Shepherd’s Watch: Guarded

by J. Hali Steele

  “Damn, baby.” He moved his hand to the back of her head and let her take control of his hardness with her fingers. Her head bobbed back and forth on his dick and sent him in a fit. He tightened his ass in an effort not to send a shot of cum down Jetta’s throat. “God, you gotta stop or I’ll come in your mouth.” Even as he spoke, he pushed and pulled her head back and forth in an effort to bury more of his penis in her mouth. “Feels so good.”

  She took his length as far as she could and then pulled back, sucking so hard he thought it would be the end of him. Wade watched as her tongue drew lazy circles around the sensitive ridge of skin surrounding his crown.

  Jetta peered at him through long lashes until she released him and smiled. “I want more.”

  “No more of that,” he said, pushing her back against the pillows. Wade climbed to his knees on the bed between her legs and pulled them up to hook over his shoulders. Grasping his swollen cock, he swept it through the crevices of her pussy, wetting the head until it shone with her juices. “I waited for this.” He nudged at her channel, seeking entrance, and sank his cock in just enough to hear her suck in a lungful of air. “Tell me when you want more.” Giving her time to adjust to his thickness, he didn’t move.

  “Ooh,” she moaned, and the O her lips formed made him think of driving back in her mouth. “Now.” Her knuckles were white as she gripped the bed covers.

  He eased in inch by inch until his penis was buried inside her. Pulling out, Wade thrust back in slowly. Again and again, wanting to take his time, wanting her to love every minute of what he did to her.

  When he couldn’t stand it anymore, he pushed in to the hilt and stopped. “I can’t hold it. Come with me, Jetta.” Hugging her thighs, he rocked in and out of her. Feeling her convulsions made him move quicker with short, hard jabs. Jetta’s cunt was hot and tight as it pulsed around him, milking him.

  “Wade,” she cried. “Coming… I’m coming.”

  “Let it go, baby, give it to me.” Warm juices slipped around his dick, making it easier to slide in and out. One final squeeze from her pussy, and Wade spurted deep inside her. “Take it, Jetta. Squeeze, honey, and take it all.” Pumping into her once, twice more, and he was empty.

  He rested between her legs, catching his breath, and planted small kisses inside her knees, licking and tasting her. “Damn, I want more.” But she needed to rest. She’d been through hell in the last twenty-four hours. Jetta wanted him too, but he should have waited.

  Untangling her legs from over his shoulder, he stood and wished like hell he could release his shepherd. The scent of her drove his dog nuts. He’d have licked and prodded and cleaned every crevice.

  That would never happen.

  A growl slipped unbidden through his lips, and he saw the questioning look gather in her eyes. “Shit, Jetta, I’m sorry.” Climbing from the bed, he spun to leave the room and heard her gasp.

  “Oh. My. God!”

  Jesus Christ. He hadn’t intended for her to see his scars. They were much worse than hers.

  “Wade?”

  Pivoting around, he snatched his pants from the floor and backed away. “No pity, remember.”

  He reached the hall and sped down the steps heading for the front door, throwing it open with a bang. The animal tore from him, giving him no time to prepare. He shoved his slacks behind a cabinet in the hallway before pain doubled him over, sending him to his knees with a hiss. His hands, balled in fists, banged against the wooden floorboards, drawing a rumbling growl from his chest. Bones popped and reformed, pulling his shoulders into a hunch. Ears sprung up as his snout lengthened and his tail unfurled, swishing back and forth in agitation.

  The shepherd was loose. Wade threw his head high and a mournful howl poured from his huge, furred body.

  Before he was aware, a car came around the corner and tires crunched on the gravel, spraying it across the driveway. At the last minute, the car veered to miss hitting him. He trotted off, but not before he glanced back at the passenger side.

  He saw Victoria Germaine’s eyes stretched wide. Max was driving. Pinched brows, the grimace on his mouth, spoke volumes. Spinning in right behind them was Ren and Margy.

  Damn it to hell.

  * * *

  His brothers found him lying by a stream about a mile away, and Max was still pissed off. “Have you lost your fucking mind? Don’t ever put me in a position to lie to Victoria again.”

