Maggie's Wolves, Part Three: A BBW Shifter Romance (Red Mountain Pack Book 3) (4 page)

He lifted his head, leaving her gasping for air.

“We should head back to the house. I’ll drive us.”

It’d taken them nearly an hour to get down here. “It’s too far.”

“It’s too cold.”

It wasn’t. She was growing warmer by the moment. “Heat won’t be a problem. The clothes might be trouble.”

He looked as if he might argue, but then his eyes darkened and he said, “Turn around.”

His voice was gruff, his light Carolina drawl more pronounced. It was unexpected hearing the command in his tone. The wolf in her wanted to resist it, but her human side was too practical to play games just now.

She stood on the running boards and faced the front of the sled. Jack grabbed her hips when she started to sit, keeping her standing while he loosened the snow pants. Underneath, she wore a pair of old sweats that had been waiting for her in the bathroom when she’d stepped out of the shower. A donation from someone in the pack until she could retrieve the clothes from her apartment. Jack’s fingers were cool as they slipped under the elastic waistband, but they weren’t nearly as cold as the air that smacked her skin when he dragged the fabric down.

“Hold onto the bars,” he said. “Lean forward. Just a bit. There. God, you’re gorgeous.”

The sled shifted as Jack moved forward to lick her. His hands pressed against her buttocks, spreading her. His hot breath was a welcome relief from the bitter cold. His tongue dipped inside, tasting her, opening her.

He pulled back. “You’re so warm and delicious.”

She shivered at the hushed strain in his voice. His thumbs touched her anus and then moved lower, skirting the entrance of her vagina and slicking through her folds to just barely graze her clit. She moaned, and his fingers flexed lightly on her thighs. His mouth touched her again, more delicately this time, tracing teasing swirls on her skin.

“My breath steams when it touches you. You’re so hot. Are you ready for me, Maggie?”

“You know I am.” He couldn’t possibly miss that. She was practically dripping with readiness for him.

His hands left her, and she tilted slightly forward. She tightened her grip on the bars and glanced back as Jack pulled his cock from his pants.

“Damn. It’s cold. I need to be inside you. Come here.”

He guided her to him, holding her steady as he positioned himself and then pulled her back. She sank onto his cock, the muscles in her thighs trembling as she tried to control her descent.

He groaned. “Fuck, yes. I think I’ve found heaven. Don’t move.”

He flexed his hips, working himself deeper, lifting her with the strength of his body. She wasn’t a small woman, but Jack—all of the men in the pack—made her feel that way. That she wasn’t too big. It was only that the men she’d encountered in her old life had all been too weak to handle her.

One of his hands moved to her back, and he pushed her down until her breasts brushed against the seat. His fingers curved around the crest of her shoulder and he began to thrust into her. Their position prevented him from being too forceful, from moving too fast or driving too deep. It was both a frustration and a thrill. Short, sharp movements thwarted by tangled clothing. Slick jerky slides and pleasure that built with tantalizing slowness. It didn’t take long for Jack to find a rhythm, and soon he was pulling her into every tight thrust.

Her clit throbbed, rubbing against a seam of her clothing, but not with enough pressure to do her any good. She panted, feeling release just out of reach. She couldn’t touch herself. Couldn’t let go of the handle bars without landing on her face. And Jack was using his hold on her shoulder and her hip to ram into her.

“Jack!”

“Tell me,” he said in a low growl. “Tell me. Tell me how much you want it. Say my name again.”

She knew what he wanted. Knew she’d hurt him by not accepting him as easily or quickly as she had Case and Eli. She knew he’d been afraid of getting kicked out of the pack and losing his family. She’d lived most of her life with that kind of uncertainty—not knowing her place in the world—and she wasn’t going to deny him now.

“I want you, Jack. You’re mine. My pack. My mate. Forever.”

“And you’re mine.”

He released her shoulder to wrap an arm around her torso, just below her breasts. Pulling her tight against his body, his free hand tunneled through the fabric bunched around her thighs. His fingers—his fucking amazing fingers—found her clit. He rubbed her to a quick, shattering orgasm that blurred her vision and had her crying out his name in great, shuddering gasps.

