“God help me.” He groaned and sucked in a harsh breath. Fuck me. “You don’t hold anything back, do you?” he croaked, slapping a hand over his bare chest and fisted it over his heart with a pained cringe. “The shy city girl routine is a beautiful ruse to lure in unsuspecting victims, and I strolled in like a lamb.”
She dropped his hand and played with the fork as she softly said, “I’m open to having some fun while I’m in town then it’s back to normal for you once I’m gone. No strings.”
Her proposal sounded legit. Doable. Having someone as sweet as Sabine to spend Christmas with? It was more than tempting.
He stood there for a long moment without saying a word. She didn’t understand what she was asking. Besides, he doubted anything went back to normal after the tornado named Sabine touched down any way she went. Bond or not.
Blazes tore up the back of his legs, spread through his back and reach between his legs to grab him by the balls.
Mating fires in the dead of winter. What the hell did he do in this life, or any past life, to deserve such torturous hell?
He considered her proposal, played with the idea of having his cake and eating it too. She was the sort of woman he didn’t need in his life. Skilled with a scalpel and sweet. The last time he fell for sweet, his heart was crushed under the weight of a broken bond. He couldn’t do that, not with her. Not when it would never be a tumble in the hay and peck on the cheek goodbye.
He slipped his hand from hers and crossed his arms over his chest calm despite the war raging inside him between human and beast. That earned him a pretty roll of her eyes as she nibbled at the soft corner of her lower lips. The same exact spot he craved a taste of. He swallowed and attempted to steel his cock from swelling which was a lost cause.
“You’re not scared of the sweet Southern girl are you, Wylde?”
Terri-fucking-fied. Heat released his balls, only to clawed up his spine, and burrowed deep in his gut until his dick swelled, stretching the soft material of his sweats.
Son of a bitch.
Her gaze raked over his chest and he knew the second she noticed the reaction she pulled from him. Her blue eyes lit with a need he wanted to tend to as though what she needed suddenly became his life’s mission.
The need reached between them and fed his hunger to the point he couldn’t rein his beast in for much longer. One touch and she would be his right here in the middle of the flour and Christmas cookies. Screw everybody who walked in.
The sun tipped over the peaks in the distance and the lights on the street died one by one. Any minute the first of the day’s customers would arrive for their bread and holiday treats.
“Sabine,” he warned gruffly. “Don’t.” He closed his eyes, unable to look at the doe-eyed expression she gave him.
Chills ran the course of his arms, and his chest widened from the tension she hammered home.
He growled low in his throat as she leaned over the counter, the scent of strawberries like a damn gut punch. A soft pad of her finger traced the ink of his den encasing the length of his left arm, and it might as well have been a blow torch. “What does this mean?”
Moving faster than he anticipated, he snatched her hand from his arm, looped it over his shoulder and pulled her over the counter, rattling the glass of the displays and toppling over a stand of holiday cupcakes.
“I can’t want you like this,” he growled every word that left his mouth. “You’re fucking killing me. Don’t you get that?” He wound his arms around her and pressed as much of her to him as he could. With the counter at her back, he bent and lifted her to sit on the marble and drew her legs around his waist. The soft material of her pajamas did nothing to squelch the sudden pleasure that shot straight to his dick as he nestled between the V of her legs.
“What do you think you do to me?” Out of breath as if he’d already swept her away on a marathon of sex, she pressed a hand over his heart before trailing her kitten nails down his chest. He wanted to feel the delicious pain on his back as he pushed balls deep into her tight core.
Her hand slipped between them, and then she tugged at the waistband.
Warm, silky and pure heaven.
“Oh my God, Sabine.”
Using the tip of her thumb, she caressed the head of his shaft before stroking over the full length. That one touch nearly had him spent.
He wrapped his hand around hers. “Stop, Angel. Please, for the love of everything…” He pressed his forehead to hers. “Stop,” he whispered.
“You kiss me, shove me away, and then tease me, standing out there in the snow this morning. Why? Waiting for me to look? Well, I did. I watched you strip and shift and train then I watched you drag those damn sweats back on one inch at a time and all in front of my window. You left me so frustrated I couldn’t even pleasure myself.”
“Good. We can suffer together.” His angel blushed at her admission and if he didn’t already want her, that would have clinched the deal.
He dragged in a breath of air, and his lungs nearly burst. Looking down at her, the plumpness of her lips less than a whisper away, he listened to the demon in him and caved.
Heaven touched his lips and he dove deeper. The walls of hell closed in. Tortured angel kisses. The warm caress of her tongue against his. She moaned, and it was harps to his ears.
Palming her outer thighs, he twined her leg around his middle tighter and nearly lost himself when her center nestled so perfect over his engorged cock.
Her chest rattled against his and he tore away, looking down at her. “What is it about you that has me so fucked up in the head? Why can’t I get enough of you when I know you’ll cut me like a razor blade to the throat?”
She pulled back until their gazes locked. His hips undulated, and he pressed his cock into the crook of her thighs. His heart ground to a halt mid beat as he watched pure pleasure wash over her face.
“I need you.”
