Moonlight Kin 4: Tristan (15 page)

Was she setting him up?

Stone had thought her desire to escape was
genuine, but watching them now, he wasn’t so sure. He pressed the
pre-programmed number on his phone.

Izzy didn’t pick up. He hung up and tried
again, but she didn’t answer. She was too busy hanging on the
beast’s arm and flirting.

He couldn’t let her do this. Not when he was
so close. One way or another, Stone would have to stop the beast by
her side. Failure was not an option.

* * * * *

Izzy’s phone vibrated when she turned it on,
indicating that she had a message. She’d kept the phone off after
Stone had left her yesterday. She’d expected him to call eventually
but hoped he’d take more time to come to his senses.

She glanced at her watch. It was still
relatively early. The sun wouldn’t go down for several more hours.
She thought about how she and Tristan could pass the time.
Instantly, a carnal image flashed in her mind.

Izzy glanced at Frosty. He hadn’t said much
since they’d gotten back to the cabin, but she had caught him
looking at her a couple times. As per usual, she hadn’t been able
to read his expression. The man should play poker.

Her phone vibrated again. Izzy needed to deal
with one problem at a time, starting with Stone. “I need to use the
bathroom,” she said.

Tristan glanced up from the paper he read.
“Okay,” he said.

Izzy picked up her purse and walked into the
bathroom. They’d had such a nice day that she didn’t want to do
anything to ruin the mood. She shut the door and pulled out her
phone, expecting to see a missed call. Instead, there were at least
a half dozen text messages from Stone, each one angrier than the
last.

Saw you in town today. What were you
doing?

You said you wanted help getting away.
Didn’t look like you needed help to me.

How could you bring yourself to kiss a
monster? What’s wrong with you? He had his hands all over you and
you looked like you loved every minute of it.

It’s us against them or have you
forgotten?

Makes me think you’ve been setting me up all
along. Have you? I only wanted to help you. Why would you do
something like that? Do you want the monsters to catch me?

You’ll be sorry, if I find out that’s what
you’ve been doing all along. You don’t know who you’re messing
with.

Is that why you didn’t leave with me
yesterday? You were too busy screwing a monster. Sick! Now I know
why you didn’t want me to hurt him.

I can no longer trust your judgment. Who
knows what kind of magic he’s worked on you. For your sake, I hope
you’re not around when I take out your boyfriend.

Wouldn’t want you to get hurt by
accident.

Izzy felt bile rise in her throat as she
struggled to get control of her fear. She turned on the water, so
Tristan wouldn’t hear her texting Stone back.

I don’t have to explain myself, but I will
because you’re obviously mental. Everything you saw today was... It
wasn’t what you think. The whole thing was an act.

But it hadn’t felt like an act. A few times
when Tristan had kissed her, it had actually felt real.

The whys are not important—just know that it
was. Tristan is not my lover.

Everly’s reading came rushing back to her.
She saw them as lovers. Heck, even Izzy had seen them together in
her vision. That didn’t mean it would happen. It couldn’t. Izzy’s
certainty wasn’t nearly as strong as it had been in the
beginning.

The more time she spent with Tristan, the
easier it was to imagine them together. It would never last, but
Izzy could no longer deny that she wanted him. If only for a
night.

Stone’s response was swift.
Looked like he
was working his magic on you.

Tristan had mentioned something about magic,
but he’d made it sound like his was nothing special. Had he lied?
The thought that he might have worried her. Worried her enough that
Izzy was going to have to ask.

Izzy typed another message.
I believed
that all monsters were the same. I was wrong. So are you.

Tristan wasn’t like any of the others she’d
met over the years. In hindsight, most had left her alone. It had
been her who’d run away, and only when she’d received a psychic
warning.

You should go ahead without me. Get out of
town while you can. I’ll leave once I’m finished here.

Stone’s response was immediate.
I am not
going anywhere without you. Got it? So get your things packed. I’ll
be there soon.

Izzy didn’t need his help. His militant
insistence frightened her.
I’ve changed my mind. I no longer
want to go. Please, Stone, just leave.

If you won’t save yourself, I’ll have to be
the one to save you from yourself.

