His smile widened as he nestled between her legs and lowered his lips to hers.
Slowly. So slowly he advanced. Too damn slow.
She licked her dry mouth, her gaze following his plump lips as they reached her, and he finally closed the distance. The kiss was tentative at first. One hand trailed up her body and held her face, causing her to meet his gaze.
Their eyes met, and she blinked. God, how she wanted him. Needed him with every fiber of her being. She didn’t care about his past or her own, as long as he claimed her right here, right now. Her pussy clenched, desperate against the rigid length of his cock nestled over her clit.
And then he tipped his head and took the kiss deeper, his tongue darting out to meet hers. He licked her lips and devoured her with the kiss. A deep moan escaped his mouth as he gripped her tighter, one hand still on her side beneath her breast and the other stroking her cheek.
Her breath hitched when his chest lowered farther, making her hyper-aware of her nipples as they beaded against the lace of her bra.
Nothing could have prepared her for the onslaught of emotion consuming her, threatening to overpower her and suck the air out of her lungs.
One second he’d been hesitant and concerned—the next he’d switched to controlled and urgent. He held her tighter, his lips demanding and firm against hers.
Heather grabbed his waist with both hands, her fingers slipping under his T-shirt to graze his skin. His clothes could disappear into the ether for all she cared. She wanted to see all of him.
He was impressively the sexiest man alive with his dark, brooding looks and intense gaze. For all she had toyed with him as though he were a stray mutt, he scrambled her brain so completely with his virility she couldn’t think straight.
She shouldn’t be surprised, really. He’d been nothing but growly and protective since she’d met him. Plus he was a wolf. His alpha tendencies were sexy and attractive. Not off-putting in the least. She wanted him to take her—any way he pleased. As long as it was now.
Heather was a strong woman. Never had she let herself be so consumed. Usually she felt completely in control of her surroundings. She’d been able to control even the largest man in the hospital when finishing nursing school. She considered herself an Alpha of the female version. She made up for her small stature in personality.
Now all that shattered. And she didn’t care.
Marcus pulled his mouth back and set his forehead against hers. “You’re mine.”
She nodded, biting her lower lip. Wetness flooded her pussy as he spoke those two words. His voice was deep, deeper than it had been before he was consumed with lust, but his tone sent a shiver down her spine and made her squirm beneath him, longing to hear more.
He lowered his hand from her face, holding her gaze, and grazed it down her body until he reached the hem of her shirt. When he wiggled his fingers under the tight cotton, Heather gasped. His firm hand splayed over her belly, caressing her skin, bringing forth goose bumps in its wake.
Whatever he had in mind, she was helpless to protest. In fact, she bucked her hips toward him to gain more purchase against his cock.
He lowered his hand and held her hip down. “Still.”
One word.
Her chest pounded. Her cheeks burned. She was so aroused.
Her mate released her hip and lifted his chest off her enough to push her shirt up her body with his hand. She felt the exaggerated rise and fall of her chest as he exposed her bra.
He glanced down at the lace and leaned to one side to give himself better access. With one finger, he traced the center edge of her bra, so lightly she could barely feel the touch. But she knew he was there. His gaze was focused on her breasts while she watched the intensity in his furrowed forehead.
When he dipped a finger under the lace and flicked it over her nipple, she bucked. Her pussy throbbed with need, a ball forming in the pit of her stomach, threatening to explode.
She swallowed past the arousal building in her entire body. Growing.
Her mate was no stray mutt…
He continued to circle her breast with his finger. He tugged the cup down, forcing her breast up high and firm. And then he dipped his head and took her nipple into his mouth.
Heather released his hips and gripped the bedding on both sides of her. She tipped her neck back to breathe air not quite so concentrated with his scent. It didn’t work.
She gasped for oxygen when he gripped her breast with his hand and sucked deeper. Fearing she might come any second, she lay very still. If he so much as budged against her clit, she would come.
Butterflies flipped in her belly. They seemed to flap against her insides, vying for escape.
With expert hands, her mate popped the center clasp on her bra, exposing her completely to his gaze. He’d seen her in a tank top, but this was so much more intimate.
