Mouth Watering

by L. P. Maxa

  “Ms. Cooper? Are you meeting with Jace next?”

  “Yes, sir, you want me to give him a message for you or something?” She was splitting her attention between the notes she was making in her computer and Jasper. She looked away from the screen when his silence stretched on. “What is it, buddy?”

  “I, well, Jace… He’s, uh, well, he’s a little different. I don’t want you to think he’s weird or anything. I mean he’s my brother, and… You know what, never mind. I don’t even know why I brought it up. Sorry.”

  “Hey, no worries, okay? I understand what you are trying to say. You’re a good brother, Jasper. Now get back to class.” She smiled at him to let him know she’d heard him loud and clear. He gave a slight wave and walked out the door.

  Corey stared out the window, looking toward the stadium. She was wracking her brain trying to figure out what Henderson had been doing interrogating the baseball team under false pretenses. She was interrupted when Keller stuck his head in her doorway, knocking on the wood lightly.

  “Was that my star catcher I saw leaving your office?”

  “Yes it was. And he was wonderful.” Corey laughed a little. Who knew Jasper would be so poetic about baseball?

  “Well, good to know. How was your date with Dom last night?”

  “It was spectacular, thanks for asking.” Their romantic first date that led to them being freaking mated? Yep, it’d been great. Did Keller know? Would Dom have already told him and the rest of the coaching staff? She studied Keller, looking for signs that he knew what had happened between her and Dom last night, but his face remained neutral. “Hey, while you’re here, can I talk to you about something?”

  “Sure, darlin’, what’s up?”

  “Come in, shut the door though.” Corey waited until Keller did that before she went on. “When I met with Jasper, he said some strange things about Mr. Henderson.”

  “Oh yeah? What did he say? I mean all the guys complained about Henderson, but we figured they were bitchin’ just to bitch, you know?” He sat down in one of the chairs she had facing her white desk.

  “Jasper said that his evaluation took hours. And that Henderson asked him really personal questions, like about his family and who he had dated and stuff like that.” She leaned back in her seat. “And he made it sound like he wasn’t the only one who went through something like that either.”

  “And none of that is needed to clear the team to play?” Keller narrowed his eyes, clearly confused.

  “Nope.” She shook her head. “All we need to hear is that they play ball because they love it. I mean they aren’t convicted felons. They’re kids.”

  “Huh. That’s weird.” Keller chewed at his bottom lip. “Well, at least he’s gone, right? Don’t have to worry about him anymore. But it sucks that the boys had to go through all that for nothing, it couldn’t have been easy having to answer so many personal questions.” Keller stood up and turned to leave. “Thank you for caring about these kids. They are far from home, and they miss their families, even if they don’t show it. It’ll probably do them a lot of good to have a female around. I know it’s good for us too.”

  Corey smiled. “I’m glad I can be here.” Once he left she turned back to her computer. She shouldn’t even pretend to try to focus on the files in front of her. Now instead of only Dominic in her head, Henderson was taking up space too. She played solitaire instead, trying to noodle out the old counselor’s actions until there was yet another knock on her door. She looked up to see Jace walk in and sit down. He didn’t say anything; he simply stared at her with his hands folded in his lap, calmly waiting for her to start.

  Creepster. She silently scolded herself. Hadn’t she promised Dom and Jasper both that she’d keep an open mind? “Afternoon, Jace, thanks for coming to meet with me. This won’t take long. I only have a couple questions.” He still said nothing, just stared at her blankly. Okaaay. “Jace, how would you feel if you could never play baseball again?”

  He blinked twice. “I would feel fine.”

  “Really, you wouldn’t be upset if you had to stop playing?” She leaned forward in her chair, clasping her hands together on her desk.

  “No. Why would I be upset? It’s only a game.” Barely any inflection in his voice.

  “Yes, you’re right, it’s only a game.” She cocked her head to the side. “Tell me, Jace, why do you play if you are so indifferent?”

