Kitty nodded.
“I have no idea. In our family, it’s pretty common. My pappy, grandpappy, oldest brother—that’s the boys’ pa—and me, a couple of cousins. Havin’ so many in one family might be unusual. As I said, Addy’s the only one left in her family—that we know about, anyway, since they’re not as close a family as the Saints are. There are others, I know, but I’m thinkin’ most Shifters stay away from the cities, so you probably don’t run into them very often. We’ve met only one other in Nashville, since we moved here. He’s a lieutenant in the Nashville Police Department.”
“You’re kidding!”
“Nope. Comes in handy, too, if somethin’ comes up, and we need somebody to cover for us.”
“What ‘something’?” she asked sharply, wondering if she really wanted to know.
“Well, like this past spring, when I was walkin’ the girls back to Mel’s car after dark one night, and there were these three drunks who wanted a piece of ’em.”
“Oh, my God. Was anyone hurt?”
“Well, none of us were—Addy and I handled them just fine—but I called our friend at the police station to tell him what happened to the three men after we left ‘em unconscious. Accordin’ to our friend, they never did remember what happened, which was good for us.”
Kitty could only shake her head. She ran her hand through her hair and sat back on the couch. “I can’t believe I’m sitting here having this conversation with you.”
Bart smiled and moved to sit next to her. “I told you it wasn’t somethin’ to talk about in your office or in a restaurant.”
“Yes, you did, didn’t you?”
“I’m hopin’ you now understand why the boys can’t play the Grand Ole Opry. I mean, that place holds what, a couple thousand people?”
“Forty-four-hundred.”
“Geeze. I’m sorry, darlin’ but you gotta see that there’s just no way: forty-four hundred people, balconies, all those lights, and whatever else the management might dream up for a concert? There’s just no way. One of the boys would Shift for sure in that mess.”
Kitty turned her head and studied him for a time then sighed. “Yes. I see.”
She sat forward, her elbow on her knees, and rubbed at her temples. “My father won’t, but that’s okay. I’m sure I can find another job someplace else.”
“What are you talkin’ about? Are you sayin’ he’s threatened to fire you over this?”
Kitty nodded and shook back her hair. She felt strangely free, with her long hair now loose and curling every which way. “Don’t worry. I’ll manage.”
“You won’t be tellin’ him about this, will you.” It wasn’t a question.
She shorted softly. “No. I won’t. Not that he’d ever believe me, anyway, but I won’t.
“I thank you for telling me, though,” she added, glancing back to give him a smile. “I do appreciate your trust.”
Bart reached out to play with her hair. “I thought I could,” he said, his hand roaming further to brush her cheek. “I figured you’d understand, iffen you knew the truth.”
Kitty felt her insides begin to quiver as his hand wandered to the back of her neck. She closed her eyes for a moment as his strong fingers began to knead the tension out of her neck.
“What are you doing, Bartholomew?” she asked softly.
“Tryin’ to help you relax a little,” he said, and she could hear the smile in his voice. “Is it workin’?”
“Hmm.” She let her head fall forward, and in another moment, she felt both of his big hands on her shoulders, his thumbs digging into tense muscles and setting them free.
I should stop this, she thought, but it just feels so damn good…
Then he turned her toward him. His hands took possession of her face and brought her lips to his, and in another moment, she was in his arms.
“Bart?”
“Shh,” he whispered between kisses as he possessed her. “Just relax, darlin’, and let’s see where this takes us.”
“But…”
It was all he needed to deepen the kiss, and she found herself kissing him back, her hands in his dark, thick hair, holding him to her.
“I can’t do this,” she whispered between kisses.
“Sure you can,” he said, bringing one hand down to cup her breast.
“I shouldn’t want you so much,” she whimpered, arching into his hand.
“But you do.”
She froze in that moment, trying desperately to see him by the firelight. She was trembling with need, hungry to feel this man’s touch, to feel him inside her.
“Yes,” was all she said.
Without another word, Bart lifted her into his arms in one graceful, powerful move and carried her down the hallway and into his bedroom. Kitty clung to him, kissing his face and anything else she could reach. In another moment, he set her on her feet at the foot of the bed.
“Let’s get you out of this strait-jacket,” he said, unbuttoning the fitted blazer and slipping it off her shoulders to the floor then fumbling with the tiny pearl buttons on her silky white blouse.
“You don’t like my clothes,” she said as she took his face between her palms and brought his lips back to hers.
