Dark and Forbidden Luca's Secret Baby Read online

I was starting to get annoyed. St. Dom’s guys didn’t seem to be any less aggressive than Blake. That was when a third guy tried it with me.

  “Hey, darlin’.”

  Suddenly there was a hand on my ass. ”Hey!” I jerked back, glaring at him. He wasn’t bad to look at, but that didn’t matter in the least. “Get your hands off me!”

  “Baby, we’re all friends here, aren’t we.” He smirked, and it made me want to punch him.

  I was about to retort when a white knight showed up, appearing as if out of thin air beside the guy, with a wild eyed glare on his face. He looked familiar to me and I couldn’t think why. “You touch this girl without her permission?” He said. His voice was low and soft. He had big brown eyes that stared down the asshole, and he was getting in between the two of us, blocking me from danger. “How about you get the hell out of here?”

  “Luca-”

  “It’s not up for discussion,” Luca said. He stood there mad dogging the guy, who eventually bowed his head and sighed, ducking out of the bar with a couple of his friends.

  Luca Barelli. Now I recognized him. He was the captain of the St. Dominic Cougars. He was also one of the alphas of the pride. I’d just never seen him up close before. But now I remember seeing pictures of him in news stories on the hockey games. I’d attended plenty of hockey games too but you couldn’t see much of the guys in their helmets sometimes. I’d always thought he was a real pretty boy, but strong too in a reliable way. Now why couldn’t Stone River have guys like that?

  “Are you alright?” Luca said, once the guy had left.

  I felt like I was meeting Captain America somehow.

  “Ah, yeah,” I said, nodding. “Thank you. That was...chivalrous.”

  “That was nothing,” he said. He ran a hand through his thick, wavy brown hair and I sighed a little. He was an athlete too so he was pretty muscular with the broad shoulders and trim waist of a guy who never skipped a day at the gym. I tried not to look like I was drooling. But just as quickly he was taking a step back. “I’ll leave you to it.”

  Stupid boy. Of course, he’d just made himself desirable, but he was assuming I didn’t want to be bothered by anyone. Which only made him more desirable.

  “Can’t I buy you a drink?” I said hopefully.

  “No,” he said firmly. “But I’ll buy you a drink.” He winked at that and I swear, the temperature rose by several degrees. I’d seen Luca Barelli play in games up against The Fangs. But in person, it was entirely different. I felt something truly sparking between us. I felt a little like I was in a dream.

  It would have to be a dream. I knew enough about St. Dom and Luca, its captain, to know that compared to him I was the trash that everybody probably thought I was. He might be happy to buy me a drink, but a guy like Luca Barelli wasn’t going to be wasting much time with me.

  Still, I could pretend, and as he smiled warmly and slid me a vodka tonic, I decide that was just what I’d do; pretend for a while that life was better than it was and that I could have somebody like Captain of the St. Dominic Cougars, Luca Barelli.

  Chapter Two: Luca

  The moment I saw the girl, I knew I wanted her. There’s a feeling I get with people I end up caring about. It’s never happened on the romantic side of things, but the moment I met my oldest friend, Charlie, back when were just cubs, I knew we would always be close. I knew he was going to be like a brother. It was the same when I met Dylan and Miguel. So far, I’ve never been wrong when I’ve gotten a feeling like that. I had the same feeling about this girl now offering me her hand and smiling shyly, introducing herself as Chloe Perkins. She was special and we had a connection. It might not be real yet, but I knew it would be at some point. I had a strong feeling that I shouldn’t let her out of my sight if I could possibly help it.

  “I haven’t seen you around here,” I said. We were sitting close at a corner of the bar, everyone else just a blur around us as I sipped my beer and Chloe sipped her vodka tonic.

  She seemed sad, this girl. I found myself wanting to lift her mood. That was less about this magical feeling rather than that, I feel compelled to help people in front of me in general. I always have. I’m not saying it makes me a great guy. I think it’s just something I was born with. Charlie thinks it makes me a good alpha. Right now, it just made me want to find out what was bringing down this pretty lioness. The scent of her was intoxicating coupled with her attractiveness. She had bright hazel eyes and hair the color of clover honey, and a cupid’s bow in her bright pink lips. I tried to keep myself contained. She’d clearly been hassled enough tonight.

