Big Bad Bite Page 24

  She tried not to tense her body. What had Logan said this morning that put Adam on edge? Out of the corner of her eye she watched as he grabbed the clean washcloth hanging from a bar and soaped it up. Picking up one of her hands he started to swipe the cloth over her in small increments. He might be doing it to get her clean, but every little brush of the soft cloth on her skin left tingles in its wake. He made his way from her fingers and hand, up over her arm, in slow sweeps until he reached her shoulder before switching to the other limb. By the time he picked up that hand her body was humming, and it seemed a distant memory that he’d just given her pleasure that morning. Wasn’t it time for them to make out a little more?

  Wait, why did that sound so teenager-ish? God, she sucked at this dating thing.

  “Jenna.”

  She jumped at Adam’s low voice in her ear. “Huh?”

  “Do I have your attention now, sweetheart?”

  He’d been talking to her? Whoops. “Oh. Yeah. Did you say something?”

  He chuckled. “Not yet, but that’s because you were zoned out on me.”

  It was that damn washcloth. She was already all tingly from him washing the first arm. The moment he started massaging that sucker in between her fingers on the second arm, well, she’d just kind of started thinking about jumping his bones.

  Stupid washcloth.

  “Well… did you want to say something then?”

  That damn washcloth was on the move again. How the hell was she supposed to concentrate when he kept inching that thing along her skin, kneading her muscles as he went? She didn’t know whether to moan in bliss or hit him for distracting her from the conversation that he supposedly wanted to have.

  “Did you understand what Logan meant when he mentioned the Mark?”

  Her brain felt kind of drugged again. That washcloth needed a fucking warning label. “Mark? What Mark?”

  “I’ll take that as a ‘no’ then.” The cause of her blissful fog moved from below her elbow to above her elbow. “Have you ever seen any other shifters besides your Uncle growing up? Any female shifters?”

  And there went that cloth in slow circles up her bicep. “Huh? Female shifters? Oh no. Uncle Owen was the only other shifter I’d ever seen till the day I ran into you. Why?”

  He dragged the cloth from her upper arm to over her shoulder. Running it up to her neck and back. “The reason I asked is because we need to talk about a Mark.”

  “A Mark?”

  “Yes, a Mark.” Back and forth. Little circle, big circle. Back up her neck to underneath her earlobe, and back down to the edge of her shoulder. “You see, when two shifters mate, the male gives his female a Mark. It’s kind of like the shifter’s version of a wedding ring.”

  “Well that’s ridiculous.”

  The washcloth stopped moving. Why had the washcloth stopped moving?

  Adam’s voice grated, “Ridiculous?”

  Still caught on the edges of her washcloth induced haze she replied, “Yeah. It’s ridiculous. And sexist! Why should only the male get to give a Mark? Why can’t the female do it too? I think there needs to be some equal opportunity working here. If it were me, I’d give a Mark to him too. Shows that we’re in this together instead of branding me like I’m some kind of property. Wait. What is the Mark. It’s not actually a branding or anything, is it?”

  That lovely washcloth started to move again. “You’d want to give me a Mark too?”

  Without thinking she answered, “Well yeah. Why should I have to walk around with your Mark like I’m your property? A marriage should be on equal ground. So, if I have a Mark, you’re damn well going to have one too!”

  His free hand wrapped under her breasts to crush her backwards into him as he ran his mouth over her neck. “Okay, you can give me a Mark too, love.”

  Well that was like a bucket of cold water dumped over her head. Had she just proposed marriage to the wet, naked, aroused man sitting in the bathtub behind her?

  “Wait, wait. Hold the damn phone. What’s happening here?”

  “We’re talking about Marks. I told you what they were, and whom they’re normally given too, and then you said you wanted to give a Mark too. I don’t know that there’s another male shifter in the history of our kind that’s worn his woman’s Mark, but I’d be happy to wear yours, sweetheart. When do you want to exchange Marks?”

