Chapter 17
Chapter
Seventeen
Cornfields stretched across the horizon in every direction as they drove through Iowa. Reed found a state park as the sun was setting and paid in cash for a site at the edge of the campground.
Siren had been studying Diana’s files in the dinette since they’d left Omaha. She’d barely spoken since she’d called Dominic. He didn’t want to interrupt her flow, so he started making dinner without a word.
He looked through the cabinets and tiny fridge in their kitchen and decided to make burritos. He warmed a can of refried beans on the propane burner and cooked some instant rice in the microwave.
When it was done, he spooned everything onto tortillas with shredded cheese and salsa. Reed set a plate in front of Siren and sat across from her silently. She looked up and blinked like she’d forgotten where she was.
“Thanks,” she said, her voice warm.
She ate her dinner, still glancing at the papers. Reed ate his meal across from her, watching her work. He kept thinking about Diana. She’d spent twelve years building this case after her mate was killed.
It made him think about what he would do if he lost Siren. It didn’t matter that they’d only known each other for two weeks. That they still hadn’t claimed each other. She was his mate. His one and only. Without her, life lost its meaning. The thought of it opened a bottomless void in his chest.
He wondered if this was what Diana felt.
He took another bite of his burrito, not wanting to think about it.
His father had lost his mother when he was fifteen.
For a shifter, losing a mate was a hole that could never be filled.
His father had carried on bravely for his kids, but he’d seen him falter. Seen the life drain from his eyes.
“I was just thinking about how hard it must have been for Diana to lose her mate. Like my dad.”
“Diana’s a human. It’s different for them.”
“How do you mean?”
“My mother’s human. She lost her mate. Your dad raised four successful kids on his own. My mom…”
She stopped speaking and picked up the dirty dishes from the table, taking them to the sink.
“She what?”
“She looked for love in all the wrong places,” Siren said, turning back to him.
“Oh…” Reed said, wanting to know more. He could tell it was a sore subject. And he knew she wouldn’t tell him any more, even if he asked.
She crossed the space, climbing onto his lap on the bench seat. His eyes widened with surprise as her mouth descended onto his, hot and demanding.
Her hands found the hem of his shirt, pulling it up over his head. He was overwhelmed by the sudden shift. Reed wanted to hold her, to kiss her gently. To tell her how much he loved her.
Siren pulled off her shirt and bra, full tight breasts like a feast for a starving man’s eyes. He placed his hands on her waist, feeling her firm, smooth skin under his palms.
She kissed him again, thrusting her tongue into his mouth. Her teeth nipped his lower lip as her fingers opened his belt. She slipped back, pulling her pants off. The wide legs fell off over the gun on her ankle. She pulled it out of the holster and set it on the table.
“Take your pants off,” she said, pulling a condom out of the first aid kit.
He hurried to comply, desperate to be close to her. Desperate to feel her body again. He wanted whatever she was willing to give him.
He kicked out of his slacks and underwear, his cock springing free. She pointed at the bench and told him to sit back down. He followed her orders, waiting for her next move. She stared into his eyes, licking her lips.
She stepped forward, hips swaying, rose colored nipples tight.
His mouth watered. He wanted to suck them, lick her skin, taste her pussy.
He could smell her scent as it filled the van.
His inner bear roared for him to claim her.
But he couldn’t move. He was held in the tractor beam of her piercing blue eyes.
She ripped the condom out of the package and gripped the base of his dick. “Siren,” he whimpered, gripping the cushions.
She slid the condom over his aching cock. “Do you want to feel me?” she asked, gripping his chin. He pressed his lips together and shook his head. He was so hard, he thought he might come from a stiff breeze.
“Your cock is mine,” she whispered, climbing astride him. “My toy. I can do whatever I want with you.”
He didn’t respond. He didn’t have to. She was going to take what she wanted from him, and that was his greatest wish in life. She slid her wet pussy over his length. He could feel her through the sheath. His cock sprang up to meet her, and she smiled wickedly at his arousal.
“You’re such a good little toy,” she whispered in his ear as she angled her entrance toward the tip of his cock. “I could play with you all day. Play with you until you break…”
Her words were harsh and teasing. Reed whimpered, forcing himself to stay still.
It took every shred of self-control not to push up inside her.
Not to use his bear strength to flip her over onto the floor and have her.
Even if he could escape the pressure of her gaze, he wouldn’t shatter the space she’d brought him to.
She tilted her hips, guiding his dick as she sank down on top of him. He moaned out loud, the sound matching her own. She gasped as she took him inside her, his cock disappearing into her darkness.
Her breasts pressed against his chest, her tongue on his neck, her teeth on his ear. “Such a good little toy,” she groaned, her pussy throbbing around him. Her nipples were hard as stone against his chest.
The feeling of her pussy clenching his dick was almost too much to bear. “Fuck Siren…” he whimpered.
Siren’s mouth dropped as she started to move, throwing her head back. Her long dark hair fell over her shoulders. All Reed could do was watch her take her pleasure from his body. She rode him, hard and fast, her fingers digging into his shoulders as she came apart, again and again.
She moved on him, his body desperate for release, his soul on fire with her pleasure. “I love you,” he said.
Her rhythm broke, and she stared at him, her intense gaze fixing him in place. He was terrified. But it didn’t stop him. “I love you. I’m yours. Whatever you want from me. I want you to take it. Take everything.”
She didn’t break her gaze. Her mouth was a hard line. He wanted to hold her, to kiss her lips. But he just let her pin him with her eyes. Surrendering everything.
“I will,” she said, gripping his chin. She nipped his ear.
“I’ll wait for you forever,” he whispered.
Her hips went still. “Reed,” she whispered, more tender than he’d ever heard her voice. She looked at him, something softened in her eyes, and she ran her knuckles across his cheek. She kissed him lovingly, her lips gentle on his.
“You want me to take whatever I want,” she said with a grin, the Reaper coming back. She wrapped her arm around his shoulders, her breasts in his face. “Suck my tit,” she demanded as she began to ride him again.
He took her in his mouth, rolling her nipple in his tongue as she brought herself to another climax. He couldn’t hold back any more, and together they erupted, quivering and breathless.
They stayed like that, her panting and sweaty. His cock going soft while he kept her hard nipple between his lips. Slowly, she slid away from him, standing above him with her dark hair in sheets around her face, hiding her eyes.
He wanted to reach for her. To hold her. To tell her he loved her again and again. But she disappeared into the bathroom and closed the door.
Reed’s heart pounded in his chest, his cock soft and wet inside the condom. He ripped it off and tossed it in the garbage, his body sensitive and over stimulated. He pulled on his boxers, cleaned up Diana’s documents, and converted the dinette into the bed.
He was placing the fitted sheet when Siren returned from the bathroom, wearing a long T-shirt. He spread the comforter over the bed, and Siren climbed in, laying down on the pillow.
He climbed in beside her, the warmth of her body radiating across the small space. “We should get some sleep,” she said, turning out the light.
She turned away from him, but to his shock, she moved toward him, her back to his chest. Reed wrapped his arm around her and pulled her to him. He held her like a treasure, terrified she’d change her mind and roll away.
But she didn’t. He inhaled the scent of her hair. The smell of pleasure radiating from her body. She fell asleep in his arms. But he wanted to capture every minute of this moment, unwilling to miss a second of it.
He’d told her he loved her, and she hadn’t said it back. But now she was in his arms, sleeping peacefully, like she trusted him with this closeness. It was a crack in the wall. And that crack was all he needed to keep going.