by Zoe Chant
It wasn’t that she thought anything would happen – aside from anything else, Joe didn’t seem like the type who’d jump a woman he’d barely met.
But, well, she could think of worse ways to spend her time than with a kind, handsome man who seemed to want to help her.
Sasha settled down in front of the fire, pulling the blanket close around her shoulders. Joe closed the stove door again, and then sat himself down a short distance away from her. She caught herself sneaking looks at him every now and then – and caught him doing the very same thing to her.
Sasha could hardly fail to feel the frisson in the air between them. It was electric, like sparks were jumping between their bodies. She knew that if Joe had been a different kind of man, he’d would’ve been reaching across the space that separated them right now and kissing her.
But he wasn’t that kind of man. He was a gentleman, offering shelter to a woman in trouble. All the same, Sasha couldn’t help feeling a thin slice of regret in her heart. Finally, she’d met a good man – and he turned out to be too good.
She didn’t get too much longer to think about it, though. Before she knew it, drowsiness was pulling her eyelids closed, the combination of the good feed, the warmth from the fire, and exhaustion from the night before conspiring to send her to sleep.
“You should sleep,” Joe said, apparently having noticed her struggle to stay awake. “There’s no need to worry. I’ll keep watch, though you’re safe here on the ranch lands.”
Sasha almost wanted to ask him how he knew, and thought again of the strange way Colfax had cut off his pursuit at the line of the fence. But tiredness made her thoughts too muddled to think about that right now. Before she knew it, she was yawning, her eyelids heavy.
“That sounds great,” she murmured, slowly getting to her feet. Joe’s gentle hands were on her arm, helping her up – and again, she felt that same strange ripple of electricity pass between them.
Sasha sank down onto the mattress without another word. The last thing she was aware of was Joe pulling the blanket up under her chin, saying something in his quiet voice that she couldn’t quite catch.
Chapter Four
Sasha
In the darkness of the night, Colfax’s eyes glittered malevolently.
“Thought you could run away from us, you puny little human?” he snarled, his voice thick with rage. Somehow, even though he was in his human form, his teeth still looked wolf-like – long, pointed and yellow between his lips. He moved toward her, a massive, hulking form, fists clenched.
“Time we taught her a lesson, hey boss?”
Oh God.
Sasha caught her breath as she recognized Larssen’s voice, before he too appeared out of the darkness, standing at Colfax’s shoulder.
Colfax nodded in agreement. “We can’t have little human runts running all over the place, shooting their mouths off and disobeying the orders of their betters.” His voice was a low snarl. “I was playing nice before, girl, but I guess you’re about to see my nasty side.”
Sasha tried to scream, tried to run, but her body just wasn’t working as it should’ve. Her muscles wouldn’t obey her brain’s commands, and she felt like she was running through quicksand. Every time she tried to cry out for help, the only sound that emerged from her lips was a tiny squeak.
Please, please, please, somebody help me, she thought desperately, her eyes moving wildly in every direction, looking for help she already knew would never come.
Scrabbling at the snow, Sasha tried to haul herself forward, breath burning her lungs, panic electrifying every cell in her body. Behind her, she heard the unmistakable growl of a wolf.
She didn’t dare look back. But she knew at any moment she’d feel Colfax and Larssen’s paws on her back, their teeth at her throat.
There was a growl in her ear, hot, rancid breath against her cheek. Then there was the thud of four clawed feet on her back, winding her. Sasha tried to scream, tried to struggle, but there was no air in her lungs, and the wolf was too heavy. The last thing she saw was a row of massive, pointed teeth, covered in the wolf’s dripping saliva –
“Sasha? Sasha! Wake up. Sasha!”
Sasha struggled on the bed, crying out, swinging with her fists against whatever it was that was holding her arms. She struck something hard and warm, but it barely seemed to make any impression whatsoever – the grip on her upper arms didn’t falter.
“Sasha, you were dreaming. It’s okay. I’m here. There’s nothing wrong. You’re safe.”
