The Fire Inside (9 page)

He caught sight of Tyra as she turned, jogging across his
front lawn. They’d only been a few blocks from the house. He turned and made
his way into the house behind her. She hadn’t even bothered to shut the front
door. Not a good sign. He found her coming back down the hall, her duffle bag
in her hand. Tears had started to track down her cheeks.

“No,” she ground out through clenched teeth as she avoided
his outstretched hand.

He stepped into her path again. “Tyra, talk to me.”

“I need to go.”

“I don’t want you to go. And there isn’t any reason for you
to leave.”

Her gaze went to the wall beside him. “You don’t understand,
Konrad. She’s right. You deserve better than me.”

“You’re wrong, Tyra. You were made for me. You’re the only
one I’ll ever want. In my eyes nothing is better than you.”

She pinned him with a hard stare, pulling her shoulders back
and standing tall. “No. Maybe once in a different lifetime I could’ve been what
you needed. But in this one I’m broken. I don’t think I can ever be fixed.”

What in the world did she mean? Broken? “Tyra, I don’t
understand. There isn’t anything wrong that can’t be fixed. What is really
going on here?”

She dropped her bag and pushed her beer-soaked hair away
from her face. A tired laugh escaped her lips. “You
know what? For a moment tonight, I thought I could get past it. I thought that
maybe somewhere in me I could find the strength to love someone again. That I
could let go of the fear.”

A million questions ran through his mind, but he remained
silent, not wanting her to stop talking.

She crossed her arms in front of her chest. “You want to
know where my alpha is? He’s dead. Along with my mother and all the rest of my
pack.” She threw up her hands. “Gone. In a moment. My mother gave me her last
instructions. ‘Run,’ she’d said. And I did. But not before I saw that
bald-headed bastard dig his claws into her flesh.”

Oh shit
. He knew just what bald-headed bastard she
referred to. Thanasis. The fucking bastard had taken his mate’s pack from her.
Konrad knew Thanasis had property running down into Oklahoma, and he figured
that was where his mate had come from, because he couldn’t remember any packs
in this area that Thanasis had run over recently. He had to tamp down the fury
inside him. His mate needed him right now. There would be plenty of time to
avenge her later.

“I shifted and I ran. There was no one. I had no one.” She
stopped, swallowing a sob before continuing. “I remained in my animal form for
years. I let the wolf take me. I didn’t want to hurt or feel. I couldn’t. I
went on that way for so long that I feared I would lose every part of who I
was. With the last piece of humanity I had left, I pulled myself together and
shifted.”

Anger and pain laced her scent with a bitterness that he
could not only scent but taste thick over his tongue, driving his anger for her
hurt and loss to a new level. He tried to pull her into his arms, but she
resisted.

“No!” She pushed him back. “I was a coward—I am a coward.”

“No. You were a scared little girl that didn’t have anyone
to protect her. You did what you had to do to survive. You’re a survivor.
You’re strong. You did what you had to do. I wish I could have been there for
you then. But I’m here now. I’m not going anywhere, Tyra.”

She sniffled and wiped the backs of her hands across her
cheeks. “Really? You think I’m strong?”

He didn’t like the tone of her voice. Her words came out
defiant and disbelieving.

“You remember the pills?”

He stared back at her.

“They’re sleeping pills. I haven’t shifted on my own free
will in years. Tomorrow is the full moon, and you know what my big plan was? To
find a way to get you to leave me alone so I could hole up here by myself,
drugged. Because I’m too much of a coward to face that side of myself again.
I’m too afraid I might not find my way back.”

Despite her protests, he pulled her into his embrace. She
fought him halfheartedly for only a moment before her weight sagged against him
and she cried in earnest. He held her tight, the warm liquid of her tears
coating his chest. He’d kill Thanasis. And it sure as hell wouldn’t be a fast
death.

She pushed against his chest, raising her head to look at
him. “Do you see why? Can you understand why you have to let me go?”

The pain on her tear-streaked face had his heart clenching.
He cupped her face in his hands. “No. I won’t ever let you go. We can do this.
Together.”

