by Cara Wylde
Claudia felt his hesitation and decided to move her hips to let him know that she didn’t want him to stop, but to allow her to control the penetration at least a tiny bit.
He stood as still as a rock, although the tentative roll of her hips drove him mad with lust. He felt as if his wolf had just started howling inside his head. Her body glistened in the moonlight, the faint scent of her sweat acting as an aphrodisiac. He wanted to shower her in compliments, tell her how wonderful she was, how she had the body of an exotic goddess and he had never been with a more beautiful woman before, but he kept his mouth shut, jaw clenched tightly. He had already acted uncharacteristically when he had told her she was beautiful.
“I’m ready,” she whispered.
Karl nodded, even though she couldn’t see him. He pushed all the way in, and this time Claudia didn’t complain anymore. He only stopped when he was fully sheathed, and waited a few seconds before he pulled out and pushed back in. She was incredibly tight, and it took all his control and willpower to not explode inside her. She started moaning again, which meant she liked what he was doing to her. He leaned lower, covering her with his body entirely, and pushed his tongue between her lips while thrusting harder and faster. Her walls clenched around his cock, and he couldn’t help but let out a small grunt, which she swallowed greedily. He kept himself from moaning, although by this point his wolf was close to breaking out of his skin.
Claudia felt so full that she was sure she couldn’t have taken another inch if Karl had had it. His cock fit perfectly inside her pussy, rubbing her walls nicely and hitting all the right spots. She knew the orgasm that was building inside her core would be different and more powerful than the first one. When Karl hit a particularly good spot inside her, all her muscles tensed and she released a long moan that sounded more like a scream.
“Oh my God, right there! Do that again!”
Karl furrowed his brows, at first disappointed that she had broken their wet, sloppy kiss to scream. Then, he focused on her body and what it was telling him, and pounded her harder, just like she needed. She arched her back and screamed again, and he knew she was close. It was a good thing, because he could barely hold himself back anymore. It was difficult enough to keep his wolf in check and resist the painful need to pour himself inside her. He couldn’t last more than a minute or two, so he focused on throwing her over the edge.
“Yes, yes, yes!”
She couldn’t think straight. She started pulling at her restraints, angry that she couldn’t take off her blindfold and look into his eyes as they both came. She was about to ask him to untie her when her second orgasm took over her body, her senses, and her entire sanity. She screamed and tensed, her walls clenching down on his cock, milking him hard and fast.
With a grunt, Karl came inside her. The mere idea of his hot seed coating her pussy made him grunt again and release more long, hot streams. She was young and fertile, and she was his. He had never felt this kind of connection with any other woman. He had slept with many, some of them humans. It was different with Claudia. He could feel it deep down. As her pussy throbbed around him and her body relaxed on top of the covers, sweaty and spent, Karl looked at her, truly looked at her, and knew she had the power to break him. And then he remembered: this was another reason why he hadn’t wanted a mate, and the list was long. He pulled out and rolled on his side, next to her.
They stayed like that for long minutes, simply catching their breaths and allowing their bodies to regain some of their strength. At some point, Karl untied Claudia’s wrists. She smiled and waited for him to remove the blindfold too, but all he did was peck her lips, gather his clothes in a rush, and run out of the room before she realized what was happening. She stood up and removed the scarf without untying it, pulling at a couple strands of hair in the process.
“Ouch! Fuck!”
Tears gathered at the corners of her eyes, and she cursed herself for not being more careful. She still needed the hair on her head, thank you very much.
“What the hell? Karl?”
She looked around the room, but it was empty.
“I don’t believe this…”
She moved to the edge of the bed and wanted to stand up, but the sharp pain between her legs told her it probably wasn’t a good idea to walk just now. It would have been lovely if she could have seen the enormous cock that had left her sore, so she’d at least know why she was suffering so badly.
