by Danica Avet
“She’s my cousin! My best friend,” she argued. “He almost killed her with that stunt.”
“And you,” Ram inserted softly.
“What?”
He stretched out his legs and folded his hands over his stomach. “His actions meant he wasn’t your best friend anymore either. He didn’t just hurt her. You trusted him. He hurt you too.”
She stiffened. “I had no idea you were such an expert psychologist. Tell me, did you get your degree between fucking groupies?”
Daisy knew it was a bitchy thing to say, but she was so stunned by his words, his perception, she went on the defense. Because he was right. Monk hadn’t just broken Kitty’s heart—he’d broken hers as well. She’d never been romantically interested in Monk, but she’d loved him as a close friend, as a brother. His betrayal had hurt her as deeply as it had Kitty. But that didn’t mean she wanted Ram Reinhardt analyzing her. It scared her that he could see her so clearly, she reacted, lashing out at him in a bid to protect herself.
It didn’t help that he looked so smug sitting there, as if he had her all figured out. And he probably did. Daisy knew she wasn’t the most complicated female on the planet. Hell, most of the time she didn’t understand other females because they confused her. She liked to keep things simple. If someone pissed her off, she was pissed off. If someone hurt her, she hurt them back. Simple, effective and direct. Everything with Ram left her mind fluttering all over the place as if she was…well, like other women. It was so annoying.
“I’m a musician,” he said easily. “I spend a lot of my time people watching. Always have.”
“Why am I not surprised to find out a lion shifter likes to sit on his ass and watch everyone else?”
“You also go on the attack when you’re feeling uncomfortable,” he replied with a smile she wanted to wipe off his face with her fist.
“What are you doing here?” she muttered.
“I’m here to be with my mate after I had an interesting meal with her family.”
Daisy fought to stay in place. She knew it! She’d known her parents wouldn’t be able to keep the Kyle incident quiet. Not when they were looking at adding a lion to their family. No, her mama would’ve wanted to smooth over Daisy’s rough spots by explaining why she’d become abrasive. God. The last thing she’d wanted was for Ram to find out about Kyle and how she hadn’t been enough for him. He’d pity her.
“Did you think I wouldn’t find out?” he asked, his amber eyes gleaming with satisfaction and something else she couldn’t identify.
She squirmed and folded her arms over her chest. It was a defensive position but fuck it. She felt defensive. “I was hoping you wouldn’t,” she mumbled.
“Oh yeah, they told me and all the pieces came together,” he continued as he glanced around the room, his gaze lighting on her entertainment center. “And the proof is right there for me to see. I didn’t notice it that first night because, well, I was more worried about diving into your pussy, but I see it now.”
Daisy frowned. Proof? Of Kyle? She peered over her shoulder. She was almost positive she hadn’t left any pictures out, not that she had many of the bastard. She didn’t see anything out of the ordinary, just her stereo system and music and movie collection. She turned back with a scowl.
“What proof?”
He nodded. “I can’t believe you thought I wouldn’t find out.”
He was driving her fucking insane! “Find out what?” she almost shrieked at him.
Ram’s lips curled into a sly smile. “You’re a groupie.”
Chapter Seven
Daisy blinked at the smug lion. “What?” she squeaked.
“I saw the pictures of you and your cousin hanging out at rock concerts and then I saw Saber CDs on your shelf over there. I’ve got you all figured out, honey. You found out we were playing at the festival and managed to plant yourself in front of the stage to seduce me.” He shrugged. “It worked. You drove me nuts and next thing I knew, I had to have you.”
Her jaw had to be somewhere on the floor. Of all accusations Ram could have made, this one hadn’t appeared anywhere on her radar. “Are you crazy?”
“I’m crazy about you, yeah. You made sure of it.”
“I was working!”
He snorted. “Yeah, you were working that uniform all right. Do you always wear it so tight?” he asked in a disapproving tone. “I like looking at you in it but you’ll have to get a different size when you’re on duty. I don’t want males staring at you and thinking about what they’d like to do with your handcuffs.”
