Reluctant Heat

by Jaden Sinclair

  Everything he did felt as if it wasn’t enough. He couldn’t kiss her enough, couldn’t get the right tempo. First he wanted to slow down, then wanted to go faster, harder. Kissing his way back to her shoulder he licked at the mark and ended up picking up the pace.

  Lindsey’s climax came suddenly. He wasn’t prepared for the sudden clamping down upon his cock, which almost tossed him over the edge. He also didn’t expect her to wrap her legs around his waist, holding tight and nails digging deep into his back either. But she did both of those things. The pain from her nails hit his animal side and, opening his mouth he bit down hard on the mark. She cried out and it seemed that the one climax turned into another, triggering his own. He couldn’t let go of the mark to cry out his pleasure. He moaned against her shoulder, moved both hands under her body, to the curve of her ass and pressed her up into him, his cock going deeper into her body.

  His orgasm shot out of him in blinding waves of intense pleasure. It seemed that ever nerve ending in his body focused right down between his legs. He shook with the intense feelings of it. Never did he ever have an orgasm this powerful or this sensitive before. Hell, even the head felt too sensitive to move.

  “Shit,” he groaned once he released her shoulder. Pressing his forehead into the mattress he rocked them both from side to side, unable to remove himself just yet. “Shit, shit, shit, shit,” he groaned.

  “You’re hurting me,” Lindsey whimpered.

  Fox stopped moving and released his hold, but didn’t remove himself from on top of her. He couldn’t. “I can’t move.”

  She relaxed somewhat under him. Her legs dropped to the side, no longer holding onto him. That somewhat disappointed him. Slowly he was able to rise up in order to look down at her, but as for the moving completely off of her, um nope, not yet. His damn dick was still hard, still deep inside her, and if he wasn’t mistaken, the hunger for a round two was quickly coming about.

  “Are you alright?” he asked.

  Her face turned red, and she looked away from him. “I think so.” Feeling a bit frisky still, Fox gave his cock a bit of a twitch that had her looking back at him in shock. “How’d you do that?”

  “The same way that you can contract yourself around me,” he said. He settled his elbows over her shoulders, resting part of his weight off of her, but not all. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

  “If I say yes, will you get off of me?”

  “No.” Again her eyes widened. “If you say yes, then I might just have to do it all over again and prove to you that it doesn’t hurt but that one time.”

  “I’d rather not.”

  “Why? Didn’t you enjoy yourself?”

  “I really don’t know how to answer that.”

  He smiled. “That’s alright. I know you did.” A quick kiss and as gently as he could he withdrew from her. It didn’t go unnoticed that she winced. “How about a shower, or better yet, a bath? Will help with any soreness.” Pushing up with a slight jump, Fox got off the bed and held his hand out to her. Again she blushed.

  “I think I can handle this Fox,” she said, covering her nakedness with the sheet.

  “Yeah, but where’s the fun in that?” He grabbed her wrist and jerked her off the bed. She squealed and ran to the bathroom. He watched her go, grinning and groaning at the sight of her bare ass. Oh the things he still wanted to do, like share a nice hot bath with her right now.

  Chapter Twelve

  Lindsey sat low in the tub, with the bubbles up to her chin, hoping against any hope that her body was hidden well enough from Fox. He stared at her, and she looked any other place besides his face.

  It’s hard to digest what just happened between them. The final step to this claiming thing had been made, which meant there was no going back now, as if there were a chance at all of that happening. Darian made it sound at first as if they were playing a part. Why she did that, Lindsey couldn’t say. All she knew at this moment is that things just went from very strange to uncomfortable real fast, when he’d climbed into the tub with her. A bath with Fox. Not something on her ‘to do’ list ever.

  “You going to talk to me?” he asked, breaking the awkward silence. Lindsey kept her mouth shut and her eyes on other things. Fox sighed. “Come on, Linds. Things aren’t that bad between us. It wasn’t that bad.”

  Just the thought of it had her face heating up and her slouching even further into the water, wishing she could bury her whole head.

  “Please, talk to me,” he said.

