Bear Mountain Bride: Shifter Romance

by Sky Winters

  Luke drove up to the restaurant and parked, letting the engine idle. He got off and went to help Jennifer off the seat, “Can we exchange numbers?” she blurted out, wincing at her own inelegance.

  “Of course,” Luke pulled out his cell phone and set up a new contact before handing her the phone. Jennifer quickly plugged her number in and shot off a text to herself and handed it back to him.

  “Thank you, for today. I had a really good time,” she swung her hands at her sides, unsure of what to do with them.

  “Me too. The pleasure was all mine, Jennifer. Really,” he reached out and pulled her towards him for a goodbye kiss. It was swift, but by no means chaste. He smiled at her before climbing back on and taking off.

  Jennifer watched the bike shrink in size before disappearing down the road, nearly panting with lust.

  Her phone rang, Tiffany was calling, “Hey, Tiff. I was just about to call you.”

  “Hey! Where are you? I was beginning to get worried.”

  “I’m at the restaurant, can you come pick me up?”

  “You been there all afternoon? It’s nearly seven!”

  Jennifer chuckled a bit, “No I haven’t. You won’t believe me. Come get me and I’ll tell you all about it.”

  “Ooo! I’m on my way!” and the line went dead. Jennifer tapped her phone against her hand and smiled to herself. Tiffany was going to die when she told her what happened, and what nearly happened.

  “You’re right. I don’t believe it. You? No offense, but you’re a little tightly wound, girl,” their apartment complex came into view. Jennifer had spent the ten-minute drive excitedly spilling every detail of her day.

  “Thanks, Tiff!” Jennifer wasn’t offended. Tiffany was right. She had been beyond an uptight stick-in-the-mud all summer.

  “Well, you can be! I’m proud of you for letting yourself have a little fun; and with a strange man no less,” Tiffany waggled her eyebrows at her.

  “Cut that out. You look like Groucho Marx,” Jennifer said with a laugh, “I really want to see him again, Tiff. I think a little fling will be just what I need to finally get over Jason and the entire spring semester.”

  “Atta girl! Like I’ve been telling you since May, the best way to get over a guy is to get under another one,” both girls broke out in peals of laughter. It was so nice to laugh again. Jennifer hadn’t noticed how deep she had slipped into her funk until now.

  “What do you say to renting a bad horror movie and getting Chinese?”

  “I think that is an amazing idea. You call China Palace while I run to the Redbox, Okay?” Tiffany suggested as she unlocked the front door.

  “Works for me. What do you want?”

  “Boneless spare ribs and fried rice, but add in some of those fried egg roll things. They were amazing last time,” Tiffany shouted as she shut the door behind her.

  Jennifer called and placed the delivery order. As she hung up a text message came through:

  I want to see you again. Tonight. Can you meet me somewhere?

  A tingle went up Jennifer’s spine. Of course she wanted to meet him. Even rehashing their make out in the car with Tiffany got her hot and bothered. She decided to wait until Tiffany got back to answer. She had made plans and didn’t really want to bail.

  Twenty minutes later Tiffany had come home, “I got some real Oscar winners here, girl. How does Cheerleader Zombie Hunters and American Werewolf in Tennessee sound?”

  “American Werewolf in Tennessee?”

  “Yeah the synopsis said it was kind of like American Werewolf in London, but set in the Appalachian Mountains. I looked up the lead actor and he was super cute so at least there’s eye candy if it’s lame.”

  “Let’s start with that one. The food should be here any minute so go set the movie up while I go change,” she had been so distracted she forgot how filthy her pants were.

  Closing her bedroom door behind her she peeled her damp clothes off and changed into a black lace bra and panty set, she had every intention of seeing Luke again tonight and she wanted to be ready. She fired off her response before fully dressing,

  I’d love to… later. I have movie plans with Tiffany. I’ll text you when we’re done.

  She threw on her silky pink pajama shorts and her favorite Butcher Babies tee just as Tiffany hollered that the food had arrived, “I’m coming!” she checked her phone, no response, shrugged and chucked it on the bed. She wanted him badly, but she wasn’t going to come off as overeager or desperate.

