Bear's Gold (Erotic Shifter Fairy Tales) (4 page)

His head jerked back slightly as if
she’d slapped him by moving away. She couldn’t understand it. She didn’t want
to try and understand it. The only thing that she knew was that she needed to
put some distance between her and the strange man before she found herself
doing something outside of her norm. She didn’t have one night stands and
didn’t sleep with unknown men. She had a firm three month dating rule. It was
something she stuck to, didn’t break…ever.

“Um… I need to get some sleep.” The
words came out more forcefully than she intended, but she felt agitated, uneasy
in her own skin. Her hands pushed her hair back behind her ear, flitted beside
her waist, and then gestured past him. She just couldn’t be still.

He blinked and his eye color was
back to black or dark brown… She still wasn’t sure which and it was a bad idea
for her to stand there and try to figure it out.

“Of course.” He moved to the side
allowing her to go past him.

She had to turn to the side to get
through the door, since he was taking up more than half the space. But, she
pressed her body tightly against the opposite frame to keep herself from even
brushing one part of his body.

“Thank you,” she called over her
shoulder as she made haste to the guest bedroom. Once there she closed and
locked the door.

Pressing herself against the solid
wood, she waited until she heard him go upstairs to his own room. Taking
repeated breaths, she finally felt herself calm a little. Crossing to the bed,
she got below the sheet and comforter and stared out the dark window and prayed
for morning to come soon. She had to get away from these woods, this house, and
this man.
Theo
.

Riley used every trick in her
arsenal to make herself disregard the needs of her body and go to sleep.

~YH~

Theo paced the floor in his room.
Repeatedly he went from the window to the bed then back and had finally begun
to walk a path along the foot of his bed. It took all of his will not to put
his fist through something or claw up his wood walls. He was sure now that he
was not only out of his mind, but lust was the father of his insanity.

Scrubbing his hands over his face,
he tried again fruitlessly to gain control of his desires. Being around Riley
had been difficult enough, but being trapped in that laundry room had been a
mistake. Her clothing had acted as a small barrier to her scent. Not that he
could not smell her personal fragrance beneath all the pine and dirt, but he
could narrow what he smelled to the clothing.

When she’d come out of the bathroom,
with her golden brown waves still wet from the shower and her naked body only
covered by his shirt, he’d wanted to sweep her up in his arms, race up the
stairs and carry her off to his room and fuck her—deep and hard. During the First
Frost Moon Cycle, it wasn’t a time for long caresses and slow loving. No, every
animal instinct was paramount with one single goal, to mate fast and often.
Most females in Den County became pregnant during this time and gave birth six
months after the Fish Moon festival, gestation accelerated due to their
combined genetics.

He growled. Not attempting to stifle
the sound. His body was shaking with need. He was so hot he’d already discarded
his jeans and had opened both of his bedroom windows hoping to catch a breeze.

The laundry room had been his
undoing. He’d seen how she’d responded to him. His shirt didn’t hide the
distended points of her nipples and the small enclosure had been an incubator
for her scent. Seeing her racing heart earlier and the subtle rubs she’d given
her own body occasionally had already taken him to the cliff of desire. Once
he’d gotten a whiff of her wet sex, he’d almost jumped. Riley had become afraid
and stepped away, breaking the spell momentarily, be enough for him to get a
grip of himself again.

Things were not making sense. Riley
was not one of his kind. She should not be responding to him in a way that the
females in Den County did.

As a human female, she could be
drawn to him, but they never exhibited the same signs of a Were-bear female. It
made it easier for Were-bear males during this time to be drawn and attracted
to Were-males so that procreation could be achieved. It was said that a bear
male could be pulled away from a human spouse who wasn’t claimed during this
time to seek out a female of his kind. This was the reason it was strongly
advised not to mate outside of their kind. A Were-bear could only promise
fidelity to a bear mate.

Whatever the reason for Riley’s
response, his bear didn’t care, he wanted her.

Theo may as well have walked into a
brick wall as quickly as his body froze in stride.

A soft moan reached his ears. It was
low and lilting, filled with need. At first he tried to trick himself that it
had come from outside; moving to his windows he closed them, pretending to seal
out the call. However, truthfully, he didn’t want anything to distract him from
the sound. He knew it was from within his house as sure as he knew that his
eyes had shifted.

Striding to his door, he pulled it
open and the noise became even more audible, even though it wasn’t loud enough
that a human could hear it from this distance. But he could.

The scent came next. Riley’s scent at
that moment became so strong his house seemed filled with it; rich and heady
with the beckoning sweetness of raw honey. An ambrosia that was made up of all
things Riley that pushed him past all restraints.

~YH~

Theo... Theo… Theo...

It was as if her body began to
whisper his name with every heartbeat. Her mind became flooded with him. Her
body was on fire for him. She could see him standing over her. His dark
piercing eyes consuming her. She didn’t want him to go away, she wanted him to
touch her and kiss her. As if understanding her request, he leaned down and
placed his lips in the curve of her neck and kissed her. His tongue swiped
across her skin and she arched her back off the bad and moaned.

His hands caressed her body and he
continued to lick her from chin to navel. He squeezed her breasts with his
massive hands, his touch strong, but gentle. He claimed one peak in his mouth.
One of his hands slipped between her thighs and she parted her legs for him,
wanting him inside of her. He fondled her. Teased her, bringing her to the
point of begging. She moaned louder attempting to urge him to please her.

Her desire increased and caused her
heart to thump with more force, the pounding became so intense she could hear
it vibrate through the room.

“Riley…”

She didn’t know how Theo was capable
of calling her name as his mouth was filled with her breast.

