by C. D. Gorri
The rest was part of a journey that could carry on for decades if she dared believe.
He backed her up, caging her in his arms until she hit the dresser. One arm snaked around her waist and effortlessly hoisted her to sit on the edge. He stepped right between her legs and—ohhh. One small thrust of his hips was enough to feel how much he wanted her. Not that she needed the evidence. His words were full of the same. His eyes, too.
She didn’t know who slipped under the other’s shirt first, but it was a race to wrangle their tops off and fling them into the ether of the motel room. She won, barely, and found herself arching into him as skilled fingers worked the clasp of her bra.
Abel’s large hands closed over her breasts the same instant his mouth found hers again. A low growl rumbled in his chest, clearly appreciative of what his fingers plucked and stroked. She let off a whimper as he pinched just right.
“Skies above, I love the way you sound,” he groaned.
He dropped to his knees, eyes seeking confirmation as his hands went to her waist. She dipped her chin and sucked down a breath. Careful, so careful and gentle, he slipped her jeans and panties over her bandaged foot.
There was nothing careful or gentle in his eyes when he rolled them up to meet hers.
Bright green stared back at her with the look of a man utterly starving, and she was the feast.
“This is what I wanted to do last night,” he said, voice thick and decadent, scrambling every last thought she had left.
Abel buried his face between her thighs and wasted no time in showing her exactly what she missed by kicking him out of the bathroom.
She curled her fingers in his hair as he licked and stroked, exploring every inch of her over and over. Suckling, tasting, groaning as he brought her right to the edge. Dakota trembled, back arching, and cried out when he slipped a finger into her heat.
“Fuck, sweetheart,” he growled. “Taste so fucking good.”
Even if her mind had changed, her body wouldn’t have turned thought into action. Every thrust of his fingers, every flick of his tongue sent shocks tingling up her spine. He lapped and tasted and teased. She watched, utterly entranced, the bob of his head, the flex of his arm. Tension coiled in her middle with every gasp and moan, only to explode with a harsh cry and tightening of her thighs.
Abel rolled to his feet, and she reached for the button of his jeans as his mouth found hers again. One deep kiss, and the button popped. Another stroke of his tongue, and the zipper slammed down. He broke away long enough to kick out of his boots and shove his jeans off his hips. She had only a moment to drink in the sight of him, from his sculpted chest to those damn lines at his hips before he stepped back into her space.
His lips found hers once more, then kissed a path over her jaw and to her ear. Sharp teeth caught the lobe. “Want you so bad, sweetheart,” he said, breath hot. “Wanted this since I caught your scent.”
His thick cock nestled against her entrance, and he rocked forward, coating himself in her wetness before sliding in an inch. He hissed, head dropping back as he eased out and back in. Pleasure etched in the tight set of his jaw and the churning of his eyes.
A high moan escaped her lips as he thrust inside that final inch. She arched into him, hands wrapped around the edge of the dresser. Legs trembling, she wrapped them around his waist as he dragged back until only the blunt tip remained in her. One glance was all the warning she had before he surged forward again.
Fuck, she had never felt so full, so thoroughly stretched. There was no escaping the sheer pleasure he commanded. His fingers dug into her hips and thighs, holding her open to take everything he had to give.
Everything on the dresser shook with the force of his thrusts. The little plastic bucket meant for ice tumbled off the edge. The mirror banked against the wall, and she was glad no one was inside the empty adjoining room. Not that embarrassment would have kept the wicked sounds pouring from her mouth as he continued to fuck her within an inch of her life.
Bright green eyes met hers, and something sparked in her chest. She smoothed her hands up his arms, over his shoulders. Anywhere she could reach was fair game and absolutely necessary to keep from spinning off into orbit.
She dragged him down and nipped at his lower lip. His groan vibrated through her as he stole control, obliterating any last lines of defense with his mouth, his hands, his cock.
