The Fairy Tales Collection (28 page)

“I’m sorry.”  Rowan gave him an apologetic
look as he parked in front of her apartment building and she continued to text. 
“I know this is horribly rude but my cousin is having a bit of a crisis.  Two
more minutes, okay?”

He nodded and shut off his truck, staring
moodily at her apartment building.  If she had found it odd that he hadn’t
needed directions to her place, she hadn’t mentioned it.  He had driven by her
place more times than he cared to admit, always at night and always when he was
feeling particularly lonely, and had even occasionally parked and watched her
window.  He would berate himself the entire time, calling himself a stalker and
a dirty old man, but about once a month he would find himself back at her
place, hoping to catch a glimpse of her sweet face through the window.

“Okay,” she shoved her phone into her purse
and dropped it on the floor before smiling at him, “I’m sorry, Rafe.”

“That’s fine.”  He cleared his throat as
she studied the empty street.  It was almost one thirty and her street was
quiet and dark.  He gave her an alarmed look when she slid across the front
seat of his truck toward him.

“Rowan, don’t – “ he began.

His breath hissed out between his teeth
when she straddled him, wedging her slender body between the steering wheel and
his body. 

“Don’t – “

“Shh,” she said and pulled her shirt over
her head.  He stared at her breasts and she pressed a soft kiss against his
mouth as lust roared to life within him.

“I want you so much, Rafe,” she whispered. 
“It’s all I can think about.”

“Me too,” he admitted in a harsh groan and
she smiled at him before unclipping her bra and dropping it to the seat beside
them.

“Rowan,” he looked out the windshield
behind her, “we can’t do this right here.  Someone could walk by.”

“No one will walk by,” she said.  “And
really you’re leaving me no choice since you won’t come into my apartment.”

She cupped her breasts and pulled lightly
on her nipples as his hands gripped her hips and tugged up her skirt.

She leaned forward and he pressed a soft
kiss on the bite mark on her breast.  “Jesus, Rowan, this is really bruised.”

She smiled a little, “It was a little
intense yesterday.  I don’t mind, honey, really I don’t.”

“I mind,” he said. “I should have been
gentler.  I lost control and I – “

“I like it when you lose control,” she said
before brushing her nipple against his lips.  He kissed it lightly before
tracing a circle around it with the tip of his tongue.  Her skirt was around
her waist now and he kneaded her naked ass as he sucked on her nipple before
kissing his way up her chest.

“Move your hair,” he whispered.

She hesitated and he growled, “Move your
hair.”

She pushed that gorgeous red curtain of
hair back and he inhaled sharply at the hickey on her neck.  “Fuck!”

“Don’t, Rafe,” she said immediately before
laughing softly.  “I find it hilarious that you gave me a hickey.”

“I’ll never hurt you again, Rowan, I
promise,” he whispered before licking the dark mark on her neck.

“I know,” she said soothingly.  “Take off
your shirt.”

She helped him tug it over his head and he
moaned and cupped the back of her head when she pressed kisses across his
chest. 

“I love your body,” she whispered.

He jerked when she nipped the base of his
throat.  “I’m going to fuck you, Rafe Taggert, and you’re going to let me.”

“Yes,” he muttered.  “God, yes.”

“Before we do,” she said, “it’s obviously a
little late for this talk but I’m clean and I’m on the pill.”

“I’m clean too,” he said.  “I’m sorry.  I
should have been using a condom.”

She gave him an embarrassed look.  “Until
you, I’ve never once let a man fuck me without a condom.  I seem to lose my
goddamn mind when I’m around you.”

He cupped her face.  “After tonight, we
can’t do this again.  You know that, right?”

She sighed.  “I know you believe that.”

“Rowan, I – “

She shook her head and rubbed her breasts
against his chest.  “We don’t need to talk about this, Rafe.  I know all your
reasons.”

She reached down and unbuttoned his jeans. 
He watched, lust flooding through him, as she unzipped his jeans and tugged out
his cock.  She stroked it lightly for a few minutes, until he was moaning under
his breath and his hips were rising and falling, and then ran her thumb through
the bead of precum at the tip.

“I love the way you taste, Rafe,” she said
before licking her thumb.

