Treasured Find (Royal Pride Book 1), page 3
She hesitated at the entrance to the employee hallway. “What a sec, buddy. I’m not going anywhere with you.”
“The name’s Rafe. Rafe Alexander. Not buddy.”
She licked her lips. “Rafe.”
Damn, his name sounded good in her breathless voice.
“Jasmine.” He tried hers out. It rolled nicely on his tongue. “Walk with me.”
She shook her head but didn’t tear her gaze from his. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
He leaned closer and brushed his lips against her cheek. “I think it’s a very good idea. You taste of heaven, Jasmine. I find it’s a flavor I crave. I want more.” And I hope your answers to my other questions satisfy me so I can enjoy you.
Her exhaled breath wafted over his neck. “Jazz, not Jasmine. I’m not a damn flower.”
“You’re pretty enough to be one.” A breathless laugh met his declaration, no denial. “Tell me, Jazz, am I too late?”
She slid her hands up his chest and started to inch them around his neck but abruptly dropped them. “Too late for what?”
The scent of Royal feline—a mix of predators—drifted to him. He brought her wrist to his nose and inhaled. Then frowned. He sniffed again, openmouthed to taste the pheromones laced into the smell. Two distinct scents were rubbed onto her skin—a temporary claim that was nearly gone. The shifters who’d marked her were male. Of that he was certain, but he couldn’t tell anything else except the males weren’t familiar.
And their claim wasn’t permanent.
He dragged his fingers down her neck and across her shoulder, pulling the edge of her collar back. Unmarred skin showed where a bite mark would’ve identified her as a mated female. She wasn’t taken.
Possessiveness gripped him, stronger than he’d ever known. The sentiment of his inner felines added to it. He wanted to keep her. Simple as that.
He rubbed her wrist against his cheek, removing the other males’ scents and replacing it with his. Her fragrance—sweet, rich and purely Jasmine—seeped into his lungs. His tongue roughened, and the first hint of fangs slipped past his teeth. The physical response to her unique scent was a first for him.
“Too late for what?” She repeated.
He glanced into the face of the female who’d awakened his primal side. The only woman who had. For a Royal, that distinction opened up a world of possibilities. All promised to leave him sated. After five hundred years, he’d be a fool to turn his back on a chance at experiencing heaven on earth, even if it only lasted a night.
He stepped closer to her and dragged in another lungful of her scent. His balls grew heavy, and his dick ached. Oh yes, she’d satisfy him, and the sight of his come dripping off her ass would be a memory he’d treasure. Or maybe he’d get her on her knees in front of him. He rubbed his finger over her full mouth. That would work too. Her lips would look damn good wrapped around his cock.
He toyed with the neckline of her shirt and fought the urge to caress her shoulder. Normal human males weren’t fascinated with that spot of a woman’s body, and he prided himself as acting as one whenever possible.
“Am I too late to claim you?”
Her brows scrunched. “Are you asking if I have a boyfriend?”
“Yes.”
“That’s an odd way to say it. Are you European?”
“Originally.” He skimmed his fingers over her forehead, smoothing her creased skin. “Well? Do you have a lover?” Or two.
“No, no. I’m all alone.” She shook her head. “I mean I have important people in my life, but I’m not involved with anyone.”
What did that make the two males who’d left their scents on her? Friends? Business partners? Whatever they were to her, they were fools to have left her alone.
“That’s good to know.” He took her hand and urged her to follow him. She flicked her gaze to the crowded room but fell in step beside him. He tried the nearest door, found it unlocked and the room empty. An office—Josh’s, going by the scent lingering there. No matter. It was quiet and private. “But I need to know who those important people in your life are before I claim a spot in it.”
“What?” She grabbed the doorjamb. “Wait a minute, buddy—”
“Rafe.”
She rolled her eyes. “I am not going in there with you, Rafe.”
He crowded her against the door. “Why not?”
