The Vixen Files Read online

  The corner of his mouth tipped up. His dimple peeked out for a second. "I want what all men want from a beautiful woman." He slid one long thigh across my waist. The caress of his slacks over my skin left me shivering in anticipation. "First I want your body." He cupped my breasts, one in each hand. His thumbs began slow circles around my nipples, tightening them into sharp aroused beads. "After I own your body, I will claim your trust."

  I fought to focus on his words. "Trust is a heavy burden. You may be strong enough to bear it, but you do have a history of selling people's trust." I gasped as he moved back and to the side so that one thigh was between mine. Then he leaned forward, blowing over one nipple. His hands never stilled their slow seduction. Already, heat pooled through my veins. How long would I be able to keep him talking when all I wanted was to rush forward? "Give me a reason to trust you."

  He sucked my nipple into his hot mouth. The gentle assault sent tugs of desire straight to my womb. Slowly he released his prize and raised his gaze to meet mine. "I have loyalty, even if you haven't seen evidence of it."

  But it was evidence I wanted. "I know all about you, where you've been and what you've done."

  His head dipped down to my other breast. Licking and worrying the hard nub until I arched against him.

  Panting, I struggled to talk. "What I don't know is why you do it."

  His fingertips brushed over the trim patch above my sex.

  "Why do you sell secrets?" The tail of my question was lost in a whisper.

  Lower, his fingers danced lightly around my most feminine flesh. "Mmmm...smooth. I like that." His fingers stroked through my folds, back and forth. Each movement dipped in deeper, but only by increments too small to measure. The slow glide was easy, sensual and complete torture.

  I was hot and wet and more than ready. After dreaming of him for more than a week, I wasn't in the mood for waiting. Unfortunately, there was a certain order of things that could not be changed. The only control I had was a slim chance of speeding up this game and reaching the end before we had killers knocking at the door. "James Smith. You demand my name but haven't yet given your real name either."

  "Tanner." The low word blew over my breast. Then he nibbled his way up my neck to my ear where he bit down gently. Damn, he was good with his teeth. He nipped along the edge and then sucked my lobe, flicking the diamond stud lightly with his tongue. Not just teeth. His whole mouth was skilled.

  And he'd told me his name. I breathed in his sexy scent and tasted it, testing it for possible lies. Emotions had scents and lies could usually be discovered in the air. "Tanner?" It felt true.

  "My name, James Tanner." His fingers dipped deeper as if to drag at least some of my attention south of my navel. "If you believe in fair play, you'll tell me your name now."

  I did believe in fair play. "Maelissian." Although no one ever called me by that lengthy name. To friends and family I was Mae or Mother, and to the agency I was Agent Vixandra.

  "Lovely..." His lips brushed my cheek and landed over my mouth. This was no tentative brush. Tanner, my mate, James Tanner, devoured me. He invaded my mouth and we battled tongue to tongue. But in the end it was his victory. He abandoned my pussy and sank his hands into my hair, holding, dominating, owning me.

  And I loved it. Never had I met my match with a lover. Finally one who took and shared, but never asked. For me he was the perfect Alpha. Strong enough to not just lead me, but my whole clan.

  My legs clenched, tightening around his thigh. The crisp fabric covering his leg set fire to my sex. I rolled my hips up, using the rope bindings as anchors. I needed him. Even while his mouth and mine were joined I needed more, wanted more, had to have everything.

  He slowed and pulled back without it seeming a retreat. "Easy, Maelissian. We have all night."

  "About that..." His warm palm covered my mouth, stilling my words. But this was too important to be put off. I bit into his hand, tasting the slight callus caused by a gun handle. The tang of my own sex dissolved on my tongue.

  James only chuckled and lifted his hand.

  "Your life is in danger. There is a hit squad on its way to eliminate you."

  His laugh deepened. "There always is, darling. There always is." He cupped my face and kissed me again. "But tonight I won't be rushed. With so much pleasure to taste and so many deceptions to uncover, the killers will just have to wait."

