"Careful," he says. I almost slip once, freezing in place, arms extended out to my sides, and then smile and take another step and my foot slides right out from under me.
I scream and fall into the pool. Arthur dives forward to catch me, and I fall into his arms just as we both go underwater. My scream turns into a tornado of bubbles, and the cold is sudden and absolute. Arthur immediately lifts me up, and I claw at my hair, pulling it from my eyes, gasping, my whole body shocked.
"You OK?" He's laughing. His arms are around me. He's holding me against his chest.
"Oh god. Cold! So cold!" Through the fog of panic and shock comes the thought again: his arms are around me. I'm being held against his broad chest. My shivering gasps stop, and the cold suddenly feels very distant. I look up into his face. Everything slows. Everything stops. Then slowly, impossibly, he leans down and kisses me.
His lips brush against mine, soft and sending a completely different kind of shiver through me. Did I think it was cold? My whole body trembles, and I wrap my arms around him, kissing him hungrily as he opens his mouth and his tongue ghosts across mine. I can't believe this is happening. I can't believe I'm kissing this hunk of a mountain man, and what's more, he's kissing me just as hungrily.
His gentleness evaporates, and his need comes surging to the fore. His massive arms hold me close, press me to his muscled chest, and he kisses me with a passion I've never thought would be directed at me. I moan as his tongue dances over mine. Each moment that our lips are locked stokes the fires in my body up higher. My hands move over his broad shoulders, my nails raking his skin just like I've dreamed, and he presses me hard against him, his cock rigid against my hip, and the very thought of it drives me wild.
Arthur takes a step and rises out of the pool, lifting me bodily in his arms. Trailing streams of water he carries me to the fire's side and sets me down only long enough to throw a blanket next to it. I start to shiver, eyes wide, as Arthur dumps a mass of logs on the fire, and then turns to me. The sun is setting, the light golden and liquid, and I've never seen a more beautiful man. The perfect blend of masculine and gentle, gorgeous and strong.
He kneels by my side and begins helping me out of my soaked clothing. I'm shivering, my teeth chattering, and I stiffly try to help, turning this way and that, raising my arms, scooting up my hips. He strips me. Removes each article of clothing, and I love how he's barely managing to remain gentle, how his movements are becoming imperious, demanding. Each piece of clothing gets thrown aside, until I'm just sitting in my soaked panties and bra. The fire is leaping and roaring now, but still I'm cold, still I shiver.
"Come," he orders, and lies down next to me. I turn and push back against him, so that he spoons me perfectly, his massive body curled protectively around my own, making me feel small and delicate. How can he be so raging hot? His skin warms me like nothing else. His body is hard, his cock straining against my hip. I'm breathing shallowly, my nerves afire, and when he leans his head down and growls and kisses me in the crook of my neck, I almost whimper.
He bites my neck, his growl resonating deep within his chest, and his arm comes over my body, his large hand cupping my breast possessively. I push my hips back against him, blazing need pooling at my core. I've never been with a man, never done more than dream, but even my wildest dreams don't compare to this moment. To this bone-deep desire I feel for him.
Arthur gently squeezes my breasts, and I feel my nipples, already pebbled and hard from the cold water, ache with pleasure. His whole body is alive behind me, as if he can't lie still, pulling me to him. I look over my shoulder and his lips meet mine again. Dear god, what a kiss, full of hunger and passion. The fire before me, his heat behind me, and my own flames licking at my core. I'm burning up.
He reaches up and unclasps my bra, then slides his hands up and under it, his hands hot and sure on my tits. "You're so beautiful, Anita."
I press back against him. I need him, I want him, in every way. "Touch me," I whisper. "All of me."
Arthur smiles and kisses me again, his hands exploring my body, from my full breasts which fill his large hands perfectly to my tummy, down over my hips and thighs which he pulls open so that one knee points at the sky, and then his palm cups my sex. I groan into his mouth, unable to control myself, the base of his palm rubbing against my pussy, a light friction that drives me wild.
I open my legs wider, feeling wild and exposed, vulnerable and not caring. I lean my head back into his neck so he can kiss my throat. I feel almost feverish, and then, unable to control myself, I turn over and push him onto his back.
