Loving Laney Read online

  But then he moved, his hand coming down so his fingers could play with her nipple, and just like that she snapped out of her lust-filled daze. Laney pushed him back, although she got the feeling he only moved because he wanted to.

  “Who are you?” she snarled at him, using anger to hide how deeply he’d affected her.

  “Sorry, sweet, the name’s Cooper, Cooper Brady.” He performed a little bow while Laney thought furiously. She couldn’t remember the name but that didn’t mean anything. She wasn’t exactly clued in to werewolf politics.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked suspiciously, trying desperately to control her breathing. Damn, that kiss had left her feeling as though she’d run a marathon. Just as well she’d stopped him—she might have passed out if they’d gone any further.

  “Where’s your pack?”

  “I’ll tell you if you tell me, sweet.” He smiled down at her lazily and Laney had to work hard to concentrate—his smile had the power to turn her mind to mush. It would be so easy just to forget about everything else and lose herself in his kiss, his heat.

  “I asked first,” she replied petulantly, sexual frustration making her feel decidedly grumpy and childish.

  “Well all right, then, sweet, if you insist. I’m on a bit of a trip, just passing through on my way to visit another pack.”

  “Where are you from?”

  “South Carolina. You?”

  Laney breathed a sigh of relief. There was no way he could have anything to do with her pack. The only pack she knew of in South Carolina was the Lian pack, and they were well known for their liberal ways. Packs that subscribed to the old ways, like hers, wouldn’t have anything to do with them.

  “Not going to talk to me, sweet?”

  “Don’t call me sweet!” she said irritably. Laney didn’t care how good it sounded rolling off his tongue… She had a feeling if she let this rogue take a foot, he’d steal a mile.

  “Well, you haven’t told me your name, so what else am I to call you?”

  She frowned up at him. “You know what my name is, don’t pretend you didn’t hear it in the bar, and remember I know how good your hearing is.”

  “Ahh yes, Laney. Isn’t that what the purple-haired slut called you?”

  “Urgh, she is not a slut!”

  His eyebrows rose in mock surprise. “Really? Could have fooled me. I felt sure that was her hand reaching for my cock when she ‘accidentally’ dropped a napkin beside my table.”

  Laney winced, aware that Ella had used that ploy successfully more than once.

  “I’m sure you were mistaken.” She tried to sound convincing.

  “Tut, tut, tut.” He shook his head at her, an expression of mock disappointment on his face. “There you go with the lying again, sweet. You know what they say about liars, don’t you?”

  Laney frowned. “Their pants go on fire?” she asked hesitantly.

  “Only because of the heat of their ass after a good long spanking.”

  Her jaw dropped. Had she just heard him right? Did he just threaten to spank her?

  “Oh yes, sweet, you heard me right. Now give me your keys. I’m going to help you into your car, then I’ll follow you to your place.”

  “I don’t think so!” she sputtered, outraged by his high-handedness. Just who the hell did he think he was? Laney glared up at him, unimpressed as he narrowed his eyes down at her.

  “There are two ways we can do this, sweetness. The way I just gave you, or I can toss you over my shoulder, throw you into my truck and leave this heap to rot as it deserves.”

  “There is no way in hell I am letting you come home with me!”

  “Haven’t you realized by now? You have no choice. I can smell your arousal from here. I felt you respond to my kiss.” He took a step toward her, almost stalking her, forcing her to take a step back to avoid touching him.

  “You want me. Your body is wet for me. The scent of your arousal calls to me. The only reason I’m not buried balls-deep inside that luscious pussy is because I didn’t want to take you in a parking lot. But hey, if you don’t care…”

  He took another step closer to her and she squealed in fright, jumping back and banging into another car. Laney held out a hand out to stop him.

  “Stay right there, you—you arrogant asshole!” she ordered, wincing at the shakiness of her voice.

