by T. S. Joyce
“I got stretch marks.”
His blond brows drew down, and he studied her stomach. “Where?”
She pointed to the little red rips on her stomach near her hips. “I made it to the last few weeks stretch mark free, and then these came in.”
“Ahh, warrior stripes. That’s what we call Brooke’s when she fusses about them in a bathing suit. There’s no shame in those,” he said kneeling in front of the bathtub she was standing in. Gently, he gripped her waist in his oversize hands and brushed his lips against one mark and then the other.
Her breath shuddered when she felt the scratch of his two day scruff against her sensitive skin. “I like that. Warrior stripes,” she murmured, brushing her hands through his hair. It was as soft as she’d imagined.
“My little warrior,” Drew said low, kissing the first stretch mark again. “Selfless enough to give Diem and Bruiser a child and brave enough to stare down a crew of grizzly shifters.” A kiss for the other mark again, and he rested his palms against her wet stomach, now alive with Harper’s rolling movement. “Bruiser is one of my best friends, and he’s going to make an amazing father. You’re doing something incredible for him and his mate. Hell, for our whole crew. Babies are hard to come by for shifters. We don’t breed easy.”
“Do you want cubs someday?” she asked, stroking her fingers absently through the hair at his temples.
“You have shampoo in your hair,” he whispered through a dazzling smile.
It wasn’t lost on her that he’d avoided answering her question, but the hungry promise in his gaze made her train of thought derail completely.
“Will a shower hurt those cuts on your side?”
“If they do, I deserve the pain. I went after my friend tonight and scared you.”
“In that case…” Riley poked her fingernail at his wounds, now half healed.
With a huffed laugh, he grabbed her wrist and angled away. “Woman, cut me a break, will you? I said I was sorry.”
“Shower with me stranger-mate, for tonight has been incredibly strange and I need a shoulder massage. Oh, damn, I have to call my friend April back home and tell her I’m getting a shoulder massage from a sexy bear shifter.”
Drew shucked his jeans as she ducked back behind the curtain to up the temperature of the water.
“You think I’m sexy?” he asked, a smile in his voice.
“You know you’re sexy, so don’t be one of those guys who needs compliments.”
“That’s a yes.” The curtain opened and Drew stepped in with a giant erection jutting out between them.
“Holy shit,” she murmured, eyes bulging.
“What, too small?” he asked through a smirk.
Riley snorted and ripped her gaze away from his long, thick shaft. Her middle was churning with need, and it had all started earlier today when he’d kissed her.
“Do you often kiss strangers?” she asked in a cultured accent.
“Only when they be as sexy as ye,” Drew responded in a pirate voice.
Unable to help herself, she laughed. When he eased her under the jets of water and massaged her scalp gently, washing the suds away, she closed her eyes and groaned.
“I like your hair.” His voice had gone soft and serious.
“Diem cut it. You like women with short hair then?”
“I like you.”
Riley opened her eyes and clamped her hands around his wrists, stilling his hands against her hair. “I think if you really knew me, you wouldn’t.”
“Ahhh,” he murmured, sounding unconvinced. “You have it all wrong. You’ll figure out I’m a monster soon enough and run screaming for the hills. It’s you who are too good to be with someone like me.”
“I’ve seen your monster, remember? I’ve been with worse.”
“Your ex?”
“You know what rhymes with ex?” she asked, desperate to change the subject.
“Tyrannosaurus Rex.”
“Quit it. I’m trying to turn this conversation filthy,” she said through a wicked grin. “Stop thwarting me.”
“Thwarting?” he asked, eyebrows arched high. “Look around, woman. There ain’t no need for that kind of language in the Asheland Mobile Park.”
“Did you know,” she said in a matter of fact tone, “that during pregnancy there is increased blood flow to the hoo-ha, and it makes nerve endings more reactive and sex more pleasurable?”
“Riley, if you’re trying to seduce me with nerd shit, it’s working.”
“I Googled it.”
