Clawed: Wild Things, Book 3 (7 page)

She smelled like the forest and woman. The scent of graphite mixed with her natural smells, giving her the unique aroma that was all her own. He could find her anywhere by her scent.

Her hands gripped his hair again, hurting and thrilling at the same time. Glancing at her, he saw raw emotion blazing in her eyes. Touching her clit, he repeated the circles he’d made earlier. She exploded again, her eyes glazing over, her face glowing with the release.

Taking her hand, he guided her to his shaft. Her eyes widened, but she gripped it and didn’t let go. Knowing his size was more than most women had ever taken, he placed his hand over hers and paused, waiting for her signal to continue. She swallowed, then nodded.

“I’ll stop whenever you say.” Or, at least, he hoped he could.

She nodded, but the determination, the raw need he saw in her eyes told him she wouldn’t ask.

Hands together, they placed his cock to her pussy. He pushed, moving carefully and as tenderly as he could. She froze, stopping him, but he started again when she slowly exhaled.

She was tighter than he could have imagined, but her body gave way, stretching to fit him, and she bit her lip as she’d done before. Although she was ready for him, he could feel her walls protesting the invasion. The heat soared through him, and he continued pushing his way deeper.

Chloe lifted her hips, helping to ease him inside. The ache in his belly grew stronger, and inch by inch, he slipped all of himself inside her. She blew out a breath, then tightened her legs around him. Rocking against him, she gave her breast to him and he cupped it, welcoming the taut bud to his lips.

His mind stopped thinking, giving way to feelings and sensations, some familiar, others new. Holding her tight, he matched her rhythm, pumping into her as she thrust against him. At first, he thought his heartbeat had doubled in speed, then he realized he could feel hers against his chest. He slipped into her, then back out, the tip of his cock near her opening, but never losing his hold on her.

Together as though they’d been born as one, they moved, flesh against flesh. She quickened the tempo, urging him to go faster, deeper. Delicious tightness assaulted him, heralding his release, but he held on, not wanting to let their time end. She peppered him with kisses, teasing him with her tongue on his nipples, her body trembling with desire.

Taking her cheek in his palm as he’d done before, he sought out her eyes, hoping to see her come at the same moment he did. But it was her eyes, filled with tenderness and heat, that broke his resistance. Shudders racked through him as his climax roared out of him. When at last the tremors ceased, he closed his eyes and fell to her side.

Neither one of them spoke, instead lying together in a comfortable yet strange silence with part of the sleeping bag thrown on top of them. Somehow Chloe had worked her way under the crook of his arm into a cuddling position, and now she wasn’t sure how to extricate herself. Or even if she wanted to.

Her body burned from his touch, from his shaft. Even now she could feel the memory of the size of him, pushing against her vaginal walls, and she tightened around him. She smothered a giggle and wondered if she’d walk funny.

A frown replaced the smile on her face. They weren’t lovers. At least not like lovers in a real relationship. What had happened was extraordinary and wonderful, a wild ride both had taken willingly. But a wild ride was all it was. She dared to glance up and caught Conan watching her.

“Uh, hi.”

He blinked at her, a worried expression flashing across his face. “Hi.”

Had he expected her to say more? And what was his part in the ensuing conversation? “I, um, don’t really know what to say.”

He seemed relieved, but was it because he was tongue-tied too? Or because she hadn’t mentioned their sexual playtime? Did he want her to praise his sexual prowess? Should she sit up and put her clothes on? But what if he wanted to talk? Should she wait for him to make the first move? Start a conversation? “I mean, it’s a bit weird, don’t you think?”

“Yeah.”

She nodded, not knowing what else to say. Obviously the man wasn’t a big talker after sex. Great.

Deciding any action was better than no action, she rose on one elbow, pushed back her hair and considered him. The dark eyes, now devoid of any amber color, stared at her. He expected her to say something, so she did. “I think the storm burst is over.”

“Yeah. Guess so.”

Wow, she’d worked him up to three words. “So, how did you get the name Conan? Was your mom a fan of Conan the Barbarian?” She winced and hoped he wouldn’t think she was making fun of his name.

His half-smile put her at ease. “It’s a family name.”

Four words and counting. “I see.” This was going to be harder than she thought. “Does your family live around here?” She put on an interested expression, hoping it would encourage him to talk.

