CHAPTER TWO
Tao gripped the marble counter hard, fighting the urge to touch and taste and take. His cock was so hot and hard it was uncomfortable to walk. Well, of course it was. The object of his every fantasy stood before him, deliciously naked. The air hissed and crackled with a sexual energy that beat at his control. It was a struggle not to let his eyes stray down to those pretty breasts.
He’d wanted Riley Porter from the very moment he laid eyes on her. Wanted to taste that gorgeous mouth, bunch all that dark iridescent hair in his hand, and see her violet eyes glaze over as she came with a scream. Wanted to explore those sweet, lush curves and high breasts that made him long to take a bite. Her fantasy mouth was full and sultry—he’d wanted to take a bite out of that too. And last night, drunk out of his mind, that was just what he’d done.
He had no idea how either of them ended up in her room, but he remembered whipping off her dress and throwing her on the bed. Remembered the feel of her pussy hot and tight around his cock, her hands pulling at his hair, her claws practically shredding his skin, her heels drumming into the base of his spine. And what a birthday treat that had been.
The memories made his cock throb painfully. Even now—while his stomach churned, a sour taste coated his tongue, and it felt like someone had smacked his head with a slab of concrete—he wanted nothing more than to shove himself inside her and fuck her raw. Hell, just her scent alone could do that to him. The blend of dark-red fruit, coconut milk, and black lace was like a magnet to him and his wolf.
In the beginning the wolf hadn’t liked her at all, since she continually toyed with his patience and refused to recognize anyone’s authority but her own. But she’d charmed both Tao and his wolf over time and earned their respect with her wit, her fearlessness, and the protectiveness she displayed toward the young.
“They’re just tits, Tao.”
He hadn’t realized he’d been staring at them until then. Tao forced his eyes back to hers. “Your nipples are hard.”
“So is your cock.”
Fuck, he’d walked right into that one.
She rubbed her temple. “Can we do this later? I really don’t think I can function well enough for a conversation.”
Good. That would give him an advantage of sorts. “No, we’re going to do this now. Last night was no mistake, Riley. It was always going to happen. You know it. I know it.” He breezed his thumb over the bite mark he’d left on the curve of her shoulder. His wolf released a soft, contented growl, liking the sight of his brand on her skin. “The hell of it is you’re not even my type.”
Bristling, Riley lifted a brow. “Because I’m not inflatable?”
“Because you’re trouble. You might look harmless enough, but I know crazy when I see it.” He tapped her nose. “You, little raven, are far from sane.”
She smiled. “I think that’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”
Tao ground his teeth. It seemed impossible to offend her. It was probably a good thing, really, because it wasn’t wise to upset a raven. They were fierce, vengeful creatures with a wicked temper who always went for the face in a fight. Riley’s temper seemed to be hard to trigger, but he knew it would be a sight to behold if she ever lost it. A perverse part of him wanted to see it.
“For the record,” she began, “you’ve already told me that I’m trouble. Multiple times, in fact. It’s why you’ve been a shit to me since day one.”
“I’ll admit that I don’t handle change well, and my natural reflex to strangers is to reject them. I also have a problem trusting lone shifters, which is pretty common.” Most loners had been banished from their pack by their Alphas for a serious crime, and they often became guns for hire to earn money and protection, hence their particularly negative reputation. “You wouldn’t tell me why you’d become a loner, which didn’t help. So, yeah, I was a shit to you. But once I was satisfied that you mean no harm to this pack, I eased off.”
“But you still don’t trust me, do you?”
“I can’t say I fully trust you—I don’t know you well enough for that.” Tao wasn’t sure if anyone knew Riley that well. She was as elusive as quicksilver and kept most people at an emotional distance. “But be honest, baby, whose fault is that? You’re locked up tighter than Fort Knox.” It galled his wolf that he knew so little about this female he craved.
“I’m not that bad. I told you that I’d been lying when I said I needed sanctuary,” she pointed out.