Stone’s message made Izzy shiver. What was
she going to do? His heart might be in the right place, but it was
obvious that he wasn’t stable.

Izzy felt sorry for him. She knew what it was
like to feel like the only sane person in the world. Stone had been
on his own for too long. Maybe he just needed time to cool off?
Once he did, perhaps then he’d listen to reason.

She turned the phone off and dropped it back
into her purse, then flushed the toilet. Izzy splashed some water
on her face then walked back into the main room.

Tristan set his paper on the table, when she
came out. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah,” she said, hoping it was the
truth.

* * * * *

Tristan noticed the change in Isabel’s
complexion. Despite the moisture clinging to the side of her hair,
she looked pale. Certainly paler than she’d been when she walked
into the bathroom.

He inhaled, catching a sharp scent that
indicated fear. What had her so upset? He’d thought the day had
gone as well as could be expected. She’d seemed fine a moment ago.
Tristan pulled her into his arms as she walked past.

Isabel yelped. “What are you doing?” Her body
remained tense for a moment, then she relaxed.

What was he doing? Sure, he wanted to know
what was wrong, but he also had gotten used to touching her
whenever he felt like it. There was no one here to see them, no one
to perform for, but Tristan wasn’t ready to stop the
act
.

“I know today was stressful,” he said,
rubbing his thumb along her spine, soothing the tense muscles.

She shrugged awkwardly. “It wasn’t so bad,”
she said. “After a while I forgot we were pretending.”

So had he.

“Toward the end, I thought we were actually
having a good time,” she said.

Tristan agreed. “Thanks for introducing me to
Yo Mama’s Bar and Grill,” he said. The burgers had been
delicious.

Isabel smiled. “I figured you’d like the
hamburgers.”

“I did indeed.” He leaned in close to her
ear. “We might have to do it all again tomorrow, including the
lunch break.”

Her scent changed subtly, growing warmer,
richer, more intoxicating. Isabel probably wouldn’t admit it, but
she wasn’t as adverse to the idea of pretending they were a couple
as she’d been earlier.

Neither was Tristan.

Her delicious scent made him wonder exactly
where she’d draw the line. Before he had the chance to change his
mind, Tristan framed Isabel’s face and kissed her. He made sure to
linger over her lips, savoring her flavor.

At first, she was too shocked to respond,
then her fingers sank into his hair and Isabel kissed him back.
Tristan’s whole body hardened beneath her. A sound rumbled out of
his chest, and he pulled her even closer, deepening the
embrace.

Their tongues brushed, then swirled, tasting,
teasing, and delighting in the kiss. Tristan’s hands dropped away
from her face and slid down her bare arms, pausing only long enough
to scrape the sides of her breasts.

Isabel gasped but made no move to stop him.
Encouraged, Tristan continued his exploration. He kneaded his way
down her arms before grasping her lush bottom.

Tristan squeezed and massaged until her
luscious scent permeated the room, then he lifted her higher so she
could straddle his thighs. The move made her sundress bunch around
her waist.

The material presented no barrier when he
rocked his hips against her core. Isabel moaned and wiggled to get
closer. Her blunt teeth latched onto his lower lip, and she
tugged.

It was Tristan’s turn to groan. Wolves loved
to bite, especially during lovemaking. And there was no doubt
that’s where they were headed if he didn’t put the brakes on.
Tristan thought about it for half a second then surrendered to his
beast.

He’d wanted to sink inside her since he first
laid eyes on her photo back in Oregon. He’d told himself that she
was human, that he should stay away, but despite appearances,
Tristan wasn’t a glacier. In fact, if he got any hotter, he’d melt
the polar ice caps.

Tristan hooked Isabel under her legs and
stood. He waited for her eyes to open and her vision to clear. “If
you don’t want this, you need to tell me now,” he said.

Indecision crossed her face for a moment.
“You know this isn’t going to last,” she said.

“I know.” He ignored the pain that knifed his
chest.

“Before I say yes, I need to know one thing,”
she said.

“What?” he asked, distracted by the feel of
her in his arms.

“Are you using magic on me?” she asked.

