by Moxie North
All her worries about being quiet fled when he turned the full force of his beautiful eyes on her and whispered, “I love you.”
Eden gasped. She knew he did, could feel it like it was a tangible ribbon between them. But when he said it that little part of her, the one she usually kept hidden, sighed. The words mattered.
Placing a kiss full of emotion on his lips, she kissed him back, her bear roaring in approval in her mind. She gasped against his tongue as his fingers found the wet folds of her sex before caressing her clit. She trembled. He knew exactly how to touch her; just enough to cause her body to shake and make her eyes roll back. She was helpless. As far as she was concerned, this human was a king among men.
“I don’t know if I can be quiet. I usually have very good control over myself,” she said, biting his jaw lightly. She knew one way to keep herself quiet. Sliding down his body, she pushed him onto his back.
“This is going to help?” he asked, tucking his hands behind his head with a cocky grin.
“Hush,” she ordered. Wrapping her hands around his thick cock, she worked her hands over the silk-covered thickness. Running her tongue over the tip, she sank her mouth down over his shaft until she reached her hands and her nose touched his stomach. She swallowed, letting her tongue undulate against him.
He growled and hissed, “Fuck me.”
Pulling off him and moving her hands over his now slick cock, she smiled. “I’m trying to.”
Eden would like to say she’d happily bring her man to orgasm with her mouth, which someday she would, but now she wanted all that was him with her. Their bodies combining only strengthened their connection. At least that’s what she was telling herself. Getting pregnant right now was a terrible idea. But her bear seemed to be the one making those decisions. Making cubs was the only thing on its mind, and it was hard to ignore.
Bringing her mouth back to his cock, she moved one hand up to his abs and could feel his muscles tensing as she sucked, her mouth working his cock slow and deep.
“Oh, baby,” he groaned. “That is fucking amazing.”
Eden lifted her eyes to him and she watched him suck in a breath as she made her eyes shift to golden yellow at him. She held his gaze as she focused on his pleasure. He didn’t look away from her, but she could see he was holding back. Giving him a reprieve, she gave him one last long stroke with her mouth and hand before climbing up his body and, with one hand still wrapped around his cock, guided him inside her.
She sank down slowly until every inch of his cock was deep inside her and her pussy rested against his pelvis. Holding herself there, she let the delicious stretch of her pussy envelope him. She squeezed her muscles, and watched him flinch. Smiling at him, she did it again and this time he glared.
“Tell me, mate. How do you want it?” she asked, dragging her nails down over his chest, one finger skimming over his nipple.
“Honestly, I’d have you turn around so I can watch my cock sink into you and enjoy the view of your ass.”
“Round two?” she offered.
“Eden, if you want to ride my cock all night, I’m not going to complain.”
She held her breath as she rose off him, using her leg muscles to balance, and then sank back down over his cock. A whimper escaped her lips and she repeated the move. Pushing herself up, she planted her feet on the bed and started moving over him hard and fast. She put her hands on his chest for balance and couldn’t stop her head from dropping back in bliss.
“I wasn’t lying about the reverse cowgirl thing,” he grunted. “But this is really good too.”
Eden loved being able to decide how deep and how fast she took her mate. His pleasure was in her hands and it made her bear happy to be in charge. She resisted closing her eyes, not wanting to miss every expression Kellan made. He looked to be in the throes of pleasure and it made her want to have him come deep inside her.
Rotating her hips, she leaned forward. Picking up one of his hands that was wrapped around her ankle, she moved it to her clit. Needing no urging, he started rubbing fast circles over her throbbing bud and she could feel the immediate rise of her orgasm. Not wanting to drag it out this time, she focused on letting the sensation flow over her. Kellan was thrusting up to her now each time she came down on him and she knew he was close, too.
Letting it take her, she threw back her head and roared as the climax took her breath away, her body locked momentarily before she started moving again. Kellan thrust harder as her pussy clenched and released around him, milking his cock as the first hot jet of cum shot into her. His hands came up to grip her hips as his body bowed under her.