“I can’t believe he just stormed out of the room…”
The apartment was silent. She tried to listen carefully and figure out if he had gone into the other bedroom, but her hearing wasn’t that sharp. Of all the things, she hadn’t expected him to run away like that. She could look for him, of course, bang at his door until he let her in, and confront him. She waited a few more minutes and calmed herself down until her heart rate was back to normal and she could breathe steadily again. She had no idea what was wrong with him, but she knew that if she went after him now, he would probably reject her. If he had wanted to spend time with her, take her into his arms and cuddle, he would have done so. He hadn’t, which meant he didn’t want to, and if she went to confront him and beg, she would only humiliate herself. And yes, she could be submissive, she could respect his rules, but she would never beg for his love and attention.
“All right, Mr. Blackmane,” she said to the darkness around her. “My dear husband. You can fuck off for all I care.”
She jumped out of the bed, winced at the pain, then went to take a quick shower.
CHAPTER THREE
Schloss Blackmane
At breakfast, Claudia did her best to hide her disappointment. She and Karl ate in silence on the terrace, one of the servant girls standing nearby in case they needed anything. They made small talk about the chilly weather, then Karl fell silent and Claudia didn’t have the power to restart the conversation. A conversation about nothing. Her husband didn’t ask questions, wasn’t curious to know if she had slept well, if she had missed him beside her. When they were done and the only thing on the table was the carafe of orange juice, Karl finally looked at her and smiled.
“I have a surprise for you.”
“Huh?”
“I thought you’d like to see your friend, so we’re visiting Max and Avelyn at Schloss Blackmane.”
Claudia’s eyes went wide with excitement.
“For real?!”
Karl’s heart grew in his chest when he saw her smile genuinely, her dark brown eyes round and bright. He felt sorry for having left her alone after the amazing sex they had had, and he hoped the news would cheer her up. In truth, he wanted her to forgive him, but he would rather die than say that out loud.
“Yes.”
“When?”
“Today. My brother is expecting us, but Avelyn doesn’t know anything. She doesn’t even know I bought you. I wanted everything to be a big surprise.”
Claudia raised an eyebrow.
“Hmm… You really like her. Avelyn does that to people, although I have no idea how. She’s usually so difficult and complicated.”
Karl laughed, and when Claudia joined him, he relaxed in his chair.
“Many things changed for the better thanks to Avelyn. She helped Max get over something very dark and disturbing from his past, and she turned our bitchy sister, Jocelyn, into the most dedicated aunt. I can barely recognize her. When she’s surrounded by the pups, she’s a whole different person.”
Claudia kept smiling, her cheeks almost hurting now. This had to be the best day of her life. Listening to Karl talk about Avelyn like that made her so happy and proud, and the idea that she would soon be reunited with her friend and meet her three children filled her with a joy she hadn’t felt in years.
“And…” Karl continued, his voice slightly lower this time. “She gave me one of the best advice… to buy you from Alma Venus.”
“Oh.”
Claudia’s heart jumped, and a tiny flutter in her stomach made her feel a bit lighter. Her Alph
a was such a complicated man. She wondered if she would ever understand him. The night before, he had done sinful, delicious things to her body then left her there as if she didn’t matter, and now he was telling her that buying her and bringing her into his home had been the best choice he could have ever made, albeit he used different, much less impressive words.
Karl cleared his throat and stood up.
“If it’s okay with you and it’s not too sudden, I’ll go get Matt, and we can leave in an hour.”
She finished her orange juice quickly and stood up as well.
“It’s perfect. I’ll just pack some things. How long are we staying?”
Karl bit the inside of his cheek and thought for a second.
“You are free to stay for as long as you wish.”
Claudia furrowed her brows.
“What… does that mean?”
“I’m coming with you, but I have a lot of meetings to attend here, so I’ll have to get back this evening. I wish I could spend more time at Schloss Blackmane, believe me, but it’s like work never ends.” Just then, his phone started ringing and Karl rejected the call. He sighed and waved the phone a bit before letting it slip back into his pocket, as if to emphasize his point. “Matt will stay with you, though.”
