He was heading to the couch, and he barely made it there with her legs wrapped around his waist and his dick pressing up against her bottom.
Reaching his destination, he lowered her onto the leather and followed after her. His body covered hers and he used a knee to nudge her legs apart and settle between them.
Slow down. Must slow down. He couldn’t take her this quickly, not without making sure she was prepared to take him. He wasn’t small, and if there was one thing he got right in life it was pleasuring and taking care of the woman he was with.
With his erection pressing against her belly, he forced his blood to slow. Focused his mind on her.
He took her mouth again. Tasting her with slow and thorough strokes.
She kissed him back, her tongue meeting his almost hesitatingly, then growing bolder. The little moans in her throat encouraged him, and when her hips began to rise against his, when she was all but squirming, he knew he needed to at least touch her. That she needed it as much as he did.
Reaching between them, he found the damp patch of curls between her legs.
His dick responded at her readiness, twitching against the slight softness of her stomach.
Parting the folds, he slid a finger into her hot sheath.
Damn. She was amazingly tight. She was going to feel even more amazing when he was inside her.
He penetrated her slowly, stretching her and warming her up.
When he added a second finger she stiffened and made a noise that almost sounded like one of discomfort rather than pleasure.
He lifted his head and stared down at her. “You okay, sweetheart? Want me to stop?”
“No.” She shook her head quickly, and her body clenched around his fingers.
He bit back a groan. Shit. Was she trying to make him lose it completely?
“Does this hurt?” He arched a brow, pressing his fingers deeper into her.
“No.” But he’d seen her slight wince.
“Okay, it’s a little uncomfortable, but it’s getting better, I promise.”
He frowned, pulling back slightly. “How long has it been since you’ve been with someone, Sage?”
She bit her lip and lowered her lashes. “That’s, um, what I was trying to tell you. I haven’t.”
“You haven’t?” he repeated. Not sure he’d understood the context of her words right. “Like you haven’t lately?”
“Like I haven’t ever.”
Her words were almost a whisper, and heavy with mortification.
No way.
“You can’t be serious,” he finally muttered, and pulled his fingers reluctantly from her tight channel. But when her blush deepened, he muttered, “Christ, you’re serious.”
“I was trying to tell you a minute ago. I thought you had the right to know what you were getting into.” Unhappiness flickered in her eyes. “Literally. A virgin. I’m sorry, Nate.”
“You’re sorry?” He shook his head. She had to be at least twenty-five. “Are you saving yourself for your mate?”
It wasn’t completely uncommon. Many shifter women chose not to have sex until they were certain it would be with their mate.
“No. Not at all. I just haven’t dated a lot or had a lot of opportunity to.” She gave a bitter laugh. “Men don’t touch me. I have a very protective brother who keeps them away. He wants me to be mated first.”
“You realize you’re a grown woman, right? You can choose to have sex anytime you want, and with anyone.”
She gave a short laugh and mumbled something that sounded like if only it were that easy.
“What?”
“Nothing. You just…don’t know my brother.”
What the hell kind of relationship did they have where he had so much power over her?
“But look, you’re right. I know ultimately the choice is mine, and so I actually put it on my to-do list a little while ago,” she added quickly, brightening a little.
“You put what on your to-do list?”
“Lose the hymen.” She did the air quotes on the word hymen. “Well, technically I’m sure it’s gone, but you know what I mean.”
The blood roared in his ears and he clenched his jaw, trying to think that his dick was just inches away from helping her achieve that goal.
“It’s actually why I was with Leaf last night. I was going to seduce him.”
He froze, icy rage slicing through and cooling his heated blood. “You were going to seduce him? Going to give your virginity to a human?”
“It’s not as if I’d have been the first shifter to do that.” She gave a little shrug and met his gaze. “It’s just sex, right?”
“No—”
“I have needs, and I’m tired of taking them into my own hands. Literally.”
The rage that had exploded so quickly died just as suddenly as the image in his head changed. The idea of Sage touching herself was damn arousing.
She nibbled on her already swollen lip, and for a moment he was distracted. Wanted to lower his mouth and suck on the fleshy bottom lip himself.
“I mean, I write about sex, I figure I should actually try it out. Even if it’s bad, I can chalk it up to research. Right?”
Research? Damn. She was blowing his mind. She was a virgin who talked about sex as easily as a whorehouse madam would.
He should get off her. Put a little distance between them if they were going to have this conversation.
And yet he couldn’t help himself from reaching down to tuck a curl behind her ear.
“Don’t seduce the human, Sage.” The moment the command was out of his mouth, he wondered where it had come from.
“Leaf? I don’t know…” Her gaze slid from his. “I mean, I think I had a bit of a crush on him, but you were right. When he kissed me, I didn’t really feel much.”
“Because he wouldn’t know how to pleasure a woman if he had a video guide.”
She laughed at that and met his gaze again. There was excitement and heat dancing in her blue eyes.