Collapsing onto his chest, Eden tried to catch her breath. They were still connected, and his heart pounded under her ear. Reaching up, she brought her hand up to cover his mark, placing her other hand over her own. She let her fingers tickle over his mark, the tingle from it traveling from her fingertips through her body to her own mark.
Kellan ran his fingers through her hair. “I’m never going to get enough of you,” he said quietly.
Eden felt those words. They were the same thing she was thinking. She understood how fiercely her brothers loved their mates now. How when they said they would kill for them, they weren’t exaggerating. Their whole life’s happiness was tied to one person. Eden had that person now.
Chapter 20
Kellan looked around the apartment. It was starting to feel like a prison. Not that he’d complained for the first few days. For the most part, he and Eden had spent the last three days in bed. They’d break to shower and eat. Occasionally, there was some movie watching. Eden would produce a tablet and sit next to him reading. She’d swear she was paying attention to the movie while she read, but he didn’t see how that was possible.
But the monotony was starting to get to him. The daily phone calls from Clan Odal’s investigators were also starting to irritate him. They weren’t working fast enough. Kellan called Beau and told him that he needed to be monitoring the work. If they weren’t looking in the right places, he’d never have his name cleared.
He also received a call from his parents. It seemed King was keeping them updated on his situation and had convinced them not to come to New York just yet. Kellan had to talk his mom down a few times as she cried. They were worried and he didn’t blame them.
Waking up from a nightmare two days prior, he could almost picture people in his office. The blonde had a face that he didn’t recognize. The other man was familiar, again, but he couldn’t place him.
KSI worked its magic and had a sketch artist from the local police department stop by the apartment. She worked with Kellan on creating the faces in his head. When they finished, Kellan wasn’t sure if they were his imagination or real people. But at least it gave KSI something to go on.
“I have got to get out of this apartment,” he said trying to not sound whiny. He didn’t whine. He didn’t even normally have to ask permission to go somewhere. Eden and Zion had started taking turns walking the streets. Zion had stopped by his apartment and gathered him some clothes while checking to see if anyone had been there. He hadn’t found anything, and there was no sign that anyone had been there, so they weren’t tracking him there. Maybe it was too obvious of a hiding place.
“And where would you go?” Zion said from the kitchen. He appeared to be making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, which he did three or four times a day as a snack. It was one of those little things that was vaguely interesting on day one then became an irrational annoyance on day four.
“A movie? To dinner? Hell, at this point I’d take a museum.”
“You don’t like my cooking?” Zion grunted.
Zion had started cooking, claiming they were all going to get fat on junk food. He wasn’t bad, but wasn’t great. Kellan didn’t cook, he purchased ready-made food. He was a New Yorker. Eden just raised her eyebrow at him when he asked her if she could cook. That left them with Zion. He hadn’t given them food poisoning yet, so that was something.<
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“I need to work out. How about the gym?” Kellan was feeling back to normal and the pushups and sit-ups he did on the floor weren’t enough. He needed a three-mile jog and an hour of lifting heavy weights. That would make him feel like he’d pushed the rest of that junk out of his system.
“Too many variables,” Zion said, taking a bite of his sandwich. Kellan noted this time it was a triple-decker PB&J.
Eden walked out of the bedroom, her hair wet and braided back. His fingers itched to free her hair from the tight braid and let it dry loose. She told him it wasn’t practical in her line of work. Kellan decided after things settled, which he was truly hoping they would, he wanted to take her on vacation. Somewhere she could truly let her hair down.
“We can take a walk, if Zion takes point,” she offered. Even in her uniform, which is how Kellan saw her jeans and dark t-shirts, she was hot. He’d asked her if she had clothing in different colors. She’d frowned and said, “of course.” But nothing in the last week supported that claim.
