Tagging Her Lynx (Alaska Lynx Clan) (7 page)

Tears
fell down her cheeks. "I…" She blew the bangs off her forehead with a
shuddered breath. "I… Oh my God." She covered her mouth.

"Shifters
have been hunted since the beginning of time, Aningan." Granger crossed
the room and held his hand out to his brother. "On that day, tragedy hit
our family hard." He pulled Darren to his feet, patted his cheek, and
turned back to Chloe. "Shawn and Darren…" He chuckled. "You'd
never seen two boys closer. They slept, ate, played together every minute of
the day."

Darren
raised his gaze to her. "I didn't bite you out of malice or to turn you
into a shifter. I wanted my life back." He thumped his chest with his
fist. "I needed to find Granger."

She
stood up and approached Granger's brother. She ran her hand down his wet cheek
and caught her breath on a sob. So very young, and he'd lost almost his whole
family right in front of him. The terror he must have gone through tugged at
her heartstrings.

"It's
okay." She glanced back at Granger. "Maybe this is what was supposed
to happen in my life, but certainly not what should have happened to you."
She laid her hand on his chest, over his heart. "I'm so very sorry."

"I'll
make it up to you, I swear." Darren rested his hand on top of hers. "If
it takes my whole life, I'll do whatever it takes."

She
shook her head. "No. You're innocent, just as much as I was."

She
held her hand out to Granger. "In a small way, I hope you'll accept me
into your family." She frowned. "Not as a replacement, but as someone
new."

Darren
nodded and gave her a shaky smile. "That'll be no problem. Granger's
tagged."

Granger
playfully punched Darren's shoulder. She raised her eyebrows.
"Tagged?"

"Yes,
he seems to find amusement in my settling down with a life mate and refers to
you as a hunter punching a tag on my ear."
Granger grinned back at Darren.

"I
don't even know what Granger has here for drinks and snacks, but will you stay
and visit with us for a little while?" She touched Darren's arm.

He
nodded.

"I'll
be right back." She headed over to the corner of the cabin, into the small
and efficient kitchen.

She
opened the refrigerator and pulled out three bottles of beer, a brick of Colby
cheese, and some mustard. With any luck, Granger stocked one of the cabinets
with crackers that she could use to give the men something to nibble. Suddenly
starving, she realized that she hadn't eaten anything since breakfast earlier
that morning.

Today
would definitely go down as the longest day of her life. To be standing in her
mate's kitchen seemed so surreal; it was hard to grasp that she had met Granger
only this morning, and here she was fixing snacks for their first guest. Living
in the bush of Alaska had never given her a social life or even a tad of the
excitement she'd found today. Despite learning the truth of how her dad died,
finding out she wasn't alone in her ability to shift into a lynx, and
confronting fears from her childhood, she thought the day turned out to be the most
incredible of her life. Deep inside, she knew her lynx luxuriated in connecting
with her life mate.

Chloe
carried the tray of crackers with cheese topped off with a drop of mustard in
one hand and hung the bottles between her fingers of the other hand. "Here
you go, boys."

"Damn,
Granger, she'll fit right in with this family." Darren pulled two beers
from Chloe and handed one to Granger. "Thanks, Chloe."

"You're
welcome." She sat between the two men on the couch and balanced the tray
on her lap. "Eat up. I know I'm starving."

"Me
too." Granger picked up a cracker. "Although, I need more than this
snack to feed me." He cocked his eyebrow.

She
ducked her head. He wasn't talking about food. Her nipples hardened, and she
swallowed. She'd forgo a real dinner for another romping round of sex.

"How
did the cleanup go at the refuge?" Darren reached over and scooped up a
few more crackers. "Who would have thought to pair mustard with cheese?
This is good, Chloe."

She
smiled.

"The
men are hanging back with the animals. They said they'd give a full report the
moment they get back on the cleanup." Granger leaned back and took another
swig of beer.

The
cracker in her hand didn't make it to her mouth. She turned and stared at him.
Her appetite disappeared.

"Oh
God." She tossed the cracker back on the tray, shoved everything onto
Darren's lap, and stood up. "Oh God." She paced in front of the
couch. "It didn't dawn on me…" She pushed back the hair on her forehead.
"Your men killed the poachers, didn't they?"

Granger
nodded. "It had to be done to protect the Lynx. They were after you. I'd
kill anyone who would threaten my life mate or one of our people. It's the hard
reality of how we have to live."

"Isn't
there some way that you could talk to them? Scare them?" she asked.

"No."
Granger set the beer bottle between his legs. "This is the way it's done."
He patted the empty spot she left on the couch. "Sit down. This is a good
time to explain your role within the Lynx clan."

She
plopped down on the couch, crossed her arms, and clamped her lips together.
Didn't she have enough to worry about with men wanting to hunt her down, losing
the refuge, and trying to fit into a community that belonged in a
science-fiction movie?

"As
the alpha—"

She
threw up her hands. "Enough about the alpha crap. I don't get it!"

Granger
grinned. "Like I was saying, as the alpha female of our group, there are
certain things that you'll have control of. Not right away, because you have so
much to learn, but eventually you'll be able to talk with the other shifters in
your head." He nodded. "Like you and I can already do. A beta can
hear you and me, but not each other."

"Why?"

He
glanced from her to Darren, shrugged, and turned back toward Chloe. "Why
what?"

"Why
can't the betas do it?" She crossed her arms. "That doesn't make any
sense. If this is like the alpha in a dog pack, it's the strongest, most
stubborn dog that challenges the others, right?"

"Uh,
yes." Granger scratched his chin.

"None
of these people know how strong I am or if I even want to challenge them for
the supreme spot in the clan." She huffed. "I don't want to be the
alpha. Someone else can have the spot."

