by Alisa Woods
What mind? he thought bitterly. You’re thinking with your wolf, Lucas.
His wolf just panted, ignoring him completely. It was raptly attuned to the sumptuous bouquet of scents rolling off Mia: the arousal, either from before or now, he wasn’t quite sure; a woodsy, clean scent, probably her fresh-washed skin before going to bed; and a lingering musky smell that had to be pure pheromones at work. That called to his inner beast the most.
Lucas turned toward her, trying to keep the lower half of his body in shadow. He handed her the milk, his arm outstretched, keeping as much distance as possible. “Here. This should help you sleep.”
“Does warm milk had the same effect on wolves as it does on humans?”
Damn that sexy, sleepy voice again.
“Yeah.” He should have beat a hasty retreat, left her to her milk, alone in the kitchen, but she held his gaze as she lifted the glass to her lips. She drank it down greedily, in several long gulps, then set the glass down on the counter with a resounding clink. She licked the milk that rimmed her lips, leaving them wet and glistening.
Dammit. “Mia,” he said, warning in his voice. He would simply have to tell her straight out. He would protect her, but there would be no more—
His thoughts cut off as she reached down and lifted the t-shirt off in one swift motion.
If she glowed before, she was pure radiance now. He hadn’t had a proper chance to just look at her before, too overcome by lust or anger or the fear of letting his wolf loose. But now, in the wan light spearing into the kitchen… she was a moon-borne goddess. Her breasts were the full mounds of his dream, only now her nipples were hard peaks begging for his touch. Her ink black hair fell in waves around her shoulders, lying softly on either side of her breasts. The moon turned her skin an ethereal silver-white, but her blue eyes glittered with a mystical light that oozed with ancient sexual power.
Her beauty spoke like an incantation to his inner beast.
He blinked. She took one careful step after another toward him, allowing him a long look, but closing the space between them in no time. His mouth was dry from hanging open, but just as he swallowed to speak, she reached him.
And went down on her knees.
Oh god. His wolf whined in anticipation.
Before he could think of words to stop her, she had freed his straining cock from his pants and taken it deep into her mouth. He gripped the counter behind him, his head tipping back with the intense pleasure of being inside her again.
“Mia.” He meant it as a pleading to stop, but even he could hear the groan of pleasure in it. His wolf lolled in it, basking in each slide in and out of her mouth, his power over Lucas’s mind growing with each bob. Her hand grasped his shaft, adding to the pressure and making him gasp.
He looked down at her. The sight of her lips sliding over his cock again and again entranced him. His hands found her hair, and he relished the silky softness of it, even as she moved under his touch. Tension coiled deep inside him, a climax coming that would obliterate him. It took everything he had to gently urge her to stop.
But as he lifted her to her feet, that made the situation no better. She was in his arms again, her breasts pressed to his chest, her arms around his neck, his throbbing cock heating the coolness of her bare skin.
She looked up into his eyes and whispered, “Take me.”
And that was it.
He plunged his tongue into her mouth, devouring her more than kissing her. He tasted his own fluids inside her, salt and musk, and that ignited an even more powerful drive inside his wolf. His hands slid down to cup her bottom, and he lifted her feet from the floor. He carried her across the kitchen and made it as far as the table before he couldn’t wait any longer. His wolf wanted to bend her over the tabletop, spread her legs, and plunge inside until she begged him to stop. But that was too close… too much like claiming… he couldn’t risk it. Even now, his canines were pushing against his lips, craving her. Instead, he set her down on the table, palmed one gorgeous breast with his hand, and forced her to lie back on the cool wood. She arched her back away from the cold surface, but that just splayed her knees, a moon goddess spread open just for him.
He had told her that wolves didn’t have sex… they mated. And it was true, at least in the two packs he’d ever belonged to. But no matter how much his wolf wanted to, Lucas couldn’t allow himself to claim her. Yet, he was nearly powerless against the pull Mia had on him. That left him having sex with a girl who was all woman, but barely a wolf... and someone he could never call mate.
