“I want you naked.”
Her heartbeat sped up, and her ears filled with white noise. Was she really going to do this?
He straightened, and his green gaze held her in place, questioning. Even now, when his wolf rode him hard to take, he waited.
Despite her nerves, her skin danced, begging for his touch. His calm, yet anxious, presence reassured her. His expression open, his demeanor accepting. She took a deep breath and met his gaze.
Slowly, he plucked open her purple, chocolate-soaked shirt, one button at a time. The absence of his mouth and hands on her skin gave her chills, but she didn’t care. Her nerves sang on high alert. She watched, mesmerized as Eric unwrapped her.
Her shirt draped open and Eric sucked in a breath. The bra she’d chosen that morning, more for functionality than seduction, did little to dampen the fire in his gaze. He pushed the cups down, dragging the edges against her nipples and let her breasts spill out.
Eric licked his lips and leaned forward.
When his hot mouth clamped on her, she moaned. Her head dropped back, and she closed her eyes. She’d dreamt of this moment many times. Always, she’d awaken in desperate need, only to chastise herself for dreaming abouthim. This moment with the real Eric made her wicked dreams, the ones with images so vivid and real she’d call out in the middle of the night, seem like faded black and white remakes.
Eric’s lips, mouth, and tongue continued to explore as he removed more clothing and lowered her to the rug in front of the fireplace—the one covering the new blood stains in the wood. As his hands roamed the curves of her body, stirring the internal ache, he peeled off her remaining clothes. Her body melded to his as the nearby fire’s intensity licked her skin.
Eric’s touch sought out, and found, the sensitive zones on her body, as if he alone held the key, and the blueprint to her cravings. Any stiffness remaining in her body from the accident dissolved out of her limbs as she turned to a puddle of molten lava. He kissed around her bruises and continued to move down. When his head ducked between her legs, waves of delight rippled through her body. Her eyes popped open, and her vision swam.
Oh, my. Yes!
She moaned again, as she melted into pure bliss. Waves of pleasure rolled through her body, yet she wanted more.
Her skin tingled, playing the tune Eric wrought from her body. He covered her body with his once more, and while she reeled from her first orgasm, he pushed slowly inside. When he joined his body with hers in perfect harmony, he answered the ache within. The intense heat built again as he stoked the fire and continued to pump his hips and thrust deep inside.
Pressed together, she moved with him, her heart thudding against her chest. She held on, clutching him tight, never wanting to let go. Never wanting this delicious moment to end yet yearning for release.
As the pressure increased, no thoughts plagued her mind. No worries, no concerns; instead, a sense of belonging, of being complete and consumed with exquisite satisfaction. Brenna sank her nails into Eric’s back as she came again, so intense light splintered across her vision and she bit into his shoulder. Eric groaned as he found his own release, his body tense and slick with a fine sheen of sweat.
Brenna peeled her nails from his skin and smoothed the indents with her hands as if it would make the wounds she’d inflicted magically disappear. Eric’s weight pressed her into the floor as he sagged on top of her. She didn’t mind. She liked it. Unclamping her teeth, she kissed the unintentional bite marks with zero regrets from losing control.
Chapter 13
In a dazed state of contentment, Brenna lay cocooned under the weight of Eric’s body. When he shifted to gently pull out and lay beside her, the cooler air prickled her skin and washed her senses with the sweet tang of pine and vanilla. She sat up, threw another log on the fire, and pulled her knees to her chest.
The soft rug brushed her bum and legs.
She’d had sex with Eric Buchanan. The alpha mate who’d felt their mate bond and decided he didn’t want it.
Instead of a rapidly beating heart, or an insatiable need to hide or flee, her muscles remained languid, not stiff. Her body became consumed with an odd, prickling warmth spreading across her chest and radiating out to her limbs. Everything felt right. As if this was how things should be. And prior to the rejection, this was how things should’ve, could’ve, been.
She sighed and ignored he painful ache in the pit of her stomach. What was the point of mourning something that never happened?
Eric pulled himself up to sit beside her. After a couple of sideways glances, he scooted closer until his bare shoulders nudged hers.
“So,” he said.
“So,” she said, heart hammering in her chest. “That happened.”
“Yup.”
She continued to let the hot air flow over her naked skin, enjoying the heat of the fire. “Are you still injured from the fight?”
He patted his rock hard abs. “Good as new.”
He was better than good, but he didn’t need her to feed his ego. “The feral?”
“Taken care of.”
