Untamed: an Alpha's Love (Paranormal Werewolf Shifter Romance) (8 page)

CHAPTER
SIXTEEN

Charmaine woke to Parker's clean pine scent and realized his arms were wrapped tightly around her. "Don't hate me," he pleaded softly in her ear. She struggled against him, but he held her fast, apologizing over and over, his breath tickling her cheek. "I love you so much," he vowed. "And I hate myself for making you so mad last night."

"You were an asshole." She was still unyielding against him.

"I was," he agreed brushed his lips lightly across her jawline.

She willed herself not to melt into his familiar touch. He was going to have to work a bit harder than that after the way he'd behaved the night before. His erection pressed into her buttocks and she scooted away from it.

"Baby, please..." he crooned, nuzzling the nape of neck but allowing her the space she'd created between them. His fingers held her waist, the tips just under the edge of her tee shirt, barely touching her skin. She felt the warmth of his hands all over and fought with herself not to give in.

"Promise you'll stop hiding things from me." Her body betrayed her as he pushed back against her and she let him, arching her buttocks lightly into his firm bulge. She bit her lip as he rocked against her, his hard length nestling at the apex of her thighs.

"I won't do it again, I promise." His fingers slid up her rib cage and then held there, burning her skin, waiting for permission to touch higher. She fought valiantly against the urge to turn to him and just beg him to take her, hard. Already his touches had her hot and soaked between her thighs. She shifted a bit, giving him silent access, and breathed into his touch. Ever so gently his hands traveled up her sides to the under-swell of her breasts, every little stroke easing a bit more of her anger.

"You'll include me in everything?" It was getting harder to keep her voice stern as he palmed one breast in his hand before plucking gently at the nipple with his expert fingers.

"Everything, I swear." His teeth grazed her earlobe just as he rolled her nipple between his fingers, not gently. She stifled a whimper and rocked back against his bulge.
No fair, fighting with sex,
she thought, though she'd just done the very same thing to him. "I love you," he murmured into her ear.

She answered with a defeated sigh.

"I need you," he whispered before turning her gently onto her back. He trailed his tongue along her collarbone before dipping his head to taste one stiff peak.

"We're partners," she whispered furiously as he twirled his tongue around her nipple and kissed back up her chest.

"Partners," he echoed, tugging her tee shirt over her head.

He twined his fingers in her hair and seized her mouth. His tongue darted over her lips until she moaned into his kiss. Gently he took her bottom lip between his teeth and tugged.

"Partners," he repeated softly before kissing her again, slow and deep, covering her body with his own, just close enough that she could feel his heat. He was propped on his elbows above her, his sea glass eyes blazing when she looked into them.

"Tell me you love me," he urged, his voice cracking.

"I love you, Parker," she sighed against his lips. "I love you so much. I don't want to argue." He groaned in response and kissed her again, harder this time, his teeth knocking against hers as he devoured her mouth.

Her legs parted, inviting him in, but he stayed on his knees between them until she slid her hands over his bare buttocks and pulled him closer. He felt so good through the flimsy barrier of her panties, his powerful erection straining to get to her secret flesh, but drawing it out was exciting her more than she thought possible.

He ground into her, his fingers gripping her hips as he rocked her. "I can feel how wet you are right through those panties," he whispered into her ear. "Fuck, Charmaine." Little shocks ran down her spine. "I can feel how much you want me."

"Yes," she breathed.

"Tell me what you want me to do."

"I want this. Just stay like this for a minute more." The friction was exquisite, and she knew she was denying him—just a little bit—while she was getting pleasure. Soon enough she'd let him inside her. But for now, the tease was turning her on more than anything. She shuddered against him and clutched his rib cage with her knees, coaxing him like a stallion.

He pressed harder against her, bumping against her clit at exactly the right angle, every movement giving her indescribable pleasure. Charmaine moaned and raked her nails down Parker's back, loving his sharp intake of breath as she dug into his smooth skin. Her hands clutched his ass and urged him on.

"I want to make you come," he rasped.

"I'm going to come like this," she gasped, sinking her teeth into his shoulder, tasting his sweat and inhaling his musky, masculine scent. She squeezed her eyes closed, concentrating on their movement together. He was really giving it everything now, riding her as if he were already buried deep inside her. With every thrust of his hips he drove her closer to the breaking point. She turned her mind off and luxuriated in the sensations his body was causing hers, her heart hammering in her chest as the approach of her climax unwound within her.
Oh, he feels so good, he feels so fucking good.

"Let me inside you. I want to feel you." His voice was so feral, so needy that she broke against him, clutching her thighs around his waist as she rode out her orgasm.

Goosebumps sprouted all over her skin and she shivered against him, gasping his name. Without waiting for her to finish coming, he snatched her panties and shoved them down one leg, lifting her hips and plunging into her slick heat. She cried out his name and he slung her legs over his shoulders, the lacy pink garment still dangling around one ankle as he thrust into her again and again.

