His tired brain tried to process everything and make sense of what he saw. Stacked boxes lined the far kitchen wall and open pantry area. A toaster oven, canister set, and full-sized coffeepot sat on the new granite countertops he’d installed a few weeks ago with Jace. Odd, but Stephen was fairly certain, aside from a one-cup coffeemaker and dirty mug he’d left by the sink, the kitchen had been bare when he’d left for work at five in the morning.
On the stainless steel refrigerator hung a Post-it note. Thoroughly confused, he moved closer to read the slip of paper. Rubbing his eyes, he reread the words four times to make sure he hadn’t misread.
Dinner’s in the fridge. XO Kate
Kate had been here? And she’d left him dinner?
Confused, he grabbed the handle and tugged open the fridge door, surprised to find a covered dish of his favorite—lasagna. For a minute he simply stared at the food, uncertain why her things would be in his kitchen. Although, he was too tired to care. The lasagna would go down nicely after a long, hot shower then he could fall into bed and sleep for a couple days.
Closing the fridge, he snagged the sticky note, stuffing the scrap of paper in his jeans pocket, and strode into the living room while he shrugged out of his coat. And once again, he came up short. The jacket fell off his arm, landing at his feet. In the corner of the room, beside the stone fireplace sat a humungous, gaudy Christmas tree, twinkling lights and all.
Where the hell had the thing come from? And how the hell had it gotten in his living room? Jesus, the damn tree had to be nine feet tall.
Hesitant of what else he might find, he scanned the living room. The makeshift bed he’d slept on the past week was gone, and more stacked boxes lined the walls. A few wrapped presents sat tucked beneath the tree, while two stockings hung from the fireplace mantel. A picture frame had been placed on top.
Stephen moved closer to investigate. When he saw the photo was of him and Kate, he couldn’t help but grin. Damn, he couldn’t wait to hold her in his arms again.
“Hey.”
Startled, he spun around at the husky sound of her voice.
In the middle of the doorway leading to the hallway stood his mate. Once again, she’d managed to sneak up on him and catch him off guard.
With her arms wrapped around her middle and dark hair tousled, she regarded him with sleepy eyes. The lights on the tree illuminated her features with a soft glow, and he drank in the sight of her in a pair of frumpy pajamas.
Her lips curved with a smile. “Do you like it?”
“God, yes.” Stephen mentally traced over each sexy inch of her oversized T-shirt and pajama pants-clad form, from her bedhead down to her bare feet.
“I meant the tree,” she said, amused.
“Oh.” He glanced at the giant spruce again then lifted his brows at her. “You sure it’s big enough?”
She flapped an arm at the huge thing. “That’s what Wes picked out when I asked him to bring over a Christmas tree.”
Stephen snorted. “There’s your first problem, asking Wes to pick anything out.”
“It was fun watching him lug the thing in, though,” she added with a smile.
The thought of his grumbling friend wrestling with the tree tickled Stephen. No doubt the Wolf had bitched and moaned the entire time. The mental image struck him as funny, and he broke into a fit of laughter, which Kate promptly joined.
Between gasps of breaths, he managed to get out, “Did he cuss the whole time?”
Giggling, she shook her head. “Not really. At least, not until I made him trim it and put it on the tree stand.”
Stephen laughed until his sides hurt. Damn, he couldn’t wait to see Wes again. He’d never let the other Wolf live it down.
When their humor faded, he and Kate were left to stare at each other across the nearly empty room. This week without her had felt like an eternity, a depressing eternity he never wanted to go through alone again. Suddenly, the short distance between them seemed as vast as an ocean.
Stephen extended his arms. “Come here.”
Kate didn’t hesitate. She sprinted across the hardwood floor and jumped against him, wrapping her legs around his waist. Folding her arms over his shoulders, she rested her forehead against his neck.
The feel of her lithe body against his was nothing short of heaven. Inhaling the clean scent of her soft skin, he enveloped her in his embrace, determined to never let her go. The thump of her heart echoed his own.
