A Wolf's Mate Page 5

  Nick turned the key in the ignition allowing the warm blast of air billowing out of the vents to warm him. He’d break into the topic of shifters gradually to gauge how she felt about certain things. Like dating a man who sometimes had fur on his body and wasn’t from Earth.

  That all sounded worse than it actually was.

  It would be fine. If they were supposed to life partners, then it would all be okay, right?

  Deep in his heart he knew Ava was definitely worth taking a chance on.

  ****

  Ava had decided to take a shower after Nick had left. She guessed that maybe saying he was going for a run was his way of getting out of the awkwardness that sometimes arose when you’d slept with someone and realized it was the biggest mistake of your life.

  Definitely not a mistake for her, but she knew all too well what men were like. Not quite like the guy who’d fathered her son, but nevertheless males were fickle creatures.

  She still hadn’t taken that shower because she’d been too busy thinking and analyzing. Part of her job was to do that and sometimes it spilled over into her private life. She realized that she was also doing all the thinking because Nick wasn’t just a guy she’d met and fucked. She had feelings for him. She’d felt some connection to him the minute she’d laid eyes upon him. It had never happened to her before and that’s why she felt there was so much at stake.

  He could be the one. If that was the case, he needed to know the truth about her. The real reason she was in the area and what she really did for a living.

  She needed to relax, to unwind, and not overthink all this. The scent of their coupling hit her nostrils again and she liked it so maybe she’d hold off the shower for a few minutes more. She fired up her laptop. After she’d washed, she’d read for a bit and then try to get some shuteye. She clicked the Internet icon and skimmed through the latest news. She yawned, stood, and was about to head into the bathroom when she heard a knock on the door. Maybe it was someone complaining about the noise from earlier. She’d never been so vocal during sex ever before, but then again she’d never been fucked quite like that.

  She wrapped her gown around her and headed toward it, stood on tiptoes and peeked through the fisheye in the door. Her heart beat faster and by the pull in her pussy she was pretty sure it like her was also glad to see Nick standing there. He was back. Maybe the “I need to go for a run” hadn’t been a lie. She unlatched the chain and opened the door for him as he walked inside the room cradling two Styrofoam cups with steam coming from them.

  “It’s freezing out. I found a place that was still open and got us two hot chocolates. I’d like us to sit down so we can talk.”

  A man who hadn’t lied about his real motive in leaving after sex, a man bearing hot chocolate, and what looked like a double serving of whipped cream, wanting to talk. Didn’t sound like the type of guy who wanted to say I made a mistake about tonight. Those cowards just fled.

  “Okay. You want to wait while I shower and I’ll be right with you?”

  “Sure. I’ll sit and watch TV if that’s okay.”

  She smiled. Yeah, she’d been wrong him.

  ****

  Nick settled into the chair, intending to watch the movie but he spotted Ava’s laptop and it was switched on. He’d accused her of being inquisitive during dinner, but the truth was he was just as nosy. Maybe that’s why he liked her so much. He eyed the laptop and then glanced back at the TV screen.

  Laptop, TV screen, laptop, TV screen.

  He heard Ava turning on the shower and knew he had some time before she headed back out again.

  Laptop, TV Screen, laptop.

  Before he drove himself crazy, he got his butt off the chair and went to the bed where he sat himself down and pulled the laptop onto his thighs. He clicked the mouse and it took it from the saver screen to a photo of what some palm trees and a beach. Florida no doubt. Next he clicked on documents, listening for any evidence of the water being shut off or even a door opening.

  Nick knew what he was doing was wrong but that’s who he was—bad alpha wolf through and through. He clicked on the first document thinking it would be one of her articles and he could get a feel for what she was like as a writer. Maybe after the great orgasms he’d given her she’d be more inclined to write wonderful things about Downward Facing Wolf. He smiled remembering her crying out and the people in the next room banging on the wall.

  He clicked the mouse again.

  Something popped up on the screen. It was a document and had a photo embedded within it.

  Holy shit, it was Dane Reynolds.

  He inched the cursor down. The next photo he saw was of a bear walking away from a camp.

  Also Dane. He’d know that grizzly bear’s swagger anywhere.

  Beads of sweat began to break out on his forehead.

  Why did Ava have a photo of both Dane as Dane and Dane as his bear self unless she knew the connection? She’d been asking questions about him and Melanie too.

  He clicked on another document.

  Shit. The letterhead. She worked as an agent in the Investigative Bureau. They were in deep doo-doo.

  Nick began to read her report…

  My initial finding is that nothing seems to be out of the ordinary…

  He heard the water being switched off and then Ava singing Adele’s Rolling in the Deep.

  She had a half-decent voice but clearly she wasn’t here to write a story and she wasn’t even a journalist like she’d told Maisey. She was obviously here to check out Dane and possibly the rest of the group too.

  He had to play it cool, but he had to get hold of Aiden and they needed to call an emergency meeting. He’d have to take Ava’s mind off work as best he could until they thought out their next move. She opened the bathroom door. The only thing she was wearing was a smile and he knew just how he could get her to concentrate on him and not her assignment.

