More Wicked Alphas, Wilder Nights: Sizzling Collection of Paranormal Romance (Wicked Alphas, Wild Nights Book 5) (7 page)

Melting against him, I nestled my head on his chest, content to listen to the steady thud of his heart through the soft cotton. “You need to look after yourself,” I replied, already knowing what his reaction would be. I could read his emotions through the mating bond; it was one of the reasons I worried so much.  

“I can’t slow down, Kara. You know I can’t. Whoever is behind all this is still out there—”

“And we’ll stop him, or her. Just remember, you’re not doing this alone. Your whole pack is behind you, helping you.”

My head rose and fell on his drawn out sigh. “I’m the Alpha. You know I can’t just—”

“I’m not asking you to stop. Or to give up. I want to get to the bottom of this as much as you do! What Eric did to me nearly destroyed me, and now, Lisa is missing—” My voice broke on a sob at the thought of what my friend might be going through, what
could
 be happening to her.

I heard the clink of a plate hitting the desk, then firm hands smoothed over my back. “Shhhh, Sean will find her, and Lisa is a tough cookie. She’ll be fine. You know it.” His deep voice rumbled through his chest.

I leaned back, blinking up at him through watery eyes. “I came in here to cheer you up, and look what I’ve managed to do! Fat lot of good I am.”

Smoothing a curl off my face, he tucked it behind my ear, then he leaned in, bringing his lips to mine in a gentle caress of sweetness and love. “Maybe we should cheer each other up?” he murmured, his mouth moving to feather over my jaw.

Arching my neck to give him room, I struggled with the warring emotions humming inside of me. The overwhelming joy of having found my mate conflicting with fear and sadness for my friend. It didn’t feel right to be this happy when people I loved were suffering.

“Let me love you, my mate. Let us find hope and solace in each other’s arms, just for a short moment, and then we’ll face the real world again.” His growl vibrated along my skin, sending liquid heat flooding through me. My wolf arched inside of me, responding to her Alpha’s command.

Lust flooded the bond, swirling around me in a hazy cloud. Beneath it, I could feel his concern, not for the pack or for Lisa—for
me!

It felt like a mental slap, a wakeup call.
I came in here to cheer him up and take his mind off things. Yeah, I suck. There has to be something…
An idea sparked, flaring to life. Now
that
 would definitely take our minds off things,
and
 I had been meaning to prod him about it. Extra points if it led to… I grinned at him, tilting my head as his eyes narrowed.

“What is going on in that gorgeous head of yours?” he muttered.

“Well, you know we were discussing that it’d be a good idea for me to practice some self-defense moves? Get in a little sparring practice?”

“Uh huh?”

“How’s about now?”

“Not
quite
what I had in mind.”

My grin widened at his scowl. “Aw, come on. It’ll be fun! We can get hot and sweaty
and
 work off some of the worry.”

“I can think of better ways to get hot and sweaty.” He nipped at my neck, a mock growl spilling from his lips.

Giving him a poke in the ribs, I murmured, “I could go find one of the guys to spar with…”

His back stiffened, his eyes glowing silver as his wolf rushed to the surface. His jaw tensed as he ground his teeth. “If another man so much as
touches
you, he won’t be able to walk for at least a week.”

“So, you’ll have to do it then.” I had him.
Victory!
 Leaning close, I deliberately brushed my breasts against his chest, my nipples hardening into stiff peaks as my heart thundered in my chest. “I promise you’ll enjoy it. If you manage to pin me three times, then you can have your wicked way…” My tongue speared his mouth, tangling and teasing with his, sealing the promise.

Not giving him time to react, I leaped off his lap and strode to the center of the room. Shoving the couch out of the way, I stuck my hands on my hips, waiting.
I need this just as much as he does, the chance to forget everything for a while. To feel like I’m doing something other than sitting around waiting for shit to happen.
And why couldn’t we have a little fun? After everything we’d been through to get to this place—
finally
together—we deserved it.

He sat sprawled in the chair, his legs spread wide, staring at me.

He wasn’t going to do it.
 My heart fell. It had been a stupid idea. But I couldn’t carry on like this; it hurt too much—

In slow, deliberate movements, he rose to his feet and stalked toward me.

