Ellis: A Best Friend's Little Sister Shifter Romance (The Johnson Clan Book 3) Read online

  If he did show up, I might have to stand around and watch him hit on some other girl. Chances were he went right back to not even noticing I existed. I would do better to ignore him completely. I made up my mind to keep my expectations low. Non-existent, to be exact. Then I wouldn’t be disappointed.

  3

  ELLIS

  Brayden answered the phone. “Hello.” The minute I heard his voice, my heart started pounding. Same old Brayden.

  “Hey, man. It’s me. It’s Ellis.”

  He exploded on the other end. “Ellis! Hey, man! Dang, it’s good to hear from you.”

  I struggled to keep my voice calm, but I couldn’t stop grinning from ear to ear. “I had to call to congratulate you, man. It’s wonderful news, and I will definitely be coming to the wedding.”

  “You will? Wow, that’s great. I wasn’t sure if you would make it.”

  “Of course, I’ll make it. I wouldn’t miss it for the world. I’m just sorry I’ve sort of fallen off the face of the Earth these last few years. I’m a putz.”

  “Forget it, man. You’re coming. That’s the important thing. You’re still in town, aren’t you?”

  “Yep, I’m here.”

  “Good. Then you can come to our engagement party next Saturday.”

  “I’d love to. Where is it?”

  “At my uncle’s house in Silver Lake. You remember the place?”

  “I remember.”

  “Be there at two, and since you’re in town, I know its bit out of the blue, but I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind being one of my groomsmen. What do you say?”

  You could have knocked me over with a feather. I picked my jaw up off the floor, and my voice wouldn’t work right. “Man! I’m stunned. I never thought....”

  “You never thought what? You never thought you would still be my best friend after you’ve been a stranger all these years? I never stopped caring about you, man. You should know that. The clan…”

  I swallowed the lump in my throat. “Takes care of it’s own. I never stopped caring about you, either, man. I would be honored to be your groomsman, and I will definitely come to your engagement party. Thanks. I mean, really, thank you. You don’t know what this means to me.”

  If he got as choked up as I did, his voice gave nothing away. “Great, and we’re having the bachelor party in Vegas, so I’m definitely going to need a good man in my corner for that.”

  I burst out laughing. “Jesus! Tell me you don’t have strippers and beer kegs and all that fraternity stuff lined up.”

  He laughed, too. “I don’t know what’s lined up. My older cousin Sam is my best man, and he’s got the whole thing planned out in secret. Him and his buddies are gonna pick me up at my house and drive there. I have to be blindfolded, and they’re taking me off to their underground dungeon. All human stuff, you know how they are.”

  I couldn’t stop laughing. “Then you definitely need a shifter in your corner. I’ll make sure you get down the aisle.”

  “Thanks. I knew I could count on you.”

  I got serious. “I’m really happy for you, man. I can’t wait to meet your girl.”

  “You’re gonna love her. Everybody loves her, and she and Mckenna have had their heads stuck together for six weeks. I’m also not allowed to see the dress or the cake, and I’m not allowed to see Julia for forty-eight hours before the ceremony.”

  My bear began to prowl when he mentioned Mckenna, but I couldn’t come right out and ask about her. She would be at the engagement party. I would see her there.

  I would definitely not love Julia as much as I loved Mckenna. Who wouldn’t love a girl as sexy and feisty and smart as her? Of course, I couldn’t tell Brayden that, though.

  “I’ll see you Saturday,” Brayden was saying. “We’ll catch up on everything. It’s gonna be great to see you. It’s gonna be just like old times, like you never left.”

  “I can’t wait. Talk to you soon.”

  I hung up, and that was the end of my workday. I spent the rest of the daydreaming about over Mckenna.

  What would it be like to see her again? She would flash me her bright eyes across the table. Her eyes would wander down to my mouth and neck. My eyes would wander down to her bright red lips and her cleavage rising and falling with her breath.

