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Ginger continues with her mate bond explanation. “Not only do they gain the same life span to ensure they spend the most time together, but they also gain a type of sixth sense. Able tofeelthe presence of their mate. Like a locator beacon. As well as being able to feel when they’re in physical pain. It’s an old connection meant to allow one to be able to find their mate if they were in trouble to protect them.”

She rolls her head to give me a sardonic look from her spot on the couch next to me. “If you haven’t noticed by now, shifters areveryprotective.”

“Oh, I’ve noticed.”

“Anyway, that’s about the gist of things when it comes to shifter mates as far as I know,” she concludes, tilting her head to rest on the couch.

“So, nothing weird happens to the mates, at least physically? I wouldn’t sprout fur and a tail if I were to complete a mate bond with Hunter?”

Just saying it out loud has a lump forming in my throat. I’d barely been considering getting involved with Hunter for a short tryst, and here I am, talking about forming a permanent mate bond with him, even though I’ve only kissed him twice.

Ginger barks out a laugh, lifting her head to stare at me.

“No, you won’t sprout a tail and start howling at the moon. The change is only internal, nothing external. You would still be you but for much longer than anticipated.”

“That doesn’t sound so bad.”

Again, my cheeks redden as I mentally prepare to ask another intimate question. “And thematingpart. Do they do that in their true form?” I tentatively ask, hoping she doesn’t realize what I’m really asking.

“Usually, yes. The bonding ritual has traditionally been done in their true form.”

So, if I were to go through with a mate bond ceremony with Hunter, he would be in his true form? With the monster cock he mentioned before? I may have jokingly teased him that I could handle that, but in truth, it sounds frightening to even attempt such a feat.

I sink into the couch cushions, curling my knees up against my chest and wrapping my arms around them. I changed out of my pajamas and into leggings and a sweater, which are not nearly as stylish as Ginger's, but these days, I go for comfort over style. Mostly.

Nibbling on my cuticle, I stare off into space, trying to figure out how something like that could possibly work without damaging my insides.

How deep can a cock go before it starts to cause damage? I’ve seen those giantfoot-longdildos, but can people really fit that whole thing inside?With my mother overlord, I never got to participate in the orgies and sex parties celebrities like to partake in behind locked doors away from the media. So, my experiences with sex and kinks land more on the average Joe spectrum rather than the experienced, knowledgeable kinky.

Ginger must notice my inner turmoil because she chuckles, drawing my attention to her amused expression.

“Not with you though, Lottie. Since you’re human and far smaller than Hunter in his true form, he would shift down for you. To whatever degree you both wish. He can retain certain characteristics if you like that kind of thing. Claws, tail . . . girth.” She wiggles her eyebrows at me, and I blush even further.

I do kind of like his tail.

“He can be fully human or not. As I said, most take their true form but not always when there are differences. Evelyn is a nymph, and her mate is a shifter. She was able to take him in histrue form because of her magic, but he still shifted down some to accommodate her size.”

“Are all non-human couples mated? Hunter said something about it being somewhat rare.”

She shakes her head and adjusts the hem of her dress across her crossed knees.

“There are many who are and many who aren’t. Most just get married as humans would. Pledging their love and lives to one another. Some participate in the act of a mate bond ceremony but don’t actually form the mate bond. It’s a great gift to find a mate.”

Ginger sighs wistfully, and her expression becomes one of yearning I understand. We all want that one person who fills in the gaps, who completes you and compliments you perfectly, who loves you unconditionally, and who protects and supports you no matter what.

Supposedly, Hunter is that to me, and I am to him. Made for one another, a perfect partner. I can’t say it isn’t tempting, that he isn’t tempting. Because he is. I want him; I can’t deny that. To have him and to be loved and accepted for hundreds of years together? That’s something I can’t ignore.

“Well, that’s enough of that; let’s talk about something else. Like, can you get me access to couture lines direct from the designer?”

With that, we fall into an easy conversation about fashion and designers and what it was like to attend fashion week in Paris. Ginger forces me to promise to take her one year, which I do. Even if I decide to step down from the limelight, I am still Alexandria and can get into any fashion show I want.

Chapter 24 – Hunter

Ryder seemed notably captivated by our conversation this morning. When I left Lottie’s, I ran straight home to change and find Ryder. There’s never anything I keep from my brother and beta. He needed to know about mate bonds between us and humans. If this is not a one-off thing, others may feel it too, and we want them to know it’s real.

He seemed distracted a good portion of the time and took off without a word. He must still be dealing with that blogger he told me about. With the blood moon only a week away, there are also more shifters showing up in town, and he has to deal with them as well. I leave that all to him. For now, I need to focus on Lottie and Vincent and what the fuck I’m going to do about both.

I know what I want to do with Lottie. I want to chase her through the forest and pin her beneath my hulking form and rut her like the beast I am. I know I can’t take her in my true form; she’s too small and fragile, and I’d never do anything to hurt her. But I can chase her and pin her to the ground and fuck her as a man. It’ll be just as satisfying.