Animal Attraction (5 page)

“Hey, no fair!” she protested as he nudged her back onto the soft bed. “I was just getting started.”

He chuckled softly. “Don’t worry. There’ll be plenty of time for you to do all the exploring you want. Right now, it’s my turn. I’ve been dreaming of your naked body since I first saw you at the diner. It’s time to see how my fantasies compare to the real thing.”

Eliza blinked. He had been having fantasies about her? But before she could think any more on it, Hunter reached down to unlace her boots and pull them off. With them out of the way, he grabbed the cuffs of her jeans and yanked them off in one smooth motion to toss them aside. Her panties followed, though not nearly as quickly since he took his time wiggling them down over her curvy hips. Not that she was complaining. She adored the feel of his fingers as they brushed the skin of her bare legs. When she was completely naked, he stood back to gaze down at her with those molten-gold eyes of his.

Leaning up on her elbows, Eliza gave him a sultry look. “So, how do I compare to your fantasies?”
Where had that come from?
She wasn’t usually so bold with a guy, but she just couldn’t seem to help herself around him.

His mouth curved into a sexy smile as he lazily looked her up and down. “My fantasies pale in comparison. You’re absolutely perfect.”

Eliza’s lips curved. That was exactly the answer she’d been hoping for.

Shrugging out of his shirt, Hunter tossed it onto the floor, and Eliza took the opportunity to let her gaze run over his well-muscled chest and washboard stomach. None of the professors she’d had in college had ever looked this good. The man would put a professional athlete to shame.

Eager to see the rest of him, Eliza waited breathlessly for him to make quick work of his jeans and join her on the bed, but instead, he cupped the heel of one foot in his hand and gently lifted her right leg. Staring hotly into her eyes, he leaned over and, starting at her ankle, began to slowly kiss and nibble his way up the inside of her leg. She let out a little sigh. While she definitely wanted to see the rest of his naked body, she couldn’t deny that being treated to his warm mouth was certainly a great way to pass the time while she waited for the rest of the reveal.

Hunter seemed content to take his time working his way up to her pussy, and she shivered as much from the stubble on his jaw as she did from the anticipation of what his tongue was going to feel like on her most sensitive region.

Even when he reached the juncture of her thighs, however, Hunter still seemed intent on teasing her. Eliza caught her lower lip between her teeth, her breath coming in excited, little pants as his dark head edged closer and closer to her pussy. Just when she thought she might have to thread her fingers into his thick hair and put his mouth exactly where she wanted it, he ran his tongue along the slick folds of her pussy.

Eliza moaned with pleasure, her entire body tingling in response. Giving in to the urge she’d had before, she reached out and slid her fingers into Hunter’s dark hair, holding his head in place. Now that she finally had him where she wanted him, she wasn’t about to let him go back to tormenting her again, no matter how delightful it had been. And yet, somehow, he still managed to tease her anyway, slowly running his tongue up one wet fold and down the other, but never touching her clitoris. He was going to drive her insane. But as he continued to run his tongue over and over her pussy lips, she had to admit that it was a most pleasant torture.

Just when she was sure she would scream from the teasing, his mouth closed over her throbbing clit and he began to make slow, little circles with his tongue around the sensitive nub. She writhed on the bed and clutched the sheets as pleasure surged through her. She let out moan after moan as his tongue somehow magically found the exact spot she wanted him to lick. It was like he could read her mind.

Her fingers tightened in his hair. “Right there! Don’t stop,” she begged. “Please don’t stop!”

Hunter didn’t stop, but rather began to move his tongue faster and faster over her clit. Eliza automatically began to move her hips in time with his tongue, rotating them round and round until she felt the first waves of an orgasm begin to flow through her. All at once, Eliza was seized by a rush of sensation so intense that it almost made her dizzy. Throwing back her head, she let out a scream, a deep primal sound that seemed to come from the very core of her being as it echoed around the room.

