Hounded Read online

  He parked the bike on the edge of the drive, and took off his helmet.

  The house was small and sweet. Those jangling wind chimes would get on his nerves, but it was just like Dulcie to enjoy their sweet sound, and she didn’t have canine ears to be offended.

  The porch looked like a good place to take a nap on a hot day. There was even a ceiling fan to provide a breeze.

  He approved heartily of her house choice and found himself relieved that he hadn’t arrived at another mansion.

  Dulcie’s car was parked close to the house. As he walked past he could see that she had left the doors unlocked. That was careless. But this wasn’t really the kind of neighborhood he was used to.

  Van jogged up the stairs to the porch and tapped lightly on the front door.

  No answer.

  He slipped out his phone again.

  No reply to his earlier text.

  For the heck of it, he twisted the door knob.

  To his shock, the door opened. How could she not lock her house?

  He hesitated a moment in the doorway

  Fuck it.

  He was going in. If she got mad, so be it, but he was worried about her.

  The front door opened with a light squeal and his nose instantly filled with the intoxicatingly sweet scent of Dulcie.

  He stepped into a tiny center hall. To the left, he could see the dining room with a turquoise painted table and benches and red and orange fall table cloth. Some sort of uneven crystal chandelier hung over it all.

  To the right, the living room spanned the whole depth of the house. There was a fireplace, and six large windows.

  And Dulcie.

  She was asleep on an old pumpkin colored velvet chair, her legs draped over one arm, book open in her lap.

  He let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. She was safe.

  And she was lovely, even in sleep.

  Her face was relaxed, dark lashes kissed her cheeks. Her mouth was open just enough that he could imagine slipping his tongue inside.

  He wanted to kiss her awake.

  At the same time, he wanted to explore the whole house while she was sleeping, wander every nook and cranny to learn everything about her.

  But he knew that either choice would be an invasion, even more serious than what he had already done by getting her address and walking in.

  He settled for waking her without a kiss.

  He surveyed her from above, trying to choose an appetizer from the feast before him. Should he touch her leg, her arm, her face, her hair?

  His hand moved for the hair before his brain had fully decided. He ran his fingers through her tresses, marveling at how soft they were.

  Her eyelashes fluttered and she was awake.

  “Van?” she asked, shooting out of the chair.

  “Good morning, baby,” he said, smiling at her fluster.

  “It’s dark,” she said, looking around groggily.

  “I guess your book wasn’t as good as you thought,” he teased. “How’s it going?”

  “Okay,” she said, sleepiness giving way to something sharper. “How was work?”

  “Fine. Anna Watson needed a real work-over. Took longer than I thought. What can you do?”

  She only stared at him. Why was she acting so odd? Van chalked it up to the unexpected wake up call.

  “Wow,” he said, picking up the book she’d dropped on the floor. “Crime Solving for Hopeless Morons. Do you really have so little faith in us?”

  Dulcie snatched it from him with uncharacteristic aggression.

  “That’s mine,” she snapped. “You’re not really on this case, we were just hanging out,”

  What the hell?

  “Dulcie,” he said, confused. “I’m sorry I woke you up. I was worried. Hey, you want something to drink? We could go for a walk if you want.”

  “Why? Do you think I need a ‘real work-over’? I’m sorry,” she said, walking away. “But I can’t afford your services.”

  Jesus. Was that a reference to her weight? He couldn’t keep up with this woman.

  Van followed her through the back of the hall to the kitchen, where she rummaged around in a cupboard, making a terrible racket.

  “I’m sorry if I offended you in some way—” Van began.

  “You didn’t offend me,” she interrupted. “We are who we are. Listen, I like the idea of solving this crime, but I am not going to jump into bed with you just because we’re hanging out.”

  Her eyes flashed, and her cheeks went a vivid pink. Why the hell did she have to be so sexy and say things like “jump into bed” when he needed to use his brain to get himself out of this?

  Van closed his eyes for a moment, and then remembered the piece of advice his uncle had given him in a moment between shots of whiskey.

  “Van, you’re a good looking kid,” his uncle had said, chucking teenaged Van a little too hard on the chin. “Just keep your mouth shut, and the girls will love you.”

  That had been followed by a lot of bad advice about dealing with the police, money problems, women problems, and more.

  But the first part had stuck with him.

  Van shut his mouth and sat down on a stool at the wooden island to watch Dulcie storm around.

  She grabbed a copper kettle, filled it with water, and set it on the stove.

  Next, she pulled down two pottery mugs and slapped them on the soapstone next to the stove.

  Van was glad it was two. She might be mad, but at least it looked like he was allowed to stay.

  She grabbed sugar and honey out of a nearby cupboard, her movements less exaggerated now as she calmed herself.

  Finally, she opened a drawer and pulled out two spoons. They clattered onto the counter in a way that reminded him of her wind chimes outside.

  Her shoulders raised and lowered in a deep, cleansing breath.

  Van made a conscious attempt to relax and show her he was alert and ready to listen.

  “I’m sorry,” Dulcie said, turning to him.

  He was dying to speak, but he waited. And sure enough, she continued.

