Page 23 of Bearly Ever After (Bear Creek Forever #5)

This was it, Klein thought as he nipped Nicole’s bottom lip, then deepened their kiss, his hand on the small of her back as he held her close. He was about to spend the evening with his mate. Alone.

The thought filled him with exhilaration. Exhilaration shared by his bear.

We sure owe Tammy a big bunch of flowers for inviting Mila to stay over at her place and hunt fireflies, his bear rumbled, breaking through Klein’s swirling thoughts.

Thoughts filled with what he and Nicole might get up to. Alone.

But he was rushing things. And rushing Nicole into anything was not what he wanted to do.

Still, this alone time was an unexpected gift.

But then Nicole took a step back, breaking their kiss as she put her fingers to her lips, her eyes fixed on the floor.

He’d moved too fast. Damn it! Klein brushed his hands over his thighs, his palms sweaty as his nerves fought to get the better of him. He’d ridden wild horses and herded stampeding cattle, but this…

Just play it cool, his bear cautioned.

I’m the king of cool, Klein shot back, as he shook off his nerves.

You won’t blow this, his bear took on a reassuring tone. She is our mate. We’re meant to be together. Which means she’s destined to love you, warts and all.

Klein chuckled under his breath, shaking his head as he reached Nicole. Thankfully, all my warts are on the inside.

For a fleeting moment, his thoughts veered to his brother Jay, to the shadow that hung over him and his family. But his bear was quick to push that thought aside. Not now. Don’t let anything get in the way of this moment.

I do not intend to, Klein said as he cracked a smile.

“Hi,” Nicole murmured, looking up at him through her lashes. The way she smiled—a little shy, a little nervous—made something in his chest tighten.

“Hi,” Klein replied, his own voice low and a little rough.

“I should warn you…” She hesitated for a moment, glancing toward the kitchen. “I just hope you’re not expecting anything too fancy for dinner.”

Klein raised a brow, amused and somewhat relieved that was what was bothering her. “Fancy isn’t really my style,” he said. “I’m good with whatever you’ve got.”

Nicole smiled, a small, relieved sigh slipping past her lips. “Good. Because I think we’re working with eggs and picnic leftovers.”

“That sounds perfect,” Klein said, and he meant it. It wasn’t the food he cared about, it was the company.

And that he cared about. A lot.

“This way.” Nicole crossed the hallway to the kitchen and Klein followed.

Like that little scruffy puppy follows Mila, his bear said with some amusement.

“You’ll have to excuse the mess,” Nicole said with a wave of her hand. “I haven’t managed to put all our stuff away yet.”

“Hey, you are talking to one of six brothers,” Klein began. “You have no idea what a mess is until you have experienced that kind of chaos.”

“Your mom must be superwoman to have that many boys,” Nicole said as she plucked a jacket off the back of a chair and hung it on a hook by the door. “I can barely keep up with Mila sometimes.”

“Mom’s definitely a superhero,” Klein agreed with a chuckle. “But she had help. We all pitched in where we could. We were good kids, really.”

“I get a sense of that.” Nicole turned to face him, her lips pursed, and he stepped closer, sliding his arm around her waist, before pulling her close, unable to resist her.

“Are you hungry?” he murmured against her hair.

“That depends on what’s on the menu,” she whispered, her breath a light caress against his neck.

“I could go get the leftovers from the truck,” he replied as he held Nicole close, her soft curves molding perfectly against his muscular frame. The enticing scent of her shampoo, reminding him of a warm summer’s day, filled his nostrils and made his bear rumble with pleasure.

“Tempting,” she purred against his ear in reply. “Those sandwiches and pies were delicious. They made my mouth water.”

Klein groaned, his hardness painfully constrained in his jeans. “You are the only thing I want to taste.”

He leaned in closer, and Nicole tilted her face up to meet his, their lips a hairsbreadth apart. “Then what are you waiting for?” she breathed.

Klein captured her mouth in a searing kiss, desire igniting between them like wildfire. Nicole wound her arms around his neck, melting into his embrace as she parted her lips in a silent invitation. He deepened the kiss, running his tongue along her lower lip.

A soft moan escaped her mouth, driving his arousal higher. Damn, he wanted her. Right here. Right now.

It was all he could do to maintain control as his hands roamed her curves, caressing her hips before sliding lower to stroke her bottom. She pressed closer, arching her back as she inched her body up and down against his hardness.

Any minute now, he was going to explode.

He wanted more. Craved more.

Klein walked her backward until her back hit the wall, his solid frame pinning her in place. He broke the kiss to trail his lips along her jaw and down the sensitive skin of her neck.

“I want you,” he growled, nipping at her collarbone. “I’ve wanted you from the first moment I saw you.”

“I’m yours,” Nicole gasped, tilting her head back to give him better access. Her fingers tangled in his hair as she held him close. “All yours.”

A low, possessive growl rumbled from deep in his chest as his bear surged to the surface, desperate to claim his mate. With a newfound urgency, Klein slid his hands under the hem of her dress, relishing the feel of her silky skin. He pushed the fabric up and over her head before dropping it carelessly to the floor.

Nicole fumbled with the buttons of his shirt, her fingers trembling with need. Together, they made quick work of the rest of their clothes until they stood skin against skin.

