He slipped a finger inside her and she arched her back, pushing her breasts against his body. Her sensitive nipples scraped against his chest, only heightening the pleasure she was feeling.
A second finger joined the first, and while she knew she wouldn't find her release like this, she couldn't help but find it rather enjoyable.
When his thumb found her clit, she knew that it was all about to change. The desire already building within her threatened to explode within moments, and he could probably tell.
She squirmed against him, hoping he'd get the hint to go harder. Luckily for Jenna, he seemed to get the message and increased the pressure.
She cried out as the pleasure washed through her. Stars started to form behind her eyes, and her whole body began to shake. She could barely remember her own name as she gave herself over to the sensations Baxter was causing within her.
She tipped her head back and gave herself a moment to catch her breath. Baxter was looking down at her with a smug expression on his face. Not that she planned to wipe it away. He could be as satisfied as he wanted to be after making her feel like that.
He started to move away, but she reached out to stop him.
"More," she whispered.
"Are you sure?" He seemed genuinely concerned, but she noticed the eager tone under it. He wanted to carry on, even though they both knew that would mean sealing the mating bond for good.
Her claws itched to be free to do the deed already, and they hadn't even finished.
"Very sure," she responded.
He nodded and settled between her legs. Even without him doing anything, she could already feel the pleasure starting to mount again. Anticipation was an aphrodisiac like no other.
They kept eye contact as he guided himself into her, seating himself with a firm thrust that made her gasp.
He groaned, his eyes closing as he began to move inside her. She wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him closer, desperate to get more.
They lost themselves in the heat, moving as one. Her release wasn't the only thing that built up this time. She could feel the mating bond ready to fully snap into place, sealed by their act. Her hand started to shift into talons, something she sensed she wouldn't be able to stop even if she wanted to.
"Baxter..." she moaned. "It's going to happen."
He pulled back enough so that he could meet her gaze. "Do it," he whispered.
Relief crashed through her at the realisation she wouldn't have to hold her shifter side back. She kept eye contact with him as she raked his shoulder with her talons. He didn't even wince in pain, though she suspected that was because of what she'd heard about mating marks bringing pleasure.
The bond between them snapped into place, causing them both to lose control. For the second time, pleasure racked her entire body, making her forget everything except for the way she felt while lost in Baxter's arms.
She now understood why everyone talked about the mating bond the way they did. It was more magical than she'd expected. She wished everyone could feel the way she did. Just, not with Baxter.
He was hers. And she was his. For as long as they both lived.
Chapter 9
Baxter
Baxter didn't think he'd ever felt as at peace as he did in that moment with Jenna resting her hand on his chest and her head on his shoulder. Both of them were still lying naked in the middle of the picnic blanket basking in the glow of their mating.
It was hard to believe they'd sealed the bond as easily as they had, but he supposed it was never meant to be a difficult process. It was the most natural thing he could have ever imagined.
"Are you okay?" he asked her.
"Never better." The honesty in her voice was hard to miss. "I'm sorry for scratching you. It was impossible to resist."
He chuckled. "It's all right. I knew what would happen."
"I didn't feel any of your magic. Aren't I supposed to have?" She propped up so she could look at him properly.
"I don't know," he admitted. "I've never really thought about it. But dryad magic is more subtle than most, so I'm not really sure what it's supposed to do during mating. I suppose it could have wrapped us up in vines, but that sounds rather kinky."
She snorted. "Can you do that?"
"I'm afraid not. We're a little bereft of cool powers, you won't be gaining anything interesting."
"Other than you," she said softly.
A warm glow settled within him at her words.
"I suppose we have a lot of talking to do about how things will work from now on," she said, falling back into place against his shoulder.
"We do. But we can take it one day at a time. Just because we're mated, it doesn't mean that we have to move in and get married tomorrow," he assured her. "We can still do all of the early stuff. Go on dates, get to know one another..."
"Have a lot of sex?" She raised an eyebrow as she started to slide her hand down his chest.
Instantly, his body sprang to life, desperate for more of her touch.
"Yes. That."
A rustle in the bushes stopped both of them in their tracks.
"What was that?" she whispered.
He shook his head. "No idea."
"Do you think it was the thief?"
It took him a moment to remember what she was talking about and that they were supposed to be here to keep an eye on the greenhouse and make sure the thief didn't come back, not to have a romantic picnic.
"Maybe? Or it could be one of the others coming in to tend to something. That does happen sometimes."
"Hmm." She sat up.
It was much colder without her body pressed against his, but he knew that wasn't going to last and they'd be back together soon.
"I should go investigate," she said.
"How are you..."
Before he could finish his thought, she shrank in front of his eyes, becoming small enough to fit in the palm of his hand.
If he was capable of catching a hummingbird in them.
