CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SIX

Forking the last piece of his steak, Deke flicked his mother a look. “Will you stop it already?”

Livy blinked, all innocence. “What? A mother can’t look at her son?”

She wasn’t looking at him; she was staring at him. A sure sign that she wanted to get something off her chest. He suspected this was why he’d been invited to join his parents and younger brother for dinner.

Deke inwardly muttered a curse. He was not in the mood for whatever this was. His earlier annoyance at Dayna seemed to have fed his sense of restlessness, and the touch-hunger was now once more raging. More, his cat was crouched within him, tense as a bow, rumbling low growls for seemingly no reason.

Deke had only accepted his parents’ invitation because he’d known they’d otherwise turn up at his apartment, determined to check on him due to the touch-hunger issue. Still, he was now wishing he hadn’t. He shook his head at his mother, exasperated. “Just say whatever it is you want to say.”

“I always intended to,” she said a little primly.

At the opposite end of the dining table from her, his father let out a low chuckle. Clarence wasn’t wrong when he called Livy a firecracker. She was full of spirit and attitude, but the older male loved that about her.

Twisting in her seat to better face Deke, she leaned toward him slightly, resting her lower arm on the table. “Have you given any thought into what I said last week about Dayna?”

Deke bit back a sigh, and his cat bared a fang at the mention of the other female. In actuality, Livy hadn’t “said”anything about Dayna. She’d yelled about how Deke needed to “be done with her already.” The look his brother, Cash, shot him suggested he was having that same thought.

Deke had already decided before then that he needed to pull back from Dayna, but he hadn’t told his mother that.

He wouldn’t tell her now either.

Because she would tell her sister, who’d tell her mate, who’d tell his father, and so on and so on … until eventually it got back to Dayna. She should hear it from Deke first. He already didn’t like that he’d spoken of his intentions to Tate and Luke before he had her. It didn’t seem right.

Deke dipped his piece of steak in what was left of his pepper sauce. “Trust me to do what’s right for me.”

Livy’s lips thinned, and her hands balled up. “Two and a half years she’s stayed away. That’s not someone who deserves you.”

For God’s sake. “Mom,” he drawled, a warning note to his voice that told her to let it go.

Livy ignored it, a flush of annoyance staining her cheeks. “She has her reasons for not returning, I know. But she could have let you go at some point. She could have said, ‘Look, I can’t break away from my family yet, but if you’re unattached when I return to the US, I’ll come to you.’ That would have been the decent thing to do. But she held you to your word instead.”

“Mom, seriously, leave it.”

“You wouldn’t have done that to her. No way. But she’s too possessive to let you move on, and this is her way of making sure you don’t.”

He briefly flicked his gaze to the ceiling. “Mom.” Inside him, his cat unsheathed the tips of his claws, far from in the mood to deal with any nagging.

“The only time she seemed to show any real intention of coming back was last time you were dealing with touch-hunger.” With a little sniff, Livy folded her arms. “If you ask me, she did that for one reason only—to make sure you didn’t consider choosing to pursue something with Cassandra.”

Deke harbored that same suspicion. Dayna had made a few sarcastic comments back then such as how nice it was that he and Cassandra “got along so well.” He hadn’t told Dayna who was helping him burn off the touch-hunger. She had discovered it via Therese and Gerard.

“Is that the kind of person who deserves to have you wait for them?” Livy asked, her tone sharp. “Someone who gets your hopes up when she thinks you might otherwise choose another woman?”

Rather than explain that, no, he didn’t—hence why he’d first considered pulling out of the vow back then—he shoved his steak into his mouth. “We don’t need to have this conversation again.”

“We do if you and Dayna are still bound up in a ridiculous promise.” Then she went into yet another full-on rant about Dayna.

He met Cash’s eyes. The little shit was on the verge of laughing.

Of course, Deke could easily shut this crap down. All he’d need to do would be to let out a few dominant vibes—as a submissive, his mother would falter under the weight of them. But he would never use his dominance against her that way. Not purposely, at least. He’d done it accidentally as a juvenile on a few occasions, and he’d hated himself each time.

Using another way to handle the situation, Deke tossed out, “She wants me to move to Australia.”

Livy’s back went ramrod straight. “If you say you’re going, I will beat you with a pot.”

He fought a grin, lowering his cutlery to his now empty plate. “That’s not an incentive for me to stay.”

