As the sun crested higher into the sky, I stroked August’s long fingers splayed on my stomach, keeping me pinned to him, thinking of the awful recording, dwelling on how low men could sink to keep what they believed was theirs, and then I thought of my father wanting to beAlpha.
I found it strange that he’d coveted leadership. Had he desired this to bring me into the pack like Heath insinuated, or had it been a life goal? Had my mother known hisintentions?
My mother who’d been another man’smate. . .
As I lay with the one who was supposed to be mine, I wondered if resisting the pull had been difficult. Perhaps it hadn’t been such a feat considering her mate was neither gentle nor sweet. The fact that she’d managed, though, reassured me that I hadn’t ended up in August’s bed because of any magic. If August had been a violent narcissist, I would’ve kept mydistance.
As though he’d felt me thinking of him, he stirred behind me, and the fingers I was caressing crimped my T-shirt and hoisted me a little higher up his body. I smiled, knowing the reason he’d readjusted me . . . havingfeltthe reason against my tailbone. His lips connected with my shoulder blade and laid the warmest and softest kiss that penetrated through the barrier of cotton and skin, and then those lips moved to the slope of my neck and pressed a tantalizing kiss there, and then he nipped his way higher, to the sensitive place right behind myearlobe.
Still smiling, I spun in his arms to facehim.
He returned my smile, a hesitant version of it, though, that had my heart beating double-time.
“No regrets?” he finallyasked.
“No.”
He ran a knuckle down my cheek, dipping it into my dimple before curving it around myjaw.
“What about you?” Iasked.
“My only regret is that morning hascome.”
“Are you worried I’ll turn into apumpkin?”
He laughed, and then he pressed that beautiful, laughing mouth of his against mine and spilled the deep notes of his joy inside me. As the kiss deepened, the shape of his mouth changed, uncurled, opened. He pulled me into him, all of me, from my tongue to my body. When the bulge that strained his sweatpants pushed against my thighs, he disconnected our mouths and pressed me slightly away as though afraid to bruiseme.
He studied my face, tucking a piece of hair behind my ear. “I’m going to be saving lots on waterheating.”
I studied him back. From his pupils ringed with brown that melted into the brightest green flecked with gold, to the scattering of chocolate freckles on his light-brown skin, to the dark auburn stubble on his oblong jaw, to the faint scar left over from my nighttimeattack.
“I’ll make up for your cold showers by taking extra hot ones,” Isaid.
His pupils dilated, and his nose flicked mine. “Planning on showering here again,huh?”
Heat engulfed me. What in the world had prompted me to say that? “No. Um. Only if I getstranded—”
“I hope you’ll get stranded often then.” He smiled while I tried to rein back the rising heat. “I might even arrange for it to happen.” He deposited a brief and searing kiss on my mouth that did absolutely nothing to cool meoff.
“I’m going to need a cold shower too,” Imumbled.
“I’d suggest taking one together, but that would defeat thepurpose.”
“It reallywould.”
He combed another lock off my face, lifted my hair, then released it, watching as each strand fluttered down. “Do you think it might be realgold?”
I gave a very unladylike snort. “I wouldn’t be riddled with debt if itwere.”
His gaze turned guarded. “You said youdidn’t—”
“It’s nothing.” I bit my lower lip. “Nothing I can’thandle.”
“Howmuch?”
“Not tellingyou.”
“Whynot?”
