Shifter In Ascent (Louisiana Shifters) (28 page)

“I’m really not sure we should be leaving them alone,” Tessa fretted, biting her lip as she followed Jace out of the infirmary. Maddie had been temporarily sedated to keep her from finishing Jasper off in her rage, but that wouldn’t last long. Knowing the Shifter metabolism, she’d be up within the hour and probably twice as vicious.

“Maddie and Jasper or Camilla and the new guy?” Jace tossed over his shoulder as he walked.
“Well,” said Tessa, flustered, “both, but I was referring to Maddie and Jasper. Camilla and Raphael are staying with Shaw and the new girl, Cassandra. And judging from the man’s reaction, Raphael isn’t about to let anything happen to my sister.”
Jace turned to give his mate a soft smile, holding out his hand to her. When Tessa slid her small hand into his large one, Jace had the overwhelming urge to pull her into his arms and rub his scent all over her body.
He stifled it, contenting himself with the knowledge that his mate, his female, had eyes for no man but him. Even now she pulled close and twined her arm with his, seeking his touch. So yes, the marking of territory wasn’t necessary. It could at least wait until they got back to his house, Jace thought with a smirk.
“You’re not listening to a word I’m saying, are you?” Tessa asked, cutting in on his thoughts. He looked down at her and saw that she was amused rather than irritated, and decided to play it out.
“I was busy thinking about what to do first when we get back to the house,” he said slyly, a teasing grin on his face. Tessa eyed him suspiciously, her cheeks heating up at his tone.
“Why does that sound dirty coming from you?” she asked skeptically.
“It must be my manly baritone. That or the fact that I’ve spent the last two hours of boring meetings thinking about all the ways I’ll have to have you in my house,” he said, his grin broadening.
“Jace!” Tessa said, her voice rising in a poor imitation of shock. She swatted his arm without any real force behind the blow. He took that as a sign that he should continue.
“Well, first of course there’s… what did you call it? My ‘orgy-sized’ shower? And then I was thinking about the couch, where we almost hooked up the first time…”
“Jace!” Tessa said again, but this time she wasn’t even trying to hide the desire darkening her eyes and flushing her skin. Her voice had deepened to a sexy purr, which only spurred him on.
“And then I thought about the kitchen island. I think that counter might be the perfect height to hit your G spot,” he mused aloud, playing at absentmindedness.
Tessa bit her lip and looked away coyly, but not soon enough. Her scent, that wonderful Ascendant scent of apples and honey, washed over him and pushed at his restraint. He needed to slow things down soon, or they wouldn’t make it the next two hundred yards to the house.
“Anyway,” he said coolly, “You were saying about Maddie and Jasper?” Tessa pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes, but followed his change of topic anyway.
“I was trying to say that you ought to be a little more concerned about your sister. She’s mated herself to some crazy Shifter she barely knows, and who is, according to you, incredibly dangerous. And yet you insisted on leaving them to work things out alone,” Tessa said, miffed.
“Would you accept someone else meddling in things between us?” Jace asked, glancing over “Would you accept someone else meddling in things between us?” Jace asked, glancing over

