Stone Bear: Sentinel (A BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance) (Stone Bears Book 1) (9 page)

“I had fun, so thank you,” he replied.

Gabriel contemplated walking her up to the door. It was the polite thing to do, but he had a feeling—after what they had just been through and done—that it would be the incorrect move in this situation. So instead, he let her go. Caia clearly wasn’t as willing to break the rules as he was, and the last thing he was going to do was push her on that.

He did, however, wait until he saw her safely enter the house before he backed down the driveway.

The truck had just turned onto the road that led out of town and up to the mansion when his phone began to ring. He punched the button on the wheel to answer it hands-free.

“Hello?”

Caia

“Turn around. The door’s unlocked.”

Caia hung up her phone and threw it on the couch, pacing back and forth in front of the comfortable piece of leather furniture. Its dark finish mimicked the night outside.

What was she doing? He had been clear and gone. Everything would have stayed the way it was, except she had to go and make a phone call. To tell him that the door was open, and that he should come inside.

“You just made the equivalent to a booty call,” she said to herself with a shaky laugh.

Don’t regret this.

She recalled the hard cock her hand had encountered earlier, and at least part of her knew she wouldn’t regret it. At least, not at the time. She might in the morning if it truly was that big. Not that it would be the only thing she might regret in the morning.

The wait was horrible. She paced back and forth for a few minutes before walking into the kitchen and getting herself a glass of water, trying to calm her nerves. It didn’t matter. She could barely hold the glass steady as she tried to take a sip, her shaking hands resulting in several drops spilling onto her exposed chest.

Which, when Gabriel got his hands on her, was about to become a whole lot more exposed. She was going to bare it all in front of him, she thought nervously. He would see her every flaw, all the ones her carefully chosen clothing hid. The scars from the incident that had effectively run her out of the police force. The extra weight she had put on since her “retirement” as well. All of it was disguised as best she could on a normal basis, but here he was, about to see it in all its glory.

Caia was terrified that he would see it and freak out. That was her biggest fear—that he might lose his desire once he saw the real her. It was a much stronger feeling than normal, too. She hadn’t been celibate since she quit the force, though she hadn’t been with a lot of men either. She didn’t care what the ones she slept with had thought of her, as long they got the job done in the end.

But with Gabriel, she had realized she
did
care. She
was
afraid of how he might react. There was a basic desire within her to please him, to want him to be happy with what he had, and her brain traumatized her with various scenes of how he might react while she waited.

Finally, after an eternity, she heard his truck pull into the driveway. The engine had barely died before she heard the door open and close. The pounding in her chest amplified as she saw an outline at her door. The handle twisted, and it pushed inward slightly, revealing the outline to be Gabriel.

The intensity in his eyes shocked her. She knew he was interested in her, but even earlier he had been guarded somewhat. But now she could tell the walls were gone. She was seeing who and what he truly was, and how deeply he was interested in her. The glowing sapphires in his eyes promised her pleasure, to the best of his ability. She knew that, because her eyes were giving him the same look.

“You called?” he asked, closing the door behind him, never taking his eyes off of her.

“Yes,” she said with whispery trepidation.

This was it. There was no going back now.

His jacket hit the floor, and he stepped out of his boots, coming closer to her.

Her hands trembled. She clenched them into fists, ordering herself to maintain calm.

The façade of control she had over the situation crumbled as he took another step forward.

“Aren’t you supposed to be the one with the plan?” he teased gently. “Not rushing headfirst into a situation without thinking it through?”

“I’ve thought it through,” she said defiantly.

“Is that so?”

She nodded.

“So what happens next then?” he asked deliberately.

Her voice caught in her throat, leaving her unable to respond as he took another step closer.

“First, you take your coat off,” she said, indicating the double-buttoned suit jacket.

“I do?” he asked.

She nodded, and he obeyed, slowly undoing the buttons and removing the jacket until it hung from one hand. A flick of her eyes told him to drape it over the couch to his left.