Harder. Faster. Their breath turned jagged and sharp. Heat gathered in her core as she teetered right there, ready to tumble over the edge. Into what, she couldn’t say, but she knew, deep in her heart, he’d be there to catch her.
Terrifying, really. And perfect.
He tore his mouth from hers, breath coming in short pants. “Fuck,” he growled in her ear. “Dakota, fuck.”
“Close,” she panted. “I’m close.”
He pulled back enough to meet her eyes, cocky smirk hitching up a corner of his mouth as he snaked a hand between their bodies. “Come for me, gorgeous,” he ordered.
She cried out the moment his thumb brushed against her clit. There was no room for thought or words after that, only moans and their bodies crashing together. Fire raced along her veins, burning her down to nothing and leaving pure bliss behind.
She was still throbbing around him, still reaching her peak, when he stuttered and slammed his hips against her, flooding her with heat.
With a soft growl, Abel pressed his forehead against her shoulder. Three shaky breaths were all he allowed himself to rest before placing a soft kiss on the crook of her neck. He worked his way higher and higher, nipping at her earlobe, then making his way across her jaw and to her lips.
Gently, he gathered her in his arms and carried her the short distance to the bed.
Dakota leaned up on her elbow as soon as he settled next to her. Bright green eyes watched her as she dragged a finger down his muscled chest, to his waist, across his hip, and up one of those sexy, sexy lines.
“You,” she said, leaning forward until their lips almost touched, “still owe me dinner.”
Abel threw his head back with a deep laugh. “Had to work up an appetite first, my perfect mate.”
Chapter Ten
“You ready?”
Dakota eyed the tiny cabin where Abel had parked. A curtain near the door twitched aside and settled back into place. That was the only sign of life she could see. No one opened the door to greet them or prowled around the corners. The nearest neighbors were well outside of shouting distance from what she’d seen on the drive.
Not by accident, as Abel confirmed when she asked. They were on the edge of Blackthorne lands, which bordered a nature preserve. The extra space afforded the pack the privacy they needed to stay off the radar. Any wolf sightings were easily played off as their natural brethren.
Nerves churned in her gut. The time from agreeing to the trip to pulling to a stop in front of the cabin had flown by, but the end result was always some distant, abstract thing. Now that she faced the reality, she didn’t know what to do with herself.
Abel’s hand closed on her thigh. Thighs he’d only that morning held open while he feasted on her, bringing her to release until she practically begged for mercy. Thighs that, hours later, still held a slight burn from the night they’d spent together.
“This isn’t how I would have wanted to do things,” he said quietly.
“I know,” she answered. “I believe there was talk of taking me out and making me feel special all hours of the day.”
“That’s unfair. I bought you two packs of peanut butter cups.” He shook his head, mouth pulling up at the corners. “You haven’t even accepted my mate mark, and already with the nagging.”
“Should have gone with three. Four would have gotten you anything you asked.”
“You’re here with me,” he said, suddenly serious. “That’s all I need.”
Her heart fluttered at the words. She wanted to believe in them—and in him—but that meant believing in all the rest. Mates. Destiny. Two totally unconnected
people giving them words that would send them on the course to find each other in a gully at the full moon.
She lived in the real world, where love at first word didn’t exist. And while maybe, maybe, she could picture a lifetime of waking up with his head between her legs and coffee slowly cranking up the ol’ brain machine, they’d still only known each other for a handful of days.
Which was insane.
Wasn’t it?
The question sounded quieter and quieter with every repetition.
The front door swung open, and she shoved down all her nerves at the sight of the tall woman standing at the entrance.
Abel tossed Dakota a grin and shoved out of the Jeep. He rounded the hood to yank open her door and help her to the ground. As soon as she was steady, he turned to the woman. Without a word, they closed the distance and wrapped each other in a tight hug.
Dakota didn’t need wolf senses or the power to read minds to understand their shared grief. They clung to the only other person who truly felt their profound loss. He’d lost his father. She’d lost her mate. Their little family unit wouldn’t ever be the same.