  That body, those eyes, those lips—I couldn’t stop thinking about her. I had to see her. I had to get her alone just one more time. Once I saw her, the chemistry would take over. I never had any doubts about that.

  I was glad I lived in the same town as this wedding. I had my own place to take Mckenna once I got my hands on her. I needed a quiet room overlooking the city. I needed a nice clean white bed to undress her on.

  I felt my pants tighten as thoughts about bending her over on the bed raced through my mind. Fuck. There I went getting hard thinking about her again. Nothing would satisfy me but her. Come to think of it, nothing ever had. No woman ever captivated me since the last time I saw her. When was the last time I saw her? I couldn’t even remember.

  I didn’t know how to appreciate her back then. All I cared about was my bear and my cocky attitude. I didn’t know how to savor every inch of her glorious self. I didn’t know how to enjoy the ache of needing her or dreaming about her, or that tightness in my balls only she could satisfy.

  Man, I needed her right this minute. I needed her on her knees in front of my office chair. I needed to see her immaculate breasts hanging over when she crawled towards me. I needed to see her eyes burning with erotic fire when she unbuckled my pants; her lips pouting and her nostrils flaring with pent-up desire.

  I needed to feel her hands gliding up my legs to my crotch. I needed to feel her warm flesh all over my chest and her white arms around my middle. That woman made me weak in the knees, but she never used her power. She cuddled close and made herself tiny and vulnerable to me. She always let me overpower her and collapsed into me like vanilla ice cream dissolving on my tongue.

  Why did I let her slip away? I should have kept her in the first place. Now I had to go through several weeks of wondering what she would be like. She might be married to some other lucky bastard by now. Fuck. That would be my worst nightmare.

  I had to have her. I had to get her for myself. No torture could be worse than seeing her with somebody else. I don’t think I could live in a world knowing some other guy was touching her skin and worshiping her curves when I couldn’t.

  I wasted too many years with my head in the sand when I could have been enjoying myself with her. I shouldn’t have run the risk of her changing into something any less attractive and desirable. I nursed too many fevered dreams about her. I couldn’t cope if the reality didn’t match my fantasies.

  How would I get through a whole weekend of wedding and family get-togethers with her and not let Brayden know there was ever anything between us? Messing around with Mckenna in high school or around the college dorms was one thing. This was going to be a whole different kettle of fish. Brayden wouldn’t let me out of his sight. I’d be chained to his side for the whole weekend.

  Thank God, he didn’t ask me to be his best man. Being his best friend and trying to sneak off with his sister at the same time was already more than I could handle.

  4

  MCKENNA

  I smoothed my dress down my hips in front of the mirror and fixed my hair. Brayden didn’t tell me anything about the guest list, but I had a gut feeling Ellis would be at the engagement party. I would make him regret he ever turned his back on me.

  I pushed my bust up so my cleavage spilled out of my top. He always liked that, and I could make his bear crazy just throwing my chest around. I would make him wish we were still together. I might even twist the knife by hitting on some other guy at the party.

  I strutted out into the sea of voices and bodies moving all around. The groomsmen stood in one corner with Brayden. Dozens of relatives filled the living room at my uncle’s house, but I didn’t see Ellis anywhere.

  I waded into the mi
x. People stopped to greet me on all sides. I hugged my relatives and introduced myself to people I never saw before. Half the people in the place belonged to Julia’s family. I saw some of my own cousins I hadn’t seen in years and barely recognized. There were spouses of people who got married or moved across the country. There were some of Julia’s friends from work. There was just about everybody, except the one person I kept searching for.

  Why was I searching for him? I shouldn’t have gotten my hopes up. Maybe he wouldn’t come. Maybe Brayden forgot all about him. Why was I getting all fluttery in my stomach thinking about him? Ellis Johnson was just another guy, another hard guy who wanted a nice piece of ass.

  As I was just about to give up my search, I saw him. The crowd parted, and there he was, standing right next to Brayden. They laughed and slapped each other on the back just the way they used to. They talked with their heads together like seven years hadn’t passed since they saw each other.

