Betting on Bear (Charmed in Vegas Book 6) Read online

  “It’s okay. We’re together now. That’s what matters.” She squeezed him tight. She still felt nervous but it also felt so, so right.

  “Let’s go to my place.” He scooped her bags off the floor while she hurriedly blew out the candle and dumped the spell ingredients back into the ripped plastic bag. She carried them to the nearest garbage can—a tall metal tube—and dumped it in. As she followed Hardiman toward the door, smoke from the incense curled into the air above the can.

  The ten minutes to drive to his house seemed like a lifetime, in part because she had to follow him in her car and that meant they were apart. After the emotional upheaval of the day, she felt a little surprised that she wanted so badly to be near him, but she did.

  She pulled into his driveway behind him, and before she’d even had a chance to turn off her car, he was opening her car door to pull her out. Seconds later, he had lifted her off the ground and leaned her against her car so he could kiss the living daylights out of her.

  She knew they needed to go inside but didn’t want to stop. He solved the problem by picking her up, kicking her door closed and carrying her across the lawn, still kissing her.

  Naya had never been so grateful for the strength of a bear shifter. Wrapping herself around him, she held on tight as he pulled his keys out of his pocket and managed to open the door of his small brown bungalow.

  She didn’t get to see much of the inside. He carried her straight through to the bedroom, where they collapsed onto the bed.

  Hardiman brushed the hair off her face. “Naya, my mate.” He nuzzled his nose against hers.

  She felt a rush of emotion. “I love you.”

  He grinned. “I love you, too.” He kissed her, long, soft and sweet, showing her with his actions that he meant every word.

  Then he reared up and pulled his shirt off. Before she could do the same, he tugged at her top and lifted it over her head.

  “Not going slow this time?” she said.

  “I don’t have it in me right now. Maybe next time.”

  Next time. That sounded good.

  He lowered himself over her and kissed her again, his hands roaming over her body. Naya explored his amazing chest and arms, awash in desire. She barely felt it when he popped open the hooks on her bra and pulled it off.

  In an instant, he lifted himself to a crouch and yanked her jeans and panties off in one swift move. He then lowered himself to his elbows, his broad shoulders pushing her thighs wide as he placed his face right in front of her pussy. “Ready?”

  She didn’t even have time to nod her head before he plunged in, his mouth devouring her. Her hips raised, pushing her against him, begging for more even though her mind had gone blissfully blank. There were no thoughts, only sensations, crests of colors washing over her with every lick of his tongue, waves of wetness when he sucked her clit into his mouth. And all of it building to an ending that felt so close she could almost grasp it.

  When he plunged a finger into her and rubbed the tip against that invisible spot inside her, even the sensations stopped. Everything stopped, suspended for a moment, reaching, yearning, pushing until finally her body broke into a million pulsing pieces, all tight, all liquid, all good.

  She shuddered and shook, only peripherally aware that he growled as he continued to lick and stroke her, extending the orgasm for far longer than any she’d experienced before. When he couldn’t wring one more spasm out of her, her arms and legs fell to the mattress like spaghetti.

  Hardiman loomed over her. “Now I mark you.” His face had taken on a bear-like cast. While his features hadn’t changed shape, his eyes were golden, his eyebrows a little hairier, his teeth a little sharper.

  She knew this was forever, and suddenly she had no doubts. Those achy feelings she always had when she was around him must have been the gods letting her know he was hers. She was ready for him to mark her, ready to be his for the rest of her life. “Yes.” The word, which she’d meant to be sultry, came out like a rasp.

  He lowered himself onto her, burying his face in her neck. His teeth once again caught on the skin of her throat before moving on.

  Naya had never come like that before. Part of her wanted nothing more than to wallow in the afterglow, even though she knew Hardiman wouldn’t let her. She lifted her hand as though it weighed two hundred pounds, and rested it on his shoulder. She should participate. She just needed to remember how to move.

  ***

  Hardiman was in heaven. He could no longer remember how long he’d wanted Naya, but it felt like forever. He’d known she was his, and he’d wanted her, and now he had her.

  His mouth closed over one of her nipples as his hands wandered over her body. With the flavor of her pussy still fresh in his mouth, he could think of nothing but sliding deep inside of her—first his cock, then his teeth, completing the bonding ritual and making her his for good.

  “What do you like?” Naya murmured, her voice rough and tumble like a sex kitten. She ran her hand over his head, stroking.

  “You.”

  She tangled her fingers in his hair and gave a gentle tug. “No. I mean, what can I do for you? What would you like most?”

  He groaned. What did any man want? But should he really ask—

  She lifted her head off the mattress to meet his eyes. “I could go down on you.”

  He groaned again. “I might not last.” Scratch that. He wouldn’t last. Not a chance. But he loved that she’d managed to guess exactly what he wanted.

