Incredible sensations floated over him. The pleasure of her body wrapped tight around his, the heat radiating form her torso, heavy breasts filling his hands. She moved, undulating up and down in a slow, steady rhythm as he fought to keep from coming in three seconds flat.
Then she brought their mouths together again, and her tongue danced against his, shaking him to the core. It was more than a kiss. More than sex. Much more than simply another incredible experience in the wilderness.
It was heaven on earth, and he’d found the secret entrance.
Gem nipped at his bottom lip, and he smiled. Hands tight on her hips, he picked up the pace. “You looking for some biting, sweetheart?”
Another nip, this time to his ear again. He’d never been one for letting the girls play with his ears before, and now he knew why.
He’d been saving them for Gem, because holy fucking moly, did it ever feel good.
She sucked the tingling lobe into her mouth and slammed their hips together harder. “I’m not ready to mark you, but damn if I don’t want to nibble you all over.”
Sadness crept in, just a tiny bit. She was right though. They’d agreed to wait until they had all their cards lined up. “Okay. Biting is fine. No marking, just—shit!”
She dragged her teeth down his neck and his cock grew two inches. Or more.
“Hmm, you like that, do you?”
“Didn’t think my southern lady had teeth.”
She nipped again, and he wasn’t able to stop himself. He pounded into her, cock driving hard. Fastened his mouth on her neck and sucked for all he was worth. If he couldn’t officially mark her, he was damn well going to leave his signature another way.
She canted her hips slightly, and his groin rubbed across her mound. With a twist, he slipped his hand between their bodies and pressed on her clit. She threw back her head and screamed, choking off in mid-cry.
He would have laughed in delight if at that moment the freight train hadn’t hit him as well, release exploding out as his cock jerked deep inside her. Pleasure rose in waves that blurred his vision and drained all logic from his brain.
Fuck, fuck. Wowity fuck.
Sweaty and sticky and happy and mind-fuddled, they clung together, kissing and caressing until the heat of their joining cooled enough they could both sit upright without using each other as a brace.
“I think you just killed me.” Shaun nuzzled the side of her neck where there was a nice big hickey.
His wolf gloated with happiness.
“You talk pretty good for a dead guy.”
“You know if I’m dead, you have to haul my carcass with you to the shores of Lake Laberge and cremate me.” Shaun grinned as she slipped her hands around his neck and gave him one final kiss.
She pulled back and batted her lashes. “No. I’m not going to listen to you sizzle as you burn, thank you. Instead, I will be forced to weep copious amounts of tears while I pile rocks on your body and leave you here where the little animals will chew on your remains and continue the circle of life.”
Impressive. “Is that your sweet innocent role-play persona? Because, like, I totally thought you meant that.”
“I did mean it.” Gem patted his cheek then rose off him, her warmth disappearing far too quickly and making him sad. She stretched and his mouth watered again. Hmm, how long was it possible to survive naked in the Alaskan wilderness if they had sex non-stop?
She was a researcher. Maybe she’d go for finding out.
Shaun glanced around. Below them, the herd had settled in, and he doubted there was any way they could get back to the tent for at least a day.
“Okay, love. Time to make a decision. You want to hang out for the next few days in our wolf skins?” She rotated to face him, the sky-blue background a stark contract with her dark skin. He dragged his gaze off her full breasts, forcing himself to focus on the current discussion. “Food and shelter would be a snap—it’s not a bad solution. We can keep track of the beasts and gather our things as soon as they leave.”
Gem hesitated. “Is there another option? I enjoyed my time as a wolf, but…I’m not sure I’m ready for more.”
Shaun stood to take her hand. “How about this? We shift to run back to the chopper. In our wolves it should be around four hours. I’ve got an emergency stash there—everything we need to return to civilization for a few days. Once my sources tell us the herd has moved on, we’ll come back and retrieve our things.”
Gem gazed at their campsite. “You’re not worried about abandoning our supplies?”
“Nah. The only thing that could cause a mess is the food, and it’s all tucked away in bear-proof containers. What about your notes and research?”
“All safely packed up.” She brought his hand to her mouth and kissed his knuckles. “I’d feel more comfortable with that plan. If you don’t mind.”
Shaun hurried to reassure her. “Don’t feel bad you don’t want to live wild for a few days. There are a lot of wolves who grew up in the Yukon who have never done an extended trip in wolf form.”
Gem nodded. “May…maybe someday. I’m not sure, but I think I’d like to. Someday.”
The fluttering sensation in his heart—was that a heart attack about to happen? Or the realization she had just implied they’d be together for long enough for there to be a someday? Even staying in the north?
Shaun tugged her to face him. He had to say it. “Gem—I want you to know…”
“We need to be going, right?” Gem stepped back, antsy. Nervousness surrounded her. “I’m starting to get hungry, and we need to be far away from the herd when that happens. I mean, if the wind changed right now, it would be terrible. You lead the way, okay?”
She shifted before he could respond. Before he could find out why all of a sudden she’d gone from sounding as if she had offered him the moon to shaking the dust from her feet as she fled.
She waited in wolf, tail twitching. Body shivering. He would go insane wondering what was wrong. Nothing physically had changed in the last few minutes. He must have said something to offend her, and the idea stabbed him in two.
“Gem?”
He thought at her as hard as possible. Nothing.
He shifted to wolf, moved to her side and held himself still. Breathing slowly, willing her to calm down. In spite of what he’d done to upset her, he wanted her to know how much he cared.
When she finally relaxed and licked his muzzle once, a tentative touch, he blew out a long breath. Whatever bullet had just passed, he was going to be very careful until he knew what was going on in that complicated head of hers.
They headed toward the chopper, two-plus days of hiking as humans eaten up under their much faster wolf gait. After two hours of travel, they’d already covered more than half the distance back. The still-illuminated sky helped as well, and other than the occasional side trip to nab a snack, they made good time.
Somewhere in the middle of the night they arrived. They were both tired, turning the corner into the clearing where they’d left the helicopter. Shaun was sure sleep was Gem’s only focus. It was pretty much the only thing on his mind as well.
Which was why he didn’t see the trap until it was too late.
Chapter Thirteen
A sudden snap rang out, followed by the scream of a rope through a pulley. Gem’s eyes, which had been closing in near sleep, flew open. Her hind left paw lifted in the air, caught in something, and she scrambled away, rolling to the right as hard as she could, all her senses waking up in a hurry.
The wolf that was Shaun howled, and she glanced upward to see him wrapped in a net like a fly in a spider’s web. He warned her to hide, the simple communication they used in their wolf forms enough to get that message across loud and clear. She didn’t bolt into the cover of the low-lying brush, instead dropping to her belly and lowering her head.