Her hand slides up my chest and grips the front of my shirt. Then she lifts up onto her toes and kisses me as though she knows what she needs and is prepared to hunt me and take everything she desires. Her tongue traces over my lower lip.
My lips part.
And she draws back a finger width and her breaths ghosts over my mouth. “This isn’t going to start the mating bond, is it?”
“No.” I haven’t told her what happens after the mating bond starts. I need to do that. But not until she agrees to be my mate and chooses me. “I am not ready for that.”
She nods, her gaze fixed on me. “Same…forever is a long time.”
I rub my thumb over her cheek, glad we agree on that. “It is.”
My meq throbs, aching for her touch.
She presses against me and kisses me again, without restraint. Her tongue dips into my mouth, stealing a taste and my hand grips her hip. She gasps as I pull her close.
Harper does not feel like another warrior in my arms. She is smaller and has more curves, though she is all firm muscle from lifting laundry all day. I want there to be nothing between us. For us to be alone.
But I’m glad we’re not because I would be far too tempted.
I release her and step back. If she believes my interest is fake, then I do not know how else to convince her otherwise.
Her teeth rake over her lip, while her fingers are still gripping the front of my shirt. “You’re actually interested in me.”
“Why is that so surprising?”
“For all the reasons you’ve already heard.” She releases my shirt.
“If you do not share the same interest, then tell me. I do not want to be that kind of warrior.” Perhaps I misread the way she looks at me, and what I thought was jealousy was simply frustration that the other women were interrupting my work. But I did not misread the kiss.
Or the scent of lust on her skin, and the delicate flutter of her heart.
She glances away. “I didn’t want to be interested, because I didn’t want to set myself up for heartache. It was safe when Ithought this was to stop you from being harassed. But you like me.” She laughs. “And there you are saying it’s the women who choose…when you’ve lured me in.”
“There is no rush, and I am not seeking any promises. We are seeing if there may be more, that is all.” If she hadn’t gotten jealous, I might have convinced myself that I wasn’t interested in her for a little longer.
“That’s not what happened with the others.”
“No, some of those connections were made under less-than-ideal circumstances. But what we are doing is more normal. Sometimes a woman will entertain the interest of several to determine who is the best fit.”
She snorts. “I’m sure plenty of human men will say they are doing the same thing.”
“Except they aren’t, because they are sleeping with everyone while not getting to know anyone.”
She gives me a curious smile. “Because humans don’t form a mating bond, it is normal to sleep with people to see how well you get on in bed. After all, it would be devastating to find out you are not compatible in bed.”
“How do you mean not compatible?” Do humans have more in their pants than dicks and pussies?
She presses start on the washing machine. “For a start, some people like a lot of sex and some people don’t. Then there is the type of sex.” She picks up a bag.
I open an unused machine and take the bag off her, emptying the contents into the machine.
“What kinds of sex are you used to?” she asks, handing me another bag.
This conversation is not helping the ache in my meq or the way it is rubbing against my pants. “Hands mostly, some grinding.”
Vari and Orik did more, but then are as close as mates, and even though they have Bridget, they lie with each other, as well as with her. Orik’s tribe does the right thing, allowing a woman to choose two warriors. Those households must be quite wealthy.
“No one ever sucked your dick? You never sucked dick?” She hits the start button.
