Bear Necessities (28 page)

“Yeah,
we have trouble with greens, they tend to look gray to us.”

“Bears
have full-color vision no matter what form we’re in.”

She
rolled her eyes. “That was not a fair bet then.”

He
smirked down at her. “Hey, I told you and you didn’t believe me. That makes it
more than fair.” He narrowed his eyes, his smirk turning to something more
feral. “On your knees, baby.”

She
pouted up at him through her lashes before gracefully sinking to her knees. She
knew what he wanted, too. She took his cock in her hot little hand and sucked
the head in. Her tongue swirled around the opening, lapping up the precome that
had begun to seep from the tip. God, she looked so good with his cock in her
mouth, those full, ripe lips wrapped around him, straining to hold him. She
sank down, burying her nose in his curls and he damn near lost it right then
and there. He didn’t think he’d ever get tired of the way she took him down to
the root. He’d never had a lover who sucked him the way she did. She pulled
back, dragging her tongue along his length.

“Oh
shit.” He was going to blow in an embarrassingly short time if she didn’t take
it easy on him. “Stop!”

She
stopped, halfway down his cock, her nostrils flaring.

“On
the bed. I want a taste too.”

She
let him go, only to stand and turn him. He let her, curious to see what she was
going to do. She pushed and tugged at him until he was on his back in the
middle of the bed, her legs straddling his face, her mouth once more descending
on his cock.

Perfect.
He had that luscious ass of
hers right above him, that delicious pussy riding his mouth. This right here
was what he was talking about. He began to eat his mate, licking her in steady
swipes, clit to hole, over and over again.

Her
mouth paused, her groan sending shockwaves through him. He used one hand to
hold her hips steady. The other went to the back of her head. He planted his
feet on the bed and began thrusting, fucking her mouth, his fist clenching in
her hair. Dominating her, just the way his little Wolf liked it. And from the
way her tongue went to work and she groaned around him, he knew he was right.
With her, he could let go, be a little rough, and she’d lap it up and demand
more.

God,
she was everything he’d ever needed.

Tabby
loved it when Alex held her like this, letting her know just how much he
desired her. She wrapped her hand around his cock, just in case he thrust a
little
too
hard, and he growled his approval. She took what he was
giving her with abandon, wriggling her hips, desperate to get his mouth right
where she wanted it.

Oh
yeah. Right there.
He sucked her clit into his mouth and hummed and that was all she needed. She
came, howling around his cock, her tongue working furiously to bring him off.

But he
wasn’t done with her. Not yet. That hand in her hair tightened, bringing a
fresh spurt of pleasure with the stinging pain. He pulled her off him, rolled
her beneath him, and attacked her pussy with his mouth, nibbling, licking,
sucking until she was screaming under him, begging him to fuck her. It didn’t
even occur to her until he moved that he’d kept his cock from her mouth. He
rolled around and impaled her in one long stroke, fucking her like a madman.
She wrapped her legs around his waist and clung to him, her nails raking his
biceps, leaving long scratches on his back. His hazel eyes darkened and he
snarled down at her. He took her hands in his and held them over her head,
ignoring her growl of protest. He bent his head and nipped her breast, licking
all around her nipple until she was ready to bite him in frustration.

When
he marked her there, right above her nipple, she came so hard she almost passed
out.

“Yes,
yes,
Tabby
,” he ground out through clenched teeth. He pulsed inside her,
his eyes screwed shut in ecstasy, a deep, shuddering groan escaping from
between his lips.

Alex
opened his eyes and bent down to her, taking her mouth in a sweet, soft kiss.
His hand was still wrapped around her wrist. “I love you.”

She
flexed her hips, earning a groan in response. “I love you too.” She grinned.
“Now, can I have my arms back?”

“I
don’t know.” He flexed his own hips, making her gasp. He was still hard. “I
don’t think I’m done with them yet.”