He took my breath away, every single time I saw him. I still couldn’t believe that he was mine. I knew I was a big girl; standing at five-foot-eleven with hourglass curves that fell on the larger side of voluptuous, I was a whole lot of woman. Personally, I’d never given a shit about it. Happy and healthy, that was my motto. But then I’d met James…and I’d learned to appreciate my curves in a whole new way. Every bump, every roll, every overflowing handful—he’d worshiped. And then worshiped some more, with his mouth, his hands, his body.

It made me grateful there was a hell of a lot of me to worship, because,
wow
, the things he could do with his tongue…

“Kara…if you want us to do this then you have to stop looking at me like that.” The low growl yanked me out of my thoughts.

“Like what?” I teased, licking my lips.

He groaned, his eyes closing briefly. “Like you want to eat me alive.”

“I was actually thinking about
you
eating
me.
” A shiver ran down my spine at the look in his eyes.
Oh, yes. He was starting to come around.

His fingers went to his shirt, popping the top couple of buttons. “I think we should have rules,” he murmured, reaching back and pulling it off over his head.

My mouth was parched as I swallowed, my eyes already roaming over his thick biceps, across his wide shoulders and down his chest. “What kind of rules?”

“The naked kind.” His hand went to the waistband of his jeans, then paused, waiting. “Are we in agreement?”

“You want to spar…naked?”
Come on,
I mentally urged his fingers to move, for him to continue the torturous strip tease.

His abs were perfectly lickable. I knew because I had spent many hours tracing the cut lines with my tongue, kissing and nibbling my way down. I knew that his skin smelled like the forest and musk, his own personal scent, one that had quickly become my favorite.

The silence stretched, our ragged breaths the only sound.

“You’ve got to pin me three times—”

“Oh, I will.” It was a promise.

Mimicking him, I pulled my vest top over my head, letting it drop to the floor. My hand went to my jeans.

He shook his head, a dark lock of hair falling into his eyes. “You’ve forgotten something.”

My eyebrows shot up as he stared pointedly at my chest. At my bra. Reaching back, I unhooked it, letting the lace fall to the floor. Goosebumps flared over my breasts, my nipples stiffening under his gaze.

Flecks of silver flared in his eyes as he took an involuntary step forward, checking himself with a groan. “Three times?”

“Three times,” I echoed, already starting to regret the number.

The loud sound of a zipper snagged my attention. He shoved his jeans down and off, his cock springing free.

So long, so thick, so—
I stifled the strangled sound that threatened to erupt, making quick work of my own jeans and panties. That he could do this to me, have me wet and panting within seconds, was ridiculous!
Ridiculously good…

I flew through the air backwards, rolling in arms of steel, to land on a mountain of hard muscle. In seconds, I was flat on my back, my legs spread wide, my arms pinned as he nuzzled at my throat. The head of his cock nudged at my core, sliding through damps curls to find my entrance.

“Number one,” he growled, his hands sliding down my arms and cupping my breasts, thumbs grazing my nipples.

Back arching, I thrust my chest into his hands.

On a low growl, he lowered his head, his tongue reaching out to swipe—

Shoving at his shoulders, I rolled, using his bodyweight to lever myself up and over until I straddled him. Shoving his arms back, I grinned at the look of surprise on his handsome face. “One for me,” I murmured, the words verging on a gasp as he rocked his hips beneath me.

“Spoilsport.”

“Cheat.”

“You don’t really expect someone who’s attacking you to wait until you’re ready, do you?”

He had a point, but still… “Are you sure that’s the real reason behind you
cheating
?”

“That, and the fact that you chose
three
 as a number.”

Yep, definitely regretting it now.
“Maybe I was a little hasty,” I whispered.

“I’m finding—” he rolled his hips, his cock sliding underneath me, “—that having to work for it is fine by me. It’ll make my victory all the sweeter.”

“You think you’re going to win?” I rocked back, watching as his eyes followed the heavy sway of my breasts.
Maybe he’s right; anticipation isn’t a bad thing…
Springing off him, I backed away.

He propped his arms behind his head, folding them like a pillow as he watched me stalk back and forth, the hunger in his gaze belying his easy grin. His cock lay thick and hard against his stomach, grazing his bellybutton at a delicious angle. “I think you
want
 me to win.”