“Actually, you didn’t ‘tell’ me,” he clipped. “You admitted it when I said you’re not the kind of person who’d hide from anything. I guessed that you claimed to need sanctuary just so you could accompany the kids here to be sure they were safe.” It had seemed obvious, given how protective she was of Savannah and Dexter, that she’d have wanted them far away from her if there was a chance she could bring danger to their lives.
“Stop scowling at me, it’s mean.” She sniffed haughtily. “I’m thinking I shouldn’t have bothered getting you a gift for your birthday.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t have. What the hell am I gonna do with a hot sauce home brewing kit anyway?”
“Duh, brew hot sauce.”
Tao sucked in a calming breath. “Too early for this shit, Porter. Too early.” He scrubbed a hand down his face. “You were put on this earth to test me, I’ll swear to it.”
“Aw, poor you. Maybe you should go find Grandma Gretchen,” she said, using her nickname for the Alpha male’s bitchy grandmother, Greta. “I’m sure she has your bottle all heated up for you.”
“Careful, Riley.” It was a lethal whisper. “You don’t want to keep pushing me. And don’t think I haven’t noticed that you’re trying to change the subject. We’re not going to ‘forget’ what happened last night, and we’re not going to leave this at a one-night stand.” To punctuate that, he pivoted on his heel and strode into the bedroom.
Riley stalked after him, snatching her robe from the back of the bathroom door as she went. Slipping it on, she glared at him. “Do I get a say in any of this?”
“Not if you’re going to spout more bullshit, no.” He buttoned his fly and then sat on the bed, where he began to tug on his socks and shoes. “I won’t let you lie to me or yourself about this. I won’t let you lie and say you regret it either—that insults us both.”
“I didn’t say I regretted it.”
“If you don’t regret it, why backtrack? Why?”
Exasperated, she asked, “Why do you care? You don’t even like me.”
“No, I let you think I didn’t like you. When people get close, you retreat into a shell.” Tao had needed to make her believe he presented no danger to her defenses. “I wasn’t going to let you shut me out.”
Riley’s mouth dropped open. Her raven too was stunned. “You’ve been playing me. That’s brilliantly devious.” Riley actually admired and respected the cunningness of it. Her raven did a metaphorical bow.
“I wouldn’t have to play you if you’d just let me past that wall you have up between you and most of the population.”
On one level Riley was an uncomplicated creature, he thought. She didn’t wear a social mask, seemed at ease with her flaws, and could be quite laid back—even in the face of conflict. But she was uncomfortable talking about herself and stuck to surface-level topics of conversation. At first he’d assumed she was hiding something, possibly something that would lead danger to his pack. But he’d soon come to realize it was much simpler than that. “Only ‘the chosen’ get close to you—right now that’s Makenna, Savannah, and Dexter.”
“Then why bother bugging me?”
“Because I don’t like that wall you have up, Riley. It’s in the way of what I want.”
Her heart slammed against her ribs. “I don’t understand why you’re pushing this. As you persistently point out, I drive you insane.”
“You deliberately rile me to hold me at a distance,” he corrected. She challenged him. Argued with him. Snorted at him. Poked at him. And yet Tao wanted her more than breath. She got his blood running in a way that no one else ever had. “No more, Riley.”
Tao knew he was going about this all wrong. A guy needed to approach Riley the same way he would a full-blooded raven. Carefully. Slowly. Not making any sudden movements. Trying to appear as nonthreatening as possible, as if he had no real intention of trying to catch it. Otherwise the bird would take flight and he’d miss his chance. But he just didn’t possess the patience or subtlety for such a careful approach.
Besides, giving Riley the time and space to make her way to him wouldn’t work. She’d spend that time reinforcing the wall between them by pissing him off at every given opportunity. That wasn’t something he’d allow.
They both stiffened at the sound of a cell phone chiming. Tracking the sound, he squatted and pulled her phone out from under the bed. He saw the name flashing on the screen. “Lucy,” he drawled. Riley held out her hand, jaw set, and he handed her the cell. “Wanna tell me why someone from your old flock is calling?”
“I wouldn’t need a phone if I knew stuff like—hey, wait a minute, how the hell do you know that Lucy’s from the flock?”
