Captivation: Shifters Forever Worlds (Shifters Forever After Book 4) (7 page)

Bain nodded. “He’s not.” He pointed to the Italian. “And he needs help, if it’s not too late.” He indicated Giorgio.

“Get him to the nearest shifter clinic.” Mikhail pointed to Giorgio. “Him, too.” He took in Braden’s appearance. “He doesn’t look so good.” Then he glanced down at the Italian. “Get rid of this bastard.”

“Thank you,” Bain said. He’d never meant those two words as much as he did right now.

“And you,” Mikhail gave him a stern look, “get your ass back to Bear Canyon Valley. It seems there’s a little girl who woke up insisting she see the man she calls Daddy. I’m guessing from Carina’s tone this is you.”

“She’s awake?” Even more relief and joy took hold of Bain.

“Yes. By the way, you have hell to pay with that woman. For some reason, she thought you’re with a group of shifters in Oregon, not on a solo mission in the den of this black bear piece of shit. I suspect what she has in store for you would make what the Italian did to you look like nothing.”

Bain looked at the unnecessary chain, then dropped it. “Will that kid Giorgio be okay? He tried to help me.”

“I’ve got the best shifter doctors on the way to that clinic, though I really thought they’d be headed there for you.”

“Sorry to disappoint.”

Mikhail laughed. “Looks like your blood debt is cleared up. What was that about?”

“Vey killed one of the Italian’s cousins.”

Mikhail scoffed. “No doubt deservedly so, though your brother was…”

“Yeah, I know.” And Bain did know. He knew exactly what his brother was.

“Your father wants to see you when you get back. Seems he’s having a change of heart.”

“What? Not my father. He’s pretty damned hardheaded.”

“Then I know where you get it.” Another hearty laugh from Mikhail. “Seriously, he wants to talk to you.”

“I wonder what changed his mind.”

“I wouldn’t know,” Mikhail said, but there was a twinkle in the depths of his eyes that made Bain wonder if Mikhail hadn’t orchestrated that, as well.

“I bet you don’t.”

“Have I ever told you how persuasive an Arctic fox can be?”

Bain frowned, not getting the change of subject. Then it hit him, Miriam was an Arctic fox shifter.

So Miriam did this. Whatever this is.

“I’ll see my father when I get back from Bear Canyon Valley. Thank you for coming out.”

“Wish we’d been here earlier.”

“No. I’m glad you weren’t. His blood didn’t need to be on another’s hands.”

“How’d you like a new job? Security for the Romanoff organization?”

“I’m not wild about fighting. The only security I like is creating systems on a computer. That’s what I’ve always done. I’m not interested in changing that.”

“Fair enough. Why don’t you do that for me?”

“How about I make a decision after I see Carina and Bree?”

“My plane will get you there. It’s at a private airfield nearby.”

“I owe you a lot, all that fuel of yours I’ve burned up.”

“This is what we do, Bain.”

Bain tried to bear that in mind, he’d not seen those values with his own family.

“Mikhail—”

“Go, son, there’s nothing like a pissed off panther shifter. And I would hate to see Carina pissed if you delay your departure.

“On it.”

B
ain walked
into Mae’s kitchen and reached out to give her a hug while at the same time he couldn’t help but notice there was no scent of Carina being present. Doc had met Bain at the airport and brought him here. He’d said Carina had gone to Mae’s house to stay for a spell so he could keep an eye on Bree.

Bain inhaled again.

No Carina here.

He frowned.

Mae stared at him, not hugging him, leaving him hanging.

His frown grew deeper.

What the hell is this about?

The temperature in the room became frigid. Mae’s eyes flashed her elemental’s presence.

Why’s she treating me like I’m some kid that’s being grounded?

“Carina wants to see you.” Mae frowned back at him. “You look like hell.”

“Yeah, well—”

“Save it. You shouldn’t have risked it by going alone.”

Open-mouthed, he stared at her. So she—or maybe they?—were pissed at him for going to Jersey? “Where is Carina? Where’s Bree?”

“Carina is waiting for you at Joe’s cabin. Bree is with Marti and Tanner, having a play date with Dominic.”

Joe’s cabin? He’d been to Joe’s cabin the last time he’d visited. Joe had kept his cabin, though he and his mate Sara spent most of their time in a larger home, now that Sara was expecting.

Doc tossed him the keys. “Take mine.”

Bain snatched them midair, his eagerness to see her and his shifter skills making his actions a blur.

* * *

I
n front
of Joe’s cabin, tucked away on the mountainside, not easily found unless you’d been shown the way, Bain pulled to a stop and set the parking brake. There were no other cars in the driveway. Was Doc mistaken?

He almost pulled away when his bear roared. The bear sensed something. Another presence?

He stepped out of the vehicle and closed the door. He approached the cabin slowly, his radar always on guard. Since he’d first started this ordeal, he couldn’t relax. Not fully.

Not even in Bear Canyon Valley, which he knew had to be the safest place he’d ever been.

The door was partially open.

Odd.

He paused, wondering if he should shift—just in case.

And if it’s a human and they see a big ass polar bear in the middle of the mountains?

Okay, shifting maybe wasn’t the best idea he’d come up with. At least, not until he was sure he needed to shift.

Bain took a step forward.

The door flew open and a blur of black launched toward him with the accuracy and deadliness that threatened him.

Bain called for his bear to come forward, but the bear did not.

What the fuck?

Bain barely had the time to process that one phrase and the thought that his bear, who had never abandoned him, was leaving him hanging.

The blur was a sleek panther with luxurious fur and very long canines that were dangerously close.

Bain was lying on the ground, supported by his elbows, while the snarling panther glared at him, her face next to his, her breath hot.