at Tessa. She was frowning, but the flush and darkened eyes remained. God, his female was sexy.
“Well, no, but-“ Tessa started.
“Exactly. Because it was between mates. It’s like jumping in to break up a fight between two vicious dogs. Only a crazy person would do that,” Jace said.
“I can’t believe you let her exchange bites with him in the first place,” Tessa said, stubborn.
“My only problem with this whole thing is that he had a gun pointed at you. If it’s between you getting shot and Maddie getting saddled with a mate who’s at least as stubborn and dramatic as she is, I’m gonna let Maddie take one for the team. Especially if it’s something she clearly wanted anyway.”
“I didn’t see her jumping up and down to be mated. Like you said, he had a gun.”
Jace stopped, pulling Tessa to face him. He braced his hands on her hips gently, looking down into her face.
“Madeline Copeland has never once done anything she hasn’t wanted to do. There were a number of ways she could have handled that situation, but she chose this path. She must have her reasons, and I for one am choosing to respect that unless I see evidence of a real problem between them,” Jace explained, his eyes serious.
“She had to be tied to her infirmary bed to keep from hurting him. Does that not count as a problem?” Tessa asked, frowning.
“Jasper can defend himself against Maddie. And to tell you the truth, I’m pretty sure it’s their way of flirting. The pattern goes all the way back to childhood, trust me.”
Tessa’s face softened, and finally she nodded.
“Okay. If you say to leave them alone, then I will.”
With that she shimmied out of his embrace, catching his hand and pulling him toward the now-visible house. Jace was slightly overwhelmed for a moment; he’d fought so long for her trust, and here she simply gave it freely. Looking at Tessa and the changes they’d wrought on each other was the biggest reason that he could let Maddie work through this without his help.
“What do you think about the new female, Cassandra?” Tessa asked as she crossed the front yard to the porch. Jace followed, a rumble building deep in his chest.
“You’re the only female I’m thinking about right now, and I can prove it,” he said, corralling her until her back was up against the front door.
“How would you do that?“ Tessa asked, her brow furrowing as she tried to keep up.
“Back at my office, I really did leave to get something I’d forgotten,” Jace said, producing a blue velveteen ring box from his pocket and showing it to Tessa.
Tessa’s jaw dropped. For a girl who was rarely without a quick response, she was rapidly becoming used to speechlessness. Jace chuckled at her expression, turning the box in his hand.
“I had this whole plan, you see. You’ve accepted Shifter culture so well, you’ve been a great sport. I wanted to do something the human way for once,” he explained, watching Tessa’s face closely.
Tessa shook her head, tears forming at the corners of her eyes. She was in complete disbelief, never having come close to guessing Jace’s true intentions.
“Don’t worry, I looked up how to propose online. You’ll just have to tell me if I’m doing it wrong,” he said, only half-joking.
With that, Jace sunk to one knee. Tessa let out a flustered squawk, pressing the back of her hand to her mouth. Jace opened the box to reveal one of the most striking rings Tessa had ever hand to her mouth. Jace opened the box to reveal one of the most striking rings Tessa had ever

seen, and silent tears began to run down her face.
“I just-“ Tessa mumbled.
“Wait, wait. I think this is my part. Give me your hand,” Jace said, trying to cover his

emotion-roughened voice with humor.
“What are you doing?!” Tessa asked, panic rising in her voice.
“Do you trust me?” Jace asked, looking up into her face.
“Yes-“ Tessa started.
“Then let me do this properly. Give me damned your hand, Tess.”
Tessa reluctantly gave it to him, trying hard to fight a panicky giggle. Jace cleared his throat,

“Tessa Anderson, would you do me the honor of being my mate?” he asked, looking up at her.
“I, uh. Yes?” Tessa replied.
“Did I do it right? Are you happy?” he asked, his voice turning a little anxious. He rose to his feet and reached out to his mate.
The next second Tessa flung herself at him, sniffling and laughing. Putting her arms around his neck, she buried her face against his chest and made nonsensical soggy noises of happiness. Jace grinned, pulling her closer into his arms. The feeling of rightness flooded his senses, and in a flash he had scooped Tessa up in his arms. Tessa’s hands and mouth were suddenly everywhere, and he could barely focus.
Jace stilled slowly, pulling back a little.
“Tessa,” he said as she dropped greedy kisses on his neck.
“Mm?” was her response.
“Just hold off for a second,” Jace said, his voice tormented.
Tessa growled and tugged his shirt up, trying to expose more skin. She was nearly mindless with need, wanting to be closer to him.
Jace’s big hands caught hers, stopping their explorations. Tessa pulled back from him indignantly, her need consuming her ability to think.
“I swear, Jace Copeland. If you turn me away again, I won’t be responsible for my actions,” she warned.
“I’m not, Tessa. We just forgot something important,” he teased. He waved the ring box in front of her eyes, then popped it open and grasped her hand. Slipping it onto her finger, he grinned.
Tessa rolled her eyes but beamed right back at him. The ring was a hair too big, but Tessa barely even noticed it. Her eyes were only for her mate.
“Have I mentioned yet that I love you very much?” she asked, her eyes luminous with adoration.
“Actually, now that you mention it, no,” Jace teased.
“I guess I didn’t think it needed saying,” she said, a rueful smile playing over her lips.
She pressed closer to Jace, murmuring her approval. Already her breaths were coming faster, making her incredible breasts rise and fall temptingly. Digging in his pocket, he produced a quarter and held it out to her in his open palm.
“What’s this for?” Tessa asked, licking her lips as if nervous.
“I can’t decide where we should make love first, so I figured we’d flip a coin,” he said, “I can’t decide where we should make love first, so I figured we’d flip a coin,” he said,

Tessa gave a startled laugh, picking up the quarter. She gave him a teasing look, and then threw it over his shoulder toward the couch. Jace was confused for half a heartbeat, but then Tessa slid her arms around his neck and put her mouth just under his ear.