  “I play because I’ve always played. My father wanted me to, so I did.”

  “So you started playing because of your father, but why do you keep playing?” This kid was definitely night to his brother’s day. Jasper was so animated, so full of life. Jace wasn’t.

  “What else am I supposed to do with my time here?”

  His answers were so monotone, the pitch of his voice hardly ever changed. “There are plenty of other things you could do here at St. Leasing. There are art classes, music classes, other languages you could learn. Why do you choose baseball, Jace?”

  “My father sent me to an all-boys boarding school hundreds of mile from where I live. I am isolated from pretty much everything. Baseball comes easy to me and it keeps me in shape. I don’t play because I love the game. I don’t play because I like to be part of a team. I play despite it. I am smarter than everyone and they make dumb careless mistakes that can make me look bad. I don’t like relying on others for my victories.” Jace stared at her again, his gaze never wavering. He didn’t look down or out the window, just straight ahead, meeting her eyes.

  “Do you feel like your father forces you to play?” There was definitely something off about this kid. No more open-mindedness, she had to dig.

  “No one forces me to do anything.”

  “What about Jasper, do you enjoy playing ball with your brother?” Her last-ditch effort to find some emotion, to try to find something redeemable that she could mark down in his file.

  “He’s my brother. He enjoys playing ball, I play with him.”

  He never really answered her question. Other than that one there-is-an-I-in-team speech, every word out of his mouth seemed calculated and insincere. He was placating her, little fucker. “Jasper told me that Henderson grilled him for a couple hours during his evals, asked a lot of personal questions. Did he do that with you?” Corey watched as a slow smile spread across Jace’s rugged face, which looked odd and out of place.

  “He did ask me a lot of personal questions, things that were none of his concern.”

  “You are smiling, is that funny somehow?” Her voice was matching his on its own accord, she sounded as calm, as calculated.

  “It’s comical to me, yes, a lot of time wasted on his part if you ask me.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “All those hours talking to us, and nothing to show for it.”

  “Well, because he left doesn’t mean he didn’t take all his research with him. Who knows what he wanted it for? He could be writing a book about this team or trying to publish a paper. Does that bother you?”

  “Henderson is not a concern anymore.” Jace’s jaw ticked, the only small tell she’d seen from him since he’d walked into her office.

  “Why isn’t he a concern? Out of sight, out of mind?” She hoped like hell that was what this crazy kid had meant.

  “Sure.”

  Corey nodded her head. “Well, I think we are done here, Jace. Thank you for coming to see me.” She watched as Jace got up and walked out. No good-bye, and no backward glance.

  She needed to talk to Dominic. Something wasn’t right with that kid.

  She’d tried, gave him all sorts of chances. He’d failed.

  Chapter Twenty

  Dominic

  Dominic looked up from his computer when he heard Corey step onto the front porch. He’d come to her house after practice today. They needed to decide which place they were going to keep, but for now he figured she’d come here, so here is where he wanted to be. He couldn’t help but grin like a crazy person when she walked in the
door. He’d missed her today, so fucking much. The bond was complete, but he still hated going too long without seeing her. He’d felt like a piece of him was missing all damn day. She had been so wrapped up with the team that he hadn’t even had a chance to talk to her, let alone touch her.

  Corey walked by where he sat. He held out his hand and she low-fived it on her way into the kitchen. “Baby? Everything okay?”

  “Yeah, I need a drink. And I need you to drink. We need to talk about one of your players,” she called, her words sounding far away, as if coming from inside the fridge.

  She came back into the living room carrying two beers and handed him one. “Which player? Was it Jasper? Did he touch you?” Dominic knew Jasper was a harmless flirt, but he still didn’t want him messing with Corey.

  “No, not Jasper. No one touched me, Dom, don’t worry.” She sat down next to him and then thought better of it, got up and started pacing.

  “What’s going on, Corey, why are you pacing like that?” He started to sweat a bit, his jealous and protective side going into hyperdrive seeing her fidget and pace. A million scenarios ran through his mind, none of them good. Most were centered on her changing her mind about him, her leaving him, or someone hurting her.