The house, their argument, sleep deprivation, the horrible-ass tree six feet away—all the shit was trivial. In the end, nothing mattered as long as they were together.
She murmured against his skin, “I missed you so much.”
Closing his eyes, he leaned his cheek against hers. “I missed you, too, Sunshine.”
Dampness warmed his neck, and he nudged her head up to look at her. Tears glistened in her sad hazel eyes.
“What’s wrong, baby?” He brushed his thumb beneath her eye.
“I’m so sorry, Stephen,” she choked out. “I never meant to hurt you.”
“I know you didn’t, sweetheart. We’ll talk about it later, okay?” He peered around the living room, looking for a place to sit. “Well, I’d offer you a seat, but….”
She sniffled. “The bed’s upstairs.”
He glanced at her in surprise. “Really? How did you manage getting it up there?”
“Wes.” She proffered a watery smile.
“Please tell me you made him hang curtains?”
“Not yet. But I will after the other furniture arrives.”
Laughing, he hugged her tighter.
***
A few minutes later, Kate sat cross-legged in the middle of the bed while Stephen showered in the bathroom. Anxiety frayed her already-worn nerves. Doubt lingered in her mind. Had she done the right thing, moving some of her things in without his approval?
They’d never discussed living together. Even though they sort of had the same arrangement at her house. After they mated, he stayed over at her place all the time. No questions asked. But, what if he hadn’t intended for her to move in with him? And then, there was the baby.
He’d find out the truth soon enough. It wasn’t as though she could hide her pregnancy from him forever. Of course, she wasn’t hiding it now, but how would he react once he found out?
At her wits’ end, she fell back on the mattress, throwing her arms out wide. Crap, she was doing it again. Letting her insecurities get the best of her, second-guessing her decisions, doubting everyone and everything—why? Why did she always fucking do this to herself?
At the first sign things were going smoothly, it never failed. She always did something to mess everything up. She growled in frustration.
Dammit, this crap stops now. Or else she’d lose the most important person in her life.
“Did you just growl?”
Alarmed, she lifted her head and met Stephen’s playful gaze in the bathroom doorway. She’d been so preoccupied she hadn’t heard the shower shut off.
With a towel wrapped around his waist, he leaned his shoulder against the doorjamb while he used another to dry his hair. She practically panted at the sight of his lean, muscled frame. A light dusting of golden hair ran a trail down his tanned skin, disappearing beneath the towel.
Chuckling, he pushed away from the doorway and padded toward the bed. “Keep looking at me like that, and I’ll forget I need to sleep.”
Kate bolted upright. “Stephen?”
He tossed the towel he’d used to dry his hair on the floor and eased down on the other side of the mattress. “Yes?”
Oh God, why couldn’t she keep her mouth shut? “I…I probably should’ve asked before I moved some of my things in.”
Groaning, he shifted on the bed until he sat facing her. “No. You shouldn’t have.”
“You’re not angry?” She frowned.
“Honestly, Kate? Do I look angry?” He lifted a bro
w. “This is our house. Not mine, but ours. You belong here with me.”
“After the things I said last week…not trusting you…I don’t know if I can ever make it up to you, Stephen. Words will never be enough.” She ducked her gaze to her fidgeting hands. “You’re the one person who’s always put up with my crap. I don’t know why I doubt everything, including you. I wish I could give you an explanation, but the truth is, I don’t know why I do it. And, in the end, I always hurt you the most.”
“I won’t lie. You did hurt me. Not because of how you reacted or what was said, but simply because you didn’t trust me enough to know I would never betray you. I wanted you to hurt like you’d hurt me. I swore I wouldn’t go to you this time. It was going to have to be you who came to me.” He raked his hand through his wet hair and exhaled. “Truth is, I was wrong, too. I shouldn’t have blown up at you in the kitchen when you caught me on the phone with Emily. I had a chance to explain and tell you everything, but I blew it. You had every right to jump to the wrong conclusions. I didn’t give you a good reason not to doubt me.”
