“I can think of a thousand things I would rather do to you,” he growled.
“Such as?” she spat out, her breasts heaving.
She couldn’t take it anymore, she wanted him. She wanted this. She didn’t want to think about Dimitri or the past or the outside world. Being this close to Rollo was driving her mad and she couldn’t take another second of her jaguar’s incessant growling. She just needed him now.
He grasped her between the legs and squeezed with a growl in her ear. Zoe let out a startled shriek, shock and arousal mingling and merging into something even more powerful. He leaned down and kissed her hard on the mouth, dipping his tongue between her lips without pause. His fingers swept under the hem of her panties, dipping through her slick outer lips and finding her ready opening. His fingers darted in and out of her pussy as his tongue darted in and out of her mouth.
Zoe strained against the bounds at her wrists, wanting to hold him and draw him closer to her. She moaned against his kiss, praying he wouldn’t stop. But he had to stop, and she had to get away from him. She couldn’t let him mark her or she would be forever bound to him. She would never be able to hide from him again. But how could she tell him to stop when it just felt so right? So perfect. Better than anything she’d ever experienced before.
It was real. Real, unadulterated pleasure. Zoe had been chasing pleasure, thrills, and excitement for her entire life. But this was it. This was the ultimate pleasure. She had never even imagined that being kissed and touched by her mate would be more thrilling than skydiving in Nepal or dancing till dawn in Amsterdam.
She groaned as the force of his pumping fingers brought her closer to climax. Rollo kissed down her neck and over her chest, pulling back the cup of her bra. As he sucked her nipple into his mouth and slid his fingers over her g-spot, Zoe erupted with a deep, throbbing orgasm. She moaned and her entire body tensed as the waves of pleasure radiated out from her core.
Rollo withdrew his fingers and kissed her cheek before he rolled away. Zoe lay panting and bound to the bed, her pleasure still clenching between her legs.
“Wait,” she panted. “Why did you stop?”
He rolled over and put his arm around her waist, pulling her close.
“You want more, little kitty,” he said into her ear. “Do you really want more? Do you want to feel my fangs deep in your neck and my cock deep in your cunt? Do you want to know what it feels like to be claimed by your mate? You’ll be bound to me by more than ropes. Are you ready for that?”
“No.”
“On second thought, maybe I should just do it,” he said raking his sharp teeth over the flesh of her neck. “Then I’d be able to read you. I would know everything.”
“You and I both know it doesn’t work like that,” she said.
He pulled away and stared at her in the eyes. “I might not get any hard evidence against Ivanov, but at least I would know more than I know now. More than you’re telling me.”
“Rollo, please let me go. Don’t you understand how much I want you? If I could have a life here on Fate Mountain with you, I can’t even imagine how good it would be. I can’t let myself imagine that. There’s no way it could ever work.”
“Why wouldn’t it work, Zoe? I can help you out of whatever trouble you’re in if you just tell me now. I can find a way. The man you’ve been working for is an evil person. He should be put behind bars. Telling me the truth is what’s best for everyone.”
“You don’t understand, Rollo. You won’t be able to catch him. He’ll kill me, and you. I cannot escape him.”
“Why do you fear him so much? He’s a criminal, like any other. I’ve been putting men like him behind bars my entire career. He hurt you, didn’t he?” Rollo stood from the bed and picked up the buck knife, showing it to Zoe. She recoiled and squeezed her eyes closed. “He did hurt you. And you’re so traumatized by it that you aren’t thinking clearly.”
“I’m fine,” she said, a tear running down her cheek.
“No you aren’t,” he said, walking over to the bed to cut the ropes that tied her down. “I’m going to take you back to the station and book you the right way. I can’t do this anymore. I tried to protect you from the law and from yourself. But you wouldn’t let me in. I refuse to hold you like this a moment longer.”
Zoe sat up in the bed feeling exhausted and confused. All she wanted to do right now was sleep beside Rollo and feel his warm body against hers just one time, before it was all over.
