Chapter Sixteen

Austin laughed at the way she managed to change the subject from sex to food so quickly. Though he knew she had to be starving.

She lifted a brow. “Are you going to feed me?”

“Always. For the rest of your life if you’ll let me.” Was he saying too much?

She rolled her eyes.

For a heartbeat, he worried he’d indeed said too much.

But then she giggled. “Please save me from grilled sandwiches and frozen pizza.”

He smirked. “Hey now, I make a mean pancake too.”

“Oh… Pancakes…” Her stomach growled so loud at the mention, he thought the room shook.

“Pancakes it is.” He lifted her off the table and set her on her feet, steadying her with both hands until he was certain she wouldn’t fall if he let go. When he released her, he grabbed her clothes off the floor and handed them to her.

He watched as she dressed while he dragged his jeans over his hips and then bent to find everything else.

“I should point out there’s still no food in this house,” she stated, confusion furrowing her brow.

“My place.”

She flinched. “We’re going to your place? Have you even been there? Your parents said it’s a mess. No thanks to me…” Her voice trailed off as she added that last line.

Austin lurched forward, took her chin in his fingers, and forced her to meet his gaze. “Stop it. Enough blaming each other for shit we can’t control. It’s not your fault some jackass wants to run you out of town. You aren’t leaving. That’s final. Whoever it is can get over themselves.

“I don’t give a fuck about material possessions. I was pretty certain my heart had been ripped out of my chest while I raced down the mountain to get to you and make sure you were okay about an hour ago, but I don’t give a fuck about spray paint and eggs and nasty messages. Not one fuck, Nuria. As long as you’re not injured, that’s all that matters.”

She nodded in his grasp. “Okay.”

He kissed her gently. “I also won’t be chased from my home, and you shouldn’t, either. We’re going back there. We’ll clean up whatever’s urgent tonight and leave the rest for tomorrow. And then we’ll make pancakes and drown them in syrup, and I might even lick some of it off your lips.”

She sucked in a sharp breath at the description.

Good. He liked to have her on the edge of sanity. Fuck their history. They were going to have to find a way to bridge the gap and get over themselves because Nuria was his. And he was never going to let her out of his grasp again.

“Okay,” she repeated with more umph as if his proclamations were sinking into her head and giving her strength.

He nodded. “Okay, then. Let’s go.”

Twenty minutes later, they pulled into his driveway. He turned off the engine and faced her. “Ready?”

The one word was loaded. He knew it. She had to know it too.

She nodded. “Yes. For anything.”

He smiled at her and then opened the door and climbed down from his truck, thanking whatever weird fate was as work in their lives for causing him to leave the truck at her place earlier in the day when he stormed up the mountain. Coincidence? Probably not.

He took her hand and helped her down from the cab, continuing to hold her fingers as they turned toward the house. Sure enough, the front door was spray-painted with green letters.

The closer he got, the clearer the words became. DIE BITCH. He shuddered. The thought that anyone would wish Nuria dead was more than he could stand. He didn’t bother reading any of the other words painted on the side of his house. Instead, he opened the door with his key and let them in.

“Austin…” Her voice trembled as he shut the door behind them and turned the lock.

He spun around, took her face in his hand, and met her gaze in the dim light of the dark house. “It’s paint, Nuria. Paint. It will come off. Is anyone hurt?”

“No.” She swallowed.

“That’s all that matters.”

She was shaking so badly he grabbed her and drew her against his chest. Threading his fingers in her hair, he cupped the back of her head and pressed her cheek against his pecs.

“What did I ever do to a single living soul to deserve this?” she asked his shirt.

“Nothing, baby. People are just damn stupid. They think if they hurt someone else, it will take away some of their own pain.

She grabbed his shirt at his lower back with both hands, fisting the material as she held on to him.

He reached out to his parents. “Mom. Dad. We’re at my place for the night. Can’t say I’m not a little concerned.”

“We figured that would be the case. Alton’s on his way over there now.”

Austin inhaled Nuria’s scent deeply, wondering why his younger brother would give up sleep for any reason. He was twenty-five and had started working in the family-owned brewery after completing his degree in engineering two years ago. Austin rarely saw him outside work.

