Shifter scrooge, p.6
Shifter Scrooge, page 6
“Yeah, good thing,” he mumbled, brows furrowed as he watched her fumbling through her spur of the moment speech.
“So, anyway, I started dinner. I mean, I am making a stew. And well, I know you are busy with whatever it is Keeton had you looking for here—”
“Poachers,” he mumbled, frowning even heavier.
“Yeah, that. Well, um, I won’t get in your way, and you don’t have to worry about keeping me company—”
“Hey, Trixie?”
“Yeah?” she asked, wringing her hands in front of her to keep from reaching for him.
“You done yet?”
“Um, yeah, I guess,” she replied.
“Good,” he growled, and pulled her hard against him with one hand cupping her neck and the other on her waist.
Then he crashed his mouth into hers, and Bea froze. Striker didn’t relent, though. He just kept on kissing her and kissing her until she melted into him and opened for his invasion.
Striker’s entire body seemed to vibrate then. His growl reverberated throughout the entire cabin as he bent her backward and proceeded to kiss the hell out of her. Bea was panting by the time he had her leggings hanging off one foot, two fingers working inside of her while he unzipped the fly of his jeans.
“Please,” she groaned, pushing his hands out of the way so she could unleash him from the confines of his tight boxer briefs.
He felt so good in her hand. Long, hard, hot, and heavy. Bea placed him at her entrance, moaning as her sex clenched on air, needing him to fill her like no one else ever could. She wanted him fast and hard, but Striker had other ideas. He fed her one inch, then another, pulling out just to re-enter ever-so-slowly. The pace was punishing in its lack of hurry, and all she could do was hold on and sob against his mouth as she begged him for more.
“Striker, need you,” she groaned, sighing when he gave her more of him this time, and moaning at the loss of him when he withdrew.
“This what you want, sweet Trixie? You want my cock inside you?”
“Yes, please, yes.”
“How can I say no when you ask so nice? Fuck, baby. Look how wet you are for me, how tight and hot. My sweet Trixie, you feel so fucking good,” he grunted, pushing in all the way.
Finally.
He lifted her up, pushing her against the wall for purchase as he pumped his hips, fucking her so good she could hardly think. His movements were wild and ferocious, and she fucking loved it. Loved that she could make him lose control. It made her feel powerful and sexy. Bea felt like a goddess when he filled her so good, whispering deliciously naughty things to her that no one else ever said.
He was like her every wish come true. And she tried hard not to let her feelings show, but she was done for. Striker had stolen her heart, and there was no coming back now. He squeezed her tight as the first tremble of orgasm slithered through her.
The wall at her back and his body pressed so damn close to her front worked in tandem to keep her anchored as he ground his pubis against her clit, moving with circular, shallow thrusts that made her gasp and squirm. Bea’s orgasm thundered into her with so much force she would have flown away if not for his strong arms bracketing her.
“So fucking beautiful, Trixie. Fuck, I love watching you come.”
Then he was pumping again, and Bea barely caught her breath before she was flying again, this time with Striker right beside her.
Talk about beautiful, she thought as he groaned her nickname while he came inside her.
Oh fuck. He came inside of her. Again. She gasped, shocked at the realization that neither of them had taken any precautions during their lovemaking. Striker slid out of her, kissing her sweetly as he lifted her in his arms.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“There’s a pool-sized tub in the master bathroom and I’ve been dying to get you in there all morning.”
“Have you?”
“Oh yeah, Troublemaker. Besides, I think we have some things to talk about.”
“You’re probably right,” she replied, mussing his hair with her hands as he carried her inside the bathroom.
He was right. The tub was enormous, and as he filled it with steaming hot water, she dug through the drawers of the vanity, squealing with delight when she found cinnamon scented bath oils. She added a few drops to the water and stepped inside, feeling Striker’s eyes on her the whole time.
