In Heat (In Heat Shapeshifter Romance Series #1) (14 page)

Walking into the bathroom, she kept smiling. It seemed she couldn't stop. She looked in the mirror at herself and ran her fingers through her sleep-tangled hair. She felt a little rough after last night's drinking session, but she'd never looked as pretty as she did today. She was beautiful. That's what he'd told her, and she believed him. The way he looked at her, and the way he kissed her, made her feel he was telling the truth. He really did think she was beautiful. She grinned at her reflection.

It dropped away when she heard Erik getting out of bed.

Her bed.

She smiled again and picked up her toothbrush, wondering if it was normal to feel so giddy and silly after the most wonderful night of your life.

Brushing her teeth, her thoughts replayed the entire night while she stared into the mirror. She'd hoped that it would end up like this, but she'd never dreamed it would happen. Well, she had dreamed it, but reality was never like a fantasy. Only it was now. Her fantasies were becoming her reality.

Erik appeared behind her in the mirror. He was still smiling and still looking incredibly relaxed. He looked damn sexy too. His black hair was tousled and there was a hint of sleepiness in his eyes. The way he was standing naked behind her, his fingers rubbing his hair as he woke himself up—she'd never seen anyone so sexy.

She focused on brushing her teeth as he stepped up behind her, but all concentration disintegrated when his body touched hers. She could feel his groin against her, his hip touching her backside. His hand slid around her waist and he pressed a kiss to her shoulder.

Her eyes widened and she realised that she had a mouthful of toothpaste that she had to spit out. She gave him a panicked look.

He grinned and nodded towards the sink. She shook her head. He closed his eyes and chuckled quietly.

Rinsing the toothbrush, she put it back into the holder and then reached up and covered Erik's ears before bending over the sink and spitting the contents of her mouth out into it. She released Erik as he opened his eyes and gave him a little smile before grabbing the mouthwash.

“May I?” he said.

She looked at him. He was pointing at her toothbrush. The thought of a minty-fresh Erik made her nod immediately.

She swigged the mouthwash and watched him brushing his teeth as she swirled the mint flavoured liquid around. Her eyes trailed over his body, taking in the strong, sweeping curve of his back and his buttocks. Adonis definitely had nothing on him. Move over Michelangelo's David.

He was perfect.

Bronzed sun-kissed skin stretched tautly over packed, defined muscles, all topped off with the most handsome face she'd ever seen. And those eyes. He looked at her, his honey eyes inquisitive. He was probably wondering what she was thinking as she stared at him. She wondered what he thought whenever he looked at her.

She motioned for him to shut his eyes and cover his ears. He did. She spat the mouthwash out into the sink and tapped his shoulder to let him know it was okay to come out now.

He spat into the sink and rinsed with mouthwash, spitting that into the sink too. She wondered why she was being so delicate around him, when he was so relaxed around her.

“You want a shower?” she said.

His eyes dropped to her body and slowly raked back up, turning up the temperature inside her. He didn't need to speak in order for her to know exactly what he was thinking. It was there in his eyes when they met hers. She could do a shower. It sounded like fun. And it was one step away from getting him into the bathtub with her.

Sliding the cubicle door to one side, she turned the water on and checked the temperature of it. She looked back at Erik. He stepped towards her and she couldn't stop herself from imagining just how good his body was going to look when it was all soaped up. Life was full of firsts, and this was another.

Stepping into the shower cubicle, she made room for Erik. He stood under the shower with the water beating down on his back and slid the door closed. The water was cool as it sprayed off him and onto her, but it did nothing to lower her temperature. She reminded herself that things couldn't get too physical. They'd used up what measly supplies she'd bought in the girls bathroom last night.

Her eyes wandered over his body, slowly working their way up to his face. His hair was wet now, plastered against his forehead and shining with the morning light coming in through the bathroom window. She smiled into his eyes, building up the courage to do something. Her gaze slipped, following a rivulet of water as it ran down his body. It traced a line over his chest to his stomach, curving around his navel before following the contour of his body downwards.