  “I’m…” She hesitated. I wondered if she was from a rival pride and that made me smirk. It was stupid how much meaning we ascribed to these rivalries. Although I was as much lion as anyone else. I wasn’t about to bow before The Fangs if they didn’t first.

  “You’re from Stone River,” I said. I didn’t even need to ask. It was written all over her face and they were right next door after all. I wondered if I’d seen her at games. How had I ever missed seeing a face like that, even in a big crowd?

  She shrugged, as if apologetic. “Go Fangs.”

  I cackled at that and lifted my glass. Low enough that nobody else could hear (because it would have started a riot at The Drawing Room), I said, “Go Fangs.”

  We got to talking after that. Or rather, once a combination of booze and the bit of charm I possess loosened Chloe up, we got to talking.

  Chloe was scraping by and working at Tom's market in Stone River. She implied that her dad was an alcoholic and her brother was kind of going nowhere. But she was dedicated to looking after the both of them. She looked sad and even ashamed as she talked about her life and I understood it, but I also didn’t understand it at all. Why should this girl feel shame because she was responsible and loving? Who had made her feel that way?

  “I just miss my mom,” she muttered, fidgeting with her cocktail straw. “She made everything better.”

  That one hit me. My parents were alive but I didn’t see them enough. They lived in a little house deep in the woods where older shifters sometimes retired. It wasn’t very far away but it felt far away. Then again, my parents had always been just a little cold. It can be that way sometimes with lion families. I think that’s why I felt so close to my friends. I lived with them after all. If nothing else, it seemed like Chloe was closer to her family than I was to mine. Even given her difficult situation, it almost made me jealous.

  “Seems like you’re doing the best you can,” I said, feeling pathetic in my attempt to console her. “You obviously care a lot for your brother and only want the best for him. You’re loyal and responsible. Hard working. I think you need a break. Do people ever take care of you?”

  “Not much,” Chloe murmured. She raised her eyes and I breathed in a little. They were the loveliest shade of hazel and they sparkled even under the dim lights of the bar. I swallowed and reached up to gently stroke her chin with my thumb. It was an impulse and I pulled my arm away. She clearly just wanted an open ear. She didn’t want some guy drooling all over her. The truth was, I was used to women drooling all over me. I was only famous within this broad region of Minnesota, but it was still a kind of fame. Minor league hockey was big here and as captain of the leading hockey team in Minnesota’s minor league, I was pretty popular with the ladies.

  “Sorry,” I said softly.

  Chloe stared at me and then slowly, she leaned forward and pecked me on the lips, ducking back. It was such an innocent little move. But it made me want her all the more.

  I had this recurring dream. I’d had it since I was a little kid. I’d dream I was running through snowy woods for a long time, searching for something that is so important, except that I didn’t know what it was. I’d hear the sound of running water and come upon a waterfall, the still waters flowing into ice and glimmering in the moonlight. Beside the waterfall, standing in the snow, would be a majestic lioness; fierce and beautiful. Snow fell slowly, in delicate flakes on her
golden fur. I’d walk toward her, but just as quickly, she’d disappear behind the falls and I could never find her again. I’d had the dream too many times to count and it gave me a fateful, surreal feeling every time.

  I was feeling that way now as I looked at this girl.

  “Can we...go get some air?” Chloe whispered.

  It was a ridiculous thing to say. It was freezing outside. But I found myself nodding.

  “Yeah, I have a car outside,” I said, even as Chloe was already getting to her feet.

  Chloe took my hand and the dark look in her eyes told me I wasn’t the only one overwhelmed with desire right now. Outside, the shock of cold nearly took me off my feet even with my stronger constitution. But Chloe’s hand was warm in mine as my boots crunched through the snowy parking lot to my car.