  “Are you saying no?” There was a tone in her voice that he couldn’t interpret.

  “For now. Later you can do whatever you want. Including that. Especially that.”

  There was a pause, and he wondered what was going through her head. Then suddenly, he lay flat on his back while she settled herself over him, her pussy nestled against his hard cock. How did that happen? He didn’t even remember her flipping him.

  “We’re going to go fast, right?” she said.

  “Ye-es,” he said, the word drawn out as two syllables.

  “Then I’m not sure what the problem is. You must have amazing staying power.” She reached between her legs and rubbed his cock through his pants. “Right?”

  “Not exactly—” He had a will of steel, but the feel of her touching him nearly undid him. “Stop. I want to be inside you when I come. You’re going to make me come in my pants like a schoolboy.”

  She grinned. “You’re saying I have that much power?”

  He reached for her but missed as she leaned backward into what looked like an extremely uncomfortable position. “Of course you’ve got that much power.”

  She sat back up again. “Good. Then prove it.”

  He pushed up onto his elbows. “How?”

  “Strip. I want you completely naked.”

  Warning bells clanged in his head. The only way he’d managed to keep from coming so far was by keeping his pants on. And he had a feeling he knew exactly what she planned to do as soon as he took them off. “I won’t be able to hold on.”

  “Let me worry about that.”

  Still, he hesitated. Was this some trick? Would she make him come in her mouth even though she knew what he really wanted?

  “Trust me. You do trust me, right?” she said.

  “Of course.” He swallowed his objections. “You’ll need to move.”

  “Of course.” She swung her sleek naked body off his but stayed right next to him as he shoved his pants down his legs and kicked them off his feet. As soon as they hit the floor, she mounted him again, this time sitting on his thighs. “Much better.”

  “Be kind,” he said.

  She simply smiled, a wicked, delicious smile that made his cock sit up even straighter. Wiggling her butt backwards, she lowered herself over him until her mouth hung a single inch above his cock. She stuck out her tongue and touched the tip of it to the head.

  Hardiman groaned, his eyes falling shut.

  Suddenly, she gripped him tight around the base
of his cock. When his eyes blinked open, she said, “It’s like a cock ring, see? This’ll help you keep from coming too soon.”

  Having never worn a cock ring, he wasn’t sure she was right—nor was he sure that her soft, warm little hand was a good substitute. But she was determined to go down on him, so he needed to keep from coming whatever the cost.

  He started reciting times tables in his head. One times one is one. One times two is two. He broke off at one times three when she took his cock so deep in her mouth that the head touched the back of her throat.

  As his eyes rolled back in their sockets, he scrambled for something, anything, to distract himself. Autopsy photos might work—but try as he might, he couldn’t picture a single one. Thinking about his mother helped for a moment, then his mind went blank as Naya slid her mouth up, causing a delicious friction that had nails springing out of the tips of his fingers and digging into the mattress.

  “I’m going to come,” he said, his voice a strangled growl. “You have to stop.”

  “Doesn’t it feel good?” she purred, her lips hovering over him.

  “Too good. It’s too good.” He dug his nails further into the mattress. “I want to be inside you. Now, Naya.”

  She growled, but rose, shimmying her body until she sat over his hips, her pussy tantalizingly close to his cock. She gripped him and held him in place while she pushed herself onto him, engulfing him.

  Hardiman thought he might die from the pleasure.

  He felt overwhelmed with the desire to take her. Gripping her hips, he held her in place and pistoned up into her, feeling the blessed tight wetness of her around him.

  For a moment, he realized he wasn’t wearing a condom and felt a frisson of fear. Then he remembered that Naya was his mate. He never needed to wear a condom again.

  Speaking of which, he couldn’t hold on much longer. It was high time to make Naya his forever. He rolled the two of them over so that he loomed over her, never missing a single stroke. “I’m going to mark you.” He’d said that before, but it seemed important for her to understand that this was her last chance to back out. Once he’d marked her, he’d never let her go.

  She slung her arms around his neck. “Do it.” She tipped her head to the side, giving him better access to her shoulder and neck.

  Hardiman growled. His. He buried his face in her neck, sliding faster and faster into her. His orgasm rushed toward him like an oncoming train as his teeth stretched and readied for the bite.

  Then the train hit him, sensation crashing over him and impacting every muscle, every cell. He clamped his teeth over her shoulder, sliding cleanly through her skin.

  Naya screamed, and from the spasms in her pussy, he could tell it was a scream of pleasure. Beyond that, he had no thought, no consciousness, just the awareness of his mate and the greatest bliss he’d ever felt.

  A minute later, he carefully withdrew his teeth from Naya’s shoulder. Her pussy still pulsed around him every few seconds, little aftershocks that told him exactly how much he’d rocked her world.

