Stripped Bear (6 page)

It sounded like Cade was about to wrap up his conversation. Curiosity burned as Leah listened to his crazy talk about vampires and slayers. For the past week she’d lusted after a man who was clearly insane. Fear trickled into her bloodstream at the realization that no one but Cade knew where she was. She’d been kidnapped by someone who, for all she knew, could have broken out of an asylum prior to showing back up in Lake George. She needed to get the hell out of there. Before he ended his phone call and realized she was awake.

Cade kept his back turned to her as he talked. Leah slipped out from under the blanket as though the slightest shift of fabric might alert him. She gazed down at her tank top and boxers—god, she wasn’t even wearing a bra!—and her bare feet. Lovely. Trapped in a building that might as well be at the top of the freaking world in the middle of New York freaking City, half-naked, with no shoes. She’d probably die of embarrassment before Cade got his hands on her.

At least bare feet allowed for a stealthy escape.

Leah tried to ignore how gorgeous the penthouse was as she snuck through the living room toward where she assumed she’d find the door. The opulence didn’t surprise her; the Mitchell family was
loaded
. Still, she’d never pictured Cade anywhere so fancy. He’d always seemed like the type who would’ve been more at home in a cabin in the woods or roughing it in a tent. Although he had cleaned up nicely when he’d shown up at the gallery last weekend. Leah’s step faltered as she thought about their exchange in her office.
It doesn’t change the fact that you’re dying for me to fuck you
. Hadn’t she gone to the hotel in the first place because she’d needed time to think? The rational part of her brain kicked in to remind her that being locked up in a luxury penthouse with the man she was currently lusting after wasn’t going to do a damned thing for her thought process.

Plus, he
kidnapped
you!

Reason enough to leave. Leah didn’t dare look back as she padded through the expansive space of Cade’s penthouse. She took a wrong turn and ended up in a kitchen that would make a trained chef weep in appreciation. Another misstep led her even farther from escape as Leah found herself in the doorway of the master bedroom. Her jaw hung slack. The space was masculine and tastefully decorated in deep blues and browns. A large king-sized bed didn’t even make a dent in the space that boasted a walk-in closet, sitting area, and a bathroom that Leah couldn’t quite see but knew she’d appreciate.

“I wasn’t planning to start the weekend in the bedroom, but if that’s what you want, I’m sure I can muster up the necessary enthusiasm.”

Leah let out a shocked squeal and whipped around to find Cade standing behind her, one arm braced on the jamb beside her. Without thinking she pulled back her arm and punched her fist into the fleshy part of his gut. He let out a
woof!
of air but was otherwise unaffected by her panicked assault. Leah shook out her fist. Truth be told, there wasn’t an inch of Cade’s body that could be considered fleshy. A renewed surge of indignation choked the air from her lungs and all she could manage was an incoherent, angry splutter.

“You …
pfft
 …
gah
!”

She shoved at his chest, but Cade was an immovable wall of muscle.

He smiled. A slow and consciously sensual act that turned Leah’s blood to smoke. Heat exploded inside of her, firing all of her nerves into a state of hyperawareness that made her want to crawl out of her skin. Cade’s eyes devoured her, dipping briefly to her breasts. Leah’s nipples hardened to aching peaks beneath the thin fabric, and her back arched slightly. God, she wanted him to touch her. Needed his hands on her.

“You kidnapped me, you son of a bitch!”

If she focused on her anger, maybe it would help to extinguish the desperate want that swelled inside of her.

Cade gave a disinterested shrug of one massive shoulder. “I took what was mine.”

His?
Of all the arrogant, pig-headed … Leah’s indignation flared. “I’m
not
yours.”

Cade reached out and feathered the pad of his thumb over one of Leah’s nipples. The contact was almost as light as a breath of air, but the sensation hit her with the force of a hurricane. She shuddered at the electric blast of heat that settled between her thighs. Her eyelids drooped, and her mouth parted on a breath. He reached to the other breast and teased that peak as well. A quiet whimper escaped Leah’s lips as she brought her gaze to his.

