Her Bear Protector [The Protectors 1] (Siren Publishing Classic) Read online

  “White, no sugar right?” he asked and Tina finally looked up at him. “Relax, baby, I’m not going to jump you, and I don’t bite. Well, not, unless I’m asked to.”

  Her sharp intake of breath made his chest feel tight, and the wave of protectiveness he felt toward her made him also sit down with a thump.

  “I know you must have a million questions, but let’s eat first, shall we? I’m starving.”

  His little human nodded, and he busied himself with serving up the late breakfast. If Tina thought his choice of meal odd, considering it was closer to lunch time than breakfast, she didn’t say. Just tucked into her food with a hearty appetite that matched his own.

  By the time she pushed the empty plate away and gave a content sigh, the earlier tension between them had been replaced by a comfortable silence. Even his bear was quiet, for once simply content to be sat opposite his mate, and to take his fill of her sweet scent. Fresh, with a hint of spice, and the floral shampoo she used on her hair, it was all Tina, and Ronan would have recognized it anywhere.

  He discreetly adjusted his cock away from the zipper of his jeans and pushed his chair back until it was tilted on two legs. Tina followed his movements and cleared her throat.

  “So, what happened…?”

  “About what you saw…”

  They both spoke at the same time and Ronan laughed and dropped the chair back down.

  “Ladies first.”

  Tina’s snort of amusement made him grin, as she waved a hand through the air and made a point of looking over her shoulder.

  “We’ll have a long wait then. I see no ladies here.” She grinned up at him and he shook his head.

  “Don’t sell yourself short, babe.”

  Tina pulled a face and shrugged her shoulders.

  “I’m not, but I’m no lady, Ronan. I grew up on one of the toughest council estates in London. There wasn’t much time to be refined. I went to school, determined to keep my head down, stay out of trouble, and get out of there eventually, which I did, only for it all to go pear shaped when Dad died.”

  Her expressive eyes clouded over with unshed tears, and Ronan reached across to grasp her hand. Instantly heat flared between them, and Tina snatched her hand away with a sharp intake of breath.

  “This is insane.” The whispered words settled deep in his gut, and he crossed his arms over his chest to stop himself from reaching out to her again.

  “No, this…us…is meant to be.”

  Tina shook her head and stared at him as though he’d grown another head. Quite apt really, under the circumstances. Ronan knew his bear was showing in his eyes. He sure as fuck didn’t like her breathy denial.

  “There’s no point in fighting this, babe, but I’ll also not be acting on it, until you know all the facts, so—”

  “Stop calling me babe, for goodness sakes.” Tina interrupted him and tried her best to glare at him. Unfortunate for her that he found that glare and show of her temper far too much of a turn-on. His fingers itched to put her over his knee and to turn that luscious ass of hers red. He knew she would curse and rally, and when she did give in, come so fucking hard it would leave him dizzy. His bear growled his approval, and his balls turned blue once more.

  Those thought are not helping, dumbass. Concentrate on what she’s saying instead. “I’m not a Barbie doll lookalike, and I’m no one’s babe. Definitely not yours. I’m not that—”

  “You’re mine, Tina.” Ronan interrupted her and she squealed in alarm when he jumped up, rounded the breakfast bar and stood behind her. Ronan caged her in with his arms, and placed a hand each on the bar in front of her. With her back pressed into his chest, she had nowhere to go and a shudder went through her when he inhaled deeply against her neck. He indulged his bear by nibbling on her earlobe and he licked her fragrant skin right over her rapidly beating pulse point. Tina jumped and groaned, and her musk increased, making it incredibly difficult for Ronan to step away. Step away he did, however, and Tina drew a shuddering breath into her lungs.

  He dropped back into the chair opposite her, took a long swig of his coffee, and winked at her.

  Some of the tension went out of her frame.

  “Why me?” she asked.

  Ronan sobered and put his cup down slowly.

  “Why not you, babe?” Her head came up sharply at that and she glared at him. Ronan put a hand out to placate her. “That didn’t come out right, forgive me. What I mean is who is to say why someone is attracted to anyone else. Why you can look at one person and know instantly she is the one for you, even though you know you can never have her.”

