Leora

 

The sound of the toilet flushing brought me awake. Well, that and the heat being generating off the man cuddled up against my back. Midnight gave off heat like a furnace in the middle of winter.

I’d never be cold again.

Haley, because who else could it be, scurried down the hall. She was probably hungry, which meant I—we needed to get our asses in gear. I tried to slip out of his arms, but the big brute of a guy, didn’t budge. I couldn’t even see what time it was.

He tucked me back into his embrace after I pushed off the covers. His right hand cupped my breast, and his thumb caressed the mark from our mating. His left hand had been between my legs, intimately palming my sex. He had to be awake. The length of his dick lay against the cleft of my ass, jerking every so often. It made me want to roll my hips and have him sink deep inside of me. Surely, he felt the slickness of my pussy across his fingers. I tucked my bottom lip between my teeth and bit down, hoping to prevent the moan building in my chest.

Damn, I thought shifters had some sort of animal sense, even in their human form. Apparently, not Midnight. He didn’t even move. I needed to get up and check on Haley. She might have had another nightmare or could be hungry again. Wouldn’t surprise me if it was the latter instead of the former. Peanut butter sandwiches didn’t make a meal.

I tugged against him again determined to get up, but the asshole still didn’t budge. I’d just raised my arm to elbow him in the side to force him to move, when the door opened, and Haley stepped inside. Shit.

“Midnight...” Haley’s eyes widened when she saw us cuddled in his bed, and her mouth hung open.

“Shit,” I muttered, trying to make sure both of us are covered.

She covered her face with her hands and shrieked, “Ew, gross. You guys got down and dirty, while I slept in the next room? I’m going to be frickin’ scarred for rest of my life.”

“Haley?” Midnight let go of me and sat up. He glanced over at the girl making fake gagging noises as though attempting to win the best actress Oscar. “What the hell, kiddo. It’s called knocking. You should try it sometime.”

Haley’s face scrunched up at Midnight’s scolding. “Maybe you two adults should have better sense than to boink when there are young kids around.”

Okay.

Maybe Haley did have a point.

Albeit a small one. We should’ve been the adults and, at least, locked the bedroom door. What if Haley had interrupted us earlier, while Midnight had me up on all fours, pounding me from behind? This moment could have been ten times worse. Heat filled my cheeks as embarrassment cooled the last embers of my arousal.

Haley cocked her hip in defiance. She gestured to me with a smirk on her face. “I’m going to tell you boinked, Tit’s McGee.”

I blinked and realized, laying there, naked with Midnight, I’d become an awesome role model for a young impressionable girl.

Not.

Wait.

What did she call me?

I glanced down at my chest. Yeah, I had a decent-sized rack. A full c cup, which hadn’t warranted Haley’s name calling. What the hell?

“Knock it off, kiddo. You’re making Leora uncomfortable.” Midnight stretched. His chest widened, expanded, and the muscles of his stomach and arms bulged when he gripped the bed frame over his head and growled.

I did feel awkward, but not because of Haley.

Nope.

It had to do with big-ass shifter laying in my bed who kept me in a state of arousal while a sixteen-year-old girl stood in the doorway. I reached up, wiping my lower lip with the intent to remove any drool escaping from my mouth. Hey, a girl had to keep her decorum intact. Surprisingly, my fingertips came away bone dry.

Haley huffed out a breath. “Anyway, I’m hungry. Is someone going to get up and feed me?”

I’d heard teenage mood swings could be vicious and sporadic, but this was ridiculous. Something just didn’t seem right. “What’s going on here?” I flicked my gaze between Midnight and Haley.

Midnight’s smile reached his beautiful light eyes, and my heart stuttered with how handsome he truly was. I swayed toward him then chided myself. I needed to get control of my wayward libido and figure out what the hell these two were up to.

“We’re just messing with you,” Haley said, with a laugh. “You need to lighten up. You need to learn, especially now since you’re mated to Midnight, ravens are known to play. Both in our animal and human form.”

“Wait. How do you...” I glanced at Midnight who shrugged.

I didn’t miss the mischievous sparkle in her eyes. “Know you’re mated?”

I nodded.