His turquoise eyes burned with an intensity that stole Leah’s breath.
“Mine
.
”

Six

All thoughts of the Sortiari, of Trenton McAlister and his petty bullshit, had fled the moment he turned away from the balcony to find Leah gone. He’d ended the call with a hasty, “You’ll see me when you see me and if you don’t fucking like it, you can go fuck yourself,” and rushed inside. He relaxed only when he caught her scent, detected the almost imperceptible sounds of her footfalls on the wood floor. Cade’s animal instinct reared up as he tracked her through the penthouse, and the predator in him thrilled at the prospect of a hunt. When he found her standing in the doorway of his bedroom, he’d nearly lost his hold on the last thread of his control.

Leah stood before him now a portrait of sensuality. Her dark pink lips parted with her quickened breath and a flush colored her cheeks. Her eyes, usually as deep blue as an afternoon sky, darkened further with passion and her lids fluttered as he brushed the pad of his thumb over her other nipple.

“Mine.”

She might not have been ready to admit it, but the truth of that word was evident in her body’s response to his slightest touch. The shift in her scent that betrayed her arousal.

“I’m not yours.” Her whisper didn’t carry an ounce of conviction, and she averted her gaze when she spoke.

“Whose, then?” Cade reached up and gripped her chin, guiding her focus back to him. “His?”

The fire in her gaze was all the answer Cade needed.

His mouth claimed hers in a ravenous kiss. Cade’s arms came around her and he pulled her tight against his body. He was starved for her. Desperate. A need unlike any he’d ever known rose up inside him until he couldn’t form a rational thought to save his life. His senses did the thinking for him as he thrust his tongue past the barrier of Leah’s lips, demanding that she open for him. The honeyed sweetness of her mouth pushed him deeper into a mindless state where passion ruled. One hand cupped her ass, his fingers digging into yielding flesh as his other fist wound in the length of her hair. He slanted his mouth over Leah’s as he tilted her head the way he wanted it so he could deepen their kiss. He was starved for her. Couldn’t get enough of her. Couldn’t kiss her hard enough or hold her close enough. The desperation of wanting her would surely kill him.

Leah’s tongue joined with his in a slippery tangle as their panting breaths became one. Cade hoisted her up and guided her legs around his waist as he carried her into the bedroom, all the while keeping their mouths joined. He could kiss her for hours, waste the day away tasting the sweetness of her mouth. Cade nipped at her bottom lip and Leah’s hips jerked as she drew in a gasp of breath. Her barely clad pussy brushed up against the length of his cock and Cade kissed her even deeper, his teeth scraping against hers in his frenzy.

One hand still cupped her ass, and thanks to the shift in their position, the pads of his fingers skimmed the skin at the crease of her thigh. She was bare beneath the skimpy shorts that gaped away from her pussy and Cade inched his fingers closer, swiping them through the slit of wetness between her thighs. Leah gasped, and a heady bloom of scent invaded Cade’s nostrils. He dove in deeper, teased her opening until her body twitched and her breath came in tight little gasps of air that brushed his lips as he continued to kiss her.

He reached up, his fingers glistening with her wetness, and dove beneath her shirt. In slow, circular strokes, he coated her nipple before yanking her top up so he could lick her arousal from the stiff peak. Leah bucked in his embrace and a wild, keening sound built in her throat. Cade sucked her tiny nipple deeper into his mouth. He bit and teased, swirling his tongue over the tight bead until Leah’s whimpers grew to impassioned cries. He reached between her thighs and wetted his fingers once again before attending to her other nipple. He blew on the shiny surface, causing the dusky pink areola to pucker tight, before he sealed his mouth over her flesh. With every suck, every lick, Leah became more desperate, arching her back as though to beg him never to stop. His teeth clamped down over her nipple and she cried out. The sound rippled down his spine, rolled over his hips, and tightened his sac until it ached.

Instinct demanded that he take her without preamble. Just pull the fabric of her shorts aside and fuck her until her screams shook the windows that surrounded them. Cade negotiated the bedroom furniture with ease even though it had been months since he’d actually lived there. When his shins made contact with the bed, he laid Leah on the mattress and followed her down, settling himself between her thighs.

There were still too many goddamned clothes between them, and Cade was greedy for bare flesh. He couldn’t stop kissing her, touching her, long enough to get it done, though. When he could finally pull away, the sight of her rosy nipples barely visible through her tank top drew his attention and he sucked the tip of one through the flimsy fabric, wetting it with his mouth. It made for an even more erotic view and Cade obliged the other side until both nipples shone pale pink through the gossamer white.

