Tempting the Tiger by Lacey Thorn: Awakening Pride Series, Book Two Read online

  She pumped her hips up into his thrusting fingers, into his suckling mouth, and he felt the tremble start in her thighs, heard the sweet gasps of her breath as orgasm approached. She was his. Her pleasure was his pleasure. He pressed deep, wiggled his fingers until he rubbed just the right spot and sucked harder on her clit. And Amia came with a scream, his name falling from her lips.

  He fought and won as the animal wanted to rise up and bite, to flip her to her hands and knees and claim her. Instead, he eased her down from orgasm with soft kisses and gentle strokes until she was soft and pliant beneath him. He continued to trail kisses along her inner thighs, across her quivering stomach with the scar that marred more than her skin. It marred her heart and soul as well. He wanted to kill, to taste the blood of the person who had hurt Amia so deeply.

  “Good?” he asked, though he already knew she was more than good.

  She nodded her head and looked at him shyly. It pierced his heart and made it harder than ever to rein in the beast inside.

  “Aren’t you going to…” She paused for a minute, and he lifted a brow in challenge, loving the way her cheeks flushed and her nose flared in acceptance. “Aren’t you going to fuck me?”

  It excited and annoyed him at the same time. Hearing her ask him to fuck her, seeing the desire in her eyes made his cock swell impossibly bigger, and inflated an ego she’d already commented on. Yet at the same time, it hurt him. She was more than a fuck, deserved to be more than a fuck. But he was loath to fight his need to claim her with his cock.

  Mine growled through his head, but this time he kept the declaration from leaving his lips. He eased back far enough to jerk his shirt over his head and toss it aside. He moved to sit on the edge of the bed just long enough to tug off boots and socks before popping the tab on his jeans and shoving them and his boxer briefs down and off. He kept his back to her, not wanting to scare her with how much he wanted her.

  But she was having none of that. Her lips brushed over the top of his ass before moving to the small of his back and the two dimples that he’d always had there. She flicked her tongue over them.

  “Amia.” He moaned her name and used one hand to grip his cock and hold it up close to his body. He turned, reaching out for her with his free hand and pressing her onto her back.

  “I want to taste you,” she argued even as he pushed her flat and moved into place between her thighs.

  “Next time,” he promised, knowing there would be a next time. One taste of her would never be enough.

  He used his hand to line up his cock with her pussy and pressed the swollen head just the barest bit inside her. She was tight, hot and blessedly wet from her recent orgasm.

  “Let me know if I hurt you,” he told her, gritting his teeth as he fought to be slow, to be gentle, when all he wanted to do was thrust deep and possess her in the only way he could.

  “Reno,” she moaned, clutching at his shoulders and pulling him to her, wrapping her legs around his hips and trying to work herself onto him.

  “Easy,” he urged. He would not fuck. He would not take. He would be slow and easy, giving.

  “No,” she sighed, pressing up and forcing another inch inside herself. “Take me, Reno. Fuck me. Show me the pleasure again.”

  He bit off an oath and dug deep, seeking the control she was shattering. But he wasn’t prepared for Amia’s next move. She lifted her head and bit down on his pectoral muscle just above his heart, and he was incapable of holding back. He felt the prick of her teeth, and the animal roared in approval. He slammed into her, burying his cock balls deep in her sweet heat.

  “Amia,” he groaned her name as she screamed and bucked under him. It took all he had to regain control, to not do as she asked and fuck her.

  “So good,” she whimpered, flicking her lids open to meet his gaze. Her green eyes were lush, dark with desire and pleasure. “Fuck me, Reno. Fuck me so good.”

  He grunted and pulled back, holding her gaze as he rocked back into her. She moaned and licked the spot she’d bitten. He’d bear the marks of her fingernails on his shoulders as well. And he loved it. There was one more thing he wanted, no needed, before he could give in and take her as they both wanted.

  He dropped down until his chest rested against hers and his mouth hovered over hers. There was one thing he craved that she’d yet to give. Her kiss.

