Chapter 3 #2
I gasped against his mouth, and he took advantage, his tongue sweeping in to taste me. One of his hands tangled in my hair, angling my head exactly where he wanted it, while the other slid down to grip my hip, pulling me flush against his body.
God, his body. All hard muscle and controlled strength, so much bigger than me that I felt delicate and feminine and utterly owned. He was hard against my stomach. His whole body trembled with the effort of holding back.
"Fuck," he groaned against my lips. "You taste better than I imagined."
"You imagined this?"
"Every goddamn minute since you walked into my lodge.
" He kissed me again, harder this time, backing me up until my spine hit the tiled wall.
The cold tile against my back contrasted sharply with the heat of his body pressing against my front.
"Imagined this mouth. These curves. The sounds you'd make when I touched you. "
His hand slid under my shirt, hot against my skin, and I arched into his touch with a moan. He swallowed the sound, his kiss growing more demanding, more possessive.
"That's it," he growled. "Let me hear you. Want to know every sound you make."
He palmed my breast through my bra, and when his thumb brushed over my nipple, I cried out. He captured the sound with another searing kiss, his hips grinding against me in a rhythm that made me dizzy with need.
"Shane," I gasped when he moved his mouth to my neck, sucking and biting in a way that would definitely leave marks. "Please—"
"Please what?" His hand squeezed my breast, thumb circling my nipple. "Tell me what you want, Raven."
"More. I need more."
He made a sound low in his chest—primal and satisfied—before lifting me like I weighed nothing.
My legs automatically wrapped around his waist, and the new position put us exactly where we both needed.
He ground against me, and even through our clothes, the friction was almost enough to make me come.
"You feel good." He kissed me again, one hand supporting my ass while the other worked between us, sliding under my shirt to cup my breast directly. "So fucking perfect. I want to make you mine."
His possessive words sent fire through my veins. "Yes."
"Say it." He lightly pinched my nipple, and I nearly came apart. "Say you're mine."
"I'm yours," I gasped, rocking against him desperately. "Shane, please, I need—"
A loud crash from somewhere in the building made us both freeze. Then Walt's voice, confused and distressed.
"Shane? Shane, where are you? Something's wrong with the heating system. I think there's smoke!"
Shane's whole body went rigid. For a moment he didn't move, his face buried against my neck, his breathing harsh and uneven. I could feel how hard he was, could feel the trembling in his arms as he fought for control.
"Fuck," he breathed against my skin. Then, louder, "Be right there, Walt!"
He carefully lowered me to the ground, and I grabbed the wall for support since my legs were shaking. His eyes were wild, pupils blown so wide there was barely any silver left, his lips swollen from our kiss.
"We're not done," he said, his voice rough with promise and frustration. "This isn't over."
"Shane—"
"Stay here. I need to check on Walt." He adjusted himself with a grimace. "And for fuck's sake, don't look at me like that or I'm going to say to hell with it and take you right here against this wall."
"Would that be so bad?"
"Yes, because when I finally get inside you, I'm going to take my time." His hand cupped my face one more time, thumb tracing my swollen lips. "I'm going to make you come so many times you forget your own name. And I'm going to make damn sure you know exactly who you belong to."
Then he was gone, striding out of the pool room to find Walt, leaving me trembling and aching and completely undone.
I touched my lips where they still tingled from his kiss.
Touched my neck where I could already feel the marks he'd left.
Pressed my thighs together against the ache he'd created. I gave myself a minute to recover—to stop shaking, to catch my breath, to try and calm the aching need still pulsing over my body. Then I gathered my camera equipment with trembling hands and followed the sound of Walt and Shane’s voices.
I found them in what had been the lodge's main office. Walt was agitated, pointing at an old heating vent where dust was drifting out, disturbed by a breeze.
"I smell it," Walt was saying, his weathered hands shaking. "Just like that night. The smoke. The fire. It's happening again."
"There's no fire, Walt." Shane's tone was infinitely patient despite the tension still visible in his shoulders. "It's just dust. See?" He waved his hand, showing how it dispersed. "No heat. No flame. Just old building materials."
"But I smell it." Walt's eyes were wild with fear and confusion. "The smoke. The screams. We have to evacuate the guests."
Shane's expression tightened, but his voice stayed calm. "There are no guests here right now. You're safe. I'm here, and I won't let anything happen to you."
"You promise?" Walt looked suddenly small and vulnerable, a frightened old man instead of the cheerful caretaker from this morning.
"I promise." Shane guided Walt to a chair, kneeling beside him. "Deep breaths. That's it. In and out. Feel how cool the air is? No smoke. No fire. Just you and me and Raven."
Walt's eyes found me in the doorway, and some of the panic receded. "Miss Raven. You're still here."
"Of course I am." I moved closer, setting down my equipment. "Where else would I be?"
"Good, good." He nodded, some color returning to his face. "Can't have staff leaving mid-season. Bad for morale."
I glanced at Shane, who gave me a subtle shake of his head. Don't push. Don't ask.
For the next hour, we sat with Walt as he gradually calmed down.