  She tried to wiggle forward, but his iron band of an arm kept her in place. Not to mention he was using his tongue on her neck now. Running it up and down, circling her ear with it.

  Who knew the ear thing could make her toes curl?

  Her mind blanked a little, and she groaned at his attentions. Jenna struggled to get her brain to work. What had they been talking about again? Damn the man! He was trying to drive her insane. Wait! Now she remembered.

  “You forgot to tell me what this Mark is exactly.”

  Moving his tongue from her ear back down to her neck, he nipped it sharply. That nip must have a direct line to her girly bits below because they clenched right up in reaction.

  “The Mark is when your mate sinks their teeth into your flesh right about here…” He nipped the skin of her neck above the juncture of her shoulder. “That way the whole world can see that you’ve been claimed.”

  Holy shit. He wanted to sink his fucking fangs into her neck!

  Jenna surged forward out of his grasp and turned to face him. “Are you trying to kill me, you crazy wolf?”

  He reached out and snagged her hips with his hands, dragging her back to him so that she now straddled his lap. And his very blatant, straining arousal that was even now prodding her entrance. She should have pulled away. It was obvious he was trying to distract her with sex. But damn it, he felt so good slipping slowly inside of her. A moan of approval betrayed her previous outrage. When he was fully seated inside of her, his hands grasped the sides of her face gently, and he stroked his thumbs over her cheekbones.

  “I will never endanger you. Never harm you. Never neglect you in any way. You will never want for anything that is necessary to keeping you happy and alive. I will treasure you every day that I draw a breath and thank God every night for the gift of you in my life. No one can ever care for you the way that I do. I was made for you, and you were made for me. I know that with the certainty that there is a sun, moon, and stars that could never guide me through this life the way following you through it will lead me to an eternity of happiness. You’ve quickly become my everything.”

  Her eyes watered. What more needed to be said? She’d heard of people bearing their soul but had never witnessed it. Until now. And what an astounding thing it had been, to have it revealed to her.

  “I know this is sudden, Jenna. The idea of us.”

  She opened her mouth to tell him that she was okay with them as a couple, but uncertain if she was ready for something as significant as a marriage yet. She didn’t get to utter a sound because his lips captured hers, stealing her breath. The kiss was seeking something. Reassurance? An answer? She wasn’t sure. What she was certain of though, was that this man just kept sinking deeper and deeper inside of her. Not just physically. In that aspect, they were joined as closely as two people could get, with him slowly moving in and out of her. No, he was also sinking in emotionally, perhaps even spiritually. She feared that he was quickly becoming her everything, as well.

  Using her hands to hold his face in place, she pulled back from him. Letting him see through her eyes; the proverbial windows to the soul, that he was, in fact, affecting her as much as he claimed she affected him.

  “I like the idea of us, Adam. More and more every second that we’re together. Can you give me just a little longer till we exchange Marks? I’m not saying no. I’m saying yes, just not right now.”

  “As long as I have you in my arms, little wolf, I can wait till you’re ready. Mark or no mark. As long as you’re already mine.”

  She lightly kissed his lips. “Yours.”

  Chapter Fifteen

 
The two lovers didn’t emerge from Jenna’s room for another two hours, much to Owen Davies’ dismay. It was safe to say that her Uncle was fairly growly by the time she and Adam made it to his room.

  “It must be nice to sleep the day away. This isn’t a vacation if you recall…” he barked at the pair after they entered his suite.

  Jenna didn’t miss how his eyes shifted to her neck either, looking for Adam’s Mark. With the realization there was none to be found, the look he shot Adam could have made lesser men run for cover. Adam was no lesser man. He boldly kept his eyes on his Pack Master while twining his fingers through hers. She cringed inwardly. She hadn’t quite thought about the way other people might perceive the fact that her neck was blemish free. She’d only thought of her own uneasiness doing something as drastic, and permanent, as the equivalent of marriage in their world. Poor Adam just couldn’t seem to catch a break where she was concerned. It was time to move on from this awkward stalemate and onto the matters at hand.

