The Mating Game: Big Bad Wolf (8 page)

“You sure it’s okay for me to come?” Ryker asked Daisy as they pulled into the parking lot of the Thirsty Iguana restaurant.

“Yes, I want them to see that you’re not some crazy kidnapper holding me hostage,” Daisy said. “Jeez, are those news vans? Are they here for you?” She looked at the vans with dismay.

“’Fraid so,” Ryker said with a sigh. “Welcome to my world.”

“How did they know we’d be here?” Daisy asked, scowling as they climbed out of Ryker’s sports car.

“I told Walt that I was taking you out here tonight,” Ryker said with annoyance. “He must have tipped them off. I’m sorry – I hope it doesn’t ruin your evening.”

“Nah, it’s okay, as long as they don’t actually come into the restaurant and take pictures of me shoveling food into my mouth. I know that the news media is part of the package with you. I mean, we are trying to show your investors what a good boy you are these days, right?” Daisy flashed him a teasing grin.

He laughed at that. “Apparently this is getting a lot of positive social media attention. People like the fact that you’re a teacher at an inner city school.”

“Yes, I’m an absolute saint,” Daisy said drolly as they strolled towards the front door of the restaurant.

Reporters shouted questions at them as they walked.

“Hey, Ryker, when you going to make an honest wolf out of her?”

“Ryker, why don’t you put a ring on it?”

And surprisingly, “Daisy, where’d you get that jacket?” several of them yelled at her.

She called back over her shoulder, “It’s a JKat original!”

Then Ryker spun towards the reporters and pulled his trademark move – partially shifted, his head gone full wolf, and snarling at them. That was what he always did when the press started to annoy him. He’d told her that it not only helped him blow off steam, but the press and the public actually ate it up.

Cadence and Larissa, who were standing in the doorway waiting for her, looked less impressed, however. Larissa’s eyes were wide with alarm, and Cadence was openly staring at Ryker as if he might go rabid at any moment.

“Guys, relax!” Daisy said. “It’s all for show!”

As soon as they got inside, Larissa grabbed her by the arm and dragged her aside while Ryker went to order them all drinks.

“All for show? He’s crazy!” Larissa hissed in her ear. “Does he beat you?”

“Are you insane?” Daisy said indignantly. “That is actually offensive. If he raised a paw to me in violence, I’d be out of there so fast I’d leave scorch marks.”

Larissa had never seen Daisy happy with a guy before, and she was acting all kinds of weird about it. Daisy was starting to suspect that since Larissa could never seem to get a guy to stick around, she resented it when anybody else was happy. Or at least specifically when Daisy was happy. Larissa pretty much ignored Cadence and her dating life – maybe because Cadence had flat-out declared that she had no intention of settling down, ever.

They headed for a high-top table and settled in as Ryker returned with a tray of margaritas, chips and salsa.

Cadence deliberately sat across from Larissa. She had a frown pinching her brows together, and she kept shooting Larissa dirty looks. The conversation was awkward and strained. Finally, Daisy grabbed Cadence. Larissa stood up, but Daisy shook her head. “I need to talk to her for a minute,” she said, and left Larissa at the table, pouting.

“Cadence, what’s up?” she asked. “Why are you mad at Larissa?”

“Other than the fact that she’s Larissa?”

“Yes. She’s been Larissa for the entire five months that we’ve lived together. Why are you particularly mad at her now?”

Cadence glanced around. “Well…okay, I didn’t know if I should tell you this or not. The other day I got out of work early. I went to this park on the north side of town to do some sketching, and I saw Larissa there…with Ronald. Your Ronald.”

Ronald was the jerk who’d dated her for several weeks and then told her he wanted to have sex with her because he’d never been with a heavy woman before.

“Don’t call him
my
Ronald,” Daisy said with a shudder. “Wow. Ronald. Are you sure?”

“Totally sure,” Cadence said. “They were standing by a tree, talking to each other. It was getting pretty intense.”

Daisy winced. “Well…I mean, it’s not like I ever wanted to see him again. I guess I can’t be annoyed about the two of them getting together. Nauseated, yes. Annoyed, no.”

