Claiming His Fire (15 page)

“Think Beast minds that he’s not going?” Jameson asked.

I shrugged, shaking off my depressing thoughts. “Nah, I’d bet he gets it. Besides, I don’t think he wants to leave little Aliyana.”

The Feral Breed crew we’d selected would be headed to North Dakota in the morning to infiltrate the pack where we believed Kalie was being held. We’d gotten every bit of information we could about the group of shifters from Beast and Calla, but we couldn’t let him in on the extraction. He was too closely connected, what with the way the pack Beta—the father of the daughter Beast saw as his own—had screwed over Beast’s mate. Beast would be sitting this one out. Luckily, Gates knew exactly where the pack had set up camp. He’d lead us in once we got to the city where we’d met Calla, and we had a solid team set up to assist. We’d strategized, planned, and researched terrain maps a thousand times over the last two days. It was time to attack.

We were bringing home Kalie the Omega, no matter what… At least one set of mates would get a shot at their happily ever after.

Jameson led the way down the back hall. “Between what Beast says and the fact that Gideon can’t feel their connection, my guess is they’ve kept this Omega drugged up hard.”

“Agreed,” I said. “There’s no way she’s fully conscious, even during the times when Gideon
can
feel her.”

“And with the news out of Louisiana that the kidnappers were looking to breed the Omegas…” He trailed off, glaring at the implication he refused to voice. A ball of anger exploded in my chest, making me growl low. Lord have mercy, just the thought made me sick. I wanted to rip these fuckers apart with my bare hands.

I nodded once, not needing to say what we both knew we could be walking into. “Gideon will kill them.”

“Or die trying.” Jameson sighed. “I know you’re not mated, but that bond is a tough one to control, if not impossible. If they’ve done anything to her, if he smells her blood or—” he paused, curling up his lip in obvious disgust “—the scent of sex anywhere near her, Gideon’s going to lose it. He could cost us the mission and men’s lives trying to defend her.”

“True.” I swallowed hard, trying not to think of Scarlett and what I would do if someone hurt her. If someone dared to touch her against her will. The tiger inside of me roared in my head, knowing exactly what he’d do if anyone touched her. How he’d pay them back for her pain. “We’ll have to keep him out of the first wave for sure, though it’s going to be hard to control him. All three of those mountain men are itching for a fight already.”

“We’re going to have to make them obey, even if that means Alpha-ordering their asses.” He bumped my fist as we reached the main room of the denhouse. “Get some rest. We get to brawl with some big-bads tomorrow night and maybe save a damsel in distress. Don’t forget your stethoscope, Doc.”

“Yeah, right.” I gave him a head nod before he turned and headed for the door, probably planning to go back to his hotel and prep for tomorrow. I wanted to follow him, not to his hotel, just out the door. Down the street. Back to the bar. I wanted to find Scarlett, but knowing my luck, she’d be out with Mr. Prepster. And I…well, I’d probably hurt even more if I were to see that. Time for me to go back to my apartment and hunker down for the night, no matter how much my inner animals wanted to sniff out their mate. My human side couldn’t handle the let down again.

I climbed the back stairs at a slow pace, my insides tied up in knots. Between the mission and the shit with Scarlett, my thoughts were stuck on mates, women, and the bond between the shifter and their fated match. What the hell would I do if Scarlett disappeared, especially when she seemed one step away from refusing our bond? Without a claiming bite, I wouldn’t be able to track her down if she needed me. I wouldn’t be able to sense her. Not that the bond was helping Gideon much. The fuckers who’d taken his mate and killed half his pack knew how to block the connection between the two, and that was some scary shit.

Mated Omegas had been deemed safe when we first started investigating the kidnappings. Not because of the protection of their packs, but because they’d easily be found through that bond. No one who wanted to stay hidden would risk such a thing.

But a kidnapper who could block that connection? When word got out about this, there’d be outcries and mass exoduses as mated pairs left their packs to hide in the deepest wilderness they could find. Not a good situation for the pair, the pack they left behind, or those of us tasked with keeping them safe while not intruding on their lives. The hysteria would make it easier for Omegas to vanish, and we’d be left trying to piece together how and where and why.

