Shiftr: Swipe Left for Love (Andrea) BBW Lion Shifter Romance (Hope Valley BBW Dating App Romance Book 4) (7 page)

“How can you know that?” Magnus released a deep roar of laughter.

“If you knew what my lion was doing inside me right now, you wouldn’t ask.”

“What is it doing?” she asked, intrigued.

“It’s pushing me to mate with you, to claim you as my own.” She let out a small gasp. “I know that sounds direct. But that’s what we shifters are like. It’s urging me to make the connection, that unbreakable bond. It’s more that sex; it’s a fusing of minds and bodies, forever.”

“That sounds pretty cool,” she said. She registered that her voice sounded calm and detached, although she felt anything but. There was a whirlwind tearing around inside her, along with a niggling little ache between her thighs. She was strongly attracted to Magnus. Who wouldn’t be? He was every woman’s dream. He had the most gorgeous eyes and the most kissable lips she’d ever seen. And hearing that he wanted her too blew her mind. She didn’t dare to believe it. She was almost waiting for someone to pop up from under the table and yell
gotcha!

“As a compromise, can I buy you a drink, and we can sit and talk and discover what we have in common?” he said.

“Ok.” He broke into a grin.

“What would you like?”

“Surprise me,” she said.

He went to the bar and came back with two glasses of Champagne.

“You did well,” she said coolly, taking the glass from him.

“To you and I getting to know each other: take two,” he said, and they clinked glasses.

“I want to know all about you,” he said, eyes wide with unaffected interest. “Like, why did you decide to move back to Hope Valley, for starters?” Andrea bit her lip. As much as she didn’t want to tell him her whole sorry tale, she knew that she owed him something.

“I worked as a journalist for the New York Metro for years, but I lost my way a bit. I got overconfident in my abilities, which made me lazy and complacent. And I got fired. I deserved it. To be honest, it sent me into a tailspin. I needed to be applying for other jobs, but I kept having panic attacks. My rent was due and I couldn’t pay it, so I did the only thing I could do – move back here.” Magnus’s eyes narrowed.

“Sounds like this could be a temporary move then?” She shook her head firmly.

“Not at all. I’ve learned some very important things about myself in the last couple of weeks, and Hope Valley is where I want to be, permanently. Things aren’t easy at the moment.  Kristin has been kind enough to take me on as a subeditor, which I’m so grateful for. But it doesn’t pay very much. I’m living at my parents’ place, and they’re not making it easy for me. They’re so, so disappointed in me. They wanted me to be their golden girl, and for a long time, they thought I was, but it was all a façade. I wasn’t happy in New York. I think I’ve always been a small-town girl, however much I’ve tried to deny it.”

“You were a good journalist, weren’t you?” he asked. She nodded uncertainly.

“I won Investigative Reporter of the Year for three years running.”

“That’s incredible,” he said, respect showing in his eyes.

“It was great, at the time. But you do burn out. It’s emotionally exhausting. All the difficult questions you need to ask. All the nights you spend away from home. I’m so glad I did it, but those days are behind me now.”

“It’s a nice coincidence that we’ve met when we’re at exactly the same point in our lives,” he said.

“Except that I’ve come to this point the hard way, and you’ve made a conscious lifestyle choice.” She paused. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound prickly.”

“There’s no need to apologize,” he said. Her hand was resting on the table, and he took it and engulfed it in his own. “I can see that you’ve had a very hard time lately. But I think that’s about to change.” He held her gaze, and the combination of the touch of his hand, and his unwavering stare made her shudder. Heat was flooding her body. She yearned for him to hold her, to crush her against his huge, masculine body, and make her feel small and protected. And then she wanted him to kiss her. Her gaze flickered to his lips, and she imagined how they’d feel pressed against her own, how soft and velvety his tongue would be.

“I want to kiss you so badly right now,” he said. Her cheeks warmed. It was as if he’d read her thoughts. He was looking at her intensely, waiting for her assent. She tilted her jaw towards him, and, at once, his mouth was on hers. His lips were softer and warmer than she’d imagined and his stubble grazed her face deliciously. He touched her jaw with gentle fingertips, getting to know the shape of her face as he continued to kiss her. The tip of his tongue flickered over her lips, tasting her. It was unspeakably erotic. She wanted more. She wanted to twist her hands in his hair, and pull him closer, to force him to slip his tongue deep into her mouth. But they were in the middle of a neighborhood bar. And she was getting way too turned on. She broke away from the kiss and looked around guiltily. But the place was almost empty, and if the bartender had noticed, he was doing a good job of hiding it.