“My brother’s coming over. Alton,” he clarified when she stiffened.

She tipped her head back. “Of course. Sorry. I haven’t seen Alton since I got here. He was ten when I moved away. Jeez. That makes him twenty-five now.”

“Yep.”

“I won’t even recognize him.”

Austin smiled. “Hell, I don’t recognize him most of the time. He went to the University of Calgary and stayed six years.”

At least that distracted Nuria from stressing over the graffiti. She giggled. “Six years? What took him so long?”

Austin shrugged. “Who knows? It wasn’t because he flunked classes or anything. He just liked school, I guess, so he got more than one degree and switched around a few times.”

“Wow. I guess I better brace myself. He isn’t in fourth grade anymore.”

“Nope.” Austin leaned back, putting a few more inches between them without letting her go. “You okay?”

“I don’t know. I’m not fond of getting death threats. Nor am I fond of putting others in danger.”

“Me?” He pointed at himself.

“Yes. For one. And anyone else from your family who puts themselves in harm’s way to protect me. I assume that’s why Alton’s coming. What’s he planning to do? Stand guard or something? This is crazy, Austin. We should leave. I should leave. Get the hell out of town. Stay in a hotel. Something.” She shoved against his chest.

Austin didn’t release his grip on her. In fact, he threaded his fingers together behind her and held on tight. “Don’t be ridiculous. There’s only one motel in town, and you aren’t going there. Ever. Nor are you leaving town. Didn’t we just establish that fact about a half an hour ago?”

She chewed on her lower lip and then set her forehead against his chest again, hiding her face.

He took that as a good sign. Anything he could do to get her to see reason was a step in the right direction.

Austin felt his brother outside before he knocked. He reached around Nuria and opened the front door without saying a word.

Alton climbed the front steps and entered the house, shutting the door behind him. “Is there a reason you’re standing in the dark?” He chuckled.

Nuria pushed away from Austin and turned to face his brother. “Hey, Alton. It’s been a long time. You’ve…grown,” she teased.

He laughed harder. “Fifteen years will do that to a kid.”

Austin flipped on the lights next to the front door.

“Ah, lights. I was wondering if I should even approach when I saw the place was totally dark inside.”

Austin groaned. “Don’t even go there, man. We just hadn’t gotten around to it. We’ve been here like five minutes. More importantly, what are you doing here? Don’t you have a hot date or something?”

Alton headed across the room and straight for the fridge. Of course. After grabbing himself a beer, and not offering anyone else one, he took a long swig. “I’m insulted. Can’t a guy help out his brother without getting the third degree from everyone in the family?”

Austin narrowed his gaze as he took Nuria’s hand and led her to the couch. “No.”

Alton’s eyes widened, and he gave them a fake look of total shock. “My own brother.”

“Who rarely sees you outside of work because you’re too busy for anyone. I’m convinced you’re leading a double life. When you were gone for six years, were you really at the University of Calgary? Or was it all for show, and you now secretly work for the government?”

Alton rolled his eyes. “So dramatic.”

“So evasive.” Austin had no idea what Alton did in his spare time, but he undoubtedly had a woman he wasn’t willing to introduce to the family. The question was, why? Maybe she was human… That was possible.

“Austin tells me you got an engineering degree.”

“Yes. Two of them, actually. I wanted to be sure I out-educated my brother.” He chuckled again and took another swig of his beer.

Austin glanced at the ceiling. “Accounting is hardly easy street. And don’t forget, I also majored in business. And I at least managed to get my two degrees in four years,” he teased.

If there was one good thing about this banter, it was putting Nuria at ease and taking her mind off the stupid threatening graffiti on the house.

Austin met his brother’s gaze. He was sure Alton hadn’t come over to hang out for purely altruistic reasons. “Tell me why you’re really here?”

Alton gasped. “What have I ever done to cause such suspicion?”

No time like the present to press the issue. “Let’s see, you went away to U of C for more years than necessary. And then you moved back here two years ago, got your own tiny apartment in town, and you spend almost no time with the family. You come to work. You leave. No one sees you. So I have to assume you either turned into a recluse or you’re hiding a woman.”

Alton’s face turned so red so fast that Austin felt bad for being so pushy. If Alton had a woman, it was nobody’s business.

