by Ann Gimpel
Alice giggled. She clapped a hand over her mouth. “I don’t know what’s gotten into me. For a minute there, I sounded a lot like a giddy schoolgirl.” She started on his buttons. In moments she pushed his shirt off his shoulders. “Oooh,” She ran both hands down his chest. “Beautiful. Your skin is golden. Maybe it’s the light, but you’re glowing.” She inclined her head and licked one of his nipples. “Are yours sensitive, too?”
“Very.” He placed a hand on either side of her head and tilted her face so he could kiss her. Her arms went around him. The feel of her breasts against his bare chest was incredible. Her scent was heady, musk and honey mixed with pure sexual heat. He wanted to do everything to her all at once. Touch her, taste her, and fuck her. Jed nuzzled her neck and laughed. “We’re never going to get rid of our clothes.” He reached for the fastenings of her climbing pants and undid them. She wriggled against his hands; her pants slid to the floor. Next came her long underwear and panties.
“Not fair,” she protested. “The best part of you is still covered.” She fumbled with the buttons of his trousers. His cock sprang out. “Oh my.” She took a breath and wrapped both hands around his shaft. “It’s huge. I had no idea. Are all—?”
“Sssh.” He laid a finger over her lips and stepped out of pants puddled around his feet. His slippers tangled in them, but he left them where they lay. He tried to draw her into his arms, but she resisted.
“No. I want to look at you.” She walked behind him and ran her hands from his shoulders down over his buttocks. The muscles in his ass clenched. Curved against his stomach, his cock throbbed, heavy with need. Alice circled him and did the same exploration of the front of his body. Her hands settled around his cock.
“Two can play that game.” He shoved a hand between her legs and rubbed her passion-slick clit. She was just as ready as he was. Alice squirmed against his hand; she made a small, moaning sound low in the back of her throat. He carefully pushed a finger deep inside her. Her muscles clenched around it. Hot as she was, he could make her come easily from just his fingers, but Jed had other ideas. He withdrew his hand and settled it in the curve of her waist.
“Legs don’t want to stand anymore,” she murmured and let go of his cock. Alice took two steps to the bed and tugged the quilt out of the way. He marveled at the lush lines of her body. Her shoulders and thighs were shapely with muscle. A flat stomach flared to generous hips. Dark curls beckoned him from between her legs.
Jed turned her to face him and wrapped his arms around her. Lost in the intoxicating scent of her arousal, he kissed her and let his hands roam down her back. They settled around the globes of her ass and pulled her close. He could have stood there kissing her forever, but his cock raged with lust. He lifted his lips from hers. “Lie back, sweetheart.” He maneuvered her onto the bed. Her hips moved of their own accord, thrusting upward.
“I know the first time hurts,” she said. “It’s all right.” She opened her arms; he shook his head, got onto the bed next to her, and knelt over her body. Jed strung kisses down her neck to her breasts. He lingered over each, sucking and kissing her wonderful nipples before moving his head lower. He settled his mouth over the sensitive nub between her legs, pleased when she cried out. While he tongued her clit, he worked fingers deep inside, loosening her.
Her hips bucked against his face. Little panting cries filled the air. She buried her hands in his hair and ground her body against him. Her pussy spasmed around his fingers; she was coming. He waited until her body settled, then slid up and positioned the head of his cock at her opening. He rocked his pubic bone against her sensitive center, delighted when she pressed back hard. Slowly, ever so slowly, he sank his full length inside her, pushing past her barrier as gently as he could.
Jed supported his body on his arms so he could watch her face. “There,” he said. “I’m inside. I won’t move for a little. Just get used to how I feel.”
Her muscles fluttered around him. She made small, experimental movements with her hips. Her delightful, full lips parted in a sensual smile. “It’s fine. Just a little bit of discomfort, but it’s gone now.”
He smiled back, but didn’t move. She rotated her hips. He kept his still. She moved her hands to his flanks and tugged. “Tell me what you want,” he said.
“I want you to move.” Her voice was husky with passion.
