Seduced By A Wolf (15 page)

“The couch is closer.” Von rained kisses all over his face.

Sean staggered the few steps necessary and dropped with her onto the sofa. They tugged and shoved, ripped and pulled until all the good parts were accessible. Then Sean was over her, driving into her. She arched up to meet each heavy, frantic thrust.

Murmurs of “More,” “Just like that,” and “God, you feel so good” filled the atmosphere, along with gasps, cries, and heavy breathing. Then Von strangled a cry and Sean let out a deep groan and stiffened above her as her orgasm triggered his.

He collapsed on top of her.

“That was...” she panted.

“Explosive,” he finished for her, still gasping for air.

After they’d both calmed somewhat, he said, “I must be crushing you,” and tried to move.

Von held him tight. “No, don’t move. I like you right where you are.”

“Here?” He thrust his hips and his semi-erect cock dragged against sensitive nerve endings, causing her to groan.

“Yes,” she hissed.

Sean kissed her earlobe and laid his head alongside hers. “We’d be more comfortable in bed.”

“The bedroom is way over there.” She made a lazy gesture with her arm in the direction of her room.

“Hmm, there is that.” He nibbled on her earlobe and she shivered.

“And, I can’t feel my legs.” Not to mention she didn’t have the energy to stand, never mind walk.

“That might be circulation. Your jeans are tangled around your thighs.”

Von thought about that for a moment. “And my panties?”

Sean raised his head, and then dropped it back down. “Under the coffee table, ripped. I’ll buy you another pair.”

Von imagined how they must look. Sean had only pushed his pants and underwear down far enough to free his cock. Her t-shirt was shoved up under her armpits, the front clasp of her bra was open, and the waistband of her pants was tight above her knees.

The first snicker caught her by surprise. She managed to suppress the rest but her body shook with the effort. Sean lifted onto one elbow and peered at her. “Are you laughing?”

She nodded. Anything more would have her losing control.

“Dare I ask?”

The giggles broke free. “Us,” she managed to get out between chuckles.

He smiled, sharing the joke. “We do look a mess, don’t we?”

“Yes,” she agreed, nodding.

Sean pushed back onto his knees. “You want the rest of your food?”

Eyeing his rapidly hardening penis, Von lightly trailed her fingernail down the shaft, still shiny wet with their combined juices. “I’m no longer hungry,” she licked her lips, “for food.”

“Sit up.”

As soon as she complied, he had her shirt and bra off. Then he went to work on her pants and his. When they were both naked, he pulled her off the sofa and towed her behind him toward the bedroom.

“You think we’ll ever get enough of this?” she asked, watching the flex and ripples of the glutes in his butt.

“God, I hope not,” he fervently replied.

“Me, too.”

The bedroom door closed firmly behind them as they fell on each other again.

“How are you feeling?” Marketta asked.

“Better. My face looks like a nightmare and is still tender to the touch. That eye is a little blurry and if I think about it, my head starts hurting, but other than that...”

“And the hunk? How’s he? He called to check on you today?”

Von cleared her throat and shifted on her ottoman, glad her cousin couldn’t see her face. “Sean? He’s, um, fine.”

“What time did he leave last night? I kept expecting you to call,” she scolded.

“Oh, um, he just left.”

There was silence. Then in a low, controlled voice, her cousin asked, “He spent the night?”

“Yeah.” Von winced when her voice cracked.
You’re a grown woman
.
You can have a
man spend the night
.

“With you.”

She cleared her throat again. Darn frogs. “Um-hmm.”

“I don’t suppose he slept on the couch,” Marketta asked wryly.

Von looked at the piece of furniture, remembered what activity
had
recently taken place on it, and felt her face catch fire. “Uh, no.”

“I see.”

How did her cousin manage to reduce her to feeling like a teenager being called on the carpet by an irate parent? To lessen her guilt, she burst out, “Sean asked me to marry him.”

Marketta took a deep breath, and then another, and Von knew she was biting back her initial response. Finally, she said, “Von, honey, don’t you think you’re moving kind of fast. I’m all for you getting rid of asshole, don’t get me wrong, but what do you really know about this man other than he’s fine as hell and can obviously lay it down between the sheets?”

