Children of the Moon: Book Six Read online

  He wasn’t even her type! He may look like his brother, Garrett, but he had a troubled vibe rolling off him that was as natural as his breathing and Summer didn’t need any hookups with gorgeous shifters that needed fixing, in fact, Summer didn’t need any hookups period. Still, it pissed her off that he looked offended by their spark of attraction and she wanted a little payback. Who did he think he was!

  She flat ironed her hair to keep it sleek and glossy and reached for her makeup bag. She rarely wore any but she wanted to make the best of what the goddess had given her and applied a little eyeshadow and mascara to highlight her unusual eyes. A little lip gloss and she looked satisfied with the results.

  She discarded the pants she was going to wear tonight and instead reached into her closet for white cotton cropped blouse and an above-knee denim skirt that fitted her like a second skin. White stitched cowboy boots that showed off her endless legs completed her look but didn’t look as if she was trying too hard. She turned in front of the mirror and had a moment of self-doubt before she snatched up her purse and car keys, damned if she would look less than her best just to appease Connor Adair.

  Going by the cars already parked in the courtyard it looked as if everyone else had arrived and she slipped in the front door and straight through to the kitchen where the delicious smell was coming from and knew that’s where her friends would have gathered.

  “Summer, you look gorgeous,” Hope kissed her cheek and India raised an eyebrow.

  “You look too adorable for dinner at The Den. Could this be for a certain Mr. Adair?”

  “Who?” Summer said.

  “Leave her alone, India.” Imogen smiled and ushered her inside. “Dinner won’t be too long, help yourself to a drink.”

  Summer took a beer from the fridge and popped the top. She was wondering whether or not to go into the other room when the door opened and Connor came into the kitchen. He stopped short as his eyes raked over her and he had the good grace to flush before he went to the refrigerator and took out a can of coke. She thought he was going to ignore her but he came straight toward her and her heart jolted as she breathed in his delectable scent.

  “Summer, you look amazing,” he said quietly and she smiled despite her annoyance at him. What girl didn’t like to hear that?

  If a man could be both dangerous and beautiful looking, then that just about summed up Connor Adair. He was wearing snug faded jeans and a white open neck shirt and he had shaved the stubble from his face and tamed back his shoulder-length hair.

  Summer felt something stir inside that she hadn’t felt in years but she shouldn’t give in to her attraction to him because she would become nothing more than another notch on Connor Adair’s bedpost. He wasn’t exactly the relationship type and she wasn’t sure why that bothered her so much, because neither was she.

  She realized he was talking and shook her head to focus on him.

  “Let’s take a seat, shall we?” he looked amused as he took her arm and he sat beside her on the far side of the table. She guessed he knew where her thoughts had been wandering to, down in the gutter right alongside his.

  Would it be so terrible if they had a fling? It would be flaming hot and exciting for sure and Summers’ mouth went dry as she imagined Connor tangled up in the sheets on her bed. She squirmed in her seat and avoided looking across the table at her brother as he watched them both closely during the meal. Lukas was a tad overprotective but she wasn’t a kid anymore and it would be extremely hypocritical of him to frown upon something that he himself had indulged in many times before he met Hope.

  Imogen’s roast beef with all the trimmings was delicious but Summer had to force herself to eat. She forked a little of the tender meat into her mouth aware that Connor was watching and felt like a kid as she concentrated on not dripping gravy down the front of her blouse. She wanted to get this evening over with so badly and go home so that she could clear her thoughts. She needed to figure out if she was strong enough to survive a tumble in the hay with Connor Adair and live to tell the tale.

  She suppressed a gasp as she felt his hand rest gently on her leg and felt sure there would be a branding mark left by its heat. She covered his hand with hers and removed it without making eye contact and wondered if he knew he was skirting the boundaries of consent.

  She was relieved when the meal was over and Roisin and India chased everyone into the huge living room with their coffee while they cleared up. She settled on one of the overstuffed armchairs by the window so that there would be no room for Connor to sit beside her and put her coffee cup on the small table.

  The room was enormous, apparently twice the size of the one in the compound but it would come in useful. As the pack Den, there were always a slew of people around and guests staying with them and she wondered if Imogen ever minded. The pale wood floors and light airy colors of the furniture and paint were fresh and new and the large fireplace added some warmth. It was a gorgeous house and too big for a normal-sized family but she had a feeling there would be many more little Donovan’s over the years to fill the space.

  She sipped her coffee while they waited on everyone joining them and Connor came into the room and his eyes sought hers. She ignored him and concentrated on something Bree and Lukas were saying about integrating the two new kids Lukas had brought to the farm into the high school at the start of term.

  “The teenagers have included them in their runs and sports and I think the sooner they have a little structure to their day, the better off they will be. Joshua is a little shy and I think he will be the easier of the two but Jeremy is still very angry and he is still a work in progress,” her brother said.

  “They are both smart kids though and I want to get them into classes as soon as possible with everyone else. No one wants to be different.” Bree added and Summer thought she looked a little comical with her huge belly on her slight frame.

