Her Anchor (11 page)

She felt him move to her side, his hand reaching out to skim over her arm. The fire that lit up her skin was intense and she shot her eyes back to his.

“I’m not going to let anything stand in the way of us being together. That’s why I came here. That’s why I stopped at your house before I even checked into the hotel. And why I’ve set up meetings here all week for a position at a production company. If you’re not ready to give this a shot I won’t push you, but you got to know I want this.”

Between his words and his hand on her skin, fingers kneading at her shoulders like they had all those months ago, she had no hope at slowing the beat in her chest. Despite the implications of what he was saying, she wasn’t nervous. She knew he was being honest with her and she’d be lying if it wasn’t what she wanted too. To have him a part of her and her sons lives, to give a relationship a shot.

Strong hands moved lower and his breath brushed the shell of her ear. He gave her a slow moment to pull away, to say something. Instead she leaned into his touch. She loved how his grip on her tightened and how his lips were a feather touch on her skin. Anticipation ignited her.

This was new, sweeter than the times they shared all those months ago. He brushed his lips against hers, just a touch. Then again. He groaned against her lips as her hands slid over his body, up his ribs and wrapping around his neck. They began an easy rhythm, their bodies acting on instinct. Dylan’s hands pulled her against him in time with her kisses and her eagerness pooled between her legs.

Dylan’s lips moved down her neck, licking and tasting her skin.

“Did you ever think about me fucking you?” He breathed out between kisses, fingers tugging up her shirt.

“I did. Many times.” She answered with no hesitation, closing her eyes and remembering the countless nights she laid in bed imagining him doing just what he was now.

Her shirt hit the floor and his hands were pulling at her pants next. As the rest of her clothes hit the floor his hands cupped her breasts, his warm mouth exploring her newly revealed skin.

She pressed herself against him, getting closer but not close enough. Dylan’s hand slid between them and her body tightened and quivered in anticipation of his touch where she needed it most. When his fingers passed over her slick wet skin she couldn’t hold back the groan of relief she felt. She rocked into his hand, his thumb a caress over her clit. His fingers slid along her slit and she inhaled a quick breath.

Dylan, his tension echoing her own, withdrew his fingers and pushed his jeans off his hips. In a rush he kicked them off and came back to her. She could feel his erection brushing against her mound and she wanted to feel more of him against her. All of him against her. She skimmed her hands over warm muscle, pulling his shirt over his head.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, his arms going to her hips. It was different than when they were together last time, there was a sureness in her now that she never felt before. But she felt the same freedom with him as she had their first time together, and she knew now that it had nothing to do with the moment or the deprivation she had run from. The novelty of being allowed to choose for herself had worn off by now. She fully knew that it had everything to do with this man.

He walked them backwards, through the open doorway until they reached the bed. Dylan sat and she followed him, straddling him. She looked over the plains of his body, the ridges of muscle, the designs inked in his skin. She took her time working her way up to his eyes and when she met them the raw unguarded desire there had her bending at the waist to pull his lip between her teeth.

While her teeth nibbled at his lips and jaw, she reached between them, grasping his thick cock in her hand. Her breath was shaky, impatient and needy. This scenario had played out in her head countless times. Positioning him at her entrance she slowly sank down.

Her body filled with him, enveloped him, and his soft groan turned needy beneath her when she started rocking against him. His hands grasped her hips and they moved in fast rhythm, an urgency in both of them. With each pull forward Emily ground her clit against him, fire seeping out from her center, lacing through her veins.

He moved with her, a wild frenzied rush. His clear blue eyes watched her every move, and she liked the way he looked at her. Emily drove against him, unable to get enough.

The tension building in her wasn’t gradual. Like a match being struck, it was on top of her quickly, stilting her movements, making them rough. She planted her hands on Dylan’s chest, her fingers grappling to hold onto him, to hold onto the moment.

Below her, Dylan’s grip tightened on her. A ragged groan tore from him and he was right there with her. Her walls tightened around him and she cried out. As his fingers dug into her skin, his own release overtaking him, she saw the relief in his face.

She felt it too. Not just a sexual release, but a connection that had been restored. Emily let herself collapse against his chest, in no hurry to leave this moment. With Dylan’s hands caressing her back she breathed a contented sigh.

“I’m happy you came back.”

“I am too. I knew I would, driving away I knew I couldn’t go without seeing you again. I hadn’t talked or laughed or connected with anyone like I did with you, not ever. But I got to tell you, I was nervous as hell to come back. I didn’t know if you’d want to see me, or if you were with someone else. That would have killed me, but I still had to take the chance to see you.”

“I’m glad you did. Even if things didn’t turn out quite like you expected.”

“Are you kidding? I love kids. Always hoped I’d have one someday.” Even without looking at him she could hear the truth in his words. “I can’t wait to meet him.”