“I don’t know you, and I’m not the type of girl to go off with a man. In fact”—she slipped under his arm—“I shouldn’t have followed you out of the bar. I’ve got to get home.”
He pulled her back. “You can’t leave. Not yet.” He breathed the words against her ear. “You didn’t answer my question.”
“Which one was that?”
“About what it’ll take to get into your bed.” Why the hell did I ask that?
He inwardly cursed. There were more important things he needed to uncover. Who the males were who’d scent-marked her. Why she was at Tony’s house. Who Josh was to her. But no. I let my instincts rule me.
She turned in his embrace and linked her hands around his neck. “That’s a line I haven’t heard before.”
Well…in for a pound. “Will it work?”
She pressed her mouth to his ear. “No.” She pushed away from him. “I need to go home.”
Two strides brought him in front of her. He settled his hands on her hips, lifted her and pressed her against the wall. His mouth muffled her gasp. He kissed her, leading her with deep, rolling thrusts of his tongue until she grew pliant in his embrace.
Her essence filled him. Became a part of him. He widened his stance to steady his legs and pressed her more firmly into the wall with his hips.
Instincts rose, ones he had no business feeling, but the need to leave his mark on her grew with each breathy moan he pulled from her. The urge worried him, but he couldn’t deny it, not when his skin tingled with the desire to feel hers rubbing against it, sweat slickened and in the throes of passion. It was lust—plain and simple—but the urgency riding him to lock her to his side wasn’t a normal reaction. It was damn scary one. Didn’t stop him, though.
She curled her fingers around the back of his head and treated him to the same deep, sensual exploration he gave her. He didn’t mind the pinch of her nails in his scalp or the hungry way she kissed him. It pleased him. So did her guttural groan.
The cotton top under his hand made his fingertips itch. He shoved the material up until bare skin met his touch. More. He needed more. He slid his hand to her lower back, then to her bottom. He squeezed her ass, and she moaned, the sound muffled against his mouth.
Noise from the bar behind them reminded him how close they were to others, males who would look upon Jasmine with lust.
He urged her to wrap her legs around him. She did, hooking her ankles at his lower back. He turned into the office.
In the back of his mind, he knew he was making a mistake. The woman kissing him as if she were starved for his taste was an unknown, somehow involved with Royal felines. She might even be associated with the group who ran the trafficking ring that had decimated their species. The possibilities chilled him. He allowed each scenario to surface before pushing them aside to be dealt with later.
Jasmine was the first female to stir his instincts and awaken his primal side. He wanted to savor her. Besides, if she viewed him as a male she desired, she’d be more likely to share the details of her personal life. That was reason enough to touch her. It was necessary.
And when did I start making excuses for my behavior? Apparently about the same time as a blonde female stood on a chair and waved her arms in his direction.
The door clicked closed with his kick, blocking out the laughter and music. He carried her to the leather couch he’d spied earlier and lowered her without breaking the melding of their mouths. Stretched over her, he slipped his hand into the fall of her hair and cradled the back of her head.
On and on, they kissed until she looped her arms around him and hooked a leg over his, allowing his cock to settle against her groin. The move assured him she felt safe in his arms. It was exactly the sign he wanted.
He broke the kiss and skimmed his lips along her jaw to her ear. He caught the tender lobe between his teeth and nibbled. Another shudder ran through her body. A sensitive spot. Good. Finding each one seemed necessary. He should be worried about why. He wasn’t. The soft moans she rewarded him with outweighed the concern over his instincts.
He slid a hand under her loose skirt. The smoothness of her inner thighs teased the rougher pads of his fingers. A shiver raced down his spine.
“What are you doing?” She tightened her grip on his shirt, balling the material in her fists, but she didn’t push him away.
Or tell him to stop.
“Touching you.”
He waited a moment, giving her a chance to deny him, then inched his fingers higher, dragging the material of her skirt with him. He moved his hand to her cloth-covered sex. Dampness met him.