  “Summer, would you mind holding him for just a moment?” Imogen handed the baby to her and she snuggled little Cian into her arms, fascinated by his tiny rosebud lips and startling blue eyes. He stared at her for a moment and then closed his eyes with a sigh and grabbed a handful of her hair like a security blanket while he drifted off to sleep. She loved his clean baby smell and when Everly climbed onto the chair too, she smiled as the little girl snuggled into her other side. Kali was playing with her little brother on the floor, building plastic blocks and watching him knock them over and little Addison was in her father’s arms watching everyone with fascination.

  A little bout of envy crept over her. She had always wanted to have children; she just wasn’t so keen on the relationship that usually came before babies. She had been burnt in the past and had sworn off relationships and then her kidnapping at Rob Danvers hands had made her mistrust of men even stronger. She knew that there were good men out there, her brother for one and every man in this room seemed to be devoted and wholly committed to their mates. She just didn’t think that it was meant for her. The intensity of a wolf’s relationship scared the hell out of her if she was honest.

  She looked up to find Connor watching her with those unnerving green eyes and when Roisin and Anjelica took all the kids to the playroom, he came and sat on the arm of her chair and she could feel the heat from his body pressed against her arm. He put a hand on her bare shoulder and leaned down to whisper in her ear.

  “Can we talk when this is over?”

  A bolt of pure desire shot through her body and straight to her overheated core and she opened her mouth to refuse him. She couldn’t make her lips form the words and instead found herself nodding her assent.

  Her skin was on fire and she felt the light trail of his fingers over her bare arm and she forced herself to concentrate on what her brother was saying as he and Hope took the floor. This wolf didn’t play very fair and she knew that if they were alone right now she would be helpless to resist his magnetic pull.

  “As you now know, Lukas and I found out we were going to be parents on the s
ame day that Bree and Nate discovered they were having twins. What you don’t know but could probably guess from my size is that we are also having more than one baby, three to be exact.” Hope was grinning from ear to ear.

  Summer stared at her in shock. Twins were bad enough but holy cow, Hope was tiny and she had three babies growing inside her.

  “Bree and Nate's babies should put in an appearance in a couple of weeks and ours will be another few weeks after that.”

  “Do you know their sex?” India wanted to know.

  “We are having two boys and a little girl.” Lukas added and Summer felt herself blinking back tears of joy.

  She was so happy for them and stood up to hug her brother and Hope. There would be five new babies to love and nurture in less than a month and Summer felt that tug of need again as she thought of holding her own child in her arms.

  She sat back down on the chair again as Seann and Imogen passed out drinks and she felt Connor’s arm slip around her waist.

  She looked at him pointedly but he kept it firmly where it was and grinned. She didn’t want to create a scene but he really was the limit. Was that why her heart was hammering in her chest like a snare drum.

  “You like the feel of my hands on you as much as I do, sweetheart. You just need to be a little more honest with yourself.” he lowered his voice.

  “Did anyone ever tell you that you have an extremely large ego, Mr. Adair.” she grinned causing Garrett’s head to snap up and look their way.

  “Constantly, I know what I want and I go after it.”

  Summer saw that Lukas too had turned to watch them and she stood up and smoothed out the imaginary creases on her skirt.

  “I’m going to go home before everyone in the room knows our business. If you want to talk to me further then I suggest you come with me, but let’s be crystal clear, it’s not an invitation into my bed.”

  “Not yet.” he smiled and she wanted to reach out and touch the honest to goodness dimples on his cheeks. Her face flushed and she turned away from him to gather her wits.

  She quickly said her goodbyes to everyone and hugged Hope before she walked out to her car, knowing that Connor had slipped out unnoticed and was just a few steps behind her. She expected him to get in her car but he got in the driver's seat of his truck to follow her home and she wondered why on earth she was encouraging him like this. She was aware that shifters had a different attitude to sex and that no one would bat an eye if she hooked up with Connor, but she knew he could be trouble with a capital T.

  The short drive seemed to take forever and she finally pulled up in front of her cabin, his truck pulled in behind her and she went inside, leaving him to follow on his own.

  He looked a little too big for her small living room and the thought popped into her head that he would probably be too big for her bed too. She dropped her purse on the chair and went into the little kitchen to put on some more coffee.

  “This much coffee will probably keep me up all night,” she said as she spooned grounds into the filter and turned on the pot.

  Her hand shook a little, spilling some on the white countertop and she mentally chastised herself. She wasn’t a naive kid but this wolf unnerved more than she cared to admit.

  “I can think of a much better way to keep you up all night,” he said coming up behind her and snaking his arms around her waist to kiss her neck.

  She wanted to close her eyes and just give in to whatever it was that he was offering, it had been so long since she felt the comfort of a man's arms around her in the middle of the night.

  “You really don’t have any concept of boundaries, do you?” she turned in his arms until she was facing him but her words had lost their bite.

  “Let’s not play games, sweetheart. I have never coerced a woman into my bed and I am not about to start now. I want you naked and willing in my arms and the scent of your arousal tells me that you want me just as much as I want you.”

