She frowned, dragged his hand to her lips, and pressed a kiss onto his knuckles. “You have nothing to be afraid of with me.”
“You’re wrong,” he said low, shaking his head as he eased back and stood straight and tall again. “You’re so wrong, Anna.”
“She-Devil is not a threat to Titan.”
He huffed a humorless laugh and let his fingers fall from hers, then strode inside the house. As she shut the door, he made his way through the small living room. He brushed his fingers against the back of the couch as he passed and then picked up the trinkets she’d placed on the mantle of the small fire place.
“Presents from Samuel, my brother,” she explained as he held up the snow globe with the fish in the middle. “He travels, and he picks me up snow globes from the airports when he’s away. He’s done it since he was twenty-one. I don’t know why, but now it’s tradition. It’s silly, but I love them.”
“You’re close to your brother?” he asked, as he made his way into the kitchen.
“Very close. We’re only two years apart. He’s the only one in my real life who knows about the panther. He built the cage I slept in, and shifted in.” It hurt to think about the cage, so she did a hard right turn and changed the subject. “I heard you have a brother, too.”
“Twin brother. We’re close, but half the time I love him, and half the time our bears are brawling.” He chuckled and had a faraway look in his eyes. “Our human sides have always gotten along. Our bears have not.”
Annalise locked her arms against the back of the couch and grinned. “And you’re a Gray Back,” she said, testing what he would let her talk about. “You both were born little monsters, right?”
Jaxon ghosted her a quick grin. “You’ve been talking to the panthers about me, huh?”
“I got in trouble for not researching enough,” she said cheerily. “I learn quick.”
“Mmm,” he hummed as he sat up on the counter and jerked his chin in a come-hither gesture that made the butterflies in her stomach get to flapping again. Jaxon Barns was sexy, and he knew it.
As she approached and then settled between his legs, she rested her hands on his thighs. Jaxon brushed her hair off her shoulders. “The panthers don’t understand the dynamics of other crews. That’s because they keep to themselves. It’s instinct for them. Maybe for She-Devil, too. But for me, growing up with the Gray Backs was normal. Violence was normal. We would cuss and brawl and bleed, and then we would have a beer and go about our lives until the next time we needed to fight.”
“Needed to?”
“Yeah.” He shrugged. “Fighting feels good, and relieves tension.”
“And Gray Backs…they just get along after fights?”
“Sometimes. Sometimes one of us will be mad for a week, but we all got over it. We had to.”
“Why?”
“Because we were crew. It’ll be the same here. You won’t always get along. It’s not a perfect or easy life, Anna.” He cocked a dark eyebrow. “It was sexy as fuck watching you go after Ben on my behalf yesterday. And when you turned on Barret? I get hard every time I think about it. You’re a fierce little kitty.”
“I thought you weren’t into shifter girls.”
Jaxon scratched under his chin, at the line of his dark beard, and narrowed his eyes. “Pass. I know you’re wanting to know, but I’m here, aren’t I?”
“Would you rather me be human?” she pushed.
“Yes,” he said without hesitation.
It hurt. It was like the end of a whip against cold skin. It stole her breath. She wished she was human too, but hearing Jaxon assuredly say she wasn’t right…well, it made her heart hurt in ways it hadn’t before.
“Not because of me, Anna. I wish your life was easier. I can see your future here, and it’s probably very different from what you’re used to. But I can’t be in it.”
More hurt. More ache.
“What if Ben changes his mind and lets you in the crew?”
“I’m a rogue.”
“So?”
He gathered her hair into little pigtails at the back of her neck. “You don’t understand. I’m nomadic. I didn’t pledge to a crew. I can’t. My bear doesn’t want to settle. I wander. I can’t stay in one place for more than a few days.”
“But if you tried—”
“You think I haven’t tried, Anna? I’ve warred with my bear my whole life. I hate what I am. I want a home. The most I can hope for is finding a girl who will be okay with roaming.”
“Don’t talk about other girls,” she growled, fury whipping through her. “Don’t sit here playing with my hair, looking me in the eyes, and talk about some future girl who is a better match. Fuck her. You said you’re here. Well…so am I.”
