Paws for Change (4 page)

This was completely different.

For one thing, Derek wasn’t driving. He was instead trying to balance on a small bit of seat behind another body...a male body that did odd things to his tired mind. Trying to keep enough space between them that he wasn’t pressing his still mostly hard prick against Dillan’s ass, Derek struggled to get reasonably secure.

Dillan reached back and grabbed Derek’s hip. While Derek tensed, Dillan ordered, “Don’t be shy. Scoot closer and wrap your arms around my waist. The trip won’t be long.” With surprising strength—especially at the odd angle—Dillan easily pulled Derek’s groin flush to his ass.

Derek bit back a moan when the pressure on his dick sent dizzying pleasure through his system. On instinct, he grabbed for something to steady himself. That happened to be Dillan himself.

“Good,” Dillan practically grunted, his deep voice sounding pleased. “Let’s get you a comfortable place.”

Without another word, Dillan brought his bike roaring to life. He pressed the throttle and turned the bike. Seconds later, Dillan drove back onto the road. He waved to a pair of men standing beside Diana in the diner parking lot, then with a roar, they were out of town.

Derek clung tightly to the man driving the bike. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d acted so recklessly. From leaving home without telling anyone to driving himself into exhaustion, add in almost getting hit, then climbing onto the back of the motorcycle with the man who’d almost hit him...every one of the decisions he’d made in the last forty-eight hours were completely out of character for him.

With that thought firmly in mind, Derek decided to just go with it. If this guy decided to attack him, he still had the mace attached to his keychain. While the first one he’d received had been a gag gift from his brother...the last gift he’d received from Deke, as a matter of fact...Derek had actually used it. He’d had a run in with a mugger in an alley.

Derek had gone to the drug store the next day and replaced his spent keychain mace with a new one.

Peering over Dillan’s shoulder, Derek watched as the biker turned onto a gravel road. He passed several other, smaller turn-offs, finally coming to a surprisingly pretty iron gate. To further Derek’s shock, as soon as they rolled up to it, the gate began to open.

Evidently, Dillan must have noticed his confusion, for he looked over his shoulder and grinned. “The land lord gave me an automatic opener,” he said. Then, Dillan started the motorcycle rolling forward again.

After riding slowly over gravel for a moment or two, Derek spotted a building between the trees. He felt his eyes widen as the cabin came into view, the structure nestled in a large clearing.

Dillan stopped the bike before it.

When Derek had heard the term
cabin,
he’d thought rustic and old fashioned. This, certainly was not that. While the log-style was definitely a nod to western, the home appeared new and clean. The porch was large and well-maintained. The railings weren’t missing any spokes. There didn’t even seem to be any grass growing between the stones that led up the walk.

“Come on,” Dillan urged, tilting the motorcycle onto its kickstand. “Let’s get you inside. There’s a very comfortable looking bed in the second bedroom.”

The thought of a bed, comfortable or otherwise, overruled everything else in Derek’s mind. He followed Dillan into what could probably be categorized as a small home. He declined the shower. Then, after only kicking off his sneakers, he fell across the bed Dillan showed him to.

Derek couldn’t even remember Dillan leaving the room.

Dillan wanted nothing more than to crawl onto the queen size bed, pull Derek into his arms, and hold him close while the human slept. Unfortunately, if Derek woke like that, Dillan figured he wouldn’t appreciate it. There was something extremely vulnerable and confused about the man...but underneath that, Dillan sensed a sharp intellect and a spine of steel.

Just what had caused the human to drive himself to the brink of exhaustion?

Knowing he wasn’t going to get the answers by staring at him, Dillan turned away. It was tough. His mate! After over three and a half centuries, Dillan had finally stumbled across his mate. He’d righted his bike, yelled at the man, then caught the crazy jay-walker’s scent.

Dillan realized he’d just about run over his mate.

Seeing the man’s dazed expression, Dillan had quickly trundled into the nearest parking lot...an electronics store by the looks of the neon sign. He’d instantly seen the lines of fatigue around Derek’s mouth and the confusion in his pretty, dark eyes. One more whiff of the guy’s scent had confirmed it.

This human was his mate.

Dillan couldn’t help glancing over his shoulder. He mentally groaned at how the sexy man’s dark five o’clock shadow graced his jaw. Even better were his messy dark locks. They weren’t long or short...just past business casual.

