Somehow, my dick managed to harden even more. My little mate was a wild one, it seemed. I suddenly felt stupid for making assumptions about her instead of getting to know her. I didn’t stop to contemplate what that meant for us, farther than lots of amazing sex.
I lifted her off my lap and yanked the dress off of her body. She was stunning naked. All smooth, soft skin and gentle curves that made my mouth water. I had to taste her. I ripped my shirt off and tossed it on the ground before laying her on top of it and lowering myself on top of her.
Unable to help myself, I kissed her. Her soft lips accepted mine and hungrily opened for my tongue. She tasted like strawberries and lime. I tasted her greedily, eager to experience every bit of her. Her nails dug into my shoulders and then raked down my back as I rocked my thigh against her core.
Kissing Veronica was unlike anything I’d ever experienced with a woman before and I wasn’t sure if I was terrified or exhilarated by it. Too worried to delve into the emotion, I kissed down her jaw, nipping as I went. Her moans and cries drove me to bite down harder and suck on her skin until a temporary mark marred her pretty skin.
“You’re going to leave a mark. Don’t.”
My bear roared and I couldn’t stop the sound from escaping my mouth. I tried to bury it into her shoulder, but she stiffened slightly underneath me before tangling her arms around my neck and pressing kisses into my neck. Her kisses were featherlight and teasing.
“Calm down, Hutch. No need to roar at me.”
I raised myself on my arms and looked down at her. With her lips flushed red and her green eyes wild, she was the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. My chest ached and my bear scratched at the surface, begging me to claim her. “Do you know?”
A devilish smile twisted one side of her mouth and she used the tip of her finger to touch the tip of my nose. “That you’re a giant bear with the temperament of one, too? Yes. Duh.”
I sucked her finger into my mouth, needing to taste more of her skin. Her eyes dilated and she moaned. When I gently bit the tip, she used all of her strength to push on my shoulder. I let myself roll and grinned as she situated herself on top of me.
Her bare pussy pressed against my dick through the thick material of my jeans and the feeling of her heat that close had me groaning. Veronica leaned down and kissed me, her tongue teasing me. “I want to see your penis.”
She shifted down and grabbed my belt buckle, but I had other plans. I grabbed her hips and dragged her higher until her knees hit the grass on either side of my head. Her wide eyes and opened mouth told me she hadn’t been expecting it. Her cry of shock hinted that she’d never been tasted that way before.
I adjusted her thighs to be spread farther and easily ran my tongue up her slit. She tasted sweet and I was helpless to the growl that rumbled through my chest. I nibbled her pussy lips and then stiffened my tongue to drive it into her.
She turned to putty in my hands. Her thighs shook and when I looked up at her, she had a tight grip on her sexy little tits. Her fingers moved over the peach colored nipples, working them as her head fell backwards and the veins in her throat stood out.
I fucked her with my tongue and then stroked her with long, teasing strokes before centering my efforts on her clit. She screamed as my lips latched around it and I sucked. Her body slumped forward and I had to catch her with my hand to her chest, bracing her. I slipped my tongue into her again and felt her tight walls pulse around it with her orgasm. I couldn’t get enough of her. Her taste, her orgasms, her absolute surrender to the pleasure. I was lost, and I wasn’t ready to stop.
I slid a finger into her and turned my sucking into light, flicking strokes. She shook above me and clawed at my arm holding her up. My name was like a prayer on her lips, chanted over and over again. When I curled my finger, she screamed and went completely stiff.
Her juices flowed out of her, around my finger, and I eagerly lapped it up as she came again.
My mate was ultra-responsive and my head was spinning, devising all kinds of ways I could make her writhe in pleasure. Right then, I ached to be in her, though.
I easily lifted her and rolled her backwards to the ground. It wasn’t the best place for our first time, but it would do. I shoved my pants down and looked down at her, shaking my head. “You’re addictive.”
She reached for me, pulling me back to her. “It’s not a big deal, Hutch, but I have to tell you something.”
I paused with my dick in my hand and shrugged. “Can it wait?”
