by Cecy Robson
I gawked at the shoes and the lingerie she handed me. The thong alone could have fit in a lipstick case. It was one of the more risqué items Taran had selected. I’d hoped to start off slow and ease my way into that little number. “But this one comes with a garter belt and thigh-high stockings.”
“No shit.” Taran glowered when I continued to gape. “Celia. You’re the one who begged for my help—”
“I didn’t beg—”
“Now run along and get dressed. Just make sure whatever outfit you wear for dinner hides the lingerie.” She hustled us out the door. “Hurry up, we’re running out of time.”
Emme and I arrived in Taran’s room wearing very casual but pretty print dresses. Shayna wore gray leggings under an off-the-shoulder white tunic. I was stunned to find Taran in nothing but red lace and four-inch heels. She threw her hands in the air like we’d committed a major slutty lingerie faux pas. “What the hell are you guys doing? I want you in only underwear and shoes. Take the rest of that shit off.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Because we’re going to practice posing.”
“Huh?”
Taran tapped her heel and huffed like we’d exhausted the last of her patience. “You have to learn which pose works best to enhance your bodies in your lingerie.” My blank expression only pissed her off further. “It adds to the seduction process!”
Taran sighed when the rest of us exchanged what-the-hell glances. “Watch and learn.” She folded her arms and leaned over her dresser. Emme jumped when Taran threw out her butt like some sort of weapon. Taran continued, unaffected. She flipped her dark hair, pouted her lips, and propelled her cleavage forward like missiles targeting terrorists. I learned two things then. One, Taran had missed her calling as a Victoria’s Secret model. And two, I must have been on crack when I asked her for help.
Taran pushed off from the dresser and placed a hand on her hip, clearly presenting herself as the ruler of the overexaggerated backsides. I thought she expected us to bow, or at the very least applaud. We did neither. Nor did we move. Except for Emme, who eyed the door like she might bolt.
Taran ignored her and held out her hands. “Are you ready to try, my young grasshoppers?”
I nodded slowly, surprised by how much work went into seducing a werewolf. My tigress reminded me Aric was worth it, so I stepped forward and began my crash course in posing. I don’t know if we were seductively inept or what, but we had to work on our poses all afternoon.
“Shayna, what the hell are you doing? I told you to stick out your breasts!”
“They are out!”
“Oh yes, they are. Sorry, girl.”
“Damn it, Emme, flip the hair! More, more, more—oh, shit. Not that much!”
“Ow! Oh no, now I have to heal.”
“Dude, is this posing stuff supposed to hurt?”
“Quit whining, Shayna. You won’t be doing it for long, trust me. One of two things will happen. Either he’ll jump you right away or he’ll watch you completely entranced. If it’s the latter, try to bend over a lot. It drives men wild.” Taran turned to me and ran her fingers through my hair, making it fuller. “And for shit’s sake, don’t forget to work the mane as much as possible. Celia, you have that whole porn-star-hair thing going for you. Milk it for all it’s worth. Also, incorporate the furniture somehow. Guys like that.”
• • •
“Gimme your money and a little affection, bitch, and maybe I won’t hurt you.”
The universe hated me. I was honest-to-God convinced of that fact. Any other gal could have had a nice romantic dinner and gone home to have sex with her werewolf lover. Anyone but me.
Aric pulled me against him protectively. If the gang of delinquents facing us in the parking garage knew what was good for them, they would leave—now. Damn, I was pissed. Aric had been telling me how beautiful I was all night and barely kept his hands off me during dinner. My confidence soared, my sexuality bolstered. I was set to seduce Aric via Taran-esque posing. But if these little maggots forced me to change and rip my skimpy and expensive lingerie, I was going to beat the unholy crap out of them.
The leader meandered away from the Escalade and glared at Aric. Wrong move against an Alpha werewolf. Aric growled louder and deeper than a hound from hell. The stupid teenager had inadvertently challenged my wolf.
A kid flashed a gun. “Hey, mama. Come over here, I’ll give it to you real good.”