“I don’t want to go to the station,” she whispered, reaching out to him.
Rollo walked towards her and knelt beside her in the bed. “What do you want, Zoe?”
She ran her hand up his muscled arm. “All I want is you.”
Chapter 12
Rollo melted like butter under Zoe’s gentle touch. He crept into the bed and held her in his arms under the warm patchwork quilt. Her body was limp with exhaustion, and he pulled her closer as her head lolled against his chest.
“I’m so tired, Rollo,” she said. “I can’t fight anymore. I can’t run. I just want to be close to you this one time before you take me in. Can we do that, just once?”
“Of course,” he cooed into her ear. “Sleep now, kitty.”
He held her in his arms as they drifted off into a peaceful sleep. He could feel her letting go, no longer resisting him. For the first time he felt as if he could trust her not to run away. The feeling of her body close to his, after everything they’d been through, was irresistible. But sleep beckoned his tired body too. They’d been awake all night, fighting each other. Finally, they could rest.
When they woke up later that afternoon, he pulled on his clothes and busied himself making coffee from the stash he kept up in his cabin. When Zoe emerged from the bed and pulled on her own clothes, she gratefully accepted a cup of the black brew and sat at the little table warming her hands. She took a sip and smiled as he sat down across from her.
“Are you ready to tell me about Dimitri Ivanov?” Rollo said.
He needed to know that he could trust her. They had to go back to the station soon. Before he took her in, he wanted to know that they were on the same page. He needed to know everything she knew, now, so he knew what to do going forward.
His intention was to keep Zoe from serving any jail time, catch Ivanov, and put him away for good. If Zoe could connect Ivanov to the jewel heist, Rollo could arrest him while he was on Fate Mountain. He didn’t want to waste any more time.
“I guess I’m ready,” Zoe said. “Whatever happens, happens.”
“Let’s start at the beginning,” Rollo said. “When did you first meet Ivanov?”
“It was three years ago in the South of France. I was at the beach resort with some friends and he was there. We started dancing and one thing led to another. For a long time, I was just part of his entourage. That lasted for about a year. Then when he realized I was a shifter, he started asking me to do heists for him. At first it was small things, someone’s handkerchief at a party. Or someone’s wallet at a restaurant. He was grooming me.
“Then he started involving me in smuggling valuables across international borders. My shifter status gives me diplomatic immunity in many countries, and he used that to his advantage. During one of my missions, I knew I was being tailed by security. If they’d caught me, they would have found the jewels, so I dropped them in the garbage container. When security did catch up to me, they took me in for questioning. No one ever found the jewels. They must have been taken out with the trash.”
“I’m sure Ivanov didn’t like that very much.”
“No, he didn’t.”
“When did you throw away the jewels?”
“That was about a year ago. Ever since, Dima has been holding it over me. It’s like a dark cloud over my soul. He relentlessly tortures me with the reminder of how much I owe him.
“The jewels I lost were worth a million dollars. What I took from Caitlin Somerset was of the approximate value. I hoped that it would be enoug
h to repay my debt and free me from him once and for all.
“This last year has been the worst of my life, until I came to Fate Mountain to prepare for the heist. I came to town to study how to get into Caitlin Somerset’s Louis the Fifteenth chest. Enrolling in the Bright Institute just gave me a perfect cover.
“Dima had stopped giving me money for expenses a long time ago. So I came here and waited until Caitlin brought her jewels to her Oregon estate where she keeps that chest. Dima found out about all this at an auction eight months ago. It really was a perfect cover. I never expected to find the love and friendship I found here.”
“You want to stay on Fate Mountain?”
“Of course I do.”
“And you’ve found love here?”
“Yes. I’ve found love here, silly bear.”
He looked into her eyes, wishing things could have been different.
“I’ve found love here too, darlin’. Love I want to show you with every bit of me.”
“Rollo,” she breathed.
