Grayslake: Creed's Claim (5 page)

“Hey, no! She’s not his mate, not yet. The rite of preparation doesn’t apply,” Brad snarled, backed up by a couple of his bully boys. Creed glared at them, then looked at Lilly. He’d take on every single one of them right now if necessary.

“In this case,” Dean Sterling drawled from the back of the room. He’d emerged from his suite, blood stains across his shirt, to lean against the door frame. “I rule that it does. Brad, if you have a problem with that, you can meet
me
in the pit now.”

Brad blanched, all the color leaving his face at the very real possibility of facing off with the Itan. No one wanted to face Dean. He was literally a lean, mean fighting machine. Not the biggest bear in the clan, he was without a doubt the most lethal, which was why he was Itan.

“No, Itan,” Brad mumbled, not meeting Dean’s hard gaze. “No problem at all.”

“I didn’t think so.” Dean transferred his attention to Creed and Kait. “Creed, take your woman home and prepare for the pit tomorrow.”

“Itan.” With a nod, Creed turned and, Kait’s hand in his, left the lodge.

T
he drive
to Creed’s house was silent. Kait stole glances at his profile to find him brooding and closed off. His expression was set and forbidding. Biting her lip, she curled up in the passenger seat and looked at the town as they passed through. Now that she knew the truth, she’d never look at the sleepy town the same way again. And to think she’d left Lizard Lick convinced that she’d only find adventure in the city…only to find one asshole, Mr. Oh-So-Wrong, and that all the excitement she could ever want was right here at home.

Home. She let the word settle and take root in her mind. It felt right. She was home. Here. With Creed. When had that happened?

She looked at him again as he turned the big truck off the main road through town just after the tattoo shop, then a sharp right again to pull up behind the row of shops. Killing the engine, he looked up through the windscreen.

“It’s not much.” He indicated the apartment above the shop. “But it’s home…for now.”

“I don’t mind. I’m sure it’s lovely,” she murmured as she opened the door to get out. Everything had changed so quickly she felt like her head was swirling. Perhaps getting her feet on solid ground would help with that feeling a little. Before she could slide from the seat and drop from the high cab though, he was there, his hands around her waist to ease her to the ground. Automatically her hands curled around his upper arms.

Her lips quirked. “I’m not delicate. I won’t break.”

He hadn’t let go, his hands spanning out on her waist. “I know, but you’re mine to protect now. Mine to look after the way I’ve always—”

She went up on her tiptoes and cut off the rest of his sentence with her lips on his. With a rumble of surprise and pleasure in the center of his chest, he pulled her closer and tilted his head to deepen the kiss.

A wave of heat and longing hit her as she molded herself to his bigger, harder body. She kissed him back, hot and open-mouthed, their embrace going from sensual to torrid in less time than it took for either of their hearts to beat. He tucked her closer. She whimpered and slid her hands up around his neck, pulling his head down so she could tangle her tongue with his.

Urging her back against the side of the truck, he pinned her against it. With a hard hand behind her knee, he hauled one leg up high over his hip and pressed forward. The thick, hard bar of his cock rubbed right where she needed him and she moaned in pleasure.

“Mine.” The word was more growled than spoken, but she didn’t mind. As long as he kept kissing her as he was, leaving a trail of white-hot kisses against the skin of her jaw and throat, she didn’t care. She needed more. More of his touch. More of his kisses. More everything. Now.

He stopped kissing her, leaning his forehead against her shoulder as he took a shuddering breath. “We have to stop, or I’m going to fuck you here. Up against the truck.”

Heat hit her. Anyone could come upon them here, but she didn’t care. Just the thought of him taking her like that, hard and fast with most of their clothes on, made her hot as hell.

Squirming against him, she rocked her hips to meet his. “The idea has its merits.”

He pulled back to look down into her eyes, surprise written in his. Then a heat so complete consumed his gaze that she was surprised it didn’t burn her to a crisp.

“Shelve that thought for another time,” he murmured, lips teasing hers.

He didn’t quite kiss her, but the ghost of it as he brushed her lips with his, using his nose to nudge and nuzzle hers, was almost hotter in some ways. It made her need more, made her chase him for the kiss she craved that he wouldn’t deliver.

He tsked at her, pulling away again. “Right now, all I want to do is take you upstairs and peel every item of clothing from you. Reveal that beautiful body of yours before I lay you back on my bed and fuck you ‘til you scream.”

She leaned her head back against the truck. “What if I’m not a screamer.”