  “You want me to talk, fine, I’ll talk.” She slapped him as hard as she could, stinging her hand. “You’re an ass!”

  Lindsey stormed from the tub, not caring if she splashed water everywhere. As fast as her fingers would move, she wrapped a towel around herself, swearing under her breath, itching to take his head off. Behind her she heard Fox also get out, slower than her.

  “Least the fire is back,” he stated.

  Lindsey turned on him. “I thought we had an understanding.”

  “And what kind of understanding did you think we had?” Both of his hands went to his waist. Hands that not too long ago were upon her, wakening things she didn’t want to remember right this second. “We’re mated, Lindsey. This kind of thing happens to mated couples. You might as well think of yourself as married.”

  “We’re not married, Fox!” Lindsey huffed.

  “It’s the same thing.”

  “Not to me it isn’t.”

  Lindsey feared she went too far with that statement. She knew enough from what Darian told her, and even from the bits Skyler had said after all of this that being mated was like being married, only to her it didn’t feel like it. She couldn’t put her finger on what she felt right then for him, or for this whole situation they were in. Deep down she knew that if Ben hadn’t made his claim and taken her, they would still be friends and things would be normal.

  “I’m sorry.” Lindsey sighed, pressing a hand to her forehead. “I didn’t mean it to sound as bad as it did.”

  “It’s alright. I think I forgot for a moment that you’re human.” Before she knew it she was in his arms, head resting on his bare shoulder. “This is all new to me, Lindsey, just like it’s still new to you. But I’m not going to say sorry for loving you just now. For the past week you’ve been torturing me like crazy.”

  Lindsey pulled back enough to look up at his face with a frown. “What’d I do?”

  His eyes sparkled. “Well, that lotion thing every night is torture. All I want to do is drop to my knees and do it for you.” She felt the heat enter her face and looked away. “Hey, it’s been a long day and evening. Why don’t we call it a truce and get some sleep.”

  “Sounds like a good idea.” She sighed, taking his hand, following him out of the bathroom and back into the bedroom.

  “But come morning I promise nothing,” Fox added.

  Lindsey let go of his hand to go to the closet, stopped and frowned at him. “What does that mean?”

  “Honey, the gates have been opened. No way in hell I’m going to be able to hold this hunger back now.”

  “Huh?”

  Fox smiled, and to her it seemed like a smile from a predator. “I’ll tell you in the morning.”

  With a frown still in place, Lindsey put another pair of panties on, and her night shirt in the safety of the closet. When she came out, Fox has already changed the bedding, put a pair of pajama bottoms on and a grin on his lips. He reached for her before she could back away, hugged, and kissed her, then together at the same time got back into the bed.

  Things had changed without a doubt. It all felt different for her now. The atmosphere between them felt a bit more relaxed, which didn’t make any sense to her. After what just happened, she’d half expected to be tense around him, but instead relaxed when his arms and body wrapped around hers. She felt safe, warm, secure even. So it surprised her even more when her eyes drifted close and sleep claimed her.

  * * * *

  Ben held tight to his
little prey of the night. Held her by the throat, cutting off her air, making it damn clear that fighting was out of the question. He never felt so alive in his life as what he felt right now. Freedom! Freedom that he owed his father for giving him. Now he was free to be himself.

  With a hard shove to the ground the little human went down, falling hard on her face. Her little sobbing didn’t faze him one bit. Her fear excited him. Already he felt like he might come in his jeans, and he hadn’t even touched her really—and he wouldn’t. His cock would only sink into one human, and this bitch wasn’t it. Instead, he wanted to make a point with her, one that he knew others would understand very clearly.

  She looked like Lindsey. That part of this plan he made sure of, just like the rest of his plan he would make clear as well. When his little toy made to get up on her hands and knees Ben kicked her back down hard. She cried out and he smiled. Reaching to his belt he unbuckled it and pulled the leather from the straps, making sure she heard the snapping of it.

  “Please,” she begged, once more starting to crawl away. “Please let me go. I—I won’t tell anyone.”