She watched him enter the tub slowly, taking in every line of his hard, muscled body. He was a true vision of the perfect male. A work of art as far as she was concerned, and she sure did appreciate his masculine beauty, and more than that, she wondered at the fact he seemed just as pleased with her soft, plump body.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked, and she shrugged at first. Then decided it would be best to be honest with him.
“I was thinking you have the perfect body. And I should know, I actually dated this physical trainer who I thought was hot, but he is like a total dog next to you—and ohmygawd, I sound so shallow right now. But anyway, what I mean is, you are hands down the hottest man I have ever, um, well, dated, I guess? And I was wondering what the heck you are doing with me? Is it the whole snowed in thing or lack of variety available up in these mountains?”
“Wow. I almost forgot how much you could talk. Okay, first, I don’t think you are shallow. Second, we haven’t exactly dated. Third, you think I’m hot?” he asked with a grin.
“Ugh. Is that really all you got from that?” she asked and rolled her eyes, splashing him playfully.
“Come on, Trixie, tell me. You think I’m hot, yes or no?” he asked, pulling her onto his lap as he nuzzled her ear.
The water lapped around them, and Bea giggled. She was so loving the way his hands felt, one cupping her sex under the water, and the other squeezing her breast while his lips found her neck.
“Fine. Yes, you are the hottest guy I’ve ever, well you said we’re not dating, so let’s say that I slept with—”
That brought a ferocious sounding growl from his throat, and all his teasing touches and nips to her neck stopped. She knew she should demand he get the heck over himself, but something about that primal sound sparked something reciprocal inside her.
It was like her inner cavewoman approved of his sudden possessive streak. What the heck? That was so unlike Bea.
“Don’t wanna talk about you fucking other guys, Troublemaker.”
“Okay,” she agreed readily, knowing she never wanted to hear about him and other women. “Let’s talk about something else, then.”
Striker nodded, kissing her softly. He turned her to face away from him while he pumped some soap into his hands and started lathering up her shoulders, massaging them with his very skilled, very long fingers.
“How about the question game?”
“What’s that?” she asked, smiling, and closing her eyes as he worked the kinks out of her neck.
“We ask each other things and we have to answer or do something outrageous.”
“Like Truth or Dare?” she asked, canting her head to the side.
“Yes! Just like that, but we get one pass each.”
“Okay,” she agreed, heart pounding.
Bea wanted to learn more about him. Everything she could, in fact. This might be orthodox, but she was already too far gone to stop now. She wanted every minute she could have with him. Besides, it was Christmas. Maybe Bea would get her wish this time. Heaven knew Bea was due for some goodwill and all that.
“Ready?” Striker asked. “You can go first.”
“Thank you. Um, where did you grow up?”
“Upstate New York,” he replied gruffly.
“That’s it? That’s all you’re gonna give me?” she asked.
“I answered the question, Troublemaker. My turn. Why did you drive to see your cousin so late last night?”
“Oh, well, lots of reasons, I guess.”
“Tell me one.”
“Okay,” she mumbled, but did she really want to tell him? Bea shrugged one shoulder up and decided what the heck. “I just didn’t want to be alone.”
“Why would you be alone?”
“Lena is my family,” she teased. Striker play-growled and kissed her again.
“Don’t be coy, woman. What about your family?”
“Oh, they’re great. But my parents and aunt are in Florida for the holidays. I lost touch with my girlfriends. My elderly neighbor who I do everything with, you remember I mentioned her, Mrs. Myrtle, she’s the one who gave me the nightie and the onesie I had on last night, anyway she visits her son during the holidays. I broke up with my ex a few weeks ago, but he started texting me again, and honestly, I am better off without his sorry butt, but well, I didn’t want to feel so alone I gave into his requests to come to my place. So, I decided I needed an out. I thought about Lena and her man and her babies, and I figured, yeah, Lena would be happy to have me. Dumb, right? I mean, I should have called her.”