Claudia shrugged and averted her gaze. Of course. It had sounded too good to be real. Karl’s demeanor had changed again. Now he was taking her to the Black Forest Mountains and leaving her there for an indefinite amount of time, and what was worse was that he was trying to make it sound as if he was doing her a favor.
“I don’t need Matt. I think I’ll be safe there.”
“Oh, of course you will! You’ll be with your friend, my brother, my sister, and two packs of wolves. There’s no safer place on Earth.” He laughed, but it sounded fake and he was painfully aware of it. “I’ll still leave Matt with you. You know… You belong to the Dark Wolves now, so it’s fitting to have at least a Dark Wolf by your side at all times. If you need anything, he’s there to make it happen.”
“Sure.”
There was no point in arguing with him, especially since she didn’t care either way. It was very clear to her what he was doing: he had done his duty as a husband and claimed her, and now he was getting rid of her so he could return to his old routine, whatever that routine was. “I’m free to stay there for as long as I wish,” she thought. She didn’t want to be paranoid, but this whole thing was starting to look like a marriage of convenience. When two people were in their first days, or even months, of relationship, they usually wanted to spend as much time together as possible. At least, that was what she had learned from books, movies, and women’s magazines.
“Well… we should probably…” said Karl, pointing to the door.
“Yes, yes.”
Claudia gave him a cold smile and walked past him. Karl held the door for her and took his time to admire the elegant sway of her hips. He inhaled her oriental perfume hungrily and thought of how much he would miss her if she chose to stay at Schloss Blackmane for longer than a few days. He followed her down the steps, and when she went into her bedroom, he stopped in the living room to call Matt. Yes, he knew Claudia didn’t need to be supervised, but he wanted Matt to be there to keep an eye on her and learn as many things about her as possible. He trusted his Beta with his life, and now with his bride. He wanted to learn how to be a good husband to her, but he would fail miserably if he’d keep her here, where she was a huge distraction. He didn’t know how to talk to her, how to act around her… It had been different with all the other women he had slept with, mainly because he hadn’t cared about them and hadn’t gotten involved romantically. But now… now that he was married to this beautiful human, he was at a loss. And Karl Blackmane couldn’t be at a loss. He needed to do everything perfectly, and for that he needed Matt to do some thorough research.
***
Schloss Blackmane was the most impressive thing Claudia had ever seen. It had to be older than Alma Venus, which used to be a medieval cathedral school founded in 597 AD. It was clear it had been renovated many times, and each time the owner had added new architectural elements. The castle had the shape of a U, with a large court yard in the front, and a lush garden in the back. The three towers were impressive, and Karl told her they each had a name and belonged to a different pack of the clan: the Luna Tower guarded the right wing, which belonged to Jocelyn’s Moon Children, the Crescent Tower was in the middle and marked the territory, so to speak, of Max’s Crescents, and the Nox Tower guarded the left wing, which was where Karl and the Dark Wolves stayed when they came home. Given that he rarely visited his family, the left wing was now used by all the members of the clan, as there was no point in getting too crowded in the rest of the castle and leaving that much space empty. If Claudia had found it exaggerated that Karl had a cook and two servants coming in to do the daily chores in his apartment, which was tiny compared to Schloss Blackmane, she was completely mind-blown when Karl told her almost two dozen people worked at the castle. On the other hand, Clan Blackmane was numerous and wolves did tend to make a lot of mess.
They were just in time for lunch, so Karl, Matt, and Claudia made their way to the main dining room, in the Crescent wing. No one had been waiting for them, as Karl had made Max promise he wouldn’t say anything, not even to Jocelyn.
Claudia’s heart was beating in her throat when she entered the dining room and saw everyone already at the table. She only knew two people there, but that was enough. They were the most important: Avelyn and Max. Max stood up and walked to them when he saw them coming in, but Avelyn was too busy with her youngest son to pay attention to what was happening around her.
