She held her breath, every nerve of her body on fire as she waited for her next move. She was being much more passive than she normally was when she went feral, but she had just survived a near death experience. Perhaps a little submissiveness was in order.
His mouth was making its way back up her leg, tenderly lavishing devotion at the side of her knee and up her inner thigh. Then his tongue found her center and she opened up to him with a gasp.
“Yes, like that” he hissed, burying her fingers in his thick, red hair. Her hips lifted from the bed, meeting his mouth with urgency. That ravenous hunger within her was only building higher, burning brightly alongside the wild desire consuming her entire being.
He was clumsy as he worked her over, but earnest, and that was enough. She felt her abdomen coiling and tightening, winding more and more until it suddenly released, sending her toppling over the edge of blissful ecstasy.
“Yes!” she cried, belatedly realizing that she had neglected to ask her savior’s name. Her thighs tightened around his head, but he let her ride it out until she collapsed into a sweaty pile on his bed.
“Are you ready for me?” he asked, unzipping his own pants.
“Actually,” she said, sitting up. “I… I think I’m good for now.”
Yes, definitely. The rush was gone, as was the desperate craving for some sort of euphoric high. It was the easiest she had ever come down from a feral high and she wasn’t about to ask any questions.
They had been happening since she had hit puberty, nasty bouts where she went into a heat-like frenzy that couldn’t went on for weeks unless she was able to find solace in some other soul. She didn’t want to say that they replenished her, but they pretty much replenished her in ways that food and water couldn’t.
She had first discovered it long after her mother had lost her battle. She had been sixteen and had gotten involved with the wrong crowd, resulting in a bit of a shootout that had left her more or less riddled with a few new holes. She had been lucky enough to stumble across a fellow teenager out delivering pizzas. The hunger had enveloped her right then and there, ransacking through her entire being so hard she could barely get a single line out to the young man. Thankfully, he was more than willing even after her flubbed attempts and one bone-jump later, she was right as rain.
After that she had fled to the closest library, trying to research everything she could about shapeShifters who were able to absorb energy from others. All she had found was lists about succubae and wendigos, but one of those was a myth and she definitely was not the latter.
“Wait, really? That’s it?” her rescuer asked incredulously.
She came back to earth, realizing she was sitting completely naked in a stranger’s bed. And an angry Shifter was not a good one.
“I’m sorry. I’m just a bit dizzy. I think that fall did a bit more damage then I let on. I’m not normally like this. I don’t think I even introduced myself properly.”
“I, uh, I guess you’re right. Yeah, that makes sense. In that case, my name is John and I’m about to take a cold shower.”
“My name’s Jaelle, and I’m really sorry about all this. I’m not normally so… flighty.”
“No, it’s fine, really.” He patted her leg awkwardly then got up, his desire pressing quite evidently against his jeans. “I should have known better, I suppose. You were just chased down by humans and shot.”
“Yup.” That was definitely what happened. “But that doesn’t mean there can’t be a part two later, uh, John.”
“That’d be nice, but don’t feel obligated, Jaelle.” He cracked her an odd smile before exiting and she found herself alone once more.
What is wrong with you? she thought to herself, shaking her head. She hadn’t gone feral in at least three years and the fact that it happened just after meeting another Aberrant for the first time in her entire life didn’t bode well. It was getting harder to believe that she wasn’t a ticking time bomb who could go insane at any time.
But it was difficult to keep her thoughts straight when she was still in post-orgasmic bliss. Her eyelids fluttering once more, she let herself slip into sleep.
Chapter Five: All the Comforts of Home
To his credit, John handled her one eighty very well. Jaelle woke up to a steak and eggs waiting for her breakfast and a change of clothes. Granted, the clothes happened to be oversized sweatpants and a flannel shirt, but she was grateful ,nonetheless.
He also didn’t pressure her about what had happened between them which was a total relief. She would hate to have to fight and possibly maim him in his own home.
Besides, he was cute. Maybe after she got to know him a little she would return the favor to him. But that was something that could only be found out with time.
And time seemed to be exactly what she had.
Several days passed and it was almost as blissful as Braywire. She supposed it would take her quite a while to find a place so safe, secluded and backwater as her previous haven, but this wasn’t a bad pitstop.
“Hey, so what is it you actually do?”
John looked up from his desk, surprise evident in his eyes.
“Jaelle, hey. You’re not normally up this early.”
“I’ve been here for four days. Do I have a normal yet?”
“No, I guess not,” he said, laughing lightly while sipping at his coffee.
“But you’ve been here the entire four days, which means either you’ve got a very convenient script or you just work part-time. Considering you own a relatively nice cabin with fully functioning electricity, indoor plumbing and internet, I found that part-time idea doubtful.”
“You’re observant, aren’t you?”
“I would hope so considering that I’ve showered at least three times and always had hot water.”
“Right, not so observant, maybe.”
“You’re dodging the question. Which is a bit odd considering it’s fairly straight-forward.”
“Sorry, force of habit, I suppose. I do graphic design.”
“Graphic design? What’s there to be ashamed about that?”
