Monstrous Intent, page 26
“Would you rather the monster fuck you?” I ask.
Declan snorts as he pushes off the wall and turns from me, but I’m not done. I hurry after him, but he’s keeping up a brisk pace as he rushes out into the street where it might be frowned upon to play with him. A woman moves in front of me, cutting me off as he heads into the hotel.
I slip past her and run inside as I see him standing in the elevator, a grin on his face as the doors slide shut with him inside.
How… dare he? He has the damn keycard, too!
Turning quickly, I rush for the stairs, knowing there’s no way I’d beat him up if I waited on the elevator. Jumping them three steps at a time, I race up to the third floor, throw open the hallway door and see him swipe the card at our room.
I run toward him as he looks back at me and steps into the room.
Quickly, I rush forward, barely catching the door before it slams shut, but the moment I’m inside, he shoves me against the wall.
“What are you doing?” he asks.
“Feeling like you’re trying to leave my ass behind,” I say as I grab his ass in my hands and pull him toward me.
“I fixed my mantra. Want to hear it? Of course you do. I will not fuck or be fucked by a monster,” he says.
“Every time you say the word fuck, it makes me harder.” I press into him so he can feel.
Declan drops the bag with the chimera’s food on the ground and pushes me back toward the bed. The moment I feel the bed behind my legs, I fall onto it, holding him tight enough that he comes with me.
I slide my fingers into his hair, drawing him down to a kiss that he sure reciprocates for not wanting to “fuck a monster.”
My hand roams off his ass before sliding under his jeans and down to his cock that’s eager for attention. He can tell me all of that shit, but he can’t fool me. He wants me as much as I want him. He’s just stubborn enough that he’s been able to hold out much longer than I can.
Knowing it’s not enough to stroke him inside his underwear, I pull my hand out and set to work on unbuttoning his pants as his lips move down to my neck, kissing and sucking as heat rises inside me. He shoves my shirt up, catching it on my arms before I pull back enough to allow him to freely remove it. Quickly, I unbutton my own pants and he yanks them off before tossing them onto the other bed.
Thankfully, he drops his own pants before joining me and I’m allowed to peruse his thick cock again. My hand slides down his toned abdomen to his cock, running my fingers gently over it as he reaches off the bed for his bag. He grabs for the lube that he must have gotten even after giving me a look when I suggested it.
“Stop the cocky grinning, it’s annoying,” he decides.
“You can very easily make me stop grinning by fucking the grin out of me,” I assure him.
His eyebrow rises as he stares at me. “I’m working on it.”
“Oh? Are you now? No ‘I will not fuck a monster’ mantra?”
“Let’s just say I’ve never been known for my good choices,” Declan says as he rubs lube down my cock, stroking me as I push him back.
For a moment, he seems uncertain until I climb onto his lap and rub his cock against mine. His lips find mine in a moment, his mouth hot against me as his hand draws over my thigh to my ass. He squeezes my ass cheeks before I feel his slick finger run over me. Breaking from the kiss, he presses his finger against me, pushing inside of me as his lips move down my throat, kissing and sucking.
Pleasure rushes through my body as he slides another finger inside me. Hell, I’ve wanted this man from the moment I met him. And he can do anything he wants with me. My hard cock brushes against his stomach as I slide my hand down his length. I need more of him. I need him now.
I pull away from his fingers and rise up as he draws me in close, pressing the head of his cock against me. As I lower myself onto his thick shaft, a moan escapes my lips.
Fucking finally. Finally, I get to feel him. Finally, I get to give myself to him and be his focus. He pushes me down on my back and rocks his hips just a little before sliding out and thrusting into me. Pleasure shoots through me as I grab for him, careful of his back. I can’t get enough of him as his lips press against mine again. He pulls out of me and rolls me onto my stomach before thrusting back into me.
