by M. L. Briers
He grunted, growled, and cursed to himself as he dashed from one side of the room to the other, finding nothing but thin air… Then, at the sound of the lock on the door clicking off – he raced towards the kitchen counter, rested his backside against it and folded his arms across his chest in what he hoped was a casual pose…
Andi came out the room, stopped in place and frowned at him. He guessed that he didn’t look so casual after all…
“We’re you listening to me peeing?” She asked, as her eyes widened and her chin went down towards her chest as she eyed him.
“What!?” Ben almost choked on his own tongue. His hands went down to his sides and he pushed away from the counter with a fast shake of his head. “No!” he rushed out and she snorted.
“I thought you were leaving?” She eyed the door and then turned her gaze back on him.
“I was… I am-”
“Which is it?”
“I’m…” Ben lifted his hand and thought for a long moment about his answer. “Going.” He offered.
“Good.” She shrugged her shoulders and then shook her head. “Not good… good, but, you know…?” She frowned.
“Not… really, no.” He offered back and she couldn’t help the smile that tugged at the corners of her lips.
“Awkward.” She muttered.
“Yeah.” Ben agreed. This whole thing was awkward.
He felt more than drawn to her, and yet he didn’t want to rush her into anything. He’d already screwed up, and if he was seriously going to woo her then he needed to do it properly and not freak her out.
“You remember where the front door is, right?” Andi’s eyebrows slowly arched as she waited, expectantly.
Ben’s grin was on a slow boil. The more that grin spread his lips the sexier he looked.
Andi could feel her heart tapping at her ribs. Her stomach was pitching and twisting – her womb was on full alert, and she could feel the heat rising within her body, spreading on flashes of excitement that she was certain fate had put there to taunt her.
There was a tingling over her sex – as if she needed reminding just how damn good he looked to her, and she had to squeeze her inner thighs together for good measure, just in case his sensitive nose picked up her arousal.
Dooooomed!
There is no getting out of this, is there?
The man might be a bear, but he’s my honey…
Damn, but why does he have to look that good?
It isn’t fair – it certainly isn’t right – it’s just so… unjust…
“I know where the door is, Andi.” He assured me with a tone that set her nerves on fire.
Either his voice just got deeper or there’s something screwy going on with my ears…
“I’m reluctant to walk back through it.” His eyes were locked on hers and her brain told her to look away before she turned into a mushy wet blob on the floor as she melted under the heat of his gaze, but she couldn’t do it.
“Perhaps you could open it first?” She offered back, reaching for sarcasm when all else was failing her.
Andi guessed that she shouldn’t have said it – the moment that those words were out he grinned harder – his eyes fired up with the light of amusement, and she felt like all hope to deny him was lost…
It’s criminal that he can do this to me with just a damn look…
Then he was stalking towards her. One foot right in front of the other as her heart leapt and her mind took to panic…
No, no, no, no, no… no, no… oh help…
She tried to back up into the bathroom and yet her feet were stuck like glue to the floor and her legs were in on the conspiracy not to let her move one step, one inch from where she was standing.
Ben reached out when he was just an arm lengths away and she felt the brush of his hand go around her hip as he took another step to close the distance between them. His arm encircled her body and his hot palm flattened against the small of her back, and with one more step, and a scoop of her body towards him, there she was, back in his arms, her palms against those well defined ridges of his abdomen, skin on skin, as a rush of heat, adrenaline, and faerie dust goodness went through her body…
No, no, no, no, no…
Too late. His lips came down on hers, soft, warm, and so damn potent to her libido that they should have labelled his touch an aphrodisiac all on its own…
Wait, wait, wait, wait… wait…
CHAPTER TEN
~
One large hand palmed her cheek. The pad of his thumb stroked against her skin, as the hand at her back did the same against her spine…
Uh-oh, Uh-oh, Uh-oh, Uh-oh….
It felt good. Too good. She gasped against his lips and Ben didn’t need any other invite than that to push in and taste her on his tongue.
Yes, yes, yes, yes… wait… no, no, no…
When he growled and she felt it right down to the traitorous toes that were curling within her shoes. Her fingers curled too, against those muscles that felt rock solid beneath her touch…
Those same fingers wanted to explore, go higher to his broad shoulders, lower to those two solid muscles that ran down each hip, and to follow the line down beneath his jeans to where his hard length waited for her, wanted her…
He deepened the kiss, his tongue mastered hers, conquered and claimed it for his own. There was one hard, deep, hungry growled that rolled through his chest and then both of his hands traced down her outer thighs, hooking the material of her pencil skirts, fingers curling against her skin as he dragged the material upwards…
Errrrr….? That’s…
His fingers exposed her thighs, upwards and onwards until she felt that material pool just below the cheeks of her backside, and then his hands moved under the material, tracing backwards, the hard press of his knuckles against her bottom, before he yanked it upwards and freed the ample cheeks of her backside to his hands…
That heat seeped into her skin sending jolts of something so good to her sex that she moaned in the back of her throat before she caught it. His fingers cupped the flesh, protected from being branded by his touch by the thin silk of her panties, and he hoisted her up his body…
Andi’s body was working independently of any rational thought that her mind might have thrown up at that point. Her legs wrapped around his hips and his growl got a hell of a lot hungrier when his hard length pressed against her sex… but then, so did her moan of pleasure.