  Ignoring her annoyed Uncle, she looked over to the sitting area to see Alec perched in the chair closest to the couch, and Logan pacing back and forth in front of the television like a caged animal. Anxiousness was rolling off of him like a crack addict waiting for their next fix. Except she was guessing his drug of choice wasn’t something he could smoke, snort, or shoot up. No, his drug of choice was adrenaline and violence. And if it wasn’t violence he was looking for, then it was probably the other natural drug of the male species. Sex. Thinking of her brother and the word sex in the same sentence gave her hives; she struck the thought from her mind for all time and pretended Logan was looking for an excuse to use his knuckles and bust some heads. That sounded like every other stupid human male she’d known over the years.

  She led Adam over to the couch so that they could sit down for their little pow wow. “So, we’re headed over to some demon’s club for the fight? Alec, have you fought at this club before?”

  Alec nodded. “Yeah, it’s a regular stop in the Black Ring so I’ve fought there many times. The high rise is made up of ten floors. The club consists of the three floors under the tenth while the entire top floor is one of the owner’s, Drake Ward, residences. The fight ring is located on the eighth floor because the seventh is the regular section of the club, and the ninth floor is the VIP section of the club.”

  Jenna rubbed her hands together in anticipation. “Okay, so what time does the fight start?”

  “Midnight.”

  Jenna stopped in disgust and snarled over at her Uncle, “Then what the hell is your problem, old man? If the fight doesn’t start till midnight, and it’s only four in the afternoon now, why are you bitching at us for sleeping in?”

  “Because, it’s called reconnaissance, you little pain in my ass.” He pointed his finger at her, “Watch who you call an old man, or I’ll show you just how young I think you are and put you in timeout in the corner.”

  And they said women were touchy about their age. Jenna knew men were actually the ones with their undies in a wad about it all. Hence, the reason they were the ones who had midlife crises and bought ridiculously expensive sports cars in a vain attempt to keep a youthful aura about them. She snorted at the idea of Uncle Owen trying to keep her in a corner like some disobedient child.

  Right.

  Dismissing the absurd threat she kept talking, “Okay, so what are we looking for during this little information gathering mission?”

  Her Uncle settled into an authoritative stance that commanded respect and attention. Feet spread shoulder width apart, legs braced, arms crossed over his chest as if he didn’t have a worry in the world, and shoulders thrown back proudly. He was Pack Master Davies right now, not her Uncle Owen. She recognized the difference and respected him for it.

  “Anything anyone might let slip about the Corvus Pack. We’re in the dark, with just whispers of fanatical type beliefs of the Others species ruling over humans, and possible criminal activities such as what happened in Wilmington. We need to see if we can dig up anything else. Especially anything in regards to what Alec overheard last time he was in Germany about the Corvus Packs’ Beta. At this point, anything at all could help us.”

  Jenna nodded her head in acknowledgement, “Agreed. When do you want to leave?”

  Pack Master Davies looked at his watch, then pursed his lips in consideration. “Let’s leave in two hours. That gives us a little time to eat an early dinner, and then attire ourselves appropriately for the club.”

  Jenna started his comment about their clothing expectations. “What do you mean, clothing appropriate for the club?”

  Adam petted her back, “Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’ll get you an outfit to wear.”

  She turned to look at Adam in abject horror. “That’s what worries me.”

  Two hours later she stormed out of her hotel suite with an amused Adam in her wake. Men were disgusting pigs. No matter what the situation was they were always trying to take advantage of it somehow. After seeing the outfit Adam had ordered for her to wear to the club, she pitched a fit of epic proportions just to have the smug bastard point out that they had to leave in twenty minutes, so they didn’t have time to procure her another outfit.

  She hated him. Stomping down the hallway, past a shocked Alec, an amused Logan, and a delightfully ignorant Uncle Owen, she marched into the elevator car and refused to acknowledge their existence. Adam slid behind her, wrapping an arm around her waist and snuggling her backside into his rock hard erection.

