The Leopard

Content advisory: m/f sex, oral sex

Delena stalked through the tall grass, belly almost dragging the ground. The male had been there recently and she didn’t want to run into him. He probably wouldn’t appreciate her being in his territory even though she was just passing through.  She was too small to take on an aggressive male and come out unscathed.

Just her luck to have to cross another cat’s territory. Where the hell had he been when she’d been desperately lonely – before she had gone home to her family. Now she was alone in the middle of a male cat’s home range. All because her stupid Jeep had broken down and stranded her. If she’d taken her cell phone she wouldn’t be in this mess – but it was at home in the charger – where she’d forgotten it.

Though none of that was the worst of it. Her heat was close. The uncomfortable signs had begun two days ago. If he was around, he would know it. She had no desire to be at the mercy of a horny cat who might not take no for an answer.

Low to the ground, she entered a thick stand of trees. The moment she passed beneath a heavy, low hanging branch she knew she’d made a mistake. A second later, crushing weight landed on her from above and sent her sprawling in the dried grass. She rolled hard trying to dislodge her attacker.

She managed to flip onto her back then regretted exposing her soft belly. He pounced, pinning her down. His powerful jaws closed on her throat in an aggressive move to make her submit.

With her breath choked off, she froze under the weight of the male. He could easily kill her if he wanted.

He leaped aside and switched his long tail. He swatted playfully at her, inviting her to romp. Holy shit. She hadn’t counted on crossing paths with any cats much less one who wanted to get friendly. Perhaps he was lonely. It wasn’t like there were many clouded leopards. Outside of her family, she rarely ran across another. It was probably the same for him.

She lifted her paw, ready to swat, and hissed at him. His ears swiveled forward and he gave no indication of being intimidated by her threat. He was big for a cloud, nearly twice her size. His coat was gorgeous with large, irregular markings. He was the finest looking male she’d ever encountered.

A low rumble came out of him. He was purring.

She flipped her tail, clearly signaling that she didn’t care. All she wanted was to be on her way. His purr deepened and he sidled up against her, rubbing along her coat. Hoping he would take the hint, she walked off. He leapt and cut off her exit, bringing her up short. She hissed. Now fairly sure he wasn’t going to hurt her, she dodged to get around him.

He let her and she broke into a dead run, trying to put distance between her and her unwanted new friend. She raced through tall grass and dodged brambles. She kept up the pace for miles, running over uneven terrain strewn with slabs of rock until she panted for breath. Finally, she slowed, unable to run any longer. She glanced back and to her relief, the male was nowhere in sight. She’d lost him.

The rumble of a motor brought her up short and her heart sank. She hadn’t lost him at all and he was no longer chasing her in cat form. The bright red pickup bouncing over a rutted dirt road attested to that. He had shifted. Damn his ass.

Now what was she going to do? She couldn’t stay in cat form and communicate now that he was in human form. If she shifted she was going to be naked as the day she was born. That idea had zero appeal. The last thing she wanted was to take human form without a stitch of clothing when a horny male had her at his mercy. She had no intention of letting a stranger mate with her. She would castrate him with her claws first. And she had to admit, the idea held a certain amount of appeal just because he hadn’t let her be on her way unimpeded.

With a growl, she darted off the trail and pushed herself into a ground eating run. After a mile or so, to her dismay, a huge fence topped with razor wire blocked her way. No way could she jump it or scale it in human form. She was done. She couldn’t run away from him.

The truck pulled up and stopped. The motor ticked while he sat behind the wheel as if debating how to proceed.

She growled.

The door opened and he got out but she couldn’t see him.  He sauntered around the truck and stopped twenty feet away from her. Her breath hung up in her throat. He was magnificent with long tawny hair hanging over his shoulders. A black t-shirt stretched to its limits over his wide chest and skin-tight jeans encased trim hips and long legs. Even from a distance, it was obvious he towered a good eight or so inches over her five foot seven.

He grinned and a dimple appeared. He was too good looking. The jerk. She was in a bad spot and he knew it and what was he doing? Grinning at her. The nerve of him.

“Guess you’ve got a little problem there,” he said in a voice so sexy she wished him struck mute.

