Chapter 4

By the time they reached Duke’s apartment on the second floor, she was very sure she’d made the right choice. Even though it was odd to her that a man would make such a serious commitment after spending an hour with someone, she could see in his eyes that he was sincere. She felt a connection to him that defied explanation. It was like love at first sight, but there was more to it. It went deeper than a physical attraction, although she’d be an idiot not to be attracted to him. He was a lion, and from the way the few pride members she’d met had treated him, he was important, but he didn’t flaunt it.

He opened the door to the apartment and she walked inside. He shut and locked the door, and then moved to her, standing at her back and hooking his fingers in her jacket and slowly pulling it off. He dropped it over the arm of the couch and then he brushed his fingers lightly down her arms. She tilted her head with a sigh and he kissed her neck as he made patterns on her skin with his rough fingertips.

He cupped her face, tipping her chin until he could kiss her lips. She turned in his arms and eagerly returned the kiss. He lifted and carried her into a bedroom. He set her down on a bed, and she felt a soft blanket under her hands as she stretched out on her back.

“Do you mind if I turn on a light?” he asked. “I want to see you.”

She inhaled sharply. She couldn’t recall ever making love with the lights on. Then again, she was very positive she’d never actually made love with anyone before. She was curvy, and self-consciousness rose within her but she pushed it away. Duke said they were mates, and he’d had his hands on her in the bar, so he knew she wasn’t slender. If he wanted her, she decided, then he would see what he was getting this first time and she wasn’t going to hide.

Besides, he could probably see in the dark anyway.

“You can turn on the light. I want to see you, too.”

There was a click and the overhead light came on. He turned a switch and the light dimmed some, cutting out the harsh brightness, but she could still see clearly. Emboldened by the bright gold of his eyes, she wiggled around to her knees and undid the zipper at the back of the dress. He watched her as she gathered the dress in her hands, and lifted it slowly over her head, then dropped it to the floor. His nostrils flared as he looked at her.

She’d chosen a dark pink satin bra and panty set. It had made her feel feminine and pretty, even though she hadn’t expected anyone to see them. She was very thankful, though, that she’d shaved her legs.

He unbuttoned his shirt slowly, his gaze never straying from hers.

“You don’t know much about shifters?”

“Not really.” Shifters had revealed themselves to the public ten years ago. They’d fought for rights and had been granted them, and allowed to live and work wherever they wanted. Companies weren’t allowed to discriminate against shifters any more than they were allowed to refuse service to someone because of their race. There were towns across the country mostly made up of shifters, just as there were some that were mostly human. “There are wolves who come into the bank, but that’s about all the interaction with shifters I’ve had. My hometown is mostly human.”

His nose wrinkled. “We’re not like wolves.”

“I figured. Do you mind that I don’t know much about shifters?”

“No. I’m just glad I get to share everything with you myself. Lions are the best, by the way.”

“And you’re not biased at all,” she said with a laugh.

“Not one bit.”

He shrugged off the shirt and tossed it aside, and she got her first real look at him. He was built like a tank. His shoulders were broad, and his arms were covered with ropes of muscles. Every inch of him was defined, from his sexy pecs to the washboard abs that begged to be licked.

“You like what you see, kitten?” he asked huskily as he closed the distance between them.

“You’re gorgeous.”

“So are you. Look at all these beautiful curves, just for me.” He climbed onto the bed and pushed her gently to her back, stretching out next to her. He cupped her face and kissed her once. “I have so much I want to tell you about what’s happening between us.”

She’d never been very bold. She wasn’t shy, but she’d never taken the lead with a guy before.

“Can we talk tomorrow?”

His brows rose. “Are you sure?”

“You’re not planning to kick me out, right?”

He growled. “Never.”

“Good. Then right now, I want less talking and more off-with-the-clothes.”

He lowered his head and kissed her. He touched her chin with his finger, tracing the line of her jaw as he sucked on her tongue. He brushed a finger down her throat and over the swell of her breasts, dipping it inside to brush across her nipples. The bra had a center catch, and she flicked it open and felt him smile against her lips.