All her internal muscles clenched involuntarily around him as she recovered from her pleasure, but the friction caused the telltale coiling to begin again. This time was exponentially more powerful, coming from some place deep inside her. She arched against him, gritting her teeth and whimpering into his chest.

"Let go, Baby," he groaned. "Let me hear you." Sharp cries burst from her, punctuated by his steady thrusts. Above her Parker labored, his forehead glistening, his eyes hazy with bliss, until seconds later he gasped, "Charmaine! Oh, Baby, yes..." and jerked inside her. He collapsed on her, pinning her hands to the bed and seeking her lips, sealing them together with a tender kiss.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Holy fuck
. Every time he made love to Charmaine she blew his mind in some new way. He rained grateful kisses on her eyelids and lips, basking in her softness beneath him. The memory of her ecstatic cries echoed in his ears. Knowing he had satisfied her so thoroughly gave him the confidence of a king. Now that she was speaking to him again, he could make it up to her. He'd do anything, just like he said.

"I don't like arguing," he murmured finally.

"Neither do I." Her huge blue eyes welled with tears and she turned away.

"Shhh... Baby, it's okay," he whispered. "It's over. I'm so sorry."

"I know," she sniffled. "I know you are."

"Please don't cry."

"It was so horrible to fight with you."

"I know. I know. It's done." He buried his face between her breasts and she cradled him there.

I have to tell her that Christopher is still a threat
, he thought. But then she whispered his name and looked up at him through her damp eyelashes and begged, "Kiss me," and he forgot there was anything else to say.

***

An hour later he wrapped her in his bathrobe and led her out to the kitchen to make her breakfast. He loved looking at her, perched on a stool wearing just his robe and her rings. He poured her some juice and almost burned the eggs as he watched her gulp it down, her throat working with every swallow, one creamy thigh exposed where it crossed over the other shapely leg.

He was selfishly thankful that they she'd lost her job if only because it would allow them more time to themselves before the baby came. For now he could do nothing but make love to her all day if he felt like it, and the more he thought about it, the more he wanted to do just that. Before they'd even finished breakfast he could think of nothing but peeling her out of that robe and skimming his hands over her beckoning flesh.

He shook his head to clear his horny thoughts. "So when will we have our Mating Ceremony?" he asked. He wanted that final piece in place, the sooner the better.

She smiled coyly at him. "I'm already planning it in my head. I think maybe this coming Saturday."

Thank God, less than a week
.

"Do we need to do anything to prepare for it?"

She shrugged. "Not really. Think Vegas, but with people we love there. I'll call my mom and see if that day's okay with her. I want her there, of course."

"And Scottie?"

She took a long time to respond, and when she did her smile didn't quite reach her eyes. "I think just my mom, your parents, and Maddie," she replied. "Let's keep it low-key."

Good
, he thought selfishly. Two seconds later he chided himself,
That line of thinking is what caused our disagreement, you idiot.
He said nothing, just leaned across the counter to give her a chaste kiss. But she caught him by surprise, parting her lips and searching for his tongue with her own, moaning softly into his mouth. He kissed her ravenously, breaking away just long enough to get to the same side of the counter, moving swiftly to take her into his arms.

Charmaine had always been responsive, but pregnancy made her insatiable. He untied the robe and she shrugged it off her shoulders as her hands busily sought his solid length through his pants. Her touch was magical, soft and insistent, like he imagined some sort of nymph's might be if such creatures existed. She coaxed his erection out of his pants and her fingers slicked through his pre-come, glazing the head of his cock. He groaned aloud, his groin seizing almost painfully, when she made a show of sucking it off her fingertips.

That drove him over the edge. Her blue eyes shimmered with desire as he hoisted her into his arms and carried her to their bedroom, his mouth on hers, tasting his own desire on her tongue. He had half a mind to drop her on the hallway runner and take her there.

"What haven't we christened?" he growled, setting her on her feet just inside their bedroom door.

"This," she replied without hesitation, motioning to the bench at the foot of their bed and crawling onto it. She looked up at him from her hands and knees, her eyes the very mirror of his own urges, and arched her back. From between her thighs her swollen, moist sex peeked at him, and the proof of her desire made his mouth dry. "Again," she begged softly, and he was more than happy to oblige her.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

It was several hours later when a shrill ringing interrupted their lazy nap. Charmaine bolted upright in bed, her heart racing, registering through her sleep-filled haze that the sound was coming from the kitchen.
The landline
.

"Parker, the phone—" But he was already out of bed, his bare buttocks winking as he dashed from the bedroom.

Eleven o'clock. I can't believe we slept that long.
Parker grabbed the phone on the last ring and she heard the low rumble of his voice.
I wonder who that is? Everyone calls the cell phone.
Frowning, she reached on the bedside table for Parker's phone and tapped the screen.
Shit. Dead battery
. That explained the call to the seldom-used house phone.

