Buried and Shadowed (Branded Packs #3) (19 page)

That brought her head back around, her eyes wide. “Yours?”

He didn’t hesitate. “Yes. Mine.” He placed her fingers against his cheek. “It just took the thought of losing you to get it through my thick skull.”

Her eyes darkened with pleasure. A growl rumbled deep in Sinclair’s chest. His woman liked the feel of his rough whiskers that stubbled his jaw. Good. He planned to rub them over her naked skin as he kissed a path from her lush lips to the tips of her toes.

“I’ll agree with the thick skull part.”

He turned his head, pressing his lips to the center of her palm.

“Let me convince you,” he pleaded in soft tones.

He heard her breath catch in her throat and the sudden leap of her heart.

But even as she started to sway toward him, she abruptly shoved herself to her feet.

“I’m going to take a shower.”

His wolf growled, struggling to break free. The animal didn’t understand the need to let this female have the space she demanded. It wanted to tumble her on the bed and seduce away the wariness in her eyes.

Instead, he forced a teasing smile to his lips.

“Do you need help?”

“I think I can manage,” she said in dry tones, heading into the small bathroom.

Groaning as he heard the sound of fabric brushing over her skin before hitting the tiled floor, Sinclair forced himself to cross the room to grab the phone set on the dresser. It was directly connected to the front office.

Pressing the zero button, he grimly kept his thoughts from straying toward a naked Mira as she turned on the shower and stepped beneath the water.

Those luscious curves would be slick, her vibrant curls spiraling down her back…

Oh, hell. His cock twitched.

Thankfully, he heard a growled greeting as the grizzly answered Sinclair’s call.

“Hey, before you take off, could you drop by a set of women’s clothing, I’m guessing size twelve, and dinner?” Sinclair requested, waiting for the man’s agreement. Then, before the grizzly could hang up, he continued. “Oh, and make sure there’s something sweet for dessert. Thanks.”

A smile touched his lips as he replaced the old-fashioned receiver.

He’d loved the few times they’d managed to eat a meal together. Mira would always refuse any dessert, but she would eagerly savor the bites he would share of his own. He’d wanted to tell her that he loved her soft curves. He was a shifter, not a human who valued only surface beauty. To him, she was perfect.

Now he no longer had to hide his true emotions.

He fully intended to make sure that she thoroughly enjoyed her life. Especially the decadent parts.

The sound of splashing water filled the room, along with the musky scent of warm, female skin. Sinclair paced from one end of the main room to the other, relieved when there was a knock at the door.

Sinclair waited until he was certain the grizzly was gone. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust the shifter. He simply didn’t want any male to catch the scent of Mira’s naked body.

Unreasonable?

Maybe. But that’s the way it was.

At last, he pulled open the door to collect the bag of clothing and the box of pizza from a nearby take-out joint, as well as a small lava cake. Perfect.

He’d just placed the food on the desk and pulled it next to the bed when Mira came out of the bathroom. Awareness was like a punch to his gut as his gaze skimmed down her body that was covered by a robe. The terry cloth material stopped mid-thigh, revealing the elegant line of her legs, and dipped at the neckline to offer a glimpse of her soft, enticing breasts.

Suddenly, his hunger had nothing to do with pizza.

“You still haven’t said how long we need to stay…” Her words trailed away as she caught sight of the food. “Where did this come from?”

He moved toward her, using her distraction to lightly grasp her arm and steer her toward the bed.

“The owner of the motel brought food and clean clothes. I thought you might be tired of your uniform.”

A shudder shook her body. “You have no idea.”

“But first, dinner,” he said, pressing her onto the edge of the mattress before he was settling next to her. Then, he pulled the desk even closer and placed a large slice of pizza in front of her.

She consumed the slice with obvious hunger, and before she was finished, Sinclair had another one in front of her. He felt a fierce satisfaction in knowing he was tending to her needs.

This was what he’d been placed in this world to do.

Protect and cherish this female.

Polishing off her third slice, Mira at last glanced toward Sinclair.

“I was asking how long we need to wait here.”