Shane checked his vitals—blood pressure slightly elevated but not dangerous, blood sugar normal, heart rate settling back to baseline.
All the while keeping up a steady stream of gentle conversation about lodge operations, upcoming guests, and the holiday preparations.
It was fascinating to watch. Shane was so careful with Walt, so patient, adjusting his responses to match wherever the old man's mind had drifted.
When Walt thought it was 1993, Shane talked about ski conditions.
When he slipped closer to 1995, Shane carefully redirected before the conversation could turn to the fire.
Watching him care for Walt with such infinite tenderness made me realize I could fall in love with Shane. This wasn't just duty or obligation. He genuinely loved this confused old man, would do anything to protect him.
And after that kiss, after the way he'd touched me and claimed me and promised me everything, I was starting to understand why. Because when Shane Wolfe cared about something, he did it with his whole heart. Completely. Irrevocably.
The question was: was I ready for that kind of intensity? That kind of claiming?
Because after one kiss, I was already addicted. Already craving more. Already imagining what it would be like when he finally made good on his promise to make me forget my own name.
Walt finally dozed off in his chair, exhausted from the emotional episode. Shane covered him with a blanket, checking one more time that he was comfortable before gesturing for me to follow him out of the room.
We stood in the hallway, the afternoon light casting long shadows. Shane looked emotionally wrung out in a way that made me want to hold him.
"Does that happen often?" I asked quietly. "The episodes about the fire?"
"More frequently lately." He ran a hand through his hair, the gesture weary. "The closer we get to the anniversary—November third, the night it happened—the worse they get. It's like his mind knows, even if he doesn't consciously remember."
"That must be hard on him. On you."
"It's hell." His silver eyes met mine. "Which is why I can't afford distractions. Why this—" he gestured between us "—can't happen."
I couldn’t believe he just said that. "What?"
"What happened in the pool room. It can't happen again." But even as he said it, his gaze dropped to my mouth, hungry and wanting. "Walt needs me focused. I can't be thinking about—"
"About what?" I moved closer, watching his jaw clench. "About kissing me? Touching me? Making good on all those promises you made?"
"Raven." My name was a warning and a plea.
"You said we weren't done. You said this wasn't over."
"I shouldn't have said that."
"But you did. And you meant it." I was right in front of him now, close enough to see the lust in his eyes. "You can't just kiss me like that and then pretend it didn't happen."
"Watch me." But his hands came up to grip my hips, yanking me closer even as he said the words. "I have to. For Walt's sake."
"Bullshit." I pressed my palm against his chest, feeling his heart hammering. "This isn't about Walt. This is about you being scared."
His eyes flashed. "I'm not—"
"You are. You're terrified of wanting me. Terrified of what it means that you can't stop thinking about me." I could feel him trembling under my hand, could see the war in his expression. "You're scared that if you let yourself have me, really have me, you won't be able to let go when I leave."
"You're damn right I'm scared." His hands tightened on my hips, fingers digging in possessively. "Because you're right. If I have you—really have you—there's no way in hell I'm letting you walk away in six days."
"Then don't."
"You have a life, Raven. A career. Five hundred thousand subscribers waiting for your next video.”
“So?”
“So you’re always on the move and I don’t want to leave this area. I like it here in this small town. And a place like Burke would never keep you long.”
“Burke, no. But you? You might.” I pressed closer, going up on my toes so my lips were inches from his. "Kiss me again and tell me you don't feel this. Tell me this is just attraction, just chemistry, just temporary."
His control was fracturing. I saw it in the way his breathing quickened and how his hands trembled against my hips.
"Raven," he growled. "Don't push me."
"Why not?"
"Because I won't be gentle this time. Because I'll take everything you're offering and then demand more." His forehead dropped to rest against mine. "Because once I claim you properly, there's no going back. You'll be mine. Completely. In every way that matters."
"Good." I closed the last inch between us, my lips brushing his. "Then claim me."
He lifted me with one arm, my legs wrapping around his waist as he pressed me against the hallway wall. He held me exactly where he wanted me while he devoured my mouth.
I moaned against his lips, and he swallowed the sound, his hips grinding against me in a rhythm that made me dizzy. I could feel how hard he was, how much he wanted this. Wanted me.
A door slammed somewhere in the building, and we both froze. Walt's door. Which meant he was awake and moving around. Shane pulled back with a curse, carefully lowering me to the ground. We were both breathing hard, both trembling with unmet need.
"This is insane," he said, but his hand came up to cup my face with unexpected tenderness. "You make me insane."
"Good." I turned my head to press a kiss to his palm. "Because I want you.”
“I warned you,” he said. “I gave you the chance to leave. I gave you the chance to keep this impersonal.”
“You did. And I ignored you.”
“Then you’re going to get everything you’ve been asking for. I’m taking you back to my cabin. Right fucking now.”
I blinked. “Now?”
“It’s daylight and I need to check in for my day shift.”
I licked my lips. “Day shift?”
“I’m on call until six.” He showed me a walkie talkie. “If luck holds out I won’t get any calls.”
“And if it doesn’t hold out?”
“You’re going to stay in my bed, wet and needy until I come back for you.”