“Riley… I will tear this door down,”
he growled forcefully.

Jolted awake, she sat up,
disoriented and confused. She became aware of two things; Theo was on the other
side of her room door beating it so hard the door actually appeared to buckle
and her own hand was between her legs, not Theo’s hand as she’d imagined.

Snatching it away, she got up from
the bed and went to the door.

She pressed her forehead against the
cool wood wall and her hand on the side of the door. The heated need in her
dream had followed her into reality or maybe her reality had taken over her
fantasy. Either way, she had to get things under control. Something was up with
Theo and this place, she was not herself.

“Open the door…” His voice was gravelly;
the husky texture was like a wood to the flames burning inside of her. “I can
smell your need…” He beat the door again.

“Theo, please go away,” she pleaded.
Riley didn’t know how much longer she would be able to fight her own lust and
his as well.

Her hands began to rub her body,
first her arms, then up and around until they were palming her breasts. When
she pinched her own nipples, her knees almost buckled. Turning she leaned her
back against the door. She needed touch.

“I can’t…” he replied, his voice
rough, shaky.

It was at that moment she understood
that the same madness that had taken over her body was affecting Theo, too. If
the craving inside her was so powerful, practically painful, Theo hurt as well.

“We need each other, Riley...just
this once.”

Just this once
. Her body screamed. She didn’t care
if it was a lie all she knew was that if Theo could quell the yearning, she
wanted him.

Chapter
Three

As she faced the door, grabbed the
knob and turned it, the door burst open at the same time. She leaped away, but
didn’t get far as Theo’s bulky nude frame filled the room. His eyes were
illuminated, molten gold orbs focused on her. His dark hair was a wild halo of
black ink around his head as if he’d been caught in a storm. Feral was the only
word she could think of to describe his look.

For a moment, her mind reconsidered
and told her to run, but her body was rooted to the spot. The only thing that
moved was her eyes as she roamed his body visually. Wide shoulders, muscles
that appeared carved out of stone; rippling abs and brawny thighs made up his
form. Unlike stone that was cold, heat radiated off Theo, blending with her own
and caressing her skin. He was an attractive male specimen, but no part of him
was more enchanting than his cock; hefty, large and curled toward his stomach.
Shivers raced along her skin as she observed him, this was what she wanted, why
she’d opened the door. Unashamed, he stood before her, proud and strong like a
peacock showing off his colors he allowed her a moment to look her fill.

Reaching out, he grabbed the collar
of the t-shirt and ripped it from top to bottom with one quick jerk. She
squeaked in surprise from his bold action, but wasn’t afraid. The cotton
fluttered down her arms and dropped, disregarded, to the floor. Now it was his
turn to gaze upon her bare body. Would he find her lacking? She didn’t allow
her doubts and concerns to infiltrate the moment, never moved to cover up her
ample breasts or smooth flesh of her sex. Theo would know what he was getting;
a woman with full hips and thighs, a narrow waist but curved stomach.

His gaze returned to her face and
she witnessed the approval in the lift of one side of his mouth. It wasn’t a
smile, more like a man who’d gone out and captured a prey that now lay prepared
before him, and he was ravenous. She wanted to be ravished.

As if understanding her internal
thoughts, his hands cupped her face and urged her forward. She stepped to him
as he leaned toward her and captured her mouth in a fierce kiss. No gentle,
light kisses that coaxed her into seduction as she was used to in the past. No,
he took command of her mouth. Forcing her lips apart with his own, he led her
in an oral dance of ecstasy. She tasted the unrestrained passion in his kiss,
matching her own.

He buried his hands in her hair,
fisting it, and he held her against him. She was captured, immobilized for his
use. Her scalp stung from the pull, but she didn’t want to pull away. Needing
more contact, she bumped her body against his, needing the heat of his flesh.
The delicious feel of his skin along hers enticed her to rub her body over his
muscles. She rotated her hips, pressing her sex against his thick cock.

Theo’s growl rumbled along her
tongue as she was swept up in his arms. His corded arms circled her waist and
pulled her high against him as her feet dangled inches from the floor. She’d
never had a man make her feel so delicate and small.

She heard the door slam and assumed
he’d kicked it shut.

Before she could prepare herself,
she was crushed between the wall and Theo. Lowering his hands, he took hold of one
of her legs and hooked it over his forearm as his other hand cupped her sex.

Moaning, she suckled his tongue,
drawing him deeper into her mouth. She wanted to be consumed by him.  Be one
with him.

He stroked along her wet folds,
flicking her clit and then pressing it firmly. His repeated action made her quiver.
Caressing her slit, he slipped inside of her and pressed one finger through her
walls. Needing stability, she curved her other foot around his calf. He didn’t
stop kissing her as his thick digit went in and out of her, making her ride it
into pleasure. As she came, he pulled his mouth away and licked down the side
of her neck to the crest of her shoulder. There he bit her and sucked her skin
into his mouth. She felt marked by him.

Pulling away, his black and gold
gaze held her as he guided his cock between her legs. Just like his kiss, he
didn’t waste time in playing coy. Finding her opening, he pressed the broad,
bulbous tip inside of her making her breath catch.

As he grabbed her other leg, lifting
it so that she was spread wide and available for his use, she clutched his
shoulders preparing for his taking. And take her he did. With a single thrust,
his hips shoved upward and buried the full length of his large dick inside of
her. She screamed; a long screech that turned from pain and morphed into
pleasure as she arched against him. She was impaled and her sex stretched beyond
the point she would have believed she could take. No man had ever filled her to
the capacity Theo claimed her. 

“Fuck,” Theo howled. Taking her
mouth in another passionate kiss, he gave her time to adjust to his girth.