She couldn’t reply without shifting and she couldn’t shift unless she wanted to give him a hell of a show.

“Something wrong?” he asked innocently.

She growled and followed up with a hiss.

He laughed, turned and went back to the truck. He came back a moment later with a blanket. “Here.” He tossed it toward her. “I’m a gentleman. I’ll turn my back till you get yourself covered.”

She wasn’t sure she believed him but she didn’t have a choice.

He turned and rocked back and forth on his heels.

She shifted quickly and scrambled for the blanket. She snatched it up and wrapped it around herself. Then she bent and grabbed a large rock and concealed it within the folds of the blanket. “Okay, big boy. You can turn around now.” He’d better not try anything or she’d lay his ass out. She might be a female but she wasn’t helpless.

His grin and dimple reappeared. “You’re the first of my kind I’ve run into around here in a long time.”

“My Jeep broke down. I’m trying to get home.”

“And is there a mate at home?” The dimple made another appearance.

She considered lying but he was so damn good looking and hell, truth be told, he was setting off some very pleasant sensations in all the right places. She hadn’t had sex in months and she hadn’t been with another leopard in a very long time. Her fingers squeezed the rock then relaxed. “No. I don’t have a mate. Do you?” Might as well find out if he was available before she considered letting her hormones get control of the situation.

“Nope. I’m all alone, too.” He shoved strands of golden hair back from his face. “How far are you from your home?” he asked.

“I’m not really sure since I’m off-road. I know I’m going in the right direction but I don’t know how far I have to go.”

“Where do you live?”

“The outskirts of Denton.”

“Darlin’, you’re about fifty miles from Denton.”

“Fifty miles? You’ve got to be kidding.” She’d had no idea she was that far from home. She must have gone a considerable distance at the wrong angle.

“That’s too far. Let me take you to my place and see if we can find you something to wear, then I’ll take you home.”

She hesitated. She wanted to accept but for all she knew, he could be a serial killer.

“I’m not some Ed Gein or anything,” he said as though he’d read her mind.

She wanted to believe him but she wasn’t letting go of her equalizer. She kept the rock draped in the folds of the blanket. Her mamma hadn’t raised any idiots and no one was going to find her hide stretched on a wall.

“I’m Cory,” he said.

“Delena. Nice to meet you.”

“Come on,” he said and headed for the other side of the truck.

The ride was pleasant. He kept up a steady stream of conversation until he turned down a gravel driveway that wound through a stand of evergreens to a beautiful log home.

He parked and led her up a stone path to a massive wrap-around deck. “Holy crap,” she said. “Did you build this?”

“Had it built about five years ago. It’s not the biggest but it’s nice.” He opened the door. “Come on, I’ll give you the grand tour after we find something for you to wear.”

She stepped inside and glanced around the golden, warm room. A vaulted ceiling featured exposed beams and a loft. The room was decorated with a mountain theme and paintings of spectacular wilderness scenes adorned the walls. Sculptures of wildlife were arranged on end tables. The massive mantle over a huge stone fireplace, bracketed by heavy iron candle holders at either end, displayed a grouping of carved bears. She didn’t want to be impressed, but hell, Cory had taste. 

“Hang on. I’ll see what I can find for you to wear.” He disappeared down a hallway but returned quickly with a pair of gray sweats and a t-shirt. “I’m afraid these are going to be way too large but it’s the best I can do.” He pointed to the hallway. “You can change in the bathroom. Second door on the right.”

“Thanks.” She reached for the clothes.

“You don’t need the rock,” he said and the dimple reappeared.

Heat suffused her cheeks. “You knew?”

“Sure. Hell, I would have grabbed a rock, too, if I’d been in your place. No big deal.”

“Sorry. But I didn’t know what to expect.”

“It’s okay. Really. You were in a bad spot and you don’t know me at all.”

She didn’t know him but she knew enough to know he was a decent person. She was a pretty good judge of character and her senses gave no bad vibes about Cory. “I’ll be right back. Without the rock.”

He laughed. “Take your time. Do you like coffee? I can put some on.”

“That would be great. Thanks.”

