Claimed by the Mate, Volume 1 (7 page)

Shrugging, she smiled and said, “I haven't stopped you before, have I?”

“No,” he said. “You certainly haven't.”

She bit her lips to keep from laughing, but Brad grabbed her around the waist and lifted her onto his lap, moving so quickly she didn't have time to come up with a reason for him not to pick her up as if she weighed nothing at all.

And wasn't that a nice surprise … he was definitely strong, and he made her feel so—well, not small. She would never think of herself as small, but he made her feel feminine. Desirable.

His big arms came around her, large, warm hands stroking her bare back above the damp towel. Her breasts, while covered in the towel, were pressed against his broad chest, while his lips covered hers in the sweetest of kisses. He nibbled at her mouth and ran his tongue along the seam of her lips until she parted for him.

He deepened the kiss until “sweet” wasn't the word that came to mind at all. His tongue tangled with hers, his lips moved over her lips, but his hands … his hands had somehow slipped beneath the towel to stroke her naked back, and it was all so amazing, the pressure of his mouth, the sensual delight of his big hands roaming the length of her spine, stroking the flare of her hips.

Her breathing grew labored and so did Brad's. She felt the thick length of his erection against her hip and didn't complain at all when he lifted her once again, turning her so that she straddled his lap and that thick length rode between her legs, the soft fabric of his shorts hiding nothing as they connected beneath the rumpled towel.

He growled—that was the only sound she could compare it to—and tugged the thick towel from between them, freeing her breasts, her whole body, to his gaze. When she was entirely bare, he groaned, lifting her breasts, one in each hand, palming the fullness of them, pinching her tender nipples until Cherry was the one moaning.

Not from the pain—this was the sweetest pain she'd ever known. She felt each pinch like a bolt of lightning streaking from her nipples to her clit. Brad dipped his head and took one nipple in his mouth, sucking hard, using his tongue and teeth, while he continued pinching and kneading her other breast, driving her higher, further, than any man had taken her before.

She wasn't a virgin, but she wasn't experienced, either. Even so, what Brad was doing, what he made her feel, was so incredible she didn't want him to stop.

He lifted her again and she thought he might push his shorts down and enter her, but they weren't using any protection and she had a moment of regret that they'd have to stop.

Except he laid her on the bed with her legs over the edge, and then he knelt on that small braided rug, gently pried her legs apart, and merely gazed at her for what felt like a very long time.

She pushed herself to a sitting position and he glanced up and grinned at her.

“Dinner might be a few minutes late tonight,” he said. “I'm starting with my appetizer.”

She was trembling when he leaned close and kissed her with lips already damp from their kisses. Trembling so hard her arms wouldn't hold her like this, she lay down on the bed with a soft whimper of absolute pleasure and complete surrender.

He slipped his hands beneath her and lifted her closer to his mouth.

Used his tongue and teeth the way he had when he'd kissed her mouth, except now he was licking between those nether lips, using his tongue to circle her clit in a steady swirl that took her so close to the edge that she bucked her hips. His fingers tightened on her butt and she wanted him inside her, wanted to feel the full, hard thrust of him, his solid weight over her.

Instead, he used his tongue and then his fingers, slipping his hands from her bottom, pinching her nipple with one set of fingers, while thrusting two fingers deep inside her.

The sensations rocked her from her breasts to her crotch, spread to her fingers and toes. She cried out and arched against his mouth, flying apart in a most spectacular explosion of sensations. Totally caught in her climax yet so aware of Brad, of his strength, of his flawless touch as he laved between her legs with the flat of his tongue, licking the fluids of her release.

She heard his deep groan, felt the tight clasp of his fingers on her as her body finally began to relax from the taut spasm of her climax. She should have been embarrassed—she'd never before put on a show like that for any man, but then, no other man had ever done this to her before. She lay there gasping for breath while Brad eased her down. Then he crawled up over her naked body until she felt the damp press of his erection between her legs.

She opened her eyes and he was right there, smiling at her, those dark brown eyes twinkling.

“I have to go,” he said. Then he blushed.