Daisy surged off the sofa, not sure if she was pissed off, flattered or going crazy. “You—I—no, you can’t tell me how to dress,” she stammered, unable to concentrate. Ram had completely thrown her for a loop and it was taking a while to regain her balance. “I had no idea you were playing that night. And I’m not a fucking groupie.”
He lifted his hands in a calming gesture. “There’s nothing wrong with showing your love for your favorite musicians, baby. You just happened to catch one on a permanent basis. You don’t have to hide it anymore.”
She gaped at him, flummoxed. “I’m not a goddamn groupie!” she screamed when she found her voice.
Eyebrows raised in blatant disbelief, he muttered, “Methinks the lady doth protest too much.’”
Daisy attacked. She couldn’t help herself. He looked so smug, so sure he was irresistible. She lunged at him, hands reaching for his throat. She wasn’t expecting him to be prepared for her attack. Every conversation she had with him turned her brain into a murky marsh of confusion—she couldn’t be expected to think rationally around him.
Before she even touched him, Ram caught her around the waist and flipped her onto her back on the sofa. The sudden change in direction punched the air out of her lungs and he had his body wedged between her legs before she could blink or breathe. His heavy weight came down on top of her, his heat burning her through both their clothing.
She blinked up at him and saw amusement in his amber eyes. If she’d had her wits about her, she might have taken offense knowing he’d taunted her into this position, but his hard cock pressing against her core finished off what few brain cells she had left.
The purr rumbling out of his chest vibrated through her. “Do you have any idea how much I want you?” he murmured against the side of her neck.
Given the size of the lead pipe pressing against her, Daisy had a very good idea how much he wanted her. “Why?” she blurted when he seemed content to sniff her.
He lifted his head, his nose inches from hers. “Why what? Why do I want you?”
Way to look insecure there, Daisy Lynn. Why don’t you just start sniffling and crying about how you were never asked to prom? She stiffened her spine. She refused to let him intimidate her but she couldn’t let it go. “Yes. I’m not like the females you’re probably used to.”
Ram’s eyes softened, his pupils expanding.
“No, you’re not like the females I’m used to.” She felt his gaze like a stroke over her skin. His hips started up a slow churn, bumping and rubbing his cock against her. “You call to my lion. He doesn’t know what to do with himself when you’re out of sight. He wants to pounce on you, mark you for his. He’s never given a shit about anyone or anything before.”
While all that sounded great, he hadn’t mentioned how he felt. Daisy knew some shifters followed their animal instinct no matter where it led them, but she never had. She didn’t want to be one of those people who did something stupid and immediately blamed it on the beast. She was completely cognizant while in her animal form. She did listen to her bear but she didn’t let it rule her.
Ram shifted against her, one of his hands sliding through her hair to cup the back of her skull. “But the lion’s wants are nothing compared to my feelings,” he rasped, drawing his lips over her cheekbone and the bridge of her nose. “The minute I saw you, the instant I smelled you, I knew you were mine.” Her scalp stung when his fingers tightened i
n her hair, but the fire in her blood turned even that slight pain into pleasure. “You’re mine, Daisy. I never thought about taking a mate, never wanted to until I saw you.”
His words and the scent of his arousal combined with the fire he stirred in her body to wipe all doubts from her mind. She knew they’d come back, she thought too much about everything, but for now she’d let it go.
“That’s good enough for me,” she muttered and grabbed his slightly longer mane to tug his face closer. “Fuck me.”
Ram dipped his head and kissed her with all the strength of ownership he could muster. She made him so hot, so ready to mount her at every chance, he could barely think straight. He’d purposely stirred her anger, diverted her from the pain he’d scented and this was his reward.
