by Amy Ruttan
The moment he touched her she had a feeling of what he was, she just didn’t want to believe it, but it didn’t matter. He was Mukswa and she was trying to escape all of that.
“What do you mean what am I talking about?” he asked in disbelief. “I know what you are.” He was across the room in two seconds, he shoved the parka down off her shoulders and pulled her shirt off over her head. Her birthmark—the claw mark on her right shoulder—was prominent, marking her for what she was.
Sheridan covered her breasts, trying to hide her erect nipples from his heated gaze. A deep growl erupted from his chest and she felt his hard cock pressed against her hip. Butterflies zipped around her stomach and her pussy clenched in anticipation.
Gordon pushed her away, taking a few steps back from her. She could smell his arousal in the air. He was as affected as she was and that secretly pleased her.
“I’m sorry I had to resort to that, but you wouldn’t tell me,” he mumbled gruffly as he unrolled a sleeping bag on the wooden bunk in the corner of the cabin. “You can rest there.”
Where will you sleep? she wanted to ask but couldn’t. Instead she watched him as he took a small hatchet and matches from his knapsack.
She pulled his parka back around her tighter, but his masculine, spicy scent had permeated into the down lining. Dampness collected between her legs. The urge to mate racked through her body and if she wasn’t careful and able to control her instinctual urges she was going to lie down on that bed in the corner of the room and spread her legs for Constable Gordon Thomas.
“How? How did you know what I was?” she asked.
“I know when I’m in the presence of another. Just as you figured out what I was.” He stood and took a step toward her. Her knees began to knock together. Her nipples hardened under the thick layers covering her body.
If she mated with him tonight she’d be bound to him forever whether he marked her or not, and that thought wasn’t a bad idea. Better than Levi who was abusive and cruel—more animal than man.
“I’m not showing you my back. You may have seen my birthmark, but I’m not showing you my back.”
Gordon crossed his arms, his eyes narrowing at he stared at her. “Then you’ll tell me who your mate is.”
“I’m not mated.”
Gordon snorted. “I find that hard to believe. You’re too old not to be mated.”
“You’re a bit of an ass, Constable Gordon,” she replied indignantly. “I’m only twenty-eight, hardly an old maid.”
“For a Mukswa you are.” He grinned, which showed off his perfect white teeth and a delectable dimple in his right cheek.
“I haven’t found the right mate yet.”
“You were allowed to choose a mate?”
Sheridan bit her lip and he chuckled again, turning back to the fireplace.
“I thought as much. You’re running away from the mate they chose for you.” She glanced at him and he shook his head and began to build a fire. “He’ll most likely come for you and when he does I’ll hand you over.”
“You can’t!”
Gordon glanced at her, his mirth replaced by concern. “Why?”
“You’re a police officer, you have to protect me.”
“I’m afraid Mukswa aren’t governed by the same rules as the rest of Canada. Your mate isn’t going to stop because I am a Mountie.”
“He’s not my mate. He’s never taken me.”
The deep growl of his inner beast was heard clearly this time and it sent a shudder of pleasure through her. Sheridan closed her eyes and pictured his large hands cupping her ass, his tongue stroking her clit.
“You need to go back to your people,” he said, his voice taut as he turned back to the fire, stirring the kindling. Flames erupted and she could feel the warmth soak into her bones.
The fire wasn’t the only heat she felt.
“Why aren’t you with your people?”
Gordon’s jaw tightened and he poked at the fire roughly. “It’s none of your concern.”
“Well, I’m answering a lot of personal questions tonight and I can tell you’re probably one of the older sects of the clan.”
“What of it?” he snapped.
Sheridan moved closer to him. “Just curious. Rarely the ancient sects leave their clan to be Lones.”
He snorted. “I did not like the mate they chose for me and I was disowned.”
Sheridan didn’t believe him. He was hiding something, but she was hiding secrets too. Who was she to judge?
“Figures. The males can have freedom, but females don’t have that luxury. We’re chattel in our culture.”
He lowered his head and she could tell she had gotten through to him. It was obvious Constable Gordon Thomas wasn’t as thick-headed and stubborn as the rest of the men in various Mukswa clans. He moved toward her, he was so close she could hear his heart pounding.
“Was your chosen mate abusive?” His voice was tight when he asked the question.
“Yes. He was cruel.” She pulled off the parka—she hadn’t pulled on her shirt again. His dark eyes focused on her breasts, she could feel his gaze boring into her soul. She turned and showed him her back where old welt marks criss-crossed her skin.
A low, feral growl erupted from him and she felt his hands trace the scars. Sheridan bit her lip and gooseflesh broke across her skin where he touched her.
“He did this to you?”
“Yes, the night he was chosen to be my mate. When he left me writhing in pain I escaped. That was a month ago. I’ve been heading north from Winnipeg. That’s where my clan is from.”
Sheridan nervously ran her fingers through her strawberry-blonde hair and turned to face him—her breasts taut and aching with need to be touched by him. She had always been a bit plump, a bit curvy, and usually she was embarrassed to show off any bit of her skin, but with Gordon it was different. She wasn’t ashamed of herself and the way his look seemed to devour her whole made her feel sexy and desirable.