“I wish you could stay. I mean, that was just … but you didn't—”

His blush went even deeper. “Actually,” he said. “I did.”

Cherry frowned. He still had his shorts on. She was the only one who had climaxed.

Wasn't she?

“I need to go back to my cabin and get a quick shower so I can go to the lodge and take care of the last minute details for dinner.” He kissed her and then pushed himself away from the bed. Away from Cherry. And when he stood, there was a decidedly dark stain on the front of his shorts.

He was still red in the face when he turned and walked into the bathroom. Cherry sat up and wrapped the towel around herself and then finger-combed her damp hair. She heard the water running, and a few minutes later Brad walked back into the room. He'd rinsed his shorts off and now, at least, the wet cotton was all the same color.

He walked up to Cherry, put his arms around her, and kissed her. “For what it's worth,” he said, “that was a first for me. I have never, not once, come all over myself while making a woman orgasm.” He kissed her again. “Now, when I tell you that you're hot and you turn me on, will you stop arguing with me?”

She had no words, not one, so she dumbly nodded as Brad kissed her once again and opened the door.

He paused there for a moment. “I almost forgot. I have a surprise for you tonight. Don't make plans, okay?”

She stared at him, still shaken from her climax. From the knowledge of his. “Okay.”

He shut the door and just like that he was gone. Cherry stood there for a full minute, staring at the closed door, thinking of how he'd made her feel. Smiling over what she'd made him feel.
It
might
have been a first for him, but it was definitely a first for her.

A truly handsome guy, the sexiest guy she'd ever met, lost control because of her.
Oh. My.
She sat down on the edge of the bed and laughed.

It was a long time before she stopped laughing.

And then she wondered what kind of surprise he had for her tonight.

Chapter 7

Cherry watched the small group sitting together at one end of the long table and wondered if she'd ever wipe the smile off her face. Steph was next to Wils, Christa had latched on to Ronan, and Brad hadn't left Cherry's side all evening. Just when she thought it couldn't get any better, Cain walked in, grabbed a couple of plates at the buffet, loaded them with enough food for at least four people, and sat on Cherry's opposite side.

The moment he sat, she turned, practically bouncing in her seat, and asked, “How are the pups? Are they okay? Is the mother okay?”

Cain paused, his fork filled with grilled salmon almost to his mouth. “Great, yes, and yes, and I'm starving. Give me a minute!”

Cherry sat back, laughing, as he neatly shoveled in salmon and rice, roast beef and potatoes, a couple of pieces of French bread, and an entire plate of Caesar salad. Conversation went on around them as before, though Cherry was fascinated that a man as trim and slim as Cain could polish off so much food in such a hurry—and still manage to do it with impeccable manners.

Finally, he pushed his plates away and sat back. “Okay, Cherry. Barring any unseemly belching, I can now give you an update.” He glanced toward Brad and both of them burst out laughing. “Hey,” Cain said, giving Brad and Cherry a look that said he was being terribly misunderstood and mistreated. “While you, Cherry, were out hiking through the woods with Wils and Ronan, with bounteous lunches, I'm sure, and Brad was here cooking and nibbling as he worked, I was watching over mama wolf and her pups. I haven't eaten since around six this morning.”

Brad held up both hands. “Did I say anything?”

Cherry shook her head and looked at Brad. “No, you didn't, but in defense of poor, mistreated Cain, here, I bet you were thinking of something horrible.” Then she turned toward Cain. “Okay, Cain. I defended you. Now I want to hear everything.”

“Well…” He grinned and then carefully wiped his mouth with his napkin, making Cherry wait even after she'd so graciously defended him. She was ready to throttle him.

“The pups are really healthy and strong in spite of the fact that they were born so late in the year. Generally, the mothers give birth in early spring, and it's almost June. The pack is healthy, so I imagine these little guys will do fine. The male brought Mama a couple of rabbits today, and she appears to have plenty of milk. The deer herd looks healthy, so there should be more than enough game for the pack next winter.”

