A Jaguars Touch (17 page)

She shook her head. “Why don’t you go check on Murphy? Let him know Finn’s conned Ariel into cooking. I’ll go see if Reno’s heard from Tah, yet.”

Vic headed into the house. She could tell by the smile on Reno’s face that good news had come in.

“You heard from him?” she asked.

“All done and they’re on the road,” he said. “Money’s set to be transferred to a bank close to Riverton in a few days. Actually, it should make it to Oklahoma before they get there.”

“How’s Jess?” Vic asked.

“She, Cody and Michael showed up,” Reno said. “Tah said she fell in love with Regan and has declared herself the official godmother. She’s already planning visits.”

“That’ll be good,” Vic agreed. “The Professor would enjoy that.”

“I think he needs it,” Reno said. “He’s hasn’t been himself lately.”

“I think we’ve all noticed that,” Vic stated.

“Abby’s worried,” Amia said. “Tah, too.”

“Do you think something’s wrong? Something he hasn’t told us?” Vic said.

“If you mean is he ill, then no,” Reno said. “We’d be able to scent the chemical change in his body if he was. It’s his obsession with research and finding answers. He’s working too hard and not sleeping or eating like he should. It’s starting to take a huge toll on him. He worries too much, about all of us.”

“Griffin knows the labs,” Vic said. “He could be a real asset in Oklahoma.”

“Clara said that,” Amia agreed. “It would help if Gideon were planning to go.”

“We’re discussing it,” Vic said. “Either way, I’m going with him. I wanted you to hear that from me.”

“We knew that the moment the two of you mated,” Reno said. “Tah said to tell you Riverton, Oklahoma will always be your home, both you and Gideon.”

“I know that,” she said.

“I’m hoping you two come to Oklahoma,” Amia admitted. “We need all the people we can get there.”

“Speaking of that,” Vic said. “Ariel isn’t comfortable riding with you.”

Reno and Amia shared a look.

“Is she planning to go?” Amia asked.

“I think she is,” Vic said. “She’s in the kitchen right now, cooking with Finn.”

“Finn’s connected with her?” Reno asked.

“He’s definitely trying to,” Vic said. “Griffin suggested he and Ariel trade spots for the trip. He thinks he’ll have more to talk to the Professor about.”

“Makes sense,” Reno said. “I don’t see a problem with it. As long as Ariel is comfortable with them. Murphy and Finn will treat her with kid gloves.”

“I think they might be good for her,” Vic said. “I’ll see you guys later.”

“Are you heading downstairs?” Reno asked.

“Yeah, I want to find Gideon,” she answered. “Need something?”

“I just got off the phone with Tah when you walked in. Haven’t had a chance to tell anyone, yet. If you’ll let the Professor know, we’ll tell Finn and Murphy,” Reno said.

“Absolutely,” Vic agreed. “I’ll even let him know about Jess and her new little love. Maybe thinking about a visit with her will do him good.”

“Couldn’t hurt,” Reno agreed.

“More people will help us out a lot,” Amia added. “I think that’s the only way the Professor will agree to slow down.”

“I think you’re right,” Reno agreed.

“Maybe there will be more help in Oklahoma,” Vic said. “Did this Daniel say if there were other shifters there? I got sidetracked in the meeting. I should have asked then.”

“Daniel didn’t say much according to Tah. I think he’s as cautious as we are. We’re putting a lot of trust in Gabriel, but we don’t have a lot of choices right now,” Reno said. “Have to admit, I’m curious to see the place.”

“Me, too,” Amia said.

Vic almost said she was, as well, but she still didn’t know what Gideon wanted to do.

“Gideon still wants to speak to Dillon before we leave,” she stated.

Reno nodded. “I don’t think he’s going to get the answers he wants.”

“I know,” Vic said. “But he needs to try.”

“I can understand that,” Reno told her then grinned. “My how the mighty have fallen.”

“What does that mean?” Vic asked.

“I believe the words you used were, and I quote, ‘I’m no one’s mate. No matter what you believe, I do have a say in that. And I say, I’m not’.” Reno folded his arms over his chest when he finished, and Amia laughed.

“Gideon convinced me otherwise,” Vic admitted. “One taste, and I was hooked.”

“I know the feeling,” Amia agreed and snuggled up to Reno’s side. He bent his head and kissed her.