  “Arrogant, I’ll give you. But asshole? Only when I don’t get my way, but I’m going to get my way, aren’t I, little one?” His voice had dropped to a low croon, and she shivered as it shimmied along her skin, warming her blood. Who was she kidding? She wanted him, they both knew it. Why shouldn’t she take the opportunity? He had no idea who she was. A one-night stand might be just what she needed to get her sex life back on track. Well, get it started, anyway. It had never been “on track”.

  She narrowed her eyes at him. “So you’re just passing through?”

  “Well, I certainly don’t intend to live here, sweet.” He rocked back on his heels, grinning down at her, his hand outstretched.

  Laney puffed out a breath of annoyance, hardly believing his arrogance.

  “Fine,” she snapped at him. “You can come back with me. But this is a one-off deal, no repeats.”

  He winked down at her, confidence written into every line of his body. “Never say never, sweet. At least not until you’ve sampled the goods.”

  She snorted. “Got a high opinion of yourself, don’t you?”

  “I’m just a big believer in the truth. Keys?” He made the gimme signal with his fingers.

  Laney fished around in her oversized bag for her ring of keys. God damn it! She could never find anything in this sack, particularly with her hands shaking like a nervous teenager on her first date.

  “Ah ha!” Finally! She held them up, triumphant to have won the battle of “find the keys” in less than five minutes. Looking up, she saw Cooper frowning down at her, his eyes snapping furiously, his strong jaw stiff with palpable tension. She lowered her gaze immediately.

  “What?” She hated that he could so easily reduce her to a scared little pup. All arousal had fled in the face of his obvious anger.

  “You do realize that while you stand here, alone, in the dark, fishing around in that knapsack, that anyone could attack you? Why the hell don’t you find your keys before you leave the bar?”

  She frowned at his scolding tone. “Sorry, Dad. I didn’t realize I was going to get a lecture. Have you forgotten that I’m a werewolf? I’m pretty sure I can take care of myself if someone attacks.” She caught her breath, barely repressing the urge to slap her hand over her mouth. Had she lost all sense of self-preservation?

  “And have you forgotten that there are other, nonhuman things that can attack you? Things that are much stronger and much more dangerous than you.” He was crowding over her, except this time it wasn’t to turn her on, this time he was trying to intimidate her. And it was working.

  Laney felt the urge to take a step back, but the car behind her blocked any movement, effectively trapping her so she had nowhere left to go. She kept her gaze from his, trying to appease his anger. His power beat at her, his anger almost sending her to her knees in supplication. But she refused to give in. He might be more powerful than her, but if she was going to sleep with him, then she’d be damned if she’d cower before him.

  She breathed in slow and easy, calming the wolf inside her. It felt the call of the wolf before her, so strong, so potent. Finally the power eased down and she risked a look up to see him peering down at her in interest.

  “You done with the dominant shit?” she snipped, even though her insides still quivered, still wanted her to cower.

  He snorted. “Anyone ever told you that you’ve got a lot of attitude for a little wolf?”

  “I may be a runt, but that doesn’t mean I have to put up with wolves outside my pack bullying me.” She jumped in surprise when he suddenly grabbed her hand. Looking up, she found him frowning down at her intently.

  “Your packmates bully you?”

  “Duh, of course, I’m the runt. You know, the smallest, littlest, most easy to pick on? Surely you have those in your pack.”

  “In my pack, those that are smaller and weaker are looked after by the more dominant of us, not bullied.” His voice was serious, hard. Maybe he thought it was that way, but she would bet those that were smaller and weaker had a different story to tell.

  “Whatever.” She shrugged. “All this talking is wasting time. I’m heading this way.” She pointed to the left. “Try to keep up.” Laney made to move past him, but he stepped in her way, blocking her.

  “What?” she huffed, frustrated.

  “Give me your keys.” He held out his hand once again.

  “Why?”

  “Gosh, you’re a suspicious little thing. Give me your keys so I can open your car door for you.”

  “Again, why?”

