Running with the Pack: Cannon Pack, Book 3 (28 page)

“Are we that alike?” Lauren fidgeted, unsure of the answer she wanted. Although she was glad he found qualities in her that he liked, she wanted him to want her for who she was. Not because she reminded him of Torrie.

Daniel cupped her chin, making her look at him. “I’m not replacing her with you, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

She wanted more, needed to hear more of an explanation. “But, like you said, we’re a lot alike.” Did she really look like Torrie as well? Perhaps too much like her? She wished she’d seen the female werewolf in her human form.

Daniel propped his head on his hand and frowned. “Do you believe me? Do you think I’m using you as a replacement?”

Lauren couldn’t speak and her silence served as her answer.

“Lauren, I thought you were smarter than that.”

Did he just insult her? Irritation welled inside her, giving her the strength to glare at him. “Look, if you’re going to keep telling me how dumb I am, then I’ll get the hell out of—”

His mouth crushed hers, cutting off her last word. Heat, passionate and real, scorched from his lips to hers. She moaned, wanting everything, anything he would give her. The kiss went on, sending the fire from her lips to the cleft between her legs. She ran her hands along his shoulders and toward his back, her fingers dancing over the muscled curves.

Daniel broke off the kiss, then touched her swollen lips. “I didn’t mean to insult you. But can’t you tell that you’re more than a substitute for Torrie? Can’t you tell how much you mean to me?”

“Well, I—”

“Lauren, you and Torrie share a lot of similarities. Both of you were very lovable, very sexy and all woman. But you’re also very different. You’re spunkier than she was and I like spunk. I didn’t know how much until you came along, but I do. Plus, Torrie wouldn’t have put her life on the line to save random hunters. Not that she wouldn’t have cared about them. She did. And she wouldn’t have wanted to see them hurt. But she wouldn’t have had the courage to do what you did either.”

Lauren fought to hold back the tears. Not only was she different, but he thought she was brave. And spunky. Hell, she liked that she had spunk, too. “Go on.”

Daniel’s chuckle was as warm as the sun. “You’re funny, too. Smart—at least most of the time.” He dodged her halfhearted attempt to swat him. “And you’re witty, too. Comparing Torrie and you is like comparing a summer breeze to a windstorm.”

“Are you calling me a big bag of wind?”

Giving her a quick peck on the tip of her nose, he added, “I’m saying that I like having a feisty woman like you. I’m saying you’re very much your own woman. Lauren, I fell in love with you because of who
you
are, not because you sometimes remind me of her.”

The heat his kiss had started flickered into a low fire that promised to burn hotter with each kiss. A fire only he could put out. Searching his velvet eyes, diving into them, into his soul, she watched as his irises sparkled with amber. Her stomach fluttered with anticipation. “Does the animal inside you always come out when you’re turned on?”

“The animal and the man are one and the same. You can’t have one without the other.” He trailed his tongue down the side of her neck, the licks soon turning to kisses. “Does that frighten you?”

“No. Not anymore,” she answered in a breathy voice. His attentions took her over the edge, driving any reservations she’d had away. “Daniel.”

Reaching behind her, he slipped her shirt over her head, then moaned at the sight of her naked breasts. Their clothes soon lay strewn over the grass, the light skimming on their bodies as the sun lifted into the sky. He gripped her sides, lifted her and placed her on top of him. His already large erection pushed at the wetness between her legs.

“What if the others come out and see us?” Lauren feathered her fingers on his bare chest and pushed her breasts together, plumping them for his satisfaction. She tossed her hair, the tips tickling her shoulders.

“Then they’ll know I’m one helluva lucky man.” Daniel suckled one breast and fondled the other.

She leaned forward, closing her eyes to revel in the delicious sensations racing through her. The warmth from the sky heated her back but it was no match for the warmth testing the boundaries between her legs. She rubbed, sliding over him in a sexual tease and heard his groan of frustration. “Easy, big boy. Easy.”

“I can’t take it easy. I need you now.”

He gripped her neck, holding her head still, startling her. He could kill her with one squeeze, but she knew she was safe in his hands. “Tell me what you want, Daniel.”

The bits of amber in his eyes suddenly grew, taking over most of the brown.

“I want to eat you.”

“I want you to eat me.” She removed his hands, twisting around to place her pussy over his head. “But fair’s fair.”

