Savage Craving: A Shifting Destinies Lion Shifter Romance (Lion Hearts Book 4)

by Cecilia Lane

  “Maybe he saw the same thing I do when I look at you.”

  Across the table, Seth met her eyes. The dark color churned with unguarded desire. Her lips parted, but no words pushed off her tongue.

  Seth pushed out of his seat and rounded the table. Lilah lifted her eyes to follow his progression, leaning back to not break the connection. His nearness raised goose bumps up and down her arms, almost like he’d touched her himself. Even the soft breath of the air conditioner felt like his fingers skimming down the back of her neck.

  “You didn’t burn yourself, Lilah,” he continued. He dropped his hand, palm upturned for her to take it. “Someone did that to you. You can avoid that person and that iron all you want, but not everyone is responsible. I wouldn’t even say you’re scared. Hurt, that’s there. That’s deserved. But you’re stronger than your fear.”

  Lilah hovered her hand over his. A tiny noise caught in the back of her throat when he closed his fingers around hers and urged her to her feet. She stumbled, then steadied herself with hands splayed over his chest. Heat flooded her cheeks. They’d done this before, in the bed only a few feet away.

  She dropped her eyes to hide the sting of hurt. He’d kissed her senseless and then left her wondering what went wrong.

  Trying to keep her voice steady, she asked, “What do you mean?”

  “You may have been kicked down, but you don’t stay down. You dusted yourself off and figured a way out of every situation you’ve been thrown into. Those bears? You got the hell out of town and made something of yourself. Jasper? You got out alive. Others facing those same circumstances would have let their fear consume them.” He ducked his head to make sure their eyes met. “I think you’re incredible.”

  “Seth…” His eyes dropped to her mouth when she darted her tongue out to wet her lips. Lilah curled her fingers against his chest. Unfair. So unfair. He shouldn’t be allowed to be so flawlessly sexy and tempting. Especially when he worked her up only to let her down. Especially, especially, when he lied about who he truly was. “We can’t do this. You’re... you. Not-shifter—”

  “Shiftless,” he corrected.

  “Shiftless. My bodyguard. And...” she sucked in a breath. Admission time. The biggest one of all, if she was honest. “You already pulled away once. I don’t want to play games or wonder if you’re with me.”

  “I didn’t think you’d accept me. I want this, Lilah. I want the crazy woman willing to spike a drink to save her skin. I want the fearless woman who refuses to stay down for long. I want the caring woman I saw today cuddling a cub to her chest.” He lifted a hand and brushed his thumb over her cheek, small smile grazing his lips. “Do you trust me?”

  “I...” she trailed off, looking away. Trust was important to her. There weren’t any secrets in trust. Secrets hurt.

  Shifters hurt, too. And he was one of them.

  A lump formed in her throat, but it wasn’t her typical fear. She was as much to blame for the secrets between them. More, in fact. She asked far too much if she expected him to come clean about his otherness when her first words accused him of trying to murder her.

  No, the lump was over the selfless man who stuck by her side even when she tried to drive him away. All his pretty words described a woman she didn’t know, but wanted to be. He didn’t deserve the trouble she laid at his feet.

  A finger under her chin turned her face back to Seth. “It’s a yes or no question, Lilah.”

  The dark pools of his eyes begged her for an answer.

  “Yes,” she breathed.

  His lips crashed over hers.

  Chapter 17

  Seth skimmed his fingertips over Lilah’s cheeks. He sipped at her lips, forcing himself to go slow. Stay gentle. As much as he wanted to strip her down and dive between her thighs, she wasn’t there. Not yet. He had to keep himself contained.

  A growl leaked out of him the moment he slid his tongue between her lips. She tasted as delicious as before, which had been even better than he’d imagined. He wanted his last memory before closing his eyes at the end of the day to be the feel of her mouth on his. His morning wouldn’t be complete if he didn’t reach for her before his eyes even opened.

  Something stroked against his mind. His lion. The beast couldn’t be bothered to show himself during all his years walking the planet, but Lilah drew him out. The sensation fed on her scent and the beat of her heart. He’d fed it punches and victories in the ring, but that hadn’t been what the creature craved. The woman in his arms?