  She looked up at him with a lazy, satisfied smile on her face. “If I’d known how amazing you are in bed, I would have jumped your bones a long time ago.”

  That was his Naya. “You can jump my bones whenever you want and as often as you want. Unless I jump you first.”

  She laughed. “I love you.” She brushed her hand down his cheek.

  “I love you, too.”

  ***

  Thank you for reading! Remember, if you join our newsletters you get a free read. Tabitha Conall Michelle Fox

  And if you’re not ready to leave Vegas, the other books in the series can be found here.

  Author's Note

  I hope you enjoyed reading Betting on Bear as much as I enjoyed writing it! With Charmed in Vegas, I was able to explore a more light-hearted story while having fun writing a magical creature I’ve never written before—a naiad. I’m really into Greek mythology, so this was a lot of fun for me.

  If you liked Betting on Bear, you might check out my Colliding Worlds series. Turn the page for a quick excerpt of the free short story that kicks off the series, then download it at your favorite store (for free!).

  Also, if you have a moment, it would be a huge help to me if you would please consider leaving a review. Even a review of one or two lines makes a big difference.

  Thank you!

  Tabitha Conall

  Her Kilted Wolf

  Her Kilted Wolf

  Tabitha Conall

  Get it for FREE

  The Colliding Worlds Series #1

  Two werewolves, a Scottish castle and the power of fate.

  Highly ranked in her werewolf pack in spite of being female, American Mattie Sloane travels to Scotland with her Alpha, never suspecting the trip will turn her life upside down.

  A rogue by nature, werewolf Colin MacPherson has to shape up fast when he finds his mate in Mattie.

  Just one problem—they both love their countries and don’t want to move. How can they be mates an ocean apart?

  This 6,000+ word short story is the first in the Colliding Worlds series. HEA included.

  Excerpt

  Mattie followed the scent out of the room and into the hallway. The scent trail seemed fresh, and yet her mate wasn’t there. Maybe he had already left before she got there?

  She continued to follow the scent. When she got to the second turn, she knew she’d never find her way back without help, so she pulled out her cell phone and took video of each of the twists and turns. Hopefully, she’d find her mate at the end of this journey and he could lead her back to the Great Hall, but if not, she’d need the footage.

  Darius would wonder where she’d gone, but he’d understand once she explained. Finding your mate was everything.

  Who would he be? A wolf, hopefully. But if he was a wolf, why hadn’t he scented her?

  Mattie jogged up some stone stairs, still following the delicious smell. With just the scent in her nose, she already felt like melting. She wanted to find her mate and drag him to the nearest bed where they could wallow in each other until their scents were so mixed no one could tell them apart.

  What if he wasn’t a wolf? Other species didn’t necessarily know when they’d found their mates. Sometimes they had to be convinced, and it wasn’t always a fun experience.

  The scent trail suddenly dead-ended at a tall wooden door, the fifth such door on that hall. Worse, the door was closed. What should she do? Should she knock? She shifted from one foot to the other, trying to decide what to do.

  The door in front of her jerked open and a tall, half-naked male stood in front of her, a towel tied around his waist and his wet hair sticking up. “You came.” He grinned, his blue eyes lighting up.

  Before she could say anything, he grabbed her around the waist and yanked her against him, covering her mouth with his.

  Oh, mama.

  Also by Tabitha Conall

  The Colliding Worlds Series

  Her Kilted Wolf

  Her Forbidden Alpha

  Her Scottish Alpha

  Her Vampire Mate

  His Dragon Heart

  The White Fir Bend Cult Series

  A Minor Shift

  Shifting Ground

  Shift for Her

  Graveyard Shift

  The Stonewall Pack Alpha Series

  The Alpha’s Pack

  The Alpha’s Obsession

  The Alpha’s Secret

  The Alpha’s Legacy

  The Alpha’s Downfall: The Complete Stonewall Pack Alpha Boxed Set

  The Mad Wolf’s Harem Series

  Hunger Moon

  Harvest Moon

  Hunter’s Moon

  Long Night’s Moon

  Wolf Moon

  Protecting the Pack

  Aurelia and the Three Bodyguards

  About the Author

  Tabitha has been in love with love since the first play she wrote at the age of eight. That story involved three p
rinces who fell in love with three princesses. What could be more perfect?

  Age has brought not just deeper conflict to her stories but also a lot more flesh. Now she describes not just the princes and princesses falling in love, but also what happens when they close the bedroom door. She's looking forward to sharing more stories with readers very soon.

  Betting on Bear © 2016 Tabitha Conall

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  First Printing, 2016

  Little Death Books

  www.LittleDeathBooks.com

  Cover Design by Andy Atkins

  Book design © Little Death Books