Valiant Read online

  He watched but didn’t try to stop her as she climbed off the bed on the other side to keep the large piece of furniture between them. Tammy stood on shaky legs and faced him. She studied him as he watched her, only he smiled while she remained wary.

  “I disagree. I think we could work. Do you think I’d hurt you? I wouldn’t. I can be very gentle when I need to be.” His gaze raked over her body. “I admit it’s going to be tough to keep all my urges in check but I would.”

  “I’m not sleeping with you.”

  He laughed. “I’m glad. Sleeping is the last thing I want to do with you on my bed.”

  Tammy gritted her teeth, her anger flaring. “I’m not doing that either. I don’t do strangers, and hell, I sure as hell won’t be doing you.”

  His smile died and the amusement left as his gaze seemed to grow slightly cold, appearing a little scary. “Are you prejudiced? I’m not putting you down for being totally human.”

  She frowned. “That’s, well, at least you know what I am.” She focused on his mouth. “And I couldn’t shred you with my teeth. I’m not scary, Mr. Lion. Is that what you partly are? Lion? Tiger? What?”

  He just blinked but something in his expression hardened. “You could say that,” he stated slowly.

  She’d struck a nerve or something. She swallowed, deciding he looked a tad angry. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to insult you. I’ve never…” Shut up, she ordered her brain. She was digging a hole and knew it. “I didn’t mean any disrespect or anything. You frighten me, okay? I’ve never met a New Species before today and you have to admit you’re really intimidating. The one at the gate who allowed me into Reservation mostly looked human. You don’t. If you were smaller it would help but you’re huge, all muscular, and I know how badly you could hurt me if you set your mind to. I’m probably rambling but stop looking at me that way because you’re scaring me again. I’m five-foot-four and I weigh a hundred and thirty pounds. You are what? Six-foot-four or five and…” Her gaze raked down him. “Two hundred pounds?”

  “I’m six-foot-six and two hundred sixty pounds.”

  “Huge,” she summed up. “Way bigger than me and you didn’t exactly walk up to me politely to inform me that I was at the wrong place. You growled at me, glared, and terrified me more than I’ve ever been in my entire life. I never shut up. Never. Ask anyone. You had me so frightened I forgot how to breathe there a few times and I couldn’t have spoken to save my life. I tried really hard too.”

  Valiant’s lips twitched and the anger faded from his features. “You never shut up, huh?”

  She shook her head. “Never. I’ve heard it since I was about four years old that I can blab anyone to death. My family kept telling me the worst mistake they ever made was teaching me how to talk and if they could go back in time, they’d have taught me sign language so they could close their eyes to shut me up.”

  The man crossed his arms over his broad chest. He grinned, showing those teeth. “You’re really adorable and I enjoy the sound of you talking. You have a really nice voice. Come here.”

  Tammy glared at him. “No way. You stay over there and I’m happy right where I’m at.”

  “Come here,” he ordered again.

  She crossed her arms over her chest the exact way he had his and her eyebrow arched. “No. I want to leave now.”

  His arms dropped he sighed. “I’m not going to hurt you. Remember that.”

  Oh shit. Tammy tensed. She was certain she wasn’t about to enjoy whatever he planned to do. He at least warned her before he moved, rounding the bed fast. She jumped on top of the mattress, hit it on her hands and knees, and started to scramble across it since she didn’t have anywhere else to go.

  A hand suddenly gripped her ankle, gave a hard enough jerk that knocked her flat to her belly, and he rolled her over onto her back. In the blink of an eye Valiant crouched over her until inches separated their bodies. He didn’t put any of his weight on her but she was pinned between his arms and legs on the bed.

  His gaze locked with hers. “Let’s try an experiment.”

  “Let’s not.” Her heart pounded. She didn’t try to touch him to push him away even though she wanted to shove at his chest. Fear gripped her. “Please?”

  He smiled. “I insist.”

  She stared at his sharp teeth and swallowed the lump that formed in her throat. “Um, you look scary when you show your…uh…teeth. They look really sharp.”