She looked down at my dick and licked her lips. “Wowza! I… I think it’s relevant.”
I sat back on my heels and nodded for her to go on.
“I’m just going to say it. I’m a virgin. It’s not a big deal. Not at all. I just wanted you to know so you’d go easy on me with that massive dong.”
My heart stopped beating in my chest. My stomach flipped and I felt sick. What the hell kind of a fucking sorry-ass bastard was I? I wasn’t just about to mount the woman in her yard, like she was an animal, but I was going to steal her virginity. The beast in me wanted to do it. It was mine, her virginity. No other man had ever touched my mate in the way that I would. She was mine. That part of me wanted to push my still hard dick into her and take her.
The man in me couldn’t do it. Yes, I was an asshole. I knew it, she knew, hell the whole town knew it, but if I took her virginity here in her backyard, without so much as giving her any hope of a future relationship, solely for my own sexual gratification, there’d be no coming back from that level of asshole.
I stood up and yanked my pants up. “I can’t do it, Veronica.”
Her face was awash in a mixture of both shock and pain. The soft, sweet mouth that had just been open in pleasure, now hung open in horror. Her expression felt like a punch to the gut.
“You’re serious?” Her voice was soft and quivering, riddled with tears. “You’re leaving?”
I backed away, terrified of the way my chest felt like it was caving in at the sight of her eyes pooling with unshed tears. “I have to. I can’t do it. I have to go.”
She grabbed her ruined dress and threw it at me. “Go, then!”
I caught it and dropped it at my feet. “I’m sor-”
“Screw you, Hutch Mallory! Get out of my yard.” She stood up and grabbed her heels. She turned to leave and then spun back around to me and chucked one of the heels at me. While I was blocking the first one, she nailed me with the second on the side of the head. “I hate you. I hate you more than you’ll ever know.”
My throat tightened and emotion threatened to choke me. “I’m sorry, Veronica.”
She stomped towards her house and stopped at her door. Before opening it and vanishing inside, I heard her whisper. “I feel sorry for whoever you end up with, Hutch Mallory. No one deserves someone as mean as you.”
CHAPTER 11: Veronica
The Burden Public Library hadn’t closed for a day that wasn’t pre-scheduled in its entire existence and I was not about to break that tradition. As much as I wanted to stay home, curled up in bed, wallowing in my own self-pity, I had to go in. My heart ached like it’d been used as a punching bag. It wasn’t the first time I was hurting over Hutch, but it was the worst. Experiencing something so intimate with him and then having him run away, like I was some kind of leper, cut deeply.
I should’ve known that I couldn’t be like that with him without falling to pieces after it. I knew he wasn’t going to stay and suddenly want happily ever after. He didn’t want me. His body probably couldn’t help its attraction to mine, but he didn’t want me.
I banged my head on my desk and let it rest there. I had a headache left over from crying the night before and sleeping exactly zero hours. I looked like a zombie. It was probably best if I kept my face hidden as much as possible today. No one needed to see how rough I looked. There’d be no dismissing the obvious pain in my eyes and I didn’t know what to say if someone asked. I didn’t want to admit that Hutch was my mate, but I did
n’t know if I should hold it in anymore.
Mortifying or not, I was hurting and I needed to confess to someone that my mate didn’t want me. Maybe it would help me move forward.
As if sent by fate, Georgia and Allie walked in, smiling. Seeing me, their smiles disappeared and they rushed into my office and closed the door. Georgia came around and knelt beside me. “What’s wrong, honey?”
Fat tears betrayed me and ran down my cheeks. “Gosh darn it.”
Allie sat across from me and reached across the desk to take my hand. “Talk to us. We’ll kill anyone we need to.”
I laughed but it sounded fake, even to me. With resignation and shame weighing heavily on my shoulders, I shrugged and shook my head. “I found my mate.”
Their faces furrowed. Allie squeezed my hand. “Shouldn’t that be good news?”
“I actually found him over a year ago. He rejected me.” I grabbed a tissue and blew my nose. “We kind of hooked up last night. It was…great, until he found out that I’m a virgin. Then, he ran away.”