His growl, deep and masculine, sent more juices flowing. Seizing her buttock cheeks, he guided her to his mouth. His tongue swept over her and, although she knew what was coming, surprised her with the ensuing surge of desire. She mewed and lowered to cup his cock in her hand.

Their bodies molded together, each matching the rhythm of the other, moaning their pleasure to each other. His mouth on her sex lips sucked and teased, and she mimicked him, giving him as much ecstasy as he gave her. Her legs quivered as wave after wave of release rushed though her, but she held on, stroking him, licking him, sucking him.

“Damn, Lauren, you’re going to make me come.”

A warmth of delight surged through her and she chuckled, liking the way his shaft jerked as the hot air spread over his wet cock. “Isn’t that the point?”

“No. I want to be inside you when I come. Not like— Ah, shit, that’s good.”

Lauren took him inside her mouth, sliding him in until he couldn’t go any farther. She swallowed, tugged, pulled, then repeated the movements over and over. He moaned, leaving her pussy to encourage her with sweet words, then returning to treat her. At last, however, he reached his peak.

In one quick move, he had her on her back, then lifted her torso until only her shoulders, neck and head touched the ground. A low rumble echoed through his chest, into his shoulders and into the inside of her thighs. Staying on his knees, he yanked her bottom upward, positioning her legs over his shoulders, higher still until he pressed his mouth to her throbbing clit.

“Oh, oh, oh. Yes!” Breathing became more difficult, thinking impossible as he savored her, drawing every ounce of flavor from her body. Unable to grasp any part of him, she writhed on the ground, clutching the grass and tearing it out in handfuls. “Daniel. You’re going to make me— Oh, shit, please, please.”

“Please what, Lauren?” His golden eyes blazed into her. Almost as though meaning to torture her, he sucked harder, then swiped his tongue across her tender skin and sucked more.

“Fuck me. Now.” Her body trembled from the multitude of climaxes racing along her body, her mind closing down until only the primal part of her consciousness remained. She shut her eyes and reached out, fighting to find his manhood, desiring him deep inside her. His tongue, his wonderful tool of torture, left her spent, yet ready for anything.

Lowering her, Daniel rubbed his shaft against her, wetting his tip, taunting her to make her plead even louder, longer. Unashamed, she did, adding the plea to her eyes. “Daniel, please.” The ache in her tone couldn’t match the yearning inside her.

Daniel rested her buttocks on the tops of his knees, massaging her weak legs. Licking his upper lip, he helped her wrap her legs around his waist. “Now?”

“Are you freakin’ kidding me? Yes, yes, yes!”

Daniel shoved into her and Lauren screamed in joy, energized by his attack. She thrust her pelvis upward, her wall to his battering ram. She grabbed his hands and placed them on her breasts, urging him to fondle them. He groaned, keeping his eyes locked with hers. They moved as one, each reveling in the pleasure they gave each other.

“Play with yourself, Lauren.” He glanced down, his body tense, sweat running down the rivulets of his chest to the toned abdomen and, finally, into the valley their union formed.

Using her middle finger, she toyed with her swollen nub, taking joy in the way he watched her hand move. She tried to hang on, to keep the delicious agony going, but his thrusts were too much. Nothing else mattered except the sensations coursing through her, the heat making the sweat seem almost cool against her skin. She watched his face, a study in restraint, and pushed against him. Another climax wracked her until she was sure she would pass out. “Oh, God, Daniel, I don’t know how much longer…”

“Lauren, I have to…”

She couldn’t think, not with him deep inside her. “Have to…what?” He stopped, the abrupt cessation shocking her. “No, Daniel, don’t stop.”

Daniel opened his mouth. Fangs, sparkling in the bright sunlight, slid from behind his lips. “Lauren, do you want me to? Quick. Tell me. If I go much further, I won’t be able to stop.”

“Do it, Daniel. Make me yours.”

Howling, he shook his head, his features changing seconds before he bent over her and sank his teeth into her neck.

She felt his fangs tear into her skin and panic seized her. Yet before she could even rethink her decision, she succumbed, clutching the back of his head and hugging him close. A liquid burn, hotter than a branding iron, spun into her neck, into her veins to scorch down her body. She screamed, her body bucking under his, and still she held on.