“But he was a total douchenozzle to you,” Cadence said indignantly. “She’s being a really suck friend if she’s associating with him.”

“Yeah, I mean…it’s kind of a jerk move on her part. But you guys are basically stuck living together until the lease is up, so I’d hate to see you both be miserable,” Daisy said.

“Don’t worry about me,” Cadence said with a shrug. “I just ignore her. So, what about you and Ryker? Have you decided if you want to make the mating permanent?”

“Permanent?” Daisy said, startled. “I…honestly, I don’t know. Maybe that’s not what he’d want.”

“Stop selling yourself short,” Cadence said. “He’d be lucky to have you.”

“That’s what my aunt says,” Daisy mused.

“She has the wisdoms. Listen to her,” Cadence advised.

She glanced over at the table – to see that Larissa had left and was heading for the door, and Ryker was fending off autograph seekers..

“Well, now the night’s looking up,” Cadence said cheerfully.

* * * * *

“So your idea of a good time is…painting the kitchen walls?” Ryker said doubtfully.

There was a patch of peeling paint on the wall by the refrigerator that had been driving Daisy crazy.

The truth was, however, the real reason that she wanted to paint was to distract herself. She was petrified of making a fool of herself with Ryker. She was mildly tipsy from the margaritas, and the more she got to know Ryker, the more attracted to him she was, but he still had her completely confused.

He hadn’t said anything about wanting her to stay there for good. And she couldn’t forget when they’d been interrupted kissing – and he’d declined to kiss her again afterwards.

But then he’d taken her down to the family swimming hole and pulled her to him and kissed her.

What did he want? What would happen if she gave in to her impulses and threw her arms around him and pulled his hard, strong body up against hers?

She was too afraid to find out. So she was painting.

“I am passionate about painting,” she said firmly.

“Painting, huh? That’s what gets you excited?” There was an amused curl to his lips. “In that case, I’m going to go get all my painting supplies. Tarps, painter’s tape, foam rollers. I’d love to see what you look like when you’re passionate.” His eyes were boring into her as he said that, and there was a roguish gleam in his eye.

She stifled a moan. So much for painting as a distraction.

Ryker left the kitchen to go fetch the supplies, and Daisy pried the lid off a container of light-blue paint. The doorbell rang, and Daisy headed to get it, still holding the paint can.

His mother was there, waving a newspaper in the air and looking fuming mad. Ryker’s aunt Marge was with her.

“Um, hello?” What could possibly be upsetting Harriet to this level now?

Harriet shoved the newspaper into her hand.

“How could you?” she yelled at Daisy.

“You shameless tramp!” Marge added, shaking her finger in Daisy’s face. “We made you pie!
Pie!
” She looked at Harriet in dismay. “You gave her your secret recipe,” she moaned.

Daisy looked at the page that the newspaper was open to.

She felt sick to her stomach when she saw what was there. There was an announcement of her engagement to Frasier, printed in her hometown newspaper.

“How could you humiliate my son like that?” Harriet shouted, her face bright red with anger.

Before Daisy could answer her, Harriet grabbed the bucket of paint from Daisy and dumped it on her head, sending blue paint cascading down her hair and face.

Ryker came barreling out the door as Daisy spluttered in astonishment, and blinked paint from her eyes.

“What the hell are you doing?” he shouted. “You’ve gone around the bend! I will have you committed, I swear on a stack of Bibles I will!”

“This hussy just announced her engagement to another man.” Harriet put her hands on her hips and sniffed in disgust. “I was completely justified. She’s been two-timing you all along.”

“She’s a two-timer,” Marge agreed, nodding. “And she has our pie recipe.” She glared at Daisy. “Give it back!”

“Hey!” Daisy yelled. “I am not engaged to anybody! Frasier was my ex-fiancé, and I have told him a million times that I’m never taking him back. Why would I move in with Ryker if I was engaged? I am one hundred percent sure that my mother ran that announcement.”

Harriet’s eyes went round and she quickly took a step back. “Oops?” she said.

