Caleb's Mate (Canyon Springs Book 1) Page 8

  Please, God. Don’t let her leave me.

  He clasped her hand at one point just to resume the contact. Every moment he wasn’t touching her stressed him out.

  It took fifteen minutes, but he finally pulled off the main street onto a side road that ran toward the edge of the closest mountain range.

  “It’s so gorgeous here,” she mused, glancing out the windshield every now and then. Her gaze always came back to him though. He liked that fact. He knew he affected her. Maybe it wasn’t as strong as she affected him, thus far, but she was growing more and more attached to him with each passing hour together.

  Caleb pulled the car off the gravel road into a clearing and stopped the engine. He released her only long enough to exit the SUV, round the hood, and open her door. Seconds later, he had her outside, planted against the warm car, his hands flattened on the frame at her sides.

  Her breathing was shallow as she tipped her face back. “It feels like every moment I’m more drawn to you, and yet you tell me you aren’t causing that.”

  He lifted a hand to tuck a long curl behind her ear. “I’m not causing it, Elena. Promise. It’s out of my control.”

  “Right. Fate. And Fate is a woman?” She gave him her humored but skeptical look, her eyes twinkling.

  “Yep. That’s how we think of Her. Not so much an actual being though as a force. As if She knows what’s best. She decides who belongs together and when they should meet. Shifters don’t question Her. But we definitely have our work cut out for us when we find out our mate is a human.” Work he would gladly do for as long as it took because the prize was precious.

  “How often does the human ignore the pull and leave town? I mean not everyone is capable of giving up their lives, dropping everything, and staying. People have responsibilities.”

  “It doesn’t happen often. And you know why. You’re living through it. You’re fighting it, but you feel it. And besides, there’s no law that says shifters can’t go anywhere they want.” He cupped her face and rubbed his finger against her cheek. “We’re all over the place. Sure, lots of us live in small towns around the world, but you don’t realize how many shifters live in and around you in larger cities too.”

  She tipped her head to one side. “Huh. I guess I wouldn’t know by looking, would I?”

  “Nope. We’re just regular people.”

  She grinned. “Except when you’re not.”

  “Except when we’re not.”

  “So…if I decided I couldn’t live without you, you would go to Chicago with me?” She grabbed his waist and pulled him closer.

  “In a heartbeat,” he responded without hesitation, making sure she was paying attention to how serious he was.

  She swallowed and nodded at him. “I believe you,” she murmured.

  He set his forehead against hers for a moment and then shoved off the car and took a step back. He wanted to kiss her, and he could have. But then they would have gotten lost in the lust again, and that wasn’t what they came out here for.

  “You wanted me to shift for you,” he pointed out as he tugged his T-shirt over his head and held it out for her.

  Her eyes widened as she took it from him. “How does this work? I didn’t think about your clothes.”

  He pulled off first one boot and then the other. “If I shift in my clothes, they’ll get destroyed. It has happened. Shredded. And then if I’m not near another pair of pants, I’m in trouble.” He grinned as he set his boots next to the SUV before unbuttoning his jeans.

  Her gaze was on his hands, and her cheeks were flushed. “You’re gonna…”

  “Strip? Yes. You could close your eyes or turn around if you want.” He hoped she wouldn’t, but he also wasn’t going to pressure her.

  “Nope. I’m good.” She licked her lips as he lowered the zipper. Damn, she was fucking cute.

  He continued to watch Elena’s every reaction as he lowered the jeans over his hips and down his thighs. His cock sprang free, hard as nails, bobbing against his stomach.

  Her breath hitched, but she didn’t look away.

  It took every ounce of self-control for him to keep from grabbing her and pressing his dick against her. He’d love to feel her smooth palm, or her mouth, wrapped around him. Jesus.

  Instead, he folded his jeans, took his T-shirt from her hands, and reached around her to set them on the front seat.

  She lifted a hand and stroked his arm when he got close. He gently removed her fingers and stepped back, pulling in a breath. “If I let you touch me, this will go in a different direction.”

