Whoever said desire was a living, breathing thing had obviously met Mitchell Truman. My entire body seemed to throb to the beat of his drum, and I was putty, soaking wet, horny as fuck, putty in the man’s very large and capable hands.
I’d searched him out at the construction site Timothy had said he’d be at with the intention of speaking to him in a calm, adult-like manner. Of course, that lasted all of two seconds. It was like just knowing the tall, sexy as hell man was possibly my mate had fried all my circuits. I couldn’t do anything other than slam my mouth to his and drink down every drop of that smoky, spicy masculine essence that was all him.
We were both breathing like marathon runners by the time he’d finished eating me out. The man knew how to use his tongue and I appreciated that, sincerely and deeply. That sort of talent should never be wasted, and while I’d had lovers in the past, no one had a goddamn thing on Mitchell Truman.
Holy. Hell.
Even then, I felt my magic sizzling beneath my skin. My Wolf was standing at attention, both supernatural sides of me watching as our mate ravaged me with his impossibly soft lips and incredibly versatile tongue. Desire flooded my brain and pulsated through my core, even though I just orgasmed minutes ago.
The fact he was still the same charming, sweet, and funny man as before, even after he’d wrecked my body, just made me fall a little faster. Our easy banter turned into a contest, and soon I was standing in front of him demanding he drop his pants.
What the hell was wrong with me? I knew he was working. Knew it was lunchtime, and he was probably expecting someone at any minute, but I could not seem to help myself. I’d been sitting on top of that thick, long, hard a steel bat beneath his jeans for the past few minutes, and the idea of seeing him, naked and wanting, was doing the naughtiest things to my body.
He was good at teasing me. I never knew sex could be playful and funny, something to be thoroughly enjoyed in every sense. And no, we hadn’t actually had intercourse yet, but we were going to. Every nerve ending I had sparked with anticipation at the thought. My skin warmed, and I closed my eyes, using all my strength to control the fire I felt sizzle just beneath the surface.
“Martina,” he growled as if in warning, but that just made my blood burn hotter for him.
“Mitchell,” I growled. “Drop. Your. Pants. Now.”
His hazel eyes glowed gold, and I saw something huge and chestnut brown in his gaze. Was that his Wolf? I paused, shocked. I thought I saw flames, but maybe that was a trick of the light. Mitchell hissed out his breath, chest heaving as he unbuttoned his pants and dragged the zipper down slowly. Then, in a move so swift he seemed to blur, Mitchel shoved down his jeans and briefs, and holy mother fucking shit, the man was not conceited or boastful.
“It won’t fit,” I whispered, eyes bulging as I watched him grip the base of his enormous dong.
“It will fit, sweetheart,” he growled.
His cock was so primed and hard. Thick veins and ridges covered the thing, and oh my fucking shit, he was pierced. Three thick barbells were just under his mushroomed head, a Jacob’s ladder and I wondered who did them. My Wolf snarled, and his head canted to the side.
“I pierced myself,” he growled, his voice deeper than ever before.
Under my rapt gaze, Mitchell started stroking himself and I felt moisture pool between my thighs. I stepped towards him, but he shook his head.
“No touching yet, baby. First, I’m gonna sit down, then I want you to stand on the couch, right above me,” he commanded.
Nerves assailed me, but there was a part of me that liked him taking command and telling em what to do. I watched as he kicked off his boots and clothes, completely naked, he sat on the couch, his big, thick thighs spread as he cupped his balls and stroked his massive erection. My mouth was watering, and I could not keep my eyes off his ministrations.
Mine.
“Up here, baby,” he grunted, and I moved, standing on the couch beside him.
He stopped touching himself long enough to position me where he wanted me. I felt exposed and open, my pussy right at eye level. Arousal dripped down my thighs, and Mitchell breathed in deep, his heated gaze meeting mine. The smile on his lips was feral and wicked, and I shivered in response.
No one ever looked at me like that before. Like he was the Big Bad Wolf, and I was Red Riding Hood. Only, I was a Wolf too. Big and bad in my own right. Mitchell’s growl grew louder as his tongue snaked out of his mouth and found my clit. How he knew exactly where to touch me, I had no idea, But his fingers dug into my hips and my ass, and I was a goner.
“Oh fuck,” I moaned.