As they talked, the dining room emptied out, until it was just the three of them. Christa and Ronan had left early with Steph and Wils. Another big, sexy guy named Evan had arrived and proceeded to put all the food away and clean up the dishes. When he left, Darnell went with him. Suni and Fred had grabbed a bottle of wine and the two of them left with Trak, each woman holding one of his hands. He'd winked at Brad and said they'd be in Fred's cabin if anyone needed him.

“Be sure and knock first,” he'd drawled as the girls dragged him out the door.

Which left Cherry here in the lodge, alone with two very hot men. Brad smiled at her. She read it as a smile that promised all sorts of things.

She just wished she had an idea what they were.

Brad stood and held out his hand for her. “Remember I told you I had something for you?”

Like she'd forget anything he said? Cherry nodded.

“Tonight, you get Cain.”

“What?” Cherry glanced from Brad to Cain and back at Brad. “What do you mean?”

“He's teasing you, Cherry.” Cain stood and held out his hand. “Though you're more than welcome to me, should you be interested.” He wriggled his eyebrows and then laughed. “Actually, Brad asked me to give you a massage tonight. He thought you might be sore after hiking up to Blackbird Lake. I'm the official masseur for Feral Passions, and tonight, gorgeous girl, now that I'm no longer starving, I will be at your service.”

“Oh. Wow…” She glanced at Brad and then at Cain and thought of what she and Brad had done earlier. She'd kind of hoped they'd continue on with that bit of entertainment, though a massage sounded really good. But Cain … he was just … wow. He was Brad's polar opposite in looks and demeanor but still way too sexy for her own good. Shaggy, sun-bleached hair curled over his collar that occasionally flopped into his eyes, a few days' growth of beard, a body just as toned and ripped as Brad's, though lean and rangy where Brad was solid muscle.

But what really made all of her inner muscles clench, what made him uniquely Cain, was an indefinable bad-boy vibe. It wasn't in anything he said or did—it just existed. Whether it was the loose-limbed swagger when he walked or the way his eyes were always moving, checking out his surroundings, he carried the vibe that he'd be a dangerous man to cross.

And an exceptionally bad boy in bed—in a very good way. She sucked in a breath and said, “Okay. Where?”

He had the sexiest smile. “Your cabin. I'll go and get my equipment out of the office. The table's on your front porch. I dropped it off before I came to dinner, so it's ready to go. Why don't you and Brad meet me there? I'll be about five minutes behind you, okay?”

“Go ahead and turn out the lights when you leave,” Brad said. He glanced at Cherry and she could have sworn she felt him touching her just from the heat in his dark-eyed gaze. “I'm not planning to come back here tonight.”

“Gotcha.” Cain winked. “See ya in a bit.”

Cherry barely remembered the walk to her cabin. Brad was beside her, holding her hand, Cain was on his way over. To give her a massage. With Brad there? She hadn't thought about that, about what it would be like to be on a massage table, barely covered in a towel, with two sexy men in the same room.

One of them would be touching her. The other already had, and she couldn't get that touching out of her mind. Her bra felt tighter; her nipples were taut little points growing more and more sensitive the closer they got to her cabin, until she felt as if they were two charged contacts channeling sexual energy directly to her clit.

She almost laughed when she realized how much she'd been thinking about sex all day.

Amazing what associating with sexy men could do to a girl's libido.

There was a big black case with a handle on top sitting on Cherry's front porch. She went to help Brad take it inside, but after trying to lift one end she quickly gave up. “This thing weighs a ton. How did Cain get it here by himself?” Cherry opened the door and reached for it again.

Brad waved her off. “It's all in how you lift it. Why don't you turn the light on and move your poor little feminine self out of the way.”

“Oh, you are so asking for it.” She laughed and then did exactly that. Brad grabbed the handle, picked the table up, and carried it inside. The only sign it was any kind of effort for him was the delicious bulge of his muscles.

He set the case in the open space between the bed and the kitchenette and opened it. More opportunity to watch his muscles flex. Cherry didn't think she could ever grow tired of watching him move. He was so comfortable with his body that he didn't seem the least bit awkward in the worn jeans that rode low on his hips and cupped his package in a perfectly praiseworthy manner. His faded T-shirt stretched so tightly, it molded his muscular chest as if he'd painted it on.