The bathroom got really quiet, and Bea’s heart thudded in her chest. Oh, he was going to think she was a total loser now. She waited for him to judge her, or to agree she was a complete moron for her behavior. What kind of desperate nut job drove for hours in the middle of the night to bust in on someone else’s holiday?
Just me.
“Hey. No, I do not think you are dumb,” he growled, and turned her head so she was forced to look at him. “You are precious, Beatrix Annmarie Constance Gallo, and I am so damn grateful you took that drive last night and came here. To me.”
“You are?”
“Hell, yeah. Was that your question? Cause then I get to go again!”
“Cheater!” she said, splashing him again and soon they were wrapped up in each other’s arms and kissing like their lives depended on it.
Maybe they did, she mused, wondering how she was ever going to stop loving him. It was too soon. Crazy soon. But it was like something had changed inside her actual chemical make up the second she’d laid eyes on him. Striker was necessary to her soul. And that was scary as hell. A sudden sharp cramp made her wince, and Striker paused in his ministrations.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah. Sorry. I just um, I think I’m hungry,” she replied, and smiled with only a hint of embarrassment in her voice.
That got him moving for some reason, and before she knew it, Striker had her rinsed off and wrapped in a towel, and back in his arms, which she had to admit was one of her favorite positions.
“You know, no one has ever picked me up like you do. I mean, I am not a small girl—”
“First, I’m glad I’m the only one to do this for you. Second, you’re tiny to me, Trixie.”
“You do that a lot, you know. Number the things you say,” she murmured, mesmerizing his profile.
“Do I?”
“Yeah. You do. Is it a military thing?” she wondered aloud.
“How did you know I was in the service?”
Bea laughed.
“Well, you’re Keeton’s friend, right? But really, you guys could all equally be part of some handsome muscle guy club or something. I mean, Silas, Niels, Keeton, and you are all smokin’ hot dudes—”
“Troublemaker, are you calling other dudes hot in front of me?” he growled, eyebrows furrowed, but she saw the teasing glint in his eyes and that made her giggle up a storm.
“Come on, Scroogey Striker, you know you’re the only one I want,” she teased as he tickled her relentlessly until she was begging him to stop.
“Scroogey?”
She sighed and sunk against him, grateful he’d stopped tickling her. Last thing Bea wanted to do was pee laugh in front of the man. Talk about the polar opposite of sexy!
Her stomach cramped up again, and Bea winced. How was it possible to be this hungry? Like her need for food had suddenly taken steroids or something.
“Here, you get dressed, I’ll see if we got something to nosh while the stew is cooking, okay?”
She nodded and donned a pair of sweats and a big t-shirt. Whatever was going on with her, she didn’t have the energy to primp for him. Hopefully, he understood. Then again, Striker didn’t seem the least bit concerned with what she wore. In fact, he seemed to like naked best.
A grin spread across her face as she joined him in the kitchen. Her stomach cramps seemed constant just then, and she closed her eyes on a wave of dizziness.
“Go on and sit, I got this,” he said, and went about setting some cheese and crackers in front of her. “Stew needs a few more minutes, but I figured you could start with this while I go see what’s wrong with the back camera. It’s down,” he told her, nodding towards the monitor.
That was odd. But maybe not. The weather could have done something to the wiring or maybe a glob of snow just knocked the thing loose.
“Thank you. I’m sorry, I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”
“There is nothing wrong with you. I just wore you out,” he replied with a sexy wink that made her heart flutter and rumble start inside her chest.
What the heck? She cleared her throat and took a sip of water. True, he growled a lot. Maybe he was rubbing off on her, she wondered.
“I’ll be quick,” he told her.
“I’ll be waiting. Oh, and Striker, I know you don’t like the holidays, but Merry Christmas Eve,” she said with a wide smile.
“Thank you,” he replied, and her smile faltered when she saw a glimmer of sadness in his eyes.
What was that about?
