Shifters and Spice: A Shifter Romance Box Set Page 5

  He nipped her again, this time at the tender spot where her neck and shoulder met. Heat coursed through her, and her nipples pebbled and hardened. She wanted to squeeze her thighs together to still the pulsing in her sex, but his body was between them.

  “My dreams are saving me.”

  She stiffened. “Dreams?”

  “Yes.” He slipped a hand down from the slope of her shoulder to cup a breast, abrading her nipple through the T-shirt material. “Every fucking night. I know you have them, too. Don’t lie.”

  Lie? She struggled to pull in the ends of her brain to give him any kind of answer.

  “Yes,” she breathed. “I’m having dreams. Every night.”

  “In your dreams, do I fuck you?” He moved his hands to slide them beneath the T-shirt and up her naked skin to her breasts.

  “Every night.” She knew she sounded incoherent. She vibrated all over from the movement of his hands. When he pinched both nipples, hard, she gasped as a bolt of pleasure/pain shot through her.

  “How did we get here?” He slid his mouth over her cheeks and growled in her ear? “How did we get thrown together?”

  “I-I don’t know.” She shivered. “I just know that every night you’re in my mind. In my bed. In my body.”

  “In your body is the best place,” he growled.

  He eased one hand down, over her belly and between her thighs. With a gentle touch he stroked her slit, spreading the wet liquid over her labia before slipping one finger inside her waiting channel. When she moaned and tried to press herself into his touch, he added a second finger then a third. And moved his fingers in and out of her slippery pussy.

  She closed her eyes and let sensations cascade through her. All she could do was grip his shoulders and hold on as she responded to his touch. Every nerve fired, her breasts felt heavy and deep inside her a climax began to build and unwind. When it hit, the intensity of it took her with such force she cried out. Anchoring herself with her grip on his shoulders, she let the spasms rip through her over and over, shaking and shuddering until they eventually subsided.

  At last, when even the aftershocks had faded, Stone eased his hand from her.

  “Look at me,” he commanded.

  Jordan opened her eyes to watch him as he lifted his hand and with slow, careful swipes of his tongue licked every one of his fingers.

  Barely recovered from the explosive orgasm, Jordan couldn’t believe how arousing the sight was to her. When he leaned forward and ran his tongue over her lips, sharing her taste with her, she was right on the edge of imploding.

  “Bedroom,” he said, wrapping his arms around her and heading in that direction.

  The room was military neat. No wonder he didn’t need anyone cleaning up after him. She wondered if he even created dust. When he set her on her feet, he gave her just a moment to look around before stripping off the T-shirt and tossing it to the side. His eyes darkened to a rich antique gold when he dropped his gaze to her breasts. He traced each breasts then drew a line down to the soft curls covering her mound.

  “I want to see you without clothes, too,” she whispered.

  Stone took a step back, unzipped his jeans, stepped out of them, and kicked them to the side. Jordan hoped she wasn’t drooling. Every muscle was defined in sharp relief, and bronze nipples peeked out from the dark thatch on his chest. His abs were flat and, below them, surrounded by a heavy thatch of coiled hair, was his heavy, thick cock.

  Jordan reached out and wrapped her fingers around his length, amazed at her boldness. Amazed at the climax he’d given her with just his touch. Amazed she felt no shyness at being nude with him. Her sexual history was so limited, and her few partners had never aroused her the way Stone did, or made her toss her inhibitions aside.

  The moment she made contact with his shaft, Stone sucked in a breath. And his hands fisted.

  “This was in my dream.” His voice was thick and rough. “Was it in yours?”

  She nodded, gaze fastened on his length in her grip.

  “In your dream, what did you do?”

  Heat suffused her face. She had never been able to verbalize anything remotely sexual and wasn’t sure she should do it now, despite feeling so unrestrained with him.

  “Jordan.” He cupped her chin and lifted her face so she had to look at him. “Tell me what you did.”