My body feels weak with pleasure as he draws me onto my knees while he fucks me. I press my head against the sheets, fingers digging into them as his hand slides down my back. He takes my waist in his hands and pulls me toward him as he thrusts into me and the sensation of him filling me up makes my cock unbelievably hard and my balls ache for release.
He hits that spot inside me that makes my toes curl as I groan, stifling the noise with the sheets pressed against my face. His hand snakes around to my cock, gripping it as he strokes me, and I know I can’t take much more. I can’t handle more of his touch, more of him inside me before I come. It’s pleasure unlike I’ve ever felt—rough and gentle at the same time. Sexy and sensual. It makes me feel weak as he drives into me, squeezing and rubbing my cock just right as my balls tighten and I come.
Declan groans at me tightening around his cock and thrusts deeper into me. I press back hard into him, and another moan escapes him. He tucks his head against my neck as he buries himself inside me while he comes.
I love the press of him against my back as he fills me up. The feeling of his hands, his cock, every bit of him. And then the gentle kiss on my neck as he pulls out, breath heavy. I roll into him, pressing in close as I tuck myself against his chest, refusing to get up yet. I know we have so much to do. So much to figure out and I know that unease will be back before I know it, but for right now, I want to just live in the moment of bliss tucked against him.
“Never fuck a monster, huh?” I tease.
“I’m still not convinced what you are,” he says, making me grin.
Does that mean he’s starting to see me as something other than a monster? I want to tease him about it, but at the same time, I love the idea that he sees me as just me… not the horrible monsters who have plagued him for most of his life.
I’m Lake. That’s all I am. And that’s what I hope he sees me as.
“What I meant is that I never fuck a monster twice,” Declan says.
That makes me laugh as I nip him. “Oh buddy, don’t tempt me.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
DECLAN
When I open my eyes, I find Lake tucked against me, body warm and quite naked. I reach out, instinctively wanting to touch him before catching myself. I know he wouldn’t mind. I know he’d want me to… but should I? Should I encourage any of this more than I already have?
No… I know the answer is no… but then why do I want to?
Am I afraid because he’s a monster? Or am I afraid because I don’t know how to open up to someone else? I learned from a young age to guard myself from relationships. My first friend was slaughtered on our second hunt. That was the day I realized that every time we went out to deal with one of those monsters, we never truly knew who would be coming back, and I built a wall between me and every one of them.
And now I can’t help but wonder if all the chimeras we killed were truly monsters.
How many were like Lake? How many just wanted to live their lives? How many fought us out of fear or to keep alive?
Lake presses into me, his arm sliding around my waist as he scoots closer, tucking himself against me. He must still be asleep because he doesn’t say anything, and I let him hold himself close.
The thing is, I’ve seen so many chimeras destroy lives. I’ve been a victim of it as well, so I never expected there to be any ounce of kindness from them. Even now, aren’t we fighting against the very monsters who want to kill people to rise up to the top and are using the hunters as pawns in their game?
Maybe there’s not a right answer. Maybe some chimeras are good but the copious amount of bad ones makes it impossible to tell. Maybe the hunters have never been fair either… I know they haven’t.
“I don’t even have my eyes open and can tell you’re working that scowl hard,” Lake says as he presses in tighter, naked body meshing against my own.
“I don’t have anything going on.”
“I’d rather you work something else hard, if you know what I mean.”
“Did you already forget my new mantra?”
“Nahhhh, that just made it more tempting.”
He opens his eyes and gives me a warm smile as he pats my cheek. I fully expect him to cling to me, pleased I’ve given in, but instead, he pushes himself up. “I’m going to get a shower,” he says as the covers slide off, revealing his naked body. My eyes run down his back and over his perfect ass as I think about having him bent down before me last night, my cock buried deep.
It’s tempting to pull him back, to fuck him into the bed again, but I don’t. Instead, I watch him go. When he reaches the doorway of the bathroom, he hesitates, and I know he’s going to ask me to join him, and I probably would because I’m not sure I have enough self-control to refuse. But instead, he grips the doorframe like he has to physically pull himself into the bathroom and I watch him go.