She stopped there, staring at his cock and the dark curly hair nestled around it. It was soft still, but she got the impression that if she touched Erik anywhere, it would stir into life.

Picking up the shower gel, she poured a little onto her palm and lathered her hands. Her eyes met his again and he smiled at her. She swallowed and stepped towards him. Her hands trembled as she brought them up to his chest and placed them on him. She moved them in small circles, lathering his body until she ran out of soap. She frowned.

Erik leaned forwards and she turned to follow his hand as he reached past her. He grabbed the shower gel and squeezed a large dollop onto his body. She blushed as it ran down him, following the path of the water and tempting her to follow it with her hands. He took hold of them and placed them back on him, his smile encouraging her to let go and explore him, enjoy the moment.

He squeezed some of the soap out onto his hands and lathered them. She trembled in anticipation, her body silently crying out for his touch as she waited. His hands seemed to move impossibly slowly, and she almost muttered words of sweet relief when he finally touched her, his hands cupping her slippery breasts. She focused on his movements for a moment, the gentle sweep of his hands over her skin and the slight pressure he applied as he ran over her nipples, and then began her own discovery of him.

Her hands followed the trail of soap downwards, rubbing it into his skin. It turned to lather only to be cut through by the water as it cascaded down him, leaving streaky patches of soap and bare skin. His hands slid down her sides, following the curve of her waist and she tried not to laugh as they tickled her. He chuckled, showing her that he'd noticed. She went straight to a spot just above his hip and tickled him there.

His hands stopped moving.

So did hers.

How the hell had she known he was ticklish there? She stared at the spot, frowning, and touched it again. He wriggled when she did, trying to evade her hands. How had she known? Maybe all men were ticklish there, or one of her ex-boyfriends was.

It felt so familiar though, as though she'd done that to him before. She remembered that she had. She'd tickled him once in one of her fantasies. She had known he'd be ticklish there. How? A fantasy was just that. It wasn't real. Everything that she knew about him there, couldn't possibly be true here.

Could he purr?

She ran her hands up his soapy chest, pushing the remaining suds with her, and slipped her fingers into his hairline. She stared into his eyes when instinct moved her to rub the spot behind his ear. His eyes closed slightly and then opened again, wide as though he was trying to stop them from closing completely as she scratched there. They slipped shut and he tilted his head towards her. He pressed a kiss to her hand and caught hold of it, bringing it back down to his chest. His eyes opened and he looked at her. He looked worried.

She shrugged it off as her reading into things too much. There was no fur and he wasn't about to begin purring on her, no matter how much she rubbed him behind the ears like a cat.

She gasped when he grabbed her waist and turned with her, placing her under the water. It drenched her in seconds, flattening her hair against her face. She stepped forwards a little and flicked her hair back, clearing it from her eyes. Erik was smiling at her but it faltered when she made eye contact.

His gaze dropped to her body and he raised a brow. She looked down at her tightening nipples and brought her soapy hands up. She caught his gaze again and circled her nipples with her fingertips. He groaned and a frown married his brows for a moment. The next thing she knew, his arms were around her and he was kissing her. She could feel his length hardening against her hip and wrapped her arms about his neck, kissing him back and trying to get her mind off how strange things had been a few moments ago.

She shrieked against his mouth as the water turned cold. Letting go of him, she tugged the door open and skidded out into the bathroom. She shuddered as she grabbed a towel for herself and handed one to Erik.

“So much for hot water today. The building has crappy timing.” She rubbed her cold body with the towel and stepped around Erik to turn the shower off.

Erik just wrapped his towel around his waist and stared at her. He still looked hungry, as though he was going to eat her whole. Her stomach rumbled, reminding her that he probably was hungry after last night.

Her mother had always told her that she'd caught her father by believing the age old saying that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. She was willing to give it a shot and believe it if she got Erik at the end of it.

“Breakfast?” She smiled at him, hopeful.