I had nothing to hold on to but him, nothing to steady me, and he knew it, the fucker. I felt his smile as he licked at me in slow, long swipes of his tongue. My legs shook and I could hardly stand, which seemed to suit him just fine. He grabbed one thigh and draped it over his shoulder, trying to do the same to the other.
“I’m too heavy, I’ll suffocate you,” I said, er, gasped really since he hadn’t let up.
“Get up here, sweetheart, or you won’t get what we both know you really want.”
I frowned and tugged him by the hair, using it as leverage to pull myself up onto his shoulders. Mitchell just grunted. His eyes were bright with his Wolf and they locked into mine before he buried his face between my legs. I never thought I could do anything in that position. But Mitchell was built like a god, and he held me up and ate me out until I came again, harder than before. Thrusting his tongue into my tight slit and using his nose to rub my clit until I screamed with my release.
The sound of engines in the distance worried me. We would have to stop soon. But they didn’t even slow Mitchell down. He just lifted me off his face, apparently done devouring me, and I slid down his body, leaving a trail of my slick and his saliva down his rock hard pecs and incredible abs.
The animal inside me loved that I’d marked him with my scent, and while my human side might think it icky later, I had to admit it was a serious turn on. Mitchell was just so damn gorgeous. All his worry about my not being into him because he was a construction worker was ridiculous. Also, he owned his own company. That took brains and skills, not to mention courage and a certain amount of grit.
There was nothing about him I didn’t find attractive. The fact he wanted me, while baffling, was enough to earn my interest. But it was the rest of him that made me want to learn everything I could about him. I burned with a need to be near him, hated the last few days without him. True, I’d felt positively sick and I could only explain it as our semi-formed matebond kicking my ass so I would go back to him to finish the job.
“Mine,” he growled, holding me high for just one more second before he slammed me down onto his cock.
“Yours. Mitch. Yours. Please. More, Mitchell. Gimme more. Gimme all of it.”
I didn’t know what I was saying, but I meant every word. I needed him like I never needed anything. It was like all the missing pieces of me were suddenly being pulled from the very recesses of my soul, but I wasn’t scared. I rejoiced in the feelings he was conjuring inside me.
Mitchell Truman. Mate. Mine.
Yes, that sounded right. It felt right, and my Wolf howled inside my mind’s eye, hoping to reach his beast. One big hand gripped my hip, and the other held me by the neck so he could kiss me while he moved me to the pace he set. It was too much too soon, and before I had even started to match his rhythm, I was already coming.
“Oh Go—”
My words cut off, and I was incapable of speech as Mitchell really took over then.
His thick length stretched me, splitting me open, as he lifted me and slammed me back down, fucking me on his dick. I felt so full, so complete, it was difficult to know where I ended, and he began. Maybe we were just one being, separated by atoms, and forced back together during sex to our true state. For real. That could be true. I’d have to ask Nova. Fact was, I had never felt more like myself than I did with him inside me.
“Mine, mine, mine,” he growled over and over again, owning my body as he took me with a ferocity that bordered on violence.
I’d never expected to find a mate. Never thought I would share myself with anyone else. Maybe it wasn’t fair because he didn’t know the truth yet. But I swore I would tell him everything.
There was something to be said about the Fates. When they matched up pairs, they did it perfectly. It was like Mitchell’s body had been made just to fit mine. His cock stroked inside me, hitting my g-spot every fucking time, and I was sobbing by the time my next release hit.
That time, Mitchell’s need had caught up with him, and he jerked upward his roar muted by the fact he had my neck in his mouth and that was when he struck. Biting my flesh, he sank his fangs deep, and the pain was blinding. But it was followed by a release so strong, I went blind, deaf, and dumb for a full minute.
It was like he had shattered my reality, ripped it to shreds, then reassembled the pieces only this time they were changed. He was embedded in every cell. And as he pumped his hips, filling me with his release, I saw flames, and they were beautiful. Still panting, Mitchell looked up, a tiny trail of crimson spilled from his lips, and I went to wipe it, feeling wonderful and loved.
Tears blurred my vision, and I reared back. Fuck. How had this happened again?
“Sweetheart,” he murmured, eyes wide as he watched the flames spread from my hands across my skin.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry.” I whispered, stumbling over our discarded clothes.
“No, no, no. Dammit, don’t you do it,” he growled, but I knew what I had to do.