  “I, um, put my mouth on you.” Her face got hotter. “And sucked you hard.”

  “You did the same in mine. Will you do it now?”

  Desire overrode self-consciousness, and she nodded. Dropping to her knees, she took her time licking the velvety head, savoring the salty taste of the drop of fluid she swiped from the slit. With great care, she took him into her mouth and drew her lips down his length and back up again. He shuddered, and chuffed out a rough breath. He was long and thick, but she managed to take him all. She curled her fingers around him and set up a steady rhythm, hand and lips working in tandem, up and down, again and again, his sounds of pleasure growing deeper and more harsh.

  When she slid her hand between his thighs, cupped his balls, and squeezed, he sucked in a breath and lifted her head away from him.

  Jordan looked up at him, distressed. “Did I do it wrong? I know I’ve just done it in the dreams, but—”

  He drew her to her feet, cradled her head in his palms, and kissed her so deep it invaded every part of her.

  “If you’d done it any better, I’d have had no control left at all. Jesus, Jordan, there’s so much we did in our dreams that I want to do with you in person, but two weeks’ worth of those dreams has shredded my self control.”

  He lifted her to the bed, and she watched as he grabbed his duffel from the closet, opening a side pocket and pulling out condoms.

  “Oh!”

  “I wasn’t even sure I’d need them when I came here, but now I’m glad I have them.”

  He climbed onto the bed, straddling her as he rolled on the latex. Draping her legs over his thighs, he slid his hand beneath the cheeks of her ass and lifted her enough so the head of his shaft could probe at her opening.

  Fuck! She was so hot and wet the walls of her channel scorched his dick. At first, he’d thought the dreams were his psyche’s way of reminding him he hadn’t gotten laid in a very long time. When you were a pack orphan, you had to be very careful. Humans were off the board. Too dangerous. Sex often was a precursor to shifting, and wouldn’t that have been just great if he fucked some woman and she woke up with a wolf in her bed.

  The men in his Special Forces group—a very special forces group—were all shifters like him and made sure he met others from their packs. But losing half his team had just about shredded his sanity. When his time was up, he’d wanted nothing more than to hide away somewhere and forget about the world.

  The last thing he’d expected was to find a female shifter in this isolated part of the world. She seemed shy to him, focused on her work for the camp, and not much into socializing. But the luxurious silver of her hair, the deep-blue of her eyes, her flawless skin had attracted him at once. There was an unexpected connection he didn’t know what to do with.

  Then two things happened: he saw the white wolf and the dreams began. The shock of finding another shifter in this remote corner of the country was electric. But finding one who was a woman, and a woman he wanted more than anything, was even more of a jolt. When she hadn’t appeared after that first night—and Jordan must have been making herself scarce whenever he was around—he almost went crazy. Tonight, when she showed up after two weeks of the most erotic dreams ever, he knew he had to have her.

  And not just for sex. He didn’t know what the fuck it was, but he wanted to keep her. Be with her, as if she could heal him and make him whole again. The reality was so much more than the dream. Seeing her naked, tasting her, feeling her silken skin was like a gift. But nothing was better than sliding his cock into her and feeling that hot, wet heat surround him.

  “Look at me,” he commanded. When she lifted her li
ds and focused her eyes on him, he said, “Stay like that. Keep your eyes on mine every minute.”

  It was a wild ride, hot and delicious, the pace increasing with each thrust. When she wrapped her legs around him and dug her heels into the small of his back, he was afraid he’d explode right then. But he gritted his teeth and held on, wanting to bring her to the peak with him. In moments, the tremor began inside her sex, dragging at his shaft. He slid one hand between them, found her clit, and rubbed it.

  Jordan tightened her legs around him even more, intensifying every sensation coursing through his body. Driving into her hard again and then once more, he pinched her clit, hard, and they both exploded.

  Holy fuck!

  The room, the cabin, the camp, his troubles—everything fell away in the intensity and force of a climax that about made him lose his mind. The orgasm went on and on until, at last, the shudders were replaced with aftershocks and the aftershocks with a slight trembling on both their parts.