Tyra searched his gaze, the glowing amber warming her
inside. She wanted to believe him. “I don’t want you to resent me later. And
what if I can’t deal with the shift? What will you tell your pack when their
alpha’s mate is not there to run at his side each full moon?”

“I don’t care what they think. Not about this. When it comes
to you, I will do what needs to be done.”

She sighed and pulled away from him, pacing toward the
kitchen. “You’re their alpha. You can’t afford to put yourself or me above your
pack. They look to you for leadership as well as your mate. The pack’s strength
is derived from that of its top mated pair.”

He closed the distance between them, caging her with his
arms, her back to the countertop in the kitchen. “They would never question me
over something like this. My pack knows their strengths, and they all feel
comfortable in them.”

“Are you certain? Because that she-bitch that knocked me
through the railing didn’t seem to feel too secure. And how many wolves do you
think now have doubts after she questioned my strength in front of them?”

He clenched his teeth, the muscles in his jaw twitching.

“Do you not think she will continue to sow discord in anyone
who will give her their ear?”

“No. She will not. Because come morning she will no longer
be a part of this pack.”

“And what message will that send? ‘Accept my mate, or I toss
you out’?”

She inhaled a shaky breath as he pressed in closer to her.
She could no longer ignore his proximity or his lack of clothing. Heat built
inside her as she tried to give feeble arguments. His breath caressed her cheek
and she trembled, eyelids falling to half mast. “Konrad?” she whispered.

He kissed the side of her neck. “Let me worry about these
things, mate. I will not forsake you. You’re mine. By choice and by right.”

She laced her arms around his neck. “I want this. I know
it’s selfish, but I want this. I want you.”

His lips traced a path to hers and then he kissed her with
an all-consuming passion. She matched his tongue stroke for stroke as she
leaned back, allowing him to deepen the kiss. She could feel the heavy arousal
of his body. She swiveled her hips and he released a moan of satisfaction. His
hands left the countertop and trailed down over her hips to grip her ass. When
he lifted her, she let her sandals drop to the floor as she wrapped her legs
around his waist.

He pulled his mouth away from hers, nipping at the fullness
of her lower lip before speaking. “How about we wash off the beer and grass?”

She smiled and nuzzled his neck as he carried her into his
room and through the doorway of the master bathroom. Her rump came to rest on
the counter and she shivered as he stepped back, missing the heat of his body.
And what a body it was. She watched, letting her gaze roam over every sinew,
line and bulge of muscle in his back and firm ass. He reached into the shower
and she heard the spray of water a moment before waves of curling steam floated
from its interior.

When he turned and faced her again, she pulled in a shaky
breath as her body began to tingle in anticipation. The sensual smile he gave
her had her own sexual hunger climbing to a new level. Her nipples drew up into
taut peaks now visible beneath her wet tank top. Her breaths became shallow as
his large, warm hands ran up her thighs and over her hips, catching the hem of
her shirt and moving it slowly up her abdomen.

Her gaze remained locked on his as his fingertips brushed
over the exposed skin of her ribs. She trembled. His touch did things to her
that she couldn’t explain. With every breath she craved him more. Craved the
pleasure she now realized only Konrad could give her. He leaned forward and
placed a soft kiss on her lips, drew back and pulled her tank top over her
head. She lowered her arms, sliding them from his shoulders to his hands, which
rested on her sides. “Touch me,” she whispered.

She sucked in a hissed breath as he palmed her breasts. The
lacy material did little to hide her stiff nipples and she moaned as his thumbs
brushed across the sensitive tips. Her body hungered for him. She leaned into
his touch and he gave a gentle squeeze to her breasts that felt wonderful. A
sensual fog enveloped her as she sighed, baring her neck for his hot kisses.
Tomorrow she would worry about the full moon. Tonight she needed the comfort
she found in his embrace.

A sharp claw lightly traced a path between her breasts a
second before the lacy material gave way. A smile had her lips pulling up as he
continued a trail of open-mouthed kisses across her collarbone. “That bra was
one of my favorites I’ll have you know,” she chided, mock offense coloring her
words.

He growled against her flesh. “I liked it too. You’ll have
to buy a lot more so I can rip each one of them from you.”