With a sigh, I roll onto my side and rub my head.
Fucking hell, this shit has been rough.
My phone beeps, so I pick it up and see that it’s Emma.
Emma: Everything okay?
Me: Yeah, I still don’t think it’s safe for you. These things are beyond what I’ve ever dealt with before.
Emma: I wish I could help.
Me: I’ll keep you up to date and let you know if there’s any other way you can help. Right now, I think we’re okay. Last night we decided we’d scout out an area this morning that Lake knows. If we can find a chimera and force it to tell us what it knows, we could acquire the upper hand again.
Emma: Please be careful. If you need something, I want to help. I want you to stop them. I don’t want anyone else to ever have to deal with what I did.
Me: I know.
That’s when Mittens jumps up onto the bed and starts doing some weird flopping thing like she’s happy. She flips and flops all around on the bed then starts pawing at it before shooting off.
“What the hell do you have to be happy about?” I growl as she spins again before zooming off into the bathroom. The way Lake hollers and Mittens bolts out coated in water makes me guess she went for a dip in the shower with him. Then she jumps up onto the bedside table, yanks the lid off the fish container and starts batting at Fish Stick.
The fish refuses to move as it looks death in the eyes. Quickly, I grab Mittens by the scruff of the neck and peel her off the table.
“I may not like the fish either but if you eat it, I will murder you,” I growl.
She stares at me with the biggest doe eyes as I drop her onto the ground where she settles for licking her wet paw.
Now that I’m up, I head into the bathroom, but Lake is already drying off. “I really think where we’re going today will get us some answers,” he says.
“Yeah?”
“Not too far of a drive. Think you can steal another car with your manly looks again?” he asks.
“Probably not,” I say. “Why don’t you? You’re scarier than me.”
He looks absolutely harmless as he smiles at me. “I am, aren’t I?”
I turn the shower on and get in, kind of irritated Lake isn’t pressing himself on me today. I feel like at least then I could try to be obstinate, but instead, I’m left feeling a bit uncertain. Which is ridiculous because this is what I wanted, right? Maybe he really did just want a fuck and that was that.
I lean back as the water beats down on me then glance through the gap in the curtain to find Lake propped against the countertop with his eyes closed.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
His eyes snap open and he looks over at me before smiling. “Just thinking… I guess I get a bit… fed up with the way life is going sometimes, you know? Like why the fuck can’t life move along quietly?” He shakes his head. “Ignore me. Just keep looking handsome, that’s all you need to do.”
“All?” I ask.
“One hundred percent.”
“Alright. Next time we’re being attacked, I’ll just stand there and strike a pose or something.”
Lake’s grinning now, all worry gone as he nods vigorously. “Sounds perfect, honestly. Couldn’t ask for a better outcome.”
“Uh-huh…” I say, not sure I agree, but he looks pleased and that makes me sink back into the water with a smile. “Mittens was trying to smack your fish.”
“She won’t hurt him,” he assures me.
“She’s going to eat him.”
“Nah, she’s just curious.”
“You have too much faith in things,” I grumble as the warm water beats down on me.
Lake pulls the curtain back a little and peeks in at me. “I had faith in you, didn’t I?”
“That’s because you have horrible judgment.”
“Maybe,” he says as he turns and leaves the bathroom a moment before my water turns cold as ice.
“Christ,” I yelp as I jump forward, only to see that Lake turned the temperature down before fleeing. Of course he did.
* * *
“This looks like a good spot,” Lake says as we pull off with our… borrowed car. We’ll give it back at some point, but for now, I pull off the road and tuck it back into a spot that looks like it was cleared for wildlife hunters.
“I’m not positive they’ll be here. I just know this is where a few lived, and we could potentially get information out of them,” he says.