Kate ducked her head. “I should’ve handled things differently, instead of acting like a lunatic in front of everyone. God, when you walked away, I was so scared you didn’t want me as a mate anymore.”
Stephen grabbed her chin, forcing her to meet his intense blue gaze. “When will you realize it doesn’t work that way? I may get mad as hell at you, but it doesn’t mean I don’t want you. When I mated with you, I knew it was forever, which is exactly what I want. Forever. With you. There’ll never be another woman. Only you. Always, Sunshine.”
“I get it now.” Kate smiled. “It took Jace coming over one day and kicking some sense into me before I realized it. And then my Wolf and I had a long heart-to-heart. I know I need to change and quit letting my insecurities ruin our lives. I’m trying. I promise I am.”
“Kate”—he gathered her hands in his—“you don’t need to change a thing. You’re perfect the way you are, baby. All I’ll ever ask of you is to open up to me and be yourself. When you are having doubts, tell me. We’ll work through them. As long as we’re together and trust one another, we can work through anything.”
“I do trust you.” She smiled despite the fresh wash of tears in her eyes. “Do you remember what you asked me before you walked away in Collins?”
His brows furrowed in question.
“You asked what I was willing to give to make our relationship work.” Disentangling her hands from his, she rose onto her knees and framed his handsome face. She gazed into his deep-blue eyes. “Everything, Stephen. You are worth everything.”
Chapter Nine
Daylight peeked through the windows when Stephen drifted into consciousness. He hadn’t slept nearly long enough, but damn if he could resist the warm press of his mate’s back against his chest any longer. Thank God he’d insisted Kate sleep beside him without those frumpy pajamas he liked so much. Nothing beat the feel of her soft skin against his. Mimicking his dream from days before, he palmed her breasts and lowered his mouth to the smooth curve of her shoulder to kiss a path up her neck.
In sleep, she sighed his name and arched against his chest, pushing the soft mounds into his hands. Her legs grazed his, and he trailed a hand down the line of her body to the back of her knee. Sliding his hand beneath the inside of her thigh, he lifted her leg to rest over his. The move opened her to his exploration.
Stephen caught her earlobe between his teeth as he brushed his fingers over her bare center. With his other hand, he massaged her breast, playfully tugging at her hardened nipple while he continued to skim light strokes over her clit.
He knew the moment she roused from sleep. Her breathing accelerated, her faint puffs of air audible in the quiet bedroom. As though seeking each caress, she rocked her ass against his stiff erection. He dipped his fingers lower, tracing over her wet entrance.
“Good morning, Sunshine.” With a nip to her ear, he pressed a finger inside her pussy. “Is this what you want, baby?”
“Oh God. Yes.” A sexy moan slipped from her throat, driving him wild.
Christ, he’d missed this—the soft feel of her body, the sweet scent of her skin, the beautiful sounds she made when he touched her. A week without his mate had felt like a lifetime. One he never wanted to repeat. His thumb rubbed over her clit as he glided his finger in and out of her wet heat while she writhed against him. This was his heaven.
Anxious to feel the tight squeeze of her pussy, he shifted position, sliding his hardened length between her spread thighs. He moved his hand to grasp her hip and lined the head of his dick at her entrance. Breaths labored, she reached behind them to grab onto his ass. Heeding the silent plea, he pushed inside, inch by slow inch, until he was buried to the hilt.
With one arm folded over her waist, he crossed his other arm over her breasts to grip her shoulder with his hand, holding her close to his body. Despite the sweet torture of her tight pussy clenched around his cock, he remained still, clinging to her.
The frantic beat of his heart raced as a possessive need swelled inside him. Grinding his teeth, he lowered his mouth to speak in her ear.
“You’re mine.” Easing out of her with slow precision, he slammed back inside with one hard thrust. “Don’t ever forget that.” He repeated the move, wedging himself deep between her thighs. “No matter what, you’re mine. Always, Kate.”
