by Jessie Lane
Yet again, the man felt too good to be true. Bringing Christmas joy like this into her sister’s life. Into their lives. Nikki could admit now that Sarah wasn’t the only one lacking Christmas spirit this year. She’d just been so focused on Sarah that she hadn’t realized how down she had been about it until this very minute.
And as she watched Joe put the tree into the tree stand, she didn’t know whether to cry or laugh for joy. A part of her wanted to do both. Her emotions were a jumbled mess. Joe Miller was starting to get to her, only she was beginning to wonder if that was a bad thing.
In such a short time, he had already done so much to lift Sarah’s spirits. Maybe there was hope for them as a mated couple yet.
Most importantly, she couldn’t imagine telling Joe that they couldn’t accept the Christmas tree now that Sarah was so excited about it. That left only one thing to do. Sighing in defeat, she headed to the back of her house where the storage room was. There in the back corner of the boxes left over from her parents’ house were their family’s ornaments. After pulling the box out, Nikki carried it down the hallway and into the living room, where she sat it on the coffee table.
Kneeling by the table, one by one, she started to take the ornaments out and lay them on the table. Once Joe was done securing the tree into the stand, he began to help Sarah put the ornaments on by picking her up so she could place them up high. Nikki kept unloading ornaments until Joe came and knelt down beside her.
“Why do I get this feeling you’re not as thrilled as Sarah is about the tree?”
Unable to look at him for fear of crying, Nikki kept her eyes on the box in front of her. “You can’t buy our love, Joe.”
Two fingers tipped her face his way and she stared into his determined face. “Not trying to buy your love, babe. What I am trying to do is give my girls a good Christmas. There’s a difference and I hope you can see that.”
Leaning toward him, Nikki whispered, “Promise me you’re not going to hurt us, Joe. Promise me that if I let you in to mine and Sarah’s lives that you’re not going to leave us. Because I don’t think either of us can take that sort of pain again.”
Joe reached out and cradled her face in his big hands. “You accept me, accept our mating, and there’s nothing that can take me away from you or Sarah. Promise you that, sweetheart.”
Then without another word, he pulled her to him and crushed his mouth on hers. This wasn’t a sweet kiss—this was a claiming kiss. One full of promise and Nikki soaked up all that emotion from him.
She was starting to think Joe was right and they needed each other.
Maybe giving into this mating wouldn’t be so bad after all.
Chapter Thirteen
Joe hadn’t expected to get all choked up on the rush of emotions. But between Sarah’s delight and the hopeful, wistful expression on Nikki’s face, he just couldn’t help it. It felt like his life was coming together in the way it was supposed to. He’d be part of a family—no, part of his family—at Christmas for the first time in decades. Nothing had ever felt more right.
With every ornament carefully hung, with every strand of lights and garland added to the tree, he felt himself sinking into the spirit of family and Christmas. He had told Nikki he wasn’t trying to buy Sarah’s love, and that was true. But the idea of playing Santa for the kid, of sitting up into the wee hours and putting together toys that would make her face light up the next morning? Shit. He wanted that so bad he could taste it.
“So, Sarah, I know about your one wish for Santa…and it was a good one. But isn’t there something you want for Christmas just for yourself? A doll or a game? Something?” he asked.
“Joe,” Nikki said, her voice laced with warning.
“I’m just asking,” he said. “I can put in a good word with the big guy, but I can’t make any promises.”
Sarah cocked her head in a gesture that was becoming achingly familiar. That was her thinking pose. Finally, after a long pause, she said, “A dollhouse. I want a dollhouse.”
Joe nodded. He knew they were expensive, but he didn’t have anything else to spend his money on. Especially since he was pretty sure anything he gave Nikki would be handed back with a firm, “Thank you, but no.” So a dollhouse was totally doable for him.
“We’re almost ready for the star,” Joe said, picking up the glitter encrusted, white star that would sit atop the tree. He placed it carefully in Sarah’s hands and then lifted her. With more enthusiasm than skill, she placed it on the top branch. It listed alarmingly to the right but somehow managed to retain its perch.
