A Home for her Hawk

by Summer Donnelly

  Dan nodded, still watching her. “I lost the sky. I know you can’t possibly understand that. I was an intel officer. I went where I was needed. Moscow. London. Munich. Hell, I could spot a rabbit in the brush from two miles away. State secrets weren’t getting past me.”

  Kimber tilted her head in curiosity. “You can’t fly? I thought you were part of the rescue crew from the fire last summer?”

  “I couldn’t help. Not really. Birds fly using binocular vision. A wider field of view. Absolute depth perception. I used to be able to see objects hiding behind objects. I saw the world in three-dimension, and it was beautiful.”

  “And now?”

  Dan shook his head. “The world is flat. I can see to fly, but I can’t find anything. I sure as fuck can’t hunt. I can’t catch bad guys.” He moved to get up, using his body space to push Kimber away from him.

  “You’re angry?”

  “Fuck yeah, I’m angry! I loved being a shifter.”

  “You still are,” she reminded him cupping his cheeks with her hands.

  “But now I’m more like a parakeet in a cage than a hawk soaring into the sky.”

  They stared at each other for a few more minutes as heat and intimacy swirled around them. Kimber swallowed, refusing to be sidetracked by the perfect cut of his lips or the anguished look in his eye. “What does that have to do with Anthony and me?”

  “Never had anyone to show me how to stick around. Stand up for people. All I know is you and Anthony are important to me. If you leave, if you take him with you, it will hurt.”

  Kimber closed her eyes and nodded. She noticed he didn’t, wouldn’t, couldn’t use the word “mate.”

  “What happens when you bond with another woman?” Her heart beat a little faster in her chest at the thought. But, thanks to her brother, she also knew how it worked. Next week, next month, next year he could meet and bond with his mate. And where would that leave her?

  Could she stay on the mountain, watching the light fade from Anthony’s eyes when Dan didn’t come around anymore? Could she watch Dan holding hands and kissing his mate around the campfire? Would she have to pretend for the rest of her life that she didn’t really love him?

  Or would she rip Anthony away from the man who wanted to be his father? From his uncles and aunts on Maxwell Mountains?

  “What happens then, Dan?” Kimber demanded.

  “You don’t have to worry about that.”

  Kimber’s jaw set at his non-answer. So be it.

  Pain marred his brow. “Just say you’ll consider staying. Please?”

  Kimber nodded. She would stay until she graduated and found a job nearby. She could stay close enough for Anthony to have his extended family but not so close that she’d have to see Dan every day. “I’m no man’s consolation prize.”

  Dan leaned down and brushed his lips against hers. There was no tongue. No nibbles. Just silken soft lips and the gentlest kiss she’d ever received.

  She splayed her fingers against his rock-hard chest and sucked gently on his bottom lip. God, he smelled so good. Raw power and something deeper. Darker. Man and beast and lust.

  Dan

  “You’ve got the most beautiful violet eyes.”

  Kimber frowned. “My eyes are blue.”

  Dan shook his head and tsked. “Which one of us has avian vision? Complete with the ability to see ultraviolet colors?”

  “You?” she guessed with a half-laugh.

  “Yep. Trust me. Your eyes have flecks of purple in them.” He brushed his nose against hers. “I can’t stop looking at them.”

  She giggled and kissed the tip of his nose. “Makes it harder to kiss me if you keep looking at my eyes.”

  “Minx,” he said, pulling her hips close and grinding his erection into her.

  “Someone has to keep you on your toes.”

  Laughter and loving was new to him. He prided himself on never lying to a lover but never visiting the same woman twice. Dan kept his life in strict compartments. One for work. One for pleasure. And when the pleasure was done, he was gone.

  But with Kimber, humor and horny went hand in hand. She felt right. Like a perfect pair of jeans after a lifetime of wearing them two sizes too small.

  “But who will keep you on yours?”

  Kimber’s head tilted back as her throaty laughter filled the living room. “Looking for pointers, Mr. Donofrio?”

  “Maybe. A little,” Dan got out before kissing her again. His hand slid up Kimber’s neck, burrowing into the silken cloud of her hair. Dan used his other hand and brushed his thumb across her cheek and jaw as he angled their heads for deeper contact.

