Page 42 of Can’t Help Growling in Love (Harmony Glen #9)
Chapter
Twenty-Nine
JUNE
My breath comes in quick, shallow pants.
I fight my way through the forest. I can’t run fast because I can’t see well in the darkness—the night comes so much faster under the treetops, even if some of the leaves have already fallen.
They cushion my footsteps, a damp carpet underneath, but there’s the occasional fir tree, its long branches reaching out to tangle in my hair.
Glancing behind me, all I see is the faint outlines of tree trunks and the shadows between them.
It hits me that this would be incredibly stupid of me in any other scenario, running into the woods at night with no flashlight or phone, dressed only in a borrowed sweatshirt and boots.
But Asher is coming for me, and I trust him to know these woods well enough to guide us back home. He won’t let me get lost.
He’ll catch me any moment now, swipe me up in his arms, and carry me to the house to ravish me.
I stifle a laugh at the thought of telling this story to our kids someday.
How did you two get mated, Mommy?
Oh, you know, your father chased me through the forest at night, but you should never do that because you could get lost, honey .
Bushes rustle to my left, startling me into stopping. I heard that howl before, echoing through the night, but the forest has grown quiet, as if all the animals are aware of the wolf’s presence.
Where is he?
My heartbeat thunders in my ears, making it impossible to hear anything but the loudest of noises.
Asher wouldn’t be loud. His soft wolf feet would carry him soundlessly through the undergrowth.
I duck and hurry back in the direction of the house. I think. My plan is to come up behind him and surprise him, but if I misjudged the direction and distance, I could very well be going in circles.
I hope Asher isn’t doing the same. We could spend hours trailing each other without?—
An arm loops around my waist, and I’m pulled back into a wall.
I shriek, flailing, before I realize the wall is warm, furry, and emanating a low growling noise my body recognizes before my brain comes fully back online.
I melt against Asher’s chest. “You found me.”
He sniffs my neck, then licks a long stripe on my neck, the rough texture of his tongue scraping my skin. “June.”
I try to turn in his arms to hug him, to kiss him, but he’s holding on to me tight, so I relax and let him touch me like he needs to.
He slides his palm down my side, to the hem of his sweatshirt, and makes contact with my bare ass. He hisses in a breath, then reaches forward, between my legs.
A shiver goes through me. He parts my lower lips and finds my clit, slippery from the lube and my own arousal.
“Wet. Thank fuck.”
Before I realize what he’s doing, he kneels, taking me down to the ground with him.
I put out my hands to break my fall. I shouldn’t have worried—Asher doesn’t let me tumble down but holds me in place against him, his warmth seeping into me.
His fingers roll over my clit, then plunge deeper to probe the entrance of my pussy.
“We-we should get back inside,” I pant, squirming in his grip.
He shakes his head. “No time.”
No time?
I want to ask what he means, but he guides me forward until I’m on all fours.
The loss of his warmth is a shock. A gust of wind whips through the trees.
My skin pebbles with goose bumps. I can’t see what Asher’s doing behind me, but seconds later, his furry thighs meet the back of mine, and the tip of his hot cock presses to my core.
“Need you. Like this.” He pants, though our run wasn’t that long. “Hold on.”
My fingers dig into the crushed leaves, and for a brief moment, I wonder at the insanity of it all. The cold, the dirt, the darkness—it should all serve to put me off this.
Instead, I close my eyes and rock my hips back, meeting Asher’s first thrust.
The head of his cock slips inside me, and I gasp, clenching around him on instinct.
“I can’t go slow,” he rumbles. His hands find my hips, and he nudges an inch deeper. “Don’t want to hurt you.”
“You’re not.” I push against him and focus on relaxing my inner muscles. “It feels so good, Asher.”
He puts his hand between my shoulder blades and pushes me lower, so my ass sticks in the air, my head pillowed on my forearms. I widen my knees, making room for him. He thrusts again and sinks almost all the way inside me.
I cry out from the exquisite pleasure, and Asher pauses, panting behind me.
“June?”
Even with the full moon wreaking havoc on his mind, he’s still worried about me. Still caring for me. He can’t enjoy this as much as he wants to because he’s certain he’ll hurt me, and I can’t have that.
“It’s okay. I’m not in pain.” I glance over my shoulder at the outline of his body. “If I want you to stop, I’ll say so.”
He lets out a choked laugh. “Deal.”
On the next thrust, his knot meets my pussy, and we both groan at the sensation.