Drew became very busy lathering up her washrag with a bar of soap. It wasn’t until after he began gently washing her body, starting with her boobs of course, that he said, “I don’t know if you’re in the right frame of mind to sleep with me.”
“I propose friends with benefits.”
“Did you miss the part where my crazy-ass bear called you his mate? No. Sex is a bad idea.”
Why did his rejection make her want to try harder? She was sucking at this whole seduction thing, but she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about him since that kiss, and he was standing in front of her with his sexy dick all red and swollen and ready for her, and dammit, she hadn’t even had the urge to touch herself in months, and now she was soaking herself just getting her nipples massaged by a washrag. So maybe she wasn’t thinking straight, and perhaps she wasn’t in the best emotional state after everything she’d learned tonight, but dammit, life was short. She wanted release, and she wanted Drew to give it to her.
A quickie shower bang with a sexy werebear sounded like just the medicine for what ailed her.
“Eat me,” she said, light as air.
“Riley, stop it.”
“I want you to touch me, Drew. Make me forget about the shit I’m dealing with and the crazy, crazy stuff I learned about the people here tonight. Make me forget everything. Please.”
“I can’t sleep with you, Riley. You slept with my best friend.” Anger slashed across his ocean blue eyes before he looked away.
“What?” Okay, now she was utterly baffled. Last time she checked, she hadn’t slept with anyone since Seamus. And that had been before he’d gone criminal. He had been drunk, popped a round in her, and rolled over, then began snoring immediately. Seamus hadn’t been awesome at meeting her needs. Drew, undoubtedly would. “I haven’t slept with anyone in over two years.”
“Wait, then how are you pregnant with Bruiser’s child.”
“Oooh,” she drawled out. “No, Harper is one hundred percent Bruiser and Diem’s baby. We did in vitro fertilization.”
“What’s that?”
“Well, doctors took one of Diem’s eggs and Bruiser’s sperm, put them on a blind date, then sent the little petri dish my way in a cooler, and then my doctor put the little baby in me. We got lucky, and the first one took. I mean, it was way more complicated than that, but there’s the gist of it. This conversation has turned not-sexy, by the way.”
“Disagree,” Drew said, holding her against his body and spinning them so he was under the water. “I think it’s sexy to get everything out in the open.”
“Most guys would’ve been pounding me by now.”
“I’m not most men,” Drew said, shampooing his hair. “I like you. I want to take my time with you, savor you, talk, make you come before I do, taste you, touch you. But we’re in a complicated situation, and I’m going to make damn sure you’re ready for me, so I’m going to clear the air now with my intentions. I don’t do friends with benefits. Not anymore. I do fuck me and you sleep beside me.”
“Oh, my gosh,” she drawled out, going all mushy. “You’re a cuddler?”
“With you. I’ve wanted to hug you senseless all day, and if we’re going to be intimate, I get that extra time with you. I want to big spoon you.”
“I can live with that.” Her round moon belly made it impossible to be anything but the little spoon. “Anything else?”
“Yes.” He ran the bar of soap over his body, taking his
time with his next negotiation. Leaning forward, he grazed his teeth over her neck playfully, then sucked on her bottom lip and left her swaying on her feet for more. “I want to take you out tomorrow morning.”
“On a breakfast date?”
“Kind of, but not. I have plans.”
Oh, this man was going to turn her into a puddle. “Anything else?” she squeaked out.
“Yeah, Tagan apparently planned this lame camping trip so we can all work our shit out before logging season begins. We leave in a couple of days, and we’ll be back right before we go back to work on the landing. Now, I know you’re heavy pregnant and you are probably uncomfortable and would be happier in Damon’s temperature-controlled mansion, but I wanted to see if you wanted to go. With me. And everyone else, but mostly with me.”
“Are you going to go all crazy-bear again if one of your crew gets too close?”
“Probably. My protective instincts are in beast-mode right now.”
“If I asked you to try and control your bear, would you try?”
His eyes softened, and he pulled her close. “Of course, I will. You give me a good reason to not be like my father. Around you I feel…steadier.”