He’d banked that one climax would only whet her appetite for more. The mate bond would make her close to insatiable—at least in the beginning. “Like this?” He withdrew until just the tip of him teased her opening and moved it in a circular pattern. The restraint was killing him, but it was for a good cause. Once he settled into a rhythm, he’d come and come hard.
Her back arched. She threw her head back and gripped his hips. “Move, goddammit. How can I figure this out if you don’t do your part?”
Jed laughed. “As milady wishes.” He pushed into her, but slowly, and then pulled back out just as slowly. After half-a-dozen strokes, his control crumpled. He drove himself into her again and again. Alice groaned. Her legs came up. She locked them around his hips. Her nails dug into his sides.
Jed rode a ragged edge of control. He would make her come again before he did, no matter what it took. Her torso took on a rosy hue. Her nipples hardened into points. With an instinctual knowledge, she held him inside her and ground her clit against the base of him. Her body spasmed around him. She shrieked her delight.
The next stroke took him over the edge. His body juddered hard inside her so many times he wondered if he’d accidentally discovered a woman’s secret about multiple orgasms. Breath rattled in his throat; his heart thudded so hard he feared it might burst. Jed’s body collapsed atop hers. The deed was done. She was his. Deep inside, his wolf howled its joy.
Fueled by the mate bond, love warmed him all the way to his toes, and a savage protectiveness rocked him to his core.
*
Alice wriggled beneath his weight. Now that her brain wasn’t fuzzy with lust, it worked overtime. His cock was still buried deep in her body. She flexed her muscles around him and was rewarded by a shower of sparks that ignited her nerve endings. She could come again. It was different with him inside than with her fingers rubbing her clit, and oh so much more intense.
“Do you want more?” His voice was muffled in her hair.
“Yes, but we need to talk. We should have used a condom. What if—”
“I decide when my seed creates new life. Shifters are immune from human disease. You were a virgin. It’s been long years since I had sex with anyone. I’d say you’re quite safe on all fronts.” He pulled out of her and rolled onto his side. Jed propped his head on his hand and gazed at her, blue eyes full of affection.
Her body felt empty, bereft without him inside. Alice turned her thoughts inward and took stock. “I feel … different.” She sat up, crossed her legs Indian-style, and looked at him.
“Yes. You would.”
“It’s more than not being a virgin anymore. There’s something here,” she tapped her breastbone. “It’s like you’ve taken up residence inside me.”
He nodded. “It’s the mate bond. I feel it, too. It will only grow and strengthen with time.”
“There’s warmth and tenderness, too. I’ve never been in love, but I always imagined it might feel like this.”
He smiled. “It’s a corollary of the mate bond. Mates only have eyes for each another. Imagine me filling your soul with everything good and nurturing, caring for you, and protecting you from harm.”
“That’s wonderfully poetic.”
Color stained his face. “Well, I meant every word.”
“It’s, um, none of my business, but you said it had been a long time since you’d had sex. Have you had other mates?”
Jed shook his head. “No. It’s not that I can’t be sexual outside the mate bond, but mostly, I haven’t been interested. The bond enriches everything. I’ve lived such a long time, casual sex lost its appeal. It felt meaningless.” He
gave a short bark of a laugh. “My hand was a whole lot easier and more reliable when my balls ached because it was so long since I’d come.”
“I want to understand more about the mate bond. Is there only one woman—?”
“No, it’s not like that. Thank Christ.” He rolled his eyes. “If it were, shifters would have died out eons ago. But there aren’t many who ignite the bond. There has to be an intense attraction which runs deeper than the physical.” He turned his amazing blue gaze on her. “You, my dear, have a beautiful soul. I knew it before I ever saw you.”
Her eyes widened. “Just from, um, smelling me as I worked my way down the mountain?”
His mouth split into a broad grin. “That and strong instincts. It’s one of the benefits of being a shifter. I see things more clearly because of my lupine intuition.”
“So, there’s more than a single possibility in terms of finding a woman to mate bond with, but good candidates are rare.”
“That’s a decent summation, yes. They’ve gotten even rarer since humans have developed such an intense fear of us.”
“Why is that?”