Lifting from the kiss, he watched as he pushed the cups of her bra open and bared her breasts, running his fingertips over her nipples. He bent to kiss one, licking a lazy circle around it and slowly sucking it into his mouth as he trailed his fingers down the center of her body to the apex of her thighs. She curled her toes into the blanket as his large, warm hand cupped her pussy over her panties.

He licked and sucked on her other nipple as he stroked her through the satin, rubbing her clit and teasing her with light touches. With a wet pop, he released her nipple and kissed her lips, delving his tongue into her mouth as his fingers wiggled under her panties and he touched her pussy. He sank a finger into her slowly and groaned against her lips.

Pulling his finger from her, he pulled the material to one side and leaned over, stroking his tongue over her clit. She pressed her head back against the bed as he pushed his finger into her, flicking her clit with his tongue. Laying his tongue against the bundle of nerves, he growled, the sound vibrating against her. She shrieked at the pleasure that pulsed through her, her back bowing as the sound of fabric ripping reached her ears and she was dimly aware that her panties were now gone. He added a second finger as he sucked and licked her clit, driving her to the peak of pleasure, her whole body turning to fire before she came apart on a keening cry, Duke’s name on her lips.

She clawed at the blankets as he drew out her pleasure with deep strokes of his fingers and lazy circles with his tongue, and when she could peel her tongue from the roof of her mouth, she reached for him. “I need you.”

He sucked his wet fingers into his mouth, his eyes blazing bright gold, and when he swiped his tongue over his bottom lip, she saw that he had fangs. Before tonight, she might have been freaked out to see a man with fangs, but in bed with Duke, it seemed entirely natural. She had curves, he had fangs.

Reaching for his pants, he undid the button and lowered the zipper, then slipped from the bed. She wiggled free of her bra, chucking it behind her and never taking her gaze from his hands as he pushed his pants down his hips. She couldn’t stop the gasp that escaped her lips as his cock sprang free, thick and long.

He crawled up the bed between her spread legs with a growl, his cock pressing against her pussy as he slid one hand behind her neck and lifted her to his lips. As he pushed inside her, she gasped into his mouth, his cock filling and stretching her. She gripped his shoulders, sliding her tongue along his as pleasure sparked within her. He tilted his hips and slid out, until only the thick head of his cock was still inside, and then pushed back in faster. He lifted from her mouth with a growl, gripping the bedding on either side of her. She wrapped her legs around his hips and reached behind to grip the headboard, lifting her hips to meet his thrusts. Her body sang, every nerve ending on fire.

He let out a low snarl and pulled from her body. Before she could protest, he flipped her to her belly and hauled her up onto her knees, slamming into her from behind. She reached for him, curling one arm behind his neck and bracing herself with her other arm. Each thrust stole the breath from her lungs and each pull made her groan. He pressed one hand to her belly, his fingers digging into her flesh for a moment before he pushed them downward, sliding over her sensitive clit. She bucked under him with a squeal and he chuckled, kissing her neck.

“Come for me, kitten. Wanna feel you,” he said with a low voice.

“Fuck, Duke,” she moaned.

He rubbed her clit side to side and she jerked and screamed as she came for the second time. He grunted, his cock thickening within her as she felt the heat of his come.

“Mine,” he said, and bit the juncture of her neck and shoulder. His teeth broke through the skin and she whimpered at the pain, but it swiftly disappeared in the wake of a peaceful contentment she’d never experienced before.

“Duke?” she whispered.

He pulled his fangs from her neck and tenderly licked the mark. “You’re mine now, kitten. You’re wearing my mark on your neck.”

She groaned when he pulled from her pussy, her sensitive channel not wanting to let go of his cock. He pulled her close, kissing her forehead, each eyelid, her nose, and then her mouth. “Say something, Ree, please,” he said.

Lifting her gaze, she saw happiness and worry etched into his features, and she brought her hand to his cheek and smiled. “Give me a minute. You just rocked my world.”

He laughed and squeezed her a little tighter. “I should have asked you if I could mark you, but my cat would not let me stop.”

