After working every day at Leif’s garage in town, he’d set off into the forest, headed to the building site where the Tribe was constructing homes for each mated pair. Col and Naomi’s cabin was finished and the two had already moved in. Kann and Penny’s cabin was currently under construction. The lion and his mate were eager to move in. Penny, like Naomi, was pregnant and needed a place to feel settled. A place to nest.
After theirs was completed, he’d been told he and Tara’s would be next. He hoped to soon feel the joy of seeing Tara swell with his young. She would be a good mother.
His cock throbbed inside Tara, hardening yet again.
Tara groaned into the pillow. “I can’t.”
“I think you can.” He chuckled, sliding his hand around her hip. He dipped his fingers between her wet folds and rubbed his mate’s bud. “How wet you are for me, shuarra.”
She gasped and bucked. “Owen.”
He opened his mouth and put his teeth around her neck and bit down, but not hard enough to break skin. A shiver ran through her whole body at the contact. Her core clenched down again on his cock and he made love to her hard enough that she wouldn’t be able to climb from the bed today at all.
He didn’t have to work today. She didn’t either.
Food was optional when he had a buffet trapped in his arms.
Knox
His wounds had sealed enough for movement, but Katherine hadn’t believed him until he stripped and showed her the claw marks on his chest and shoulder and back. Not until she’d inspected each and every cut. Only then had she let him take her back to the bedroom. And now she stood in front of him a little scared, a lot aroused, and very curious.
The whole way in the truck he’d been able to smell nothing past her arousal. His cock was hard and he wanted to claim her. His animal howled to take her now and take her hard.
Ours. Mate.
But then…that confession of being untouched. Even his animal had halted the rush of adrenaline. He would take his mate, but she would be prepared. She would be begging for him before he took her slowly and methodically.
He would make her first time hers.
Not his.
He wouldn’t claim her yet. Not fully, until she was truly ready.
Knox stood in front of her completely naked, enjoying the stolen glances she took at his form before looking back at the floor. He took a step closer and she backed up a step, mirroring his movement. He walked again and she retreated, bumping the back of her legs into the foot of her bed.
“What…what are we…what are you going to do? I want to, I just. It would help to know what to expect.”
Knox canted his head to the side to study his mate. She glowed bright with magick, like she’d swallowed the moon and it was glowing from within. Her face was flushed. She smelled divine and he couldn’t wait to get his mouth on her and taste her and make her scream his name and only his name.
“I will touch you.”
She nodded, her shoulders relaxing slightly.
“I will take your clothes off so I can see and appreciate your beautiful body.”
There. There was the hesitation again. The fear flickered across her face like a kroven who knew a predator was about to pounce.
She feared him seeing her? Or being naked?
She had responded to the kiss. She’d desired his touch. There was no mistaking that she was aroused. He could smell her need.
He reached for the hem of her shirt and tugged it up slowly, baring her stomach and then a curious bit of material that encased her breasts. Just above her heart a spray of round puckered pink scars marred her perfect flesh around one central larger scar. Below her breasts were other scars. Short straight lines from a blade.
Someone had hurt his mate.
Badly.
Kill. His wolf howled and pushed to the surface. Knox quieted the beast though he felt the same rage.
He traced each mark with his fingertips, memorizing the places and the number of wounds. There were so many. If he ever found the monster responsible, he would be sure to inflict much much much more pain before permanently ending her tormentor’s life.
She raised a hand to her face and wiped away tears from her eyes.
He lifted her chin and met her gaze straight on. “Do you hurt from them still?”
“No. They are old. I just. I’m so—”
“Beautiful. Strong. A survivor. You lived after this? You don’t have magick to heal you. No beast to make you stronger. You are beyond words, my shuarra.”
More tears fell down her cheeks. “So, you don’t think…You don’t mind that I have scars?”
“This is why you were hesitant. Because I would see these?” He bent and put his lips against the largest scar above her heart. He couldn’t imagine what kind of weapon had inflicted such a wound, but he knew she was lucky to have survived. “Never doubt me, Katherine. I want you more as each moment passes.”
A sob ripped from her body. She collapsed into his arms. Tears poured down her cheeks.
“Tell me who to punish for hurting you, shuarra. My wolf cries for blood. I would take revenge for my mate.”
She shook her head slightly. “He’s dead.”
Anger and relief swirled together in his gut. His animal wanted to punish and tear something apart, but the man in him was glad his mate didn’t have to live in fear of someone returning to hurt her again.
“Since it is done, you will tell me one day what happened, but not this day. This day is for you to feel.”
“Feel what?” Her voice was so small. So worried.
“Everything, shuarra. Everything I can offer is yours.” He stripped her of her remaining garments, tossing them aside. Once she was naked and glorious, he pulled her up against him, chest to chest. She wrapped her legs around his waist, putting her warm slick center against his abdomen.
He grabbed her ass, palming her flesh and kneading it, pushing and pulling her tighter, grinding her body against his. She moaned and threw her head back as desire spread across her face, leaving her expression one of complete abandon.