Riley reached forward and traced a long, bulging vein down the side of his shaft. Drew shuddered. Emboldened by his instantaneous response, she slid her hand down him, from tip to base, until his eyes rolled and his head arched back. His sexy Adam’s apple was so tempting to bite.
What the hell had come over her? She felt drunk on Drew already, just like she had when he’d kissed her earlier. Her mind was foggy with want as she slid her grip back up his erection.
Drew grabbed her hips and moved her backward until her back hit the cold plastic of the shower wall. His dick brushed her stomach, and her belly contracted with need. Breath unsteady, she pulled another stroke and reveled in the growl that rattled Drew’s throat. There was his bear, peeking out just enough that Drew’s wild nature was exposed. Sure, she should probably be terrified right now, but damn, that noise was sexy.
Her breasts were tingling and aching now, but when Drew cupped one gently, the pain decreased. Dipping down, he pressed his lips on hers, lapping at her closed seam until she opened for him with a groan.
She rolled her hips, desperate to feel his skin against hers, but Harper was an epic cock shield right now.
“Holy moly, okay,” she said between biting kisses. “How does this work. My stomach is in the way.”
Drew chuckled patiently and nibbled at her earlobe before he whispered, “Let me worry about that.”
He hit the tap behind him and folded her into his arms like she weighed less than air. It happened so fast, her stomach dipped. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she joked, “Thank goodness for your shifter strength.”
“Stop it. You’re perfect.” Drew stepped out of the tub and toted her into the bedroom, then settled her gently on the bed.
“I’m all wet and slippery and look like a soggy marshmallow,” she teased. “I’d make a fantastic Beluga whale shifter.”
Drew knelt down, dragging her by the ankles to the edge of the bed. “I know you have more confidence than that.” He grabbed the curve of her ass cheeks hard. “Tell me this isn’t going to go away after you deliver.”
“You like big butts?” Yeah, she was setting him up, but his cheeky smile said he wasn’t falling for the game.
“I’m not finishing that lyric. You have the perfect ass.” Drew dipped down and disappeared under the swell of her stomach. His teeth brushed her inner thigh, drawing gooseflesh from her ankles to pelvis.
“Oooh,” she groaned out. “More of that.” Please, please, please!
He kissed the peak of her wet folds and urged her legs wider with a steely grip on the back of her knees. His tongue flicked out and brushed against her clit, bowing her back against the bed. Oh, dear goodness, she was going to come too soon if he wasn’t careful with the clever mouth of his. He sucked on her gently. Danger! Another lick, and she was toeing the edge.
“Drew,” she gasped out. “I’m…” She was what? Fucking exploding, that was what.
Drew gripped her ass and pulled her hard against his mouth, slipping his tongue inside of her. A quick pulsing orgasm rocketed through her, and she cried out.
“Good woman,” Drew murmured. “So sensitive for me.”
And she was. This was better than any orgasm she’d had while not pregnant. The internet didn’t lie, sa-weet!
Lights were sparking in the corners of her vision, and her hips jerked as Drew kissed her deeply with each aftershock, drawing every last one from her. He nibbled and sucked his way over the swell of her stomach, and Riley stifled the urge to pull the covers over them. She felt vulnerable after something so intimate and, finally sated from release, her thoughts were clearing. She was exposed, stretch marks and all. Perhaps she hadn’t really thought this through… Oh! Drew clamped his lips over her nipple and sucked gently. That swollen, achy feeling was back as she arched against the mattress and cradled his head. With every stroke of his tongue, the pain lessened, but the pins and needles remained, giving her an erotic mix of pleasure and pain.
Drew jerked back, wide-eyed as he stared at her chest.
“What?” she asked, panicked.
Warmth trickled down her rib cage, and she frowned, then propped up on her elbows. To her mortification, a stream of white made a tiny river around the swell of her stomach and onto the comforter.
“Oh, no,” she whispered in horror, reaching for the blanket. “I’m so sorry. That’s never happened and—”
“That’s fuckin’ hot,” Drew said on a breath, dragging his fingertip across the stream to break it. “Stop wiggling around and let me enjoy this. And put that cover down, woman. No hiding from me.”
