by A. C. Arthur
“I’m trying to get my life together,” she said simply and cocked her head as if she didn’t expect any further questions.
She should have known better.
“And how do you plan to do that? What have you been doing for these past five years?”
Her head was shaking before he could finish the question.
“I don’t want to talk about that. I just want to come home and get myself together. Is that all right with you?”
Nick contemplated his answer. Saying too much, holding too tight, would certainly send her running again. He definitely did not want that. With the same definitiveness he wanted to know where she’d been and what she’d been doing. The litigator in him decided to proceed with caution, giving her just enough space to let her circle for a bit before he clamped down and got the facts he wanted.
“Cool. Where are you going to live?”
She smiled again. “You know, I was wondering why you didn’t immediately demand I stay at your place. But now, sitting here, I’m getting the sense—” She stopped and inhaled deeply. “Yeah, I’m getting the sense that you don’t have room for me.”
Deny being a shifter in one breath, but fall back on her innate feline senses the next. Nick had to smile: She was still the girl he’d known.
“I told you we just returned from the Gungi. Rome, X, and myself. We were there rescuing a curandero. We brought her back with us.” We, he repeated to himself. Not I brought Aryiola back with me. Strange.
“Big time,” she said. “You’re rescuing people and all that. Mom and Dad would be proud of how you’re interacting with them.”
“With the shifters in the Gungi,” he corrected. “You know Rome’s the East Coast Faction Leader and I’m his commanding officer. We’re working for all the shifters. Including you.”
She shook her head again. “I take care of me.”
Nick’s cell phone rang, and he peeped at the screen to see who it was. “I have to take this.”
“That’s fine. I just wanted to stop by and let you know I’m back. I’ll get in touch and let you know where I’m staying.”
Nick held a finger up to keep her standing there and pressed the button to answer his phone. “Delgado.”
“FLs are conferencing tonight at Rome’s,” X said in his usual gruff voice.
“Cool. I’ll be there. Later,” Nick replied quickly.
“You okay?” X asked before letting Nick go.
“Yeah. Caprise is back,” he said, then hung up because X would most likely have just as many questions about her whereabouts as Nick did. That was something he’d deal with later.
“Who was that?” she asked the moment he dropped the phone on his desk.
“X. Look, I’ve gotta tell them you’re back. They’ve all been going just as crazy as me worrying about you.”
“Just tell them to keep their distance” was her curt reply. “The same way I’m telling you. I’m not a little girl anymore. I can handle myself and my life.”
Nick walked around the desk, stopping when he was only a few steps away from her. “You’re still my little sister.”
“That,” she said, the right edge of her mouth tilting in a slight smile, “is not something I can change. But I’m good, Nick. I’m finally good. So let it stay that way.”
She looked sincere, like she really wanted him to believe her words. Problem was, Nick had known her a hell of a long time. And he was no ordinary man who might just fall for those big dark eyes batting at him and those full lips almost pouting. No, he knew much better. Just as he was sure she’d scented the calor a shifter carried for his mate, Nick scented her anxiety and the carefully masked fear she didn’t want to show.
“No more disappearing or this time I will tear some shit up looking for you,” he said.
“I’m here to stay,” she said with certainty.
“Then I’ll see you soon.”
This time when Nick held her, he paid much more attention to how she felt in his arms, how she smelled, what his senses picked up from her. And his heart felt heavy with what he found.
“Take care of yourself,” he whispered into her ear.
She nodded, and when she pulled back he was only slightly satisfied to see the sheen of tears in her eyes.
“I will. And you do the same since you’re out here playing warrior.”
Nick let her walk out of his office without another word, because he wasn’t sure if the next thing out of his mouth wouldn’t be to ask her to stay with him. He had a large condo with three bedrooms. She could stay.
But Ary was there.
Chapter 13
The sounds were different.
That was one of the first things Ary discovered about being in the United States. Last night when she’d gotten off the plane it had been dark, much like in the Gungi. The air had smelled different, and then there were the sounds. There were no owl monkeys, tamarins, no hissing reptiles or harpy eagles. Sleep didn’t come easy and she wasn’t sure if that was because she was in Nick’s house—his American house—or that she was in America, period.
All her life she’d dreamed of coming here, of becoming a real medical doctor, as they called them. And now she was here, penniless, jobless, and for all intents and purposes homeless. Pitiful was what she really was. No, she didn’t like that word. She was making a change, finally taking steps to live the life she wanted. All she needed to help her was a job, money, a place to live. At that she had to chuckle because crying again was not an option.
Getting out of the bed after she’d heard Nick moving around was easy because she knew she wouldn’t have to face him again just yet. Ary had no idea what was going on between them. Sure, they’d had sex in the Gungi, but it was the forest and it was hot and she was a shifter and he was a shifter, and cats did what they knew.
Now, here, on his turf, she was uncertain once more. He was a man and she was a woman. What the hell that meant, she had no clue. Except she probably shouldn’t be living with him if they weren’t involved in some type of relationship. And they probably needed to get that situation defined sooner, rather than later.
