His beautifully maintained body gleamed in the firelight, lush with muscle and endless razor-sharp edges of bone pressing against flesh.
Mara’s breath caught in her throat when he slipped entirely from her grasp and pulled her upward with him, leaving them standing face-to-face.
Harry splayed his hand across her lower back, driving her up against him hard, curling his other arm around her shoulders until their chests crashed together.
Mara reached between them, cradling his shaft, stroking the long column of it, lingering over the tip, reaching around him and cupping his ass to knead the muscled flesh.
Harry’s lips sought hers again, his tongue driving into her mouth until she almost couldn’t breathe from the newest round of heat between her legs. He pulled away with a suddenness, drawing her to the floor and splaying his large frame in the small space between the couch and the fireplace hearth.
Mara’s heart jumped at the sight, crashing and pounding in her ears. His thick thighs, dark with a sprinkling of hair, his lean calves, tight from working out, all made her mouth water. The ripple of his abs and the trail of hair led to his erection, stiff and waiting.
“Sit,” Harry demanded, his breathing harsh, his words not a request as he positioned her atop him, her back to his face.
She gasped when their skin met again, leaning forward when Harry placed his large hand under her ass and lifted to hold her just above his cock. Her fingers dug into his thighs with anticipation, luxuriating in the flex of tight muscle.
When he centered himself at her passage, Mara almost wept a plea. Instead, she bit her lip and savored his entry, a slow push upward of thick, hot cock.
Her gasp echoed in the room, the pleasure so intense. Yet Harry lingered, lying still beneath her until she wanted to scream a demand to drive deeply into her. He placed one hand at her waist, stroking the curve of it, slipping it around until he found her throbbing clit.
Mara jolted when he began that torturous stroke of the sensitive nub, her hips began to writhe, moving up and down, slow, steady, and that white-hot need grew in her again.
Harry drew circles on her spine, pushing her forward inch by inch until his hand was under her ass again. Mara lifted her hips to give him access while she clung to his hand, encouraging him to stroke her cleft, moaning long and low each time he hit her sweet spot.
She braced her hands on his thighs, using her core to rock with him, savoring the thrust of his cock, slick from her desire.
Each thrust made Harry hiss, sounding out his pleasure, making Mara smile with the joy being a woman brought her tonight.
She cried out when his thrusts became more forceful, welcoming the stretch of her muscles, gritting her teeth when he sat up and pulled her tight to his chest.
His hands went to her breasts, rolling her nipples between his fingertips. His words, hot and hushed, spurred her on. “Christ, Mara. I can’t hold on much more, but I don’t want this to end—ever . . .”
Her arms went up around his neck with a cry of completion, tears stinging her eyes. This—this moment with Harry—one she’d never even considered; it was so tender and right it left her weak with need. She clung to him as he took a final drive upward, exploding into a million pieces when he demanded she come with him.
He held her tight. The hot press of his chest against her back, his arms around her, all drove her right over the edge into the blissful relief of orgasm.
Harry moaned long and low in her ear, nipping at her earlobe before finding his own release. His arms tightened, his muscles rigid, before he relaxed into her, letting out a long breath of air. The expansion of his chest against her back made her cling tighter to his neck, her fingers tugging on the wisps of hair at his damp neck.
“Who knew GILFs were made of so much awesome? We didn’t break a hip, did we?” he teased, nuzzling her neck.
Mara laughed, forcing air into her lungs, letting her arms drop to squeeze his forearms. “It’s the Bengay massages and calcium tablets. They do a GILF good.”
Now Harry laughed, the deep rumble vibrating against her back. “You’re amazing, Mara Flaherty.”
“In the sack?”
“In the everything.”
Her cheeks grew hot. “Yeah, yeah. Bet you say that to all the geeks you woo into your web of love.”
“Nope, I really don’t. And you’re my first geek in the sack, thus proving geeks rule.”
Leave it to Harry to mix his blatant honesty with a compliment. “You’re not so bad yourself.”