  “Oh I know you won’t,” Ben sighed in pleasure. “You won’t tell a soul.” Raising his arm up, he brought the belt down as hard as he could upon her back, his pleasure releasing into his jeans while he beat her.

  * * * *

  “You are up and about early. Sort of figured you wouldn’t be out of that bed now that Lindsey is in it.” Skyler smiled at Fox while reaching up in the cabinet for a large bowl. “You hungry? About to start breakfast.”

  “Is it important for humans to marry?” Fox asked with a frown.

  Skyler stopped getting things out of the pantry and faced him. “For some it is. Your Aunt Jaclyn wasn’t interested in it, but Sidney was. Why you ask?”

  “You think Lindsey is the kind that finds it important?”

  Skyler sat down at the table across from him. “Humans don’t really understand our ways, even when we tell them. They don’t process that our marking is our marriage, which is why when our kind does mate with a human, things are very tough in the beginning. Lindsey is human and even though she knows a lot about us, the mating part of who we are is foreign to her. So for her to maybe understand it the way she needs to then maybe getting married is what needs to be done. She might need to feel like she belongs more, and a marriage could help”

  “But she’s my mate. She belongs to me.”

  Skyler smiled. “She’s also human, Fox. In her mind right now this is like dating and living together. She doesn’t belong to you, not in her eyes.” Out of the blue she slapped him not too hard in the back of the head, but hard enough to get his full attention. “And stop thinking she belongs to you. She isn’t a damn dog.” She stood back up and went back to the pantry.

  “What should I do then?”

  Skyler shrugged, keeping her back to him. “Marry her, if that is what she needs to feel like she’s a part of the family.”

  “You make it all sound so simple,” he sighed, rubbing his face.

  “Fox, it isn’t that hard. Go get her a ring, ask her and then we’ll throw a big wedding and invite the whole family.” She turned around again. “I think your Aunt Sidney said that every girl dreams of a wedding. I’ll give her a call later on.”

  “Morning,” Dominic walked into the kitchen and went right for the coffee, pouring a cup. “Please tell me Lindsey is with you.”

  “She’s dropping books off with Jewels,” Fox told him. “And then I think she’s coming here.”

  “Good.” Dominic took a sip and sighed. “I need her help with some of the books again. I don’t know who Adrian used to do those accounts but the guy sucked bit time.”

  “I did them,” Adrian joined the party, went up to Skyler, and kissed her on the cheek.

  “Well, you suck,” Dominic stated, moving away from the coffee. Adrian walked to the coffeepot for his own cup. “If you don’t hire her, I will.”

  “I’m going to work on that,” Adrian stated.

  “Work on what?” Fox asked.

  “Hiring Lindsey to do the books permanently,” Adrian answered with cup in hand. He took the cream from Skyler before sitting down at the table. “She’s damn good.”

  “There’s something different about you,” Dominic said, pointing a finger at Fox.

  “No there isn’t,” Fox said.

  Dominic sniffed a couple times then both eyebrows went up. “No shit!”

  “What?” Skyler snapped.

  “Nothing!” Fox raised his voice but looked at Dominic. “Where’s Darian?” Color flooded Dominic’s face and he looked down at the floor quickly. Adrian’s face also turned red, but it appeared more out of anger instead of embarrassment. “Never mind. Have her come to the shop when she gets up. Need to talk to her.”

  Fox started for the door. “You’re not staying?” Skyler called out.

  “I’m good, Ma!” Fox waved her off and was out of the house before shit hit the fan. Clearly, he and Lindsey weren’t the only ones enjoying themselves last night and, apparently his parents heard the couple. That had Fox smiling all the way to the shop.

  He worked on a boat, got lost in it, and jumped when a hand touched his shoulder. Darian stood behind him smiling big. “Heard you wanted to see me.”

  “Jesus Darian,” Fox gasped. “Make some noise next time, will yah?”

  “I did, but it seems you were lost in the job. Nick said you were in a good mood, and now I can see he is right.” She sniffed. “And I think I know why.”