Von rose and began to pace her living room. “I didn’t say yes. I know it’s too soon, despite how I feel about him.”

“And just how
do
you feel about him?”

Von sighed. “I love him. Really, truly and deeply love him. You were right. I cared about Derrick and maybe even loved him, but I wasn’t in love with him.” She paused by a window and looked out at the woods while she considered her words. “I thought at first maybe it was the sex. You know, the intimacy and novelty of it.” Not that she’d tell Marketta, but Sean had told her about Lycan pheromones and shared his concern that they might be affecting her emotions toward him. His honesty had only made her love him more.

“But it’s not the sex,” she continued. “Sean sees me and he likes what he sees. He listens to what I have to say and cares about how I feel. He’s not trying to change me or mold me into his
perfect
woman
,” she finished with a hint of sarcasm.

“I’m glad you finally realize that’s what D was doing,” Marketta said, sounding relieved.

“Yeah, me too. You know he came here this morning, said he was willing to forgive me for Sean and offered to take me back. No apologies for hitting me. He acted like I made him do it.”

“You’re shitting me. That bastard! I knew I should have followed my first instinct and put a cap in his ass. You didn’t agree, did you? Honey, tell me you told D where to shove it!”

Von rubbed her face. “No, I didn’t go along with it. For once I told him how I really felt, about everything. The sad thing is, if he would have gotten to me last night before Sean, I might have fallen for it and agreed with him.” And didn’t that make her feel all warm and fuzzy inside? She was so disgusted with herself and how weak she’d been where Derrick was concerned.

“Then I’m glad I let Sean into the apartment. Someone needed to open your eyes.”

“You were doing a good job of it. It’s just that Derrick had become a habit.” Von shrugged. “You know how hard habits are to break.”

“Well, don’t beat yourself up about it. You aren’t the first woman to stay in a bad relationship because it was comfortable. Change is hard, even when it’s good for us. Then you had all that other baggage,” Marketta stated.

“You were right about that, too. I’m not my momma and I need to stop making decisions based on her.”

“It’s about damn time you realized that!”

Von laughed a little at her cousin’s enthusiasm.

“So, what are you going to do about the hunk?”

“Sean has two months’ leave and says he’s planning on spending it here, with me. We’ll take our time, do couple’s stuff, and see what happens. Marketta, he’s serious about that marriage proposal. If I’d let him, he’d marry me today. He’s up for re-enlistment and said he’d leave the decision up to me. He’s willing to get out and move here, if that’s what I want.”

“With the economy the way it is, he’d better stay his ass in the military.” Marketta paused, then asked, “Would you really go with him?”

“I might. It’s not like I’d have a problem finding work. I’d miss you and the rest of the family but Sean...he just does it for me. I can’t explain,” she finished lamely.

“I can. You’re in love. The real deal. When Derrick was enlisted, you never mentioned joining him. You never even thought about going to visit him the few times he was stateside.”

Von went back to the couch and sat. “Back then I was busy with school and didn’t have any money. And I was scared to leave momma, scared of what would happen to her if I wasn’t around to check on her.”

“Honey, if he really wanted you with him, he’d have paid for you to come, and your momma’s a grown woman. She can take care of herself. She’s not your responsibility.”

“I know that, now.” Not comfortable talking about Derrick, Von changed the subject. “What are you doing tonight?”

“Me? Nothing.”

“Why don’t you come over? Sean went to the base to get some stuff. Then he’s picking up some movies and Chinese food on his way back. He likes you.”

“Yeah? Still? After last night?”

Von hesitated. “Last night? What did you do?”

“Oh, nothing much.”

She groaned. “Marketta, knowing you—” Someone bammed on the front door.

“Is that
your
door?”

“Yeah. They must have the wrong apartment. So, you coming over?” she asked as she walked to the door.

“Yes, I’m coming. Who can turn down Chinese? Make sure he gets Sweet and Sour Chicken. You know I love that stuff.”

“Damn,” Von cursed in a low voice and jumped away from the door.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s Pastor Wilkins,” she whispered.

“So don’t open the door. Act like you’re not home.”