  Tina fidgeted on her seat. She couldn’t quite bring herself to look at him, and he knew he had her there. Ronan had sensed her instant attraction to him the minute they’d met. It might have only been pure lust on her part, but wasn’t that how all great love affairs started?

  “I guess it’s even more complicated for us shifters. We don’t really get a choice when our animal finds its mate. For us, that moment is it. There’ll never be another person we will care as deeply for, or will want to build a family with. Which is all hunky dory when the other person is a shifter, too, because they’ll be as equally enthralled with you. Things get more complicated when you mix species.”

  He watched her closely for her reaction, but apart from a slight widening of her eyes, there was none. Tina looked simply deep in thought, and his bear growled and started to pace.

  The beast had enough of talking. He wanted Ronan to simply grab her and force the bond between them.

  “What exactly are you?” she asked, and it was his turn to blink at the sudden change of topic. Tina finally looked up and there was a maelstrom of emotions chasing the clouds in her eyes. “Apart from a bear, I mean. What happened here last night, and who could have damaged you so badly? You shift into a freaking grizzly? What else is out there, that I should know about? And don’t tell me, it’s dealt with and I don’t have to worry, because I do. Worry that is. My heart near damn stopped when I turned up and saw the state of the house, and then found you looking like that.”

  His smile grew the more she rambled on, the words tumbling out of her faster and faster, until she was forced to stop to take a breath.

  “Good, breathe, woman. Any minute now you were going to turn blue from lack of oxygen, babe.”

  She stuck her tongue out at him.

  “Don’t call me—”

  “Babe, I know. How about baby? Darling? Honey? Sweetie pie? Kitten?” His chest shook in silent laughter, as she got more and annoyed.

  “This isn’t funny. What the fuck is wrong with calling me Tina. That is my name, after all.”

  Ronan sobered and allowed more of his bear to show in his next words.

  “And what is wrong with me wanting to call my woman by a special name, just for us. One she knows will mean, we’re in a scene, and being sassy will get her put over my knee, until her ass is lovely and red.”

  Tina froze as though in shock, but it wasn’t disgust he sensed coming off her but excitement. His bear growled his approval, and Tina opened her mouth as though to say something. Nothing came out, however, bar her rapid breaths.

  Ronan leant forward and tucked an errant strand of her hair back behind her ears. She’d left it loose and it fell down her shoulders in a silken mass of black that meant he wanted to bury his hands in it, and never let her go. Every minute he spent with her he fell further under her spell, and she still didn’t know everything about him.

  “Cat got your tongue, Tina?” he asked, and pushed back to give her some space. This had to be her decision, after all, and he had coerced her enough. It was testament to her inner strength that she still sat there, and hadn’t run away screaming. He wouldn’t have blamed her if she had, and of course she might still do that. That thought made his bear try to gain the upper hand but Ronan was fully healed now, and in full control. He wouldn’t be rushed by anyone for something this important, inner animal or not.

  Tina bli
nked and a wan smile kicked up her full mouth. Lips that he was suddenly desperate to taste. Again Ronan adjusted his cock and this time, Tina’s gaze dropped to the action. She licked her lips, whether unconscious move or by design, he couldn’t quite determine, but he reacted in Pavlov fashion anyhow.

  “You keep looking at me like that, and I’ll be mighty tempted to spank that ass of yours right now.”

  A feminine whimper of need escaped Tina, and she hastily wrenched her gaze back up to his face. The most delightful blush stained her pale skin again, and she twisted her fingers together on the breakfast bar. Ronan put one hand over them, and this time relished the jolt of awareness that travelled up his arm. Would he still react like that to her, once she was his? Or was this just the mating bond trying its hardest to push them together? Did she, a human, feel it as acutely as he did?

  Judging by the way she unconsciously leant in as though to get closer to him and her finger nails dug into his digits, he surmised she must be, and that thought brought his bear dangerously close to the surface again. His jaw ached in tune with his balls, and his claws ran out, making Tina jump.