“I’m sorry,” he said, with a laugh. “I got a little carried away there.”

“I have to go,” she said. He looked wounded.

“Really?”

“Yes. I’m sorry. I’ve got to finish up a couple of things for work.” It wasn’t a lie. She still had a couple of hours of editing left to do before she went to bed that night. But more than that, she was scared of getting carried away with him. A few seconds more, and she would’ve been at the point of begging him to take her to bed. And she wasn’t ready for that. She hadn’t had sex for more than a year, and she suddenly felt as inexperienced as if it was her first time.

“You don’t have time for a quick dinner?”

“No, I really can’t. My plan was to have a sandwich while I was working at my parents’ kitchen table.”

“Ok. Fair enough,” he said, making no attempt to hide the disappointment in his voice. “But would you like my number?”

“Of course,” she said, and they swapped numbers.

“I go this way,” she said, when they were out on the sidewalk.

“And I go this way,” he pointed in the opposite direction. “But I’ll walk you to your car.”

“No. It’s ok. That’s not my thing,” she said firmly. He raised an eyebrow.

“Is this your thing?” he said, and, at the same moment, he pushed her against the wall of the bar and crushed his mouth against hers. She gasped at the shock and the feeling of his body pressing against her. Those incredible pecs, his strong, muscular arms. She ran her hands over his biceps as he kissed her hard, possessing her mouth with his long, agile tongue. She let out a small sound, yielding to him. He was making her dizzy. She wouldn’t be surprised if she was wet already. Her body was screaming for him to take her. His hand slid beneath her coat and ran up and down her back, over her waist and hip. It came to rest an inch below her breast, and she badly wanted him to cup it, to pinch her aching nipple between finger and thumb. Unconsciously, she moved to the left a little, and, as his thigh slipped between her legs, she had to stifle a moan.

“
Stop!”
the sensible voice in her brain told her.

“Ok, I really have to go now,” she said breathlessly, tearing herself away from him. He straightened up, adjusting his clothes.

“Goodnight, Andrea. I hope to see you soon. Whenever, you’re ready, please call me.” Reluctantly, they turned away from each other and walked off in their separate directions.

Magnus couldn’t sleep. It had been two days since he’d seen Andrea and experienced the most intense kiss of his life. It had been so passionate, so soul searching that he knew he never wanted to kiss anyone else again. His relentless hunger for women had shriveled away overnight. When he walked the streets now, he barely noticed a pretty face or a hot body. All he wanted was Andrea. He yearned to take her to bed and get his hands on her full curves. He wanted to kiss that tender, provocative mouth again, while he lay on top of her, pushed himself deep inside her, their bodies melding into one. This was the reason why he couldn’t sleep. He was sick with desire. It was all-consuming. His lion was prowling around relentlessly, not allowing him a moment’s respite. His hand slid down and encircled his thick shaft. He was hard, as he’d been almost constantly for days now. He thought of Andrea’s lips, the sweet curves of her hips; he imagined how full her breasts would be, and how good her nipples would feel in his mouth. Seconds later he came, wasting his seed, yet again. At last, he fell into a heavy slumber, which wasn’t broken until mid-morning.

When Magnus got up, he checked his phone, as he did first thing every day, hoping that Andrea had messaged him. He was expecting to be disappointed again, so, when he saw that there was a new message from her, he did a double take. It said:

“
Are you free this afternoon? I thought we could go for a walk or something.”

His lion let out a roar and he whooped. Of course he was free! His diary was wide open for Andrea. In fact, he had a couple of phone meetings, but he’d cancel them. He hovered over his third meeting of the day. This one was pleasure, rather than business, and maybe he could incorporate it in the date somehow. His heartbeat sped up with excitement. Yes; he liked this idea a lot. He messaged Andrea back:

“Hi Andrea, I’m absolutely free, and I’d love to go for a walk with you. I do have one errand to run though, in the national park, as luck would have it, so, if you wouldn’t mind, we could incorporate it in the walk?”

She messaged back within half an hour saying that was fine, and they arranged to meet at 3pm.

Somehow, in the last couple of days, spring had begun. The park had lost its wintry starkness, and some of the bare branches were showing tiny shoots of green. The sky was a clear, pale blue, and the air was thick with the smell of animals that were crawling out of hibernation. His lion pawed at his insides, frustrated that he was in the woods and he wasn’t shifting. He hushed it, told it to behave. When it continued to pace and snarl, he warned it that if it messed things up and got him too horny and heated in front of Andrea, he’d never let it out again. He knew it wasn’t true, of course, but the warning was enough to make it throw itself down in a sulk. From time to time, it picked up the scent of potential prey, then gave derisory snorts. The animals that had been asleep all winter were too skinny to be worth bothering about.

