kind of bath salts? I think you need a nice long soak.”

  It made her feel good that he was thinking about her comfort, and suddenly the idea of a warm bath sounded perfect. What made her feel coddled was that he squatted at the end of the bathtub and massaged her feet. He didn’t try to join her in the tub and seduce her. She had time to examine the lines around his eyes, laugh lines mostly, but a couple that alluded to some hardships as well. A well-lived face, a kind face. And right now, he was helping her recover from a night of wearing new shoes with too-high heels.

  When her eyes started to droop, he scooped her from the bath, wrapped her in towels and started a pat-down. Things could’ve gotten really sexy then too, but Jake acted like a spa man, there to serve, not to take.

  * * * * *

  In the morning, Jake heard Dean’s footsteps outside the bedroom door even before his knock. Either Jake’s hearing had gotten hyper-aware this morning, or Dean was trying to make a lot of noise. Either way, father met son at the door by the second knock. Dean handed over his cell phone. “It’s Mom for you.”

  Oh shit, what had Dean told her? His son seemed to sense what he was thinking and mouthed what seemed to be the word “Nothing”.

  “Hello?” Jake said, bracing himself. First of all, it was way too early in the morning for Lynn to be awake, much less on the phone.

  “The school called me.”

  “Huh?” They never called her. They knew Jake was Dean’s guardian of record.

  “What about?”

  “About the fact that he wasn’t at school yesterday.”

  “I cleared that with the office.”

  “The call was from his World History teacher. Did he tell you he had a big test yesterday that you just let him blow off?”

  Shit. He glanced at his son, who was innocently pouring cereal into a bowl. “No, he hadn’t mentioned that, nor did the principal who I spoke with about the sudden trip.”

  “You told them you had to go to a family funeral. Who died?”

  “Who told you that?”

  “The principal when I called the school to find out why he missed the test.”

  “Why do you suddenly care? I asked you to take him for a couple of days, but of course you were too busy. I’ll make sure he’s able to take a make-up test.” And he’d find out why someone at the school had contacted Lynn instead of him.

  “So who’s the new babe? Did you tell her you were into spanking?”

  “Bitch,” Jake whispered quietly into the phone before hanging up. He passed his son at the counter and went straight for the coffee. “Big test?”

  “Hey, you just said we were going, didn’t seem that concerned that I’d miss something so long as you could see your new girlfriend.”

  “You normally have perfect attendance, so I didn’t think a couple of days would be a big deal. It would’ve helped if you’d mentioned the test, though. I’ll have to make sure they let you make it up.”

  “It’s not like I wanted to take it anyway.”

  “Yeah, that must be why you conveniently forgot to mention it to me.” He sat down across from Dean and looked him in the eye. “I know you’ve put up with a lot of shit with all the fighting before the divorce, not to mention the never-ending fighting after the divorce. Then your parents dating at the age you’re just starting to think about dating. I get how hard all that crap is.”

  “But?”

  “But what did you say to your mom about where we were? Did you mention Christine?”

  Dean fought for a straight face as he said, “I told her you was hookin’ up with some hot ho in Florida and that you’d brought me along to take pictures.”

  “Jesus H…”

  “You know he’s joking, right?” Christine said as she crossed the living room, cheeks still indented with creases from the pillow, her hair only finger-combed.

  By now, Dean had burst out laughing, so Jake turned to the coffeepot to hide his grin. Which relative did he claim had died when he’d talked to the school? He and his boy needed to get their stories straight before going back.

  Dean mumbled good morning to Christine before claiming a spot in front of the TV. He’d made sure to grab his phone from Jake before he left.

  “Sounds like you better get your kid back to school.”

  “He really is a good student, so I figured playing hooky for a couple of days wouldn’t hurt him, but I need to get back to my jobs too.”

  “Well, you should’ve come up with a better excuse than being a werewolf to come down and see me.” She’d turned away to pour herself some coffee, but he heard the hurt and disbelief in her voice. “You could’ve just said you couldn’t stop thinking about me and wanted to see me again as soon as possible and not been so possessive.”

  “I couldn’t stop thinking about you, literally, and this possessive thing is biological. It won’t stop.”

  She turned back to face him. “Well, it has to. My life and my decisions are my own.”

  Jake cocked his head at her. It was interesting that she wasn’t scared of the bondage and submission element that they’d been experimenting with, but was totally afraid of givi
ng up any independence in real life. Maybe that’s why giving up that control was such a relief to her…as long as it was play.