As the tremors from her orgasm gradually began to subside, Eliza lay there unmoving and panting for breath. That had to have been the most amazing orgasm any man had ever given her, she was sure of it. The thing she wasn’t as sure of, however, was whether she had the strength to move after coming so hard. Perhaps she would just lie there and let Hunter have his way with her. But when she felt him press a gentle kiss to the inside of her thigh a moment later, she somehow managed to lift herself up on her elbows and gaze down at him.

He leaned back to regard her silently, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “You seem to have enjoyed that,” he said.

Her lips curved. “You’re very good at what you do, Professor. But now it’s my turn.”

Forgetting all about her earlier lethargy, Eliza pushed herself into a sitting position and ran her hands down his six-pack abs to his belt. “I think it’s time these came off, don’t you?”

Without waiting for an answer, she tugged open his belt, and then made quick work of the buttons on his jeans. Eager to finally get a look at the hard cock that she’d felt pressing up against her when they’d been kissing before, she quickly pushed down his jeans and underwear. As his hard shaft sprang free in front of her, Eliza could only stare. Long, hard, and thick. Just the way she liked them.

Reaching out, she wrapped her hand around his thick cock and leaned forward to take him in her mouth. Above her, Hunter groaned as he slid down her throat. Letting out a little moan of her own, Eliza slowly slid her mouth along the length of his shaft and back down again. She would have immediately repeated the motion, but Hunter slid his hand in her hair and gently pulled her away. Curious, she looked up to find him gazing down at her, a glint in his gold eyes.

“Any more of that and you’re going to make me come sooner than either of us wants,” he growled.

Pleased that he hadn’t found her oral skills lacking, Eliza only let out a husky, little laugh. Leaning back on her arms, she watched hungrily as Hunter shoved his jeans and underwear down the rest of the way. There wasn’t anything on him that wasn’t perfect. She took in his long, powerful legs. As he settled himself between hers, Eliza felt her pulse quicken in anticipation. As content as she had been to explore his cock with her mouth moments earlier, now she couldn’t wait to have him inside her.

But to her dismay, he didn’t enter her right away. Instead, he braced himself up with one strong arm while he rubbed the head of his cock up and down the opening of her pussy. As good as what he was doing felt, however, she needed more.

“Please,” she demanded desperately. “Stop teasing me.”

The head of his cock still poised at the opening of her pussy, Hunter lifted his gaze to meet hers, and for a moment, Eliza thought he would ignore her entreaty and continue teasing her instead. But then, inch by delicious inch, he slowly slid his cock into her waiting pussy.

Eliza gasped as entered her.
Dear God!
He was hot and hard inside her; the perfect fit.

Letting out a hoarse groan, Hunter bent his head to claim her lips in a passionate kiss. Reaching up to loop her arms his neck, Eliza wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled his cock into her even deeper. They stayed like that, his cock buried in her pussy, his mouth plundering hers, his strong, hard body pressing her into the soft mattress. Then abruptly, he slowly started to move inside her. She whimpered against his mouth, automatically lifting her hips to meet his. Every time Hunter thrust, his cock seemed to find that secret place deep inside of her that no one else had ever even come close to discovering.

Just when it seemed she would go insane with ecstasy, Hunter suddenly rolled over onto his back, taking her with him so that she was now the one on top. Breathless, Eliza could only sit there and gaze down at him.

“Ride me,” he commanded huskily, the hands on her hips urging her to move even as he spoke.

Eliza didn’t need to be told twice. Placing her hands on his chest, she began to make slow, rhythmic circles on his cock. In this position, she could grind her clit against him perfectly, and as sensitive as she was from the orgasm he’d given her earlier, she knew it wouldn’t take long for her to come again. No sooner had the thought crossed her mind than she felt the familiar tingling that always preceded her orgasms. As it continued to build, she rotated her hips faster and faster, only to let out a loud moan a moment later as she came for the second time that night.

As she slowly came back to earth, Eliza opened her eyes to find Hunter looking up at her with a hungry expression. She leaned forward to kiss him, moving her hips in a way she instinctively knew he’d like.