“I mean it, Deke,” she clipped. “You are not leaving us. Not to be with someone who clearly doesn’t love you the way you deserve to be loved.”

“I heard Australia’s a beautiful place.”

“And if you loved her, you’d find it unbearable to be away from her, but you’re managing it well enough—that’s telling.”

“Australia’s looking more beautiful by the second.”

Clarence chuckled into his glass.

Livy shot her mate a hard look. “This isn’t funny.”

Struggling to wipe his amusement from his expression, Clarence set down his drink. “Let’s just do as our boy asked and trust him to do what’s right for him.”

“No,” she snapped.

A knock came at the front door.

“I’ll get it.” Livy stiffly stood, her gaze hard on Deke once more. “But this conversation is not over.”

Watching her all but stomp out of the room, Deke sank back into his chair with a rough sigh. The woman might be submissive, but she mentally backed down for no one. When she got an idea in her head, there was no getting it out. Unfortunately for her, she’d passed her tenacity onto him, so she rarely succeeded in changing his mind on anything.

“You’re not really thinking of packing your stuff and jetting off to Australia, are you?” asked Cash.

“Nah,” replied Deke. “Just wanted to see her face turn purple.”

“Bailey, hi!”

Deke’s gut clenched at his mother’s booming welcome.

“Hi, Mrs. D,” said Bailey, her voice making his cat go completely rigid. “I wanted to bring your plate—”

“It’s just wonderful to see you,” Livy practically sang. “Come on in.”

Bailey cleared her throat. “Well, actually, I was gonna—”

There was the sound of the front door shutting, and then two sets of footfalls.

Deke felt his muscles tighten. He did not need to be around Bailey right now. His body was already a hot fucking mess. Her close proximity would only make it worse. And yet, his pulse did a pleased little jump of anticipation.

His mother all but shoved her into the dining room, beaming like a loon. “Look who’s here, everyone.”

Clarence and Cash called out their hellos, flashing her warm smiles. Deke merely grunted.

Bailey lifted her hand in greeting. “Yo.”

Curling her arm around the mamba’s shoulders, Livy asked, “Have you eaten yet?”

Bailey nodded. “Yup, I’m good.”

“What about dessert?”

“Uh …”

“You’ll have some with us,” Livy declared, herding her toward the table. “Here, you can sit with Cash.”

Deke felt his upper lip try to quiver. He’d expected his mother to direct Bailey to the empty seat beside him. Which, yeah, would have annoyed him. But it annoyed him more to see Bailey sitting beside his brother, who instantly gave her his full attention—something Livy obviously hoped would spark some jealousy in Deke. Yeah, he knew what she was doing.

That didn’t mean it wasn’t working.

In fact, it was working a little too well—a darkly primitive jealousy began to slink through his system, heating his blood and twisting his stomach, as she and Cash nattered away to each other like old friends.

His cat’s fur puffed up. The feline might not particularly want her attention, but nor did he want her so focused on another male. And he wasn’t pleased that she clearly hadn’t learned her lesson that Deke wasn’t a person she should dismiss. That was exactly what she was presently doing: Acting as if he wasn’t there.

He drew in a calming breath. It was a mistake. Because he got a lungful of her scent, and it made his body tighten. Harden. Burn.

Meanwhile, his mother collected all the plates with a smile, looking rather pleased with herself and shooting Deke the occasional smug smirk. He ignored that, fixing a glare on the main source of his frust—

He bit back a hiss as electrically charged arousal fired through him. He held his body still, subtly breathing through the hot, crackly wave as he waited for it to subside. His skin suddenly felt too tight, as if being stretched from the inside out.

Hearing his cell chime, Deke forced his muscles to unlock as he fished it out of his pocket. It was a message from Tate: Keep a lookout for jackals. Bailey told Havana that two of the Westwood Pack earlier approached her in the parking lot outside your complex to question her.

Deke went motionless, anger bubbling in his gut. His cat rose to his feet in a slow, menacing move.

Another message came through: They didn’t threaten or attempt to hurt her, but they made it clear they’d be back.

Then the assholes didn’t have a lick of sense, because if she didn’t chase them off herself, the pride would do it for her. Descriptions?

Dark hair. Tall. Trim. No facial hair. Black suits.

I’ll keep an eye out for them.

Also, remember Ginny from the rec center? The one who wants Bailey fired?