  “Look, we can ignore this thing as long as possible, but at least let me show you I’m not delusional. I’ll try to find a way to break the bond.” Saron had made it sound as if there was no way to do this, but perhaps no one had tried too hard. “The last thing I want to do is take away your confidence and independence—I like the woman you are.”

  The way Jake looked at her when he said that made her instantly melt, despite the other craziness he was trying to sell her. He seemed to truly believe this werewolf stuff, but then didn’t every good actor in a sci-fi series look as if they believed as well?

  She had taken a lot of risks since meeting Jake. She’d never felt as high as when he’d paddled her. She’d trusted him completely each time she’d let him bind her. She was already craving more time with him to explore this newfound sensuality.

  She sighed. “What’s the date?”

  “Today?”

  “No, when you supposedly turn into a werewolf.”

  He pointed at the calendar she had pinned to the wall and put his finger on the date with the little circle that represented the full moon.

  “And how would I witness this change and still be safe?” She didn’t for one second believe she’d see him turn into a werewolf, but maybe she could help him face his psychosis…or report him to the police and get him locked up, either being altruistic, right? She felt as if telling him to get lost and never seeing him again was going to leave things too unresolved for her even if that course would be wiser.

  Jake glanced in the living room to find Dean wearing his headphones, playing with his iPod, and watching TV at the same time—completely distracted, as most teens were these days. Then he faced her again. “I used to go to an abandoned warehouse before Saron found me. I’d secure the doors from the inside with locks that required opposable thumbs.”

  “So you turn completely into a wolf?”

  “Yes.”

  Christine resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the nonsense. She wanted to help him, remember? “Well, me locking myself in a warehouse with you is a bad idea.”

  “You could watch through a window.”

  She shook her head. “I’d be concerned about the neighborhood this abandoned warehouse was in. Where do you change now?”

  “Saron’s compound in upstate New York. I think of it as a weekend getaway.” He smiled.

  “So at this place there’s a bunch of wolves running around free on the night of the full moon.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Also not so safe for me. What do you do with Dean?”

  “His mom always takes him. She knows I won’t budge on that. Dean doesn’t need to know about this side of me.”

  “But you want me to.”

  “Only because of this mate thing. I wouldn’t burden you with it otherwise. In fact, I probably would’ve managed never to see you again because I wouldn’t want to complicate your life like this.”

  “Have you ever just chained yourself up in a bathroom or something?”

  “No.” A grin blossomed on his face. “But I have acquired quite a bit of bondage gear lately.”

  “Good quality gear? Not novelty items?”

  “Handcuffs, chains, ropes…the real stuff. You could come to my apartment, make sure I’m secure for your safety. You’d have to unlock me after. I’d have to trust you on that.”

  “Okay, I’ll do it.” She sat down on the kitchen stool and gave Jake a serious look. “But what if you don’t change? What if I tell you that you never changed? Would you believe me? Would you consider seeing a doctor?”

  “Absolutely.” Jake had no problem agreeing to this because he had no doubt about what he was. “So you’ll be able to fly up? I can pay your way.”

  “No, I’ve got some frequent flyer miles and I can take a day or two off work with no problem. But I still don’t believe a word you’re saying about this. If you’re lying for attention, it’s going to end embarrassingly for you. But if you’re delusional, I’ll try to help you face it and find help.”

  Jake kissed the top of her head. “I understand.” He’d be almost as skeptical if someone told him they were a vampire. Almost…but he now knew there was at least one race of mythical beings alive in New York, why couldn’t there be more?

  They kissed awkwardly at the car as Christine left for work. Then Jake got himself and Dean bundled back together and headed to the airport, hoping they’d find a flight leaving in the next couple of hours. Then he got Dean unplugged long enough to discuss the test he had missed and to help him study. He called the school to set up a make-up time, but also to ask why the teacher had called his ex-wife instead of his cell phone when he’d already gotten the okay to take Dean out of school. It galled him that Lynn got to call him on a mistake when most of the time she didn’t care what Dean was doing in school at all.

  Once they were finally on the plane and safely in flight, between dozes, Jake found himself reliving the club scene with Christine. When that made his pants too uncomfortable, something he didn’t want Dean to notice, he turned to wondering if there was some way to do a disconnect on this mate thing. Since the curse was originally caused by Native American magic, could it be broken with magic? Jake tried to imagine his life as a human. Would it be different? He wouldn’t be able to go back and change the frustration, loneliness, doubts and pain he’d already gone through. He’d still be a divorced cabby with a bitch of an ex-wife and a teenage son. Truthfully, he thought he’d miss those full-moon nights running free, away from the city, away from daily worries. The pain during the change had waned a lot over the years, or maybe he’d stopped noticing.