  “It’s Jace. I can’t clear him to play.” She stopped moving and faced him, wincing.

  His jaw dropped open. “You are telling me you aren’t clearing my starting third baseman to play less than a week before our first game?” She nodded. “Can you at least tell me why?”

  “Of course I can tell you why, I was getting to that.” She took a couple sips of her beer and he licked his lips, wishing he was that bottle in her hands. He adjusted his pants when he started to get hard from the thought of her mouth wrapped around his dick.

  Would this need to constantly have her ever stop? He shook his head and tried to focus when she started explaining her decision. “I think he is a sociopath, maybe a psychopath? Maybe both. I don’t know. I’m not a psychologist. Look, I know you think he is socially awkward, but he’s not. He is cool and calculated, and never really answers a question directly. There is nothing awkward about this kid. He isn’t shy, he isn’t any of the things you think he is. When he talks about his family, there is no emotion. He never used the word home and when he spoke about his dad, he called him my father.”

  “So? Maybe that’s what they call their dad. What’s wrong with that?”

  “I met with Jasper first. He called him Dad. Jasper is light, soulful, secure, and compassionate. It’s so obvious that he grew up in a home full of people who love him. Jace, well, he almost seems like a kid who grew up with neither of those things. Except for his self-righteousness. He thinks he is above everyone and everything.” Corey finally sat down. She turned to Dominic and closed her eyes as she said, “He even kind of made it sound like he offed Henderson.”

  “What?” He scoffed. “Corey, come on, you think Jace killed Henderson? Why?”

  “Apparently Henderson was conducting really weird interviews with the team. Keeping them for hours, asking really strange personal questions. And when I asked Jace about it, he said that Henderson was ‘of no concern anymore.’ It was creepy. Maybe I’m being paranoid, but the kid isn’t okay, Dom. I can’t in good conscience clear him to play. I didn’t tell him though.” She poked him in the chest. “And you can’t either. I need time to figure all this out.” She lowered her voice. “Are you mad? Do you hate me?”

  “Of course I’m not mad, baby. I’m a little confused to be honest. I didn’t really see any of this coming.” He rested his hand on her thigh. Pretty much par for the course of this week though, right? He hadn’t seen Corey coming either. When he woke up Monday morning, he never imagined he’d be mated. And it was the bonded male in him that asked the next question. “Do you think he is dangerous?”

  “I think he could be.” She pursed her perfect lips and shrugged one shoulder. “I think if he thought he was going to be exposed, he would react. He has carefully constructed this shy gentleman persona. Which is why we can’t let him know I’m questioning it.”

  “Look, if it will make you feel better, why don’t we find Henderson? We can ask him why he was interrogating the kids, get his notes, see that he is alive and well, and that my third baseman isn’t a sociopathic murderer. I have a college buddy who is a detective in Denver. I’ll give him a call and see if he can locate Henderson for us.”

  “Really?” She sagged in relief. “Thank you, I think that would make me feel much better.”

  “Anything for my girl.” Dominic put his arm out toward her, and she took the invitation and finally snuggled up next to him. “Want to ask me your three questions for today? Get your mind off all this evil twin stuff?”

  “No. I want you to go call that detective. I’ll make dinner and after we eat I can ask you all about the wolf life.”

  “Is that like the thug life?”

  “I don’t know, you tell me.” She turned her face up to his and kissed him. “I’m sorry, I should have kissed you right when I walked in the door. Instead I started drinking and ranting about potential murders.”

  He kissed her again, deeper that time. The kiss made chills run down his spine and his dick twitch in his shorts. He pulled back to say, “It’s okay, you had a rough day. But you know, you could make it up to me.” He put his mouth back on hers and as he parted her lips with his tongue, she let out a little moan.

