Alaskan Fire (55 page)

“Oh
God
,” she whimpered,
straining under him, unable to avoid the delicious sensations as he lazily
traced her curves.

“I’ve got a problem, Blaze.”  He
took his time to reach her nipple, tracing slow patterns across her belly and
chest, leaving liquid fire in its wake. 

“What kind of problem?” she
whimpered.

“The mating kind.”  When his
touch reached the hard, aching, rigid peak, he flicked it gently with a talon,
and Blaze shuddered from head to toe. 

“Condom…Age…” she panted.

He chuckled again and started
tracing the soft fur of the back of his hand across her abdomen, stroking
exquisite softness across the ultra-sensitive skin.  “Okay.  Say that’s true. 
I’m not really worried about that part of it.  What worries me is what you’re
gonna do
afterwards
, if I stake that claim.”

Whereas in most cases, Blaze
would have been irritated at the wereverine’s old-time views on women and sex,
now all she really wanted was for him to do just that.  “Take me,” she
managed.  “Please, Jack.  However you need to.  I’ll be fine with it after.  I
swear
.”

Jack jerked and she saw a tiny
frown before his face cleared.  “You don’t really know what I’m asking.”  He
said it with a sigh.

She was shuddering with Jack’s
every languid motion, now, the heat in her groin building to a painful
need
that left her body a single massive ache for completion.

“Please, dear God, Jack, please.” 
Twisting her arms desperately underneath his grip, she turned her head to face
him, biting her lip.  “If you’re not gonna do it for me, at least have the
mercy
to let me do it myself.”

Grinning at her, his green eyes
dancing, Jack started working her jeans down her hips, then the big pad of his
finger—
not
his talon, thank God—started tracing pathways through the
orange curls between her thighs.

Moaning outright, now, Blaze
arced her back, trying again to speed his descent, to make his touch harder,
faster,
anything
.  He took
centuries
to reach her sensitive
center.  Then he found the little nub at the base of her mound and she cried as
he began to rub, ever-so-gently.  Not hard enough, and not fast enough,
however, to do anything but make that heat racing through her body build and
build…

“I can’t do this,” Blaze
whimpered, once it became unbearable.  “I can’t.”  Her mind was being thrown
into neutral, and her body was becoming one arcing, straining mass of
pleasure.  “Please, Jack.”

“Please what?” Jack rumbled in a
chuckle.  Toying with her.  As if he didn’t
know
.

Oh God.
  He was so strong,
so
male…
  His body hot beside hers, pinning her down,
playing
with her.  Panting, Blaze managed, “Take me.  Please.”

Jack seemed to consider that a
moment, then slowly pushed himself from the bed and shifted back over her. 
This time, she felt the hardness at her groin, felt the heat rolling off of
him, and she whimpered, rolling under him to bring her body against his rigid
chest and abdomen.  He lowered himself over her, bringing his lips back to
brush against her ear.

“Just stay there a second,” Jack
whispered, against her neck.

Her mind did a startled
double-take when he suddenly released her arms and backed away…

…And then he yanked her jeans
free of her legs and spread her thighs wide, a deep groan of appreciation in
his chest as he lowered his face to her—
crotch?

Blaze had just enough time to do
a startled double-take before waves upon waves of spine-arcing pleasure began pounding
through her, doubling her over, curling her toes until her feet cramped with
each flutter of his tongue.

“Jaaaack!” Blaze cried, grabbing
him by the scalp and reflexively pulling him tight against her.  “Oh Jesus,
Jack!  What are you
doing
?!”

Jack lifted his head to look up
at her curiously.  “Never had anyone play with you before, little bird?”  He
sounded a bit startled.  And amused.  “What kind of two-bit pussies—”

Blaze was getting dizzy with
need.  She pushed him back to her womanhood, not really caring what he was
about to say.

His green eyes met hers from
betwixt her legs and he chuckled against her folds, which built into a massive,
shattering explosion within her, sending her body into an arc of clenching,
spasming heat.  She felt herself bucking against his face, which only seemed to
make him chuckle and try harder, alternating his tongue’s rhythm, sometimes
suckling, sometimes plundering, sometimes lapping.  And, while the first orgasm
was the best Blaze had ever had, the next one completely knocked it out of the
ballpark.  She devolved into mindlessness, riding each wave of pleasure as it
came, so far gone she didn’t even see Jack’s smile when she bucked against his
face.