By the time she changed and tried to do something with her hair, the delicious aroma of coffee and fresh bread filled the lower level.

“In here,” he called. “Follow the coffee.”

She found him in a kitchen any woman would have swooned to own. He had already poured two large cups of coffee and placed a basket of bread on a huge center island. “I thought you might be hungry so I warmed some bread. Help yourself.”

“Did you bake that?” She admired the powerful muscles outlined beneath his shirt as he moved about. He smelled good, too. Male with a hint of spice. No doubt about it, he had some seriously good DNA. He certainly had the physical attributes females sought. So why the hell was he unmated. A warning bell clanged to life.

“Nope. Nice kitchen but I’m not much good in it. Though I can fix a mean pot of coffee and warm things up.”

He could warm things up all right. She was warming up just fine despite the code-red that had gone off. “You live here all alone?” she asked innocently.

“I do now,” he said quietly and looked away.

She’d blundered. “I’m sorry if I said something I shouldn’t have.”

“It’s okay. I had a mate when this house was built. I lost her six months after we moved in.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up something painful.”

He took a gulp of steaming coffee. “Don’t be. I can talk about it now and at some point you have to get on with living.”

She didn’t say anything. Mostly because she didn’t know how to respond.

“She was pregnant. The midwife got here late and something went wrong. She wouldn’t let me take her to a hospital. She was afraid they would find out she wasn’t all human. I begged her to let me call for help. . .” He took another drink of coffee but his eyes were far away. 

Finally he said, “She died while trying to deliver a dead baby.”

A pang of sorrow nailed her with arrow force. “I’m so sorry.” She put her hand on his forearm and the muscles jumped at her touch.

His tawny gaze lifted to meet hers. “It was a long time ago. It just wasn’t meant to be.”

Her tongue moistened her lips. It was so wrong to notice how good looking he was after he had just recounted the painful loss of his mate but she would have been blind not to see him as a quality male. Heat surged through her and she tried to quell it. No such luck. He was firing off long stifled mating instincts in her. Her approaching heat cycle wasn’t helping. Dampness between her legs attested to her interest in him.

His golden-brown eyes widened a tad.

Did he smell her desire? Her cheeks warmed under his watchful gaze.

A low purr rumbled out of him and she knew the answer to that question. “This doesn’t seem right,” she whispered.

“It seems very right to me. The past is done. Concluded. I still have to live and go on.”

She couldn’t argue with that.

He stood and came around to face her. “I haven’t been with anyone in quite a while and then it was meaningless. You are the first person to awaken my senses since. . .I lost my mate.”

His scent was intoxicating and she wanted to drown in it. She wanted to draw him near but she didn’t move. She might be lonely but he had been wounded. She waited for him to choose the fork of whichever road he needed to walk.

“I think I would like to kiss you, if you will allow me to,” he said in a near whisper.

He was indeed a gentleman. Her admiration went up a notch. She’d never had sex with someone she’d just met before, but the possibility of being with him was exciting and seemed right. This male needed someone and who was she kidding, so did she. Their paths had crossed because fate had deemed it so.

“I would like that,” she said a little breathlessly.

His big hands, rough, probably from a lot of outdoor work, came up and skimmed slowly down her arms with a feather light touch that ignited a flame under her skin. He grasped the chair arms, braced himself, then bent his head and pressed his soft, warm lips to hers. The kiss was gentle and slow and she kissed him back in the same manner.

He grasped her waist and urged her to move forward, closer. Then his arms were around her, bringing her into easy contact with more of his big powerful body. His muscles were solid, defined under the thin fabric of his shirt and she couldn’t keep her hands from exploring.

He groaned a little against her mouth as her hands ran over his chest, feeling the cut flesh and hard tissue. He licked at her lower lip and nipped without breaking the skin. She opened and his tongue shot inside her mouth, tasting and rubbing until she groaned. Her panties were already wet and the tingling between her legs was maddening.

Slipping her hands beneath his t-shirt, she stroked over his muscles and worked her way around to his back. She caressed his shoulders and down over taut flesh to the waistband of his snug jeans. What was he hiding under his Levis’? God, she wanted to find out.

