Claimed By The Lion: A BBW Paranormal Shapeshifter Romance Standalone (BBW Romance, BBW Shifter Romance, BBW Paranormal Romance, Paranormal Shapeshifter Romance) (4 page)

VIII.

              The next day, they floated as if they were walking on clouds. Some of the people who knew Jackson gave him strange looks with how genuinely happy he seemed. They’d seen his fake smiles, but his real smiles were completely different. Juliet felt lucky to be on his arm with how handsome he looked with his smiling face.

              “We probably should get back, but I was thinking of taking a day off to spend time with you,” Jackson said as they got on the car. “How about that?”

              “That sounds lovely,” she responded and grabbed his hand. “You’re so surprisingly sweet.”

              “I do try sometimes. Not very often, but sometimes.”

              “Sometimes you succeed. Not very often, but sometimes.”

              “Har har har, very funny.”

              The drive was much more scenic than the route they took to the conference. When they started getting into the forest near where they had met, Juliet started to feel uncomfortable. The man her father sold her to kept her in the woods, and it was terrifying to race through it at night. She tried to keep a brave face, but they went further and further into the darkness of the trees. She wanted to tell him to just take her home until finally they stopped at a rustic farmhouse.

              “Here we are,” he turned to her and smiled. “It’s the old family farmhouse. It’s very special to me, and I want to share it with you.”

              She simply smiled and kissed him. She wanted to be supportive even though she felt completely frightened. He unloaded their bags and carried them into the house. She followed, wanting to be inside with him where it was safe.

              “Okay, so I’m going to get us some food and water. Go ahead and take a look around, and I’ll be back soon,” he said with another wide smile.

              “Maybe I should go with you,” she said frantically.

              “That probably wouldn’t be very effective. Don’t worry, huh? I’ll be back soon.”

              She nodded and walked him to the door. As soon as he exited, she locked the door and rushed around the house making sure all the windows and additional doors were locked. She found a baseball bat in the kitchen (for whatever reason) and sat with it in the living room, cradling it in her arms until Jackson returned. With every noise, she jumped as if an intruder had gotten in. She counted the minutes, frozen by her fear as she waited.

              After some time, she wondered if something had happened to him. He should’ve returned - he said he’d be right back. She waited a little longer, but he still hadn’t come back. Thoughts about his possible demise jogged around her mind. She took a deep breath and decided to look for him, just in case. She carried the bat in her hands, searching around her for any indication of where he’d gone.

              “Jackson? Jackson, are you out here some….”

              Before she could finish, an arm came out of nowhere and pulled her into the woods. She tried to scream, but her voice box wouldn’t vibrate.

              “Finally, I found you,” a voice that still haunted her dreams said. “It took a long time of trailing that pretty boy of yours to finally get you alone, but now I’ve got you.”

              Juliet didn’t need to see her assailant to know it was the man she’d been sold to. Nearby, five burly men stood with ropes and gags, seemingly ready to take her away.

              “Is that the girl, boss?” one of the men asked.

              “It is,” her kidnapper snickered. “We got her.”

              She finally found her voice and screamed as loud as she could for help; unfortunately, since she had no idea where Jackson had gone, she knew her scream may not get her anywhere. It sure didn’t get her anywhere before. She dropped her bat, and she was now defenseless. She closed her eyes and prepared for the worst. She wouldn’t be able to get away.

              Another bloodcurdling scream came out of nowhere. She opened her eyes to see one of the burly men being attacked by a fearsome lion. She’d never seen a lion up close before, but she again couldn’t find her voice to scream. Instead, while her kidnapper was distracted, she elbowed him in the face and ran. Yet, not far away, she tripped and twisted her ankle - she couldn’t continue running.

              She watched as the lion attacked the men. The men were able to get away and ran for their lives - including her kidnapper - but she knew she wasn’t going to be able to escape this time. The lion turned to her and came straight toward her slowly. She felt her heart pound against her chest and prepared herself to be eaten by a lion.

              The day had started with such promise, and now look at it: ruined. At least she wouldn’t live with the violent man who she’d been sold to.

              She closed her eyes as the lion came close and raised his paw. She waited for the pain, but instead the paws wrapped around her in a hug. When she opened her eyes, the lion had transformed into a man. She screamed, trying to scramble away.