"You
have no choice. You have the gift." Granger sat forward. "You've
already shared with me how you can heal the wounded and sick animals at the
refuge—"

"So!"

"God
damn it, Chloe, will you stop interrupting me and be quiet?" He frowned
and blew out his breath.

"Fine."

Granger
closed his eyes, inhaled, and looked back at Chloe. "There is a sense of
supremacy in you, and now I realize why. The power to heal is only known to
come from my ancestors. I believe it was Darren's bite that gave you this
awesome power. The other lynx sense this power in you. Deal with it." He
winked. "I'll teach you how to speak with the others, give orders, and
lead the females." He held up his hand as she opened her mouth to
interrupt again. "You also need to learn how to shift, track, and use the
natural gifts that come with being a Lynx shifter."

Darren
laughed. "He's telling you that your lynx sucks."

Granger
glared at his brother. "Not exactly. You've done very well on your own,
but your animal needs to dominate. You'll find you're much happier if you let
your animal have its lead."

Silence
filled the small cabin. She bit the inside of her cheek and debated if she even
wanted to continue finding out more about shifting. She had spent years trying
to get rid of her lynx, and now she was supposed to just embrace it? What he
was asking was for her to lose control over her own body.

"Fine."
She sighed. "I'm telling you that I'm perfectly content the way I am."
She raised one of her eyebrows. "You have to listen to me, because I'm
your alpha."

Granger's
head turned back to her, the corners of his lips curled, and he sat studying
her without blinking. She pursed her lips, sighed, and lowered her gaze to her
lap. That little show of independence didn't go over very well.

She
glanced over at Darren, but he shrugged and threw back his head to finish off
his beer. Her stomach churned, and she lowered her gaze to the floor. She had
upset Granger.

"I'm
sorry," she mumbled.

"What?"

She
swallowed. "I'm sorry."

"Why
are you apologizing?" Granger reached over and stroked the side of her
head.

She
turned away her gaze, not looking him in the face. "I shouldn't have
spoken to you like that."

"Aningan?"
He leaned over and kissed the tip of her nose. "Although you're an alpha
female, you're my beta. You'll submit to me naturally. Inside your lynx, you'll
let me dominate you in everything, understand?"

She
frowned, but in the end, nodded. For a change, she wanted to give him something
he needed, and she did enjoy letting him take control. "I suppose."

"Good."
Granger stood up, clasped his hands in front of him, and grinned at his
brother. "Okay Darren, get the fuck out of my house. I'm going to feed my
mate."

Chapter
Seven

After
the front door banged closed behind Darren, Granger growled and stalked over to
scoop Chloe off the couch. She giggled in a way she never thought she'd hear
come from her more sensible self. It almost sounded…girlish.

"I
wanted this all day. I've thought of you sticking your cock inside me and
marking me." She nuzzled the area where his neck met his jaw. "I
could smell you on me. Your scent mixed with mine."

"Keep
talking like that, and I won't make it to the bedroom with you." He kicked
open the door, and it bounced off the wall. "Clothes. Off. Now."

He
set her down, and she hurriedly stripped. Her skin burned with a desperate need
for his touch. To connect. To please. She finished undressing before he did and
stood back to stare in admiration of a body she deemed perfect.

He
was broad at the shoulders, and his waist tapered to lean hips that fit
perfectly between her legs. His cock jutted out from a thatch of pure black
hair. She mewed. Her pussy grew damp, and he grinned.

Without
breaking eye contact, she advanced toward him. The attraction was so strong,
she let the emotion take control. He held up his hand, stopping her from
touching him. "Turn around."

She
rotated on the tips of her toes, and a warm blush of heat crawled up from her
chest to her face. His gaze drank in her body, exciting her, and she hoped she
pleased him.

His
hands spanned her waist and traveled down over the spread of her hips. "Perfect."

Her
head fell back, and the brush of her hair swept down the bare skin of her back.
Every nerve stood aware and waiting for his next touch.

His
hand skimmed her spine beneath her hair, and he gathered a fistful of strands
between his fingers. "Don't ever cut your hair."

She
shook her head. The pull on her scalp sent a trickle of juice out of her pussy,
dampening her lower lips. She tugged against his hold. Pleasure and pain built
inside her lower belly and spread out to all the hidden places inside her body.

He
slapped her butt cheek. She jumped and moaned at the same time.

"On
the bed. Stick your ass in the air."

She
crawled to the middle of the bed, lowered her head to the mattress, and widened
her knees. A groan came from Granger, and the walls of her pussy quivered. She
needed him inside her.

He
slid a finger from her clit to her anus, and she squealed. Unable to take the
torment of waiting, she pushed her ass back, searching for his cock. Instead,
the warm velvet heat of his tongue lavished her hole, her lips, and her clit.
Her hips bucked wildly against his mouth.

Granger
turned and lay on his back between her legs. "Lean up, Aningan. Ride my
tongue."

She
raised her upper body. He wrapped his arms around her thighs and pulled her
womanhood against his mouth. He sucked her labia into his mouth. She squirmed
and rubbed her juice over the lower part of his face.

She
grabbed the top of his hair to balance herself and gazed down at his face.
Seemingly intent on pleasuring her with his mouth, Granger opened his eyes. The
heat in his expression drove her wild. A craving so deep and strong curled
around her, and she lost herself in his licks and nibbles.

Granger
lapped her pussy up and moaned for more. Pressing his lips to her clit, he then
flicked his tongue over the sensitive nub. Her fingers held on to his hair like
a rope. She threw back her head and let her orgasm pleasure her whole body.

Her
sexual high exploded in his mouth. Riding the spasms, her hips jerked with
every swipe of his tongue. She fell forward and lowered the side of her face to
the mattress. Granger scooted out from underneath her pussy.