Hunter growled against her mouth. Tightening his grip on her hips, he began to pump in and out of her, his cock going deeper and deeper with each push. The first tremors of another orgasm approaching, Eliza broke free of the kiss and buried her face in the curve of his neck. She felt Hunter shift his grip so that he was cupping her ass cheeks. Grasping her bottom firmly, he began to thrust even harder and faster into her until she was crying out in one long, continuous scream of pleasure as her climax crested.

As her orgasm went on and on, she knew in her heart that no matter how many other men she made love with, this would truly be the most perfect and complete sexual moment of her life. And as her cries of ecstasy joined with his deeper, hoarser groans of satisfaction, she almost wept at how perfect the moment was.

Gasping for breath, Eliza collapsed on his chest afterward, utterly spent from their lovemaking. She wanted to say something, to tell Hunter how wonderful it had been, but his arms were so warm and comforting around her that she allowed her drowsiness to overtake her and let her eyes drift closed instead. The last thing she remembered before she fell asleep was Hunter pulling up the blanket and throwing it over both of them.

Chapter 4

At first, Eliza didn’t know what had awoken her, but as the familiar strains of
Don’t Cha
continued to play over and over in her head, she finally realized it was her cell phone ringing. Who would be calling her at this ungodly hour? Hoping it would stop if she ignored it, she cuddled closer to Hunter. But to her annoyance, it didn’t. She wasn’t sure exactly what time she and Hunter had finally gotten to sleep, but it had to have been late. She had only been snuggling against his chest for what seemed like a few minutes after their first lovemaking session before his hardening cock had awakened her for round two. While the first time had been wonderful, the second had been absolute perfection.
God, he’s hot in bed!

Beside her, Hunter groaned. “What the heck is that?” he asked, his voice sleepy in her ear.

“My cell phone,” she mumbled.

Throwing back the blankets, she reluctantly left the warmth of Hunter’s arms and got out of bed. That ring tone was really irritating at this time of night. Not to mention kind of embarrassing. What the heck had she been thinking putting that on there?

Of course, finding her jeans in the dark and unfamiliar room while she was still half asleep was much easier said than done. Following the sound of the ring tone, she grabbed her jeans off the carpeted floor and dug out her cell phone. Flipping it open, she held it to her ear.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Eliza, it’s Andy. Sorry if I woke you, but I was listening to the police scanner I brought with me, and I thought you’d want to know that there’s been another animal attack. I figured you’d want to go by and take a look,” the photographer said. “Do you want me to stop by your room or meet you down at the car?”

Brushing her disheveled hair back from her face, Eliza glanced over at Hunter still lying in bed. “Um, I’m not at the hotel,” she told Andy. “Why don’t you tell me where it happened and I’ll meet you there?”

If Andy wondered why she wasn’t in her room at this time of night, he made no mention of it. “It should be easy enough to find,” he said. “The wolf, or bear, or whatever it was, attacked some guy in his house.”

Eliza frowned at that, but made no comment. Not having anything to write the address down on, she had no choice but to commit it to memory when Andy rattled it off. Flipping her cell phone closed, she turned to find Hunter getting out of bed. She opened her mouth to tell him who was on the phone, but he chose that moment to turn on the bedside lamp, and she couldn’t seem do anything but stare at his naked body. Her mouth watered at the sight.

Giving herself a mental shake, she forced herself to focus. “That was Andy,” she explained. “There’s been another attack, and he figured I’d want to go check it out. I told him I’d take a cab and meet him there.”

“You don’t need to take a cab,” Hunter said. “I’ll drive you.”

Her brow furrowed. “Are you sure?”

“The cops will want me to take a look at the scene anyway,” he said, grabbing his jeans from the floor and putting them on. “Especially since the guy got attacked in his house.”

She blinked in amazement. “You heard that?”

Hunter looked at her in confusion for a moment, and then shrugged. “Yeah. Your phone’s really loud.”

Eliza didn’t think it was that loud, but she said nothing as she hurriedly pulled on her clothes. As she dressed, she couldn’t help but glance over at Hunter from beneath her long bangs as he shrugged into his shirt. Damn, he was even better looking all tousled and disheveled from sleep than he had been last night when they’d fallen into bed. That thought brought with it a flood of images from last night’s sexcapades. To say the sex had been mind-blowing was an understatement. It had absolutely, positively been the most amazing experience of her life.

