Fox, Morgan - Ravished by the Moon [Moonlight Shifters 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (8 page)

He growled low in his throat. His body appeared to expand and grow larger, shielding her from escape, trapping her inside the confines of his arms. “No, you’re not, but that is clearly an unfortunate mistake, Megan.”

He clasped hold of her by her shoulders, crushing her soft breasts against his steel chest just as his mouth captured her lips in a bold, carnal kiss. She had no control over her body. Instinct had her opening for him immediately, allowing his warm, moist tongue to sweep inside. He tasted of morning coffee and peppermints, two flavors she loved and suddenly felt addicted to.

Passionate hunger welled inside her. The moist glide of his tongue over hers sent fire burning in her stomach. She wrapped her arms around his neck while her fingers played against the short hair on his head, enjoying the tickling peach-fuzz sensation. She moaned as his strong hands explored the underside of her breasts and waist. His powerful hands caressed her back and lowered to capture her buttocks, tugging her against his erection.

He ground his cock against her pelvis and had her wanting to crawl up his body, wrap her legs around his hips, and ride him until sunset, but in that moment, he untangled his body from hers and retreated from their heated kiss, leaving her momentarily confused and cold.

Stepping back, he met her heavy gaze. His lips were wet and red as he said, “Now, are you ready to go, or do I need to show you more of why I’m not going to let you out of my sight?”

Now, if he kept talking to her like that or worse yet, acting on those ideal threats, she’d be anything but cold. Scowling, she tossed him the keys, doing her best to hide just how aroused she was. She wasn’t a complete fool. She knew he could sense her body’s reaction to his. “Just drive and stop smirking at me like you just won a hand at strip poker.”

He bowed and extended his hand toward the door. “After you, my dear,” he said to her in the most charming of voices, his blue eyes sparkling as the light of the sun danced around the room.

She didn’t want to think Reyes was charming. She wanted to keep finding ways to dislike him, but when he kissed her as if his life depended on it, well, shit, that changed her plans altogether. With one last glance at his satisfied grin, she elbowed her way out of her apartment.

Groaning, she whispered, “This is going to be a very long day.”

* * * *

Reyes stopped Megan just before they reached the doors to her lab. His eyes drifted over her face and body as if inspecting her for quality assurance. She arched a brow, waiting for him to say something. The moments that passed between them had her stomach rolling with anxiety.

“I think I’ll wait out here for you, but should you need me, you only need to call my name.” His dark lashes magnified the intensity she felt deep in his steel-blue gaze.

“I’ll be fine,” she assured him. “You really don’t have to stay now that I’m in the lab. It’s perfectly secure, and anyone who comes and goes from this facility must have an ID badge so you are free to go and do whatever you must without fear of failing in your task to protect me.”

Reyes crowded in close to her. Her back pressed up against the wall as he placed his hands on either side of her face. He whispered, “I’ve told you before that I will not leave you, no matter what. I will wait outside these doors because I know there is no other way in or out of that room except through me.” He inhaled deeply. His nose glided over the skin of her neck and cheek. She shivered. “Plus Dr. McCoskey will see to your protection as well as assist you with your research.” He grinned, his mouth hovering over her lips. “Now go, before I can no longer stop myself from kissing you again.”

With her eyes widening, her hands instinctively pressed against his firm chest, but not to push him away. The palms of her hands captured the strength of his fast-beating heart and the fiery warmth that burned within his body. She swallowed hard, and her chin jutted up, giving him access to her mouth.

Moistening her lips, she breathed, “Wait, what if—”

He cupped her face in his uncompromising hands, coaxing her gaze to lock with his, his breath mingling with her own. “Megan,” he whispered, speaking her name in a fierce warning. The deep timbre of his voice licked up and down her spine, curling her toes. “Go do your job. We’ll talk tonight. There’s a lot we need to discuss, but now is not the time. Neither is me ravishing you up against this wall.” He tucked his head down, leaning until their foreheads touched. “If you don’t walk away from me now, I fear that that is exactly what I’m going to do.”

* * * *

Megan blew out every ounce of air her lungs held just so she could inhale a calming, cleansing breath. She needed it. Badly. She had to find a way to escape the confusion building within her mind. With her heart racing, she drummed her manicured nails on the hardwood desk. Her thoughts churned in a riptide she hoped to somehow find the strength to ignore.

How in the world was she supposed to work knowing that Reyes wanted to have “the talk”’ with her? How had he gone from silent brooding and avoidance, to taking unbridled chances to be close to her, to say the things she only imagined a man as possessive and intimidating as Dominic had the courage to divulge?

Groaning, she wondered how she was supposed to focus on anything but the dangerous and tempting kiss Reyes promised.

“Hey, boss, when did you get in?” Zane’s voice crept over her, stirring her out of her tangled thoughts, and she tried her best to smile without making it appear forced.

Dr. Zane McCoskey was not only her assistant and fellow lycan, but a good friend. The nicely built, sandy blond-haired doctor spent more hours in the lab than she did, and that said a lot. Both of them had an unhealthy appetite for science, and that made working together perfect, but it also made for an impossible personal life.

“Actually I just got here,” she told him. Zane was the one person she could unburden herself with without fear of judgment, and she desperately needed someone to help her figure out what to do about her two mates.

