Taming the Tiger (BBW/Shifter Mail Order Bride Romance) (Mail-Order Mates Book 4) (2 page)

“Take off the coat. Now,” Dom ordered.

Gwen turned to face him as she put her purse down on the coffee table. She undid the belt of her long coat and shrugged it off slowly. Dom’s eyes traveled down her body as she revealed the outfit she’d chosen specially for him. She knew the white lace drove him wild. The lingerie barely covered her and left just enough to the imagination. Tonight, she’d also worn thigh-high stockings. They were a pain to find in her size and there was a good chance Dom would shred them, just like he had every pair before. Still, it was worth it. The stockings were luxuriously soft against her bare legs. And every time she pulled them on, she knew she was in for a night of fun.

Dom circled her, grabbed the coat off the ground and threw it in the direction of his coat closet. Her tiger didn’t like him circling like that. Gwen’s heart hammered as the silence stretched. Just as her tiger was urging her to bolt, Dom made his move. He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her into a hot kiss. His tongue dipped into her mouth and danced around hers.

Gwen knew Dom would be able to smell her desire now. She was soaking wet. He walked her back against the wall still kissing her and shoved his leg between her thighs. He rubbed his jeans-clad thigh against her wetness. Gwen shuddered and pressed her head back against the wall. She moaned when Dom lowered his head to her neck and sucked at her tender skin.

He brought one hand up from her waist to knead her right breast. He tugged the delicate lingerie until her breast popped free. Her tiger growled when he took her left nipple in his mouth while still groping her. Gwen ground herself against his leg as he sucked at her. It never took Dom long to get her all worked up.

“Go lean over the couch,” he told her. She almost ran to the couch, she was so ready to go. She had barely draped herself over the edge of the couch before she felt Dom’s warm tongue licking up her inner thigh. As he licked, he reached up and pulled her white thong down to her knees. He ran his finger along her wet slit, teasing her. He continued kissing her thighs as he ran his finger back and forth lightly. He was touching her but it wasn’t enough.

“Come on,” Gwen begged. She looked over her shoulder at him and Dom smiled.

“No talking.” Dom stood up and smacked her hard on the ass. Him and his rules. He could talk and tell Gwen what to do, but once she was inside his house, she couldn’t speak until he said so. She couldn’t remember when that little rule had come into effect, but it was hard to follow. He always managed to work her up enough to make her beg.

Dom slapped her ass four more times before getting back down on his knees behind her. Gwen’s ass was hot by the time he finished. Even after he stopped, she could feel exactly where he had spanked her. His hot breath tickled her lips as he pushed her knees further apart. He stayed in the position for a while. Gwen could hear him lick his lips as he ran his hands up and down her inner thighs. Finally, after an eternity, his warm tongue lapped at her bare lips. He held her open with two fingers as his tongue explored every inch of her sex.

Gwen let her head fall against the couch and she held on to the side cushion for dear life. She growled as her legs began to shake. Dom’s tongue circled her clit relentlessly. Two thick fingers entered her from behind and plunged in and out. He worked his tongue and fingers in unison until she was panting. She bit her lip to keep from crying out as her pleasure soared to its peak.

Once she had stopped shaking, Dom stood up and put a hand on her lower back. “I’m going to fuck you now, Ms. Johnson. Remember, no talking. I don’t want you to make a single sound. If you do, I’m going to have to punish you.”

With that warning, Dom slid into her with one hard thrust. Gwen squeezed her knees together and gripped the couch leather even harder. She could smell her scent mingling with Dom’s. With each hard thrust, he brushed against that spot deep inside her that made her toes curl. She opened her mouth but didn’t make a noise as the pleasure built again.

She pressed back against Dom and came up on the balls of her feet. She was so close. Dom slipped a hand under her and rubbed her clit. Gwen put her hand over her mouth as she clenched hard on Dom’s cock. Her pussy pulsed and throbbed. She fought hard to make no noise and succeeded. She removed her hand and breathed hard out of her mouth.

Dom wasn’t finished with her yet. He pulled out of her and spun her around. He slid her panties all the way off and picked her up. Dom set her on the edge of the couch before wrapping her legs around his waist and entering her again. He pulled her close and ground against her while he was deep inside of her. He moved his hips in small circles and bit at her neck. His eyes were bright amber as he fucked into Gwen. The slow circles felt good but gave her a chance to catch her breath.