Arthur's eyes open wide with surprise and pleasure as I grab his boxers with both hands. "I've been wanting to do this since I met you," I say.
His body is a vision, his abs in clear relief, and his smile drives me over the edge. "Why did you wait?"
"Because," I say, voice husky as I pull his boxers down. "I'm a lady." His cock slides into view, and I have to fight back a gasp. He's a massive man. His cock is just as large. I can't believe he's lying there before me with his insanely sexy body, his perfect cock, and that inviting smile. I slowly close my hand around the base of its shaft. It's large, stiff, and there are beads of pre-cum and water down its length. I wrap both hands around it, and there's still room for more.
"Did I say I was a lady?" I whisper, moving my hands up and down his shaft. When I get to the tip, I move my thumb over his slit, wiping his moisture over the head of his cock. "I'm changing my mind."
"Oh, Anita," groans Arthur, and it's the sexiest sight, how he closes his eyes as I work his shaft, the pleasure I'm giving my mountain man causing his muscles to tighten. I lean down and lick the crown of his cock, loving the slightly salty taste, and Arthur groans again. I work his shaft slowly, and then lower my head and slide him past my lips.
"Yes," he moans. "God, that's perfect."
I push down, trying to take more and more of him into my mouth until he hits the back of my throat. He's just too large. I raise my head, pumping his shaft with smooth, hard strokes, and then lower my mouth down once more, trying to take more. Over and over, his hips rising to meet me each time, until with a groan he sits up, reaching out to take my face in his hands.
"What's wrong?" I ask, suddenly nervous.
"Wrong?" He laughs. "Nothing. I just don't want to lose control yet. Not before I've had a chance to taste you. Lick you. Suck you. Own you."
He kisses me and I almost swoon. He turns, lays me down on the blanket, and then leaves a trail of fiery kisses across to my ear, where he bites the lobe, then moves down my neck to the hollow of my throat. I bury my hands in his thick hair, and then arch my chest as his lips close over one nipple, the heat and soft rasp of his tongue driving me to the edge. He cups my breasts, squeezing them deliciously, and moves from nipple to nipple, the pleasure too much, suckling and nipping them till I'm so wet between my legs I think I'll come just from his attention to my breasts.
"I need your cock," I say, not caring how I sound.
He rumbles and moves his face down my tummy, kissing me, not caring if I'm soft there, biting and mock-growling till his head is between my thighs. "Not yet," he says, looking up at me. "I told you I need to taste you."
Wetness drips from my pussy, and the sight of his face but an inch from my sex is too much. I can even feel his breath on my sensitive lips, and when he licks me I cry out, as if I'm being lashed by a whip of pleasure. He wraps his arms around my large thighs, making sure I'm spread open before him, and then licks me again, from base to clit, causing me to writhe and gasp. It's too much. I can't take it.
Then he traces a swirling path down over my lips, only to spear his tongue between my folds and into my hot, aching core. I arch my back again, overwhelmed, wanting him inside me, deep within me, filling me like I know only he can.
"Oh, Anita, you taste fucking divine." His voice is a raw growl, his need making him sound almost bestial.
"Lick me," I say, raising my hips. "Deeper. Lick my clit.
" Saying these words pushes me closer to the edge. Never did I think I'd be ordering a man like Arthur to eat me out. I love it.
And he obliges. Growling, the vibration only adding to my ecstasy, he licks and sucks, teasing and tormenting my clit, burying his tongue inside me, swirling and occasionally licking my whole sex with the flat of his tongue until I can't even breathe. My pleasure is mounting, making me feel desperate, almost panicked. I need release. Oh, god, how can anything feel this good?
"Harder," I gasp. "Please. Please make me come. Please."
Arthur obliges with a hunger all his own, working his tongue around and around my clit, flicking it, and then I cry out when he slides two fingers deep into my soaking passage. He sucks at my clit and works his fingers inside me, and with a thunderous crescendo my orgasm floods through me, making my hips shake and shiver and dance under his touch, my eyes squeezing shut as I cry out, my whole world shaking as if it's caught in the grip of the most deliriously exquisite earthquake.