Zane absently glanced down at his watch and then back to her. His brow furrowed, and as if catching her hand in the cookie jar, he said provokingly, “It’s almost lunch time, Dr. Shaw, and last I checked, your normal arrival time was before 6:00 a.m.” Frustration consumed her as he stared at her. His teasing was so much like the two men she was trying to find a way to resist. She didn’t need Zane reminding her that her life had suddenly turned upside down.

“Are you now my keeper, Zane? Because I honestly already have two that I just can’t seem to get rid of, and I really don’t need another one.”

He folded his arms over his chest, his eyes narrowing as he studied her. Then he pulled out the chair across from her desk and sat down, placing a piece of paper facedown on the chair beside him. “You want to run that by me once more?”

“No,” she said sharply. “I don’t, so don’t even bother trying to pry it out of me.”

Smirking, he knowingly wiggled a golden-brown brow. “Right, and I guess I shouldn’t ask why Reyes just had you pinned against the wall in the entryway. I’m no expert in physical relationships, but it sure did seem like you two had more going on between you than just talking.” She glared at him. “I’ve never seen you in a compromising position, Dr. Shaw, so that must mean Reyes is—”

“Stop it, Zane,” she cut him off. “I’m not going to talk about it, so stop digging.”

“Sure thing.” He nodded, putting his palms up in a gesture of surrender. “Then maybe I shouldn’t tell you that he just left, saying something about needing to talk with Dominic, but that he’d be right back and he gave specific instructions that you were not to leave this lab for any reason.”

Reyes left? Where is he going? Why would he leave? He promised…

She stood abruptly, her fingers gripping the edge of the desk. “He did what?” she snapped. “He said he wouldn’t leave, said he would stay to make sure I was protected.”

Zane chuckled, eyeing her as if he had just figured out every detail of what she was desperate to keep to herself. “Since when do you need protecting, Megan?” His golden-brown eyes focused on her. “Besides, he told me he wouldn’t be gone long, and that if anything happened to you while he was away, he would personally remove my balls from my body in a most unpleasant fashion. I must confess that I like my testicles where they are so I guess I’m your protection now.”

Megan huffed out a breath, slamming her weight back down in the chair. Shaking her head, she said, “This is so not good.”

“Should I even bother asking what you’re having a coronary over?”

Licking her bottom lip, she stared down at the manila folder on her desk, flicking the edge of the papers inside with the tip of her finger. She was bewildered by everything she felt and hated that there was no apparent way out. She couldn’t escape Dominic or Reyes because they would simply track her down like hunted prey. She was trapped like a caged animal preparing to be led to slaughter.

“Everything started because of this damn virus.” She picked up the folder and stared at it. “I’ve never been so uncertain in my life, and I don’t know what to do about it.” Meeting Zane’s curious gaze, she told him, “I think the mating bond has finally taken hold of me, and I can’t do a damn thing to resist it, no matter how hard I try. Trust me, I’m trying everything.”

“That’s great news, Megan.” He pinched his brow tight as all of her words registered. “Wait, why would you want to resist it?”

Her jaw flexed under the tension of her compressing muscles. “I never wanted the mating bond to affect me as it does the other members of our species. I don’t want some damn chemical that our bodies release to be the only reason a man wants to be with me. There must be something more than carnal pleasures.”

“Megan, you’re a doctor. You know that the instinct just gives the mating pair a chance to recognize each other, but the bonding is more than that. It’s the opportunity to build a relationship, to learn about each other. Consider the awareness of your mate like muddling through you first date. Now that you know you both share physical chemistry and a common bond, you can work on the other stuff.”

Megan giggled, wiping a firm hand over her face. “That sounds all good and wonderful, Zane, and so perfectly rehearsed, but what if the chemistry released is coming from two different men?”

“What?”

“You heard me. According to what I’m feeling, I should be mating with both Dominic and Reyes.”

Zane leaned back in his chair, his jaw twitching from the tension of his unspoken thoughts. Eyes shifting back to hers, he said, “Let me get this straight. You’re complaining because you have two men who find you attractive and want nothing more than to see to your every whim?”

She glared at him, hating that he made it sound like she was an idiot for thinking the idea preposterous. “Not exactly.”

“What do you mean? They must sense they’re your mate.”

“Well, I know Reyes does, but I can’t say for Dominic, but regardless, it really is not the ideal situation, Zane. You know how I am, and no matter what you think, it truly is a complete disaster.”

With a breathy gasp of annoyance, Zane rolled his eyes at her. “At least these men know you exist. I can’t even get a certain woman to have a conversation with me outside of ‘how’s the weather’ and to discuss any questions Sebastian has sent her to ask me.”

“Tiffany?”

Zane nodded. “Yes, Tiffany. The woman drives me crazy. I can’t sleep. I can’t eat. I can’t stop thinking about her.”

“Have you tried to talk with her, tell her that you like her?”

“How the hell can I when she’s always surrounded by others, especially Ryder O’Laughlin.” He twisted his expression, showing his animosity toward the larger lycan warrior. “If he’s not standing right beside her, he staring at her from across the room like he is about to pounce on her.” Shaking his head, he said, “There is something going on there, but I can’t figure out what. I think he’d like a chance with her, but she hasn’t given him the green light.”

Megan leaned her elbows on the desk and said, “Maybe that’s because she’s waiting for you to make a move.”

Zane shrugged. “Maybe you are right.”