  She nodded, biting into her lower lip.

  “So, I’m going to shift. It will look like a shimmer to you. It takes about ten seconds, and then I’ll be a large wolf standing in front of you. I’ll still be me. My mind will be inside the animal. I would never hurt you. You can touch me if you want. I’ll run toward the tree line at the base of the mountain and back. I won’t let you out of my sight.”

  She glanced around. “Is it unsafe?”

  “Not really. But there are real animals out here. Not all wolves and bears are shifters,” he pointed out, dipping his face to catch her eyes.

  “Right.”

  “Ready?”

  “I think so. It’s surreal though. I mean I’ve heard about it all my life, but seeing is entirely different.”

  “Yes, it is.” He stepped back, fully aware of his total nudity before her and the way her gaze kept scanning his body.

  The shit of it was that she was aroused. She liked what she saw, and besides her scent, she kept shuffling her weight back and forth from one foot to the other. Her hands were fisting and unfisting at her sides. She was nervous, but she also wanted him.

  He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and let the transformation wash through him, concentrating on his other half, his lupine side. As his body changed—hair replacing bare skin, bones distorting, face elongating—he had to concentrate. As soon as he landed on all fours, he was able to focus on Elena once again.

  She stood very still, eyes wide, breath caught, but she didn’t look like she was going to run. Her hand was on her chest, but that wasn’t surprising.

  For several seconds, he stayed right where he landed, let her take him in, get used to him, especially his size. Shifters were somewhat larger than their counterparts, but he found that most humans had never seen regular wolves up close and personal.

  Finally, she inhaled and dropped her hand, her feet moving toward him. Slowly. “Wow.” She lifted a shaky hand, and he dipped his head down so she could touch him without worry about getting bitten.

  When her hand landed on his fur, he felt a sense of peace. This was an important moment. She was handling it better than he’d expected.

  Caleb had heard stories from other shifters about the moment they revealed themselves to a human. Some were quite comical. Many humans freaked out and ran away or fell on their asses or screamed.

  Elena was calm. She came closer, buried her hand in his fur, petted him. Her fingers trailed down his back. “It seems weird,” she said. “I’m not sure if you meant for me to actually pet you.”

  He ducked his snout farther and rubbed her leg with the side of his head, letting her know she was welcome to do whatever she pleased.

  She continued to stroke him. “Your fur is coarser than I expected. I love the color. A combination of black and gray. It’s gorgeous.”

  Caleb closed his eyes and soaked in this moment. Every second with her was precious, but her acceptance of his wolf side was monumental. If she’d been afraid or unable to look at him, he would have been devastated.

  When she seemed to be done exploring, he stepped away from her, tipped his head toward the tree line, and took off at a run. It felt good to be in his lupine skin, freeing. It always did. He hadn’t shifted since last weekend when he came out here with Hunter to go for a run. It always helped clear his mind. Center him.

  Today he ran with purpose, showing off a bit. He loped toward the tree
s faster than usual, the wind whipping at his ears and pushing his fur away from his face. He glanced back several times, checking on Elena. Nothing would happen to her out here, not standing next to the car like she was, but he wasn’t going to waste time galivanting.

  When he hit the trees, he made a wide arc and started back toward her. Even from a distance, he could see her smile. Her face was lit up with excitement. He skidded to a stop right in front of her.

  She giggled. “Now I’m jealous.”

  Caleb settled, going into his head and concentrating on the shift, letting his body return to human form. Fifteen seconds later, he was once again standing next to her, winded, naked, and covered with a slight sheen of sweat.

  She threw herself at him so fast he lost his footing when he staggered backward and almost fell. Her arms went around his neck, and her lips came to his.

  He grabbed her waist and tipped his head to one side to enjoy the kiss. Nothing he’d ever experienced compared to the raw passion between them. Her scent was intoxicating. Perhaps his was too, considering the way she rubbed her belly against his thick cock.