“I’ll just leave you two alone and go find my own mate,” Vic said and headed out.

Gideon and the Professor were deep in conversation when she walked in.

“You talk some sense into him,” the Professor said as soon as he saw her.

Vic crossed to Gideon and slid under his arm, cuddling into him. “What sense does he need talked into?”

“The Professor seems to think he needs to stay up half the night working. I said he might want to call it early tonight. Get some rest. He’ll be starting a long trip in another day,” Gideon said.

“Well, he has a valid point,” Vic told the Professor. “And I have good news.”

“It’s done?” the Professor asked.

She nodded. “Money will be transferred to a bank with offices close to Riverton, Oklahoma. Tah, Abby and the rest of the team are all on their way there, now.”

“And Jess?” the Professor asked. “How is my daughter doing?”

“From what I heard, she fell in love with Regan and has declared herself godmother. I believe she was talking about making more trips to visit.”

“She is?” The Professor looked startled then slowly a smile tilted his lips. It lit up his face. Maybe Finn wasn’t the only one who could be surrounded by people and still be lonely.

“Well, I guess I should make sure I’m packed and ready to go. Just a few days, and I’m on the road,” the Professor continued.

“Speaking of that,” Vic said. “There might be a change in plans.”

“What kind of change?” Gideon asked.

“Ariel and Griffin may switch places,” she said.

“That girl’s been hurt,” the Professor said. “You can see it in her eyes.”

“She has,” Gideon said.

“She needs love and acceptance,” the Professor said. “A home with people who will teach her how to move forward.”

“I hope they do,” Gideon said quietly.

“Ariel and Finn are cooking dinner together,” Vic said.

“He better not be planning to hit on her,” Gideon stated with a growl.

“No,” the Professor answered before Vic could. “Finn’s a good boy. He and his brother both. And if any of us can teach her to smile and believe again, it’ll be those two crazy Irish boys. I think they’re just what she needs.”

“I think so, too,” Vic said, squeezing Gideon’s arm.

“What about Griffin?” the Professor asked. “How does he feel about changing places?”

“It was actually his suggestion,” Vic informed them. “He seems to think he’ll have more to discuss with you, Professor, than he will with either Finn or Murphy.”

The Professor looked surprised. “That’s interesting.”

“He knows his way around a lab and research,” Gideon said. “I trained him myself. He’ll be a real asset when you get to Oklahoma. If you let him, that is.”

“Well, why the hell wouldn’t I?” the Professor thundered. “We need all the help we can get. You trained him?”

Gideon nodded.

“That’s wonderful. I still say we need you with us. Now that you’re mated, surely you’ll be coming with us,” the Professor said. “So much we need to do and plan and prepare to face.”

“Vic and I are discussing what we want to do,” Gideon said. “In fact, I’ve been waiting for her, so if you’ll excuse us…”

Gideon didn’t wait for the Professor to reply, he just took her hand in his and pulled her behind him down the hall to the bedroom they shared.

“We need to talk,” he said as soon as they entered the room and continued to blow her mind with what he and Ariel had discussed, and his conversation with Clara before she’d left.

“Oh, my God,” Vic said. “What a bastard! Do you think Clara might be right? I can’t believe he said that to Ariel! Jesus! Thomas is a grade-A asshole.”

Her head was reeling with everything he’d just shared. In her mind, it spoke volumes that Thomas’s niece was the one who wasn’t sure her uncle was the good guy. Vic felt the same after knowing he’d told Gideon to stay quiet and not share what he’d been forced to endure. By doing so, Thomas had fed Gideon’s guilt and made her mate easier to manipulate. Add in what he’d had the audacity to tell a woman who Vic feared had been brutalized, and she would be more prone to kill Thomas instead of rescue him.

“I need to talk to Dillon,” Gideon said. “He’s the only one here who can shed light on this.”

“Reno doesn’t think Dillon will tell you anything,” Vic stated. “Nothing Murphy’s done has broken him.”

“He’ll talk to me,” Gideon said. “He won’t be able to stop himself. If for no other reason than to prove to me that he’s smarter than me, smarter than Thomas. He wants to brag. He just hasn’t had the audience he wants.”

“When do you want to talk to him?”

“Tonight,” Gideon answered. “After dinner.”

“Then we make a decision about what we’re doing when we leave here?” she asked.