She shivered and then gasped as he took her puckered nipple
into his mouth. He sucked the peak hard, wringing a cry of pleasure from her
lips as his hands gripped her hips, lifting her off the counter. He released
her nipple. Her own hands scrambled to help him rid her of her shorts, and she
kicked them off her feet as he lifted her into his arms. She wrapped her legs
around him, and the heat of his shaft slid against her wet, needy sex. A moan
parted her lips, and Konrad took advantage, devilling his tongue into the
depths of her mouth as he stepped into the shower.

The warm water beat against her skin and served to heighten
her arousal. Each droplet slid down her flesh with a sensual grace. Her nerves
became more sensitive, hungry for more stimulation. She rocked her hips against
him as she kissed him back enthusiastically. The long, hard glide of his
arousal stimulated her clit, making her throb with want.

He tore his mouth away from hers. “You feel so good. And
you’re so damn sexy.”

Tyra sucked in a sharp breath as his hand ran over the curve
of her ass, then lower, his fingers rubbing against her slick intimate folds.
As she rocked her hips back, he inserted a finger into her pussy and she
moaned.

“So tight and wet,” he half growled against the sensitive
skin of her neck.

A shiver of delight ran through her as she let her forehead
rest against his shoulder. Her hips undulated against him. Each movement
caressed her nub, sending ripples of desire through her cunt. As she rocked
back, he’d fill her with his finger that he flexed inside her, increasing the
pleasure. She wanted him. Now. “Please, Konrad.”

He slowly withdrew the digit and she whimpered, and then
gasped as he inserted a second. The exquisite torture he dished out to her body
had her drunk with desire. Her hand skimmed down between them and she gripped
his thick cock and began to work it as she rode his fingers. The moans and
growls of pleasure he released were music to her ears, an awesome accompaniment
to her own cries of pleasure. His cock pulsed beneath her fingers, matching the
small spasms that racked her vagina. Her pussy quickly became drenched from the
magic his fingers worked there.

She couldn’t take it anymore. She needed to know what his
smooth, marble-hard cock would feel like inside her. With her other hand braced
on his shoulder, she pushed her body up, his fingers slid free and she guided
the head of his cock to her entrance and glided down.

“Fuck, Tyra.” Konrad braced one hand on the tiled wall in
front of them as he cradled her ass with the other. “So soft and tight.” He
rocked his hips.

Tyra squirmed and moaned as she tried to take all of him in.
He stretched her, but the slight pain was nothing compared to the wondrous
feeling of him filling her. With one more pump of his hips, she felt her pelvis
meet flush against his and she couldn’t stop the deep moan of pleasure from
escaping her lips.

Konrad moved his hand away from the wall and placed it back
under her bottom, taking a step to bring her back against the wet tile. “Lean
back. I want to watch those beautiful breasts bounce as I fuck you.”

Tyra leaned back as instructed, bracing her palms against
his shoulders. Her gaze locked with his, the warm, rich amber glazed with his
desire. Then his lips were on hers and she glided her tongue against his. There
wasn’t anything gentle about the kiss. His lips staked their claim on her mouth
with a fiery passion. A wordless reminder that no one would ever be able to
fill her and love her as he could.

He pulled back and spoke next to her lips as a tremor ran
through his body. “I wanted to take you slow and easy this first time, but I
don’t think I can. I need you too much.”

“I don’t want you to go slow. I need you. Now. Please.”

She moaned as he withdrew and slammed back inside her,
hitting her G-spot just right. His answering growl had her pussy fisting around
him. He held her bottom in a tight grip as he began thrusting in and out of her.
She curled her fingers, digging into the solid flesh of his shoulders. “Yes,
Konrad.”

The slide of his cock against the sensitive inner flesh of
her core drove her mad. He hit all the right spots with each pump of his hips.
Her pussy creamed and quivered, begging for more. The scent of their sex filled
the small interior of the shower and wrapped around them, helping to drive her
toward the climax she so desperately wanted. The intensity built as he fucked
her hard, each slap of his pelvis against hers wringing cries of exquisite
ecstasy from her lips. She didn’t care who heard them. The world outside meant
nothing to her. Only him.

