Cord kissed her, leaning over her, his chest hairs brushing against her nipples. Tied to the bed, she felt vulnerable, yet she trusted him not to hurt her. She knew Cord wouldn’t do anything she didn’t want. When he broke the kiss, she was panting and aching for his touch.
“How are you feeling, Winter?” he asked before raining kisses along her jaw line.
She moaned before answering. “I want you so much.”
“Today, I get to decide when you come,” he murmured against her neck.
Winn whimpered and arched her hips off the bed, not sure why the threat of making her wait to orgasm was turning her on. She’d never thought herself the type to enjoy giving up that kind of control to anyone.
“You like it when I take control like this, don’t you?” he asked.
“Yes,” she panted out.
“It’s why you pretend you’re not Winter,” he continued, taking her earlobe between her teeth and nipping it before continuing. “It lets you pretend you’re not really in control.”
Not giving her a chance to respond, Cord claimed her mouth again, leaning over her to savor her lips. His own moans of desire mingled with hers as his tongue moved into her mouth just slightly before retreating. He was intentionally holding back, denying her what she craved most, and making her insane with need. Soon, she found herself tugging at her restraints in an effort to touch him. Eventually, he took pity on her and deepened the kiss, allowing his tongue to sweep into her mouth. His hands moved along her body, sliding down her belly, closer to the place she most needed his touch. Instead of touching her, his fingers skimmed over her belly, along her hip, and then down to her thigh.
If her hands had been free, she would have smacked him—feeling desperate and needy after her change. What she wanted was primal and frenzied, something to match how she felt. With her hands tied, all she could do was focus on what Cord was doing to her body.
His torturous kisses and caresses seemed to go on forever as her body ached with need for him. When Cord finally broke the kiss, his mouth began to move down her body. “I’ve been dying to tie you down like this since that first time we were together,” he murmured, swirling his tongue lightly around her left nipple before blowing hot air on it. “It was really hard leaving your legs free, but I didn’t want you to feel too trapped this time. Are you going to let me tie your legs down next time we play, Winter?”
This time, she didn’t flinch when he used that name. It was hard to think about anything other than the pleasure he was giving her. “Yes, you can do anything, just touch me more,” she begged.
He sucked her nipple into his mouth, stroking it with his tongue. When he released her nipple, she whimpered. “Don’t worry, Winter. I’m going to make the ache go away very soon.”
“Please,” she breathed out. “I need you to touch me. I can’t take anymore.”
Looking up, his eyes locked with hers. “Should I let you come now, Winter?”
“Yes,” she breathed out.
“No flinching and no denying your name,” he rasped out, moving down her body, closer to her core. “Who is Winter?”
“I am,” she admitted, and his tongue swirled around her clit as two long fingers thrust into her body. Her heels dug into the mattress as she pressed up to his face, increasing the pressure of his tongue. As his fingers expertly worked her body, she rocked against his face. She heard herself screaming as waves of ecstasy pulsed through her body.
Cord was far from gentle, his tongue strumming her clit in time with his fingers sliding in and out of her pulsating channel. She rode the edge of her orgasm for what seemed like hours but was probably only minutes. When Cord’s teeth grazed her clit, Winn screamed and thrashed desperately. Cord must have finally decided she’d reached her limit because he sucked her clit into his mouth, holding it captive as his tongue expertly drove her over the edge. Her screams echoed across the walls, turning to soft moans as her spasms subsided.
After working her through the last of her spasms, Cord moved up her body, positioning the head of his dick at her entrance. His teeth scraped against the spot just above her collar bone as he slid into her body. His invasion caused aftershocks from her intense climax to travel through her, and Cord groaned.
“Fuck,” he hissed. “Your body feels incredible, and you look so damn sexy tied to my bed. The only thing missing is my mark.” His teeth settled on the spot just above her collar bone for emphasis.
“Yes,” she panted out. “Right there. Do it.”
There was no hesitation. His teeth sank into her flesh, and Winn moaned, feeling the humming of her jaguar side. Cord growled low in his throat, his teeth remaining in her neck until he was sure the mark would scar. When he finally removed his teeth, he gripped her hips tightly and started rolling against her body. His eyes remained locked with hers, and Winn was nearly overwhelmed by the intensity of their union.
As her body tightened with her second orgasm, Cord’s energy moved along her skin, bringing forward the uninhibited part of her she’d experienced in jaguar form. Their bodies had moved in the same fluid motion when they’d danced in the rain, perfectly in tune with each other. Every part of her was connected to him—mage, shifter and female. He was her mate.
“You’re mine,” she moaned.
“Every beat of my heart belongs to you,” Cord agreed. “I love you, Winter.”
Winn screamed with her orgasm, and Cord’s body jerked inside of hers as he found his own release. Her mind was in a complete daze as she came down from the drugged state of pleasure overload. Cord untied her wrists and massaged her arms before running his tongue along the new mark he’d made. She shuddered under his touch.
“I meant what I said,” he told her, as he gathered her against his side. “You’re more than my true mate. You’re the female I love, the female I would die to protect.”
“I love you, too,” she replied softly before laughing. “This is absolutely insane.”