“Because we spend so little time in our animal form, it weakens our ability to sense a potential mate; it also dilutes our attractiveness to them.”
Her eyes narrowed. Sadness washed through her. She pushed it aside. “I’m glad you weren’t already taken.”
He placed a hand on her thigh. “How could I have been? It sounds sappy, but I was waiting for you.”
“It seems impossible, but it feels like I was waiting for you, too.”
He grinned knowingly. “You were.”
A thought came to her. She wanted to ask, but felt suddenly shy.
“You want to see what the animal half of our partnership looks like?”
Her cheeks grew warm. “I’d forgotten you can see into my head. Yes, maybe we could go outside and—”
“No.” The vehemence of his tone startled her. “Too dangerous. I’ll shift for you, but I’ll do it in here.”
“Will we still be able to talk?”
“Yes, but you’ll hear my voice inside your head.”
“I’d like it if you’d show me.” Alice bit her lip. She didn’t understand why it was so important for her to know his wolf side, but it was.
Jed got to his feet. His body was magnificent. Broad, well-muscled shoulders, slender hips, and a wonderful ass. He had the slightest sprinkling of red-gold hairs around his nipples. His cock was still half-hard. Lust speared her, but she ignored it.
The air shimmered. In seconds, a black-and-silver timber wolf stood where Jed had been. The same blue eyes gleamed at her. Alice jumped off the bed and buried her hands in his thick coat. “You’re beautiful this way, too.”
He turned his head and licked her bare leg. A delicious shiver ran up her spine. “Why thank you.”
Alice hunkered next to Jed and petted him shamelessly. To her surprise, tears welled in her eyes. The affection she felt for Jed in all his forms was almost too much to take in. It filled her to the brim and spilled over in her tears.
“I could let you do that all day, but it’s dangerous for me to stay this way.” Jed stepped away from her. The air glowed. When it settled, his human self smiled at her.
“It won’t be very comfortable, but I’m going to rinse myself off in the creek. Want to come?” She smiled back at him. “It’s bad enough that my clothes stink.”
“Sure, we can clean up. I’ll even gin up a bit of magic so the water won’t be quite as cold.”
“You can do that?”
“You’ll be able to, too, once I teach you.”
Warmth began in her midsection and spread through her body. Everything tingled; she felt more alive than she ever had. “I feel like I’ve embarked on a grand adventure.”
“You have.” He dragged two robes off hooks and tossed one at her. “Here. It can double as a towel.” They went into the front room; Jed pushed the cabin door open.
“But it was locked,” she protested, walking through into pale, spring sunlight.
“Not for very long. I unlocked it once you went to bed.”
“Hmph. You might have told me.”
“I couldn’t chance having you leave before I’d made my pitch. I was willing to risk you being angry with me.” He took her hand and led her along a cleared path. “Easier on your feet over here.”
“No more secrets.”
He thought guiltily of Terin and Bron. I’ll tell her just as soon as we’re done bathing. “Um, there’s a waist-deep pool past that boulder. It’s where we rinse off. The water’s more contained and easier to warm.”
He draped his robe over a flat rock and reached for hers. Alice grinned and handed it to him. “You just want to see me naked.”
“You bet!” Jed slipped into the water. He shut his eyes and waved his hands in an intricate pattern in front of him. “Come on.” He crooked a finger at her. “Not bath temperature by any means, but better than the rest of the creek.”
She dipped her foot in. “Gee, it’s actually tepid. How’d you do that?”
“I drew heat from the earth’s crust. Wolf shifters have an affinity for earth magic. The other clans each have their own special element.”
She got into the water and sat on the sandy creek bottom, letting the stream flow over her. Part of her hair was still in its sloppy braid; the rest hung free. She untangled its strands and tilted her head back to wash the sweat out of it. “There’s a lot for me to learn. Is any of this written down anywhere?”
“Once upon a time, yes. Not anymore. We’ve been Hunted mercilessly for several hundred years.”
“You’ll teach me?”
He nodded. “Of course. We need to talk about what happens next—and about my two friends.”