Chapter 9
"What..." I gasp, rubbing my forearm over my face. "What was that?"
Arthur smiles as he rises to his knees. "That was the appetizer."
"Appetizer? I thought that was the main course."
I watch, mesmerized, as he takes hold of his cock. His long fingers wrap around it and he slowly strokes himself, his eyes drinking me in. My reflex to feel self-conscious tries to assert itself, but the hunger in his eyes causes it to melt away. He doesn't care if my tummy is soft, if my thighs are thick, if I'm a curvy girl. No, he loves it. "You taste so fucking good, Anita. Just like I knew you would. I could lick and suck you forever."
I gulp. If anything his cock looks even larger. Harder. The crown swollen.
"You're so beautiful, Anita. Every inch of you. You've been driving me wild since we met."
"I have?" I can't believe it. He's seemed so calm. So in control.
Arthur laughs. "Are you kidding me? With your wicked curves, that smile, the smell of your arousal? I've been waiting to sink my cock into you since I agreed to bring you out here. Wanting you. Wanting this."
I feel a warmth suffuse me that's more than just physical pleasure. It's not quite delight, it's not quite joy. It's genuine happiness. "Then fuck me, Arthur. Please. Don't make me beg."
Reaching down, he grabs my legs and brings me close to him. Leans down so that the head of his cock rests against my lips. My whole body almost spasms from his touch. "How badly do you want my cock, Anita?" His grin is pure evil.
"I want it so much. I want all of you. Inside me. Stretching me. More than anything."
He slowly eases forward, his head pushing against my lips, which slickly part before him, enveloping him, welcoming him. I groan, and I hear him growl again. I love that sound. It sounds feral, deep and untamable. He slides in an inch, and he does stretch me, his girth such that I dig my nails into his thighs, the pleasure so deep that the sting only serves to heighten the sensation.
"Oh, god, you're so big." I raise my hips, angling them to take him perfectly.
"Fuck, Anita." His voice is pure churned gravel. "This. Right here." He eases deeper into me, and I throw my head back, crying out as he slides home, taking all of him to the hilt. It's a smooth glide in to my core, and it feels amazing, an intensity I can't believe, his whole body over mine. He buries his face in my neck, bites me again, and I claw at his back, not caring how hard I scratch him.
He stops, deep within me, and I can't breathe, I can't think. We're connected at the hips, my legs wrapped around him, and then with a ragged breath he withdraws, the ridges of his crown dragging forth waves of pleasure through my pussy that I can't believe. My lungs are burning, my skin is slick with sweat, and I open my eyes to see that he's looking at me, his eyes wide. A world of communication passes between us.
"Anita," he groans. "I can't."
Panic. "Can't what?"
"Hold back. Be gentle. I need you too much."
"Then fuck me," I say, my heart beating wildly. "Don't hold back. Give it to me. All of it. Now."
And he does. He slides into me again, faster, harder, then out. Over and over, merciless, building in tempo, my hips bucking to his rhythm, my pussy accommodating him, welcoming him, his strokes driving me right to the point of ecstasy.
I'm breathing in shallow gasps, and a moment of clarity hits me: I'm making love with the most gorgeous man I've ever met. He's losing control over me. He's wanted me since we met. All facts, all unbelievably amazing. I cry out and push back against him, urging him on, and the low growls that are coming from him as he truly lets go are the sexiest, wildest sounds I've ever heard.
Faster and harder, my whole body shaking as he slams into me. He's so big and strong that I feel tiny beneath him, his hands wrapped tight around my hips as he rises to his knees, his whole body focused on one thing and one thing only. Faster and faster, and my orgasm approaches, a tidal wave compared to the ripple I felt before. I'm crying out, not even knowing what I'm saying, and then he throws his head back and roars just as I come, my whole body clenching as his hot seed spurts deep within me, his cock rock-hard and spasming.
The universe bursts into stars. We're so tightly pressed together I don't think we'll ever come apart. I'm moaning and shaking, and he falls forward over me, his lips finding my own as he thrusts slowly, and finally stops. I feel tremulous, raw, almost dizzy. I fight for breath even as he kisses me, his kisses tender, but I know he's gone somewhere deep, somewhere far away. His eyes see right through me, and I get the sensation that he's dived deep and is swimming for the surface. I hold onto him, hold him close, till finally he blinks and looks at me, his lips curving into a smile.
