Authors: Cassandra Cole
*****
The sounds of footsteps behind Riley would have normally caught her attention but her mind was wandering tonight. She was too distracted by her daydream to notice that the footsteps were getting faster and faster. Riley just about made it to the stairs when a pair of arms reached out from the darkness and dragged her back, pressing a hand to her mouth.
Riley's blood ran cold as the sheer panic made its way through her body. Icy dread filled her veins and she let out a scream of pure terror, though it was muffled by the hand over her mouth.
She was being dragged back into the shadows where no passerby might see them and Riley was beginning to understand that whoever this was had a nefarious plan in mind. Riley kicked and tried to bite the hand that was cutting off her precious air supply. Her teeth sank into fairly delicate skin and the hot, coppery taste of blood filled her mouth.
The person who was dragging her back let out the scream of a wounded animal and it gave Riley enough time to escape. She elbowed the person in the black hoodie and made a run for the stairs. Her attacker lunged for Riley and they hit the ground together rolling around before the attacker got the upper hand and managed to pin her down. Riley's elbow split open on impact and when she saw the hot, crimson blood pouring from the wound she felt a little dizzy.
She somehow managed to stay focused and twisted until she was facing her assailant she grabbed the hood and shoved it away from the person’s face, gasping when it revealed Angela's features. Blood was dripping down her nose in two little rivers of blood and it smeared along her lips and cheeks. The sight made Riley sick and her stomach gave a violent lurch.
"Angela...why?" She whispered, her voice almost failing her
"You think...you're going to take him away from me like you've taken everything else." She whispered, a maniacal laugh starting to bubble up in her throat. "You think I'm going to let you win?"
Angela's hand slipped into the pocket of her jacket and she pulled out a long, sharp blade that shone under the flickering lights of the subway station. Angela brought it up over her head, an insane cackling spilling from her lips.
When Riley caught sight of the blade, she went catatonic. All she could think about was the video of her mother. When the video was finally released from the police, Riley hid in the basement and watched it over and over again. She watched the blade sink into her mother’s neck a million times. That video gave her a deep fear of dying like her mother.
Riley assumed that her mother died because she was kind. She let her guard down and it resulted in her death. Riley found herself in the same exact position even though she’d avoided being overly kind. She was going to suffer her mother’s fate no matter how hard she tried to avoid it.
‘Weak women don’t survive in this world.’
She thought she was strong. Riley thought she was going to survive. As she stared at the shaking knife, she knew that she was weak. Her strength and her power were facades that she put on in a desperate attempt to make it in this world. The truth was that she was never meant to make it.
Riley closed her eyes and turned her head away, hoping that the sweet embrace of death would come soon. Her only regret was that she’d never be able to tell Charles that she cared for him. It wasn’t love, but she did care for him and now she’d never get a chance to be with him.
As she lay there on the cold concrete she heard the sound of a deep rumbling growl. At first, she thought it was the vibrations of a faraway train but it didn’t give her any hope. By the time the train stopped and people unloaded she would have been bleeding out. As the sound grew closer it became evident to her that the sound was being made by something far more...organic.
The sound of the knife clattering to the ground made Riley open her eyes and look up. Two huge paws settled beside her head and they were attached to a monstrous lion. Her eyes widened and she began to shake almost violently as the lion growled and stepped forward. The beast stepped over Riley completely and took off after Angela.
They disappeared into the darkness together and the pure adrenaline and fear that rushed through Riley made her collapse on the concrete and pass out. The last thing she heard was a blood curdling scream that echoed through the entire subway station.
Riley wasn’t sure how long she’d been asleep, but when she awoke a warm, wet cloth was being dabbed along her forehead. When she finally forced her eyes open, she was surprised to see Charles leaning over her and cleaning her up. While she was asleep she started sweating profusely thanks to the nightmares and he was doing his best to get her clean.
When her eyes fluttered open he smiled and stroked her cheek with a tenderness she never would have expected from him.
“You’re awake…I’m glad…” He said softly, leaning away so that she could sit up.
Riley ran a hand through her damn hair, looking up at the man, brows furrowed.
“Where…Am I?” She whispered.
“You’re in my bedroom.” He said, motioning around to the modern looking room.
The bed was very low to the ground and the room itself was very sleek with large mirrors, black curtains and white, metal furniture. Riley swallowed thickly and looked up at him.
“How did you find…” Her voice drifted off as she stared into his hazel eyes and took in the thick blonde hair that sat atop his head.
Her hand came up her lips, fingers shaking as she slowly began to put the pieces together. Those lion’s eyes…She didn’t notice it in the moment, but they looked so damn familiar. They looked familiar because they were the same shade of green with golden specks as her boss’ eyes.
“You’re…the lion…”
*****
Charles looked away and closed his eyes, bringing a hand to his face. He looked so pained and remorseful. It wasn’t a look she was used to seeing on his face. It made her heart ache for him. He took a breath and dropped his hand, turning to face her. The pain in his gaze was palpable and it cut right through her.
“Are you scared of me?” He asked.
The words rang through Riley’s mind with a startling amount of clarity. She stared up at the man who saved her; the man who wasn’t a man at all, and she expected to feel fear. Riley felt that she should be terrified of what this man could do to her, but something in her told her that he would never hurt her. He couldn’t hurt her.
Riley offered a slow shake of her head in response and she smiled a little, leaning in closer to Charles.
“I’m not scared.”