  He didn’t get angry. In fact, her words seemed to amuse him greatly. “The better to eat you with,” he teased softly.

  Tammy’s heart flipped inside her chest. “That’s a bad joke, right? Please tell me you’re just kidding.”

  “I’m not a wolf.”

  “I’m not wearing red.”

  “I still want to eat you.”

  She was shocked by his candor, and realized that no man had ever spoken to her that way before. He didn’t attack her but instead seemed happy to just peer into her eyes. She calmed a bit.

  “I never thought I’d say this but you better be talking dirty to me.”

  He chuckled. “I am.”

  “Good.” She blushed, realizing what she said. “I mean, not good. Bad. You know that’s totally inappropriate to say to a stranger, right?”

  His smile widened as he flashed more teeth. “Kiss me.”

  She studied his mouth warily. “That’s not going to happen.”

  “I wouldn’t hurt you.”

  She hesitated and bit her bottom lip for a few seconds. She was strangely attracted to the guy. He’d grabbed her, scared the crap out of her, but he wasn’t doing anything more than pinning her down. He’d have torn her clothes off and raped her if he were a douche-bag looser. She actually appreciated his sense of humor.

  They stared into each other’s gaze. His eyes were probably the most beautiful ones she’d ever seen. Up close she could see his pupils were slightly oval shaped instead of round, reminding her of a cat she’d once owned. Definitely not human but oddly sexy. Her gaze dropped from them to his lips.

  Full, masculine ones that she found appealing for some strange reason. What would it be like to kiss him? She was tempted to find out. What are the chances of ever being in this situation again? She really hoped the answer would be never. Maybe. Think, damn it. You can’t really be considering this! It’s nuts.

  “I don’t know you.” She was proud she said that.

  “This is a good way to.”

  “Most men buy women dinner and take us to a movie before they try to make it to first base.”

  “First base?” He arched an eyebrow.

  “It’s a saying that means kissing someone. It’s a baseball analogy. First base is kissing.”

  “Is there a second base?”

  “That’s touching someone from the waist up.”

  “Third base?”

  “That’s doing a little more that includes touching sexual parts on the body from the waist down but usually through the clothes but there are exceptions such as light under-clothes groping.”

  She couldn’t believe she was having this conversation with a New Species but he seemed genuinely curious and she was rambling, more than aware she should shut up, but nervousness always made her mouth go into overdrive.

  “Fourth base?”

  “Nope. Only three bases and then it’s called a home run.”

  “What does that entail?”

  “Everything. Going all the way.”

  He grinned. “In that case, I want a home run.”

  “No.”

  He chuckled. “Kiss me, Tammy. At least give me a chance to show you that I won’t harm you in any way. I promise you’ll enjoy what I want to do to you as much as I will.”

  “I don’t kiss strangers.” But you’re tempting me to break that rule. She pushed that thought back, trying to focus on the reasons why she shouldn’t. He’s New Species. Scary. Big. Yeah. Math, remember? And she’d thought it would never come in handy in high school while suffering thro
ugh those boring classes.

  He blinked a few times and his smile faded. “We’ll really get to know each other. Kiss me. I’m dying to taste you.”

  She was tempted, admitted being more than a little curious about what kind of kisser he’d be and if someone so intimidating could be just as passionate. She hadn’t kissed a man in about a year, not since her last boyfriend had broken her heart by cheating on her. She debated if she should let Valiant kiss her or not when he lowered his face a few inches until their lips nearly touched. She took a shaky breath knowing that he wasn’t going to give her a choice.

  “Close your eyes and don’t fear me,” Valiant ordered in a deep, husky whisper. “Relax. I’m not going to hurt you.”

  Relax? Is he kidding? He was huge and had her pinned down on the bed even though he wasn’t touching her. Oops, she thought as his lips brushed hers. He’s touching me now. She tensed a little and reached up to flatten the palms of her hands on his chest. He was hot to the touch and his skin felt soft but so warm it was as though he were burning up with a fever.