This time, the gentle words managed to make their way into her brain, and she stopped struggling. Sasha gasped for breath, panic still flooding her body with adrenaline.
“Oh God,” she panted, shaking. “I was – I dreamed that –”
“Shh. It’s okay. You don’t have to tell me about it.” Joe’s voice was warm and soothing. “Just forget about it, it was only a dream.”
Sasha swallowed. If only that were true, she thought wretchedly. It should have been a dream. Terrifying men who could turn into wolves. No, that’s not a dream, Sasha thought. That’s a nightmare.
“I’m sorry if I scared you even more,” Joe said as she eased herself up into a sitting position on the bed. “But I thought I’d better wake you.”
“No, it’s okay,” Sasha said, wiping her hand across her forehead as if to wipe the memory of the dream away. “I’m glad you did.” She gave a shaky laugh. “I’d rather be awake and here with you, anytime.”
Maybe it was a bit of a flirty line, but it was true. Sasha couldn’t tell Joe how thankful she felt for his help.
“All the same,” Joe said, sitting on the side of the bed, his dark eyes fixed on hers.
The last vestiges of the dream were fading from her mind, and Sasha managed a small grin. “It’s me who should be apologizing. I’ve crashed your cabin, eaten your food, woken you up –”
Joe laughed a little, shaking his head. “Nah, you didn’t wake me. I’m not a big sleeper. I can get by on a couple of hours.”
Sasha blinked. “So you were… what, just watching me sleep?”
Now it was Joe’s turn to blink, as if her question had disconcerted him. And Sasha was delighted to see that his ears were turning just the slightest shade of pink.
“Well, I –” He cleared his throat, his expression turning a little desperate. “I mean, I can’t lie to you.”
Sasha felt excitement coursing through her veins. Now that the fire had burned down and the air in the cabin had cooled a little, she could feel Joe’s own heat as he sat close by her on the bed. He was warmer than anyone else she’d ever known – heat seemed to radiate off him in waves, washing over her skin like a healing balm.
“You don’t need to apologize,” she said, her voice soft. “If you’d been the one sleeping, I can’t say I wouldn’t have been doing the same.”
He glanced up at her, his deep brown eyes searching. “Then… you feel it?” His voice was quiet and deep, little more than a low rumble in his chest. It sent fire running though her veins, pooling in her belly.
Sasha could only nod. Of course she did – she couldn’t explain it, but Joe wasn’t like anyone else she’d ever met. Despite everything, she’d known she could trust him right away, and the air between them had sparked with attraction from the first moment they’d laid eyes on each other. She’d thought maybe she was imagining it – an outsized reaction to kindness, after everything she’d been through. But if Joe could feel it too…
His calloused fingertips ran gently over her cheek, and all thoughts, all doubts immediately left her head. His touch left warm trails over her skin, making her shiver. She wanted him – more than she’d ever wanted anyone else before in her entire life.
She lifted her own hands, cupping his jaw between them, her thumbs sliding down over the arch of his perfectly sculpted cheekbones. She watched as the pulse in his throat sped up, his breath hitching slightly, before he leaned forward and kissed her.
His taste was pure and
clean, washing away the last of whatever remained of her nightmare. She parted her lips, feeling his tongue sweep between them, hot and thick, as if he was desperate to consume her. For all his mild-mannered exterior, Joe’s kiss was like a fire that burned her down to her core, igniting her desire into an open flame.
She pulled him against her, feeling the hard plain of his chest pressing against her breasts. They fit together perfectly, his hard angles and her soft curves. It was as if they had been made for each other. Joe’s hands tangled in her long hair, cradling the back of her head, while she filled her hands with the muscle of his shoulders, drawing him against her, pulling him down onto the bed.
They never broke their kiss, their tongues still tangling against each other as they lay down. Joe’s strong, heavy weight above her only made Sasha want to feel more of him – she wanted to feel every inch of him pressed up against her, taste nothing but his taste, smell nothing but his scent. She had never felt safer in her whole life than she did right now, Joe’s arms around her, his lips on hers.
