by Chant, Zoe
Confused, Delilah looked down at what she’d sketched. “I mean… yes?” she said, trying to figure out what had him so perplexed. Maybe he didn’t like it? “I’m sorry, I was just sketching – it’s kind of bad.”
“No, it’s not,” Euan said emphatically. “I just… I’m not used to looking at myself. At all. But especially not… like this.”
Delilah bit her lip. What Euan was saying made sense. She knew it could be confronting for people to look at a portrait of themselves – to see themselves truly as someone else saw them. Delilah had only drawn what she’d seen: Euan, with all the sharp angles of his face and jaw, his pensive expression, and the sadness in his eyes as he’d spoken of his friend who had been killed, his own lost ability to shift.
“It’s…” Euan said, after a long moment of silence. “I never really thought…”
“It was just to help me calm down,” Delilah said, forcing as much levity into her voice as she could. “I… really appreciate you helping me. And I’m sorry I asked so many questions. I feel like I understand a lot more about… uh, shifters now. I hope it didn’t make you too uncomfortable to tell me these things about yourself.”
She didn’t want him to feel like he had to tell her any more than he already had. She’d been interested in him – more interested than she’d been in any other man in her whole life. But if he’s waiting for his mate…
Delilah pressed her eyes closed, before opening them again. She wouldn’t push him into being closer to her. She’d already intruded enough.
She flipped her sketchpad closed.
“Thank you for letting me draw you,” she said, turning to look at him – and then gasped as she realized just how close his face was to hers.
“Delilah,” Euan said, his voice low and husky, his dark eyes burning as they gazed into hers. “If I knew how to find my mate… I’d want her to be someone just like you.” He swallowed, shaking his head. “No, that’s not what I meant. I wouldn’t want her to be like you. I’d want her to be you.”
Delilah gazed up at him, feeling the warmth of his breath against her cheek.
Well, what else am I supposed to do after he says something like that? she thought, as she reached up to slide her palm over his cheek, then pulled him down into a kiss.
His lips were warm against hers, and she couldn’t help but shudder a little as his hands came up to tangle in her hair. He kissed just how she’d imagined he’d kiss: with the same kind of heat and intensity she often saw in his eyes. Sighing a little, Delilah gave herself over to it – she’d been wanting this since almost the first moment she’d laid eyes on him – and, from the urgency she felt in him now, she guessed he’d been feeling pretty much the same way.
She could have screamed in frustration when he pulled back a little, the expression on his face questioning.
“Delilah…”
“I know what I’m doing, Euan,” she told him, looking him straight in the eye. “I’m not making a mistake. I know you had doubts about taking this mission, but I hope you don’t have any doubts about –”
“About you? No. None.”
Euan’s voice was firm, and Delilah believed him instantly. Maybe he’d just wanted to be sure she was sure, because in the next moment he’d swept her up in his arms again, pulling her firmly against his chest as he stood.
Delilah gasped. The feel of his broad, hard pecs against her only made her all the more aware of the thin layer of clothes that separated them. Perhaps she was moving a bit fast – she’d never been one for jumping into bed quickly, after all, unless it was for a nap after work – but right now, she’d never been more certain that this was what she wanted.
I want this. I want him.
She was aware of the clumsiness of her hands as they fumbled at his shirt where it was tucked into his pants – the neat, party-appropriate clothes that he’d made look good, despite the fact Delilah thought they probably weren’t what he’d choose to wear in his day-to-day life.
It didn’t really matter what he was wearing, though – she just wanted his clothes off.
Maybe Euan realized the problems she was having controlling her fingers, because a moment later his large hands were there beside hers, pulling the shirt from where it was tucked in and then tearing open the buttons, before he apparently lost patience with it and just yanked the half-open shirt up over his head.
Delilah bit her lip, allowing her eyes to range over his chest – it was every bit as wide and strong as it had seemed, his pecs broad and flat, his abs well-defined, his skin smooth and tanned. She couldn’t stop herself from reaching out and running her fingers over his stomach, and watching how his skin rose into goosebumps in response.
His hands were on her shoulders now, softly brushing the straps of her dress down her arms. Delilah managed to tear her hands away from his skin for long enough to untie the sash of the dress from around her waist – without which the dress simply slithered off her body, pooling on the ground at her feet.
Euan sucked in a breath between his teeth as he looked at her, his eyes ranging over her body as she stood in front of him in nothing but her bra and panties.
“Delilah,” he said, his voice low and husky. “You look…”
Delilah’s first instinct was to wrap her arms over her stomach – she wasn’t used to showing off her body, and she preferred old, baggy clothes to anything revealing. Even her work blouse had felt too constricting at times, though in summer it just wasn’t practical to wear a jacket over the top of it.
But as she glanced up at Euan’s face, all thoughts of self-consciousness dropped away. His expression was… well, it was marveling. As if he’d never seen anything like her before, and was trying to commit every detail of her to memory, just in case he never would again.
Well, obviously I’ll have to make sure he knows that’s definitely not the case, Delilah thought. She’d never considered herself one to take the lead in this kind of thing, but now she found herself stepping forward, standing on tip-toes to wrap her arms around Euan’s neck, and pulling him down into a heated kiss.
