Reclaiming the Wolf (Cascade Shifters Book 1) (9 page)

No doubt Kaya’s inner wolf felt the same.

He positioned his cock at her swollen wet entrance, but didn’t thrust. Kaya was convinced this was a one-time deal, and as much as his mind and inner cat was already shouting “no fucking way,” he needed to show he cared about her future. Unlike when he’d been a nineteen-year-old jerk and had used less-than-reliable methods of avoiding pregnancy, he would be a responsible male this time. He caressed the smooth, tan skin of her lower back and asked, “Are you on birth control?”

“Yes.” She rubbed against his cock. “Now fuck me.”

With one hard thrust, he complied.

Her head dropped and she groaned. He grabbed her hips and started moving, her moans increasing with each thrust. “You’re so damn tight.” In and out. “And so wet.”

“Sy, harder.”

First he slapped her ass before increasing his pace to the point his flesh started slapping against hers. He wondered if he was pounding her too hard, but as Kaya continued to moan and say his name, he decided she was fine. She might be female, but she was anything but delicate.

He reached around and grabbed one of her heavy, swinging breasts. They fit perfectly into his palm and he squeezed. Kaya arched her back, and never giving up his rhythm, he released her breast to take hold of her nipple and twist.

Kaya arched her back even more as she cried out. “Yes, yes. Do it again.”

He did and her pussy clenched around his cock.

Fuck, he was close. But he wasn’t a selfish bastard, so he moved his hand from her nipple to her clit and rubbed the swollen flesh. He increased the pressure and demanded, “Come for me, Kaya-love.”

He pinched and she let out a cry as her tight pussy gripped his cock and squeezed. All the while he thrust harder, loving the feel of the squeezing with the pull of his skin as he moved back and pushed forward.

The tingle at the base of his spine was too much, and he thrust to the hilt, letting his hot semen fill her pussy. When the last drop was wrenched from him, Sy leaned against Kaya’s back, put his arms around her waist, and kissed the back of her neck.

As her feminine scent filled his nose and her heat warmed his chest, he realized holding her just felt...right. He’d been hurt by her actions from all those years ago, but when he put that anger aside, he felt the pull Kaya had always had on him. He was starting to think they might fit better now than they ever had when they were younger.

Of course, that was a dangerous thought, but he ignored the warning bells inside his head. He squeezed her waist and decided, fuck it. He was going to pursue her and find out if he was right. No matter what happened, it would be better than always wondering ‘what if.’

~~~

Kaya’s wolf reveled in the feel of a naked man at her back, holding her close in his arms. Touch was something the animals in them craved, but Kaya had ignored the need for too long. Or, more likely, while she’d had touch, she hadn’t had the right kind. She was an alpha female and her wolf would only be happy with an alpha male’s touch. Sy might be outside the hierarchy of her clan, but as DarkStalker’s second-in-command, he was most definitely an alpha. Given the chance, he could soothe both the woman and the wolf.

But then Kaya remembered the dead wolf-shifter she’d seen a few hours ago, and instantly felt guilty. Here she was, dreaming about having a man to cuddle and comfort her, and all the while, another infected wolf could be roaming the mountains, infecting one of her clan members right this instant.

She was clan leader first, and she could never forget that.

Kaya lifted one of her hands from the ground and found Sy’s hands at her waist. He tried to lace his fingers with hers, but she grabbed his fingers and tugged at his hand. “Let me go, Sy.”

For a second, he did nothing, but then he released her. As he moved away, she felt his cock slide out of her. She tried not to notice the empty ache with him gone. Instead, she stood up and brushed the dirt off her hands and knees.

She squared her shoulders and turned around. She hated how Sy had an unreadable expression on his face.

Oh well, best to act as if she hadn’t just had one of the best fucks of her life. “We should quickly rinse off and get back to the car or we’ll never make it to Seattle before midnight.”

Sy stared at her for a second before he said, “Okay.”

Then he picked up his clothes and walked out of the cave without another word.

That was exactly what she’d wanted him to do, so why did she feel more than a little pissed off at his actions? For a few seconds, she’d felt as if Sy had wanted to keep her for more than one quick fuck. But either she’d misjudged him or he was letting her not-so-subtlety know that if she wanted him again—or anything more—she’d have to voice it out loud.

She gathered her clothes, squeezed through the crack that served as the cave’s entrance, and passed through the cascading waterfall. Stepping into the small, cold pool of water at her feet, she looked around and noticed Sy was gone.

Well, then. She felt a little hurt at his “fuck and leave” method, but at least he’d given her two mind-blowing orgasms.

As she quickly washed between her legs, the tenderness of her skin brought back the memory of her on her hands and knees with Sy pistoning behind her. She had missed that kind of closeness, and by extension, trust. If her inner wolf didn’t trust him, it never would’ve allowed him to take her from behind.

She wasn’t quite sure how to interpret that.

Deciding it was best not to dwell on that fact for too long, she stepped out of the pool and wrung the water from her hair. She was about to start her trek back to the car when Sy reappeared and tossed something at her. She caught the t-shirt as Sy said, “Since we were going to pick up some clothes for you in the city, that’ll have to suffice for now.”

For some reason, the fact he’d only left so he could fetch her one of his t-shirts to wear made her feel happy.

Shit.
So much for being a mature and collected clan leader. All it took was some great sex for her to start acting like a teenager.

She resisted the urge to lift the shirt up to her nose to breathe in his scent, and instead, simply tossed it over her head. Since she was nearly as tall as him, the shirt barely covered her pussy and ass, but at least it would protect her breasts and sensitive skin from the bushes and trees of the forest.

She forced her gaze upward, and damn the man, he was still stoic. Fine. If he was going to act like nothing had happened, so would she. That might actually work best. They both needed to focus on tomorrow.

“Thanks,” Kaya said before heading back to the car.