  “Your work is your business,” she said “I’m glad we’re friends. Want to talk about the case?”

  “I’m getting a sense you don’t approve of my work,” he ventured. “But I don’t really understand why. I don’t have a lot of options.”

  A horrified look appeared on her face and she turned away again.

  What the hell? She knew he was trying to save enough to open his own place. She was the one helping him look. Was she worried he wasn’t taking her advice seriously?

  “A lot of personal trainers make a good living,” he explained. “And I’m helping people, Dulcie. What’s wrong with that?”

  “I, um, heard that you might do… more than personal training,” she managed to squeak.

  Oh.

  Oh boy.

  “So, you think that when I say I was just with Anna Watson, that I was with Anna Watson? For money?”

  He tried desperately not to picture matronly Anna Watson, the extremely proper elementary school secretary, naked with a fist full of singles.

  “Van, it’s none of my business,” Dulcie began.

  “Well, I wasn’t,” he said.

  “Oh.”

  The teapot whistled and she dashed over to pour the tea. It looked like she was glad to have an excuse to stop the conversation. And Van was glad too. Though he knew the conversation wasn’t quite over. At least not his part.

  The boiling water hit the mugs in a way that reminded Van of the way his grandmother always seemed to be making endless cups of tea. Dulcie’s soft form in the warm sweater made him feel sentimental for a moment.

  When she headed his way with the tea, he could tell she had another question.

  “So, when Gil busted in and accused you of sleeping with his wife, he was just jumping to conclusions?”

  There it was.

  “No, he was right on the mark. I definitely slept with Heidi,” he a
dmitted, waiting for Dulcie to freak out.

  “That adds up, then,” she said lightly.

  “Not for money, though,” he added. “I would never do that. That’s just…gross.”

  She studied him, then her face relaxed a bit. No wonder she’d been disgusted, she’d thought he was a gigolo.

  “Are you mad at me?” he asked.

  “In your position I’d probably sleep with Heidi too. She’s hot, and she seems like a nice person,” Dulcie said as she let a waterfall of honey cascade into her tea. “I don’t like it that she’s married, but I guess that’s not your issue.”

  She shrugged and grabbed the sugar.

  Jesus. That was easy.

  Then he saw the set of her mouth. Lips thin, eyes veiled. She measured out tiny spoons of sugar into her tea, instead of heaping it in liberally.

  Jealousy.

  Unfortunately, he’d seen it a million times.

  Fortunately, there was absolutely no reason for it this time.

  “There is one issue,” he said darkly, rising from his stool. “I don’t want to sleep with Heidi anymore.”

  Dulcie turned to him. When he reached her, he put his hands on either side of the counter behind her.

  She still looked tense, but she was engaging with him.

  “I only want to sleep with you,” he whispered in her ear.

  Chapter 14

  Dulcie’s heart pounded. Van was all around her. She could feel the heat pouring off him.

  This had been all she could really think about since he’d come to the office yesterday morning.

  She looked up at him, and was arrested by his beauty. His face was angelic, but his expression was steel and fire.

  She could feel her body begin to respond before he even touched her. Her nipples tightened, her pulse raced, and an empty ache spread in her belly.

  She looked around frantically, but he had her effectively caged in his arms.

  “Dulcinea,” he said, the rasp in his voice skittering teasingly across her nerves.

  She gazed into his dark eyes.

  He brought one hand off the counter and twisted it in her hair.

  The tugging sensation and the feeling of ceding control flooded Dulcie with an ecstasy she didn’t expect.

  Before she could take it in, Van pulled her close.

  She shut her eyes in anticipation.

  But just when they were millimeters from kissing territory, Van paused.

  Dulcie’s eyes fluttered open.

  Van drew back slightly, his eyes searched hers.

  He must have seen what he wanted to see. The next thing she knew he was kissing her.

  Their kiss in the woods had been sudden and passionate. Dulcie had wondered if the element of surprise had been the reason it was so all-encompassing.

  But even now, in her own kitchen, knowing it was coming, she could never have been prepared for what he had for her.

  He brushed her lips lightly with his own, once, twice. Then nipped gently at her bottom lip.

  Dulcie sighed in surrender.

  He took her face in his warm hands and kissed her hard, devouring her mouth under his own.

  His tongue tasted so good, and the insistent way it thrust into her mouth had the rest of her body clamoring for a piece of the action.

  She fought the instinct to rock her hips against him.

  Just as she was convinced she could control her desire, he released her mouth to run a trail of kisses down her neck.

  “You’re the one for me, Dulcinea,” he whispered roughly in her ear, his five ‘o clock shadow ticking and abrading her skin. “You’re all mine.”

  Dulcie’s entire body threatened to melt from the inside out.

  “Say it, baby,” he whispered, nipping at her neck. “Say you’re mine.”

  Dulcie moaned and tried to press her aching breasts into his chest.

  “Say you’re going to moan for me, scream for me,” he teased, running a hand down her side, allowing his thumb to brush her nipple gently.

  Dulcie arched her back, too proud to beg for his touch, but unable to control herself.