“Not so bad? Not—so—bad?” he mocked, tickling her and forcing her to roll away from him. He pinned her to the floor while she giggled uncontrollably, placing his large body squarely upon hers. His eyes captured Mara’s, glittering with amusement. “So, say again? Not so bad?” He drew her thigh around his waist again, slipping his cock between the folds of her flesh.
Mara giggled from beneath him, loving this version of Harry, playful and light. “Isn’t improvement always the goal? If I tell you how incredible you were, you’ll never work harder.”
He leaned down and nipped at her bottom lip, sending another small wave of heat throughout her body. “So improvement’s what you’re looking for? Tell me, fellow nerd, what can I do to improve this?” he asked, slipping back down to find her breast, lashing her nipple with his tongue until it ached.
She hissed her pleasure, fighting to find words. “More of that could improve your game,” she teased, cupping the back of his head.
“More,” he murmured, trailing his fingers along her stomach before skimming the place between her legs. “Like this?”
Her hips moved to the rhythm of his fingers. “Definitely more of that,” she said on a shuddering sigh, dizzy from the talent of his hands.
Harry’s words grew fewer and farther between when she stroked his cock, pulling him back up into her arms to place his heated shaft between her legs, loving that he wanted her once again.
When he drove into her this time, she opened her eyes, watched each move of his muscles, memorized each clench of his jaw and stroke of his hand. And when he came, she clung to him and held him close so she’d always have this night.
No one could take that away from her.
Not ever.
* * *
“CARL? Close your eyes, buddy. Mara and the brainiac are doin’ stuff your delicate orbs shouldn’t bear witness to.”
Mara’s eyes popped open at the sound of Nina’s voice to find her and Carl in the middle of her living room, Nina’s hand over the zombie’s eyes.
Harry sat upright, too, grabbing his discarded sweater and dragging it over his head in a rush. His hair stuck up at odd ends, and his cheeks were tinted an adorable red.
“Carl?” Nina swished her finger in their general area. “This is what not to do when you have houseguests.” Nina cackled. “We stayed at Marty’s last night to give you two some time alone. Get dressed lovebirds. Stop exposing my zombie to the nasty,” she ordered, guiding Carl toward the guest bedroom.
As they passed, Carl lifted his hand and gave them a stiff wave of his arm, eyes still protectively covered.
Harry stretched and yawned, pulling the throw from her couch and covering her with a kiss. “Morning,” he hummed against her lips.
“Afternoon, lovers. It’s afternoon!” Nina bellowed from the back of the cottage. “Do you have any flippin’ idea how long you two went at it? We thought you’d never get ’er done. It’s a damn good thing I learned to tolerate daylight hours.”
Mara hid her face in the throw, then in Harry’s shoulder with a giggle, forgetting everything but waking up beside him and the intense joy that feeling left in its wake.
Nina reentered the living room, hand now over her eyes. “One more thing, lovebirds. Jeff called in to the police today.”
Mara cocked her head, unsure whether to be relieved or concerne
d. “What?”
“Yep. At least he said he was Jeff. Anyway, the cops called Keegan to let him know that according to Jeff, he’s safe and sound. Gave them some bullshit story about a bender in Vegas. Sounded too goddamn Hangover-ish to me, but the cops fell for it.”
Harry shook his head. “Jeff wasn’t a Vegas kind of guy. A tech convention in Vegas, maybe. But a weeklong drinking spree? Not a Jeff thing.”
Nina nodded. “I said the same damn thing to Keegan, nerd. I don’t know shit about Jeff. I do know it’s fucking convenient, and I don’t give a shit if his story checked out with some hotel on the strip. My spidey senses tell me someone made him call in. Like by force. The same someone who took my Carl and the kids. His story ain’t sittin’ right with me. So today, while you two make googly eyes at each other, I’m goin’ back to Jeff’s and seeing what I can sniff out. I’m also callin’ that hotel in Vegas. If I have to, I’ll fly on over there and knock some heads together. Somebody has to save the nerds of the world.”