  Holy fuck!

  Stone braced himself on his forearms, keeping his weight off her much smaller form. Sweat slicked their bodies, and he didn’t know whose heartbeat he felt, hers or his own. When his breathing slowed, he brushed the hair from her damp skin and gave her a long, slow kiss. Her taste was intoxicating, better than any drink, and her lips were soft as silk. He took his time, exploring with his tongue, licking every inner surface, finally withdrawing to trail a line of tiny kisses the length of her jaw.

  He’d heard others talk about meeting their mates, about the electricity of it, the sense of forever, the blending of souls. He had never thought to find it for himself, not here, deep in the woods. That was for sure. He wanted to claim her as his own, to mark her, but before that, he wanted to make sure she knew he was still unscrambling his brain. And he sensed turmoil beneath Jordan’s quiet surface that she managed to keep hidden from sight. He had to know what it was. If it was trouble, he’d protect her.

  Easing from her, he went to dispose of the condom then climbed back into the bed and pulled her against his body.

  “I have to leave soon,” she murmured, a hesitant tone in her voice, as if he’d be angry with her.

  “I know.” He tightened his arms around her.

  “This is all so fast, Stone. Is this— Are we— Do you—”

  He chuckled. “We’ve been together every night for two weeks,” he reminded her.

  “I know, but—”

  “Jordan.” He turned her so she was facing him, lying on her side. “Didn’t you learn that wolves mate for life? That the connection is either there or it’s not?” He frowned. “What pack did you belong to?”

  She lowered her gaze. “That’s a story for another day.” She brushed a kiss on his lips. “Right now, I need to get out of here, run the woods, get my clothes, and get back to my cabin.”

  He let her go with great reluctance.

  “Tomorrow.”

  She hesitated for a brief moment then nodded. “Tomorrow.”

  “And no changing your mind.”

  Again the hesitation before she nodded. He guessed that would have to be good enough for the moment.

  Chapter 5

  The day dragged for Jordan. So many thoughts were whirling in her mind she found it hard to concentrate. She was glad both Allison and Don were so busy with camp business they paid scant attention to her. She looked forward to the evening with a mixture of anticipation and dread.

  Somehow, in their dreams, she and Stone had forged a connection that seemed to grow stronger each night. Last night had cemented that for sure. But they had problems to deal with. She was still worried about Stone’s PTSD. Even if they got past that, there was Charles, out there somewhere. Still looking for her or not. She had no idea if he’d tracked her here, and there was no way for her to find out. She couldn’t reach out to her pack, not even her adoptive parents. Controlled by Charles’s oppressive rule as the alpha, they’d feel compelled to tell him.

  She could try to break it off with Stone, but he’d hound her until she told him the truth anyway. God! Why did her life have to be so complicated? Why did Anton have to die and leave the pack to a selfish, domineering, soulless alpha?

  She was surprised when, in the middle of the afternoon, Stone suddenly appeared in the doorway to the little workroom of the office.

  “Allison and Don are both out on errands,” she told him.

  “I know. I was watching.” He moved to stand right beside the desk, so close she could inhale the masculine scent of him. “I wanted to see you.”

  Her stomach knotted. Had he come to tell her tonight was off? That it didn’t matter if they were meant to mate, he was too screwed up for this? It would no doubt be the best thing, but, at the moment, she didn’t think so.

  She spoke without looking up from her work. “If you want to tell me not to come to you tonight, it’s okay. I understand.”

  He closed his hands over her upper arms and lifted her from the chair.

  “Listen to me.” His deep voice rushed through her like a warm blanket. “I don’t know what gods or fates or whatever sent us to each other, but if anyone can help me heal, I know it’s you.”

  She nibbled her lower lip. “And how do you know that? What if—”

  He touched two fingers to her lips. “I may not know a hell of a lot right now, but I do know this is supposed to happen. You know why? The dreams. And, after last night, I feel hopeful for the first time in many months.”

