by T. S. Joyce
“A shifter, you mean?”
“Yeah.”
She leaned her butt against the counter as he began cleaning her shoulder. “But you don’t regret me, right?”
“No.” Kirk shook his head and kissed her lips, just once. Just a single sip. “No, Ally, I have no regrets. I just have a lot to learn.”
She smiled in relief, rocked forward, and rested her forehead against his bare chest. “So do I.”
He chuckled deep in his throat, but swallowed the sound the instant she winced against the burn of the cleaner. “I hate this.” He pressed his lips on top of her hair and let them linger there for a few moments before he started taking care of her again. “I hate seeing you hurt.”
She ran a light touch over the gunshot scar on his shoulder. “I know the feeling.”
As he bandaged her, his attention dipped time and time again to her breasts and the tattoos that covered most of her left side, and she understood since she was drinking in his body as well. Muscular neck, perfectly defined pecs, eight-pack abs that flexed with every breath, and that light trail of hair that led from his belly button down into his jeans. With her fingernail, she traced the strip of muscle that delved over his hip bone and into the waist of his pants. And when she pulled his jeans forward and ran her touch along the edge of the fabric, a shiver took Kirk’s shoulders, and he let off a soft groan.
“Woman, I just told you it’s hard to be gentle. You’re hurt. Don’t push.” His voice came out all inhuman and rough. Sexy silverback.
Feeling empowered that she could affect him so easily, she unsnapped the button of his jeans and gave him a naughty smile. “Should I stop then?”
His gaze on her hands, he shook his head with a jerk. Oh, beautiful man, with those blazing golden eyes and his chestnut hair falling forward against his sharp cheekbones. Alison pulled his zipper down slowly and unsheathed his thick erection. The head of his cock was swollen, and his length hard as stone, standing rigid against his belly. She ran her finger down his shaft and reveled in the satisfaction from his soft, needy growl.
“You’re fucking killing me,” he murmured as she slid down to her knees, taking his pants with her.
Kirk leaned back on the sink on one locked arm and ran his fingers through her hair with the other. Gently, she clamped her teeth on the head of his cock. He hissed, gripped her hair, and eased her back. He shook his head slowly, his hair twitching against his jaw with the motion. He looked feral right now. Inhuman. Wild. Hers. With a smile, Alison gripped his shaft and slid her mouth over him. His grip tightened in her hair, and he let off a soft sound deep in his throat, but he didn’t pull her onto him. Instead, he let her set the pace, stroke after stroke, until his abs were twitching and his breath came ragged. And when his hips rolled with her motion, she knew she had him.
“Ally, Ally, Ally, stop. Stop or I’m gonna come in your mouth.”
That sounded awesome, but Kirk eased out of her and blew three short breaths, then pulled her upward with a surprising amount of strength. She forgot how much of his power he hid. His chest was still making that sexy rumbling sound and, biting back an excited grin, she shimmied her damp shorts down her legs. Her insides were on fire, ready for him. Her body reacted to him like she was a firecracker and he was a match. His touch caused instantaneous, tingling, glorious heat.
He cupped her cheek, his expression intense the moment before his lips crashed onto hers. Swaying her from side to side, he turned her around until her back rested against his chest. He dragged kisses down her neck, one hand gently cupping her breast. His erection was hard against her back, and she was shocked at her reflection in the mirror. Cheeks flushed, lips parted and swollen, pupils dilated, nipples drawn up into tight little buds. A moment of mortification took her when he locked her arms against the counter top and she realized what he intended. If she didn’t close her eyes quick, she was going to watch herself get banged by a Boarlander. She squeezed her eyes closed, but Kirk’s deep, reverberating chuckle filled the small room.
“You should watch what you do to me, Ally.”
“I’ve never done it in front of a mirror,” she rushed out.
“Neither have I, but I want to see you. And I don’t want to do this if I’m going to hurt your claiming mark.”
Ooooh. There it was. And again, his gaze dipped to her bandages. He could’ve gotten away with four of those big square Band-Aids, but instead he’d wrapped up her entire shoulder like she was part mummy.