  It was trashy probably, the idea of having sex in a car right outside a bar full of people. It was something I wouldn’t have thought twice about when I was younger. But I considered myself a responsible adult now. It was such a ridiculous thing to do.

  Not that I wasn’t going to do it, if given the opportunity. I already couldn’t take my eyes off Chloe’s thighs, swathed in tights under her short skirt. She was much shorter than me and she had all kinds of curves. I wanted so badly to get those thighs in my hands, feel their soft curves in my palms, the give of her flesh. I wanted to lick her neck and touch that honey blonde hair that fell around her face like silk curtains.

  I unlocked my car and we weren’t inside two seconds before we were heatedly making out, as if the world might be ending and we had only minutes to explore each other. Our breath was hot, another shock after that crisp, cold air. Chloe tasted just a little like vodka and lime, but also like her; a lioness, fierce and strong. I rid her of her parka and she took my leather jacket off quickly. She gave me a funny little apologetic look, that I think had to do with the logistics of tights.

  As if tights were going to stop everything.

  “Do you want this?” I said, my voice a little growlier than I’d intended.

  I knew it was only a distraction for her. She needed someone to make her feel good tonight. I was happy to fill that role.

  “God, yes,” she whispered.

  With that enthusiastic affirmation, I pulled her into my lap and my hands came up under her tight skirt, my nails ripping through her tights, leaving them in shreds, tearing a hole to give me access. I managed to rip through her panties at the same time.

  I mumbled a, “Sorry-”

  “I don’t care,” she hissed. She fumbled with my belt and I licked my lips, ducking my head as I pulled up the hem of her sweater to get my mouth on her breasts, her nipple in my mouth. It was messy and fast. I was already hard and soon enough she was impaling herself on me, the two of us breathing each other in, staring into each other’s eyes as if in surprise that this was actually happening. I was hard as a rock and Chloe felt hot and tight around my cock as she clung to me, her lips resting against mine, the two of us just breathing.

  “Y-you feel so good,” Chloe whispered against my mouth.

  I nodded and my hands found their way under her skirt to clutch at her ass and I rocked her against me, the two of us groaning. It hadn’t been too long for me, or at least not by my standards. I’d had a fling with a woman a couple of months ago. It had been nothing serious, and I’d thought the sex was pretty good. But even this scramble just to somehow get inside each other felt better than that. It was as if we were trying to get inside each other’s souls as much as we were trying to get in each other’s pants. That’s how it felt to me anyway.

  I was clutching Chloe’s ass, moving her on top of me, and she unbuttoned my shirt, mouthing at my chest, her hands coming up under my shirt to palm my back. I found myself unconsciously flexing, wanting her to feel my every muscle. It was silly probably, but I wanted to impress this girl. I had that restless feeling of wanting to feel every bit of her at once as I bounced her on top of me and tongue kissed her neck. This would be so much better on a proper bed with better lighting. I’d lay her out naked in front of me and make her scream and call my name until she was utterly undone.

  But this was good too.

  “Luca,” she whispered.

  For a thrilling moment, it felt as if we’d been here before. It was something about the way she’d said my name.

  “Say it again,” I mumbled into her skin. “Say it again, Chloe…”

  “Luca, please…”

  Then I felt almost as if I might shift, I was so excited. I hadn’t felt that way since I was a teenager, so aroused and riled up. I bounced Chloe on top of me harder and faster and she gasped and cried out, which only egged me on. It was so cold outside, but inside the two of us were hot and sweaty, steaming up the windows. I was lucky my car was pretty roomy but Chloe was petite too. Even scrunched onto my seat, she felt so perfect in my arms.

  “Fuck, Chloe,” I muttered, and caught her in a kiss, moaning as I came inside her. She clenched around me and I felt myself pulse, every bit of pleasure exploding through me, and I reached down at a fairly awkward angle to finger her clit. I was always concerned about my partner getting enough pleasure themselves. Chloe shrieked so loud at the first touch of my rough fingers that it made me laugh into her neck. I had barely begun to rub circles along that nub of pleasure before she was trembling with her orgasm, her mouth latched onto my neck, her teeth sinking in just enough to leave an impression. I love that about a lioness. They’re just as eager to make their mark as we men are. She didn’t break the skin, but the thought that she had a natural instinct to mark me was such a turn on I was likely to get hard again in no time even as I came down.