“Sasha,” he whispered, his voice hoarse, when he finally did break the kiss. “I don’t want to if – you can just tell me –”
“Shhh,” she said, reaching up to press a quick kiss to his lips. “I want to. I promise. God, I wish I could tell you just how much I want to.”
Joe looked down into her eyes for a long moment, but whatever he saw there apparently convinced him of the truth of what she was saying. She wasn’t doing this because she thought she had to ‘pay him back’ for his hospitality, or for any reason other than that she wanted to – she wanted him.
He kissed her again, overwhelming her with his desire. Sasha’s heart pounded, her skin sensitive to every touch, heat pooling between her thighs.
Joe broke the kiss as she began pulling at his shirt, tugging it out of his jeans before fumbling at the buttons. His lips travelled down her jaw, over her throat, leaving a trail of fire in their wake.
Oh God, oh God, oh God…
The words repeated themselves without meaning in her brain. She had never felt so turned on before in all her life, Joe’s every touch, every kiss, fanning the flames of her desire. When she finally managed to tear off his shirt, Sasha had to pull in a quick, hungry breath: he was utterly gorgeous, his pecs flat and broad, his abdominal muscles a tight grid. The V of his hipbones led ever-so-tantalizingly down beneath his jeans.
While she’d been staring at him, Joe’s hands had been busily at work on her own shirt, slipping it up over her head and tossing it across the room without ceremony. He dipped his head to her breasts, running his tongue over the soft, sensitive skin, before sinking lower, gently teasing her hard nipples through the material of her bra with his teeth.
Sasha cried out, writhing up off the bed as his tongue circled first one and then the other, relentlessly drawing sensation from her body. It felt incredible – pleasure spiraled through her as she shuddered beneath him, forgetting everything except the way Joe was touching her.
She arched up off the bed, moaning, her lower lip caught between her teeth as Joe deftly unzipped her jeans, before sliding his hand beneath her panties. He kissed her again as she clutched his shoulders, groaning into his mouth while his fingers slowly circled her clit. She was already soaking wet, but Joe caressing her sent a new wave of heat through her body, coating his fingers, making her ready for him.
She wanted desperately to feel him inside her, but Joe seemed content to take his time. His fingers on her were relentless, sliding over her sensitive clit, making her cry out. When her climax came, it was almost a surprise – the sharp, sudden pleasure flooding her body, her hips jerking up off the bed. Sasha cried out again, her eyes squeezed shut, digging her fingernails into the hard muscle of Joe’s shoulders.
“Oh God,” she whispered, when the power of speech came back to her. “That was incredible.”
She meant it, too. But already she could feel her desire building again. She ached to be filled – to feel Joe inside her, sheathed to the hilt.
“Please,” she whispered, her voice rasping in her throat. “Please – I want you so badly…”
Her fingers fumbled at the fly of his jeans. Joe apparently didn’t need to be told twice. His fingers joined hers, covering them, and together they shoved his jeans down over his hips.
Joe groaned as her fingers closed around his thick, heavy shaft.
“Sasha,” he whispered into the crook of her neck as she stroked him, slow and careful. “Oh God, Sasha…”
She could have kept on touching him like this forever, listening to him growl out her name like that. But in the end, her own desire was too overwhelming to continue with it for long.
Lifting her head, she ran her tongue over his ear, before whispering, “Please, do it now. Please.”
Joe only nodded, and then Sasha found herself lifted into the air, his hands on her buttocks, and then his hard cock was pressing at her entrance. His mouth was on hers hungrily as he pressed forward, slowly filling her.
Sasha squirmed in his strong grip, panting, wriggling her hips against him. She was greedy to feel every inch of him – but as usual, it seemed like Joe was determined to draw things out. He buried himself slowly, letting her feel all of him, as if he was glorying in the sensation of her body around his.