Striker kissed her once before walking to the door, where his boots and coat waited. He pulled them on with unhurried movements, waving before he stepped outside.
“Stay inside. Door locked, okay?”
“Of course,” she replied, chewing another chunk of cheese.
The stew smelled great, and her stomach rumbled, but she was not going to eat without him. Bea turned her head to the skylight, and yeah, the snow was falling faster. Even though it was barely afternoon, the sky was gray, and the ground completely whited out.
Chapter Seven
Striker stalked around the back of the cabin. His mind was on his mate. Shit. He had a mate. Claimed her without telling her a fucking thing about what he was or what he’d done. Shit. He was such a motherfucker.
Trixie, sweet little troublemaker, I got something to tell you.
He closed his eyes, angry at himself for his lack of control. Not only had he had sex with the sweet seductress last night, but he’d bitten her. Then, instead of coming clean this morning, he practically jumped her. Multiple times.
Rrrrr.
At least she enjoyed it. That was all he could do to console himself, but it was hardly the fucking point! Fucking hell, he was a mess. Striker couldn’t keep himself off her long enough to explain what he’d done. Now, his beast was tethered to her. The animal was loyal in a way he hadn’t ever been to anyone else.
Mate.
No. We can’t keep her.
Mine, his Tiger snapped.
Fuck off, pussy.
“Maybe I don’t have to tell her,” he reckoned as he trudged through the foot and a half of snow on the ground. “She’ll be gone the day after tomorrow. Just another day. That’s nothing at all.”
Why he was speaking out loud, he had no fucking idea, but Striker continued to muddle through his thoughts as if talking to a real person while he checked the wired cameras for any breaks or tears in the thick rubber coating that protected them. The snowflakes were fat as half dollars, and were it not for his Tiger, he wouldn’t have been able to see a fucking thing.
Of course, even blind, Striker would have heard the fucker watching him from the woods. The man was breathing like a marathon runner, and he stunk of days’ old sweat and the elements. He wasn’t alone.
Striker knew that before he located the other man. Still, he worked the wires, pretending not to notice the small group of human morons who’d been foolish enough to trespass on Keeton’s land. These were the ones. The poachers who’d been getting closer and closer to the Mountain Lion’s refuge. Foolish fuckers. Even the wild animals in the area knew better than to hunt uninvited on Keeton’s land.
No, this wasn’t his home, but he’d made a promise to keep watch for the male. What had Trixie called him? A friend. Yeah, maybe he was at that. Striker didn’t have many, but if he was going to call anyone a friend, it would be the worthy males he’d served with and bled with. The ones who’d had his back on all those ops.
Damn, she was changing everything already, wasn’t she? Trixie was stirring up things, making him feel. Hell, he didn’t know if he liked it or not. Right then, he had a job to do, though. Protect her and Keeton’s mountain. It was why he was there, right?
Worthy of a mate or not, he would do anything to keep her safe. Terrible fucking things, his Tiger snarled inside of him. That’s what happened when a monster claimed something as his own. The man in him might try to deny it, but Striker Sanchez was more monster than man. And the Tiger would burn the whole fucking world to protect what was his.
Mine.
His beast clawed at his insides. The Tiger didn’t like these males so near to his mate. He wanted out, and he wanted out now. Nothing and no one should ever threaten his mate.
Rrrrr.
Fuck. Every time his Tiger used that word, Striker felt the bonds he’d started tightening around him. It was going to hurt like hell when she left. But he’d just have to deal with that later. Anyway, it was nothing less than he deserved.
He located the busted camera and growled deep in his throat. These assholes had no finesse at all. They smashed the thing with a rock. Probably just to lure him outside.
Shit. Trixie.
Striker straightened from where he was crouched down on the floor, presumably picking up the broken bits of camera. He had his hands on his hips when he heard them move. Three men, he counted as he picked up the sounds of a third intruder's footfalls.
“Striker?”