“See what you did, Jake? I told you to wait. Now there’s milk all over your clothes, and I’m not changing you until after lunch. You’re bound to spill more food on yourself.”
Claudia laughed at how cute and hilarious the situation was. Avelyn was holding Jake on her lap and trying to clean him up with a napkin, while Jake’s brothers laughed out loud and made fun of poor Jake until he got angry, screamed, and punched his oldest brother in the shoulder.
“Don’t fight! You know we don’t allow that at the table.”
Avelyn sighed and finally looked up, not because she had heard Max and Karl hugging and laughing, but because she was hoping someone would take pity on her and give her a hand. When she met Claudia’s eyes, her mouth opened agape and she dropped Jake from her lap. The boy slid to the floor easily, then simply sat there, pouting and throwing punches at his two brothers when they provoked him. He cried and tried to hold onto his mother’s long skirt when she stood up, but Jocelyn was there to take him into her arms.
“Oh. My. God. Claudia?” She ran straight into her friend’s arms. “Oh my God, I can’t believe this. You’re here!”
Claudia hugged Avelyn tightly and closed her eyes to better enjoy the moment. “I’m so happy to see you. I missed you so, so much.”
“I missed you too.”
Avelyn sniffed loudly, but didn’t try to hold back her tears. Of all her friends at Alma Venus, she had probably missed Claudia the most. Sweet, gentle Claudia who never bothered anyone and was always friendly and sincere. Well, it might have also been because she had just seen Delyse and Amelia a couple of weeks before and kept in touch with them almost daily. She hadn’t been able to keep in touch with Claudia, though, because as long as the brides were at the boarding school, they were isolated from the outside world. Either to guard their innocence, or to keep them in the dark when it came to the realities of marrying a shape-shifter to whom they were sold like live stock.
Avelyn held Claudia at arm’s length so she could see her better. She looked her straight in the eyes for a long moment, as if she wanted to read her thoughts. And that’s how she knew: Claudia wasn’t happy. Sure, she was happy to see her, but she wasn’t happy overall. She had always read her like an open book. There was a sadness there, underneath the joy and excitement, and Avelyn couldn’t wait to be alo
ne with her to ask her what was wrong.
“You look amazing,” she said instead.
Claudia chuckled. “You look way better. Tell me: is it because you’re a hybrid, or because you have three rambunctious children?”
“Oh, it’s because I’m a hybrid, trust me. And it’s what saved me, too. If I were a mere human, those three would have sucked the life out of me by now.”
They both laughed, and Karl and Max joined them. Avelyn turned to Karl.
“You bought her and you didn’t tell me.” She punched him lightly in the shoulder. “You little liar, you…”
“Hey! It’s not lying, okay? You didn’t ask.” He raised his hands in front of him, as if to protect himself from her fury.
“You’re saying that if I had called you yesterday and asked about her, you would have told me?”
“Nah,” Max intervened. “He wouldn’t have. We wanted it to be a surprise.”
“No. No you didn’t!” Avelyn crossed her arms over her full chest. “You knew and you didn’t tell me.”
“Now, now, honey. That’s how surprises work.”
Avelyn shook her head, but she was smiling. She had to admit that the Blackmane brothers did a great job when they worked together.
Jocelyn approached them with Jake in her arms. The oldest boys, Nick and Luke were trailing behind her, curious about the new stranger in their home. They all loved Karl and were excited when he visited, but now they were reluctant to jump into his arms because of the weird, dark lady standing by his side. They felt she was someone important, especially to their mother, so they had stopped fighting amongst themselves and decided they had to make a good impression.
“Well, well…” said Jocelyn, a warm smile on her face. “I thought I’d never live to see the day my oldest brother got married.” She turned to Claudia and studied her carefully. “Welcome to Schloss Blackmane, Claudia.”