He shook his head. “I think…I think I owe it to Clara to listen to what she said. We should be smart and not just go blindly searching.”

“Does that mean what I think it means? Do you want to go to Oklahoma?” Vic asked, holding her breath in anticipation.

“I think it’s the smart thing to do,” he answered. “This is your family, and I think I could be an asset.”

“Most definitely,” she agreed. “They’ll be grateful as hell to have you join them.”

“This is what you wanted, right?” he asked.

“Yes, I want to go to Oklahoma, but only with you,” she said then shook her head. “Jesus. The thought of going anywhere without you makes me ill. If this mating shit turns me into a blithering idiot who can’t stand on my own, I might just have to go back to my first instinct when I met you.”

“What was that again?” he asked with a laugh, pulling her into his arms.

“I debated between sex and murder.”

He leaned in, nipping her bottom lip. “I’m glad you went with sex.”

“Me, too,” she agreed. “But maybe you should convince me I made the right choice.”

He laughed. “Every day for the rest of our lives,” he vowed and took her mouth in a heated kiss.

In minutes, the kiss wasn’t enough. They became a tangle of arms and legs as they fought to shed clothing between kisses. Vic tumbled to the bed with her jeans and panties caught around her ankles, hindered by the shoes she’d neglected to kick off. Gideon chuckled and took care of them for her before catching her thighs and tugging her to where he stood by the bed.

She reached out and took his cock in hand, stroking from tip to balls and back up again. So long, hard and thick. She used her thumb to stroke across the head, spreading a drop of pre-cum.

Gideon hissed and pushed his hips into her hand. “Your touch sets me on fire,” he whispered.

He released her legs, leaned forward and braced one hand on the bed by her hip then moved the other to the saturated folds of her sex. He brushed his thumb over her clit, pressing it then plucking it between his thumb and forefinger. She moaned and thrust her hips up toward him. He trailed his fingers down her pussy and dipped inside, stroking her walls.

“Your touch awakens every part of me,” Vic said on a long sigh. “Soft when I need it to be. Hard when that’s what I crave.”

“I’ll be anything you desire me to be,” Gideon crooned.

“You already are,” she assured him. “You’re everything I never realized I wanted.”

She guided his cock to her and lifted into him as he plunged deep. She planted her heels on the edge of the bed and used it as leverage to rise into him as he took her. His abdomen rippled, his thigh muscles flexing and straining as he powered into her. Both his hands were braced on the bed, caging her in. She curved hers under his arms and up his back, grabbing his shoulders and digging her nails in, holding on for the ride he was taking them on.

She came with a loud cry. “Gideon!”

He kept thrusting, fucking through her orgasm and taking her higher. Her head thrashed against the bed, and her nails scoured his flesh. His name became a chant until his low roar of surrender shook the room. He dropped his head to the bite mark by her neck and sank his teeth into her. Another orgasm slammed through her, and for seconds, she was sure she lost consciousness as he came inside her. She held him close as he licked over her wound and rubbed his chest against hers. They were still breathing hard when he lifted away, scooped her up in his arms and carried her into the bathroom.

“Shower,” he said, giving her ass a smack as he set her on her feet.

She bent over the tub, adjusting the water and starting the shower. She widened her stance and gave her butt a wiggle before glancing over her shoulder to find his gaze glued exactly where she wanted it. She licked her lips, noticing the way his cock was already growing hard again. His stamina was definitely a perk to mating a shifter.

“I think we might be late for dinner,” she said.

He moved closer behind her, his hands grasping her hips. “I think we’ll be very late.”

Chapter Fourteen

Murphy was the only one in the kitchen when Vic and Gideon headed down to eat.

“Food’s still on the stove. Baked potatoes and grilled chicken with a pasta salad Ariel threw together with some of the leftovers.” He groaned and rubbed his tummy. “Damn, our girl can cook.”

“Our girl?” Gideon asked.

“She wants to be a member of this pride, then she is. That means she’s just as much mine to watch over as she is yours. Also means she has my back just as well as Vic does,” Murphy said.

“What does she like to do?” Vic asked, setting a plate on the table for Gideon and one for her. “Other than cook?”

Gideon sat down beside his mate. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “I spent most of my time in the lab when I was there.”

“What was she doing while you were in the lab?” Vic asked.