“I’m sorry.” She shivered delicately in his embrace, and the sudden urge to protect her against every force the world hurled her way, or threatened to take away the pleasure that swam in the sapphire depth of her irises, grabbed hold. To shelter her from the pain he saw earlier drove him to grind her against his hard shaft again despite the clothing that blocked him from giving her real pleasure.
“Sorry for what? Don’t be. The torture is almost the sweet reward. But Sabine. The kisses won’t hold me forever. A day with the taste of you on my lips, my beast wants more. Demands more and I don’t know if I can maintain control around you much longer.”
“Should I be afraid?” With her mouth parted and eyes wide she tilted her head back and he rocked his hips.
“Mr. Wylde?”
Anger mixed with fierce possessiveness. Wrapped up in her, he failed to hear the approach of someone from behind them.
A thin speck of control eased his anger down a notch and while holding her gaze, he spoke to one of his wait staff. He turned to shield her from the intruder and their prying eyes.
“Just wanted to let you know the first customer is coming up the sidewalk now.”
Rone nodded at the dishwasher for Wylde Fire that doubled as a barista for Big Paws in the mornings.
“Thanks, Mave.”
“Yeah, sorry, man.”
Finally, alone again he turned his attention back to her and cursed under his breath at how far he let things get carried away. How far the need drove him.
He stroked his hands down her arms and slowly stepped away from the counter. “I’m sorry about that.”
“You keep saying that. But you know what? Maybe it’s for the best. Being a razor blade and all, I wouldn’t want to leave you bleeding.” She scooted off the counter and straightened her sweater as she turned on her heel and was out the door before he could stop her.
Rone’s jaw dropped as she tossed his words back at him. He had a sinking feeling he would regret those words for a long time coming and really fucked up big.
God, but she was lovely.
Back in her temporary apartment and her temporary bed, Sabine stuffed the pillow over her face and let out a scream at her very not-so-temporary lust-induced need to orgasm.
She sat up and tossed the pillow aside.
“It was a mistake coming here.”
“Rone.” She rolled the name around and savored the way it played off her tongue. Short for Tyrone she bet. “What kind of name is that anyway?”
He was dangerously addictive and not because he could whip up a batch of mean pumpkin chocolate pie-gasms or work the coffee machine like the god of caffeine.
And the combination of his kiss and what he did with his hips made her desperate to find out what he would do when there were no clothes holding him back.
She rubbed her hands over her face and groaned. She had two words for what he was—possessive and claiming. No. Three, she corrected. He was passionate too. Not only about his bar and bakery but about his family. She caressed the pads of her fingers over her lips. The burn he incited on impact...she shuddered from her head down to her red berry painted toes. Is that what her sister meant by burning desires when her mates kissed her?
Sabine rolled back on the bed and pressed her legs together, desperate. Pulse after pulse of pent-up aching need throbbed through her clit. She’d never experienced something so consuming, so fast to burn.
She needed a cold shower. Pronto.
She bounced from the messy bed and crossed the small apartment to collect her suitcases where she’d left them the night before by the couch. Dawn worked its magick beyond the large windows and peeked around the fringes of the heavy red curtains that matched the comforter on the bed.
Sabine slipped from her bed and pulled them open to reveal a wintry wonderland of pure white.
She took a moment to appreciate the view before making her way through the apartment to flick on several lamps to chase away a few of the shadows that remained.
White carpet covered every inch of flooring with a matching couch kissing the back wall. Other than that, the place was pretty bare save the coffeemaker and a round table for two nestled close to the front window. The open combined space wasn’t much, but she had to hand it to Rone given it was his place, he knew how to pull together colors that made the space feel cozy. For a second she considered what his place looked like. Was it matching to hers or all decked out in manly things like a big recliner and flat-screen TV?
She dashed that thought away. Probably not. She didn’t see him as a stay at home kind of guy when there was so much to do.
Back in the bedroom, Sabine tossed the suitcase on the dresser under the front window overlooking Main Street and paused when a flash of white caught her eye.
Rone stood in the middle of the vacant street with an elbow propped up on the roof of a heavy-duty truck talking with the white-haired man from last night.
She pulled the heavy curtain to the side a fraction and peered out from the corner. “What are you up to, slick?” On tiptoes she pried closer, using the back of the curtain to wipe away some of the condensation.
A couple of minutes later he rounded the truck and she watched the red of his button-down flannel slide out of sight as he entered the passenger side.
But not before he flicked a look her direction. “Oh, shoot.” With the curtain pulled back she couldn’t readily dodge behind anything, so she did the only thing she could.
She raised a hand and pressed her lips against her fingers and blew a kiss his direction.
She earned the flash of his sexy half grin and then he was gone. “Be still my freaking heart.” She fanned her face. “That man will haunt you forever and a day, girl.” Sabine pulled back from the window and let the curtain fall back in place as she flicked through the few things she’d packed.
Meticulous organization ruled her like an unwanted bad habit that leaked over from her schooling. Everything she did fed into her massive need to have things lined up. Until now, she mused. About the only thing that she could organize was her suitcase.
In order of use, she pulled out a pair of long johns, underwear, two shirts and a pair of jeans that she could tuck into her snow boots. More layers. She needed more layers to protect her against the lust bombarding her body like daggers, if she was going to spend the next several hours working with him.
