Chapter Twenty-One – Alison
Was she crazy? This was moving far too fast. But did that mean it was wrong?
No. When Jay said they were fated mates, she believed him.
And this time, Ronald’s voice didn’t utter the merest whisper in her mind, telling her she was not worthy. Because Jay made her feel something she’d forgotten even existed: loved. Every touch, every look. It was as if they had known each other for a thousand years. And would be together for a thousand more.
“This way.” She took his hand and led him to the foot of the stairs, pausing to look up, hoping they didn’t wake Tessa.
“She’s asleep,” Jay murmured against her ear, his breath on her neck sending shivers of desire down her spine.
“How do you know?” Alison half-turned, her lips an inch from his, and the overwhelming need to kiss him almost consumed her, but she held back, savoring the tension.
“I can hear her breathing,” Jay whispered, the corner of his mouth lifting in a half-smile. “Bear shifter, remember? I can hear her little snores from here.”
Alison’s eyes widened. This shifter business was going to take some getting used to. But she would have to admit it excited her. Just as Jay excited her in every way. “That’s...convenient,” she breathed.
“You have no idea,” he said and then lifted her into his arms, cradling her against his chest.
She smothered a small cry as she wrapped her arms around his neck as he carried her up the stairs with impossible grace, each step slow and purposeful, as if he were savoring the anticipation as much as she was. Alison pressed her face into the curve of his neck, breathing in his scent—pine and earth and something wild that made her heart race. She’d never felt this way before, this heady combination of desire and safety.
When they reached the landing, Jay paused, his head tilting slightly to the side.
“Second door on the left,” she whispered, her lips brushing against his ear.
As they passed Tessa’s room, Alison glanced in through the half-open door. Her daughter lay sprawled across her bed, one arm wrapped around Bumpkin, her chest rising and falling in a slow, steady rhythm.
Jay paused, his eyes searching hers in the dim hallway light. “Are you sure?” he asked, his voice rough with restraint.
The fact that he asked, even when desire had clearly overtaken them both, made her want him more. If that was possible. Ronald had never asked. Ronald had always taken.
“I’m sure,” she whispered, brushing her fingers along the stubbled line of his jaw. “More sure than I’ve been about anything in a long time.” Perhaps ever.
He grunted with satisfaction, shouldered the door open, and carried her into her bedroom. The moonlight was brighter now as it spilled through the half-open curtains, painting silver stripes across the simple quilt she’d brought from her old life. One of the few things she’d kept.
Or been allowed to keep.
No, she would not let Ronald taint this moment. He was her past and Jay was her future.
Jay crossed the room and set her down beside the bed with such tenderness that tears pricked her eyes. He must have noticed, because his brow furrowed with concern. “What’s wrong?” he asked gently as he cupped her cheek in his hand.
“Nothing,” Alison whispered, leaning into his touch. “It’s just... I’m not used to being treated like I’m something precious.”
A shadow crossed Jay’s face, his eyes darkening. “To me, you are the most precious thing in the world. And whoever made you feel otherwise…” He stopped himself, taking a deep breath. “I may not remember everything about my past, but I know this. I would never hurt you. Not ever.”
She nodded, letting the tears fall freely now. They weren’t tears of sadness but of release. Of letting go of a past that had held her captive for too long.
Jay brushed them away with his thumbs. “I may not remember anything real about my old life,” he murmured, “but I know what I feel for you is real. It’s the clearest thing in my mind.”
Alison reached for the buttons of his flannel shirt, her fingers trembling slightly as she undid the first one. “Show me,” she whispered.
His chest rumbled with a sound that wasn’t quite human, a low growl that should have frightened her but instead sent heat pooling in her belly. His hands covered hers, stilling her movements.
“Slowly,” he said, his voice thick with restraint. “I want to remember every moment of this, to savor it... I don’t care if I never remember my past. But this… This, you, I never want to forget.”
She nodded, understanding. And boy, did she want this to be a special memory for him. And for her, too. For being with Jay, feeling his hands on her skin, his lips on her mouth, was like she was making love for the first time.
Jay’s fingers traced the curve of her neck, following the line down to her collarbone. “You’re beautiful,” he murmured, his eyes never leaving hers as he tugged at her robe and slipped it off her shoulders.
His chest rumbled again, but this time the sound was almost a growl, primal and possessive. Jay’s eyes flashed amber in the moonlight, a reminder of the bear within him, before he captured her lips with his own.
The kiss was different this time, deeper, hungrier. Alison’s fingers fumbled with the remaining buttons of his shirt as she lost herself in the heat of his mouth. When she finally pushed the fabric from his shoulders, she gasped at the sight of him. Muscles rippled across his chest and arms, and his skin bore many scars, each hinting at a story she had yet to learn.
“How did you get this?” she whispered without thinking as her fingers traced one particularly jagged line that ran across his ribs.