His eyes widened and he allowed her to come closer, wrapping his strong arms around her much smaller frame.
“You aren’t?”
“No…You…Pretty much had your paw on my neck, Charles…If you were going to hurt me you would have done it right then and there…You saved me…Angela…She would have killed me if you weren’t there.” She frowned and pulled away, looking up at Charles.
“Angela…Did you…Kill her?”
“No…But I don’t think she’ll be coming back to work…Or the city any time soon.”
They both smiled and allowed a comfortable silence to settle between them. Charles cleared his throat after a moment and looked down at Riley, shocked by her silence.
“Don’t you have…Any questions?” Most people expected him to do a lot of explaining once things settled down.
“Oh, I have a lot of questions. But first, I have a demand.”
“What is that?”
“Kiss me.”
There was still a good bit of adrenaline rushing through her. Riley lived a very controlled life so far. She planned out everything in advance and always insisted on having her ducks in a row. She didn’t believe in spontaneity and believed that a well-planned life was a happy life. When she’d been knocking on death’s door, it made her realize that she couldn’t plan for every single thing that was going to happen to her. Sometimes she just needed to live in the moment and that was exactly what she was going to do now.
Charles seemed shocked and opened his mouth to argue but he wasn’t able to get any words out since Riley pressed her full lips to his, nearly stealing his breath away. He pulled her even closer, if that was possible and ran his hand down her smooth back. He’d stripped her down to her bra and panties while she slept, considering they were both covered in Angela’s blood.
Riley fell back into the soft, silk sheets, enjoying the way they enveloped around her as she pulled Charles on top of her own body. His warmth surrounded her and she was filled with a sense of safety that she’d never experienced before. She didn’t understand how or why he could turn into a lion and she planned on asking those questions, of course, but right now she just wanted to enjoy the thrill of being alive and making love.
They melted into a long, deep kiss and didn’t pull away from each other until the need for air over powered their need for each other. They pulled away and gasped in a big gulp of air before Charles began kissing every inch of her body, tasting her skin just like he’d done her dream. She moaned softly and threaded her fingers through his hair, pushing him further down south.
Charles all but ripped her bra off, too impatient to go through the hassle of actually undoing the clasps. The display of strength made Riley shudder in the best way possible and she was thrilled when he ripped her panties off with just as much impatience. Riley liked the idea that he could tear her apart at any given moment. It was a safe sort of danger, like bungee jumping off a cliff. She knew she wasn’t going to get hurt, but the threat was still there
He paused at her breasts, taking one of the taut nubs into his mouth and suckling on it eagerly while his free hand kneaded the soft flesh. Riley moaned and arched her back, gasping softly as his fingers danced along her belly and hips. Those eager digits found the soft mound of her womanhood and just like she’d imagined, he pressed two fingers inside of her. It felt far better than anything she could have imagined.
Each thrust of those talented fingers drew a long low moan from her and she arched her back desperately, trying to ride his fingers. She wanted more. She wanted everything Charles was willing to offer her. He rested his head against her belly, panting and moaning, pressing kisses to the tender skin as he worked her open. She was as tight as he imagined and the smell coming off of her was absolutely intoxicating. He wasn’t sure how long he was going to be able to hold back.
Soon enough, his ministrations were pulling sobs of pleasure from her as the heat coiled in Riley’s belly and threatened to spill over into the rest of her body. His fingers worked their magic and soon he was kissing back up her body, pausing to lavish each breast with attention before he found her lips again, smiling against the kiss. Even with their lips pressed together, his name fell from her lips like a prayer.
Charles pulled away from her just long enough to strip out of his suit and leave it in a useless pile by the bed alongside her shredded undergarments. His chiseled body was revealed to her for the first time and she couldn’t stop herself from reaching out and touching the wiry hair at the apex of his hips. She moaned and licked her lips, looking up at her with hungry eyes.
“Make me yours.”
They were the words he’d wanted to hear since he first laid eyes on her and now that she was offering herself to him, he wasn’t about to turn it down. He straddled her and stroked her beautiful curls back, the heat of their bodies mixing and creating a heavy musk that lingered in the air. He settled between her legs and gripped her hips hard enough to leave little red bruises there. She loved the shot of pain that ran through her when his grip became almost too tight to bear. He didn’t seem to know his own strength, but she was a strong woman and she would gladly take it.
His fingers dug into her hips as he buried himself inside of her, dragging her closer and letting a low, animalistic growl that sent shivers up her spine. It sounded a lot like the growl she’d heard in the train station. She arched her back against him, her fingers digging into the sheets as he ran his hands up her body and then up her arms, finally stopping to grab her wrists.
When he wrapped his hands around her wrists she didn’t fight him. Riley let him hold her down, deciding that just this one time, it would be okay to give her power up. Once she was held down and couldn’t move, Charles set a slow deliberate pace, watching her face as her lips parted and she whispered his name over and over again. Each powerful thrust brought forth another moan and it only encouraged him.
Soon the sound of their hips slapping together filled the room as he leaned over her and pulled her to him, claiming her as his mate. He knew that he would have her, he just never knew it would be this amazing.
As soon as Riley’s arms were released she threw them around Charles and arched into his thrusts, meeting his hips with gusto. Each thrust and each deep growl brought her closer and closer to the edge. The molten pleasure that was pooling in her belly began to cascade through the rest of her body, making her see stars as her orgasm finally consumed her.