“A walk?” Kellan said, leaning his head on the back of the couch. Eden walked behind him and placed a kiss on his mouth.
“Yes, a walk. Fresh air, it will help shake off some of your restlessness.”
“Aren’t you getting cabin fever?”
Zion let out a laugh. Eden shot him a glare before turning back to him. “No, this is pretty plush. We’ve holed up in shacks in the jungle, abandoned buildings, sometimes sitting cramped in one location waiting for a mark. This is very comfortable. It’s better than the hotels I’m in and out of all the time.”
Kellan realized he was being a little childish. He should be treating it like he was on vacation. But for him, vacation didn’t include sitting on his ass eating pizza and staying in one place.
“A walk would be great. Let’s make it a long one,” he suggested.
Eden gave him another kiss and smiled. “It shouldn’t take Odal much more time, Kellan. The investigation has to turn up something.”
They’d gotten information back on the barista. She wasn’t affiliated with any particular hate group that they could find. But AJ, KSI’s tech guy, found out that she’d liked some questionable posts on her social media. She definitely wasn’t a lover of the Kindred, but she hid it well when she had to. It seemed to be a dead-end.
Kellan jumped up and got his shoes and coat on. The weather was getting colder and he wasn’t keen on getting sick so soon after getting out of the hospital.
“Coat, gloves, and a scarf?” Eden remarked as he piled on the cold weather clothing.
“Didn’t I mention I’m very fashionable and have to keep up appearances? Besides, I can’t look sickly around the Clan right now. I at least need to appear healthy.”
Eden walked up and straightened his scarf. “You’ve got a little bit of me in you now. You probably won’t ever get a cold again. You’re tougher, you’re a mate,” she said with a wink.
Kellan knew he had changed, it was a feeling deep inside him, but he hadn’t realized that super health was one of those perks.
“Well then, I should just run outside naked? No harm right?” he asked.
Eden let out a growl and Zion walked up behind her. “Unless you want your mate to shift and have a pissed-off bear running down Second Avenue.”
“Maybe not,” Kellan said, smiling at his mate. He helped her with her coat and pulled a gray knitted cap down over her head. He felt like she needed some gloves, or a cute muffler. Something he should think about getting for her. Pulling off his scarf, he wrapped it around her neck and tied it as cutely as he could.
“There, I don’t want you getting cold,” he said, kissing her on the forehead. When he looked back down, he saw Eden had her soft eyes. It was something he had started noticing after their bonding. Certain times, certain words, would make her eyes go soft. She looked at him with so much love and he always, always, felt unworthy of it.
He brushed his thumb over her cheek and hoped he was returning that same look of love so she would know, without the words being said aloud, that he loved her.
“Let’s go, I’m not getting any younger,” Zion declared.
Heading north from the apartment, Eden and Kellan held hands, with Zion bringing up the rear. Any other day, any other time and it would be something so commonplace. Instead, this was almost the first date for them. Going out, being together, it was a small moment of normalcy.
“Oh, man, I missed that smell,” Kellan said, taking in a deep breath.
“What, urine, hotdog water, and car exhaust?” Eden said, wrinkling her nose.
Kellan gave her a shit-eating grin. “Exactly.”
“You need to smell Seattle’s air. Salt water, tar, coffee; all of downtown smells like that.”
“What no hotdog water? Sounds lame,” Kellan joked.
The pair walked and walked, all of them enjoying the opportunity to stretch their legs. They didn’t stand out; New Yorkers walked everywhere. No one even gave them a second glance, that being said they did look once. Zion was a big guy and his shifter eyes flashed silver as he silently intimidated anyone that thought about coming to close to Kellan.
Not that they would, but Zion was on duty and was taking it seriously. He even growled when a man who wasn’t looking where he was going bumped into the couple.
“Thanks for having our back,” Kellan said over his shoulder.
Zion grunted.
After walking a good distance, Eden suggested they turn around. Kellan didn’t want to go back to the apartment, but they also couldn’t stay out forever.