“Really?” She asked, pulling back to look at him. “You’re not such a tough rocker as you pretend to be, are you?”

“Oh I can be tough when I need to be. But yeah, I’d much rather be myself with you. No amount of fame would change that.”

Emily settled back against his chest, Dylan’s arms wrapped tight around her. Neither were in a hurry to leave what they had found. In the quiet of the night they shared themselves, their stories and hopes for a life with Jack. They enjoyed the calm before they would need to get dressed and head out of the hotel. Heading towards her home and their son. Heading toward their future.

THE END

Chapter 1

“Why are you doing this?” Elliot’s voice was distraught as he felt his own blood seeping from his wounds. He held his shoulder now dislocated after the fight.

“You are a nuisance to the pack. You can’t control yourself.” Stanton’s voice was calm and collected. Elliot glared at him for a moment, just seeing him was enough to make him feel sick to his stomach. He had dirty blonde hair that was always gelled with a bit too much product. Elliot’s razor sharp eyesight could pick up on every single strand of that hair, each one greasy and uncared for. His green eyes were dull and constantly void of emotion like he had lost it years ago in his battle for the alpha position.

But what Elliot hated the most about his rival, were those sharp eyebrows. They had a way of instantaneously making him look like the biggest douche bag he had ever met. It was as if he couldn’t wipe that condescending smirk off his full pink lips, constantly contorted into something of a pout. Elliot hated him and as this hatred grew within, he felt his instincts come into play. The urge grew until he felt like he could not control himself any longer.

It was always like this, ever since he had turned into a werewolf. Stanton was the one who had done this to him, who had turned him into a monster and for that reason, he would always harbor this inner resentment. All of a sudden, Elliot’s hatred broke out of him. His dark eyes flashed with color for a moment before taking on a yellow hue. He could feel his body change. He always despised this part. It felt like every part of him was shattering as he was going through the transformation.

Doubling over, he held his head as he felt a pounding headache come over him when his skull took on a different shape. All of a sudden, skin and fur blurred together into one. Within moments, he stood there as a full-fledged wolf, snarling at his alpha, something unthinkable in the werewolf community. Stanton chuckled in amusement as the young wolf lunged forward, barring his teeth in an attempt to attack.

He sidestepped with ease, dodging the attack. His transformation was a much smoother one. Being a much older and more experienced wolf, his transition from human to beast was nearly a painless one. In his wolf shape, he was also much bigger. But with each day Elliot had been a wolf he had grown exponentially stronger. Soon he would surpass Stanton’s strength and that was why Stanton felt the need to get rid of him now while he was weak enough to still be an easy kill.

With this thought in mind, Stanton dashed forward. With lethal precision, his jaw latched around Elliot’s neck, nearly crushing his windpipe. Somehow, Elliot managed to wiggle himself away from the deadly jaws. The puncture wounds were not deep, to his relief. He could still fight. With this blind determination, the novel wolf launched himself toward his superior. He felt that if he got the wolf to the ground, he would have the advantage.

But to his dismay, once he tried to tackle the larger wolf, he retaliated with a swipe of his paw. Elliot whimpered as he felt the deep wounds in his side. Blood seeped out of them, matting his thick brown coat. His powerful nose caught the scent of his own blood. This wasn’t good. If he didn’t get himself out of this situation, he would soon be dead. There was no doubt in his mind that Stanton would kill him right then and there.

The alpha wolf seemed to smirk, thinking the battle was over. He stepped forward haughtily. Elliot snarled in a last ditch effort to show his dominance. He would not bow down to this monster. He growled loudly, snapping his jaw in the alpha’s direction. The large wolf just cackled, finding it all rather amusing. He knew there was no way for Elliot to beat him and it made him overly confident.

Elliot just wanted to rip his neck out but knew he was too weak to accomplish such a feat. Growling, he suddenly turned around and fled into the forest. The alpha transformed back into his human form, placing his hands in his pockets in a nonchalant stance. “Go ahead and run you, coward!” He called out, his powerful voice echoing throughout the forest, like a haunting ghost that followed Elliot wherever he went.

He was ashamed of himself for running, but what else was he supposed to do? Fight to the death? While that would have been the more honorable thing to do, he felt like he would do better getting stronger and fighting Stanton again, once they were on equal terms. He knew that the only reason Stanton was going for him now, was because he had an advantage. But Elliot would show him. One day or another, he would kill the wolf who had turned him into the monster he now was.

He would never forgive him for turning him into this beast. As Elliot ran through the forest, weaving through the thick mass of trees, his mind flashed him images that haunted him day in and day out. The atrocities he had committed while he was a newly turned wolf, were too much for Elliot to face. He ran a little faster as if he could outrun his demons, but they kept following him.