And it wasn’t just the physical act itself, either. From the very beginning, there had been more than just sex between them. She didn’t know why they’d connected so easily, or why she’d fallen into bed with him so quickly, but it had just felt right. Which was rather funny, considering she’d only just met him. But she had always trusted her instincts about men, and right now, they were telling her that there was something special about Hunter McCall. Maybe it was the whole outdoorsy, Alaskan-hunk thing he had going on. Then again, maybe it was just that great ass of his, she decided with a smile as she watched him bend over to pull on his boots.

* * * *

The address Andy had given Eliza was for a house just on the outskirts of town. It was situated on the edge of the industrial area, right where the warehouses and manufacturing plants left off and the forest began. It didn’t exactly look like the nicest part of town. In fact, it looked a little creepy with all the deserted buildings and densely wooded areas. She could just imagine a big wolf lurking out there among the trees trying to decide whom he should eat next.

The photographer was already there by the time she and Hunter arrived. He was standing behind the yellow police tape along with a handful of other onlookers, and he walked over to them when he spotted Eliza.

“Andy, this is, um, Dr. McCall. He’s the professor I went to see at the university,” she stammered awkwardly, glancing at Hunter. “This is Andy Decker. He’s the photographer I was telling you about.”

Andy lifted a brow, clearly curious as to what she was still doing with Hunter at two o’clock in the morning. “Professor, huh?” he said as he held out his hand. “You guys must work really late up here.”

Hunter opened his mouth to reply, but Eliza spoke before he could get a word out. “So, did you find out anything?” she asked Andy.

The photographer shook his head. “Not much. The cops aren’t talking, but I heard some of them say it’s really bloody in there. They won’t confirm anything, though.”

The cops usually didn’t.

Hunter glanced at her. “I’ll never get Andy in with his camera, but I can probably get you inside, if you want.”

“That’d be great,” she said, grateful for the offer.

Giving Andy an apologetic look, she ducked beneath the police tape that Hunter was holding up for her. The uniformed officer standing just inside the cordoned-off area stepped forward to intercept them, but stopped when he recognized Hunter.

“Oh, Dr. McCall. I heard they were planning to call you, but didn’t expect you to get here so quick,” the officer said. “You can go on in.”

Hunter gave the man a nod as he and Eliza walked across the yard to the house. The uniformed officer posted outside the front door obviously knew Hunter as well, because he made no move to stop the professor. The man didn’t seem too sure about letting her in, however.

“She’s with me,” Hunter told the man.

Apparently, that must have satisfied the officer because he nodded. “Good enough.”

Eliza didn’t know what to expect when they walked into the house, and she was shocked at what she saw. Not only had the front door been torn to shreds as if someone had gone at it with a chainsaw, but the entryway and living room were in complete shambles. The couch had been knocked over and shredded, along with the coffee table. A lamp and what looked like the end table it had been sitting on had been tossed across the room, and now lay broken to bits in one corner. Even the carpet had not escaped damage, but was covered with long claw marks that led straight from the shattered door to the hallway off the room.
Could a wolf really do all this?

Still looking around in disbelief, Eliza followed Hunter out of the room and down the hallway. When they reached the door at the far end, he turned to look at her.

“If you’re squeamish, you might want to wait out here,” he said. “If it’s like the other attacks, then it’s going to be bloody.”

Eliza wanted to tell him that she could handle it, but the truth was that she did have a delicate stomach when it came to stuff like that. She nodded. “Okay.”

Even though she didn’t go in the bedroom, she still found herself drawn to it, and she edged closer to the doorway to get a better look.

If she’d thought the living room had been in disarray that was nothing compared to the bedroom. It looked like a bomb had gone off in there. It was the blood that captured and held her attention, though. She’d never seen so much of it. The red stuff was everywhere—the walls, the floor, the windows, the bed, even the ceiling. And the odor coming from the bedroom was almost a physical assault. She’d never smelled anything like it in her life. She could only imagine that this was what a slaughterhouse would smell like on a hot summer day. The smell of the blood was so thick in the air that she could almost taste it on the back of her tongue.