She knew that they were moving by the way that his length was rubbing against her sex, but it felt so damn good that she didn’t even care if he was taking her outside to spread her out over his truck, strip her naked, and thrust into her under the pale moonlight – where any one of his clan could see them…
She wanted the feel of him against her. She needed that hard press – that rock of his hips that made his length rub over the little nub of sensitive nerves that screamed for more…
Andi’s back pressed against the wall and she melted around him.
Fast… this is fast… but is it too fast?
Faster… move those damn hips faster, because if you do I’m going to be rewarded with a great big…
Oh… wow…
Ben broke away from her lips and traced his kisses down to her chin, lower to her neck, over her collarbone… and then she felt his fingers pull against her shirt, moving the fabric, his hot breath against her shoulder…
Isn’t that where he’d put his mark…?
A rush of panic tore through her, mind, body, and soul rose up as one to balk at the idea of his fangs coming out, her hands slammed against the hard muscles of his chest and she pushed…
“No!” She pushed her body away from him and tried to get into the wall and out the other side…
Ben’s head came up and his eyes took her in. There was a rush to panic in her face… big brown doe eyes stared back at him, and his brain kicked his ass into gear…
“I wasn’t… I wouldn’t…” He rushed out. His eyebrows practic
ally met over the bridge of his nose. His head shook from side to side as if it needed to back up his story, and his bear roared within in from the slight scent of fear that came from her…
“I… you…” She didn’t know, she wasn’t sure. He seemed genuine enough in his denial…
Had she got it wrong?
“You wanted too.” She blurted out, and his frown eased into a small smile.
“Of course I wanted too. I’m going to want to claim you, put my mark on your skin to ward off anyone and everyone else. It’s in my nature.” He offered the words on a quiet tone.
He’d done wrong. He’d done what he’d said he wasn’t going to do and rushed her – head first into hot and heavy without even thinking of the consequences.
She’d seemed to enjoy it. Seemed open to more, and he wanted more. Hell, he wanted everything…
There was still that deep seated fear within him that she’d reject him. She was here now and she’d kissed him back, boy had she… but that didn’t mean he’d wooed her, won her for his mate…
“But you weren’t going to bite… then?” She frowned. Unsure.
“I was going to nibble. I didn’t know nibbling wasn’t allowed…” He gave her one of those sexy smiles then and she felt another rush of excitement go right through her body and ping her sex… the same sex that was still throbbing with heat against his hard length…
Boy, do I feel like a grade A idiot…
“Nibbling is… allowed…” Andi grimaced a little and the sound of his deep seated chuckle rolled over her nerves and made her cheeks fire with the white hot heat of pure, unadulterated embarrassment. She grimaced harder.
“I’ll keep that in mind for the next time.” Ben said and her mind tried to grasp what that meant, but he was already backing off, already lifting her from his body and putting her down onto her feet on the floor…
Wait now… what just happened?
She mourned the loss of his length against her sex. And as his hands reached to smooth down the material of her pencil skirt, she had to wonder what steps she’d missed to get them to this… detachment.
“The next time?” Andi echoed his words back to him and his eyes locked on hers. His hands stopped brushed against her outer thighs, but he stayed bent forwards so that his face was right there, practically nose to nose with hers.
“Oh, there’s going to be a next time.” Ben said, so damn self assured that her heart played like bongo’s against her ribs. “And soon, real soon, but I don’t want there to be another misunderstanding between us, Andi.”
Me either… I won’t say a damn word… you wanna bite, bite, just get those hips back against me, and we’re gonna be all good…
Wait… is that what I really want…?
“I rushed you…” Ben said, looking thoughtful… too thoughtful for her liking. “I’m gonna take it slow.”
Slow…? Damn, slow doesn’t work for me… I’ve got a need…
“How slow?” Andi asked, swallowing down hard.
“Real slow, baby.” He promised and her heart sank…
That’s… nice… not.
Ok, I’m confused… what the hell just happened?
“O…k…a…y.” She said, and the next heartbeat he was turning on his heels and stalking away from her… “What are you doing?”
“Let me make you something to eat.” Ben tossed back over one broad shoulder. A shoulder that she’d had her hands on… wanted them on again…
“Not hungry…” For fooood!
“A drink then?” He shot her a look and a jolt went straight to her womb.
“Not really thirsty…” Thirsting for something… She gave a small shrug off her shoulders. Frowned when he turned back towards the small, open planned kitchenette…
“What can I get you?” His deep tones echoed in her mind…
An orgasm would be good… two would better… and three… well, three would just about be my life’s ambition come to fruition… it doesn’t have to be all at once – space it out…
“Andi?” Ben’s voice slapped her back to him…
“Nothing, I’m…. good.” Not!