“It’s like trying to get you out of a sardine can,” Bart growled in frustration as he kissed her back, and she heard the buttons of her blouse go flying across the hardwood floor when he ripped it open.
He made short work of the front clasp on her bra, and suddenly his hands were on her breasts, molding them and bringing them to his lips. Kitty cried out and arched her back, while she clung to his arms to keep from falling. He shifted to brush her clothes aside, and placing one strong arm around her back, he gently lowered her to the bed. Coming down over her, he straddled her thighs and reached for the zipper at the side of her skirt. Once it was down, he peeled the soft fabric and her silky slip down over her hips and away.
“Well, well, well,” he murmured when he saw what she was wearing underneath.
Kitty struggled to remain in control, but she couldn’t stop her hips from rising and falling in a frustrating attempt to rub against him. Her legs were trapped together by his strong thighs, though, and he seemed content to simply look at her. She knew what he was seeing—she wore stockings and a garter belt, because it was cooler in the summer than pantyhose, and her scrap of lacy panties hid nothing.
“Please,” she whispered.
“Please what?” he asked, taking both her wrists in one hand and raising her hands up over her head. He used his free hand to explore her, touching her in all her secret places but one, coming closer and closer to that goal, but never quite touching her there.
“I need…” Kitty panted.
“Need what, darlin’?” he asked.
She heard the laughter in his voice and hated him for it.
“You know!” she gasped.
“Could be.”
She strained against him, pumping her hips in a frantic motion that was severely limited by his grasp of her thighs with his own.
“Damn you!” she cried.
“Tell me what you want, Kitty,” he said, his voice turning hard.
And she suddenly knew. He wasn’t going to give her what she so desperately wanted—needed—until she admitted it to him in so many words. But she had no more room for pride.
“You!” she cried. “I need you!”
“Looks like you have me, darlin’,” he said, his voice sounding suddenly rusty. “What do you want me to do?”
She could feel the bulge in the front of his pants where he straddled her legs, and she knew he had to be close, too, but she realized he wouldn’t give in, until she did.
“Inside me!” she cried, and she felt tears of frustration on her face. “I want you inside me! Now! Please!”
Without a word, he ripped her panties aside and plunged his fingers into her most secret place, and Kitty instantly erupted with a scream on a climax bigger than she had ever known.
What seemed a long time later, though she knew it could only have been minutes, she managed to open her eyes to see him beside the bed, quickly pulling off his own clothes. When he turned back to her, she sucked in her breath, knowing real fear at the sight of him. He was hung like a stallion, and she just knew it was never going to work. But when he came down over her, pulling her legs wide, she felt the cool air on her thighs as it hit the wetness of her own juices, and when he began rubbing his member against her, she felt herself stirring once more.
She reached up to shyly run her fingers over his broad chest. It was covered with a dark, grizzly fur, and when she arched against him and clasped her arms around his muscled torso so her breasts rubbed against him, the sensations caused by the friction shot straight to her loins and she moaned. He was playing his fingers over her thighs and just inside her, and much to her surprise she felt herself quickening once more.
“I can’t,” she gasped. “Not again.”
“Sure you can,” he said, and she heard a new sound in his voice.
She released him and laid back, opened her eyes to see the strain in his face. She reached up to touch his cheek as her hips began pumping in earnest once more in an attempt to bring him closer.
“Come with me this time,” she pleaded.
He chuckled, and she heard something of the bear’s growl in his voice. “That’s the idea, darlin’,” he said. “What happened before, that was just to get you ready for me.”
She felt something prodding at her center and looked down to see his member rubbing on her. A mixture of fear and anticipation warred in her brain, but the mental conflict did nothing to slow the pumping of her hips.
“Hurry,” she pleaded.
He chuckled then without another word, he fitted himself to her. He was huge, but she was well-lubricated, thanks to her earlier climax. Still it was a tight fit, and they both strained to complete their union. Bart finally hooked his arms under her knees, opening her wider, and with a final thrust, seated himself to the hilt.
Kitty cried out in frustration as she came just to the edge of completion and no further, but in this position, she had no leverage, and he took complete control of their mating, pulling out almost completely then driving himself into her, over and over again, until Kitty felt herself coming apart once more.
“Bart!”
He only roared in reply as he emptied himself into her, and she saw star bursts in the night as her second climax slammed through her even harder than the first.