The image of the first man he killed, his body marred and destroyed on the side of the road, replayed in his mind over and over, driving him toward the brink of insanity. He was a murderer. He had killed that man. Killed him in cold blood. He would never forgive himself for what he had done.

***

“It feels nice to be home alone… doesn’t it Nala?” Valery asked as she reached up and petted the lion-looking cat, lounging on the top of the couch. The cat just flicked its tail in response, looking at her new owner with its powerful yellow eyes. “But I do miss him… you know?” She spoke to the cat as if the animal would reply.

The cat did indeed meow in response, however as if it knew what Valery was talking about. “I bet you miss him too, don’t you?” Valery sighed and sat up, thinking about her fiancé. It had been almost a year since he had died, but yet she still missed him terribly. She couldn’t get his image out of her mind most nights. She had loved him deeply and it was weird to think that she would never see him again.

“Are you hungry?” She asked the feline who got up and stretched, showing off its unique black markings painted on its gray coat. Valery smiled as she petted her gently, ruffling the mane of fur that was gathered around her neck. “You’re a cute little lion. I can tell why Liam saved you from the shelter.” The cat sat back down on her haunches, blinked a few times, and then meowed once more.

Valery chuckled. “Silly cat.” It meowed again before Valery turned away and made her way into the kitchen. She grabbed a can of cat food and opened it up, placing it in Nala’s bowl. The cat started to rub against her legs, purring loudly as she waited for her dinner. “Calm down… it’s just food.” Valery commented before she bent down and placed the bowl on the ground.

The cat had a powerful appetite as it started to scarf down its food as if it had never eaten in its life. Valery smiled to herself before opening up the fridge. Now, what was she going to eat herself? She didn’t really feel like cooking. Right now, it seemed like such a bother. She just wanted to lay down and sleep.

It had been a busy day at work. Valery owned the town’s only cat café, a place where patrons could come in and have a cup of coffee while playing with the felines that called the café their home. Valery was glad she had started the business with Liam three years ago. It was a good place for abandoned cats to go when they had no home and it had helped to find some of them a permanent home. Valery loved her job, but it was very hectic at times.

They were quite popular and sometimes they would end up understaffed, which meant Valery had to take on the position of a barista. Valery didn’t mind it much, but it was tiring work. There was no denying that.

Finally, Valery found a box of leftover Chinese. She grabbed it and popped it into the microwave, waiting for it to heat up. As she did, she leaned against the counter looking at the wall, her mind wandering in a million different directions.

While distracted, Nala walked up to the door. She started to scratch at it and meowed loudly. Valery tilted her head, trying to figure out what was going on with her pet. What had gotten into her? Valery walked up to her cat, before squatting and petting her gently. “What do you want?” The cat responded by continuing to scratch at the door. “Do you want to go outside? But it’s nighttime.” Valery was confused. This was not normal behavior. There must be something going on outside that Nala wanted her to go look at.

Valery started to feel a little nervous, but Nala had never led her astray before. She trusted the cat and opened the door. In an instant, she shot out into the darkness. “Nala!” Valery yelled after her. She quickly turned on the floodlight on the back porch. To her horror, she saw someone laying on her lawn, curled up into a tight ball.

Nala was standing next to this person, looking back at Valery and meowing. Hesitantly, she stepped forward. Once she heard a loud groan, she realized things were not looking good. She ran forward as fast as she could, leaning down over the injured person. Valery lived near the forest, where it was not uncommon for people to be attacked by the wild animals that lurked there. Maybe this person had the bad luck of being met by such a fate.

As Valery squatted down, she slowly rolled them over so she could see their face. She gasped in horror when she saw the face of a handsome young man looking up at her. He had impossibly dark eyes that looked into her own for a moment. Their eyes locked before he groaned louder this time, his fingers moving away from the deep gash in his side. He was quickly losing a lot of blood.

“Oh my god!” Valery gasped, her strawberry blonde hair spilling over her shoulders as she leaned down in concern. “Hold on! I’m going to get help!” She quickly took off her thin sweatshirt and pressed it against his wound. He grunted as the pain radiated through his body. “I’m sorry… but if I don’t do this, you’ll bleed out… can you move?”

Elliot tried to get up. It was painful, but he refused to die in this girl’s backyard. He got up, pushing through the extreme pain, using the strange girl as support. They slowly made their way into her house, leaving a trail of blood behind them as they went in. Nala rushed ahead, standing by the door and flicking her tail as if she were up to something. Her yellow eyes looked at Elliot as if she knew his secret.

As they approached the doorway she dashed inside, hiding from sight. “Nice cat…” Elliot muttered as he stepped into the girl’s home.

“Thanks…” Valery answered naturally. It was a little odd that this man, as injured as he was, was complimenting her cat.