  “Oh my God,” Chloe said. I kissed her firmly and reached up to rub my thumb along that swollen lower lip. I’d bitten her there without even realizing it.

  “Get some air, huh?” I said softly.

  She chuckled and when I stroked her cheek, she leaned into my hand. That chaste, sweet bit of affection did something to me. It tricked me into thinking this could possibly be something.

  But just as quickly, she crawled out of my lap and fell back into the passenger seat, smoothing down her skirt and taking off the remains of her tights and panties. There was an awkward silence.

  Finally I said, “I’d like to-”

  “I’ve gotta go,” Chloe said quickly. “Yeah, I should go.”

  “I’d like to see you again,” I said, before she could get away. I grabbed her hand and squeezed but she cast me such a tragic expression as she pulled away and started to climb out of the car.

  “No, you don’t,” she said.

  “Wait, you’ll be cold!”

  “I’ll shift,” she said.

  I got out of the car, intending to plead my case. I was only going to try. If she wanted this to be it, that was fair. But she was already on the icy sidewalk and disposing of her shredded undergarments in a trash bin just before shifting.

  She was a beautiful lioness. Her form was flawless and her deep, golden brown winter coat gleamed in the moonlight as she ran off down the street and then deep into the woods beyond.

  “Shit.”

  I didn’t feel like having another drink. I’d gone out just to have some alone time. The hockey season had been heated and living in a big house with three of my friends is nice, but sometimes a guy has to get out and be by himself for a bit. Or at least, I’d always felt that way. Charlie says I’m an introvert. I suppose that’s true in some way. Though I’ve never had any trouble being around people. I just like to go on my own at times. But I had to wonder, if I really found a true mate, someone I loved beyond reason...I’d bet they’d be an exception to that desire most of the time.

  I sighed and drove home. The sex had been so satisfying, but the way Chloe had run off had been more than a minor let down. Maybe she just felt she had too much on her plate in her life. I found myself wishing things were different. If I was her man, her mate, I’d be helping her. She’d have someone looking after her need
s for once.

  “Christ, man,” I muttered to myself as I drove the short distance to our house on the fringes of St. Dominic. “Just met the girl.”

  We’d had a nice talk though. There had been a real spark, and that wasn’t to mention that magical sort of feeling I’d had being around her. Still, I knew it would be better not to dwell on it. She clearly wasn’t interested in anything more than a one night stand.

  “Hola, amigo,” Charlie said as I popped in the door. Charlie had auburn hair now touching his shoulders and a permanent layer of gingery scruff on his chin. He had freckles on his nose that always made girls coo over him and he was definitely the fun one of our little quartet.

  Our house was a pretty old white shingled thing. It wasn’t in the best shape in the world but we’d done a lot of work on it and made it a nice home for ourselves and best of all it was so near the woods we could just walk out the back door and shift to go on runs. It was also just about a half a mile from the rink where we practiced and played. There was a nice pond just behind the house in the woods that froze over perfectly in winter. We skated there a lot too. It was our own personal practice rink to warm up in.

  Charlie and Dylan were sprawled on the couch, playing Skyrim. It had been years at this point, and they were still obsessed with it. It was ridiculous. Miguel and I played other games but Charlie and Dylan only ever wanted to play Skyrim. Or Mario Kart. The two of them were like kids sometimes. Though I supposed that was nice for Dylan. He can be so quiet and serious sometimes, and even broodier than Miguel, the hothead of the group. It was Charlie who seemed to have a talent for lightening him up which I liked to see.

  “Did you get properly decompressed?” Charlie said, looking up at me. He squinted at me. “You’re not drunk but… Oooh! You had sex, didn’t you?”

  I froze in the middle of the living room, standing there stock still on the dark hardwood floors that Dylan and I had refinished ourselves. I took off my leather jacket and hung it on the rack.