Yes. Deke had spotted the woman a time or two when he’d gone to the rec center to either keep watch over Havana or escort her home. She slept with the guy Bailey was dating, the one who recently got jumped, right?

Yeah, her. She blames Bailey for the attack. She turned up at the center today with his two brothers, who seem as suspicious of Bailey as Ginny.

Deke ground his teeth, and his cat spat a hiss. They might not have warm, fuzzy feelings for the mamba, but they didn’t like that anyone would think to come at her that way. I’ll keep a lookout for them as well.

A bowl of warm apple pie was placed in front of him by his still smirking mother.

He returned his cell to his pocket as he eyed Bailey, who was snickering at something Cash said. A simple sight, yet the vision of her so at ease with another male made his jaw clench. She’d never been that way around Deke. And vice versa, really.

Much as he wanted more info on what happened at both the center and the parking lot, he wouldn’t ask her about it here. He’d do it when they were away from ears that didn’t belong to people who weren’t part of the Alphas’ inner circle.

A prickly itch scuttled across his chest. Deke rubbed at it, trying not to scratch, and then grabbed his spoon. “Why do you have a rabbit’s foot hanging on your necklace?”

Her dark eyes flew to his. “One of the Phoenix wolves told me they give the wearer good luck.”

“How? The animal wasn’t exactly lucky in life. It died and then had its foot removed.”

“For the greater good.” Bailey lifted the spoon from her own bowl. “It now provides others with good fortune.”

“Again, I’m not seeing how. And please tell me you didn’t capture, kill, and butcher that rabbit yourself.”

“Okay, I won’t tell you.”

Chuckling, Livy retook her seat at the table. “You two …” Pausing, she turned to Bailey. “So, what have you been up to today?”

“Just working,” Bailey replied, spooning some apple pie.

Livy fussed with the position of her bowl. “How long have you worked at the rec center?”

The mamba shoveled pie into her mouth. “Since I was sixteen.”

“You lived with Corbin before that, didn’t you?”

“At his house, yeah. It’s a sort of foster home for homeless lone shifter children.” Bailey scooped up more pie with her spoon. “He’s the best.”

“Were you always a loner before going to live with him?”

“No, not always.” Chewing more of her dessert, Bailey glanced at everyone apart from Deke. “Were you all born and bred into the pride?”

“We were,” Clarence confirmed, smiling.

Livy’s own mouth curved. “Clarence and I were … what’s the term for it? Frenemies. We were frenemies when we were children.”

Bailey’s brows hiked up. “Really?”

Livy nodded. “Teenage hormones changed that. I told him when we were fourteen that I was going to claim him one day.”

“And she did.” Clarence closed his mouth around his spoonful of dessert and chewed. “I went along with it.”

Livy narrowed her eyes. “You eagerly claimed me right back, you liar.”

“Of course I did; I’m not a stupid man.”

Deke scoffed down his pie as his parents threw casual questions at Bailey. She answered each without really giving away much. It was impressive. It also made him yet again wonder why she bothered to be evasive.

Perhaps sensing the weight of his attention, she looked his way. He didn’t drop his gaze, just kept on staring. She raised a questioning brow. He answered her with a slight shrug of one shoulder.

A slow smile crept on her face. “Every time we do this staring thing, I feel our connection growing.”

He glowered. “Don’t make me drug your drink with holy water—I’m pretty sure it would kill you.”

“Nah, I’ve built up a tolerance to it. Not that I’m buying you want me dead. You’d miss me if I was gone.”

“Like I’d miss a kick to the crotch.”

She wagged a finger. “You secretly adore me. Admit it. You’ve wondered if we’re meant to be.”

“I’ve wondered if you’re an omen that the Day of Judgement is almost upon us.”

“Flatterer.”

He let out a short, jagged growl.

Bailey couldn’t help but grin. This was going a long way to improving her mood. She’d originally intended to not stay, but then she’d spotted Deke at the table, saw his face darken, and chose to instead stick around merely to make him snap. Her snake loved that it was working.

“Have you ever been normal?” he sniped.

She grimaced. “And fall into society’s trap? No, thanks.”

“Society’s trap?”

“Encouraging people to be normal is literally just encouraging them to conform. Blend. Follow. Obey. Be part of the world’s flock of sheep. I’d rather be the predator that hangs not far from the flock, does its own thing, and bites any sheep that piss it off.” She paused. “Why are you pulling that face?”

He rubbed at his nape. “I find myself agreeing with you. I don’t like it.”

