by B. L. Dawn
And here was something else she knew. Lilly had most likely been mating with all the available males, and it was not smart to get attached to someone that wasn’t your true mate. That’s why she was saving herself for her true mate. Screw all this heartbreak and drama.
Luke scrubbed his hands down his face. “Tate, something’s wrong. Something must have happened last night at Green Lagoon. Something’s not right with how you’re acting.”
Something’s not right with how you’re acting, Tatum thought. Shit. She hoped he wasn’t losing his mind like his brother had. She might have to talk to Enoch about this. “Luke, everything is going to be fine. I think you’re confused, but that’s okay. You’ve had a hard time dealing with Cade and Lilly, but it will get better.” She stood up, walked around the desk, and patted him on the shoulder.
Luke pinched the bridge of his nose, bringing out his dark sunken eyes. “Can I say one more thing to you?”
“Yes. Of course.”
“I want you to know that I can’t sleep. I can’t eat. I’m not feeling well.”
Poor thing. Luke was having a nervous breakdown. Yeah, it’s time to talk to Enoch.
Luke continued, “If you could just…forgive me, and let me hold you so that I can sleep. I promise that I won’t hurt you again.”
This poor male was so sad and defeated. She once felt the same way, and the only thing that helped her was Jenny. That lovely female had stayed with her and watched over her while she slept. Maybe, Luke needed to feel that kind of a connection.
If Tatum were Lilly, which she clearly wasn’t, she would comfort this sexy male all the time. That was if she were Lilly. As it were, she was just herself, a strange anomaly that didn’t look or act like other females. Luke would not be interested in someone like her, especially when she wasn’t going to give up the goods between her legs. There wasn’t a shifter male in this world who would put up with that bullshit. Shifters had sex all the time, it was part of their culture, and if Tatum made a male wait, he would just move on instead of deciding she was worthy of patience. If a male did wait for her, it would make it easier to weed out her true mate when she met him.
Tatum could hold Luke and give him comfort in that way. It shouldn’t be that big of a deal. It’s not like she was going to mate with him or anything, even though damn, he was gorgeous. Maybe, if he got some sleep, he would make more sense, not to mention he might feel better.
Tatum grabbed his hand. “Come on.”
Luke let her drag him away from the barn with a look of shock on his face. Tatum led him to the farmhouse. Fellow shifters stared at her as she pulled Luke along. She waved at them with a smile on her face, pushing her hand through the air, indicating that Luke would be fine and not to worry.
Tatum walked up the stairs to Luke’s room, closing the door behind them. She bounced on the bed a little too eagerly and patted it for him to come over.
Luke shook his head. “That’s not how we sleep.”
That’s a weird thing to say, she thought. Luke walked around the bed and pointed to the other side. She looked at the other side of the bed with a shrug and scooted over. He laid behind her, tucked her into his stomach, wrapped his arm around her waist, and slid one leg between hers.
If she didn’t know better, she would have sworn there was a humming vibration making its way into her skin. Like she was sucking the energy out of him. It made no sense, so she tried to ignore it.
She drew invisible circles on his arm with her fingertips. He trembled as his head buried into her hair. Is he crying? After feeling a tad bit of wetness in her hair, she concluded that he was indeed crying. And that was okay. If he needed to cry and let it out, that’s what he needed to do. She cried when she was by herself at night too. Sometimes, no matter how tough she thought she was, emotions found a way to be expressed.
He did lose his older brother as well as Lilly. If she had lost one of her brothers and a lover, Tatum would be murderous, not holding onto the shifter that killed her brother. It was almost ridiculous that they were together at all, or even on speaking terms.
Luke’s warm breath pushed out against her neck. He must have fallen asleep. Reaching around, she moved his arm away from her waist, but he grunted loudly, wrapping it around her again. She lay back down and enjoyed his strong arms around her before falling asleep herself.
All of the trees were red and flying past her as she ran. There was a loud shrill in the air. A glowing light pulsed in front of her as her body suspended in time and place. The trees turned white. A female’s voice trilled in her ears.
