My heart leaped. “Absolutely.”
He breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. Now that we’ve settled that, how fast do you think we can get back to the ranch?”
I laughed, my spirit light and open. “You don’t want to finish your appointment?”
“I can reschedule.” His voice dropped low, and he growled, “But right now I want to mark my mate and make it official so everyone knows you’re mine and I’m yours.”
I jumped to my feet and tugged him to stand with me. “Then let’s go.”
We rushed past a grinning Dr. Harrington and his receptionist. Mason tried to convince me to leave my car and ride with him, but I shoved him toward his truck and darted across the parking lot to my vehicle. I followed him home. He pushed the speed limit, but I suspected he held back on how fast he truly wanted to go because I was there.
As soon as I parked my car, he had my door open and lifted me into his arms. “Mason! I can walk.”
“I want to hold you.”
“What about your shoulder?” I wriggled in his grip. “I don’t want to make it worse.”
He continued carrying me toward his cabin. “It’s fine. A little sore, but lifting you won’t cause any damage.”
I gave up my protest. We were almost at his place anyway.
Once we were in the bedroom, Mason lowered me to the ground while keeping me in his arms. He pulled me close and kissed me. A sweet kiss with just a tinge of urgency. It felt as if he were holding back. As if he thought I was delicate and needed to be treated with care.
I wasn’t.
My palms came up to rest on his chest, and I smoothed them over his shirt. “Mason?”
“Yes?”
“Kiss me like you mean it.”
His eyes widened for a beat, then two, before he crushed me to him and devoured me. I refused to be a passive participant and met him kiss for kiss. Hands reached for clothes. I don’t know who removed what, but soon we were naked. His skin was warm against mine. I briefly flashed back to when I held his hand in the forest, and it was icy cold. Now, he was full of life and all mine.
I trailed kisses over his chest, moving lower and lower until I kneeled at his feet. I met his gaze as I wrapped my hand around his large cock, which was hard and ready for me. His eyes had a look I could only describe as reverence.
I stroked my hand up and down his length before leaning forward to kiss the head. His fingers tangled in my hair, and he groaned when I took him in my mouth. I sucked and licked. memorizing his reactions and making note of what he liked best.
Just when I thought he would finish in my mouth, he tugged me off him. His voice rasped out. “Not yet.”
He walked me backward until I felt the bed at the back of my legs. Then he followed me down, his weight pressing me into the mattress. He gave me a hard kiss on the lips before softening his mouth and moving it to my neck, then to the junction where it met my shoulder. The spot that would bear his mark. His kisses continued down to my breasts, and he stopped to explore them. His hands and lips kneading and nipping and sucking until my back bowed off the bed, and I cried out. “Mason!”
Only then did he move lower. His hands led the way. Gliding over my skin. I shifted beneath him, pressing my legs together to soothe the throbbing ache that built in my core. But he slid his hand between my thighs and spread them beneath him. I lay under his gaze.
He shot me a hungry look. “Mine.”
Then he dove in, attacking me with his lips and tongue and fingers. It was an assault I welcomed, even as I climbed higher and higher without falling over the edge. He kept me there as he opened me with his fingers, stretching me and preparing me for him.
When he finally judged me ready, he came back to kiss me on the lips. I tasted myself on his and wondered if he tasted himself on mine. We exchanged breaths and kisses as he settled between my spread thighs.
“I love you, Brooke,” he whispered as he slipped inside me. He filled me so completely I almost cried. Even our bodies were made for each other.
“I love you too, Mason.”
He rolled his hips and rocked inside me. His thrusts built up in speed and force, and I matched him, even as I urged him to go faster. He moved solidly above me, most of his weight on his uninjured arm but otherwise with no sign his shoulder bothered him. I kissed his scar as if I could impart my strength to him.
He dropped his head into the crook of my shoulder, and his teeth bit gently on the flesh there. We moved together, both of us approaching our peak.
His teeth sank into my skin as I flew over the edge, shattering into pieces from the mix of pain and pleasure. His hips moved wildly, and he followed me with a roar, spilling his seed into me before collapsing on top of me.