“It does feel kind of weird,” said Bailey with a slight shudder. “Stop it.”

Cash snickered, almost spitting out his food.

Deke merely grunted before going back to his pie. So she once more began talking to Cash. The twenty-one year old broke female hearts regularly. If she’d been a few years younger … well, nothing. She wouldn’t have been interested, because she’d never get involved with a guy when it was his brother she most wanted, even though said brother had no interest in her.

I’ve wanted to get my hands and mouth on you since the first day we met.

Okay, so it wasn’t that he had zero interest in her. It was simply that he didn’t wish to do anything about it—probably because he didn’t like being around her. That might have hurt if she wasn’t well-accustomed to people not wanting her around. Her parents had introduced her to that concept when she was a kid.

Feeling eyes on her, she turned her head without thinking … and found Deke’s gaze locked on her. Again. And not in a good way. Her snake reared up, watching him carefully.

He flicked a look at her loaded spoon. “You don’t have to eat it if you don’t want it.”

Bailey’s brow pinched. “Why wouldn’t I want it?”

“Because it’s been sitting on your spoon for the past ten minutes.”

“I’m talking with your brother. It’s rude to talk and eat at the same time.”

His brows drew together. “Since when do you care what’s rude?”

“I didn’t say I care.”

He sighed and looked away.

How fun. “You just want me to hurry and finish so I’ll leave,” she accused.

Frowning, he met her eyes again. “Makes no difference to me whether you’re here or not.”

“Yeah, you look fine with it.”

A choked laugh crawled up Clarence’s throat.

“We need to have you over more often,” Cash said to her.

Deke’s frown slid to him. “She’s too old for you.”

Cash’s brow furrowed. “Maybe I want a sugar mama. Or sugar mamba.”

Bailey pointed at him. “Ha. Good one.”

Inwardly seething, Deke watched as—between bites of her dessert—Bailey chatted with his parents and Cash, again neatly dodging anything too personal. It seemed an instinctive act on her part.

He didn’t get why she made a point of holding so much back. And it was strange to watch her be so mindful of what came out of her mouth. Bailey wasn’t exactly a person who generally minded her words.

Was it that she had things she wished to hide? Was it that there were things in her past she found too painful to speak of? And why did he care?

Hot pain lanced through his head, almost making him swear beneath his breath. More, a spurt of arousal pulsed through his blood and went straight to his hard cock. His shaft throbbed, his foreskin uncomfortably tight.

He clenched his teeth as he rode the wave, staying as still as possible to keep anyone from sensing it. Even with his cat coming close to the surface to help him shoulder the discomfort, it wasn’t easy to bear it—especially in silence.

Bailey’s gaze snapped to him and narrowed. He could see that he wasn’t fooling her, but he had no idea how she’d sensed his issue. Nobody else at the table had. He was good at hiding his pain.

Keeping his expression blank, he steadily stared back at her. Anyone else would have averted their gaze—he’d been told many times that he held such intense eye-contact it was a little unnerving. Which wasn’t purposeful on his part, he’d apparently done it since he was a toddler. His parents had found it hilarious.

Bailey didn’t shift in her seat or look away, though. Her unblinking stare held his just fine. Eventually, she let out a prissy little sniff and turned away, as if bored.

Again with the fucking dismissiveness.

His fingers flexed beneath the table as he imagined wrapping them around her throat and giving it a little squeeze. Or maybe just slamming his mouth on hers and—

His cat bared a fang, rejecting the idea instantly.

Just then, Bailey turned to his mother. “Thanks so much for dessert, Livy. It was awesome.” She pushed out of her seat.

Livy frowned. “You’re leaving already?”

“Yeah, I gotta get going.”

Deke stood as well, ignoring how the abrupt move aggravated the dull ache in his head, grateful his long-sleeved tee hid his erection. “Same.” He had some questions he needed to ask her.

His mother smiled, apparently mollified by the idea that he was leaving with Bailey. He gave his head a minute shake.

After goodbyes were exchanged, he and Bailey left his parents’ apartment and made a beeline for the elevator. “What exactly happened with the jackals earlier?”

She shot him a sideways glance. “I’m guessing Havana mentioned it to Tate and then he mentioned it to you.”

The Alpha male made a point of keeping his enforcers well informed on any issue that might affect the pride, so she shouldn’t be surprised.

“What happened?” Deke pushed.