  They’d left the women alone at Jetta’s, under the pretense of looking for the shepherd. Max lied to Vic, saying Wade had brought the dog with him.

  “That’s your biggest concern?”

  Both brothers had likely shed their clothes and hid them once they were safe in the woods. All three sat on a grassy knoll, naked as jaybirds.

  “I warned you, damn it.”

  “Fuck off, Max. I don’t want to hear ‘I told you so.’ Not now.”

  Ren sat between them and chuckled. “This mating thing, it’s a bitch, isn’t it?”

  “You should have heard her when she saw my scars.” Wade lay back with his hands laced behind his head. “She can’t stand the sight of me.”

  Max cleared his throat, sending small animals scurrying into nearby trees and back into their safe burrows. “Vic told me about her accident. Anyway, it’s doubtful she’ll hold a few scars against you considering she got past your ugly face.”

  “Go to hell.” Wade was stockier than his brothers and he’d never be considered classically handsome standing next to either of them. That stopped bothering him a long, long time ago. He thought the scars had too. “Vic needs to keep her mouth shut.”

  By the time he’d heard the growl, it was too late. Max yanked him to his feet and a hard blow sent him sprawling back on his ass. “Don’t ever do that. Never use that tone when you talk about her.”

  Ren jumped between them. “Easy, man.” He craned his neck at Wade on the ground rubbing his chest. “Get up, we need to head back. I don’t want to leave Margy alone too long. I love her to death, but she’ll give away all our secrets if Vic pours on that syrupy charm of hers.” He spun back to Max. “I’d really like to know what’s up with her voice and the constant smell of cinnamon.”

  “I’m keeping my eye on her.” Max bowed his head and scratched at his thigh. “I -- um… chased a couple shepherds away from her restaurant last week. Haven’t seen them since. If I didn’t know any better…” His words trailed off.

  Wade glared at him. “I’ve been trailing them all over that side of town. If it wasn’t for those mutts, I wouldn’t have been in the alley to help with Jetta.”

  “You get any scent from them?” Ren’s head twisted back and forth waiting on someone to answer him.

  Wade spoke up. “Nothing, just dogs, but they’ll be great once they’re trained. Still, it’s bugging the shit out of me.”

  Ren’s teeth worried his bottom lip. “Okay, Jack’s cop is following up on the blood in the alley. Max, I guess we can’t keep you away from Victoria and the Seared Soul.” He smiled, piercing Wade with a look. “I’ll try and pick up the strays’ trail unless you want to trade places. You search for the dogs, Margy and I can stay out here.”

  Wade felt the heat rise up his neck. “You bastards are itching to get your asses kicked.” He stabbed his brothers with a look. “She’s mine.” He gripped Ren’s shoulder. “How did you get up the nerve to tell Margy?”

  “You’ll know when the time’s right.” Ren said solemnly, “You have to tell her, Wade. It’ll drive you and your shepherd crazy if you don’t.”

  Releasing their dogs, they headed back to Jetta’s.

  After his brothers donned their clothing, Wade was impatient with the pace. His beast even nipped Ren in the ass to speed him up. All he got for his trouble was laughter. He waited at the edge of the woods while Max retrieved his pants from the hallway.

  When he entered the house, Jetta excused herself to go take a shower. She can’t stand the sight of me. Not good at small talk, he did his best. W
hat he really wanted was to be alone with Jetta. “Margy, how are things with the new eye specialist?” Ren’s wife remained blind from an accident involving one of the Watch’s guard dogs.

  She tilted her head in his direction. “You want us out of here, don’t you?” She laughed. “Actually, he thinks I’m keeping myself in the dark so I don’t have to see my husband’s ugly face.”

  Ren stood and swooped her up from the chair. “I’ll show you ugly when we get home.” He faced Wade. “If you need me, brother, howl. I’ll be here.”

  Max cleared his throat. He did that a lot lately in an effort to keep them in line and from saying the wrong thing around Vic. Wade wondered why the man just didn’t screw her and get rid of some of the pent-up emotions he’d carried long enough. He hadn’t touched a woman or a bitch since the day she walked up on them at the Seared Soul. It wasn’t possible she was his brother’s mate -- the man would have no control by now.