“Fuck, the sounds you make.” His voice sounds harsh. He curls his big body over mine. “You drive me fucking mad.”
He grasps my waist hard and pulls me onto his length with every thrust. It takes me a moment to realize he’s holding me off the ground, my knees barely brushing the leaves.
I close my eyes and let myself feel . Every slide of his thick cock winds me higher. Every hot breath on the back of my neck tells me how much he wants me, and it fuels the flames inside me.
“I want your knot,” I pant, body trembling from my need. “I want to feel you come, Asher. Then I want your bite.”
He snarls, moving faster, fucking me with deep strokes that hit the end of me. My body sings for him like it’s never done for anybody before.
Then strong arms wrap around my torso, and he lifts me to his chest. I scream. Gravity takes over, and the big bulge of his knot shoves against my pussy lips.
The sensation borders on pain, the pressure so strong, my mind throws up panicked objections to what we’re doing.
If we tried this without preparing me, if Asher hadn’t knotted me this morning, I could have gotten hurt.
But I remember that incredible feeling of fullness and connection. I let myself relax, let Asher hold up my body, and lean back.
“I’m yours,” I whisper. “Take me. I want you to, Asher.”
His ragged groan pierces me to my soul. He fucks me from below, his hips working behind me. He takes the collar of my sweatshirt and rips it, exposing my neck and shoulders to the cool night air. I reach back with my hands, holding on to the back of his neck for support.
“Take it,” he snarls, shoving me down. “I know you can. I’ll give you my cum, but not before you take my knot.”
His command breaks through to my subconscious, and I give myself over to the sensations. I bear down as much as I can with Asher’s arms around my body.
“Let me,” I gasp. “You’ve got to let me. You won’t hurt me.”
His breath hitches, then he relaxes his hold. On the next thrust, I spread my knees wider on either side of Asher’s thighs and sink onto his knot. He waits for me, giving me time to adjust, and finally, finally, my body relaxes enough to accept his.
The knot slips inside and swells to fill me completely.
“Ah!” I grasp Asher’s fur with both hands and tug on it. “Fuck, that feels so good. Oh-oh my God.”
He presses his fingers over my clit, and my pussy spasms around the thick bulge now locked inside me.
Asher’s snarl is the only warning before he moves again, bouncing me on his lap.
Locked together, we chase our climax. I cry out, the first flutters of bliss starting in my core.
Asher works faster, fucking me from below, as if determined to push me over the edge first.
I shatter, wrapped so safely in his arms.
At the cusp of my orgasm, Asher licks the skin of my neck, then sinks his fangs into it.
I expected pain. A hard pinch, a searing burn, something unpleasant to be endured.
But the moment his teeth pierce my skin, my awareness of him blooms to life. The bond between us, forged by interest, affection, compassion, and lust, glows golden. Fate connects us forever.I gasp, my eyes flying open, and another burst of pleasure explodes.
Then I feel him . Asher’s climax is monumental. He comes inside me, his teeth still clamped on my shoulder.
His chest heaves behind me, his arms wrap around my body, and he holds me close, his knot pulsing in my pussy.
The sudden rush of his cum has me gasping.
For one wild moment, I imagine how hot this will be once I’m no longer protected by my implant, and I twitch around him, helpless to stop another wave of pleasure flowing through me.
Asher releases my shoulder and licks the bite with long stripes of his tongue. The nurse in me worries about all the dirt surrounding us getting in that wound, but I put that concern off for later. Now, I relax and let him clean me like he clearly wants to.
“I feel you inside me,” he murmurs against my skin, his voice still rough. “I felt you squeeze my knot. I bit you, and we connected. I didn’t know it would be like this.”
“I love you.” I curl my fingers in the fur on his neck. “And I love this, too. It’s like a warm tie between us, isn’t it?”
I glance down at the center of my chest, almost expecting a golden thread to illuminate the darkness. But it only exists if I close my eyes and focus on it, a connection that should feel fragile but already pulses with energy.
Somehow, I know it will only get stronger with time.
“You feel it, too?” Asher nuzzles his cheek on my temple. “I didn’t think you would.”
I shrug, but I can’t stop a smug grin. “I guess I really am perfect for you.”
He snorts. “We knew that well before I fucked you in the middle of the forest.”
The words bring back the reality of our situation. I’m still wearing his torn, oversized sweatshirt and nothing else, and the autumn air cools quickly around us. Asher is as warm as ever, though, so I lean into him, soaking up his heat.