Gavin (Northern Ohio Shifters #3)

Chapter 14

Chapter

Fourteen

The day passed painfully slow as Gavin spent a good bit of time with Ryan and Midas discussing the current security measures and how they could improve them. Sadie wished she knew about that kind of thing so she could be helpful, but the truth was she’d never worried about the safety of her pack because others had handled it. Even though her alpha had hated her, along with a good number of pack members, she’d never felt unsafe in the pack, just an outsider. So this situation was an entirely new experience for her, because not only were the people she was surrounded by at risk, but someone—or several someones—were actively trying to get to her.

One thing she had noticed was just how very sexy her mate was when he was being protective of her. Was there anything hotter than a protective male? Her wolf certainly didn’t think so.

A spare bedroom on the first floor had been set up for them, and it had a private bathroom. One of the security team members had gone to Gavin’s and packed a bag for them because until the threat to her safety was gone, they were going to stay with Midas and Maya. There were more bedrooms in the large home and a few other pride members had moved in since they had homes on the outskirts of the pride’s territory or lived alone. Maya had introduced her to a young family, Lila and her mate Hans, and their young cub Benjamin, who lived pretty close to the edge of the territory, as well as several older females. When Sadie asked why Nora didn’t come to Midas’s home, Maya said she didn’t want to leave her home, and the security team had set up some cameras to ensure she was safe.

That night as Sadie climbed into the unfamiliar bed wearing one of Gavin’s T-shirts, she sighed as she settled back on the pillow. It was quiet in the house and dark in the room as she’d pulled the thick curtains across the two windows. Gavin walked into the room from the bathroom wearing boxer briefs and nothing else, scratching his chest as he yawned.

When he hit the bed with a groan, he put his arm around her and pulled her close. She snuggled close and rested her head on his chest so she could hear his heart beating.

“I’m sorry about this,” he said softly.

“About what?”

“Not being in our house.”

“It’s okay, it’s the safest place for us.”

He let out a disgruntled sound, half growl and half snort. “My cat wants to be able to keep you safe on my own, but I know I’d be an idiot to risk your safety for my ego.”

“You are keeping me safe,” she said. She tilted her head so she could look at him, although she couldn’t see much in the dark room. “I’m just glad we’re together and we’re both safe.”

He kissed her forehead. “I’m thankful for that too. I just can’t shake the dread that seems to be following me. I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I just feel in my gut that something bad is coming.”

She could feel how tense he was, his body strung tight like a bow. She stared at him in the darkness, thinking about how much she cared about him. She wasn’t in love with him, but she was definitely falling for him. And how could she not? He was sexy and strong and protective, with a sweet nature and sense of humor. She really felt like she hit the lottery when she met him. The worst thing that had ever happened to her turned into the best thing.

She liked him so much and decided it was a good time to show him.

She rose onto her hands and leaned over to kiss him. “Try to be quiet,” she whispered.

“Be quiet about what?” he whispered back.

She didn’t answer but lowered her head to kiss the center of his chest. She moved down his body slowly, kissing his warm skin and pushing the light blanket off as she moved lower.

He growled softly. “Sweetheart.”

She licked a circle around his navel and smiled as his muscles twitched. “This is just for you. Let me take care of you.”

He inhaled sharply as she slipped her thumbs into the waistband of his boxers and pushed down. He lifted his hips and she drew them down his legs and tossed them aside. She settled her hands on either side of his hips and kissed just under his navel, and then kissed and licked a path down to his hipbone. He jerked under her light touch and snarled with a low tone, and she smiled at finding a sensitive spot.

She leaned on one elbow and slid her hand up the outside of his thigh and then moved over with the lightest of touches to run her fingertips up the length of his thick cock. She wrapped her hand around the base and kissed the head, flicking her tongue along the velvet-soft top. He groaned softly and she heard his teeth click together as she opened her mouth and took him inside.

She took him as far into her mouth as she could, then slowly slid off, moving her tongue around and over his length as she went down on him again. Each time she took him into her mouth, she went a little deeper, using her hand to keep him where she wanted him. His cock thickened in her mouth, going more rigid, and she loved the feeling of taking care of him.