  Wade was nervous as hell waiting for Jetta to come down, so he cleaned up in the kitchen. While he was out with his brothers, the women had eaten. Vic brought her specialty of pepper-crusted lamb and cinnamon glazed sweet potatoes. The woman was fixated on cinnamon.

  “Shocked something so beautiful could be marred.”

  Her hushed words made him jump and bang his head on the pots hanging overhead. “Shit.” He was losing it.

  Wade looked down at her bare feet. His gaze traveled slowly up her legs, and got no further than her breasts swelling over the top of a thin, purple cover-up. Damn, she looks edible.

  “Wade, I have no right to ask questions unless I’m ready to answer some, and I’m not.” Jetta fiddled with the strip of plastic that covered her wound.

  “I haven’t asked anything.” He tugged her into his arms and leaned back against the counter. “Here and now. That’s all.” This wasn’t the time to tell her she belonged to him, that he never intended to let her go.

  Shadows clouded her eyes. “Once you find who dropped me in the alley, it’s over, right?”

  “Right.” She stood on her tiptoes and planted a chaste kiss on his lips. His heart raced out of control. Air whistled through his lips when her cool hands stroked his chest. An audible moan filled the room when she took a hard nipple into her mouth. “You know what you’re doing?”

  She licked little circles around his nub before she gazed up at him. “I know what I want.”

  Chapter Four

  “Tell me, so I can give it to you.” His shepherd was freaking purring inside him.

  She leaned into his chest and sucked a nipple into her mouth. Not yet finished, Jetta moved to the other nub, treating it with the same loving care. A weaker man’s legs would have buckled. His chest rose and fell rapidly as he shoved his hands into her hair and held her mouth tight to his body. “Bite it, baby. You won’t hurt me.”

  Jetta bit down lightly on the bud, and the shepherd in him keened. Wade drew blood, biting the inside of his cheek to stop the growl that gurgled from the pit of his stomach.

  Gripping her shoulders, he pushed her away. The look of desire in her eyes burned through him like a hot poker. Bringing her back into the circle of his arms, he smothered her lips under his and pried for entrance with his tongue. Moving his hands down her back, Wade grabbed her butt and wedged her against his hard-on. He needed her to feel what she did to him.

  “Mmm.” Her moan slipped into his mouth and started a fire that would not be extinguished. Her tongue battled with his, searched out places no one had ever touched. Breaking the kiss, he eased her back and spun her to face the counter. “This has to go,” he said as he ripped the flimsy material from her body. “I’ll get you another one.”

  Her lilting laugh drove him on. It was as though his shepherd sat on the side of a hill baying at the moon. That’s how crazy the animal was. The sound rattled through his chest, and it took every ounce of strength to hold in. He’d have to tell her soon, or the creature would tear him apart. Jetta belonged to them. Wade was going to show her that.

  Flipping her chestnut hair over her shoulder, he covered the back of her neck with kisses. He licked and sucked until her skin was red. When he reached the first scar, he moved his tongue over the welt. Then the next and the next. She shuddered beneath him. Had he been there, done this when the lacerations were fresh, they would have healed much quicker and better. No special power, just something all animals knew and humans seemed to forget.

  When she’d passed out at Victoria’s, he had licked her palm clean before he bandaged it. God had given the saliva of every living thing the power to help start their healing process. It took him a long time as a man to learn to refrain from sweeping his tongue over things. The stimulation was euphoric.

  Continuing to the top of her ass, Wade stopped when she whimpered. “I can’t help it, you taste so good.” He twirled her back around and lifted her to the counter.

  “Wade…”

  “Jetta, stop me. Stop me because I don’t know if I can let you go.”

  * * *

  Her back tingled everyplace his tongue had been. Jetta’s nipples were sore from Wade’s sucking and nipping on them. Yet her hands stayed buried in his hair and she held him to her breasts. It was a pleasurable pain.

  Stopping him was beyond her power. Wade exuded a scent she’d never before smelled, one that captivated and drew her further under his power. The man smelled like heaven, and she sniffed noisily at the air.