Leah gripped his shirt in her fists, and her legs came around his torso. Her heels dug into his ass as she pulled him hard on top of her and rolled her hips to brush her barely covered pussy against his erection. Gods, she smelled so good. He wanted to bury his face between her thighs and lap at her until he’d had his fill.

Desire built inside of Cade. It tightened his gut and pulled his muscles taut. Gods, he could come this way, kissing her, dry fucking her until he went off inside his damned pants like an undersexed teenager. His mouth wandered to Leah’s jaw. He kissed his way to the pulse point below her ear and then sucked the lobe into his mouth. Leah’s back arched off the bed and her grip on his shirt tightened. Cade smiled, pleased he’d managed to find a hidden spot on her body that drove her wild. He planned to know every inch of her before the night was over. His name would be the only one she ever cried out again.

He reached his hand between them and pulled her shorts aside so he could fondle her velvet flesh. “I need to fuck so bad that I hurt,” he murmured against her ear. “Gods, Leah. Your pussy is dripping for me. You need it too, don’t you? You need me inside of you.”

“Yes,” she responded with a desperate gasp.

His fingers found her clit and he circled the tight knot of nerves, slow and soft at first and then harder. A renewed rush of wetness coated his fingers and the scent of her arousal intensified to the point that it intoxicated Cade. He slid one finger inside her, working it in and out of her slowly before adding a second finger. He pumped his hips in time with the thrusts of his fingers as he brought his mouth to Leah’s and kissed her furiously. “Tell me to fuck you, Leah. I want to hear you say how badly you need it.”

“I … do,” she said between panting breaths. “It feels so good.”

“Say it.” Cade pressed the pad of his thumb against her clit as he moved his fingers in and out of her tight channel. “You’re so tight. So wet. Tell me you want my cock inside of you.”

“I … wait.” Leah’s body stiffened beneath him. “Cade, I need a second. Please.”

Leah’s frightened tone caused Cade to still in an instant. He pulled away, took his hands completely from her as his instinct to protect her—even from himself—intervened to clear the fog of incoherent lust from his mind.

His mate needed a moment. He’d give her a year’s worth of moments if that’s what it took for him to be able to keep her. Cade would do anything for her. All she had to do was ask.

*   *   *

Leah brought a shaking hand to her lips as she panted through the pleasure that continued to pulse through her body. What in the hell was wrong with her? One second, she’d been planning her escape, and the next she was pulling Cade down on top of her, ready to beg him for whatever he told her to as long as he kept touching her, kissing her. Her want of him bordered on depraved, far too intense to be merely desperate. Some part of her that she never knew existed took control when Cade was near. She found herself helpless to deny him anything, and even more disconcerting was the feeling that she was right where she was supposed to be. Here with him held tight in his arms.

She’d felt it the moment their hands had touched. And from that moment of brief contact, Cade had become Leah’s single obsessive thought. She hadn’t been able to get him out of her head no matter how hard she tried. Hell, he’d rattled her to the point that she’d walked out on her own wedding, breaking off her engagement yesterday. It still stung to think that Adam hadn’t been all that hurt or surprised. He’d been well aware of her history with Cade. That didn’t mean she’d been ready to run into Cade’s arms. She didn’t even know him anymore. So she’d left the home she’d shared with Adam for months and gotten a room at the hotel to give herself the quiet time she needed to assess her feelings and
think
. Cade had put an end to that, hadn’t he? Any sense of clarity had fled her mind the moment he’d reached out and touched her. Her body was his to command. And it frightened her.

Cade pulled away the instant she asked him to. His brows came down over his blue-green eyes and his expression held so much gentle concern that it wrung Leah’s heart. She hadn’t seen him in sixteen years, and yet the moment she looked into his eyes, she was that silly fourteen-year-old girl who’d been so convinced that they were meant to be together no matter how many years older he was.

That didn’t matter now though, did it? They were both adults. They both knew what they wanted. Why should her own stupid fear stand between them? Why should
anything
stand between them? His kisses felt like home. His hands on her were a balm that banished every thought that plagued her. Why should she fight something that felt so
right
? Her rational brain refused to acknowledge what Cade seemed to already know: they belonged together.