Baby, I'm Howling for You

by Christine Warren

  Or, you know, a late-night erotic feature. He wasn’t picky.

  “Okay, write down their names in the morning,” Renny said. “I’ll add them to the cookie list.”

  “You want me to wait till morning?” He slid his arms around her waist and tugged until her soft curves nestled against him. “I could jot it all down now, if you’d rather. Get it done tonight.”

  “Oh, no.” She stretched up on her toes and looped her arms around his neck, pulling herself up until their lips met. “I have plans for tonight.”

  Mick let himself sink into the kiss and reconsidered. A little thrill ride never hurt anyone.

  Renny wasn’t the kind of girl who believed in trading sexual favors for the things she wanted. She didn’t use it to get her way, and she didn’t think of it as a bargaining chip. Good sex had enough to recommend it that she’d never felt it needed any other justification.

  Of course, with all that said, she saw nothing wrong with using it as a well-earned reward, especially when that reward was so easily and satisfyingly shared.

  She pulled away just long enough to take Mick’s hand and tug him toward their new, magazine-ready bed. “Come on. This bed was a little rickety when I picked it up. Let’s test out the repairs.”

  Her mate chuckled and scooped her up, taking two long strides and then tossing her through the air to land in the middle of the mattress. The duvet billowed up around her and pillows scattered to the floor. Renny snuggled into the pristine softness and giggled.

  “So far, so good.”

  Mick leaned over her, bracing his palms beside her shoulders. “Good? Let’s try for spectacular.”

  He took her mouth with greedy hunger. She could feel him looming above her, his weight carefully balanced so as not to crush her. Even so, she could feel his presence like a roof over her head, sheltering and protecting her, and that’s when she knew herself to be a dirty, rotten liar.

  Renny was not “most of the way” in love with him like she’d told him in his truck the night before. She was head under water, fully submerged, soaked to the skin, and drowning in love with him. It no longer mattered whether he said the words to her, because there was no going back and nothing she could change. This was it. Her story was written.

  She believed now that he loved her back. What else could he have been trying to tell her with this surprise, with all the time and effort and thought he had put in to not just repairing their den, but changing it to suit her and the new life they could build together? Actions, as Marjory had tried to tell her, really did speak louder than words.

  But she still wanted to say them to him. They really had been important to her when she had confronted Mick about his feelings. Even though she now realized that she could hear them with her heart instead of her ears, she would feel like a coward if she didn’t speak them. It would be as if she held something back, and she wanted nothing of that between them.

  She nipped at his lips, hard enough to get his attention. When he raised his head, she looked straight into his beautiful blue eyes and bared her soul. “I love you, my mate. Completely.”

  His eyes blazed and his features took on a look of fierce satisfaction. “Good, because you’re mine, little red. And I love you, too.”

  His mate stared up at him in silence just long enough to make him kick himself for being an idiot. The world’s biggest idiot. For Renny to react to his declaration of love with such shock meant that she hadn’t expected to hear it. So, either she still doubted his feelings for her or she doubted he had the stomach or the balls to man up and express them to her.

  Either way, it meant he had some serious work to do. Before this night was over, his mate would have no doubt in her mind that he loved and cherished her above everything else in this world. He’d show her with both actions and words, but first he needed her naked.

  He knelt on the bed, straddling her legs, and reached for the buttons of her prim, striped shirt. The tailored fit and conservative neckline had been driving him crazy all day.

  She probably thought of it and of her trim, gray suit as professional and conservative, but to him they served as nothing more than a constant reminder of all the luscious things they concealed. Renny might think she dressed as a librarian should, but it only made him want to chase her behind a stack of books and ravish her. He could picture how she would look when he was finished, all soft and rumpled, her hair untidy and her eyes drowsy with satisfaction.

  Oh, yeah. He’d like to see that look on her face again. Right about now.

  She watched him while he undressed her, and he had a hard time choosing between staring into those sweet pools of green and staring at every inch of pale skin he uncovered. She watched him with such hunger and trust and love that it made his hands shake, and by the time he got to the button of her trousers, he lost all control. He ripped the fabric from her and tossed the pieces carelessly behind him.

  She grinned. “You realize I don’t have many clothes left to spare, don’t you?”

  He stripped off her panties, leaving her bare and beautiful on the rumpled new duvet. “Good. I like you naked. I think I’ll keep you that way.”

  “Only if you join me.” She flipped open the button on his jeans, then lay back with a smug expression while he shed his own clothes at record-breaking speed.

  When he eased back down on top of her, she arched and rubbed skin to skin, as if she were a cat instead of a wolf. Not that Mick minded. The feel of her bare curves and sweet softness beneath him made him harder than tempered steel. “My pleasure.”

  It felt like a punishment to have to move, because he wanted to stay right where he was forever, pinning his mate to the mattress beneath him and savoring the inviting warmth of her. But then it became a punishment not to move, because the hunger inside him demanded more.

  Mick slid down her body, unwilling to break contact long enough to shift with any real efficiency. She moaned and undulated a little beneath him, which turned out to be its own reward. He trailed kisses over her skin, along the arch of her neck, the dip of her shoulder, the firm smoothness of her breastbone.

