Only After Dark The Boxed Set Books 1 - 4: Shifters Forever Worlds (7 page)

N
atalya was still
in state of shock, first at seeing Lézare, then at Allynne’s statement that she and Lézare were fated to be together. Now, at the story that was unfolding.

She looked at Lézare’s outstretched hand and put her own on top of it. His hand enveloped hers, covering it completely as he held it. A tingle began where their fingers met and traveled up her arm and throughout her body.

She bit her lip. Why was she so afraid?

Because he’ll hate me.

“A visit?” he was asking again. “I’d like to talk to you. Uninterrupted.”

“Yes. I know a place.” Her father had a pontoon boat on Lake Travis. She could have them there in thirty minutes.

“I’ll drive,” he said, and held the door open for her.

The sun was well up. It had been just after dawn when she’d arrived. She let him hold the door for her and gave him directions. He drove in silence, his eyes glued to the road.

Natalya glanced at his profile now and then. She checked out his handsome face, his high cheekbones and short dark hair; the way his hands held the wheel with complete confidence; the way the muscles stood out on his thighs when he switched from the brake to the gas pedal. She memorized everything, every single little detail, because she was certain that no matter what Allynne had said about them, he would be gone from her life once again.

Finally, they arrived at the dock. He parked, got out, and held the door open for her.

“This is it?” He pointed to the
Marguerite
.

“Yes. Named for my mother.” She dug in her purse for the keys. “Unless you wanted to be somewhere else? My father’s house? A restaurant? You said you wanted privacy…”

“This is fine.” His smile reached his eyes, crinkling the corners.

She slipped her heels off so she could get on the boat. He took her hand and helped her up and over the side. Then he followed her.

“I grew up only eight hours from here. I know many of the shifters in the southern US. Why did I never see you or know about you before that incident with Vax?”

Natalya cringed at the mention of Vax, thinking of her childish antics in Dallas. “I spent a lot of time in Europe. It seems I was too much of a handful. My father sent me to a private school after my mother was gone.”

“No doubt you raised a little Cain there.”

Natalya didn’t want to respond for fear he’d start to dwell on her behavior with Vax.

God, that seems like a million years ago.

Natalya unlocked the door of the cabin and slipped inside, opening two of the blinds that faced the water, still affording them some privacy but giving them light and a view of the beautiful lake.

She waved her arms around the place, as if she were a game show hostess. “We’re here. Privacy.”
Now what?

He was watching her. The muted morning sunlight made his eyes darker and yet at the same time emphasized the amber glow of his tiger flashing in their depths. “I should spank you for leaving me in the lurch.”

A shiver ran through her body. “You’ve threatened that before.”

“I recall. Does the idea repel you?”

More like, excite me.
“I had to leave the ball. I got a text saying that Ms. Claudette was in a bad way.”

“I understand why you had to leave. But not the way it was handled. You should have come and talked to me.”

“Lézare, how could I? After my behavior with you all those months ago? After my behavior with your cousin… your family.” She felt the pinprick of tears and blinked them back.

“Say that again.” He put a thumb on her bottom lip, his fingers holding her chin.

Say what again, that I’m sorry?
“What is it you want me to say?”

“My name.” He leaned lower.

His face approached hers in what felt like slow motion. Her breath was trapped in her lungs. He kissed her slowly, his tongue making languid swipes in her mouth, claiming her, taking her, not asking permission. He broke contact with her mouth, pulling away just the slightest bit, his flesh emanating a warmth that filled her body with sensations she had never experienced before.

“Say it. I love the way you say it.”

She’d never said it aloud, not to him, not to anyone, though it was a sound that she’d savored when she was alone, saying his name so many times that she would have willed his presence next to her if she had any magical powers.

“Lézare.” It was like a caress on her tongue, like an embrace to her lips.

“Natalya.” His voice was like nectar, making the way he said her name equal to a lover’s touch. The southern lilt melded with the slight patois, an accent she’d come to associate only with him.