  He licked over her lips, nipped her bottom lip, and when those sweet curves parted on a soft cry, he dove deep, claiming and possessing. His tongue found hers and wound around it, leading it back to his mouth where he wrapped around her tongue and sucked softly. He braced his weight on one forearm and used the other to reach down and hold her hip while he began thrusting slowly in and out.

  “Reno.” She breathed his name as they parted for air.

  But he wasn’t done, hadn’t had enough of her. Her kiss was even more innocent and addictive than her pussy.

  He took her mouth again, and this time she rewarded him with a tentative sucking of his tongue into her mouth. Christ, the things this woman did to him without even knowing it. He sensed a woman who had been hurt in ways that might kill him when he discovered them, and he vowed he would discover them. Whoever had hurt her would die, no matter how long it took to exact the vengeance.

  She moaned again softly and began moving with him. She relaxed her hands, rubbing where she’d just scratched and dug in, soothing and holding him close. Her lips spread kisses along his jaw, then she arched her neck back with a long, low sound of pleasure. He dropped his lips to her neck and sucked and licked at the spot where her neck met her shoulder. He wanted to bite her, to just sink his teeth in and hold her in place while he filled her with his seed. And he was going to fill her.

  He’d never taken a woman without a condom, but the mere thought of anything separating him from Amia made him want to pound his chest and roar in denial. It didn’t matter that he hadn’t planned for this, that there was no condom available. In the past, that would have been enough to stop him. But not here. Not now. Not with Amia.

  “Reno.”

  The way she crooned his name. God, she made him feel like a king, like a sexual god.

  “Come for me, Amia,” he ordered and slid his hand from her hip to her swollen clitoris, rubbing it with his thumb.

  She cried out as she jerked her body higher up into him, trapping his hand between their straining bodies. Her legs inched higher along his sides, and she pressed him impossibly deeper. He felt the first hard pulse of her pussy as it contracted around him in orgasm before he gave a yell and joined her. He could feel his cum shooting out of his cock, filling her with burst after burst of his semen. Every tight squeeze of her cunt milked more seed from him.

  With a grunt of pleasure, he eased his weight down on her, not wanting to crush her but unable to even move the slightest inch right then. She’d drained him, and he wasn’t just talking about his cock. He was a quivering mass of loose limbs and galloping heart. No woman had ever turned him inside out during sex the way Amia had just done. And to know he’d rocked her world as much as she’d rocked his? Yeah, there went that king and sex god complex again.

  She clutched him to her, her hands running up and down along his back where she could reach. Her breath came in sharp pants beside his ear, and he knew he needed to move off her.

  “Sec.” He slurred the word out. Shit! She had him slurring.

  “Not yet,” she said and tightened her grip on him as if she could hold him to her with force of will alone.

  He rolled, taking her with him as he did so she was on top.

  “Better?” He grunted and lifted his hand to rub along her lower back. “Ease up, baby. I’ve got you.”

  Slowly, she relaxed. First, her hands eased to rest curled up on his chest. Then she shifted her legs, moaning a bit as she straightened them along his. Hell, she’d been wrapped around him like a vise, and he’d enjoyed every moment. But she had to be cramped and sore. He’d tried to be easy, to be slow, but Amia and her sexy m
oans and pleas for more had shattered any willpower to hold back. If he wasn’t careful, he’d be back to full mast in her soon, and they couldn’t afford that. They should have been on the road already.

  “Are you okay?” he finally whispered, then couldn’t stop himself from kissing the top of her head.

  She looked up at him then wiggled again. “Thank you. That was amazing.”

  He smiled, unable not to, and eased her off him, turning onto his side and looming over her. “Anytime, Amia. Just say the word.”

  She glanced down his body, and he felt the heat of her gaze on his cock like a stroke of her hand or tongue.

  “How about a quick shower, then we hit the road?” he offered.