He nodded and grinned. Her knees felt a little weak. She dropped her towel and wrapped her arms around his neck. Hopping up, she put her legs around his waist as he grabbed her backside to support her. His lips played softly against hers, sending shivers of warmth through her as she leaned into him. She looked around as he moved and saw that he was carrying her into the bedroom. He laid her down on the bed and lay on top of her, his body covering hers as he kissed her again, his fingers running through her wet hair. She sighed beneath him, her hands tracing the muscles of his back as her tongue tangled with his. God this felt good. She could lie here forever with him kissing her, the outside world passing by the window and the room bright with sunshine, warm with summer.

She could die right here, and not care.

As long as Erik came with her of course.

He stopped kissing her and she opened her eyes, staring into his honey ones. They were smiling at her, slightly narrowed and full of a look that made her melt inside. He'd looked like that last night when he'd told her she was beautiful.

The longer she stared into his eyes, the more she found herself thinking about things between them. Sometimes when he looked at her, like he was now, she got the impression he could have feelings for her, and it made her wonder what her feelings for him were. She felt as though she knew him, almost intimately, as though they'd met in more than just fantasies and like this. There was a closeness between them that she knew wasn't one sided. The way she felt around him, and the way he acted around her—it was more than just a physical attraction. The warmth he made her feel and the way his touch soothed her. She couldn't make sense of it. She barely knew him. How could she feel so intensely connected to him?

Her heart skipped and danced when a thought flitted across her mind. Love? She didn't think so. It was far too soon to be falling for him.

Or was it?

She frowned and the moment drifted away when a phone rang. Erik's look darkened and he pushed himself up off her. She propped herself up on her elbows and watched him cross the room to his clothes. He rifled through them and produced a mobile phone.

He scowled at the display and then opened it.

“What do you want?” His voice was heavy, full of anger and resentment. He paused for a moment and his gaze shifted across to her. “That's none of your business. I warned you about that at the restaurant, Alistair. I wasn't kidding either.”

Realising that the conversation was about to turn nasty, Kim stood and slipped into a little dark blue dress. She glanced at Erik. He managed a smile at her and she returned it, wishing that Alistair hadn't called. She didn't want anything to spoil her time with Erik, and Alistair brought with him a reminder that Erik was a client, and this was exactly the kind of thing she could be fired for.

Walking out of the bedroom, she opened the windows in the lounge and then went into the kitchen. A quick inspection of the cupboards revealed that there wasn't much in them that could be classified as food. She sighed to herself. It wasn't as though she'd been expecting her dream guy turned real guy to spend the night. When she'd agreed to go out with him, she'd gone straight home to get ready, skipping the grocery shopping that she should have been doing.

She grabbed the bag of bread off the side and opened it, frowning as she took out a slice and inspected it for mould. The last thing she wanted to do was give Erik mouldy toast. That definitely would not be the way to his heart. She hummed quietly to herself as she put some slices of bread into the toaster and tried not to listen in on Erik's conversation with his brother. She could hear him quite clearly. It wasn't as though he was keeping his voice down.

She'd witnessed first hand the animosity between them and now that there was more evidence, she couldn't deny it. The meeting, last night at the club, and the way Erik was speaking on the phone, they all made her see that the two of them hated each other. It raised one question in her mind again.

Why were they entering into this contract with each other if they couldn't stand each other?

She remembered the paragraph and the fact that she'd not mentioned it once last night.

The toast popped and she put it on a plate before refilling the toaster. She stared at it, thinking about everything that had happened over the past few days and what the contract said. She just couldn't understand why Erik wanted to sign it. There didn't seem to be anything at all beneficial to him in it, and that clause about blood gave her the willies. What kind of contract mentioned blood?

“Sorry about that,” a strong male voice spoke close to her ear and an equally as strong pair of hands caught hold of her waist and turned her around. He lifted her effortlessly onto the work surface and sat her down, nestling himself in between her knees. He smiled. “Now where were we?”