Klein stepped back, his heated gaze raking over her body appreciatively. “You’re so beautiful,” he murmured reverently. “So perfect.”

A pretty blush stained her cheeks as she reached for him, urging him closer. He went willingly, capturing her lips in another searing kiss as he pressed her back against the wall. Then he lowered himself to the floor, worshiping her body with soft butterfly kisses until he kneeled before her.

He pressed his hands against her inner thighs, and she inched her feet apart as he inhaled the scent of her arousal. Then he flicked out his tongue, tasting her for the first time.

Nicole moaned, her fingers threading through his hair as she held him close. He lapped at her, teasing her sensitive flesh until she writhed against him.

“Klein, please...” she whimpered breathlessly.

He redoubled his efforts, flicking his tongue faster over her most sensitive spot as he slipped one finger, then two inside her. In and out, he stroked her inner walls, each moan, each whimper from his mate driving his own arousal.

He was so painfully hard, but he was not going to relent now. Not until she’d reached a high, the kind of high she’d never experienced before.

With her back arched, she offered herself up to him completely. He could feel her inner walls flutter around his fingers. She was so close.

Nicole’s moans grew louder, more urgent, as Klein worked his fingers and tongue in tandem, driving her relentlessly toward release. Her hips rocked against his face, chasing the exquisite sensations building inside her.

Then she came. With a keening cry, Nicole’s inner walls clenched rhythmically around his fingers as wave after wave of intense pleasure crashed over her. Klein coaxed her on, drawing out every last sensation until she shuddered, completely spent.

Carefully, he withdrew his fingers and pressed a tender kiss to her sensitive mound before rising to his feet. Nicole swayed unsteadily, and he wrapped a strong arm around her waist, holding her close as she came down from her high.

“That was...” she panted, struggling to find words. “Incredible.”

“And we’re just getting started,” Klein promised with a wicked grin. In one smooth motion, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her down the hall to the stairs. He mounted them one by one as she rested against his chest, her breathing ragged.

“Bedroom?” he growled.

“Second door on the left,” she murmured.

He elbowed the door open and strode across the room, where he lay her gently on the bed, his eyes never leaving hers as he settled his large frame over her soft curves.

Nicole reached between them, wrapping her hand around his length. Klein groaned at her touch, his hips jerking forward involuntarily. She stroked him, teasing him, tempting him as he closed his eyes and bit down on his bottom lip.

He’d been with other women, but they had never touched him like this, never stirred such intense sensations.

Nicole’s touch set Klein’s body aflame, stoking the embers of his desire into a raging inferno. He captured her wrist, stilling her movements as he struggled to maintain control.

“I need to be inside you,” he rasped, his voice rough with need. “Now.”

She nodded, her eyes dark with matching hunger. He eased her onto her back and slid between her thighs, his body hovering over hers as she guided him into her.

With excruciating slowness, he pushed forward, groaning as her slick heat enveloped him inch by delicious inch.

“Damn, you feel so good,” he ground out once he was fully inside her. He stilled, savoring the exquisite sensation of their bodies joined as one.

Nicole lifted her hips, urging him to move. Klein obliged, withdrawing almost completely before surging forward again. He set a steady rhythm, stoking their mutual passion with each deep, powerful thrust.

She met him stroke for stroke, her fingernails digging into his back as she held him close. Their bodies moved together in perfect sync, as if they’d been made for each other. As they had been, he mused fleetingly. Two halves of the same soul , destined to be together for all eternity. The thought spurred Klein on, his thrusts growing more urgent, more demanding, driven by the primal need to claim her, to solidify the bond that pulsed fiercely between them.

With his weight resting on one elbow, he explored her body with his free hand. He relished the feeling of her soft skin under his fingertips—cupping the fullness of her breast and teasing the hardened peak.

Licking his lips, he lowered his head and sucked her nipple into his mouth, sending a jolt of electricity through them both. She arched into him, her inner muscles gripping him tighter as he thrust into her. The friction was exquisite.

He swirled his tongue around her nipple, grazing his teeth against her sensitive flesh as Nicole cried out, her body arching off the bed as her orgasm threatened to overwhelm her. Klein growled his approval, the sound vibrating through his chest and against her over-sensitized skin. He released her nipple, then trailed featherlight kisses between her breasts before lavishing the same attention on its neglected twin. He licked her with the flat of his tongue, slowly and deliberately pushing her closer and closer to the edge.

Her inner walls tensed around him, her body trembling as she hovered on the cusp of release. Determined to send her flying, he slipped a hand between their heated bodies to stroke her where she needed him most.

Nicole tensed, then with a keening cry, her orgasm crashed over her in wave after wave of pure, unadulterated bliss. Klein flexed his hips as he rubbed her mound, drawing her orgasm for her as he relished the feel of her inner walls pulsing and throbbing around him.

But it was all too much. He could not hold himself together any longer.

With a hoarse shout, he followed her over the edge, his hips pumping erratically as he spilled himself deep inside her.

He did not want this to end. He wanted to stay here with her forever. Their bodies joined as one.

But at last, they lay in each other’s arms, the covers pulled up over them.

And for the first time in his life, Klein felt complete.