“But you do, don’t you, Nate? This is actually kind of perfect. You’re a shifter, so I’m naturally more comfortable with you. Maybe you should be my first.”
Her words had him hardening even more, even as unease got in a small jab. Be Sage’s first? Hell yeah, he wanted that honor. It would be so easy to just lift her knees up, adjust himself, and sink into her wet heat.
But what kind of bastard would that make him? He would be lucky if he even came out of this whole thing alive. He couldn’t offer her forever, maybe not even tomorrow.
He shook his head. “I won’t mate with you, Sage.”
Her eyes went round. “Oh, whoa, I’m not asking you to. That would be crazy, we don’t even know each other.”
They were starting to get to know each other. Maybe a little too well.
“You seem to think you know me well enough to let me fuck you.”
Her pert little nose wrinkled. “Will you stop using that term, please? It’s kind of crude.”
“So is what I want to do to you.” To think he’d considered bending her over the kitchen counter and taking her there.
Going to hell, Larson, you’re absolutely going to hell.
He’d never been with a virgin. Hell, even his fiancée—who’d been pretty lukewarm in bed the few times they’d slept together—had been experienced.
“Look, clearly you’re the one who needs to do some thinking now.” Sage cleared her throat. “Why don’t we cool things off and you can decide later?”
He arched a brow. “You can’t be serious.”
“Well, I mean, when you have a clear head. No pun intended.” She pushed at his chest and wiggled out from beneath him. “Let’s just keep our eyes on the prize—proving your innocence—and put the sex stuff on hold for today.”
A little dumbfounded that she’d taken control, he was tempted to drag her back to the couch and continue where they’d left off. But she was absolutely right. If he took her now, feeling so completely raw and bare
ly leashed, he’d hurt her. Emotionally and physically.
If they had sex, and that was a big if, he would wait until he was a little more under control.
“Agreed.” The word nearly killed him, and he said it through clenched teeth. “I’m going to shower.”
“Didn’t you already take…?”
When he gave her a pointed look, she ducked her head and nodded.
“Oh. Right. Umm. Cold water is to the right. Just in case you forgot.”
He just barely restrained a snarled, grumpy response, before disappearing up the stairs.
“I need a room for one night, and I’ll be paying cash.” Jocelyn tried not touch anything as her gaze slid around the dusty, rundown motel.
“That will require a deposit.”
“Of course.” She pulled out three times the amount the room would cost and set the bills on the counter.
The teen behind the counter stopped chewing her gum for a moment to stare down at the handful of hundreds.
“M’kay. I think that’ll work.”
Of course it would. This place was lucky if it had a customer, let alone many. She bit back her snide reply and just answered the questions the woman needed to book her room.
When the time to hand over her ID came, she placed a fake one with her picture on the counter.
“Thanks, Mrs. Anderson. Here’s a key to your room and we hope you enjoy your stay.”
Doubtful. Pretty damn doubtful, actually. By the looks of it, she’d be lucky if she didn’t find bedbugs on the mattress.
Some might call this place quaint, but those people likely hadn’t stepped foot out of a barn in their life.
But she didn’t want a paper trail and needed to get to her destination without drawing too much attention to herself.
After days of not hearing from Bob, she’d received a message that it was vitally important she meet him here. In this small town, Podunk motel in Northern California.
That he should make such a demand was alone ridiculous. She’d initially told him to go fuck himself and he could just relay whatever information he had over the phone.
But then he’d made it clear he wasn’t above taking her money and walking away, and maybe dropping some hints to the P.I.A. about just how she was involved.
So she’d caved to the blatant blackmail and taken an unplanned road trip south.
But if the little piece of shit thought he was going to get away with such behavior, he had another thing coming. Once this little assignment of his was over…
Jocelyn entered her room and barely had time to set her suitcase on the floor near the door before the phone in the room rang.
Frowning, she moved to answer it. Before she could even finish saying hello, he’d cut her off.
“Meet me in the diner across the street in fifteen minutes.”
The call ended before she could reply.
Well. Fortunately she didn’t hire these types of thugs for their manners.
She took her time washing up and getting ready for the meeting. She made it a habit to call the shots, and she wasn’t about to change her standards on that anytime soon.
The diner wasn’t the cheerful, bright type either, but more a seedy dive restaurant that had several burnt out lights and held the cloying smell of grease.
Her gaze slid over the interior, but there was only one customer in the back, and it wasn’t Bob.
She started to glance away, but her focus snapped back to the man seated watching her.
For a moment she just stared, before blinking in fury and striding forward.
“I don’t suppose there’d be a logical explanation as to why you’re here?”
The attractive geek she’d met briefly at the dive bar in Seattle gave a wide smile. He was completely unfazed as he gestured to the empty chair across from him.
“Please, have a seat, Jocelyn.”
Her head reared back in shock, before she narrowed her eyes. How the hell did he know her name? She hadn’t given it to him in that brief run-in.
Driven more by curiosity than his request, she sat down across from him.