“I feel…” Kirk sighed and shook his head. “I’ll Change if I hurt you.”
“You’re feeling protective.”
Kirk nodded hard and lifted impossibly bright eyes to her. His gaze was so bright it was hard to hold in the mirror, and his face looked different now. Harder. Feral, as if his gorilla was right there ready to rip out of him.
Slowly, Alison spread her legs and arched her back, presenting for him as she watched his reflection. The corner of his lips turned up in a smile, and he dragged that hungry gaze of his down her back as he traced the outer edge of her tattoos with a light touch. “You’re so beautiful.”
Her throat tightened at how honest he sounded. He really did think her pretty. Strange, after feeling so unnoticeable for so long. He should hear how much he meant to her. Breath shaking, she whispered, “I’ve always felt invisible, but not with you.”
“Not invisible, Ally Cat.” He rested his chest against her back and kissed her uninjured shoulder with such tenderness, it made her want to cry. “You’re all I see.” In the mirror, his eyes were so open, so raw and vulnerable she wasn’t alone in this freefall. Kirk was quieter, more reserved with his feelings, but he had jumped over the edge with her, just like on that cliff. He was in this.
She pushed backward, reveling in the feeling of his hard shaft against her. Kirk ran biting kisses down her neck, straightened his spine, then gripped her hips. She was so wet, so ready, and when he slipped the head of his cock into her, she moaned and rolled her eyes closed. He pushed into her deeply and grunted as his body went rigid, then relaxed as he pulled out slowly. When he rammed into her again, curiosity got the best of her. She opened her eyes. Behind her, Kirk was utterly sexy. Big, brawny man whose body had gone hard, and she wanted to watch his powerful thrusts into her. He was clenching his teeth, his eyes were glowing, and the growl in his chest was constant. And as beautiful as he looked right now, slamming into her, he also had an edge of panic in his eyes, his attention on her bandage. He liked it from behind, and he liked it hard, but this wasn’t going to work if his protective instincts were in overdrive.
She pulled herself forward and turned on him. He didn’t fight her cutting them off so suddenly, just cupped her cheeks and kissed her lips. “I’m sorry,” he murmured against them.
“Come here,” she whispered, tugging his hand gently. Alison led him to the bedroom and pulled the comforter down.
“I’ll hurt you,” he said, balking.
“You won’t.” She climbed in and held up the covers. “We’ll do this easy.”
“Easy,” he said in a voice that couldn’t pass for human anymore. He slipped under the covers and pulled her close against his chest.
Alison slowed them down. She ran her hands over the mounds of his abs and then raked her nails gently up the strong planes of his back. Goosebumps rose under her touch, and he jerked his hips like he couldn’t help himself. The growl in his throat settled and softened, and his dick throbbed against her belly. She’d worked herself up to white hot by touching him, so when he drew his fingertips up her hips, against the curve of her waist, over her ribs, then cupped her neck as he kissed her, she was nothing more than putty in his capable hands.
There he was—Gentle Kirk.
His focus was no longer on her claiming mark, but on pulling reactions from her body, and she loved this. Making love under the waterfall had been amazing, but this right here was perfect. It was saying “I love you” without words. It was him coveting her body and urging her closer
to climax with just a touch of his hands. With kisses and nibbles. When he dragged his lips down the base of her throat and sucked gently on her breast, she gasped quietly and held his head, encouraging him to continue lapping at her sensitive skin as she rocked her hips against him. His movements were grace and power, and when he drew her nipple between his teeth and held her there, she was frozen with how good he felt against her right now. Slowly, he pulled her on top of him, held her close, his arms tight around her back as he rolled his waist and slid into her.
Kirk’s heart was racing so fast she eased back and asked, “What’s wrong?”
He was breathing too hard, eyes uncertain as he searched her face. Kirk brushed her hair behind her ear and shook his head like he was having trouble finding the words. He pushed into her again, easy, holding her gaze. “I’ve never…not like this.”
Oh, she got what he was saying.
Kirk had fucked.
He’d never made love.