Magnus was leaning against his car in one of the forest’s parking lots, waiting for Andrea to arrive. At last, there she was, climbing out of her charmingly beat-up car. She looked stunning. She had knee-length boots on. Her long, camelhair coat was open, and underneath, she was wearing a black sweater dress, which showed off her full breasts and curvy hips to perfection. His lion gave the ghost of a roar, longing to sink its claws into that ripe body. He waved, shushing it up at the same time, and strode over to her.

“Hi!” they called to each other. He was going to kiss her on the cheeks, but, at the last moment, he moved his mouth to the right, and the corners of their lips brushed. The contact ignited a slender flame of desire in his body, and his cock jolted to attention. He tasted cherry lip-gloss. It had given her lips a very appealing pinkish-purple tinge. She didn’t seem to be wearing a lot of make-up. Her eyes were a violet hue. He hadn’t realized before, thinking that they were blue, but now their true color was revealed in the sunlight. They sparkled between long, black lashes, and her eyebrows had a high, elegant arch. Her hair was curlier than he’d seen it before. It bounced mischievously just above her shoulders.
God, she’s sexy
. She didn’t seem annoyed that he’d sneaked a kiss on her lips. In fact, her cheeks were pink with telltale pleasure.

“It’s so great to see you,” he said. She smiled, with a hint of self-consciousness.

“So, where are we going?” she said.

“Well, I’ve got a meeting at a location in the forest, a mile and a half from here. There’s another parking lot that’s closer, actually, but I thought it would be nice to take the walk from here.”

“Good call,” she said. “It’s a lovely day.” He crooked his elbow out, and, to his delight she took it, wrapping her arm around his.

“So do I get any clues about this mysterious location?” she said. He really liked her voice. It was strong and well-spoken, the voice of a woman who asked questions for a living. There was an endearing hint of a New York intonation, cutting through the southern softness.

“Nope!” he replied. “It’s not that big a deal to be honest. So if I drop you any clues, you’re going to be seriously underwhelmed when you see it.”

They walked for around half an hour, chatting all the way. They talked about their favorite parts of New York, the bars, cafes and galleries they’d both been to. They talked about their first impressions of Hope Valley. Andrea said how much she’d loved living there as a child, because of all the open spaces. It was a safe town where kids could play outside in summer until sunset. She talked warmly of chasing the other kids around the neighborhood and playing softball in the local park. But then she’d reached her teens, and her parents had dumped a load of pressure on her head.

“It was like they’d been waiting for me to reach puberty, so I could become their great white hope, and make up for all the things they’d lacked in their lives,” she said. “I think, to a large extent, I lost my childhood right there.”

“That’s really sad,” he said with feeling, thinking that he wanted to do whatever it took to prevent her from having to face any pressure ever again.

“What are your parents like? Are they both shape shifters?”

“Yes they are,” he said with a grin. “They’re pretty adorable actually. They met in high school, and became mates when they were only sixteen. By the time they were 25, they had five cubs, and we spent our childhood tumbling around together in a big old house near the Canadian border. We always traveled a lot, so I got to see the world from an early age.”

“I haven’t traveled much,” she said wistfully. “I’ve worked such long hours that I’ve wound up spending most of my vacations sleeping.” Magnus put an arm around her shoulders and squeezed them.

“Something tells me that’s going to change very soon.” Her expression became so appealingly innocent that he dipped his head and kissed her. It was intended to be a quick peck, but became a lingering embrace. Her lips were cold from the misty air, but warm and inviting on the inside, reminding him how much he wanted to be surrounded by her warmth.

The sound of men yelling to each other reached their ears.

“What’s that?” Andrea said, as they turned a bend in the track and came into a clearing. In front of them was the wooden skeleton of a house. It had two stories, a high, sloping roof and a large veranda. Four big, stocky men were working on it, hammering away.

“What do you think?” Magnus asked.

“You’re having a house built!” she exclaimed.

“Sure am!” he said with a grin.

“It’s going to be finished all in wood, right?”

“Yep, like a giant cabin.” One of the builders turned around at the sound of his voice.

“Hey, Magnus,” he called, coming over. Magnus shook his hand.

“Hey, Connor. This is Andrea.” The tall, well-built man shook her hand, smiling at her kindly. He shouted to the other guys to come over and introduce themselves.