  His.

  Theirs.

  Mate.

  Another growl. Another reminder to keep steady. He didn’t want to scare her off. She’d been through so much. Too much. He wanted to make up for every hurt she’d ever suffered.

  Lilah wound her arms around his neck and leaned into him with a sigh of her own. Then she took a little step backward and dragged him with her.

  Neither of them fit where they’d been placed, like puzzle pieces added to the wrong box. He’d struggled with belonging, the same as had been thrust on her, but she erased all the wrong. She made him feel whole.

  Maybe it was buried instincts. Maybe it was simply her. Didn’t matter in the end. He wanted to keep her for the rest of his life.

  His hands landed on her hips and he backed her through the tight quarters. Her knees hit the back of the bed and she took a heavy seat, her gorgeous hazel eyes tilting up to meet his hungry look with one of her own. She swept her tongue over her lips and leaned back onto her elbows, slowly working her way further up the bed.

  “Lilah,” he groaned. Fuck, he loved the taste of her name on his lips. Those syllables coated his tongue and rolled out of his mouth with all the heated promise he could muster.

  He placed a knee on the bed, then followed with a hand. His eyes never left her face as he added another knee, then another hand. He ran his fingertips up her ankle, up her shin, and brushed against the back of her knees. He stalked her over the bed until their bodies lined up hip to hip, chest to chest. Seth groaned again at the first press of his cock trapped against the apex of her thighs.

  “I’ve wanted this from the first time I touched you,” he murmured against her neck. Mangoes and lavender filled his nose and made his mouth water.

  Her breath picked up. “That’s hard to believe. I was running for my life.”

  “Is it?” Seth leaned down and dusted his lips over her skin again. “You were dressed like a sexy librarian.”

  “Fantasy of yours?” she asked, voice husky.

  Seth smiled against her skin. Fuck, he hoped she liked a talker. He didn’t know if he could stop himself from babbling like a madman. “Did I want to hike up your skirt and peel down your panties? Mouth my way up your thighs until I reached your pussy? Kiss and lick and suck until your legs quivered around me?” His cock jumped against his zipper at her sharp inhale. The scent of her arousal made his head spin. “No, definitely not a fantasy. Not anymore.”

  She let off a shaky laugh. “Cocky, aren’t you?”

  He nipped at her earlobe. “Tell me to stop, then.”

  She wrapped her legs around his waist and rolled her hips against him.

  Seth growled and claimed her mouth again. Her heart sounded loud in his ears, but her gasps drove him on. She groaned and whimpered against his lips with every collision of their hips and tongues.

  He curled his fingers under the hem of her shirt and slid it higher, soft cotton slowly bunching and exposing more of her skin. She unwound from him long enough to lean up and rip it over her head, then reached behind her to unsnap her bra.

  Seth stared as he took in the curve of her waist and flare of her hips. “Gorgeous,” he growled, leaning back into her.

  He kissed a line down her neck, over the upper curve of her breasts. Her nipples pebbled against his chest, begging for his attention. Plucking one between his fingers, he closed his mouth around the other. She rocked against him, offering more of herself, and he gave over to the feast.

 
Seth licked and nipped, breathing in her moans and gasps. His cock strained against his jeans. Painfully hard, he smoothed his hand down her body with a stroking, grasping touch. He wanted to know every inch of her before they were done.

  He teased her with his hands, his mouth, spiraling her desire higher alongside his own. She rolled her hips to meet his, body stroking his dick with each grind. Fuck, he wanted to bury himself inside her and feel her clamp down all around him. She wanted it, too. Thick arousal scented the air and made his mouth water.

  “How wet are you, gorgeous? How much do you want me?” He ground the heel of his hand against her heat, drawing a sharp cry from her chest.

  She threw her head back and pressed against him on her own. “More,” she breathed. “More.”

  “I bet you’re soaking right now. Fuck,” he groaned, “I want to taste you as you come.”