  Dan sighed as he felt her melt into him. Kimber collapsed into him, and his hand slid to the small of her back, dragging her hips closer to him. Grinding his erection against her.

  “More,” she begged as his lips left hers and left a deliciously warm trail down her neck. Kimber trembled in his arms, writhing like a cat in heat. Full breasts scraping against his chest.

  Dan cupped her breasts, his thumb scraping gently across her nipple. She moaned and arched her back, seeking more. “You need that?”

  “Yes,” she hissed, almost sobbing with the need. “I haven’t been touched in so long.”

  “I got you,” he vowed.

  Eyes at half-mast, Kimber reached for him. Kissing his neck. The sensitive area where neck met shoulder. Nibbling on his earlobe.

  Dan clenched his jaw and growled as she grew bolder. Grazing her teeth along his jaw. His lips. “You’re playing with fire,” he muttered in a gravel-filled voice. He bent his head and brushed his tongue against the plush outline of her lips. “Bite me again, and this discussion is over before it began.”

  “Promises, promises,” Kimber teased, a mischievous light in her eyes. She stood on her toes to nibble his chin, but he tightened a hand on her hair until she moaned at the pleasure-pain of it.

  “You like it a little rough?” They were panting now, hands roving over any bit of exposed skin. Squeezing. Stroking. Shivering with awareness of each other.

  “I don’t know,” Kimber confessed, eyes wide as real life intruded into their dance of desire. “It was only the one time with Wayne and then.” She blushed and looked somewhere south of his neck.

  Dan didn’t think his erection could get any harder, but Kimber kept proving him wrong. The idea of exploring her sexuality with her thrilled her.

  “Tell you what, let’s not think about some frat boy asshole, okay? Just you and me and whatever you like.”

  “I’d like that,” she whispered against his lips before reaching for another kiss. She cried out with the emotion and slid her fingers against his scalp and into his hair. “You make me forget my name.”

  His chuckle was a little thready. “We have names?” he teased.

  Kimber giggled and pressed her face against his chest. She inhaled and then relaxed her shoulders. “You’re a damn fine kisser.”

  Dan trailed a line of kisses down her neck before nipping on her shoulder. “Yours are pretty addictive, too.”

  Kimber giggled and then groaned. “Lacey is watching the baby. I wanted to take a bath before he needs to eat again.”

  Dan ran his finger down her collarbone and bicep before cupping one breast. “Do they hurt?”

  “It hurts if I delay a feeding. They get all swollen and so tender.” She pouted a little. She hugged him and groaned. “It’s hard to explain, I guess. They’re ginormous now, and I feel like I’m chained to a hungry tyrant. And yet, I feel stronger and more powerful than I’ve ever felt in my life.”

  “I loved watching you.” Dan felt emotion sting his eye but blinked it back.

  Kimber took a deep breath and then looked directly at him. “Having you hold us while I fed him was the most erotic thing I’ve ever done.”

  Dan grinned at her and tilted his head towards the tub. “How about we add to the list of erotic adventures, and I help you with your bath?”

  Kimber stared at him
for a moment with a quizzical look on her face.

  “Damn, I wish I could read your mind,” Dan said.

  She wrinkled her nose in playful suggestion. “I’m sure you would,” she said with a demure grin.

  As Kimber slipped her hand into his to pull him into the bathroom, a feeling of unexpected belonging filled Dan’s heart. Right then and there he decided that no house would ever be a home without Kimber beside him.

  Chapter Four

  Kimber

  The small bathroom grew misty as hot water poured from the faucet. She watched his strong, capable hands as they adjusted the temperature. She could pour her own bath, but somehow it was fascinating watching this huge man. A shifter. Be so tender and sweet with her.

  Kimber licked her lips as she watched him. She was as nervous as a virgin. In so many ways, she still felt like a virgin. Her experience with Wayne had been little more than a boy’s groping, eager hands in the back seat of a car.

  But Dan was no college boy more intent on getting his than his partner’s pleasure. Dan was a man. With a man’s needs, hunger, and desire to see to his woman’s orgasm before his own.

