Who was this guy?
I gathered my wet hair and pulled it over the front of my shoulder. Mr. Severino hadn’t been messing around when he hired this bounty hunter. Could he still be part of the military?
Doubtful. There’d be too many questions. But judging by his weapon of choice, I had to assume he’d been a Green Beret at some point.
Maybe in the morning Aren could give me a visual description of him. He said he’d recognize him if he saw him again.
I turned the Beretta over in my hands. Goddamn. Special Forces. Maybe Severino didn’t want me back after all.
He wanted me dead.
I needed to talk to Sebastian. If Nero still had ties with the military, he would know. Could the Army have known one of their own was a werewolf? They couldn’t have. No one believed werewolves were real. Did they? My mind raced with a million scenarios all at once.
Slow breath.
I massaged my temple and turned off the bathroom light, moving back to the main room. I placed the gun on the table by the television, careful to stay away from the window. My stalker hadn’t tailed us back to the hotel, but it was only a matter of time. No sense taking stupid chances.
The bed seemed huge and empty. Against my better judgment, I walked over to the sofa bed and sat on the arm. Sprawled out across the mattress was a man who’d risked his life to save mine tonight. He was stubborn, smart, and way too sexy to ignore. And while he slept on his stomach, the only thing covering him was a white hotel sheet, draped across his hips.
Before I could stop myself, I leaned over to brush a lock of his dark hair behind his ear. His sleeping face was peaceful, not frustrating.
My gaze wandered over his masculine features to his lips. Just remembering the way he kissed me sent heat pouring through my veins. He shifted his broad shoulders, and I almost wished he’d open his eyes. Maybe if we had sex it would relieve some of the crazy tension between us and I’d be able to concentrate again. One night couldn’t hurt…
It’d been over six months since I’d shared a bed with a man. Maybe I was thinking with the wrong body part.
The big empty bed taunted me across the room. I should’ve walked over there and gotten under the covers before I did something I might regret.
Instead, I ran my fingers lightly down his back. His bright green eyes opened and his gaze was instantly latched on mine, demanding and full of silent questions. He rolled onto his side, facing me, and started to say something, but I knelt down and pressed my finger to his lips. The last thing we needed was another argument.
“Don’t talk,” I whispered.
He kissed my fingertip in answer and brought his large hand to my face. My head warned that we were going to scratch an itch, nothing more, and as I lay beside him I bargained to enjoy this. Just for tonight.
His lips caressed mine, slow and sensual, his warm breath teasing my skin. He ran his hand down my body and unfastened the tie on my robe. Before he made any move to open it, his eyes met mine, analyzing my reaction.
This was my chance to say no. He was giving me an out.
In spite of everything, he respected me.
My inner voice taunted me. I shouldn’t be in this man’s arms. He should have a woman worthy of his love and affection, not a fallen cop who tried to kill him for her personal gain.
Sensing my hesitation, he pulled me close and kissed away my doubts. His lips fed on mine, and my entire body responded. I moaned when our tongues touched, my fingers sliding back into his hair. He silenced my inner voice. It didn’t matter if I was worthy of his attention or not. I wanted him, needed him.
“Just for tonight,” I whispered before I gasped.
He rolled over me, and my robe opened, pressing his warm skin against mine. My pulse raced with need. “We’ll see.”
His lips trailed down my neck as his hand rose up slowly from my hip, along my stomach, until he finally cupped my breast. Another gasp escaped my lips as his thumb brushed over my nipple. My back arched, my entire body aching for his attention. His touch sent a current through my bloodstream, heating me from the inside out.
I ran my fingers down his back, my nails biting into his skin as his lips closed over my breast. His hips pressed against mine, our bodies eager to collide. Watching his mouth on my skin, the rest of the world ceased to exist. I wanted to touch and know every inch of this man.
His eyes met mine from under his brow, passion and fire burned in his gaze. I pulled him back up to me, and our lips fused together in an urgent kiss. We rolled again until I was on top, straddling his waist, my hips grinding into him. He pulsed through his shorts and my body answered, hot and wet.
My teeth grazed against his lower lip as I kissed my way down his chest. The salty taste of his skin teased my senses, reminding me of the powerful way his muscles flexed during our yoga session. My lips drifted down his abs, and I slid a finger along the waist of his shorts. His hands fisted in my hair as I drank in the desire in his gaze. I pressed a hot, slow kiss to the soft skin just below his navel and carefully pulled his shorts off.
Standing before him in my open robe, my eyes ran over his body. Every part of him was chiseled, proud, and ready. When my gaze reached his, I brought my hands up and pushed the robe off my shoulders. My skin felt warm where his eyes moved over me. He sat up on the edge of the bed and brought me closer, his fingers trailing up the back of my legs, along the curve of my ass until he gripped my hips. I bent to kiss his lips as I settled onto him, wrapping my legs around his waist until the tip of him brushed against me, teasing me.
His hot mouth fed on the skin along my shoulder, and my body tensed. He froze for a second and leaned back just enough to make eye contact.
“I want you, Sasha. Scars and all.” He tilted his hips, sinking deep inside of me, and I let my head fall back.
His lips left slow sensual kisses over the scar that ruined my life. And I didn’t retreat—I rode the passion, my hips bucking against his, my body aching for release. His fingers tightened on my waist as my nails scratched down his back. Our lips met again, needy and urgent, and he claimed my mouth over and over again.
“Don’t stop,” I begged, my muscles starting to clench around him.
He growled in answer, working himself even harder, deeper, touching me in places I never knew existed. Our bodies fit together, perfect, so different from the insanity my life had become. I struggled to cling to the pleasure, but the tide was building until I finally felt myself surrender. My entire body shuddered, trembling in his arms as he erupted inside of me.
Chapter Fifteen
Aren
I held her in my arms, closing my eyes and drinking in her scent. Praying this wasn’t all an amazing dream. If I woke up and found her in the other bed sleeping, I was going to be royally pissed. I twirled my fingers in her hair, still wet from the shower, and felt her hand slide up my back.
My lips curled into a smile. This wasn’t a dream.
She started to pull away, but I didn’t loosen my grip. I didn’t want the moment to end yet. I wasn’t sure what had happened between her telling me to fuck off and her coming out to seduce me, but if I asked she probably wouldn’t tell me. In fact, it’d likely make her run.
But if I kept her in my arms, everything didn’t have to get complicated.
As the blood returned to my brain I realized we hadn’t used a condom. I usually didn’t give it much thought since a female couldn’t conceive—at least not from me—unless she was converted to a wolf.
But Lana was a jaguar, and she had twins. This was a helluva lot more complicated. Shit.
I held Sasha a little tighter, forcing the thought from my head for now.