At that moment, his body tightened, and his features changed, returning to the Daniel she loved. Howling again, he gave into his release, taking her along with him, his shudders smoothly flowing into hers.

Daniel lay next to Lauren, his eyes closed, enjoying the cooling breeze flowing over his love-worn body. Her shoulder grazed his, tantalizing him, awakening another burst of desire. If they didn’t move soon, he’d take her again. Not that he wouldn’t love to do exactly that. But they needed to address other matters first. “Lauren, are you all right?” He peered at her wound, already beginning to heal.

Eyes closed, she snuggled in the crook of his arm and ran her hand over his chest. “Hmm?”

“Do you know what just happened? What that bite meant?” Had she understood? Or had he been mistaken?

“You marked me.”

Did she sound angry? She didn’t look angry. In fact, she seemed very relaxed, satisfied, even happy.

“Yes, I did.” A bee buzzed between them, the only sound disturbing the silence. Wouldn’t she act upset if she hadn’t wanted him to mark her? “I know neither one of us has mentioned this what with all the problems going on. Then John, the hunters—”

“Daniel, just spit it out.” She was suddenly alert and, propping her chin on his chest, arched her eyebrows at him. “What is it?”

Her hair felt like silk in his hands. Did he dare ask her? If she turned him down, could he stand it? “I know your life is in the city, but would you ever consider—”

“Yes.” She laughed, then buried her face against him. “I’m sorry. I know I should’ve waited for you to ask, but you’re taking way too long to get to it. So I figured I’d help you out.”

“How do you know what I want to ask you?” His heart lurched at the idea. What if she didn’t know? What if she’d assumed incorrectly?

She sat up, her eyes wide. “Uh, I guess maybe I don’t. And maybe I should’ve kept my big mouth closed.”

He tried to get her to look at him, but she turned away. “You? Keep quiet? Come on.” He winced, fearful that he’d made a mistake when she didn’t laugh at his joke. “Lauren, we’ve gone from enemies to…”

When she turned to seek his eyes, he found he couldn’t meet them. When had he ever gotten tongue-tied? But the question he had to ask was too important. If he didn’t ask her the right way, she might refuse him. Hell, she might refuse him anyway.

“What are we now, Daniel? I thought since you marked me, that made us…together.”

He sensed she wanted the same answer he did, but fear made his words stumble from his mouth. “You’re right. We’re, I mean, we’re good together.” He took her nod as a positive sign. “Uh, not sexually—I mean, not
just
sexually—but…” He studied her, readying for her reaction. “You do realize that you’re going to change, right? That you’ll become one of us?”

She smiled and ran her palm along his cheek. “Yes, I know. And I’m happy about it.”

He relaxed a little. “Good. But I want you to know that just because you’re going to change, it doesn’t mean you have to come with me. You can still choose.” Why couldn’t he get the words out? “Lauren, I’m trying to ask you if you’d go, I mean, come. Oh, hell, I’m not saying any of this right.”

“For the sake of the pack, man, will you just ask her?”

Daniel followed Lauren’s stunned gaze and found Tucker standing at the edge of the picnic area. She gasped and hid as much of her body behind his as she could, reminding him of the other time at the mansion. Talk about déjà vu. “Tucker, what the hell are you doing here?”

Tucker’s grin said it as well as his words did. “I’m watching a terrific show. In fact, I think you two should make a video and submit it to one of those amateur porn websites.”

Daniel heard Lauren’s quick intake of breath, felt her bump against him as she hurriedly pulled on her clothes. She remained behind him, probably hiding from embarrassment. “How long have you been standing there? And why didn’t you let us know you were there?”

“What and cut the show short? If anything, I’d like to see more.”

Daniel held back his anger, knowing Tucker would take it as a sign to further bait him. “Did the others take John?”

“Yep. The rest of us are escorting the hunters to the edge of town. Minus their guns and cell phones, of course. Devlin’s escorting the big white hunter to his trial with the council.”

“Good. Then you can get on your way, too.” He flicked his hand at Tucker, motioning for him to leave.

“Hell, no. I want to hear her answer.”

Daniel gritted his teeth. “I haven’t asked her anything.”

“Shit, man, why are you such a slowpoke? I can’t wait around here all day. Lauren, darlin’?”

Daniel glared at Tucker, but that didn’t intimidate him.