She let her head fall to one side so Dom would have better access to her neck. He loved to mark her. Normally she would be more careful but the warmth spreading through her body made her reckless. As long as he kept doing that thing with his hips, she didn’t care what he did to her neck. Once he’d marked up her neck, he picked up his pace.

He started fucking her harder and harder. Gwen leaned back on her arms and met him at every thrust. The warmth in her lower body spread out until even her fingertips were tingling. Before she knew it, she was clenching around Dom again and letting out a ferocious growl.

Dom didn’t stop moving. “You made a noise.”

“Fuck.” He was right. She had growled, and loudly at that. Dom thrust into hard one time before stilling. Gwen felt him harden inside her and before she could hop off, he was spilling his seed deep inside of her. Her eyes almost popped out of her head as she looked down at their still-joined bodies. He had come inside of her!

She pulled back. “Dom! What the fuck!”

He looked at her, confused. “What’s wrong?”

“You came inside of me!”

He shrugged. “So? You’re on the pill, right?”

“That doesn’t matter. You were supposed to pull out.” She was on the pill, but she wasn’t always diligent about taking it. She thought she had taken it this morning, but she hadn’t the day before…or the day before that. Damn. Fuming, she got off the couch and stood up.

He grabbed the back of her neck and towered over her. “Calm down, Gwen. I’m sorry. I should have pulled out. It won’t happen again.”

Dom sounded sorry, but she was still pissed. He’d never done that before. No one had. She was very careful about using protection at all times. Shifters were very fertile and she didn’t want to have any surprises before finding her mate.

“Come on, Gwen. Don’t let the fun end now. I won’t even punish you for that little growl.”

He kissed her softly while stroking her between her legs. It was only one time and he was sorry. He was right. There was no need for her to leave just yet.

She let him pick her up and take her into his bedroom.

*

Gwen listened to Dom snore softly. The sun was just coming up and she needed to get going, but she was so tired that she didn’t want to move a muscle. Dom had fucked her for hours. They had only gone to bed an hour ago, and Dom had gone right to sleep, but Gwen had been staring at the ceiling the whole time. She was trying to motivate herself to move. Dom’s warm, hard body was pressed against her side and he had one arm thrown over her middle.

It wasn’t going to be easy to sneak out, but she had to get up. She didn’t sleep over at Dom’s house anymore. She didn’t want him to get the wrong idea. This was a booty call. It was about sex and sex only. Their days as a couple were long over. In the beginning, it had seemed like he wanted to get back with her, and that was more complicated than Gwen wanted their relationship to be. She hadn’t hooked up with him again until he had assured her it was only about sex for him too.

They were so good together physically that Gwen didn’t want to jeopardize their relationship. They were even able to hang out in public now too. They had talked at Frank and Amy’s wedding and it hadn’t been weird at all. She liked Dominic, but she knew they would never have a future. He wasn’t the type to settle down, which was rare among shifters. Usually, shifters mated for life. That could mean a lot of things. The lion women of the Brooks Pride shared two alphas among them and the Lunar Pack occasionally had triads. It was fine and dandy as long as all parties agreed to be in a ménage relationship.

Loner shifters weren’t into any kind of monogamous relationship. They moved around and slept with whomever they wanted. Sometimes, loner men and women would hook up and have children, but most often, those shifters never had children. It made Gwen sad to think Dom would never have cubs, but that wasn’t a life she would choose. She wanted a man who would be true to her and her alone.

She slid out from Dom’s arm carefully and got dressed. She gave him one last lingering look before leaving the bedroom.

As she opened the front door, there was a growl behind her.

Three

“You’re just going to sneak out?” Dom spit. He was so angry. Angrier than he’d let himself get in a long time.

“I have to work.” Gwen didn’t even turn around when she spoke to him.

“You don’t work until later today. You have the same schedule after the holidays every year.”

“Now you’re stalking me?” He could hear the anger creeping into her voice too.

“No. I know you very well. I’ve taken the time to get to know you.”

“Good for you.” She went to open the door but Dom ran forward and slammed it. His arm was above her on the door. He was shaking with rage. She was doing it again! Even after he’d spent all night satisfying her, she was still going to sneak out before he was awake.