“Now the bowtie,” she ordered, a faint hint of strength returning to her voice as he allowed her to dictate what was happening at first.

“Undo the cuffs,” she told him, “And roll them up.”

He grinned but didn’t say anything, and simply followed her commands.

“Now what?” he whispered into the silence as he stood there. She was looking him up and down, admiring him. Especially the way his rolled-up sleeves emphasized his forearms. It was such a sexy look. She wanted to drool over him. That, however, would not do for what she next had in mind.

“Come closer.” She had barely finished speaking before he stepped up right in front of her.

Putting a finger on his chest, she held him just inside of arm’s length, preventing him from getting any closer.

“Now, stand still.” He didn’t move as she dragged her finger up to his neck, where her other hand joined it.

Her deft fingers worked quickly, and the first button fell victim to her. She could sense him shaking as she worked, peeling the shirt off one button at a time. He wasn’t wearing an undershirt, and efforts revealed broad muscle everywhere she touched. His chest flexed almost reflexively under her caress, which she emphasized by running her fingers through the slight patch of hair on his breastbone.

“What?” he asked as she made a noise while doing so.

“I like this,” she said, pointing at the black patch. “It’s sexy. Makes you more manly.”

“Oh,” he said, then smiled. “I’m glad you think so.”

“I do. Now hush,” she said, and went back to work, finishing undoing the last of the buttons. “Off,” she said, stepping back to watch as he removed the shirt entirely.

He has the body of a damn statue!

Every muscle seemed to be bulging and visible. Her feet carried her right up to him, at which point her fingers ran across the bumps of his abs. They were so well defined she could count each of them.

“Now, unzip me,” she said, turning around to face away from him.

“Of course,” he said into her ear, his voice practically a purr as she finally let him touch her.

A shock ran through her body at the sheer warmth his hands exuded as they ran up her arms to the zipper, which ended at her neck. Despite his size, he managed to undo the clasp with ease and the zipper slid smoothly down her back.

She shivered as his fingers ran up her back, pressing under the fabric, and then down her arms, taking the dress with it as he stripped her down to her underwear in a matter of moments. The material fell to the floor into a puddle of silk, from which she removed her legs.

A moan slipped from her lips as he moved closer, his arms encompassing her at the same time his chin dipped. Gabriel’s lips breathed fire along her neck, a burning blaze to echo the furnace building between her legs as his hands ran from her sides, across her stomach, and up to cup her breasts through the thin lace of her bra.

“Is this allowed?” he breathed into her ear, before taking a gentle nibble of her lobe, which sent all kinds of shockwaves through her spine, weakening her legs.

“Yes,” she said, her voice trailing into a hiss as his fingers gently tweaked one of her hardened nubs through the material. It took her a moment to recover and find her voice once more as he switched to the other side. “But put me up on the counter.”

“Of course,” he said obediently, picking her up as if she were nothing, and carrying her two steps forward and two to the right as he entered the kitchen, depositing her on the counter so she was at his head height.

“Now get your hands back on me—this counter is cold. Keep me warm.”

Gabriel didn’t respond this time, surging forward to close the foot or so gap that had opened between them, his arms clasping around her back as his lips sought hers. They met and she jumped as a small static charge leapt between them. But the sheer heat that he exuded quickly made her forget that and the cold granite on her legs and ass. His touch seemed to bring her to life, and she felt warmth begin to pool between her legs in anticipation of what was to come.

She wanted him. Bad. The buildup was driving her wild with a craving need, but she held on, not wanting to give in just yet. Gabriel’s mouth opened, and his tongue sought hers, finding it in a flash as her lips parted in return. Her bra fell away, exposing her breasts to him. Caia hadn’t even felt his fingers touching it, she was so caught up in kissing him.

“I think things are slightly uneven,” Gabriel said as he stepped back, his eyes feasting on her nakedness with a ferocity that made her swallow hard with nervousness.