“Fuck,” he muttered.  He lifted her and she
guided his cock into her wet core.  She sank down onto him with a hoarse moan
and braced her hands against the window and the headrest as he bent his dark
head and teased her nipple with his tongue and teeth.

His hands clamped down on her hips and he
thrust rapidly as she bit at her bottom lip and panted loudly.

“Touch yourself,” he demanded. 

“So bossy,” she said but slipped her hand
between their bodies and rubbed obediently at her clit.

“Are you sure you can’t come up to my
apartment, Rafe?”  She panted as she circled her clit.  “I have a really
comfortable bed.”

“I can’t,” he groaned.  “Please, Rowan.”

She clenched around him and he muttered a
curse before thrusting even harder.  She gasped and met each of his strokes
eagerly as she rubbed her clit firmly.  She leaned forward and nibbled at his
ear as he threaded his fingers through her hair.

“I love your hair,” he rasped.  “I love
your body and your hot little pussy.”

She moaned into his ear, her fingers
digging into his broad shoulders.  “I love fucking you.”

He groaned harshly and twitched when she
bit him on the base of the throat.  She started to suck and he tried to pull
her away.  “Rowan, stop that.”

“It’s only fair,” she said.  “You’ve marked
me and now I’m marking you.”

“I am way too fucking old for hickeys,” he
said desperately as she sucked harder.  “Stop.”

“Make me,” she laughed and then squeezed
him with her inner muscles.

“Fuck!”  He arched his back and she bit him
again before making a soft noise of satisfaction.

“There,” she said happily. 

He wound her hair around his hand and
pulled until her throat was bared to him.  He placed kisses across her neck as
she rubbed her clit rapidly.

“Going to mark me again, Rafe?”  She panted. 
“Show all the other boys that I’m yours?”

She was way closer to the truth than she
knew.  Wolves marked their mates and right now his wolf was howling at him to
mark the soft, warm female riding him.  He tore his mouth from her throat,
keeping his fangs from popping out by sheer willpower alone, and shook his
head. 

“No,” he rasped.  “You’re not mine.”

She cupped his face and sucked on his lower
lip.  “I am.”

His cock swelled inside of her at her words
and he could barely stop from coming. 

“Don’t say that,” he muttered.

“Don’t say what?”  She asked.  “Don’t say
that I’m yours?  That from this moment on I’ll never let anyone but you fuck
me?”

His wolf howled happily and he dragged her
closer, fucking her rapidly as she licked his lips and kissed him.  He thrust
his tongue into her mouth and she sucked at it as he continued to plunge in and
out of her.  Her scent filled his truck, driving him mad with the need to claim
her, and she nipped his bottom lip before smiling at him.

“I’m yours, Rafe, and you’re mine.  Tell me
you won’t fuck anyone else but me.”

“I won’t fuck anyone else,” he said.  “I
can’t.”

“Because I’m the only one you want.”

“Yes,” he moaned. 

“You’re the only one I want too,” she
whispered.  “Always, Rafe.”

He made a short howl at her words, his hips
thrusting up, and she rubbed her clit as his hot seed soaked into her.  He was
shuddering and gasping beneath her and she kissed him deeply before tugging
lightly at her clit.  Her climax rolled through her, and he howled again as she
clenched around him and milked the last of his seed from him.

She collapsed against him and he rubbed her
back as their breathing slowed and returned to normal.  Too soon for him, she
straightened and tugged her shirt over her head before stuffing her bra into her
purse.  She wiggled off his lap and straightened her skirt.  He waited for her
to invite him in – God help him, he would say yes when she did – but she only
smiled at him and pressed a soft kiss against his mouth.

“Thanks for the ride home, Mr. Taggert.”

She opened the door and slid out of the
truck, slamming it shut behind her before walking quickly to her apartment
building.  She paused at the door and waved at him and he waited until the
light came on in her apartment before starting the truck and driving away.  His
wolf was making small, pleased growls, but his mind was reeling with what he
had said to her.  He touched the mark on his neck.  Why the hell had he let her
do that?

Because you wanted her to mark you.  You
wanted to feel like you were a part of a pack again.