She felt exposed like never before.
With obvious intent, he lifted off her body, shoved her shirt and bra over her head, and released them. He met her gaze as he popped the button on her shorts and then lowered the zipper. He inhaled long and slow as her arousal filled the air. She could smell her need. “Please,” she mumbled. She reached for him, but her fingers were useless.
With a grin, Marcus lifted his own shirt over his head and tossed it aside also.
Quickly he straddled her legs and tugged her shorts down, taking her panties with them. Both items fell to the floor as he nudged her legs apart and kneeled between them.
Heather’s chest rose and fell, even though her breathing seemed very shallow.
His gaze roamed over her body, his fingers trailing in the same spots.
She lifted her head to look down. So wanton. Her nipples stood at attention. Her breasts ached, seeming much larger than ever before.
No man she’d ever dated made her feel this beautiful. Worshipped.
Her mate stroked her skin, intent on touching every inch of her.
She gripped the blankets again, tighter this time.
Dark eyes met hers. He paused, his gaze penetrating.
He lowered his face again to peruse her body. She hadn’t been privy to his yet, but the bulge in his jeans told her there would be an impressive cock under there.
He was as silent in human form as he’d been in wolf form. But he communicated so much more. And he did it well.
When he pushed her legs open wider and tilted his gaze to her pussy, moisture pooled at her entrance. She shouldn’t be embarrassed, but she couldn’t help it.
He stood from the bed and stared down at her, his only movement his chest rising and falling. He wrapped his hands around her thighs and tugged her toward the edge of the bed.
Heather squeaked as he handled her. There was no place to put her feet this close to the side, but he took care of that easily by wrapping his palms around her thighs, holding her legs open and splayed, and dipping his face in toward her center.
She moaned. Even without any contact, he made her want. Her ears burned. She was crazy with need. So fucking horny she couldn’t focus on anything. Her vision clouded. Nothing in her past had ever compared to this. Arousal slammed her entire body until she could think of nothing else but mating.
She squeezed her fists tighter, willing him to do…anything.
He seemed to have four hands the way he held her so wide and still managed to stroke her with his thumbs. He grazed over her swollen lower lips several times and then pulled them apart and inhaled deeply.
Her mate growled. She lowered her gaze, half expecting to find a wolf. But no. He managed to make such a primal sound in human form. His eyes dipped closed, and he plunged forward, consuming her pussy so fast she gasped. She had to bite her lip to keep from screaming. The last thing she wanted was for the Spencers to hear her.
Her mate thrust his tongue inside her and lapped at her channel as though starving. The second he pressed his lips to her clit, she shot off, her orgasm taking over her entire body. She moaned, all attempts at silence out the window. She bucked her hips and pressed her pussy wantonly into his open mouth. He didn’t protest. Instead he expertly worked her through the orgasm, easing away from her sensitive skin at the right moment.
She panted, sweat running down her brow. And she wanted more. She nailed him with her gaze, willed him to climb on top of her and take her completely. Maybe she could express her desire with her eyes without begging.
Finally, he lifted his face, licked his lips, and smiled at her. Without wasting another second, he scooted her back to the center of the mattress, dropped his jeans, and climbed over her. He lodged his cock at her entrance and stilled. She could feel the tip, so close. She never even got to see his dick before he was over her.
He reached for her face, held her chin, and met her gaze, searching with his eyes for something.
Heather swallowed and tried to find her voice. “Claim me.”
That was all he needed. He thrust into her to the hilt so fast the air whooshed from her lungs.
Her mate sighed, his teeth gritted. Good. He wasn’t as restrained as he projected. He drew her up tight against him, his hands snuggled under her armpits, and pumped in and out of her with slower strokes after the initial thrust. Eventually he met her gaze again and held it while he increased the pace.
Her arousal shot back up in a hurry, the girth of his cock filling her so completely she couldn’t help but reach another peak. The base of his cock hit the over-sensitized skin surrounding her clit again and again.