Marge quickly dodged behind Harriet. “I told you this was a bad idea,” she said to her sister.

“Traitor,” Harriet growled at her.

“You’re lucky you are my immediate family or I swear to God I’d…” Ryker’s face turned red with anger. “Off my property. Now!” he roared at them.

They turned and scurried off.

Ryker followed as she stomped a trail of light-blue painty footprints towards the bathroom, muttering under her breath – something about “crazy” and “overprotective” and “boundaries”. Occasionally the tracks were punctuated by a discarded piece of clothing – a dripping shirt, spattered jeans and - his breath caught and his dick hardened – a pristine pair of pale pink cotton panties.

He hesitated before breaking his stride to scoop them up and hold them against his face. He inhaled deeply. Her unique, intimate scent pervaded his senses, setting his heart tripping in his chest as he quickened his steps.

He was just in time to catch a quick flash of her smooth, rounded bottom as she disappeared into the bathroom, still using some very unladylike phrases. Well, that was fine. If he got his way and she didn’t throw him out of the bathroom on his butt, he had absolutely no intention of acting like a gentleman.

The glass walls of the shower stall were already steamed up, and Daisy was a voluptuous blue-streaked blur, but Ryker watched greedily as she raised her arms to run her hands through her red hair. Her full breasts lifted, mouth-wateringly plump, and he almost groaned out loud, his cock an aching length in his jeans.

He hastily toed off his shoes, and as Daisy turned under the spray, he wrenched open the cubicle door and, fully clothed and not caring, he stepped under the water and kissed her, hard.

Her mouth parted on a gasp of outrage, and Ryker took advantage of the moment to slip his tongue inside, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her hard and thoroughly.

He was shaking with need. Within moments his shirt was soaking wet and sticking to his skin, and his jeans were waterlogged. As Daisy kissed him back, she tasted of French vanilla coffee and clean, warm shower water. She wrapped her arms around his neck, going up on tiptoe to press her wet, naked body against his. Their tongues tangled as they clutched each other desperately, before breaking apart and breathing hard.

Ryker’s hands were on the dip of her waist, and warm, faintly blue-tinted water ran over his knuckles. His gaze went lower, to the neat triangle of gingery curls between her thighs, and he shuddered with desire, then looked up at her through lashes beaded with water.

* * * * *

The look Ryker gave her from underneath long, sooty eyelashes set a pulse throbbing low in her body and made the petals of her pussy moisten with something slicker than the warm water that ran over them both. As she trailed her hand down Ryker’s chest, she left faint pale-blue trails on the sodden, clinging white cotton of his T-shirt. The fabric clung to his pecs, outlining the defined muscles, and through the semi-transparent fabric she could see the shadow of the narrow trail of dark hair that led tantalizingly down under the waistband of his jeans. Her mouth went dry as she took in the hard ridge of his erection trapped beneath the drenched denim.

Then without words, they came together again, kissing, touching, clutching at each other with eager hands. Desperate to run her fingers over his smooth, hot skin, Daisy tugged at the hem of his T-shirt, and he paused in his kisses to pull it over his head and toss it onto the floor outside the shower stall. His jeans and underwear followed. He almost overbalanced as he stood on one foot and struggled to peel down the wet denim, and Daisy gave a little yelp and reached out for him. She ended up encircled by his arms, leaning against his broad, muscular chest as he steadied himself with his back against the cold tiled wall. The length of his cock was hot and hard against her soft, rounded belly, and she couldn’t help wriggling against him. The friction made him hiss in a sharp breath between his teeth, and before she knew what was happening, he ran his hands down the backs of her thighs, hooked his palms behind her knees, and effortlessly lifted her. She wrapped her legs around his waist, locking her ankles at the small of his back as he turned and pressed her back against the tiles. The surface was cold against her skin, in contrast to the heat of his chest against her breasts, and she shivered a little in his arms even as her nipples hardened and peaked against him. With her arms around his strong neck, she clutched generous handfuls of his thick hair, gasping as she felt the head of his cock at her slick entrance.