  When he reached her breasts, he stopped and lingered. He couldn’t help himself.

  He nuzzled against the soft inner curve, drawing her scent in deeply. It lingered here in the sweet, dark space underneath, tangy lemon, dried tea leaves the color of her eyes, and hints of piquant nutmeg. He lapped at her skin, trying to draw in the taste, but that only increased his craving.

  Her nipple beckoned to him, the stiff, pink berry drawn hard and tight. He closed his lips around it and felt as well as heard her low moan of pleasure. Her legs shifted restlessly, or tried to, since his lower body held her pinned in place, and he slid his hand between them.

  He found her hot and wet and ready for him, and as his fingers glided through her plump folds, he felt the way her body reacted every time he drew hard at her breast. His little red mate liked the heavy pressure. He could give her that.

  Part of him wanted to draw out the moment, to tease and torment and savor the tight drawing of need in his belly. His wolf clawed at him, but even that became part of the pleasure, the tension of struggling against his own base needs even while the means to sate them melted under his touch.

  As it turned out, that part of him wasn’t quite as strong as the other. The second part was all need and urgency and it was damned tired of waiting. It wanted their mate now.

  Abruptly, he pulled away from her, ignoring her whimper of confusion. Her hands reached for him, but he brushed them away and seized her at hip and shoulder, rolling her onto her stomach. She didn’t need further prompting but immediately pulled her knees forward and raised her hips, offering herself to her mate.

  By the Goddess, she looked gorgeous. Her back slim and straight, her ass round and firm and curving down toward his glimpse of heaven. Her sex glistened with her arousal, puffy, pink, and inviting. The sight made his mouth water.

  His dick could wait a second, he decided, and leaned for
ward to drag his tongue across her center. Renny shuddered and turned her face into the duvet, muffling her urgent little whimpers.

  Oh, no. She didn’t get to do that. His mate didn’t get to deny him the sounds of her pleasure, not when every one of them made his chest swell with pride. And his cock swell with need.

  He tangled a hand in her hair and used the grip to turn her head until her cheek pressed against the smooth cotton and her breathless little cries echoed around the room. That was more like it. He continued to tease her for another minute, savoring both the music of her noises and the salty, sweet flavor that was her essence. He didn’t believe he would ever have enough of this woman.

  Mate.

  Mine.

  Love.

  Need.

  Take.

  Mick reared up behind her and gripped her hips with both hands. His fingers dug in with bruising pressure as he fit the head of his cock to her entrance and began to ease inside.

  He intended to plunge. Dear, sweet Lady of the Moon, how he wanted to plunge, but as his mate’s body closed around him, he felt how tight and snug the position had made her, and his instincts compelled him to relish every second of sensation.

  She closed around him like a fist, her body milking him with tiny little contractions he knew she couldn’t control. She wasn’t trying to drive him out of his mind; she just couldn’t help herself.

  “Mate. Please.” She panted the words, quiet and high-pitched with desperation. “More.”

  Mick eased forward, sinking deeper, and had to grit his teeth against the impulse to let go, to spill himself then and there and damn anything but his own pleasure. His wolf snarled at that idea, grabbing him by the balls and demanding that he satisfy their mate, that he pleasure her so thoroughly, she would never have sufficient energy to think about other males.

  “Please.”

  He thrust forward with a muffled shout, burying himself to the hilt in her tight, hot passage. She felt like paradise, slick and soft and snug, and he was moving before he could think, setting a hard, driving rhythm that had their new bed shaking beneath them.

  Renny met him thrust for thrust, throwing her weight backward to drive him deeper inside her. Her hands braced against the mattress, fingers curling into fists as he continued to ride her toward climax. He heard the hissing tear of fabric and saw her claws emerge, puncturing through the duvet to the sheets and probably the mattress beneath. The sight didn’t bother him. It only made him hotter.

  His head fell back and he struggled not to unleash his own claws, unwilling to break his mate’s pale, smooth skin. His hips snapped in a primitive beat, keeping time with the fierce pounding of his heart.

  Nothing this perfect could possibly last. He felt the climax rushing toward him with the speed and power of a locomotive, but he’d be damned if he’d go over without taking his mate with him.

  He released his grip on her hips, shifting one hand to the mattress beside her head and draping himself across her back like a heavy, living blanket. The other hand he slid around to cup her sex, fingers finding the place where they joined and tracing a firm path up to her clit. He circled it and drew a sharp, keening wail from her lips.

  That was all it took. Her pussy clenched around him, orgasm tightening every muscle in her body until she quivered like a bowstring. It made it hard for him to move, but Goddess, he needed to move, so he threw all his power into it and hammered into her until his own body seized up. He felt like he’d been struck by lightning, or maybe just stuck his dick in a wall outlet. But he wouldn’t have been surprised to see the room light up around them as he poured himself helplessly and endlessly into his mate’s welcoming body.

  By the time he was spent, gravity had taken over, and he collapsed on top of Renny like so many pounds of dead meat. She grunted but offered no protest. Instead, she snuggled deeper into the mattress and slid her arms across the cool cotton surrounding their overheated bodies. When her hands found his, she twined their fingers together and brought one pair to her lips. He felt her press a kiss to his palm and slipped into sleep thinking no moment in his life had ever felt this good.

