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The pleasure built again, coiling tighter, and when I came again, it crashed over me harder than before. My entire body clenched around him, and that was enough to send Hudson over the edge right after me. He buried his face in my neck as he finished, holding me like I might disappear if he let go.

“Sloane,” he breathed, the name almost a prayer. “My Sloane.”

We stayed like that for a long while, trading lazy kisses and quiet words about nothing and everything.

I traced lazy patterns over his shoulder. This was what it felt like to be held without conditions. To be seen and still wanted.

Eventually he gathered me against his chest, pulling the throw blanket from the back of the couch over us. My limbs felt heavy, my mind quiet in a way it hadn’t been in months.

Safe in the circle of his arms, with his heartbeat under my cheek and the faint scent of the woods still clinging to his skin, I drifted off into sleep.

27

HUDSON

GOOD MORNING TO YOU, TOO

I woke slowly to the sound of birds chirping outside Sloane’s window, their bright calls cutting through the quiet of her apartment. As a shifter, my senses picked up every note in their chorus, the way the sounds layered over distant traffic.

Morning light filtered through the curtains, and it took me a few seconds to fully register that we’d slept on her couch.

The throw blanket had slipped down sometime during the night, leaving us both exposed. Sloane was curled against my side, her skin soft and warm against my body.

We were completely naked, and the realization sent a rush of heat straight through me. My cock hardened fast, thickening against her thigh as memories from last night flooded my mind.

I remembered how she had come apart under my mouth on the couch, her thighs trembling around my head. The tight grip of her pussy when I finally slid inside her, how she had gasped and adjusted to my size after so many years without anyone. The way her nails had dug into my shoulders when she climaxed around me.

Those images made my erection throb painfully. I already wanted her again, the need building low in my stomach. Part of me wondered if this intensity came from the wolf side recognizing its mate, or if it was simply how deeply I had fallen for this woman who had upended my entire world.

Sloane stirred beside me, shifting before rolling over to face me. Her eyes blinked open, still heavy with sleep, and when her gaze traveled down my body, a soft laugh escaped her. “Good morning to you, too.”

Her laughter loosened any residual tightness in my chest. I pulled her closer, wrapping my arms around her and pressing our bodies together from chest to thigh. Her breasts molded against me, and I claimed her mouth in a deep, searching kiss.

My hands roamed down her back, cupping the curve of her ass and squeezing gently.

“I want you again,” I murmured against her lips. “Last night I needed to go slow, to make sure you were comfortable after so long. But this morning I don’t feel that same need for gentleness. I want to feel all of you, harder this time. If you’re ready for that with me.”

She rocked her hips against my erection, her breath catching. “I want that too.”

Those words ignited me. I sat up on the couch, the cushions dipping under my weight, and scooped her into my arms. She wrapped her legs around my waist instinctively as I stood, carrying her the short distance to the kitchen. Her bare ass settled on the cool counter when I set her down, drawing a quick inhale from her.

I didn’t give her much time to adjust. My mouth found her neck, kissing and nipping along the sensitive skin while my hands cupped her full breasts. I took one nipple into my mouth, sucking hard enough to make her moan and arch into me. My tongue flicked over the hardened peak, then I switched to the other side, lavishing the same attention until both nipples were tight and wet from my efforts.

I slid my hand between her thighs, finding her already slick with arousal. The heat of her coated my fingers as I pushed two inside her, thrusting them deep and curling them to hit the spot I knew drove her wild.

She gasped loudly, her walls clenching around the intrusion. I worked her steadily, my thumb circling her clit in time with the movement of my fingers. The wet, obscene sounds echoed in the small kitchen, mixing with her quickening breaths.

God, she was so responsive, her body opening for me so readily despite the size difference between us. “You’re so wet for me already,” I murmured against her breast. “I love feeling you like this, all hot and ready around my fingers.”

She trembled, her hands gripping the edge of the counter for support. But before I could bring her to the edge, she pulled back, sliding down from the counter. Her eyes stayed locked on mine as she dropped to her knees. The sight of her looking up at me, lips parted and cheeks flushed with desire, sent a jolt straight to my cock.

She wrapped one hand around the base and leaned in, taking me into her mouth in one smooth motion. The wet heat enveloped me, her tongue swirling around the head before she sucked me deeper. My hands tangled in her hair, the strands soft between my fingers as I fought the urge to thrust too hard.

“Fuck, Sloane,” I groaned. “You’re taking me so deep.” She hummed in response, the vibration traveling down my shaft and making my balls tighten.

She bobbed her head, her hand stroking in perfect rhythm with her mouth. Saliva dripped down my cock, making everything slick. I watched her the entire time, mesmerized by the stretch of her lips around my thickness and the way her cheeks hollowed with each suck. Thoughts raced through my head—how lucky I was to have her here, willing and eager, how much I loved the trust she placed in me after everything we had been through.

The pleasure built fast and intensely, coiling at the base of my spine. “I’m getting so close. You keep that up and I’m going to come down your throat.”