“Not much. They asked where Roman was. I told them I didn’t know. They seemed dubious about it, so I said they should ask my Alphas. Instead, they gave me a card with a number on to call if Roman gets in touch. And they made it clear that they’d be back. Gerard hurried them along, but I think they would have left without trouble anyway.”

“Gerard?” he repeated.

“Yes. He appeared shortly after I was given the business card.”

“Did all that happen before or after you were questioned by Ginny and your ex’s brothers?”

Bailey narrowed her eyes. “Tate told you about that, too, huh.”

“He keeps all his enforcers up to speed on anything important.”

Reaching the elevator, she pressed the “up” button. “I wouldn’t really call anything Ginny does ‘important.’ And to answer your question, my little meet and greet with the jackals happened after.”

The elevator doors had glided open, and they both stepped inside.

“Do you think she truly believes you’re Jackson’s attacker?” he asked, pressing the button on the panel to take them to their floor.

“Nope, not even a little.”

“What about his brothers?”

“It’s hard to say,” she said as the elevator smoothly began to ascend. “They don’t seem to be certain I’m responsible for what happened to Jackson, but I’m not sure they’re convinced of my innocence either. I don’t think they know what to believe.”

Deke went to speak, but then the ache in his head sharpened and began pulsing fast—telling him that his libido would soon lose its shit. He clamped his lips shut to hold back a pained groan. His cat’s attempt to help him bear the pain didn’t work this time.

Deke silently cursed. He blamed her damn scent. It was as delectable as it was feminine, and he wanted to drown in it. The sooner he got into his apartment and away from the temptation of her, the better.

He blinked hard, forcing himself to concentrate on the subject at hand. “I wouldn’t have thought Ginny would be so stupid as to pull a stunt like this. It’s not like she isn’t aware that you’ll make her pay one way or the other, and it’s never wise to anger a pallas cat pride.”

“True.” Bailey paused as the elevator doors opened. “But she’s feeling all big and brave because Jackson’s brothers are at her back,” she went on as they stepped out and began striding down the hallway. “Speaking of brothers … I like yours. Cash, I mean. He’s cute.”

Deke tensed, and his cat bared his teeth. “Don’t even think about it.” The words came out on an animalistic growl.

“What?”

“Dicking with me by pretending you’re interested in my brother.”

“What makes you think it would be a pretense? And what has your cat got against me getting hot and heavy with your brother?”

Stopping outside his apartment, he raised a brow. “Didn’t we already establish that it’s not wise of you to push me too far?”

Her gaze turned inward, as if she was searching her memories. “Oh, yeah, right, I forgot about that.”

Forgot? Yeah, he needed to ring her little neck. Instead, he yanked his keys out of his pocket.“Did you get rid of the snakes?”

Walking on ahead of him, she paused as she glanced over her shoulder. “Well … you took yours with you when you left my place days ago, and Clive—”

“Jesus, forget it.”

She snickered.

“You know something? You’re a—” He cut off as the ache in his head seemed to explode, and then it was thundering through his skull. The pain was so excruciating that it made his vision blur, his knees shake, and his head go hot. Black spots danced in front of his eyes, and he would have swayed if he hadn’t planted his feet.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

“Easy, big guy,” said Bailey, practically lunging to his side.

“I’m fine,” he gritted out.

“Never said you weren’t.”

“You can go.”

“Thanks so much.” Ignoring his death glare, Bailey scooped up the keys he’d dropped, unlocked his door, and then herded him inside … briefly marveling over how it wasn’t all that dissimilar to what he’d done for her a few nights ago.

His eyes went cat—the warning to leave the apartment very clear.

She scowled at the animal. “Oh, get over yourself.”

A growl rumbled out of Deke that came from his feline.

Even as her snake coiled to strike, Bailey put her hands on her hips. “Why are you being a dick?” she asked the cat. “He’s in pain. You’re in pain. But you’re so busy stewing on your own bullshit that you—”

A warm, strong hand snapped around her throat as a very feline hiss escaped through Deke’s teeth, his cat still very much in charge.

Her snake lifted her body, wanting to strike at the animal. “Hiss all you want. But if you hurt me I will ream your ass.”

Just like that, the hand disappeared from her throat and the cat let out an offended growl … as if affronted that she’d think it would cause her physical pain.

Deke’s eyes squeezed tightly closed. When his lids lifted long moments later, his eyes were their normal caramel-brown. He dragged in breath after breath, clearly trying to ride out the pain.