“I won’t return you to your mate.”
“Thank you,” she whispered and moved closer to him, but he stood quickly and backed away from her.
“I’m sorry, Miss Stevens, you’re going to have to keep your distance from me. I’m struggling. With…you’re in heat and it’s hard for me not to touch you.”
“You want to touch me?”
“Very badly. I find it hard to control myself in your presence. You’re making me fight my inner beast.”
A shudder of desire rippled through her as she thought of him taking her, claiming her.
“Then don’t fight it.” Sheridan licked her lips and undid the fly to her jeans, sliding them down and kicking them off when they pooled at her feet. Now she was completely nude save for her black lace thong.
“You’re beautiful,” Gordon murmured appreciatively. “But I can’t.” His protest was half-hearted.
“You need release. You do not have to come in me as I’m in heat.” Although she wouldn’t mind. Mukswa men and women were immune to any form of disease and she wouldn’t mind bearing his children.
If she became Gordon Thomas’ mate then Levi would have no say over her and she’d finally be free of his tyranny.
Gordon growled again, his dark eyes flashing with lust. “I can’t…I can’t.”
Sheridan moved closer, closing the gap between them. She pressed herself against him. The heat from his body burned through his RCMP uniform, scalding her. She undid his belt, unbuttoning his pants before sliding her hand down the front to stroke his hard, thick cock.
He sucked in a deep breath as she stroked his shaft. “Take me, Gordon. Release the beast with me.”
She didn’t have to do much more convincing when he gripped her upper arms, his fingers digging into the soft flesh. It made her wince, but it a pleasurable pain. A pain she wanted.
The pain of her first time.
Sheridan had no idea what she was doing, she just let her instincts take over. She let her needs extinguish any vir
gin fear she might’ve had.
She wanted Gordon Thomas. She wanted him to be her mate. She wanted his cock buried deep inside her.
“Is this your first time?” he asked, his voice thick with need.
“Yes.”
He closed his eyes and growled before scooping her up his strong arms. He carried her over to the bunk in the corner, but Sheridan trembled when they moved away from the warmth of the fire. Gordon frowned and took her back to where they had started.
“Stay,” he ordered. Sheridan watched him pick up the mattress with ease and place it on the floor at her feet. He spread out the sleeping bag and she clambered on top, lying against the flannel, her body shaking with anticipation and desire.
He leaned over, still dressed, and gazed down at her. His eyes, which had been dark brown, were now black, like ink. It was not uncommon for a male Mukswa’s eyes to change color the more aroused he became. It thrilled her that she affected him just as much as he did her.
That he desired her.
Levi hadn’t. He complained about how fat she was. He hated her curves.
It’s not you he’s attracted to, it’s the heat. Sheridan ignored her self-doubt. There was no place for it here or now.
“I won’t come in you. Not while you’re in heat. I can’t take you as my mate…I’m not worthy enough to be your mate. I have no clan, I am just a Lone.”
“I don’t care, just take me. Mate with me. Fuck me.”
Gordon slipped his shirt off, baring his muscle-honed chest for her hungry admiration. She ran her hands over his pectorals and down his abs. He was hard as a rock.
A shiver of delight zinged through her.
Gordon unzipped his pants and under his tight, gray boxer briefs she could see the outline of his erect cock. It was huge, thick, and a momentarily prickle of fear coursed through her.
He slipped down his briefs and she felt a rush of moisture between her thighs. She had the urge to wrap her lips around his shaft and taste him.
“Touch yourself, Sheridan.” It was a command, not a request. “I want to see you pleasure yourself.”
He knelt between her thighs and slipped her thong off. The brush of his fingers against her labia made her arch her hips.
“Patience,” he whispered. “Touch yourself for me.”
A heated blush tinged her cheeks as she parted her folds to rub herself, his dark gaze intent and focused on her actions. She had never thought about masturbating in front of a man before and a perfect stranger at that, but there was something highly arousing about touching herself in front of Gordon.
“Good,” he murmured, his voice strained. “Tell me how it feels to pleasure yourself for me.”
“So good. Oh God it feels so good.”
He moved her hand and spread her thighs wide, his hands encircling her hips as he knelt down between her legs.
“Tell me how this feels.”
“Oh God,” Sheridan shouted as his hot tongue slid slowly over her slit.
“I take it you like it?” He chuckled and then dragged his tongue up her labia again. He pressed his tongue inside her, tasting her, before he swirled the tip around her clit.
Sheridan glanced down to see his mouth cover her entire pussy and she bucked her hips, riding his mouth as he sucked her.
A pulling sensation grew deep in her belly and tension began to build and build. She ground her hips against his mouth, moving them upward faster and harder as she came closer to the edge of her climax.
Only he pulled away before she could come and she let out a little cry of frustration.
“I’m not finished with you yet.” He grinned wickedly as he leaned over her.
Sheridan reached up and slipped her fingers through his black hair. Gordon ran his hands lightly over her skin. They were hot on her chilled skin, but her body was quickly warming up under his ministrations.
Pleasure jolted through her body—a hot, heady sense of longing and need that tingled and settled warm and wet between her thighs.
