He almost did. His hand even reached down to cup himself, stroke his turgid member through his pants. As if the sight of his excitement were too much, she’d come with a long scream that made his balls tighten and almost shoot their load.
In those seconds, he almost forgot his aversion to the cat, his trepidation over being with his sister’s best friend, and even the fear of the commitment she offered. For more than a fleeting moment, he wanted, with an intensity that shocked him, to belong to her, whether as part of a threesome or not. He could even so easily imagine taking turns with the seducer, pleasuring her lusty body, muffling her cries with his cock as Alejandro took her from behind. Erotic images that stunned him and sent him fleeing.
Not ready. Frightened.
His emotions swirled inside him, a cacophony of sensations that made him sit in his car, unable to move while he fought to regain control. It didn’t help that his wolf nipped at the edges of his mind, demanding to know why they didn’t go back to mark the female, to stake their claim.
But mating with Francine had taken on a whole new dimension. Claiming her also meant accepting the cat. It meant sharing a woman, a home, possibly even a bed. Could he handle that? Probably not given each time he saw the bastard, he wanted to wipe the smug look off his face with his fist.
He needed advice, but who could he turn to? His mother, who clawed the face of the last female bitch who thought to grab her mate’s ass? His brothers, whose solution would probably rhyme with beat the crap out of? He did know one person, make that two actually, who would possibly understand what he went through. Who could maybe explain how they managed to share without turning his sister’s house into a war zone. But given the late hour, it would have to wait until morning.
Amped up on emotion, and hornier than a fucking bunny in heat, Mitchell made it home, but sat in his car instead of going inside. Indoors, he’d just wander restlessly or toss and turn. If he woke his mother, she’d pry the uncomfortable truth from him, or cuff him upside the head. Neither scenario appealed.
The serenity of the forest called him along with the mindless peace he knew he’d find in letting his beast free for a run. Stripping, he placed his clothes on the passenger seat of his car and got out. Naked, he stretched, enjoying the cool night air on his body. Then clenching his teeth, he shifted, letting the animal mind that resided within him bound forth and take control.
As his wolf emerged, which involved a painful cracking and re-shaping of limbs, his senses grew even sharper. The myriad scents of the outside filtered themselves into identifiable things like grass, rubber, a wandering coon…and a female bear?
Cocking his head, he sniffed, sucking in a deep lungful, trying to figure out why the scent appeared so odd. He could tell right off that the scent didn’t belong to a shapeshifter, the human overtone that melded with a shifter’s animal odor a distinctive marker. And yet, he knew for a fact no bears roamed these parts. No large predators did given they’d claimed the forested tract behind the strip of houses as shapeshifter land. Natural creatures smartly stayed away, or had in the past, which made the odd-smelling bear’s presence beyond strange.
Putting his nose to the ground, Mitchell followed the trail, growing more baffled as it led to the base of a tree across from his sister’s house. Sure, bears climbed them, but not big sows, and not without leaving marks. The bark didn’t show any of the deep gouges from claws he’d expect to see. A glimpse up showed him nothing but shadows.
Circling the base of the large oak, sniffing to see if he’d tracked wrong, he froze as he heard a whisper of sound from above him. Peering up, he dove sideways as he caught a glint of metal. Bang!
The shot grazed past his shoulder, taking hair and a sliver of skin with it, the gouge burning like hell. Fuck. Not a bear, but something worse. A hunter.
Snarling, and unable to shift because the human might see, Mitchell began to howl in warning, knowing either his brother’s or Naomi’s mates would come running. Lights flicked on and as doors opened. A second shot went whizzing past, burying itself in the dirt in front of his paw. Mitchell darted sideways, barking to draw help to him, not stupid enough to think he was a match for a gun shot at close range by an asshole in a tree. A third shot buried itself in his side, and he yipped at the fiery pain, almost missing the sound of feet hitting the ground. Agony or not, he whipped around with a snarl in time to see a shadow running away. He limped after the hunter, but the pain proved excruciating, and inexplicable. He’d suffered worse before.
As he slumped to the ground, he heard the sound of animals baying and running footsteps. Then, the more disturbing sound of an engine starting and tires spinning.
But he found it hard to care that his prey escaped as he passed out.
Chapter Eight
A feathery touch tickled down Francine’s spine, and she squirmed to make it stop. It lightly stroked her again, and she grunted as she rolled onto her back to stop it. A warm hand landed on her bare breast, cupping it, and she froze, her next breath halted. Oh my God, he’s still here. The realization both warmed her and sent a chill of fear through her because she didn’t know what to do.
She’d not exactly expected Alejandro to disappear like Houdini before she woke, but she’d never expected to wake up beside him. While she’d had boyfriends in the past, short term ones, she’d never had one spend the night. At a loss as to what she should do, she kept her eyes clamped tight and tried to breathe shallowly lest he discover her less than pleasant morning breath.
“You’re not very good at faking sleep,” Alejandro said wryly, squeezing her breast before rolling her nipple between his fingers.
With a gasp, her eyes flew open, and she saw him propped on one elbow staring down at her while his other hand continued to palpate her breast.
“Um, hi. I didn’t expect to see you.”
A frown tightened his lips. “I told you I wouldn’t leave.”
At his disgruntled tone, she hurried to explain. “That came out wrong. It’s not that I expected you to run off at the crack of dawn, it’s just,” she lowered her voice to a whisper, “no one’s ever spent the whole night with me before.” A blush heated its way up her cheeks as she admitted it.
“Probably because you steal the blankets and hate to cuddle,” he retorted, diluting his rebuke with a smile and squeeze of her boob.
“I like to cuddle. Well, I do when I’m awake anyway.”
“I’ll test that claim later, but I can tell you right now when you sleep, it’s on your stomach, clutching your pillow, and every time I touched you, you elbowed me. At one point, you even kicked me.”
She could only grin sheepishly. “Oops. Sorry, I guess I’m not used to sharing.”
“Well, get used to it, baby, because while I don’t have much experience sleeping with someone either, I’d like to start doing it with you. But…” He released her breast to wag a finger at her. “I also don’t want to wake up freezing on a sliver of mattress, looking for something to hold on to for fear of falling on the floor.”
“Whiner.”
“Brat.”
They grinned at each other and laughed. He dropped a kiss on her nose, but she cringed anyway. “Toothbrush first.”
“I’ve already brushed,” he admitted. “I’ll go make breakfast while you take care of yourself. You need to get ready for work, and since I’m going to be sticking around, I need to start looking for a job.”
“Really? You’re serious about staying even though I wouldn’t let you claim me?”
He flicked her nipple and she yelped. “You are really asking for a spanking. I meant what I said and as far as I’m concerned, I claimed you all right, baby. It might have only been your body last night, but I’m pretty sure I’ve already got my hooks in your heart, which just means I need to win your trust. And that starts with me putting down some roots.”