Sarah clapped her hands in delight. “Turn on the light, Nikki!”
Joe couldn’t resist a sidelong glance as Nikki bent over at the waist to plug the extension cord into the outlet. The ass on that woman was beyond sinful. Maybe, he thought, if he played his cards right, he might get his hands on it. Not to take her to bed. She wasn’t ready for that, but a throw-back-to-high-school-make-out-session wasn’t out of the question.
The tree lit up. Lights of all different colors twinkled from within the branches. It might not have been the fanciest tree, and the ornaments were a hodgepodge of homemade and store-bought ones, but it was the prettiest Christmas tree Joe had ever seen. Every single one of those ornaments had been placed with glee and delight…and love. Somehow, even though he’d known Sarah a grand total of two days, he loved that kid. She’d wormed her way right into his heart.
Looking back at Nikki, at the worried expression on her face and the nervous way she folded her arms, he knew he had his work cut out for him. He had to convince her that he was there for the long haul and that he could be there not just for her, but for Sarah, too.
“How about some hot cocoa?” Nikki asked. “It’s kind of a tradition we used to have. Hot cocoa after decorating the tree.”
Sarah squealed again, the pitch and volume enough to make his ears bleed. Shaking his head to clear it, Joe nodded. “Sure sounds good.Is it served with a side of noise cancelling headphones?”
Nikki laughed. “Oh no. You did this. You brought the tree and you stirred up the hornet’s nest. You get to pay the consequences.”
Gladly, he decided. “Why don’t you go put on your PJs, Sarah?”
Sarah nodded enthusiastically. “They have reindeers on them.”
Joe smiled. “I bet they’re awesome.”
When the little girl had run down the hallway, he looked at Nikki. “I’m assuming she can get into them by herself. I might be wrong.”
“Oh, no. She can. They’re easy enough. They’re footed PJs that zip up the front,” she replied as she moved toward the kitchen.
Joe followed her, eager for a moment alone with her. “I got something else today,” he said.
“What’s that?” she asked over her shoulder.
Joe pulled the sprig of mistletoe from his pocket and held it aloft. “I thought I might have better luck stealing a kiss if tradition was on my side.”
Surprisingly, Nikki didn’t give him hell, or even some of that sass of hers he had come to like so much. Instead, she leaned in and planted a hungry kiss on his lips. Teasing him with the taste of her tongue. Joe felt a hunger of his own rise, his lion ready to come out and pounce on his mate, when the sound of running little feet caught his attention. About two seconds later, a little body hit his legs so hard it almost bowled both him and Nikki over.
“I’s ready for hot cocoa!” shrieked Sarah.
Joe reluctantly pulled his lips away from his mate and dropped the arm holding the mistletoe to drape around her waist as he looked down at the cub. “Cocoa and then bed, sweetling.”
Sarah’s little face screwed up as if she was thinking really hard about something, and then she fired back, “Cocoa, bedtime story, and then bed.”
Nikki giggled as she leaned into him and whispered, “Take the deal. It’s the best one you’re going to get.”
Joe agreed to the little girl’s terms, but for a very good reason. The sooner they got the wild li
ttle cub off the bed, the sooner he’d get his mate all to himself.
Chapter Fourteen
Nervous didn’t begin to describe how she felt sitting there in the dark with her mate.
She hadn’t accepted him fully yet. Nikki still had too many reservations for that, but she admired his persistence in trying to show her that they could work. Plus the way her need, and her panther’s need, for him continued to grow made her think that fate was a twisted bitch. She was damned if she did and damned if she didn’t.
Sort of like the physical need she felt coursing through her now. She wasn’t sure if she should act on it or not.
The Christmas tree lights were shining bright and merrily, so they weren’t totally in the dark, but the lights were off and Sarah was fast asleep. It was just her and Joe…and the heat in between them. They were cuddled on the couch watching a movie. Or at least that’s what they were supposed to be doing. In reality, Nikki was sitting there, unable to concentrate on the television because all she could think about was the hard, strong body she was curled against.