  “This movie is ridiculous!” Jennifer shouted. American Werewolf in Tennessee was proving to be a riot. The acting was the worst. The film was supposed to be set in the mountains, but it looked like it was filmed in someone’s backyard in Palm Springs.

  “Yeah, but I told you the actor was cute. Look at his butt as he runs through the woods. Mmm. Mommy, like.”

  Jennifer laughed, but something in the next scene had caught her attention. The lead had been attacked by a wolf earlier in the film and had shifted during the full moon. He had woken up, covered in blood and in the middle of the woods, his girlfriend’s corpse on the ground next to him.

  An ominous shiver went up her spine. The movie was hokey as hell, but it did remind her that her chosen career path was really a dangerous one.

  “Poor bastard. That is so sad,” Tiffany slouched into the sofa, “Can you imagine being cursed like that and killing the person you loved the most?”

  “I’m sure it would destroy me.”

  The next scene immediately obliterated the heart-wrenching kill scene with a poorly rendered wolf puppet and an Appalachian witch doctor.

  Jennifer was getting a bit antsy, and excused herself to her room. She wanted to so bad to play it cool, but cool was not her M.O.

  She woke her phone up to see she did indeed have a message received only ten minutes before,

  I want you.

  That’s all it said. Jennifer’s stomach clenched in anticipation, she had tried to pretend she hadn’t been hot and bothered since she got home, but she couldn’t keep up the charade. In a flash she had sent him her address. She didn’t want to wait.

  “Hey, Tiffany?”

  “What’s up?”

  “I hope you don’t mind, but I’ve got a guest coming over in a bit.”

  “Oooo a booty call!” she squealed, “Well, far be it from me to cock block my girl,” she glanced at the clock, “It’s only nine o’clock. I’ll go see if I can’t get a little for myself.”

  She leapt off the sofa quick as a dog, and hugged Jennifer, “Now remember, sex is cleaner with a packaged wiener.”

  “Ugh! You are such a dude!”

  Tiffany howled all the way to her bedroom, no doubt to change into one of her “man catching” outfits.

  Jennifer stood, shaking her head. That girl did nothing to ease her awkwardness.

  Her phone buzzed again.

  I’m outside. Which apartment number?

  She responded and then wondered where he was staying. It only took him five minutes to get to her apartment. Then she chided herself, this was a small town, and it only took five to ten minutes to get anywhere.

  A knock jolted her from her thoughts.

  “I’ll get it!” Tiffany paraded out of her room in a patterned mini dress that barely covered the tops of her thighs.

  “No! No, no. I’ll get it,” she was too slow. Tiffany had already opened the door and invited Luke in. Jennifer froze in the foyer. It had only been a few hours, but she had nearly forgotten how huge he was.

  “Hey there, big man. She’s waiting for you. I’m on my way out so go ahead and make yourself at home.” Tiffany winked as she let herself out.

  “Oh my God,” Jennifer whispered.

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  “Can I get you a drink? I have beer, wine, and a bottle of Johnny Walker Black I’ve been saving for when Tiffany finally drove me to drink.”

  “The scotch please. One ice cube.”

  Jennifer ended up
having three glasses of whiskey and was feeling a happy buzz. Luke had a few more than she did while they sat on the sofa and talked for a bit. They had casually touched each other, a stroke of a knee, or a hand resting on a forearm. Innocent gestures that made Jennifer feel anything but.

  Luke had the same idea. He took her glass from her, and set it on the table before crushing his mouth to hers. He had been driven just as mad with lust as she had been. Waiting any longer to have her wasn’t an option.

  Jennifer returned the kiss with the same fervor and need. She probed his mouth with her tongue drawing him into her with each fevered motion. Forgetting herself she threw her arms around his neck and held on.

  There was no tenderness, nothing gentle about that kiss. Her need fueled Luke, and he let all restraint go, “bedroom,” the word came out husky, a demand that dared not be refused.

  Jennifer grabbed his hand and led him to her room. Her queen size bed was nowhere big enough for the length of him, but then again she had no intentions of sleeping.

  She ran her hands up his shirt, caressing his muscled stomach before edging the hem up, a hint for him to take it off.