“My car’s out front.” She winced as he hammered on the door again. “I don’t think he’ll go away.”

“Vondalyn! Open the door, child!”

“Vondalyn? That’s not your name,” Marketta said.

Von sighed and rolled her head on her shoulders to ease the tension. “I know. He knows, but he insists on calling me that.”

“Now I see where asshole gets it from. It’s genetic.”

Pastor Wilkins pounded on the door again.

“Look, I gotta go. Might as well get this over with.”

“Okay. I’m on my way. Later.”

“Later,” she echoed. She disconnected and in a loud voice, called out, “Just a minute.”

Von rushed into the room and grabbed a scrunchie, quickly pulling her hair into a messy ponytail. She shut the bedroom door behind her and on her way to the door, straightened the pillows on the couch. Spotting her torn underwear on the floor, she scooped them up and shoved them under a sofa pillow. Then hurried to the door.

She took a deep calming breath, wiped her sweaty palms on her jeans, then cracked open the door. “Pastor, I wasn’t expecting you.”

“Let me in, child. Don’t keep me out on the stoop.”

Very aware of her braless state, she said, “I’m not dressed for company.”

“When a pastor drops in on his parishioners, he’s not expecting them to be perfectly put together,” he said gently.

Von reluctantly stepped aside and allowed him to enter her apartment. Derrick Senior looked nothing like his son. Whereas Derrick Junior was lean and slender, Derrick Senior was built along the lines of a football player. Even though he was in his mid-fifties, he still worked out and kept in shape. There was no flab on this man, no beer gut, just two hundred and fifty pounds of pure muscle. His head was bald and face grave, his expression, like now, usually set in stern lines. By comparison, Derrick Junior was small, almost delicate looking. Von had decided years ago the son must take after his mother.

She shut the door, but left it unlocked, hoping this would be a quick visit. Even after years of knowing him, Von still felt uncomfortable in his presence. “Would you care for some refreshment?”

“No, don’t put yourself to any trouble.” When she turned, he got a good look at her face. “Did my son do that?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Care to tell me what happened?”

“No, sir.”

He arched an eyebrow. “I see. May I have a seat?”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Yes, please.” She gestured toward the seating arrangement in the living room.

He loosened his tie before sitting on the two-person ottoman. Von took the armchair across from him, pulling her feet up into the chair and hiding her chest behind her knees.

“I spoke with Derrick today.” Von tensed. “When he didn’t come to church, I was concerned. It’s not like my son to miss service, especially when he has to speak. He told me you two were having some...difficulties.”

Von gripped her jeans with tightly clenched fingers. “With all due respect, Pastor, I believe what happens between me and your son is just that, between us.”

As Derrick Senior leaned forward and rested his forearms on his thighs, his suit jacket fell open. With his intent stare focused directly on her, Von had to force herself not to fidget. “I’m aware that you feel I’m too involved in your and Derrick’s relationship. Derrick has expressed with me how unhappy you were that I advised him to wait on your nuptials.”

Angry and defensive, Von stated in as calm a voice as she could manage, “I understood the reasoning behind Derrick’s decision. I simply wished he would have discussed it with me first, especially since it affected both of us.”

“Hmm, I see.” He glanced down, playing with the creases in his dress pants before pinning her with another look. “You know the bible teaches women to be submissive to their husbands.”

“Yes, but as I told Derrick, we’re not married yet.” She sighed. “Pastor, I have no problem following the leading of my husband. I believe that the husband should be the head of the household. I
want
my husband to lead. What I don’t want is to be treated like a mindless child. You taught me that a wife should be a helpmate to her husband. To me that means we should work together, like partners, with Derrick having the final say. Not the only say, but the final one.”

Derrick Senior smiled ruefully. “Listening to you, you remind me of my wife. She had a lot of the same views on marriage and relationships.” He stood, straightening his clothes, and Von scrambled to her feet as well. “I’ll leave you two young people to work out your issues on your own. You know I’m always available for counseling.”

“Thank you, sir.” Relieved that he wasn’t going to pry, Von trailed behind him to the entryway. When he paused to let her pass, she gave him a brief smile and quickened her pace, eager to have him gone.