He jerked, the truck weaving on the road
and gripped the steering wheel tightly.  He didn’t need a pack.  He was doing
just fine on his own and he definitely didn’t need to make Rowan a part of his
pack.  She was human and she would never understand his wolf side.  His mother
had tried for years and look how that turned out.  Fear trickled down his
spine.  He couldn’t let Rowan any closer. 

“How’s avoiding old Red over there going?” 
Duncan sat down next to him and Rafe scowled before his gaze drifted back to
Rowan.

Bennett joined them, setting three beers
down on the table, and grinned at Rafe.  “Why does Rowan reek of you?”

“You know why,” Rafe growled.  It had been
two days since he’d had sex with Rowan in his truck but his scent would linger
on her for a few more days.  The thought made him ridiculously happy.  Not that
his former packmates ever frequented Gaston’s, but on the off-chance they did
they would know immediately that Rowan belonged to him.

“Can’t say that I blame you, wolf boy,”
Duncan said.  “Rowan’s a hottie.”

Jealousy tore through him and he growled
angrily at Duncan as his eyes turned jade.

“Knock it off, Duncan,” Bennett said. 
“He’s just trying to get a rise out of you, Rafe.”

“I am,” Duncan agreed cheerfully.  “Is that
a hickey on your neck?”

“No!” Rafe touched the hickey that Rowan
had given him before yanking his collar over it.

“You let her give you a hickey?”  Duncan
grinned at him. “That’s delightful.”

“Shut up, Duncan,” Rafe said through
gritted teeth. 

Duncan laughed.  “You know what I find
weird?  Human women bite way more than shifter women during sex.  What’s up
with that?”

Bennett grinned at him as Rafe sighed
loudly.

“It’s not that I mind,” Duncan said.  “Ella
can do whatever she wants to me in bed and you won’t hear me complaining, and
obviously Rafe doesn’t mind but – “

“Sex with Rowan was a mistake and it’s not
going to happen again,” Rafe said.

“No?  Then why are you sitting here at
Gaston’s watching her like you want to gobble her up?”  Duncan asked.

Rafe didn’t reply.  He had tried to stay
away and had succeeded last night but tonight, after pacing his house
restlessly and his wolf howling incessantly at him, he had driven to Gaston’s. 
Just seeing Rowan soothed his wolf enough for it to finally shut the fuck up
and give him a moment’s peace.

He stiffened when Rowan approached their
table.  His wolf growled angrily when she squeezed Duncan’s shoulder and kissed
Bennett on the cheek. 

“Hey, guys.  Your lovely ladies joining you
tonight?”

Bennett nodded.  “Yes, they should be here
any minute.”

“Good,” Rowan said.  “Hello, Rafe.  How are
you?”

“Hello, Rowan,” he replied.  “Good.  You?”

“Can’t complain,” she said.  She gave him a
flirty little smile but didn’t touch him before walking away and he rolled his
eyes at the petulant little whimper his wolf made.

“Now that’s some sexual tension,” Duncan
said before taking a drink of beer.

“Shut up, Duncan,” Rafe muttered.

Before Duncan could reply, Belle and Ella
joined them. 

“Hello, beautiful,” Duncan said with a grin
as Ella sat down beside him. 

Ella leaned forward and pressed a kiss
against his mouth before making a face.  “Ugh, beer.”

Belle took Bennett’s hand.  “Dad’s doing
well.  He said to say hello.”

“Good,” Bennett said.  He placed his hand on
Belle’s thigh and squeezed it lightly.

“Hi, Rafe,” Belle said cheerfully.  “How
are you?”

“I’m good.  It’s nice to see you.”

“Nice to see you too.  It’s been a while
since you’ve been to Gaston’s,” she said innocently.

Rafe cleared his throat before grabbing his
half-empty beer and drinking the rest of it.  “I’ve been, uh, busy lately.”

“Doing what?”  Ella asked sweetly as Duncan
snickered loudly.

“Uh…”

Rafe trailed off as Rowan stopped at their
table again.  “How are my favourite girls?”

Belle grinned at her.  “We’re good.”

Rowan placed a glass of wine in front of
each of them.  “I assumed you wanted your usual?”

“Thank you, Ro,” Ella said.

“You bet,” Rowan said.  She stood next to
Rafe and picked up his empty beer bottle.  “Another beer, Rafe?”