“Sasha,” he gasped when he was at last all in. “You feel…”
He never got to finish the sentence. Sasha squeezed her walls around him, making him groan, his head thrown back. Sweat coated the long, bronzed column of his throat, and Sasha couldn’t stop herself from leaning forward, running her tongue over his skin, tasting its salty tang.
His first thrust into her was strong and hard, and hit her in just the right place. Sasha cried out, her swollen clit rubbing against his hard abs, his cock filling her to perfection. She could do nothing but simply hold onto him, her arms around his neck, her legs locked around his hips as he pounded into her, fast and deep.
She could feel ecstasy begin to uncoil inside her, white heat chasing itself along her nerves. Closing her eyes, Sasha listened to Joe’s panting breath, his groan every time he sank into her. Her heart hammered in her ears, pleasure flooding her in wave after wave, building inexorably toward climax. She could hear herself crying out, over and over again, but her voice sounded almost as if it was coming from somewhere far away; somewhere outside her own body.
Just when Sasha felt she could take no more, her climax exploded through her body like a burst of light, heat flooding her, all her nerves singing in ecstasy.
She heard herself crying out as every muscle in her body clenched, and she jerked against Joe’s body, her nails digging into his skin.
His own climax wasn’t far behind: she heard him groan, and then his hips jerked, his muscles going taut, as she felt him come.
They collapsed back onto the bed together, him still inside her, sweaty and breathless. Sasha couldn’t do anything but heave in oxygen, still feeling alive with pleasure, the aftershocks chasing each other over her skin.
“Wow,” she said when she had her breath back enough to speak. “Just… wow.”
“Yeah,” Joe said, still slightly breathless. “That was…”
He didn’t need to finish the sentence. He raised himself up on one arm, before slowly slipping out of her body. She missed the feel of him instantly, but she hoped this would be far from the last time they did this. Joe looked down at her, his dark eyes intent, as he brushed tendrils of sweaty hair back from her forehead.
“Maybe you should get some more sleep,” he said, before leaning down to press a kiss to her temple.
Sasha wanted to protest – to say that she could think of far better things to do than sleep – but before she could give voice to her objections, a massive yawn welled up in her chest, splitting her mouth wide open.
“Okay,” she mumbled, burying her head against the warm, comforting plain of his chest. “But promise me you’ll stay here with me.”
Joe’s laugh was a low
rumble. “I promise.”
***
Sasha woke in the morning to the smell of meat roasting over an open fire. Yawning, she stretched – every muscle in her body felt deliciously relaxed. She smiled, as the memories of last night came flooding back to her. No man had ever made her feel as good as Joe had. It had been earth-shattering, in every respect. And it made her think that maybe, just maybe, there could be something special between them. Joe clearly felt it too – they were drawn to each other. It wasn’t just in her imagination after all.
Sitting up on the bed, Sasha looked around, trying to find the source of the delicious roasting smell. Joe sat in a chair by the stove. He’d opened the top, and what was clearly a hare, skinned and expertly dressed, was cooking over the low flames.
“Wow,” Sasha said, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. “Is that breakfast?”
Joe glanced over, smiling. “I figured we might need a little something to keep our strength up before we head out. The snow’s stopped, but it’s still pretty deep out there. It’s going to be quite a trek.”
Sasha nodded, standing up and wrapping the blanket around her naked body. Joe himself had put his jeans back on, but remained bare-chested – giving her a very nice view indeed.
“Aren’t you cold?”
“Nah. Cold never bothered me.”
She decided she’d just have to take him at his word. He certainly didn’t seem bothered.
Sasha sat down in one of the armchairs by the fire, simply watching him as he checked the meat, before coming and sitting down across from her.
“That should be ready in about half an hour,” he said.
“Is that the fella from yesterday?” Sasha asked.
Joe nodded. “I hope you don’t mind.”
“Eating hare?” Sasha shook her head. “No. I mean, they’re cute, but my uncle used to take me out hunting with him. Rabbits and hares were the first things I learned on. Out where we lived, if you wanted meat for the winter, you went out and got it yourself. That was just the way things were. It’s what I grew up with.”