Placing the lava cake between them, Sinclair scooped up a large bite of gooey goodness.

“We should stay at least a few hours,” he said, pressing the spoon to her mouth.

She absently accepted the bite, completely unaware just how sexy it was when she used her tongue to wipe the chocolate off her lips.

Sinclair, however, was acutely, painfully aware.

“Okay,” she conceded, understanding the danger of stumbling across the SAU soldiers that were no doubt searching for them.

Continuing to feed her small bites of the cake, Sinclair studied her delicate features.

“You know, we’ve spent a lot of time together, but you rarely speak of your family,” he said.

She shrugged. “I had a boring childhood.”

Sinclair narrowed his gaze. If he weren’t a shifter, he would never have noticed the slight tensing of her body.

Clearly her relationship with her family was a source of anxiety for Mira.

“Do your parents live in Fort Collins?” he pressed, needing to know what was troubling her.

He had every intention of protecting her. From both physical dangers and emotional ones. No one was allowed to hurt this female.

No one.

“No,” she said. “I was raised in Minnesota.”

“Ah.” His lips twitched. “A farm girl.”

She grimaced. “Yeah.”

“Your parents must be very proud of all you’ve accomplished,” he said, carefully watching the hardening of her expression.

“Not really.” She reached up to brush a damp curl from her cheek. “They never understood my love for computers. And they certainly didn’t want me leaving home to take a job so far away.”

Sinclair arched a brow. This female was strong, intelligent, well-educated and successful. What else could parents desire in their daughter?

“Why not?” he demanded.

She shook her head at the last bite, once again driving Sinclair nuts as she licked her lips clean.

“They thought I should follow in the footsteps of my older sister and marry a nice local boy and start producing a family.”

A low growl rumbled in Sinclair’s chest. Not only anger at her family for making her feel ‘less’ because of her choices, but also at the mere thought of some other male trying to claim her.

Mira Reese belonged to him.

Period.

“They were idiots,” he snarled. “And so was I.”

His confession of fault appeared to catch her off guard. She blinked. And then blinked again.

“What are you talking about?”

“They didn’t value you as they should have,” he said in rough tones.

She was instantly on the defensive. “They loved me.”

“I don’t doubt that, but they should have been supportive of your decision to seek your own career and independence,” he insisted. “You have a true gift with computers.”

“It’s what I’ve always wanted to do,” she agreed.

“Just as I should have honored your tender heart,” he continued, refusing to ignore his own culpability in allowing this exquisite female to believe she was anything less than perfect. “It’s a precious gift.”

“Sinclair,” she breathed, a lovely flush staining her cheeks.

Leaning forward with the intention of claiming her lips in a kiss of frustrated hunger, Sinclair abruptly halted. There was no missing the dark shadows beneath her eyes. She clearly was at the point of utter exhaustion.

With a muttered curse, he pulled back. “You should get some rest.”

Mira nervously glanced toward the bed, clearly judging the width.

“I’m not tired,” she said, as if determining there wasn’t enough space to avoid being pressed against him if they shared the mattress.

He squashed the image of holding her tight in his arms as she slept. No pouncing on his pretty female until she was ready.

“Sweetheart, you can’t fool a shifter. I can scent your weariness,” he assured her, grabbing the desk to move it back to the corner.

He heard her crawl across the mattress, then the soft sound of the sheets being pulled back.

“What about you?” she demanded.

Waiting until he was sure she was covered by the blankets, he slowly turned to meet her guarded gaze.

“What about me?”

“Are you going to rest?”

He lifted a shoulder. “I’ll keep watch, we should be safe, but I don’t intend to take any chances.”

There was a long pause before her face abruptly paled. “Oh. Of course.”

He scowled, wondering what the hell had put that look of hurt in her eyes. Then, suddenly, he realized she thought that he didn’t want to share the bed with her.

He clenched his hands. Okay. Screw the whole ‘no pouncing’ thing.

With one long leap, he was on the bed, crouched over her rigid body.

“What are you doing?” she breathed, her eyes wide with shock.