“You’re beautiful,” Euan breathed when they finally broke apart. His voice throbbed with desire as he spoke, and Delilah found an answering desire growing more and more desperate within her.
“You’re – well, I wouldn’t say beautiful, but my goodness, you sure are hot,” Delilah said, laughing. “I’ve hardly been able to take my eyes off you all this time.”
Euan gave her a strange look, as if he wasn’t quite sure he believed her. “So… this wanting to draw me – you’ve been thinking about that for a while?”
“Well, kind of,” Delilah admitted. “But that’s not exactly the only reason I couldn’t stop staring. I mean, you do know how hot you are, right?”
“I’ve never really thought about it,” Euan said, and Delilah could tell it wasn’t just false modesty speaking.
“Well, take my word for it then: I’ve been wanting to climb you like a tree for at least a day and half now.” Delilah rocked back on her heels, surveying him in all his broad, muscular glory. “Seriously, that probably doesn’t even have to be a metaphor. I probably just could climb you like a tree.”
Euan let out a low, soft laugh that was almost just a rumble in his chest. Delilah thought it was just about the sexiest thing she’d ever heard.
“You probably don’t need to do that,” he said – and before Delilah could ask what he meant, he’d reached forward, bending at the knees slightly to scoop her up in his arms.
Delilah laughed delightedly – oh my God, this is all my dumb, cheesy high school fantasies come true – before Euan’s lips were on hers once more, as he carried her effortlessly across the room to the bed.
Fire burned in her pit of her stomach as he lay her down on the bed, covering her body with his own. She could feel the hardness between his thighs pressing against her as he leaned down to kiss her again, palm cradling her cheek. For all his imposing size and intimidating demeanor, Euan was being
so gentle with her – almost tender.
But the last thing Delilah wanted right now was for him to take his time.
She arched up, wanting more – more of him, more of everything.
Desire raced through her veins, her hands going to the pants he was, for some insane reason, still wearing, first managing to pop open the button fly and then tugging them off his hips. He helped her, rolling to one side briefly to push them down his thighs, and giving Delilah a more than ample opportunity to check him out in the process – something that only made her mouth water in anticipation as she took in the roll of his abs as he moved, the dark hair that trailed over his stomach and down between his thighs.
His hands moved back to her hips, and Delilah shivered as they traced over her heated, sensitive skin. She was suddenly way too aware of the bra and undies she was still wearing, and, impatiently, she sat up, unclipping her bra and tossing it aside, wanting to get rid of everything that was getting in the way of their being completely bare before each other.
As she did so, Delilah heard Euan make a low groan in the back of his throat – and then he swept her up in his arms once more, his mouth on her breasts, teasing her with his teeth and tongue and making her gasp, her head falling back.
“Euan –”
She writhed beneath him, feeling herself growing wetter and wetter between her legs. She wanted him desperately, and she wasn’t sure how much longer she could wait – but at the same time, she never wanted this feeling of white-hot liquid heat in her veins to end. Euan seemed, somehow, to know just what to do, touching her until she couldn’t speak, couldn’t think.
His hand slid up her thigh, finding the wetness at her core, and Delilah cried out as he stroked his fingertips against her, soft and gentle.
“You’re gonna drive me completely insane,” she finally managed to gasp out as her back arched, pushing her body up against his. She wanted to touch him, to make him feel just as good as he was making her feel, but Euan was relentless – every time she thought she could get herself together, he moved his fingers or his mouth just like that and all Delilah could do was lie back and shudder with pleasure.
Finally, she managed to pull herself together enough to slide her hand down over the tantalizing line of hair that trailed down between his thick, muscular thighs. Euan groaned as she finally managed to wrap her hand around him – he was desperately hard and hot in her palm.
It was hard to believe that it had been watching her that had done this to him – but Delilah was more than happy to accept it.
Between shifters and disappearing men and everything else that’s happened over the past couple of days, this is pretty easy pickings.
Delilah could feel Euan’s muscles clench as she stroked him, his mouth returning to hers, hot and more demanding now. His hands slid to her hips.
“Yes, Euan – please – I can’t take it anymore –” she groaned out, wanting to feel him – all of him. The groan Euan made in response told her that he’d understood her perfectly.
She shuddered at the first press of him against her entrance, her stomach clenching in desire. Heat coursed through her veins, setting her nerves alight.
“Please –”
She cried out as he slowly pushed into her, her fingers grabbing at the heavy muscle of his shoulders. He was huge, but he’d teased her so much that she was more than ready for him. He slid inside easily, and she gasped, head falling back onto her pillow as he filled her.
“Delilah – God –”
The sound of his voice, low and gruff with desire, made Delilah’s head spin. Pleasure thrilled through her as he made his first thrust, and she cried out, unable to hold back.
His body surged into hers, and she arched her back, rising up to meet his every thrust. Nothing had ever felt so perfect, so right before in her life. Delilah realized that she was crying out his name, but she couldn’t bring herself to stop.