And he
didn’t stop
. 
Blaze, who in the recent past had never had more than one tiny orgasm before
she had to wait for her body to reset, suddenly couldn’t control the pounding
waves of pleasure driving through her, again and again, jerking her body like a
puppet on strings.  Her mind switched off and she felt herself go completely
over the edge, losing herself fully in the experience, so far gone that,
somewhere along the way, she simply lost consciousness.

* * *

Jack watched Blaze’s pale body
finally stop quivering against the bed and, after several moments of suckling
her clit with no response, he gently pulled his face from her warm center, now
covered in the sweet scent of her musk.  He’d brought her to orgasm so many
times he’d lost count, and watching her lithe, beautiful body buck and roll
underneath his attentions had almost brought him to release on his own. 
Oh
gods,
he thought, kissing the tip of her womanhood in parting as his eyes
swept up her stomach, adoring the smooth lines of her passion-slickened body.  Her
glistening, flat stomach was still rising and falling with the fervor of her
orgasms, her pert breasts still peaked with the swollen pink knots of her
rock-hard nipples, tantalizing him, begging to be kissed, nibbled, licked…

Throughout her contortions, it
had been everything he could do to keep from staking that claim.  The whole
time she’d been moaning and thrashing against him, he had been struggling with
her lightning-rod to his storm, stoppering up that energy, forcing it back
before he formed a link they would both regret.  He was
still
struggling
with it, seeing her stretched out delicate and inviting beneath him.

Even then, her long, exquisitely
pale legs were spread wide to him in her sleep, exposing her hungry pink clit,
swollen from under its protective hood.  Beneath it, the lips of her womanhood
were engorged, waiting… 

Jack traced a finger down a
perfectly pale thigh to the blazing orange fur of her center, biting his lip. 
She was so beautiful.  Beyond beautiful.  Like a Norse goddess come to steal
his heart away.  He tentatively looked up at her face, then, anxiousness once
more tearing at his soul.  She seemed so strong, and yet so innocent, as well. 
He was pretty sure she had no idea just how terrified she made him, each time
she’d tried to bring them to this point.  He wanted her, wanted her so badly it
hurt, and yet he was afraid of what would happen to her if he did.  He struggled
with another overpowering urge to claim her, to make her his mate, to wrap his
protective arms around her and hold her close as he took her for his own.  He
knew, beyond a doubt, that all the control he had managed to maintain
throughout the night would disintegrate the moment he sank himself into her
core.  The link would form.  She’d be
his
, and no amount of apologies
would change that.

He was so afraid…  What if he
formed the link and she
rejected
him?  He was a
demonkin
and she
was a
phoenix
…  Part of him knew she just didn’t realize how big that
difference was, and it terrified him that he was letting her in, opening his
heart, making her his own, entrusting
everything
to her, and someday she
was simply going to fly away.  She could have any man she wanted.  Why
him
? 
Why would she want a short, insecure, uneducated little wereverine?  And, as
she had made so perfectly clear as they’d fixed the trusses, she knew it.  She
could go
anywhere
.

Yet she obviously wanted him, so
badly she’d spent over an hour moaning, thrashing,
begging
for him to
take her.  To
claim
her…  The heat of that still rushed through him like
blasts from a furnace, warming his heart, opening him further to her, and he
almost lost control again right then. 
Damn
it…

Her lightning rod to his storm. 
He bit his lip, eying her warily.  He was already riding the very edge.  He
couldn’t take her and continue to keep the mating link at bay.  He just didn’t
have the control.  Half of him wanted to run away screaming, and the other half
wanted to cement the bond right then. 

Blaze moaned and moved slightly
in her sleep, making his breath catch at her exquisite, smooth lines.  Her
breasts stood up high on her chest, as dually assertive and as delicate as the
rest of her.

He lowered a trembling hand to
her tantalizing stomach, felt the pounding of her heart in the flat of her belly. 
She was so graceful, so elegant, so
fragile
…  She obviously wanted to be
pinned and taken, obviously wanted him to be strong and forceful, yet he was
terrified he’d gone too far.  He’d been walking a fine line, trying to give her
the thrill she wanted, to let her feel his power at its best, to let her soak
up that strength and know it was there to protect her, and yet terrified he was
going to cross the line and have her eyes darken, see her shields go up, hear
her tell him he needed to leave.

And through it all, he’d seen the
need
in her eyes and it had been all he could do not to give her
everything she wanted right then—
all
of it.