“Shit, man. I’m sorry. That was uncalled for.”

“Nah, I get it. If I were you, I’d be suspicious too.” Alton dipped his face toward the floor and played with his beer bottle between his legs. “Can you just trust me on this issue for a while longer? You know me. You know I wouldn’t be doing anything illegal or dangerous.”

“Of course. Consider it done.” Austin pushed off his knees and stood. “I need a drink. Nuria?”

“Now’s a good time for a beer. Yes. Thanks.”

“All kidding aside,” Alton continued, “the truth about tonight is that Dad set up a rotation of us to come over here and keep an eye on the perimeter of the property all night. I drew the first shift.”

Austin shook his head as he leaned into the fridge. When he returned with three open bottles, handing one to Nuria and one to Alton, he faced his brother again. “Why didn’t you just say something?”

Alton shrugged. “And ruin the fact that you thought I was just a good brother coming over for a social call?”

∙•∙

Two hours later, after a giant pile of pancakes and listening to more warming banter between Austin and his brother, Nuria stepped out of the shower and wrapped herself in one on Austin’s towels. She had stayed in there forever trying to warm her body and chase away the deep chill that didn’t come from the cold but from the words on Austin’s front door. DIE BITCH. She hadn’t even seen any of the other graffiti on the house. That one phrase was enough.

She could hear the faint tones of Austin speaking to his brother in the living room. She envied their close relationship. She’d never had any siblings, and although she had always felt bad that Austin’s older brother was a total dick, at least he had two younger sisters and a younger brother. They had all been close when they were young.

It would seem things had not changed. With the exception of when each sibling went to university, they had always been involved in the family business and come together for functions.

Everyone except Antoine. From a young age, he’d been defiant and a loner.

Nuria dried off quickly, set the towel on the vanity, and grabbed Austin’s brush to work the tangles out of her hair. When she finished, she stared at herself for a long time. For fifteen years she’d worn her hair down. For the fifteen years before that she’d pulled it back.

It was like she was two people. Before and after Antoine.

She shuddered and then shook the thought from her head as she slipped one of Austin’s T-shirts over her head and then grabbed a hair band and pulled the damp locks away from her face.

If she was going to stay in Silvertip, stay in Austin’s life, she needed to find herself. Reinvent herself. Maybe grab a piece of who she was with him the first time around.

Was this truly possible? Could she stay in Silvertip and forge a life with Austin, perhaps even bind herself to him?

For the first time in years, she had a glimmer of hope.

Now they just needed to find out who was threatening her and why.

“I’m gonna crawl under your covers and try to get some sleep. I’m exhausted,” she communicated with Austin. She didn’t feel like putting on enough clothes to be presentable to his brother, and she didn’t want him to feel like he had to join her, either.

“Okay, baby. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

“Take your time. I’ll be out as soon as I hit the pillow.” She doubted that was actually possible with her mind racing under piles of stress, but she climbed into his bed and snuggled deep under the comforter.

So much had happened in just a few days. She’d sold everything she owned and moved across the country, packed up her parents’ home, dealt with a fire, reconnected with the man she should have spent her life with, and faced an unknown threat that still lurked out there somewhere.

Was it serious? Would someone actually harm her given the chance? She doubted it. She couldn’t imagine a group of strung-out drug addicts bothering to seek revenge for some imagined harm done to one of their friends fifteen years ago. But no way was Austin going to take any chances.

She closed her eyes, turned her face into his pillow, and inhaled deeply of his scent. It soothed her at the same time her body came alive, needing him.

She moaned into the pillow, trying to stifle the lust while working hard to block it from Austin. Irrational arousal flooded her body with every breath she took. How had she gone from worrying about ten things to needing to fuck in two seconds flat?

The door to the bedroom snicked shut, and she flinched, holding her breath, hoping she’d kept her thoughts to herself.

Judging by Austin’s breathing and the speed with which he crossed the room and climbed onto the bed, she figured she had failed miserably.

In a flash, he tugged the comforter off her, flipped her onto her back, and straddled her torso. His gaze searched hers while she tried to catch her breath.

Her nipples rubbed against his T-shirt, pebbling. Wetness pooled between her legs. Her hair fell out of the band she’d put in it to haphazardly land around her face.