  Her fingers slid to his shoulders, the tips digging into his skin. Her lips were swollen and needy, nipping at him while she let her tongue explore as if this might be the last kiss they ever experienced.

  Caleb walked her backward until her ass hit the side of the SUV, never breaking the kiss or even the pressure against his cock. This situation was way out of control. He had no intention of fucking her here in the middle of nowhere, and yet she was driving him to the brink of sanity.

  Her damn hands… They strayed down to his chest and then lower, working between their bodies until she gripped his cock.

  He groaned into her mouth, his brain cells dissolving. All he knew was the driving need to be inside her. Claim her. Take her as his.

  She broke the kiss, but only to continue nibbling down to his neck and then his chest.

  Caleb held her waist, forcing himself not to tear her clothes off. How ironic that he could have shredded his in the shift and would have grabbed a spare set from his trunk. Instead, it turned out her clothing was in far more danger of being ruined.

  He tipped his head back and gritted his teeth. When she dropped to her knees in front of him and immediately licked a line down his shaft, he growled. He was so fucking gone for her that he might howl like a wolf without being in his lupine skin.

  He slammed his hands against the side of the car, his feet planted, his body rigid.

  Elena wrapped one hand around the base of his shaft and sucked him into her mouth, moaning the entire time. Every movement of hers was desperate, as if she hadn’t eaten in weeks, and he was her first meal.

  A part of him thought he should stop her for so many reasons, but he couldn’t. He didn’t have that amount of willpower. He knew he’d be even more bonded to her from this experience, perhaps not as deeply as he would be after he thrust into her tight warmth, but far more than he already was.

  Fuck. Her mouth. Jesus. Her head twisted and turned in every direction as she bobbed on and off his cock. Her fingers slid up and down with her mouth. When she reached under his dick to cup his balls, his vision swam. He yanked his head down, trying to focus on her, seeing nothing but blond curls bouncing around as she thoroughly enjoyed herself.

  He knew she wanted this by the eagerness she exhibited. The noises coming from her lips to vibrate against his dick. The scent of her arousal wafting up to his nose.

  Finally, he managed to slide one hand down to cup her head, forcing himself not to pull or push against her, but needing the contact, the feel of her soft curls threaded through his fingers.

  Time stood still as his balls drew up, and his body raced toward climax. He curled his toes under, fighting off the orgasm, not wanting this feeling to end. He never wanted her to stop. He wanted to freeze-frame this moment for the rest of his life.

  The tornado couldn’t be halted though, and moments later, he came, forceful juts of his come hitting the back of her throat. She sucked him harder, swallowing every drop, milking him so fucking perfectly.

  When he was thoroughly spent, she eased off, kissing his still-hard shaft and then his belly before finally tipping her face back and meeting his gaze. “That was so hot,” she murmured.

  He chuckled. “Baby, that was way beyond hot. You took me by surprise.” He was breathing heavily, unable to slow his heart rate.

  Her face flushed as she rose to standing. “I couldn’t stop myself. It’s like I was someone else.” She grabbed him by the waist and set her forehead against his chest. “Something took over,” she continued. “Seeing your naked body…and the way you ran toward me…and then your scent…and Jesus.”

  His hands were shaking as he cupped her head and lifted it so that he could see her eyes. “You unman me. I lose track of everything when I’m with you. When you look at me. I couldn’t stop you.”

  “I didn’t want you to stop me.” Her face pulled in. “Did I do it right?”

  His eyes shot wide. “Did you…do it right?” He grabbed her waist, lifted her off the ground, and pressed her back against the car so that her face was level with his. “You couldn’t have done that more right, Elena.”

  She smiled, her face flushing further. “Good.” She wrapped her legs around his waist.

  A war ensued inside Caleb’s head. He needed to taste her. He needed to see all of her so badly he was trembling. Could he stop himself from claiming her fully if he stripped her clothes off and suckled her pussy?