“I’m good with whatever you’ve got,” I say as I get out of the vehicle while Lake frets over Sir Reginald. It’s cool in the shade of the trees, though, so his water definitely won’t get too warm with the windows down.
“I really want to get him a good tank soon, you know? He says he likes the container but thinks it’s a little harder to see out of.”
“I’m not carrying around a fifty-gallon tank, if that’s what you’re thinking. What if we find a fish sitter for him?” I ask.
“I had to have someone watch him for a week while I was gone one time and he refused to eat the entire week.”
“What?” I ask, unable to fathom this. It eats every time Lake feeds it, no matter what kind of journey it’s gone through for the day.
“He was so skinny and sad when I returned. Even his color was dull,” Lake says.
“Your fish is a bit of a diva,” I decide.
“Maybe.”
Mittens bounces and springs after us, thrilled with our trek through the woods.
“So we’ll just assess the area for now. It’s like… housing or a compound or something, right?” I ask. While I have my rifle, I’m not sure either of us are prepared for an all-out attack. I don’t think Lake is fully recovered yet, and I know I can’t do this alone.
“Right. I’m good at assessing things. I assessed how damn good of a mate you’d be and look at us now,” he says with a smile.
I just shake my head at him because honestly, what else is there to do? “How far of a walk is it?”
“I don’t know. Probably another mile to the lookout spot if I’m remembering correctly. Honestly, it’s been years, I could be wrong. They won’t sense us if we’re far enough away. There are so many deer hunters that come through here, they’ll probably think we’re hunting deer.”
“And then they hunt the humans?” I ask.
He shrugs. “I guess if there’s a real juicy one, they might. You’re real juicy, I’ll have to make sure they don’t take a bite out of you.”
“Funny.”
Lake grabs my arm and rubs his head on it.
“What are you doing?”
“Marking you with my scent so they know they can’t touch you,” he says.
I push him away as he laughs. “You are so strange.”
“Thank you.”
As we walk deeper into the woods, I notice that his body language shifts a little. Is he nervous at the idea that we might run into his family? I reach over and pat his back. “We’ll be fine.”
His head snaps to me and he smiles. “Thanks, Declan.”
“Yeah…”
And that’s the moment I hear it. How the hell didn’t Lake hear it before me? Is he still weak from his shift? I guess I was able to outmaneuver him last night in the alleyway, which I doubt I’d be able to do on a standard day.
“Lake!” I say. I try to step close to him as I pull my rifle up.
The look on his face tells me he already knows what’s happening as Sy moves through the trees. The dark creature is lithe and swift as he slows to a stop ten feet from us. His leatherlike skin pulls tight over his bones as his ragged claws strike the ground. He faces us for a moment before he shifts into his human form, giving me the first look at what he appears like as a human.
He’s shorter than Lake but almost too thin. He still has an unnatural look about him that makes him appear beautiful, something I feel like is one of the ways they get humans to trust them.
“Lake?” I ask, wondering if Lake is planning on trying to reason with him. I don’t aim my gun just yet, in case Lake wants to talk to him, but I keep it steady so all it’d take is a flick up.
“Hey, Sy,” he says, expression dark as he stares at his cousin.
Sy’s quiet as he watches him closely, just as closely as I’m watching him.
“Here… is the hunter. You can take him to Mona as long as you promise I can go back into the pack,” Lake says.
It takes far too long for his words to sink in because they were the very last words I was expecting to hear. Turning to Lake, I still can’t seem to find what I’m wanting to say.
“What the hell are you talking about?” I settle on.
He shrugs. “I’m sorry I’ve been lying to you. They were hoping you’d be able to draw out the other hunters, but you never did. You were too cut off from them. It was my job from the beginning to bring you out, use you… but you didn’t have enough use with me. Mona wants you now. She’ll probably see if you can get the other hunters on her side. You should just give in and do… whatever she asks. It’s easier.”
