Dana Bell: Sweet Dreams

He was going to have to work on that.

He took a moment to study her as he got out of the truck. She was too thin and jittery, something else he planned on doing something about.

Her wildly curling light brown hair floated around her face as she watched him move around the hood of the truck. She was smart enough to stay put when he opened her door, allowing him to carry her into their home. He carried her through the mudroom and straight through the kitchen into the great room. He was pretty sure his feisty mate would kick him in the nuts if he tried to carry her straight to the bedroom.

He set her gently down on his sage green couch, enjoying the way the color lit up her pale skin. He hadn’t consciously chosen the colors of his home with her in mind. It wasn’t until he set her down on the couch and he saw the way her skin came alive that he realized he’d done his entire home in colors suited to her. The result was light, warm golden walls and bright, fun fabrics that brought her coloring to life. The fabrics were soft to the touch, almost like velvet. He’d gone with the lighter wood tones, opting for maple wherever possible, with little touches of black here and there to bring the whole thing back to earth. Yet another way his Puma had tried to get his attention, and he’d ignored it.

If a man could kick his own ass, Simon’s would be bruised all to hell and gone. If he’d mated her months ago when he first realized what was happening she would have been able to kick Livia’s ass. In short, it was his fault that she’d been hurt.

“Whoa.” Becky looked around, taking everything in, much to his amusement. This was the first time she’d been in his home. He hoped she liked it, because if he had his way she wasn’t leaving it. The sofa he’d put her down on was a sectional with an attached chaise; the coffee table and entertainment center were contemporary in design. The glass in the center of the maple coffee table was Simon’s work, depicting a puma with jewel-bright eyes stalking through the woods. “It’s not what I expected.”

“What did you expect?”

Her expression was pleasantly surprised. “Something a little more ‘bachelor slob’ and a little less ‘comfy contemporary’.”

He grinned. “Do you like it?”

“Yeah.” She winced as she tried to sit up and take everything in. He leaned over her and helped her, wincing along with her until he had her in a comfortable position. Her look of gratitude was all the thanks he needed.

Simon walked away but quickly came back with a bowl of warm water and a washcloth. “Okay, shirt off.”

Becky raised her brows in challenge.

Simon sighed. “I have to see how bad the cuts are. And the bite mark.” He glared at the side of her neck, his lips tight, hands clenched around the bowl. Even with the enzyme changing her that scar would more than likely remain. Damn, he should have just gone ahead and killed the bitch. The fact that Livia had left a permanent mark on his mate had his Puma snarling again.

“I’m not taking my shirt off.” She almost crossed her arms over her chest but winced as the pain in her stomach stopped her.

“Oh yes you are, baby.” Simon put the bowl down on the table and perched on the edge of the chaise.

“Those wounds need to be cleaned.”

“That’s what doctors are for, Oh Artiste.”

Simon grinned. With one swift move, he ripped her shirt open from neck to waist. “All duh…you didn’t wear a bra.” His tongue tripped all over the place. Becky’s beautiful breasts were bared to his delighted gaze. They were small, the nipples rosy pink. They perked up slightly in the cool air. He could feel his IQ drop by ten points just from staring at those beautiful nipples. He literally felt his thought processes grind to a halt as all of the blood rushed out of his head and pooled in his dick. If it wasn’t for the blood all over her stomach and shoulder he’d be having a much harder time not fucking her on the spot, and he was having a really hard time of that already.

Becky crossed her arms over her chest with an outraged squawk followed by a squeak of pain. “My shirt!”

“ My shirt.” He gently tried to pry her arms off her chest, but she wasn’t letting him. He almost pouted over the fact that she’d covered her entirely edible breasts. Damn, he wanted a taste so badly his mouth watered. He realized they’d fit perfectly in his mouth and had to hold back a groan. His dick was beginning to press insistently against his black pants, the thin material doing nothing to hide it.

“Huh?”

He stared at her, scrambling to remember what they were talking about. Oh yeah. The shirt. “I paid for it.”

“What?”

He looked up from her breasts and frowned absently. “I picked out this outfit and paid for it, therefore it’s my shirt and I can rip it any time I want.” With a gentle hand Simon began cleaning the blood from her stomach, paying special attention to where Livia’s claws had dug in.

“I am so killing Emma, vows of eternal friendship or not.” Becky fumed, struggling briefly when Simon tried to move her arms out of his way again.

“I just want to see if she scratched you there.”

From the way she glared at him he was pretty sure she wasn’t buying his act. “Trust me, I didn’t get scratched there.”

“What about here?” He rubbed his fingertips gently over the top slope of her left breast.

Becky slapped his hand away. “Bad kitty!” When he reached for her again, she smacked him upside the head.

Simon grinned at her, loving her fire. “I can’t help it. It’s been so long since I’ve had a beautiful, half-naked woman on my couch.”

“Yeah, sure, that’s such a rare occurrence.” She rolled her eyes and scooted back from him with a groan. “This particular half-naked woman is off limits, buster.”

Simon’s frown was ferocious. “You did it again.”

“Did what again?” Becky inched a little further away from him on the chaise, but unless she wanted to do a back-flip over the armrest she really wasn’t going anywhere.

“Pulled away. Backed off.” He sighed and dropped the washcloth into the warm, now pink water.

“Becky, I…”

“Your phone’s ringing.” Becky looked towards the kitchen with an amused grin.

“What? No it isn’t.”

The phone rang. Becky smirked. Simon looked at her strangely and got up to answer the phone.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Simon.”

“Oh, hi, Adrian.”

“How’s Becky?” He could hear the sounds of the masquerade in the distance. Adrian must have called on his cell after stepping outside the mansion.

“You heard, huh?”

“Rumor flies fast, especially where the Alpha and his new Curana are concerned. Is she okay?”

He sighed. “Yeah, she’s fine.”

“And she’s your mate?” Adrian’s grin could be clearly heard.

“Yes.” He stared, puzzled, at the woman lounging on his chaise. How the hell did she know the phone was going to ring?

“Mind if I keep Belinda…occupied? Seems she’s a little upset right now.”

“Belinda? Hell no, go for it. Just remember she’s on the prowl for a mate.”

Adrian laughed. “Don’t worry; I’m not planning on sleeping with her, just keeping her from rushing over to your place. Is Becky still bleeding? That must be driving you nuts.”

He looked back at Becky and frowned at her smug smile. “Yeah, she’s bleeding on my couch as we speak.”

“Have you cleaned the wounds and begun dressing them?”

“Gee, Doctor Dufus, what the hell do you think I was doing before you called?”

“Asshole.” Adrian’s amusement was once again loud and clear. “We still on for next Saturday?”