Her panther was just as distracted. She wanted to strip, shift, and rub herself all over Joe like a cat in heat to mark him as theirs. It was hard keeping her panther locked away, but Nikki did. She wanted this human time with Joe first before she let her panther out.
Or she should say, if she ever let her panther out with Joe. She was still unsure how this was going to end between them. Those were thoughts for another time and place though. This moment was about the here and now. Right now, she wanted Joe, and she wanted him touching her.
The scent of Joe’s arousal teased her senses and made her own burn even brighter. But as aroused as he was, Joe hadn’t made a single move on her yet. Why?
The better question might be, did she want Joe to make a move on her? If she listened to her body, that answer would be a resounding hell yes. Emotionally, was she ready for that step? Searching inside herself for the answer, she came up with a hesitant yes. Nikki might not be ready to have sex with Joe, but she did want to pet him. Touch his body and trace the hard ridges and lines until she reached the best parts of him. Would he find her as physically attractive as she found him?
She watched Joe out of the corner of her eye as he stared at the television screen. Was he really watching the movie, or was he sitting there overanalyzing things like she was?
There was only one way to find out.
Slowly, Nikki moved her hand from Joe’s stomach. The moment she moved, she could feel his muscles tense, as if he were a lion waiting to pounce on her. Hell, her panther was ready to pounce all over him. That sort of play was for another day though. Right now, Nikki wanted to play in her human form.
In an achingly slow move, she slid her hand up his hard six-pack abs over his shirt up until it rested on his chest. She could feel his heart beating like a kick drum through his body and it excited her to know that she had that sort of affect on him. Nikki, feeling more than a little bit playful and a whole lot of turned on, started to reach her fingers toward his nipple, when his harsh voice growled. “Don’t.”
Unsure if she had made the wrong move, she stopped just shy of touching him there. Had she read her mate wrong? Did he not want to be intimate with her tonight?
Nikki didn’t have to wait long for her answer. Joe turned his head, his eyes burning bright with both lust and his cat, and he growled at her again. “Don’t start making those moves unless you’re ready for me to make some of my own, sweetheart. I want to feel you so bad that I swear my dick is about to combust from too much blood flow. So don’t start something you can’t finish, love.”
Feeling the playfulness of her cat peeking through, Nikki asked, “And if I want to feel your hands on me tonight?”
In the blink of an eye, Nikki found herself on her back on the couch with Joe on top of her. He leaned his head down slowly until his lips touched the shell of her ear. “You want my hands, baby, then you can have them. All over you, petting you everywhere. Just say the word and I’ll make you feel better than you’ve ever felt.”
So turned on she was nearly breathless, Nikki whispered, “What words do you want me to say?”
Nuzzling her neck, Joe pulled back and then licked the shell of her ear before saying, “You’re not ready for the words I really want to hear, which are ‘fuck me, Joe’. So if my mate wants to play tonight, the magic words she has to say are ‘make me come, Joe’, and I will. I’ll make you come with my hands and my mouth, all night long if you want me to. Now all you have to do is say the words.”
Nikki’s breath hitched as arousal poured through her entire body like gasoline lit with a match. Never had she wanted a man as much as she wanted Joe right now. Feeling restless, aching to have him touching her already, she said the words he wanted. “Make me come, Joe.”
It was like she’d set a spark to tinder. Clothes shifted and her top disappeared entirely. When his large callused hands closed over her breasts, his work-roughened fingertips teasing the tender peaks of her nipples, Nikki had to bite her lip to keep from crying out. The last thing she wanted was to wake Sarah up and cut their play time short.
Joe’s lips followed the burning path created by his hands. He took first one taut nipple and then the other into the heat of his mouth. Laving with his tongue and then scoring gently with his teeth. Nikki was on edge second by second, never knowing what sensation he would evoke in her next. It didn’t matter, because they all contributed to the raging heat that had settled between her thighs.