She was running again, arms out to brace for the impact of the white log fence. Two muscular arms flew beside her and boxed her in. She turned around laughing. Luke was hovering over her, staring at her lips. He kissed her softly and started rubbing her back. Wetness pooled between her legs, and she throbbed for him to mate with her.
Luke woke up smelling something erotic. Tatum was clinging to him, wrapped in his arms. Her face was an inch from his, and he could hear her panting. His cocked sprang to life when her pelvis moved against him. A whimper escaped her sultry lips, but her eyes remained closed.
The only thought going through his top head was that she was breathtaking. The only idea going through his lower head was that she was fucking killing him.
He rubbed small circles on her back, just like she had done to his arm. She leaned in and kissed his lips.
His back stiffened as he stared at her. He wasn’t sure what to do because he knew she was still asleep. But what if he never had the chance to kiss her lips again?
Leaning in, he brushed his lips over hers, keeping his eyes open. Tatum’s mouth parted. He glided his tongue in, deepening their kiss. There was nothing better than kissing her after worrying that he had lost her forever.
In this very moment, as he sucked on her tongue and heard her moan, he knew that he had to win her back. She was his mate, after all. Their connection was unmistakable, even if she didn’t understand it. He kissed her deeply as the smell of her arousal drifted into his nose, and he became harder than he had ever been. Luke rubbed his erection lightly on her body, not feeling enough of her through his pants. Her hands wrapped around his waist, and her thumbs went through his belt loops.
She moved against him while they kissed. Her leg slid over the top of him, pulling him closer. He was going to come, and he was going to let it happen—wanted it to happen.
It didn’t matter if he was inside her or not. He wanted whatever he could get. She jerked, then shuddered. The feeling of her coming was more than satisfying. Why couldn’t he be inside her channel as she tightened around him? She climaxed with a jolt, arching in his arms as he continued to move his erection against her. He joined her, coming hard. After a short time, she calmed and relaxed, tucking her head into his neck. She remained asleep. Tears fell from his eyes into her hair.
Tatum wasn’t acting right, but maybe he could use this to his advantage. She had trouble remembering past events, and perhaps it was happening again. Tatum would now be calm enough for him to explain what happened between him and Lilly. If she couldn’t recognize their connection after that, he would spend time making her fall back in love with him again.
He wished more than anything that Tatum would have mated with him that first night they raced together. Her hesitation triggered his doubt about their connection. After waking up and finding Lilly on him—vomit rose in his mouth. He didn’t want to think about it.
Tatum was his true mate. On top of that, she was the most astonishing female he had ever known. Her personality, strength, and nurturing side were just some qualities he admired in her. Most people saw her as their leader, but Luke could see that she also had a soft side, a side that needed to be loved, comforted, and appreciated. He could do that for her, respect her when she needed him to, take care of her when she felt weak, and remind her how loved and special she was.
Luke was ready to fight for her. She neede
d to know that she could trust him. Closing his eyes, he nuzzled her face with his wet cheek. “I love you so fucking much, Tatum.”
Chapter 32
Tatum’s eyes fluttered open from a very relaxing nap. Luke’s face was right in front of hers, and surprisingly enough, her body was craving him to mate with her. She needed to get a grip on herself before she broke one of her cardinal rules.
Staring at his handsome face, she kissed his lips gently. Then she did it again. It surprised her. I need to stop doing that.
She slid away from him, tiptoeing out the door. What she needed was a shower—a freezing shower. When she finally got herself under control and clean, she walked to the living room, brushing her wet hair.
Music was playing outside. As she looked out of the living room window, she saw Mason playing his guitar. She listened to him play as the gloaming faded to night.
Tatum felt strange. She touched her temple, knowing it had to do with her mind. Oliver said something about her loving Luke. Earlier, Luke said he wanted to be with her. Was he what she was forgetting? Did they have a relationship? Tatum rolled her eyes, genuinely hating herself. Why was she so different all the time? If it wasn’t one thing, it was another. Storming off in aggravation, she made her way to the storage building to undress. Running always calmed her down.
