“Oh.” She fell silent, then laughed. “I guess this is all still a little new to me.”
“Are you disgusted that we hunt our own food?” He looked adorably concerned.
“No. Of course not. It’s pretty cool actually. I’m just your typical first-world consumer, used to my meat coming wrapped in plastic.”
“It tastes a lot better when it’s fresh-caught, you’ll see.”
She nodded. “I’m sure. Anything I can do to help?”
“Well, I’ve got to gather wood for the grill, and I was thinking it’d be nice to get a fire going.”
“Great!” she said. She used to love making campfires when the kids were young. It was a way of getting them to all hang out together. They’d toast marshmallows and tell ghost stories.
She and Connor worked together collecting the wood. Connor held an impossibly big stack in his massive arms while she kept adding to it. Soon, the fire was set up and they piled more wood into a big metal trough before laying a grill on top.
Shouting and joking, the guys came back with a bunch of rabbits. “You guys gonna go inside and prepare them?” Logan said, shooting Lauren a look.
“Sure thing,” Logan said, taking the hint that Lauren probably didn’t want to watch them being skinned and gutted. He’s so considerate, Lauren thought, stealing a glance at Connor while his attention was distracted. More caring than I knew was possible for a guy to be.
Less than an hour later, the smell of roasting meat filled the air. Dalton had cooked up some potatoes and greens, and she had a nice buzz going on as she sipped her third beer. She tried to help serve the food, but the bears wouldn’t let her, insisting on doing everything themselves. Connor sat her beside him in the circle, and Timo and Ryder served up the food on a bunch of chipped, mismatched plates. “We’re gonna get some better ones just as soon as we’re more settled,” Connor said.
“They’re great. Everything’s great,” she replied, a warmth spreading through her. It was fully dark now, a clear, starry night with the moon just a sliver in the sky, and it felt cozy being with the guys in the warmth of the fire.
As they tucked into the delicious food, the bears asked her a hundred questions about herself with an adorable lack of tact. She told them how she’d lost her parents, then brought up her younger brothers and sister and she felt the sympathy in their glances and words. They’d all suffered in some way, just as she had. For once she didn’t feel like the odd one out; she wasn’t embarrassed that she hadn’t had time for relationships.
“Enough now, guys,” Connor said, as the latest question pinged her way. “Let’s just relax now.” He pulled Lauren’s seat toward him, a little way from the others, and they took the cue, immediately jumping into an intense discussion on who was going to get their cabin decked out the best.
“The guys love you,” Connor said, close to her ear. “You fit so well here.”
“You think so?”
He gave her a look full of tenderness mixed with sadness. And it burned her. “Maybe I should date one of them,” she replied. When his bear snarled, she jumped. “What was that?”
“It was just my bear being possessive. Do you mean that?”
“What if I did?”
“I think it would kill me.”
“You’re a confusing guy, Connor. You know that?” She sat up straight in her seat, trying to clear her head, but a ripple of breeze whispered from the trees, chilling her back. She gave a little shiver and hugged herself.
“Cold?” Connor murmured.
“Only the parts that aren’t by the fire,” she said.
He put his arm around her. Right away, butterflies tingled in her stomach. “Connor?” She shot him a look.
“Yes, what?”
“You know what.”
“I can’t help myself, Lauren. My bear, every part of me, is crying out for you.” When he dipped his head, she didn’t move away. His soft, lush lips met hers again. A moan escaped her throat, and she opened her mouth a little, needing to feel the touch of his tongue. It felt so good to be held in his arms. So right.
He drew back, his eyes glowing in the firelight as they looked deep into hers.
“This is where I should get up and go home,” she said.
“Stay. Please,” he murmured.
“And tomorrow?”
“I’m so scared of my nature. But I’d kill myself rather than hurt you. I want to protect you and care for you every day. I’ll do whatever it takes. I’ll leave the clan. We can live on a mountain top together and never see another soul if you want.”
