Love's Taming(97)
Her eyes took in the horrible conditions up close and the stench almost made her gag. As other agents gathered around, she took control shouting out orders.
“You need to call animal control. I let a couple of dogs out earlier, but I wasn’t thinking clearly. Until the dogs can be safely handled, you need to keep your hands and fingers away from them.”
Her eyes quickly scanned the cages, counting over twenty, each with more than one dog. “You need to call the SPCA of Richland as well as the surrounding counties to be able to have enough people and handlers.”
Shane stood back, a smile on his face, as he watched her take charge of the animals, ordering around the agents and police. Matt, Jake, Tom, and Tony’s men stood to the side watching her as well.
“You’ve got some woman there, Shane,” Jake commented.
Tom clapped him on the back. “I see you’ve finally got what I discovered a couple of years ago.”
Tony and his men continued to watch in amusement as her orders were being carried out. Only when the dogs were safely out of the crates and loaded into clean containers to be taken to a location for inspection could she calm down.
Annie turned to walk back over to Shane, a smile finally lighting her bruised face as she made her way to him, exhaustion taking over as she slid into his embrace.
He kissed the top of her head, holding her tight, then looked at the circle of men surrounding them and smiled. “Pure, fuckin’ sunshine, boys. Pure, fuckin’ sunshine.”
The fight instantly left her body and she slumped back against Shane. Lifting her eyes to his, she pleaded, “Take me home, Shane. Please.”
Touching his lips to hers, he replied, “You don’t have to beg, baby. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.” With that, he stood with her in his arms and they walked toward Tony’s dark SUV with the rest of their group.
No one knew if she was telling the truth about what she knew about Carl’s involvement. But as far as they were concerned, she told what she felt. That was all that mattered.
* * *
Annie didn’t remember the drive to their house. She didn’t remember being carried to their bedroom. She didn’t remember being undressed or being tucked in. What she did remember was waking up to the sight of Shane’s massive chest pressed under her face, his arms around her protectively. She breathed him in. My wild, untamed man. He came for me.
The morning sun was streaming through the windows, illuminating the couple lying in the bed. She leaned her head back and saw that his eyes were taking her in, intently staring.
“Did you sleep, honey,” she asked as her fingers lifted to smooth the small crinkles at the corners of his eyes.
“Not much,” he confessed. “I just wanted to stay awake while I held you, makin’ sure you were really here with me.” He hesitated before continuing, “When I think of what could have happened…”
His eyes closed for a moment, and when they opened again, she could see pain lingering in their depths.
“Shane, I’m right here. You came for me. You got me. I’m safe because of you.”
He grunted as he said, “Baby, you were escaping on your own. I’m so fuckin’ proud of you.”
She placed a gentle kiss on his lips, and he allowed her this emotion before taking it deeper. She moaned in his mouth, igniting his passion despite having no sleep the night before. Rolling over, he pressed her down into the mattress using his forearms to hold his upper body from crushing her. He held her head in his hands, relishing the feel of her lips against his as his cock nudged against her stomach. He felt her hips begin to move up and down, as though she were desperately seeking relief.
He slid his hand down to the bottom of her nightie while taking the kiss deeper and wetter. She had just sucked his tongue in her mouth when the sound of scratching on the door interrupted.
Their eyes flew open as they looked at each other for a moment, waiting to see if the noise would stop. The scratching continued, accompanied now by whimpers.
Shane dropped his head to her shoulder and sighed. “Gotta take Sarge out babe and you gotta feed the cats.”
Unable to stifle her giggle, she kissed him quickly before he had a chance to roll off of her. “That’s a promise of what will come later,” she assured him as his eyes skimmed over her, his smile lighting his face.
Shane walked to the kitchen, letting Sarge out into the back yard while Annie fed the cats. Flipping on the coffee maker, she turned to see Shane already setting out the cups. They moved about the kitchen in perfect harmony, making breakfast as though they had been doing it for years together.
After a quick meal, they walked out on their patio with their second cups of coffee. Shane headed into the yard to toss a ball with Sarge while Annie settled onto the patio glider. She watched him smile as he tossed the ball and then wrestled on the grass with their dog. Her mind went back to the first time she was with them, months ago…the dark alley, Sarge needing surgery, Shane hiding who he really was. She, who never took risks, threw caution to the wind that night and now she had the love of a wonderful man. Her tamed, wild-man. She couldn’t hold back the smile that lit her face as the memories poured over her.