As her last article of clothing was pulled off, leaves shuffled in the distance, bringing her focus up. Luke’s tan muscular back and awe-inspiring bare ass was walking through the woods. Maybe he didn’t know she was there, which would make sense because she regularly used the north side shed to undress, but this evening she wanted to explore the east side of the territory.
If she spoke with him, could he help her understand what she had forgotten? And if he couldn’t, then what?
Tatum shifted quickly and trotted up behind him. He smelled so good she wanted to bite his ass. As she got closer to him, she thought he would slow down, but he kept walking. Luke put his hand down and ran his fingers through her caramel-colored fur. Energy from his fingertips traveled through her body. She wanted to talk with him, but unless he shifted or she shifted, that wasn’t going to happen. Perhaps, she could wait him out. They walked for a long time, side by side. His fingertips were rubbing the back of her neck. She tried to look straight ahead, resisting the temptation to peek at his package, less than a foot from her eyes.
It wouldn’t be so bad if she looked at his manhood, right? After all, she was a shifter, and that sort of thing was normal. Dammit. The urge to look was too great. She looked up to make sure his gaze was straight ahead. Turning slightly to her left, she took him all in. He was gorgeous. At the bottom of his ripped stomach, he hung low. Watching it move somewhat as his muscular thighs gripped and released was enough to send her into a tailspin.
She glanced up again, noticing a slight grin on Luke’s face, but he continued to move forward. Where were they? It didn’t seem like they were in the eastern section anymore. Up ahead, the special brook she liked came into view. It was a peaceful place. She had walked its waters and sat in its cool, rippling stream. How did he know about it? Memories flashed of the two of them sitting side by side, looking over the water. Her head was on his shoulder, and his head was on top of hers. Blurred memories of him telling her about his youth with his brother and stories about Green Lagoon rose in her mind. Why was it hard for her to remember? She tried to hold on to the thoughts, but they were trying to slip away.
Scared that something was wrong with her, she shifted quickly, causing Luke to stumble as he walked. “Sorry,” she said, trying to reach out for him.
He grabbed her hands and held them, pulling her close to his body. “What’s wrong? You look scared?”
“I think I remember something, but it keeps pulling away from me.”
“What is it? You can tell me.”
“Have we been here before?”
“Yes. You and I sat right there, and we talked for a long time. Do you remember?”
“Barely.” Tatum looked around, hoping to get some answers out of her surroundings. Why can’t I remember?”
“I think something happened in the woods the other night at Green Lagoon.”
“Like what?” She looked frantic as she stared into his gray eyes.
“I don’t know, but I think whatever happened, you have some kind of memory loss.” Luke let her go so that he could take a seat near the brook’s edge. He stretched his legs out and stared out over the water.
Tatum walked over and sat beside him, bringing her knees to her chest and tucking her legs in close. “What kinds of things am I forgetting?” She hoped he would be more forthcoming than her grandfather.
“Well, first of all, you think I have a loving relationship with Lilly, which is far from the truth.”
“Really?”
“Mm-hmm. Worst of all. You’ve forgotten about me…about us.”
“What about us?”
Luke turned to Tatum and stared into her eyes. He gripped her chin with his fingers and pressed his lips to hers.
Tatum couldn’t believe he was kissing her. He felt so good, so very good. It had her head swimming and her heart racing. Electric tingles erupted all over her body. They had to be true mates. It was undeniable in her mind as their true mating connection engulfed them.
He pulled his lips away and pressed their foreheads together. “We were confused about being true mates for a long time. We raced one night.” Luke smiled at the memory. “You won, of course. It all went wrong that night. I fell asleep dreaming of your body on mine. The dream was the best dream I’ve ever had. We were joined together in our first mating, you were my sexy female. You were riding me with the most delicious smile on your face. What I didn’t realize was that I was acting out my dream while I was sleeping, but it wasn’t you. When I woke up...” Luke swallowed down the bile. “… Lilly was mating with me. I’ve been too embarrassed to tell you.”