  “Scene?” she finally asked, her voice barely above a whisper, and he grinned. “Scene as in…” Her cheeks grew crimson, and she dropped her gaze to her hands and left it there.

  He reached up with one hand to nudge her chin up, and her eyes widened anew at his toothy smile.

  “I’m a dominant man, and I need to be in control, so yes, I mean scene as in play, as in wanting your submission.”

  She yanked out of his grasp and glared at him.

  “I won’t be anyone’s slave, and I’m not into pain, so you can forget that right away.”

  Ronan crossed his arms over his chest, raised an eyebrow and simply looked at her. After a few seconds of trying to stare him down, she gave up and found the inspection of her fingernails most interesting. She couldn’t hide her reaction to him, however. Her breathing sped up and her nipples poked through the sheer fabric of his dress shirt, until he damn near salivated for a taste of them.

  “And I’m not into giving pain, Tina.” Her head shot up at the use of her given name, and he reached across to put his large hand over her clasped one. “I’m not a sadist, babe.” Her eyes narrowed at that pet name but she didn’t protest this time. “And I don’t want a slave. I need your submission in the bedroom. Judging by the way that you knew immediately what I was talking about, I know you know what I mean by that. So, I have to ask myself, how do you know?”

  “I-well…I…” She tripped up over her words, and tried to pull further away from him, but he wouldn’t let her. Instead he dropped his voice, and took her hands again.

  “Look at me, when you’re talking to me, girl.”

  Instantly her gaze snapped to his, and he was hard pressed not to smile at her immediate reaction. She was a natural submissive alright, and his balls drew tight at the mental image of having her on her knees in front of him.

  “I asked you a question, and I expect an answer.”

  “I read, okay.” Tina squirmed under his intense scrutiny and exhaled sharply when he nodded.

  “You do realize that you cannot get an accurate picture of the lifestyle by reading books. Most of them have no clue what they’re on about and—”

  “I’m not an idiot.” She interrupted him and bit her lip so hard she drew blood. His bear roared and she flinched. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt you.” He sensed the inner struggle in her, and then she added a very quiet, “Sir.”

  Fuck. Hearing that term from her lips was enough for him to almost shoot his load in his jeans, and his bear clawed to be let out. Right now his animal wouldn’t have cared if he condemned them both to years of vanilla sex. He wanted his human to sink his teeth into her soft flesh, and fuck her silly.

  Ronan groaned and pulled his hands away. The contact was not helping him to keep his inner animal under control.

  Tina licked her lips in a nervous gesture, and frowned when she seemed to notice the spots of blood. She lifted her fingers to her lips briefly and her frown deepened when she saw the red evidence on her fingertips.

  “Did I do something wrong? I thought you liked being called Sir. I mean, that’s the correct term, is it not?”

  She stopped talking, and looked so utterly adorable in her confusion, he wanted to wrap her up in his big arms and keep her with him, always. He couldn’t do that, however. Being with him would place her in danger, and he had to explain that side of him, too.

  “No, you did nothing wrong. Hearing you address me like that makes me hard as nails, in fact.” Her involuntary gasp drove him on. Might as well push her a little more and see her reaction. “It makes me want to rip that shirt off you, use it to tie your arms, and then bend you over this bar. I’d rip that sexy underwear off you with my teeth, and then spank that luscious ass of yours until it was as pink as your cunt. Then I’d feast on the cream running down your legs, tunnel into your hole, and make you come by using my tongue and fingers—several times—until you beg me to stop. And then, if you’re a very good girl, I’d let you have my cock. I’d run it through your wet slit, teasing you, until you’re about ready to explode, and then I’d take you. You’ll be tight and wet, and you’ll milk my cock, like the good little subbie you are, wouldn’t you? You’re wet right now, aren’t you? You cunt is clenching, waiting to be filled by me.”

  He dropped his hand to his cock, and stroked his throbbing length through his jeans. Shit that felt good. On impulse and spurred on by the hungry look in her eyes, he pulled down his zipper, lifted his hips, and yanked his jeans down under his ass to enable him to free his shaft.