  “Because my mama raised me with manners.” He waited until she reluctantly passed over her keys. Opening the driver’s door, he placed a hand on the small of her back and helped her settle into the driver’s seat. Before she could stop him, he’d belted her into the seat and laid a warm kiss on her lips.

  “Drive carefully. I’ll be right behind you.” With that, he closed the door and strode over to a sleek navy-blue car parked a few vehicles away. It took a minute for Laney to start up her old bomb. The car was never reliable. It usually took a few tries to get it going, especially when it was cold. Unfortunately, she had neither the money to fix it nor the knowledge to do it herself.

  Occasionally, her neighbor Josh helped her with it. He was due back from the city any day, but until then she was stuck with this weird rattle that appeared every time she went over a slight bump. Not to mention the excruciating whine of the fan belt, which she was sure could be heard clear across town. Eventually she coaxed it into movement and drove the five miles to her small apartment. Parking, she moved quickly to her door, not bothering to look around for Cooper.

  A large, tanned hand suddenly grabbed hers, pulling it back from the door handle as a strong arm clasped her tightly around the waist, drawing her back against a broad, muscular body. The heat from his front seeped through to her back and she bit back a moan as her clit tingled in reaction. She felt his chin on her shoulder, his face resting beside hers, his sexy stubble rasping against the soft skin of her cheek. Laney searched for the usual panic that came from having someone so close, but it simply wasn’t there. Instead, his unique scent seemed to wrap around her, drugging her, making her limbs grow heavy while her insides trembled in anticipation.

  “You should have waited for me, sweet,” he scolded lightly. His hold was possessive, unbreakable. When he leaned down and licked her neck, her breathing quickened as a damp heat grew between her legs.

  Then he broke through the sensual spell by pushing her to the side of the door.

  “Wait here.”

  “Excuse me?” she asked breathlessly, watching as he quickly unlocked and opened the door.

  He spoke without looking at her. “Wait here until I check the apartment is safe. This doesn’t look like a good area of town.”

  He looked at her briefly with a frown, and Laney crossed her arms in a huff.

  “Paranoia, thy name is Cooper,” she muttered to herself as he slipped inside. But she stayed where she was. In truth, it felt kind of good to have someone protecting her. She’d been by herself for so long she’d forgotten what it was like to have someone worry about her safety. And Cooper made her feel safe. There was something in the way he held himself, in the sure way that he touched her, watched her, that let her know nothing would harm her while he was here. She didn’t think anything or anyone would even dare try.

  Just as she was wondering what the hell he was doing, he reappeared. Grabbing her around the waist, he dragged her inside. She barely had time to catch her breath before the door was slammed shut and she was in his arms.

  His mouth descended on hers, hot and firm, the kiss commanding, dominant, arrogant, everything she knew he was. He didn’t ask, didn’t hesitate, his mouth plundered hers as if she belonged to him. A thrill of excitement went through her at the feel of him so close—he was hard, male and very, very aroused. Backing her up as he kissed her, he pushed softly on her shoulders so that she landed backward with a thump on the unmade bed.

  “Wait. Wait, Cooper,” she panted as he started to follow her down.

  “Why would I want to do that, sweet?” he murmured as he pulled her t-shirt up. She waited until it passed over her head to speak again.

  “I need a shower, I smell like food and smoke.”

  “I don’t care if you smell like a sewer. I need you so bad I’m going to strain something if I don’t get inside you in the next five minutes.” She glanced down, gulping at the hard erection pushing against his blue jeans.

  His hands moved, quick and sure, stripping her clothes until she lay naked and panting below him.

  “Beautiful,” he whispered as he stared down at her intently. His gaze was primal, possessive, filled with heat. So intense, so sensuous that she struggled to catch her breath.

  Laney moved her hands to cover her mound and breasts, embarrassed to be laid bare like this.

  “Uh-uh, no covering up.” He moved to grab her hands, but she saw him coming and quickly rolled, coming to stand on the opposite side of the bed. Laney looked back to find him watching her, his eyes narrowed while one eyebrow rose in query.