She kissed him to hide her happy grin. Nipping his lip, she murmured, “Good.”
His kiss was so soft, so slow. He didn’t force his tongue into her mouth or push their pace. Instead, he licked the closed seam of her lips, and when she parted for him, he slipped inside of her just enough for her to taste him. God, she loved him. They might not have said the words yet, but this right here was loving.
Kirk cupped her neck gently, his calloused hand on her skin as he angled his head and kissed her deeper. Alison set their pace slow because it seemed to be what he wanted now. And she wasn’t in a rush. If she could stay in this moment forever with him, she would’ve, and from the careful attention he was paying her body with his touches, with his kisses, Kirk felt the same.
The pressure built fast—much faster than she’d expected at this pace. With every stroke he pressed into her, the tingling sensation deep in her belly increased until she had to close her eyes against the intense pleasure.
“No,” he murmured, brushing the pad of his thumb across her cheek. “Look at me.”
Feeling vulnerable wasn’t so scary with Kirk. With a gasp on her lips, she rocked forward again and opened her eyes. She’d never seen adoration on a man’s face before, but it was here in Kirk’s gaze.
He gritted his teeth and blew out a breath, his body going hard as a rock every time he buried himself completely inside of her. “Ally,” he gritted out.
“Me, too.” Orgasm blasted through her, and she bowed against him, crying out his name.
He arched his neck back against the pillow and groaned as his cock throbbed inside of her. Heat shot into her over and over, matching her own release, but he never left the moment. Never closed his eyes, never let her go, never left her alone. He stayed there with her for every beautiful sensation. Every pounding aftershock.
And when he’d drawn every last one from her, he settled her onto the mattress beside him, pulled the comforter up to their shoulders and stared at her as if he couldn’t believe she’d picked him. Cupping her neck, and brushing his thumb across her cheek, Kirk kissed her. Time passed with no meaning as he sipped at her lips, and she fell even harder. Nothing had ever felt like this—like another person was touching her soul.
“Ally?” Kirk asked.
She eased back and pushed his hair off his cheekbone so she could better see his darkening eyes. “Yeah?”
He swallowed hard and searched her face like she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. “I see you.”
And for the first time in a long time, she didn’t feel like a ghost anymore.
Chapter Sixteen
Kirk hesitated on Bash’s front porch, hand lifted to knock against his newly painted red door. If he did this, it was the first step to breaking away from the Lowlanders.
Kong would fight to keep him.
But if he left now, he was saying goodbye to what he had up here in Boarland Mobile Park. He would have to move farther away from Ally, and leaving her alone and unprotected felt like more than his animal could handle. If he was completely honest with himself, his moodiness lately had been the direct result of thinking he would have to go back to Saratoga to continue his half-life.
Ally made him want more.
He needed to stop spiraling, and to do that, he had to make a decision and escape being stranded in the middle of two crews. Mason would likely leave the Boarlanders soon and go back to his life assisting Damon, but with every day that passed, Kirk felt more like this shitty old trailer park was home. It wasn’t just Ally keeping him here either. Over the past week since they’d claimed each other, she’d cracked his heart wide open, and somewhere along the way, when he wasn’t paying attention, the crew had snuck in there, too. Even fuckface Clinton.
Kirk ran his hand over his short beard, then rapped his knuckles loudly against the door.
Bash threw open the door, a big grin on his face. Kirk mirrored his smile. He couldn’t help it. Bash’s perpetual happiness was infectious.
“Hey, man,” Kirk said.
“Second best friend.” Bash wrapped him up in a back-cracking hug and clapped him on the shoulder blade hard enough to knock the wind from his lungs. The rough and tumble bear nearly killed with his affection, but with his mate, Emerson, Bash was gentle as a lamb. Kirk had always known he would be good at this mate thing.
“Emerson is in town with Audrey. You want a beer? Pizza rolls? I have a shit ton of boxed wine that my lady can’t drink on account of the baby in her tummy.” Bash grinned real big. “My baby.” He was bragging, but Kirk let him. Bash had wanted a family for so long, and Kirk was damn happy for him.