“What she said was true, you know.” His words caressed her heart, soothed her soul, and filled a part of her that had been hollow.

She fought to breathe, to concentrate, so consumed was she by her desire for this man, for the way he pulled her into a place that felt like she was alone in the eye of a hurricane, but with a spotlight shining on her.

“Who?” She barely managed to get the word out.

“Allynne. What she said about us.” He pulled back, his gaze lancing straight to her soul. “You don’ deny it, do you?”

Natalya licked her lip nervously, then sucked it into her mouth and chewed on it.
It’s my dream.
She couldn’t say that, though. “I’m going to give Ms. Claudette a home.”

Now, where the hell did that come from?

She hadn’t planned to tell him. She hadn’t even made a plan yet—not fully, just a nebulous idea of what she wanted and didn’t want for Ms. Claudette. What she didn’t want was for that wonderful lady to be in a homeless shelter for the rest of her days.

“I can’ let you do that.” He lowered himself into a chair and tugged on her hand, pulling her onto his lap.

For some reason it felt exactly right to be in his lap, just as it had felt perfectly right to be in his arms dancing last night.

Was it just last night? Why did it feel like so much more time had passed?

Then the words he’d just said hit her. “You can’t let me do what?”

“Ms. Claudette. She should be with us. With family.”

An overwhelming sadness took hold of her. The pinpricks returned. This meant she wouldn’t be able to see Ms. Claudette, but at least she’d be happy, and surrounded by those who would love her.

Those who hate me.

His sisters.

“You’re right. She belongs with family.” She fought the hot tears that threatened and looked out the window, watching a flock of birds as they surrounded a tall tree on the banks of a cove, and kept herself from glancing at him because it hurt her physically to look at him, to know she couldn’t be with him. Not given the way his family would hate her, even if he seemed attracted to her.

“And you?”

“I’ll miss her, but I’ll be happy for her.”

“That’s not what I meant.” His hand was back, tilting her to face him. “Are you going to deny what we have?”

“Lézare.” She swallowed hard, trying to bury the bitterness and sorrow of knowing that she wouldn’t have him—couldn’t have him. “I’m sorry.”

“For what,
chère
?” His thumb touched her tear, then traced the path it had taken.

“The way I behaved, toward you, your family. Vax. I can’t blame them for hating me.”

“They don’ hate you.”

“Ha.” She couldn’t help the smile she felt growing on her lips. “Who are you kidding? I’d hate me. I do hate who I used to be.”

“I thought you were a sexy spitfire. Angry at the world. Why were you so angry? What made that anger go away?”

“Maybe because my mother left me. Then my father shipped me off to Europe…” She turned her head out of his grasp, immediately missing the warmth of his fingers. “Really, that’s no excuse. There is no excuse for my behavior.”

“You’ve changed.” He regained his hold on her chin and turned her face toward his once more.

“For the better, I hope.”

“I won’ say I didn’ want the woman I met, all those months ago. I did. The tiger in me… he’s been relentless about it, too, almost as much as I have been.”

Natalya searched his eyes. How could he have wanted her back then? She waited for him to continue, wondering if the blade would fall, if the other shoe would drop.

“This woman you’ve become, though…”

His eyes held her captive, the golden flame she occasionally saw roaring to life in the depths of that darkness.

A
ll the breath
in her body abandoned her. Her heart pounded. Her tongue traced her bottom lip in anticipation. His thumb ran across it, following her thumb, capturing the lingering moisture.

His mouth lowered in a hard kiss, one that was very different from the tender dance their tongues had engaged in earlier. His tongue snaked in and took hers with an animal dominance. He tasted like freedom and sin, captivity and innocence, all at the same time. The raw ultimatum in his kiss resulted in a searing pulse that flowed through her body, and awakened her own tigress with a fury that matched his tiger’s.