  He groaned and pressed himself close. She felt his rigid length against her, like last night, and instinctively pressed herself closer.

  His breath caught.

  “Good girl, I like that,” he whispered into her hair, his hands sliding under her bottom.

  The next thing she knew, she was sitting on the island.

  And Van was mouthing her breasts through the dress. She clutched the counter top and tried not to scream when she felt his warm hands on her legs, pushing her dress slowly up her thighs.

  He lightly bit her nipple through the thin fabric just as his thumbs brushed the silk of her panties.

  Dulcie let her head fall back. There was a low sound. She realized a second later that it was her own moan.

  He continued to grasp her thighs hard and massage her with his thumbs, lightly enough to set her blood on fire with desire. Surely, he could feel the evidence of her need soaking through the silk.

  Van inhaled deeply, then groaned and stopped nuzzling her breasts to ravage her mouth again.

  Dulcie welcomed the roughness of his kiss, but in spite of his brutal assault on her mouth, he was still teasing her lightly in the place she most wanted to be pillaged.

  A heartbeat later, he pulled away and lowered himself until he was kneeling on the floor in front of her.

  Dulcie froze with anticipation.

  Van leaned forward and buried his face in her center, inhaling deeply and then exhaling hot breath against the thin fabric that stood between them.

  The sensations were overwhelming. Dulcie felt herself swelling and melting at the same time. It was hard not to beg for more contact.

  Van’s big finger slid her panties to the side.

  His tongue swirled against her.

  He moaned as he licked slowly up and down. He pressed a finger against her opening without penetrating.

  Dulcie was lost to his touch. She arched her back, wantonly thrusting herself upward to meet his tongue.

  She was close, oh so close, if only he would—

  He stopped.

  Dulcie opened her eyes, praying he didn’t think she was finished.

  His eyes were glowing amber, and he licked his chops as he leaned over her.

  “Where’s your bedroom?” he asked, his gravelly voice deep with need.

  She pointed wordlessly, hating him for stopping, loving him for wanting to make it nice.

  He carried her in, like she was a bride, and placed her on her bed.

  He began to undress quickly, talking to her all the while.

  “I’ve wanted to do this since we met.”

  His socks and shoes were off, and he lifted his shirt over his head.

  “I’ve needed to do this since then.”

  He threw the shirt on the ground with his shoes.

  Dulcie drew in a quick breath at the sight of his naked torso. He was more handsome than she had ever imagined, his rippling abs and bulging biceps only accentuating the ethereal beauty of his face.

  “Do you know how hard it has been for me to see you smile at me, and not be able to lay you down and lick every inch of you?” he asked.

  She had a pretty good idea, since she’d felt the same way.

  He slid down his jeans and boxers and stood before her like a naked god. His rigid penis jutted forward proudly. Twilight silhouetted him with a pink glow.

  He crawled onto the bed. His body covering hers.

  Dulcie wrapped her arms around his neck.

  The need was coming in waves now. Even the air touching her skin made her crazy.

  And she didn’t need to hide her true self. He was a shifter too.

  She gazed up at him.

  “Your eyes,” Van whispered in wonder.

  She smiled.

  “They’re beautiful,” he said. “What are you?”

  Dulcie shook her head and pulled him down to her.
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  He surrendered and kissed her with such passion it took her breath away.

  His cock pulsed between them. She wondered how much more he could take.

  He sat up and pulled her with him. Suddenly, her dress was over her head.

  The air of the room felt cold without his body pressed to hers. Dulcie shivered, then realized Van wasn’t moving.

  He was staring down at her, frozen.

  Oh god, she was too soft, too much for him. He was used to the kind of women who spent hours each day trying to make their bodies more like his.

  Devastated, she rolled over on her side and curled up so he couldn’t see her, grabbing blindly for the dress he’d pulled off her so she could put it back on.

  “No,” Van demanded. “I want to look at you. I’ll be damned if you’ll hide that body from me.”

  “I’m not - I don’t…” she argued into her pillow, unable to look him in the eye. How could she have believed that a guy who looked like Van would want to be with a regular person like herself?

  “You are and you do,” he growled. “Now let me see you.”

  Dulcie rolled back slowly, eyes still squeezed shut.

  Van pounced.

  Dulcie’s eyes opened as he rubbed his raspy cheeks between her breasts.

  “I love your breasts. They’re so full, so ripe, he murmured, nuzzling her. “I could lose myself here.”

  He moved lower.

  “I love this soft belly, so round, so female.” He nuzzled her as he spoke. “Perfect for resting my head against, or growing babies.”

  Dulcie couldn’t resist giggling.

  Van lifted his head to smile indulgently at her.

  “But mostly, I like that. I love your smile, Dulcie, I want to make that smile stay on your face all the time.”

  Dulcie felt tears prickle the insides of her lids.

  Before she had a chance to say a word, Van was pulling off her boots and socks and throwing them on the floor.

  He reached up and grabbed the waistband of her panties.

  She lifted her hips to help him.

  He pulled them down slowly, and added them to the pile of clothes on the ground.

  And she was naked.

  He fell on her, bruising her lips with his kisses, his hands in her hair, on her breasts.