I’m a fucking genius. He slid his tongue against hers, delving deeper into the honeyed recesses of her mouth. He wanted to crawl inside her, merge his whole self with her until they couldn’t be separated again. He admired everything about her, from her stubbornness to her five-alarm temper to the curve of her cheek. She was amazing and she’d turned him into a sap.
A sap about to fuck her on the sofa. Again.
He reluctantly pulled away from the scorching kiss, his body burning, his cock twitching with the need to release into her. She protested when he levered himself off the sofa but he turned a deaf ear. If he listened to his mate, he’d have her here. He was determined to prove he had a little more restraint even though he hadn’t displayed much in any of their encounters.
She pouted her kiss-swollen lips. “Where are you go—” He cut her off by scooping her into his arms. She let out a startled gasp before she threw her arms around his neck. “God, don’t drop me!”
Ram laughed, hoisting her higher. “Not gonna happen, baby. Now which way to the bedroom?”
“Down the hall, on the left.”
He started across the living room, heading for the narrow hallway. He didn’t even glance at the pictures lining the walls but promised himself he would when he didn’t have sex on the brain. That might take about five years, he figured, maybe longer if she always nibbled on his neck the way she was doing now.
By the time he found the bedroom and staggered in, his cock was knocking on the zipper of his slacks and his breath was coming out in loud pants. She had a wicked tongue, one he well remembered from earlier in the day. She flicked his ear, his neck and the edge of his jaw while the scent of her arousal wafted to him.
Her room was on the small side, but it smelled strongly of her, the mixture of bear, woman and flowers he’d come to associate with Daisy Picou. The bed had no headboard and looked as if it was only a little bigger than a twin, proof that she didn’t share it on a regular basis. It would be hell staying on the tiny mattress, but he couldn’t contain a pleased rumble at the idea she had no need for a larger one.
The springs protested when they landed on the bed. Ram propped himself on his elbows to see his female better. She looked ready to rip his clothes off. As though she’d read his mind, she sprang, her mouth plastered against his as if she couldn’t contain herself any longer.
On board with her aggression, Ram kissed her back as fiercely. Fabric tore beneath sharp claws, fangs pressed and nipped, beads of blood welled against lips, clothing flew in every direction and the air filled with the sounds of dangerous, animal attraction.
She felt silky smooth against his rougher skin, the soft swells of her breasts pillowing his chest as the kiss continued. Her thighs parted for him, her long legs wrapped around his waist and pulled him to her. It was only as he found the hot, wet folds of her pussy with the head of his cock that her earlier words came back to him.
That’s good enough, she’d said. He pulled back to look in her lust-dazed eyes. She blinked up at him in confusion, but it was as if Ram finally saw the light. She didn’t believe him when he said she was his mate. She didn’t think this was for forever.
“You’re mine,” he rumbled, paying more attention to her face than her body.
The lust was still there, but a flash of disbelief flared before she hid it behind a smile. “Okay.”
Her voice held a hint of skepticism. She didn’t believe him. He’d have to make sure she did because there was no way in hell Ram was going to let her go. He admired her stubbornness but it was a roadblock to the future he wanted with her.
He’d have to prove to her, somehow, that he wasn’t going to hurt her like Monk or the other lion had. That he wasn’t going to choose other females over her, and that he wouldn’t just walk away when he was finished with her. It was a long list of things to show her, but he swore to himself she would never doubt where she stood in his life.
In a short time she’d become the focus of both the man and the lion. Both sides of his psyche wanted her like nothing else and he knew he’d never want anyone else. He just had to show her. Somehow.
“What’s wrong?” she asked with the softest hint of vulnerability.
He shook his head. “Nothing,” he sighed as he lowered himself over her again. “I just realized I haven’t done half the things I wanted to with you.”
Gold-flecked black eyes studied him. “Like what?”
Ram couldn’t fight his smile at her suspicious tone. He glanced over at the belt she wore with her uniform, his gaze drawn to the clip holding her handcuffs. Maybe it was time for him to fulfill the fantasy he had concerning this confusing bear he called mate.