“What do you mean?” she asked. Things had been perfectly fine with her.

“Give me your hands,” he said, and she smiled at the reversal of authority that had managed to subtly take place without her realizing it.

Still, she didn’t protest, sticking her hands out. Gabriel took them and placed them on his belt. “I think you should remove this and equalize our nakedness,” he said, his eyes twinkling before they shut as he leaned back in to kiss her some more.

Her hands fumbled with his belt as she tried to concentrate on both that and his lips, but she found success when he began to trace his kisses along her jaw before dipping down to her neck once more. Her mind turned to mush as he did, but she could focus just enough to pull the belt from his pants and unbutton them. They refused to simply fall to the floor—they had become stuck on the large protrusion just below them, to the point where she had to reach out and tug them over it.

“Oh,” was all she was able to say as they fell away and Gabriel stepped out of them smoothly. His cock looked huge.

Without warning his hands grabbed her legs, lifting them so they wrapped around his waist, and he pulled her closer until her hips were almost falling off the lip of the counter. She wanted to ask him what he was doing, but she found out. His hips pressed into hers, the entire thickness of his cock pressed flatly against her opening, the only thing separating them the two thin pieces of underwear. She felt herself soaking through, and wondered if he could feel any of her wetness through his underwear. She fervently hoped so. She wanted him to know just how badly she wanted him in return. It was, she thought, rather easier for her to tell if he was turned on than the other way around.

Gabriel moved to pick her up. “Where’s the bedroom?” he asked, pausing in his alternating of kisses and tender bites along the veins in her neck, which had been driving her wild.

“I thought I told you to put me on the counter?”

“You did. And I did.” He sounded thoroughly confused.

“Did I tell you to move me elsewhere?” she said with malicious delight.

Gabriel pulled back just enough to look into her eyes, and she saw the realization there.

“No, you didn’t,” he admitted.

“I’m glad we got that settled.” She smirked, and pulled his head down to her chest. His mouth took one of her nipples in immediately, and the warmth was so intense it almost burned, making her gasp.

Meanwhile, his hands slipped around her back and pulled her underwear down, until it encountered the granite. He tightened one hand around her waist, and like before, lifted her up as if it didn’t faze him in the slightest. Fingers tugged and all of a sudden she was completely naked.

Caia licked her lips nervously as one of his hands—she wasn’t even sure at this point which one—traced its way back up the inside of her leg, heading straight for the apex. Her entire body shuddered as a single finger slid through her wetness, before encountering the slight bump at the top, where it came to rest. It slowly moved in tiny circles while his tongue continued to flick across her nipples.

The air seemed to thicken. She could think of no other reason why it had suddenly become so much harder to breathe. Her lungs worked harder as she moaned and moved within his grip, but he didn’t let up. The pressure between her legs increased slowly, and he continued to dip down lower to ensure that he glided smoothly over her tender skin.

Her nails dug sharply into the skin of his shoulders as Gabriel increased the pressure and speed slightly once more. She was shuddering now as the pleasure overwhelmed her nerve receptors, triggering feedback within her brain. Despite her cries and muffled groans as she buried her face in his shoulder, he never stopped. His teeth had moved back up to her jaw now, teasing her there with nips and bites, followed by tender kisses that fed the flames between her legs.

“Gabriel,” she gasped as he increased his pace one more. “Just like that!” she cried, her arms shaking violently as they trembled to hold her up.

“I’ve got you,” he said, his arm tightening around her waist ever so slightly.

Her arms collapsed from the overwhelming assault on her senses, but she remained upright as he held her in place, never moving or wavering.

“Yes,” she cried out repeatedly, before suddenly inhaling deeply, her eyes wide. “Now!” she told him, and her body went from shivers and trembles into an explosion of movement as ecstasy blossomed between her legs and flowed out through her central core, overwhelming her body’s instincts.