His lips quirked, the heat of battle in his eyes. “You will be by the time I’m finished with you.”

Oh. My. God. She bit her lip, heat coursing through her at his words. His expression shifted, became hard and feral as his gaze latched onto her lips.

“For fuck’s sake, don’t look at me like that, Kait. Or I will push you up against this truck and fuck the living daylights out of you.”

Before she could answer, he bent and scooped her up, holding her high against his chest as he used his foot to close the door behind her. Turning, he strode toward the metal steps that led up to the apartment. She clung to his shoulders, her arms tight around his neck. He wouldn’t drop her. She knew that. He’d never drop her. Anticipation and heat shivered through her body and she pressed closer to place a kiss on the side of his neck.

He shuddered, a soul-deep judder that encompassed his entire body, but kept walking, iron control written into every movement. Encouraged, she carried on, trailing a line of kisses along his stubbled jaw to tease the corner of his lips. They quirked as he stopped, adjusting his hold on her to open the door in front of them.

“Careful, baby girl. Baiting the bear. Sure you wanna go there?”

“Uh-huh,” her reply was muffled as she kissed him again. She lifted up to whisper against his skin. “Not a big scary bear, though… more teddy bear.”

He barked a laugh, shouldered opened the door and carried her inside.

T
he door shut behind them
, and the mood changed.

Creed stopped in the middle of what looked like a small hallway. It was dark, and she couldn’t see but that didn’t matter. All that mattered was the man who held her in his arms. He caught her gaze with his, tension stretching out between them.

“Teddy bear?” His low whisper filled the darkness. “I’ll give you teddy bear.”

With that his mouth crashed down over hers. Hard and firm, he pried her lips apart with a single sweep of his tongue. She didn’t take any persuading and opened up to him instantly. He groaned, arms tight around her as he deepened the kiss.

His tongue slid against hers, not teasing but demanding her response. It was a warm, wet, slick dance of pure sensation. She murmured in pleasure and speared her fingers through the short hair at the back of his neck. Without pausing the kiss, he let go of her legs to slide her down the front of his body. She felt it all. Every hard plane and ridge of muscle. The strength of his body as he held her close. The thick bar of his arousal pressed into her soft belly.

He broke the kiss, breathing ragged to look down at her. The moonlight streaming through the window to the left caught his eyes, rendering them pale and piercing. The blue was eaten up by darkness and need as he smoothed his hands over the curve of her hips and ass. Strong fingers gripped, pulling her up hard against him.

“Feel what you do to me?” he muttered, grinding his hips against hers. “All for you, baby girl. Wanted you for so long… now you’re mine. All mine.”

All she could manage for an answer was a nod, and she lifted her chin for his kiss again. He didn’t disappoint, kissing her with a desperation that scorched her soul. Not to be outdone, she matched him kiss for kiss as he walked her backward. She didn’t know where they were going and didn’t care. All that mattered was him. Them. What they were doing.

Her hands swept down to the buttons on his shirt and she tried to drag them free. They resisted. She made a tiny sound of frustration in the back of her throat, the sound lost under his kiss. He must have heard, though, because he stopped moving, grabbed the sides of his shirt and tore it. The buttons scattered, pinging off the floor in a melody all their own.

A sigh of relief and pleasure escaped her, and her hands swept over the heavy muscles of his chest. His skin was warm satin, roughened with hair. Not cuddly at all, but lean, ripped and infinitely more dangerous than any teddy bear she’d ever known. She traced the lines of definition between his muscles and found his nipples as he walked her backward through a doorway. Circling them, she pulled back from the kiss and nipped his lower lip at the same moment she tweaked the sensitive peaks.

He gasped, then growled… rendering the sound almost a purr. He pulled his head back to look down at her with fire in his eyes. Which was when she realized they were in his bedroom. Two more steps and he had her backed up against the bed. His bed. Big and with a heavy wooden frame, it suited him. She shivered, her knees weak as she clung to his upper arms.

Without a word, he moved her hands down to her sides and left them there. Then he hooked strong fingers under the straps of her top. Without breaking eye contact for a second, he dragged them slowly across her shoulders and down her arms. She shivered, biting her lip again as the fabric whispered over her skin. He didn’t stop until it dropped to puddle around her feet, leaving her clad in just her bra and her jeans.

Only then did he look down and the darkness in his eyes flared again. Subconsciously, she arched her back to present herself to him. His breathing caught, hands rising to smooth up her waist and coming to rest just beneath her breasts. Achingly slowly, he stroked both thumbs along the underside, following the curve. A sigh escaped her and she pressed into his hands. Needing him to touch her. Aching for him to touch her.

