It was like she could feel his lion growling with need.
“I’m sorry about your poetry reading,” Jake said once they settled onto a dark open road. “I know that you wanted to hear some tonight.”
Casey shrugged, watching the yellow lines ahead repeating themselves. “I would have liked it, but I think I liked what I didn’t pay for more.”
Jake placed his arm around the head of the driver’s seat, then edged his body closer to hers. It took everything within her power not to veer off into a ditch.
“You know,” Jake began, his voice hushed and gravelly. “Most human women don’t like that kind of violence or any violence for that matter. I find it really hot that you didn’t mind it.”
Casey’s heart punched inside her chest when she felt Jake’s hand begin to rub up and down on her knee. He leaned his mouth in closer, then dipped it toward her shoulder.
“Hell, maybe you even liked it,” he whispered.
Casey began to breathe deeper when Jake’s lips touched her bare shoulder, then made their way up to the nape of her neck. She was aroused beyond belief what his voice, his touch, and the risk factor of driving. He continued to plant soft kisses and teased her with a caress on her thigh, circling her center but never drawing too close.
“Oh, God, Jake,” she moaned.
Her brain was on fire as his kisses morphed into light nips and a singular rough bite. She groaned and twitched slightly on the steering wheel, which brought her back to earth like a smack to the face.
“Okay, you horny toad,” she quipped, trying to pull away from him. “Save your energy for when I’m not driving.”
Jake whimpered as he planted one last kiss upon her neck, then leaned back into his seat with his eyes closed. He didn’t look disappointed; in fact, he looked excited and content.
They drove on for twenty more minutes, then came to a massive house that glowed like a firefly at sea. Casey began to feel nervous about seeing his home, the luxuriousness of it all and wondered if the wealth would make her feel unworthy of him.
Jake, however, seemed excited as he instructed her where to park. She did as he asked, then they both hopped out of the car into the beauty of the night.
Cicadas sang their night song in a serene setting that calmed Casey’s fears. Jake enthusiastically took her by the hand and guided her along a path that seemed to stretch out around the entire acreage of his land.
“You’re going to love this,” he said as they walked.
At one point, Jake decided to shift again, neatly removing his shorts for Casey to carry. He sauntered ahead, and Casey watched him in silence as he showed her around, the midnight stars glittering above.
They got to the opening of a wide lake, which was as black as coal beyond the sconces that had lit their path. Casey marveled at it, adoring the privacy and how a few ripples washed lightly against the soft sand of the shore.
“This is stunning,” she whispered.
In his lion form, Jake sat along the edge of the lake. Casey wasn’t afraid of him. Of course, she knew who he was beneath the skin of the beast. But it was still strange to be talking to an animal that could’ve eaten you alive.
She came toward him and stood there, his sitting height nearly the same as her standing. She fiddled with her fingers as she looked over the mostly still water, looking like glass as the dreamlike state of the night maintained its tranquility.
“You know, I have one more guilty pleasure to tell you about,” Casey said, cracking the silence slightly.
Jake gazed at her, his blue eyes blazing in the dark.
She looked at them thoughtfully.
“I really love fishing. It’s not really something many female friends of mine enjoy. It’s usually a father-son thing. But I’ve learned to really like it.”
If a lion could smile, Jake would be doing it. He bobbed his head up and down with understanding, a human gesture that made Casey giggle.
“I’m assuming you’ve got boats, fishing rods, and everything ready to go?” Casey quipped.
The lion nodded its head again, this time protruding its tongue and waving it back and forth. It was a massive meat slab and would be intimidating in any other context.
Casey doubled over with laughter, combined with a pure sensation of joy. She would have liked listening to some poetry and meditating upon the mysteries of life with him, but she knew deep down that it wouldn’t have been as enlightening as the way the date had turned out instead.
After a few more minutes of looking out onto the waters, Jake, the lion, turned back toward the house. He motioned at it, and Casey knew he was asking her to go. She felt a connection psychically already, despite not being a shifter herself.