  Chapter Nine

  Insatiable would be how she’d describe Nick Pearson. However, she wasn’t complaining. She was sure her lips were swollen to double their usual size caused by all the kisses he’d laid upon her. Her nipples were now completely numb but in a very good way. The guy knew how excite a woman’s tits with his tongue. He slid inside her, filling her, stretching her pussy to the max while lurching over her like a big bad wolf.

  Why had she thought of that image?

  Maybe her mind was playing tricks on her. Maybe that’s what happened when you had too much sex?

  Could you have too much?

  Nooooo.

  Nick picked up the pace, pushing her body farther up the bed, his cock hitting the back of her pussy making her bite her own lip because it felt so damn good. She tasted blood but didn’t disliking the metallic taste in her mouth. It was almost downright erotic. She brought her legs up and crossed them over his gorgeous butt, hoping that he’d realize by that gesture it was her subtle way of insisting he go deeper and harder.

  But then he stopped moving.

  “Get ready for this baby,” he said.

  His voice sounded deeper, had some huskiness to it, and she loved the way he’d called her baby. No one had called her that before.

  He was using his cock like a vibrator again. This time the beats per minute were off the charts. She dug her nails into his biceps, positive she was drawing blood. A droplet of sweat clung from the base of his chin, suspended there like it was trapped in time. Finally, as she bucked against him, it fell onto her chest.

  She was pretty certain this was the sexiest man in the world and right now he was making her go cross-eyed. With the level of pleasure he was inflicting upon she wondered if it would be permanent but strangely didn’t care. Her legs jerked as her orgasm built deep within her pussy. She pushed against him again, crying, thrashing out, and sending one of the pictures on the wall falling to the ground.

  “More. Give me more.”

  Had she shouted that demand?

  Obviously she had because there was more banging on
the wall from her next-door neighbors.

  “We’ve warned you once. Don’t you people ever stop with the sex?”

  She wanted to shout something back to them, like what are you not getting enough yourself, but she was temporarily mute because another orgasm was on the horizon. She bit down on her right hand trying to stifle the cry of joy, but couldn’t. They were heading her way in fast succession now. Death by climax overload. Was there such a thing? Would they find her dead in bed with a beautiful big smile?

  Her hand slapped against the top of the bed, bringing down yet another painting off the wall, this time shattering its glass. Her pussy was in a constant state of arousal now as she pressed her body up into Nick’s causing him to start thrusting again and bringing about his own release.

  She was exhausted and couldn’t move. Nick leaned over and kissed her.

  “Don’t think I’m not the type who loves to stay and cuddle post sex, but I have to go because I have an early morning meeting. Let’s get together again tomorrow night. I’ll give you a call.”

  She was too weak to even say goodbye and before she knew, he was getting dressed and then she heard the door closing. Ava was covered in perspiration, her muscles ached, but she managed to swing her legs around to the side of the bed.

  A cool drink is what she needed. Cool shot of something in her pussy too. She got up and headed for the mini bar. She spotted a piece of fur sitting on the rug in front of it. She bent over and picked it up. Dog hair from a previous guest’s canine?

  No, the room had been cleaned many times since she’d rented it. She held it up to the light. It was thicker and coarser than a dog’s fur. If she wasn’t mistaken it looked like part of a wolf’s pelt.

  Downward Facing Wolf. Nick being part owner in said venture.

  Wolf hair on the floor where he’d stood when he’d returned from his run.

  Maybe there was actually something to all these weird allegations after all. And maybe all the good sex he’d given her was all part of a ploy to take her mind off her work. He knew what she was up to and had been playing her all along.

  She sat down. A man had tricked her into having sex with him once before. She was young then, a virgin and very naïve. This was all-grown-up Ava and if he wanted to play that game, then game on.

  ****

  “This is all my fault and I’m so, so sorry,” said Dane standing to address the group.

  Nick had contacted Aiden Renner as soon as he’d left Ava’s motel room and they’d called an emergency meeting for the following morning.

  “Don’t think that, don’t ever think that,” said Trent Burgress, pulling Dane back down and forcing him to sit on the chair. “If I hadn’t been digging around about Melanie, things wouldn’t have come up on anyone’s radar. The Investigative Bureau. I can’t believe they got involved in this too.”

  “It is my fault because I wasn’t thinking when I walked away from the camp that night. You’ve always warned us, Aiden,” said Dane.

  “You had Melanie to think about and I would have done the same to save Charlotte,” said Aiden.

  “Speaking of which, we didn’t have any of this sort of trouble until you guys started getting involved with human women and marrying them of all things,” said, Liam, one of the Kodiak bear shifters. “Group was doing just fine keeping ourselves to ourselves.”

  There was a general mumbling among everyone and Nick overheard more than a handful of the group were in agreement with the Kodiak.

  Nick would have said the same thing but then he’d met a human called Ava. Sure she might be their downfall but he now knew what it was like to be attracted to one. There was more mumbling and whispers and even if this all blew over, Nick sensed change was on the horizon. They’d been united as one since the night they’d crashed here but in the pit of his stomach he sensed they were about to become divided.