“So beautiful…” He stepped closer and the heat of his body beat against hers.

Big strong hands covered her breasts, cupping them and molding them through the satin of her bra. She whimpered, lifting her lips for his kiss, and he hooked a finger into the cups to pull them away. Her breasts popped free, nipples beading in the cooler air as though in anticipation of his touch.

He gave her the kiss she wanted, hot lips on hers in a torrid caress. He kissed like the devil himself. A fallen angel designed to tempt women into sin. But it wasn’t just his lips. His hands worked their own magic, stroking and teasing the flesh of her breasts in ever decreasing circles until he reached the nipples. Strong fingers rubbed over them, circled them, and then when she was least expecting it, pinched and tweaked suddenly.

Pleasure pain shot through her, arrowing down from her nipples directly to her clit. She couldn’t help the small cry that escaped her lips, and her mouth filled the next instant with the thrust of his tongue. Her thought processes scattered, leaving her a willing slave to his every desire.

He pinched and pulled gently at her nipples, a sensual torment she couldn’t do anything about, nor did she want to. All she could do was arch into him and whimper in need.

Her hands found his stomach and then flirted with his belt buckle. With a growl, he covered her hands and broke away from the kiss to shake his head in warning. “Not happening, baby girl. This one is all mine. If you touch me, that’ll be it… I won’t be able to control myself. And I don’t want to hurt you.”

Understanding swirled through her, wrapping around the desire that throbbed in her veins. She needed, she wanted, and she ached… But she wouldn’t make him do anything he didn’t want to do. With a small nod, she answered him, and his smile was worth every ounce of torment that not touching him brought her.

Reaching around, he unclipped her bra, pulling the straps down her arms to discard it behind them. She stood, a little unsteady on her heels, as he slid to his knees in front of her. His lips blazed a trail of fire down between her breasts and her stomach. He worked the fastener on her jeans, parting the denim so he could slide his hands beneath. His palms were rough over the soft skin of her hips and ass, and she shivered. It felt so good. Too good to be true.

He eased her jeans and panties down her legs holding out a hand to help her step from them until she was clad in just her heels. Still on his knees, he looked up at her and she felt like she could drown in his eyes. The look on his face was filled with lust and longing. She caught her breath, her pussy clenching as her body responded.

“Mine,” he growled again and swept his hands up her thighs.

Before she realized what he was about, he’d lifted her and tumbled her back onto the bed behind her. She squeaked as she landed on the cool sheets, but he was already over her. Parting her legs, he wedged his broad shoulders between her thighs. Heat hit her cheeks as she realized she was spread open for his perusal.

“So pretty,” he murmured.

Her body clenched as he bent his head, clit aching in the moment before his breath washed over her. A second later his tongue swept her. A warm brush of rough wetness that made her cry out and arch off the bed. Ruthlessly, he held her down, a big hand spread over her stomach to keep her in place as he licked her again. And again.

He found her clit easily, circling the tiny bundle of nerves around and around in maddening circles that did nothing to ease the tension within her body. Trying not to wriggle, she reached up and grabbed the sheets above her for something to anchor herself. He didn’t let up, alternating licking in circles with sliding his tongue down to the entrance of her pussy and circling until she was ready to scream with need.

He moved back up and found her clit, but this time he licked over it finally. Bringing a hand up, he slid one, and then a second finger deep within her. He pumped them slowly. Torturously slowly. A plea, his name, broke from her lips in a plea for more before she could stop it. Latching his lips around her clit, he rumbled in the back of his throat, the sound one of amusement and approval. The vibrations brought her hips off the bed again, liquid heat leaving her in a rush. He groaned, finger-fucking her faster, then curling his digits back to press against her G-spot. She whimpered and writhed, torn between pleasure and the need to get away from the overstimulation. He wouldn’t let her. He held her down and tormented her until she teetered on the very edge of climax.

“That’s it, baby girl. Come for me. I need you warm and wet to take my cock. Because you can take it all, every single inch.”

That did it. She cried out and tipped over the edge. Pleasure cascaded through her body, and hard-edged shards of ecstasy and bliss rebounded from every cell in an endless loop of sensation. He didn’t let her go, pulling his fingers from her to replace them with his tongue. With a groan, he gathered the juices of her release, his strong agile tongue fucking her as she came over and over again.