              “Juliet, Juliet, it’s me,” the man said. “It’s Jackson, calm down.”

              She opened her eyes fully and looked at him. It was Jackson. “What… what is…”

              “I couldn’t tell you and have you leave me before we even got started. I was… afraid.”

              “How…”

              “It’s a family thing. My dad told me where it came from years ago, but I don’t remember now.”

              “I can’t believe this.”

              “I’m safe, I swear to you. I have enough consciousness as a lion to never hurt you. Do you understand?”

              She still felt frightened, but she nodded. She knew (somehow) that he was still the man she knew, even if he also transformed into a lion.

              “How are you feeling?”

              “I think I sprained my ankle.”

              “That’s not good, but I meant about me. This is my biggest secret, Juliet. I’ve wanted so badly to tell you and…”

              “It’s okay. It may take some getting used to, but you saved my life.”

              “I hope you would allow me to take care of you, protect you, respect you for… for the rest of our lives. I want to make you my mate, Juliet.”

              She started to cry, “I’ve never wanted anything more.”

              He grinned, wiped her tears, and kissed her. When he did so, she couldn’t help but forgive and accept him - he kissed so well! He picked her She leaned her head on his shoulder, all her fear leaving her. She knew things would be okay after this. He placed her on the couch after entering the farmhouse and left the room to get some medical supplies. He returned with an ankle wrap and wrapped it gently.

              After he was done, he opened his mouth to speak, but she placed a finger on his lips and quieted him. Then she kissed him, feeling all the passion of the night before again. He responded to her kiss by bringing her closer

              “Do you think you can be gentle with me?” she asked between kisses.

              “I can certainly try,” he answered.

              They started removing their clothes again and admired each other’s bodies. She’d been worried to let him see her body before, but now she felt completely sexy - curves and all.

              “You’re beautiful,” he smiled.

              “So are you,” she answered. “Everything about you.”

              He kissed her again, running his hands up and down her body. He helped her get warmed up by sliding a few of his fingers inside her and massaging her inside walls. As she started to moan in pleasure, he slip them out and began making love to her. Now that she knew his secret, he let go completely and enjoyed her even more than he had before.  They moved in and out in rhythm with each other. It was as though they were performing a beautiful dance until they climaxed together. The way their skin felt when being rubbed against each other made them be completely in tune.

              “I love you,” he said, readjusting to lay comfortably with her after they’d finished.

              “I love you too,” she answered.

              They fell asleep in each other’s arms, excited for the new days ahead.

The End.

              PREVIEW OF ‘STRANDED WITH A BEAR’

Chapter 1

The day was exhausting. When her shift in the bar was over, Chantelle rushed to the car, wishing she could find herself at home right away. But she had a long trip ahead, driving down a lonely narrow road winding in the woods.

Chantelle was a twenty-five year old beautiful but extra curvy woman. She wasn’t really happy working as a waitress in a bar: she couldn’t find any friends there.

Another waitress, Emma, was always mocking on her looks, and her manager didn’t care about the staff, so the only conversations she had throughout the day were with the customers: noisy, short-tempered, and often too demanding. And to add to her worries, Chantelle didn’t have a man in her life, and Emma wouldn’t let her forget about that. So Chantelle hated her life.

This evening turned out to be even worse. In the middle of the woods, Chantelle’s car stopped for no obvious reason. She checked the car’s gas level, and then went out to see if there was a flat tire, but no luck. It seemed the car was perfectly OK, but it simply wouldn’t start anymore.

Swearing in anger, Chantelle suddenly noticed a light in the woods. It looked like there was a cottage out there; she decided to ask for help there.

She left her car and went deep in the woods. It was a small house, Chantelle was right, and the windows were lit.

She was about to knock on the door when she saw an enormous figure approaching her. This noisy giant was a bear!

He reared onto his hind legs as if to attack Chantelle, and she screamed.

The next moment, she realized that the bear had grabbed her to draw even deeper into the woods.

“Help me, somebody, please, help me!” she cried.

The bear shook her as if he wanted the girl to be silent. Chantelle was so frightened that she broke off.

A few minutes later, they stopped in front of another house; it was much smaller, and there was no light inside.

“Get in!” the bear suddenly ordered.

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