The Lion and the Lamb

by Snow, Jenika

  Leo followed her inside and shut the door. “You weren’t where you said you were going to be.” It sounded like an accusation, which wasn’t what he was going for, but damn if he couldn’t help himself. She turned around, her eyes wide, her lips parted.

  “Kiki changed her mind at the last minute.” Her brows lowered further. “Wait. How did you know I went somewhere else?” For a solid minute they did nothing but stare at each other. The way her eyes slid to the living room window and stared across the street knew he needed to come clean. Clearly she had an idea of what he had been doing anyway. “You’ve been having me followed, haven’t you?” The hurt in her voice pierced his heart.

  “Yeah, I have.” There was no point in lying, and he wasn’t about to feel bad about doing it. “I wanted to make sure you were safe.” He took a step toward her and stopped. “At first it was because I didn’t like the neighborhood you lived in, but then Slade started sniffing around, and I knew it was best to keep a detail on you.” She shook her head and looked away. “I did it to protect you.”

  “That’s a sneaky thing to do, Leo. It’s not right, no matter what your intentions were.” She turned and tossed her keys onto the counter. Resting her hands on the Formica, her head dropped between her shoulders, and she inhaled loudly.

  He moved forward until he was right behind her. Fingers itching to touch her, Leo refrained and inhaled. Pushing away the stench of Slade, he found what he had been looking for. It was the sweet, subtle scent that was all Tatum. The lion inside of him purred, and he grew instantly hard.

  “Tatum, look at me.” She shook her head, and he clenched his jaw. Her act of defiance had the dominant part of him rising to the surface. “Look. At. Me.” Voice low, his cock jerked to attention when she turned around and looked up at him with her smoky, dark eyes.

  “You shouldn’t have had me followed.” Her voice was low, but the scent of her arousal was stronger.

  He took a step forward until they were chest to chest. “Is that what really has you acting strange?” And she was, and he knew it had to do with Slade, but until she was ready to tell him he’d wait her out. Besides, he’d find out eventually, meaning when he left her house, hauled his ass to Stripped, beat down Slade’s fucking door, and kicked the living shit out of the shifter for even thinking it was okay to speak to his mate.

  He looked at her mouth. The fact she needed him took his common sense away. He hauled her to him and slanted his mouth on hers. The taste of her exploded along his tongue, like apples and honey and everything good. Hands cupped her ass, and Leo squeezed the mounds. He couldn’t help himself from grinding his cock into her belly.

  Tatum moaned into his mouth, and he swallowed the sound, loving that it was because of him she made those sexy little noises. Wrenching away from her, he tore at her clothes until tatters of material fluttered around her body and landed at her feet. She stood in nothing but her bra and panties, and his cock jerked fiercely against his zipper

  “I liked those clothes, Leo.” The words fell flat from her lips as she pressed her breasts against his chest. Ignoring her comment because he didn’t trust his voice, Leo slipped the straps of her lacy bra off her shoulders. The creamy swells looked pale in the darkened room. Cupping a full mound, he massaged the globe. The sounds that came from her were deep and throaty and had him impatient for more. He wanted inside of her, wanted his cum filling her up and marking her has his, irrevocably.

  “I’ll buy you more, baby, a whole fucking closet-full.” Yeah, he’d do that, then he’d tear each piece off her luscious body. Taking her waist in his hands, he spun her around and pressed her upper body forward with a palm to the middle of her back. The sight of her bent over the breakfast counter, balancing on her toes, her ass high in the air, had him fumbling like a damn teenager to free his cock.

  When he finally took his shaft out, he stroked himself a few times and let his eyes zero in on her ass. It was round and full, perfect for fucking, which was what he wanted, so damn bad.

  Smoothing his hand on one cheek, he bent forward until he felt his cock press between the crease. The G-string she wore left little to the imagination, and he was thankful that she had decided to wear the miniscule piece of fabric.

  “Fuck, baby, what the hell are you doing to me?” He had never felt so out of control before, but then again he’d never had a mate. “Tell me he didn’t touch you.” His words were a growl. She didn’t answer, but her increased breathing and accelerated heart rate answered for her.