Food was actually what she figured she needed on the soonest end of the clock.
With bare feet she padded out of the room, on floors that looked like wood but were entirely too smooth to be the real thing. She kept going until the floor stopped and spiral steps took over. On the lower level the floor was more of the same; to her left was the kitchen. Sparkling silver fixtures greeted her, and she moved in for a closer look. Dragging her hand over a cool marble surface, she pulled an extended handle and grinned at the water that came splashing out into the silver sink.
Ary opened cabinets, saw supplies. She opened the refrigerator and saw even more food. Her stomach grumbled and she took out a pitcher of orange juice. There was a bowl half filled with oranges and she took one of those. Across from the sink and refrigerator was a tall table and stools. She took a seat and began peeling her orange.
A shrill ringing sound scared her so badly she dropped the orange and almost slid off the stool. It was the phone, she told herself when her heart threatened to jump right out of her chest. “Crazy girl,” she chastised, walking around trying to find the contraption with the intent of making it stop that exasperating noise.
Bingo!
She found it on a glass table in another room filled with furniture.
“Hello?”
“Hi, Ary!” The voice on the other end was very cheerful, almost too much so. But Ary recognized and appreciated it.
“Hi, Kalina. How are you?” she asked, taking this opportunity to look around the room.
It was bigger with more furniture—their homes in the Gungi had the necessary furnishings like chairs and tables, beds and tables, so this seemed more than luxurious to her—and glass doors that looked outside to where the sun was bright. The phone did not have a cord or anything to keep her still so Ary moved instantly to the light. She wanted to feel the warmth from the sunlight on h
er skin, not just the humidity that she was used to.
“I’m a little tired from the travel but glad to be home. Hey, I was going to come over so we could go out and have lunch. Probably do some shopping since I know you don’t have nearly enough clothes.”
Ary looked down at the bra and panties she wore. Nope, she definitely did not have enough clothes.
“Ah, sure. I would love to go out.”
The door had some kind of latch on it, and Ary was trying to work it free.
“Great. I’ll be there in about an hour to pick you up.”
“That is fine,” Ary said. “Just fine.”
She pushed the OFF button on the phone and dropped it to the floor, much more concerned with getting the damn door open. With a crack that didn’t sound good but didn’t bother Ary too much, the latch flipped, a small piece falling to the floor. But the door opened, and for that she would be forever grateful.
The air wasn’t damp; instead it was warm, like a cloth from the boiling water she used to put on swollen limbs. There was more wood on the floor out here, but it was coarser than inside. A chair that looked more like a bucket had the softest leather covering it.
Ary sat in the chair and crossed her bare legs. For endless seconds she simply sat there, inhaling and exhaling, letting the different scent in and out of her lungs. It was quiet out here, or what seemed like quiet to her in comparison with all the forest sounds she was used to.
There were voices. Turning her head, she could see there were other balconies across from her and below her. All the way down on the ground was a fountain with water rushing over smooth stones. Her chest clenched at the slight memory of home, but then she focused on the people moving about. She had no idea where they were going but figured wherever it was, it was their choice.
That’s what Ary wanted above all else, the right to make her own choices and live her own life. She buried her face in her palms and let emotions roll inside. She’d taken a big step, one she was more than ready for, if only she could pull herself together and get out there.
“My neighbors are going to call the cops with reports of indecent exposure.”
His voice interrupted her thoughts, sending spikes of desire through her body instantaneously.
“I thought you were gone.”
He stood between the glass doors, dressed in a suit and tie. He looked professional and dour and sexy as hell. Why couldn’t she stop her body from wanting this man?
“I came back to check on you.”
“You shouldn’t have. I’m fine.”
He nodded, folding his arms over his chest. “That you definitely are.”
She didn’t like the way he was looking at her. Or rather her body liked it way too much. Ary stood, intending to move back inside the house. Of course Nick didn’t move, so she ended up facing him.
“I’m going to ask you not to come out on the balcony or leave the house in only your underwear again.”
“Why?” It sounded stupid, but that seemed to be protocol for most of the things she said to Nick.
He frowned, thick eyebrows drawing close together, two lines forming on his forehead.
“I like living here, but I’ll kill any bastard that looks at you. Is that clear?”
“That’s barbaric. Aren’t you supposed to be working with Rome to make the shifters more appealing to humans?”
“No. That’s not my job. I’m the enforcer, didn’t they tell you? What I’m good at is combat.” He stood up straight and took a step toward her. Wrapping his arm around her waist, he pulled her close then turned so that she was inside the house and his back was facing the balcony.
“And other physical endeavors,” he finished with a smile that felt like a hand on her breasts.
Ary gulped. “Anybody can have sex.”
She knew she shouldn’t have said it but damn, he was one cocky shifter. All she wanted was to knock him down a peg or two, put him in his place once and for all.
It simply wasn’t meant to be.