  She tasted like cold beer and chocolate. He moved his laptop to the side and brought her on top of him, like last night. He peeled her shirt off, exposing her lacy white bra, and bit her neck lightly before licking it to take the sting away. He picked her up then laid her down on the floor, blanketing her body. He moved against her, creating the perfect amount of friction in his pants. Which were suddenly way too tight. She reached between them, undid his top button, and pulled down his zipper. She pushed his shorts off as far as she could reach and then used her feet to get them down the rest of the way. She was panting and as frantic as he was. Apparently he wasn’t the only one feeling the constant need to be close.

  She arched against him as her hand grabbed his cock and began to stroke. He returned the favor by shedding her jeans and then they were both naked, making out on the living room rug. Fuck, he needed to be inside her, he’d craved this all day. He trailed his fingertips lightly down her toned stomach, causing goose bumps to erupt all over her soft flesh. He continued down farther and cupped her pussy, testing to see if she was ready for him. And what he found made him groan in anticipation. She was so wet for him. He did that to her and it was such a turn-on. He positioned himself at her entrance and then eased in painfully slow, in case she was sore from last night.

  Corey wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him in deeper. She didn’t let up until he was buried inside her to the hilt. It was like coming home. Where last night was hard and rough, this was slow and smooth.

  He stroked slowly instead of hammering into her. “Baby, you feel so good wrapped around my dick. I can never get enough of you. Fuck, Corey.” He watched her, saw what his words did to her, and she bit her lip to keep from crying out. So she liked it a little rough and she liked it when he talked dirty.

  Noted.

  He continued his deliberate assault. When she met his leisurely thrusts with her own hard ones, he smirked. He knew she wanted him to pump into her, drive home. But he needed her to know that he could make her feel good a hundred different ways. He would make it perfect for her every time. “God, Corey, come for me, baby, like this. Let me make love to you.” And she did. Her release triggered his own, and he pulled out and shot all over her stomach. He stayed like that, looking at her covered in his cum. It was so fucking hot.

  Eventually her breathing returned to normal and she opened her eyes to find Dominic staring at her, wearing a smug smile. She looked down and saw what was causing it. “Uh, babe? You mind getting me something to clean up with?”

  He shook his head no.

 
; “Seriously? Is this a wolf thing?”

  He chuckled. “Honestly? No freaking clue.” His eyes trailed up and down her naked body a few more times, savoring the sight. “Don’t move. I’ll be right back.”

  “Don’t move? Where am I going to go? To the neighbors to borrow some sugar?” She let out a loud sigh that he heard all the way in the bathroom. “At least you pulled out this time.”

  When Dominic returned holding out a fluffy purple towel, she rolled her eyes. “Dom, sweetheart, could you maybe grab a paper towel? That towel cost more than I want to admit.” He returned her eye roll and took off in the direction of the kitchen.

  ***

  After dinner they sat on the couch watching mindless TV. Corey cooked a delicious meal of fish sticks and mac and cheese. He had no idea how she stayed so thin eating that way. He was going to have to do the cooking around here apparently or they would both die of scurvy. Dom had called his friend at the DPD about an hour ago and he was going to look into Henderson’s whereabouts for them. “Okay. Hit me with your three questions for tonight.”

  “Oh fun.” Corey leaned her head back against his chest. “Question number one. Are there other wolves here at the school?”

  “Yes.” She watched him, waiting for him to continue. He didn’t.

  “Yes? That’s it? I don’t get more answers than that?” Dominic looked at her, eyebrows raised. She needed to learn to ask the right questions. Plus, playing with her and making her all annoyed and huffy was fun. “Who are the other wolves at this school?”

  He smiled. “The other baseball coaches, Keller, Linc, and Baze, are all wolves. The dean is one, a few teachers, and most of the kids on the baseball team.” He left it at that, revealing which kids wasn’t his place. Part of the reason their parents sent them here was to keep them off anyone’s radar.

  “Shut up. That many wolves, here? Why? Wait, that wasn’t my question. Uh, why are there so many of you here at this particular school?”