She takes another step back.
"Yes?" I try again, my voice sounding rough, as though I haven't used it in days.
"How bad do you want me right now?"
My eyes shoot up to hers. "Don't challenge me, omega. Not right now. You won't win." It's a caution as much as anything else. I'm hanging on by a thread. My knot is twitching. My cockthrobs against my zipper. The need to rut into her is making my vision hazy.
The fact that we're leaving tomorrow only makes this moment feel more urgent.
This hunger isn't even about sex, though the need to sink inside her is unlike anything I've ever felt. It's about claiming her—getting so deep, burrowing so far inside her that there isn't room for anything else. Like I told her a few days ago—everything else around us, it's all just static. Being with her is at the center of my soul.
I told her this morning that I wasn't in any rush, and that's true. I'm simply waiting for the right moment to show her who I really am. All the parts of me.
The gentle partner, the caring mate. And the feral beast who hides beneath my skin, who will stop at nothing to sink himself so fucking deep inside her that I brand her insides with my cock so she feels the echo of me with every step she takes for the rest of her fucking life.
"I think I'm still mad at you, Orion," Mona says lightly. "I think…" She takes another step until her back hits the balcony doors. She fiddles with the lock behind her. My heart beats faster. My cock grows stiffer. I swallow the venom dripping from my teeth.
"I think you have to earn my forgiveness," she lilts.
I cock my head to the side. The door pushes open at her back, and she steps onto the balcony. Behind her, in the distance, the mountains sprawl. Her vibrant red hair glows against the sky-blue backdrop. She's a vision.
Mona isn't skilled in the art of seduction. Her ass hits the railing, and she squeaks, then peeks over the side, eyeing the drop.
"Mona…" I warn her.
"You can earn my forgiveness…" She peers over the side one more time. Then, her smile lights up my fucking heart, which immediately bursts in terror when she hops up onto the railing. "Ifyou can catch me!" Then she fucking jumps.
I hear a dull thud, and an "Oof,"as I spring forward with a roar.
Peering over the railing, I find her below, eyes wide, staring up at me with a guilty, excited expression.
"Where you going, firefly?" I shout before gripping the railing and launching myself over the side. Before I land, she squeals like prey and bolts for the front of the house, her scent spiking with adrenaline. I run, chasing her around the side.
Her scent grows wild, and I'm only steps behind her when she reaches the porch. Just as she opens the front door, I snag around her waist and swing her up into the air.
She screams, and the sound rushes through me, making my heart pump faster, flooding each thundering pulse straight to my cock. She squirms out of reach and takes off, tripping over her own feet, slipping on a rug.
I click my tongue, shaking my head. "Firefly, all you're doing is showing me what I need to train you in."
She stumbles into a side table, runs down the hall, skidding into the kitchen.
"Agility, balance, stamina," I count off on my fingers while I stalk after her.
Her heart is racing, the scent fucking intoxicating. So sweet. Stronger than it was this morning. The honey is so thick I can taste it on my tongue. I storm after her, finding her in the kitchen, a wild look in her eyes. Her hair is still wet from the shower, cheeks and lips flushed red. She clutches a chair, holding the seat between us. I dart left, she swings right. So I fake right, and when she lets go of the chair and flies left, we collide.
Picking her up with one arm, I toss the chair out of the way—it crashes into the wall—then, with both hands, I squeeze her ass, lifting her and holding her against me. Striding to the table, I drop her down, spin her around, and shove her torso over the tabletop.
Her breath hitches, and when I grip her waistband and rip her pants down and off, she cries out, cursing loudly.
"Bad girl, running from your alpha," I growl, gripping her ass cheek tightly, jiggling all that I can hold in my fist. I fuckingloveher ass. I push my other hand flat between her shoulder blades, keeping her bent.
"Spread them."
She grunts, forehead pressing into the table, then spreads her legs. I release her and step back, taking in the beautiful mess of my mate, legs spread, ass high in the air, bent over the fucking table.
She looks back over her shoulder, blue eyes gleaming through strands of messy red hair. "You're not forgiven yet."
I laugh darkly. She's teasing me, but I don't think she has any idea the demon she's trying to unleash.