Haley rolled her eyes. “I ran into Midnight last night on the way back from the bathroom. I noticed the mark on his chest. I’m young, not stupid, Leora. I did the math, and where I couldn’t, Midnight explained it. Either that or he found some lost chick in the wood and did the deed with her.”

The thought of Midnight doing what we did with another woman made my skin crawl and my stomach knot.

“Enough, kiddo.” The rumble of Midnight’s deep voice, gave me the shivers.

In a good way.

Haley shrugged. “I wasn’t lying. I’m starving.”

So was I. But I needed to get a shower first. I was sticky, and I smelled of hot, raunchy sex. Nothing a young, naïve girl needed to be around for a long period.

“I need to get a shower.” Haley frowned, but I continued. “You’ll find some blueberry muffins, on a covered platter on the kitchen table. Have a couple, and when I’m done with my shower, I’ll make a big breakfast for all of us.”

“’Kay,” Haley said, as she hurried from the room.

I wrapped the top sheet around me, trying to ignore the massive hard-on that moments ago, Midnight had pressed to my rear. I started to slip from bed only to stop when he called my name.

“I didn’t get my good morning kiss.” He pulled me back on the bed. I gazed up at him, looming over me. A wave of need, not like anything I’ve ever felt before washed over me. His eyes darkened and filled with lust. I knew he saw the same need reflected in my own.

“Haley...” I whispered, worried she’d come back down the hall.

“Occupied,” he muttered before leaning down to take my lips.

The kiss was soft, gentle, and nothing like I’d experienced with him last night. I ran my fingers through his disheveled locks, enjoying the way the silky tresses slipped between them. I panted once he broke the kiss. “This is real, right?”

He brushed light kisses down my chest till he stopped at the mark on my left breast. “Very.” He mouthed the word against my breast. The warmth of his breath gave me goosebumps. His hot tongue laved at the mark, tracing it, slowly.

It was one of the most erotic moments of my life. My breasts ached, and my clit throbbed. I no longer cared Haley was within hearing distance. Or the fact that the bedroom door hung open. I arched my back, pushing my breasts harder against his mouth and rolled my hips against his stomach seeking some relief.

Midnight glanced up, catching my gaze. “Sweet Leora, what I wouldn’t do to feast upon your tits and pussy and fuck you till neither of us can move.” His grey eyes filled with regret. “Alas, my love, it’s not possible. We move out soon. I promise though, when we’re safe, and Haley is in Window Rock, it will be my first fucking priority.”

He was right.

I closed my eyes willing my body to calm.

“Shh,” Midnight cooed.

“I should shower,” I whimpered.

It’d be ice cold to help stem the tide of my need.

“I didn’t wear a condom last night,” he admitted, not looking the least bit remorseful.

I never called a halt to the activities. I even, maybe once, encouraged it. My cheeks filled with heat, and I swore the flush went all the way to my toes. I knew the risks. Although I’d never had sex without a condom. Ever. I’m not easy, and I really haven’t had a shit-ton of sexual partners. My experience, including Midnight, could be counted on one hand.

I didn’t do one-night stands.

I did relationships.

Including Midnight, it brought my grand total to three. We took a risk last night, and we both knew it. Not with STD’s or other diseases, but with pregnancy. I wasn’t on birth control.

He nodded. “We’re mates, so really it’s a non-issue as far as I’m concerned. If you want to prevent conception, I’ll either wear a condom, or I’ll contact Danielle when we arrive, so you can do what you feel is right.”

I cocked my head. Hadn’t PRA told the men about contraception during orientation? I didn’t think Danielle would tell the women and not the men. “It doesn’t work so well for the wolves and felines shifters.”

He smiled, rubbing his hand through the scruff on his chin. “Wolves knot, and it’ll break the condom.”

I nodded. I had been told that. “Yeah.”

“I’m not really sure what the hell goes on with the felines. I just know it’s intense as fuck. It’s different for birds. Birth control and condoms work. We can experience some mating symptoms.” He glanced down, taking in my nipples, which were swollen and hard. “I suspect you’re feeling the need now. It’ll ease once you’ve washed away my sperm. I’ve been told it...ah...can trigger desire or arousal in human females.”

I reached up, giving his chest a hearty shove. He barely moved. “Good to know. You could have told me last night.”