Feeling bile rise in her throat, Eliza tried to block out the smell as she forced her gaze away from the sickly red smears to focus on something else. Unfortunately, it seemed that the only other thing in the room her attention wanted to focus on was the body lying on the floor. Though someone had covered the man with a sheet, it didn’t conceal the pools of dark red blood on the hardwood floor beside the body.

As Hunter crossed the room, the two men who had been standing beside the body glanced up, and Eliza recognized one of them as Fred Newman, the detective she’d met yesterday.

“Oh, someone else called you. Good,” Newman said to Hunter. “I was hoping you could take a look and tell me if this is the same animal that attacked those hikers.”

As he spoke, the detective crouched down and lifted the sheet at an angle so that Hunter could get a look. Because of the position of the body, Eliza couldn’t see much, but she did catch a glimpse of a bloody, mangled arm before Hunter squatted down, hiding it from her view.

“So, what do you think?” Fred Newman asked. “Was it a wolf?”

Hunter didn’t answer right away. “It definitely looks like it was,” he finally said. “And the bite patterns are the same as the others. I’d say it’s almost certainly the same one.”

Newman frowned and shook his head. “Damn! The hikers I could explain, being that they were out in the wolf’s territory, but this? What the hell would make a wolf break into a house and attack a guy?”

Hunter said nothing for a moment, and then sighed. “I don’t know. I’ve never seen anything like this before.”

The detective dropped the sheet and stood. “Well, we’ve got to find this animal, and soon. Fish and Wildlife need to be brought in on this.”

Hunter spoke to Fred Newman for several more moments before coming back over to her. “You’re looking kind of pale,” he said, concern in eyes. “Are you okay?”

She tried to nod, but it was halfhearted. All that blood must have really gotten to her because she felt faint.

“Here,” he said, taking her arm. “Let’s get you outside.”

Eliza let him guide her back down the hall and through the living room, then out the front door. Once outside in the frigid night air, she started to feel better almost immediately.

“Better?” Hunter asked when they had stepped off the porch.

She nodded. “A little. It’s just that I’ve never seen anything like that before.”

“Nothing wrong with that. Few people could look at what we saw in there and not be affected.” He glanced at the house, and then back at her. “I hate to do this, but I’m going to have to hang around here for a while. Maybe you should get Andy to give you a ride back to the hotel, so you can get some sleep. You look exhausted.”

Eliza would much rather have gone back to his place and spent the rest of the night cuddled up to him, but she tried not to let her disappointment show. “Oh…okay.”

“How about I call you tomorrow?” he said.

“Um, yeah. Sure.”

She tried not to hold it against him—the cops needed him here, after all. And she knew he was just looking out for her when he suggested she go back to the hotel.

Mumbling a quick, “Good night,” Eliza turned to walk back toward the group of onlookers still gathered behind the police tape, only to stop when she felt Hunter’s hand on her arm.

“Tonight was amazing,” he whispered softly in her ear.

His breath was hot on her skin, and she shivered. “It was for me, too.”

He stared down at her for a moment longer, the heat in his eyes letting her know in no uncertain terms how much he still wanted her. With a smile, he gave her a wink, then turned and walked back to the house.

Eliza turned and made her way over to the crowd of people. Spotting Andy standing just on the other side of the police tape, she headed in his direction. Ducking beneath the yellow tape, she glanced back at the house to see Hunter talking to one of the uniformed police officers.

“So, did it look like it was another wolf attack?” Andy asked.

She turned her attention to her co-worker. “Yeah. And it’s one vicious wolf, too,” she said, her stomach suddenly churning again at the memory of what she’d seen in the house. “Look, there’s not really much more to do here, so we might as well go back to the hotel.” She didn’t want to admit to the photographer that she had gotten a bit queasy from being inside the house.

Andy was silent for a moment. “You go on. I think I might hang around. See if I can get any pictures. I’ll have Nate drive me back to the hotel.”

She blinked in surprise at the name. “Nate Corrigan’s here?”