All he could do was pleasure her. And obtain some kind of relief for himself. He would plunge into her and make her come and do everything short of truly making her his. But then he had to find a way to keep her safely away. Otherwise he might lose his mind in this madness.
He lifted her slender legs until her ankles rested on top of his shoulders, then pressed the tip of his aching cock against the dripping wetness of her folds. His wolf whimpered, disappointed, begging for more than just sex. Mine, his wolf whined. Lucas gripped Mia’s hips and thrusted deep inside her, driving back his wolf with a slamming wall of pleasure. She cried out his name, which rallied his wolf even more, but Lucas buried him again in a haze of lust. Mia moaned, and he could hear her wolf whimpering as well, asking for release. He held her tight against his pounding cock with one hand, while he slid the other over the silky skin of her belly until he found the tight nub of her sex. He drew small circles, timed with the rocking of their bodies. It didn’t take long for that to make her come. The waves of her pleasure made her tight, hot body grip him even harder. He gasped with the intensity of it, but managed to hold his own pleasure back, while he continued taking her hard, driving his body into hers until her moans turned into shrieks again. Her claws came out, carving into the table, just as he brought her to a second climax. This time when she squeezed around him, he couldn’t hold back. The pleasure shot through him, emptied him, buried him under an avalanche of sensation that quieted his wolf, finally and completely.
Their panting breaths rasped the air. The table joints squeaked from the abuse they were giving it. His pounding rhythm slowed, but he kept rocking against her, riding every last shockwave of pleasure, until she was ready for him to stop. They didn’t speak. When they had both come fully down from their peaks, he gently untangled their limbs, lifted her from the table, and carried her back to his bedroom.
He would lay with her tonight. God help him, he would probably take her again. He would pleasure her as long as she allowed it, and as long as he couldn’t resist.
But he couldn’t bear to constantly have her, but never be able to really claim her.
In the morning, she would have to leave.
The smell of eggs and bacon had never been as heavenly as it was to Mia this bright and sunny morning in the apartment of an alpha wolf who happened to be her boss.
And now her lover.
Mia was sore in the very best way—a way she didn’t even know she could be. She adjusted how she sat on the strange-shaped decorator chair at the kitchen table, thankful for the cushioned seat, even if the black leather stuck to her legs. Lucas was cooking breakfast, dressed only in those pajama pants that hung low on his hips. She knew for a fact that he had nothing on underneath the flannel, because they had both just thrown on clothes when they climbed out of bed with the morning sun. His back muscles flexed as he stirred the eggs. His bare feet made no sound as he crossed the kitchen for plates. The ropy muscles of his arms worked to craft a breakfast for her after he had made love to her all night long. Or at least until they had both fallen asleep from sheer exhaustion.
The man was so damn sexy she could hardly stand it.
But he was strangely quiet now.
He hadn’t been so quiet before, when he woke her this morning, asking for more of what they had done the night before. Her body still hummed from the pleasure he had lavished on her. And he had taught her more than one way to return the favor. It was like they had been l
ocked in a secret time bubble where there was nothing but their bodies and the pleasure they would wring from them.
She supposed they had to come back to real life some time.
She squirmed in her seat again, the memories bringing back a flush of pleasure with them. Lucas was plating their food and soon brought it over, returning to bring two glasses of juice as well. He took the seat opposite her, but the silence continued. She was so ravenous, she didn’t mind. They both consumed everything he had cooked in less than half the time it took to make it.
As they were finishing, he finally spoke. “We’ll need to go by your dorm and clear out your things. Whatever is important to you, bring it. I don’t know when it will be safe to go there again.”
She nodded and glanced around at his immaculate apartment. “I don’t have much. And it probably won’t fit in with your gorgeous apartment, but I promise I won’t take up too much space.”
He scowled at his plate, hesitated, then finally lifted those dark eyes to meet her gaze. Her heart rate picked up even before he spoke. Something was wrong.