How the hell could he leave me wanting like that?
Does that boy not have a sensitive bear nose?
He can’t tell what I need, what I want?
What the hell am I supposed to do? I could throw myself down on the floor and assume the position…
He might just pick me up and put me on my feet thinking I tripped or something…
He wanted me and I wanted him, and now that’s kind of one sided…
Damn, I had to open my damn big mouth. I could have been enjoying that thick hard length of smoothness right now…
“Are you okay?” Ben’s question snatched her back to him again, and she took a long moment to consider it. Then she nodded. “Tired?” He frowned.
“Not so much.” How the hell can I be tired when my body feels like it’s been wrapped inside a livewire?
Goddess, but I’m an idiot. And there’s me thinking that shifter’s were a few sacks short of a full load…
“Maybe you need to soak in the tub…” Ben offered those words like that was the answer to a woman’s prayers and dreams, and she had to admit that after a longs day’s work on her feet, she could tub it, but right then and there… she’d prefer it if he was in there with her… even though they probably couldn’t both fit…
“Sure, that might…” she didn’t sound overly enthusiastic about it, and he noticed.
“I’ll go run it for you.” Ben offered, setting off on fast feet before she could say another word.
Now I gotta have a bath?
CHAPTER ELEVN
~
I suppose it’s not the worst thing in the world… a… bath.
He’s my mate… so I guess coming on slutty wouldn’t be too wrong… would it?
Maybe I should just get naked, stretch out on the bed, and when he walks back in…
I’m not really the seductress type… I’m the idiot type… the type that had my man between my legs and cried wolf… bear… bite!
Maybe I should have damn well cried bite… maybe he would have?
Maybe he’d do it now?
Maybe I should just crawl away and hide under a rock until I get a clue…
Until I get a backbone…
Damn it to hell…!
She started to pace, back and forth across the floorboards, over the rug, turned, and went back the other way. Her hand went to her forehead and she scratched gently as her teeth worried her bottom lip.
Think! What would a slutty girl do?
No, wait… do I want to come off as slutty?
Does it even matter if he respects me in the morning? It’s not like he’s going anywhere… he’s my mate…
But what if he doesn’t like slutty? What if I turn him off completely and he never comes near me again…
Der! That’s never going to happen…
But, respecting me… I want him to respect me, don’t I?
Of course I do.
And aren’t shifter men supposed to be all dominant and gung-ho leading the charge? I think they are…
So, if I come on like a dominatrix in jack boots…
Goddess, this is so damn confusing…
How do you seduce a big old shifter bear without him knowing?
“Bath’s ready.” Ben said, and she turned on her heels to see him standing at the bathroom door, shoulder propping up the frame, arms folded across his chest, eyes taking her in… her heart slammed her ribs and her sex jolted…
Sexy as hell… look at him… just as sexy as hell… my man… my muscle man…
Standing there with those big old muscles on display… jeans loosely clinging to those hips… hips I had my legs wrapped around not so long ago…
Too long ago!
Not so long that I can’t feel the hum of his skin against mine…
Well, Mr Smooth – sexier –than – hell – shifter… two can play at
that game…
Andi slowly walked towards him making sure that her hips tried as hard as possible to bounce off either wall as she went…
Is that sexy?
He straighten a little. His eyes flared as she headed right for him… and he dropped his arms down to his sides, more attentive, a little hungrier looking…
Guess it might be…
He stood his ground in front of the doorway, and she stopped in front of him… lack of choices…
“Would you mind?” She lifted her hand and placed her palm flat against his chest, the sound of a low growl started beneath her hand… she lifted her left foot behind her and reached down for her shoe… his hand came up to her hip to steady her, and she slowly pulled it off and dropped the shoe where she stood…
That growl grew louder, hungrier, as she lifted her palm and used her other hand to replace it. His other hand moved to her other hip as she reached back and pulled off her other shoe…
His eyes were locked with hers. She could see that the chocolate colour was being erased by a blackness, and his tongue stroked over his lips to wet them as she dropped that second shoe…
“Thanks.” She gave him what she hoped was a sexy as hell smile, and he growled a little harder…
Andi looked up at him. No heels meant that she was lower now, felt dwarfed by the size of the man… but she liked it. It made him feel more powerful, not that he needed any more strength…
Now what? I’m shoeless…
“Am I supposed to climb up over you to get in the door?” She asked, and for one long moment his eyebrows tried to meet in the middle, as if she was speaking tongues… and then his brain caught up and he had to force his body to take a step to the side…
His eyes never left hers… not until she put one foot in front of the other and offered him a damned sexy smile that felt as if she’d tugged on his length… she could have reached out, wrapped his hard cock in her fist and pulled him along with her, because his feet moved, went to follow where she led…
“We’re you planning on watching?” She cooed, and his length twitched, tried to escape the confines of his jeans right through the material…