* * *
Nick had come home on impulse to check on her. The fact that he hadn’t spoken to her since last night was gnawing at him. Besides that, he just wanted to see her again. Caprise’s arrival had reminded him of how long it’d been since he’d seen the two women he cared most about in this world, and Nick vowed never to waste the time he had with them again. So he’d packed his briefcase with the baby file and told Kerry he’d be working from home.
If somebody had told him he’d walk in to see a just-about-naked woman standing on his balcony, Nick probably would have stopped for some champagne and strawberries. On second thought, he wouldn’t have. Romance wasn’t his strong point. Women were attracted to him, enough so that all he had to do was talk to them for a few minutes and they’d end up in his bed shortly thereafter. That was the extent of any effort he’d ever had to make for female companionship.
Just looking at Ary in her bra and panties made him want to do more. His body ached for her, his heart slamming wildly against his chest, ripples of the beast within tickling along his skin. She smelled like rain, fresh and damp.
She squirmed in his arms, rubbing her body against him, and Nick grit his teeth.
“Careful, baby. One more move like that and we’re going to end up on this floor.”
The glow in her eyes meant she didn’t like what he’d said. The way her body went pliant in his arms said she liked what he was doing. So he did more, moving his hips so that his thick arousal rubbed against her stomach.
“You think you’re irresistible to all females, don’t you?” she asked.
“Not at all.” Moving his hands down her back, he slipped his fingers beneath the band of her panties. “I know you cannot resist me.”
Parting the softest cheeks he’d ever had the pleasure of feeling, Nick lowered his head to hers.
“I do not want this,” she told him.
The fact that her hands came up to clasp his shoulders meant something totally different. But Nick wasn’t a rapist, so he said, “If you don’t want it, all you have to do is tell me to stop.”
She didn’t speak immediately, so his fingers continued to explore. He touched the rim of her rear entrance and felt the prick of his sharp teeth against his lips. His chest heaved now, his breath coming in quick pants.
Her forehead rested on his chest. Nick pulled once, not using all his strength but enough to rip her panties off and toss them across the room. He lifted one of her legs, locking it around his waist. She was shaking her head, her fingers digging into his biceps. Then her small hands slid beneath the lapels of his jacket and pushed it off his shoulders.
Nick didn’t want to move his fingers from her, but he did to let his jacket fall to the floor. She tore at his tie, popped the buttons to his shirt, and hissed as her teeth raked over his bared chest.
“There she is,” he murmured in a low voice. “My little cat.”
“You have on too many clothes,” she said.
Quick fingers undid his belt and pants as Nick stepped out of his shoes. They were standing in the middle of his living room, with the balcony window uncovered behind them. But he didn’t care. His focus was only on Ary, who was growing wilder with each passing moment.
When he was naked and he’d yanked on the snap of her bra to release the binding, they both stood staring at each other.
With a tilt of her head, she rubbed along his pectorals, down to the sculpted ribbings of his abs. “I’ve always wanted you,” she whispered. “Even when you were gone I used to dream of touching you, lying with you again.”
He pushed her hair back and clasped the back of her head, pulling her mouth to his. “You don’t have to dream about it anymore. Touch me all you want. Lie with me whenever you want. I’m all yours,” he whispered seconds before his lips ravaged hers.
She grabbed on to his wrists, coming up on tiptoe to deepen the kiss. Teeth and tongues scraped and dueled as their kiss quickly turned from passionate to downright lustful. When he had en
ough of the playing, Nick lifted her into his arms and headed for the couch. He was about to sit when she shifted out of his arms and pushed him so that he fell back on the chair.
Straddling him, her glowing gold eyes stared down at him and she arched her back, a mewling sound escaping her throat.
“Gorgeous,” he whispered, rubbing his palms over her heavy breasts, fingering her taut nipples.
“You make me wild,” she answered, bringing her head forward, her hair falling around her shoulders and covering her face.
Nick wanted to see her eyes, her lips, every inch of her. So he pushed her hair back, holding it tight in his fist as he kissed her once more. “Wild and wanton, that’s what you are, Miss Serino.”
“Yeah,” she cooed, lifting her hips until her moist center touched the tip of his dick.
“You want it baby, take it,” he told her, letting her settle over him and slide down slowly on his length.
A keening ache moved up Nick’s spine at the precise time her pussy sucked him in completely. In her hair his fingers began to shake. And when her fingers splayed over his chest, he sucked in a breath. She began moving, lifting her hips then dropping them down, pulling up off his length then settling down to take it all inside again.
It was the kind of pleasure that made a man’s vision blurry, his tongue too thick to speak. All Nick could do was sit back and enjoy as she rode him as if it was what she’d been born to do. Her movements were wild and stemmed from her own pleasure and arousal. He could see it in the deep flush over her skin. When her release was near her bright eyes fastened on his, sharp teeth bared. He bared his own teeth in response and felt their cats reaching out in this time of ecstasy.
She screamed his name and fell forward, her teeth sinking into the bare skin of his shoulder. Nick held her hips still, pumping into her feverishly as her release rippled through her body. When he thought she’d caught her breath he flipped her over, staring down at her perfect ass until his mouth watered.