“You can’t stay here, Mia.” It was the same cool tone he had the night before, only minus the anger. Although that wasn’t exactly right—he seemed angry at something, it just wasn’t her.
Her heart sank. “Oh.” She couldn’t think of what else to say.
“Last night was… amazing,” he said, the frown still deep on his face. “But it would be better if we just left it at that.”
Her stomach twisted, the eggs suddenly feeling like a rock inside her. “That’s not what you said this morning.” Anger was rising up in her like bile. He did just want to screw the intern, after all. It felt like he was throwing her away… but that wasn’t right either. He was moving her out of her dorm because he wanted to protect her. He had promised to protect her.
He gritted his teeth, staring at his plate again. “I told you before,” he said quietly. “I have a hard time resisting you.” Then he looked up, and the heat was back—the same passion he had shown her all night long in his arms.
She held his gaze for a breathless moment. “Then don’t resist.”
He closed his eyes briefly and shook his head. “You don’t understand.”
“Tell me,” she said, still holding her breath. If only he would open up to her about it… let out the darkness that was holding him back…
He dragged his gaze back to her. For a moment, she thought he might tell her. “Maybe someday, Mia.” The painful honesty in his eyes ripped into her. “But for now… I’m sorry. I just… can’t have you here.” He rose up from the table, taking her dish as well as his into the kitchen.
She watched him go, a lump in her throat. “But you’re moving me out of my dorm.” There was a tremble in her voice.
He set the dishes in the sink and turned back to her. “We’ll find you a place to stay. Probably just a hotel for now.”
She got up from her chair and stared across the chasm of cold the kitchen had become. They had made love in this room… or maybe they simply had sex. She wasn’t sure anymore.
“You’re not going to stay with me at the hotel.” She didn’t let it be a question, just a confirmation that she understood the conditions he was setting.
“I’ll stay until I’m sure it’s secure,” he said. “Then I’ll hire someone to watch over you.”
She bit her lip. “But I’ll still see you in the office?” That one actually was a question. Did she still have a job? Did she literally screw herself out of the best job she’d ever had?
“Of course.” His stance softened, and he unlocked his arms. “You’ll have a position at SparkTech as long as you need. Or want.”
That made her heart skip a little. And it gave her time… time to convince him he was wrong to push her away. That there was room for her in his life.
“But no more sex?” she asked.
His arms locked up again. “No.”
“How about kissing?” she asked lightly.
He cocked his head to one side. “This isn’t a negotiation.”
“No kissing, then,” she said. “What about fondling? Over or under clothes? How about straight-up groping?”
He gritted his teeth. “Mia,” he growled through them.
“I’m just saying…” She pushed in her chair. “If I accidentally brush up against you in the elevator, don’t be surprised if some part of your body gets squeezed.” She raked her gaze over his overly-hot, extremely-masculine body. She made it sound like a joke, but she wasn’t so sure it was. Would she be able to keep from jumping him in the elevator? She wasn’t entirely sure.
But it pulled a smirk out of him. “Duly warned.”
She flashed him another flirty look, then turned away. “I call shower first,” she threw over her shoulder as she headed back to the bedroom. His low chuckle followed after her.
In truth, her stomach was still twisting.
He had given into her for a night. But in the bright sun of morning, he’d thought better of it and pulled back. She would just have to keep trying, not drive him away, and eventually, he wouldn’t be able to resist the pull between them anymore. Her inner wolf was still basking in the glow of a night with her alpha, but she roused enough to yip in agreement.
Lucas and his wolf belonged with them. But they would have to be patient while he figured that out as well.