She flitted back and forth in front of him, almost like she was showing off. Now he thought about it, that was probably what she was doing. After all, part of the reason he'd given her one of his tomatoes was to share that part of himself with her. This was her doing the same.
Her feathers were a beautiful bottle green save for a slight white and pink patch under her throat. She didn't look like what he immediately pictured when he thought of a hummingbird, but that was probably a species thing. He should look into them more now he knew his mate was one.
And now he was going to be able to shift into one. Eventually. He'd spent enough time around paranormals mated to shifters to know that he'd eventually gain that power.
Jenna sped off in the direction of the noise, obviously deciding that she'd shown off for him enough.
He reached out and grabbed his shirt, pulling it over his head so he wasn't completely naked while she tried to hunt down the thief responsible for stealing from the dryads' tether-plants.
He dressed quickly, but didn't follow Jenna just yet. She was so small that anyone up to no good probably wouldn't notice her unless they knew what they were looking for, and as far as he knew, he was the only one with the knowledge of what Jenna could shift into.
But he couldn't just wait around and do nothing.
He started packing up the picnic food, knowing that if they caught the thief, they'd be too busy to do it after. He kept an eye on the direction Jenna had flown off in, not wanting to miss it if she came back.
Baxter sighed, regretting having his time with Jenna cut short even if they would have plenty more of it to come, and that it was for a good cause. If they could find the person who was stealing from the greenhouse, then they could all rest a little easier.
He finished putting everything away and pulled on the rest of his clothes before beginning to pace back and forth. He hated not knowing what to do.
"Baxter!"
Jenna's cry travelled right through him. Was she in trouble?
/>
No, that wasn't likely. But it did sound like she needed his help.
He grabbed her dress from where he'd put it while tidying up. He knew that most shifters didn't care much about being naked in front of others, but he didn't know whether she was one of them. It seemed like a good idea to take it with him just in case she wasn't.
He headed in the direction of her voice, preparing himself for whatever he was going to find.
Chapter 10
Jenna
Jenna flitted through the greenhouse, being careful not to let herself be seen by anyone who might think she was spying on them. It was times like this when she was glad she was a green sunangel rather than one of the more brightly coloured hummingbird species, it made it much easier to creep around unnoticed.
The sharp snip of sheers sounded from up ahead. She landed on one of the nearby branches, settling in so that she could see properly.
A woman with long blonde hair leaned into a plant she recognised as belonging to one of the other dryads, sheers in her hand. Without being able to see the woman's face, Jenna wasn't able to identify her so had no idea what kind of paranormal she might be. Even if she could see the woman's face, she'd only know that for sure if she worked at the greenhouse and Jenna had seen her personnel file.
It seemed likely she was an employee, though not one of the dryads. The thefts seemed to be fairly personal in nature, but no dryad would ever harm plants that way unless they were retaliating over the death of a loved one. But none of the files she'd read had included information to that effect.
The woman raised the sheers and prepared to cut the plant in front of her.
Jenna took that as her cue to move. She couldn't let the woman damage anyone else's plant. She darted forward on swift wings, only shifting once she was close enough to grab hold of the woman.
"Baxter!" she called, hoping the dryad would bring her dress with him.
"Who are you?" the woman demanded, tugging against Jenna's hold.
Her heart beat fast as she waited for her mate to arrive. Once the woman got over her shock, she could use her magic in order to get away from Jenna and disappear. She didn't want that to happen.
Baxter crashed through the greenhouse.
"Are you okay?" he asked, looking between her and the woman.
She nodded. "Can you dig the band out of the pocket of my dress for me?" she asked, relieved to see he'd brought it with him. Perhaps she should have thought about that in advance and made sure she asked him to bring it, but that was beside the point now.
He did as she asked, and she snapped the band into place around the woman's wrist.
"What's that?" she demanded.
"It stops you from doing magic while we ascertain whether or not you're the thief we've been looking for," Jenna explained. "Though I don't think that's going to be much of a problem considering I caught you in the act."
The woman scowled.
"Felicity?" Baxter said, surprise in his voice.
The woman glared at him. "Don't look at me like that," she snapped.
"It was you?" The hurt was so prominent that Jenna longed to reach out and reassure him.
But she had to resist the urge. She couldn't do it without letting go of the woman and risk her shifting and slipping away. That was one of the problems with small shifters. They could disappear with surprising ease. While most of them didn't on principle, those who broke the laws in general had no such worries about running away.
"Yes, it was me, all right? I stole your precious tomatoes and everything else," Felicity sneered.
"But, why?" Baxter seemed genuinely confused, which was to be expected. She'd taken something that was special to him and there wasn't a ready explanation for why.
"To teach you dryads a lesson. Do you know what it's like being a non-dryad here? You're all so special that the rest of us aren't given a chance to do anything good."
"That isn't true." He folded his arms, annoyance on his face.