Primitive instincts swamped him. He wanted to free his cock, rip her underwear off and plunge into her. She’d fit him perfectly. Massage his dick. His dick jerked, and precome dampened his boxers, making the fabric stick to him. He wanted to lose himself in her.
Make her mine before another male steals her away.
Yes, of course. That was the driver behind his intense reaction. The other males’ scent on her triggered his instincts. It didn’t matter who they were or what role they played in her life. She’d stirred Rafe’s primitive side. His possessive nature wouldn’t allow her to escape.
She was his. At least for the moment.
He propped on his elbow, giving her space. It also allowed him to judge her reaction. He didn’t want to push her into doing something she didn’t want, but he needed to touch her, exactly as he’d claimed.
Her half-lidded, drowsy gaze met his.
“You do enjoy being touched, don’t you?”
She swallowed hard but didn’t respond.
“Answer me.”
“Yes.”
He slid one finger under the elastic of her underwear and brushed his fingertip over her slick lower lips. “You’re wet, Jasmine.”
She glanced from his face to her panties. The excited yet hesitant way she watched him caress her made him wonder exactly how experienced the little siren was. From the way she’d kissed, he would’ve said very. Maybe he’d assumed wrong.
“Drenched.” He circled her opening with his fingertip. Her heat and warmth lured him closer. He didn’t fight the temptation. He pushed two fingers into her body, and her breath rushed out. “Sensitive too.”
“We shouldn’t…” She lifted her bottom, and her inner muscles squeezed his fingers. “We shouldn’t be doing this.”
He pressed his hand to her lower belly, holding her still. “Do you want me to stop?”
“I should say yes.”
Hunger burned in her eyes, but her lip caught between her teeth spoke of her warring desires.
“Look at me.”
She met his gaze.
“I’m not going to fuck you, but you will come around my tongue. I want to taste you. Hear you moan my name.” He worked her panties down her leg, leaving the fabric hooked on one ankle. “No one else’s. Your pleasure is mine tonight.”
“I don’t know you.”
“You will.” Whether she learned the intimate details of his life or simply the basics depended on her.
“We’re in a public place.” Excitement tinged her words.
“Which is why we came back here.”
“You planned this?”
“Not exactly. I wanted to talk to you in private.” He curled his fingers and stroked her core. Her eyelids fluttered. “You’ve distracted me.”
“What do you want to talk about?”
“A mutual friend.”
Her brows pinched. “Are you talking about Jo—”
He added a third finger and pumped them into her body. Her words turned into a throaty groan. He grinned and stroked her until her arousal soaked his hand. Her breaths quickened. Each exhale lifted her breasts, pushing her erect nipples against the thin cotton. In and out he slid his fingers, listening to the clues she offered and adjusting the speed and angle of his thrusts to take her to the edge.
Each time her sex quivered and her breathing hitched, he changed the depth, delaying her release. He wasn’t quite ready to allow the hot little Jasmine to orgasm. He enjoyed hearing the sounds coming from her mouth.
“Rafe”—she rocked against his hand—“please.”
The please did it. He couldn’t deny her pleasure, not with the desperation laced into that one word.
He replaced his fingers with his tongue. She cried out, and he groaned. Her flavor was as unique as the woman in his arms—a sweet, earthy tang that left him hungry for more.
He slid his hands under her bottom and kissed her as completely as he’d explored her mouth. More rich arousal flowed the longer he licked her. She hooked her legs over his shoulders. The move pushed her sex against his face, slickening his chin and shoving his nose into her glistening, short curls. He loved her taste, her eager response, her passion.
Possessiveness flared, stronger than before. He ignored it and focused on stimulating her. With his hands on her butt cheeks, he helped her fuck herself on his tongue. Her cries guided him. A groan crawled up his throat. She shuddered in response. Perfect. He growled softly, letting the rumble against her sensitive lips take her higher.
“Yes. There. Please, lick me there.”
More flicks, and she sobbed his name. He pushed his thumb against her rear opening, and she trembled.