Dillan wanted to touch so badly.

Instead, Dillan turned away, gently closing the door behind him. He strode out the back door and onto the deck. Moving into the nearby trees, Dillan stripped off his clothes, folded them, and left them at the base of a tree.

Dillan sighed and let the shift flow through him. It’d been a few months since he’d let his puma out and the change happened quickly, the cat eager to run and hunt. His bones cracked, his muscles popped, and his tendons snapped. In seconds, he stood on all fours. After a satisfying stretch, arching his back, Dillan sprang into action. He lunged forward and sprinted through the forest.

A couple of hours later, Dillan the puma prowled around the house containing his mate. He rounded the structure, sniffing the ground and scenting the wind. No knew smells marred his territory markings.

While Dillan had been given permission to enter Declan’s pack territory...and yes, technically, this was the wolf’s territory, this home was still Dillan’s for the time being. After unpacking his things, he’d immediately shifted and marked a small bit of territory, only fifty paces out, that way the wolf shifters and other animals would know this place was freshly occupied. It was just enough to satisfy his cat’s desire for solitude.

Once he was sure no one had come or gone...and that his mate was still safely inside the dwelling, Dillan leaped into a tree a distance outside Derek’s room. He sprawled on a forked branch, closed his eyes, and took a cat nap.

Dillan blinked his eyes open. He flexed his paws and arched his back, stretching contentedly. Once fully awake, he noted the dark shadows stretching across the ground. He also felt his stomach rumble.

Remembering that he’d missed dinner—and why—Dillan decided he should check on his guest and start an evening meal. He should also call Edwin. He hadn’t missed the shocked surprise on his godson’s face when he’d driven away from the group.

Dillan leaped out of the tree and padded around the edge of the clearing, sticking close to the shadows. He’d need to introduce his mate to his cat and the world of shifters soon, but now wasn’t the time. Dillan needed to woo the human a bit, first...to see how receptive he was to his advances.

He didn’t know the first thing about Derek Sommers, after all. That wouldn’t stop him from doing a little light touching to see how Derek responded.

Upon reaching the tree where he’d left his clothes, Dillan quickly shifted. Once more in human form, he stretched his arms over his head and popped his back, letting out a satisfied grunt. Dillan then yanked on his jeans, zipping the fly but not bothering to button them. Holding the rest of his stuff, he padded barefoot across the thick grass and entered the house.

Dillan smiled, spotting Derek seated at the dining room table. His hair was damp and appeared as if Derek had finger-combed it with water in an attempt to tame it. He had a mostly full bottle of beer between his hands. Staring at the glass, he seemed entranced by the label.

“Good evening,” Dillan greeted softly as he placed his clothes on a nearby bench.

Derek started, lifting his head and turning his head to gaze at him. He stared at him with wide eyes for a second. Then, he blinked and smiled back.

“Hey.”

Sauntering slowly to the refrigerator, Dillan took his time. He purposefully gave Derek plenty of time as he retrieved a beer of his own. Bending over a bit as he reached for a beer from the bottom shelf, he tightened his ass, knowing it looked fantastic in the worn, faded jeans.

When Dillan turned back around, he bumped the fridge door with his hip, closing it. He noted how Derek’s gaze quickly lowered to the beer he clutched, a rosy glow staining his cheeks.

“How are you feeling?” Dillan asked. He rested his lower back against the bar top and leaned against it. By placing his elbows behind him on the counter, he knew he put his body on display. While he might have salt-and-pepper hair these days, his body remained toned and lean, in thanks partly to his feline shifter genes. “Are you feeling better?”

Derek lifted his gaze and cleared his throat. While licking his lips, he swept his gaze over Dillan’s form. Then, he cleared his throat again. “Y-Yeah. Thank you.” He rubbed his hand over his face. “How long did I sleep?”

Dillan rolled his shoulder in a half shrug. “However long you needed.” He glanced at the laminate deer head clock on the left wall and saw it was already almost half past nine in the evening. He figured he’d have at least three calls from Edwin by now. Deciding he’d worry about that later, Dillan stated, “Maybe three hours or so.”

Nodding, Derek mumbled. “Sorry to put you out.”