Need overwhelmed her, causing her to touch his chest, where she could feel the bunched, hard, taut muscles beneath the soft fabric of his shirt. His hand closed round hers, pressing it into his flesh, forcing her to feel the throbbing, primal beat of his heart, in sync with the beat that pulsed inside her own body, a beat that proclaimed her desire and screamed her need.

She tore her hand free of his to run it downward. Relishing in the flexing muscles that responded to her touch, she slipped her hand beneath the fabric, scoring his flesh with her nails, running her fingers through the hair that broadcasted his maleness.

A growl deep within his chest mirrored her own longings. She slid the fabric upward, higher and higher, until she’d pulled it over his head. Then she marveled at the latte-colored flesh beneath the shirt. She yielded to the urge and lowered her lips to the tender flesh between his neck and shoulder.

A groan, hoarse and raw, was torn from him as she scraped her teeth across his flesh, letting her canines nick his skin, leaving behind a tiny trail that erupted into miniscule drops of blood.

Who am I?
She didn’t recognize this part of her. She’d never been this way before.

She was still in his lap, his hand on her hip holding her close, the hardness of his desire pressed against her thigh. He pulled her closer, and his other hand tangled in her long hair, twining it around his fist. He pulled her mouth to his and kissed her deeply, drawing her tongue into his mouth, sucking the flavor of his own blood off of it.

The pulse between her legs matched the beat of her heart and the snarls of her tigress. Passion unfurled, claiming both Natalya and her beast.

She heard the sound and recognized it immediately: the sound of fabric giving way to the sharpness of claws. She knew at once he’d unsheathed his. That was followed by the sensation of air cooling her exposed flesh as the dress fell away from her body and draped her lap. The swell of lust trailed behind, picking her up in its waves and carrying her to another place.

“Lézare.” Her voice was wispy, like delicate tendrils of fog floating just above the water’s surface before the sun could dissipate it completely.

“Natalya, you are mine.” The throatiness of his growl was like a dam holding back the power of destruction, completion, and even resurrection.

“I am.” There’s been no question in his statement, and there was no doubt in her reply.

It was as if she’d never breathed before Lézare.

Her murmured words seemed to spur him to action. He stood up from the chair, holding Natalya against him. Her dress drifted downward, settling at their feet on the shiny wood flooring. He glanced around the luxurious cabin, then made for the upholstered bench seat.

“There’ll be no more running away from me.” He took a seat on the bench, flipped her over his lap, face down, her luscious ass skyward.

“No more running.” She whispered, her voice tinged with anticipation. She was turned on. She couldn’t deny it. His hard cock pressed against her body, teasing her with what he had to offer. Her breathing was irregular. Shoving her dress up, he pulled her panties down just enough to bare her ass.

“What are you doing?”

“What I promised. To spank that delicious
derrière
of yours,
chère
.”

She struggled, though desire pooled between her legs. Lézare threw one leg over hers, keeping her in place.

“You think you’re in charge?” She panted the words out in short bursts of breaths.

With one hand on her ass, searing her flesh, the other slid down the crease between her ass and thigh, tracing her flesh so lightly he left tiny bumps in his fingers’ wake. When he slipped his fingers against her folds, and his fingertips feather-stroked her swollen lips, her muscles tightened with arousal. Her back arched against her will, and yet very much in line with her desires.

“Very much so,
chère
.” With a flattened hand, he tapped her ass, the impact making her breath catch. The sting followed the burn.

He massaged her tender skin with one hand while the other hand teased her pussy lips, touching them ever so lightly, then pushing in.

Desire batted indignation within her.

And yet his fingers continued, massaging, slipping in, going out, bringing her juices out and slickening her lips, then back in. Then out. In. Out. Her back arched, her ass pushed ever upward. Still trapped beneath his leg, her legs tried to spread to take more of his fingers in.

The hand massaging her ass rose, and dropped swiftly. A fierce smack that made a high squeal slip out.