“What’s insane is the fact that I’m already thinking about taking you again,” he admitted, and when Winn looked down, she found he was already getting hard again.
“You’re insatiable,” she accused.
“Only when it comes to you,” he insisted, leaning in to kiss her. “How about if we try this a little less frenzied this time?”
Winn laughed. “You can try, but we don’t seem to be very good at less-frenzied.”
“I’m willing to keep working on it until we get it right,” Cord murmured before claiming her mouth.
Winn still didn’t believe they could manage less-frenzied, but she was definitely willing to let Cord keep trying.
Chapter Forty-One
Max had been staring at the phone lying on his bed for more than an hour, cursing Connor for talking him into the torture the phone represented. While he’d known Lexi had a phone for quite some time, it was tucked away in Zane’s home, and he’d never even seen it. Now, this bit of temptation was lying beside him. It had been a very long time since he’d indulged in female companionship, not since he’d met a vampire by the name of Eleanor. The moment his eyes had landed on her, he’d known she was his true mate. While finding one’s true mate was a happy occasion for most, that hadn’t been the case for him. He and Eleanor both had obligations to their people. Both were leaders living far from each other.
With a curse, Max picked up the phone and looked through the contacts. He wondered if Connor was trying to torture him by including Eleanor on the list. He was certain Connor knew nothing about their attachment. Before he could change his mind, Max called her.
“This is Eleanor,” she answered, the power in her voice carrying through the line.
“Elle,” he breathed out, clearing his throat before he said more. “It’s Max.”
“I know,” she replied, sounding nervous. “I recognized your voice.”
“You did?” he asked, surprised by her admission.
“Yes. I think about you a lot,” she confessed. “I shouldn’t, but
I can’t seem to help myself.”
He chuckled. “I know how you feel. I keep telling myself to stop thinking about you, but it’s hard when you haunt my dreams.”
Eleanor let out a sad sigh. “I’ve been alone most of my life,” she began. “Before I met you, I only missed Lexi. Now, I miss you both so much I’m tempted to abandon my responsibilities.”
Lexi was Eleanor’s daughter, and she lived with Max’s clan. As his son’s mate, he loved her like a daughter. His Elle had been without her daughter for decades. Lexi was only alive now because she’d been pulled from her time before being killed by vampires. Max still had trouble following what had happened, but he’d never really understood the Fae or their abilities.
“Lexi is happy here with Zane,” he told her. “I’m sure she’d love it if you came for a visit.”
“We’ve been discussing the possibility,” Eleanor replied. “Going to your territory is just too dangerous for council members with everything going on.”
“You sound tired, Elle,” he remarked. It was true; she sounded like the weight of the world was becoming too much, and he wanted to fix it for her. Even if they couldn’t be together as mates were meant to be, he wanted to make things better for her in any way he could.
“I have nothing here,” she finally admitted. “People I thought were my friends believe I’m a traitor for taking Connor’s side in his break from the council. My daughter is alive, but she chooses to live far from me, and I can’t argue with her because it’s safer for her. There’s also you.”
“What about me, Elle?” he asked. While he knew there was no way she could share his exact feelings, he still hoped she felt drawn to him. Why he was pushing this, he had no clue. She’d already admitted to missing him, and he should leave it at that, rather than torturing them both with thoughts of something they couldn’t have.
“Stop trying to get more attention, you annoying cat,” she scolded, and the smile in her voice sent blood rushing to his cock. It was all he could do to bite back his groan of desire. “Where are you?”
“My bed,” he replied honestly.
“Since when do you have a phone?” she asked. “This isn’t Lexi’s number.”
“Connor insisted I have one to make it easier for him to contact me,” he explained. “He also thought it would be easier for me to let him know if we find the jaguars and rogue vampires.”
Eleanor laughed. “Rogue vampires? That makes them sound much too glamorous. It seems more appropriate to call them traitors.”
“I suppose you’re right,” he agreed.
“You asked Connor for my number?” she asked.
“No,” he admitted. “I keep trying to convince myself we shouldn’t talk or see each other. Connor put your number on the phone for some reason.”
“You could have just deleted it from the phone,” she told him. “Or had Lexi delete it for you. Have you used a phone before?”
“We had them before,” he admitted. “Back when we lived in Canada. These aren’t that much different, so I could have figured it out, but I couldn’t bring myself to delete your number. I’ve been lying in bed staring at this phone, telling myself I shouldn’t call you.”
“I’m glad you did,” she uttered. “Do you ever resent being in charge?”
He knew he should tell her no because he was a leader who’d never been one to put anything before his clan. Elle was changing that, and he’d hardly spent any time around her. “Not until I met you.”
Her only response was a sharp intake of breath before silence fell between them. Max finally broke the silence. “I’ve considered stepping down and letting Jase take over as leader of my clan. He’s strong and has a good head on his shoulders. The only thing holding me back is his mate’s age.”
“What does his mate have to do with him taking over?” Eleanor asked.
“She’s young,” he replied. “Far too young for Jase to claim her. Since he found her, he’s been less rational, and I suspect he will be until he can mark her.”