  Luke tossed his shirt away and made quick work of his belt, shoes, and socks, “Strip,”

  Fueled by liquid courage, Jennifer ditched her pajamas and ponytail. She watched as his eyes ravaged her body. The navy blue lace was a stark contrast to her milky skin and green eyes. Her light brown hair hung in wild waves down her back. Luke’s reaction made her feel sexy. She tossed any insecurity she may have felt about her body to the side.

  Hunger flashed in Luke’s stare when Jennifer crooked her finger at him. She grabbed him by the waistband of his jeans, and pulled them both to the edge of the bed. Seating herself she undid the button and fly of his pants, and pushed them down his legs.

  She took a pause. He was completely in proportion for a man six and a half feet tall, and completely aroused. She wasn’t sure she could handle it all.

  Luke saw her surprise, “I won’t hurt you. Scout’s honor,” and he bent to kiss her again, his hand slipping into the cup of her bra to fondle her.

  She became wet almost immediately. His capable hands turned her to putty. Without breaking the kiss he knelt in front of her, pulled the front of her bra down, and drew a nipple into his mouth. Jennifer thought she would howl with pleasure.

  Luke’s hands found their way to the front of her underwear. He started rubbing her through the delicate fabric, and he teased her nipples.

  “Oh, that feels amazing,” Jennifer gripped Luke’s hair as he worked her, holding him to her breast. Very quickly the cloth of her underwear was soaked through.

  Luke chuckled, “I’m so happy to oblige.”

  Jennifer coaxed Luke to stand. She needed a breather or she would cum before getting started. Sitting on the edge of her bed put his manhood right in her sightline. She ran her hands up his thighs, leaving goose bumps in their wake.

  Tentatively she licked the sensitive tip. She would have to ease her way into this or she may get hurt. She ran her tongue up the back of the shaft before taking him in her mouth. Luke moaned as she sucked, slowly working him inch by inch.

  He tangled his hands in her hair. The head felt so good. He closed his eyes and just enjoyed it, “Oh, baby. That’s perfect,” he moaned, stirring Jennifer’s arousal further.

  She stroked him with her hand, moving to give attention to the rest of his manhood. She ran her tongue over his balls. Luke sucked air through his teeth, the sound encouraging Jennifer to keep going. She closed her mouth slightly around one testicle, sheathing her teeth with her lips and sucked gently.

  “Oh, Christ,” he couldn’t take it. He moved her hand away and lay her back on the bed. In his tipsy state he fumbled a bit unhooking her bra and pulling her underwear off, “I want to fuck you,” he buried his face in her neck kissing and nibbling the delicate skin, “I’ll try not to hurt you, but I’m not going to go slow.”

  Jennifer nodded and positioned herself towards the headboard and spread her legs. Luke crawled between them and rubbed his head against her, “I’m wet enough. Go ahead,”

  He thrusted into her, with a commanding strength. Her insides stretched to accommodate all of him, but he was nearly uncomfortably big.

  “You are so tight. Oh, God,” he began to thrust harder. The first few he forced himself to slow down. Then she started moaning and rocking her hips. He went animal and began to fuck her harder than she had ever been fucked. He had to claim her, rock her, and make her his. His thighs slapped against her ass as he picked up the pace. He reared up and pulled her leg to his shoulder for a better angle.

  He teased her clit with his thumb, “Luke,” she moaned.

  Jennifer rocked her hips in rhythm with his, he felt so good she didn’t want to stop. She was high on arousal, on pure animal power and didn’t want to come down. She came hard and fast. She tipped her head back and cried out his name, to hell with the neighbors.

  Her orgasm pulsed around him sending him over the edge behind her, “Fuck!” he groaned as he emptied himself into her.

  Each slowing thrust and the extra slickness sent one last shockwave over Jennifer, leaving her body spent.

  Luke dropped on the bed beside her, sated and happy. He gathered her up into his arms, cuddling her to his chest.

  She could feel him nuzzle her neck through her hair, and backed up into him so they were skin to skin. Within minutes she could feel his breathing and pulse slow as he dropped off to sleep.

  His body heat mingled with the lingering effects of the alcohol lulling her into a sleep of her own.