His mouth touched the side of her neck and then slid down until he reached the collar of her jacket. His arm tightened around her body. Strong. He was very strong. His lean, young body thrust into her again and again. The seat kept her legs spread wide open. Jack’s arms both supported her and locked her in place. Her wolf reveled in his strength.

This
is what the wolf wanted. Maggie might have been charmed by Jack’s uncertainty and his willingness to please, but this is what the wolf had been waiting to see from Jack.

“I want it to be me,” Jack whispered against her neck. “I want my baby in you, Maggie. I hope it’s mine. I’m going to fill you until my come is running down your legs. Every fucking chance I get.”

His fingers began to work her clit again, firm slow strokes that matched the slide of his cock.

“Come for me again,” he said. “I want to hear you screaming my name when I come inside you.”

She shook her head. “I can’t. It’s too soon.”

“You’re not human,” he said. “You’re a shifter in heat. You can come again. This one will be even better, you’ll see.”

Better would blow the top of her skull off. “Jack…”

“You can do it. Come with me.”

He said it like a dare. She wondered if it would always be this way between them—her being cautious and Jack daring her into trouble. Only this wasn’t trouble exactly. It was a pleasure so intense it scared her. Just because she was scared, it didn’t mean it was wrong or bad. She was so done being scared of what she was. She stopped fighting against the pleasure and instead let it take her completely. As if he sensed the change, Jack began to drive harder into her hot flesh. His fingers worked her faster, and his teeth sank into the base of her neck.

She welcomed the searing pain as he marked her, welcomed the tidal rush of sensation that swept over her. Her body began to shake. Jack’s cock swelled bigger, and he planted himself deep. She could feel when he began to come, the pulse of his cock and the heat of his seed filling her up just as he’d promised. He ground the heel of his hand against her clit, and her body clenched around his hard cock, milking him of every last drop.

When she sagged forward, Jack caught her in his arms, holding her steady and keeping her warm as she caught her breath. He licked at the wound on her neck and she shivered. He squeezed her tight, his hand splayed over her abdomen, and then he withdrew. As quickly as they were able, they straightened their clothes, their breath steaming in the cold air. When she climbed off the sled, Jack caught her hand. She looked him in the eye and blushed. It was ridiculous to feel embarrassed now, she told herself. After everything they’d done. Jack had watched her have sex with two of his closest friends, and they’d watched him fuck her. If anything should have made her blush, it should have been that. But this, the way Jack was looking at her now—all mushy and tender—felt far more intimate.

“You can ride with me,” he said softly. “I meant it when I said I don’t mind coming back for the sled.”

Her legs felt wobbly, but she thought the ride might do her good. It would give her the space she needed to pull herself back together before facing the rest of the pack. “I want to ride on my own.”

Jack wanted her to have his child. His baby. With everything that had happened the last two days, she’d barely even thought about that. But it was the whole purpose of a heat cycle. If everything went right, then she’d be pregnant by the end of the week. She might be pregnant right now. She touched her belly. Jack’s gaze followed the motion and then lifted to her face. Wolflight flared in his eyes. He nodded and released her hand.

“If you change your mind, there are a few flat areas along the trail where you can pull off.”

She turned back to her sled. It was almost a relief to put the helmet on and let the roar of the engine drown out her thoughts.

A baby…

She’d never thought she would have children. She hadn’t wanted to pass on this curse. Having a pack changed everything. It was just that things were changing so damned fast.

Chapter Five

By the time they reached the garage, Maggie had herself back under control. Jack hit a button on his sled, and the overhead door opened as they approached the garage. She followed him inside and cut the engine. When she removed her helmet, she heard the sound of a car approaching the house. It sounded like it was coming from the direction of the main driveway.

“Case?” she asked hopefully.

Jack listened for a moment and then shook his head. “That’s Carson.”

Maggie ran a hand through her tangled hair. She was going to give one heck of a first impression, wearing old sweatpants with her hair all snarled and windblown. “Maybe I should go take a shower.”

Jack smiled at her. “I don’t think you need a shower. You look great and smell better.”

She rolled her eyes and climbed off the snowmobile. “I smell like you.”

“Exactly. He should know. I want everyone to know we’re mated. Don’t you?”