  Okay, so she didn’t hate him. But she refused to talk to him for at least the next three hours. Surely there wouldn’t be a reason why she would have to speak to him for at least three hours. Having to endure this outfit was worth at least three hours of silence.

  After asking Jenna if she was as proficient with knives as she was with guns, where Jenna had answered ‘hell yes’, Adam had disappeared for an hour while she watched extremely confusing German soap operas and eaten an early dinner. He then came back empty handed and informed her that he was going to take a shower. When he came out fifteen minutes later in nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist, she wondered how much trouble she would get into for being late so that she could seduce her lover into having her first quickie, but Adam had smacked her on the ass and told her that it was time for her to jump in the shower and start to get ready.

  When she came out twenty minutes later – and yes a woman was capable of getting ready in twenty minutes if they weren’t into all of that extra makeup crap – she saw Adam sitting dressed on the bed with a bag in his hands. At first she could have cared less about the bag he held. The human woman in Jenna was drooling over her lover dressed in black denim jeans that cupped him lovingly in the best places, with his black shit kicker motorcycle boots, and black button up dress shirt which had the sleeves rolled back to his elbows. His hair was finally dry, and sticking straight up in all of its red glory in a hundred different directions, just the way she’d come to love it to look. He was the sexiest thing she’d ever seen, and her wolf was all but jerking her control away to get out and take a bite of their mate.

  Wait a minute. Had she just admitted in her head that Adam was her mate?

  Before she got the chance to ponder the implications of that slip up, Adam shook the bag at her. Motioning for her to hurry up and take it. Now she was standing in an elevator wearing a leather purple mini skirt designed with pleats and buckles, with a matching leather purple vest that was low cut and buckled up the side but had corset style ties down the back. She felt like a Barney colored Catholic schoolgirl porn star wannabe from a crummy horror flick. Her girls were barely staying in the damn thing, and all she had to say about that was if anything popped out at an inopportune moment it was not her fault.

  Adam had also given her knee high black leather boots that were the only thing she appreciated about his shopping trip. Sure they had four inch heels, and she’d more than likely break her neck while trying to walk in the damn things, but they came with sheath
s on the inside of the boot that hid two knives per shoe. So they were fabulous and functional. Not to mention, that instead of feeling like a midget next to Adam because her head barely reached the top of his shoulder, now she was up to his chin, so she had a little extra height in case she decided to give into the urge to punch him in the mouth.

  The only thing she’d truly loved about the outfit was the knife like hair stick he’d given her. With her hair pulled up in a French twist secured by the hair stick, she had a fifth weapon that the population in general would over look, and her hair looked flippin’ fabulous. Of course, if Adam continued to play with the wisps of hair lying against her neck she was going to ruin that phenomenal hairdo and take her hair stick out to stab him. If this was going to work between the two of them, he was going to have to learn when not to provoke her, or he was going to end up shot sometime in the near future. Not to mention that if Logan snickered one more time over her obvious snit fit, she was going to stab his annoying little ass too.

  The cab ride to the club went fairly quickly, with the mid forties cab driver sporting greasy hair, beady eyes, and a deviant grin giving her multiple looks in his rearview mirror as Adam growled in low tones back at him in warning. She rolled her eyes in dismay over his possessive idiotic behavior because – HELLO – he was the reason she was getting this kind of attention. Somehow, the outfit the tiger had given her earlier in the week didn’t seem so awful now, at least it covered more.

  Her mental tirade was cut off when the cab started to turn down a narrow ally on the side of their destination, and the moment they crossed the entrance to that alley, a weird sensation hit her. It felt as if her entire body was suddenly crawling with spiders, and she didn’t know whether she should start trying to claw her skin off to get rid of the feeling, or tuck her tail between her legs and haul ass the other way. She felt Adam do a whole body shiver beside her and knew that he’d felt it too.