“So you went from hitting on me in a trashy bar in Seattle, to showing up at this shithole diner in Northern California.” She arched a brow. “I should warn you I don’t believe in coincidences.”
“Neither do I.” He leaned back in his chair and observed her. “Nor do I believe in luck or opportunity, but more importantly, creating your own.”
Despite her reluctance to be, she grew more fascinated by him. “Three questions, you strange man. Why have you followed me here? However did you learn my name? And who the hell are you?”
“My name is Frank. I made it my business to know your name. I didn’t follow you here, I’m the one who arranged for this meeting.”
He did what? “That’s impossible. Bob did.”
Frank chuckled and shook his head. “Bob. Not very creative with the name, was he?”
“Probably as creative as Frank.”
“Sadly, that is my true name. Passed down through the males in my family or some other kind of nonsense.”
“You mistake me for someone who gives two shits. Where is Bob?”
“He’s not coming. In fact, he’s no longer working for you. I am.”
“Are you now?” The smile she gave him in return was anything but warm. “Funny, because I don’t recall hiring you.”
Frank stared at her a moment, his expression thoughtful.
“Think back on what I said a moment ago, Jocelyn.”
Her mind raced backward, latching on something. “You create your own luck?”
“And opportunity.”
“Where is Bob,” she asked again, irritation starting to set in. “I didn’t hire you.”
“He’s not coming, and you won’t find him easily reachable.” Frank gave an amused little smile that should’ve scared most people. “I’m his replacement.”
“The hell you are.”
“I’m aware and up to date on everything you paid him to do.” He paused, obviously for drama. It worked. “Track and update you on a one Mr. Nathan Larson.”
Her heart froze for a moment, before rapidly speeding back up.
“Did you pay him off? Offer him more money that I did?” She managed to get out through nearly clenched teeth.
“Everyone has a price.” He seemed about to say more, but then closed his mouth.
No. Dammit this was not happening. “Bob had certain qualifications for this position—”
“As do I. I’m quite skilled at tracking.”
His words sank in. This Frank guy was a shifter? She hadn’t sensed it. Which meant it was pretty damn likely he was only half-blooded, like her.
It didn’t matter. He shouldn’t have taken it upon himself to replace Bob.
“Look, Frank—”
“Can I get you folks something to eat?” The waiter interrupted the rest of Jocelyn’s blistering reply.
“I’m not hungry,” she bit out, without taking her glare off of the man across from her.
“Well I certainly am. I’ll have a grilled chicken sandwich, no mayonnaise please. Also, cottage cheese instead of fries.” Frank handed the waiter his menu. “And actually, why don’t you bring the same thing for her?”
She was so stunned she didn’t even get a chance to stop the waiter before he went in to put in the order.
“You look like you make healthy choices in regards to diet, Jocelyn.” His gaze slid over her, more analytical than lustful. Though there was a glimmer of interest in his hazel eyes. “How else do you keep the type of body a twenty-year-old would have?”
Rather than acknowledge his flattery, she murmured, “You have no idea how tempted I am to remove your heart with one of these filthy spoons.”
He laughed, genuinely amused. “Look at you. A bit of violence under that pretty face.”
“You’d be surprised.”
“Actually, I don’t think I would.” Frank folded his hand on the table. �
��Agent Larson fled the scene of the crime and made his way to California via the Washington and Oregon coastlines. Always staying close to trees and disguising his scent.”
She shrugged. “A nice guess. Especially since news has been released within the shifter community that he’s been spotted in Central California.”
“Several homes or summer cottages were broken into along the route I’ve described. I’ve collected hair samples as evidence, if you’d like to have it run.”
If he was speaking the truth, then this man was thorough.
“You can’t do this on your own, Jocelyn. I can help you.”
“I’m not sure I want your help.”
“You do, and you need it. And here I am willing to help you continue tracking Agent Larson.”
Apparently. Her lips curled into a hard smile. “How much would you want, should I decide to keep your unsolicited services?”
“Nothing. Just the pleasure of your company.”
Not very original. “You sure go to great means to get a girl’s attention.”
“Quite rare for me, I assure you.” He caught her hand as she reached for a creamer for her coffee.
“You’re not my type. You’re a little too…old.”
“That would make you old as well, seeing as I only have two years on you.”
She wasn’t even going to ask how he’d figured out her age. His party trick of knowing things about her was becoming less shocking.
“You’re attracted to me, Jocelyn Feloray.”
“Not really.” Actually, that was a lie. Frank did have something charming about him. Something she was drawn to. Despite his creepy persistence of her and the way he’d forced himself into working for her.
But then, who was she to judge on creepiness and determination? She’d likely taken those labels at least a couple times in her life.
Maybe that was the draw to this man. On the outside he seemed normal and a bit of the intellectual nerd type, but the personality was complex. Fascinating.
“You’re buying my lunch,” she said softly.
“Of course.”
“Tell me, Frank, what else have you learned about Agent Larson?”
“Quite a bit, actually. I’m not sure if you’re aware of the handful of women who’ve turned up dead lately?”
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