There was a touch of uncertainty in his eyes, and she walked to him. Wrapping her arms around his waist, she laid her head against his shoulder. “You’re mine. Nothing can change that now.”

He relaxed against her, and his arms came up around her shoulders. “I worried I pushed you too hard. No regrets?”

“You didn’t push me into doing anything I didn’t want to do.”

“Case might not believe that.”

“I’ll convince him.” She looked up. “You don’t regret anything do you?”

He laughed. “You know, you’re not like any other female shifter I’ve ever met.”

She flinched, and Jack’s smile faded. “What’s wrong?”

“Why aren’t I like other female shifters?”

“I didn’t mean that as an insult.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “You asked me if I regretted becoming your mate. It’s not something most female shifters would ask. It wouldn’t even occur to them that a male wouldn’t be grateful to be claimed. It’s a great honor that most shifters only dream of.”

“You’d have accepted me no matter what.”

“No. I wouldn’t have. My mother is a cold woman who thinks males were put on earth to serve her. She treats her mates like crap and sets them against each other. As much as I love Case and Eli, if they’d mated to a woman like that, I’d have walked away. Most female shifters aren’t quite that bad, but none would have asked me if I regretted mating with them.” He squeezed her arms. “You’re
nothing
like any other female shifter I’ve ever met, and I can’t believe how lucky I am to have found you. How honored I am that you claimed me.”

He meant it. His blue eyes were solemn, his face as serious as she’d ever seen it. She touched his cheek. “Why would a shifter accept a mate they couldn’t ever…” Love? She couldn’t say that. “That they couldn’t get along with?”

“The mating drive is powerful. Their wolf wouldn’t necessarily care. My wolf wanted to mate with you as soon as he saw you, before I knew you at all. My human half has been holding back.” He kissed her forehead. “I’m sorry for that.”

“Case told me that he doesn’t think of his wolf as a separate thing. I thought I was strange for thinking of my wolf as her own being with her own desires and agenda.”

“Case has never had to think of his wolf as separate,” Jack said. “He grew up in a good pack and has never lived much around humans. I rejected what my wolf wanted by walking away from my old pack. You had to hide your wolf. It’s probably given us a better appreciation of where the boundaries are.” A gust of wind blew into the garage and she shivered. Taking her hand, Jack tugged her deeper into the garage. “Come on. Let’s put our gear away and then I’ll introduce you to Carson. You’ll like him. He’s our age.”

“You make it sound like we’re headed to a playdate.”

Jack’s blue eyes danced. “Carson is a nice boy. He likes a lot of the same games that you do and almost always shares his toys.”

“Brat.” She hip checked him into a cart and Jack swung her off her feet, tickling her belly before letting her go.

They stripped off their gear and Jack put everything away neatly in its place. He hooked the gloves together in pairs and tossed them into a big metal basket. The goggles were hung up on a peg in the wall.

They walked back to the house in comfortable silence. As soon as they stepped inside the small mudroom, Maggie heard voices coming from the direction of the great room. She recognized Eli’s voice and apparently Case had returned too. The other voice belonged to a stranger. Jack led the way through a narrow hallway and into the great room. The man on the leather couch was turned slightly away from her. He was busy talking to Case and didn’t notice them immediately which gave her a chance to study him. Carson. He had curly dark brown hair, the profile of a poet and the hands of a musician. He gestured as he talked.

“Two teenage daredevils and their great aunt who’d had hip surgery last year. The boy wanted to climb Kelly’s Peak all on his own and the girl wanted to climb me.”

“Rough trip then?” Case asked.

Carson gave him a withering look. “You knew.”

“I thought you could handle it on your own.”

“You just enjoyed the idea of me trying to rein someone in. Being the voice of caution and restraint is not exactly in my nature.”

Case shrugged. “That’s why you need the practice. Did everyone survive the trip?”

“The only casualty was my self-respect.”

“And the girl?”

Carson looked disgusted. “Was a girl, even if she seemed to think she was full-grown. I might only be a few years from horny teenagerdom myself, but I do have some self-control.” He tossed his head against the back of the couch, rumpling the leather. “God, I reek. I can’t believe anyone would be interested in me like this.”