“You’d really do that?”
“Of course. It’s the very least I’d do for you, Lauren.” He ran one of his big, thick fingers across her cheek, as gently as the kiss of the breeze.
“You’re a good man,” she said, and as she spoke the words, she felt herself yielding, her tightly controlled core unlocking. She needed him close to her again, his body entwined with hers. Even if it was going to hurt like hell later, it was worth it. She wanted this more than she’d wanted anything before. Taking hold of his head between her hands, she drew him down for another kiss. And she allowed herself to forget. To think only of how right he felt.
“Will you spend the night with me?” he murmured.
She nodded, not trusting herself to speak.
“Let’s go.” He helped her to her feet, and she was surprised to discover that all the bears had gone, leaving them alone. She expected him to lead her to his cabin, but he lingered by the fire.
“Want to stay here a while?” she said.
He nodded. “I’ll get us some blankets.” He slipped away and returned with a comforter, a deer skin rug, and some heavy wool blankets. He laid them carefully on the grass beside the fire and added a couple more logs to the flames.
Then he knelt down and wrapped his arms around her hips, pressing his face against her stomach. He needed this, to be outside with the sky above. Looking down at him, she laid her hands on his shoulders.
“Come here,” he said, pulling her down onto the bed he’d made for them. It was soft and warm, almost too warm. Then he unbuttoned her plain office shirt and slipped it off, followed by her black pants. She pulled his shirt off too, and her hands immediately went to his pecs. She couldn’t get enough of the feel of his skin.
He covered her with his body, spreading her thighs and slipping between them. “You’re too soft,” he said, stroking her arms and the tops of her breasts. “I can’t believe I’m allowed to touch you.”
She grinned and felt him hardening against her, his pelvis making little back and forth motions as if he could barely restrain his desire, his need to be inside her. After his deft hands unfastened her bra, he took her hard nipples into his mouth. She pulled his head down, encouraging him to be rougher. She was way past nerves now; all she wanted was him to claim the virginity she’d held onto for so long.
“Connor, please,” she muttered, wriggling, her panties soaked as she ground herself against his hardness.
“You want me?” he growled.
“I need you. Right now.”
He let off a long rumble as he knelt back and pulled off her panties, rolling them carefully the length of her legs. A rush of cool air hit her, but she stayed motionless, watching as he unfastened his zipper, freeing his big, swollen cock. He stripped off his pants quickly, then arched above her. She was helpless, at his mercy, and it was a hot and wild feeling. When the tip of his cock slid along her labia she moaned and tugged at his shoulders impatiently.
“I’m trying to be gentle with you, baby, but you’re not making it easy for me,” he said with a grin.
“I don’t need gentle,” she said. “I just need you inside me.”
He began to enter her slowly, and she felt her muscles stretching, yielding to accommodate him. It was a lot to take, a hell of a lot more than his fingers. Every time she tensed up, he paused, kissed her, stroked her face, until she was desperate for more of him. It was too intense to spe
ak or move, but she kept pulling him toward her until he slid all the way inside her, filling her with his thick cock.
“Are you okay, baby?” he breathed, looking into her eyes, and she saw the wildness of his bear lying behind his care and tenderness.
“Yes, I am,” she managed to say. She could hardly believe he was there, a place she’d started to think no man would touch.
“Mine,” he growled. He eased out a little and pushed back in again. It kind of burned, but it was good too, her nerve endings singing with pleasure. “Lauren,” he muttered. “So beautiful. You’re mine.” And he kept murmuring beautiful words to her while he took her gently, thrusting in and out, gazing into her eyes the whole time until her breathing got quick and shuddery. She wanted more. She wrapped her legs around his hips, pulling him deeper, and he unleashed a wild sound. “Lauren…too much…I can’t control myself.”
“I want it like this. I want to feel you. All of you. Your animal.” She hardly knew what she was saying, but somehow it made sense.