Tatum jerked back, but Luke grabbed the back of her neck, pulling her nose to nose with him. His other arm held her tight against his body. “Cade had just left, and she thought it would make me feel better about him leaving. It didn’t make me feel better. It made me sick to my stomach. Before I woke up, I thought it was you. I swear, my mate. I thought it was you.” Luke’s voice strained from trying to hold back his emotions.
Tatum’s tears fell one after the other. Luke wiped a few tears away with his thumb. “I haven’t wanted anyone since the first day I saw you. You made my heart jump to life, and my insides claw with need. I’m going to take as much time as you need until you fall back in love with me, but we can’t keep denying we belong together.”
“We are going to be in each other’s arms every night because I need that to survive. I can’t live without you in my arms. I’m wasting away. Look at me! I want everyone in the pack to know that we are true mates so that there is no mistaking our bond when it comes to other shifters who might be interested in us.”
“And you don’t have to worry about being dominant over me. I don’t give two shits about that. I’ll be your submissive male when you need me to be and when you finally want me to dominate your body. I will. I’ll make you my submissive female in bed and pleasure you in every way imaginable. You have my undying love and loyalty, my Tatum, my beta, my one true love.”
Tatum felt her whole body light up in excitement. She let out a half-laugh, half-sob before wrapping her arms around him and crying into his neck.
Luke kissed her head. “Shhh. It’s okay, my mate. We will never be alone again.”
Luke pulled her body over his. She straddled him, wrapping her arms and legs around him. He held her close, feeling her heart beating rapidly with his as he rocked her side to side. As badly as he wanted to make love to her, he just wanted to feel their connection for now. He had to tell his dick to give him a fucking break.
“Is it a deal, my female? Can I keep you as mine now and forever?”
Tatum pulled back and b
it her lip. “I know that this connection is telling us to be together, but are you sure you want me? I’m different than other females, and something’s wrong with my mind. I keep forgetting things. What if it keeps getting worse?”
Luke kissed her again. “I love everything about you. If you forget again, I’ll keep reminding you, and we will make more memories. You’ll belong to me, and I’ll belong to you forever. The more shifters that know about our connection, the better. No matter what happens, we will not be able to deny this connection between us. It will remain strong until we die.”
Tatum nodded. “It’s a deal. I’m so happy that it’s you.”
Luke kissed her once more before pulling her into his chest. Then he helped Tatum to her feet and stood up. After placing a gentle kiss on her lips, which he just couldn’t seem to stop doing, they walked back to the farmhouse. Hand in hand, they stared at each other and smiled while Luke’s thumb rubbed circles on her wrist.
In the shed, Luke watched her get dressed with glowing eyes and a purring growl low in his throat. His cock stood at a full salute, and for once, she didn’t feel self-conscious. She felt sexy under his hungry gaze. Tatum moved with slow, deliberate motions—playing with the elastic of her panties, bending over slowly to pick up her pants, and lingering longer in that position than necessary.
When Tatum had finished, she grinned at him as he stood frozen in place with eyes aglow. “Aren’t you going to get dressed? I’d like to let everyone know that you’re my true mate. However, I do like this view very much. Would you rather stay here so I can admire you?”
A smile spread across Luke’s face. “No, my mate. I want everyone to know that I belong to you, but if you keep teasing me with your fuckable fine ass, those exotic eyes, and that delicious smell, I’m not going to be able to hold myself back from fucking you right here and now.”
Tatum laughed, loving the effect she had on him. Luke quickly pulled on a pair of pants and let her lead him into the farmhouse. After informing Enoch about their bond, the alpha ordered Lincoln and Sissy to gather everyone up. In front of the pack’s smiling faces, Tatum introduced Luke as her true mate.