She’d experienced those hugs with her grandmother. With her father? Never.
“Mom,” he said, pulling back and reaching his hand out to draw her forward, “I want you to meet someone. This is Dakota. Dakota, this is my mother, Adella.”
The resemblance was uncanny. His jaw was sharper and his lips not as full, but their noses formed the same curves below the same green eyes.
“Nice to meet you,” Dakota said and held out her hand.
Adella’s smile fell as her nostrils flared. She slid a questioning look to Abel. “Human? You brought a human onto our lands?”
Dakota shot a look at Abel. He’d warned that not everyone would be accepting of a human. They’d spent lifetimes actively hiding their nature from mere mortals like her. His own uncle—not the greatest of characters in the first place—had killed them for sport.
But his own mother?
Abel’s eyes hardened. “What she is or isn’t doesn’t matter to me,” he said firmly. “She’s mine. That should be enough.”
“To you. To me.” Adella shrugged her shoulder. “There are others that will care.”
“Then they can say it to my face,” Dakota piped in. She stood right there. While she obviously didn’t know every aspect of shifter life, she damn sure would be included in the conversation about her. “And then they can either deal with it or keep their opinions to themselves.”
Pleasant surprise jumped across Adella’s expression. “Hopefully more choose the former than the latter. Come in, both of you. I put tea on when I saw you pull up.”
Dakota followed Adella through the front door, with Abel taking up the rear.
In a blink, her eyes adjusted to the lower light. The interior was as small as the outside suggested. Some standing screens hid the bed, and careful positioning of other furniture separated the living room from the kitchen. One room of living was a far cry from what Abel had told her of the three-storied pack house.
Abel helped her into a spot at the small, two-seater table. Lavender poked out of a vase right in the middle.
He dragged a finger along one of the sprigs. “You’re fine? They haven’t done anything to you?”
“Aside from throwing me out of the home I shared with my mate?” Adella grimaced over her shoulder. “They’ve largely ignored me. I’m just an old woman lost in her grief. Idiots, though Rasmus never was the smart one of the bunch. Conrad took the brains and looks.”
Fresh pain tightened her mouth to a thin line as she made her way back to the table with a teapot in her hands. Abel gave her shoulder a squeeze in passing and collected teacups and spoons.
“Idiots,” he agreed. “Everyone knows who really ran the pack.”
“That’ll be a lesson for you,” Adella turned to Dakota. Grief still welled in her eyes, but she spoke through it. “Disagree for the hell of it. Let him work out the best argument by convincing you of its merits even if you already know it’s the right choice. Making up is just the bonus.”
Abel scoffed at the salacious wink Adella added to the last. He reached for the teapot. The light scent of chamomile mixed with the lavender decorating the table. His teacup filled, he poured for his mother, then Dakota.
“Has anything happened since we last spoke?” he asked.
The brief flash of light faded from Adella’s face. “More of the same. Rasmus installed the enforcers he brought with him in the pack house. He’s keeping a handful of the younger males there for training, he claims. Given enough time and beatings, they’ll turn as rotten as the rest of his wolves.”
“Stephen and Lyle’s family?”
“Safe. The mates and pups left as soon as their banishments were announced. They planned to head south to the Redwoods. Publicly, anyway. East toward Wolfden was their true destination.
“Everyone else has stuck close to home and walked on eggshells. I think they’re collectively holding their breath and waiting to see what happens, given the threats to cull the submissives. Harlan dropped in yesterday and said he knows of two other families looking for safe passage out of the territory. More will follow, especially if the rumors of Rasmus forbidding any mating without his permission turns out to be true.”
There was that word again. Cull. She’d known things were bad, but threatening death and revoking the right to choose their own relationships was astonishingly evil. Forcing them to accept or flee their homes shrouded in secrecy? She didn’t even know the asshole, and she already hated him.
Abel was right to come home as soon as possible. Someone had to stop Rasmus before more lives were disturbed.