“Why are you treating me like this?” Dom demanded. “I know that I’ve done some fucked-up stuff in my past, but I’m not like that anymore. You know me better than that.”

She looked at him with fiery amber eyes. “You know this is just about sex. Don’t start making it complicated now.”

“What if just sex isn’t enough for me anymore?”

Gwen laughed bitterly. “What about Mary Margaret? Or Sally from the grocery store? How about Tonya? She’s just starting her freshman year of college, right? What is it with all of them?”

Dom shook his head. “Who’s stalking whom now?”

“You aren’t exactly discreet with your dealings,” Gwen snapped. She tried to pull the door open again, but Dom didn’t move an inch. “Let me out of here!”

“We’re having a conversation. Can you not talk to me anymore?”

“I knew this was a mistake. I should have just left well enough alone. We’ve been getting along so well.”

“We can keep getting along well. Just one date. Give me a chance, Gwen.”

“I gave you a chance. You don’t want to settle down. I don’t need a man who’s slutting it up all over town.”

“Whoa. I’ve been with a few girls. Sorry, I’m not a virginal princess in a tower. That doesn’t mean that I don’t want to settle down.”

“Your actions tell a different story. How come you haven’t had a long-term relationship in the last eight years?”

“I did,” Dom said softly. “She dumped me after a few weeks.”

“Uh-uh.” Gwen put her finger in his face. “Don’t put that on me. You dumped
me
. You said you wanted to play the field. Keep your options open.”

“But I didn’t say I didn’t want to be with you,” Dom said lamely.

“Right. What girl who has even a shred of dignity would stay with a guy who’s sleeping around?”

“I’m not that dumb kid anymore, Gwen. I’ve changed. If you don’t give me a chance, you can’t say that I’m the same.”

“I want to get married, Dominic!” Gwen exploded. “I don’t want to keep dating until I’m old and dried up. I want a family of my own. Not this same bullshit over and over. I tried with you and it didn’t work. I don’t need to revisit that mistake.”

“Can you honestly tell me that you don’t feel the connection we have?” Dom took his hand off the door. “If you can look me in the eye and tell me honestly that you’ve listen to your tiger and it says nothing about me, leave now.”

She turned and faced him. Her eyes were crystal-clear green. “You are not my mate.”

Dom felt like he had been kicked in the chest. He nodded curtly. His mouth was as dry as sandpaper and he couldn’t speak. He hadn’t cried in more than a decade. Not since his grandpa had died. But he was sure if he opened his mouth now, he wouldn’t be able to control his emotions. He let Gwen open the door and leave his house.

He leaned back against the door and slid to the ground. She had to be lying. There was no way she wasn’t his mate. He felt it. He
knew
it was true. His tiger couldn’t be that wrong. He knew that he had fucked up all those years ago, but he had really changed. He wasn’t young and stupid anymore. He wanted to get married and have cubs too. And he knew that he wanted all of that with Gwen.

There was no way he was going to be able to do this all by himself. He thought about what he knew about women. Granted, his knowledge was slim, but he knew they talked with their friends about everything. He needed to get her friends on his side. Recently, she had been hanging out with Erin Brooks and Amy Franklin. He knew those two women liked him a lot. They were new in town and hadn’t known him when he and Gwen were dating. He had even spoken at Amy’s wedding. Getting their approval would be easy.

His problem was going to be Rachel Drummond. The waitress was almost ten years older than Gwen and a spinster to boot. She and Gwen couldn’t be more opposite. Gwen was vivacious and had a big personality. Rachel was meek and quiet. As much as Gwen loved having a good time, Rachel loved staying home and having a quiet night. There were only two things they had in common as far as Dom could tell: both women were tall, and they both had outrageously curvy bodies. Rachel wasn’t his favorite person in Sunset Falls, but he wasn’t blind.

She hid her body behind dowdy clothes but she was stacked. He didn’t know if that was the kind of thing women bonded over, but it was all that made sense. When he and Gwen had started having problems, it was Rachel she spent a lot of time talking to. They didn’t seem to be as close these days, but they were still friends. And nobody in town hated him with Gwen as much as Rachel. If he could get her seal of approval, he would be golden.