A low rumble emanated from his chest, and his eyes flashed with intensity. For an instant, she thought it was anger that had transformed his face into something wild, up until the point a slow, feral smile stretched his lips. “I like when you get possessive. It’s sexy. Makes me want to spin you around and fuck you from behind.” Her jerked his chin. “Right up against that counter over there.”
The anger in her evaporated instantly and was replaced by the stunned, shaky feeling her body always got when he had texted to her like that. How many naughty discussions had they had in the last four months? How many times had his words left her legs trembling, and her stomach quivering with desperation to have him buried deep inside of her? And now he was here. Now those sexy words weren’t in a text for her to read. She didn’t have to imagine his voice. She could hear the deep timbre of it and see the desire in his eyes as he dragged his gaze down her body.
She could actually have him.
“Yes, please,” she whispered.
The sexy smile fell from his lips and he slid off the counter, catching her hand on his thigh and placing it on the hard length of his erection pressing against his jeans.
Oh God, how could a man be this sexy?
He stalked her, pushing her by the hips backward until her ass hit the counter on the other side of the small kitchen. Such hunger roiled in his eyes. The second he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers, he slid his hand down the front of her shorts, cupped his hand on her sex and pushed a finger into her. She inhaled deeply at how surprising and good the sensation was. Jax was a man who knew exactly how to touch a woman. She was clay in his capable hands. Not submissive in the bedroom in general, but right now, she would’ve done anything he asked.
His free hand went to the side of her neck and held her in place as he deepened the kiss, plunging his tongue into her mouth. Annalise let off a tiny helpless whimper and unsnapped the button on his jeans. It sounded so loud in the quiet of the kitchen. She brushed her fingertips against the swollen head of his hard cock, and Jax reacted, thrusting against her with a soft, sexy groan. Desperate, she shoved his jeans down his hips, exposing the muscular V at his waist. Jax pulled his hand from her shorts, shrugged out of his blue flannel shirt, then reached over his head, and pulled off his black T-shirt, leaving his hair mussed as he tossed the fabric onto the floor. His massive shoulders rippled with muscle as he moved to grip her waist again. His fingers dug into her skin as his lips collided with hers again. The kiss was urgent now, the pace of his stroking tongue fast and hard as he pressed his hips against hers.
To touch his skin was a need. It wasn’t a want. To exist another moment, she needed to feel the warmth of his skin against hers. Annalise eased back just enough to tug her shirt off, though much less graceful than Jax had. He helped. He peeled it from her arms the rest of the way in a rush, and then reached behind her and popped the clasp of her bra like he’d written the damn book on being a smooth operator. Hooking his finger in the front of her bra, he yanked it off her arms and, without hesitation, moved to her shorts. He didn’t even unbutton them, just shoved them along with her panties down to her ankles so she could step out of them. He stepped back with the smack of his lips, cast a quick glance down at the pile of fabric, and gri
nned.
She’d worn pink see-through lacies today, just in case number one on her list did happen.
He slid a firm hand to her breast and massaged as he pressed his hard erection against her belly. So warm. Surely, Jax ran ten degrees hotter than her. She wanted to study all his tattoos and ask about every one of them. She wanted to know the story he’d had drawn on the canvas of his body, but that would have to wait because right now, she just wanted to close her eyes and feel him. And not just him, but the blanket of safety he laid over her every time he was physically close. It was broad daylight, and she wasn’t insecure at all about her body. She’d never trusted anyone this much, and she’d only just met him in person.
Inside of her, She-Devil was quiet and watchful. Happy almost. Well, that was new.
Jax gripped her hips and spun her slowly while kissing her. When she faced the counter, right before he disengaged from the kiss, he sucked hard on her bottom lip, bit it slightly. Oh, she liked bitey. Or more specifically, She-Devil did.