  Her pussy quivered with need, and if Jetta was honest with herself, no one could fill that void but Wade. What the hell had she gotten herself into? Confiding to him about Jordan was out of the question until she could talk to her ex first. Considering their past, she felt she owed him a chance to explain why he turned up at her office, and why he had waited by her car. Then it would be over. Wade would go on his way and she could return to her quiet life of… loneliness.

  Shit. Jetta didn’t want it to end. Wade made her feel beautiful again. He made her feel like the scars didn’t matter. Was it because he was scarred too? When she saw his back, she cringed inside at the idea he’d suffered even more pain than she had.

  What amazed her most was they looked exactly like hers. A dog attack.

  Shepherd’s Watch used the animals to patrol and help guard clients, which meant Wade had to be with them every day. How did he deal with the fear? She avoided dogs at all costs, crossed the street when she approached people walking them.

  While the guys were out earlier, Vic attempted to put her at ease over the fact a shepherd was here. Margy had gone to the bathroom, and Victoria talked with that hypnotizing voice of hers. She told Jetta the dog on her property was special and would take exceptional care of her if need be. Her friend’s cryptic words raced through her mind. “He’ll love and guard you even if it means losing his own life.” Why would she say it like that? Love her? She’d never laid eyes on the creature and didn’t want to.

  Wade wouldn’t let it hurt her. Somehow she knew that with every fiber of her being. “Wade, don’t let the dog hurt me.” Instantly, she wanted to take the words back.

  “What?” He lifted his head from ministering to her nipples, his brow furrowed.

  “Nothing.”

  “Talk to me, honey.”

  She pushed her hands into his wavy, brown hair and pulled his mouth to hers. “Love me. Make love to me.”

  “Are you sure?” His eyes pierced her like arrows. “Maybe I won’t let you go.”

  * * *

  Letting her go now was out of the question. In the only way he could, he tried to tell her but his words weren’t enough. Jetta had no idea what she was getting into.

  Wade reeked of her, always would. He’d sniff her out a mile away for the rest of his life, and soon she’d carry his scent. Max had been right. Jetta was his mate.

  And if his beast was anything to go by, they were paired. That’s what the pack doc called it. Pairing. They learned about it when he’d paid a visit to the States not long ago when Ren was freaking out
over Margy. How the hell could he tell her? Especially if he had heard her right. Don’t let the dog hurt me.

  He’d known immediately after seeing her scars that they were from a dog attack. Wade silently cursed the owner. Accidents happened. Christ, look at Margy, she was a prime example. One of their dogs had gotten out of control, knocked her down, and the blow to her head had damaged her optic nerve, leaving her blind.

  Daggett, the Watch’s employee who had handled the Rottweiler that fateful day, would have never let the animal do what some dog had done to Jetta. Her back, the bite on her stomach, it was too much even for him to comprehend.

  Wade spread her legs wide and leaned in to kiss the scar on her belly. Her womanly scent started his dog prowling. He wanted her too. It tore at Wade’s heart that his shepherd would never feel her except through him. His dog would never touch another bitch and would cause Wade unbearable pain if he tried to touch another woman. The beast would die protecting Jetta from any harm.

  Forget. That’s what he wanted to do. Forget everything but right now and being with her. “I want to taste you.” He parted her legs and dipped his head between them. The scent wafting around him sent his body into overdrive. Wade’s cock stiffened beyond belief, the slit leaked against the front of his pants. “Damn, I love smelling you.”

  “Do it now.”

  Grasping her thighs, he lifted her legs. “I’m going to make you come so I can taste every part of you.” He lowered his head and swept his tongue across her nether lips. Sweet. So good, his shepherd settled into a quiet ball inside him and waited.

  He inched his tongue further into her folds and lapped like the animal he was. Back and forth, he stroked over her cunt until she fell back against the cabinets.

  “More,” she moaned.

  Spreading her thighs further, he delved deeper into her pussy, plunging his tongue in and out until she squirmed, lifting her ass toward him. Finding her clit, he nibbled at it softly before nudging back inside her canal.