Mr. Red Riding Hoode

Chapter Five

Okay. So maybe this wasn’t going quite the way she’d hoped it would. She’d planned on answering all his questions, yes, but she had hoped she wouldn’t terrify him.

Again.

Damn it.

Why had he followed them the other night? The man should have stayed inside and sipped hot cocoa laced with Tia Maria or something; anything but see something he wasn’t quite ready for.

Gah. What a mess.

“Steve?”

He looked up at her, his face pale, his eyes wild. “Mate?”

She nodded. “We know the moment we hear your voice, get a whiff of your scent. It’s…” She breathed deep, his musky scent wrapping around her like a warm cloak. “It’s delicious.”

He shuddered, the ever-present hint of fear spiking again. “I’m gamey. And stringy. And have I mentioned I taste like ass?”

She bit her lip, trying to hold back her laugh. “Tasted a lot of asses, have you?”

The color came flooding back into his face, embarrassment pouring off him in waves that nearly made her dizzy. “That’s more Ben’s kink.”

Her laugh broke free, and she could feel his delight, his happiness. He liked making her laugh, and the knowledge gave her hope. “If it makes you feel any better, Ben and Dave are mates.”

That quickly his pleasure disappeared. “I feel like I’m in a dream, and I can’t decide if it’s a nightmare or a comedy.”

She schooled her features as best she could. “Definitely comedy. Think Keystone Cops.”

The small smile she received wasn’t what she’d hoped for, but she’d take it. “I could see Dave wearing one of those stupid-looking domed hats.”

“And Ben falling all over himself and everyone else.”

“And Rick yelling at all of them?”

She nodded and helped him up. That little dose of silliness had gotten him over at least some of the fear, and he no longer looked ready to pass out at any second. “The food’s getting cold.” Above all else, the urge to take care of her mate was strong.

“Yeah.” He picked up the knife and fork and eyed her warily. “Are you going to get pissed if I moan?”

She shook her head, trying to appear small and unthreatening. She even hunched in her seat a little. “No.”

He sighed and took a bite, but some of his enjoyment seemed to have disappeared. “You don’t have to be afraid of me.”

She sat up straight. “Not you, your reactions. I don’t want you to be scared of me.” Not now, not ever. She’d defend Steven Hoode with her very life. She bit her lip and hoped she wasn’t about to push his boundaries too hard. “I could prove that we’re mates.”

“How?”

She watched him take another bite, enjoying his reluctant shiver of pleasure. Her mate was a sensual creature. She’d enjoy feeding him in the future. “If I give you the mating bite, you’d feel the pull.”

His eyes went wide. “Bite?”

She nodded.

“Um. If you bite me, will I change into…?” He waved at her, and she understood.

“Yes.”

“And if I’m not your mate?”

He was remarkably patient, her mate. He only tapped his foot as she rolled on the floor, laughing her ass off. He didn’t once yell at her to get up or anything.

She wiped a tear away from her eye as she took her seat once more. “Trust me. We’re mates.”

Thank God amusement seemed to be taking over from the fear. Apparently he found her funny. “And this bite will prove it?”

“Yup.”

“And your Alpha approved this.”

“He already accepted you. You’re one of us now, a protected member of the Pack.” Mate or not, the moment Rick had howled his recognition, Steve had been theirs. Rick would eviscerate anyone who tried to harm him without a second thought.

“So…one of you would be biting me anyway to change me.”

Oh, he was bright once he got over his fear. She liked that, even if some of his questions made her want to laugh. Silver bullets? Really? “Ben would probably do it, since he’s the one who first petitioned for you to become a member.”

He blinked, his expression utterly horrified. “I’m not his mate too, am I?”

Again, all he did was tap his foot while she laughed hysterically.

“I’m glad you think this is funny. No, really. Seeing Ben’s hairy, naked ass the other night wasn’t traumatizing enough, now you have to tell me he could bite me and make me crave cock.” He gagged, making her laugh harder. “No offense to Ben or Dave, but I really like boobs. They’re soft, and squishy, and the owner makes such interesting noises when you—”

“Steven!” He’d cupped his hands in front of his chest, his fingers flexing, and she couldn’t stop laughing.

“What? This is important. The last thing I want to do is look at Rick and think mmm, redhead.”

Steven Hoode was going to be the death of her. “No, silly. Even if Ben changed you, he can’t mate you. The enzyme for mating only releases with the person who is our mate. No one else. You can’t force someone to mate.”

“So if I said no?”

She winced. Ouch. The last thing she wanted to hear was that he was thinking of denying her. “I would walk away, and Rick or Ben would bite you.” She’d die inside a little every day until she went feral, but she would give him what he needed.

His eyes narrowed. “So you’re saying that either way I’m going to wind up wolfing out.”

She nodded. She didn’t want to lie to him, not about something as important as this. “Rick accepted you. It’s inevitable. The only thing that isn’t is our mating.”

He contemplated her for a moment, and she just knew he was turning everything over in his head. “Will it hurt?”