“Nope.”

Damn. He’d gone back to a one-word answer.

“So you’re here on business? Or pleasure?”

“Pleasure.” Again, one word.

“Oh. Then I guess the fishing is good?”

“It’s okay.” He cleared his throat. “I’m sorry.”

She held her breath, fearful of the direction he’d taken the conversation. Was he sorry they’d had sex? “You are? About what?”

“Your drawing.”

“Oh.” Crap, now
she
was down to one-word responses. Getting him to open up was as difficult as getting Lassie to speak Italian. “It’s okay. It wasn’t your fault. I’m sorry I yelled at you.”

“No problem.”

She sighed and sat up, pulling on the sleeping bag to cover her nakedness. Her gaze fell to his uncovered crotch, drying her mouth and proving that the multiple orgasms she’d experienced hadn’t been her last. Just looking at the man’s impressive shaft sent a sexual burn to flare between her legs.

“You saw me at the stream.”

Startled, she stared at him, unsure how much she should reveal. He waited, his face open, eager to hear her answer. What would he say if she told him she’d thought she’d seen him change into a bear? Even she had a difficult time believing it.

“Yes, I did.” She dropped her gaze lower and was once again stirred by his large shaft. Another rush of desire turned her legs to jelly. She might have fallen if she hadn’t been sitting.

He pulled a small section of sleeping bag over to cover his crotch. Had he caught her gawking? She blushed and lifted her head, determined to keep her gaze high.

“I’m sorry you saw that.”

Was he talking about his package now? Or about what she’d seen at the stream? “I’m not.”

His eyebrow arched, his stare intensified. “You’re not?”

“No.” She nodded, admitting the truth to herself for the first time. “But I don’t understand either. Tell me, Conan. Tell me what happened.” The second she’d asked, she sensed him retreat behind an invisible wall.

“What’s to tell? I like to fish.” His hard face lacked any emotion.

Disbelief ripped her apart, but she hung on. She had to know the truth. “With your bare hands?”

He laughed, an insincere snort of a chuckle that didn’t come from deep inside him. “No, not with my bare hands. I used a net.”

“A net? I didn’t see any net.” His lie hurt her more than any simple denial would have. Granted, they didn’t know each other, but hadn’t they shared a very intimate connection? After what they’d done, couldn’t he tell her the truth? He darted his eyes away, churning a hole in her stomach.

“It’s a very small net.”

Disappointment shot through her. He’d already withdrawn from her with his lie about the net. Why bother trying to get him to tell the truth when he refused to open up? “I see.”

“That’s right.” His eyes grew cold and impenetrable. “Nothing more, nothing less.”

Pushing her hurt away, she opted for a different topic. A topic she hoped would be a lot less dangerous to broach. “Do you have any family? Kids?” She paused and strengthened her resolve to know. “A wife?”

He jerked his head up, his eyes narrowing. “Why do you ask?”

“You mean about having a wife? Seems like a reasonable question after what we did. Although I guess I should’ve asked before we did what we did. And for the record, I hope you don’t have one.”

“Why would it matter?”

Was he for real? She gritted her teeth to keep choice words from slipping out. “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because I wouldn’t like being the other woman.”

This time his laugh was full throated and sincere, rolling out of his chest. “The other woman? Where did you get the idea that you’re the other woman?”

Her ire dissipated for a moment as hope, ridiculous as it may have been, seeped in. “So you’re not married?”

“No way.” He grabbed for his clothes and tossed hers to her. “Let’s get this straight, okay? This—” he glanced down at the rumpled sleeping bag, “—was great. I enjoyed the hell out of it. But it was just a fun time in the sack. A result of heightened emotions and easy opportunity.”

Her breath got caught somewhere between her lungs and her nose. She found it along with a hefty dose of incredulous shock. “Wait? Easy opportunity? As in ‘slam, bam and thank you, ma’am’?”

He couldn’t have shaken his head any harder. “What? No. That’s not what I meant.”

“I hope the hell not. Because I’m not, you know. Easy, that is.” Great. She’d finally gotten him to say more than four words, but now she wished he’d just shut up.