  Her pulse beat a little stronger at the thought of being with a man who knew what he was doing. Her panties dampened with excitement, and she surreptitiously rubbed her legs together to assuage the sensation.

  Dan looked up at her and grinned. She blushed, wondering if he could scent her arousal in the small confines of the bathroom. Probably. Damn it.

  “Don’t be nervous.” After nodding with satisfaction at the water, Dan stood and reached for her.

  “I’m trying not to be.” Kimber held her trembling hand out, seeking his strength. She struggled against the need to overexplain her inexperience.

  “I got you.” Dan’s manner was gruff, and just a little domineering as he began to undress her. First, her loose ponytail was history. Long hair spread around her shoulders in a wanton cloud. “Perfect.” Fingers burrowed into her scalp massaging her. Easing away some of her remaining tension.

  “That feels amazing.” Kimber groaned as she succumbed to his strength. Her body felt alive with awareness. Each nerve ending begged for completion.

  Then, Dan’s warm hands tugged at her tattered T-shirt covered with a wide array of new mom stains. With a crooked, boyish grin he lifted it over her head. Warm fingers trailed a line between her shoulders and down her spine. Kimber shivered in his loose embrace.

  She wasn’t even naked yet and already felt on fire with sensations. A deft snap of Dan’s fingers and her nursing bra fell to the ground with a low sound. Instinctively, Kimber lifted her hands to hide her breasts.

  “Don’t,” he said, his deep baritone husky with need. His laid his hands over hers. “You’re beautiful. I want to see.”

  “I have stretch marks. And my breasts are so sensitive.” Tears clogged her throat. “I wish you could have seen me before.”

  “Shh, you’re beautiful.” Dan held his forefinger to her lips to shush her. “Let me take you in.”

  Kimber swallowed, nodded, and stared, transfixed as this handsome pirate tugged her leggings down until they pooled at her feet. Panting lightly as desire coursed through her, she could hardly breathe let alone utter any words. She placed her hand on his broad shoulders for balance before stepping out of the knit pants.

  For the briefest of moments, Dan knelt at her feet and scanned her body. Hands tracing delicate skin. The occasional scrape of his fingernails made her shiver, and her nipples tighten even further.

  She felt heartbreakingly alive for the first time in her life. A shameless, sexual goddess exposed to her lover.

  Dan tossed the clothes aside and rose to his full height. He towered over Kimber, making her feel small. Feminine. Protected. Heat from his body caressed her until she ached for more.

  Involuntarily, her hands lifted to touch him, but he stepped back. “Don’t distract me,” he warned teasingly.

  Steam from the tub rose and billowed around them. Each time Dan’s hand stroked Kimber’s skin, a shock of arousal flared across her. Dan’s hands were like a brand on her body. Claiming her. When he finally hooked his fingers beneath her panties and pulled them down the length of her legs.

  His amber gaze was hungry. Predatory, like a hawk catching sight of a tasty morsel. Kimber swallowed but stood proudly, hands clenched at her sides. “I’m going to want to take my view of you,” she warned.

  Dan grinned suddenly. “Soon,” he promised. Once her panties were kicked aside, he took her hand and led her into the tub.

  She lifted a foot to step in, but she paused when she felt his hand on her chin. There was just a hint of a smile as he leaned forward and kissed her.

  Kimber wanted to cry at the perfection of his lips on hers. Tender. Mobile. Her tongue played at his upper lip, teasing him. Dan groaned in response, and Kimber floated on the power that comes when a strong, sexy man craves your touch.

  Dan broke the kiss, leaning his forehead against hers. “Tub or you won’t get the hot, relaxing bath you want.”

  A heavy ache formed inside of her. Kimber felt restless and needy in his arms. While he hadn’t touched her breasts yet, they were taut with arousal, jutting away from her body. Eager to be touched.

  She arched beneath his hands. He chuckled and cupped her breasts, teasing her tight nipples with his thumbs. “Is that what you needed, baby?”

  Kimber felt her eyes grow heavy. “Yes,” she whispered. “Be gentle, though. They’re so tender.”

