by Ellis Leigh
And I had no problem with that.
“Mateo,” I whispered as he finally released my mouth to attack my neck. To lick and bite up and down the length of it as I groaned against him.
“Tell me to stop, princess,” he growled, the sound more vibration than anything.
I still wasn’t afraid of him. “Don’t stop.”
He growled low and deep as he lifted me higher, striding across the room to the kitchen island. With one swipe of his big hand, he cleared the counter, sending my fruit bowl flying. Bright-red apples rolled across the wooden floors, escaping his wrath. But I was trapped. Happily.
“Lie back,” he demanded, using one hand to push softly on my belly. To tell me what to do. I did as instructed, lying back on my kitchen counter. Skirt rucked up to my hips and my entire upper body likely flushed and red as the heat rose through me. I lay back and spread my legs around him, even bringing one foot up to rest on the counter. Presenting my body like a gift for the conquering hero.
Mateo grunted and stared down at me, watching his own hands as they pushed my skirt up even higher. As he exposed my panties to his greedy eyes. Without warning, though, one hand slipped right up the middle of my stomach to the buttoned front of my blouse. In a second, the man had ripped my shirt open, leaving me lying there with the tatters hanging from my shoulders and my bright-red bra on full display.
“Mine,” he grunted, tugging me down until my hips practically dangled off the edge of the counter. “You are so beautiful and all mine.”
I nodded, barely able to squeak out a “Yours” before he had me moaning as he ran those naughty hands up my thighs to tug on my panties.
“I’m going to taste you,” he said as he worked his thumb against my clit through the thin fabric. “Right now. I’m going to kiss you here—” he pressed hard on my clit, initiating another squeak from me as my legs shook “—if you let me.”
I shook my head, groaning. Unable to think beyond the needfulness building inside me. “You don’t have to.”
Mateo ran his hands down my thighs, spreading them wider, bringing one hand back to my pussy to push aside the fabric and nudge a thumb inside me. I gasped and jumped, trying to push back against him. Trying to escape. Unsure which was the right option.
“I’m going to ask you again,” he said, bringing that naughty thumb to his mouth to suck on it with a groan before slipping it back inside me and pumping it in and out. “May I taste you?”
The reality of his needs hit me like a ton of books. He wanted permission, not submission. He wanted me to give explicit permission to him for all the debauched things he planned to do to me. I had a feeling the man could just take anything from me and I’d likely let him, but that wasn’t enough for him. That wasn’t what he needed to get off.
I had to be an active contributor to my own defilement.
“Yes,” I whispered even as my legs clenched as if to close of their own accord.
Mateo clucked and shook his head slowly, staring down at where his thumb was now deep inside me. “That’s not enough, my pretty princess. And you know it.”
I did know it. I’d already figured this out. He wanted my enthusiastic participation, not just my consent. He wanted to make me beg for it.
If I weren’t already sprawled before him like a holiday feast, I would have dropped to my knees in a heartbeat. Instead, I reached between us, locking my eyes on his as I grabbed his hand and pulled his thumb from inside me. I didn’t let him go, though. Instead, I directed his long, thick fingers to where his thumb had been playing. Used his hand as my own personal toy as I directed one of his digits inside me, following it up with one of my own. Both of us working over my pussy together. I arched and writhed at the intrusion, at the pressure, closing my eyes and letting my body do the talking for the moment. Letting him feel what he did to me.
“Fuck, Arabella,” he said, his grip on my thigh growing stronger. I would have bruises there in the morning, and I would love every one of them. I would wear them with pride, knowing I received them pleasuring my mate.
“Do you feel how wet I am for you?” I asked, keeping my voice low, practically purring my words.
“You’re so fucking wet. So wet.”
“I’ve been this way all day because I couldn’t stop thinking of my stubborn mate. And now you’re here but still not satisfying me.” I pushed his finger deeper then pulled mine from inside me, bringing it to his lips and smiling when he sucked on it. When he groaned at the taste of me. “This is my consent, Mateo. My wet pussy is showing you my enthusiasm.”
His groan practically shook the counter, and he dropped to his knees immediately. With a quick tug, he ripped the panties from my body and tossed them to the floor. They landed on one of my apples, the white practically covering the red. Innocence over sin.
There would be nothing innocent about tonight.
Without a word of warning, Mateo grabbed me by the knees and pulled me closer to him, and then he was there. His face between my legs. His overpowering kiss directed at my most delicate flesh. There was no small lick or tease, no cautious beginning. The man devoured me from the start, slipping a second finger inside me as his lips and tongue attacked my clit.
I arched and yowled, reaching down to grab hold of his hair and tug him tight to me, the anticipation breaking over me. The pleasure cresting almost immediately. The heat of his mouth on me, the feeling of his tongue laving my clit, was all it took to throw me right over the edge. I came with a scream that couldn’t be held back, my entire body seizing as Mateo continued to assault my tender flesh. As he dove in even deeper, filling me completely and sucking on my clit. I shook beneath him, my hands clutching at his hair as if they had minds of their own, not sure if I wanted to pull him closer to push him away. Thankfully, he didn’t make me choose.