“You need to go, Bailey.” His voice was full of smoke and glass shards. “I can’t calm him or the touch-hunger down while you’re here.”

She doubted he’d manage either of those things easily even if she wasn’t here. He was in a bad way, and she knew he’d probably be like this for hours upon hours.

Bailey was a bitch. Owned it. Was proud of it. Nurtured it, even. But she wasn’t cold-hearted. She didn’t want to leave him like this. There was really only one way she could help, though. And as an idea occurred to her, she thought she might just be able to give him that help.

Her self-respect reared up, reminding her that he’d never touch her under other circumstances; he might want her, but he didn’t approve of her. That knowledge wasn’t exactly uplifting, but neither were her failed attempts to quash her attraction to him. She’d tried so hard. Again and again. But it hadn’t worked.

Their little sexual encounter a few days ago had made things worse. For her, kisses had always been a mundane part of the foreplay “dance.” They were always the same, no matter her partner.

She’d never fell into a kiss. Never lost herself in one. Never had one that shot her arousal straight into the stratosphere like goddamn sex magic.

With Deke, it was different. There had not been one thing mundane about the kiss. It hadn’t felt like a mere means to an end. And it had been nothing like any kiss she’d had before.

She often tried telling herself that she was remembering it wrong; that it couldn’t have been that amazing. Not really. Surely.

But while she was talented at bullshitting others, she’d never been good at lying to herself. And now that she knew how hard he could make her come just from a hand job, she couldn’t help but wonder how much more intense it would be if they took things up a notch.

It was hard not to wonder when she was such a curious creature by nature. Her curiosity often got the better of her. “Not knowing” could drive her nuts, and then things would play on her mind until she found answers.

That’s all this is, she decided. All this would stop if I just satisfied my curiosity.

The infamous kiss would cease surging to the front of her mind. She would quit wondering just how hot they’d burn the sheets. She would be able to ignore the weird sexual energy that crackled between them—hell, a night with him might even extinguish it.

And it wasn’t like she hadn’t helped guys work off touch-hunger before. Not that it had been a charitable act on her part—nah, she loved how elemental sex could be when touch-hunger was in play. It wouldn’t be a selfless act now either. At the same time, though, she truly did want to help him.

Leaving him like this would be hard, because it wasn’t just any guy. It was Deke. Even her snake wouldn’t feel good about walking away when he was clearly in agony. His own inner animal, however, could be a real problem.

“Why doesn’t your cat want anyone getting too close these days?”

“He just doesn’t,” Deke evaded, backing away while swiping a hand down his face—pain was etched into every line.

Poor bastard. “But he didn’t interfere when you and me got handsy at my apartment.”

“Only because he was mad at you for dismissing me. He wanted to teach you a lesson.”

Ah. She hummed, thoughtful. “I have an idea.”

“I’m literally afraid to ask what it is,” he said, his voice dry.

“If I made your cat mad again, made him want to repeat that lesson he pushed you to teach me … he might let you fuck me, mightn’t he?”

Deke stiffened from head to toe. “What?”

“It wouldn’t be a pity fuck. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for helping you. But that’s mostly for selfish reasons—guys wound tight with touch-hunger fuck like masters.”

His brow creased. “You don’t even like me.”

“You don’t like me. Didn’t stop you from giving me an orgasm once before.”

The tips of his fingers twitched. “You couldn’t make my cat angry enough to be interested in fucking. Nobody could.”

That wasn’t a no to sex, she noted. “You sure?”

“I’m sure.”

Oh, how he underestimated her. “All right, if you say so. Personally, though … I think you’re just worried that you’re not dominant enough to handle me.” She folded her arms and walked further into his apartment. “I guess it’s a fair concern. I mean, I’m not convinced you can either.”

A growl grated the back of his throat.

She pivoted to face him again. “And I’m not easy to please in bed. A guy has to know what he’s doing. It would be fair to say you’re out of practice, wouldn’t it?”

His eyes turned cat once more, and the animal glared at her.

She arched a brow at the feline. “Still intent on having ‘nobody can touch me’ tantrums like a little bitch?”

Again, there was a guttural growl.

“You don’t expect me to be afraid of an itty, bitty cat, do you? Come on.”

A hiss sounded this time.

She looked at her nails. “Well, if you’re really not up for getting down and dirty, I guess I could go see Cash. Or maybe even Shay.”