  “I don’t want to hear any talk like this. You know my father hated discrimination and bias of any kind. He would not tolerate hatred toward humans and I won’t either and not just because I’m married to one,” said Aiden. “We’ve always respected that this is their planet and that we’re the intruders.”

  “But not by choice,” said a cougar shifter. “It’s not our fault we’re here. Some of us still don’t want to be here.”

  More mumblings and whispering.

  “I think it might be time for you to step down as leader of the group,” said Liam, standing up and staring at Aiden.

  Aiden’s father had been president on their planet and he’d rounded everyone up during the days following the crash. Nick saw him as a true hero the way he restored order. He was a born leader and after he’d died Aiden had taken it upon himself to take over. Nick supported him but maybe it was time to follow the human’s example and take a vote on who should be head of the shifters

  “Turning on one another’s not going to solve this problem,” said Christopher.

  “My brother’s right,” said Aiden. “We have to deal with this. I can’t afford to have the authorities sniffing around with Charlotte due to give birth soon. Melanie too. If they start hauling us away they could take the babies too.”

  Nick took a deep breath. Who knows what they’d do to the shifters if they rounded them up. Torture them, experiment on them. Lock them up for sure, and Nick Pearson wasn’t the type of guy who’d be caged. “You want me to try and do some digging, find out exactly what Ava knows?” asked Nick.

  “I think that’s our best plan,” said Aiden. “At least we have someone on the inside.”

  “I said I’d take her out again tonight,” said Nick. “Maisey might be able to do some digging too when she’s in the yoga class.”

  “Can we contain this situation?” asked Christopher.

  “If we can’t then we might have to move on to another area,” said Aiden. “But if they’re hell bent on finding us, they will,”

  Nick couldn’t do it. This was the only home he’d known since coming to Earth. He loved the area. His business was here. Lots of other shifters had work and business here, given birth to their children here. Many had died here too.

  “I’ll see what I can do and what I can find out and report back,” said Nick. He ran his fingers through his hair. He hated the situation he found himself in. He was pretty certain he’d found his mate. He didn’t want to lie or deceive her and the last thing he wanted to do was use her. But his and the rest of the group’s survival hinged upon her not reporting anything strange to her agency.

  Whatever way he played this, he’d be walking a fine line.

  Chapter Ten

  “How would you like to come to dinner with me and my fiancée Lucas tonight?” Maisey asked at the end of the advanced yoga class.

  “Actually I have another date with Nick.”

  “Then we could do it tomorrow night.”

  Perfect because she could do a little more observing and digging for info. On the one hand, she’d hate to wrong these people, accuse them of being freaks when in fact they were just like her. However, if she could break open this case, get to the bottom of the truth, her position in the Bureau could be secured for the rest of her career.

  “Sure, that sounds great.”

  “Great. I’ll tell Nick to bring some wine.”

  Ava headed for the locker room. Most people were leaving for the night. In fact, it looked like she was the last one in there.

  She jumped when she saw Nick leaning against the doorjamb. Was he getting more handsome each time she saw him? Her knees wobbled. They hadn’t done that since…well she didn’t want to think about that right now.

  “Don’t bother getting dressed because you’re getting a massage,” he said. “My treat.”

  “You’re going to spoil me.”

  “I have my reasons for doing just that,” he said, walking over to her.

  He got hold of both sides of the towel that she’d secured around her chest, and pulled her toward his lips.

  She closed her eyes, taking in
his scent and thinking back to her finding the tuft of what she knew was wolf fur. He smelled so good, and she had to admit there was a hint of a musky odor about him. Maybe that’s what drove her crazy when he was around. Bears, wolves…she wasn’t going to say oh my.

  He pulled away.

  “Okay, go to the massage room, get naked, and lie on the table. Hope you’ve realized that I’m the masseur tonight.” He winked at her.

  Maybe he wanted her to be relaxed for their date. In fact, he hadn’t said where they were going out tonight. Maybe he was going to bite her, turn her into a wolf? How ridiculous did that sound? His hands would be on her body and if she was going to die tonight, then what a way to go. She headed toward the room, took off her clothes, and then hung them on the peg by the door. Ava got on the table and pulled the blanket over herself.

  Ava jumped when it went dark suddenly. Her previous massage had been during the day and the sun had shone through the window. This evening the blinds were closed and stars twinkled on the ceiling of the room.

  They were so pretty, mesmerizing almost.

  “You feeling relaxed?” It was Nick’s voice. He walked over to her. He was just as naked as she was and he had the mother of all erections.

  “You always give clients a massage while you’re in your birthday suit?”

  “Nope, it’s a treat just for you and don’t go telling anyone or everyone will want one from me. You good at keeping secrets, Ava?”

  Oh he didn’t know just what an expert she was on the topic. She had been keeping the mother lode from her son for twenty years.

  He leaned over and kissed her. She ran her hand down the side of his face.

  “Um, you taste good. You smell good too,” she said, detecting the musky odor again.

  “You want to listen to some music while I pamper you?”

  “That would be perfect.”

  Soon relaxing, new agey music was playing softly through the two speakers on the wall.

  “Are you certified?” she asked him as he squeezed some oil into his hands.