Annalise’s body was on fire, and the warmth gathered and pooled between her thighs. Anticipation built in her lower belly when Jax gripped the back of her hair and pushed her forward so that her bare breasts rested on the cool surface of the counter. She thought he would ease into her, but the second the head of his cock pushed into her wet entrance, Jax thrusted hard and stretched her in an instant. The growl was back in his throat now as he reared back and shoved into her again. So big, but she was ready and relaxed and this didn’t hurt at all. It felt so fucking good, she was left breathless with every thrust. And then he reached around her hip and pressed his fingers on her clit, rubbed in rhythm to him slamming into her, and she cried out at how sensitive she was. Jax massaged her breast with the other hand, pinning her against the counter as he bucked into her, over and over, faster and harder until she was crying out with every stroke, so close to release.
When he leaned against her and bit down on her neck, the pressure in her middle built to blinding, and her orgasm was instant with the pressure of his teeth on her skin. She screamed his name as he pounded into her. The quick, deep pulses were so fast, and she was so responsive to their connection right now, it was almost a relief when he snarled and shoved deep inside her, froze as the first jet of warmth throbbed from his cock.
His teeth were still on her as he bucked into her again and again with the rhythm of his own pulsing release.
“Do it,” she said mindlessly. Do what? He was giving it to her hard, had given her an orgasm that was stretching on and on. What was she asking?
Jax’s jaws clenched so that he was close to piercing her skin. It hurt. What kind of violent creature in her middle would ask for this? What kind of monster would ask that a man she cared for hurt her?
Still she begged. “Please, Jax.”
The bite got harder. He would draw blood with it. Warmth was streaming down her inner thighs, and they were still throbbing together, matching each other’s orgasms, but suddenly, Jax released her neck and pulled out of her so fast, it was shocking.
Legs shaking and splayed, she leaned against the counter, panting, wondering where the all-consuming warmth had gone. In that instant of disconnect, she missed his touch down to her bones. Her instincts told her something was very wrong.
“Fuck,” Jax choked out in a strange, gravelly voice. “Anna…”
Annalise turned just in time to see Jax fall to his knees, his body rippling with breaking bones.
“Anna, run!” he yelled.
She didn’t understand. They’d just shared everything. They’d been connected and happy. They’d satisfied each other, so why was Titan shredding his skin right now? Annalise forced her legs to move and bolted for the door as the massive grizzly ripped out of Jax and bellowed a roar that shook the house. With a gasp, Annalise threw open the door. She could hear him coming, his nails scrabbling across the wooden floors, the cabin shaking with every step he gained on her.
Outside, there was movement on her right. The panthers were coming. She didn’t know which ones, but three solid black monster cats were barreling toward her so fast they nearly blurred. There was panic in the first’s eyes. Ben?
She leaped off the porch as Titan blasted through the front wall. Splinters and logs exploded outward. Her back stung, but she had no time to favor anything. She had to put distance between her and the grizzly. Her middle turned molten, and with no warning, She-Devil burst from her skin. She pitched forward and landed on all fours, then spun around. She-Devil wasn’t a runner.
There was war. Awful war. The panthers and grizzly were all tearing each other to shreds. Red Havoc had come to protect her, but the beast they were defending her from was the beast she adored. Who did she hurt? Who did she side with? Who did she sink her claws and teeth into?
Confused, she sank to her belly in the mud and hissed, frantic gaze going back and forth between the panthers latched onto the bear. Green rage flashed in his eyes as he latched his massive jaws onto one of the panther’s legs and ripped the cat off him. The panther slid off-balance through the mud and tried to struggle to its feet, but his back leg was clearly broken. He couldn’t even put pressure on it, and it was stuck at an odd angle. The constant growl in his throat sounded pained. Was that Anson?
“Shit! Stop!” Jax’s voice echoed across the clearing.
Stunned, Annalise looked over to find him completely human, on his knees in the grass, streaming red from a cut across his chest but otherwise looking in fine health.
He held his hands up to stop the two panthers stalking closer. “I’m in control! I’m in control again, but you’ll bring the bear back if you don’t stop!” Jax gripped his stomach and doubled over. He needed help. The panthers would kill him in his human form, or draw Titan out again and start the battle all over.