“No, Martina, wait—”
The sound of someone traipsing up to the trailer gave me all the distraction I needed to start my shift, and by the time Timothy opened the door, I had already Wolfed out. I bumped into him as I raced outside, the sound of Mitchell’s roar echoing in my ears.
I darted through a crew of men and women, ignoring the gasps and snarls from the ones I startled. I supposed it made sense Mitch would hire Shifters. But that didn’t matter right then. My vision was all reds and oranges and I knew I was seconds away from flaming out. That kind of uncontrolled use of my powers hadn’t happened to me since puberty.
Usually, it was extreme stress or emotion that brought my magic out to play when I wasn’t ready. Over the years, Davian, and Erryn, and sometimes Sherry Morgan, had worked with me to use my Wolf to stop the magic from consuming me. Wolf could handle my little fire bug tendencies. Whatever force controlled these things had made sure when I was born with both Fire Witch proclivities and a beast inside me, they granted protection to my animal.
My fire could not hurt my Wolf. But that didn’t ring true for anyone else. How many bedding sets had I burned through in my youth? How many times had I put my sisters, Davi, and Erryn in danger because of my powers? No. I could not risk doing the same thing to Mitchell.
Devastation had me howling as I ran through trees and bushes. The pine barrens were like this vast series of forests in South Jersey made of gnarly looking trees and shrubs. To the normals it looked probably half the size as it truly was. Supernaturals had started masking the world’s precious places centuries ago, and this place was no different. What seemed like acres to the human world could be miles and miles to us supes.
All I knew as I ran in my fur were the trees looked like giants, and I felt small and hollow. Flames blazed across my fur, and I prayed like hell the cold and snow would stomp them out before I did any harm to this magical place.
Where I ran, I saw mostly pitch pines and several varieties of oaks, mostly black. Maccon City was surrounded by them on one side. So many legends involved this place, and I felt the power and magic of it as I ran in my Wolf form. How many of them were true? I didn’t know, though I’d heard the Devil, the Jersey kind and not the Prince of Hell, and his family lived there still.
Harbor House sat at the edge of the barrens, on the outskirts of Maccon City, and I don’t know how long it took, but eventually I recognized the special stand of scarlet oaks that stood like sentinels at the back of our home.
My Wolf was snarling and snapping, the animal torn between needing to go back and needing to protect him. Protective instincts won out and even my flames died down as I crawled through our backyard, broken and angry.
The back door flew open, and Nova and Sybil ran out. It was too early for either of them to be home, and yet, there they were, and the pain and sympathy on their faces were too much to handle. I shifted to my skin and screamed.
“Martina, I am so sorry,” Sybil whimpered and ran to me, covering me with a blanket as she hugged and cried with me.
“Come inside, Marti. I have tea waiting and we can talk,” Nova whispered, her expression dark and full of concern.
“Davi and Erryn aren’t here,” Sybil added, holding onto my hand like a lifeline.
I allowed them to usher me inside, needing the comfort of my family around me. They didn’t pause in the kitchen like I expected. Instead, they shoved me right towards the shower, and I supposed they were right. I was covered in mud and soot. That sometimes happened when my fire came out unexpectedly.
I washed my body and shampooed my hair to get the smoky smell out. Then I simply stood still, letting the hot water sluice over my body as I tried to make sense of what had just happened. The Fates were fucked up. Giving me a mate only to show me it was impossible for us to be together.
Seriously. What. The. Fuck.
I was already resigned to the fact my career was over. I no longer wanted a life practicing corporate law in New York City and dating men who could never know me. I wanted to come back home. To be with my family and figure out a way to bring balance to my Wolf and my magic. That part was settled.
So why did Mitch have to walk into my life and change all my plans? Why did everything have to get so fucked up? I sobbed and sank down to the bathtub, shoulders shaking hard as I poured out all my wretchedness and misery and allowed it to wash right down the drain.
“Talk to us, Marti,” Sybil implored.
I knew the girls were sitting on the bathroom rug side by side, waiting for me to explain, just like when we were kids. So I talked. I told them everything. Well, mostly everything, but they didn’t need all the details. I told them the gist of things and that Mitch had claimed me and I thought it was okay. Then my Wolf went dark, and my powers came out and I almost burned down his whole fucking trailer.
“But you didn’t actually hurt him?” Nova asked, and I could almost see her scientific cogs turning inside that pretty head of hers.
“But I could have.”