  “Are you sure?”

  He nodded. “I may not be sure of a lot right now, but I am sure of that.”

  “So, what did you need to tell me?”

  He hitched his hip onto the edge of the desk, picked up one of her hands, and stroked her knuckles with his thumb.

  “Last night—and maybe even a little in the dreams—I could feel tension running through you. I’m willing to tell you about mine, which is something no one else has been able to get me to do. But you have to share yours. That’s the only way we can go forward.”

  It would be so wonderful to be able to unload all this fear. To feel safe. To have someone to care for her. But what if he—

  No. I won’t go there. He’s willing to open himself up to me. I can do the same.”

  She nodded. “Alright. But you may not want to be around me afterward.”

  “Let me be the judge of that.” He leaned forward and brushed his lips over hers. “Tonight.” He started to leave then turned back. “And come straight to my cabin, instead of meeting me in the woods.”

  “What if someone sees me?”

  “You can tell them you’re going to fix my coffeemaker.” He winked, easing the tension. “Tonight, Jordan.”

  * * *

  Jordan looked at Stone standing by the door to the porch, tension in every line of his body. He hadn’t looked at her once while he was talking, just pulled the words out of his soul. Words filled with so much angst and pain, she wondered how he’d borne the grief and agony this long. Fighting a war was bad enough, but to lose so many of your friends? To have two of them die in your arms? How did he even go on? No wonder he’d come up here to isolate himself.

  The last thing he needed was the mess she was in.

  She got up from the couch where she’d been sitting and walked over to him. When she wound her arms around his waist, she could feel how taut his muscles were, how much on edge he was. She began to rub her hands with slow movements over the rock hard muscles of his abdomen and pressed herself against his back, trying to infuse him with her warmth.

  “I have nightmares.” His voice was uninflected. “Sometimes bad ones. And I don’t do well in social situations.”

  She wanted to laugh hysterically. “Neither do I.”

  “You manage to work here,” he pointed out.

  “Where I don’t have to talk to anyone except the Pelleys.” She moved around in front of him and grabbed his hands. “It’s alright, Stone. I can be here for you. The dreams told us we were meant to be together, so we wi
ll.”

  He stared down at her. “You know you have the right to leave any time.”

  “Let’s not worry about that right now.”

  “How about your story now?” he reminded her. “Then we can figure out whose mess is bigger.”

  Mine. Mine, mine, mine.

  “Let’s sit down, please.” She drew him over to the couch, and they sat side by side.

  In halting sentences, doing her best to mask her fear, she told him about the pack, Charles, his cruelty known throughout the pack, and her run to save herself.

  “He doesn’t know where I am,” she told him, “although I live in fear he’ll somehow find out. What if he does? What if he shows up here? Everyone would be in danger. Allison, Don, the guests. I keep thinking I might have to leave and find another place.”

  She felt the tension leave Stone’s body and looked at him, surprised. “What?”

  He lifted her and placed her on his lap. “Everything you said is true, but it’s still just a maybe.”

  “But—”

  “But at least this is something I can take care of.”

  Every muscle in her body tightened. “What? No.” She shook her head. “No, no, no. I can’t ask you to put yourself in that kind of danger.”

  “First of all, you’re not asking me. Second, there’s a lot in play here.”

  She frowned. “Like what?”

  “One of the things we have in common is we are both pack orphans. Mine was small, and it was destroyed in a blazing forest fire in Northern California. I don’t even know how I managed to survive.”

  “Were you a child, like I was?”

  He shook his head. “No, I was eighteen.”

  Jordan touched his cheek with the palm of her hand, a gesture of shared loss. “What did you do?”

  “I knew of another pack in Montana where we had friends. I made my way to them, and some of the guys I met there and I thought about joining the military.” He cleared his throat. “I won’t bore you with all the details, but you know the military does a lot of strange things. We found out about a group of shifters who were being trained as a very special operating team.”