He smirked. “I’m not sure you could have trusted anything that came out of my mouth, Leora. I had a single-minded focus on getting my dick buried balls deep into your sweet, little pussy.”

I gasped, clenching my thighs together to stop the throbbing.

None of my other lovers had ever been as descriptive or vocal as Midnight. I liked it.

A lot.

“Guess this means, going forward, you won’t be getting any blow jobs.”

I held back the giggle at the look of dismay on his face. “Now, sweet Leora, I wouldn’t go to that extreme. More like they need to be given at night, right before bed.” He wiggled his brow.

I rolled my eyes and got serious. Our conversation brought up another question I’d been pondering. “How exactly are bird shifter babies born?” I think it’d be a deal breaker for me if he informed me I’d hatch and then sit on an egg for any length of time.

“Ravens or birds shifters, in general, give birth the same way as humans.” The corner of his mouth quivered.

I placed my hand over my thumping heart. “Oh, thank the Gods.”

He threw back his head, laughing. I think I loved his laugh. It was deep and rich, and he put his whole body into it.

“What’d you think? You’d birth an egg?” Amusement laced his tone.

I bit my lip, not wanting to admit my foolish thoughts.

“Shit. You did.”

“For a second,” I admitted, doing everything in my power to avoid his gaze.

“I’m still hungry,” Haley yelled from the kitchen. “I don’t hear the shower going either!”

“Jesus, she’s a pain in my ass.” Midnight climbing off the bed. “Hold your horses.” He pulled the comforter off the bed and wrapped it around his trim waist as he walked to the door. I suspected Haley was standing at the beginning of the hallway. “Feel free to eat my freaking blueberry muffin.”

Scrambling from the bed, I ducked under Midnight and addressed our charge. “No, you won’t. Eat a banana. You need protein to get some meat on your bones. Don’t blow it on carbs.”

Haley nodded and headed back to the kitchen, while I ducked into the bathroom. On one hand, I kind of hoped Midnight followed. On the other, I knew it wasn’t the best idea with a teenaged girl in the other room.

Once I was in the bathroom, I turned on the water to warm then dropped the sheet and stepped into the shower. The hot water caressed my head and shoulders lulling me into a sense of calm. I picked up the body wash and squirted a healthy dose on the washcloth. I cleaned my body from head to foot. When that was done, I washed and conditioned my hair. Now, squeaky clean, the clawing desire I felt earlier eased.

I brushed my hair and teeth before snagging up the sheet and wrapping it around me.

Haley and Midnight were talking softly in the kitchen, so I made my way to my bedroom and got dressed quickly.

Stepping into the kitchen, Midnight was gone.

Haley stood by the stove moving link sausages around in the frying pan. She looked up at me and smiled, and I saw the vulnerable child she tried to hide.  “You’re not mad, are you?”

I smiled reassuring her. “Not at all.” I made my way to the stove, nodding at what she had done. “I can take a joke.” Her attention was back on the pan, but the tension in her shoulders hadn’t eased. “Really, don’t worry, Haley. I’m a straight shooter. When I tell you, I can take a joke, I mean it.”

Haley looked at me and smiled. The anxious energy eased from her body, and she relaxed beside me. My job was done.

“I’ll get the eggs.”

I pulled the carton out of the fridge then proceeded to crack all twelve into a bowl. Right as I was ready to pour them into the pan, Midnight sauntered in wearing a pair of faded, tight black jeans and a grey t-shirt I’d scrounged for him last night.

Haley piped up teasing her pseudo-father. “Just like a guy, always late coming in after all the work is done.”

“Watch it, kiddo,” he lobbed back at her.

Haley giggled.

I could get used to these two and how they played off each other. Father- daughter bonding. It was cute. Whoa...wait a minute. Midnight and I were a done deal. Mated. I knew it, accepted it. When we got to Arizona, I was ready to start a new adventure with my mate.

Haley, on the other hand, once we arrived in Window Rock, would be made a ward of the orphanage where the Raferty mates would take care of her. She’d have a family, but Danielle and Keeley had their own responsibilities, children, and lives. The people who worked for them were all dedicated, loved the kids and protected them with every ounce of their being.