  At that moment, I knew I messed up big time making myself more noticeable to him. I never stopped wanting him. I wanted him now as much as I ever did. My bear prowled beneath my skin, begging for his attention. If he put out his hand and cocked his head to one side to invite me to slip away with him, I would do it. I would follow him exactly the way I used to when we were in high school.

  Icy cold slithered up my spine and my bear panicked. I had to get away. I had to hide in the crowd so he wouldn’t notice me. I couldn’t run the risk of him seeing me in that dress, or I would be lost. I couldn’t have him look me up and down. I couldn’t have those mesmerizing eyes trace my breasts and my hips and my thighs.

  Forget about making him regret what he did. Forget the whole thing. I wished I never came to the party. I should have locked myself in my room at home and never gone near him.

  Just then, my mom hustled up to me. “I need your help in the kitchen. We’re putting out the crab dip, and we don’t have any Tabasco sauce.”

  I raced after her with my heart pounding in my neck. I would take any excuse to get away from Ellis. What made me think I could ignore him? What made me think my feelings wouldn’t come rushing back?

  He looked just as good as he ever did—maybe even better. The years were more than kind to him. They made him more commanding, more enticing. He got bigger, bulkier, more masculine than ever. Now that I saw him, I realized what a young and awkward cub he was back then. He didn’t know what to do with himself.

  Those eyes burned into my soul, even after I took refuge in the kitchen. Those eyes knew exactly what they wanted. They knew what they were looking at, and they knew what to do with it. Years of experience told him how to take his time, how to move in on his prey with infinite slow movements.

  Those eyes kept me frozen like a deer in the headlights. They disintegrated my flesh at his touch until I fell at his feet in a puddle of panting desire.

  My mom shoving the empty Tabasco bottle into my hand woke me from my reverie. “What are we going to do? We can’t serve crab dip without Tabasco.”

  I bit my lip to contain my laughter. Of course, my mom would worry about something as little at Tabasco sauce. But this was my chance to get away from Ellis. “Don’t worry, Mom. I’ll run out to the store and get some.” I would make any excuse to get out of here before I fell apart.

  “Oh, would you, really?” she gasped. “Thank you so much, honey. You’re the best.”

  Yeah. I’m the best. I’m the best at getting myself into situations I can’t get out of.

  I tossed the empty bottle in the trash and raced for the door when a blocky figure barred my way. It was him. My heart stopped, and my breath stuck in my throat. He looked me up and down.

  “There you are. I was hoping I would see you again.”

  I ducked around him. “Gotta go. Crab dip emergency. Can’t serve crab dip without Tabasco.”

  I raced to the door and ran out to freedom. I jumped in my car and fired it up. Now that I was outside, my dress made no sense at all. I would attract lots of attention at the grocery store, but who cared? I was out of there. I didn’t have to talk to Ellis Johnson after all.

  I hit the gas and swerved into the main road. Phew! I started to calm down on the way to the store, but once I got to the parking lot, I faced a whole new problem. A bunch of construction guys leaned against their truck fenders right outside the door. They unwrapped the sandwiches they just bought and ate their dinner. They laughed and joked and swigged their drinks out of the bottles.

  Well, here goes nothing. I got out of the car and slammed the door. The noise attracted their attention, and their eyes bugged out of their heads when they saw me sashaying across the parking lot toward them in my dress.

  At first, they just stood and stared. Then came the first wolf whistle and the catcalls. “Holy Mother of God! Will you look at that!”

  “Hey, baby, come on over here and have dinner with me. You won’t regret it.”

  My cheeks burned, but I couldn’t help smiling. I could throw it around for them, no problem. Anything was better than getting stared at by Ellis Johnson. I wasn’t in danger of falling for any of these guys.

  I strutted past them and paused in the door to throw one hip out to the side. I gave my ass a hard slap. “Take a good look, boys, ‘cuz you ain’t never getting a piece of this.”