He pulled on his shirt and gave her a sympathetic smile. “Baby, do you really think I’d let a perfect stranger into my pack without knowing about their background?” Finding out where she came from and the details of her flock hadn’t been easy. He’d had to dig deep and use a lot of his contacts. It had taken months and he still didn’t have all the facts.
Riley tensed, wary. “Just how much did you find out about my past?”
He gave her an enigmatic smile. “Enough.”
What did “enough” mean? Riley didn’t exactly have deep, dark secrets, but she had as much dirty laundry as the next person. Knowing Tao could be fully aware just how dirty that laundry was . . . it made her feel vulnerable. Exposed.
“I wasn’t prying, Riley, and I didn’t do it to hurt you. I was making sure my pack mates were safe—that includes you. Of course, I would never have had to go to such measures if you hadn’t kept your past one great big secret.” He settled his hands on her shoulders. “I didn’t uncover anything you’d consider personal, just basic facts about the flock. I don’t want to find out about your life from other people. I want to hear it from you. Okay?”
No, it wasn’t okay, because she wasn’t sure she completely understood what he was asking for—a bed-buddy? A fling? A relationship? Riley swallowed. “What exactly do you want from me?”
Tao traced the delicate line of her jaw. “I’m not asking for anything serious, baby. Relationships don’t work for me, they never have.” His past relationships had been stressful and complicated—mostly because he was an asshole with no idea how to make another person happy. “But we both know we’d be kidding ourselves if we thought this could end here, so I say we just let it play out. And I want you to let me in a little, because I’m not interested in anything cold and impersonal.” He watched her carefully as she stared back at him, eyeing him warily and deliberating on what he’d said. No doubt she’d fight him on it, but—
“All right.”
He blinked, unsure he’d heard her correctly. “All right?”
She shrugged. “I like sex, and, from what little I remember of last night, you’re pretty good at it.”
He’d been expecting a fight if for no other reason than that she could be a pain in his ass when she chose to be. Her reactions didn’t always make sense to him, and it really did make him wonder what went on in her pretty little head.
Satisfied by her response, his wolf relaxed. Tao, however, felt a little wounded by her assessment. “I’m better than ‘pretty good.’”
“Really? I hadn’t noticed.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Next time I have you under me, I’ll prove it to you and—”
The bedroom door flew open and two small children scurried inside. They both froze, eyes dancing from Riley to Tao.
She forced a breezy smile for them. “Morning, guys.” Bending, she gave both kids a peck on the cheek. “You’re all washed and dressed, I see. Good.”
Savannah’s brows met. “You smell funny. And you have black stuff on your face.”
Hmm, thought Riley, apparently she hadn’t wiped off all the mascara after all. “I know, which means I need to go shower.” At that moment her cell began chiming again. “I’ll meet you guys in the kitchen soon, okay?”
Dexter gave a reluctant nod, and she ruffled his mop of blond curls before turning away.
Tao watched Riley quickly retreat into the bathroom. He’d like to stick around and eavesdrop on her call. Instead he turned to the kids looking up at him. Savannah’s gold, unblinking eyes were staring at him steadily. The impish viper shifter might be only four, but she was a fearless little thing. She also considered him the enemy, which was kind of understandable. He hadn’t been what anyone would call welcoming when they first arrived.
It wasn’t that he didn’t like kids. Tao had worried that they might hurt the Alpha pair’s son, Kye—especially since Dexter not only was a cheetah cub but could already partially shift. But the kids had quickly grown on Tao and, honestly, he felt like a bastard for initially being such an ass toward them.
Clearing his throat, Tao said, “Morning.”
The cub pulled a crumbling half of a cookie out of his pocket and held it out. Dexter was a hoarder, so heaven only knew how long that cookie had been in his pocket. Still, Tao took it to be polite. “Thanks, little man.”
Dexter just nodded; he didn’t say much in general. Unlike Savannah, the two-year-old had warmed up to Tao.
“Why are you in Riley’s room?” asked Savannah suspiciously, cocking her head and making her little caramel pigtails bounce. She was mightily protective of Riley.