  He’d have a bit more time to get into the BDSM scene.

  But what if the curse couldn’t be broken but magic could be worked on the mate bond itself? Had anyone tried? Were there any true Native American shamans around anymore?

  Damn, he’d miss Christine, though. Were his intense feelings from the bond or from the amazing experiences they’d been having together or from the woman herself, who he’d liked and been attracted to from the first moment she’d stepped into his cab? How could he possibly be objective in any of this?

  Chapter Eight

  Christine found herself looking forward to Jake’s emails and his replies to her comments on Facebook. It had been a week since he’d gone home, leaving only a week until she would visit him for the full moon. She was heavy-hearted knowing that that would be the end of their relationship. Hopefully she could at least help him face things. But she refused to ruin the present with thoughts about their doomed end. So far the only preparation she’d made for the trip was reserve the flight and buy a Taser and pepper spray. The man at the survivalist store had also showed her how to use the Taser and let her try it out on a couple of store mannequins to get a feel for it. He said one zap would bring a grown man to his knees.

  But online things between her and Jake were light and sexy. She was learning more about his likes outside of BDSM, fave movies and music. They’d chatted a bit about high school memories and screwy dates and early jobs. He’d told her more about his marriage and how that blew up. She liked him best when he talked about Dean because she could tell what a thoughtful father he was and how much he loved his son. No matter how mentally ill Jake was, he was a truly good father.

  Christine dreamed about Jake every night and thought about him every day, about what they’d done, about his face and eyes and hands on her, the sound of his voice, his scent, his sense of humor and the things they had in common. They flirted during late-night chats, but Christine had resisted his suggestions to go further, such as sexting or using Skype. This werewolf thing was too big between them.

  He called her to check on her plans. “Do you want to come up a night early so we can…um…enjoy ourselves?”

  She squirmed in her seat wanting more than anything to say yes. “No. I’ll come in that morni
ng.”

  “How long are you staying?”

  She thought it best to be noncommittal. “We’ll see.”

  * * * * *

  Jake was a bundle of nerves as he sat in his cab outside Newark airport. He’d actually parked in short-term so he wouldn’t have to fend off people jockeying for a taxi. He was picking up Christine, not taking fares. Lynn had Dean, so the apartment would be empty when they got there. Before driving to the airport, he’d emptied the biggest closet in the apartment, tossing the displaced items into Dean’s room temporarily. Then he’d rigged up a board with eyehooks to which he securely attached chains. He’d laid out metal cuffs, which he hoped wouldn’t dig into his wolf legs too much, but he’d have to risk it. The main thing was the collar. It was heavy leather with metal buckles and spikes that bent in such a way that they’d poke into his neck if he tugged against the collar. He’d never use such a thing on a real dog, but in this case, Christine’s safety was paramount.

  He really wished she would’ve consented to coming in early and just spending some normal time with him, but perhaps that would’ve been too awkward with her thinking him a loony the whole time. Of course, the terms “loony “and “lunatic” had to do with the full moon, so perhaps the label was accurate.

  Saron had been out of the country the past two weeks, so Jake hadn’t been able to ask him more about the mate thing or the possibility of breaking the bond. Well, one step at a time.

  He glanced at the dashboard clock. The time was right, so he turned off the ignition, got out and locked the car and made his way to the terminal to meet Christine. She’d said she wasn’t going to check any luggage, so as long as the flight was on time, she should be able to breeze right through the airport. Jake glanced at the bank of screens that gave the flight statuses. It looked as if her flight was on time, so she should be landing and disembarking within ten minutes. He decided to grab a coffee from a vendor and wait just outside the security area, but one sip of the coffee told him that was the wrong idea. His senses had been in a heightened state all day, the moon making its presence felt even before it would be visible in the sky. Normal city sounds plucked his nerves like violin strings, which was why he normally liked to go out to the compound a day early. Now the so-so coffee tasted rancid on his tongue, plopping into his roiling stomach, making him want to vomit. He tossed the cup in the trash and found a seat where he could watch anyone leaving the security area. He was used to the extreme sensations that coincided with his change, but his worry about Christine’s reaction made him even more out-of-sync than usual.