Okay, I did, but I wasn’t telling him that.
“Come on, show me what you’ve got, Alpha,” I taunted him.

“Maybe when I win, I should spank you?” he mused, seeming to talk to himself.

Liquid flooded my pussy, surprising me.
Who would have thought?
Though it
was
Basic Dominance 101, and he
was
 my Alpha. “You’re all talk and no—”

Once again, I was flying through the air, my arms and legs flailing. Using the momentum, I rolled with him, bringing him up over me, then continuing until I was straddling him again. For a split second. Then I was on my back, again.

An arm flattened against my stomach, holding me down.

I bucked, trying to throw him off.
This was getting a little embarrassing!
His head moved south, licking a hot path across my navel and zigzagging across my hips. My squeal of frustration melted into a moan as his tongue hit the jackpot, slicing through my folds to tongue my aching clit. Hot and wet, he sucked and licked, his fingers joining his mouth and hurtling me toward climax.

My hips bucked, all pretense of fighting dropped. Crouched over me, his cock bobbed enticingly close. Wrapping a hand around the silky smooth shaft, I rolled my hand in time with his laser focused licks, my back stiffening as waves of heat rolled through me.

He thrust into my hand while pushing my legs wider and burrowing his face even deeper into my pussy.

Lurching up onto my elbows, I took his straining cock in my mouth, licking my way around the wide head, then swallowed him whole.

“
Fuck!”
 he growled against my clit, the sound vibrating through me. That was it. A mangled scream ripped from my throat as I sucked him hard, pleasure cascading through me, my toes curling and hips straining against his mouth.

“Enough, Kara,” he ground out, pulling himself free. Jumping to his feet, he swiped at his brow, his jaw set. “One more round and you’re mine.”

His low words stirred a fluttering in my stomach, the sated afterglow receding as anticipation clawed at me.
This
 is what we’d needed, to let go of everything. To just
feel
—raw and primal and pure.

I forced my legs to obey my command, struggling to my feet. “That’s if you can take me. I might win the next one,” I drawled, curling a lock of hair around my finger, my hand propped on my hip.

He started forward, flashing the universal sign of timeout when I took a step back.

Stalking forward, he tilted my chin with his finger, his dark chocolate brown eyes penetrating mine. “Either way, we both win,” he whispered as he lowered his head, pausing as his skin brushed mine. “I love you, my heart. And
when
I win, I’m going to show you
just
how much.”

Her heavy breasts dragged against my chest, her soft stomach cradling my cock. It was pure torture—but the kind I liked.
Craved.
 Dragging a hand down her back, I gripped her hip, urging her closer as I swallowed her gasp of surrender.

One day soon, we would have a proper sparring session, and I would teach her the necessary moves, but not now. Not with urgent lust riding me, and my cock straining for release. I had to join with my mate, cover her body in my scent and fill her with my seed. She was my love, my heart, my soul—the mother of my unborn children. One day, her belly would swell with my child. And I couldn’t wait.

“James,” she gasped against my lips as I gently pushed her back. Her lids were hooded, her eyes glazed and unfocused. Soft. My mate was soft and tender and—

“Run,” I growled, baring my teeth at her.

Her pupils dilated, her chest rising as she scented the air. Her lips spread in a wicked smirk. “You do like to chase me, don’t you?” She leaped back, vaulting over the desk into a crouch.

“Self-defense 101—if you can’t fight your opponent, you run,” I quipped, stalking toward her. I narrowed my eyes, focusing on the pulse fluttering in her throat, the way her lips parted ever so slightly.

“Not fair! You know I can’t resist it when you chase me,” she murmured.

“I’m counting on it.” I vaulted over the desk just as she darted to the side.

Her eyes caressed me, her tongue darting out to wet her lips.

I didn’t bother to stifle the groan, instead letting it echo through the room. I fisted my cock. “Your mouth, Kara…hot and wet and perfect.”

She shuddered, her eye drifting down to my hand. “You tasted so good. Why didn’t you let me finish?”

I took another step forward, my hand still on my cock. “Because I want to fuck you. I want to finish inside of you. I
want
to make a child with you.”