A long time later, he rolled to his back, pulling her with him, so they remained joined. He brought a blanket up over her, and she snuggled into his furry chest.
“Don’t let me fall asleep here,” she murmured.
It was the last thing she knew.
Kitty woke to broad daylight. The bed beside her was cold, and she had a moment of disorientation while she tried to figure out where she was. A knock at the bedroom door brought reality back with a crash.
“I’ve brought you coffee,” Bart said, coming in bearing a huge white ceramic mug.
By the look of his damp hair and smooth jaw, he was freshly showered. He was also fully dressed, and she felt at a distinct disadvantage. Then she noticed the clock.
“Oh, crap! I told you not to let me fall asleep here last night!”
“Relax, Kitty,” he said, blocking her from rising and holding out the coffee mug. “I called Mel, and she’ll make your excuses for you at work.”
“Oh, geeze! Does the entire family know about last night?”
He had the gall to chuckle. “Only Mel and Meg. Meg’s the one who loaned you a dress for today.” He gestured toward the open closet, where she saw a splash of pale yellow hanging among Bart’s dark suits. “I’m afraid your blouse is ruined, but Meg thinks you’re about her size, so the dress should fit.”
Kitty pulled a pillow over her face with a moan.
“Look, take a shower and get dressed,” he said, setting the coffee on the bedside table. “Have some coffee and some breakfast. Like I said, Mel will cover for you at work, so take your time, figure out what you’re gonna tell your old man.”
Kitty heard Bart walk out, closing the bedroom door softly behind him. She tossed the pillow aside, and scooting up to lean against the headboard, she reached for the coffee. As the caffeine hit her bloodstream, she started making sense of the world again and pulled the sheet up to cover her nakedness.
Okay, she thought. I’m here in Bartholomew Saint’s bed. Two of his nephews’ wives—at the very least—know I spent the night in Bart’s bed. When Bart takes me into work—she glanced at the clock—three hours late, it’s likely everyone at Konstantine will know I spent the night with him.
Then she thought about her father’s harsh words over the phone yesterday afternoon, and she could only wonder at her sudden lack of trepidation. In fact, she decided, she felt pretty darn good at the moment. She hadn’t slept with Bart in order to convince him to sign the contract, which is what her father had hinted she attempt. Instead, she had made love with Bart after conceding that The Four Saints would never sign such a contract. Her father would be furious, but she realized, however belatedly, that she didn’t care. In point of fact, she had money in the bank and a pricey condo she could sell. So who said she needed to worry about what Randall J. Konstantine, Sr., thought of her? Why should she continue to care about pleasing the “old man”—and keep beating her head against the wall trying to do so?
Kitty froze with the coffee mug halfway to her lips, suddenly realizing what she was considering.
Are you out of your cotton-picking mind? her other half—the sensible half—asked herself.
“Probably,” she said, then sipped her coffee and waited, trying the kernel of an idea on for size.
Then she took a very deep breath and smiled. “In fact, undoubtedly.”
Setting aside her coffee mug, she threw off the sheet and headed for the bathroom, before she could change her mind.
Bart pulled the SUV into the loading zone at the front door of the Konstantine Talent Agency, put it in park, and hopped out to come around and open Kitty’s door.
“You sure you don’t want me to go in with you?” he asked.
Kitty smiled. “No thanks. I’ve got this.”
She released her seatbelt and swung her legs around only to have Bart grasp her waist in his big hands and lift her gently to the ground.
“Thanks,” she said. Slightly breathless, she reached back for her purse.
“Thanks for the ride,” she added. “And thank you for last night.” Her smile warmed. “I’m really glad you trusted me enough to tell me about yourself and your nephews, Bart. It means a lot to me.”
Bart returned her smile, and brushed a loose lock of hair back from her face. She wore it pulled back into a simple pony tail, this morning. It was unusual for her, to say the least, but it seemed to match the style of Meg’s dress, which was a light, full-skirted wrap-around style, made of a light-weight, breezy chiffon. The color was of early daffodils. Meg had left not only the dress for her but also a white slip, panties, and a pair of matching, low, wedge-heeled canvas shoes. The entire outfit couldn’t have been more different than Kitty’s usual work attire, and she found she loved it—both the look and the feel. She and Meg were of a size, and everything fit perfectly.
Ian (BBW Bear Shifter Wedding Romance) (Grizzly Groomsmen Book 4) Page 76