Falk Clan Tales - Chapter 48: Chapter 48

Melody opened her eyes slowly. She stretched her body noting soreness in her previously under-used muscles. Hurts so good. She smiled lazily, looking over to the large male breathing evenly in blissful sleep right next to her.
Niko’s hair fell over his forehead, the hard lines of his face relaxed in slumber. The sheet hung low on his hips and she ached to tug it down lower. To see him in all his masculine nudity before her hungry eyes. She hadn’t gotten to taste him last night, that would be her one and only regret.
He breathed deep and the muscles along his tight abdomen rippled with the movement. Whoa. That was definitely a sight she could get used to, she sighed.
She supposed she’d just have to live with the single encounter. It’s not like they’d made any promises to each other. Hell, they hardly talked. Yes. You talked the language of love, her Coyote insisted.
He’d been such an exquisite lover. The best she’d ever had. Tender and affectionate, while exceeding every naughty, rough, and wild fantasy she’d ever dreamed of.
She wouldn’t make any apologies about her lusty nature. The fact is no man had ever come close to satisfying her the way Niko did.
Shifters were very physical beings. She’d only gone to bed with a handful of men. True, they were all Shifters, but there was no comparison. Like, at all.
He’d given her exactly what she never knew she needed. Filling her in every way, shape, and form. The Dragon Shifter brought her to orgasm again and again. Wringing pleasure out from every nerve ending in her willing body. And boy, oh boy, had she been willing. Sun peeked in through the hotel’s luxury blinds and she grimaced.
Time for the walk of shame. Pain squeezed her chest as she watched him. The steady rise and fall of his chest, the smooth, muscled skin that she’d caressed and kissed, the man that had loved her so well.
She slid from the fiery sheets, moving away from him. With each step, she felt the cold seep into her, down to her bones. Her Coyote howled in protest.
Melody considered waking him, but she wasn’t in the mood for a long, uncomfortable goodbye. This is what you signed up for, she told herself firmly. Then why am I so sad? She ignored her overactive emotions.
Last night was exactly what she had wanted. Hot sex with no ties. A chance to let her hair down and get buck wild with someone.
An image of the catty blonde Witch who’d stopped her before she left last night sprung to mind. Whatever that woman had been trying to do, Melody couldn’t even fathom.
Imagine trying to spread a rumor that his mighty Dragon-ness over here was unable to satisfy in bed? Yeah. Right. He probably just turned her down. Sour grapes and all.
Well, it didn’t matter. Nikolai was definitely not impotent. She could attest to that. Images of the night they’d shared flooded her mind.
Lips touching, hands searching, bodies coming together. Secret sounds and smells, touches and tastes. The air still held hints of their combined passion.
No surprise there. He’d made love to her for hours. Sure, they’d exchanged very few words in that time, but they were sensory creatures. Shifters relied on body language and instinct as well as human forms of communication. She knew he’d enjoyed himself as much as she had.
Her hand went to her neck and she sighed. Her Coyote yipped in her mind’s eye, her brownish-gold fur shimmering in the magic of that special place where their bond existed. The beast craved him still. Longed to feel his teeth pierce her skin. Mate. Mine.
Whoa there. Easy girl. No marking here. WTH. But no matter how much she wanted to deny it in the cold light of day, Melody had desperately wanted to wear his claiming mark on her skin. She came close a time or two to ordering him to just bite her already. Uh oh.
It was just the sex haze, that’s all. She could hardly think straight when he was moving inside of her. No. you wanted it. Mates. Love. Mine.
Melody growled. It didn’t matter what she wanted. Clearly, the Dragon had not been inclined to claim her in the way of Shifters. Whatever she felt, it must not be true for him.
Don’t mistake sex, for love. Fuck. Where the hell did that come from? Time to go. She stood and snuck out of bed.
The word mates scared her. Thomas had been her husband, but not her mate. Being with Nikolai felt different. But it was one night only, she reminded herself.
She refused to dwell on the fact that she wasn’t meant for the big, beautiful man who slept soundly not five feet away from her. Stupid heart, getting attached.
She blinked rapidly and snuck out of the room. She would not cry. Nope. No way. She grabbed her wrinkled gown and put it on, along with his silk shirt. That would at least cover her almost bear back.
Surely, he wouldn’t mind and if he did, she could mail it to him. If she knew where he lived. Oh, whatever.