“We’re all part of the same clan. This is Leigh, Ryzard, Niall and Logan. We’re all working on the build, but Logan is our expert carver, so he’ll be doing all the little details.” They all greeted Andrea, holding her hand gently in their large, calloused ones.

“You’re shifters, right? Am I allowed to ask that?” Andrea said, her voice a little above a whisper.

“Yes, ma’am,” Ryzard replied.

“Are you bears?” she ventured. They all laughed.

“Need you ask?” Connor said.

“I guess not.” She laughed.

“Are you guys on schedule?” Magnus said.

“Yes. Should be done next Friday at the latest,” Logan replied.

“Wow. A whole house, ready in two weeks?” Andrea said.

“We bears work hard,” Niall said, with pride.

“That’s very refreshing.”

“Speaking of which, if you’d excuse us, we’d better get back to work now,” Connor said. “The days are still short, and we don’t want to waste the light.” 

“Do you like it?” Magnus asked Andrea when they were alone again.

“I love it.”

“Me too. It’s my dream house. Full of space, and everything’s going to be environmentally friendly. But, part of the reason why I wanted to bring you here was to find out if you had any suggestions for making it even better, as I’d really value your opinion.”

“Me? I’m really not an expert on house design,” she said, but she looked pleased to have been asked.

“You don’t need to be. Just take a look at the structure, and I can show you the plans, and if you think the house could benefit from any additions, please let me know.”

“Ok!” she said and began circling around the house. Magnus watched her, glad she was occupied with something else so he could feast his eyes on her. The walk had warmed her up, and she’d taken her coat off, allowing him to see the outline of her body beneath her dress. There was a little wiggle in her hips as she moved, which was driving him crazy. Images of her on top of him, those hips swaying back and forth flashed through his mind. She had a lovely ass too – round and full, and just asking to be bitten. He could see that two of the guys were sneaking appreciative glances at her, and his lion snarled. No-one else was going to touch her. He was going to love and protect her forever.

“Mine,” he muttered under his breath. “All mine.”

Andrea completed a circle of the house and came back to him.

“A balcony would be good, maybe running all the way around the house. I don’t know if that would be possible though.” He grinned.

“I love it! I’ll find out if it can be done. And here’s the plan.” He handed her the architectural drawings that Logan had done himself.

“Nice big kitchen. That’s important. One, two, three – four bedrooms, right?”

“Yep.”

“Three bathrooms. A den. What’s that room for?” she pointed to an unmarked square.

“I’m not sure yet.”

“Maybe a spa room? Or am I being ridiculous? I just love steam rooms and hot tubs.”

“Whatever you desire,” he said. She stared at him, suddenly realizing what they’d been saying to each other. She dropped her gaze to the ground and bit her lip.

“Andrea.” He touched her chin with his thumb, lifting her head so she was forced to meet his eyes. “I know we haven’t even mated yet, but I know you’re the one for me. I said it in the bar the other day, and the feeling has only grown stronger.” He watched as her pupils dilated, flooding the iris.

“But what if we’re not, you know, compatible?” she said shyly. His lion let out a little roar. She jumped.

“What was that?” she shrieked.

“It was my lion. It was lion language for ‘there’s no way we won’t be compatible’.”

“Really?” Her expression turned mischievous. “So, if I understand right, your lion is saying that it’s got the hots for me. But what if that feeling’s not reciprocated? What if you’re not the lover for me?” His lion let out a louder roar.

“That’s lion for ‘I promise not to let you out of the bedroom until your every desire has been satisfied. Every. Single. Time’.”

“Oh.” She looked at him through her eyelashes. “In that case, I’ll hold you to that. Every. Single. Time.” He grinned at her, delighted that her sassiness was back in full force. “Come here,” she whispered, and, to his total surprise, she grabbed a fistful of his hair and drew him towards her. He yielded, bringing his mouth to hers. She met his lips, drawing him into a fierce kiss that made tingles run from his scalp, all the way down his spine.

“If you’re going to kiss me like that, we’d better get away from here, unless you’re intending for us to have some al fresco sex,” he muttered. She laughed joyfully.

“That
has
always been my fantasy, but isn’t it a little cold? And I think we’d have a bit of an audience as well.” He laughed as well.

“Cold, I think we could work with, as long as we had enough warm clothes. But I agree on the unwanted audience.”

“The shed’s not far away though, is it?” she said calmly.

“About half a mile,” he said, desire thrumming in his veins.

“You know how I feel about that place. But right, now, it sounds like heaven,” she said, in the same calm tone, as if she was discussing the weather. He took her hand.

“Actually, I added a couple of home comforts since you saw it last. If we walk fast, we could be there in eight minutes.”