Euan had spoken of never being able to find his mate without his shifter senses, and said that there was an unbreakable bond between a shifter and his mate – but right now, Delilah couldn’t imagine any connection stronger than the one between them in this moment. Every move Euan made seemed to drive her further and further toward the peak of ecstasy.
Almost as if we were made for each other, she thought hazily, as the sound of her name on Euan’s lips sent yet another wave of pleasure crashing through her.
Digging her fingers into his back, Delilah cried out again as she felt Euan’s movements speed up, his muscles going taut, and he groaned desperately into her mouth.
“Delilah…”
Bliss flooded her body at the sound of her name. Delilah cried out again, wrapping her legs around his hips and drawing him even further into her body. Sparks shot along her nerves, fire filling her.
Above her, she heard Euan groan again, deep and rumbling, and the sound sent a new wave of ecstasy surging through her. Shocks of electricity danced over her skin, stars spinning across her vision. She clutched at him desperately as wave after wave of pleasure crashed over her, every muscle taut and clenched. A moment later, Delilah heard Euan cry out too as he shuddered above her as he came, pulsing inside her.
Delilah was aware of her gasping breath, of the aftershocks of pleasure that seemed to chase each other across her sweaty skin. Aside from that, she could barely think straight – she felt utterly wrung out by the power of her climax.
“I – I – wow,” was what she eventually managed to get out once she’d caught her breath enough to speak, but that was about all her brain could come up with.
She felt Euan’s fingers brushing her hair back from her temple, followed a moment later by his lips.
“Are you sleepy again?” he asked as she snuggled up against his side in response, trailing her fingers down the broad expanse of his pecs.
“A little,” she said, before a yawn cracked her mouth wide open. “It’s been a long couple of days, I guess.”
“Then you should sleep,” Euan said.
Delilah heard his voice mainly as a vibrating rumble in his chest as she rested her head against it.
It was hard to argue with that, she thought – and then, a moment later she’d slipped into the deepest, most satisfying sleep she’d ever known.
Chapter 11
Euan drifted slowly back into consciousness.
His whole body felt warm and relaxed. It was a feeling he hadn’t woken up to in a long time.
No. This is a feeling I’ve never woken up to before, Euan thought, blinking in the sunlight that filtered through the thin curtains over the window – and then frowned. This isn’t my room…
Suddenly, the events of yesterday came back to him in a rush. He knew the party had been real, but everything that had happened afterwards –
No. That had to be just a dream…
But when he turned his head to see Delilah’s sleeping face beside his, he knew that every moment of it had been real.
Delilah looked utterly peaceful in her sleep. Her lips were slightly parted, fluttering the strands of hair that trailed over them. She was curled up on her side, her hand resting lightly on his arm, as if to reassure herself that he was still there.
Euan watched her, scarcely daring to believe that what he was seeing was real. She was so beautiful – so kind, funny, talented and clever. He’d never met anyone like Delilah before.
And she’s ours.
Euan gasped as the voice suddenly flashed through his head.
It was a voice he hadn’t heard in months. A voice he’d never imagined he’d hear again. But it was a voice he’d know anywhere.
My lion.
Euan jerked into a sitting position, his heart pounding. Had that been real, or had all the months of wishing that he’d heard anything from his lion simply made him imagine what he wanted to hear?
She’s ours. Ours. Our mate.
Raising his hand to his chest, Euan tried to take a deep breath, and found his chest too constricted to allow it.
The voice was fainter this time – as if it were fading away by the second.
But there was no mistaking what he’d heard.
Delilah is my mate. Our mate.
That was what he’d heard. That was what his lion had told him, before its voice had faded away completely.
Are you still there? Euan asked desperately, searching inside himself for his lion. He could find nothing – there was no trace of what he knew he’d heard, or of his lion’s presence inside himself. The place inside himself where his lion had been when he’d called to it was still empty.
But I heard it. I know I heard it.
And more than that, it had told him that Delilah was his mate.
Euan’s head swam as he looked, wide-eyed, down at Delilah’s sleeping form. His heart pounded as he stared at her – and he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was true.
She’s my mate.
He hadn’t experienced any of the things he’d been told a shifter would experience on meeting their mate. He hadn’t felt the spark of electricity the first time their hands had touched. He hadn’t known with an unshakeable certainty from that moment on that Delilah was the one for him – the one he had always been destined to be with.
Euan knew that without his shifter senses, he couldn’t experience any of those things the way a shifter normally would.
But I know now, he thought, reaching out to gently brush the hair back from Delilah’s face. And that’s all that matters.
It seemed so obvious, now that he knew. He thought back over how terrified he’d been that he wouldn’t be able to protect her, and how easily he felt he could talk to her, despite the fact he wouldn’t have called himself a very open person. He’d even told her last night about how he’d lost his shifter ability – about Sam’s death, and the unstoppable fury it had unleashed within him.
It had never occurred to Euan before that fateful day to be frightened of the lion within him – it had always been a simple fact of life, no different from his having two arms and two legs and one head. But at that time, feeling its raw animal instinct to fight, kill, destroy coursing through him, blotting out all rational thought, all human feeling… Euan had been frightened of it. Or rather, of what he would become if he didn’t regain control of himself.