  “Don’t go there.” He pointed a finger at her, turned, and finished tightening a screw. “From the look on Dad’s face, I’m going to say you have a tumble yourself.”

  “Yeah, you’re right, don’t go there.” Fox chuckled at her. “So what’d you need me for?”

  “Wanted to ask you something,” he finished, grabbed a rag, and wiping grease from his hands.

  “Which is what?”

  “Has Lindsey always wanted to do the wedding-marriage thing?”

  “I’m not sure really.” she frowned. “Why?”

  “I’m getting this vibe you might want to say, like she is. Mom seems to think that all human girls dream of that big day.”

  “Well, when we were little, she would dream of this dress kind of thing. I never understood it really, but that dream of hers I think kind of died when her mom did, and her dad started drinking and you know the rest.”

  Fox nodded. “Yeah.”

  “Why you asking this? I mean, you’re already mated.”

  “But I don’t think she grasps the full meaning of that, Darian. I know you’ve talked to her about it and all, but I don’t know. I just picked this up last night that she, I don’t know, maybe she’s still holding onto this dream then.”

  “Maybe she is. Want me to talk to her again?”

  He shook his head this time. “Naw. Think I’ve got something else in mind.”

  “Care to share?” She batted her eyes at him and Fox laughed.

  “Ah, no, not really. It’s a surprise.”

  “Oh, I love surprises!” She rubbed her hands together and followed him to the back of the shop where he started to clean up.

  “No you don’t.”

  “Sure I do, as long as they’re not mine.”

  He finished up, changed into a clean shirt, and walked past his sister with a grin on his face. She followed him out.

  “You’re up to something,” she said.

  “Yep, and you’re not in on it. I’ll see you later.” He waved at her, left the shop, and got into his truck. Darian came out and he waved again, pulling away. Yep, he had a plan and he hoped it would work. The sun was setting when he pulled back into the dock, got out of the truck to head for the houseboat. Lights were on—a good sign—he just hoped that tonight they might have some alone time. Ever since Darian came home for the summer and them mating, Fox hadn’t really had much alone time with Lindsey and they needed it. They just needed to sit around an
d not so much get to know each other but just talk. Sure, they were mated, and now that the door opened to their sharing sex, he felt like he needed to get his friend back now.

  The moment he slid the door open, the smell of food cooking greeted him and his stomach growled.

  “Wow, something smells great,” he said, closing the door, then pulling the curtains.

  “I hope you like spaghetti and meatballs,” Lindsey said, disappearing behind the stove. “And garlic bread. It’s about the only thing I can really cook that doesn’t suck.”

  A partial loaf of garlic read sat on the stove and the rest she placed in a large bowl. Fox was without a doubt very hungry, but moving to the kitchen and standing behind her a new kind of hunger overcame him. He moved up close and wrapped his arms around her waist. Oh, she smelled like heaven to him. The sweet scent that belonged only to her drowned out the food right then. Fox moved her hair from her shoulder and replaced it with his face, grazing her flesh with his lips.

  “I think a new kind of hunger just hit,” he purred in her ear.

  She didn’t stiffen in his arms, giving him hope that maybe just maybe they were finally going to move forward.

  “Please tell me that we’re eating alone,” he said. He kissed her shoulder, then moved up her neck to nip at the earlobe.

  Her hands moved to the top of his and she rested her head back against his shoulder. “You’re sister and Nick are going out for dinner and your parents are having a quiet diner at home.”

  Slowly, he moved his hands up and closed them both over her breasts, squeezing gently, then teasing the nipples with his thumbs. She gasped. “Good. I’d hate for them to walk in on us.”

  “What about dinner?”

  “Later.” He turned her face toward him and he kissed her deep. In seconds, he had her shorts unfastened and one hand inside them, cupping her sex.

  Lindsey seemed to rise up on her toes and backed up from him. Fox followed her, rubbing at her, moaning into the kiss at the heat and wetness that greeted his hand. Up against a counter they were forced to stop, and with a quick yank he pulled her shorts down to her ankles, hand still between her legs.