His relationship with Mina had been artificial, and it was actually a blessing things turned out the way they did. He’d done a lot of thinking, realized what he wanted out of life, and had finally come to the conclusion he was better off living the way he had been: not forming lasting bonds with people, working his ass off, and sticking to himself.
Living that way had served him fine, and he didn’t plan on changing anytime soon.
Despite Bram’s successful flirtations, he looked like shit, what with his black eye, split lip, and claw marks that were showing right under the collar of his shirt. Despite his appearance, he always got pussy, but Ford suspected the females liked the dangerous and beaten look. It called to them on some kind of primal female level.
Rubbing a hand over his short hair, Ford was fucking exhausted. He gestured for the bartender to bring him another beer. But then a flash of wine-colored hair caught his attention. Talia walked in behind a male and had two others following closely.
The sight of her with a male had his bear rising up. Someone else touching her, knowing what she tasted like, felt like, had rage washing through him.
Despite the stench of spilled, sour beer, sweat, and sex, he picked up the intoxicating aroma of lavender with a hint of citrus. Ford inhaled deeply, closed his eyes, and felt his dick harden so fucking fast it pressed incessantly against the fly of his jeans.
A heady sensation passed through him, one that had nothing to do with the liquor he drank, and all to do with how bad he fucking wanted between her thighs.
He let his gaze travel up and down her body in a quick sweep but then lingered on the parts of her that called to his bear. She had a waist that was made for him to wrap his hands around. The shirt she wore was some kind of sweater set and far too many layers for his liking, but that didn’t matter, because he had the image of her rose-colored nipples ingrained in his brain.
Even now, all he could see was her coffee-stained blouse and bra. He had been able to see her full breasts, which had his hands itching to touch them. The fact that she was all he could think about should have bothered him. But it didn’t.
It energized him.
He had to find out who she was, what she felt like under his hands, tasted like under his tongue. He knew her name, and saying it over and over again in his head was like an auditory orgasm.
Talia Landon. Talia Landon. Talia Landon.
It was feminine and sexual and a name he wanted to say while buried deep inside her pussy.
“Ford, man, I think I’m heading out soon.” Bram stepped in front of his line of sight, and Ford let out a low growl. “Really, dude?” Bram cocked a brow, looked over his shoulder at where Talia sat with the three assholes, and glanced back at Ford with an amused expression.
He was acting dumb, and growling over some female he didn’t even know was something a male would do only for his own female.
Talia Landon was definitely not his, so he needed to control his shit.
“Somethin’ you like, brother?”
“Fuck off, Bram.” Ford picked up his beer and took a drink it, never taking his focus off his brother, although he wanted to watch Talia. Bram grinned broadly.
There was this prickling on the back of Ford’s neck. He straightened in his seat and looked over Bram’s shoulder. Talia was glancing in his direction, and when her eyes landed on his, he swore he could hear the increase in her pulse.
His dick was hard as hell, and all he wanted to do was walk up to her and take her mouth in a kiss that would leave her weak and just as fucking turned on as he was. And then he wanted to lick every inch of her until she would never forget how his touch felt.
What in the fuck is wrong with you?
These thoughts were dangerous. Ford wanted to ease this ache he had for the sexy-as-sin red fox shifter, and he was going to accomplish this tonight.
“See ya,” he said and waved Bram off without a glance. Ford kept his gaze on Talia.
The male who had been walking in front of her threw his arm around her shoulders and leaned in to say something in her ear. He was a big fucker, tall and heavily muscled, and far too close to her. Ford found himself curling his hands into tight fists, straightening, and taking a step closer.
He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, filtered out the vile aromas that surrounded him, and focused on Talia’s and the male’s scents. He snapped his eyes open and felt the tension inside him start to ease.