It just wasn’t the same, and I knew it.

I jumped when I felt Midnight place his hand on my shoulder. “Leora?”

“Yeah?”

Midnight took the spatula from my hand. He pushed the scrambled eggs around in the pan. “You went away for a minute. You okay?”

“I’m good.” I could see the doubt in his eyes. I pasted on a smile, hoping to reassure him. “Promise, Midnight. It’s all good.”

Haley cleared her throat. “Sausage is done.”

I stepped away from the stove and pulled a platter down from one of the cabinets.

I put the plate beside her. “You can put them on this. When the eggs are done, Midnight can put them on the other end. We’ll eat family style.”

She nodded in agreement, and I pulled more plates down from the shelf then retrieved the silverware from the drawer and went to work setting the table. Midnight brought the full platter to the table, placing it next to the muffins.

“Do you have ketchup?” Haley inquired.

I nodded and replied. “In the fridge door.”

Haley pushed her chair back, retrieving the condiment and placing it on the table, near her plate.

Midnight handed the serving spoon to Haley. “Ladies’ first or, in this case, hungry, teenage girl who demanded we feed her.”

Haley’s grey eyes sparkled with merriment as she scooped up one spoonful of eggs and a single sausage.

It could be hours before we’re able to stop or eat lunch. She’d need more than what she put on her plate.

I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, knowing how teenage girls could be with food.

I looked at Midnight for guidance. He’d been with her a little longer than me. He too was focused on her plate. And, like me, he was frowning. Without saying a word, he took the spoon from her, and proceeded to slap several more spoonsful on her plate and add more sausage. He handed me the utensil before he addressed Haley. “Eat it. All of it.”

It surprised me when Haley picked up a fork and grudgingly began to eat. I didn’t miss the look she gave Midnight, but he didn’t seem to give a shit, so I was going to keep my mouth firmly shut and eat my breakfast.

Midnight though, wasn’t done. “Food is no longer scarce for you. You don’t have to ration out, give your portion or any of the other shit you used to do. You’re hungry. You eat till you’re no longer hungry.”

Tears welled up in the young girl’s eyes.

I got it. She’d lived a hard life for so long, and old habits, well they’re often times hard to break. I placed my hand over hers. She lifted her gaze from her plate. The look in her eyes, broke my heart. Not only was Haley learning to adjust to life outside of the system, she also had to miss those kids she took care of for so long.

They had become her family.

Later, Midnight and I would have a conversation. I hoped we could fill the void for her. I realized a lot of it would depend on Haley and what she wanted to do. So much of her life, other adults, who didn’t know or understand her, had made decisions for her. Now it was time for her to make her own choices.

With guidance of course.

“It gets easier.” I drew on my own past. “You live sixteen years in a constant state of situational awareness, wondering when then next obstacle was going to be thrown at you. You’re always stressed to the max. It’ll ease. Not overnight, though. You’ll start to live your life by the seconds. But soon they’ll turn into minutes, then hours. Before you know it, you’ve worked up to days, months, and finally, years. The pain of the past never fully goes away. It molds and shapes us into the adults we’re supposed to be.”

Haley blinked. A single tear escaped, rolling down her cheek. “When was the last time...” Her voice broke, trailing off.

I didn’t play dumb or ask her to expand her question. I knew what she was asking. When was the last time I thought of the bad? “Every time I have the pleasure of helping a child through PRA.” I let go of her hand to pick up my fork. “You have the opportunity to take what happened to you, turn it around, and make it a positive. It’s all up to you, though. You either want it... or you don’t.”

I’d given her a lot to think on. She needed to nourish her body. Soon, we’d find something to feed her soul.

Haley started eating, and I glanced over at Midnight, worried I’d had stepped on his toes, yet again. My breath caught in my throat at the acceptance and love I saw reflected in his grey gaze. It was an intimate moment, and I could feel his approval at how I handled our young charge.

Without a word, he picked up his fork and began to eat.

When breakfast was over, Haley scurried off to get a shower and get ready while I cleaned up the dishes.

After kissing me senseless by the sink, Midnight used the communication room to call Kalkin. We were two hours behind schedule. Considering everything we’d been through; two hours could be made up once we were on the road.