She wanted him. And it wasn’t just because he was her mate. Yes, that heightened her body’s response to him, but it was more than that. His tenderness with Sarah, his carefulness with her, all of it packaged in a body that was beyond sinful and a face so handsome it hurt just to look at him—how could she not want him? Now, as he played her like an instrument, building the need to a fever pitch as she writhed under him, Nikki had a moment of regret. She’d asked him to make her come, but she knew that wouldn’t be enough. She needed to feel him hot and hard inside her, to be filled up by him and to give as much pleasure as she received.
“I changed my mind,” she said breathlessly, taking the plunge before she could second-guess herself.
He stopped instantly, his whole body still except for the ragged breathing that had his chest rising and falling rapidly against hers. “It’s okay. I’m never going to take something you’re not willing to give,” he finally whispered.
“No. I don’t mean about this. I mean about how far it goes. I asked you to make me come, but I want more,” she admitted softly.
His eyes blazed. “Then say the words, Nikki. I told you what they are.”
She blushed but didn’t take her gaze from his. “Fuck me, Joe.”
Her jeans vanished. They were almost shredded from her body. And when he came back down on top of her, his were gone as well. Commando. And packing. Holy hell, she thought with awe and a little bit of fear. He was huge.
There wasn’t a whole lot of time to consider the implications of his size. He’d slid down her body, parted her thighs, and pressed his lips to her mound, inhaling the scent of her arousal. “I’ve never wanted a taste of something so bad in my fucking life,” he growled, a hint of his animal coming through.
His mouth descended on her, his tongue slipping between the slick folds of her sex and lapping at her tender flesh until her whole body trembled with need. When his lips closed firmly over her clit, sucking lightly as he slipped two fingers inside her, Nikki broke, shattering beneath him as pleasure washed through her. She managed to muffle her cries as her body quaked and shuddered with her orgasm, but she had no idea how.
Her belly was still quivering in the aftermath when he rose up again and kissed her. His mouth was hot and hungry on hers and she could taste herself on his lips. It was more arousing than it should have been given that she’d just had the strongest and fastest orgasm of her life.
“I need to feel you, Nikki,” he rasped as he broke the kiss.
Nikki wiggled down deeper into the couch, until her bottom was barely perched on the cushions and he was kneeling between her thighs. His cock was thick and heavy as it rested against her. “Then take me,” she urged, shifting her hips to rub against him.
His hands gripped her thighs, parting them wider. Nikki reached between their bodies, gripped his massive erection, and guided it to her entrance. He pressed in, nudging inside her one glorious inch at a time, filling her completely, touching her in ways she’d never imagined.
When he was seated to the hilt, their bodies connected in the most primal of ways, their gazes locked with one another, then he moved—just a little pump of his hips. Nikki reached out, grabbing his forearms, her nails scoring his skin as she whispered urgently, “More.”
He eased back, slow and steady, then plunged into her again, harder and deeper than before. She couldn’t maintain the eye contact with him as the world fell away. Her head dropped back, her neck and back arching upward as her body bowed from overwhelming pleasure.
The rhythm he set wasn’t about making love. It wasn’t gentle and kind. The tenderness she’d seen from him wasn’t absent, but it sure as hell wasn’t running the show. She’d asked him to fuck her and he did. Relentlessly. Hard, fast, dirty, and so fucking good she bit her lip hard enough to draw blood.
The tension in her was wound so tight it was all she could do to breathe. One last thrust and she heard his growl. He was close. It was a risky thing to let her mate come inside her, but she craved the heat of it. Locking her legs around him, she drew him in deeper. He dropped his head to her breast, his teeth sinking into her flesh just hard enough to mark, but not enough to claim her. Her nails scored up his sides and then down his back. Her panther’s way of marking their mate in the only way that Nikki would allow right now. His hips jerked against hers and she felt that first rush of heat from him. Her body responded instantly. The tension in her peaked and then plummeted as pleasure swept through her. Her legs and belly quivering as she crested. The spasms arced outward, her body clenching around him as he shuddered against her.