The small pulses began low in her belly, spreading through
her and into her core. Her clit tingled as she gave into the tide of pleasure
that washed through her. “Konrad!”

“Hell yeah, baby. Come for me.”

His husky whisper spread over her like an accelerant. Her
pussy pulsed and grew drenched as he picked up the pace, pistoning in and out
of her tight sheath. As one wave ebbed another crested and crashed over her,
taking her to a new level of satisfaction. She felt the first pulses of his
cock deep within her, and her quim responded in kind, milking him for his
release.

“Tyra. Mine!”

She trembled in his arms as his climax rocked them both. She
felt the jets of his hot cum filling her, sending her over the edge again as
the muscles of his lower body jerked against her.

Their breaths were rapid, and each of his stirred the fine
hairs around her neck, making her shiver. Slowly his hands released their hold
on her ass, and she slid down his body to stand on shaky legs. His lips found
hers and she sighed into the depths of his mouth as he kissed her with a
tenderness that broke her heart. Each kiss led into another as they stood flush
against each other, hands roaming over each other’s flesh.

She felt his cock twitch against her stomach and she
couldn’t help but smile against his lips. With a soft laugh, she pulled back
slightly. “My, my. Insatiable much?”

He gave her a wicked grin as he tightened his arms around
her body. “Only when it comes to you, my sexy mate. But this time I plan on
thoroughly exploring your body.”

Her hands ran up his chest and neck, fisting in his dark
hair. He bared his teeth, and a quiver of desire rolled through her. “Only if I
get to explore yours as well,” she whispered—a smooth, smoky sound.

He growled and nipped at her swollen lower lip. “Oh hell
yeah, baby.”

She tried to capture his lips with her own, but he moved out
of reach, teasing her mouth with his tongue and teeth but never delivering the
kiss she craved. He drove her wild.

Two could play at this game. She bent her knees and started
a sensual full-body caress as she made her way down his body. The hair on his
chest abraded her nipples and they puckered tight. He raised a questioning brow
as her face became level with his upper chest. She licked his erect nipple in
answer and continued her path down.

He groaned, tilting his head back, and she smiled as her
knees came to rest on the tile. His cock stood thick and proud in front of her.
She caressed it from base to tip, loving the velvet-smooth slide of it under
her fingers. It twitched and she saw the bead of moisture appear at the head.
She moved the tip of her finger across the slit and heard his sharp intake of
breath as she worked the slick pre-cum over the head of his cock. His head
snapped forward and she noticed his teeth had sunk down into his lower lip. The
sight caused her pussy to clench. Her gaze moved over the rugged handsomeness
of his face until she met his gaze. She watched his lids pull back as she
leaned forward, mouth open, a mere breath away from his hard dick.

Her lips wrapped around the silken smoothness of his
erection and she hummed in satisfaction as she watched his eyes grow heavy lidded
once again. She sucked him into her mouth. The salty taste of him washed over
her tongue as she moved her mouth as far down his shaft as she could. His large
hand cupped her check, and she leaned into his touch, letting her eyes close as
she savored the flavor of him.

“Tyra…feels so good,” Konrad moaned.

Her inner muscles spasmed and her core began to tingle as
she pumped his shaft with her hand, licking the head of his cock, before
dipping forward and sucking him into her mouth again. The sounds of pleasure he
released had her growing wetter and more eager to take him over the edge. She
wanted to feel his release coating her tongue and sliding down her throat. Her
lips moved faster along his shaft and she felt the muscles tense in his
powerful thighs as his hand moved from her face into her hair. She tilted her
head back, allowing him greater access to her mouth to take his pleasure. His
hips moved, but he was courteous not to harm her with his small thrusts. She
moaned and squeezed her thighs together as she allowed him to fuck her mouth.

The change in his breaths alerted her to his impending
release a moment before she heard him curse, then praise her name. Warm, salty
cum jetted into her mouth and she swallowed it down, bobbing her head when his
movements slowed so she could maximize the sensation he felt. With one last
hard suck, she released his cock. Tyra looked up and saw Konrad staring down at
her, a satisfied smile lifting the corners of his lips.