Eleanor let out a sad laugh. “I’m not sure what it would take for me to step down.”
“You’d have to believe those under you would be safe,” he said with a sad sigh. “As long as there’s infighting among your council, you’ll worry.”
Eleanor let out a bark of laughter. “There’s always infighting among the council. Does this mean I can never be happy? I convinced the Fae to save my daughter’s life, but I’m never allowed to see her because of stupid squabbling and ridiculous politics. I can’t go anywhere alone for fear I’ll be murdered so someone else can take my place on the council.”
“Who is a threat to you?” he ground out.
Eleanor laughed, clearly amused by his reaction. “Just about everyone is a threat to me, Max. It’s been this way for the last century. Cancer was slowly killing me before that. I suppose I’ve already lived much longer than I expected to. I’m not afraid of dying.”
“You’re afraid of not living,” he stated.
“That is an annoyingly astute observation,” she accused. “How can I miss a man I barely know?”
“You’re my one true mate,” he replied. “The reaction between mates is very strong. I’d always believed it was one-sided if one’s true mate wasn’t another shapeshifter, but it seems vampires react like shapeshifters.”
“Don’t laugh, but I used to read romance novels with shapeshifters who found their mate. They always ended in fabulous sex and a happily ever after.” He didn’t miss the smile in her voice.
Max coughed to cover his laugh. “I’ve heard about those books. Sadly, I’m not going to match up to the hero in any book.”
“I don’t know about that,” she argued. “You’re a very attractive man. I could certainly see a woman swooning over you.”
“Will you swoon over me, Elle?” he asked.
“Will you catch me?”
“If you fall for me, I can promise I’ll be there to catch you,” he replied, and they both ended up laughing at how corny his response was.
“I suppose neither of us are the romantic type,” she stated.
“But you were at one time,” he added.
“Not really,” she admitted. “While I was reading romances, I was getting pregnant at a concert by a man I never expected to see again. I’m not sure I was ever looking for a hero to save me.”
“I’m not sure you’ve ever needed a hero to save you,” he uttered. “You’re a strong female. It’s one of your most attractive traits.”
“I really need to go,” she said with obvious regret. “When you called, I was on my way to a meeting and should have told you I couldn’t talk.”
“I’m glad you didn’t,” he said honestly.
“Will you call me again?” she asked.
“Don’t tell me you’re the type of female to sit around waiting for her phone to ring,” he teased, enjoying her laughter.
“Don’t tell me you’re going to be carrying that phone around waiting for me to call,” she shot back.
“Good point,” he told her. “I’ll probably have someone else answer it most of the time, but I’ll call you again soon, Elle.”
“Please do,” she said softly before ending the call.
As Max laid in his bed alone, his thoughts were focused on one thing—Elle. He’d done his duty to his clan long enough. After they dealt with the jaguar, he’d leave Jase in charge of his clan and find a way to make things work with his mate. It was time to admit that she was the one thing he couldn’t live without.
Chapter Forty-Two
Jase had been trying to reason out what was going on for days, but nothing made sense. At first, he’d insisted his reaction to the little cougar was nothing more than sexual attraction to a female near her heat cycle. He’d even allowed himself to believe it had something to do with how bothered he was about having to wait to claim Vee. Seeing her again made it impossible to explain away what he was feeling for her. He didn’t just want the little cougar, he recog
nized her as his mate. Realizing he wanted to mark two cougar females meant there was a very good chance he’d end up hurting one of the females. That is, unless one of them didn’t see him as her mate. The little cougar hadn’t acted like she couldn’t stay away from him, leaving him with two possibilities. Either she didn’t see him as her mate, or she knew Vee and knew about his connection to her.
In the end, he decided to discuss what was going on with Cord. There was always the possibility Cord would be angry, but he had no choice since this was a cougar matter as much as a lynx matter. Jase felt a twinge of guilt about bringing this to Cord’s attention since Vee didn’t want her father to hear about him being her mate, but he couldn’t come up with any other options. Cord could help him find the little cougar. One that small would stand out.
He knocked on Cord’s front door and waited for him to answer.
“What can I do for you, Jase?” Cord asked when he opened the door.
“I have a problem,” Jase admitted hesitantly.
“And you came to me?” Cord asked skeptically.
“The problem involves two of your females,” Jase began.
Cord nodded and gestured for him to enter. “If you’re about to tell me you’ve gotten two cougars pregnant, then let me put your mind at ease by assuring you I consider that a good thing. I’ve been hoping to create more of these types of alliances between our clans.”
“I haven’t gotten any of your females pregnant,” Jase told him.
“That’s a shame,” Cord grumbled. “Can I at least assume there are two you’d like to get pregnant?”
“I’m afraid it’s nothing quite that simple,” Jase began, taking a deep breath before continuing. “I saw a young female from your clan several months ago, and I knew right away she was my true mate.”
“This is a good thing!” Cord exclaimed.
“I thought so, too,” Jase said. “She’s too young, but I’m patient, and I have no problem waiting. Actually, that’s a lie. With my brothers having found mates, I’m impatient to find one of my own. I hate that I’ll have to wait to claim her, but I don’t have any choice.”
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