  He reached for the button of her shorts, but her hands flew up to stop him. “Seth.”

  The pained note in her voice and the rigidness of her body pulled him back sharply. He searched her face for any clue of where he’d gone wrong, but she avoided his eyes.

  Her fingers dug under the hem of her shorts, and he understood.

  Seth stroked a thumb over the back of her hand. “I don’t care, Lilah. You’re going to be beautiful to me no matter what.”

  “I don’t like them.” She pressed her lips together, but slowly turned her face back to his. Desire and wariness warred in the pretty hazel, but she nodded.

  He reached for the button again, then slowly rolled down the zipper. She lifted her hips and shoved at the fabric herself, then kicked them off the bed.

  Finally bare, he ground his teeth together to keep from letting off a string of curses.

  Four raking marks curled around one leg, the thickest points near her inner thigh and fading out almost to her knee. He’d need to flip her over to see the others on her backside, but the edges looked like a solid swipe across the backs of both thighs.

  They’d toyed with her, just like she’d said. Swatting, swiping, sending her reeling away. They weren’t killing blows. To her, anyway. For him? They were reasons for revenge.

  She'd survived. That was what mattered. She'd survived, and kept on believing in the best of people. Her work trying to keep kids like him on a good path was proof of that.

  Brave girls turned into brave women. She had fire in her middle, even if the bad memories still got the better of her. He couldn't even blame her for that when the evidence of what she’d suffered through marked her skin.

  Lorne had some fucking answering to do. Seth wanted names and addresses of every relative involved in Lilah’s attack. When he finished with the bears, he’d rip through the lions who tried to pull the same shit.

  Lilah blew out a hard breath. Her hands curled at her sides, almost as if she wanted to cover herself. He didn’t give her a second to reconsider before bending his head and licking the lowest claw mark from one side of her thigh to the other. Skies above, he wanted more. Wanted to taste her to completion. He was so fucking close. Just a little tilt of his head and he’d have his mouth on her most private parts.

  He retreated and found the jagged edge of the next scar. More anger bubbled up inside. More desire soothed the rough edges as he followed the trail between her thighs again.

  This was for her. He wanted her to feel good.

  Lilah shifted under him. Her teeth caught her lip and she arched into his mouth every time he followed the curve of a scar closer to her pussy. His gums ached with the demand to taste her, claim her, and make her forget everything but him.

  He barely contained himself when he reached the end of the final scar. With a groan, he crashed through her folds and licked deep into her center. She cried out, but he switched focus to swirl around her clit and yanked another moan from her lungs.

  He sucked her clit between his lips and flicked her with his tongue. On the peak of another roll of her hips, he slid his fingers into her slick core. She clawed at him, gasping, but he didn’t slow his pumping or licking.

  Her breath came in needy pants and her muscles twitched around his digits. She was close. So fucking close. His cock ached to have her wrap around him, but he wanted a taste. Needed her on his tongue. He growled, lashing her with his tongue and plunging into her with his fingers, until she tensed. Her hips bucked into him and her back arched, a harsh cry splitting the air.

  “Gorgeous,” Seth told her in a thick voice. He pressed a kiss to each of her thighs. “Absolutely gorgeous.”

  Lilah sagged against the bed, surprised she didn’t see little birds circling her head. Holy hell. He needed to come with a warning label or something. Seth was not for the faint of heart.

  He’d made her feel normal. Her scars weren’t something to avoid. He didn’t shift his eyes away or flinch when he touched them. He’d worked them into the molten hot seduction before he shoved her straight over the edge into pure bliss.

  Holy hell.

  Even then, looking down her body, she found him watching her. Hints of gold colored the center of his dark eyes and made the naked look of need plain. He wanted to eat her. Had eaten her, she corrected, stifling a laugh.

  A cocky smile hitched up one corner of his mouth. “Enjoy yourself?”

  “You’ve served your purpose,” she joked icily.

  He bent his head to press another kiss to her clit. “If you’re sure...”

  She reached for him, arms wrapping around his shoulders, then drew him back down. “Don’t go anywhere.”

