"Neither can I, which means we need to go or I might not be responsible for my actions." He laughed, though the sound was forced. Denim detected the frustration behind his words because she felt it, too.
"I guess there's a first time for everything," she teased, forcing herself to put a little more distance between them, and trained her eyes on his face. It wasn't easy. "Come on. Let's keep moving." The sooner he put on his clothes, the better.
Jax had a puzzled look on his face. "You might find this hard to believe," he said, as they began walking again. "I haven't dated a human in three years."
"Three years? Is that a record?"
Chuckling, he replied, "If you only knew, but to answer your question, the answer is yes."
"How many women have you dated?"
Smiling, he took her hand and while they walked, he told her about all of his human encounters. Jax had been right. A lot more than she'd cared to know about. It was weird, but she felt a hint of jealousy knowing someone before her had been kissed by him, possibly with the same intensity, even worse they'd had a chance to feel his gorgeous cock inside them.
They reached the edge of his property line and Denim spotted a heap of clothes under a tree. A few feet away, two beautiful motorcycles were parked.
"Who rides?" she asked and when his brow rose inquisitively, Denim pointed and he followed the direction of her gaze.
"That red one belongs to Aidan and that black Harley is mine."
It was definitely beautiful.
"We parked them out here last night and decided to shift and race home." Jax laughed. "Sometimes Aidan and I can be real competitive."
Denim shook her head in awe. On the outside the Wilde bunch seemed like any other twenty-something boys-next-door. Who would have ever guessed on the inside was a world very few knew anything about?
"You see that clearing there?" Jax reached for his jeans then pointed to the area where from the treehouse she'd first spotted him in Were form. "A big storm ripped through here last fall and tore down all the trees that lined that area of our land."
"Is that why no one has seen you shifting out here?" It took everything she had to keep her eyes on his face while he dressed.
While Jax slipped into his t-shirt, he nodded. "My father is having trees flown in from California and planted there this fall. In the meantime, I wasn't worried about being seen because I knew Pappy went to bed early." He shrugged. "I always waited until he was asleep."
"And you weren't expecting me to be here," Denim said, understanding what he was getting at.
Jax shook his head. "Not at all and especially not playing in a treehouse." He smiled. "But I'm glad you're back."
His smile caused her heart to bang beneath her chest. "So am I."
As soon as he zipped his jeans, he signaled for her to follow. "C'mon. Let me drive you back to the house."
9
The whole time with her riding on the back of his motorcycle, clutching his middle, Jax tried to remind himself Denim was a threat. Her having knowledge that he was a Were was complicated and downright dangerous for both her and the pack, but thinking of her as the enemy wasn't easy. Instead one thought kept scrolling through his brain.
She's mine.
As he reached the dirt road, Jax took another deep breath. He was a man who believed in getting what he wanted. And right now it was Denim. He knew he'd told his brothers the last thing he wanted was a human, but there was something about Denim and the way she'd made him feel that never died. In fact, it was burning hotter than ever before and he was starting to think there was nothing he could do about it except embrace it … regardless of the consequences. But it was hard to think with her soft breasts pressed against his back. The bike's engine thrummed between his thighs. Her scent was floating through the air, making it hard to focus on the road, driving him insane.
Jax breathed a sigh of relief when he finally turned onto her driveway. As soon as he parked the bike in front of Pappy's house, Jax climbed off and helped Denim to her feet.
"Thanks," she said, smiling. "You know, I could have walked."
As Jax removed the helmet from Denim's head, he caught her gaze. "I wanted to spend a little more time together. Is that a crime?"
She blushed. "No, I'm just saying."
Their fingers touched, and she jerked back. It didn't take a scientist to know she was just as attracted to him and he was to her.
She gave him a grateful smile. "Thank you so much. I've never ridden on a motorcycle before."
"Really?" he smirked. "You'll have to ride with me more often."
Denim nodded. "I'd like that. Actually I would love to ride one of your beautiful horses."
He winked. "That can be arranged."
Jax watched as she reached into the front pocket of her denim shorts and removed a single key. Turning, he followed her up onto the wide wraparound porch and waited for her to unlock the door.
"We still on for dinner?" Jax asked, hating for the night to end.
Denim swung around and faced him. "Yes."
Jax nodded, then moved forward. "Denim, you do understand no one can know what happened tonight, right?" his voice was thick with warning.
She rolled her eyes. "Jax. I understand. You can trust me. Really you can."
Something in her eyes told him he could and it helped him relax a bit.
"But you know I'm going to have questions."
His brow rose. "Questions, huh?"
She blushed a bit. "Like for instance, at night, do you sleep in a coffin or a doghouse?"
Her question caused him to laugh out loud and she joined in. They must have been making too much nose because she brought a finger to his lips, silencing him. "Shhh, we're going to wake up Pappy." Then Denim made the mistake of moistening those delicious-looking lips of hers and Jax lost it.
He tucked her into the far corner of the porch and braced his hands on either sides of her head. Leaning in, he pressed his mouth to hers in what was supposed to have been a simple peck. However, the second their lips touched, he was a goner again.
Denim tasted just as good as she smelled. Seductive. Sweet. Intoxicating. She opened her mouth and the flavor of her tongue damn nearly dropped him to his knees. Part of him couldn't believe she was really here and that he was holding her, touching her, and most importantly, tasting her. Jax deepened the kiss with skillful strokes, staking complete possession of her mouth. Denim followed him stroke for stroke, sending heat radiating through his body and settling right smack down at his throbbing cock. Jax gyrated against her leg, trying to soothe the ache she had created. A frustrated whimper slipped from Denim's lips before her hands slid from his shoulders and then she took a step back. Tilting his head, Jax met her luminous brown eyes.
"Good night," she whispered.
Jax took several breaths to calm the wolf inside. His animal instinct had kicked in and mating with Denim weighed heavily at his cock. "Good night." He forced himself to walk down the steps over to his motorcycle and straddled it. Denim was still standing in the same spot, staring at him.
"Denim, unless you want to go back to the ranch and share my bed, I'd advise you to get inside."
Jax heard the desperate warning in his voice. Apparently so had she, because obediently she turned the knob and stepped inside the house. Once the door clicked shut, he released a low growl. His wolf was anxious to emerge. Denim had no idea how close he had come to losing control and mounting her. But the day they finally made love-because they would-he didn't want it to be with him taking her like a savage beast. He wanted their lovemaking to be slow and agonizingly sweet.
He waited until Denim had switched off the porch light before he started up his bike and drove away.
* * *
Jax pulled his motorcycle into the garage, turned the, key shutting it down, and then climbed off. As soon as he swung around, his muscles tensed when he discovered who was standing behind him.
"Where have you been?" Her voice was sharp, demanding.
Damn. Denim was definitely effing up his head, because he didn't hear Troy come up from behind.
Jax removed his helmet and hung it on the bike. "What are you doing here?"
She chuckled softly as she sauntered into the garage. "Is that anyway to greet your mate?"
"You're not my mate," he reminded.
The fair-skinned beauty's gaze darkened and then her lips curled into a pout. Troy always did hate being denied anything she wanted. And it was such a shame because she was a beautiful woman. Sexy hot. Statuesque with dark-red hair and the largest green eyes he'd ever seen. However, there was rarely anything but bitterness in her gaze. During their three year relationship, no matter what Jax had done, it was never enough.
"What do you want Troy." With her it was best to get straight to the point.