  “Anything. Everything.” Heat and promise echoed in his voice. “Be patient, Kimber. We have all night.”

  His hands trailed down her hips and then back up again making her shiver. Kimber blinked, momentary self-consciousness striking her again. Her once-slim body was curvier now post-pregnancy. She still held lush post-partum softness and worried he wouldn’t find her body desirable.

  “In you go.” Dan’s ardor and attention didn’t wane, and Kimber sighed and relaxed once more.

  Eyes wide with emboldened awareness, Kimber settled into the hot water. She flinched slightly when it touched her aroused sex but then relaxed into the blissful feeling. The gentle sway of water lapped at her skin like a lover before she reclined against the back of the tub.

  “Let me get a towel for across the back.” Dan grabbed a hand towel and splayed it along the back of the cold tub.

  Kimber sighed as she relaxed against it. “This is better than I ever could have imagined.” She closed her eyes, letting herself float lightly in the depths of the water. “Thank you.”

  “Your pleasure is my pleasure.”

  Dan

  He grinned when her tiny pink toes popped above the water line. “How can I help?” he asked, breaking into a full-fledged smile when she blushed. Wanting to take care of her could easily turn into a life-long obsession.

  Kimber sat up, presenting the slim line of her back. Beads of water clung to her skin, and Dan suppressed the desire to lick each and every one of them.

  “Wash my back?” she asked, looking over her shoulder. Tendrils of her hair coiled, giving her a wild mermaid appearance.

  “I can do that.” He looked for a washcloth and only found an orange puffball so bright it hurt his remaining sight. “How do you women do this?”

  Kimber handed him a bottle of liquid soap and poured a tablespoon on the puffball. “Squeeze it to build up the lather.” Her hands reached for the hand towel to protect her breasts.

  “I’ve already seen everything you’ve got,” Dan chided gently. “Put that towel back.”

  She squeaked in response, her fingers tightening on the towel before discarding it. Taking a deep breath, she relaxed her hands. “You’re right.”

  “See how well we’ll get along if you remember I’m always right?”

  Kimber snorted and chuckled softly. “We’ll see.”

  At first, he tried using the puffball, but Dan soon realized it was a barrier to touching the womanly skin he wanted to feel. His hands sl
id up the straight line of her spine before massaging the tight muscles in her shoulders.

  “You’re so tight, baby. Like the weight of the world is on these shoulders.”

  She moaned beneath his probing fingers and relaxed.

  “I do,” she whispered.

  “Hmm?”

  “I have the weight of the world on my shoulders. Another person’s life depends on me. I need to figure out going back to college to make up the missing semesters. Find a job. It’s a lot.”

  Dan tilted his head as he considered her words. It humbled him the way this slim bit of a female struggled to keep her life together. Giving her son up for adoption wasn’t even an option for her. Despite the struggle, she held it together and fought for a better life.

  “Let me help,” Dan said. Cupping his hands, he washed away more than the suds that clung to her skin like a lover. Her arms, back, her torso. Each inch of her skin was clean. Dewy. Fresh.

  “Can I wash your hair, too?”

  Kimber’s eyes were wide as she peeked over her shoulder. Her brand of bold shyness tugged at him, and he longed to treasure her. Always. She reached across the tub and handed over the tube of green-apple shampoo.

  “You like these bright colors, don’t you?” he commented.

  “I guess. Hadn’t really thought about it.” Kimber turned to look at him, frowning. “Do they hurt your eyesight?”

  Dan shrugged. “The orange does, a little. The green not so much.”

  “Oh.” Kimber stared at him while he poured a generous handful of soap into his palms. “Maybe we could go shopping for a new puff. Something that won’t hurt your eyes.”

  Dan’s heart beat a little faster in his chest. She wanted him. Not for an hour’s worth of pleasure. Not for money or because she was some kind of shifter-chaser. Kimber wanted him. The man. “I’d like that,” he pushed out through his tight throat.

  Other memories, other times threatened to interfere with the intimate moment they were creating, but he pushed them away. He had the woman he wanted. Naked. In a tub. Living in the moment never felt so good.