Gordon’s mouth captured hers and she could taste herself on his lips. It was so deliciously wicked and naughty. His tongue slipped past her lips, caressing hers. Sheridan clutched his back and let her hands slide over his muscles. She reveled in the sensation of his muscles tensing and flexing under her fingertips.
“Sheridan, you make me forget myself.”
Sheridan chuckled and arched her back to rub her body against him. She wrapped her legs around his waist, his cock pushing against her core.
“You’re beautiful, Sheridan. You’re so hot,” he murmured, letting his gaze rake over her body. Gordon leaned down and his tongue flicked across her nipple.
“Oh God,” she moaned as pleasure began to wash over her. His hot tongue swirled around her nipple while his free hand cupped her other breast.
His cock was so hard and thick at the slick entrance to her pussy. She ground her hips, wordlessly begging him to thrust into her. To fill her.
Gordon spread her legs wide before he pushed his shaft inside her, stretching her.
“Fuck you’re so tight. So wet.”
Sheridan braced herself as the last remnants of pain from her first time waned. It was a pain worth bearing.
“Fuck,” he murmured again as he slowly began to thrust in and out of her. Sheridan gripped his ass tight, urging him to go faster.
Soon she learned the rhythm to match and she rode his cock as her release built up inside her.
“Dammit, Sheridan, if you keep doing that I’m going to come.”
Good. Though she didn’t say that out loud. She wanted him to come inside her. She wanted his seed—she wanted to be claimed by him.
Gordon’s thrusts became quicker and shallow. She grasped his buttocks tighter to keep him buried inside her as she came, her muscles clamping down on his cock.
“Ah fuuuuuuuck…” He cried out as he stilled, his head thrown back as he came inside her.
Her legs were gelatin as she relaxed. Gordon rolled over, breathing heavily. She shimmied over to him and ran her knuckles along his cheek.
“That was…amazing. Thank you.”
“No need to thank me,” he snapped. He let out a sigh. “I’m sorry, Sheridan. So sorry.”
Chapter Three
“I’m sorry,” he whispered. He was so stupid. He said he wasn’t going to come in her, but he couldn’t resist it. It had been so long since he had been with a woman, coupled with the fact that she was Mukswa and the potent aroma of her heat drove him crazy, he lost it.
“There’s nothing to be sorry about.” Sheridan stroked his face.
Gordon moved away from her. He couldn’t let himself become emotionally involved with her. As he told her, he was a Lone, an outcast. He didn’t have a clan and that was no way to raise children.
If he was in a clan, then it would be different. He would flip her over and mark her back as he mounted her. Every male’s claw marks were different and a woman was claimed when the male marked her with his claws, so that other males knew she was taken.
To mar a potential mate’s back before the claiming was sacrilegious, it was cruel. When Gordon met Levi he was going to beat some sense into the man’s hide.
Literally.
He flexed his fist, his claws threatening to extend as he thought of taking down Levi.
What are you doing?
Constable Gordon Thomas shouldn’t be thinking about kicking another man’s ass, okay well he did think about it often when he dealt with domestic violence, but he never thought about acting on it.
“Gordon, are you okay?” Sheridan’s hand touched his back. Her touch was so gentle, so warm, and it stirred his blood.
Just moments ago he was buried to the hilt deep in her pussy and it felt so right. So good.
“Are you hungry?” he asked, changing the subject.
“Starving actually. I haven’t eaten hardly anything since Whitehorse.”
Gordon stared at her. “Why?”
She blushed. “I wa
s running. Levi was catching up on me. I could barely afford the time to stop for gas.”
Gordon growled and pushed her down against the mattress. “You rest. I’ll get you something to eat.”
He pulled on his clothes and he could feel her watching him. He glanced at her and then wished he hadn’t because he could see the lust reigniting in her green eyes.
Oh God.
“Don’t look at me like that, Sheridan.”
She grinned sheepishly, tucking a strand of her silken strawberry-blonde hair behind her ear. “Like what?”
He dropped back down onto the mattress, crawling over her, his arms on either side of her head as he stared down at her. The scent of lavender filled his senses, heating his blood once more, and God help him he wanted her again.
Over and over.
“Like the cat that has got the cream,” he teased.
She giggled and her laugh sounded like a little bubble of happiness that made him want her all the more. With a groan he pushed himself away and finished dressing. He grabbed his gun from the gun rack over the mantle of the fireplace.
“What are you going to do?” she asked.
“Get us something to eat. You had a knock to your head and you’re malnourished, you need something more than granola bars in your belly.”
Sheridan scrambled off the mattress and wrapped his Hudson’s Bay blanket around her nudity. “What about Levi? What if he tracks me here?”
“I don’t sense another male around here, but this is a pull latch.” He held up the latch on the cabin door. “You can pull it and no one will be able to enter. I’ll knock three times.” He rapped on the table. “Then you can let me in.”
She bit her lip, creases of worry on her brow. Gordon strode over to her and kissed her bandaged forehead. “Don’t worry. You’ll be all right. Why don’t you check and see if there are any staples in the cupboards.”
Sheridan pulled out her cell phone and frowned at it.