He leaned down until they were nose to nose. “You were busy assuming that I’m standing guard because I don’t want to share the bed with you,” he growled.

She pressed her lips together. “It’s not really a secret you don’t find me physically attractive. I-”

Her words were cut off as he kissed her. Just like that.

Pressing his mouth against her plush lips, he moaned at her sweet taste. It was intoxicating. Addictive.

He grasped the headboard, his claws digging into the sturdy wood as he battled back the urge to consume her.

“Sinclair,” she said, her hands lifting to press against his chest.

“Shut up,” he growled.

She stiffened in outrage. “What did you say?”

Sinclair was in no mood to back down. She could accuse him of many things. But to imply that he wasn’t desperate to have her as his lover was ridiculous.

“Shut.” Another fierce kiss. “Up.”

She grabbed his t-shirt, tilting back her head to glare at him.

“You do realize where my knee is, don’t you?”

He chuckled, not particularly worried despite the fact that her knee was only inches from his cock.

In fact, he boldly grabbed her hand, tugging it down to press it against his raging hard-on.

“There,” he breathed. “Does that feel like I don’t find you physically attractive?”

The tantalizing scent of her arousal filled the air. Still, she stubbornly refused to believe the obvious evidence of his desire.

“You barely kissed me in all the time we’ve known each other,” she accused.

“Christ, Mira, it was bad enough to know that I was allowing you to put yourself in danger-”

“You didn’t
allow
me to do anything,” she sharply interrupted him. “Everything I did was my choice.”

“Okay,” he conceded. “It was bad enough to know you were in danger without taking advantage of you.”

Her expression remained wary. “Hmm.”

Dipping his head down, he planted a line of kisses along the length of her jaw.

“But my good behavior is about to come to an end,” he warned, allowing his fangs to lengthen so he could scrape them down the arch of her neck.

She shivered, her hips instinctively lifting to press against the hard length of his cock.

“It is?” she said, her fingers digging into his chest.

“Mm.” He nuzzled his lips against her pulse that pounded at the base of her throat. “Once we’ve exposed the SAU and returned to our lair, I intend to devote my nights to exploring every lush curve.” He moved down to explore the satin swell of her upper breasts. “Oh, sweetheart. You’re so beautiful,” he rasped, not daring to part the robe to fully expose her soft curves.

There would be no stopping his urgent need to claim her.

“No,” she said, shaking her head.

“Yes,” he hissed, lifting his head to glare at her stubborn expression. “I adore everything about you.”

“I’m too plump,” she protested. “And my hair is always a mess.”

He reached to thread his fingers through her thick mane.

“I’ve been fantasizing about burying my face in these curls forever. I love them,” he rasped, his hand skimming down her throat to the bountiful swell of her breast. “And this body.” His fingers squeezed, feeling the pebbled hardness of her nipple even through the thick terry cloth material. “This exquisite tribute to feminine perfection…”

She released her breath on a soft sigh. “Sinclair…”

Claiming her lips in a deep kiss, he shared all the pent-up hunger he harbored for this female. Instantly, her mouth parted, inviting in the thrust of his tongue as her arms wrapped around his neck.

Hell.

She was so sweet. Soft. Edible.

With a harsh groan, Sinclair forced himself off the bed, staring down at her flushed face with a brooding gaze.

“Rest, sweetheart,” he commanded in gentle tones. “I’ll keep you safe.”

Rios wasn’t sure what’d prompted his midnight run.

He’d been sifting through the avalanche of texts and emails that were flying between the members of the SAU when his jaguar decided that it’d had enough. It wanted to be surrounded by nature.

Leaving his cabin, he shifted into his animal form and headed across the boundaries of the lair. His sleek body moved with liquid ease over the fallen pine needles and mossy ground, darting through the trees as he headed up the mountain.

Silence surrounded him, the black sky speckled with shimmering stars. He loved this place. It was the home he’d never thought to find.

Still, it wasn’t until he’d caught the rich musk of wolf that he realized what had drawn him out of his home.

Bree.

With a low roar, he was on the hunt, following her scent until he caught sight of her running just ahead of him.