Alpha Mate: BBW Paranormal Shifter Romance (16 page)

She wasted no time yanking on her clothes. She simply
pulled on her t-shirt and leather pants sans underwear and stabbed
her feet into her boots. Frantically, she looked around for her
jacket. She saw it hanging in front of a long mirror at the corner
of the room, but it was too far away and from the looks and sounds of
it, Lucas wasn't joking. He had told her to run. She would do well
to heed his warning and get away right now.

His eyes were now completely wolf, and his muscles
seemed to have swelled bigger. His chest and biceps were about to
burst out of his t-shirt, and his shoulders stretched and rippled
even wider.

“
Run!” The last word was a command.
Run
hard. I will chase you.
His eyes glowed, flashing an intense
gold.

How was she going to outrun him?

His snarl was savage as she sprinted past him towards
the towering double doors. With a tug, the doors flew open and she
shot out into the carpeted landing. The front door was at the foot
of the wide, curved stairs and she ran madly down the marble steps,
reaching for the gold handle. The massive, oak door opened with a
whisper and she slipped out into the sprawling gardens. The driveway
was long and straight, and as she ran, she looked back at the grand
mansion behind her. She couldn't help marveling at the beautiful
architecture and thinking that Lucas had a very nice home. She had
glimpsed his hall as she clattered down the stairs, and it looked
tastefully furnished and cozy.

Shaking her head to get rid of all these distracting
details, she concentrated on making her escape. The tall, iron
wrought gates were wide open at the end of the driveway. Thank God!
She couldn't imagine trying to climb those. She would probably
impale herself on one of those spikes at the top of the black gates.
Hurtling through the gates, she cursed loudly when she saw that her
only refuge was the woods in front of her. No roads? No street
lamps? Just how far away was she from the city?

She heard Lucas howling her name behind her, and she
headed for the woods in a flash. No time to plan her route. She'd
just have to play it by ear, and keep running.

As she raced through the forest, she felt a rush of
thrill and exhilaration as the adrenalin kicked in. Her senses were
heightened, and she listened to the whispers of the forest. Taking a
deep breath, she inhaled the clean, fresh scent of the forest. The
trees leaned in, as if wishing to share their secrets with her.

She could hear the crisp rustling of the leaves and the
clear snap of twigs as she ran. Glancing up, she saw the full moon
through the gaps in the forest canopy and breathlessly followed the
silvery shafts of moonlight.

Hearing nothing but her own hammering heartbeats,
Charlotte ran full tilt ahead, swiping away low hanging branches and
vines. Adrenalin pumped through her veins and she absently patted
down the side of her leg, preparing to pull out her silver daggers
which weren't there.

She swallowed hard, recalling Lucas's look of dark
desire and raging hunger. But strangely, seeing his wolf rise so
close to the surface and feeling the rampaging ferocity of his animal
lust didn't frighten her. It...excited and challenged her.

She wanted to run through the woods, and she knew that
he would chase her.

The thrill of the chase.

And the sweet passion of surrender.

Charlotte increased her pace, listening to her own
ragged breathing. Was Lucas closing in on her? Her heart thudded
and skipped at the intensity of the game they were playing. It was
fierce. It was arousing. It felt dark and dangerous, but she wasn't
running because she was afraid. Her body had never felt so alive as
at this moment. Every nerve and muscle was on fire, burning and
aching. The light of the full moon pierced cleanly through the gaps
in the canopy, creating pools of shimmering light on the forest
floor. Bathed in the moon's silver light, the forest was well lit
and hauntingly beautiful.

Even as she ran, Charlotte was aware of the lush, ripe
flowers and fruits all around her. The scent of night blooming
forest flowers and sweet fruit swirled in the air. There was the
sound of a waterfall in the distance, and Charlotte instinctively
followed the sound. Cocking her head, she listened to the sound of
falling water and began to make her way towards it. She kept moving
until she caught a shimmer through the shadows. Pushing through the
thick undergrowth, she parted the curtain of vines and heart-shaped
leaves, and gasped. Sparkling diamonds cascaded down the towering
rock face and the smell of fresh, clean water made her inhale
greedily. She could hear the calls and chirps of insects and small
animals, and the songs of various birds. This place was brimming
with life.