“But you didn’t. You stopped. You got out of there,” Sybil said,
“That’s not the point,” I argued, standing up and turning off the water.
Nothing motivated me like anger, and they were pissing me off. I couldn’t have Mitch. Period. Why beat a dead horse? I grabbed a robe and towel, wrapped it around my body then my head.
“But Marti, you are so lucky. You found your fated mate. I don’t think you should just quit,” Sybil said, and I growled my fury.
“Quit? You think I want to quit?”
“Well, it’s not like you’re fighting for him,” Nova pointed out, and I screamed again, walking out of the bathroom.
What happened to the comfort they were supposed to bring me? I shook my head, stomping towards our bedroom, both of my sisters hot on my heels. I turned around and snapped my jaws, and they slowed down, but continued to dog my steps.
This was not helping. I dressed angrily, shoving my feet into socks, and pulling on a pair of pajama pants and a tank top. I angry-brushed my hair, and yes, it fucking hurt.
“Maybe ease up before you tear it all out, Marti,” Nova murmured, and I snarled again.
At this rate, I was going to Wolf out again in no time. Fuck it. That was not important. Nothing was. The only thing that mattered was I could never have a mate. I was a total fucking hazard. A danger.
“Sweetie, you are not a hazard. Mitchell would be lucky to have you—”
“Mitchell can’t have me! No one can,” I yelled, and stomped my way through the house to the living room.
Sybil and Nova raced behind me, but I was so done with them. I didn’t want them talking to me about possibilities that were not possible at all! It was making me crazy. Couldn’t they see that it was gutting me to do this? It was killing me to admit that I was so fucked up, I had to leave my fated mate to save him.
“Did you even tell him the truth? Did you tell him what you are?” Nova asked.
“No. I didn’t.”
“So you’re telling me you decided you are this danger to him and therefore you know better than the Fates themselves?”
“Yes. No. What? Nova, I have the worst fucking headache in the world right now and my heart is literally broken. Fuck whoever set this thing in motion if it’s the Fates, then yes, fuck them. I do know better. How the fuck could I live with myself if I hurt him? It isn’t worth the risk.”
“So, you are drawing the conclusion that your Fated Mate is better off without you, and you aren’t worth the risk without even testing your hypothesis? That’s just sloppy work, Marti,” Nova said and tsked.
Fucking scientist.
“Marti, you should talk to him. At least give him the chance to decide what he wants,” Sybil argued.
My blood was boiling. I could feel my magic sparking inside of me, and while it was nice not to be dead inside anymore, to hear my Wolf and feel my powers, I was so not about to hurt either of them. Even if they were kind of asking for it. I spun on my heel, cracking my neck as I inhaled and tried to remember those breathing exercises I used to do when I was a kid.
Inhale. 1, 2, 3. Exhale. 1, 2, 3.
“Look, I know you want to help. But you can’t.”
“But you only just came home,” Sybil whispered, tears welling in her eyes.
Fuck. I hadn’t even considered that I would have to leave. That Harbor House could not be my home anymore. There was no way I could stay in Maccon City and risk running into Mitchell at every turn. Fuck. Fuck. FUCK.
“I’ll figure that out. You know I can’t stay here,” I replied, letting my own tears run down my cheeks.
“No. There has to be another way,” Nova yelled, and I knew she was mad.
Almost furious. Wind whipped around her, making her black hair fly this way and that. Sybil gasped, and I growled. Shit. We were about to have a full on magical fucking frenzy if I didn’t diffuse this shit.
“Stop,” I said.
But Nova was breathing too rapidly, and the air around her was crackling with energy. Sybil’s reaction was worse. Green scales started to pop out on her skin and if she shifted into her beast inside, well, the house would be fucking destroyed.
“STOP!” I roared, and power infused my command.
Both of my sisters covered their ears and bent their heads, averting their gazes while I tried to rein in whatever the fuck that was. They looked frozen in place, and that scared the shit out of me. The very air seemed to sizzle with power, and I was stunned and scared, but I thought maybe it was my emotions that were setting the scene.
So, I did my breathing thing again. My arms were already open, hands raised like Moses parting the Red Sea, and I lowered them, forcing myself to calm down. After a moment, both of my sisters were able to move. They looked at me, shocked but not angry.
“Wow, Marti. Did you just command us?” Nova whispered.
“She totally did. Oh, my God! You know what this means, right?” Sybil asked, and she seemed really fucking excited for some reason.