  When I opened my mouth to object he dove forward and stopped the words with another soul blistering kiss.

  Minutes passed before he broke away with a very satisfied grin. "My dear Maelissian, I intend to interrogate you until you can't take any more. We have miles to go before we sleep, or in this case before we deal with a wandering hit squad."

  Chapter 3

  * * *

  Despite the danger, I couldn't disagree with my mate's excellent intentions. A full night of sexual interrogation sounded damn appealing. "I know, and normally I wouldn't rush something so very enjoyable, but..."

  He jerked his thigh tighter flush against my sex. "Is there anything about this that screams of normal for you?" His eyebrow lifted in elegant inquiry.

  "Not much, no." I pushed down, rubbing my pussy over his thigh. Pleasure rocketed through my body, wringing a shallow gasp from me.

  "Tell me, my lovely Maelissian, what will it take for you to give up all your secrets?" He grabbed my hips holding me still until I was ready to scream with frustration, but forced to focus.

  What would it take? It would take trust, but that wasn't my answer. "Torture... it will take torture, if you're man enough to give it." I bucked against him, using a touch of my real strength. I had been an alpha wolf long enough to rebel against his dominance even while my human side loved it.

  He growled, a low and satisfied sound. "Delicious." He dragged my hips up, using his thigh to caress me in a long hard sweep. Then he repeated the motion again and again. The corded muscles of his thigh bunched and I panted with the waves of blunted sensation. So very good and yet nowhere near enough.

  Just when I was near to begging, he jerked back. Cool air rushed in, hitting my sex, leaving me hissing. His mouth dipped to take mine, but he kissed nothing but air. His breath teased and tantalized me until I was breathing him in, desperate for contact. But he refused, instead moving down my body. He licked over the hard tip of one nipple while cupping and molding the other breast in his hand.

  I arched against him. "Suck me," I demanded, but he only licked at my flesh in ever widening circles.

  When he reached the center of my chest, he switched to my other breast and still he only licked. The controlled methodical seduction had to make him as crazy as it did me, but the man seemed to have patience beyond known limits.

  The damp trails tingled in the cool air, tightening my nipples to the point of pain. "Damn it, Tanner."

  He was relentless. Leaving my breasts, he moved south with that devastating tongue, dipping into my navel and dancing over my hips. He tasted me everywhere but where I wanted most. Couldn't he see how slick and ready I was? Didn't he want to find pleasure together?

  But I already knew the truth. There would be much more to this game before we would come together for intercourse. For the first time in a long time, I hated my ability to see the future without changing it. Then again, if I could change it, would I? I had no answers. I knew he would torment me until I wept with the need for release, but the path through that torture would be so very sweet.

  Then, like the wind, James was gone. He rolled from the bed and in a smooth motion flipped off two of the three lights in the room. The only remaining one shone down from above, flooding over the bed like a spotlight, while leaving the rest of the room in dark shadow.

  I craned my neck to better see where he'd gone, but there was no way to tell. Far as I knew, he'd left me alone.

  "Lie still." His voice rumbled out of the darkness.

  Although my eyesight was good in the dark, I still couldn't identify his form in the black on black shadows.
I breathed in, sorting through the many scents until I found his. The special tang of aroused male mixed with his own subtle masculine pine flavor. Good to know he was as turned on as I was.

  "I said, lie still." This time the rumble was lower and twisted with pleasure. The tang of sex deepened.

  What was he doing?

  I heard the rustle of cloth. Was he undressing? I imagined him removing each piece of clothing. His breath increased, the rasp of air coming evenly. In my premonition he'd taunted me with images of him masturbating in the shadows. Now I paired those fantasy images to what my other senses told me.

  There was a chair across the room. He would slouch in it and watch me while stroking the length of his cock. His breath stayed even...patiently enjoying his pleasure. James wouldn't rush such things. Everything for him was a game of time. Each stroke from tip to base would be calculated.