Her muscles tightened around his fingers. His groan was her reward, though her tender flesh stung with intensity.

“Please.” Her voice was distorted with passion and pain.

“Please? Please what,
chère
?” His fingers plunged in deeply. His hand dropped on her ass with a sharp tap.

That was her undoing. A crunching and stretching sound yielded to her shifting. Within seconds she was in her white tigress form, snarling and turning to face Lézare.

She stepped back. He’d shifted along with her. He was a huge white tiger, majestic, deep-chested and broad-shouldered. His eyes flashed a deep dark brown, a golden glow in their depths.

He snarled back and pushed on her to establish a sync, the way that shifters communicated, creating a link that allowed them to speak within their minds.

We weren’ done, chère.

She cocked her head, studied his tiger.
My tigress was done.

He laughed in their synched link, a soft laugh, sexy and at the same time challenging. He stalked closer, though they were already in crowded quarters.

She swatted at him with her claws extended, semi-playful. She didn’t intend to hurt him, and she wasn’t sure she could anyway. His tiger was massive.

I like the fire in you.
He put his head against her withers, just above her shoulders and opened his tiger’s mouth, gripping her neck.
Shift back so I can make love to you, or I’ll mount you in your tigress form. And ch
ère,
I want to do so much more to you than that.

Natalya didn’t think she could have fallen more in love Lézare that she had, but she was wrong. His words, his actions, everything he was sent her to the next level. She shifted quickly, still in her clothing, and faced him. He was still in his tiger form, an incredible feline. She reached her hand out, buried her fingers in his fur and leaned close, letting that luxurious fur touch her face. Seconds later he’d shifted into his human form.

“Chère, I want you.”
He picked her up, sat her on the seat, and she raised up so he could pull her panties over her hips, then down her thighs and completely off.

“Open your legs.”

His command, explicit and blunt, made her heart pound. She parted her legs. His eyes seared as he stared, branding her as his. She closed her eyes against the intensity and yearning behind them.

She heard him lower himself and concentrated on the sound of the water lapping and the image of the man in front of her, muscular, handsome, and completely hers—forever.

She felt the warmth of his breath on her inner thighs and flinched as if she’d been burned. His fingers on each knee pressed insistently, opening her legs even more. Without warning his finger slid in; Natalya released a small sound, part protest, part pleasure and all beseeching—wanting Lézare, needing him.

He began to stroke her with an in-and-out rhythm that had her channel gripping his moisture-slickened finger, her hips writhing for more. That one finger was joined by another, delving deep with the ruthless and relentless objective of delivering pleasure. Then his mouth closed over her clit and he sucked in deeply, claiming the swollen nub.

For a moment, Natalya’s cries drowned out every other sound.

“I have to have you.” His voice was raspy, the tiger in it reaching out to capture the tigress within her.

The explosion of sensations, and the starbursts behind her eyelids made her grab his shoulders. She dug her nails in deep as her body clenched around his strong fingers, spasming with each thrust. Frenzied cascades of ecstasy culminated in a scream that was lost in his mouth as his lips secured hers in a kiss.

Natalya opened her eyes to find the tiger in his, a strong, golden glow that suffused her tigress with warmth. She tasted herself on his lips, savoring the salty earthiness of her slickness. Lézare pulled her toward him, his roughness bringing her back from what felt like a whirlpool, closer to a new realm of pleasure.

He thrust forward into her, and a delicious pain sizzled inside, eliciting a new sound from her throat, the husky howl of her tigress’s release.

He ground against her, then began to move at a rapid, wild pace, pulling out and pushing deep, enveloping himself over and over while her flesh fought to keep him from drawing away by tightening fiercely around him.

His back arched and a harsh sound left his lips. His grip was like steel, clutching her to him as his orgasm pulsed deep within her, catching her off guard and sending her spiraling into her own climax.