He leaned forward to suck at her neck and she thrust her hips, her body begging for more than he was going to give her this time.
A growl rattled in his chest.
Katherine mewled and moaned. “Please.”
Claim. She’s ours.
She was. But she wasn’t ready for his bite. He would keep her glowing just a bit longer.
Knox laid her gently on the bed and stood, looking down at her curvy delicious figure. Ample breasts. Hips he wanted to sink his teeth into. He wanted to taste every inch, especially the wet folds between her legs hidden by a small dark patch of curls.
He crouched on the bed between her legs, pushing them apart, baring her to his hungry eyes. She was perfect. She smelled perfect. He bent and licked her from core to bud, growling with pleasure at her sweet taste.
Katherine arched off the bed, crying out. “W-what are you…oh!”
He slid a finger into her heat and pressed gently. She was so tight.
“Knox,” Katherine said, his name coming out more like a yelp.
He bent down and licked her again, taking special time to twist his tongue around her very swollen bud. Her hands were on his head in an instant. Her fingers burrowed into his thick hair and held tight as if she might fall away from him at any moment.
His cock ached in time with his pounding heart. He wanted nothing more than to take his fingers out of her and bury his cock instead. To feel her heat and her tight body wrapped around him would end him.
He couldn’t. Not yet.
He would bite her if he did and she wasn’t ready.
He couldn’t claim her without her agreeing to it. She wasn’t Reylean. She didn’t understand the bond. What it would really mean for them.
Katherine’s taste was sweet and spicy and even better than he had imagined. He could lose himself in her forever. He moved his mouth up the inside of her thigh, continuing to thrust his
finger in and out. Slow. So slow. He would stretch her and tease her until her body shattered beneath him.
Her breathing was coming out more like panting. A sheen of sweat coated her skin. Incoherent murmurs of pleasure slipped between her lips.
Knox trailed his mouth and kisses up her stomach, around her belly button, closer and closer to her rosebud nipples and soft rounded breasts. He kept his finger sliding slowly in and out as he moved to her breast, never slowing never speeding up, just a steady connection. A connection he could feel building between them, coiling, and tightening, and readying to implode.
“Knox,” she said, her voice a strained whine.
“I said I would touch you. Now I have to taste you.”
“I need…” Her request trailed off in a keening cry of desperation.
He closed his lips around her nipple and bit down just enough to make her hiss. Then sucked and licked and tugged at the breast until it swelled beneath his mouth. The other breast received the same treatment. By the time he released the other nipple, Katherine was writhing and moaning beneath him. He could feel the tension building inside her. Her climax was so close.
He wanted to see her soar. Wanted to see her eyes roll into the back of her head as she screamed his name until she couldn’t scream anymore.
He pulled his finger from her and slid it around her bud. She cried out at the loss but gasped when he touched her swollen clit. She clenched and arched up off the bed toward him. She thrust her hips up, wordlessly begging for more.
But he backed off. Slowed his hand. Slid his finger deep inside her again and licked at a sensitive breast.
“Knox. Please.”
“You’re almost there. Trust me.”
He brought her up and took her down twice more.
Her breathing was ragged at this point and he was harder than granite. But it still wasn’t about him. This was all for her.
“I need you.”
“I need you too, shuarra. But not this time.”
She cried out, grabbing at his shoulders with her hands. Her fingernails dug into his skin as she panted her way toward the first climax.
“Now. Katherine. Come now.” He slipped two fingers inside her and sucked one of her nipples into his mouth, biting down just enough to make her go over the edge.
Her core clenched around his fingers, threatening to break them in half. A half-scream-half-sob tore from her throat. She clawed at his back and his shoulders, trying to pull herself closer.
Knox dropped his weight on top of her, giving her the pressure she sought, all the while continuing to drive his fingers deep.
He pressed his thumb to her clit and smiled against the breast he was teasing when her body responded with a gasp and another pleasure-filled sob as she careened over the edge for the second time.
8
Tara
“I need to just go over there and check on her. I could bring her bottle of wine and hang out. I’m telling you, she smelled strange. Like one of you, but different.” Tara paced back and forth in the small bedroom. It was the only place she and Owen could be alone in the cabin they shared with Tor and Saul. Kann and Penny had almost completely moved to their place, even though it wasn’t quite finished.
She didn’t blame them. She would’ve preferred an ‘almost’ finished cabin over this crowded group home.
Owen patted the bed. “Vraka said no. We respect his commands, Tara. You are Tribe. This is how it works. We are safe. We have a home. The Tribe protects its own, but we owe our respect to our Vraka.”
“She’s my best friend. What if someone is threatening her? She was buying a bunch of bandages. She was jittery and weird. I smelled an animal. She doesn’t own any animals. Something is wrong.”
Owen’s brows furrowed. “She wasn’t hurt though.”
“No, but—”
“Then there’s no reason to arouse suspicion by going today. She’s likely at work. You said that yourself.”
“Wait, what? Did Col say something else after I left. Not today…so, when?”
“You mean after very rudely stomping out of the room like a youngling with no self-control.”