  He lips were gentle as he used his mouth to open hers. She didn’t fight it but instead forced her body to relax. I hope his teeth don’t hurt my mouth. That was the last thought she had as his tongue invaded. He didn’t kiss her the way anyone else ever had and she was no lightweight in that department. She’d dated heavily in high school when kissing boys had been a nice pastime as long as they didn’t turn into octopuses—all hands and grabbing. She wasn’t that kind of girl in high school, drawing a very firm line between that and doing more with boys.

  Valiant devoured her mouth. His tongue explored every inch, rubbed erotically against hers and even swiped the roof, which tickled slightly. His lips were firm over hers, opening her mouth wider to his dominance. When he growled softly she could feel vibrations against her palms and even against her tongue. It was a shocking turn-on and her body responded instantly when she kissed him back.

  His hand fisted the bottom of her shirt, jerked it from of the waist of her slacks, and suddenly his hand brushed against her stomach. His calloused fingertips lightly explored her skin. The feeling was insanely good. She moaned into his mouth as his hand inched upward until he cupped her breast.

  He wasn’t gentle about that either. His hand was firm as he squeezed her sensitive breast and even through the thin material of her bra, she could feel the rough texture of his hand across her nipple. It reacted instantly, tightening, and the tip grew taut. Tammy heard someone moan loudly, only to realize the sound came from her again.

  The mouth on hers tore away and left Tammy breathing hard. Her eyes flew open to watch Valiant stare down at her, an intense expression on his handsome but strange features. His hand still gripped her right breast and he rubbed his calloused thumb across her nipple. Her breast seemed to grow heavy and her nipple became so stiff she wondered if it could actually break. Tammy arched her chest against his hand, not meaning to, but she did. She could feel heat pooling between her thighs and her stomach quivered. She was turned on big-time and her body began to throb.

  He inched his body lower over hers. “Just a taste,” he growled.

  It was a soft but deep tone that made his chest rumble again, vibrating against her hands. He jerked her shirt up higher until it was pushed over the top of her breasts to expose her bra completely. He stared at it before his hand released her breast. His finger slid under the center of her bra in a light caress until there was a tug.

  She looked down to realize he’d somehow sliced open her bra in the front with one of his fingernails. The material was pushed away from her breasts, baring them to his view. Both nipples were hard peaks, her skin sensitive, and she didn’t feel embarrassed. She knew she should try to cover them but she didn’t.

  “Beautiful and you have so much for someone so small,” he softly growled right before his head lowered. “I bet if I lick them, they’ll taste as good as they look.”

  Tammy closed her eyes when his breath fanned across her breast. He opened his mouth and swiped her nipple with his tongue. She made a surprised sound because the texture of it was soft but rough at the same time, the feeling unique, but it sent more heat flooding between her legs. Her arousal level shot up to nearly unbearable. She gasped when his mouth closed over her breast.

  His raspy tongue moved, sliding quickly back and forth across her taut nipple. She moaned, arching her breast into his mouth. She could imagine instantly what that tongue could do if he used it on other places of her body. His teeth gently raked across her skin above and below her nipple and in response, her fingers dug into his skin where she clung to him.

  She knew she should push him away but didn’t. She curled her fingers around the tops of his shoulders instead, encouraging him. He growled again, vibrated against her, and another moan broke from her lips. The guy reminded her of a big vibrator on her breast and the way his tongue slid across her nipple was intensely pleasurable. She gasped when he swirled it around her nipple and then he was sucking on her. Her stomach clenched hard and the ache between her thighs started to scream with need.

  His hand on her stomach slid down and there was a jerk at her waist. She couldn’t really think about that though. Concentrating on anything other than what he was doing was too difficult as Valiant played her breast. She barely registered the fact that something pulled on her slacks until he released her breast. Her eyes flew open again.

  “Lift your hips.”

  My hips? She stared at him, confused. “What?”