One by one, the rest pulled out knives. Aric stepped in front of me. His growl deepening as he headed toward the teen brandishing the gun. The others panicked as he advanced. I’d be scared, too, if some crazy guy pretending to be a dog was coming at me.
Before I could say, We need to get home so I can seduce you, all but one kid had either run off or lay unconscious. The last idiot waved a knife in my face, clearly terrified. “I’ll cut her, man,” he told Aric. “I’ll cut her if you get near me!”
I snatched the wrist holding the knife and crushed it as I yanked him to me, changing my face to that of my beast. The knife hit the concrete. I roared and snapped my fangs an inch from his nose. He didn’t take it well. The kid’s eyes rolled into the back of his head just before he crashed to the ground. I released him, trying hard not to kick his sorry ass into the wall. He and his friends could have hurt someone. I’d let him off easy with a broken wrist and a mild concussion.
Aric ushered me to the Escalade. “Come on, sweetness. I’ll call the weres on the force on the way.” He opened the car door for me, but something near the dark corner of the garage alerted my senses. I couldn’t smell it or hear it; I only felt it. And it felt cold, unearthly, wrong.
I inched away from the car. “What is that?”
He peered in the same direction. “Stay here.”
I ignored his order and followed behind him. Aric kept his arm out near me, but his focus remained ahead. We found nothing in the corner when we reached it, but the sense of wrongness continued to linger. Aric bent to take a whiff. His nose wrinkled in disgust. I inhaled as well, hoping to understand what had stalked and watched us.
An awful, sharp and sour stench burned my nose and made me want to flee from it. My inner beast cringed. Our saving grace was that whatever had lurked was gone, and that its scent faded quickly.
“Demon,” Aric said.
I hoped he was joking. “You mean demon child?”
“No. This was one of those damned to hell that can’t remain on earth.”
I straightened, my blood turning into clotting chunks of ice. “But who summoned it?”
Aric focused on the corner as he stood. “Sometimes demons appear on earth when there’s a strong collection of evil. Those damn kids probably attracted it through their shared thoughts and actions.” He shrugged. “And with all the attacks and the presence of evil lately, it was probably easier for one to present itself.”
My eyes scanned the area. “Should we search for it, just in case it’s still here?” Although I asked, meeting a demon was high on my list of things I never wanted to do. Their offspring had been kicks and giggles enough.
“No. There’s no trace of him left. I’m certain he’s back in hell where he belongs.”
I wrapped my arms around myself. “Glad to hear it.”
Aric’s eyes shimmered with ferocity when he drew me to him. “I swear to God, I won’t let anything hurt you, Celia.”
In his arms, with that heat, I believed him. He led me back to the car, holding me close. I didn’t like being coddled. I was tough, strong, and capable of protecting myself and those I loved. But something about Aric made it okay for me not to be the hero for once.
Aric’s constant touch on our drive back to the house dissolved the unease the demon had created. He kept rubbing my knee and reaching across the seat to stroke my cheek. The scuffle and momentary threat of danger had excited his wolf. I could taste his longing against my tongue and looked forward to exciting him more. But when we entered the house, my confidence took a nosedive.
Emme and Shayna, both wearing bathrobes, slouched on the couch while their wolves tended to them. Misery and humiliation shimmied like well-endowed burlesque dancers across their faces.
“Bend over a little more, angel.” Liam tucked the fan knotted into Emme’s hair beneath his arm. His right hand manipulated the scissors, cutting Emme’s hair free in large, uneven chunks. “Why did you shake your head so close to the fan, sweet girl?”
Emme’s bottom lip pouted down to her toes. “I was flipping my hair, Liam.” Her blush could have set off a sprinkler. “Oh, never mind. . . .”
Poor Emme. And Shayna? Good grief. Koda held an ice pack to her neck. He tilted her chin as he examined her head carefully. “I still don’t understand why you were lying on top of your dresser like that, baby. You could’ve gotten hurt a lot worse by the way you fell.”
“I’ll explain after Emme heals me, puppy,” she grumbled.