  A strangled moan came from Tina, and she rocked herself back and forth on the edge of her chair in a move he recognized all too well. His naughty little sub was trying to get herself off. He would let her for now, because watching her come undone was hot as fuck. The thought that she was this turned on by his dirty talk alone, and seeing him fist himself made his own arousal spike. Pleasure surged through him as he took a firmer grip on his cock and using his leaking pre-cum as a lubricant started to seek his own relief.

  Tina’s chair rocked as her movements grew ever more urgent, and Ronan groaned and dropped his hand from his junk. His relief could wait. He didn’t want to miss a moment of seeing her come undone.

  Perspiration dotted her skin, and she didn’t seem aware of the little needy sounds she made as she hurtled toward her peek. She hovered there, panting, for what seemed like ages, her beautiful eyes closed, lips pressed together as her hips went frantic, and then she exploded with a whispered, “God…oh god…yeeeeeeees.”

  Chapter Five

  Oh. My. God. What had she just done? With her body still shaking in little aftershocks after one of the most explosive orgasms she’d had in a long time, Tina hung her head and hid her burning face behind the curtain of her hair. If she didn’t look at him, then maybe she could pretend that none of this had happened.

  Ronan’s harsh breathing told her otherwise, and she couldn’t resist another peek at his cock. He looked so damn long and thick. Had he sought his own release while she was shamelessly masturbating in front of him?

  Her internal muscles clenched and released at the thought of having him inside of her. That would hurt, surely. He was so damn big, yet her body wasn’t listening. Despite the fact that she had come rather noisily moments before, the tingles started again. A gush of her juices trickled down the inside of her thigh, and Ronan groaned.

  From the looks of it, he hadn’t come yet. He was still standing proud, the broad mushroom tip of his magnificent cock leaking copious amount of pre-cum, and her mouth went dry. She wanted to taste him so badly, it hurt. Before she could change her mind and chicken out she slid off her chair, rounded the bar and got to her knees in front of him. Ronan’s bear growled, when she placed her hands on the man’s thighs, and Ronan wrapped his hands in her hair and tilted her head up until she was forced to look up at him. She stared into th
e golden eyes of his bear, and the sight of his visibly elongated canines sent yet more moisture down her thighs.

  Heaven help her she wanted him to do all the naughty things he said he would do. Hearing him say those words in that deep, gravelly voice of his had been enough to send her over the edge. Her body had taken over, and not caring of her surroundings, she’d had to seek relief. The hard edge of the chair had been just right to rock herself against, and make her explode. It seemed only fair to return the favor.

  “You don’t have to do that, babe.”

  His hold in her hair tightened and that tiny sting of pain shot straight to her clit. Maybe she liked a bit of pain after all, if it was Ronan delivering it. She didn’t even mind the silly pet name right now. The way it rolled off his tongue made her wetter, and bolder, it seemed.

  She ran her hands further up his thigh, until she reached his heavy ball sac. Using only her fingertips she massaged the sensitive skin and Ronan swore. His hips bucked up and his slick cock hit her in the face.

  “Fuck, babe, stop, or I’ll—”

  She stopped his words by kissing the tip of his cock and when she licked across his slit they groaned in unison. His unique salty flavor exploded on her tongue, and she slid her lips over his head and sucked.

  Ronan yanked her off him by her hair and the sharp pain brought tears to her eyes. Deprived of his taste she wrapped her hands around his thick girth instead and pumped his dick. It pulsed under her fingers and grew bigger still, and a rush of feminine power went through her. To know her touch affected him this much was a heavy aphrodisiac indeed.

  “Tina, stop. I told you don’t need to do this. I…fuuccck.”

  She ignored his protests and rejoiced inside when he pulled her back down and she could wrap her lips around his cock. It seemed his body had taken over silencing his objections, and she went to work in earnest. Relaxing her throat muscles, she took as much of him as she could inside her mouth and swallowed around his head when it hit the back of her throat. For once she was glad she didn’t have much of a gag reflex, because his thighs tensed and Ronan swore again, and started to take over.