“Look, Conan, I’m not trying to start a romance here.” She wasn’t, was she? “I just thought it would be nice to know a little something about the man I just slept with. Like whether I helped him cheat on his wife. Unlike what you may be used to doing, I don’t hop into bed with every Tom, Dick and Beary.”

They froze, each wondering if she’d actually said what she’d said. Conan recovered first. “I didn’t think you did, and for the record, I don’t have kids or a ma—a wife.”

He didn’t have a wife. Thank God. Relief as well as joy did a little dance inside her.

“But don’t get any ideas, either.”

Chloe closed her eyes against his worried expression and regretted the moment the joy fled and the anger set in. Who the hell did this guy think he was, anyway? She took a deep breath to steady herself and opened her eyes, sending him the meanest look she could. She stabbed her index finger against the middle of his chest. His oh-so-much-like-granite chest, damn him. “Don’t flatter yourself. I’m not looking for a husband, and if and when I do, I won’t want a slug like you.” She hoped her mean look was as hard as the one he gave her.

“Good deal.” Conan got to his feet, standing as straight as his height allowed in the tent, and fisted his hands as though trying not to strike her.

“Yeah, good deal.” She stood, hands on hips, and glared at him.

Did he just growl at her?

“Hey, you two. The rain’s over.”

Nina’s voice broke through their confrontation and Chloe stepped back to let Conan pass. He threw back the tent flap and strode out of the tent. Unwilling to let him get the last word—er, growl—in, she hurried after him. Nina and Billy scurried backward, hands linked, mouths gaping at them.

“I thought they were getting along.” Nina shot Billy an exasperated look.

Billy, on the other hand, shrugged it off. “You can never tell with Conan.”

“I should’ve kicked you out in the rain.” Chloe wished she’d thought of a better comeback.

Almost to the edge of the forest, Conan whirled around to find Chloe on his heels. “What the hell do you want from me?”

She shoved her finger into his chest again, delighting in the way it made him snarl. “Haven’t you been listening? I don’t want anything from you.”

“Great.”

“Yeah, great.” Sudden awareness of his overwhelming physicality made her step back although she ached to touch him. Damn, but she didn’t really want him to leave. She’d handled trying to get information from him in the worst possible way, but she couldn’t do anything about it now. If only she could start over again. If she could, she’d stay cuddled next to him and keep her mouth closed.

The memory of how she felt snuggled in his arms swept through her, washing away most of the anger. “Look, Conan, maybe—”

“Billy, let’s get the hell out of here.” Sending her one last glower, Conan whirled around and stalked into the woods.

Chapter Five

“Hey, Conan, slow down, will ya?”

Conan ignored Billy’s request, his mind filled with a tumultuous squall of thoughts and questions. Why the hell had he gotten involved with Chloe?

He shook the odd word away. No, not involved. He wasn’t about to be involved with anyone, much less a human female. But the question remained. Why had he made love to her?

Love? Shit, where were all these crazy thoughts coming from? He’d taken her; not made love to her. Right? Right. Sure, she was hot enough to make his balls ache, but he could’ve taken care of that problem by himself. Done anything, in fact, other than what he’d done. He’d lost control, that’s all. Plain and simple.

Billy grabbed his arm, but he yanked away from the were-coyote, keeping his hurried pace. “Back off, Billy.”

“What the hell happened with you two, huh? I mean, I
know
what happened first, but then what caused the blow-up? Argh!”

Conan clutched his friend’s shirt, lifting him off the ground to let the smaller man’s feet dangle in the air. “I told you to back off.”

“No.”

The word came out as a squeak, but he could see the determination in Billy’s face. Placing his face an inch from Billy’s, he let out a low growl. “I’m warning you.”

“Sorry, but I’m not giving up.”

Conan narrowed his eyes, all while knowing it was useless to threaten him. Billy knew he’d never hurt him. Tossing the man aside like a rag doll, Conan barreled his way through a group of bushes, although he knew Billy wouldn’t be far behind.
Tenacious little animals, these were-coyotes. Sometimes too tenacious for their own good.
“Fine. It’s up to you. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“Conan, come on, man. Tell me what’s going on. Anyone can see how much you like her.”

Conan slammed to a stop and felt Billy bounce off his back before he swiveled to confront his friend. “She was good in the sack. Nothing more.”