Allie scowled dangerously. “Who is he?”
Georgia’s jaw went slack. “You’re a virgin?”
“Georgia, focus!” Allie rolled her eyes and turned back to me. “Who do we need to kill, Ronnie?”
I looked up at her with tears in my eyes and did it. I confessed. I’d always been so worried about what everyone would think of me if they knew how my own mate couldn’t stand me, but for once, I didn’t care. “Hutch.”
They both seemed shocked. “Hutch Mallory?”
I nodded and looked away. My chest felt like it was so tight it might snap. I rubbed it absently and then looked back at them. “Hutch, and he hates me. I guess he was okay with putting his feelings for me aside last night. Until I told him about my virginity. Then, he freaked out.”
Allie hissed. “That son of a bitch. I really will kill him. Well, I won’t kill him because he’s your mate, and he’s, like, a giant, but I want to kill him. That asshat! Can’t he see how lucky he is to get to be with you?”
Georgia tilted her head to the side and opened and closed her mouth a few times before sighing. “Okay, I’m just going to say it. You’re one of the freakiest women I know. You suggest erotic books and sex toys with ease. You helped Fiona with her husband’s little problem without batting an eye. Last night, you gave me instructions on how to prepare myself for anal sex! How in the hell are you a virgin?”
I laughed and that time it was real. Her bewilderment was more than amusing. “I read. A lot. I’m still sexual…just not with another person. I’d never really found anyone I wanted to have sex with until I saw Hutch. Then, he rejected me. Hard. After that, I couldn’t imagine having sex with anyone else. I’m not some prude. I just…it just hasn’t happened.”
Allie snorted. “No one in their right mind would ever consider you a prude. Anyone who’s actually heard you speak, especially after a drink or two, knows that you’re a freak.”
My cheeks burned. “I’m not a freak. I just have a healthy curiosity about things.”
Georgia shook her head. “You wear the sexiest lingerie of any of us. You are more informed about human sexual practices than any of us. I feel lied to.”
I laughed again and shrugged. “I don’t like to draw attention to myself, but I like to feel sexy. Even if it’s obvious that I’m not. My own mate can’t stand me enough to pop my cherry.”
Allie’s anger came raging back and she poked her finger into the top of the desk while she spoke. “He treats you terribly. He’s such a douchebag to you. It never would’ve occurred to me that he was your mate. What the hell is wrong with that man? I’m going to beat him senseless.”
Georgia nodded. “I agree. We won’t kill him, but we’ll fuck him up. No one gets away with hurting our resident freaky librarian BFF.”
I pushed her shoulder, making her tumble onto her butt. “Shut up.”
She laughed and caught sight of the book hidden under my desk. “Adventures in Anal?”
I nodded. “It’s a good read. It would be helpful for you, I bet.”
She tucked it under her arm and grinned. “Wyatt thanks you.”
Allie stood up. “You can’t just sit in here pouting all day. You need to get out and do something fun. Close this place up.”
“I can’t. It’s never been closed on a day that wasn’t pre-scheduled.”
Georgia waved her new book in my face. “I’m willing to bet it’s never been used as a naughty book exchange, either.”
Allie paused. “That’s a good idea, actually. A naughty book club.”
I felt the first smidge of excitement since Hutch had walked away the night before. I loved reading and recommending books to other women. I liked the idea that I could help them spice up their love lives and have more fun. “Do you think women here would come to that sort of thing?”
They both laughed, loudly. Allie nodded finally. “The women in this town have to deal with the sex drives of shifter men. Everyone would come.”
I stood up and grabbed my bag. “Okay. Let’s do it,” the new Veronica was all about skipping work today and starting some sort of dirty book exchange club. “I know a girl back home that sells sex toys. Maybe we can bring something like that in, too. Right now, anyone in Burden who wants one has to either drive to Dallas or order it online. Lord knows online ordering is a mistake waiting to happen. It’s impossible to judge actual sizes online.” Allie and Georgia were frozen, both staring open-mouthed at me. “What?”
