Xavier grinned. “Me, too. Now, let’sgo somewhere we can start working on a plan.” He lowered his voicea little so only Kaea could hear him. “And I have a little plan ofmy own I want to execute. It involves you and me, somewhere with aflat surface, and some time to spend worshiping your body like I’vebeen wanting to from the moment you first spoke to me.”
A delicious heat swept into Kaea’sface that had absolutely nothing to do with embarrassment. “Really?I was holding a weapon on you at the time, and you were thinkingsalacious thoughts?”
Xavier nodded. “Hell yeah, I was. Yourvoice called to me, had my bear practically fawning all over itselfto be near you. My bear is a monster, love, and he doesn’t fawnover anything. I knew then that you were meant for me. I didn’tcare that you had a weapon trained on me.”
Kaea laughed. “Then why did you chargeme?”
Xavier grinned. “Just your magneticpersonality I guess.”
****
“How many are left in yourclan?”
Kaea was sitting on the floor in hishotel room, his back against the couch, eating out of a Chinesetakeaway carton. After their coffee this morning, they had headedback to Kaea’s hotel, to start planning Clarkson’sdownfall.
Xavier sighed, dropping his chopsticksback into the carton he was eating from. He was sitting in asimilar position to Kaea, but against the wall on the opposite sideof the coffee table that sat between them.
“I’m not entirely sure.”There was no missing the sad note in his tone. “When I left, it wasa small but strong clan. Seven males, three of them enforcers anddominant fighters, two females mated to two of the men, but nocubs. In terms of enforcers, I k-killed two of them last night, sohe is down to one.”
There was no missing the slightstutter Xavier made over that one word, and there was no way Kaeacould stay where he was when Xavier was hurting so much. He placedhis takeaway carton down, lifted the table over his legs and out ofthe way, and moved to kneel between Xavier’s spread legs. Kaeacould see the hope in Xavier’s expression, and the growing desirethat shimmered there, but it was the hint of sadness that had hisheart aching.
“You can’t take thatburden on, Xavier.” Kaea said it gently as he lifted his hands tocup Xavier’s face, reveling in having the right to touch this manas intimately as he was. “Those two bears came at you with theintent to kill you. I could see that from where I was, and you knowthat, too. You reacted the only way you could and survive. Theywould have killed you without remorse.”
He thought back to the fight thatfirst night for a moment, and he was struck with a realization.“You were holding back at the beginning, weren’t you?”
Xavier took a deep breath, placing hishands on Kaea’s hips and leaning in to press his forehead toKaea’s. “Yeah. I was hoping that they would somehow snap the hellout of whatever trance they were in, and realize who I was. Atfirst, I thought they would recognize my bear, then perhaps myblood, but nothing. They just kept coming at me. I didn’t want tokill them. They were clan; they were family. But I hadto.”
Kaea wrapped his arms around Xavier'sshoulders and held him tight. “Gray has taken so much from you, buthe will pay. I promise you that, baby, he will pay.”
Xavier shuddered against him, and thetwo of them sat like that in silence for a few minutes, both ofthem simply enjoying the moment and drawing what they needed fromit.
Xavier finally pulled back, and Kaeacould see peace in his eyes where there had been turmoil. “Thankyou, love. I needed to hear that from you.”
Kaea leaned in and pressed a soft kissto Xavier’s lips. Xavier froze, and Kaea smiled. Had he managed toshock the dominant shifter? Wanting to do it again, he swept histongue over the soft seam of his lips and gently pushed for access.Xavier obediently opened his mouth, and Kaea moved in, using histongue to taste every inch of his mouth, taking the flavor that wasas tantalizing as the man himself, into his own.
Xavier tugged him closer, and Kaeafound himself straddling Xavier, with his knees pressed tightly tohis hips. In this position, there was no mistaking their arousal.Kaea bit down on Xavier’s full bottom lip and reveled in thechuffing growl that was Xavier’s bear, and the way the man’sfingers seemed to tighten on his hips. He was still riding thatwave of pleasure when Xavier’s control snapped, and he tookover.
Xavier lifted both hands to Kaea’sface, and he pulled it slightly to the side so he could takecontrol of the kiss. He thrust his tongue into Kaea’s mouth andplundered. Nothing was left untouched, and Kaea acquiesced againsthim and let Xavier lead him into madness. That was what it feltlike. He was so turned on, set alight by the passion of this man,that he felt like he was being taken over, and he was willing tolet it happen.
Much too soon, Xavier pulled back, andKaea was pleased that he was breathing just as hard as he was. Whenhe opened his eyes to look up at him, he saw the bright blue flashof color in his gaze that told him his bear was close to thesurface. He should potentially feel a little apprehensive about thefact that he was kissing a man who could turn into a half ton bear,and rip him limb from limb without even batting an eyelid, but Kaeaknew that Xavier would never hurt him. Could never hurt him. All hefelt was safe. Aroused and hot as hell, but safe at the sametime.
In an amazing display of brutestrength, Xavier stood with Kaea still wrapped around him, shockinga gasp out of him.
Xavier grinned as he placed his handsbeneath Kaea’s ass and tugged him a little higher. “Impress you,did I?”
Kaea returned the grin as he leanedback slightly to rub his arousal against Xavier’s, reveling in thespike of pleasure the move rewarded him with, and the way Xaviergroaned his name. “A little. I am not a light man, so that tooksome strength.” He crossed his knees behind Xavier, gripped hisshoulders, and began to grind himself against him. “And I have tosay that I am a very big fan of the position it has put mein.”
“Fuck!” Xavier cursed,throwing his head back as he stood stoic beneath Kaea’sministrations. “That feels so fucking good.” He lowered his head sohe could look Kaea in the eye. “I have to be inside you, love. Ineed it so fucking bad. Let me have you.Please.”
Kaea stilled his movements and almostlost himself in Xavier’s gaze. The man’s eyes were pleading, andthere was heat, oh God, so much heat, that told him that if he saidyes, the pleasure he would wring from him would be immense, but itwas more than that. His expression clearly told Kaea that if theanswer was yes, then this was merely the beginning forthem.
The question, though, was could Kaealive with a man so dominant, that he sometimes forgot that Kaea washis equal, and that they were partners? It was a question thatmight have proved difficult to answer even twenty-four hours ago.But now it was a lot simpler. Kaea didn’t think he would want tolive without him. It might be fast, it might be soon, but theconnection he had with Xavier had the strength of graphene. Itcould never be broken.
“You can have me, baby,”Kaea said in a tone that spoke of his own need. “Take me and makeme yours.”
Chapter Seven
“Are you sure? Be fuckingsure, Kaea, because for me, there will be no going back. You willbe mine. I will be yours. No ending, just a beginning and a futuretogether.”