Jay’s breath hitched. “I wish I could tell you,” he said, his voice tinged with frustration.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked.” Alison pressed her lips to the scar, wanting to kiss away his frustration, his fears.
“It’s okay. You don’t have to apologize,” Jay whispered, his hand gently cupping the back of her head as she kissed his scar. “Maybe someday I’ll remember. But tonight...” His fingers tangled in her hair, tilting her face up to his. “Tonight, I only want to make new memories. With you.”
The intensity in his gaze made her breath catch. When he lowered his head to kiss her again, Alison melted into him, her soft curves body molding to his hard tone muscles.
“I’ve never wanted anyone the way I want you,” he murmured against her lips. “It’s like my soul recognizes yours.”
Alison reached up to touch his face, her thumb brushing over his bottom lip. “I feel it, too,” she admitted. “Like we were always meant to find each other.”
“We were.” His hands skimmed down her sides, hesitating at the hem of her nightdress. Then he locked eyes with her as if silently asking permission that she would never hesitate to give. With a sigh of satisfaction, he slowly lifted the fabric, his knuckles grazing her thighs, her hips, her waist. She raised her arms, allowing him to pull the nightdress over her head, leaving her nearly bare before him in only her panties.
A flush spread across her skin and she resisted the temptation to cover her breasts. For years, Ronald had made her feel inadequate and flawed. But Jay looked at her as if she were the most desirable woman in the world.
“Your turn,” she whispered, reaching for the button of his jeans.
As she unbuttoned his jeans, he helped her slide them down his thighs, revealing his arousal beneath the fabric. Jay’s breathing grew heavier as they stood before each other nearly naked, his eyes caressing every curve of her body. Then he pulled her against him, their chests pressing together. The contact drew a soft gasp from her lips as she felt his hardness against her stomach, and the ache in her core deepened to an almost unbearable yearning.
Jay’s lips found the sensitive spot on her neck, and she shivered as his teeth grazed her skin. “Is this what it means?” she whispered. “The mate thing?”
“It’s more than sex. It’s deeper than that. Wider than that.” Jay cupped her breast in his hand and rubbed his thumb over her hardened nipple. “It means you’re mine,” he murmured against her skin as he lowered his head and sucked her nipple into his mouth, flicking it with his tongue playfully. “And I’m yours. Forever.”
Alison clung to him as her legs threatened to give way from the pleasure coursing through her body. Jay’s mouth moved to her other breast as she arched into him, desperate for more contact. Her fingers threaded through his dark hair, tugging gently.
In one fluid motion, Jay lifted Alison and lay her down on the bed, following her but bracing his weight on his forearms. The moonlight cast half his face in shadow, but his eyes gleamed. Human yet somehow wild, watching her with an intensity that made her tremble.
“I want this to be perfect for you,” he murmured seductively, trailing kisses down her stomach. “Tell me what you like.”
The question caught her off guard. Ronald had never cared what she liked. Her pleasure had been incidental at best.
“I... I don’t know,” she admitted, her voice small. “It’s been a long time since anyone asked.”
Something dangerous flashed in Jay’s eyes, a glimpse of the bear beneath the man. But his touch remained gentle as he hooked his fingers in the waistband of her panties and slowly slid them down her legs. The cool night air kissed her exposed skin, but it was nothing compared to the heat of Jay’s gaze as it traveled over her body.
“Then let me discover what you like,” he whispered, his voice a seductive promise.
With those words, Jay began a slow exploration of her body, his hands and mouth learning every curve, every sensitive spot. When his fingers found the heat between her thighs, Alison gasped as he spread her legs wider. Jay watched her reactions with intense focus, adjusting his touch in response to her every sigh and moan.
“There,” she breathed when his fingers hit a particularly sensitive spot inside her. “Oh, Jay…”
He smiled against her inner thigh, his breath hot against her skin. And then his mouth replaced his fingers as he licked and sucked on her most sensitive flesh. She thought her world would explode.
Alison bit down on her lip to stifle her cry of pleasure, mindful of Tessa sleeping down the hall. Her hands clutched at the quilt beneath her, knuckles white as Jay’s tongue worked magic against her most sensitive flesh. The pressure built inside her like a gathering storm, and when his fingers joined his mouth, curling inside her with perfect pressure, she couldn’t hold back any longer.
Her release crashed through her in waves, stealing her breath and sending tremors through her entire body. Jay held her hips steady, his tongue slowing but not stopping as she trembled beneath him. When the last aftershock faded, he pressed a tender kiss to her inner thigh before moving back up her body, his eyes dark with desire.
“So?” he asked, brushing a strand of hair from her flushed face. “Did I succeed?”
“Yes. But we might need more practice, just to be sure,” she teased as her hands explored the broad expanse of his back before slipping lower. “Make love to me.”