“Why would you think that?” The question
cooled some of the desire coursing through Tristan’s veins.

Isabel took a deep breath and met his gaze.
“I just wondered if that was why I wanted you so bad.”

Tristan felt as if he was being ripped in
two. On the one hand, he was angry that she’d accused him of doing
something to her to get her into bed. On the other, he was elated
to know that she wanted him.

“The only magic in this room is the kind
conjured between a man and a woman,” he said.

It took her a moment to understand, but when
she did, her eyes widened and she kissed him.

It wasn’t exactly the declaration Tristan
hoped for, but it would have to do. He strode the short distance
across the room to the bed. Tristan juggled Isabel in his arms and
pulled the covers back, then he laid her down.

For a moment, all he could do was stare at
her. Isabel’s wild hair had fanned out around her head, and her
purple sundress was wrapped around her waist, revealing a matching
satin thong. Tristan smelled the moisture gathering between her
thighs. The beast in him drooled.

This was a bad idea, but Izzy’s body didn’t
care. All day long, she’d endured Tristan’s gentle touches, his
long drugging kisses, and his intimate nuzzling. By the time they’d
left the Quarter, she’d been wound so tight she thought she’d
burst.

Stone had accused her of taking Tristan as a
lover. She hadn’t lied, but she also hadn’t told him the whole
truth, which was that Izzy had been thinking about it. Thinking of
little else. Now it looked like her wait was over.

Tristan grabbed his shirt and pulled it over
his head. Muscles rippled in his arms and over his chest as he
tossed it behind him onto the couch.

He truly was incredible. Izzy was pretty sure
she’d never seen anything like him and doubted she would again. His
fingers dropped to the front of his jeans. With a flick of his
wrist, the button opened and his jeans split, revealing bare
skin.

Izzy swallowed hard. He wasn’t wearing
underwear. Her imagination went wild as Tristan slid his zipper
down. The hiss filled the silence, then his hard shaft spilled out
of his pants.

How he’d kept it inside them was beyond her.
It shouldn’t have been anatomically possible to squeeze something
so big into material so tight.

Tristan chuckled and slid his jeans down
before kicking them aside. Naked, he stared at Izzy until she grew
self-conscious. She wasn’t ashamed of her body, but she was well
aware she wasn’t built like a god.

Izzy covered herself with her hands.

“No!” Tristan snapped. “I want to look at
you. I’ve been imagining what you would look like with your dress
hiked up around your waist all day.”

The admission surprised her. “Really? But you
don’t like humans.”

“And you don’t like monsters,” he replied,
his gaze soaking her in.

“You’re not a monster,” Izzy murmured
softly.

Tristan’s dark gray eyes widened then quickly
shuttered to hide his emotions. “You have no idea how beautiful you
are, do you?” he asked. “Men were falling over themselves trying to
catch your attention. It was very hard not to respond.”

“As I recall, you growled at them,” she
said.

“For me, that counts as no response,” he
said.

Izzy laughed and sat up to untie the straps
on her shoulders.

“Let me,” he rasped. Tristan’s hands trembled
as he untied first one side of her sundress, then the other.

The material dropped, but the dress stayed in
place—thanks to her ample chest. “There’s a zipper in back,” she
said.

“I know.” Tristan leaned over her and kissed
her. Another hiss filled the air as her zipper came down.

Izzy had not felt his hand move. She’d been
too busy trying to uncurl her toes. She hadn’t worn a bra, since
the dress had built in support. Now that the material pooled around
her waist, Izzy wished that she had.

Tristan pulled back from the kiss to look at
her. He shuddered. “Beautiful,” he said, his attention locked on
her engorged nipples. “Stay just like that.” Before she could
figure out what he was going to do next, Tristan dropped to his
knees in front of her.

The position put him between her legs, but he
couldn’t get any closer without climbing onto the bed. He clasped
her hands and tugged her forward, then he latched onto her
nipple.

Fire shot through Izzy, spreading at an
alarming rate. The flames leapt higher with each pull of his mouth.
Tristan sucked her deep, laving her until Izzy thought she’d
scream. She squirmed to get closer, but he wouldn’t let her.