He moved fast. Wicked fast. Then Deke’s body was again all up in her space and his hand was curled tight around her throat, his cat still in charge. And the air instantly turned thick and static—not with a bad tension: with a very sexual tension.

Two blinks later, Deke was staring down at her, his eyes twin pools of heat. “You have no clue what you’re doing,” he said, his voice like crushed gravel. “No clue how hard and rough I’d use you.”

“So show me,” she dared.

His grip on her throat flexed, and she thought he’d let her go. Thought he’d step back and urge her to leave.

He didn’t.

He cursed, tightened his hold, dragged her closer, and then brought his mouth crashing down on hers.

Oh, Lord above, the kiss went from zero to a hundred in a second flat. And it was just as she remembered—feral, bruising, uninhibited. His free arm became a band around her waist, pinning her against him. She wrapped her own arms around his neck, arching into him, her breath hitching as she brushed against his hard cock.

He kissed her so hard and long her lips throbbed. As if he was determined to imprint his own on them. The whole time, she ground against him, craving the friction, feeling herself become damp.

Her lungs burning for air, she pulled her mouth free … at which point he jerkily whipped off her tee and began impatiently stalking forward, forcing her to back up. Catching her by her hips, he brought her to a sharp halt, none-too-gently twirled her around, and then bent her over the back of the sofa … all in the space of what felt like three seconds.

She blinked. Well.

A growl vibrating in his throat, he roughly shoved down her leggings and panties. A hand boldly cupped her pussy from behind and swiped a finger between her folds, finding her slick. That same finger plunged inside her, and another abruptly drove deep mere seconds afterwards.

“Fuck them,” he rumbled, the words so gruff they were barely comprehensible.

With pleasure. She threw her hips back again and again, taking his fingers as deep as she could; listening as he snapped open the buttons of his fly with his free hand in one swift, almost violent movement.

Something hard and warm then bumped the globe of her ass. His fingers disappeared, quickly replaced by the blunt head of his cock. Oh, now they were getting somewhere.

He gripped her ass tight. “Should have done this years ago.” He rammed his hips forward, burying himself balls-deep in a single, forceful thrust.

Bailey jolted with a shuddering breath as she found herself speared by at least nine solid inches of thick, long cock. Damn, he had some girth on him. How awesome.

She didn’t like that he was holding himself so still. She could almost feel him trying to gather his control so he didn’t take her too hard. Neither she nor her snake wanted or required him to be careful. “Remember you said you don’t hate me?”

“Yes,” he grunted.

“Fuck me like you do.”

He snarled deep in his throat. And then he was brutally pounding into her, cramming every wide inch of his shaft inside her again and again. It chafed and strained against her tight, super-sensitized inner walls. She had no complaints, though. Not when he tunneled so deep, his angle perfect. She didn’t just take it, she reveled in it.

“Never fucked a pussy this tight.” Deke groaned as her inner walls rippled around his dick. Too many times he’d wondered—even jerked off thinking about—how it’d feel to be buried so deep inside her. The moment felt almost surreal, because he’d never thought it would really happen. Not when he’d been so sure she despised him with every breath she took.

How this was happening when his cat was having a weird fucking crisis, Deke didn’t know. It shouldn’t have been possible that she could manage to anger his cat to such an extent that it would fall for her trick—the animal wasn’t exactly easy to manipulate.

But she’d kept pushing and pushing, goading and goading, until anger and arousal blended. His cat’s protests died as the feline sought an outlet. This outlet. And now, everything Deke felt where she was concerned just spilled out of him.

Need.

Frustration.

Desperation.

Possession—a feeling that had solidified in his veins the moment he’d jammed his cock inside her.

Still hammering hard and deep, he smoothed a hand up her sleek back, unsheathed the tips of his claws, and then sliced into her bra. It fell to the floor beneath her in pieces.

She grumbled something about it being her favorite bra—he didn’t properly take in the words, his focus ensnared by the score marks he’d accidentally left on her back. They were only thin red lines that would be gone within the hour, but they made his balls tighten and his cock ache.

Spitting out a low curse, he began yanking her back each time he savagely thrust forward. Her now-free pretty breasts bounced with each thrust. If he hadn’t needed to be inside her so damn badly, he’d have earlier lavished some serious attention on them before bending her over the sofa. But his control had been wafer-thin—still was. Hell, it would have been so fragile even if he hadn’t been riddled with touch-hunger, because this was Bailey.