  Fuck it. He had to do it. There was no way to stop himself. He held on to her around the waist and walked around to the back of the SUV. With one hand, he opened the hatch. Thank God the back row of seats were down, giving him plenty of space to lay her on her back inside the car.

  She squealed as he nearly dropped her on her butt, so eager to get her clothes off that gentle had flown out the window. Her knees were covered with dirt from kneeling before him, so he brushed them off and then tugged her sweet body to the edge of the trunk.

  Forcing himself to slow down, he planted his hands on either side of her waist and met her gaze. “I’ve never wanted anyone so badly in my life. Please let me see you. All of you.”

  Chapter 13

  Elena nodded, or she thought she did. She must have given him some sort of acknowledgement because two seconds later, his hands were on the hem of her tank top, shoving it up over her head.

  She scrambled to help him, arms everywhere while she got tangled in the shirt. Before she was completely free of it, his hands were on her breasts and he leaned over her body to drag his tongue alone the edge of her bra straight down into her cleavage.

  She arched her chest upward. Every single touch sent sparks flying. She needed more, and she shoved at him so that she could rise up and unhook her bra. As it fell away, he pushed her back down, one hand cupping a breast while his mouth came over the other. Bombarded with sensations, she couldn’t even think as his lips sucked her nipple, his tongue flicked the tip, and his other hand pinched its twin.

  Elena flattened her palms on the carpeted floor of the car, trying to get some sort of purchase as if she might fall. The world spun, and before she realized what was happening, his free hand was working on her shorts. He unbuttoned and unzipped them in rapid time.

  One second his lips were wrapped around her nipple, the next second he’d switched breasts, drawing the other swollen bud into his mouth hard enough to sting. His hands were on her shorts, tugging them and her panties over her hips.

  She gladly lifted her butt to help speed things up. She needed him inside her. Now. His glorious naked body hovered over her, and she craved the feeling of his thick cock inside her tight sheath.

  When he finally released her nipple with a pop, his lips trailed kisses down the center of her belly, making a line toward her sex.

  Elena gasped when his hands grabbed her thighs and pushed them wide, spreading her open. Cool air hit her sex, sending a slight panic to her s
ystem when she realized his lips were precariously close to her clit. Not only had she never gone down on a man before, but no one had done so to her either.

  A blow job was one thing, but what did women taste like? She trembled, half of her wanting to stop him to avoid the uncomfortable situation, the other half wanting to set her hands on his head and encourage him further.

  She never got a chance to ponder the embarrassment because his lips landed on her sex two seconds later, his tongue flicking over her clit and then plunging into her channel.

  Elena cried out, her body shaking as he pressed her thighs wider. Her hands were trapped under her knees. And oh God… His mouth. What the hell was he doing with his lips?

  Tasting. Licking. Sucking. Everywhere at once. His tongue was relentless in its quest to torture her. It was too much and not enough. Sensations everywhere. Tingling. Wetness leaking out of her. Clit throbbing.

  And then the world spun when he circled her clit with his lips and sucked it into his mouth, tongue flicking over the tip rapidly.

  Elena screamed. She had no idea if there were words or just raw noise.

  Caleb continued his torment, sucking and licking while waves of pleasure washed through her. Far better than anything she’d ever experienced alone, and ten times better than anything she’d ever experienced at the hands of the two men she’d slept with. Those two paled miserably in comparison to Caleb Tanner.

  When her sex grew too sensitive, she winced, and Caleb immediately let up, kissing her sweetly all around her sex.

  She was panting, partially sated, also still craving more. It felt naughty and wicked to want more. But she did.

  Caleb lifted his face and smiled at her as he wiped his mouth on the back of his hand. “My God, baby. I’ll never get enough of you.”

  She did not recognize the woman who responded. “Good. Start now. I need you inside me.” Her channel gripped at nothing as though disappointed it had been left out. Except for his tongue, Caleb hadn’t entered her.

  She glanced down at his thick erection. He was ready again. She needed to feel him inside her. She scooted forward, trying to line up better with his shaft.