Kirk lifted the envelope in his hand. “I actually wanted to have a meeting with you and Harrison. A business type meeting.”
“Sounds like smart shit. Okay.” Bash puffed out his chest and said in a formal voice, “Let’s talk in my office.”
Kirk snickered as he followed the giant shifter across the living room. They both ducked under the door frame of Bash’s office, and he gestured to a futon covered in swirly, girly throw pillows. Emerson must’ve made this place her workspace for when she wrote pro-shifter articles for the Saratoga Hometown News. Kirk huffed a private laugh at how much she’d come in and improved Bash’s life. He had the nicest trailer in the park now, thanks to his urge to make a good home for Emerson.
Kirk sank into the thick cushion as Bash settled onto a rolling chair in front of his computer.
“So, you know I’m supposed to go back to the Lowlanders next week.”
Bash’s face fell, and his gaze dipped to Kirk’s work boots. “I don’t like talking about that.”
“Why not?” Kirk asked.
“Because it means you won’t be here no more. You won’t be here to yell at Clinton with me or see the fire pit we’re building in a couple weeks. I won’t hear your car rumblin’ down the trailer park anymore, and you won’t be here when Emerson has my cub. You won’t be here for me.”
Kirk swallowed a few times before he answered so Bash wouldn’t see how affected he was. Finally he admitted, “I guess I wanted to talk to you before Harrison came over because I wanted to thank you.”
Uncertainty slashed through the green of Bash’s eyes. “For what? I didn’t do nothin’.”
“Untrue. You’ve done plenty, for this crew and for me. Remember when we were talking about you finding a mate, and you were scared you wouldn’t be any good at it?”
“Yeah. I was wrong. I’m fuckin’ awesome at it. Emerson says so all the time.”
Kirk laughed and nodded his agreement. “Well, I remember when we were talking about that, I knew exactly how you felt. I understood your fear because I was afraid of the same thing—that I wouldn’t be any good at being a mate.”
“That’s stupid,” Bash scoffed. “You’re a smart man, a hard worker, loyal as hell. You don’t let people in easy, but when you do, you dig your heels in and make sure they’re taken care of, no matter what. Ally is lucky, and you’re lucky, too.”
Kirk leaned forward, rested hi
s elbows on his knees. “I don’t know if I’ll be good at this, but I’m trying. And I’ll keep trying until Ally is happy, like you make Emerson happy. But part of that means sticking around.”
“Sticking around?”
Kirk handed him the envelope, and with a frown marring Bash’s jet-black brows, he opened it. He did a quick count of the twenty dollar bills inside. Bash’s face went slack. “What is this, Kirk?”
“I heard you are the one to go to when we want to invest.”
“You want me to grow your money?”
Kirk clasped his hands together and nodded.
“But I work for the Boarlanders. Kirk, I can take care of you, but not if you’re getting paid by Kong down in Saratoga. I handle finances here, that’s all.”
“So if I stay here, you’ll get me a 401k set up?”
“Yeah.” Bash smiled hopefully. “401k, investments, insurance, child education funds, whatever you want. I can make sure you retire on time with lots to live on. I can take care of you and Ally.” Bash looked down at the envelope in his hands again and clutched it harder. “Stay. Not because of the money, but because it’s where you belong. The other Boarlanders Clinton chased off? They weren’t strong enough for this crew.” Bash sighed. “I don’t want it to feel broken around here again.”
Harrison leaned against the office doorframe. “I second what Bash said. It won’t be the same without you here. Look, I know you have a good job down in Saratoga and a nice setup near town. And I know it’s hard on you finding your place in the pecking order here. But we were royally fucked at the beginning of the season, and you came in and helped us turn things around. We were limping along, and you propped us up. You and Mason both.”
“What about your interviews?”
“Fuck the interviews, Kirk. You aren’t replaceable, man. I was looking at hiring two loggers to put in the work you do. I don’t like it, hiring new Boarlanders. I’d rather my crew choose to live here. Not for the money or the job stability, but because they fit here. You fit.”