With a snarl, he began to take her harder, a smooth, insistent rhythm that made her muscles clench in fast spasms. “You feel so good, my mate,” he muttered. The spasms got stronger and stronger until, with one hard thrust, he drew her to a climax, and she orgasmed around him, waves of euphoria shooting through her body, all the way to her fingertips. He came a second later, his face buried in her neck, pushing deeper inside her than before as he ejaculated.
“Did I hurt you?” The animal was gone, and it was just Connor again, tender, caring for her. He slid out but stayed on top of her, holding her gently, kissing her, inhaling the scent of her skin.
“Not much.” It was the truth. She’d already forgotten the initial bloom of pain, and her insides were still pulsing with waves of bliss.
“Not too rough?”
“No, I loved it.”
“And I loved being inside you. Having you so close. I never want to let you go.”
He turned his head and glanced at the fire. “But I guess it’s late. Shall we go sleep inside?”
The blaze was still strong, and she was drowsy and comfortable. “We can sleep out here if you like?” she offered.
He smiled down at her. “You get me, Lauren.” He turned onto his side and snuggled in behind her. “One of the many things I love about you,” he muttered into the back of her neck.
Did he say love? she wondered sleepily, her heart sparking with happiness a second before she fell asleep in his arms, lulled by the bliss of their lovemaking.
Connor lay awake for a long time, peaceful for the first time he could remember, his mate nestled in his arms. He didn’t want the night to end, but he understood she needed to sleep. Instead he gazed at her, her black eyelashes resting on her cheeks, full lips pressed together as she breathed softly through her nose. He replayed their mating over and over, his cock hardening again. She was his now, and he’d do whatever it took to make her happy. He wouldn’t allow that nasty feral gene to ruin everything. She trusted him at last, and there was no way he was going to jeopardize that. He imagined her sleeping in his bed every night, taking care of her, making her food, doing things to make her happy. Listening to her problems and helping her resolve them. And their cubs. Soon, but not yet, because he wanted to have her to himself for a good long while. But in the future, he’d make her pregnant, and they’d have cubs.
A thought nagged at him—cubs that would still have that feral gene. But they’d be half human, too. Would that be enough?
One step at a time. She was enough for him. More than enough, and far more than he deserved. He kissed her cheek, curled himself around her to make sure she didn’t get cold in the night, and slept for a while.
He awoke from time to time to check on her, then finally awoke for the day when the dawn came. He tucked her face against his chest so the light wouldn’t disturb her. She finally awoke an hour later, and watching her wake up and remember was one of the most beautiful things he’d ever seen.
“Hi,” she said, rubbing her eyes.
“How did you sleep?”
She laughed sleepily. “The last thing I remember is me suggesting we sleep outdoors.”
He frowned. “You didn’t like it?”
“No, I did. It’s the first time I’ve tried it actually.” She started to sit up then remembered she was naked. “Oops.” She laughed again. Relief ran though him. He’d been worried she’d wake up and realize it had all been a mistake.
“Do you have to work today?”
She sighed. “Unfortunately.” Her face tightened.
“What is it?”
“Oh, nothing. My office environment isn’t the greatest right now.”
“Because of this?” He gestured toward the cabins.
“That’s the surface issue. The underlying issue is that my boss is an A-grade asshole.”
“You should leave, Lauren. You deserve to work someplace where everyone thinks you’re as awesome as we do.”
“I’m working on it, believe me.” She yawned. “Can you pass my pants and shirt, please?”
She got up, and he showed her where the shower was, and while she was getting dressed, he made her bacon and eggs and coffee.
When they’d finished eating, he wanted to drive her to the office, but she had her car, so instead, he kissed her goodbye on the doorstep, again and again until she giggled and tore away from him. “You’re making me late!”
“I’m sorry. I’ll stop now. Are you coming back tonight?”
She tipped her head to the side, gave him a coy look. “I might swing by.”