  His lion growled and clawed, demanding that he take what was his. He wanted the scent of Slade off of his mate. Ripping the clothes off of her had been a start, but it wasn’t enough. He wanted her smelling only of him. Tonight wouldn’t be about romance and going slow. He needed her now. Leo needed to mark her in every possible way. And by the way she ground her ass against him, made sweet little sounds of need, and smelled so fucking hot, that he knew in his mind she would give it all to him.

  “Please, Leo, please. I need it.” Arms stretched out in front of her, she gripped the edge of the counter and moaned.

  Yeah, he’d give it to her all right, give it to her until she screamed his name over and over again. Leo reached between their bodies, gripped the elastic of her panties, and tore those from her. The scent of her desire was like a punch to his cock. He felt the damn thing swell even further between his thighs. When he felt the hot, wet center of her at the tip of his dick, he surged forward. A gasp left her, and he grunted as her muscles clamped down, drawing him deeper inside. Hands on her hips, Leo started pounding in and out of her, faster and harder, trying to get as deep as he could.

  “I want all of you, Tatum. All of you, dammit.” He growled and thrust into her. Her ass shook from the force and the sounds she made. Fuck, the sounds she made had his balls drawing up tight to his body. He didn’t want to come yet, not until she screamed his name, not until she knew who she belonged to.

  “I’m yours, Leo. Oh God, yes…” Sweat dripped down from his hairline, and he felt her come around his cock. The extra lubrication had his dick sliding in and out of her slick pussy with so much ease he couldn’t stand it.

  He pulled back, watched his cock sink in and out of her, her cream coating the length. Seeing his erection glisten with her pussy juice was hot as fuck, and he worked himself deeper, harder inside of her. She came again, incoherent words spilling from her mouth as the pleasure stole her.

  “That’s two, baby. How ‘bout we go for three?” She shook her head, but he knew damn well she wanted more, would take whatever he gave her. His orgasm rushed forward fast, and he let it take him over the edge. He fucked her like his life depended on it, and roared out when she came once again. Yeah, this was what it was about, and how is was supposed to be.

  When she milked him dry and he pulled out of her with a groan, little aftershocks of her climax rippled around his dick. The image before him had his cock hard again, ready to go round two. Her legs spread, her cunt pink and swollen and dripping wet with her cream and his cum, was a sight that he would never get rid of. The image would be burned into his damn brain, and he was fine with that. More than fine.

  The smell of her sweet fucking pussy filled his nose, and his skin tightened with the threat of shifting. Oh, hell no. Moving behind her again, he palmed her tight ass. Spreading her cheeks, he looked down at the hole in the center. The rosebud of her ass beckoned him, and his cock swelled further, filling with blood until he thought it would explode.

  Bending over her, he ran his tongue up her back, licking the saltiness from her sweat off her spine. When he reached her ear he gave the lobe a tug with his teeth.

  “I want to fuck your ass, baby.” He nipped at her again, and she shivered. “You’re gonna’ let me have it, aren’t you?” Snaking one of his hands around, he found her clit and rubbed it back and forth.

  “Yesss.”

  “Yeah, you’re going to let me do all kinds of things to you.” Leo ran his finger up and down her slit, gath
ering her moisture until his fingers were drenched with their combined fluids. He pulled back, kept one hand on her ass cheek, spreading it wide so he still had a good look at her hole, and spread his slicked up fingers over it. Using his foot, he kicked her feet further apart until she was spread good and wide for him, not hiding anything from his view.

  Leo worked first one, then two fingers into her ass. The hole was tight and sucked at the digits fiercely. Letting go of her ass cheek, but still keeping his fingers buried inside of her, he gathered more of her cream and spread it over his cock. When his dick was good and lubed he removed his fingers and pressed the tip of his dick at her anus.

