The Alpha's Choice: A Paranormal Werewolf Romance (Roadside Angels Motorcycle Club Book 3) (7 page)

Lex licked the spot where he had marked his mate for the third time, soothing the pain.  By the time his knot loosened and he pulled out of her, it had stopped bleeding.  He knew that now she had received enough hormones into her system to trigger the bonding, and he knew that the mating was complete.

“Are you all right,
chérie
?” he asked, gently turning her to face him. He stroked a finger over her cheeks, waiting for her to answer him.  “Did I hurt you?”

She shook her head, too spent to speak, and Lex rolled away.

“Stay right here.  I’ll be back in a minute,” he said, and disappeared into the bathroom.  Tammie heard water running, and when he returned a minute later, Lex was carrying a warm washrag, which he used to clean her up. 

Tossing the rag on the floor, he pulled her to him, turning her so her back was to his front.  Spooning in behind her, he wrapped his arm over her, and whispered, “Sleep, love.  I have a feeling I’ll be coming back for seconds.”

She murmured sleepily, a smile on her face as she dozed off.  When she woke up it was dinner time, and though he didn’t want to share these last hours with her in company, he knew he needed to let her body recover before he took her again.  He was making up for lost time in advance, and she would need her strength to enjoy every second of the pleasure yet to come.  He showered with her, restraining his lust, and went with her for dinner. 

CHAPTER SIX

“Your friends will believe in your potential, your enemies will make you live up to it.”
  ~ Tim Fargo

It was getting near eight o’clock.  Jeff and Ginny were curled around each other in the den watching Friends on Netflix, and Bear was with Lex in his office, talking strategy.  Tammie was asleep, partly from weariness, partly from a subtle mental push from her mate.

“What time is Maricia arriving?” Bear wanted to know.

“An hour.  She’s been updated, and she knows what to do.”

Bear sipped his drink, and Lex thought back to the hours since he had last made love to his mate.  He still had not said the words to her, and he knew he would when he woke her up before he left.  He remembered how she had wanted to leave when he did, and he had had to explain that they could not be seen together in any way that Lancaster would recognize as a relationship.  She hadn’t been flattered when he told her what Lancaster thought about them.

“Maybe that’s because the only kind of woman he can get is the kind who wouldn’t stay with him, anyway,” she’d said.  “He’s not exactly a keeper, is he?”

He had promised to find her once this business with the rogue was settled, but that in the meantime, she had Bear, who would be with her.  He didn’t tell her about Maricia.  The fewer people who knew who she was, the better.  When the time was right, he’d tell Tammie.  Now wasn’t the time.  She had enough on her plate.

“I have a bad feeling about this, Lex,” she had said, tears pooling in her eyes which she refused to let fall. 

“That’s a natural feeling to have because of all the trouble you’ve seen this past week, honey.”  He hadn’t wanted to minimize her fears, which were justified, but he needed to comfort her.  "But trust me; you’re safe with Bear, okay?  And I’ll be okay, too.”

He had kissed his mark on her, and when she winced, he licked the spot, promising her that it would heal by morning—though it would always be tender and warm to the touch.

“This will be the first time in over a hundred and fifty years that we’re not watching each other’s back,” Bear said, staring at his friend.  “I know you can take care of yourself, and I know you’ve got people who will see to your safety when you get back.  But I’m your bodyguard.  It feels wrong to be separated from you at a time like this.”

“My life will be worth nothing if anything happens to Tamara,” Lex said.  “You know this.  And you know I can’t take her with me till this is over.”  He sighed.  He knew what Bear feared.  “I trust you with my life.  You know that, right?”  When his friend nodded, he went on, “Tamara is my life, Bear.  I know you won’t let me down.  You never have.”

Bear stood up, draining his glass.  “I’ll set a watch around the house.  The boys will come over in the morning, as usual, and they’ll watch the ranch while I escort Tammie back home.”

“Without her knowing,” Lex reminded him.  “We don’t want to take the chance that any of Lancaster’s men has been set to watch her and sees you with her.”