“That’s an easy one,” she breathed.
“Is it?” Jace said, reaching behind her to open the front door.
“I’m a dirty girl, so you should probably take me to the shower and clean me up,” she teased,

Jace didn’t even bother to respond, just scooped her up and made for the shower. His only pause was to kick the front door closed, and then Tessa was trying to peel off his clothes as he carried her to the bathroom. He hit the remote switch by the bathroom door, turning the shower on before he set Tessa down on the marble counter. He pulled her tee shirt up and over her head, exposing her creamy pale skin and lacy ivory bra. He bit his lip to keep himself from immediately putting bite marks all over her breasts and her lovely neck, marking his territory.

She purred under his gaze and began trying to help him take his pants off, then stopped for a second and looked down at the counter.
“Did you know you’re missing a big chunk of marble here?” she said, looking amused.
Jace dropped a kiss on her shoulder and groaned when she made a soft noise in response.
“Remind me later to tell you why that’s your fault,” he said gruffly, practically shredding her bra in an effort to remove it quickly. Jace had to force himself not to look at her full breasts and already-hardened pink nipples lest he lose every shred of dignity and self-control.
The room was heating up quickly thanks to the now-steamy shower, and Jace was nearly out of his mind with need. Their hands flew as they rushed to discard the last scraps of their clothing.
Then they moved into the large, luxe shower and Jace had to force himself to set her down and pull away from her so that he could adjust all the shower heads to point to one corner. When he was done, he backed Tessa into that corner, not touching her yet but merely enjoying the play of the water on her magnificent body.
Jace couldn’t help but reach down to stroke himself firmly as he drank in the sight of his mate, her breath coming in pants as she waited for him to make the next move. Water flowed off her perfect curves, gleaming wickedly. Jace couldn’t remember ever being so damned thirsty in his whole life.
He felt her eyes travel down to his chest, his abs, then to his growing arousal. His female knew what she wanted, but he wasn’t ready to take it there yet. He first wanted to touch her with his hands until she begged, to wring every drop of pleasure his mouth could produce until she wept with desire.
Jace moved forward until his body was only inches from Tessa’s, and he continued to drink in the sight of her. She squirmed impatiently under his gaze, more than ready for his touch. Reaching out, Jace brushed his fingertips just under her jaw, then the sweet curve of her hip bone. Tessa watched with wide eyes as he trailed his caress upward over her ribcage and up just to the curve of one breast.
Tessa bit her lip and leaned her head back, looking up at Jace with heavy-lidded eyes the color of an afternoon storm. Watching her teeth knead her bottom lip had Jace’s imagination running wild, thinking of where he’d like those lips to be next.
When he brushed his fingertips up to her hardened nipple, she opened her mouth just enough When he brushed his fingertips up to her hardened nipple, she opened her mouth just enough

to let out the first little “oh” of pleasure. Jace couldn’t help but move closer and run his hands over every inch of her satiny skin. Tessa stretched up on her toes like a cat asking for a scratch, and Jace slanted his mouth over hers in response.

He felt Tessa’s small hands at his waist, exploring his hips and then his lower back, urging him on. Jace gave a low growl and she shivered deliciously, moaning into his mouth. His female was asking for more, and more she would get.

Breaking their kiss, Jace slid his hand under her jaw again and gently tilted her head back to expose the slender white column of her throat. She obliged him by making a series of breathy gasps and writhing under his touch. Smiling, Jace nipped her neck and shoulder a few times, interspersing the love marks with simple kisses.

Shifting his hands one more to her ribcage, Jace slowly cupped the fullness of her breasts. When Tessa shivered and moaned in answer Jace ran his large, calloused thumbs over both her nipples. He could feel Tessa’s touch growing bolder, her hands clutching at his thighs and hips in search of yet more. She knew what she wanted, but Jace still had a surprise in mind.