“You do that,” he said and then watched her drive away.
12
Errol was in A-grade asshole mode, but Lauren let it wash over her. Connor had taken her virginity. The thought bounced around her brain like a firecracker trapped in a barn. It had been even better than she’d imagined. Having him inside her like that, possessing her, making her his. All those things he’d whispered into her ear, making her feel like the sexiest girl in the world. She giggled to herself as she hunched behind her monitor, staying out of Errol’s way. She hadn’t thought there was a man alive who could make her feel like that. And she trusted him. He wouldn’t cheat on her. She felt it deep in her core.
She spent the day filling out spreadsheets mechanically, watching the clock, waiting for five-thirty p.m. to come so she could be back in Connor’s arms. Her skin tingled, crying out to be touched by him again, while her nostrils were full of his spicy, masculine scent.
When he messaged her at lunch time, saying How are you, baby? I miss you, she was as excited as a puppy dog out on its first walk.
I miss you, too, she wrote slowly. The words still didn’t come easy. She felt like she was splitting right open, exposing her most vulnerable parts. “Please look after my heart, Connor,” she whispered to herself.
At five p.m., Kristin called her, and she went outside the building to speak to her.
“Guess what?” Kristin said in a loud, excited voice. “The realtors who were selling the cabins have taken their ads down and are refusing to work with the Parks Department anymore. Annnd…I have it on very good authority that none of the other realtors in town will agree to work with them either.”
Lauren gasped. “Oh, my god! That’s awesome. So, is this it?”
“It’s another very positive step in the process. The hardest thing will be to get your boss to agree that he lied about selling the land to Connor and the guys, but I think we’re well on the way to that.”
“Thanks, Kristin! You’re the best!” Lauren exclaimed as loudly as she dared.
“There’s a protest scheduled for two days’ time in the central square, which will hopefully be the nail in the coffin. But keep an eye on your boss in the meantime.”
Lauren snuck back into the office, trying not to look triumphant. But she needn’t have bothered. Errol was in his office with the door closed, and his face and bald patch were bright pink. He was gripping his cell phone agai
nst his ear while pacing up and down the office, clenching his fist and nodding rapidly. He’s as mad as hell, Lauren thought, accustomed to her boss’s fits of rage. She chuckled to herself. Good.
“That’s not how it happened, sir—” he said loudly before resuming his nodding again.
“Geez, Errol’s about the color of a ripe tomato,” her colleague, Maureen, said over the top of her monitor.
“He sure is.” Lauren glanced at the time. It was five-twenty p.m. “And I’m outta here before he explodes and bits of him wind up all over the office.”
She put her computer to sleep, gathered her things, and swept out of the building.
She went home to pick up a few things, then drove to the cabins, bursting to tell Connor the news.
Wanting to surprise him, she parked the car a little way down the dirt track in the forest and walked the last few hundred yards. Maybe his incredible bear hearing had already picked up her arrival, but she could only try.
He wasn’t on his front porch, so she slipped down the passage between his cabin and the next one and went around to the back. He was on his back porch, sitting on the step, and another man was beside him. Someone who looked kind of familiar. Shading her eyes from the sun, she called Connor’s name, and he looked up as if he hadn’t heard her approach at all.
“Lauren!” he called, getting to his feet, but his voice was tight and his face several shades paler than usual. He jumped down the steps and swept her into a hug—a light one that didn’t quite press his body against hers. When his friend stood, the color drained from Lauren’s face, too.
He indicated the other man. “This is my brother.”
She barely heard the words. Instead she stared into a face that bore quite a resemblance to someone she’d known from long ago. Someone who’d broken her heart so badly she’d vowed never to love again.
“Frankie,” she said weakly.
He nodded at her. “Lauren, it’s been a long time.” There was such a mixture of emotions in his eyes—guilt, regret, confusion.
She turned back to Connor. “Frankie is your brother?”
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