“Now,” he grunted before yanking me into his arms—my knees over his elbows and my legs spread around him—and striding from the kitchen through the house. “I need to fuck you now.”
“Second door,” I whispered, still fuzzy from my orgasm. Still fighting the conflict of sinking into the fogginess or pulling myself from it. Luckily, I didn’t need to make that decision. Mateo took me straight to my bedroom, tossing me on the bed before stripping off his clothes. He climbed on top of me, pushing my skirt up, settling himself between my thighs. And he did as he promised. He fucked me. Good and hard and repeatedly. Him fully undressed and me like some fallen princess, skirt around my hips and blouse hanging in shreds. He fucked me up the mattress and down, flipped me over and took me from behind. Gave me more orgasms than I could count as he filled the silence with his grunts and heavy breathing and filthy mouth. Telling me all about my wet pussy, how deep his cock was, and how much I was made for him.
At one point, as I rode his cock toward an ending that I was almost afraid to reach, the bed groaned and cracked, the entire head of the mattress falling to the floor. A broken bed didn’t stop my mate, though. He simply flipped us over to where I was underneath him then spun us around, thrusting into me again and again.
Stubborn to the very end.
6
Mateo
Waking up in my mate’s bed with her in my arms might have been one of the most amazing moments of my life, had I not felt as if I were somehow slipping off the mattress. I opened my eyes, squinting at the sunlit room, to find the entire head of the bed on the floor with the foot still supported.
“Ah, fuck,” I groaned, memories of the night before resurfacing. She’d been so hot, so wet. So delicious. I hadn’t been able to pay attention to something as trivial as breaking the bed. That was definitely something I’d need to address today, though. Especially since my feet were basically on the floor. And Arabella…
Well, Arabella lay next to me, soft and sweet as ever. I moved a lock of that jet-black hair off her pale face, amazed at how red her lips were even without makeup. Probably slightly bruised. I hadn’t been gentle with her the night before—kissed her hard, handled her r
oughly, and fucked her brutally. She’d definitely seemed to enjoy every second of it, but I should have tried harder to be sweeter. Softer. I wasn’t good at that, but I could have attempted it. Could have held back instead of going all in our first night together. I’d been an animal with her—barely giving her a break. What had I been—
Arabella sighed, breaking the downward spiral of my thoughts and bringing one hundred percent of my attention to her. By the fates, she was beautiful. Stunning, really. And mine. My inner bull snorted at that, the bastard proud as fuck that his mate was so lovely. There was so much more to her than her looks, though. She was kind and sweet, funny and engaging. The woman had it all…
And she was stuck with me.
“I promise to do everything I can to be good to you,” I whispered, running a finger down the side of her face. She sighed again and rolled toward me, cuddling closer. My heart nearly exploded. She wanted to be near me. Even in her sleep, her instincts kicked in to stay at my side. Our mating would be a strong one for sure. Strong and happy. I’d do everything I could to be certain of that fact. I’d never woken up so happy in my life, and I would protect that. And her.
Which meant I needed to deal with my client.
Before my thoughts could take off in the direction of work, Arabella shifted in her sleep. Raising a leg to tangle with mine. All felt well and good until said leg brushed against my already aching cock. I tried not to move, to stay still and silent, but my hips had a mind of their own. They rocked forward, passing my cock over her knee once more, which made me groan. I did it again. And again. Hating myself with every pass. Growing needier for the real thing with every move. I was an animal to bother such a sleeping angel. A beast. A dishonorable hunter. I was—
“Mateo,” my angel whispered in her sleep. Her gorgeous eyes opened and locked on mine, her red lips rising into a smile. “Good morning.”
Ah fuck.
I couldn’t help myself. Couldn’t resist her. I dove in for a kiss, demanding entrance into her mouth and going to war with her tongue. My little mate battled right back, wrapping her arms around me and pulling herself up my body. Up because the bed was still sort of hanging there. It didn’t take Arabella long to be distracted by the fact that we were lying at an angle with our heads at the foot of her mattress. She pulled away, looking down the length of our bodies before returning those gorgeous eyes back to meet mine with the most adorable pout on her lips.
“My bed—”
“It’s fine.”
“But we broke it.”
“We did.” Don’t be proud of that, you animal. “I’ll fix it. Or if I can’t, I’ll buy you a new one.”
“You don’t have to buy me a bed.” She started to unwind herself from me, looking absolutely distracted, which wouldn’t do.
I rolled with her, keeping her underneath me so I could gain all of her attention again. Practically grinning when her concerned pout turned to a smile. “I broke it. I’ll replace it.”
That smile turned softer, her fingers coming to dance along the side of my face in the gentlest touch I’d ever experienced.
“We broke it. Together.”
Fuck me. I couldn’t control myself. I dove in for another kiss and manhandled her until I had her exactly where I wanted her. In the perfect spot for me to gain access to that sexy body of hers. Once I had her positioned, I grabbed her leg and pushed it out, spreading her, before slipping a hand between us. Using my fingers to tease her clit. She was already wet for me, already primed and ready, and I groaned when my fingers slid right inside her without a hint of resistance.