“The bite, you mean?”

“No. Wolfing out.”

She smiled. That was an easy question to answer. “It’s more like flowing into something new. It’s…indescribable. There’s no screaming agony, no crunching of bones. Just a pleasant tingle.”

That seemed to ease Steve. “Anything else I should know?”

“You’d be under Rick, subject to his commands, like every other Wolf in the Pack.”

“I figured. Anything else?”

“Ah.” She tugged on the end of her ponytail. “There’s a mild side effect of the mating bite.”

He sagged. “I knew it.”

“You’ll get so horny you’ll be blind with it.”

He cleared his throat and sat up straight again. “So…I’ll jump anything that moves and hump it like a dog.”

Chela growled. “No. You’ll only hump me.”

“If Ben bites me?”

“That bite would be different. It’s only a changing bite, not a mating bite.” She shrugged. “It will hurt, but you won’t wind up chock-full of lust either.” And if that was the route he wanted to go, she’d allow it. He’d feel the pull once his wolf woke up, and they’d be mated later rather than sooner.

Now that the mate dreams had started, she didn’t think she’d be able to keep away from him. She just prayed he didn’t want Ben to change him, that he accepted she was the one who was going to give him the bite. So she played her last card and hoped it worked. “Do you want Ben kissing your neck?”

The way his eyes went wide would have made her laugh again if this weren’t the moment she’d been waiting for. She held her breath, praying with everything in her that Steve chose her.

He stared down at his half-eaten steak, his expression grim. His emotions were all over the place, making her dizzy. But when they finally settled down, when his blue eyes finally met hers again, she nearly sagged in relief. He’d made his decision.

Steven nodded once. “If you’re telling me the truth, then I’d rather you bite me.”

Chela stood. She could barely keep the smile off her face. “You won’t regret this.”

He grimaced. “There’s a lot of questions I still have, but…” He sighed. “Ben has never once hurt me. I have to trust in that, if nothing else.”

That wasn’t exactly what she’d hoped to hear, but she’d take it. She’d work on winning his heart after he’d accepted the bite.

She was patient.

She opened her mouth so he could watch her fangs grow in. She wanted him a part of this, to see everything that was about to happen. Her eyes changed, going over to her wolf’s. Her vision changed as she lost the red-green spectrum. His red shirt now appeared to be deep mustard yellow, but his blue eyes darkened, sharpened. His blond hair appeared lighter, almost white.

He looked ethereal yet strong, a fairy warrior come to life just for her.

“Holy shit. What big teeth you have, Grandma.”

She wasn’t fooled. The sight of her fangs had made him fearful again. “This won’t hurt, I swear.”

“You can say that, but you aren’t the one facing the fangs.”

She tried for humor once more. She shook her head and tsked. “Just because you’re a virgin…”

He glared at her. “I am not.”

She put her hand on her chest and fluttered her lashes. “Oh, it’s so big. I… I don’t think it will fit.”

“I hate you right now.”

Except she knew he didn’t. She could feel it, the uneasiness, but there was no hatred. Hatred burned, was acrid against her senses. Even when his fear had been at its highest point she hadn’t felt that. “At worst, it might sting a little, like getting a shot.”

“Have I mentioned I hate needles?” He stood, towering over her. “Just…” He sighed, his emotions all over the place again, a jumble of nerves and fear and desire making her head spin. “Let’s get this over with, okay?”

“You’re so romantic.” She tugged on his shirt, pulling him down so she could reach his neck. “I promise I’ll be gentle, you virgin, you.”

His laugh had a bite of hysteria to it, but she didn’t give him time to think. She brushed her lips against his skin, the scent of him overwhelming. She wrapped her arms around his waist, her teeth scraping against his skin. Before he could protest, she sank her fangs into him, her joy nearly overwhelming as she released the mating enzyme.

He was hers, and soon, she would be his.

Whatever the fuck she’d just done to him, she needed to bottle it, because she’d make a fortune. Heat raced through him, his cock turning so hard he was afraid if he moved it might simply snap off from being confined by his jeans.

And not even that image did anything to dampen the desire to rip Graciela’s clothes off and fuck her until she walked funny.

He needed. He’d never needed anything the way he did Graciela. He had to make her squirm, make her want as much as he did. If he didn’t get her out of her clothes and on his cock in the next two seconds, he might just explode in a shower of lust-filled goo.

He was tugging at her shirt before her teeth left his skin, desperate to feel her golden skin against his, test the weight of her breasts against his palms.

She licked his neck, right where she’d bitten him, and he nearly dropped to his knees. He shuddered, the feel of her tongue on that mark making him crazy with want.

This was the result of the mating bite? This unwavering need to sink inside her, make her scream his name? The urge to come and come and come inside her until they didn’t know where she ended and he began?

Hell. He should have said yes immediately.

He couldn’t wait any longer. He tugged her head back by her ponytail, devouring her mouth with all the savagery of a starving man. Clothes flew off as he pushed and pulled, hauled and yanked until she was naked, barely breaking the hungry kisses long enough to remove her shirt.