The wolves seemed so distracted by my sisters’ injuries, they’d missed the point entirely. I tugged at my skirt. My tigress made me more graceful and coordinated than my sisters, yet their sexual expertise far exceeded mine. I second-, third-, and fourth-guessed my posing abilities. “Um. Are you guys all right?” Shayna nodded. Emme tried, but the fan impeded her movements. “Ah. Okay. Where’s Taran?”
Shayna jerked a rather irate thumb in the direction of Taran’s bedroom. “She called Gemini to her room and asked him if he’d like to deflower her. He slammed the door shut behind him. We heard a lot of grunting and screaming, and they haven’t come out since.” Shayna thought about it. “I think they broke her dresser.”
“Oh.” Something told me no falls or fan fiascos lay behind Taran’s closed door. I hoped none would transpire in my room and made a mental note to avoid the window and anything pointy. I slapped my hands against my sides. “Well, I guess we should head up ourselves.”
Emme clasped her hands over her lap. “Yes, good luck with that.” Liam had finally set her free. And not to judge, but I think a two-year-old sugared up on Pixy Stix could have done a better job on her hair. For her sake, I prayed her hair would grow back fast.
Aric covered his hand with mine and led me upstairs to my room. He sat on the bed and pulled me onto his lap. “What the hell was up with that?”
“Oh, you know girls.” I stood and patted his back like an idiot. “Why don’t you get comfy? It’s been a long night.”
Aric angled his head, scenting my nervousness. Thankfully he didn’t push and began to remove his shoes. I gathered my courage and moved to the dresser, watching as he loosened his tie and unbuttoned his collar. I sighed. The disheveled look totally worked for that wolf.
“Aric, could you help me unzip my dress?”
A hint of want sparkled behind his grin. “Yeah, I can do that for you, baby.”
The way he gradually pulled down my zipper told me he was ready to make love. I stepped away from him before he could take off my dress. Damn it, I’d worked hard on my ridiculous posing all afternoon. I couldn’t spoil the big reveal now. “Thanks, Aric. I’ll get the rest.”
“All right. . . .”
I turned my back and waited by the mirror as he returned to the bed and removed his clothing. When he was down to his briefs, I let my dress drop to the floor as loudly as possible. I tried not to glance at him for fear I’d be too embarrassed to continue, but I felt his eyes lock on to my body.
Aric swallowed audibly when I thrust out my bottom in the exaggerated way Taran had taught me. He growled when I bent over to pick up my dress and tossed it aside. I rose and flipped my hair back, causing his sound effects to intensify. Then, slowly, I ran my hands down my body.
Aric stood before me at once, his voice several octaves lower. “What are you trying to do to me?” His hands gripped my hips, his breath hot and ragged teasing my flesh. I groaned from the evidence of his growing need pressing against my body. “Celia, what are you trying to do?”
My hands slid up his chest as I forced my eyes to reflect an innocence his body had vanquished from its first touch. I licked my lips. “Seduce you,” I whispered.
Aric’s passion ignited mine. What happened next was a frenzied exploration involving lips, tongues, teeth, and hands. Our cries echoed loud enough to bash down the door, our movements forceful enough to collide the dresser into the wall.
When foreplay wasn’t enough, Aric carried me to the bed. He lay on top of me, our sizzling skin sliding against each other, our kisses wild and deep.
I clasped his wrist when he reached for the box of condoms on the nightstand. “You won’t need those anymore.”
The already burning fire in Aric’s eyes intensified into an inferno. He threw the condoms across the room. His head fell against my shoulder and he seized me tight, struggling to stay controlled. With a hard yank he pulled off my tattered thong. He entered me and began to move.
“Do you want me?” he asked between grunts.
“Yes,” I whimpered.
“Can I have you?”
“Yes.”
“Then you’re mine.”
• • •
Aric’s cell phone alarm woke me from the best sleep of my life. He didn’t make a move to turn it off. Instead he continued to lie where he’d fallen asleep, with his face buried between my breasts. I maneuvered enough to shut it off, but even my movements failed to wake him. He looked so peaceful and content. I hated to disturb him, except I knew he couldn’t be late for work.