  He smiled. His mouth lowered and captured her other breast. A moan tore from her throat. He didn’t tease her breast, he sucked it into his mouth, using his tongue and teeth against her. The ability to think fled as he increased the suction and the sharp tugs on her breast made her clit throb as if they were connected. One of his hands slid under her back as she arched off the bed to press tighter against his mouth. His hand lowered, cupped her ass and squeezed.

  That’s when she realized his hand held bare skin. Her eyes flew open as she tried to shove him away. His mouth released her breast and their gazes met. She twisted, trying to see around his body and realized that he’d somehow gotten her pants open and down her thighs where they were bunched at her knees. Her panties were down there too, tangled up with her slacks. Tammy gaped at him.

  “I didn’t even realize. How did you get my pants down without me knowing?”

  He chuckled. “That’s all you have to say?”

  Valiant tried hard to keep control of his desire. He wanted her so bad it had become a physical pain. She’d probably scream if he removed his pants, considering she seemed worried about the size of his cock. Their size difference could be an issue but women were designed to stretch for birthing. He could make it work if he were careful, gentle, and took it slow enough for her to adjust to him.

  She’s human. He clenched his teeth but finally relaxed. It didn’t matter that he’d never believed he’d be attracted to a human or that he’d thought other males of his kind were idiots to want them, because it all boiled down to the truth. He wanted and needed this one.

  He inhaled her wonderful, sexy scent, and fought back a snarl. She had admitted the sound frightened her. Species women would know he did it because he was aroused but Tammy wasn’t one of his kind. She wouldn’t be turned on if he didn’t restrain his animal instincts. It had been tough to do, but for her, he’d fought hard to remain in control.

  He had to take some deep breaths to calm. He resisted the urge to just tear her clothes from her body, shove her legs apart, and bury his face between those soft, sensual, pale thighs of hers. The scent of her arousal made him long to bury his tongue deep into the source. He fought to think but it was difficult as an image of how it would feel to taste her desire, to know the warm depths of her sweet pussy, and how she would make more of those soft moans if he fucked her with his mouth.

  His dick hardened until he wondered if the material of his jeans would actually split apart and it would break free of
the confinement. His shaft had swollen to a painful size from just thinking about where his tongue wanted to go—inside her. Fear cooled his blood though. She wasn’t Species. He couldn’t just make her climax, flip her over, lift her ass up into the air and pound into her until he came. He’d hurt her.

  Valiant stared into her beautiful eyes. The blue of them reminded him of the ocean. He’d never seen it personally but he’d watched plenty of DVDs featuring Hawaii. It was just one of the places he’d seen on his television that he’d never be allowed to visit.

  First he’d been sealed inside concrete prisons, then later in the hot, miserable desert in a horrible motel with nothing around but flat miles of emptiness. Reservation had been bought to provide a better, permanent location for Species and now he had trees, blue sky, and a home. His. Something that belonged to him.

  She blinked and took a deep breath, her breasts lifted as she inhaled, and he realized there was something else he wanted to belong to him—her. He could happily stare into those eyes every day. To have her spread out naked on his bed would be a joy. The scent of her was something he could easily grow addicted to. Everything about her drew him, mesmerized him, and he wasn’t about to allow it or her to slip through his fingers.

  He would just need to get her addicted to him and convince her she belonged in his life. He’d wanted a mate but he’d imagined she’d be Species. He mentally shrugged that fantasy away. None of them had affected him the way the small human under him did. He’d been denied a lot in his lifetime but he would have her.

  Mine! All mine. I’m not giving her up. Never.

  Chapter Three

  “Get off me.”

  Valiant shook his head. “Kick the pants away and open your thighs for me. I want to touch you.”

  Panic gripped Tammy. The guy had practically managed to strip her and she hadn’t even realized what he’d done. She’d wanted to kiss him, she’d admit that, but now her pants and panties were around her knees, her body mostly exposed and she had to call a halt. She couldn’t have sex with a stranger and especially not one as scary as Valiant.