Mara’s hands shook. If what Nina said was true, and someone had Jeff, they had him because he’d been in the lab that night. The same person who’d anonymously called Keegan. But why? God, she was tired of asking why. “I don’t understand why someone would want to harm Jeff? Just to use his phone and keep him from telling Harry about it?”
“Maybe this person thought Jeff knew about the serum? You sure you never let a word about that crazy shit slip, Short-Shot?”
Oh, there was no doubt in her mind. “Absolutely sure. All my notes were in my head. I have a photographic memory. So as I wrote them down—on paper, not an electronic device—I memorized them, and burned the notes afterward. Also something to note, I didn’t do it because I thought enough to worry about someone getting their hands on the serum and wreaking havoc. I did it because I didn’t want anyone to know pathetic Mara couldn’t find a mate to create a family with.”
Harry pulled her hand into his. “It isn’t pathetic to want to find the right person to mate . . . spend your life with. I’m damn tired of hearing you say that. You might not have seen how many men were interested in you, but everyone else damn well did. You were just being discriminatory. There’s a difference. So knock it off.”
Carl groaned from the other room, prompting Nina to snap her fingers. “You two heathens get dressed, and we’ll figure out where the fuck to go from here. I call we go back to Jeff’s and poke around some more. If he’s in Vegas, I’m America’s Next Top Model.” She stomped off to tend to Carl while Mara huddled into the throw.
“How’d you sleep?” he whispered into the top of her head, the scent of his sweater comforting against her nose.
Mara closed her eyes and savored Harry, his arms, the beat of his heart, for one more brief moment. “Well, I know I did a good job refinishing the floors. They’re as hard as floors should be,” she teased.
Harry reached around her to find his jeans, dropping hers in her lap. “They’re definitely hard. What say we do this on your bed next time?”
Slipping her jeans on and recovering her sweater, she let her eyes fall to the bottom of the couch and gulped. There would be no tomorrow. But Harry didn’t know that. “Bed it is.”
Harry rose, holding his hand out to her. He smiled down, warm and sweet, his teeth perfect and white. “If we can do, you know, that again, I’ll even put all those frilly pillows back on the bed afterward.”
Mara took the offer of his hand, allowing him to sweep her upward in his embrace. She laughed, forcing herself to ignore the numbers on her microwave’s clock and focus on the visual of Harry, his clumsy fingers trying to arrange her pillows the way she liked them. “I think it’s only fair. I put out. You pick up,” she teased, squeezing him one last time, refusing to linger too long in his embrace, before making her way to the kitchen to brew a fresh pot of coffee.
But Harry grabbed her hand and took the lead. “I’ll make coffee. You grab a shower first. I’d join you, but you know, Carl. Impressionable zombie and all . . .” he added with a wiggle of his eyebrows, his husky voice full of suggestion.
As the microwave’s clock struck one, she realized this Harry, the one not overcome with testosterone, was sweet and accommodating; this Harry was considerate.
But she didn’t have time for a shower, and she wouldn’t be able to help Nina scope out Jeff’s house.
When the doorbell rang, Nina whooshed by in a blurry vision of arms and legs, her eyes bright and aware, her words protective. “I got this. You two stay put. Harry? Just in case this isn’t the motherfucker kidnapping people right out from under our noses, brush your hair. You look like you used a hand blender on it.”
Harry’s hand self-consciously went to his hair. He licked his fingers and smoothed it down with a cheesy grin in Mara’s direction.
It was adorable and so Harry it hurt her heart. That was exactly as she wanted to remember him.
Squaring her shoulders, Mara sucked in a breath when Nina popped open the door.
The face on the other side of it was stoic, reserved, maybe even a little remorseful against the backdrop of the gloomy sky. Cooper Beaman held his hat respectfully in his hands.
Nina grinned, acknowledging one of many she’d defeated at Pack’s annual touch football game. “Cooper? How the fuck are you, dude? You here for a little rematch? How many times I gotta kick your ass before you accept I’m a chick and I rule the field, buddy? Go home and iron your pom-poms.” She slapped him on the back good-naturedly.