  “Bear down for me, baby.” As soon as she did his dickhead popped through the tight ring of muscle and slid home. He was careful to go nice and easy, but damn she felt good. “Fuck, Tatum. Fuck yeah.” Buried balls deep inside of her, he pressed his chest to her back and kissed her shoulder.

  “Oh, God, Leo. Move. I need you to move.” Her ass clenched around him, and he grunted. He didn’t want to disappoint his girl.

  Pulling out until only the head of was erection pressed at the entrance, he pushed back inside. Over and over he slid his shaft home. He felt his balls slap against her moist pussy, and having her cries of ecstasy fill his ears. He started moving faster, feeling his second orgasm of the night rearing up fast. He wanted her to come again, especially while he was buried in her tight, hot bottom.

  Reaching in front and finding her clit, he stroked it fast and hard. She cried again before her back bowed and she came on a long, loud moan. That was it, all it took for him to get off. The instinct to mark her ascended until it consumed him and couldn’t be ignored. His cum shot out of him, filling her body at the same time he opened his mouth and clamped down on her shoulder. His lion rose up, and his canines elongated. The taste of her blood hit her tongue, and he went crazy.

  She was his. All. His.

  His dick filled her, his cum bathed her insides, and now his mark would cover her flesh. It was a testament to all who saw, all who were his kind, that if you fucked with her, you fucked with him.

  He sagged against her, spent yet deliriously happy. There was no going back. She wouldn’t push him away, and there would be no one else.

  “Mine.” Leo kissed the center of her back and heard her sigh. He pulled out of her, scooped her limp body into his arms, and headed down the hallway to her room. There were only two doors, one being the bathroom, so finding it was easy enough.

  When he had his girl on the bed, he got a wet, warm washrag from the bathroom and went back to Tatum. He cleaned his mate up, then himself, and settled in next to her. With the blankets over them Tatum curled right around him. It was a good feeling, one that made everything right in this fucked up world.

  He wanted to ask her a lot of things, but the sound of her deep, even breaths told him she fell asleep. So, letting himself relax into the only woman he had ever loved, Leo fell asleep with a smile on his face for the first time in his life.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Leo paced his office, his rage rippling across his skin. He was on the verge of shifting, so close to letting his beast free that he could feel his muscles stretch in preparation for it. The morning after he had fallen asleep with Tatum beside him, she told him everything that had happened: Slade touching her on the dance floor, him forcing his mate into his office, the offer he made her. Just knowing that she had been alone with Slade had Leo seeing red. There were so many things that could have happened to her, and he wouldn’t have gotten there in time to save her. That thought had a cold sweat covering his skin and his pulse racing.

  “You wanna go take care of business now, boss?” Tryck leaned against his door, picking at his fingernail with a blade. Tryck was human, but he had been loyal to Leo since the very beginning and knew pretty much everything, including his shifting abilities. Tryck also knew about Slade, about all the shit between him and Leo, and knew that what was going down was bad.

  Leo had left Tatum right after she spilled it all. It had still been early, but he wouldn’t have been able to stay in her bed a moment longer, even if his dick complained otherwise. He had wanted blood on his hands, and needed to form a plan so this shit with Slade ended, like yesterday.

  He stopped pacing and looked at Tryck. What he wanted to do was go alone, but he wasn’t stupid enough for that. Slade fought dirty, and Leo needed to be smart about this.

  “I want to go talk to him, alone, but I want you there hanging back in case I need you.” The sound of Tryck sheathing his blade seemed louder than it should have, or maybe Leo was just overly perceptive right now, seeing as some fucker tried to move in on what was his.

  Slade never made it a secret that he wanted to control the territory, but Leo wasn’t having any of it. He had been here first, had been around years before Slade showed his ugly fucking face, and wasn’t in the business of illegal fucking shit. But Slade had a lot of men on his side willing to do some dirty fucking shit, stuff that made even Leo wince. So, that being said, a lot of people were afraid of him, letting Slade get away with a lot shit because they thought it best when concerning their survival.

  “All right, boss. Just tell me when and where and I’m there. You wanna take more than just me?”