"You," he whispers.
Just that one word gives me butterflies. "Yes?"
"You." He shakes his head, as if that's all he can manage, and with a groan rolls off me. He scoops me close, lying on his side so that we both face the fire. I'm throbbing still, the aftershocks sending flashes of heat through my body. I feel lazy. Amazing. Languorous. I've never felt so good. So happy. So sexy. His body feels amazing pressed against mine.
"Oh, Arthur," I sigh, and snuggle even closer. He tenses up. I look over my shoulder at him. "What is it?"
"Anita." His voice is heavy, hesitant. A stab of fear rushes through me.
"What?"
"I have to tell you something."
Can any six words be more terrifying after sex? Is he married? "Arthur?"
"That's –" His voice is heavy. "That's not my name."
I sit up and turn to face him. "Excuse me?"
"Arthur. That's not my name."
I feel like I've been hit by a truck. "What?" How do I even begin process this? "Then – what is your name?"
He sits up, his body gleaming in the firelight, pain and hesitation on his features. "Soren."
"Soren." I say the name flatly, and then suddenly again, infused with new understanding. "Soren?"
He nods. "I'm the werebear you've been searching for. You just didn't know you'd found me right from the get-go."
I leap to my feet and stare down at him, heart pounding. "You lied to me? Why?" I snatch up my shirt and hold it against my body.
Arthur – no, Soren – raises a hand as if to calm me. "You asked about the honey."
My fury checks itself. I was about to throw a boot at him, start panicking, but that causes me to pause. "So?"
"I had to learn more about you before I decided whether to give you more."
"By lying to me?" Outrage spikes again.
"By getting you to show me your true colors. You don't know how many people have come searching for it. The lies I've heard. The threats."
Again I stop. I'm alternating between fury and confusion. "Threats?"
He nods, face grim. "Threats. You know that honey is special. You could even call it magical. It's made in only one place, a secret glade that I guard. It's my responsibility to make sure it's not taken advantage of. It's my sacred duty to protect it."
Th
e firelight dances over his broad, honest face. I sink down to sit on a smooth rock. Study his face. "Why didn't you just tell me this?"
"Because you're the first person I've ever considered showing the glade. The first person I haven't just said no to." Soren sits up and loops his arms around his knees. "My bear trusted you. But I had to get to know you. The real you. Which I thought traveling together would do. And it did."
I don't know what to say. I want to be furious, but I can't.
"I'm sorry," he says, his voice grave. "I'm sorry I lied to you. But I wanted to give you a chance to prove yourself. To convince me to help you. In the heat of the moment, it was the only way I could think of."
"And the rest? Selune? Your solitude? Everything you told me? Was that a lie too?"
He shakes his head. "No. All of that was true. I just didn't tell you how during my travels after leaving the clan I discovered the glade. Or, more accurately, was led to it. How I was asked to become its guardian, and how I accepted. It's the true reason I've been alone these many years."
"Oh." I turn this over in my mind. I don't know what to say. "Wait. So does this mean you've decided to share the honey with me?"
Soren stares deep into my eyes, and then slowly nods.
I feel a spike of unexpected joy. That means I'll be able to get the investment from Whitman. I'll be able to pay off Harold. I'll be able to save my father. My joy lasts only a moment. Those thoughts – of Harold and Gerry and Whitman – they're of a more complicated, darker world. A world of debt and payment. Completely different from the simplicity and purity of this wilderness, of Soren's company. It's a world I suddenly don't want to return to. But I have no choice. I can't abandon my father. I have to return. This sojourn with Soren is temporary. A moment of bliss that I can't capture. This can't be my life.
I return to the blanket. Soren is watching me carefully. He's sharp. He can tell there are complex thoughts running through my mind. I sit next to him, and he wraps an arm around my shoulders. He's so comforting. So strong. Like a force of nature.
Look Before You Bake: (BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance) (Honeycomb Falls Book 2) Page 7