Shifted Plans (12 page)

Glowing, sated eyes stared at him. “What’s wrong?”

“No condom.”

Her smile dropped in disappointment. “Oh. Um, I don’t have any.”

Declan was elated she didn’t have a need for a condom stash, but he was also ready
to cry. His dick hurt so damn bad, but he refused to have sex without some sort of
protection. He hadn’t planned on taking her so soon after seeing her at the bar. Hell,
he had been lucky he’d had one on him in the first place.

Edging away from the temptation of her body, he looked for his pants.

“Declan?”

“Yeah?” He couldn’t make eye contact with her. He was likely to beg her to offer him
some relief. Considering his fuck ups, no matter his pain level, he wouldn’t do that
to her—pressure her into something she wasn’t ready to give freely.

He heard her shifting on the bed. Glancing at her quickly, he found her on her knees,
legs spread.

She licked her lips and beckoned him over. “Come here.”

He swallowed hard. He could clearly see what she offered. “You don’t have to, Avery.
I didn’t plan on any of this.”

A sexy little grin curved the corner of her mouth. “I know. Makes it even better.”

He took a step closer and, when he was within range, she grabbed his hand and pulled
him close.

Running her hand over his length, Declan clenched his teeth and groaned. The cool,
softness of her skin on his heated flesh made his eyes roll back. Preoccupied with
the sensations bombarding him, he missed the moment when she leaned forward and took
the head into her mouth. Swirling her tongue around the crown before engulfing him
in the warm heat of her mouth, she didn’t stop until he bumped the back of her throat.

“Holy shit, Avery.”

He looked down, and she fluttered her eyelashes, swallowing the head of his dick down
her throat. She hummed, grabbed his balls, and rolled them in her fingers all while
bobbing up and down. She pulled almost all of the way off him before swallowing him
again.

“Again, Avery. Swallow me down again.” Voice rough, he barely held onto the human
side. The lion enjoyed the mating, hoped for his turn with her lioness next.

Shallow thrusts of his hips he worked himself into frenzy with the teasing pulls.
She came off with a pop, flipping quickly onto her back, and dropped her head over
the side of the bed. Grabbing his steel-hardened dick, she guided it into her mouth
again, latched onto him, and sucked. Her hands ran up his legs until she clutched
his ass, forcing him to move faster in and out of her mouth.

Declan felt the come rising inside him, ready to burst free. He grunted and thought
he told her he was about to explode, but she refused to let go.

“Avery,” he shouted, shoving to the back of her throat, and came. She took it in stride,
swallowing him down without a struggle, humming the entire time.

When he finally stopped ejaculating, she leisurely lapped at his deflating cock, licking
and kissing the tortured flesh until she deemed she was done.

Dropping to his knees, he kissed her on the forehead, slumping against her.

How did he ever think he could ignore her?

Avery rolled over and got a good look at Declan. Exhausted but sated, he appeared
content to stay right where he sat.

She, however, was ready to go. She felt recharged and alive, ready to tackle the world—as
long as Declan stood by her side.

Her stomach growled, breaking the silence in the room.

Declan chuckled while getting up off the floor. Grabbing his jeans, he slipped them
on but didn’t bother to zip or button them. He held out his hand and helped her off
the bed. Once she stood in front of him, he kissed her…deeply…soundly.

“Let’s eat,” he said, handing her his T-shirt.

She slipped it on, hiding the smile the simple gesture created.

She grabbed her phone off the charger. “How about I order some pizza? Steph’s delivers
here all of the time. They have my standing order on file.”

His eyebrow raised in skepticism. “Really, you have a standing order at Steph’s?”

“Yeah, double meat stuffed, super grande.”

“I’m impressed. Order away. I’m sure I can eat a couple slices.”

She speed dialed Steph’s as they walked out into the living room. “Hey, Georgie. I’d
like my regular times two. Yes, two of them. Cheesy bread, too. And a six pack of
soda. Use my card on file. Thanks. See you in twenty.” She hung up and tossed the
phone on the coffee table.

“You’re going to eat one by yourself? I’ve seen their pizzas. They’re big.”

“I love them. Trust me. I’ll have no problem polishing off mine.”