As he caught sight of her slipping a hand beneath her, he gently batted it aside. “No touching your clit.”

“What? Why not?”

“You’re going to come just from my dick pounding into you, that’s why.” He clamped his hands around her shoulders and fucked her harder.

She gasped. “Don’t be such a bossy shit.”

He fisted her hair and snatched back her head. “You knew what you were getting into. No use bitching about it now.” He slammed into her faster and faster, ramming deeper and deeper … until her inner muscles trembled as they became hotter and tighter. “Yeah, come.”

Her back wrenched, arching like a bow, as she hoarsely cried out. Her pussy squeezed and contracted around him, dragging him with her.

Deke’s release thundered through him—strong, violent, blinding. His come erupted out of him in hot bursts, filling her. And when his brain switched back on moments later, he realized that his teeth were buried in the back of her shoulder.

Fuck.

He gently detached his teeth from her flesh. He’d marked her. Marked her. It was deep, too. Not so deep as to scar, but it wasn’t going to fade anytime soon.

Even as he called himself all kinds of stupid, he couldn’t regret it. He liked the look of his brand on her skin. His cat, however, wasn’t pleased; wasn’t in a mental place where he could lay any kind of claim, big or small, to anyone—he wanted only to be alone.

As his cock softened, Deke pulled out and stepped back, still panting.

Breathing a little raggedly herself, Bailey stood upright and yanked up her underwear and leggings. Turning, she didn’t berate him for biting her, as he’d expected. No, she smirked and said, “You seriously underestimated my ability to make your cat crazy. Why is that?”

He narrowed his eyes, tucking his cock back into his jeans. “I wouldn’t be too smug about it, if I were you.”

“Why not?” she asked, gathering the torn pieces of her bra from the floor.

“Because you’re now marked. You know what that means for you? It means you’re fucked. My cat isn’t going to let anyone else touch you while you’re wearing my mark. Neither will I.” No shifter would.

She gave him a flat look, clearly unbothered how he felt. “The only way you and your cat can ensure that is if you keep me sexually occupied. Your animal wouldn’t be down with that.”

His cat did in fact bare a fang at the idea, but it was an act of annoyed resignation rather than a protest. “He’ll allow it.” Begrudgingly.

Her brows arched. “Is that so?”

“Yes, it is.” A good thing, since Deke had lost the will and ability to fight his need for her any longer. “So, we understand each other?”

“Understand what?”

“No other male touches you while that mark is there,” he stated, adamant. “Only me.”

She folded her arms. “Look, I’m fine with us doing the dirty while you work off your touch-hunger—I told you that already. But you’ve been battling it for weeks, so it will probably take just as long to settle. And I’m not seeing how we can stretch it out for that length of time. Because once the bite on my shoulder has faded—which will only take a few days—your cat will be back to ‘no one gets close.’”

“So I’ll mark you again. And again and again. However many times I need to.”

She twisted her mouth. “Something tells me that Dayna wouldn’t like that you’re branding another female.”

Definitely not, but … “She’d like the thought of me in constant pain even less.” He considered telling her that Dayna wouldn’t be in the picture much longer, but he couldn’t yet. Not until Dayna herself was made aware of it.

Bailey stared at him for a long moment. “All right. I take it you want us to keep this to ourselves, since your mom—who’s pretty much wooing me on your behalf—would otherwise pounce on the whole thing.”

“Yes, she’d read too much into it. Then she’d up the courting ante and drive us both crazy. If you want to tell your girls and feel you can trust them to keep it to themselves, fine.”

“They wouldn’t say a word.”

He snared her gaze with his own as he said, “Be warned: I’m going to fuck you often. Hard. Anyway I can get you. And it won’t stop anytime soon—like you pointed out, it could take weeks for the touch-hunger to pass. Once it does, we’ll each go our own way.”

“Works for me. If we’re really going to do this, we need ground rules, though.”

He felt his forehead crease. “Ground rules?”

“No permanent marks. No butt stuff. No sleeping in my bed overnight.”

In other words, she didn’t want to encourage any possessiveness or cross the casual line. “You like boundaries, don’t you, Bailey?

“Yup.” She arched a You got a problem with that? brow.

“Whatever.” He ate up the small space between them with one step. “Now, I got no clue why you righted your clothes but take them off. I’m fucking you again before you leave, and I want you to be stark naked when I do.”