Breathlessly, she braced herself against a tree trunk
and closed her eyes. She could feel the soft spray from the
waterfall on her face as she lifted her face and arms. Her fingers
brushed against some curling vines and she stretched her arms high
over her head to grasp the vines, luxuriating in their thick, velvety
texture. She exhaled a slow sigh as her body began to relax. She
was rotating her wrists slowly, letting the velvety vines twine
around her wrists and hands. The spray from the waterfall felt cool
and refreshing against her hot, sweat-slicked skin. There was no
other sound but the sounds of nature.

“
Charlotte.”

She jumped at Lucas's low voice. He was standing
silently behind the tree, and as she blinked, he prowled slowly
forward, until he was standing in front of her, his solid body just
inches from hers. His shirt was gone, torn and ripped from his body.
His sweatpants were slung low on his narrow hips and she saw a line
of hair trail down from his navel and disappear into his waistband.
As she stared at his rock hard body, at his beautifully defined
muscles, she unconsciously licked her lips, and molten heat pooled
low in her body. Lucas's nostrils flared as he inclined his head
towards her. “I can scent your need,” he growled.

She squirmed and let out a shuddering breath.

“
Charlotte.” His hazel eyes glowed with a
fierce, hungry light as he breathed her name. She shivered and
pressed her back against the tree trunk. He looked so much, too
much like a predator, a hunter. But now, there was nowhere to run.

She was acutely aware of the predatory animal lurking
just beneath the surface of the man, a dangerous, alpha wolf. She
tried to twist away, but suddenly his hands were on her waist,
holding her, caressing her and pulling her inexorably towards him.

“
Lucas,” she said breathlessly, as she
tilted up her face to see golden wolf eyes staring out of that
handsome human face. The wolf growled and Lucas slanted his lips
across hers in a hungry, scorching kiss. The wolf was ravenous,
predatory, demanding.

She parted her lips with a gasp and he immediately
pressed her closer to him and deepened the kiss. She could feel
every hard surface and angle of him, his muscular arms and legs, his
ripped body and his demanding erection stabbing into her soft belly.
Her eyes fluttered and she moaned against his mouth. Lucas swept his
tongue across her lower lip and pushed his tongue deep into her mouth
to taste her. Groaning, she melted against him, her thighs clenching
with need.

Gripping her body possessively, Lucas kissed her so hard
that she almost lost consciousness. Finally, he drew back with a
hiss.

She opened her eyes to the light, hazy spray of the
waterfall. The water droplets seemed to sizzle on her heated skin.
Through the cooling sensation of the water, she felt hot breaths on
her cheek, against her ear, on her neck. She felt a firm, warm
pressure on her wrists, against her body, pressing her back against
the tree trunk.

She blinked up to see Lucas's lips hovering so near her
own, his face angled to kiss her again. He was holding both her
wrists above her head in one hand, while his other hand was moving
down her hips to her thigh.

Charlotte shivered at his touch, and her body arched
towards him. She blinked up at him, marveling at how handsome he
was. His lashes were dark and long over his half closed eyes, his
skin tanned and covered with a light sheen of moisture. Such a
powerful, hot, virile male, and he wanted her.

Her whole body was buzzing and thrumming with heat and
anticipation. She panted and writhed against him, loving the dark
desire that flashed across his eyes. She felt a surge of triumph and
power that she could tempt and arouse Lucas to such a degree, teasing
him to the point of madness.

But you could only play with a wolf for so long.

Lucas raised his head to the moon and howled. It was a
long, lone note that sounded so beautiful and powerful. It was a
rousing sound, a sound that ignited every nerve in her body.

It was a mating call. A call her body and heart ached
to answer.

She threw back her head and let out a cry, in answer to
his. Heat exploded from her core and she quivered with a fierce need
and desire. She needed Lucas. She wanted him. Now.

