Shifting the Night Away (78 page)

He felt his canines extend as he neared the place where he would mark her. He closed his eyes tightly and measured his breathing to calm the wolf that surged just below his human surface, finally moving his mouth to taste her breasts and distract himself from the urge to turn her now.

His hands moved to her chest, one strong arm wrapped around her waist while the other cupped her breast from underneath as his mouth bit through the fabric of her shirt. Tara gasped, partly in surprise, partly in passion, she would worry about her torn shirt later. Right now the only thing she wanted was his mouth on her taut pink nipple.
 

She suddenly moved within his grip and pulled the shirt over her head, then the bra. As she tossed the garments aside, Lane latched onto one rosy bud with his mouth while wrapping his arms around her waist to pick her up and drop her onto the empty cot. The ease with which he held her and moved her made her feel small, petite. She couldn't remember ever feeling weightless in a man's arms before. It was a heady feeling that only added to the blur of sensation that had overtaken her body.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Tara was surprised at herself. She'd known this man for all of 2 hours and here she was, half naked and panting under him, desperate for his touch, wanting the feeling of him inside her. That wasn't like her at all. She was usually self conscious of her body, trying to stay partially clothed or at least make sure the lights were off during sex. She didn't know if it was the physical activity of hiking for several days, if it was the clean mountain air, or if it was Lane himself but some combination of factors had awakened an almost animal instinct within her. She found herself responding to Lane on a primal level that she wasn't interested in controlling even if it had been an option.
 

Tara arched her back in an attempt to offer herself more fully to Lane's mouth. His hands ran over her body appreciatively while his mouth moved from nipple to nipple and down her stomach. She flinched momentarily as his hands and mouth met near the dip of her navel where he lingered over the soft swell of her belly. She worried for a moment that he might suddenly snap out of whatever wonderful spell had overtaken him when he found the cushiony contours of her waist line.
 

Lane felt her flinch as his tongue lapped at the soft hill of her stomach, he could sense she had become suddenly nervous about something. He almost froze in fear that she was about to come to her senses and put a stop to their passion. Then her hands fluttered to the lower border of her rib cage, as though she had been overcome with a sudden fit of modesty. He smiled against her warm skin and quickly did his best to calm her insecurity as he resumed his attention to her body.
 

The undulations of her body were far from a defect in her form. It was something in her scent that convinced him that she was meant for him, but the discovery that his mate was blessed with the sensual curvature of a woman's body that modern man had long since lost appreciation for inflamed both the wolf and the man in Lane.
 

Seeing
 
her naked in the soft pink alpineglow of sunset at the lake last night had reminded Lane that it had been many years since he had known the company of a woman as either wolf or man. He had yearned for her then, watching her standing naked and proud in his mountains with the cool lake water still glistening on her skin. It had taken all his will to merely watch her from the far side of the small lake as she slept. He hadn't intended on her spotting him but when she looked at him he found he couldn't pull away from her gaze.

It had been no different a moment ago, when she caught him admiring the ample curve of her ass and thighs and now here they were, frantically rushing forward based on nothing more than a mutual instinct that told them both they belonged together.

Lane's mouth moved lower until he found himself blocked by the button on her hiking pants. He hated to take his hands off the warm flesh of her belly but he couldn't very well go about tearing all her clothes off with his teeth, no matter how much he wanted to. He unbuttoned and unzipped and her hands were there next to his face, pushing the nylon fabric over her hips and down to her ankles before kicking them to the dusty wooden plank floor of the tent cabin.
 

Now Lane could turn his full attention on her wide hips and round thighs, he moved down her body and knelt beside the cot in order to better position himself. The fingers of one hand ran along her hip, down it's wide curve and back to the triangle where her thighs came together. He watched her skin quiver at his touch as his fingers neared her most sensitive secrets. He smiled at the sound of her breathing becoming heavy in anticipation.
 

Her mound was left in its natural state, tufted with soft deep auburn curls that formed a narrow triangle and an enticing trail leading to the hooded bud nestled in the succulent folds of her pubis. Lane growled his approval unconsciously as her natural musk filled his nostrils. His cock had been rock hard since he had stepped into the tent, but now it strained against the denim jeans he wore with the tenacity of the beast within him.
 

Tara turned her head to one side and closed her eyes. He obviously knew she was a zaftig woman when he met her, she wasn't going to let her personal body issues deprive her of this serendipitous encounter. Lane seemed to genuinely marvel in the hills and valleys of her body, holding her flesh against his hands as though she were some coveted treasure. Something about the intensity of his interest set her at ease in his hands. She would never normally give a partner the uninhibited view of her naked body that Lane now held between his hands and admired between kisses.

When Lane's fingers moved through the untamed triangle of dark hair between her legs, Tara's mind raced momentarily back to reality. She hadn't shaved in months. She had always meant to get that permanently taken care of so she wouldn't find herself in exactly this situation-- caught unprepared-- and now she had a handsome man browsing her unkempt ladyparts which also had not been showered in several day. She panicked at the realization that she must reek of body odor and dirt when she heard a deep noise like a growl and for a moment she wondered if there was an animal outside the tent. In the moment between the sound and Lane locking his mouth against her sex, she realized that the growl had emanated from Lane. A shiver raced through her. No man had ever growled in anticipation of her before. It was hella sexy.

Tara's breath caught in her throat as his tongue swirled around the swollen nub of her clit, suckled and lapped, alternating between flicking and circling before running down the length of her slit to dance along the edges of her opening and back again. It was no challenge to bring her over the edge of a dizzying orgasm that left her panting, waiting for his touch to resume.

He admired the clenching of her muscles as they spasmed in ecstasy under her smooth skin, then paused to allow her to ride down the wave of climax before moving into position to answer the throbbing insistence of his own needs.