She whimpered as he picked her up and carted her off to the bedroom, his hands tight on her firm, naked ass. And it was a fine ass too. Nicely rounded in all the right places. It fit his hands perfectly.

She fit his hands perfectly. Part of him was terrified by that. A small, miniscule part that he promptly stomped on with all his might.

The larger part of him wanted to know if she was a moaner or a screamer. He intended to find out.

She wrapped her legs around his waist, her arms around his neck. She was driving him crazy, her mouth busy on that fucking bite she’d given him, making him nearly drop her as pleasure raced through him.

In record time he had her flat on her back on the bed, her legs over his forearms, her body spread for his viewing pleasure. The only problem was he couldn’t get enough of her mouth, of the way she tasted on his tongue. Pulling away to stare at his prize was just too much. He greedily sipped at her lips, drugging himself on her flavor, embedding it into his very soul.

Eventually he’d want to taste her pussy, see if she was as sweet there, but for now he simply couldn’t make himself leave her lips.

“Please.” She was tugging on his biceps, begging him, her breasts pressing against his chest as she arched into him, tempting him. His cock nudged her opening, startling him with how wet she already was. Her scent filled the air, warm woman and need captivating his senses.

But instead of plunging into her, he bent to her breasts, taking one hard nipple in his mouth for a good, long suck that had her gasping under him. God, she tasted good here too, golden and warm as honey. She whimpered, her hands scrabbling against his skin, scoring it with her nails.

She’d drawn blood, and for just a second he worried about wolf claws. When he glanced out of the corner of his eye, all he saw were the same pretty hands, the same short, clean nails with their deep pink polish.

“Steven. Please!” She arched against him, an aching cry falling from her lips, her body shuddering as he continued to suckle her.

Something settled inside him. That was what he’d needed, to feel her shudder in pleasure, to…to come for him.

He could fuck her now, take her, make her his.

But not yet. That shuddering, sweet cry had given him more satisfaction than fucking any of his former girlfriends had. He needed to hear it one more time before he finally took her.

Oh. My. God. Where had this man been all her life?

His tongue lapped at her pussy, tasting her, teasing her. It was all she could do just to hold on to the bedsheets, praying she didn’t lose her mind.

He was good, better than any man she’d ever been with. Not that that was saying much. Chela was willing to bet he’d had far more partners than she’d ever had. Handsome, rich and a magic tongue?

She needed to stop thinking about that or she’d wind up in New York, hunting down some hoes.

“Oh. Steve.” He’d hit that spot, the one very few of her partners had found on their own, the one that made her want to buck and scream. His fingers entered her, fucking her gently as he continued to lap her clit in just the right spot.

She whined, chasing the orgasm that wanted to devour her. She couldn’t wait until Steve’s fangs grew in. He’d bite her, claim her, mark her—

The orgasm took her by surprise, ripping through her with all the force of a tsunami. She shuddered, moaning, her mate’s touch gentling as her body rode the wave.

He licked his lips, shooting her a hot look before bending to her thigh. He bit, sucking up a human mark that would fade in a few days.

But his mark would be on her, and somehow she understood that, when the time came, he’d bite her there for real.

“Steve.” She was getting restless, needed to feel him inside her. That final joining, his body to hers, would cement their mating. “Fuck me. Please.”

He snarled, and for just a moment she could see the Wolf peeking out at her. She grinned. She’d known he’d be strong, that his Wolf would want out sooner rather than later.

And when his Wolf came out, it would come with a vengeance. He’d hunt her down, mark her, bind them together for eternity.

Chela could hardly wait.

Steve kissed Graciela again, plunging into her moist depths with tongue and cock. Her wet heat wrapped around his cock and he moaned. God, she was tight, and wet, and moving under him in the best possible ways.

She growled, that inhuman sound she’d made earlier, but instead of terrifying him, this time it made him want to fuck her harder. He began nibbling at the side of her neck, inordinately pleased when she moaned and moved for him. Her head tilted to the side, granting him access to whatever part of her neck he wanted.

He used his teeth, scraping along her tight skin.

She gasped, coming for him again, tightening around his cock in a rhythm as old as time. The sensation nearly drove him over the edge as well, but he wanted to make this last, so he slowed down, allowed her to catch her breath.

When she began tugging on his hair he moved faster, giving her what she wanted, what they both had to have. She began speaking in Spanish, broken words he didn’t understand. Her dark eyes were golden brown from desire, her pupils dilating as she spasmed around him one last time.

When she sank her fangs into him again he shuddered, pouring into her as he came so hard he saw stars. Everything went dark as ecstasy took over, blinding him to everything but her.

He panted, staring down at the woman who’d just flipped his world-view upside down. “Shit.”

Graciela licked her lips, tempting him into another kiss, one he took with enthusiasm even as his mind reeled.

He’d been bitten by the wolf, and he couldn’t have been happier.