Turning down another street, Kellan looked around and stopped cold as they passed a nondescript storefront that looked like it was being used as an office.
“It’s her, isn’t it?” Kellan asked, confused. The smiling blonde woman staring back at him from an election poster made his guts twist and cold sweat form on his forehead.
Eden stared at the poster. “It looks similar. But how could it be her?”
Kellan read the poster. Helena Mathers for State Representative. The bottom of the poster said, ‘Family, Rights, Freedom.’ She looked almost plastic in her photo. Her hair was too big, her smile too white.
“I don’t know, but that woman I’ve seen before and not on a poster,” Kellan said emphatically.
The three of them made haste back to the apartment. Zion jumped on the phone to update King and Eden grabbed her tablet from the bedroom and started researching the woman on the poster.
Kellan looked over her shoulder as Eden scanned through campaign photos. Helena kissing babies, shaking hands. All normal campaign photos.
“Wait, stop, make that one bigger,” Kellan said. Eden enlarged a group photo that had been taken at a party. In a sea of dark-colored suits, Helena was in the middle wearing bright red.
“Him. That’s the other man from my dream. The sketch isn’t exact, but I can feel it, that’s one of them from my office.”
Eden made the picture even bigger. “I know him! It’s the doctor that first night in the hospital that came in then left. He seemed suspicious, but I had no reason to follow up at the time.”
“Shit, this is real. They really did drug me? But why?”
“This might be why,” Eden said, pulling up a picture that was from a website that looked like it hadn’t been updated in twenty years. It was a younger-looking Helena frowning at the camera. There was an audio file attached and Eden played it.
“We cannot let these creatures take over our planet!” Helena’s voice screeched out. “Humans are the superior species. They may be bigger and stronger than us, but they cannot reproduce by themselves! That fact proves they are meant to be extinct. If species traitors stop breeding with these animals, they will die off. How wonderful would the world be then? We can all do our part. We can cut ties with them. Don’t work for them, don’t be friends with them, and don’t help them in any way to become stronger. All of us need to make sure that our first priority is to other humans. There is no de
ed too ugly to consider if it means making a Kindred’s life harder.”
The audio went quiet and Kellan looked to Eden whose eyes were bright yellow and her fangs had dropped.
“What a bitch,” he said, trying to break the tension.
“She’s scum,” Eden growled. Eden picked up her phone and started typing. “King and AJ need to get on this. How is this still up? Why hasn’t she deleted it?”
“Because there are those that support her ideology. They don’t think they’re being bigots, they think they’re proud of being human,” Zion broke in. He’d hung up with King after he’d given him the name of the woman.
Eden was typing furiously on her phone. Zion’s rang again and Kellan felt like he was standing still as the action in the room whirled around him. This was all about him, but he wasn’t involved in any of it. Zion made some noises that sounded like acknowledgements and then hung up.
“We’ve been invited to a party at the Odal’s Clan Head’s house,” he said like the words physically hurt him to say.
“Why?” Kellan asked, suspicious.
“They’ve requested all of us, so I doubt it’s to kill you,” Zion said casually.
“Thanks for that, but why would they invite a suspected thief to a Clan party?”
Eden sighed and dropped her phone. “Because they want to keep you on edge. They’re showing their strength and hoping you’ll falter and give yourself up. Just being in a crowded room of Kindred usually makes people nervous. Though I don’t know why.”
“But it will be everyone, right? Mates, families?”
Eden shrugged. “I guess we’ll find out.”
“Oh, and it’s formal,” Zion added.
Eden groaned and threw her head back.
“Formal?” Kellan asked. He shot his confused look between his miserable-looking mate and a grinning Zion.
Chapter 21
Kellan adjusted the tie on his tuxedo and felt a little more like his old self again. He’d invested in his own tuxedo when he started having to go to events with Beau. He didn’t see the point in always having to wear the uncomfortable suit just to stand around and drink.