"You always get the best plots, and equipment. Not to mention the bonuses and the praise."
"We don't get anything extra," he countered. "We have exactly the same resources as you do."
Felicity laughed bitterly, but didn't say anything.
"What now?" Baxter turned to Jenna as he asked.
"We call the local PCI unit to come pick her up for questioning. They'll take care of the rest. Do you mind watching her while I do that?" she asked.
"That's fine. How do I stop her from shifting?"
"Make sure the band stays around her wrist, that'll do the trick." Jenna pointed to the circle of thread around one of Felicity's wrists. She'd been surprised it worked the first time she'd put one on someone, but had quickly learned how effective magical objects were when it came to doing what everyone said they did. She wouldn't be able to do her job without items like the band.
"Got it," he promised, handing her dress back to her.
"Thanks." She slipped it over her head, glad not to be naked any longer. She didn't have any problems with being that way, but it tended to make non-shifters wary, and the last thing she wanted was a fight between her mate and any of the other people who turned up to take charge of Felicity.
She leaned in and kissed his cheek, not wanting to leave his presence without at least that.
Satisfied that the thief was in safe hands, she made her way back to the area where they'd had their picnic so she could make the call to the closest Paranormal Criminal Investigations department.
The PCI didn't always get involved with the cases she worked on, but that was mostly because some of the businesses preferred to keep things in house. But in this case, there'd been an actual crime, and that had to be dealt with by the people who understood it best.
While she wasn't about to admit it out loud, she was almost glad that she could hand the woman over. Once she was off her hands, the only thing she'd have to do was write her report, and that wasn't going to eat much into the time she could spend with Baxter.
Chapter 11
Baxter
Considering how useless his boss could be, the meeting they'd just come out of hadn't been too bad. Bradshaw had recognised that there might be a problem with the way the staff were being treated, and that Baxter could investigate and do something about it. But that didn't take away the sting of what Felicity had done.
Or worse, the fact that Jenna would be leaving.
"So, I guess you have to go now," he said softly.
"Yes. I have other jobs to do," she responded, a hint of regret in her voice. "But that just means we won't see each other during the day. It means nothing about what we get up to when we're not at work."
She stepped forward and touched his chest lightly.
"It sounds as if you have plans..."
"Just a few." She winked and turned away from him.
He reached out and caught her arm, being careful not to squeeze too hard for fear of hurting her. He tugged her around, letting her come crashing into his chest.
She bit her bottom lip as their gazes locked.
He cupped her cheek in his other hand, watching as her lips parted and her eyes fluttered closed. He leaned in and kissed her, letting the whole world fade away until there was nothing left other than them. She pressed her body against his, silently begging him for more, even if this wasn't the place for it.
Except...
"Come with me," he whispered against her lips.
She pulled away and studied him before nodding and letting him pull her towards a store cupboard. No one would need to be in there at this time in the morning, and the two of them could make the most of that.
The moment the door was shut, her hands flew to the buttons of his shirt, undoing them with deft fingers. She pushed it off and let it fall to the floor. The rest of their clothing followed, even though it was more dangerous to be completely naked, he wanted her too badly for that.
Their lips met again and their bodies pressed together. He groaned as he rubbed ag
ainst her, hard and ready for her.
"Baxter," she whispered, her hot breath fanning against his lips.
The sound of his name travelled right through him, only making him yearn for her more.
"Please," she whispered.
He picked her up and placed her ass on the table in the storeroom. She started to wrap her legs around him, but he stepped back, not letting her. He had other plans.
Baxter sunk to his knees in front of her and looked up. Lust filled her eyes as she stared down at him, yearning clear in them.
He trailed a hand up her leg, enjoying the way the soft skin felt under his fingers. His knuckles brushed against the inside of her thigh and she let out a small moan.
A grin spread over his face at the sound. He hoped to have her make a lot more of them in the future.
He leaned in and followed the path of his fingers with his tongue. She reached down and threaded her fingers through his hair, pulling his head closer to her centre.
Baxter chuckled, which only seemed to make her squirm more. He lapped her with his tongue, hoping to drive her crazy with desire for him. From the small noises coming from her, he was doing just that.
"I want you," she said through her pants.
He didn't need asking twice, and he rose to stand between her legs.
Jenna glanced down, hunger entering her eyes as she took him in. She reached out and curled her hand around him, stroking gently as she did.
He tipped his head back and groaned. She was going to be the death of him if she carried on like that.
Their gazes locked as she guided him into her. He'd thought about being with his mate like this more times than he could count, but it wasn't anything like what he'd imagined.
It was so much better. Like she knew him better than he knew himself.
He thrust into her, desperate to add to the connection he felt towards her, even though he knew that wouldn't come just from physically being together. But it would help them, he was certain of that.
Eat Your Heart Out: A Romance Charity Anthology Page 61