“I remember.  Maricia will be with me to throw them off the scent.  And as she doesn’t smell like a shifter, they’ll just assume she’s human.”

Lex studied his friend’s face for a minute and smiled when Bear asked, “What?”

“I don’t know.  I just have a feeling…”  He let his voice trail off, then added, “Anyway, by the time Tamara gets back, I’ll be on the way and will contact you when I touch down.  No one knows what time I’ll get there, and the plan is to get there and do a little reconnoitering before I ‘arrive.’  Once I know who has been sent to get me, I’ll put the rest of the plan into motion.”

“You just be careful,” Bear cautioned him.  “I don’t wanna have to go all Kodiak on anyone’s ass.  It’s very exhausting!” Both men laughed, and then Bear said, “You should go say goodbye now.  You know how long that can take.”  His smile was amused, but his eyes were sad at the same time.  Lex knew he was remembering his own last goodbye to the mate he never saw alive again.

Tammie was on her side when he got to his room, her face turned up, her limbs loose and boneless.  She was naked, and the sheets he had pulled over her were in disarray around her, as though she had been thrashing about.  He sat beside her on the bed, reaching over to smooth the hair away from her cheek.  She stirred and mumbled in her sleep, only opening her eyes when he leaned over to kiss her.  She smiled at him and turned in the bed till she could wrap her arms around his neck loosely.

“Hey,” he said, toeing off his shoes and lying beside her, never letting her let go of him.  “Feeling better?”

“Much,” she answered.  “Thanks for the push.  I did need some rest.”

He wondered if she knew how true her words were—though he didn’t react to them in any way.  Instead, he focused on the things he needed to say to her.

“I’ll be leaving soon, honey.  I wanted to see you before then, to hold you again.” 

He rolled to his side, pulling her into his arms, and brought his lips to hers as their legs tangled together.  She tasted so good to him.  Every kiss was better than the one before.  Her arms held him tightly, and she rolled him to his back so she could lie on top of him, still kissing him back and moaning in muffled bursts of sound.

“Are you all packed?” she asked, breaking the kiss and gazing down at him with deep emotion.

“Yes.  Are you?”

“Yes.  I’m leaving at nine to be on the noon flight back.”

“I’ll miss you, honey.  I’ll call you as soon as I can, I promise.  And as soon as you get home, you call me, okay?  Promise me.”  He smoothed her cheeks again and waited until she gave him the promise.

“I promise.  Are you going to be this anal always?”

“This what?”  He grinned at her.

“You heard me.  Anal, as in anal retentive, as in tight-assed.”  She chuckled at him and waited for his reply.  When he said nothing and just kept grinning at her, she shoved him in the arm and said, “Well?  Are you?”

“I have been called many things, and so has my ass.  Tight, however, is new.”  He laughed out loud when she slapped him on the arm.

“And that is no answer, which I take to be a yes.  Good to know.” 

He sobered quickly, adding, “Where your safety is concerned, Tamara, I will always be the Alpha.”

The thought of what that meant sobered her, as well.  He was his nation’s leader, and her well-being, as well as that of all the shifters he would govern, would be the first order of business for him from now on.  How would she manage as the wife of the leader?  Did this make her a kind of First Lady?  Alpha Lady?  What the hell would she be?  And would she be able to function, with only twenty-four years of life under her belt compared to his two hundred?  Would he live to see two hundred and one, or would she be a widow before she had had time to learn to be a wife?  Was he going to marry her, or would they live in sin till death?  How did all this work?

“Lex…” she began, at the same time as he said, “Tamara…”

“You first,” he said, turning them back to being side by side. 

“I have so many questions, and I know you can’t answer most of them now. But I need to know the answer to this one at least.  Are we mated now?  And if so, what happens to me if anything...happens to you?”

Her voice broke at the end, because she could not contemplate his possible demise without feeling like her word was shattering around her.

“Tamara, nothing is going to happen to me, okay?  But if,” he added, seeing her about to protest, “if something were to happen, as my mate you would be under the protection of my family and the Prime Council till your death.  My lands and wealth would all be yours.”