Lucas growled at the sight of Charlotte writhing against
the tree trunk, her arms stretched high over her head in sweet
surrender. Her hair was a tangle around her face, and she was
panting with exertion and need. The spray of the waterfall mingled
with her sweat to form a mesmerizing, almost unearthly sheen on her
skin. She looked beautiful, ethereal, exquisite. Her feminine
scent, the unmistakable scent of her arousal, was heady and
intoxicating, and it was driving him out of his mind. Lucas wanted
to take her right now, hard and fast. Her generous breasts were
heaving and straining and threatening to spill out of that teasing
t-shirt.

“
Lucas...” she rasped, her voice trembling
with need.

He could feel the raw power of her desire, and knew the
unbearable ache and hunger that was consuming and tormenting her.
“Lucas, please!” she panted, her emerald eyes going wild
with desire and desperation.

Lucas pushed his claws out. Undressing her slowly was
out of the question. Slashing his claws down that frustrating
fabric, he ripped that offending top away to reveal her bare,
quivering breasts. His erection pulsed painfully in his pants as he
grabbed one creamy breast in his palm and squeezed. God, the feel of
her, the softness and sweetness of her in his hand. He wanted to
taste her, lick and bite her, mark her completely as his.

Her green eyes shone like emeralds in the moonlight, her
long lashes glistening with sparkling water droplets. Lucas ran the
back of his large hand down her cheek and over those plump lips.
“You are so beautiful,” he whispered hoarsely. “So
perfect.”

Charlotte inhaled a shuddering breath as he leaned in.
Her eyelids fluttered and she shook her head from side to side, the
undeniable need to mate overwhelming all her senses, or what remained
of them.

He closed his eyes at the overpowering, rich scent of
her need, her hunger for him. When she tilted up her face to him, he
took her mouth immediately in a harsh, demanding kiss. This was no
soft, tentative kiss. It was all heat, all demand, all painful
hunger. His lips crushed against hers, tasting her, taking her. She
gasped at his fierce, unrelenting demand, before melting against him.
When she moaned into his mouth, he gripped her pebbled nipples
between his fingers and plucked them. He pinched and rolled them,
feeling them lengthen and harden further. As he kneaded her breasts,
he felt her erect nipples stab into his palms and he groaned. God,
he didn't know how long he could last. His lips moved down her neck,
her bare round shoulder, her chest. He flicked her hard nipples with
his thumbs and her body bucked.
So sensitive, so responsive.

She arched her back with a whimpered plea, and he knew
she wanted his mouth on her. Lucas licked his lips, savoring the
sight of her creamy skin and dark, glistening nipples. With a growl,
he lowered his mouth to one breast and suckled her hard. Sucking and
nibbling at her soft, sweet flesh, he circled her nipple with his
tongue before licking and flicking the hard nubs until she thrashed
her head from side to side. He moved to her other breast and laved
his tongue over the swell of her breast to her nipple. When he
nipped that dark pebble between his teeth and tugged at it, she began
to pant, her hips rolling against his leg. He closed his eyes and
sucked hard, his fingers clamping down on her other nipple to squeeze
it forcefully. The burst of pain and pleasure through her body made
her jerk wildly against him.

A gasped plea escaped her lips. “Lucas...please,
oh please...”

His mate was begging him, begging him to ease her, sate
her, fill her.

His claws sliced out and an instant later, her leather
pants were in shreds around her ankles. He yanked her boots from her
feet and threw them over his shoulder. There would be no more
running, no more running from him.

Charlotte was now completely naked before him. His wolf
eyes raked down her bare, curvy body. God, she was so beautiful.

Her hair was matted and plastered to her face and neck,
and her body was undulating against the tree trunk. Her breasts were
heaving with her heavy breathing and she was rubbing her thighs
together, trying to ease the ache between them. She needed him. She
jerked her hands against the vines, trying to free her hands so she
could grab him. She strained her body against him, her hot, wet body
scorching his.