Declan shook his head and tugged her toward the couch. He sat down, pulling her next
to him, making sure her legs were across his lap.

“I picked dinner, how about you pick the movie?” She handed him the remote and did
a tiny dance inside at how cozy the situation felt.

Declan picked an action flick while they waited for the food.

Avery reveled being with him. Now that they had gotten over the misunderstanding,
she felt they were on the right track. She wouldn’t say she loved him, but he was
her mate. They could build from there. She hoped.

She knew she should be a tad bit angrier about what he had done, how he had gone about
things, but she didn’t want to. Call her a pushover or a too-stupid-to-live chick,
she didn’t care. She’d dreamed about finding her mate for years, and it finally happened.
Not in the fashion she’d hoped, but what in life went according to plan? If only she
had realized it when she’d felt her world crumbling.

Her phone buzzed again, and she jumped up. Dashing into her bedroom, she grabbed tip
money and her shorts and then headed for the door.

“Be right back. Time to get the food.”

“I can go and get it. You aren’t exactly dressed.” Declan had gotten up from his seat
and met her at the door.

Avery slipped on the shorts, the seam rubbing up against her naked pussy. “No, best
if you stay here. I don’t need a man traipsing all over the townhouse quite yet. I
need to let the girls and Housing Management know about you first.”

He nodded, but Avery didn’t think he knew what he’d agreed to. “I don’t want you thinking
I’m ashamed of you. We have a certain set of rules we have to go by.” Ones they would
have to talk about and live by while they figured out what to do.

Running downstairs, she snatched the pizza from Georgie, promised she would explain
the two pies later, and was back on her level in less than ten minutes.

She and Declan dug into the food as they sat on the couch, watching the movie. A perfectly
normal, domestic thing to do, and, for once, she decided not to make a pig out of
herself. She closed the lid on the pizza box.

“Done already? I thought you were going to show me how well you could devour one of
those things.”

“I never said I did it in one sitting. Besides, we can save the rest for later.” She
licked her lips out of nervous habit. “That is, if you want to stay longer.”

“Definitely.” Declan studied her. She sure as hell hoped she didn’t have pizza all
over her face. He played with her hair then tugged on the ends. “I have a question.”

He sounded so serious a jumble of nerves formed in her belly. “Okay, shoot.”

“Where were you this morning? I got to class early and waited for you. Mark got a
kick out of it. I may have freaked out a little.”

“A River Rock police officer freaking out because of little ole me? Wow, I guess I
should say I’m honored, and I’m glad I could help entertain your friend. We need to
introduce him to Reese. She likes to wallow in other people’s misery as well. I had
my classes changed up. Reese did it for me. I was mourning the loss of our nonexistent
relationship, thinking you’d rejected me and couldn’t do it.”

Declan didn’t know what to say. He would to have to get used to the brutally honest
thing with her. He didn’t run into many women as up front as her. But then, Avery
didn’t fall into his “usual” kind of woman. She was far superior. His mate. The woman
tailored perfectly for him.

His lion chuffed in agreement. No demure lioness for him. He liked it. Declan had
a feeling he would always get an honest answer out of her whether he liked it or not.

They still had a lot to talk about, a lot to decide, but for the first time in over
a week, he could honestly say he wasn’t worried about what to do. He was right where
his lion wanted him, and the man agreed. She made it easy for him to relax and enjoy
their time together.

Time was exactly what he wanted, too. A lightbulb clicked on in his brain. He had
a bag in the truck filled with everything he would need—a change of clothes and basic
hygiene items. He would have no problem spending the night at her place and getting
ready for work in the morning. Though, if he played it right, he might miss his class
in favor of some personal time with her.

“I get the feeling you don’t want me wandering about, but I need something out of
my truck.”

“Okay. I can go down with you.” She wiped her hands on a napkin before taking a swig
of the soda.

“You afraid I’ll get kidnapped between here and the truck or that I won’t come back?”
He didn’t get why he would need to be escorted. Didn’t she trust him?

No, you dummy, not after the shit you pulled.

Avery snorted. “No, it’s just there are rules we have to abide by. No unescorted men
on the premises is one of them. The only caveat to the rule is if the man is mated
with one of the women living in the house. It’s pretty rare to see since, by the time
they’ve gone through the mating ceremony, they are usually already living together.”