  And just like that, her joy seemed to fade. “I wish you would believe me when I tell you it’s not a good idea to take me with you. I can’t give you the answers you want.”

  “Can’t? Or won’t?”

  She sighed. “They’ll come after me. You’ll lead them right to you.”

  He shook his head. “They’ll never find you where we’re going. You’re going to have to trust me when I say I won’t let anyone hurt you again.”

  He could tell by the look in her eyes that she didn’t believe him, but she didn’t say another word about going with him. “Are we sharing the shower?”

  Just like that, his cock was rigid again, and damned if a sound like a fucking purr didn’t rumble from his chest. She glanced at him in shock and must have found his expression amusing. Nice to know his disgust amused her. She bit her lip and reached out tentatively to caress his flesh. He closed his eyes. And fucking purred again.

  Her giggle had his eyes snapping open and glancing at her. She didn’t seem like a woman who laughed often, especially not the girlish sound of a giggle. It was all he could do not to puff his chest out and preen with pride, or purr again. Then her hand slid over his abs and headed toward his straining erection. He struggled between what he wanted and what they needed to do for a second before interceding and capturing her hand with his.

  “Why don’t you go start the water, and I’ll join you in a minute?”

  She seemed uncertain, as if she wasn’t sure how to react to him stopping her.

  “I want you to touch me. I want your hands and mouth all over me. Don’t doubt that. But we need to be on the road. We’ve stayed longer than we should have.”

  She nodded, and her eyes flared then went soft when he brought her hand to his mouth and kissed the palm.

  “Go,” he urged her and couldn’t take his eyes off her as she stood and walked across the cabin naked. The woman was built like a goddess and seemed oblivious to the fact.

  Mine roared through his mind again, and he gritted his teeth, fighting to contain the animalistic claim inside. Things were fucked up enough as it as was without him trying to claim her as a fucking possession. He had a feeling Amia wouldn’t appreciate it anyway. There was so much to her, so much she kept bottled up inside. He wanted to know all her secrets, her hopes, dreams and the demons that haunted her at night. He’d watched her while she’d slept, scented her fear and held her while she’d cried and begged someone to just kill her. He didn’t think she’d appreciate it if she knew that, though.

  There were secrets she held deep. Like the scars she had and who had put them there. Then there was her fear of going with him, that she would be endangering him just by being with him. What had been done to her? And why? That’s what he couldn’t wrap his mind around. What had happened to create the rift between Amia and her family?

  He was already in too deep, and he knew next to nothing about her besides her name. Christ, what was happening to him? To them? Because he was willing to believe Amia was caught up in this as much as he was. Was this anything like what Tah had gone through with Abby? Was Amia meant to be Reno’s mate? He shook his head. There were too many unanswered questions for him to even think about claiming and mating a woman.

  He heard the water start up, and Amia’s sigh of pleasure made him grin. Until the ringing of his phone interrupted.

  “Where are you?” Tah wasn’t one to beat around the bush with a simple hello.

  “On my way back,” Reno answered.

  “Good. I had a bad feeling. Abby had to hold me back from coming after you last night. I’ve paced the fucking floors today driving everyone crazy waiting to hear from you. Couldn’t take it anymore. You okay? Everything okay?”

  “I’m good.” His glance speared back toward the open bathroom door and the steam slowly making its way out. “I’ll tell you everything when I get back.”

  “Tonight?”

  “No.” Something told him he’d never make it driving straight through. He already wanted Amia again. He figured they’d make a few stops along the way. Maybe he could get her to open more than her body to him. Maybe she would want more than his body in return.

  “Reno?”

  “I’m here. I’ve… I won’t be coming back empty-handed. I’ve got a member of the Blane family with me.”

  “Does he have answers?”

  “I don’t know yet. I’m going to take my time, make sure we’re not being followed on the way back.” He wasn’t sure why he didn’t correct Tah’s misconception that the person with Reno was a man. He just wasn’t ready to share Amia yet.