~~~

The next morning, Sy stood in the kitchen of the apartment DarkStalker rented in Seattle for visits. He stared at the coffee machine and willed it to finish brewing. He’d had a hell of a night, and only caffeine was going to get him through the day.

Kaya had spent their drive to Seattle replying to emails and doing who the hell knew what else on her smartphone, but he hadn’t minded her purposefully ignoring him. After all, he was still trying to figure out what he was going to do. He hadn’t imagined her going soft in his arms yesterday, nor had he misjudged the longing in her eyes last night. She was lonely, plain and simple. The problem was, she would rather be tortured than admit it.

She took her job as clan leader seriously. He would never try to change that, but whether she knew it or not, the woman needed to learn to relax and lean on at least one other person. Otherwise, within a few years, she might have a nervous breakdown. Not because she was female; no, because he’d heard of it happening to other mateless clan leaders in the past.

Yet, if Kaya had someone to lean on, she would probably become even stronger and more determined than ever to change some of the patriarchal shifter ways to the benefit of her clan. And to be honest, the more he started to imagine himself as the person she turned to, the more he wanted it to be true.

Yes, shit had gone down between them when they’d been younger, but last night he’d realized that none of the other women he’d ever held or fucked had fit as perfectly as Kaya Alexie. She was smart, sexy, stubborn, and would be able to keep up with him in the bedroom. And most of all, when she didn’t try to hide behind the emotionless mask of a leader, she was extremely fun to provoke.

He had planned on devising a strategy to get her naked with him again last night, but instead, he’d spent the time replaying every sexual encounter he’d ever had with her. Even now, his cock was hard and hurting for relief. One night with Kaya would never be enough.

The coffee machine chimed it was done and he took out two mugs. After pouring milk into one and spooning sugar into the other, he filled them with coffee, and headed for the second bedroom. He banged the door with his elbow and received a muffled, “Come in.”

Maneuvering one cup to rest between the wall and his hip, he opened the door, and then grabbed the cup again. He stepped inside to see Kaya lying on the bed, her hair mussed around her face as she rubbed her eyes with the back of her hands. He couldn’t help but smile at the sight. “Good morning, sunshine.”

She lowered her hands and glared. He laughed before lifting one of the cups of coffee. “I come bringing caffeine.”

Her brows eased and she sat up. “Then hurry up and give it to me. Otherwise, you’ll be dealing with the grumpy as hell version of me.”

He didn’t move. “I would think after two orgasms last night, you’d be a little more relaxed.”

He waited to see if she’d brush the topic aside or address it head on. When she picked up a pillow, he knew she’d brush it aside. “Give me the damn coffee, Sylas, or this pillow is going to make friends with your face.”

Since they had an appointment with one of his contacts in about an hour, he decided to pursue the topic later. “Okay, okay.” He walked over and handed her the mug with milk.

She took a sip and smiled. “It’s perfect. I can’t believe you remembered how I like it about half coffee and half milk.”

He sipped his own coffee. “I was once a caring boyfriend, if you remember.”

She looked at him askance. “I remember you getting the coffee ready as soon as you woke up to avoid dealing with my grumpiness.”

He shrugged. “Hey, there’s nothing wrong with self-preservation.”

He waited for her to argue, but Kaya remained quiet. Neither the man nor the cougar liked her silence, so he decided to stick to a safer topic. “I’ve set up a meeting with our most trusted man inside DS Engineering. He was sort of a hacker as a teenager, but gave it up to go to college.”

“How long have you known him?”

“I’ve been acting as a liaison for the software engineer division for four years now, and Dave has been there from my very first day. I also know if there’s anything he can’t do, he knows someone who can.”

Kaya nodded. “Fine. Since Trinity made some calls and had clothes delivered here for me before we arrived last night, I just need a shower. Give me five minutes to finish my coffee, and another twenty to get ready.”

He gave her face and then the gentle slope of her breasts underneath one of his shirts a thorough perusal. “You sure you don’t want some help in the shower?”

“Sylas.”

He met her eyes again. “Whenever you use my full name, I know to leave it be.” He moved to the doorway and decided to take a chance. “But I’m going to let you know now, Kaya Alexie, that once we ensure your clan’s safety, I’m going to pursue you full-on. I spent all last night thinking of every way I want to fuck you, and I plan on recreating each and every scenario.”

She paused with her coffee cup halfway to her mouth and he could smell her arousal. One night wasn’t going to be enough for her, either.

With that, he smiled and shut the door behind him.

The words had just come out, but he was glad he said them. With any luck, she’d now think about him in the shower.

Chapter Eight

Since becoming clan leader, Kaya had rarely had the opportunity to leave GreyFire’s land. In truth, it had been about two years since she’d last been in Seattle, and she hadn’t been able to see much when they’d arrived late last night. Now, in broad daylight, she could see and drink in the eclectic mix of modern glass buildings nestled right next to old brick ones. Since it was a rare blue-sky day, she could also see the beautiful mountains to both the west and east of the city with the dark blue water of the Puget Sound in between. Sure, she lived in the Cascade Mountains to the east, but there was something almost magical about seeing the snow-topped peaks at this distance.

All too soon, Sy turned their car into an underground parking garage beneath one of the office buildings and the sights of downtown were replaced with a low-lit concrete contraption. She might live inside a mountain, but at least her den had ample lighting and air circulation. Her inner wolf itched to get back outside.

Sy turned off the ignition and Kaya couldn’t exit the car fast enough. She moved toward Sy, but as soon as she was within arms’ reach, he hauled her up against his chest. She gasped at the hard muscles pressed against her breasts and her nipples betrayed her by going hard. She looked up into his eyes and her voice was breathy to her own ears as she asked, “What are you doing?”