The pain of the mark was nearly gone. “Am I really yours?”

“It’s official. You’re my marked mate. That’s like marriage for my kind.”

Her brows rose. She really didn’t know what to say to that.

“Before you made me see stars, you said you had a lot to tell me. Maybe start with mating?”

He sat up enough to grab the blanket at the bottom of the bed and drew it up over them. Then he rested his head on his upturned hand and settled his other hand on her waist.

“Our kind has two mates – heart and match. A heart-mate is one who’s chosen by the beast. A match is one that’s what you’d probably think of as being an arranged mating – a matchmaker chooses the best mate and they join at a mating ceremony.”

“So, you don’t just meet someone and take them out on dates and fall in love naturally?”

He shook his head. “Shifters don’t date. Well, not like you’re thinking of. It’s a simple part of our nature – when we meet someone, they are either our true, heart-mate or they’re not.”

“The matchmaker only picks lions?”

“Yeah. Our pride has laws about matings.”

Her heart rate spiked suddenly. “Is what we did okay?” The thought that he could get into trouble with his pride because of her made her eyes sting.

“Yes, kitten, please don’t worry. I knew when I walked across the bar to meet you what choice I was making. It was the fucking easiest thing I’ve ever done, okay? I am so fucking happy right now that nothing else matters.” As if to punctuate his words, a purr rumbled in his chest and she smiled.

“You’ll have to talk to your pride leader about me?”

“It’s my dad, so I’m not really worried, and you shouldn’t be either. There are laws I’d change if I was alpha, but I’m not. And if the worst thing that happens is that I get exiled, I still get you at the end of the day and I’m good with that. Better than good, actually – fan-fucking-tastic.”

“You just said fuck like ten times in two minutes.”

“It’s a good word. Very effective.”

She brushed her finger over his jaw, the stubble making her skin prickle. “You’re talking about losing your pride like it’s not a big deal. If I couldn’t see Mercy anymore because I was with you, at the very least, I’d be angry. I mean, not a lot, since she makes me buggy, but I wouldn’t be so cavalier.”

“One more way our kind is different, and that’s not a bad thing. Exile from the pride doesn’t mean I never get to see my family anymore, it just means I’m out of the pride. I care, and it sucks in some ways, but my cat is purring so loud in my head that all I can think about is that I get to wake up with you tomorrow. As my mom likes to say, when the heart is happy, everything else is just details.”

“Important details, though.”

He brushed his lips over hers. “I’ll talk to my parents tomorrow, and then I’ll bring them here so you can meet them. Humans aren’t allowed on the pride’s hunting grounds. The bar belongs to me and Titus, not the pride, and isn’t officially in pride territory, so the only thing that changes is that I’ll be hunting for you and not with the pride.”

“Why would you hunt for me?” she asked.

“Because deer meat is awesome.”

“Um, no. I like to get my meat all cut up at the grocery store, thank you very much.”

His whole body shook as he laughed. “Don’t worry kitten, I won’t make you clean anything. But I will hunt for you, and I’ll show you just how tasty venison is.”

“Okay. But I’m not making any promises.”

With a purr, he kissed her, pulling her close as he rolled to his back and drew her with him. Her legs fell to either side of his body and she moaned as she straightened and looked down at his hard cock. Wrapping one hand around the thick length, she said, “My, my Duke. What a big, hard cock you have.”

“I’m not the big, bad wolf, sweetheart,” he said with a snarl. “But I will eat you.”

“In a minute,” she said as she rose above him and placed his cock at her entrance. She settled down on him slowly, closing her eyes at the sweet fullness that engulfed her. Duke was her mate. She didn’t entirely understand it, but she believed him when he said that they were going to be together. She’d been burned in the past, but the strange connection she felt to him grew stronger with every minute. She felt closer to him than she ever had a man before, and she trusted him not to break her heart.

“You feel so good,” he said, arching under her and pressing into her a little deeper. “So fucking good.”

“You do, too.”

“Say it,” he growled.

“So fucking good.”