“But it’s gross!” She felt like a cow whose udders had gone too long without milking. “That’s not supposed to happen until I deliver. Right?”
Drew gazed up at her, looking completely baffled. “I don’t know. Maybe stimulation brings your milk sooner.”
“Ugh, don’t say that.”
He cocked his head and grinned. “Milk. Milk, milk, milk, fucking awesome milk. Here let me do it to the other one.”
“No! This is embarrassing enough.”
“What? Why are you embarrassed? I’m not. Stop, Riley.” He stilled her hand from pulling the comforter over her body. Resting his hand over her belly, he scooted closer beside her and tucked his arm under her head. Leveling her with the softest gaze, he said, “My dick is harder than it’s ever been, and sharing that moment with you only made me want you more. I don’t care what preconceptions you have about what’s normal or not normal. Sex is natural. And sex during pregnancy has been going on for eons. I’m not the first man to draw a woman’s milk from her.”
“Swear it’s not weird and you aren’t going to go back to all your werebear friends and make fun of me tomorrow.”
Drew snorted and leaned forward to brush his lips against hers. “That’s not me, and even if you decided to tell everyone, I can guaran-damn-tee you what would happen. Brooke would tell you she and Tagan went through the same thing and that it’s normal. Denison would make some crude joke and everyone would laugh with you, not at you, but then later he would ask me what sex with you being pregnant was like and want all the details. He and his mate, Danielle, are trying to get pregnant right now. And he has no filter.”
With every word, Riley had relaxed. It might have been from his hand rubbing absently over the swell of her belly, but it was more likely from the fact that Drew was slowly making her realize this was okay. Body shaming herself wasn’t going to do either one of them any good, and if the hard roll of Drew’s dick against her leg was anything to go by, Drew really wasn’t turned off by any of this. “You want to play with the other one?”
“Really?” Drew looked like a kid in a candy store.
“Yeah, really. It’s probably sexier if I own it, right?”
“Well, I only g
et to play with you like this for a couple more weeks, so yeah, Riley. Own that shit and let me get off on it.”
She grinned mischievously. “Milk me.”
Drew snickered and shook his head. “Eat me, Drew. Milk me, Drew,” he said in soft, high-pitched notes before his voice deepened to his own again. “Demanding woman.”
She shook her damp hair and stretched out languidly across the bed, comforter forgotten.
Drew rolled upward, then hovered over her, knees on either side of her hips and giant dick proudly on display. Oh, she liked this view.
His six pack abs flexed with every breath, and his eyes danced as he watched her. And that smile—the sexy, crooked smile that made the bottom drop out of her stomach—was back on his face. Flaxen tresses of his damp hair hung forward in front of his face as he settled his palms on the pillow on either side of her neck. Lowering slowly, he kissed her, plucking at her lips and teasing with his tongue. Then he moved his affection down her jaw to the base of her throat, and then in a trail between her full breasts. When he finally clamped his mouth over the nipple he hadn’t played with yet, she reached forward and took a long stroke of his dick with her hand. Hot damn he was big, and swollen, and hard as a stone in her grip. And at the very tip was a drop of moisture that brought a delicious tremble up her spine. She wanted to taste it.
Drew rolled his hips, showing her the pace he liked. The tingling ache increased in her breast, and she bowed against him. His tongue lapped at her, drawing pleasure where there should’ve been discomfort. He smiled against her skin as the ache decreased and warmth streamed out of her. Easing back, he massaged her with his hand, pulling even more milk from her breast. He smeared it across her chest as his hips jerked harder with each of her strokes. His eyes lightened to that frosty gray, and his jaw clenched so hard, a muscle twitched and jumped there.
“I’m gonna come,” he gritted out.
She released him immediately. That’s not what she wanted. She didn’t want him spilling onto her stomach when her sex was aching so badly for release with him.
“How do you want me?” she asked as soft as a breath.