Maggie could believe it. She could believe it just fine. The heat in her blood simmered to the surface, her wolf responding to the challenge of a new male.

Carson’s nose wrinkled, and he lifted his head. “What’s that smell?”

“You?” Case offered, amusement in his voice. He didn’t look toward Jack or Maggie, though Eli noticed them standing there and smiled a welcome.

Carson shook his head. “No the good smell. It’s freaking amazing. Like—” He broke off when he finally looked around the room and set eyes on Maggie.

She raised her hand and waved. “Hi.”

Carson’s eyes widened. His body tightened to the ready stillness of a predator.

“I wondered how long it would take you to notice,” Case said, breaking the sudden and tense silence. “We had a stranger in the house, and it took you nearly twenty minutes to notice.”

“She’s not a stranger,” Carson said. “I can smell you all over her. All of you.” His gaze moved to the man standing beside her. “Even Jack.”

Carson stood up, facing her, but his eyes fixed on Jack. He looked angry and… and
hurt
. Jack’s hand flexed on her shoulder and fell away. He moved to step past her, but before he could say anything, Carson turned to stomp out of the room.

“Carson,” Jack called, moving to follow. He paused to turn back at her. Curling a hand around the back of her neck, he pulled her forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

“What’s going on?”

“I have to go talk to him. I’ll explain everything later.”

Jack left, walking quickly after Carson, and Maggie stared after him for a long moment.

What the hell was that?

She joined Case and Eli, taking the seat that Carson had vacated.

“What did I do wrong?”

“Nothing,” Eli said, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and tugging her closer. “They have things to talk about.”

She frowned trying to sort it all out. Carson had scented her and Jack. He’d have known they’d recently had sex. She looked at Case. “Are they lovers?”

“No,” Case said, “though they’re very close.”

“Carson has always wanted more,” Eli put in. “And Jack… I think Jack’s kept things from becoming physical because he didn’t want to complicate things within the pack.”

Great. She’d stepped right into a love triangle. No.
She
was the triangle. And it wasn’t a triangle anyway. She was number six in the pack, not number three. What did that make it? A hexagon?

“Jack should have told me.”

Case inclined his head. “Probably.”

“Not probably.”

Case was silent, and she felt badly, taking her anger out on him. Eli looked down at her, a smile playing about his lips. “You did claim Jack, though? Outside?”

She nodded.

“In the freezing cold?” He paused. “
On a snowmobile?
”

She blushed, but nodded again.

Eli breathed a laugh. “We’ll have to try that sometime. If you want my opinion, I think it’s a good thing that you claimed him. I’m happy for that.”

Case set aside his mug. “I’m glad too. You didn’t twist Jack’s arm. Right now, Carson is worried about losing his pack and his best friend. I know this has been hard on you, but it’s hard on us too. The ties between pack mates can be intense, but they’re nearly impossible to break. We’ll work it out together.”

Together.
Some of the tension eased from her body. She was so used to handling everything on her own, she was already in “How do I fix this?” mode. But she didn’t have to fix it alone. She had a pack now and people to depend on.

Easing back in the sofa, she stretched out her foot and tapped Case’s knee. “You didn’t say good-bye this morning.”

Case caught her foot and pulled it onto his lap. He peeled off her sock and began to massage her with his strong, warm hands. She nearly purred in response.

“You were exhausted,” Case said. “I didn’t want to wake you. I did hurry back.”

“You didn’t find Declan?”

“I found him.” Case’s expression changed. His jaw tightened, and his gaze drifted toward the stairs. He lifted his chin. “He’s in his room now getting settled. There’ll be time for introductions later.”

“Later?”

“Hmm.” Case ran his hand up her leg and curved his fingers around her knee. A delicious thrill shot straight to her pussy. Her womb clenched with a jolt of pure lust. The heat was coming back. It
was
back and just as powerful, maybe more so, but this time it didn’t hurt. Maybe she was getting used to it. Maybe it was because she wasn’t fighting it anymore. This time she welcomed the warm feeling spreading through her body.

Case leaned forward to scoop her off the sofa and onto his lap. “First I want to wish you a good morning, and then we deal with Carson and Dec. They can wait.” His eyes flared with wolflight. “I can’t.”