I stroked his long dark hair off his forehead. “Baby,” I whispered. “It’s time to wake up, love.” He still didn’t move. I glided my hands around his hard shoulders, but instead of his eyes opening, something else perked in attention.
Part of me was scared what we had wasn’t real and that it would end too soon. It was that same side of me that wanted as much of Aric as possible while I still had him. So I continued to caress him, triggering my excitement in the process.
My breath came out in quick bursts. Aric stirred. His nostrils flared once before he opened his eyes. My touch hadn’t succeeded in wakening him, but it seemed the scent of my arousal had.
He repositioned himself on top of me and kissed my neck. “Good morning, sweetness,” he murmured.
My back arched with pleasure. “Good morning.” There was no foreplay this time, but it wasn’t necessary. Aric hooked my leg over his shoulder, and we began our day.
CHAPTER 17
Emme’s pale yellow light receded. “Did I get all of them, Celia?”
I examined my neck in the foyer mirror, trying my best to avoid facing Emme. She knew Aric and I regularly engaged in sexual intimacy. Still, I had to work up my courage to ask her to erase the evidence of his exploration. June in Tahoe didn’t allow for scarves or turtlenecks, and my scrubs hid very little. “Yeah. I think so. Thanks, Emme.”
Shayna fell into the sofa. Her droopy ponytail matched her mood. She wasn’t herself when Koda had to leave her to hunt. “Can I drive us to work today?”
“No,” the rest of answered.
I didn’t care at that moment how depressed she appeared. Shayna wasn’t allowed to drive us anywhere. Ever. If we had somehow slipped into comas and a tribe of cannibalistic pigmies were about to sacrifice us to their volcanic god, and Shayna behind the wheel was our only escape? I’d take my chances with the lava.
Shayna blew out a breath hard enough to flutter her bangs. “Did Aric give you any indication how long he and the wolves would be gone?”
I sat next to her. “No. I just know things aren’t going well. Every scent they pick up leads to a dead end.”
“Or a dead body.” Taran scrolled through her iPad as she paced. “Three more women missing. This time near Carson City.”
Shayna lifted her head. “Do you think they were with those three men Koda and the others found near Lake Tahoe State Park?”
“It’s possible. Considering the vamps, or whatever, continue to target couples on dates.” I rounded up my thick hair and attempted to tie it in
to a twist. It took a few tries since my hands couldn’t seem to work right. “And women out on their own.”
Emme helped me fasten my clip. “What do you think is happening to them? We know they’re draining the men, but . . .”
Taran shut the cover closed over her iPad. She brushed her hands over her arms as if something crawled along her skin. “I’d rather not think about it, Emme.”
There was a lot I didn’t want to think about. The fate of the women. The last few breaths of the men. How I’d fallen in love with a werewolf who hunted the supernasties of the world. And how his Elders held him responsible for it all.
I grabbed my purse and huge lunch sack, pausing when I caught Taran continuing to hug herself. “Are the nightmares back?”
She stared blankly out the window. “They haven’t left, Celia. They’re just getting more vivid.”
I moved to stand next to her. “Do you talk to Gemini about them?”
“Not really. They don’t happen much when he’s around.” Taran wiped the crease of her lid, removing a bit of eye shadow that had smeared. Makeup seemed like too much work. That’s why I never bothered. She examined the charcoal color on her fingertips. “I’m not looking forward to the night without him.”
“He makes you feel safe, doesn’t he?”
Taran snatched the keys off the table. “Yeah. Even when I dream of demons raping me.”
I stepped in front of her and held out my hand, trying to ignore Emme’s and Shayna’s gasps. We’d suspected what her nightmares entailed. But Taran hadn’t confirmed our fears until now. They must have worsened in the past few weeks. “Why don’t you let me drive today?”
Her glare prepared me to argue. Instead she nodded and handed me the keys to our Tribeca. I didn’t like seeing Taran so shaken. Thank God Mrs. Mancuso was around to lift our spirits.
“Whores!”
I leaned my head against the car. We’d almost made it safely into the cabin. Taran stepped into the car and leaned her arm against the opened window. “You got that right, Mancuso. By the way, your grandson sends his love.”