“I just needed to talk to her about something. Why don’t you go wait for her in the kitchen? I’ll bet Grace has made your breakfast by now.” But Savannah continued staring at him, her gaze unblinking. “I’m not going to hurt Riley.”
“You growl at her. And you do it a lot.” Her little nose wrinkled. “That’s mean.”
“Only because she purposely drives me . . . You know what? Never mind. Let’s just go have breakfast. Riley won’t be long.”
Tao hustled them out of the room, closing the door behind them. Shooting him one last suspicious look, Savannah took Dexter’s hand and walked ahead of Tao as they moved to the ladder at the end of the tunnel. Incredibly agile, the kids easily scrambled up the black metal ladder. Once on the first level, the kids then turned down the tunnel that led to the kitchen while Tao went down a separate tunnel toward his bedroom. He didn’t pass any of his pack mates along the way, which meant it was likely that they were already in the kitchen.
After taking a quick, refreshing shower and some much-needed Tylenol, Tao pulled on some clothes and made his way to the kitchen. As he entered, his stomach rumbled at the sight and smell of the delicious spread on the dining table—scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, fruit, cereal, and biscuits and gravy were among the selection. Grace, the pack’s cook and mother hen, stood at the stove while the rest of the pack sat around the table.
Sinking into a chair, Tao loaded his plate with food as he scanned the room. Riley hadn’t yet arrived, which made him frown. He saw that many of his pack mates looked as if they were suffering from serious hangovers, especially Ryan’s teenage cousin, Zac; he’d been allowed only one beer, yet the kid looked dead to the world.
Makenna in particular, who was filling Savannah’s and Dexter’s plates, seemed badly hungover with her puffy face and the bags under her eyes. She knew the kids well, since she worked at the homeless shelter where they’d stayed before coming here with Riley for sanctuary. It was only later that Tao had figured out that Riley didn’t need sanctuary at all.
Lilah, Grace and Rhett’s pup, giggled loudly and clapped at something Kye said. Pretty much everyone at the table winced at the sounds.
Jaime slapped her hands over her ears, looking close to tears. “Sound is pain.”
Dante began massaging her temples. The Beta pair were an extremely tight couple, most likely because they’d known each other since childhood. “Did you have a good birthday?” he asked Tao.
Tao nodded. “Thanks to all of you for the party and presents.”
His pack mates gave him strained smiles, with the exception of Jaime’s brother, Gabe. Leaning his head on the table, the submissive male lazily lifted his hand to acknowledge Tao’s words. He’d most likely meant to give him a thumbs-up or something, Tao couldn’t be sure.
Gabe’s mate, Hope, said, “I hope you liked the cake that Grace and I made.”
“There’s still some left,” said Greta.
Marcus’s head snapped up. “There’s cake left?” The male enforcer ate like a horse and, like his mate and fellow enforcer, Roni, he was obsessed with cake.
“You already ate most of it,” Lydia complained.
Marcus tipped his chin toward Cam. “He okay there?” Her sleeping mate had sunk so deeply into the chair he looked close to slipping right off it. Lydia just shrugged as if too tired to help him.
As Tao chatted with his Alphas, Taryn and Trey, he listened for Riley’s approach. It was at least twenty minutes before she arrived, and he tracked her every move as she headed to the table. He really did love to watch her walk. She had a fluid, predatory grace that said she was confident, capable, and not to be fucked with.
As she took the seat beside Makenna, Tao studied her carefully. He’d watched her often enough to be able to read her moods—much too often, really—but nothing in her expression gave away anything about her phone call.
Had it been bad news? Was someone hurt? Had she been asked to return to the flock?
More and more questions sailed around his head, none of which he would ask her at that moment in front of the pack. The news was for her to share or not. And if he knew Riley like he thought he did, it would be not.
Riley poured herself coffee and met Tao’s gaze across the table. She’d felt the burn of it on her skin as she entered the room. She warned him with her eyes not to question her now about Lucy’s call—and he would question her about it sooner or later—but there was really no getting Tao Lukas to do anything he didn’t want to do.