He stood from the table and picked her up, lifting her up to wrap her legs around his waist. She clung to him, pressing her lips to his mouth. She’d told him everything about Dimitri Ivanov. But more importantly, she’d told him she loved him.
In a roundabout way. But it was good enough for him. All he wanted was her. They’d figure everything else out later. He carried her across the small room and slid her over the bed, kissing her as he pulled at her clothes. Why had they put on clothes?
He yanked her shirt over her head, watching her breasts pop out in that sexy as hell pink pushup bra. He unhooked her bra and brought her breasts out, cupping the sweet softness of her fucking hot curves. He rubbed her nipples in his hands as he kissed her, his cock bulging in his pants.
He pulled his shirt over his head and unzipped his fly but got distracted by the sight of her thighs in those fucking tight skinny jeans. Rollo pulled her jeans down her legs. She sat in front of him, breathless and naked. She reached up to his waistband, tugging it open. She licked her lips, pulling out his throbbing cock, looking him in the eye.
Rollo groaned as Zoe licked up the length of his cock as she cupped his balls in her soft little hand. Her mouth sank over the head, and he caressed her face with his hands, holding himself back from pounding into the warm depths of her mouth. Zoe moved up and down over him, sucking the full length of his erection as she stroked him with her hand.
“Holy fuck, Zoe,” Rollo growled.
He pushed her away from his cock, and slid his hand between her legs. So sweet. So wet. She moaned and her eyes grew wide. Rollo knelt down in front of her, his cock aching to sink deep into her ripe pussy.
He gripped her hips and flicked his tongue up the slit between her legs. Zoe groaned and fell on her back across the bed, giving him better access to her sweet nectar. He slid his tongue deeper into her folds, sliding over her entrance and focusing on her clit.
Zoe panted and moaned in his hands. His tongue plunged into her core and pressed against her bud. She ran her hands through his hair, begging for more. He had to taste her come on his mouth. Her sweet juices flowed like rain over his tongue and he lapped up every honeyed drop. Rollo slid his fingers inside her as he focused on licking her clit.
“Oh God,” Zoe shouted, her pussy clenching on his fingers as her clit twitched under his tongue.
The taste and smell of her filled his senses. He couldn’t hold back anymore. Her sweet softness was so open and ripe for him.
“I’m going to fuck you now,” he growled, gripping her hips and moving her up over the bed.
“Yes,” she breathed.
He crawled over the bed and slid inside her in one slick motion. The tight warmth of her pussy drowned his cock in a sea of pleasure. His bear roared, barreling toward the surface of his mind. Zoe tilted back her head, her eyes wide as he thrust into her again and again. Her jaguar’s voice cried through Zoe’s pink lips, and she threaded her fingers through his cropped hair.
She felt so fucking good, he wanted to come deep inside her and fill her with his seed. He hadn’t even thought about protection and she didn’t seem to care anymore than he did. More than that, he wanted to claim her and make her his forever. But Zoe had other ideas. She bucked up under him and turned him over on his back, coming up top to ride him.
Chapter 13
“Oh, kitty likes to take charge,” Rollo growled, pressing up under her.
Zoe ran her hand down his chest, moving in slow waves over Rollo’s powerful thrusts. He was so fucking gorgeous at that moment. His tanned skin glistened with a thick sheen of sweat from holding back his lust so long. His hips thrust harder as he held her under his control.
She threw her head back, reveling in the overwhelming thrill of his cock inside her. Each thrust brushed over every pleasure point inside her core as her clit bumped his pelvis.
Rollo grabbed her ass, bouncing her on his thick rod, her breasts weightless as she rode him. Zoe looked up at the ceiling of the cabin, lost in the sensation. Feeling Rollo so near, allowing herself to let go like this. It all came together in a warm crash of pleasure. She felt the rush of climax coming as she looked down at him.
She leaned in to kiss him, feeling his soul spiraling toward her. She smelled the scent of his grizzly in the nape of his neck.
She whispered, “I love you,” and sat back up on his lap, her orgasm throbbing around his thrusting shaft.