  “Bring Rocker and another.” Rocker, one of the muscles he had behind The Lion and the Lamb, would come in handy for some damage control if and when Slade decide to dispatch his goons. Rocker was good with a gun whereas Tryck knew his way with a blade.

  Shit. Tatum didn’t even know the kind of man he was. Guns and knives were just the tip of the iceberg when it concerned making sure his business ran smoothly. Leo wasn’t all about illegal shit, like prostitution and killing just for the sake of it, but he would be lying if he said he didn’t, on occasion, have to rough a few people up to make his intentions clear. What would she say if she knew that? Tatum had to know that nothing was as it seemed.

  Life was an illusion, and it just depended on whether you opened your eyes and saw through the haze.

  Tryck nodded once and left his office. Leo grabbed his phone from the inside of his pocket and punched in Slade’s number. The asshole only let it ring once before he picked up.

  “Funny hearing from you, lion.” The sound of Slade inhaling deeply preceded his words.

  “Know you saw my girl, Slade.” Leo didn’t bother keeping the growl out of his voice. “You know that shit isn’t going to fly with me.”

  “Yeah, we talked.” Slade chuckled, and Leo tightened his grip on the phone. The thing started to crack in his hand, and he eased up on it. “Offered her a job, but you know that or you wouldn’t be calling me.” Inhale. Exhale.

  “I should go over there right and rip your fucking throat out.” His voice became distorted as his lion started to take control. It was inevitable, especially with his mate being in the conversation and her safety at risk.

  “Sounds like you’re having quite the time controlling yourself, brother.”

  “I’ve told you I’m not your brother.” Leo went back to pacing. He wouldn’t be able to stop himself from going over there and finishing this.

  Slade chuckled deeply. “That’s where you’re wrong. Leo. You and I aren’t that different, especially when something as juicy and sweet as Miss Weatherton comes along.”

  The phone snapped in his hand. Pieces of it fell to the ground, and he let the roar that had been brewing since this shit with Slade went down, free.

  Leo threw the remnants of his phone against the wall, and a small sliver of pleasure at the way the rest of it shattered filled him. Snatching his keys off his desk, Leo stormed out of his office, past Tryck and the rest of his staff, and into his car.

  Yeah, this shit ended today.

  ****

  Tatum washed the last cup and set it in the strainer. Since Leo had left her pleasantly sore in her bed this morning, she hadn’t been able to think of much else. It was her night off, so she just stayed at home, cleaning things she h
adn’t cleaned in far too long. A knock on her door told her it was either Kiki or Leo.

  Kiki had sent her a quick text last night saying she got home okay and that Beau had been waiting up for her so they could talk. She hadn’t heard from her all day, and knew if something bad had happened between them Kiki would have been a blubbering mess at her door this morning. The fact it was going on dinnertime and she hadn’t heard a thing from her was a good sign.

  So, chances were it was Leo on the other side. A thrill went through her. They hadn’t spoken either since he left, but she had more than enough to keep her busy. After telling him all the crap that had gone down at Stripped, she thought he would have an aneurysm. His anger had been pretty clear, and when he left Tatum worried he was going to do something that got him in trouble.

  Oh, she had tried to call him, but there hadn’t been an answer, and his reply texts had been short. After that she had given him space, knowing that he obviously dealt with this in his own way, and her continuing to pester him was only going to make things worse.

  She pulled the curtain aside and felt her brows lift to her hairline at who stood on her porch. Pulling the front door open, Tatum smiled.

  “What are you doing here?” Tatum stepped aside. “You want to come in?”

  “Actually, no, but thanks. Leo sent me over to bring you to the club.”

  Tatum felt her brows knit in confusion. “Really? Why didn’t he just call me?”

  “Not sure, but I do know he’s got a lot of shit going on right now. He just said to come get you and bring you to the club.”

  The situation was weird, but Tatum did get the feeling that Leo had been busy today, and had a lot on his mind after she told him about Slade. She still didn’t know what their issue was with each other, but it obviously ran deep. “Well, okay, let me just grab my phone and call him.”