“I’m never drinking again,” said Taryn, eyes closed. The blonde might be small, but she was all Alpha. She had an aura of authority and dominance that Riley’s raven highly respected.
“I promised myself that same thing twenty minutes ago,” said Riley, shaking her head when Makenna offered her some toast; her stomach protested the idea of food. Turning to the only female enforcer, she griped, “It’s not fair that you look so fresh.”
Roni buttered her toast. “It’s only because I didn’t drink as much as you did.”
“You were more interested in the cake,” said Jaime.
Roni frowned at Jaime. “I’m mated to Marcus. If you don’t get to the cake fast, you don’t get cake.” Marcus smiled, eyes dancing with amusement.
Jaime raised a hand. “Girls, I say we make a pact here and now never to even touch a bottle of tequila ever again.”
Makenna nodded. “It would be for our own good.” Ryan grunted at his mate in what might have been agreement—Riley didn’t know. Mostly mute, he often communicated with grunts that only Makenna seemed able to fully translate.
“Don’t kid yourselves into thinking you won’t break that pact,” said Trey. Unlike his mate, he was powerfully built. The two Alphas might be very different in size, but they were both equally crazy, in Riley’s opinion.
“Dexter, you can’t!” said Kye.
Riley turned her attention to the cheetah cub, who was stuffing food in his pockets again, and groaned. “Dexter, please don’t do that.” She smiled in approval when he put the bacon back on the plate. “Thank you.” Of course, she knew he’d slip it into his pocket the moment she looked away.
Zac pushed away from the table. “The smell of food is killing me. I need a dark, quiet room so I can die in peace.” As he left the room, he passed Trick—another enforcer, who happened to be more deliberately annoying than even Riley—and bumped fists with him as he entered.
Seating himself at the table, Trick looked around, and his mouth quirked. “You all look like extras from Dawn of the Dead.”
Taryn glared at him. “Why don’t you have a hangover?”
Trick shrugged. “I rarely ever have them.”
“Lucky bastard,” said Riley, raking a hand through her hair. “I wish I could say I look rougher than I feel, but I don’t.”
“You don’t look rough,” insisted Dominic with a mischievous grin. “You look beautiful. You make me think of fast food—I want to take you out and then eat you in my car.”
Jaime chuckled, Tao growled, and the others groaned.
Dominic had an idiotic habit of dishing out cheesy pickup lines, and often used them on females who were either mated or dating; that aggravated their partners, given that shifters were very possessive. All that aside, Riley thought the cute blond enforcer was pretty funny.
When Dominic opened his mouth to speak again, Tao snarled, “Dom, don’t.”
Surprised at the vehemence in his tone, Riley met Tao’s gaze. “Cheer up, Fenris,” she said, knowing he hated that she’d nicknamed him after the wolf from Narnia. Exasperation glittered in his eyes, which tickled her raven something fierce.
“You’re a pain in my ass, Porter,” he growled.
Riley just smiled.
“Don’t tolerate that behavior, Tao,” said Greta. The woman didn’t dislike Riley just because she was a raven. It was also because Riley was unmated. Greta didn’t like unmated females around her “boys”—Trey, Dante, Tao, and the four male enforcers—and did her best to scare them off. Tao, Trick, and Dominic were unmated, so Greta wanted her long gone.
“She’s a raven, she shouldn’t be here,” complained Greta. “She’s rude and disrespectful, just like those three hussies,” she added, pointing at Taryn, Jaime, and Makenna. She was as rude to them now as she had been when they were unmated. Roni had somehow tricked Greta into liking and accepting her, which most of the pack found plain hilarious.
Riley took another sip of her coffee. “I would have thought you’d be in a better mood these days now that you have yourself a boyfriend.”
Greta gasped. “Allen is not my . . . my . . . boyfriend,” she insisted, stumbling over the word. “He and I just enjoy each other’s company.”
“Right,” drawled Riley, winking at her. Allen was Cam’s uncle and, for some unknown reason, thought the sun rose and set with Greta. Riley struggled to understand how the guy could be attracted to Greta, but to each their own.