When her fingers curled around his hardness, Jay groaned against her mouth. “If you insist.”
“Oh, I do,” she whispered as he settled between her thighs, his hardness pressing against her entrance. Jay paused and slipped his hand between their bodies, stroking her once more.
She squirmed beneath him, needing to feel him inside her. To be one with him. To be mated. Completely.
Alison wrapped her legs around his waist, drawing him closer. “Please,” she whispered, her voice barely audible even in the quiet room. “I want you. I need you.”
He smiled as he said, “I was made to make you happy.”
With exquisite slowness, Jay pushed into her, giving her time to adjust to the feeling of him. He was big and Alison gasped at the fullness, her fingers digging into his shoulders as he sank deeper. When he was fully seated within her, he stilled, his forehead resting against hers, as her inner wall tensed around him.
“Are you okay?” he whispered, his voice strained with the effort of holding back.
“More than okay,” Alison breathed, shifting her hips slightly to take him even deeper. The sensation was overwhelming. Not just physically, but emotionally. This connection with Jay felt ancient and new all at once, as if her body had been waiting for his all her life.
Jay began to move slowly and deliberately at first. His gaze never left hers as Alison moved with him, matching him stroke for stroke, the friction between their bodies exquisite. She arched her back as he thrust deeper and he cupped her breast in his hand and circled the taut bud with his thumb, sending sparks of pleasure shooting through her body. Alison couldn’t hold back a moan as the sensations intensified, the coil inside her winding tighter and tighter.
“You are mine,” Jay growled against her neck, his teeth grazing her skin. “And always will be.”
His words, his touch, the way he filled her so completely, it was almost too much. Alison dug her nails into his back, holding on as if he were the only thing anchoring her to the earth. Jay’s thrusts grew faster, more urgent, and she could feel his control slipping as his own pleasure built.
Then he lowered his head and sucked her nipple into his mouth, swirling his tongue around the sensitive bud. The added sensation sent Alison spiraling closer to the edge, her inner walls clenching around him. Jay groaned against her breast, the vibrations adding to the building pressure inside her.
Jay, his hips, drove into her with increasing intensity, pushing her closer to the edge, until at last she could hold on no more. As a wave of ecstasy crashed over her, her inner walls clenched around Jay’s hardness, pulsing and fluttering as her orgasm overtook her.
Jay groaned, burying his face in the crook of her neck as his own release followed, his hips jerking erratically as he spilled himself deep inside her. Then he slowed his rhythm, and he kissed the swell of her breast, trailing butterfly kisses along her shoulder as he held her close, as if he never wanted to let her go.
“How did the first lesson go?” he asked as he raised his head and looked at her.
Alison smiled, still catching her breath. “It was okay.”
“Only okay?” he asked with mock wounded pride.
“Above average, I guess,” she said, running her fingers through his hair. “But I’m sure with a few more lessons, you’ll get the hang of it.”
“If that is a challenge,” Jay chuckled, the sound rumbling through his chest. “I’m more than happy to oblige. Anytime, anywhere.”
He shifted to the side, pulling her with him so they lay facing each other, their limbs intertwined. For a long moment, they just looked at each other, basking in the afterglow of their lovemaking and the depth of emotion that flowed between them.
Jay traced the curve of her cheek with his fingertips, his touch feather-light. “I don’t know what I did to deserve you,” he murmured, “but I’m going to spend the rest of my life making sure you never regret taking a chance on me.”
“I thought it was fate,” she replied sleepily.
“A fate you could have walked away from,” he stroked her shoulder as her eyes grew heavy.
“I could never walk away from you, Jay. You’ve already given me more than I ever thought I could have.” She laid her hand over his heart, feeling its steady beat beneath her palm. “You make me feel cherished,” Alison continued softly. “Desired. Things I never thought I would feel again after...” She trailed off, the shadow of her past hovering at the edges of this perfect moment.
Jay’s arms tightened around her, pulling her closer against his warmth. “You are one of the kindest, smartest, most compassionate people I have ever met,” he whispered fiercely. “I will always be there for you, Alison. Reminding you of that. Both you and Tessa. I swear it on my life.”
“I know you will,” she murmured, pressing a soft kiss over his heart. It seemed impossible that she believed this of a man she had just met.
Yet deep in her soul, Alison knew it was true. The bond between them, though new, felt unbreakable, a connection that transcended time and reason. Jay’s presence filled a void she hadn’t even realized existed. Healing emotional wounds she thought she’d always bear.
As her eyelids grew heavy, lulled by the steady rise and fall of Jay’s chest, Alison allowed herself to imagine a future she never dared dream of before. A future filled with love, laughter, and a sense of belonging. A family, not just for Tessa, but for herself as well.
As Alison drifted to sleep, a smile played on her lips. Perhaps this new life in Bear Creek held more than just peace and security. Perhaps it held the promise of a happiness she had never thought possible.