“I—”
“Did you ever stop to think that Col is worried that you might do something you regret in front of Katherine because of your inexperience with your animal. You are more dangerous than any of the surviving wolves from the mountain. You could hurt someone without meaning to. Your beast is new to you. You’re still getting acquainted. Give yourself time. And don’t go see Katherine without us.”
“You’re going to take me then.” Her heart slowed in her chest, sliding into a more relaxed rhythm.
“Yes, several of us are going to go with you tomorrow, but you didn’t stick around long enough for that part of the plan.”
“So, he believed me?”
“Yes, Tara. Col believed you. So did I. Always.” He patted the bed again next to him.
Tara’s shoulder’s relaxed and she took a step toward her mate. Perhaps she was over-reacting. Perhaps her wolf was a little impulsive. Okay, a lot impulsive.
Katherine
Putty. That was what she felt like.
Warm happy putty.
She’d never imagined when Knox said he was going to touch her that it would entail all the things he did. Things no man had ever done. Places no man had ever touched.
And still, they hadn’t had sex. For hours he’d teased and coaxed and kissed and licked.
He’d wanted to. He’d been so hard. So big. She didn’t know how that appendage was supposed to logistically fit inside her body. His finger had made her feel so full. She couldn’t even imagine how having his cock inside her could be possible or pleasant.
She’d almost reached out and touch his cock several times, but he’d kept her so wound up it’d become difficult to think straight. His mouth. And his tongue.
He hadn’t shied away from her scars. She’d felt his mouth caress all over her. No place had been left unexplored. Her breasts still felt heavy from his attention. She could still feel the sensation of his tongue and his lips. Still taste him on her lips. Still smell his musky woody scent.
His heartbeat thumped right beneath her ear.
How?
She cracked one eye open and looked down at Knox’s glittering brown and golden eyes. She raised her head and tensed, realizing somehow during the night she had climbed on top of him like a giant pillow and had sprawled over him. Her legs draped over one of his hips and between his legs. Her arms hung over either side of his chest and her head had been resting just above his heart.
“Hi,” she said, her voice husky from sleep. She cleared her throat and looked toward the window. There was still plenty of light outside, but for May in Denali light was more common than darkness. How long had they slept?
“Shuarra,” he said, his mouth curving into a cat-like-pleased-with-himself-grin.
“How long have we been asleep?” She turned her head looking for the clock.
“Several hours I would imagine. It is difficult with your long sun to tell for sure. I’m not used to it yet.”
Katherine twisted a little further, twisting her neck and blinking a couple of times to bring the clock into view. Almost noon. That was a pleasant morning. She swiveled her head back to face Knox.
“Hungry?”
Knox’s fangs descended and he smiled broadly. Damn the man was beautiful. Even with the slightly scary fangs, she still found him completely irresistible. “Very,” he said, his voice a silky purr.
“No,” Katherine said, pushing up from his chest, careful of his healing wounds. They were looking really good. Amazingly good. This magick he kept mentioning was no joke. The skin was already scabbing over where she could see the edges of the claw slashes showing out from under the bandages wrapped around his torso and shoulder. “I mean food.”
He slid an arm around her waist, halting her retreat. His mouth went to her neck. His nibbles made her skin prickle. Energy shot from every n
erve ending straight to her breasts and abdomen.
How did he do that? He was barely touching her.
Knox’s fangs scraped carefully along the soft part of her neck and shoulder. Is he going to bite me? Katherine swallowed the pit in her throat and stiffened in his arms, but as he continued kissing and nipping the fear retreated leaving her relaxed and willing to let him do anything he wanted.
“I’ve changed your mind?” He nuzzled the back of her neck and breathed deeply. “You smell like home.”
“You smell really good too, but I still need to eat some food. I’ve got some bacon and eggs in the fridge.”
“If that’s what you’re eating, I will eat it as well.”
She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and tugged against Knox’s grip.
“I don’t want to let you go. You aren’t going to leave the house?”
“No. I’m not going anywhere. Just to the kitchen to cook some breakfast for lunch.” She pulled again and he slowly released her waist from the iron band of arm he had wrapped around her.
Katherine grabbed her fuzzy robe off the back of her bedroom door and tied it closed, smiling at the disappointed male groan behind her.
“You could cook naked.”
“Nope. There are windows and Harrison might come by at some point today. He never did come yesterday.”
A disgusted snarl from Knox made her turn and glare.
“Harrison saved your life. You were bleeding out all over my bathroom floor. I’ve never seen so much blood. You owe him. I owe him my life too.” Katherine crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her gaze. “Be nice. And put on your pants. He already got an eyeful of you last time.”
His expression changed immediately, going from annoyed to surprised then morphed to playful. “Are you sure?” The mischievous grin was back, but he grabbed his pants and followed her out of the bedroom without another complaint.
She put the bacon on a pan and into the oven, then whipped up eggs.
Wolf At The Door: Soulmate Shifters World (Soulmate Shifters in Mystery, Alaska Book 5) Page 8