An hour later she walked into the open floor of the Wylde Fire still flushed. Her shower proved no help in squelching her libido, and she couldn’t even work the edge off herself. Every time she tried to touch herself, the only thing she did was rekindle the fire but no bursts of lights and cosmos erupted for her.
She crossed the hardwood floor and weaved through several tables still waiting for the staff to prepare for the afternoon crowd yet to arrive. Soft light bathed the entryway as the morning light spilled past the tables but failed to chase away all the shadows. For the darker areas, beautiful stained glass chandeliers hung from long golden chains and gave the place a warm, inviting feel. Like a home away from home.
Over the back of the bar above the long mirror and shelves of various colored liquor bottles hung a large square, hand-carved clock. Two large bears on all fours adorned the top corners and little bear paws placed at the tips of the minute and second hands ticked by, signaling the early hour. If she hurried she could still help Rone get things in order for the afternoon and have time to step in for Cherry’s mates, who couldn’t make it to the monthly checkup at the doctors. With any luck she would use the time to say her piece and have that done and over with and shuttled off to Fairbank with time to spare.
In contrast to the guilt that weighed heavy in her chest, soft light came through the front window with the first rays of sunlight for the day. Cherry would say it’s one of the most magickal moments in Alaska. But she craved to see and experience an Alaskan midnight sun.
Endless light, endless time. An illusion, but still it would be as though time could be recuperated. Or at least that was how the author put it in the guidebook.
Maybe next summer, if her sister still wanted anything to do with her after their conversation, she could plan another trip.
Sabine set to work putting out all the fixings for coffee. Filled the water tanks for the massive contraptions Rone had set up on the back of the bar and let her mind wander over nothing in particular as she placed clean mugs on one side of the bar and shots on the other for the people who like to chisel off the cold edge with something a little stronger.
Limes were cut and she had a fresh bucket of ice for the icebox already poured when heavy footsteps drew her eyes up.
A broad smile and a sexy grin greeted her.
“Hey, handsome. You’re not here for a rematch, are you? Rone and I beat you fair and square!”
Everett’s broad smile worked wonders to boost her mood. She was quickly learning that the second oldest sibling couldn’t keep a sulky face if he tried. “Nah. Next year.”
Doubtful, but she kept that to herself. Setting aside the freshly laundered rags, Sabine clutched the side of the bar and leaned over for the small peck on the cheek in greeting. “Cherry said something about a climb up the back passages today. I thought you would be out with Adam, Lorne, and Kohl.”
“They didn’t need all of us so I volunteered to stay back and check some smaller unknown passages closer to home. Some of the local teenagers like to get rowdy back there, so better safe than sorry. Besides all five of us up there,” he made a drastic circle with his hand toward the peaks visible through the front window, “on those trails? No, that would be a recipe for disaster. One dog dare or another and we’d be spending Christmas in the hospital.”
She arched a brow when she came up with nothing to say to that. Men.
“Besides, werebear or not, it’s nasty out there. The cold doesn’t really affect us but damn, I hate getting wet.”
At his chin nod toward the front of the bar, Sabine looked out the window and saw that the slivers of sunlight that had once been there now dimmed as fresh snow a
nd a strong wind kicked up flurries to swirl in the air.
She shivered down to her little Southern boots. Perfect weather for long and slow kisses and warm fireplaces. Whispery thoughts of what it would be like enjoying a cold wintry afternoon like today with Rone marched across her thoughts and brought a warm fuzzy feeling to the pit of her stomach.
As Everett scraped a stool out from under the bar and made himself comfortable, she swiped a couple of mugs from the sidebar. “So a nice day off. Sounds like a perfect excuse for some hot cocoa and pie.”
Rich and savory tendrils of chocolate-infused steam wafted up as she poured them each a mug from the brew she’s put one five minutes ago. “I switched up the recipe a little from what Rone had written on the paper beside the machine. Hope he doesn’t mind.” She propped a hip against the counter and eyed Everett over the rim of her cup with a smile of anticipation. “Whatcha think?”
His eyes rolled back after one long sip. “Mmm.” He took several more, the next one bigger than the last. “Damn, woman! Where did you get this recipe? It’s like Mrs. Marty’s double dipped chocolate fudge brownies only in liquid form. Every man’s wet dream in a cup. You didn’t melt down her recipe, did you? Cuz damn, you could open a hot cocoa shop and have everyone in the state flipping for your brew.” He rolled his eyes in an exaggerated manner and the way he licked his lips made her heart swell with pride at making someone happy.
Everett slapped a hand over his heart. “I love you.” He sat his cup down heavier than needed and motioned for a refill. “If I wasn’t mated already to Pepper, I would scoop you up and never let you leave my home.”
Her mouth twitched into a grin. “Mr. Romeo, how ye melt me with thy words!” she teased, fluttering her lashes dramatically. “I get the same reaction from every patient I deliver pain meds to, by the way. So the competition would be stiff.”
Snowbound With Her Christmas Bear: Wylde Den #4 (Alaskan Den Men Book 16) Page 8