“When do you suppose they’ll be back? I suppose they’re shifters, too?”
“They ought to show up in the next couple of hours. And, yes, they’re wolf shifters. Terin and Bron are my lieutenants. Together, we manage the wolf clan and make a family unit. I really do need to tell you more about—”
“How many are in the clan?” she interrupted.
“Just shy of a thousand in this country. Double that if you count the rest of the world.”
Alice tried to latch onto her usually sharp analytic skills. There was so much she didn’t know, it was tough to decide where to begin asking questions. “So, do you travel to, uh, oversee things?”
“Yes, more in astral form than the way you’re thinking about it, though. Um, Alice—”
“This just gets deeper and deeper, doesn’t it?”
He took her hand under the water. “It will feel pretty overwhelming at first. I’ll do everything I can to help you. Bron and Terin will, too.” An uncomfortable look flitted across his face, but it was gone so quickly she wondered if she’d seen it at all. “When are you expected back?”
“No one’s expecting me anywhere until the end of this week. I took a few vacation days from work.”
His brows drew together. “One of us will go down the trail with you and see you safely to your car. You’ll drive to the hospital to check on Brent because you ran into some strangers who told you he’d been hurt. Brent will be suspicious. Do what you can to set his mind at ease. Then return to your house and job. I’ll find you, and we’ll go through the pretend-we-just-met ritual in case anyone’s paying attention—”
“It will be a whirlwind courtship, since I want you where I can lay eyes and hands on you,” she interrupted. Alice couldn’t stop smiling. Tingly warmth that had nothing to do with the water swooshed through her. “I don’t know when I’ve felt this happy. Certainly not since after Mom and Dad died.”
He bent toward her and kissed her forehead. “That’s just how I want you to feel, sweetheart. Happy and fulfilled.”
Alice would have lolled in the water, but Jed said they needed to get moving so they’d be dressed when Bron and Terin showed up. She snuggled into his arms. “I hate to get up.
Being here with you feels so right.”
“That’s because it is.” He tightened his hold on her. “There’s, um, one more really important thing we need to talk about before my friends get back—”
A savage whoop sent her heart spinning into overdrive. Alice tore herself away from Jed’s embrace and gazed wildly about. “What was that?”
“Damn! I knew we should have gotten out of the water sooner. It’s just my boys.”
“Wahoo!” Red hair streaming around him Terin cannonballed into the water. He’d shucked his clothes somewhere between the cabin and the creek.
“Double wahoo. You got us a woman.” Bron splashed into the creek and sat down in the water.
“What the hell are they talking about?” The happiness inside Alice winked out, replaced by bleak resignation. Something was desperately wrong and she had no idea what it was.
Chapter 6
“Leave her be,” Jed snapped.
“But you’re mated. I can smell it, and I sense the bond,” Terin protested. “That means—”
“Quiet. We hadn’t gotten to that part yet.”
“What part?” Alice would have drawn herself up to her full height if she weren’t naked. She sank deeper into the water, tucked her knees in front of her breasts, and wound her arms around them. Her gaze moved from one man to the next. Lust, just like she’d sensed from Jed, practically dripped from the two newcomers. “What the hell? Are you a bunch of perverts?”
She took a few moments and really looked at Terin and Bron. They were very good-looking men. Just as handsome as Jed, but in different ways. Her nipples pebbled beneath the water. A corner of her mind recoiled in horror. Am I going to turn into a wanton and want to fuck every shifter I see? She shook her head hard. “I’m quite interested in whatever Jed didn’t quite get around to telling me.”
Terin’s amber eyes skittered away from hers. “Uh, it’s not my place.”
“Damn straight,” Jed muttered. “How about if the two of you give us some privacy so the lady can get dressed?”
Bron rolled his dark eyes. “Aye, aye, oh fearless leader.” He got to his feet. His cock jutted in front of him. It was long and thick and beautiful. Alice got an eyeful before he turned and plodded through the water to shore. It was all she could do to keep from launching herself out of the water after him. Terin followed. When he stood, his back was to her, but Alice had no doubt his member was just as hard as the other shifter’s.