  Idiots, they didn’t even know what I truly was. And if they found out? They wouldn’t be interested. No human man could handle a woman that could turn into a bear. Someone who was stronger, faster, bigger than them. I made guys stumble on their words, but when things got serious, I knew I needed to find a mate. A real shifter who could handle me and my bear.

  I went to the store and got the Tabasco. When I came back, the guys were gone. Good. I got in my car and started the motor, but I drove back to the house much slower than I left it. I parked outside and took my keys out of the ignition, but I didn’t want to go in.

  Now, what was I going to do? I couldn’t exactly ditch the party when I carried the crucial Tabasco in my hand. I definitely didn’t want to go back in there, though. He would be waiting for me. Once he set his eyes on something he wanted, he didn’t back down. I knew that better than anyone.

  Those eyes told me everything. He wanted me again. He wanted to pick up where we left off, and I couldn’t let that happen. I had to avoid him.

  Maybe, just maybe, I could duck in, toss the Tabasco to my mother, and hit the bricks. Maybe he would be in the bathroom and wouldn’t see me, but what about Brayden? What about Julia and all my family and all Julia’s family? They would notice if the groom’s sister ditched the engagement party. Brayden would be furious and demand an explanation. And when our bears went at it? Ugh, a nightmare.

  No, I had to go back in there. I had to face the music, and that meant Ellis Johnson. I had the rest of the weekend to get through, and I wouldn’t be able to do that if I didn’t get myself under control pretty quick.

  I could still pull this off. I got away from him once. I could do it again. I could be too busy helping my mom and talking to people to notice him. I would surround myself with strangers so he couldn’t touch me.

  He couldn’t lead me off into a private room for you-know-what if I didn’t let it happen. Right?

  5

  ELLIS

  I spotted her the minute she walked in the door. Holy fuck, that dress worked miracles on her. She looked even better than she did in high school. The dress hugged her curves, and her heels made her ass sway when she walked.

  And the second my bear laid eyes on her? Mine. All he wanted was to claim her. I was so screwed.

  Her face showed the signs of maturity. She wasn’t a little girl anymore. She understood pleasure and pain. She understood the heart in ways she never did before.

  Her eyes widened when she saw me looking at her. She still wanted me. She still craved the attention of my eyes slipping over her curves, but they didn’t respond the way they used to. I could tell something was stopping her, but I wouldn’t allow that.
/>   Gravity hauled me toward her. I had to get near her, but she kept slipping away. She hurried to the kitchen, and a dozen women engulfed her. No way was anyone with a cock getting in there. She worked with her mother and her aunts to get the buffet on the table. Bodies surrounded her so I couldn’t see her.

  A moment later, her mother came into the living room. “Come and get it, everybody.”

  The whole crowd came at a run. Brayden caught my arm. “You’re with me, man. Don’t think you can run off and leave me high and dry.”

  “I wouldn’t do that.”

  He dumped me in the chair next to him, so I couldn’t get away. I caught sight of Mckenna’s dress flashing gold and shimmering down the table. I kept calm, but I couldn’t keep my eyes off her. She spent the meal talking to other people. She never even looked at me.

  Anger bubbled up in my chest. My bear roared. What was she trying to do to me? Didn’t she know what seeing her again would do to me? Didn’t she know how she drove me crazy?

  Was she turned on right now? Did seeing her bring back old memories and old feelings, old desires? Did she ever dream about me the way I dreamed about her? I stole another glance at her, and she never once looked back at me. From the way she acted, anyone would think we never met at all. I could actually start to think she didn’t remember me.

  How many guys did she play around with in the last seven years? Maybe some of them were ten times the lay I ever was. Maybe I was too young and stupid to make much of an impression on her. Maybe I squandered my chance to get close to her.

  Brayden told everyone how funny I was. He told them all about the great jokes I used to tell, how I kept everybody rolling in the aisles. He kept nudging me in the ribs and telling me to tell everyone that joke about whatever. I didn’t feel like joking, though. I couldn’t get my mind to function.