Melody sighed as she realized she’d have to forego underwear. He’d torn her sheer panties to shreds with his teeth. Grrr.
She felt her cheeks heat and knew she was blushing furiously just thinking about it. No man had ever wanted her so much. Not even douchey her ex-husband.
She glanced at her phone and rolled her eyes. The clock was ticking. Melody jogged down the stairs barefoot to the next floor before snagging the elevator. She hadn’t wanted to alert him to her leaving with the pinging noise. He might feel obligated to her in some way, and she didn’t want that at all.
Nope. She’d take a cab back to her apartment, soak in a tub to ease her sore muscles, and go back to her life come Monday morning. She’d have the next two days to wallow in the memories of her hot as sin night with her sexy Dragon lover.
If only she were made for happily-ever-afters. Oh well. She paid the exorbitant fee to the cab driver and exited the taxi. Ignoring her neighbors’ odd looks. It wasn’t ever day she returned home at seven in the morning dressed in a man’s shirt and evening gown.
Her Coyote beckoned, and she decided she could use a little run. Melody entered her ground floor apartment and pulled down the shades. She stripped out of her clothing and welcomed the familiar hum of magic that settled over her body.
Bones cracked, skin shrank, fur sprouted and soon she was her animal. She stretched and twitched her tail. She loved being in her Coyote skin. She was similar in appearance to grey wolves, but much smaller. Her goldish hue made it easy for her to pass herself off as a dog to her neighbors.
She’d resented it at first, but she lived in a city and stealth was necessary. She even installed a dog door which she used regularly. She gave a quick shake of her fur, then Melody trotted over to the loathsome door. She exited into the small, paved courtyard that sat behind the building she lived in.
Through the wrought iron fence, stood a stand of trees that led to a small, enclosed wood. The smattering of trees was hardly a forest, but it gave her much needed room to run.
Her emotions had been rioting inside her since she woke up that morning. Melody needed the blissful oblivion of being in her other skin. Her Coyote longed to howl, but she knew better than to loose the sound there.
Uniformed police would be there in minutes if she did. City folk did not appreciate the threat of wild animals. She’d learned that the hard way when she’d first moved there three years ago. She moved swiftly as her thoughts through the dried-up grass and over the frozen ground.
The brisk December wind whipped the short bristly fur that covered her elongated snout. Her muscular body was leaner than her human one. She was fast and strong, agile and very aware of her surroundings.
A true predator, she snorted. Melody preferred the running to the hunting, though she wasn’t objecting to chasing a squirrel or two on her run. Tongue lolling to the side, she absorbed the freedom that came with being in her fur and shook off the negative feelings she’d had about leaving Niko that morning.
She was being ridiculous. Her Coyote growled at her. Mate. Mate. Mate. No. Not mine. He was only interested in the one night. She finished her run and headed back to her apartment. A little scrambled eggs and bacon sounded exactly right.
Melody climbed the stairs and walked through the pet door to the sound of her phone ringing madly. It took her a couple of seconds to change shape. The stretching of skin and bone was fast after years of practice, but it still hurt. She panted with the effort, glaring at her blasted cell phone.
Maybe she should change that stupid beeping ringtone? It was hard on the nerves. It was another few seconds before she could comfortably move. Not that the damn thing stopped ringing. Whoever it was, they weren’t giving up.
“Come on, it’s Saturday,” she mumbled as she grabbed the receiver. Ugh. It was work.
“Hello? Slow down, Mrs. Grayson. Who? A client. Okay. What do you mean I have to travel. No, no, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude, it’s just I don’t understand. Why me?”
After a few seconds of Mrs. Grayson’s brief explanation, Melody realized she had no choice. The bank president, Mr. Atkins, had hand-picked her, Melody Casper, management accountant, to be loaned out to Graves Enterprises.
Apparently, their CEO needed a fill in and her boss had generously donated her. They were a multi-million-dollar company and an especially important account. As if she needed the reminder.
Great. All she wanted to do was sit at home and eat something deep fried with way too many calories, while she binge-watched medical romances, and mooned over the last eight hours. Ugh.
“Yes, Mrs. Grayson. It’s fine. I’ll pack a bag right now. Give me one second, and I’ll write the address down,” she dropped her things and scrambled for a pen and piece of paper.
“Okay. Yes, Maccon City, New Jersey. Got it. Be there tonight at seven? Okay, yes, I can do that. Goodbye, Mrs. Grayson.”