  He fell over top of her, mouth sealing with hers. The rough rasp of his cloth-covered cock sent a delicious shudder down her spine. Even the cotton of his shirt rubbed against her nipples and added to the desire pooling again in her veins. She ached. For him. For his cock. His mouth. Fingers.

  Both breathed hard when she broke the kiss. “You’re overdressed.”

  “That means leaving.” He nipped at her lip. “You seemed so demanding before.”

  She shoved at his shoulders. Cold washed over her naked frame as he disappeared. He ripped his shirt over his head and shucked his pants, dirty grin spreading over his face as she eyed him up and down.

  Sweet heavens above, she didn’t know what she’d gotten herself into.

  “Your stomach. You healed?”

  “You did that,” he answered. Dark hunger filled his eyes. “You make me whole.”

  A shiver ran down her spine. She saw the truth in his eyes and written over his face. She saw it in the faint pink line spanning his stomach. Something powerful built between them, growing and growing until she felt electricity zinging through her nerves. Whole, yeah. They were filling in the gaps of each other.

  Seth stroked his impressive length slowly, closing the distance to the bed. He watched her, eyes heating, as he crawled back into place and knelt between her legs. His fingers wrapped around her knees and he hauled her up his thick thighs. “This what you want, gorgeous?” he growled. “This what you need?”

  He rocked his hips forward and rubbed his cock along her slit. Lilah hissed when he inched into her, teasing her with a hint of penetration. In and out, up and down, glancing against her clit and nudging into her. He drove her wild. “Seth,” she whimpered.

  With a growl, he eased his hips back and thrust sharply into her center. Her mouth dropped open at the sudden, perfect invasion. He filled her, and then some. Every thick inch rasped and rubbed until he left her panting.

  “Lilah,” he groaned. He dropped his head back and bit his lower lip as pleasure etched in his features.

  When he focused on her again, she gasped. Bright gold churned in his eyes, but there was more than the change in color. More than lust. He looked at her like she mattered. She wasn’t a pity fuck or someone to pass the time with until someone better came along. She wasn’t her anxiety or her past.

  She wasn’t defined by what happened to her.

  He was different. His people were different. The evil she’d experienced first
hand didn’t exist in the same room as Seth and the other Crowley lions.

  Another growl, he eased his hips back and shoved forward again. Deep and hard, he dragged sounds out of her that she hadn’t thought she could make. Primal, feral noises dripped from her lips to match the bald, dirty words he dripped into her ear.

  “Feel so good, gorgeous,” he growled. “So fucking good. So wet. So tight. You going to come for me, good girl? You going to come all over my cock?”

  All she could do was nod. Words were beyond her as he bucked into her harder than before.

  He reached out a hand and palmed her breast. The swipe of his thumb over her nipple arced more pleasure through her body. Molten hot desire slid through her veins, prickling and bubbling until her skin felt hot and tight.

  Lilah slid her hands up his arms. Heat blasted off him and warmed him down to her very marrow. “Seth,” she groaned, back arching. “Close...”

  He gripped her thighs and held her tight, thrusting into her with even greater power than before. She flung her arms out wide and wrapped her fingers in the blankets just to hold herself steady. Heat coiling tighter inside her and left her ready to spring.

  Harder. Faster. Her entire body trembled under him. Pressure built in her middle; pleasure filled her from head to toe. She teetered right on the edge, ready... ready...

  “Seth!” she cried out again.

  He flung himself forward and consumed her scream with a harsh kiss as she throbbed around him. His hips jerked against her, then tensed, flooding her with warmth.

  His movements slowed, steadied, even while her heart tripped fast in her chest. He rocked them both to the final twist and throb of their aftershocks, then eased them to their sides.

  “Gorgeous,” he murmured against her lips.

  She believed him.

  Lilah snuggled closer to the man, not bothering to wiggle under the blankets or run to the bathroom for a shower and a change. With Seth, she didn’t need to hide her scars. He made her feel safe.

  A deep, satisfied purr vibrated through her. She didn’t need to look up to know his eyes had gone gold.