Lucas strolling through her dorm building, at her side in his casual-yet-upscale polo and slacks, felt like some kind of out-of-body experience: his powerful frame and confident walk were better placed in a boardroom, not next to a bunch of hungover college students stumbling in from whatever frat party they had crashed the night before. Lucas let her lead the way, but his presence was commanding: he swept the hallways with his gaze and narrowed his eyes at every person they encountered, probably assessing whether they were a threat or not. It was incredibly reassuring, and made her feel safe, even if she didn’t know from one minute to the next what kind of relationship they had. For her wolf, it seemed simple: he was her alpha, or at least should be. Even if Mia hadn’t submitted to him in any real wolfish way… yet. Her inner beast paced and pawed the ground, eager to cement that thought into reality. But her human self wasn’t at all sure about that—especially when Lucas was a volatile, crazy mix of employer, lover, protector, provider, breakfast-cooker, and mentor on all things wolfish.
If she were on Facebook, their relationship status would definitely be it’s complicated.
Lucas let her step into the elevator before him, then followed and used his stare to keep a bleary-eyed boy from joining them. The door closed.
“Floor?” he asked.
“Eleven.”
She looked at him, but he kept his gaze on the slowly climbing numbers. There was an invisible wall between them now, one she wanted to breach by taking his hand or touching his face—she wished she was bold enough to grope him in the elevator like she had threatened, but all her bold demands had been made in the shadows of his kitchen, alone, late at night. Not in a brightly lit elevator that could stop at any moment.
When they reached the 11th floor and stepped into the common room, Lucas’s nose wrinkled. She couldn’t blame him—the post-Friday-night-party stench was second only to Sunday morning’s usual combination of spilt drink mixers, stale body sweat, and at least a couple hasty sexual encounters. Today there was an eau du Cheetos added to the mix. Must have been movie night. At least there weren’t any used condoms in the corner, like she found the last time.
“Sorry about the Smells of Debauchery,” she said.
“I’d kind of forgotten about the college stench.” He threw her a small smile that felt like a lifesaver on her stormy sea of emotion. “Probably blocked it out.”
She smiled in return. “The whole place could use one of those air purifiers you have a SparkTech.”
His smile dimmed. “Well, at least you won’t have to stay here much longer.”
She grimaced, thinking that at least in the dorm she
had someone to live with, whereas Lucas was about to stick her in a hotel by herself. Or with a bodyguard. Which would be fine if the bodyguard was Lucas, but that seemed to be off the table.
The hallway was empty, with the dead-quiet of too-early Saturday morning for most college students. The early risers were already gone, and the rest were probably sleeping it off. Mia dug her keycard out of her purse and slid it into the door. The blinds were closed, and the morning sun hadn’t yet been introduced to her room. At first she thought her roommate, Jupiter, wasn’t home—probably spent the night with her crush from last week, Jackson—but then she saw Jupiter’s telltale blue-feathered purse dangling from her wrist. Her roommate was buried under the blankets on her bed, face down, her wild red hair spilling out over the edge along with her floppy arm, but the covers were pulled up over most of her head.
Lucas tiptoed past her sleeping roommate like she was a guard dog, but they would need some light to clear out her stuff. Mia strode over to the blinds on their window and opened them with a loud zip sound. Light crashed into the room.
Jupiter groaned like she had been mortally wounded. “Et tu, Brutus Mia?” she croaked, still under the blanket.
“I’m not stabbing you, Jeeter,” Mia said with a smile. “Although I should for what you’ve done to the place.” The open blinds had revealed the wrecked state of their room: overturned red cups, underwear she prayed was Jupiter’s draped over the chair, and it looked like someone had crumpled every piece of paper from the printer and tried to score baskets with it. Only two made it in the trash can.
Lucas took in the disaster scene and just shook his head. She could only imagine what he was thinking.
Jupiter stirred but only to pull the blanket tighter over her head. Her voice was muffled, but Mia could still hear her moaned complaint. “Oh, cruel fate. Why do you mock me?”
“It’s a little early for Shakespeare, don’t you think?” Mia called. She emptied the remaining printer paper from its box and handed the empty to Lucas. They wouldn’t need much more than that to pack up her stuff.