“Here,” Bennett said.  He slid the third
beer across the table.  “I got this for you, Rafe.”

“Thanks,” Rafe said.  He tore his gaze from
Rowan’s chest and took another drink of beer as Rowan winked at Belle and Ella
and walked away.

Jesus, he needed to get control of himself. 
His face reddened when Ella and Belle gave him matching grins and he took
another drink of beer.  They wouldn’t be able to smell his wolf on Rowan but no
doubt she had told them what had happened between them.  He picked at the label
on the beer bottle.

Don’t be a dirty old man
, he told himself fiercely. 
Have some goddamn self-control.

* * *

“You are not giving that asshole Marty a
massage,” Duncan said heatedly as his eyes glowed yellow.

It was two hours later and the five of them
were still at Gaston’s.  Rafe knew he needed to leave - just watching Rowan in
her short skirt made him want to take her to his den - but his wolf had been
quiet for the last two hours and it was a much-needed respite from its usual
whimpering and whining to find Rowan.

Ella rolled her eyes and squeezed Duncan’s
arm.  “Calm down, honey.”

“I mean it, Ella.  I don’t want you going
anywhere near him,” Duncan said.

“One – I told him no and two – stop with
the caveman attitude,” she said.

Duncan growled at her and she squeezed his
arm again.  “Growling at me is not going to get you what you want.”

“That guy is such a dick,” Duncan said.

“He is,” Ella replied.  “Which is why I
said no when he tried to book a massage appointment.”

She glanced at Bennett.  “Speaking of massage
– do you mind if I bump up our appointment tomorrow by half an hour?  Marjorie
Wilkins phoned earlier and she insisted on a two o’clock appointment.”

“Sure,” Bennett said. 

“Thanks so much,” Ella said.  “I appreciate
it and if it was anyone else but Mrs. Wilkins I wouldn’t ask but it’s
incredibly difficult to communicate with her over the phone.  I swear she
deliberately doesn’t wear her hearing aids when she – “

Rafe’s loud growl interrupted her and the
four of them turned to stare at the wolf shifter.  He was sitting up straight,
his eyes bright jade, and they followed his gaze.

“Uh oh,” Belle said quietly.

“Who is that?”  Duncan asked.

“Bruno Morris,” Belle said.  “We went to
school with him.  He and Marla Finton started dating just after high school and
they got engaged last year.  Then he caught Marla sleeping with some guy from
Newport.  They broke up three months ago and he’s been hitting on every woman
in town since.  I’m surprised it took him so long to get to Rowan.  He used to
flirt with her like crazy in high school.”

“You know,” Ella said with an impish grin,
“I didn’t realize your eyes were green, Rafe.  I always thought they were
hazel.”

Duncan cleared his throat loudly before
giving Rafe a pointed look.  “Rafe, how’s the landscaping business going?”

Rafe ignored him and Duncan gave Bennett a
look of alarm as the hair on Rafe’s jaw noticeably thickened.

“Rafe!”  Bennett said loudly.  “Maybe you
should head out.”

“No,” Rafe snarled. 

“She can take care of herself,” Ella said
quickly as Bruno reached out and tugged lightly on Rowan’s long hair.  “She’s a
really good boxer, Rafe.”

“Fuck,” Bennett said in a low voice as
Bruno moved closer to Rowan, trapping her against the bar.  He leaned down and
whispered something into her ear.  She gave him a polite but distant smile and
shook her head no before tapping him lightly on the chest.  He didn’t move and
with another loud growl, Rafe abruptly stood and stalked toward them.

“That dude is totally going to wolf out,”
Belle said.

Duncan jerked and stared at her in
surprise.  “How do you know Rafe is a wolf shifter?”  He stared accusingly at Bennett. 
“You can’t just be telling – “

“I didn’t,” Bennett interrupted.  “I didn’t
say anything.”

“Oh please,” Ella said, “it’s more than
obvious.  His eyes are glowing and he’s growling non-stop.  Plus, Rowan gave us
some details that made it pretty clear to both Belle and me that he’s a wolf.”

“Sweetheart, you can’t say anything to
Rafe.  If he finds out that you know he’s a wolf, he’ll freak out.  Okay?” 
Duncan said.