“What?” I asked, for some reason I was always late to the party.
“You’re the Alpha. We always figured you would be,” my petite sis added, and she was all but glowing.
“What?”
“Sybil is correct,” Nova said, brushing her hair back with her fingers. “You’re our Alpha. The leader. The one calling the shots.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“Witch Shifter Clan!” Sybil shouted and clapped.
“What?”
“Witch. Shifter. Clan.” Nova enunciated like I was hard of hearing.
I’d heard her all right. I just didn’t believe it. My heart thundered inside my chest and the door opened and closed behind me. I couldn’t face Davian and Erryn just yet, so I continued to give them my back.
“You can’t leave us, Marti. You’re the Alpha of our Clan. We need you,” Sybil said, and something inside of me clicked.
“That’s right. We do. Besides, you and Mitch have to work this all out.”
“I-I, no, I mean, Alpha?” I whispered, shaking my head.
But it felt right. My Wolf growled and my power surged. Both sides of my being seemed to know this was the right place for us. I stared at the wall opposite where I was standing and flicked my gaze over the bookshelves and old pictures hanging up. Harbor House was my sanctuary, and it would be wonderful not to leave.
But what about Mitch? My heart hurt, the pain so bad I gasped as I placed my hand over my chest. Nova and Sybil stepped closer, and both put their arms around me. Any other time, I’d just shrug them off, but I needed them. The bickering and the arguments were nothing serious. Sometimes you had to shout to be heard in a gaggle full of girls. It was this, the comfort and support that my sisters gave me that I truly needed and loved them for.
We’d always been peas in a pod. The three Musketeers with Davian and Erryn cheering us on and helping us grow. God, I was so lucky. Even when I was in denial about who I was, they were there for me. Always having my back and letting me find my way.
How had I stayed away so long? New York was exciting at first, and different. There was no pack to hide from, and no one to call me on my bullshit. New York was easy. That was why I’d stayed. But look what I had missed? My heart was constricting so damn hard I could hardly breathe.
“Do you love him?” Sybil asked.
Love? I’d never thought I was the type of person to fall in love or have a mate. Fated mates were just fairytales, made up stories, they told little Shifters before bed. I never expected the Fates to pay any attention to me, and maybe they shouldn’t have. Maybe my heart wouldn’t be breaking if they had just left me alone.
My Wolf howled and the pain I felt from my powers hit me right in the gut. I gasped, but I could only nod. Nova squeezed my shoulder, and I knew she wanted to argue some more. But there was nothing to say. Alpha or not, I couldn’t hurt him.
“He might surprise you, you know,” she whispered.
“Even if he was fine with me being a Wolf and a Fire Witch, I couldn’t ask him to live like that. I mean, who would want a mate who could potentially burn the fucking house down every time she got angry, or happy, or horny?”
“That is a lot, but if the sex is good, could be worth it,” Sybil teased.
“Come on. Seriously, who the fuck would be crazy enough to want me in their life?”
“Me.”
The sound of a deep, masculine voice behind me brought all the hairs on the back of my neck standing straight up. I covered my mouth with my hand, body tensing, and tears pricking my eyes. Sybil and Nova released their hold on me, and I spun around.
When the front door had opened, I expected Erryn and Davian to be there, had even scented them. And they were there, standing in an embrace as they witnessed the entire drama that was my life unfold.
But I wasn’t expecting him to be there. Seeing him standing not ten feet away, looking better than anyone had the right to, Mitchell Truman simply stole my breath away. His hair was tousled, and he had on a t-shirt and jeans, his boots unlaced. It was freezing out, but he didn’t have a jacket.
He smelled like fur and the elements, and that smoky, spicy scent that I loved that was all his and his alone. Had he run out in the cold after me? My gaze ran over him from head to foot, but I’d been avoiding his face. When I finally found my courage to look at him, I gasped.
Mitchell’s eyes were red and his frown deep as he stared at me with such longing and tenderness on his face. He held his hand out and for one second, I was completely frozen. Then I was running and jumping towards him, leaping into his arms. He caught me, of course, hands on my ass as he slammed his mouth to mine and claimed my lips in a kiss that rocked my entire world.
I barely heard the cheers and wolf whistles of my family as Mitch spun me around and around, kissing me until I forgot all my worries, all my cares, everything, and anything except him. Only him. My him.
Mate.