With a sigh she rooted in the drawer for the charger, plugged in his phone to juice up the battery, and then went looking for her own phone. The screen lit up, displaying several missed calls from both Lena and Maddie, and her stomach flip-flopped as she realized what was happening. She braced herself for Parker's return, too terrified to listen to her voice mails.

His quick steps down the hallway told her it wasn't too late. "We have to go to my parents' house right now. Shit. My cell phone battery must be dead. I don't even know where I left it..." He looked absentmindedly around the room.

"Is it your dad?" Charmaine coaxed.

"Yeah." He blinked, as if just remembering the reason for his mother's call. "He's not good. Hospice is there. They think it will be a few days, tops. So pack some things. We're going there and staying until—" He stopped himself. "It might be a week. I'm not leaving that house."

"Okay," she agreed softly. "I'll get some stuff together." She took the phone from him and took it back into the kitchen. When she returned, he was standing in the middle of the room, his pants in his hand, looking like a lost child.

"Babe?" She approached him and he gazed at her in stunned silence, his movements heavy as if in slow motion.
Shock
. "What can I do? Do you want me to pack a bag for you, too?"

He nodded, the color drained from his face.

"Why don't you get dressed and I'll pack for both of us."

He nodded again and slowly drew on his clothes while she scrambled to pack both their overnight bags. In less than ten minutes she had the Audi packed and came back into the house just as Parker was pulling on his coat.

"I'm driving," she insisted, and for once he didn't argue, climbing obediently into the passenger seat of his own car.

They drove almost fifteen miles in silence before Parker spoke. "His organs are failing," he said, his voice so low she almost didn't hear him.

"I'm so sorry, Baby." Her own eyes filled with tears as she thought of losing the man who had become an important part of her life in such a short time. In some ways he had already been like a father to her.
Had he looked that bad when we last saw him
? But cancer was a merciless opponent. She'd always known things could turn for Dominic at any moment, she just somehow believed they wouldn't. Blinking to clear the blur from her vision she took her husband's hand in hers. Parker had been her rock, and now it was her turn to support him in his hour of need. He answered her touch with a squeeze and a half-smile.

The Kreuger house was quiet when they arrived, but as Lena embraced them both she informed them that Dominic was awake and lucid. "You should be with him now," she told Parker, her voice shaky with grief. "Don't wait. If you have anything to say to him..."

Charmaine went into the living room and found Maddie sitting on the couch, staring at her cell phone, her mouth twisted and her brow furrowed as she played a game.
Shit. The dance
. "We never went shopping," she realized, her heart in her throat.
Way to bail on your new sister-in-law
, she scolded herself.

Maddie gazed back at her blankly. "What? Oh. Yeah." She shrugged. "They canceled that dance, you know, because of the accident. Since so many kids died and all. A bunch of kids were still on crutches and stuff, so I guess they figured we wouldn't have much fun."

"What about your dress?"

The younger girl sighed. "Maybe I can get it for the end-of-year dance. That is if no one drives any more buses off the cliff." Her voice hardened at the end.

"I'll still take you, if you want."

"My dad's going to die. Soon," she said matter-of-factly. Her eyes dared Charmaine to disagree with her.

Charmaine nodded.

"I mean, I guess. No one tells me anything." With her stubborn jaw she looked so much like Parker that Charmaine longed to clutch her close and comfort her.
I know what it's like when everyone wants to protect you
, she thought, looking into Maddie's eyes. Today she looked so much older than her twelve years.

Charmaine cleared her throat. "You know what hospice is, right?"

"It's for people who are about to die," Maddie replied bluntly.

Clever girl.
"Yes. They think it might happen this week."

Maddie was still for a moment, processing the information, and then she nodded slowly, as if satisfied with the answer. Her eyes fixed on Charmaine's face. "Mom said your dad just died recently."

"He did. He had a heart attack and then a stroke."

"It was sudden?"

"Pretty sudden."

"Did you get to say goodbye?"

"No. Not like I wanted to." A lump rose in her throat and she fought back the stinging behind her eyelids.

"My dad's been sick for a while. It feels weird to say goodbye to him when he's awake, though. If I say that to him, won't he think..." she trailed off, a troubled look on her face. "Isn't that like telling him I think he's going to die?"

Charmaine shook her head. "No, sweetie. Your dad knows he's dying. I think you should say whatever you want to say to him. Do it now, while he can still hear you. And then when he's gone you won't be mad at yourself for not telling him."

Maddie took it all in, her eyes solemn. "Did you wish you got to do that?"

"Yes. And your dad has been like a father to me. We've talked about his dying. It's not as sad as you think to talk about it. It just seems really hard before you actually do it. I wish I got to say all those things to my own dad. But he was gone so fast. You should talk to him, Maddie. Don't let him leave without saying all the things you want to say."