She
licked her lips and dragged one foot from his back down to his ankle, stroking
him with it. “Well, if you’re still using them, I suppose I could let you keep
them a while longer.”

His
grip tightened, but not so much that he caused her a moment’s pain. Just enough
to tell her she wasn’t getting out of this bed any time soon. “
Let
me?”

She
kept the grin off her face, doing her best to look sultry. She wasn’t done with
him, either.

“Emma?”
She didn’t know why the Curana had demanded Tabby come to Wallflowers, but the
summons had managed to get her out of the last of the cleanup at Living Art.
Glory had grumbled, but Cyn had waved her out the door with orders to return
with lunch. That had shut Glory up. Alex waited outside, refusing to leave her
alone even long enough to walk to Wallflowers. Whoever had injured his cousin
was still out there, and Alex wasn’t taking any chances with her safety.

Inside
the store were two people chatting with Emma, but she couldn’t quite get a good
look at them. All she saw was a flash of red hair and the tinkling sound of
feminine laughter.

“Tabby?”
Emma Cannon glided up to her, hands extended. “I have someone I’d like you to
meet.”

She
caught a strong, feral scent and damn near passed out.
Oh. Oh dear. I’m
screwed.
Behind Emma stood a Wolf and a Puma. The Wolf had waist-length red
hair, a nasty scar on one cheek, and eyes the color of a frosty day. He wasn’t
the handsomest man she’d ever seen, but there was something about him that
demanded your attention and kept it. The Puma was a blonde woman with bright
green eyes and an easy smile on her face. She was almost too pretty to be real.
She leaned heavily on a cane, her free hand wrapped around the redhead’s
biceps. Whether that was to hold herself steady or just because she felt the
need to touch that massive arm, Tabby didn’t know.

“Rick
and Belle Lowell, I’d like you to meet Tabitha Garwood, my newest Pride
member.”

Rick’s
eyebrows rose at the words
Pride member
.

“Tabby,
these are the Poconos Alphas.”

Yup.
I’m screwed.
She nodded respectfully. “Mr. and Mrs. Lowell.”

“I’ve
just been telling them about what happened out in the woods.”

Rick’s
power slammed into the room. “Tell me
everything
.”

Tabby
shuddered and did. She told him her date of birth, how her mother’s
obstetrician had declared her a girl, how her mother had knitted her first cap.
She told him about her first scraped knee, her first fistfight, her first kiss.
Then she told him how she’d been made Outcast, abandoned by Pack and kin. She
told them how she had lived like a Wolf for years, found her way to Halle and
met Mrs. Anderson. She described Gabe, Julian, Alex, Ryan, Cyn, Glory, and
Brit, the girl who couldn’t handle a drunken Wolf. She told him about Gary’s
stalking and how the Pumas had saved her and claimed her as their own.

She
almost told them about all the sex she and Alex had been having. She decided at
the last minute they probably weren’t interested, since by that point, both
Rick and Belle’s eyes had begun to glaze over.

By the
time she was done, Emma’s mouth was hanging open. “Note to self. Never ask
Tabby to tell me everything.”

“Can I
have a drink of water?” Tabby croaked. Her mouth was parched, but at least that
heavy weight of the Alpha’s power was gone.

Rick
had a bemused look on his face. “Are you done?”

“God I
hope so.” Belle limped toward the sofa, ignoring the way Rick nearly jumped to
her side. “I don’t know if I can handle another round of
This Is Your Life
.”
She settled in with a sigh, rubbing her hip with a wince.

“Who
was your old Alpha?”

She
stared at Rick.
Hell, at least he won’t head to Georgia and try to eat him.
“Dennis Boyd, sir.”

“Out
of?”

“Marietta,
Georgia.”

“Address.”

She
supplied it with a wince. She figured he’d check up on her story and decide for
himself whether or not she could stay.

“Calm
down, Fido. You’re scaring the crap out of her.”

Tabby
blinked and turned toward the Luna. “Ma’am?”