“Where did Alton go?” Her voice came out on a croak.

“Outside.”

“He didn’t have to do that.” She swallowed, still trying to make reasonable conversation. “He could have stayed inside, in the guest room, the living roo—”

Austin cut her off, his lips landing on hers to steal a kiss. “Shut up,” he communicated. “I sensed the rush of arousal from you, and my dick got instantly hard.” His tongue tangled with hers while he spoke into her head.

She set her hands on his waist and pulled him closer, needing more contact, more of anything. Working her fingers under his shirt, she set them on his heated skin and smoothed them up his back. Damn he was built.

When he finally broke the kiss to tug his shirt over his head, she tried to clear her mind. Think. “Alton… He’s outside… He’ll know…”

“Yeah. He’s a grown man. He isn’t stupid. Plus I kicked him out without hardly a word.”

She could feel his presence outside. He’d moved away from the house, but he was still in the proximity.

Austin grabbed the hem of her T-shirt and pulled it over her head. When his gaze landed on her chest, she sucked in a sharp breath. He stared at her reverently as if she were a goddess. He made her feel like she was.

Time stood still. Nothing existed except his gaze roaming over her chest and her heavy breathing mixed with his. “I need to taste you.”

One sharp nod of her head was all she gave him. He seemed to have a thing about devouring her entire body. Her mouth. Her chest. Her pussy. And she was powerless to deny him anything since the benefit was totally hers.

Suddenly, he leaned forward and kissed her lips briefly before leaving a trail of kisses down her neck and between her breasts. When he paused to suck her nipple into his mouth, she set her hands on his head and stroked through his hair. “So good.”

“Mmm.”

He flicked his tongue over the other nipple briefly and then nibbled a path down her belly until he reached the apex of her sex. He grabbed both her knees and shocked her by pressing them high and then wide. The exposure was intense. His gaze on her pussy was even more acute.

Without warning, he opened his lips and suckled her clit and the entire surrounding sensitive skin.

She cried out, an orgasm rushing toward the surface. “Austin.”

He ignored her plea, though she had no idea what the plea had been for.

When he released her clit, it was to thrust his tongue deep inside her. And when he withdrew his tongue, he did something she never expected…

He set his teeth on her groin and made several mock bites on both sides of her pussy.

Her entire body shot off like fireworks, a fierce orgasm rocking her so hard she shook against the bed. “Do it. Dammit, Austin. Bite me. Now.” She managed to communicate all that while her pussy drew in on itself, grasping at something that wasn’t there. His cock. And her clit pulsed. Surely if she could look at it, she would find it jerking.

Austin growled against her, his warm breath heightening the pleasure. His teeth dragged over her skin again and again, teasing, tempting, tantalizing her. But he didn’t break the skin.

Even when she lifted her hips off the bed in an effort to force him to nick her, she failed.

Frustration mounted. She wanted—no, needed—to connect with him on a deeper level. The only way she knew to do that was to complete the binding. When it became clear he had no intention of binding them to each other, she shoved his shoulders and climbed out from under him.

She shook violently from the orgasm that still rushed through her system, the need to have his cock inside her, and the driving force of nature that demanded they bind together.

She bared her teeth, still pushing his much larger frame in an effort to flip him onto his back as she’d done last night. If he wasn’t going to give her what she wanted, she would take it from him. She would find a way to position him so she could thrust herself onto his cock and then sink her teeth into him at the same time.

Like a feral animal, she fought with him to get the upper hand. Her teeth seemed sharper than usual, scraping against her lips. Her struggling was a failure.

Austin sat up next to her, grabbed her shoulders, and gave her a shake to get her attention. “Nuria, stop.”

She had trouble focusing on his face. Tears clouded her vision, forming as all hope of mating with him fled. “Why?” she screamed.

“Because you aren’t in the right frame of mind. Your decisions are clouded by lust. Nuria, listen to me.” His voice was strained, ragged, rough, too loud.

She blinked, licking her lips. When she stopped struggling to get out of his grasp, he blew out a breath. “Baby, I love you. I love you so much it hurts. I’m going to love you for the rest of our lives. But this is too rushed. Ten hours ago we nearly split up. I can’t let you bind yourself to me in the heat of the moment and risk you regretting it later.”