Abel scrubbed a hand down his face. “I should go see him. If anyone has a lay of the land, it’ll be him. Knowing who to trust and who’s thrown in with that bastard is going to be vital.”
He cast a look at her, then the door. The same battle warred as when she tried to kick him out of her home in Yellowstone. Tried, and failed.
“I’ll go with you,” she offered.
“It isn’t safe. Not with Rasmus in charge,” Adella objected. Abel nodded. “You can stay here with me.”
“Is that okay?” Abel turned to her. One dark brow lifted with his question. “We can head back into town and get a room somewhere if you’d prefer.”
She was aware of Adella watching her. Weighing her, just as she’d tested and approved of her answer about her humanness. Abel, too, waited, but she knew there’d be less judgment from him. Maybe a little disappointment, but nothing that would last for more than a second.
“Go,” she told him. “This is why we’re here.”
She slid her palms into his outstretched hands and let him pull her to her feet. A small shiver worked through her when he kissed each of her temples.
“I’ll be back soon.” His eyes danced with mischief as he nodded toward his mother. “Don’t listen to anything this one says, especially anything concerning my under-five years. If it’s remotely embarrassing, it was her terrible parenting. If it’s adorable, consider it a natural talent.”
“Got it. You have a natural talent for being embarrassing.”
“We’ll work on your listening comprehension later.” He leaned in and pecked her lips before striding for the door.
“Be careful,” Adella warned. “I don’t know where any eyes are turned these days.”
He dipped his chin in acknowledgment, flashed Dakota a reassuring smile, and disappeared through the door.
Dakota rubbed absently at her chest and stared at the wall between them. No engine started, and it took her a long moment to realize he must have shifted for his journey. It made sense when she thought about it. He’d have to follow a set road if he took his Jeep. Four legs offered a lot more off-road sneaking behind enemy lines.
Skies above, as he liked to say, she hoped he didn’t run into any trouble.
The clink of a teacup settling on the table brought her bac
k to the room and who else was in it—a she-wolf watching her with very interested eyes.
“I’m sorry,” she murmured, taking her seat again.
“No need to apologize, my dear,” Adella said softly. A sad fondness entered her eyes. “It takes some getting used to, feeling that little pang of heartsickness when your mate leaves the room.”
“He’s not—” she started. “We’re not—”
She clamped her mouth closed. Doubt curdled her stomach. Human, not a wolf, not a mate. No doubt his mother wished she could sprout fur and howled at the moon. Hell, she couldn’t even step outside without bringing danger on her head.
She didn’t fit in with Abel’s world.
“Oh.” Adella frowned, eyebrows knitting together. “I just assumed… You came all this way.”
“Didn’t seem like much of a choice at the time. He needed to be here, but he wouldn’t leave me. I’m just an extra piece of luggage.”
Lies. To herself, to Abel’s mother, to the man himself. The words even tasted like ashes in her mouth.
Insanity. That was all it was. Pure insanity to hop into a stranger’s Jeep because he called her his mate. Madness to follow him across multiple states so he could mete out justice to his father’s killer and claim his pack.
What then? He had his life. She had hers. Was she supposed to give up everything she’d worked for to sit at his side? The finer details of what happened after had been tossed aside for the more pressing concerns.
Sitting in his mother’s cabin, drinking her tea, hearing the assumption she was to be Abel’s mate brought it all into focus.
“This is all happening so fast.”
“Ah, that’s the trouble eating at you since you stepped in here.” Adella’s face softened. She drummed her fingers on her cup, the move so like Abel that Dakota knew where he’d picked up the habit. “There’s no easy answer. We don’t live easy lives. All that matters is how you feel and if you can accept this life. Our animals often jump the gun, and it takes some time for our human sides to catch up. But when they do, we’re almost always left wondering what the hell took so long. I know you don’t have a wolf. You have to trust your gut on this. Does he make you laugh?”