Belle
glared at her. “Don’t ma’am me. Makes me sound like my mother.” Belle’s glare
turned into an evil grin that had Tabby backing up a step. “Tell her, Rick.”

“We’ve
already checked out your story, Tabitha.” She turned back to look at the Wolf
Alpha. His expression had softened significantly, making him much more
approachable. He might even be likeable. “Dennis Boyd is no longer the Marietta
Pack Alpha. His son has taken over for him. He’s been Alpha for about two years
now, and he’s been trying to find you. He wants to make amends for what was
done to you.”

“He
wants you to go home. Even your parents want to see you again. They know now
what the Alpha did was wrong.” Belle patted the cushion next to her. Tabby fell
into the seat, stunned by what she was hearing. “You have options. One, you can
do what Micah wants and return to Marietta. No doubt everyone will want to fawn
all over you and show you the
boo-hoo, oh-how-sorry-we-ares
. Two, you
can stay here in Halle and tell them to go fuck themselves, thank you very
much. Which, frankly, is the option I would personally go for.” Belle gave her
the most vacuous grin she’d ever seen, morphing from powerful Luna to bimbo
Barbie in the span of seconds. The sharp intelligence behind those green eyes
belied the look, leaving Tabby feeling bewildered and not a little off balance.
“Make sure you use an air horn to drive the point home. They hate that.”

“Belle.”

The
Luna grinned up at her mate, the empty-headed look completely gone. The Wolf
Alpha sighed, but the sound was full of fondness for his blonde mate. “Three,
you can come to the Poconos with us. I’ve already spoken to the Pack and
explained your circumstances. They’re willing to waive Protocol in light of
what’s been done to you and what you’ve done since then.”

She
gasped. Go to the Poconos? Leave Halle?

Join a
new Pack? One that might actually
want
her?

“I
mean, what self-respecting Wolf would want to live with all these…cats?”

She
growled until she saw the wicked grin on the Alpha’s face.

“Them’s
fightin’ words, Fido.” The Luna was laughing with him. “Besides, from the sound
of that growl, I think she’s made a decision.”

“No
one said she can’t be both Pack and Pride.” Rick lifted Belle’s hand and kissed
her knuckles. “You’ve proven that.”

Belle
tilted her head. “True. Emma?”

“Hmm?”
The Curana calmly poured tea from the silver tea service, her brown eyes
dancing with glee.

“Care
to share her?”

Share?
Me?
Tabby’s head was spinning. She hadn’t done anything to prove herself to
the Pack. Why would they want her?

“I
haven’t done anything to earn my way into your Pack.”

“You
helped defeat a rogue Wolf. That’s all we need to know.” Belle patted her knee.

Rick
nodded. “You could have done anything during those years you were alone. You
could have caused a lot of damage, done a lot of mischief. Instead, you chose
to make your way as a Wolf, living off the land. Not once did you cause
trouble. And when you did rejoin the human race, you started working toward
your GED, got your driver’s license, a job, and an apartment. That does not
scream threat to me or to my Pack.”

“But…”
Only one thing was really clear in her mind. “I don’t want to leave Halle.”
Halle was
home
.

“No
one says you have to.” Rick’s eyes narrowed in thought. “You could be our
ambassador to Halle.”

Emma
snorted and handed over a cup of tea to Belle. “Ambassador? Rick, we see each
other once a month.”

“So? I
like the thought of having an ambassador.” Rick winked at Tabby.

She
was pretty sure she looked like a landed fish, gaping and gasping like crazy.
“How about I’m just the resident Wolf?”

“Works
for me.” Rick clapped his hands.

And
just like that another mantle settled over her, one of acceptance. It was
similar in feel to the Pride, but was somehow wilder, more earthy. More
integrated.

“I’ll
satisfy Protocol and set up your formal introduction to the Pack later. For
now, welcome to the Pack.”

The
mental voice of her Pack Alpha was strong and sure. Tabby buried her face in
her hands and cried.