“It doesn’t work that way. You know it.” Her voice squeaked as she tried to reason with him. “We’ll never regret it. I see that now. I get it. As soon as we’re bound together, we’ll never feel a moment of doubt again. That’s how it is. That’s how Nature set it up.”

“I know that. Intellectually I know you’re right. And I have the same argument running over and over like a movie reel in my head. But this isn’t how we’re going to make the decision. We’ll make it together in the light of day, calmly. We’ll discuss it and rationalize it and figure out all the implications and make an informed decision.”

She couldn’t breathe.

“Nuria,” his voice rose as if he knew he wasn’t quite reaching her. “We are going to bind together. We are. You’re mine. For better or for worse. You’re mine for a lifetime. But we’re going to do it right. After we figure out who’s threatening you and put it to bed.

“We’ll pick a time when my brother isn’t lurking outside unable to avoid our rambling feelings and thoughts. We don’t need an audience when we bind. We’ll do it alone. Maybe take off up the mountain one day where no one will be privy to our thoughts and feelings. Maybe go on a trip. Something. Anything that isn’t hastily done while my family’s on watch outside and the house is covered with damning graffiti.”

She nodded. He was right. She knew it in her heart, but her lust took over and got control of her. There was no reason to argue with him further, but she did need one thing from him. “Fine. Deal. I promise not to sink my teeth into you if you take off your damn jeans and fuck me before I lose my mind.”

A slow smile spread across his face. “I can do that.” He scrambled off the bed and shrugged out of his jeans hastily. “Get on all fours, baby, in the middle of the bed.”

She lifted a brow. “You want to role play? Now? You need to take some sort of dominant stance with me after all this?”

He shook his head as he climbed back onto the mattress, his cock bobbing in front of him. “No, baby. I want to take you from behind so you can’t slip up and bite me while I drive you wild with the need to come over and over again.”

A shudder raced through her body at his words. She hesitated for one second to absorb his meaning, and then she flipped onto her hands and knees and rocked back toward him.

When he set his hands on her hips and guided his cock to run across her swollen pussy, she moaned. This was a new position, a vulnerable position. It took trust to let him take her like this.

But she wanted it. She wanted it more than her next breath. “Please,” she begged, rocking backward again to encourage him to enter her.

“Okay, baby. Okay.” With one hand on her hip, he used the other to guide his cock to her entrance, and then he thrust all the way to the hilt, forcing her to sway forward.

His hands held her seconds later, gripping her right above the hips. When he pulled out and thrust back into her, he had enough control to keep her from falling forward. Her breasts swayed, heavy, full, tight.

She moaned. It felt so good. Every time he took her, it felt better than the last time. She could get addicted to sex. She already was.

This position put him deeper and caused him to drag across her G-spot more precisely. On the other hand, her clit was left out. She needed contact there.

As if he read her mind, and probably he did, he wrapped his arm around her waist and lifted her off the bed. Crawling forward without dislodging from her tightness, he dragged her toward the headboard. “Put one hand on the wall, Nuria.”

She was confused for only a second, and then she lifted her left hand to brace herself against the wall. They were close enough that her body was almost upright.

His lips hit her ear, and he whispered his next words against her lobe. “Use your other hand to stroke your clit, baby.”

She shivered in his grasp.

He nibbled her ear. “Do it. Touch yourself. I won’t move again until you do. I want you to come with me. Rub your clit for me, baby.”

She followed his instructions as if she had no other choice. In her desperation, she truly didn’t.

“That’s it. God you’re sexy.” He grabbed her hips again and thrust in and out of her while she stroked her clit with exactly the right pressure, using her pointer and ring finger to trap the swollen nub while her middle finger flicked over the tip rapidly.

Between her masturbating and his cock inside her, she was on top of the world again in moments. And he was right about something else—she indeed would have sunk her teeth into him given the opportunity. Since she was facing the wall and unable to get her mouth anywhere near him, he was safe.

The thought almost made her smile. Instead she put her energy into reaching another orgasm. And the moment she tipped over the edge, he was right with her, holding her steady while his semen pulsed against her cervix.