  “I have never met anyone like you, Connor Adair. You excite me and I do want to walk down the corridor to my bedroom and take you with me but I have never been a one-night stand kind of girl.”

  “Oh, I think it will take many, many nights to satisfy my need for you, Summer Blackwood. We are only just getting started.”

  He bent his head to kiss her and her fingers tangled in his thick hair as she pulled his head toward her. His lips were soft and full and Summer couldn’t get close enough to satisfy her need for him. His tongue invaded her mouth and she groaned as his arms came around her and a blast of heat filled her belly as she felt the full force of his arousal against her.

  “Connor,” she gasped.

  He lifted her and sat her on the edge of the counter and she opened her legs to allow him to get closer to her. He lifted the hem of her blouse and pulled it over her head and bent his lips to her breasts as his hands slipped under her short skirt to caress her thighs. Even through the lace of her bra, he was driving her crazy and she knew if he stayed the night she would find a new awareness of her own body at his touch.

  “Tell me what you want, sweetheart.” he lifted his face to hers and his gorgeous eyes were glowing with desire.

  “You, I want you, Connor.” she cried out and fisted her hands in his hair as he touched her through her panties.

  She was going to explode right here and now if he touched her like that again.

  “Which way?” he lifted her as if she weighed nothing and she wrapped her long legs around him.

  “End of the corridor.” she ground out as his hard length pressed against her and she rubbed her body against him looking for some relief from the inferno building inside her.

  Connor put her on her feet and stripped off his clothes and she couldn’t help but admire his impressive body. He was all lean muscle and rock-hard abs. She kicked off her boots and unbuttoned her skirt and let it fall to the floor. She faced him as she wriggled out of her panties and unclipped her bra and felt bolder by the second at the lust in his eyes.

  “You are more beautiful than I even imagined you would be.”

  He pulled her toward him and they landed on the bed in a tangle of arms and legs. He kissed and stroked every inch of her body as the last of her inhibitions deserted her and when he buried his face between her open legs she threw back her head and cried out as he brought her to a shattering orgasm with nothing but his skillful tongue.

  He turned her onto her stomach before she even had time to recover and he pulled her hips against him as he entered her swiftly from behind. It was unexpected and erotic and when he filled her completely her orgasm began to swiftly build again until she was begging him to thrust harder and harder as she gripped the headboard tightly for some purchase.

  When he cried out with his release, she went over the edge again and knew she would never be satisfied with another lover as long as she lived. He was sensual and sinful and everything she had ever secretly craved in a lover.

  She was in deep shit.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Connor

  He lay perfectly still watching her chest rise and fall as she slept and couldn’t quite believe what had happened last night. He wanted her from the moment she turned her beautiful violet eyes on him in the courtyard, but he never expected to still be here in her bed this morning. His wolf was craving her desperately and he almost reached out for her again before reminding himself that she was much more fragile than a shifter.

  He admitted to being a ‘love them and piss off before breakfast’ kind of guy, but he didn’t want to leave her last night and she hadn’t complained when he stayed. She slept contentedly in his arms after their marathon session and he could still go another few rounds with her yet. He’d had many human lovers so was also acutely aware of how stiff and sore she would likely be this morning but she had kept pace with him and he was more than a little impressed by her stamina.

  He slipped quietly out of bed and closed the bathroom door behind him. He turned on the taps to fill the tub with hot
water and added some pink floral-smelling crystals he found on the side of the bath while he took a quick shower. A soak in the bath while he made her breakfast would help soothe her aching limbs.

  He wanted so much more from her than one glorious night, but he wasn’t about to start promising hearts and flowers either. He had always vowed he would never be tied down in a loveless union like his parents, yet he wasn’t eager to hand his heart to anyone either. Both were certain to bring their share of pain and he had managed without it for this long and was doing just fine. Connor didn’t think he would ever be like Garrett and India or all of the other mated couples in the pack and for the first time in his life that thought made him a little uneasy.

  Once, a very long time ago when he was just a pup he thought that he had found the girl of his dreams and his head was full of all the wonderful things that they could be together. She was a shifter so his father couldn’t complain too much about their union and she seemed to be as smitten with him as he was with her. He found out the hard way what a deceitful little liar she had been and how many of his friends she was sleeping with while still pledging her undying love for him.

  He was only grateful that he had never bitten her and it had never occurred to him before why he hadn’t felt the urge to either, his wolf clearly had better instincts than he did. It was the first time that his heart had ever been broken and Connor Adair vowed that it would be the last. No woman was ever going to hold that much power over him ever again.

  He went back into the bedroom and found Summer awake and he leaned over and kissed her gently on the mouth. He was sorely tempted to climb back into bed with her but knowing he was behaving in a way contrary to what he needed and wanted from her, he backed off and walked to the door instead.

  “I’ll make us some breakfast,” he said with a smile. “The tub is filled with hot scented water, you may be a little stiff and sore this morning and it will help soothe your muscles.”