Mara watched Cooper, his eyes looking past Nina’s shoulder. Usually, Cooper was all about a good ribbing, especially when it came to his rivalry with Nina. But not today. He cleared his throat. “I’m here for Mara, Nina. Official business.”
Harry was instantly at her side, pushing her behind him before she had the chance to object. “What official business?” he demanded.
Mara let her forehead rest against his broad back for only a moment before she said, “It’s okay, Harry. I knew Cooper was coming.”
Harry whipped around, his eyes searching hers. “For what?”
Nina’s face went from playful to angry in an instant. “What the fuck’s goin’ on, Coop? What official business, dude? Spit it out, or you’re gonna find out what it feels like to be annihilated by a chick, ass sniffer!”
“Pack business,” Cooper said, straightening his spine before pulling a pair of handcuffs from his belt.
“Hold on a minute, Cooper, is it?” Harry stepped between Nina and Cooper, his hand on the man’s chest. “What the hell is this about?”
“Harry!” Mara grabbed his arm, scenting his anger. “It’s okay. Cooper’s here for me. I knew he’d be here. The council gave me twenty-four hours to get my personal affairs in order as consolation for turning myself in. I said I’d go peacefully, and I will.”
Stepping around Harry, Mara held her wrists out. “I’m ready, Cooper.” While she forced her voice to calm, her stomach threatened to empty itself.
“Hold the hell on!” Harry roared, pushing her hands away from Cooper, his eyes angry, his jaw tight. “The hell you’re taking her anywhere. Take your hands off her, or I’ll put mine on you!”
Mara’s heart swelled, hitting her ribs with a hard knock. Her hands shook when she took the handcuffs away from Cooper and slapped them on herself.
“Cooper, I’m gonna beat your ass bloody, motherfucker!” Nina yelled in his face.
“Nina, Harry! Both of you stop!” Mara shouted. “Please stop making this harder than it has to be. I thought you’d both be gone. I didn’t think that Harry and I . . .” she shook her head, fighting back tears. “I didn’t think you’d be here, Harry. I turned myself in the other day. There’s just no other way. Eventually, the pack would have found out you’re not a human anymore. How would you explain that? Should you lie for me? I had to take responsibility before you were considered a conspirator. Add in that someone’s bound
to mention Jeff’s been gone from the lab. The Vegas story isn’t going to work a week from now when Jeff’s used up all his vacation time. To make everything so much worse, what if someone in Jeff’s family, or maybe a friend we don’t know about, begins to wonder where Jeff is and contacts the police? You said it yourself, Nina, human interference is always a problem. We can’t keep running behind this broken story, gluing the fallen pieces of it back together only to find more of it has chipped away. The pack will know how to handle both Jeff’s disappearance and the police. But I have to take responsibility for Harry’s turning. It doesn’t matter that it was an accident. It happened and it happened at my hands. Period. The council has to investigate in order to protect everyone. You included, Harry. So, please, please, just let me go with Cooper.”
Nina’s fists clenched and unclenched before her barely contained rage exploded. “Fuck you and your stupid goddamn pack, Cooper!” She flipped up both middle fingers. “You and all your fucking rules and bullshit. Mark my words, Cooper, and tell all your freakishly, old-ass comrades in crap, too, I’m comin’ for her. And when I do, you damn well better hope you’re not in the way,” she snarled down at poor Cooper, making his ruddy face go white.
“It’s my job, Nina.”
“Fuck you and your job! That you’re even a part of enforcing this kind of middle-age shit makes you a sissy-ass follower, collecting a paycheck at the expense of someone else’s life. Fuck. You.”
Aw. Nina really liked her. She’d linger on that revelation a little longer, but the color orange was in the distance, calling her name. “Nina,” Mara soothed, brushing her cheek on Nina’s shoulder. “I offered myself up, to keep Harry from having to lie and make up some wild story, and to keep us all free of guilt. Now let him take me, and let him take me peacefully. Don’t shoot the messenger.”
Nina hissed in Cooper’s face, flashing her fangs in protest, but she didn’t try to stop him from taking her.
The Accidental Werewolf 2: Something About Harry (Accidentally Paranormal Novel) Page 24