“Were you dreaming of me, mate?” I growled, diving in to give her neck a little bite. “You’re awfully wet already.”
Arabella gasped and arched, seeming to like the attention I gave her pussy. “I woke up wet. And needy. If I hadn’t been distracted by the broken bed, I’d already be riding your cock for sure.”
Dead. I was dead. My mate had just killed me with a filthy mouth that did not fit her sweet persona. I loved it, though. I snatched my hand from her pussy, grabbed her by the hips, and flipped us over. Placing her on my hips as she spread her legs to accommodate me. Lying back with my hands behind my head once she was good and stable.
“Go ahead, mate. My cock is yours to use. Pleasure yourself on me.”
And fuck me, but she did. Arabella shot me a wicked smirk then reached right between us, holding me in place as she slid down the length. I died right there—the confidence, the heat, the pulsing grip of her pussy, the smirk on her wicked, red lips. All of it led me to my death. Old Mateo was dead and gone. New Mateo had been reborn to do nothing but take care of the woman riding his cock like a goddamned pro. The woman the fates had deemed perfect for me.
The woman I had come to Kinship Cove to find, though not because of the fates.
“You were made for me,” I groaned, trying hard to hold on to any sense of reality before I made a fool of myself and spilled before she’d gotten hers.
Arabella didn’t disappoint. She leaned over and gave me a little kiss, biting my bottom lip like a vixen before sitting up once more and letting her pussy swallow my cock whole.
“And you for me, my big, strong mate.”
Big and strong. Yes. That was me. And she was small, fragile almost. Something to be protected.
As my mate began to twist her hips in a way that had me groaning and grabbing hold of her, had me arching so I could try to be just a little deeper inside her, my mind went right into protective mode. As much as I wanted to stay in Arabella’s bed all day—to fuck her for the next week without letting her out of my sight—I had one last job to do. Once last task. I had to protect her.
Which meant making sure the woman from LaPorte who had sent me to Kinship Cove to look for her was off her tail. Permanently.
7
Arabella
The only problem I could see from spending a solid two days in bed with a mate three times your size was the fact that walking afterward became an issue. A big one. It was almost comical how I had limped into work that morning. Thankfully, none of my coworkers had said a word. Brittani had even brought me a stool so I could sit while checking out patrons, not mentioning at all how I might have hurt myself. I appreciated her as a boss even more in that moment.
Her friends, though…
“Good morning, Bob.”
The bobcat shifter shot me a mean glare, looking as if she were ready to shift and fight me. I just smiled. I knew the name bothered her, but the look she sent me when I called her that was well worth the irritation. At least to me. She might have disagreed. Bobcats were just so dramatic, though.
“Hey, Arabella.” Matthew approached the desk around halfway through my shift, staying back a good five feet from the other side. At first, I wondered if something was wrong, then I realized that I must have positively reeked of Mateo. A mated male would never challenge another, and Matthew was far too smart to put his scent on me in any way, as that would be seen as a challenge.
The fact that I was now a mated shifter hit me as a surprise once more, and I had to bite back the silly grin wanting to explode across my face.
“Good morning, Matthew. Something I can help you with?”
“Maybe. I was wondering if you’d be willing to dress up and play the Snow White role again this weekend. There’s a street fair—”
“Absolutely.”
The man smiled, stepping almost to the edge of the counter. “Great. I’d really appreciate it. The families that have been coming in have…”
Matthew kept talking, but at that moment, Mateo walked into the library, and every bit of my attention locked on my mate. He was just so big and overwhelming. He seemed to fill the space of the foyer with ease, seemed really comfortable in his size. Other people looked and moved away, obviously scared of him, but I wasn’t. In fact, if Matthew hadn’t still been talking to me, I would have hopped over the counter and run into Mateo’s arms.
If my thighs allowed. Those hips
were thick, like the rest of him. I was going to need to do some serious yoga to increase my flexibility.
Mateo looked right at me, his expression solid and…mean. Angry, even. He flicked a glance to Matthew, who was still chatting away about the fair, and the heat in his eyes grew. The rage. Oh dear.
“Matthew,” I said, interrupting him mid-sentence. “My mate is here to take me to lunch, so…”
Matthew stepped back immediately, looking over his shoulder to where Mateo stood just inside the door. The children’s librarian sent my mate a head nod that I had to assume held some sort of male mate code in it, because Mateo responded with the same nod.
“Great,” Matthew said, putting even more distance between us. “We can chat another time, but thank you for always being willing to help.”
“No problem.” I was in motion before the words left my mouth, heading straight for my mate. He swooped me up into his arms the second he could, clinging to me as he released a deep but quiet groan. “You okay?”
“Yeah,” he said as he scented my neck.
“You looked mad.”
“Other men…”
I knew that. But I also knew Matthew. “He’s mated.”
Mateo placed me back on the floor, still holding on to me. Staring me down in a way that made my knees quake and my insides go liquid. “So are you, young lady.”
I died. Right there in the public library, I breathed my last breath as a woman who had never considered having sex in her workplace. This man made me want to be so naughty.