“I’m going to do everything I’ve wanted to do since the day I first saw you,” he promised, enjoying the way her gaze followed his.
Her eyes widened in alarm. “What?”
He gave her a hard, quick kiss. “Don’t worry, baby, you’re gonna love every minute of it.”
Daisy didn’t know what caused the sudden change of plans and she wasn’t sure she liked it. In fact, she was downright uneasy when Ram leaned over her to snag her work belt. He took the gun out and carefully placed it on the nightstand. She didn’t worry he would hurt her. She’d done enough shit to enrage him and he hadn’t resorted to violence. No, her concern came from the wicked gleam in his lazy, amber eyes.
He slid the belt around her naked waist and tightened it carefully so it was snug against her skin. She glanced down. It looked weird without clothes on. She looked back up in confusion.
“You want me to wear the belt?” she guessed.
He shook his head, his warm hands stroking the soft swell of her stomach. “I have something else in mind, mate.”
Her womb clenched at the word mate but Daisy forced herself to hide her reaction. He didn’t mean it. Well, maybe he did. Now. But it wouldn’t last. She’d decided to simply enjoy what she could with him and thinking about tomorrow would only ruin what she had now.
She forced a flirtatious smile. “Oh really?”
“Oh really,” he purred.
In the blink of an eye he had her wrists caught in both of his hands. The brush of cool steel and the distinctive click of metal was her only warning that she was about to experience Ram’s idea of different.
She lifted her arms and sure enough, her handcuffs encircled her wrists. “You do realize these are parish-issued handcuffs? This is like…in violation of my office.”
Or something. She really couldn’t think straight. Her heart pounded hard enough she thought it might pop out of her chest. She’d always wondered what it would be like to be handcuffed and at the mercy of a male, but it’d seemed like such an impossible dream. None of the males she knew had the balls to do something like this. Except for Ram.
“You can write yourself a ticket later,” he hummed in satisfaction as his big hands stroked up her stomach to her breasts. “Do you think the scent of your arousal will stick to the metal and every time you use them from now on, you’ll remember this moment?”
Think? He honestly thought she could do that now? With his fingers plucking and teasing her nipples? “Uh.”
“Probably not. I’ll just have to make sure you can’t forget this,�
�� he murmured as he pressed her arms over her head, leaving her vulnerable to whatever he wanted to do.
His breath feathered over her nipple seconds before he took her into his mouth. He tugged with his teeth, a slight sting that made her melt into the mattress. She wanted to touch him, pull him closer or redirect him to her other nipple, but with the cuffs and his strong hold on her arms, she couldn’t.
She couldn’t control this. The realization sparked a fever in her blood. “Ram,” she panted, squirming beneath him. “Please don’t tease me.”
He released her nipple for a moment. “Do you believe you’re my mate?”
“Huh?” What kind of question was that?
“Do you believe you’re my mate, the only female I’ll have for the rest of my days?”
Daisy barely held back a snort. Yeah, right. She nodded. “Sure.”
His lips firmed, disappointment darkening his eyes. “Wrong answer.”
“Wh—”
He flipped her with as much effort he would a pancake, making her bounce on the mattress. He slapped her ass. “That’s for lying to me.”
She arched her back and shot him a surprised look over her shoulder. “What?”
“You don’t believe me when I say you’re my mate, that this is forever,” he growled at her as he straddled her hips, disappearing from her sight. “You think this is some game for me? That I’m indulging in a little fuck with a local before I leave?”
Daisy had retained enough brain cells to know answering in the affirmative was a bad idea, but she wouldn’t lie to him either. She didn’t think this was going anywhere. In fact, she knew it wasn’t. He didn’t belong here any more than she belonged in his world.
Sharp fangs nipped at her shoulder, startling her out of her thoughts. “You’re mine, if I have to mark every inch of your body. If I have to drench you in my scent until I seep into your pores, you’ll accept me,” he rasped in her ear.