The apartment was dark when I entered, but I didn’t turn on a light. Didn’t need to. My heightened animal senses meant my eyes quickly adapted to the low light. Besides, I didn’t want to see the evidence of this morning’s disaster. The messy bed, the sheets tangled, the hole behind the door where I’d punched through the drywall. It was bad enough the place still smelled of her, of smoke and flowers. It almost hurt to breathe.

Knowing I needed to be up early, I slunk off to the bathroom. I would wash the day away with a hot shower, wash the scent of Scarlett from my skin. Not that it would matter—that scent was embedded in my memories, her essence burned into my soul. I could scrub for days and I’d never be rid of her.

Once under the water, the thoughts of Scarlett didn’t disappear. In fact, the memories of last night played in my mind, growing louder and brighter on each repeat. Of holding her tightly against my body as she rested. Of the way she would sigh and wiggle closer in her sleep. I’d barely closed my eyes for most of the night, but it hadn’t mattered. I’d had my mate in my arms—sleep was an interruption.

Thinking of her warm weight against me, of the feel of her skin against mine, I reached down and grabbed my aching cock. I’d been almost continually hard since I met her, since I felt that bond. And no matter how much I jerked off, I couldn’t find the relief I needed. Logically, I knew it was the mating frenzy, the urge to claim her with my body and my bite, but that didn’t make dealing with the constant arousal any easier. My dick was chafed and my balls were bluer than a Smurf’s, but nothing helped. My hand was no substitute for what I really craved.

Sighing, growling, I ran my fist from base to tip. Slow…easy. But Scarlett wouldn’t be slow or easy with me. She had spunk, fire. She’d own my cock with a look if I gave her a chance. And I would. I’d give her every chance if she’d let me.

I sped up my movements, pulling harder, tugging and rubbing and teasing the head on every other pass. My breath increased with the speed of my hand, my heart pounding in my chest. Fuck, the water running over me reminded me of how hot her body could be, how her skin burned against mine. I turned up the temperature, nearly scalding myself, but the heat felt good flowing down my chest and abs, over my cock, down my thighs. The burn felt right.

Grunting, I spread my legs wider, the telltale tingle of an orgasm starting low in my belly. Just a little more, a few more strokes, a spray of hot water running down my legs. One hand on the wall, one working my cock, I growled and grunted and sighed my way to completion, nearly roaring as I came in heavy spurts that disappeared instantly down the drain.

When I was as sated as I could get on my own, I leaned my forehead against the tile, trying to catch my breath and clear my head. Damn, that girl was going to break me one way or the other. Break my heart and my cock. Though really, if she outright refused me, it might be a broken soul. Which was a really fucking depressing thought and not what I needed to focus on considering all that needed to get done.

Sighing, I stepped out of the shower, fully intending to dry off and crawl into bed. The bed that probably still smelled like Scarlett. Just a little extra torture for the night. I was still naked when someone knocked at my door, their scent hidden under the steam and the smell of my soap. Figuring it had to be Jameson coming to go over more details, I dropped my towel.
Motherfucker.
We’d been at it all day. Couldn’t we take a few hours off?

Growling in frustration, I yanked on my sweat pants and hurried down the hall.

“I swear to Christ, Jameson, I’m not in the mood—”

All my words, my anger, and frustration died the second I opened the door. My voice changed from a deep, growly, irritated tone to a breathy sigh as I said the only word I could think of.

“Scarlett.”

She looked so nervous standing at my door—shy, almost. Not at all the sassy woman I was used to seeing. This one had dropped her walls completely, leaving her vulnerable and open. She made me want to hold her, protect her, ease her anxiety. But I stood stock-still, staring, waiting for whatever she was here to accomplish. Preparing for the worst.

“I probably should have called.” Her smile was small and forced, unable to reach her pretty green eyes as they tracked over my bare chest and up to my wet hair. “Oh God, you’re busy. I’m sorry. I can go.”

“No.” I reached for her, unable to resist, shivering as our skin met. Fuck, this girl would destroy me, and I’d enjoy every second as I went down in flames.

She didn’t pull away when I circled her wrist with my fingers, didn’t retreat, so I carefully pulled her inside my apartment and closed the door behind her.

“I’m glad you’re here.”

She glanced past me into the living room, still cautious and obviously uncomfortable. “I didn’t want to interrupt.”

