“She gets it from our mother.”
“She gets it from you.”
She had no response to that. She stood beside him in the doorway, watching her sister sleep, and felt the last of the fear that had been coiled in her chest finally begin to unwind.
She’s going to be all right. We’re all going to be all right.
She reached out and took Tarek’s hand.
His fingers closed around hers immediately, warm and sure. He looked down at her, a question in his glowing green eyes.
“It’s time,” she said softly.
“Time for what?”
She turned to face him fully, reaching up to cup his face in her hands. His skin was warm beneath her palms, the faint rasp of stubble rough against her fingers.
“Time for you to make me your mate.”
His breath caught. Something flickered in the depths of his eyes—hope and hunger and a fear so profound it made her heart clench.
“Jessa—”
“You told me you wanted my heart.” She rose up on her toes, brushing a gentle kiss against his lips. “You have it. You’ve had it for longer than I realized. Now I want yours.”
“You don’t know what you’re asking.”
“I know exactly what I’m asking.” She drew back just far enough to meet his eyes. “I’m asking you to choose me. Not because you feel obligated, not because of any bargain or debt. Because you want to. Because you love me.”
The sound he made wasn’t quite human—a low, rumbling growl that seemed to vibrate through his entire body.
“I do,” he said, the words torn from somewhere deep inside him. “Gods help me, I do.”
“Then show me.”
He kissed her, fierce and claiming, his mouth hot and demanding against hers, his hands sliding down her back to pull her hard against him. She gasped into the kiss and he swallowed the sound, his tongue sweeping past her lips to taste her, to claim her, to make her his in the most fundamental way possible.
Her back hit the wall of the corridor before she realized they’d moved. He caged her there with his body, one hand tangling in her hair to tilt her head back, the other gripping her hip with barely restrained force.
“The bedroom,” she managed when he finally let her breathe. “Not here.”
For a moment, she thought he might not listen. The look in his eyes was wild, barely human, the glow of them bright enough to cast shadows on her face. His beast was close to the surface—she could see it in the way his muscles coiled, the way his claws had extended to prick at her hip through the fabric of her dress.
Then he took a deep breath, visibly fighting for control, and nodded.
He swept her into his arms as if she weighed nothing at all, carrying her down the corridor to the larger bedroom with long, urgent strides. The door was barely closed behind them before he had her on the bed, his body covering hers, his mouth finding the sensitive curve of her throat.
“Jessa.” Her name was a promise on his lips. “I need you to be sure. Once I claim you, there’s no going back. You’ll be mine. Forever.”
“Good.” She pulled at his shirt, desperate to feel his skin against hers. “I don’t want to go back. I want this. I want you.”
The shirt came off. Then her dress, his hands surprisingly gentle as he unlaced it, as if even now, even with his control stretched to breaking, he couldn’t bear to be rough with her. But she wasn’t interested in gentle.
She pulled him down to her, wrapping her legs around his waist, arching up to press her body against his. He groaned—a sound of pure, desperate need—and his control finally shattered.
What followed was fierce and tender in equal measure. He worshipped her body with hands and mouth and tongue, until she was writhing beneath him, then gently flipped her over onto her hands and knees. He bent over her, the head of his cock teasing her entrance, as he gently scraped his fangs over the sensitive curve of her neck.
“This is where I’m going to claim you.” His voice was low, guttural, barely intelligible. “Are you sure?”