Mouth tightening, Greta narrowed her eyes. “Don’t think I don’t know you were the one who first suggested he take me for a meal.”
Riley’s mouth curved. “Like I told him, I just want you to be happy.” What she wanted was to make Greta feel awkward as revenge for her being so awful toward Savannah. The little girl had bitten her once—once—and she hadn’t even pierced the skin, but Greta persistently whined about it to make Savannah feel bad. Having Allen around, flirting and trying to charm her, wasn’t something that Greta was very good at handling without blushing like crazy—probably because she was a terrible prude.
“You might have him fooled, but I see you for what you are,” sneered Greta. “Common through and through.”
Riley put down her cup. “Look, Gretchen—”
“It’s Greta.”
“I don’t care.”
As Greta proceeded to rant, Makenna leaned into Riley and asked, “Will you ever refer to her by her real name?”
“It’s unlikely,” replied Riley. Not when not doing so was the easiest way to annoy the old crone.
Savannah hissed at Greta, which made the other kids laugh.
Greta dramatically put a protective hand to her throat and turned to Riley. “Do you have no control over that child? She’s vicious.”
Riley sighed. “Are we back to this again?”
“I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised by her behavior since she has you for a role model,” sniped Greta. “I mean, look at you. You’re supposed to be taking care of them, but you were drinking all night like you’re not responsible for anyone but yourself.”
Riley snickered. “Lady, you have hair sticking out your nostrils—you don’t get to judge me.”
Taryn nearly choked on whatever she was eating, and Greta instantly turned all that bitchiness onto the Alpha female, calling her one name after another.
“Good one.” Makenna smiled at Riley. “But she still hates me more than she hates you.”
“Really? Bummer.” Noticing Tao leave the room, Riley leaned into Makenna and asked, “Is there any chance you could watch over the kids for me for a couple of hours? I need to get a few things done.” She didn’t add that she was leaving pack territory; Makenna would insist that she take someone along for protection, and she wanted to have her meeting in private.
“Of course,” Makenna agreed easily. “I love spending time with them. And they love climbing Ryan like he’s a fence post.”
Yeah, they sure did, but he didn’t complain. Nope, the poor guy often just stood there, quiet and stoic . . . which was pretty much how Ryan always looked, really.
Once she was done with her breakfast, Riley told the kids to be good for Makenna and Ryan and then headed through the network of tunnels. Out of the mountain, she jogged down the steps carved into the cliff face and into the concealed parking lot. There were several pack vehicles for everyone to use at their leisure. Riley headed for the nearest SUV . . . only to find Tao leaning against it.
He opened the passenger door for her and asked, “So, where are we headed?”
She sighed. “I don’t need you to come.”
“You can’t go off alone, Riley. None of us do anymore. The anti-shifter groups are getting more problematic. Just a few months ago they were here calling for Dexter’s death, remember.”
How could she forget? The two-year-old cub had been living alone on the streets for a while, surviving on scraps. No one was sure just how long he’d been homeless; he came to the attention of Social Services only when video footage of him partially shifting was uploaded on YouTube. That footage had also captured the attention of the human anti-shifter extremists, who had called for him to be “put down” like a rabid dog. Instead Social Services had taken him to a shelter for lone shifters.
“Don’t tell me I’m staying behind,” said Tao. “You know I won’t.”
“Look, it’s not that I’m being stubborn. Lucy didn’t explain what she wants to talk about. If it’s personal, she’s not going to tell me in front of you.”
“Probably not, but her feelings aren’t more important than your safety.” Tao wasn’t budging, and he let his determination show in his expression.
Riley sighed again. “You can come only if you agree to wait in the SUV. That way she can talk to me in private and you can be sure I’m safe. Everybody wins.”
He twisted his mouth, considering it. “All right, I’ll wait in the SUV.”
Eyeing him curiously, she walked to the vehicle. “You’re being uncharacteristically cooperative.”
“I can be cooperative . . . when I’m getting what I want.” And right now, the very thing Tao wanted most was sliding into the passenger seat. Life was good.