“I know, but what else can we do? Neither one of us wants to lose our jobs or our place in the Pack, but ignoring this thing between us is impossible. I know it sounds crazy, but sometimes it seems like I need Xander more than I need air.”
“It’s not that crazy. Gage went through the same thing, so I’ve seen firsthand what it’s like when a werewolf finally meetsTheOnehe’s destined to be with.”
“What do you mean, ‘when a werewolf meets the one he’s destined to be with’?”
Mac looked up in surprise, a pita chip halfway to her mouth, but then shook her head. “Xander didn’t tell you, did he?”
“Tell me what?”
Mac sighed. “Men can be so dense sometimes. Well, if you could get them to talk about it, I’m sure the guys would do a better job of explaining this, but basically, there’s this folklore that says there’s one, and only one, perfect mate out there for every werewolf. You know, like a soul mate. When a werewolf finds this one-in-a-billion person, the feeling is supposedly something akin to getting hit by lightning and cupid’s arrow at the same time.”
Khaki almost laughed at how crazy that sounded until she realized that Mac had just described how it had felt when she’d met Xander.
“You don’t really believe in that stuff, right? I mean…soul mates? Seriously?”
Mac lifted a brow. “Khaki, you’re a werewolf. You can grow claws and fangs, see in the dark, shake off getting shot like it’s nothing, and at some point you’ll probably be able to shift completely into a wolf. As amazing and insane as all that sounds, you’ve accepted it without doing much more than batting an eye. But when I tell you that werewolves can sense when they’re around the person they are meant to be with forever, that you have a problem with?”
Khaki didn’t say anything. When Mac put it that way, everything that had been going on between her and Xander made complete sense. There was more to her attraction to him than some out-of-control werewolf hormones. She’d been essentially bonded to him since the moment they’d met. Deep down, she knew he was the man she was meant to spend the rest of her life with.
“Yes, he is,” Mac said with a smile.
Khaki thought she’d missed something while she’d been daydreaming, but then she realized she’d said that last part out loud and that Mac was simply agreeing with her.
Suddenly, the obstacles she and Xander were facing didn’t seem so impossible to deal with. “It makes the prospect of losing our jobs if we slip up and give ourselves away not seem quite so bad now.”
“True.” Mac reached for a pita chip. “But why don’t we figure out a way to make sure you get to have your cake and eat it too by coming up with a plan on how you’re going to keep anyone from finding out about the two of you?”
* * *
When Xander opened the door of his apartment, it was hard not to pounce on him, but Khaki resisted the urge, instead sidling past him and walking inside.
“I was a little worried you’d still be at work,” she said.
Xander closed the door, his smoldering gaze sliding down her body like a caress. “I was a little worried about that myself, but fortunately, Gage has a fiancée to get home to. I stopped by the store after I left and picked up some things I thought you might like—in case tonight’s training runs long.”
She smiled. “Hope you picked up something for breakfast too. Because I think training might run a really long time.”
His eyes flashed gold. “As a matter of fact, I did.”
Khaki was just wondering if whatever he bought could be eaten in bed when Xander closed the slight distance between them and kissed her. She twisted her hands in the fabric of his T-shirt, pulling him closer. She felt her teeth elongate and her claws come out as his tongue slipped into her mouth. This time, she didn’t worry about them. Instead, she relaxed and enjoyed the sensation of teasing him with her sharp canines.
Xander groaned, weaving his fingers in her hair and urging her back against the wall, his mouth, and fangs, sliding down her neck. She loved when he did that. The combination of his soft, warm lips and those hard, cold fangs really did it for her.
She thought about asking him to take her to bed but decided she couldn’t wait that long. The entryway to his apartment would have to do.
Khaki dug her claws in his T-shirt, ripping it the rest of the way off. Always more in control, Xander took care with her tank top and bra. They continued kissing and nipping at each other as he unbuckled her belt and pushed her jeans over her hips, then dropped to his knees and helped her get completely naked.
She’d been ready to yank him back to his feet, but he put his hands on her hips and pushed her back against the wall, apparently deciding he liked being down there just fine—level with her pussy.
She leaned back, growling as he kissed his way down her stomach. She knew exactly where his mouth was going to end up and she wasn’t sure she could handle that. She’d never been licked standing up like this. Could her legs even hold up once he started?
Xander didn’t give her a chance to voice her concerns. One moment he was kissing and nibbling around her belly button, the next he put his right hand under her left thigh and spread her wide, forcing her to balance on one leg. The position was so sexy she started to tremble. Then he dragged his tongue up and down the folds of her pussy. He was doing a good job of holding her upright because she thought for sure she was going to lose it.
She reached down to bury her fingers in his hair, careful not to scratch him. Xander’s nimble tongue immediately zeroed in on her clit, alternating between little circles and broad licks.
“That’s so perfect,” she breathed. “Right there.”
Xander growled deep in his throat. Between the rumbling sound and the flicking of his tongue, Khaki thought she might come before he even got started. Not that she was complaining. This first orgasm had been building up since they’d left her place to go to work that morning, and she was more than ready to let go.
