Marilu Mann - Changing Focus

“Micah, what are you doing to me?” Olivia’s whisper reached him and he took a deep breath, savoring the scent of slightly aroused female.

“Not as much as I’d like to.” Micah stepped back slightly and smiled down at her. “Tonight, though, tonight will be quite a different story.”

He stepped away from her as Talia came back into the room. The child didn’t even slow down. Just ran right to the table with a stuffed penguin under her arm.

“Uncle Micah, do we eat penguins?”

“No, Talia. We do not eat penguins.” Watching Olivia smile, Micah moved toward the coffeepot. He refilled his cup and Olivia’s then sat at the table to enjoy his breakfast. He had the woman he wanted for his mate and a child to care for in his home. Life is good.

Breakfast over, Micah pushed back from the table. “If we all pitch in, we can get this kitchen cleaned up and then…” He wriggled his eyebrows at Talia. “Then maybe we can see about taking the sled dogs out for a run.”

Talia’s squeal of pure delight drew an answering grin from Olivia. The kitchen returned to its normally clean state in no time with all three of them at work. Talia even set her penguin up, declaring, “Emily is supervising.”

Micah felt as if his heart would burst when Olivia reached down and hugged Talia. “Tell Emily to keep a close eye on your Uncle Micah. I think he might be slacking.”

“Hey now.” Micah swung Talia up to sit on his shoulder. “You aren’t on her side, are you, Talia?”

“Uncle Micah, there are no sides in Pack.”

Olivia’s raised eyebrow and studied gaze lasered into Micah. He cleared his throat. “So who wants to go for a dogsled ride? Everyone needs to get dressed. Layers!”

The two females laughed as they raced out of the room. Talia pulled at Olivia’s hand trying to get her to move faster. Olivia glanced back at him and winked. Her gaze dropped from his head to his crotch and back, causing Micah’s heartbeat to increase.

Micah rubbed his chest as he took a very deep breath. Trying to get a normal child to filter their speech was hard enough. A hyper-aware, extremely intelligent shifter kid was a ticking time bomb in this situation. Olivia had to be told and soon before she decided Talia needed intervention or something. Heaving a sigh, he hit the stairs. No time like the present.

Olivia’s scent teased him as he moved up the stairs. He ran a hand along the wall, letting the smoothness of the wood glide under his palm. Memory of Olivia’s skin, of the feel of her body, wrapped around his brain, pulling his cock to attention as he paused outside her door. Unbidden, he remembered the smell of her arousal and that caused him to growl softly.

“Micah? Is that you?”

The door swung open and Olivia tugged him inside.

“Talia is in her room deciding what to wear. I got her started on the layers but I think we have fifteen minutes. I’ve been thinking about you.”

Wrapping her arms around him, she kissed him. Her soft arms rubbed his neck, making Micah fear for the durability of his jeans. Pressing into her, he let her feel how aroused he was. His tongue teased at her sweet lips while he rubbed his hardness into her belly. The supple give and take of her body was driving him crazy.

Micah couldn’t think. A hot, sexy woman he wanted dragged him into her bedroom, who was he to complain? Slipping one hand under her shirt, he spread his hand against the heat of her. God, he wanted to ease up higher to cup that beautiful breast he could see so easily in his mind’s eye.

At his touch she tipped her head back with a soft groan and tangled her fingers in his hair. Her voice caressed him as she whispered low, “Did you come up here to help me get dressed, Micah?”

He shook his head then nipped at her neck and worked his way as far down her shoulder as he could. Finally stopped by cloth that wouldn’t give any more, he bit just a bit harder.

“I need you out of this shirt now, Olivia. I need your nipple in my mouth-your breast in my hand-my cock buried deep inside you. I have never wanted anyone or anything like this in my life. What is it that you do to me?” Micah pressed his rock-hard cock against her more urgently. “Now, Liv.”

Olivia’s eyes grew wider and wider at each statement. Nodding her agreement, she stepped back slightly from him and grabbed the bottom of her shirt. He licked his lips as her pale flesh appeared. Her belly would be the perfect pillow for his head after he made love to her until he couldn’t anymore.

Then her bra appeared. Micah had never considered himself a fan of lingerie-it just got in the way. But the sight of those lacy bits on Olivia made his cock swell until he thought he might be shifting unconsciously.

Shifting. Micah grabbed her hands and pulled the shirt back down. “Olivia, stop. We can’t do this now. As much as I want to ram myself into you until your voice goes hoarse from screaming my name, we need to talk about something first. Besides we have to remember Talia could show up at any time.”

He flinched at the disappointment in her eyes and the shudder that hit her just after she lowered her shirt. Taking her in his arms, holding her tightly so she could feel his heart racing and his still-hard cock against her body, he laid his head on hers for a moment.

“Don’t think this means I don’t want you because I do. But we need to talk about that night your parents died.”

Her hands hit his chest, shoving herself away in a stiff-arm worthy of any football player. Micah clenched his jaw but held his ground.

“No, Micah. I don’t want to talk about that right now. Please.” She blinked rapidly, turning her head away from his gaze.

“Sweetheart, it’s okay. I know what happened. That’s what I want to talk to you about. It wasn’t your fault. You couldn’t have known. You were taken away from your kind, our kind, too young. Liv, you’re special.”

“Special? Special?” Her voice climbed octaves and decibels as she railed at him. “What is special about being the kind of person who has an insane monster inside? The kind of person who loses it so bad over not going to a damn school dance that she freaks out and causes her dad to lose control of a car, killing her parents? If that’s what you think is special, you need your head examined.”

Micah’s heart clenched painfully as her voice cracked. She glared at him. “You need to walk out of here now, Micah. I don’t know what you are playing at, but I’m not special. I am a murderer. And don’t even get me started about scaring my fiancé so badly that not only did he call off the wedding but he never spoke to me again.”

Her face crumpled into tears as she stumbled to sit on the bed. Burying her head in her hands, she whispered, “Please, just go away. Please.”

“I can’t, Liv. Not now. I can’t let you think you are a monster when you aren’t. I mean it when I say you’re special. You share something in common with me-with Gareth-hell, with Talia. You found us for a reason, Olivia. You’ve found your own kind.”

Moving to kneel beside her, he pulled her hands away from her face. “Look at me. Your hearing and sight are really good, aren’t they? And your sense of smell? I’m willing to bet you can identify a person by their scent. What about your coordination, Liv? Did you do better in school at sports than the other kids? Run longer? Jump higher?”

Her mouth gaped more on each statement. Thrusting her chin out, she bit out, “How could you know that? Did you get my medical records? How could you possibly know all of that?”

“Because, sweetheart, I’m like you. Do you dream of wolves?”

Olivia scooted backward on the bed, ignoring the bunching of the spread. She grabbed a pillow, hugging it tightly to her chest.