Chuckling, Dillan finally popped the cap off the beer and tossed it onto the counter behind him. “You’re not. I’m happy I could help.” He tipped the beer toward Derek, then lifted the bottle. “Cheers,” he said before taking a swig of the cold brew.

Derek smiled and drank. He downed several gulps.

As Dillan swallowed his own mouthful, he found his gaze riveted to Derek’s Adam’s apple as it bobbed. He wanted to suck on that little nub. He wanted Derek to arch his neck for him, moaning and gasping for more.

Forcing back his carnal thoughts, Dillan took in Derek’s tight shoulders and white-knuckled grip on the beer. His mate seriously needed some down time. What had him so keyed up?

Dillan decided to try another approach. Pushing away from the counter, he downed his beer in several long swallows. He pointed at Derek’s and ordered, “Finish that.”

While Derek looked confused, he obeyed.

Grinning, Derek once again opened the fridge, this time pulling out four more bottles, two in each hand. He hip-bumped the door and closed it again. Then, strode to the back door. He tilted his head at the sliding glass door.

“Wanna open this for me?” Dillan asked, holding up his full hands.

Derek rose and crossed to him. Reaching past him, he opened the door.

Dillan couldn’t resist inhaling deeply, taking in his mate’s earthy, masculine scent. The heady aroma sent desire streaking through his system. His blood surged southward and his cock thickened to full mast. He wanted to adjust himself in his jeans, but his hands were full. Besides, he planned to take them off in a minute anyway. While Dillan didn’t want to scare the human, he had no intention of hiding how the sexy man affected him either.

“Come on,” Dillan said again. “Shut the door behind you.”

“What are we doing?” Derek asked. “What about my car? Don’t you want me out of your hair? Why’d you even bring me here?”

Dillan chuckled softly. It seemed his mate had finally found his tongue. He set the beers on a plastic table next to the plastic lawn chairs. Next, he crossed to a hot tub set up off in the corner of the deck. Dillan had been extremely pleased to discover that little bonus.

“We are going to relax in this hot tub,” Dillan stated, filling his voice with confidence as he pulled the cover off. “We’ll drink a couple of beers. Tell each other about ourselves.” He glanced over his shoulder and winked at his human mate. “Generally, tonight we’re just gonna relax.”

Dillan hadn’t missed the way Derek had instinctively responded to his commands when he’d been half out of his mind with fatigue. He was interested in knowing just how much he could use that to his advantage.

Picking up the beer, Dillan lined them up on the side of the hot tub. Then, he gripped the zipper of his jeans and carefully lowered it...didn’t want to catch anything, after all. Finally, he pushed the jeans down and off. Half-turning to face Derek as he folded the pants, he looked toward the human.

Dillan spotted the blush on Derek’s cheeks and noted how the human’s gaze was riveted to his hard cock. Hell, he liked that Derek seemed unable to resist staring at him, and he sure wasn’t going to do anything to embarrass him. Instead of drawing attention to his mate’s staring, Dillan tossed his jeans onto the table where the beers had been and climbed into the hot tub.

Groaning in pleasure upon feeling the heat envelope his road-weary muscles, Dillan slid onto a seat. He sighed, grabbed a beer, and popped the cap. After tossing the cap in the direction of his jeans—and feeling proud he landed it on top of the folded fabric—he held up the bottle and waggled it.

“Come on, jay-walker. Get in here and loosen up,” Dillan teased.

Derek moved forward a few steps, looking uncertain.

Dillan beckoned with the beer again, then set it on the side of the tub. Picking up a second bottle, he opened that and did the same with the cap as the first one. Dillan took a long drink from this one. He swallowed, then rested the back of his head on the pad of the seat and waited for Derek to make up his mind. As he eyed the handsome human, he tried to ignore the twitching of his throbbing cock.

“I, uh, don’t have a suit,” Derek objected halfheartedly.

Snorting, Dillan shook his head. “I know you didn’t miss that I don’t either.” He narrowed his eyes and grinned. “If you’re feeling shy, leave your underwear on. It’d be a shame though, because I bet you have a sexy ass.”

Derek’s cheeks turned almost scarlet and he took a step backward. “You’re gay?”

“Bisexual,” he corrected. “I’m an equal opportunities connoisseur of the pleasures of the flesh,” Dillan told him with a wink. “Why limit myself?”