Even now, his manhood was a throbbing
ache against his stomach, so hard that it pressed tight against his abdomen of
its own accord.  Seeing her, spread beneath him, her exquisite body waiting,
Jack felt the heat in his groin increase and he had to look away.  It had taken
every ounce of self-control he had not to give in to her demands, not to thrust
himself home within her, savoring her enveloping heat, loving the arc of her
back and her little pants of need as he took her slowly, savoring the ambrosia
of the link.

Jack pulled away from her before
that thought could trigger that lightning-strike.  He couldn’t do that.  Not
yet.  Not until he was
sure
.

Slowly, he got up and levered
himself to the side, careful not to wake her, lowering himself to the bed until
he was leaning on an elbow, looking down at her smooth form from eye-level. 
Her light, flowing hair reminded him of flames, and those strands that had
fallen from her braid in her feverish orgasms were now plastered to her
sweat-soaked face.

Her eyes were closed—
such
beautiful eyes
, he remembered, his heart skipping a beat.  Like tongues of sunfire
leaping outward from the pupil, twisting against a ruby backdrop.  They’d
stopped his heart, the first time he’d seen them.  And, as she’d clung to him
and thrashed, moaning in ecstasy, he was pretty sure he’d seen a flash of an
inner inferno before it had been gone, hidden by the way they rolled into the
back of her head and her legs tightened against his ears.  He’d
almost
been afraid she was going to awaken right there, thighs clamped to his face,
his tongue burrowing into her musky feminine center, his mouth blissfully suckling
at her engorged lips.

Now, though, her head was tilted
softly to the side, away from him, exposing the smooth lines of her graceful
neck.  Her breathing had slowed to a gentle rise and fall of her breasts.  He
could see her pulse still pounding her throat, however, her heartbeat still
singing in his ears.

Jack leaned back, admiring the
beauty sharing his bed.  Of its own accord, his hand found her braid and tenderly
pulled the band free, then, biting his lip and watching her gorgeous face for
any sign of arousal, he tugged the fiery locks free with his fingers and laid
them out along her glorious body.

Her hair spilled forth from his
fingers like liquid fire, flowing over her breasts and stomach, tantalizing
against the U-shaped ridge of her perfect, swim-model belly-button.  Seeing
that, Jack felt his breath catch again.  He rearranged the glorious locks
around a nipple, leaving the pink nub saluting through the waves of fire, then
idly began stroking his fingers along her curves, tracing her lines, learning
her.

Underneath his caress, Blaze gave
a soft moan and one of her legs slid down, relaxing against the bed.

With a gentle touch so as not to
wake her, Jack ran his fingers across her impossibly smooth skin, reveling in
the softness of her shoulders, the utter femininity of her long, sexy body, the
milky smoothness of her pale thighs.  His hands found her fire-orange mound and
hesitated there, circling, reveling in the texture and color of her mons.  Against
his better judgment, he let his hand dip downward, felt the thrill as he traced
the tip of her slick womanhood, circling her hot clit.  He started to slip his
fingers into the waiting warmth beneath, to prepare her for his claim, then
hesitated, eyes once more catching on her sleep-slackened face.

She’s not yours yet, you old
fool
, Jack reminded himself, reluctantly pulling away. 

“Why’d you stop?”

The soft whisper, coming from the
other side of the bed, preceded Blaze’s head turning, her flame-and-ruby eyes
catching on his.  Once again, Jack felt his heart stop, riveted by the
beautiful streaks of fire in her eyes.  “Uh…”  He found himself unable to
speak, caught between a horrible desire to climb over her and stake his claim,
and the horrible, soul-piercing fear that she was just passing time, that she
didn’t
really
want him.  Not like that…

But her eyes flickered down to
his groin, and her face cleared, a little smile playing upon her full, arousal-moistened
lips.  “Oh.”  Her husky voice sounded…naughty.

Blindly, Jack tilted his head
down to see what she was looking at.

His manhood, rock-solid and
almost purple in its throbbing need, was greeting her like an old friend.

“Oh,” Jack said, flushing, “Uh,
yeah, sorry, I’ll go find some pant—”

But she rolled onto her side,
facing him, and her delicate fingers found his sensitive flesh, ending his
words in a strangled sound as his breath left him from the electric tingles of
her touch.  He gave a tiny moan as her fist closed around the head of his
member and tightened, pulling back the foreskin to show the glistening head
underneath.