  He couldn’t wait until they managed to top it.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Had Renny really thought of what she shared with Mick as “good” sex? Because if she had, she needed to check her dictionary for the definition of good. She didn’t think it stretched to the kind of sex that could render her deaf, dumb, and blind for the better part of a night. That kind of sex crossed over into the realms of spectacular, possibly even earthshaking.

  Life-changing?

  Oh hell, yeah, she decided, grinning into her pillow. She felt like a new woman, after all. A new, slightly sore, and thoroughly mated woman, with a man who possessed an unfortunate tendency not to hog the covers, but to kick them off the bed entirely during the middle of the night.

  The chilly air had her shivering, and she fumbled around on the floor for the missing duvet. It had turned out her nails hadn’t damaged it too badly, and only a few feathers had spilled out to stick in her hair.

  It had been totally worth it.

  She kept smiling even when she realized the blanket hadn’t landed on her side of the bed. If she wanted it, she’d have to get up and find it, or make Mick do it for her. Rolling over, she found the space beside her empty and blinked into the fading darkness. Judging by the sky outside the windows, it had to be the last hour or so before dawn.

  “Mick?”

  A squeak of a floorboard and the low murmur of his voice told her that her mate had gone into the living room to have some kind of conversation. Really? In the middle of the night? After they had wrecked each other like that?

  Now that was stamina.

  She climbed out of bed and shrugged into one of his shirts but didn’t bother with the buttons. With luck, she wouldn’t be wearing it long, but it was too chilly to walk around naked without her fur.

  Her bare feet padded silently down the hall. She found her mate pacing across the living room with his cell phone pressed to his ear. He looked concerned, but not murderous, and his movements spoke more of restlessness than suppressed fury. No immediate danger, then. It still left her with questions. Who was he talking to in the middle of the night, and about what?

  She stepped in closer, lifting her hand to cover a yawn.

  “… expected to hear from you before now. What the hell happened?”

  Eavesdropping really wasn’t her style, and damn it, it was chilly out here. The cold front the forecasters had mentioned must have moved back into the area. She entered the room, seeking her mate’s warmth.

  Mick scented her and turned. She watched as he initially stiffened, then adopted a resigned expression and relaxed. He beckoned her forward. Renny settled into his side underneath his arm and snuggled close. The male gave off more heat than an old-fashioned radiator.

  He pulled the phone away from his ear and pressed a button, then held it a few inches in front of them both. “Wait, what was that again?”

  “I said that we expected to call before now.” Zeke’s voice came over the speaker clearly. He sounded tired. And cranky. “The fuckers played us. We had the decoys in place in the room you used last night, surveillance was active but covert, and everyone involved maintained strict radio silence, but they still made it as a setup.”

  “Are you sure? Maybe they just decided tonight wasn’t the night to make a move.”

  “Oh, no, they moved.” Zeke’s tone filled with disgust. “One of the fuckers managed to sneak in close and mark the damned wall under ‘your’ bedroom window. The coyotes knew you weren’t at the B and B, and they wanted us to know they knew. The sting flopped.”

  Renny pursed her lips and peered up at her mate. He didn’t have the grace to look ashamed of himself, but he at least looked like he knew he should pretend to look ashamed. He failed.

  Mick sighed. “All right, then. Back to the drawing board. If they know we tried to set them up, it would be stupid to t
ry the same thing again. We’ll have to come up with another way to lure them out of hiding.”

  “Yeah, but later.”

  “Yeah. I’ll call you in the morning.”

  “Oh, no, you won’t. I’ll be asleep. You can call the department. They might actually answer.”

  The line clicked off, and the phone screen went dark. Renny raised an eyebrow. “Let me guess,” she said dryly. “The menfolk came up with a plan to lure Geoffrey and his pals out without putting poor, vulnerable little me in danger. What did it involve? Dressing one of the deputies up like a woman and sending him and his partner to the B and B to pretend to be us for the night?”

  “Don’t be sexist. This is the twenty-first century. We have deputies who actually are women.”

  “Riiight. How’d that work out for you?”

  Mick made a face. “You heard Zee. It didn’t.”

  “Did Jaeger not mention that Geoffrey isn’t stupid?” she asked. “He’s been stalking me for months, Mick. He’s not going to be fooled by any other stand-in with breasts. He would have known right away that wasn’t me at the inn. Hello, coyote, remember? He’d be able to scent that it wasn’t me.”

  “I gave them some of our clothes, and they used some hunter’s tricks to mask their own scents. We’re not idiots, no matter how badly our master plan flopped.”

  She patted his bare chest, trying not to let the feel of it distract her. “Sorry, baby. I didn’t mean to underestimate your intelligence, but you just underestimated Geoffrey’s, big-time. He’s no genius, but the man is a coyote, and an alpha at that. He’s clever, and he’s sneaky. Since tricks and cheating constitute his normal set of tactics, he’s going to expect them from others and be on guard for it. You’re more likely to catch him by breaking down his door and dragging him out by the ears.”