He pulled away and she pouted in disappointment, arching her body as she stretched in reaction to her climax. Standing by the side of the bed, he wiped his mouth on the back of his hand as he looked down at her. His hands dropped to his belt buckle, and with a few swift movements, he undid it and his jeans, shoving them down to the floor.

Her eyes widened as his cock popped free, the thick shaft slapping against his toned belly. He was not only commando but he was also freaking huge. Her pussy clenched, clit throbbing as need filled her again. The need to have him between her legs, that thick hard cock sliding into her cunt. Taking her. Owning her. Fucking her.

“That’s a naughty look, baby girl,” he muttered as he crawled over the bed toward her. “Wanna tell me what’s causing it?”

She shook her head as hard hands pulled her legs farther apart so he could settle between them. There was nothing gentle in his movements, the rough touch exciting her beyond measure despite the fact she’d already come harder than she could remember coming before. Ever.

He lowered himself. Hands on either side of her head bracing him over her and his cock pressed to the groove of her pussy lips. She bit her lip, saw the flare of his nostrils in reaction, and did it again.

“Careful, baby girl,” he growled. “Bad girls get spanked.”

She couldn’t help the smile. “Is that threat or a promise?” she asked and rocked her hips to torment him.

“Fuck me!”

His reaction was instant and feral. His eyes widened and a growl trickled from his throat that was far more animal than any sound she’d ever heard him make before. Was that the sound of his bear? She didn’t care. Didn’t care that a monster resided within him… He was just Creed. Her man. He’d never hurt her. Ever.

Catching her gaze with his, he pulled back and fit the head of his cock against the entrance to her body. “Definitely a promise.”

“Good.”

One word was all she could get out as he pushed forward. Her breathing caught, and her hands on his upper arms tensed. Not to push him away, but just for something to hold onto. Her nails bit into the flesh and he groaned.

“Fuck, you’re so tight.”

Dropping his head, he pulled his hips back and pressed forward again. This time, her body gave and the lips of her sex wrapped around the head of his cock. They both moaned.

He let up the pressure, pushing harder and filling her inch by inch until she didn’t think she could take any more. But with a last shove of his hips, she did.

He paused above her and his gaze bored into hers. She read everything there. Need, lust, desire, longing, tenderness. The last took her by surprise, but she held onto him as he pulled his hips back and thrust into her again. Then again.

It was no gentle lovemaking. He took her body in rough pleasure, hard and fast, with no compromises. Just the way she’d always seen him being. Just the way she’d always imagined, those nights alone in her bed with her battery-operated boyfriend. But no amount of fantasy could compete with the reality of being claimed by Creed. It blew her mind, even as he took her body.

“You’re so fucking sexy,” he murmured against her neck, moving to grab one of her knees and looping it up over his arm. He slid deeper on the next thrust, making her moan and arch against him. Then he did the same with the other arm, opening her further, and deepening his possession.

“So fucking sexy, and all mine.”

Satisfaction and triumph rang in his voice and he upped his pace. Pinned beneath him, she couldn’t do anything other than reach up and cling to the headboard as the bed rocked beneath them. Each hard fast stroke of his cock stroked nerve endings she hadn’t realized she had and tightened the knot of tension in her core even further. A familiar tension, one that should have been used by her earlier orgasm, was back tenfold. More. She’d never felt need like it.

“Creed, please…” she begged, needing something… More.

“Don’t worry… I got you, baby girl.”

Letting go of her, he turned her over and hauled her hips up so her ass was in the air. She squeaked, but before she could do anything about it, he was there behind her. His cock found her cunt and he drove home in one solid thrust.

Her squeak turned to a liquid moan. If she’d thought he was fucking her hard before, she now had a whole new appreciation of it. This time he let his feral, male side loose. Hands hooked around her hips, he held her in place as he drove into her, hard and fast. His bigger body covered hers, the hair on his chest rasping against the sensitive skin of her back. He used a knee to nudge hers farther apart, pulling her hips back at the same moment to impale her farther on his cock.

She whimpered, feeling him throb within her. There was just something about being taken from behind that triggered every submissive instinct she had, and several she hadn’t realized.

He pulled her upright, still buried within her and she clung to the wrist of his hand as it slid up to cup her breast. The other snaked around her hip to delve between her legs. The whimper left her before she could stop it. His clever fingers found her clit again, teasing and circling until she thought the torment would never end. He drove into her, his movements relentless, ruthless, and so fucking delicious that all she could do was hang on for the ride. Her body tightened, every cell in every muscle locked and tense as they screamed for release. The coil of need deep in her core pulsated, her pussy clutching his cock greedily.