“Carina?”

Oh, he knew it was her, for who else could it be.

He knew the woman he loved, even in her shifter form, though at first she’d caught him off-guard.

No wonder his bear refused to shift and attack.

Her beautiful head was sleek, her eyes dark, a green light flared in their depths.

Her nose twitched as she sniffed, bringing her face closer.

He sat up, forcing her back on her haunches. “You’re not going to kill me. So why don’t we go inside and talk about this.”

His bear roared.

That particular roar was trouble.

Bain knew that roar only too well. His bear was fully aroused and fully in mate-claiming mode.

Down,
he cautioned his bear.
We should talk to her first.

Carina shifted, quickly and adeptly, with bone-crunching and a sinew-stretching noises that would have sounded excruciating to a human. She morphed into the beautiful, curvy brunette he was in love with.

Her lips were flattened into a line, except, not totally because full lips like hers couldn’t.

“Fine, let’s talk.” Her dark eyes flashed anger.

Kneeling before, perched on one knee she rose to her feet, turned around, and walked into the cabin.

Bain followed her inside, closing the door behind him.

“You had my daughter worried.” She crossed her arms over her breasts, her chest heaving, clearly still angry.

“Not you?” He cocked his head. “You weren’t concerned for me?”

The arms uncrossed and became fists.

“Carina.” He took her by the shoulders. “I had to make sure…” He couldn’t tell her. He didn’t want to bring that ugliness between them. “How is Bree?”

Carina’s eyes lit up, her expression softening. “She’s fine. Really fine. I think her panther is helping her cope. She’s accepting me as her mother. Her panther must have some memory… something. I don’t know enough about this. Doc said he’s not surprised.”

“I’m glad.” Damn, but Bain wanted to lick those lips, needed to kiss those full lips, and plunge his tongue into her mouth and make her his.

“She thinks you’re her daddy. Keeps calling you that. She doesn’t know that…” She licked her bottom lip then chewed on it nervously. “She doesn’t know that we’re not …” Another pause. “Together.”

Heaven help him, he wanted to turn her around, and take her from behind, consequences be damned. He wanted to mark her with his couple bond while they climaxed together. His vision was almost blurry with desire.

The hell with it.

C
arina felt
like she couldn’t breathe. No, that wasn’t it. She was in this tunnel with a whirlwind pulling her around, twisting her, making her emotions a delightful and scary swirl.

Bain’s lips came crashing down onto Carina’s. He kissed her intensely, his mouth demolishing hers, overwhelming her, taking, giving, needing, yielding, demanding. His tongue charged into the depths of her mouth, imprisoning her, and every second of the kiss was kerosene added to the passion raging within her.

His tongue untangled from hers, and his lips traveled, kissing her jaw, chin, neck, slow, languid licks following the kisses as he made his way lower and lower to the point where her neck and shoulder were connected.

Bain’s tongue and mouth were driving her crazy. Days of pent-up desire for him, months of no contact, no intimacy, had turned Carina into a shattered bundle of sexual energy.

“I scent what you’re going through,” Bain said, his eyes dropping where she knew her nipples were giving away her need for him.

Then his eyes dropped even lower, where she knew he could savor the scent of her desire for him, the moisture that had pooled within.

Flames rose to her cheeks, neck, and chest.

He took her hand in his. His thumb was on her telltale pulse, reading her craving for him. Every pore on her body pled for his touch. She wanted to scream at him to take her, to claim her, and make her his, the way she knew he could, from the way he kissed.

His hands glided downward, tracing the curve of her body. If she thought she’d wanted him before, that had nothing on what his touch was doing to her now.

Her core flooded with desire as his extra-large palms and fingers cupped her ass, pulling her close onto a length of hardness that pressed against her, seeking her center, like a guided missile.

Oh my.

Carina needed to keep it together, but how the heck could she with him here, next to her, like this. The touch of Bain’s fingers burned into her ass, even through the fabric of her clothing. One hand rose up her back, scoring her flesh with desire as it began to trail the neckline of her top.

If she breathed, just once, she was sure she’d leap on the man. She wanted him as much as she wanted him to take her.

“Bain.” Was that croaky sound her voice? She sounded like a pubescent toad.

“Mhmmmmm?” His murmur was hot, searing her flesh with the warmth of his heated breath.

“I need you.” Anger flashed renewed in her at what she could have lost. “Damn you for doing that.” She gasped, desire warring with fury. “You could have been hurt.”

“But I wasn’t.” The huskiness of his tone made everything go away. It was like a salve to blistered flesh, chasing anger away and replacing it once more with desire.

And again, his mouth took hers, reassuring her, leaving her secure with the knowledge that he was the man. The man who would protect her. The man who would champion her.

She moaned. “Don’t stop. Never. Ever.” Another moan. “I want you.”

* * *

B
ain didn’t need
a second invitation. He wrapped an arm around her waist, the other hand took her wrist and tugged her until they were against the wall, his body pressed against her curves, tempting him and his bear.

He hadn’t noticed that one of his bear’s claws had extended until he pulled on her top and the fabric ripped, revealing a bra that barely held in her creamy, dusky-tipped breasts. Her chest heaved with every breath, making those lovely mounds rise and fall, driving him crazy. He throbbed with a yearning that overrode his brain as all blood traveled south.

Damn. Bain shoved the bra aside in his impatience. He dropped his head to suck one of her pebbled nipples. He latched on to it, sucking it in deeply. His fingers reached for the other one, tweaking and tugging it, then rolling it between his fingertips while it grew harder and harder.

He took in the scent of what their teasing was doing to her. The aroma of her was making his cock pulse with the fiercest of needs to touch and taste the source of that incredible scent.