He tangled his fingers in her hair as she increased her pace, slipping her hand off his cock and down to cup his balls. His hips lifted, meeting her as she moved on him, and she let herself go into the feelings that coursed through her. She was so turned on by turning him on that she moved even faster, her head bobbing up and down and taking as much of his thick length into her mouth as she could.

His teeth ground together and the growl that had been rumbling lightly in his chest deepened. He growled her name as his cock thickened and the first splashes of his come hit her tongue. She sucked on him, drinking every drop as heat welled inside her and her stomach twisted.

He pushed her to her back roughly and kissed her neck where he’d marked her as two fingers found home inside her and his thumb worked her clit. It took only a few thrusts of his fingers and his thumb rubbing her sensitive bud as he sucked on the mating mark to send her careening over the edge into white-hot pleasure. He pressed his hand to cover her mouth a moment before her back bowed with her climax and she managed to not shout his name to the heavens thanks to his quick thinking.

He gentled her down from orbit with slow movements of his fingers, and then he kissed her jaw and cheek and finally her lips.

“You are the most precious female in the world to me, Sadie. I’m crazy about you.”

She pressed her hands to his cheeks and stared at him in the darkness. “I’m crazy about you too, Gavin.”

They kissed and he slipped his fingers from her, rolling to his back and bringing her with him. She listened to his heart beat and closed her eyes with a contented sigh. What a sweet way to drift off to sleep.

“Babe!” Alli said as she walked into Midas and Maya’s home the following day.

Earlier that morning Gavin had suggested Sadie call her fallen angel friend for a visit and she’d been eager to come to Whisper Creek to hang out.

Sadie rose from the kitchen table with a smile and hugged her. “Thanks for coming for a visit.”

“Thanks for the invite. I’m always happy to hang out with you.”

“Are you hungry? There’s plenty of sandwich fixings in the fridge.”

“Sounds good to me. I’ll help. Here, I brought you some almond M&Ms, I heard they’re your favorite. Hard as heck to find though. I had to go to three stores.”

“Oh, wow! You’re a doll, thank you.” She took the package from her and gave her a second hug.

The two set plates on the table and made sandwiches, making enough to share with Gavin, Midas, Maya, and the others who showed up just as they were being made before ducking back out of the kitchen again.

Sadie and Alli sat at the table with their turkey and Swiss sandwiches and glasses of sweet tea mixed with lemonade.

“So it’s looking pretty stressful here,” Alli said. “Guards around the house, people checking cars as they’re coming into town. What’s going on?”

Sadie told her everything that had happened. “So we’re staying here until this asshole poacher takes a hike, along with Brent and his HAS people.”

“Bastards, all of them. I’m sorry you’re going through all this. But you know what? Fate brought you to Northern Ohio to meet Gavin and I believe that you’ll both get through this dangerous time safely and have a long and happy life together. If I can help at all, let me know.”

“If you could figure out where they’re holing up so we can deal with them, that would be awesome,” Gavin said as he came into the kitchen with an empty plate.

“Yeah,” Sadie added. “That would be wonderful.”

“I’ll certainly keep my eyes and ears peeled. I wish I knew where they were.”

“You know what? I don’t want to talk about anything dangerous anymore, I want to just forget for a little while,” Sadie said. “Tell me something about your past, Alli. You’ve been on Earth for a really long time.”

“Oh sure, I’ve got loads of stories! Did I ever tell you about the time I lived with a troop of gorillas in South America?”

“Actual gorillas or gorilla shifters?”

“Gorilla shifters. Man, can they party,” Alli said. “And their males? Yummy perfection.”

Gavin shook his head with a chuckle as he collected another sandwich, kissed Sadie on the cheek, and left the kitchen. Sadie turned her attention to her friend as she told her about a party she’d gone to in a forest with the gorilla shifters, finding herself in a sexy sandwich between the alpha and his brother.

Sadie was so glad Gavin had suggested that Alli come to visit. The sweet angel and her crazy stories were just what she needed to get her mind off the danger that felt like it was pressing ever closer.

She’d worry about Victor and Brent later. For now, she was enjoying Alli’s wild tale of a three-way in the forest with the gorillas and looking forward to hearing how it ended.