They looked at one another. Allie snorted, and Georgia burst into peals of laughter. “Then it’s a plan,” Allie said, taking my arm, “Now, come on. We’re going to show you a good time today. We also have to plan how we’re going to pay Hutch back.”
Allie looked at Georgia and then at me. “He has to pay.”
I bit my lip and then nodded. “Okay.”
CHAPTER 12: Hutch
Sterling strolled into the garage and paused when he saw me. “Jesus, Hutch. You look like shit, man. You should get more sleep.”
I cut my eyes in his direction and growled.
Byron, a guy who’d worked for me for years, popped his head up from the engine of a Mustang and shook his head at Sterling. “Dude, don’t poke the bear here. Get out if you’re going to make him any grumpier than he already is.”
“Fuck off.” I slammed the wrench I was using down and crossed my arms over my chest. “Did you come around for something other than giving me beauty tips?”
My little brother had always been able to push my buttons and that moment was no exception. “You’re a real mean son of a bitch, aren’t you?”
I roared. “If one more fucking person calls me mean I’m going to lose my shit! Byron, get back to work! Sterling, get the fuck out of here!”
Byron’s head disappeared but Sterling stayed where he was. “Going to lose your shit? What’s your deal, man?”
I grabbed a rag and wiped my hands on it. “You got something else to say?”
He rolled his eyes. “Yeah, actually, I do. I thought you might like to know that I saw Ronnie, Allie, and Georgia all racing out of town in your truck. Ronnie was behind the wheel, looking hot as hell.”
I felt my blood pressure soar and my eye start to twitch. “What?”
Sterling’s grin was a shit-eating one. “I said I thought you might like to know that I saw Ronnie driving your truck like a bat out of hell with Allie and Georgia riding next to her, and she looked hot as fuck. Talk about a sexy librarian, damn.”
My eye twitch got worse and I felt my body heat with anger. “Don’t call her hot.”
“That’s what you’re pissed about?”
“No! Fuck! How’d she get my truck?”
Sterling shrugged. “No clue. You didn’t loan it to them? You going after her?”
I looked around the shop and swore. “I can’t. This place is swamped.”
“Let me help out. I’ll work while you chase them down.”
Normally, I’d nev
er agree. My shop was my responsibility. My truck wasn’t easy to handle, though, and the idea of Veronica losing control of the big machine and flipping it had my blood turning ice cold. She could get herself hurt… or killed.
“Fine. Ask Byron what all needs done. I’ll be back.”
I ran out of the shop and hopped on my bike. I revved the engine and then sped off in the direction Sterling said they’d gone. There was one road out of town. I hoped they weren’t going too fast for me to catch them.
I wasn’t ready to face her yet. I didn’t know what to do or say to her. I wanted her, damn what red-blooded man wouldn’t, but she and I were so completely mis-matched. She was smart, one of those brainy girls. I didn’t even think a dumb-ass like me could make her happy. If she knew that we were mates and what that meant to a shifter, and that I’d been rejecting her for over a year, none of that would matter anyway, she’d never agree to be with me.
I pushed everything from my head and focused on the road. I had to find her. Before she wrapped my truck around a tree.
CHAPTER 13: Veronica
I should’ve felt bad for tricking Hutch like we did, but I just couldn’t. As soon as Sterling saw us and ran off to tell his big brother, the way we’d planned, we turned around and I drove the truck right back to his house. Then, we went to the Georgia’s new place and spent an hour trying on the clothes she’d had shipped from her home on the East coast.
When we were all dressed up, we settled around on her and Wyatt’s couch and drank margaritas while reading erotic novels we’d picked up from my house.
“The man is this book is so hot. He’s pushy and bossy in bed, but doesn’t impose on the rest of her life with that shit. So hot.”
I looked over at Georgia and made a face. “The guy in my book is so hot to me because he actually wants the woman.”
Allie snorted and then made her face serious. “Sorry. He’s going to come around, and then he’ll be sorry for ever messing things up with you.”
I crossed my legs and rested the book on my knee. “I don’t know. He hasn’t in over a year. I have my doubts he will suddenly have a change of heart.”
Bears of Burden: HUTCH Page 5