  “You want to play catch and kiss, sweet?”

  She frowned in confusion, momentarily forgetting her fears. “Catch and kiss?”

  “Yeah, what children play? The wee girls run while little boys chase them. If they catch them they get to kiss them.” Distracted, she didn’t see him move until suddenly he was beside her, grabbing her around the waist and kissing her until she forgot everything else. Her hands moved of their own violation, clasping around his neck, drawing him closer as though she meant to inhale him.

  “That’s better, sweet,” he murmured against her lips before he kissed along her jaw and down her sensitive neck. She shivered in reaction, his touch leaving a trail of sensation that heated her blood. Licks of fire raced through her body, a feeling so intense, so hot, that she thought she would self-combust.

  “Cooper,” she murmured in soft protest.

  “Yes, sweet?” His voice was muffled as he leaned down and captured one nipple in his mouth. She watched as he took as much of her breast in his mouth as he could before releasing her slowly. His eyes rolled up to watch her watching him, and a quick grin darted across his face as his mouth moved to her other breast.

  God, what had she been going to say? He robbed her of every thought, every breath, every worry. Worry…

  “Please, Cooper, please stop. I­-I…” she stuttered as he softly bit her tender nipple. She found herself arching her back, offering her breasts up for a feast. But instead of partaking he stood straight up, towering over her, his thumbs circling her nipples as he clasped her breasts in his palms.

  “You what, sweet?” She looked up into his eyes. They were shimmering with lust as he gazed down at her. She didn’t want to tell him, to ruin that look of sultry, silken arousal.

  “You want to tell me what’s going on, or do I have to cajole it out of you?” He made to move his mouth back to her neck but she stepped backward, bumping into the bed so abruptly that she found herself sitting on her butt.

  “It-it’s just that I-I…” She hesitated, looking down at her hands before finally just blurting it out. “I don’t want to disappoint you.”

  Chapter Two

  Cooper looked down at her sitting there so dejected, her shoulders slumped as though she expected him to reject her. Long, silvery blonde hair covered her face, a thin protection that wouldn’t save her. He held out a hand to her.

  “Laney,” he said firmly, waiting patiently until her head rose. She studied him silently for a moment. Then, just as he was giving up hope, she tentatively reached up and clasped his hand. He pulled her up quickly, giving her no time to change her mind. Sitting on the bed, he drew her onto his lap to hold her securely against his chest. Gently, he tipped her face up to his. “I think we need a little talk, don’t you?”

  Laney blushed.

  “I don’t really want to,” she murmured, shame creeping into her voice.

  “Why would you disappoint me, little one? You’re sexy, responsive and I want you so badly that these jeans have become mighty uncomfortable, let me tell you.” He shifted restlessly, drawing a small grin from her.

  “I’ll disappoint you because I don’t know what I’m doing.”

  Shock ran through him and he sat up straighter, thinking furiously. How the hell could someone who looked like every guy’s wet dream be a virgin? He grinned slowly, a surge of possessiveness rising inside him. What had started as a quick fuck was quickly turning into something else in his mind.

  Well, everyone else’s loss was his gain. But he would have to change his game plan. She deserved more than a “wham, bam, thank you, ma’am”. He wasn’t a gentle man, didn’t know how to be gentle. But he would try for her, because there was no way he was walking away from her now.

  Dying of embarrassment would surely be merciful.

  “Let me go, please,” she cried out, near tears. This was so humiliating, to open herself up like this, to leave herself vulnerable. Just look at him, he was so dumbfounded that he couldn’t even find the words to reject her.

  “Uh-uh, sit still, sweet, you’re just stirring things up,” he groaned, tightening his hold as she tried to wriggle free.

  “Let me go, please just leave. I’m humiliated enough. Please, please leave.” The last word broke on a sob and she lowered her gaze, sitting passively, waiting for him to leave her.

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