“You never finished?” she
whispered, her breathtaking eyes once more finding his face, curiosity there.

“Miss Blaze,” Jack said, trembling
under the building heat in his loins, “I don’t want you to take this the wrong
way, but I mate for life.”

But she wasn’t listening.  “Oh my
God,” she whispered, barely able to fit her feminine hand around the shaft
itself, “does this even
fit
?”

Again, Jack found himself
wondering what kind of ball-less pussies had mounted this beauty in the past,
and felt another kindling of rage that he should have had to share her.  Then
his mind did a startled double take. 
Share
her?  She wasn’t even
his
yet.

“I can’t even close my hand
around it,” she giggled, trying.

“Well,” he admitted, watching
anxiously as her smooth fingers slid across his skin, “I
have
had
problems in the past.”

Then her slender hands were
sliding down, cupping his balls, moving against his most tender parts.  Jack,
already oversensitive from watching her body thrash under his ministrations
earlier, had to grab her wrists to stop the sensations before they drove him
over the edge.  “Listen, Miss Blaze,” he panted, his whole being tingling with
heat and passion.  “I don’t think you really understand.  I—”

The rest of his words choked off
when she leaned down and caught his nipple in her teeth and gave it a playful
tug, sending shockwaves of pleasure through his system.

Growling, Jack rolled back over
her, once more pinning her wrists above her head.  “Listen here, missy,” he
rumbled down at her, “I was in the middle of telling you something important.”

She looked up at him, her
ruby-flame eyes dancing with mischief.  She gave him a devilish grin as she
began to wiggle underneath him, and it took him a moment to realize that she
was positioning the throbbing head of his member to the wet heat of her
womanhood. 

With a groan, Jack quickly
retreated and pinned its length between the two of them, confining her firmly
to the bed.  “
Listen
a moment,” he said, breathless.

“You’re no fun,” she pouted,
still smiling.  She strained up against his grip, leaned up with her head, her
pert chin reaching for his chest again.

Just for that, Jack lowered his
lips to the taut pink nipple sticking up from between her locks of hair, and
her chest arced under him with a gasp, her firm belly pressing into his abdomen
as she moaned his name.

…his name?

Releasing her nipple, Jack lifted
his head to stare down at her, caught between panic and elation.  Panic, that
she didn’t understand what she was asking.  Elation, that she seemed to crave
his touch as much as he wanted to give it.

“Miss Blaze,” Jack said softly, lowering
his head to nip up her jawline.  She moaned as he reached her earlobe and
nibbled.  Into her ear, he whispered, “Will you let me mate you?”

“Of course,” she cried, tugging
in vain at her wrists.  “Hurry the hell up before something
explodes
.”

Jack pulled back so he could see
her eyes, his heart hammering like an anvil against his chest.  “You’re sure? 
It’s…permanent.  Can’t take it back.”

Wriggling ineffectually under
him, she finally lifted her head and slammed it back to the bed in frustration,
surrounding her face in a halo of fire.  “
Yes
!”

“I don’t want your decision to be
one of passion,” Jack growled.  “Think on it.  Whatever you decide tonight,
goes.”

It was then, trapped beneath him,
still slick with passion, he saw the sharpening in her eyes, saw the
understanding.  “Mate…  Like
wife
?”

He winced at the harsh way she
said it.  “Yes, like ‘wife,’” he managed.  But it was so much more, such a
deeper connection than that…  In a rush, he decided to lay it out for her
logically, so that she could make an educated decision instead of a slap-dash
one they would both later regret.  “It’s like this, Miss Blaze:  You’re a
prize.  I ain’t arguin’ that point.  Any man in Alaska’d be happy to crawl up
your chimney.  And anyone who knew what you
were
?  Hell, you’d have
dragons knockin’ down your doorstep to get you.  But I got experience, I got
blades, I can
protect
you, okay?  You just say the word, and you will
have a wereverine watching your back the rest of your damn life.  You
understand?  I been lonely a long time.  I ain’t the best conversation, and I’m
a bit of an asshole, but I get around you and my heart starts thumping out of
my chest and I can’t hear myself think.  If you had ears like mine, you’d
already
know
what you do to me.  Those kind of feelings, I only had
those four times in my life, and each one lasted a
long
time.  You get
me?  A
really long
time.  I just want to make sure you know what you’re
dealing with, before it goes too far and you can’t take it back, you know?”  He
winced as he finished, knowing he’d babbled, but unable to form the words properly
in his head.