“We’re mated,” he argued. She really didn’t need to go with him. He wouldn’t be able
to stay away from her now if he wanted to. He craved her scent, her body, and her
presence. She filled an empty space in him he didn’t know existed.

“No. We’re mates. Not mated. Pretty big difference.”

“You think so? I’m positive there will never be anyone but you. Don’t you feel the
same?”

“I do…but I’m still kinda hurt. Mates by fate or not, I want to get to know the man
I’ll be spending the rest of my life with before actually going through the mating
ceremony. I’m told most couples don’t, but both of our well-ordered lives and plans
have been shaken up. I think we need to take the time to make peace with it all. While
we’re doing that, we can figure out a new plan, one we create for us.”

“All right, then.”

She made sense, in a way, glad she wanted them to take their time. One thing that
would happen quicker than she probably thought would be their moving in together.
He stood and held out his hand, waiting for her to take it. When she did, the glide
of her palm against his sent fire shooting up his arm. Pheromones released, binding
their essence together. The more they touched, the more they rubbed off on each other.
The stronger the bond.

It was one of the reasons a male generally couldn’t go long periods of time without
his mate. The need to mark her, imbue his scent on her, could drive a man insane.

He would wait to bring it up, though. He wanted them to have tonight.

Together, they walked down the stairs. When they got to the second landing, she stopped.
“Go ahead and get what you need. I need to check on the girls anyway. Let them know
you’re here.”

He leaned in, brushing a sweet, swift kiss on her lips. A breathy sigh, not from Avery,
brought his head up.

Blaire stood in her doorway, watching them. “It’s so romantic.” She swooned, her body
drifting with a dreamy sigh. Declan didn’t know if he should try and catch her or
not. The girl definitely had flighty, romantic dreams filling her head. The guy who
mated with her would have his work cut out for him.

He looked toward Avery, who smiled indulgently and shook her head. “I’ll be here when
you get back. Make sure you lock the back door, though, when you come in.”

“Okay.” He jogged down the stairs and out the back. When he got to his truck, he grabbed
his gear bag and headed inside again.

The entire trip took him about five minutes. He felt the need to rush to be near her.
When he made his way to the second floor, Avery leaned in the doorway of another girl.
He heard her smooth, husky voice seconds before her scent drifted over him. His lion
propelled him forward—not that he gave much of a fight.

He grabbed her by the hips and pulled her into him. She didn’t break from her conversation,
only relaxed into him as he nuzzled the side of her neck.

“This must be your mate.”

“Hmm.…” Avery responded, apparently lost in the small nips and sucks he planted along
her neck. When the girl said her name, she jolted in his arms. “Oh, oh! Stop that.”
She batted him away and shifted to try to break his hold. He wouldn’t let go. “Sorry,
Tess. Yes, this is my mate, Declan Weller. Don’t worry if you see him here from time
to time.”

Declan interrupted before Avery could finish. “I’m with River Rock PD. Now, your home
will be safer than ever.”

Tess cocked an eyebrow. “Thank goodness you’ll be here to save us poor, defenseless
women. I mean, how would we ever be able to fend off an intruder?” She brought her
finger up to her lips and tapped. “Oh, I know,” she explained in an overly bright
tone. “We can shift and maim the bastard. If that doesn’t work”—she shrugged—“we can
rip his balls off and throat out.”

Avery snorted, and Declan took a step back. Tess was one angry chick. “All right,
then. I think I’m going to take Avery upstairs. Nice meeting you, Tess.”

“Bye now. Y’all come back soon,” she drawled.

As soon as Avery stepped out of the doorway, Tess’s door slammed shut.

Declan ushered her upstairs and into her place. “She must be a barrel of fun at parties,”
he quipped.

“Don’t mind Tess. She’s just a little angry with men at the moment. She caught her
boyfriend cheating on her. Walked into one of the practice rooms in the music department
and found him banging his friend, Steve. Both guys, surprised at the interruption,
fell forward, knocked over the music stands, and ended up making so much noise a group
of kids coming in the room, rushed over and saw them. She’s been angry and humiliated
ever since.”