Tara's eyes met Lane's as they were once again face to face she moved her mouth to meet his and savored the flavor of her juices on his tongue as he slipped the wide head of his cock gently past her tight entrance.

Tara closed her eyes and drew her breath. It had been over a year since she'd been with a man. Now she found herself wondering how she could have gone that long. How could she live without something that felt this good?
 

Lane held his breath, biting his lip before exhaling in one long, low sigh. He shut his eyes tightly as he slid his length into her slick tightness all the way to her core. She felt so good. She was hot and wet and her body fit his perfectly. Lane's resolve to move slow vanished, he pulled back out and thrust deeply into her.
 

Tara cried out in pleasure. Lane was big, built to fill her, his size pushing against the walls of her channel, testing the limits of how much she could take. His combination of tenderness and aggression aroused her passion and set her on fire. Now he was thrusting into her deeply and roughly, she relished the primal intensity and allowed herself to get lost in her lust for him, moving with him, matching each thrust with her own until she felt her muscles clench around him as though her insides were trying to hold him still and pull him deeper inside her.
 

Tara's orgasm triggered his and Lane felt himself tighten just before his release pumped his seed deep inside her. When he was emptied and sated, Lane collapsed against Tara's naked breasts and they both lay there silently for a bit catching their breath and thinking their own private thoughts about their encounter.

Suddenly Tara burst into a fit of giggles. Lane looked up at her, unsure of what had set her off but certain that it had nothing to do with him. He enjoyed seeing the joy in her face as she laughed uncontrollably and soon he found himself laughing with her before finally asking what was so funny?

"I can't believe I just did that!" Tara squealed. She felt like she'd just nailed the landing of her first solo skydive. She was giddy and she decided to enjoy it while it lasted, knowing the crash would come and reality would set in soon enough. She'd have to grapple with the finer points of what had just happened and the possible consequences down the line. Right now, she felt great and Lane hadn't jumped up and run off as soon as he came so she figured she'd take what she could get.

Lane grinned at her. Her laughter was contagious but he wasn't sure what the joke was. "Can't believe you did what?"

Her giggles subsided but the smile remained as she stared toward the canvas ceiling, "I can't believe I just fucked a total stranger."
 

"I believe I introduced myself back on the ferry dock," Lane grinned as he got up and held his hand out to her to pull her off the cot. The day light was fading and he remembered she had been looking forward to a hot shower before enjoying a hot dinner from the resort's kitchen.

Tara laughed at him, "total
almost
stranger" she corrected herself as she grabbed for clean clothes and toiletries and headed for the showers.

Lane smiled broadly as Tara entered the little restaurant. Her hair hung in loose, wet curls that framed her face and hung midway down her back. She looked warm and content in her fleece sweatshirt and fleece pants with a pair of lightweight plastic shoes over her thick wool socks that would have looked ridiculous on anyone other than a backpacker. She was in the process of wrapping her hair in a bandanna to keep the wet curls under control while her hair dried naturally.

Lane felt his cock stirring at the sight of her and looked forward to his next chance to be with her. He was disappointed that the shower had washed away so much of the natural scent of her, but she looked refreshed and happy and he warmed to the thought of being part of that. He wanted to keep her warm and safe and happy for the rest of their lives.

He held up his hand toward her, holding up a dark amber bottle with a green and gold label on it, "First beer's free!" he said as she took a place opposite him at the small table. She took the beer from him and studied the label.
 

"Hmmm. Seems like an appropriate choice," she said. She held the bottle up while he raised his, "To the Sierra Nevada!" Tara intoned authoritatively, "and the beer that made it famous!"

A hot dinner made from real food that hadn't been dehydrated first was a welcome treat for Tara and after second helpings of the homemade chili and several more beers, they decided to take the long way back to the tent. They walked to the edge of the lake, Lane's arm wrapped protectively around Tara's shoulder, her arm snaked around his waist.
 

Standing on the shore, watching the moon rise over the mountains, Tara described her "real" life. "Just your basic, boring, frumpy office worker." She said as she bent down and added another flat, round pebble to the collection in her hand. Every so often she would step forward and attempt a side-handed toss to send one of the pebbles skipping across the smooth water. "I grew up in Sacramento. I live in a one bedroom apartment with a gold fish and I drive a 16 year old Subaru." She looked thoughtful for a moment, "People probably think I'm a lesbian. That's probably why men aren't throwing themselves at me on a daily basis." She tossed another pebble and tried to look nonchalant when she counted 5 skips. "How bout you?"

Lane looked a little surprised, as though he hadn't expected her to ask him for his own personal information. He wanted to tell her everything about himself, a hundred and 6 years of information. He wanted to tell her about his wolf, he wanted to tell her about the pack, he wanted to tell her about turning her and mating for life and filling her womb with future generations of werewolf puppies. Somehow, he didn't think she was quite ready for that.

He shrugged. "Not much to tell. I was born near here, but I grew up mostly in Canada. Lived in Alaska for awhile and now I'm back here." He tried to make it sound like it was all par for the course.
 

Tara picked up on his hesitance to share personal information. He wanted to know everything about her but when she asked about his home and work, his answers were vague. She wasn't sure she really wanted to know the answer but she had to ask, "Are you married?" She held her breath while she waited for his response. Not that she expected him to tell her if he was, but she paid close attention to how he handled the question.

"No." Lane said it simply and firmly. Then he paused for a second and for the first time in their conversation, Tara felt like he let her in on something personal, "I was. A long time ago." His tone had a very final quality to it. He would not be filling in any details on that account and Tara understood. "What about you?" Lane returned to the previous casual tone.