  I could almost taste his arousal. I licked the scent off my lips and was rewarded by his indrawn gasp. Two could play this game. Arching my back I pushed my breasts up like a sacrifice. If only he'd return he could have them, taste them. The pulse of my banked need built again. A low throb pounded at my pussy. All I could do was press my thighs together.

  My mate responded, his breath coming in ever faster gasps. And when I slowly flexed my hips in that same building crescendo, he growled. I swore I could feel his heartbeat pounding through me. The space between us lost its meaning. Even from across the room, we were together for every stroke. The knowledge tore away the human side of me. As the ache of desperation spiked I whimpered, cried out.

  His panting breath broke rhythm. "Maelissian." It was my name that rumbled across his lips when he found release. The heavy scent of pleasure permeated the room.

  My body responded, tightening my womb and demanding to reach the same satisfaction. "Damn you, James."

  "Quiet, dear Maelissian. You shouldn't curse the only man who can give you what you need." His voice moved across the room to the small dresser. My guess was confirmed with the shush of a sliding drawer. Seconds passed, but he stayed outside of the light. "Arch your back for me, Maelissian."

  I obeyed, pushing my ass into the mattress. My breasts were swollen and the nipples so tight they ached.

  "You look delicious when bound, love. Nod your head if you are enjoying these restraints, too."

  "I like it."

  "And do you like being punished?" He came forward, stepping into the pooling light. He was once more dressed in his slacks and now had a familiar looking crop. "You were told to be quiet and yet, you disobeyed." In a heartbeat he was on the bed and sitting astride me, pinning me down.

  Instinctively, I wanted to struggle, but I bit back the urge.

  James leaned forward and kissed me deeply, but the contact was hard and fast, a passionate reminder of who was in charge. "I'm going to turn you over, so that you may be punished. Nod if you understand."

  A thrill rushed through me. I nodded and waited for his next move.

  My hand was untied and retied, before I did more than register his movement. James pulled my ruined suit from under me and then moved to the bindings on my ankles. Again his movements were unbelievably fast and smooth. In seconds I was tied diagonally across the bed. Only then did he reclaim the crop from the edge where he'd tossed it.

  He rolled me over slowly, taking the time to cup my breasts and then fan his hands over my ass. His fingers danced over my skin, petting down my back and following my spine down to glide between my cheeks. Then back up and around, so slow and decadent.

  The crop snapped against my ass and I yelped in surprise. The sting spread outward, radiating heat up my back and down to my pussy. The crop fell again and another wave of sensation flooded my body, leaving me writhing against my bindings.

  James parted my thighs, dragging one knee wider. When my motion closed the gap again, he stopped me. "Don't. I want access to you." Yet he didn't take advantage of what he claimed to want.

  The cool air bit at my heat until I could feel nothing but the pulse of my arousal.

  James tossed the crop into the shadows. His hands came down on my shoulders, parting my mass of hair and pulling it through his fingers. "I love your hair." His words blew past my ear. He breathed in a fistful of the tangled length.

  Did he know how very wolf-like his behavior was? The dominant posture and the scenting and pinning. It all left me quaking inside, trembling with a need greater than any sexual desire. He was my mate. We would have eternity to learn how to please each other, but he was making a damn good start of it.

  His fingers tightened in my hair, pulling my head back until I whimpered. His other hand found my ass and slid between my thighs. He didn't plunge in, but caressed me, stroking, petting until I bucked with desperation. "Please," I begged.

  Abruptly his hand came away and slapped my ass hard.

  I jerked forward under the assault only to be brought up by his hand on my hair.

  "You will not speak unless it is to divulge who you are and who owns your loyalty." His hand fell again with a crack of skin against skin, but this time it stayed to stroke over my tingling flesh. "Maelissian, you're an addiction, wrapped in enigma. But know this, love, I will steal your secrets before your release."

  I bit down to keep from spilling every secret I ever held. James was my mate and nothing would change that. Whatever his reasons, he would soon have my trust, and all I wanted now was satisfaction and the freedom to claim him as mine.

  But that time had not yet come.

  I arched against him, silently pleading with my body for what he wouldn't allow me to ask for.