He changed position, moving up so he pressed up tight against her crotch. The bulge in his jeans made it clear he had been blessed down there as well. He nuzzled into her neck and kissed his way up to her ear where his tongue traced over her skin. He purred and the vibrations against her skin made her wetter, more ready to receive him. Oh God, how she wanted to take him within her— He nipped then licked over the spot.

Her fingers dug into his back then caressed over his silky, warm skin. A shudder ran through her as he pressed tiny kisses on her throat and then ran his soft tongue along the same trail.

She plunged her hands into his think hair and pressed him closer. Jesus, he was bringing her to life like no man ever had. She had never wanted the way she wanted to feel him inside her. A little moan escaped her as his hands pushed up under her borrowed shirt and captured her bare breasts.

Sparks zinged through her when his thumbs caressed her nipples in lazy strokes, pleasuring the hard peaks until she tossed her head back and let out a lusty cry of delight.

“That’s it,” he said. “Enjoy it and let me take you further.”

She wanted to see him. All of him. She reached for his Levis’ but he shifted slightly. “Not yet. Don’t be in a rush.”

She whimpered and he laughed gently against her neck. She was aching between her legs, needing him to fill and complete her.

His arms went around her and lifted her effortlessly. In a half dozen strides he carried her to a heavy wooden table where he sat her on the edge. His hands traced down and hooked into the waistband of the sweatpants and eased them down over her hips. Breath catching, she supported herself on her hands and lifted up so he could remove the pants.

The table was cold under her ass but it didn’t cool her lust for him at all. If anything, the effect was just the opposite. He claimed her mouth again in a long, exquisite kiss that seemed to last forever before he broke away. He grasped the sweatshirt and pulled it off her in one quick move. She jutted her breasts forward and he bent and fastened his mouth over one mound and then the other, licking and sucking until she panted and squirmed on the table.

His hands stroked down her sides and over her hips, the rough skin of his palms felt abrasive but pleasant. He stroked on down to her legs, over her thighs and then slipped between them. He gently urged her to open her legs and then those wonderful, rough skinned fingers touched her. He skimmed over her folds and she jumped with a little gasp of delight.

He rubbed gently, tested, explored. One long digit slipped inside her, a second joined in and pumped slowly. She dropped her head forward and rested her forehead on his shoulder. A moan fluttered out of her as he slipped from her and began massaging the little bundle of nerves at the top of her sex. His thumb circled and stroked until she didn’t think she could take any more.

As if sensing her nearness to peaking, he stopped and lowered his head. When his tongue touched her, a cry of pleasure tore from her. She sank her fingers into his hair and fisted long strands as his tongue licked and probed and sucked until she thought she might die right there with him between her thighs.

He nipped the little bud and she shrieked. Ripples of pleasure radiated out and through her. Her hips gyrated on the table until she crested.

He stepped back with a smirk of satisfaction on his handsome face. He purred and stroked her cheek. “Okay, my turn now.”

She panted with anticipation as he unfastened his jeans and kicked off his boots. He divested his clothing and stood before her displaying his powerful and beautiful body. Her eyes locked on his large and fully erect cock. The sack under it was heavy, potent.

He moved between her legs and grasped her ass. He brought her to him, entering her in one stroke. She moaned as he filled her. She wrapped her legs around him, holding on as he thrust into her with powerful strokes. She threw her head back and hung on while he took as he had given.

The table restricted her movement but it didn’t matter. He was in control. He rode her into another peak, pumping harder when she stiffened and harder still to take her over the edge. She crashed around him, her walls squeezing him rhythmically.  Her orgasm wrung her out and left her spent. Now it was his turn, with a shout of pleasure, he exploded, filling her with his seed, shooting deep within her.

When he stilled, he remained buried deep inside her. “I don’t want this to be a one time thing,” he said.

Joy burst through her. “I don’t either.”

“Good.” His purr rumbled throughout the kitchen.

~ Nickie Asher ~

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Copyright © 2012 Nickie Asher

All rights reserved. This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, locations, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination, or have been used fictionally. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, locales, or events is entirely coincidental. No portion of this work may be transmitted or reproduced in any form, or by any means, without permission in writing from the author.