“You do,” I replied, the words barely audible.
His brow furrowed. “Kara—”
“No,” I whispered as I walked out of the water toward him. Suddenly, the red leaves fell to the ground, making a lovely display since the grass was more barren in the woods. Pressing my hand over his heart, even though he couldn’t feel it, I said, “You do. I don’t care if you’re the Dark One or the villain or the monster at the end of this story. You’re mine.”
His throat bobbed as he swallowed. “Don’t say that.”
“You don’t get to decide what I say or how I feel.”
He placed his hands over mine on his chest as soon as he noticed and uttered, “I’ve told you. Giving you pleasure is pleasuring to me.”
“It’s not the same.” I kissed his back, though I knew he couldn’t feel it.
“It’s not,” he agreed. “But it’s more than I thought possible.”
I smiled against his skin. “You’ve thought about my pleasure often then?”
“I have thought about you, Kara, so much that it became painful, and it wasn’t your desire. Just you. And before you complain that I’m trying to be cruel, I’m not. You wanted honesty. How much you plague my mind is torture.”
I wrapped my arms around him. My nipples pebbled as they pressed against his heated skin. I couldn’t help the tingle coursing through me or the sudden ache in my breasts as I smashed myself against him.
“I’m painful to you?” My voice was hoarse.
“So fucking much.” He cupped my cheek. “It was agony to watch you from a distance, hear conversations, laughter, andsee your smiles, and your frustrations, knowing none of it was directed at me.”
“You’ve been watching me?”
He flashed his fangs. “Like your family, I have my way of tracking things and seeing people. Of course, I’ve kept an eye on you when I stopped coming to as your shadow. You are an agony that’s mine and mine alone.”
“I’m a pain in the ass, and yours? Hmm?” I ran my hands down his arms. “You said you weren’t coming for a mate the day you kidnapped me, and now suddenly, I’m being claimed.”
“I wasn’t being honest back then, Kitten, but let’s be clear: You’ve been mine long before you existed.”
The shock coursed through me, and I could only part my lips. Luke used the opportunity to swoop down and steal a kiss, even sliding his tongue in. The taste of him, the wet glide of his intrusion, and the way he squeezed me tightly before sliding his palms down to ass—everything turned my stomach to molten lava. He groaned and sucked on my tongue. I could feel the suction on my clit like the sensation was a direct link to my desire.
Hades, I wanted to lay claim to Luke in the same way he laid claim to me. I broke our kiss to trail my tongue down his chin, then neck, peppering his skin with light teases before I began to suck. I pulled hard on his skin, desperate for him to feel me, to want me the way I wanted him.
His lips dipped toward my ear. “Let me take care of you.”
My pussy was clenching on nothing from his words. I didn’t want to give in. I wanted him to feel me, just once. Maybe then he’d understand the magic between us.
“No, let me take care of you.” I dragged my teeth across his skin.
Hades, Luke was freaking shaking head to toe.
“Kara…”
I pushed away from him abruptly; desperation was driving me forward. “Don’t do that. You’re not trying. I can make you feel good, but it’s like you refuse to let me.”
His nostrils flared. “Kitten, do you think I’m unfazed by you? I’m literally a web of desire on the inside, and I can’t feel you. You, Kara, you cause an uprising inside me when there is no means of escaping. If I could, I’d show you what you do to me. Just how well you would be fucked by me.”
I covered my face as tears pricked my eyes. “I’m sorry. It’s not your fault, but I can’t. You might not know you’re shaking, but I do. It feels wrong to seek my pleasure when you get none. I feel your need too.”
“Kara…” His voice was mournful, so soft, but I didn’t look at him. “It doesn’t bother me. I want to touch you. Even though we are mates, I never expected you’d allow it. I know what I look like. The fact that we can have this is more than I would have imagined.”
Luke was such a conundrum, saying and doing things that felt so much like affection.
I dropped my hands to see him beckoning me.