“As if money and property is any substitute for flesh and blood!”  Her voice was almost angry, and Lex hugged her to his heart, realizing he needed to tell her now how deeply he was coming to love her.  She had to hear the words, so that the bonding could begin.

“I couldn’t agree with you more.  So it’s a good thing they won’t have to try to be.” 

He kissed the tip of her nose and was about to declare himself when she whispered,

“I don’t think I could bear it if you never came back to me, Lex.  I’m not ready to let go yet.  I mean, I haven’t really had you yet, you now.  My grandparents don’t know you.  Em doesn’t know you.  How will I explain that my heart is broken if you...if I never see you again, and it’s not because you’ve left me of your own free will?”

Tears sparkled in her eyes again, and she hid her face in the bend between his neck and shoulder.  Lex lifted her face to his with tender fingers and kissed her soundly, making her open up to his tongue and his breath. 

When she kissed him back, he pulled away and said, “I love you, Tamara.  There is nothing that will keep me away from you.  Nothing.  And before you say I could die, just remember, I've lived for two hundred years.  I spent many of those years trying to stay alive despite repeated attempts on my life.  I can take care of myself.  I promise.  Like the song says, ‘Just remember I love you, and it’ll be all right.’  Okay?”

Without waiting for her to respond, he kissed her again, tamping down the lust that in other circumstances would have had him balls deep inside her.  He wanted her with a fierceness that astonished him, but he didn’t want her to think that all he wanted was to fuck her into a coma.  Even if that was sort of how he felt around her.  So he tried to content himself with kissing her everywhere he touched her.  As their passion rose, he slid down her body which he had once again turned so she was on her back and kissed her lower lips, helping himself to the nectar that seeped from her core, before plunging in with his tongue to take her over the edge. 

Tammie’s hips rose and fell almost of their own volition as Lex ate her, humming with pleasure at the feast.  Her legs trembled, her mouth was dry, and her chest was heavy with the need to scream in pure pleasure.  She couldn’t think beyond this moment, this man, and this orgasm.  It barreled down on her, and she was overcome.  She reached for him, as he crawled back up her body, and kissed him, tasting her essence on his lips and loving the way his heart thundered above her.

“You’re overdressed, you know,” she managed, when she could breathe without gasping.  “Need some help with that?”

“No, I’m fine,” he lied.

Her disappointment was a cloud between her eyebrows.  “Why not?” she pouted, nipping his lower lip in punishment.

“That was just for you.  My gift till next time, honey.”  He kissed her again, losing himself in her mouth, and only when she had already unbuckled his belt did he notice her busy hands.

“Honey…” he began, but she stopped him with another kiss.

“Please, Lex, I want you in me.” 

Her face was a study in crimson.  It amused him and warmed his heart that she was still so shy with him, even after all they had done together.  She would be fun to teach the ways of love, and there were so many, too.  Lex knew he would be like a cat with cream.  For now, though, he could not refuse his mate anything she wanted.  So, he helped her remove his slacks and sat up so she could straddle him.  He pulled her close as she settled her pussy over his hard cock, and when she began to ride him, he hugged her tightly and kissed her, over and over, willing his wolf to stay under.  He would not bite her again, else she ran the risk of returning home with marks she could not explain. 

Her walls were smooth, wet, and warm, and his hungry cock rode between them, striking her g-spot and the opening of her womb.  She grunted when he began to thrust up into her, and when she slid completely off him, he groaned in protest till she sat down again, taking him in and giving him a view of their bodies joining over and over.  The view of his cock disappearing, wet and hard inside her body stoked his flame into an inferno, and he felt his orgasm gathering force.  He didn’t want to come without her, so he reached around and stroked her clit.  One touch, and she exploded, just as his seed boiled up through his sack and poured into her hot flesh.

She leaned back against him, her vaginal walls spasming around him, his cock spurting out the last of his semen.  She turned her head, and whispered, “I think I love you, too, Lex.”