“I won’t say anything,” Ella said.

“Shit.” Bennett stood up.  “She won’t have
to say anything.  Rafe’s about to lose it and everyone in the goddamn bar will
know he’s a wolf shifter.  C’mon, Duncan.  We need to stop him.”

* * *

Rowan sighed irritably when Bruno didn’t
move.

“C’mon, Ro, just one date,” he wheedled as
he tugged on her hair again.

“I said no, Bruno.  And stop touching my
hair before I punch you,” she said with a sweet smile.

“I like it rough.”  Bruno grinned.

She sighed loudly.  “I’m not interested in
you.  Now move so I can get back to work.”

He took her arm in a light grip when she
tried to move past him.  “Just one date, Ro.  Hell, you’ve fucked half the guys
in this town, I don’t get why you won’t give me a chance.  Everyone knows you’re
a slut.”

“Oh my God, why do guys always try the slut
shaming card?”  Rowan laughed.  “Just because a girl likes fucking doesn’t make
her a slut, you shithead.”

Bruno turned red.  “I’m not slut shaming. 
I want to fuck you.  Jesus.  Get that through your stupid little – “

“Let her go.”

He turned his head and stared in surprise
at Rafe before scowling.  “Get lost, Taggert.  This doesn’t concern you.”

“She’s mine.  Now let her go before I break
your goddamn arm,” Rafe snarled at him.

Bruno stared at Rowan.  “You’re fucking
him?  So, what, you go through all the guys your own age in town and decide to
start fucking old men?”

Rafe, rage flooding through him, reached
for the man.  Before he could grab him, Bruno’s head snapped back and Rafe
blinked in surprise.  Blood was pouring from Bruno’s nose and he cupped his
hand over it before staring at Rowan.

“You broke my fucking nose,” he choked out.

Rowan shrugged before uncurling her fist
and shaking out her hand.  “Stop talking shit about Rafe.”

“Bitch!”  Bruno snapped and lunged for her.

He squealed in surprise when Rafe’s hands
landed on his shoulders and he was lifted off his feet.  He made another
girlish squeal when he was thrown across the room and landed with a crash into
an empty table.  The table collapsed under his weight and he moaned loudly as
Rafe started toward him.

Rafe, his blood pounding in his ears and
his wolf snarling and snapping at the man who dared to touch his mate, made a
harsh growl before grabbing Bruno by the legs.  He started to drag the man
forward and snarled when Bennett and Duncan appeared and tore him away from the
frightened man.

“Rafe, enough!”  Bennett snapped.  He and
Duncan struggled to hold Rafe back as the wolf shifter made a low howl and
fought to tear his way free of them.

“Fuck, we need to get him out of here,”
Duncan said quietly.  Rafe was starting to swell and Bennett quickly stepped in
front of him, blocking Bruno’s view, when Rafe bared his fangs.

“Jesus, Rafe.  Control it!”  He muttered.

“Let me go, bear shifter, or I’ll tear you
apart,” Rafe snarled in a low voice.

“Have you gone fucking insane?”  Duncan
hissed softly at him.  “You’re about to fucking shift.”

Rafe ignored him.  His wolf was very close
to the surface now and he wanted – needed – to let it free.  He needed to show
that asshole and everyone else in the bar what happened to men who touched his
mate.

“Rafe, stop.”  Rowan’s low voice caught his
wolf’s attention and as she stepped between him and Bennett and cupped his face
his wolf made a pleased whine at her touch.

“Stop, honey.  I can take care of myself.”

“If he touches you again,” Rafe said
heatedly, “I’ll kill him.”

Rowan smiled and stroked his cheek with her
thumb.  “That’s awfully sweet, Rafe Taggert, but going to prison for murder
isn’t a smart life goal.”

“This isn’t a joke!”  Rafe barked.  “I
don’t want him touching you.”

“He won’t,” she said soothingly. 

He stared at her, lust and anger warring
within him.  He wanted to kill Bruno.  He wanted to throw Rowan over his
shoulder and take her to his den.  Hell, he wanted to push her up against the
wall and fuck her in front of everyone so they would know she was his.

“You belong to me,” he said loud enough for
everyone in the bar to hear.