Annalise bolted for him and skidded to a stop between Ben and Jax. She flattened her ears against her head and hissed, then slapped a claw at Ben’s face when he got too close. She didn’t understand what was happening, but she couldn’t watch them fight again and do nothing. She-Devil’s instincts were too big, too wild, too much to stand aside and let this happen.
Fuck. Consequences.
Jax was hers, monster and all.
As Ben Changed back, he let off a panther scream that morphed into the word, “Fuuuuck!” His human face was red, his veins popping in his neck, his eyes bright gold and furious. He ran his hands through his blond hair and then gripped the top as he paced, eyes on Jax, who was still on his knees behind her.
“You were with her for fifteen fuckin’ minutes, Grizzly! And you tried to kill her.”
“Bite her,” Jax corrected.
“What?” Ben yelled.
“I want to claim her.”
“No!”
“I know!” Jax yelled, standing gracefully. “I told her to run. I stopped myself, but the bear pushed for the bite.”
“Uh, guys?” Anson gritted out from where he was lying like an upended turtle in the mud. “My leg hurts so bad.” He rolled back and forth on his back, like that would ease the pain. The bruising and swelling was already getting bad. Indeed, it looked awful. Jax had snapped it in his jaws. They needed to call 911!
“Mother fucker cock chafer asshole licker bag of dicks Gray Back!” Anson yelled.
Barret was human now and snorted. Hands on his hips, eyes shining with hunger, he announced, “We should kill him.”
“Kill me?” Anson screeched.
“No, you dumbass,” Barret said. “The Gray Back. He gave us good reasons…right, Alpha?”
He swung his attention to Ben, who sighed. “Barret, we can’t just kill everyone. It’s not a solution for everything.”
“I never get to have any fun!” Barret the Hillbilly Serial Killer yelled, and then he stomped off toward his cabin.
As Annalise forced herself to Change back, Jax made his way smoothly over to Anson.
“Don’t touch my cat,” Ben demanded, following him closely. “Attack him w
hile he’s on his back, and I will let Barret have you!”
“I’m not attacking him. I told you I’m in control right now. You keep calling me a Gray Back like it’s a cuss word. Well, asshole, being raised in that crew is about to benefit this mother fucker bag of dicks Red Havoc panther. Quit squirming and man up,” Jax muttered, feeling along Anson’s leg.
“Don’t touch me!” Anson kicked at Jax and screamed in agony when he connected.
“Big and dumb. Way to kill the panther stereotype, you pansy,” Jax said. Was that amusement in his voice? What the hell was happening?
“Why are you smiling like that?” Anson said, curling his fists against his chest and shrinking back into the mud as he looked up at Jax suspiciously.
“Oh, I don’t know.” Jax gripped Anson’s calf in both hands and twisted his shoulders sharply as he set the bone. Snap!
Anson screamed. And screamed.
Jax ignored it even though it must’ve hurt his ears to be that close to the sheer and monstrous volume of Anson’s pained yell. “You all talk about Gray Backs like they’re so different from you. False. You’re the Gray Backs of the panthers. Fuckin’ C-team.” Jax pointed toward where Barret was kicking the side of his cabin over and over. “You have Murder Kitty…” He jammed a finger at Anson. “Pussy Panther.” And where are your others, Alpha? Lynn could be a freaking figment of your imaginations for all I know, Jenny is standing on your front porch grinning like all this is funny—the bloodthirsty female—and where’s Greyson? Oh wait, there he is, sitting in that tree watching the fight. Smiling. Like a psychopath. And Ben, don’t tell me fighting like that didn’t feel good. I feel fucking great after that.” Jax pointed at all of them, his dark eyebrows arched up. “C-team.”
“Screw you, we’re A-team panthers,” Anson muttered in a hoarse voice as he felt over his calf with searching fingertips. “And good for you, Psycho Bear. You get your kicks from breaking bones.”
“I re-set it, didn’t I? That skill? It’s one all the Gray Backs have. You’re welcome.”