She extended her long, sharp claws and slashed Rollo across the chest. His eyes shot wide, the gashes weeping blood. He caught her hand, knowing exactly what the wound meant for a cat shifter. She’d marked him. He belonged to her now. She bent down and ran her tongue across the wound, lapping up his blood.
“That hurt, little kitty,” he growled, moving out from under her.
He used his brute strength to move her body so that she was leaned over the bed with her ass in the air. Rollo ran his hands over her body, and Zoe giggled, knowing exactly what he had planned. His hand slapped down across her ass, sending a sharp sting through her flesh.
She moaned, wanting more. Her pussy longed to be filled with him again. She wanted him to take her in every way possible. She wanted him to claim her, and she knew he would do it.
“Say you’re sorry,” he said, slapping her again.
“I’m not sorry,” she groaned as his hand fell over her ass, sending pleasure through her pussy.
“Not sorry for hurting me? Why not?”
“Because, I marked you. If that’s hurting you, I want you to hurt me too.”
He growled and spanked her again. Rollo made her feel like she’d finally found someone to give her the deepest thrills of her life. At the same time, he was the one who would keep her safe and love her forever.
He rubbed his cock over her wetness and thrust inside. She groaned, gripping the bedsheets. His strong hands held her hips, thrusting deeper and harder each time. The rhythm of his hips, drove her into an endless orgasm as she felt Rollo’s pleasure building inside her. The mark she’d put on him brought him deeper, closer to her body, mind, and soul.
His hands ran over her curves, cupping her breasts as he leaned over her. He brushed her hair to the side, moving in long slow thrusts behind her. Her chest pressed against the bed, and he whispered in her ear.
“I don’t want you to ever be sorry for marking me,” he said, his breath tingling over her skin.
His sharp teeth sank deep into her neck as his seed shot deep inside her. Zoe’s body sang with a quivering release and she cried in a silent scream. The pain of his bite mingled with the pleasure of his love. And all she wanted was more. She could feel him, his heart and soul, mingling with her own. Before he’d even retracted his teeth, their mutual bond beamed between them with a powerful force.
After he pulled away and they climbed into the bed together, he held her in his arms under the warmth of the blanket. They belonged together now, and it was the only place she wanted to be. Forever.
“This
is how it was meant to be,” he said, kissing the top of her head.
“I wish it could stay this way forever,” Zoe said, running her finger through the curly hair on his chest.
“Me too, kitty. We can stay awhile longer.”
Zoe let out a deep sigh and relaxed into Rollo’s chest. Making love to him had been amazing. They hadn’t even used protection, and she could have gotten pregnant if not for the birth control stick in her arm.
Just as she was thinking about her birth control methods, the piercing scream of a bullet sliced through the air. Zoe and Rollo sprang to their feet and then dropped to the floor.
“It must be Ivanov,” Rollo said.
“I thought we’d have more time,” Zoe whimpered.
Rollo moved across the cabin floor, keeping low to the ground until he came to the shotgun and pistol he’d brought in from the SUV.
“So did I,” Rollo said.
“You knew he was in town?” Zoe asked.
“I saw him at the lodge, kitty,” Rollo said. Another shot rang through the cabin, slicing right above their heads. “Your ex is a piece of work.”
Zoe growled at him as he crawled over to the front window. The ancient glass already had several bullet holes through it, and Zoe thought it was about to shatter. Rollo smashed out the glass with the butt of his rifle, most of the glass falling outside. He crouched below the window, taking aim. Zoe crawled up beside him as he took a shot.
There was a sharp cry of pain in the distance.
“Got one,” Rollo said.
“Let me help,” Zoe said.
He looked down at her, the afternoon sunlight in his eyes.
“Fine,” he said, handing her the pistol.
She took aim beside him and a bullet flew over her head.
“Give us the jewels and the girl and we might let you live,” he heard a thickly accented voice say from outside.
“You’ve got some really big balls,” Rollo shouted. “But I hear you lack in other departments.”