“I’m not ashamed, per se. But anytime this conversation starts, it inevitably ends up leading in one specific direction.”
“And what direction is that?”
“The age-old question ‘what projects are you working on now?’”
“Ah, I see. Sounds like you’ve had this conversation a lot.”
“I have.”
“So,” Jaelle gently took his coffee from his hand and indulged a long drink. He gave her a wry, but patient look before she handed it back to him. “What projects are you working on now?”
That startled a laugh out of him and he shook his head. “You’re a cheeky one, aren’t you?”
She shrugged. “I might have been told that before.”
“Yeah, I bet so.” He chuckled and turned back to his computer, opening a file that looked like it was filled with dozens upon dozens of photo manipulations. “But my main client right now is a porn website. They order about a dozen banners a month and I make bank.” He made a broad gesture for his screen. “You name it, I’ve probably designed a fetishized pop-up add for it.”
“Oh,” Jaelle said, leaning forward and inspecting his screen. “So, you’re the one who’s made all those flashing advertisements that like to wink at me when I’m on all those download sites you’re not supposed to be on.”
“Yup. That’s me.” He turned back to her with a smooth grin. One thing was for certain, the redhead was certainly an accommodating host. “Now, I’m going to use my amazing powers of observation to guess that you’re a mechanic of some sort.”
She thought back to how eagerly he had peeled her uniform from her frame and smiled. “Goodness, however did you deduce that?”
“Lucky guess.” He stood and crossed to his kitchen at the other side of the cabin, Jaelle following after him. “But how did an Aquarian Shifter end up working as a mechanic hours from any sort of ocean coast only
to end up run down and shot by humans?”
“That’s a long story,” she answered with a sigh.
“I’ll take the cliff-notes version.”
“Come on, you know how it is. A young girl on the mainland for the first time. She gets involved with the wrong people, makes a run for it, finds a nice little haven only to have some locals spot her mid-shift in the quarry lake.” She shrugged. “Humans and their guns. What’re ya gonna do?”
He winced. “Still, that sounds pretty traumatic. They didn’t see your human face, did they?”
“Nope, as far as they’re concerned, their town is just being plagued by some mysterious sea monster. I can’t wait to hear legends for generations to come and all the mystical sightings that’ll happen after cookouts with one too many drunks present.”
“For someone who’s had such bad luck, you certainly have a great sense of humor.”
“That’s the way it always works, doesn’t it?”
She hopped up onto his counter, planting her behind on one of the few dry spots. That turned out to be a bad idea as her mind flashed back to the light time her butt had touched the counter, and her cheeks flushed at the memory.
“Hey, you all right?”
“Fine, fine,” she said, shaking her head. Just because she had gone feral once, it didn’t mean that she needed to go feral again. Sure, maybe she could have some fun with this Johnny boy, but there was no need to rush it. “Just lost in thought, that’s all.”
“I can imagine. You’ve been through a lot in a short week.”
“Yeah. And again, I really appreciate your kindness. I’ll be out of your hair ASAP.”
“Don’t worry about it. You’re welcome to stay as long as you like.” His face clouded over a bit, as if he wasn’t sure he should say what he was about to say. “I’m sure you heard that wolves are very social creatures. Although the isolation is rather serene, it often gets lonely.”
“Now, are you saying that because you want my companionship, or to finish what I started when I first woke up?”
“Why not both?” he shot back. “Or neither. All I know is that I like that you are here, and I like that know it all tone you have, and I like that my house smells like something other than myself. And for me, that is enough to know that you should stay as long as you like.”
“Wow. You’re a pretty giving person, you know that?”
He shrugged. “It’s kinda a wolf thing. We’re only as strong as the weakest of us.”
“Are you calling me weak?” she countered, batting her eyelashes at him.
“Wouldn’t dream of it. How’s breakfast, by the way?” he asked, shoveling his own plate full of food.
“Delicious and filling.”
He took a step toward her, a serious expression on his face. “You know what else is both delicious and filling?”
Jaelle caught his salacious tone and didn’t know quite how to respond. “Hey, about that, I uh—”
“Mashed Potatoes.” He finished, his serious mask breaking into a mischievous expression that made her want to kick him something fierce. “I have a great recipe. Maybe I’ll make some tonight.”
“You did that on purpose,” she accused, reaching out to josh his arm.
“Maybe. Consider it payback.”
“That’s the nicest payback I’ve ever experienced.” She finished the rest of the of her food and set her plate in the sink. “As your reward, I will wash the dishes!”
“Sweet, but I do have a dishwasher.”
“What? What kind of fancy-pants place is this?”
“Like I said, the porn gig pays well.”
“I guess so.” She wiped her hands on her shirt before realizing that it wasn’t actually her shirt and she should probably stop. Sheepishly, she looked to John, blushing a bit. “Hey, if you’re not too busy with your job, would you like to go on a hike?”
“A hike? Really? That’s something Aquarian Shifters are into?”
“Uh yeah. You know, it’s so different here, not on the islands.”