As his face drew up, she knew he was getting close. She wrapped her hands around his biceps. Suddenly, her mate released her with one arm and lifted his torso enough to reach between them. He pinched her clit firmly, unexpectedly, forcing her to orgasm again at the same moment he did.
She couldn’t see for several seconds. All she could do was feel his thick cock pulsing into her as she gripped it with her channel. Long moments of release ruined her for any other man. She was his now. Mated. Claimed. Completed.
When her mate was finally sated, he collapsed to one side of her, drawing her body with him. They remained face to face on their sides, his cock still imbedded inside her.
He met her gaze and smiled, brushing a lock of hair from her face as he softened.
She fell in love with him at that moment. One fantastic fuck, and she was a goner. “You aren’t very wordy when you’re in the zone, are you?”
He laughed again. She loved the sound and thanked God he had another side than the serious beast who’d just claimed her. “Maybe I’m a man of few words.” He stroked her hair. Another moment of silence, and then he spoke again. “You’re gorgeous. Been wanting to tell you that since yesterday.” He lowered his gaze from her hair to her face. “And even more beautiful when you come.”
She felt the pink as it warmed her cheeks again.
Marcus thumbed her face. “When you embarrass, your pale skin pinkens. It’s precious.”
“I don’t embarrass easily.”
He lifted one brow and cocked his mouth.
“Well, except when some wolfboy waltzes in, strips me, and then stares at my…my…”
“Pussy?” He chuckled.
She rolled her eyes. “Are you always so…forward?”
“Yep.”
She rolled her eyes again. “Here we are with the wordiness once more.”
He tweaked her cheek and eased away from her. “Lie on your belly.”
She hesitated.
He rolled his eyes. “You’re so tense. I’m going to rub your shoulders.”
She melted at the sound of his voice and lowered her face to the pillow he pulled under her. Her body came to life thinking about him smoothing his hands over her, and she hid her face to keep him from seeing how much more red she surely was.
She was shocked when he climbed over her, straddling her ass, and kneaded his hands into her shoulders. How did he have so much energy after what they just did? She was putty.
“I have a lot of questions still, but I couldn’t concentrate on any of them until after I claimed you. My lips wouldn’t move.”
She knew the feeling.
“After spending almost twenty-four hours with you but unable to touch you intimately… I was a ticking time bomb.”
She gripped the sheets alongside her face into fists as his hands worked magic on her back and wetness flooded between her legs again.
He dug his thumbs into just the right spots along her spine and shoulder blades before he spoke again. “I’m not done with you. I need you again.”
“Thank God,” she muttered into the pillow. Was it just the mating? Or was it more? He seemed to command her body.
He leaned forward and set his lips on her ear, his breath sending a shiver down her spine. “You’re so sexy sprawled out like this.”
Her shiver turned into a full-body shudder. He squeezed her ass cheeks with both hands and molded them to his palms, and then he slinked back down alongside her, grazing lightly over her skin.
She stared at him. She missed the way he held her down with his body over hers. He was so much more than she’d anticipated when she met him in the woods.
His expression was serious again. “Will you tell me what happened to you?”
She swallowed. “I was kidnapped by the Romulus and drugged.”
He squeezed her bicep. “I’m so sorry.”
She gave him a weak smile. “It wasn’t as bad for me as some of the other women. I was only held a week before NAR rescued me.”
“I’m not sure that makes me feel better.”
She lifted a hand and stroked his cheek, loving the feeling of his unshaved face. She smiled inside, imagining him deciding he couldn’t take the time to shave before he emerged from the bathroom. Day-old growth coated his face. That’s probably where it was when he’d shifted. “I’m going to be okay.”
He kissed her palm. “I want to hear the rest when you’re ready.”
She lifted to sitting so she could see him better. “When did you recognize me as your mate? Were you watching me?”
He took her hand and brought it to his lips. “No. Nothing like that. I hadn’t been close enough. I saw you collapse in the field, and I couldn’t let some woman disappear between the tall grasses and leave her there. I’m more couth than that. I didn’t know if you’d fallen into a hole, been caught in a trap, or fainted. I didn’t realize you were mine until I got closer. And then my heart beat out of my body to make sure you were alive.”