“Yes,” she cried out, the sound echoing in the room.
With another hard thrust, he demanded, “Tell me.”
“I’m yours,” she shouted, her nails digging into his ass. “Always.”
The admission and the tight walls of her pussy constricted around his dick broke his control, flipping a switch inside him. He powered in and out of her, sinking deeper with each stroke, determined to reach any remaining piece of her heart he didn’t already own. But, it wasn’t enough. He had to get deeper, until he was as embedded under her skin as she was his.
Rolling Kate onto her stomach, he pressed her into the mattress, pinning her with his body. Beneath the surface, his beast awakened in a fervor, the surge of energy raising the hair along his arms. This need to possess her, to consume her as she’d consumed him, flared in his mind, inciting the animal inside him.
Guided by instinct, Stephen urged her thighs wider with his own and plunged deep inside her with a harsh growl. She released a shrill scream and fisted the sheets. For a blink of a moment, he’d feared he’d hurt her until her gasped words registered in his clouded brain.
“Oh God, Stephen. Yes. More.”
Beneath him, she writhed and moaned as he continued to pound into her, thrust after thrust. The sound of their flesh meeting and the pound of his heart filled his ears. With each powerful stroke, he mastered her willing body.
When tingles rippled down the base of his spine and his balls tightened, he lifted her hips enough to slip his hand between her thighs and apply pressure to her clit. As soon as he pinched the little bundle of nerves, she cried out in ecstasy and bucked beneath him.
Suddenly, his Wolf compelled him to reassert his claim. The overwhelming need to mark her gripped him by his drawn balls. His canines pushed through his itchy gums in anticipation. Tugging aside her long hair, he bared her shoulder and struck, sinking his teeth into her flesh. The instant the tang of her rich blood hit his tongue; release slammed into him. Buried to the hilt, he shuddered as he came deep inside his mate.
Depleted of energy, he released his hold on her shoulder and kissed over the mark he’d left on her soft skin. He rolled onto his side, bringing her with him. He barely heard their noisy gasps for breath over the wild thud in his chest. Sweat beaded all over his body but he couldn’t move a muscle, nor did he have the desire to.
He placed a soft, lingering kiss behind her ear. “Love you, Sunshine.”
“Love you, too,” Kate mumbled in a drowsy whisper and snuggled deeper into his embrace.
Satisfied, Stephen closed his eyes a
nd ventured toward the call of sleep. Everything was in its right place again. His mate was right where she belonged, in his arms.
***
Enveloped in Stephen’s warmth, Kate awoke with a contented sigh and the sudden urge to pee. Disentangling herself from his arms and legs, she eased to the side of the bed then rose with a wince. Desperate to empty her poor bladder, she hobbled to the bathroom in a rush. Every muscle in her body groaned in protest from her and Stephen’s lovemaking session earlier. She wasn’t complaining. Quite the opposite, in fact.
She’d never experienced that side of him before. Unlike his usual playful bedroom behavior, he’d been forceful and taken control of her body. And God, she’d loved every second of it. After she attended to personal matters, she padded into the bedroom to find Stephen sprawled on his back, soft snores billowing from his open mouth.
Her poor mate. He’d run himself ragged lately, working so much and dealing with her crap. Even though he’d said she didn’t owe him a thing, he was wrong. After all the patience, understanding, and love he’d given her throughout the years, she definitely owed him.
Kate slipped beneath the covers and turned on her side to study his strong profile. If it took the rest of her life, she’d prove how much he meant to her.
As though her gaze had lured him from sleep, he rolled toward her, cracked open his bleary eyes, and his lips curled into a lazy grin. “Hey, babe.”
His husky voice sent a chill down her spine, and her heart gave a painful kick at the tender expression on his face. The need she felt for him was constant and enduring, the intensity burning. Her heart overflowed with love for him, a love which would never wane or falter. It had always been for him. It would always be for him.
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