Worshiping Jasmine became his world. He listened, felt the slight change in the muscles along her core. She was close. Ready to come. He tilted his head, withdrew his tongue and sucked. Her thighs trembled, and she moaned his name. Satisfaction swelled his chest. He brushed his thumb back and force over her ass and lapped up her release.
The moment she sagged in his arms, he crawled over her and took her mouth in a deep kiss. The taste of her arousal on his lips didn’t bother her, not if her soft sigh was any indication.
She skimmed her fingertips across his back to settle at the base of his spine and pulled him closer. His breath rushed out with the simple move. More rightness settled over him. He wanted to curl his body around hers and…hold her. Not fuck her. Just tuck her against his chest so her breath warmed his skin.
And yes, I think that means I’m screwed.
He turned his head. A deep breath cleared his mind of the thoughts he couldn’t allow to take root. Not yet anyway. “Delicious. Thank you, my Jasmine.”
She traced his cheek. “Shouldn’t that be my line?”
He sucked her fingers into his mouth, caressing each tip with his tongue before releasing them. “No line. I feel privileged to be the male gifted with your cries, to have the chance to taste your sweetness.”
She released a shaky breath. “Wow. You’re a dangerous man, Rafe Alexander.”
In more ways than one. If his instincts failed him, then she would learn exactly how dangerous he was. No. He wouldn’t allow those thoughts to take hold. His inner spirits would never have allowed him to touch her if they doubted her. He had to trust them.
Whatever secret she held, he’d uncover, and he needed to do so soon. There was a damn good chance he’d gotten himself addicted to the woman.
Chapter Four
Jazz couldn’t move. Her body lay boneless, sated and so relaxed she could’ve drifted off to sleep if not for the heavy weight of the man who’d pleasured her keeping her awake. Rafe’s head rested on her stomach while he skimmed his fingers up her side. The sweeping exploration reached under her shirt to skim along the edge of her bra, but he made no move to unhook it. He hesitated each time as if he were debating whether he wanted to push for more. At the moment, with her body humming and pliant, she wouldn’t have fought him.
Rafe would know it too. With the easy, confident way he’d touched her, she had no doubt he was well experienced. Unlike her. She hadn’t had any sexual relations in… five years.
Jeez, she hadn’t realized it’d been so long. She’d gone from abstinence to oral sex with a stranger.
What have I done?
His fingers stilled. He lifted his head and peered at her through the blond strands of his hair. He appeared wild and untamed…a primitive male set on taking down his prey. Her breathing quickened.
“Jasmine?”
The cautious way he said her name added to the churning in her belly.
“Off.” She shoved at his shoulders.
He sat up slowly, as if afraid to startle her. She stood and smoothed her skirt. The clock on the wall chimed. Nine o’clock. Curses zinged through her head. She’d promised Mr. Wilkins she’d be home by nine-thirty.
She ran a hand through her hair. Or tried too. The tangled mess would need more help than her fingers could give. It would have to wait. She tugged up her panties and reached for her keys. They weren’t in her skirt. Not surprising. She’d dressed for fashion, not practicality. And I failed at both. My shoes don’t even match.
“Dammit!” She glanced under the desk. Nothing.
“Looking for these?”
“Yes!” She reached for them. He raised his hand, keeping the ring with her two keys just out of reach. “Gimme those.”
He slid his other arm around her waist and slammed their bodies together. The thick cock pressed into her belly left little doubt about his feelings.
“Not until you give me your name and number. I want to see you again, Jasmine.”
She swallowed hard and tipped her head back. Heavy-lidded eyes met hers. “Jazz. Not Jasmine.”
He shook his head and slid a hand over her bottom. He massaged each cheek before resting his palm over her hip. “Only in public. When we’re alone, you will be my Jasmine.”
The possessive edge to his voice left her body and mind warring. She went lax in his arms, while her instincts warned her to run. The intensity to his gaze made her feel as if she were his prey, the one he meant to capture. He blinked and broke the spell.