  “Call me daily until you get your ass back here, or I’m coming after you, which will piss Abby off, which will piss me the fuck off.”

  Reno laughed. “Point taken.”

  “Are you sure you’re okay?” Tah asked quietly. “I swear I heard you roar in pain. It fired through my brain and had me leaping out of bed ready to fight. Scared the shit out of Abby.”

  Reno wondered if Tah really was his pride leader. He’d always felt a connection to his best friend, long before they knew anything about spirits and shifters and beasts sleeping inside. Was it possible Tah could sense when one of his pride was awake and in pain? Because Reno had no doubt his animal spirit was awake and ready to fight. In fact, he found spirit too gentle of a word for what was inside him. It was a fucking beast, as dominant and arrogant as the man. Didn’t that just figure.

  “I’m good. I’ll call and check in tonight. Take care of Abby.”

  He hung up and tossed the phone on the disheveled bed. He would do as he said, keep his eyes open and make sure they weren’t followed. Someone had definitely been watching them in the woods earlier when Amia had run. He’d sensed it, but he hadn’t sensed any threat, only curiosity. That’s the only reason he’d been able to push it aside and make love to Amia when they got back inside the cabin. That and the fact the beast had been so demanding. Now, he was back to mulling it over. Was it possible Amia had a friend keeping track of her? She didn’t act as if she did. But there was definitely more going on than he knew right then.

  “I’m using all the hot water,” Amia called from the bathroom.

  “Coming,” he hollered back, stopping to check the door. He inhaled deeply but smelled nothing but the mingled scents of him and Amia and the sex they’d just shared. His cock, which had been going down, twitched happily, making him groan. Fuck. This was going to be a long-ass trip back to Colorado.

  She turned toward him with a smile that wrapped around him as he stepped in the bathroom and got his first look at her all wet and naked, covered in soap suds and looking like a dream. Thank God for sheer shower curtains that hid nothing.

  “I’m almost finished,” she said.

  They were far from finished. He had a feeling there was more between them than just great sex. He could keep ignoring his beast as long as he wanted, but he doubted it would change anything. The beast was determined Amia belonged to him, no matter how much the man said it couldn’t be. Reno had no idea which side would win this battle or how Amia would react to his primal urge to claim her. She already wanted to leave him. A bite like the one he ached to give her would send her screaming as far away as she could get. Fuck!

  He stepped in and inched close enough for her wet
skin to brush all along his. She felt good, perfect, as if she were meant just for him. She turned to face him, water sluicing over her shoulders and hitting him. Her nipples grazed his chest, and his cock stood right back up and begged for attention. She was holding a washcloth thoroughly doused in soap bubbles.

  “Let me get your back,” she offered, and it took every ounce of willpower he had not to press her against the wall and take her again.

  He dropped a kiss to the top of her nose and turned to give her his back. Strong fingers worked the cloth over his shoulders and down his spine where she didn’t stop. No, she surprised him by sinking to her knees and washing the rest of him as well. She was still on her knees when he turned around. He moaned as she worked that cloth up the front of him, especially as her touch caressed his balls and cock. Her eyes met his as she stood and worked up his stomach and chest.

  With nothing more than a sigh, she slid around him so he could rinse off. He felt her slide back to her knees behind him and knew exactly what she had planned when he turned to face her. Her hungry mouth met his eager cock in a kiss that had him locking his knees just to remain upright.

  “Amia,” he moaned, meaning to tell her to stop. They needed to leave.

  “Shh,” she whispered as she licked along his shaft. “Let me taste you, Reno. Please. I want to taste you.”

  With a groan of submission, he reached behind and jerked the handle down to shut off the water then leaned against the wall as she licked and sucked, driving him slowly insane. One hand played with the taut sac of his scrotum, her fingers rubbing and exploring while her mouth worked the head of his cock. Fuck, it was so good. She was tentative, uncertain at first until he gripped her hair with one hand and began a slow fucking of her mouth.