With a speed that could only be attributed to his tiger, Lézare’s lips latched onto her neck and he sank his teeth into her flesh. She gasped as the instant of pain transformed to a flush of pleasure that forced a shiver throughout her body.

He pushed off but remained inside her and held her at arm’s length. A smile, slow and wicked, emerged on his face. “You won’ be running from me again.”

“Lézare.” Natalya’s voice was soft as the depth of his love infused her. “I told you I was yours.”

“I’m taking no chances with you, tigress.” He lapped at the tiny, quickly healing wounds he’d left at the base of her neck.

L
ézare watched her sleep
. She’d barely been able to keep her eyes open after he’d couple bonded with her. She’d laid her head on his shoulder and before he knew it, tiny bursts of breath were escaping from her parted lips every time her chest rose and fell. He’d moved aside and let her take the bench seat, covering her with a sheet that he’d found in a drawer nearby.

This was the woman he loved—and he had her. His chest filled with joy. His spirit was renewed. He’d never fully comprehended how empty his life had been until now, until this very moment, as he reflected on how much she meant to him.

He texted Theo, told him to call his attorney and make any and all necessary steps to ensure there were no obstacles to giving Claudette Dunnington a grant so she could have her own money.

He called Alexa, but it rolled over to her voicemail. That didn’t surprise him; she’d been up late with the ball, after all, and it wasn’t quite time for the brunch.

Sacre bleu, I’ve missed the ball and now I’ll miss the brunch.

This was a first. Lézare never shirked his responsibilities to his family or their obligations to the shifter community. Hopefully Alexa had fulfilled his role.

He looked at Natalya again, and realized that it was all worth it. Of course, he’d have to smooth things out with his sisters, get them to see who Natalya really was.

That shouldn’t be a problem.

I hope.

With any luck, Valencia had shown up without a problem. And Evie hadn’t killed Mason Martinez.

I picked a fine time to leave town.

He dialed Vax’s number.

“How’s my nephew—or is that cousin, twice removed? I think I’d rather to call him my nephew.”

At the other end, Vax laughed. “He’s thriving. And sleeping. So is his mother. Where are you?”

“Austin. I’ll be home later this evening. Would you make sure Mae and Doc don’ leave? I have someone I want Mae to meet.”

“Sure. Who?”

“An elemental.”

“Austin. Do I need to ask why you were in Austin?” Vax paused. “Do I need to ask why?”

“I’ll catch you up when I get home. I have another call or two to make.” Lézare tapped the end icon on his phone.

One more thing to do: He dialed the homeless shelter and talked to the woman named Monica, who’d let him in early this morning. He told her he was a relative of Ms. Claudette and he was going to take her to Arceneaux Point, and that there’d be no need to worry about her.

“You’re family? Oh, that’s wonderful. I’m so glad.”

“I’ll be by later on this afternoon to pick her up. It’s time for her to go home.”

If only I’d known much earlier.

“You’re something else, Lézare Arceneaux.” Natalya’s voice was sleep-husky and sexy.

His head snapped in her direction. “When did you wake up?”

A smile crept onto her face, a gentle smile, one that made her eyes light up. She pulled the sheet higher with a touch of modesty that made her even sexier. He felt a stirring in his pants.

Damn. This woman.

He sighed.

“A few moments ago.”

“So you heard my conversations?”

She nodded.

“You didn’ hear the one I haven’ had yet.”

“Which one is that?” She looked puzzled, her brows dipping into a tiny V.

“The one where I call your father and tell him you’re mine.”

A delicate pink laced her cheeks. “I like the sound of that.” She cocked her head, a half-smile on her lips. Then, suddenly, the smile vanished. “My father! I need to tell him where I am! Not to worry!” She jumped to her feet, the sheet wrapped around her.

“He knows.”

She froze. “What?”

“When he couldn’ find you, he called me. He thought after the way we’d returned you, all those months ago, that we could do the same thing again.”