  His body relaxed against mine. He wound his arms under me to pet at the curved sides of my breasts. Our bodies lay flush together. His ridged erection pressed in the line of my ass cheeks. He rolled his body, rubbing against mine. The delicious pressure and rough abrasion of his bare chest and slacks against my skin left me whimpering.

  With a growl of frustration he rolled away. Then he was back again, this time as naked as I was. Forcing my knees slightly wider apart, he caressed my heated flesh, dipping between my slick folds.

  I was ready for him. Wordlessly I pushed my ass up, begging for what I needed so bad.

  His thick erection pushed between the apex of my thighs, the hot length sliding against my sex. I tilted into the movement, hoping the new angle would allow penetration. I ached to the core of my being to have him sink into me, to join us in that most primitive way.

  But the devil had other ideas. He pumped slowly, mock-fucking me. The sensual cruelty of that contact would drive me insane. Over and over, he drove forward and back, every plunge ending with the head of his cock sliding over my entrance and butting erotically against my clit.

  I wrapped my fingers around the silken cords that bound me. I needed the anchor to keep from screaming in frustration, to keep from tearing free and demanding he give up the sex he teased me with so dangerously.

  His breath blew on my shoulder. Then his teeth latched onto my flesh and I broke.

  "Fuck me, James!" I screamed. To hell with the consequences. His actions were that of a male claiming his mate, and the wolf inside me demanded I meet the challenge and force him to fight for the right he was taking.

  "Maelissian, you need to be punished." He turned me over to face him. His eyes were ablaze with desire as bright as my own. In moments he retied me to the four corner posts, stretched out facing the ceiling once more. And then he was gone, back into the dark.

  Long moments passed. I couldn't hear any sign of where he was or what he was doing. Was this to be my punishment? Was he going to leave me panting and overheated, tied to a bed alone and without relief?

  The tick of a clock marked the passing minutes. Otherwise, silence reigned. The clock also reminded me that we were on a schedule whether we wanted to be or not. How much time had we played already? How much longer until the assassins arrived? Surely James didn't think he was safe here. Nothing about his location was secret, and from all
I'd seen between the entrance and the bed, nothing was secure either.

  Just as I was about to call out to him, James returned, standing just at the edge of the light. The image was sexy as hell and very familiar. This was the beginning of my premonition and I couldn't hold back my sigh of relief. Not only would we soon be able to move past the trust issues, but soon he'd actually let me come and then fuck me like I'd been dreaming about for what felt like forever.

  Still...I had a role to play. "Let me up." The words I'd spoken in the premonition, the actions I'd taken, spun through my mind. All I had to do was follow that path and soon enough we would both reach our goals.

  Although I couldn't see James' face, I felt his gaze drift down my body, lingering over my breasts, before moving lower. When he reached my pussy, I parted my thighs in invitation.

  Something snapped, a crop in his hand. Need ignited at the sound. My pulse kicked up a notch, thundering blood through my veins.

  "Please..."

  The crop darted out and came down on the inside of my thigh with a stinging snap. I gasped, sucking in raw air. Again the crop snapped downward, this time against my opposite thigh. The strikes landed inches from my pussy, stinging like a bitch but bringing my body to life as well. So close and yet so damn far...

  The deep ache of desire flooded outward and danced with the sharp pain until I tingled everywhere.

  "You have been warned. Not one word until you're ready to tell me what I want to know." His voice rumbled through me. Then he stepped fully into the light. His fingertips traced the red marks on my thighs, then trailed upward, brushing over my sex.

  I fought back all my natural responses. This game demanded I lie with my body and trick him into giving up his teasing ways. When his hand did no more than pet over me, offering no relief, I glared and he smiled back mockingly.

  But he did relent to a degree. His fingers deepened their stroking movements and dipped between my folds to the slick heat of my center. The sweet shallow caresses repeated over and over, pushing my arousal higher than ever before. It was all I could do to keep from bucking against his ministrations and screaming out my demands. Instead I held his gaze and locked my body in place, controlling all but the smallest of motions.