“You’re never an interruption.” I grinned as she gave me a sarcastic smirk, looking pointedly at the water running over my shoulders from my soaked hair. “Okay, fine. You’re never an
unwanted
interruption.”

She looked toward the living room again, then nodded. “If you’re sure.”

“I’m sure.”

Silence fell over us, the energy turning awkward. I had no idea what to say or why she was in my apartment. Not that I wanted her to leave. But still, what was this? Why did she come here? And why was I suddenly so nervous?

“I’m sorry about this morning,” Scarlett finally whispered, pulling out the big guns with a sad expression on her face and a tiny pout on her lips. “I didn’t have a date tonight, I only said I had plans because I needed time to think.” She shuffled her feet, biting that pouty lip, staring at the floor, making me nearly shake with my need to comfort her. “I can’t always think clearly when I’m around you.”

She looked up at me, eyes so big and bright. Lips so pink. I could barely resist her. And yet…

“So then why were you at the bar with that guy?”

“You mean Dull Doug?”

I had to bite back my smirk…
dull indeed.
“Is that the preppy fucker I saw you talking to? It’s not the first time I’ve seen you with him.”

“We’ve hung out a few times, but tonight wasn’t about him.” Looking up, she speared me with her gaze, her obvious honesty. “He walked up and started talking to me. That was not planned at all. I was there alone, looking for you, hoping you’d come so I could talk to
you.
I didn’t have your phone number so I couldn’t call, and I was too afraid of having to explain our whole” —she scrunched her nose and waved her hands around— “situation to ask Phoenix for it. But then…”

“What?” I asked when she didn’t continue.

“You left,” she whispered. “I saw you leave with…Kaija.”

So many pieces fell together when she whispered Kaija’s name—the nervousness, the fear, the looking over my shoulder when she arrived.

“You didn’t know it was Kaija.” I inched closer when she nodded, stalking her, making her my prey. “Were you jealous?”

Her eyes flashed, a bit of annoyance there. “Were you jealous when you saw me with Doug?”

“Yes.”

She opened her mouth to speak but stopped, probably having no retort for my honest and straightforward answer. Of course I was jealous. I saw no shame in admitting it. Though I did like the fact that she was jealous as well. It gave me hope, a little boost of confidence that she might give me some kind of chance.

I inched closer, desperate to bask in her heat, craving her scent. “And if I hadn’t come in the bar at all?”

She kept her eyes on mine, red and orange sparks slowly dancing with the green. Something magical and stunning, unique to her. “I would’ve come here to find you.”

I stepped closer, bodies brushing, forcing her to retreat. A soft growl escaped as my wolf pushed against my mind. Ready for his mate, ready to claim.

“You were hunting me?”

She licked her lips when her back hit the wall, trapped. “Yes.”

My growl deepened, rumbled from deep within me, a sound of want and need and lust. This woman did me in, made me weak and strong at the same time, made me want things I hadn’t expected or planned on. Made me needy for her.

“You’ve got me,” I whispered, leaning over her, running my nose along her cheek. “What are you going to do now?”

Scarlett made a little gasping sound, one I wanted to hear again and again. “Shadow.”

“Yes?” I breathed her in, scented her, tasted her on the air.

She gripped my arms, her hands so hot they burned. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Then don’t.” I dragged my lips along her jaw, to her ear, nuzzling her. My body pressing into hers. Hard against soft, warm against fire. Perfect.

Scarlett whimpered as I bit her earlobe. “Sometimes, my fire, I can’t control it. It’s been hard lately.”

“Me, too. But there’s burn ointment in the closet.” I licked my way down her neck, barely touching her with my tongue, teasing myself with her taste. And oh, what a taste it was. Spicy, sweet… Mine.

She clung to me, almost kneading my arms, her breaths fast and the scent of her arousal building. “I’m serious.”

“So am I.”

I lunged, giving in to my desire, pressing my lips to hers as I grabbed her ass and lifted. She wrapped her legs around my waist, using the leverage between me and the wall to edge herself higher, pull me closer. There was no delay in the kiss, no warm-up or tentativeness. As soon as our lips touched, our mouths were open, our tongues dancing together in a routine that could have been choreographed over lifetimes. But it was no fair give-and-take. She owned my mouth, controlling me, kissing me with a passion I’d never experienced before. And I loved it.