  Jennifer was woken a few hours later by her bladder. As she finished up in the bathroom she could hear voices coming from the living room. One she recognized as Tiffany’s. The other was a man’s voice. She tied her robe around herself and checked that Luke was still sleeping before going to investigate.

  “Hey, sex kitten!” Tiffany was curled up on the couch with a glass of red wine. Her male companion was one of the bikers that she caught the attention of when she went to pick Jennifer up. The leather jacket attired man had a week’s work of dark blond beard growth and sleepy blue eyes that swept over Jennifer’s body.

  “I’m sorry to interrupt. I just wanted to check on you. Hi, I’m Jennifer,” she waved at Tiffany’s guest and pulled her robe tighter around her.

  “Pleasure to meet you. I’m John-Paul; JP for short,” he made no move to get off the couch, just waved at her. He could see she was uncomfortable and didn’t want to make things worse.

  “Well, you two have fun. I’m just gonna go back in my room now.”

  “Is Luke still here?” Tiffany’s eyes twinkled in excitement.

  “Yeah. He’s sleeping.”

  “I’m proud of you, girl.” Tiffany flashed a brilliant smile at Jennifer before turning her attention back to JP.

  Jennifer closed her bedroom door behind her as Luke came out of the bathroom, “There you are. I was wondering where you went,” he wrapped his arms around her, pressing their bodies together.

  “I woke up to use the bathroom and heard voices so I went to see what was going on. Tiffany’s out there entertaining some guy named JP.”

  Luke stiffened, “JP? A little smaller than me, scruffy brown facial hair?”

  “Yeah that’s him. Why?”

  Anger flared in Luke’s eyes. He picked his pants off the floor and jammed his legs into them, “He’s a dangerous guy, Jennifer. He runs with a gang of sh… he’s just not a good dude.”

  Luke threw open the bedroom door and growled at the man on the couch, “You need to leave.”

  “Well hello to you too,” JP put his beer bottle down, “Fancy seeing you out among the civilized, Luke. I see it took a piece of tail to draw you out of your cave.”

  Tiffany’s eyes went wide with shock, “Hey wait a minute. Don’t talk about my friend that way!”

  “I’m sorry, I mean no offense to your friend,” JP amended, “I mean only to of
fend this piece of shit here.”

  “Look, I don’t know what beef you two have, but you need to not have it under my roof,” Tiffany stood, “You should probably take off, JP.”

  “No problem,” he turned his attention to Luke and Jennifer before leaving, “I’ll be seeing you soon, and hopefully your girlfriend sooner,” JP announced before leaving.

  Luke had gone red in the face and kept clenching and unclenching his fists. Every muscle in his body was tensed for a fight. He breathed deeply, willing his temper to cool. He couldn’t afford to lose it in the tiny apartment.

  “Care to explain or should I just make something up in my head,” Jennifer crossed over the couch and sat next to Tiffany, “I’ll wait.”

  “I’m part of this group in Chico. You could say we’re a biker gang, but really that’s not it. We sort of help out the cops and hire ourselves out as protection to abuse and stalking victims. We do what we can to maintain a noble cause in the community, I guess.”

  “And what’s the deal with JP?” Tiffany asked.

  “He’s the head of a different group just on the outskirts town. They bully business owners and extort money from innocent people, they run their own sort of mafia type business.”

  “So he’s like, the biker Al Capone?”

  “That may be the easiest way to describe it,” Luke slid down the wall to sit on the floor, “He killed my second last year during a standoff up in the mountains. I haven’t pursued anything because it was a fair fight, but that doesn’t mean I don’t hate him.”

  “That’s awful,” Jennifer empathized. She couldn’t imagine what losing a friend would be like, “You had to have gone to the police, right?”

  “Uh… no. My kind can’t go to the police when there is trouble. We handle it ourselves and try to keep as many people out of it as possible,” his face fell, “and now he knows we’ve been involved with each other,” realization struck him. The woman he’d been searching for his entire adult life was now in front of him, and he had to let her go. He promised himself he wouldn’t, but things just spun out of control, “I can’t see you anymore; I need to be going.” Luke shuffled to his feet and went back into Jennifer’s room to gather his things.