He shook his head, but he was still wearing a smile as he responded. “You know what? Why not? I haven’t left the house since I brought you here and a little run could do me good. Let me just finish up what I was doing and we can head out. I’ve got a couple of water canteens on the high shelf there.”
Jaelle looked up to where he was pointing. Of course, it had to be in the cabinet above the fridge, someplace her five-four self had no hope of reaching without a little acrobatics. But, she didn’t let that on to John and instead beamed widely at him. “Sounds perfect.”
“Great. I’ll need an hour probably and then we’ll be good to go.” He slid past her back to his computer and she went to work. First things first was the canteens.
With a sigh, she clambered onto the counter, her bare feet gripping the surface. Grimacing, she reminded herself to wipe down everywhere she stepped, out of courtesy if nothing else. Leaning over the fridge, she still had to stand on tiptoes to reach the cabinet handle and pull the door open.
Sure enough, about four different water bottles of varying sizes and insulation tumbled out, clattering to the floor with a racket.
“You okay in there?”
“Yeah,” she called back, jumping down to the ground and picking two of the largest ones. “Just getting those canteens.”
“Oh, good. I had my headphones on and I thought you might have had a fall. There’s an ice cube tray in the back of the freezer that’s specially made to create water-bottle friendly ice-tubes. Use the entire thing.”
“Gotcha. Thank you for the water-bottle filling tutorial. That’s what I sincerely needed in my life.”
“The more you know,” he shot right back.
She heard him turn back toward his computer then got to work getting ready for her hike. It wasn’t that she was overly enthusiastic about the outdoors, especially considering that she couldn’t take any land-forms to run around and play. But she needed to get the lay of the land for when she eventually left John and his comforting little cabin. Because, as nice as he was, he was way too close to Braywire and associated with the Shifter community. If she stayed here, it would only be a matter of time before the hunters caught that murderous Aberrant they were after and then came back for her.
She shuddered at the thought. Her whole life had been spent on running and hiding from those who would condemn her for the way she was born. She had quite the streak going and she didn’t want to ruin it now.
In the end, it took John just under an hour to finish up what he was doing, and then another fifteen minutes for them to gear up and head out. Once they were walking, the fresh air hit Jaelle like a ton of bricks, reinvigorating her while, at the same time, flooding her senses with an array of smells. She halted in her tracks a moment, taking it all in. The crispness of the breeze. The sap of the trees, the comings and goings of hundreds of forest creatures as they went about their simple lives.
Okay, maybe she was a bit of an outdoor-lover. She had just forgotten it after being sheltered for so long in the little hidey-hole she had made in Braywire.
“You okay over there, or are you about to start painting with all the wind-colors?”
“I’m fine,” she answered, shooting the man a look. “Just appreciating what I almost lost.”
He looked a bit sheepish and ducked his head. “Right, that whole almost-dying and then miraculously recovering thing. Almost forgot about that.”
“I don’t know whether to be impressed or upset by that,” Jaelle retorted, brushing past him as she walked forward. She didn’t know why she was teasing him, especially since she was trying to send very clear messages after giving him possibly the worst set of blue balls recorded in history, but he was so fun to flirt with. It was hard to resist, especially since he seemed so even keeled and patient with everything.
“I guess I’ve been distracted.”
“Really? For the life of me I can’t figure out what by.”
He let out a
noise that was somewhere between a laugh and a snort, and then they were both walking again.
It really was beautiful. The trees were lush and green, and flowers were in full bloom. The calm of it all seeped into her bones, making the whole past week seem a little surreal with its stress, murders and people sworn to kill her on sight.
It was almost easy to pretend that she was a normal Shifter girl without any worries or terrible curses, and she enjoyed the temporary freeing from her situation. That was until they stopped so suddenly that she almost walked right into John.
“What’s up?” she asked, taking a step back and looking around for any sign of danger.
Except there wasn’t any danger at all. Just breathtaking beauty in the little clearing that they were in.
They were at the edge of a drop off not too similar to the one she had swan dived off of in her previous escape, but covered in lush foliage. There were flowers of almost every color and bushes chock full of what looked like wild blackberries. A weeping willow stood almost in the center of the beautiful meadow, with a stream bubbling past it to trickle off the edge of the cliff.
“What is this place?” she breathed, looking around in wonder.
“It’s nice, isn’t it?” John answered, shooting me a genuine smile. “I found it my first summer here, about four years ago. I thought it was too good to be true and had to be some sort of tourist camping ground, but I only get the occasional hiker or so. I like to come up here every now and then when I’m feeling particularly outdoorsy.”
“I can’t blame you,” she said, dropping her backpack to the ground and sitting herself down under the weeping willow. At first John had been a little confused that she insisted on bringing her dash-sack along, but he hadn’t pressed her too hard on it. “If I had this kind of escape, I’d come here all the time.”
“Who says that you can’t?”
“I appreciate that, I do. But I can’t stay for long.”
“I know. But it’s my nature to remind you that you’re more than welcome.” He crossed over to sit next to her, brushing his red hair from his face.
“Thanks, that’s really sweet of you.”
The Aberrants Box Set (Books 1-5) Page 4