Page 27 of Into the Dawn (The Devil’s Claw #3)
27
VANESSA
A fter wrapping myself up in the fluffiest dressing gown ever, I pad along the corridor quietly, my bare feet silent on the wooden floor. The house is peaceful in these pre-dawn hours with only the faint sounds of nature filtering through the windows.
When I get a blast of his scent, it’s enough to make my heart skip, and my steps falter. And I know I'm at the right door. His presence calls from somewhere deep within me. Swallowing hard, I rest my palm against the cold surface and push, peering through the door before I slip inside.
Ben’s sprawled across the bed with one arm thrown over his eyes, and the other, dangling toward the floor. Even in sleep, his body is oriented toward the door. Toward me.
My heart swells at the sight of him, this powerful man who found a way to save me from my father's plans. The mate bond pulses stronger with proximity.
I settle on the floor beside him, unable to resist reaching out to trace the strong line of his jaw, rough with stubble.
His eyes flutter open instantly, alert despite the late hour. The amber glow of his beast shows through momentarily before fading. "Nessie? What's wrong?"
The concern in his voice nearly undoes me.
"Nothing," I whisper, forcing myself to hold his gaze.
"I must have nodded off, sorry." He sits up and sighs, rubbing a hand over his face. "Let me show you the guest room."
A pang of hurt pierces me in the chest until I remember what Holly said. He's going above and beyond to give me space to process what's just happened. My mate is too much of a gentleman to pressure me so quickly with conversations about us and what he'd like to happen next.
Scared as I am, it's going to have to be me.
"I don't want the guest room, but I'll stay there if that's what you want or need right now."
I catch his arm and stop him from standing, moving closer as he stares at me with a mixture of surprise and trepidation.
"I love you, Ben. Always have. And I messed things up before, and probably this time, too. But if there's any way you think we can work past this, I'll do whatever it takes."
He lifts his head to look at me properly, his amber eyes staring straight into mine. "We were too young. You needed time."
With a gentle shake of my head, I move closer until I can feel the warmth radiating from him.
"I was scared. But I'm not now. Not anymore."
The mate bond thrums between us, now, stronger than ever.
"You're the one for me. And if you still want me, I'm all yours."
Ben blinks, his beast flashing in his eyes, and my chest seizes momentarily in panic as he takes in what I'm saying. His arms tighten around me protectively.
"You better mean it," he says softly but firmly. "Because if you say you're mine again, Nessie, I'm never letting you go. We'll be together forever. Starting now."
His claws have extended slightly—his control is impressive—and I watch, amazed, as one black claw slides into the belt of my gown and slices straight through it, allowing the sides to fall open. The tip of the other flicks against my hardened nipple, and I arch into his touch, scared of his sharp claws but craving his affection.
When I rest my hands on his thighs to keep myself steady, he rumbles, loud and clear, the vibration travelling through the tiny room.
From down the hall, Evan shouts, “If you guys aren’t… eh… tired, we’re going to see John for a while. Give you some privacy.”
And then they’re gone. A door closes. An engine starts. Tyres crunch over gravel.
“All alone,” Ben says, voice deep and husky, as he slowly pushes my gown off my shoulders till it falls around me. With one claw, he tips my chin up higher and watches me carefully as he trails the other down the side of my neck and along my shoulder.
“My beast was furious that we waited, that we didn’t mark each other before we tried to run away. He believes you never would have backed out then.”
It hurts to think about what I did to him. I wish I could go back in time and undo it.
“Are you certain you want this? Us? Because he’s not going to make the same mistake twice.”
Reaching up over my shoulder, I sweep my damp hair to the side and tilt my head away, giving him full access to my exposed neck. He can bite me right now if he wants.
Ben stares at the spot, fingers twitching, before he drags himself back from the edge of losing control. His claws retract, and for a second, I think he’s pulling away. That he’s not going to do it. Then, in the blink of an eye, he lifts me up then tosses me onto the bed with a playful growl.
“Did you really think I would mark you while you kneel on the cold, hard floor?”
I’ve barely stopped bouncing when he grabs the gown still tangled around one arm and throws it aside, but not before pulling free one piece of the now ruined belt. Biting down on it, he rests one knee on the mattress and shoves down his joggers.
No underwear. His cock, thick and long, bobs freely. It’s hard and swollen and pointing straight at me as he crawls over me, then straddles my thighs and pins me in place, looking relaxed and casual, where I feel like I’m staring down the barrel of a gun.
Quite literally.
The head of his erect penis stretches up past my belly button, so close, and yet, so far. As I try to sit up and reach for it, he tuts, resting a hand on my chest and pushing me back flat against the mattress. He captures my hands and presses my wrists together, slowly wrapping the soft belt around until my hands are tied.
“You didn’t think I was going to do this that quickly, did you? I’m going to enjoy this moment. Savour it.”
Every word he says in that deep, gravelly growl of his turns me on even more.
I squirm while I watch him, waiting for him to give me some clue to what he’ll do next.
Backing down my thighs, he looks me over, scanning every inch of my body, which is on full display with my hands bound above my head.
“I can’t decide where to put my mark. Or the first one, at least,” he mumbles to himself as he strokes along my soft tummy and lightly skims his fingertips over the underneath of my breasts and up the valley between them. Teasing me. Torturing me. “Maybe I’ll mark you twice, and you don’t get to mark me. How do you like that?”
When a rumble sounds from my chest, Ben smiles, liking my beast’s possessiveness. If we’re mated, he’ll damn well be wearing my mark.
He kisses me tenderly, and I melt into it, a warm feeling of happiness and safety flooding my veins and making me feel lightheaded. Ben deepens the kiss, flicking his tongue under my top lip, feeling for my canines that are already down and ready to bite, and then chuckles to himself before pulling back out of striking distance.
“Maybe here,” he muses, settling between my legs before ghosting featherlight kisses across the delicate skin of my inner thigh. The urge to clamp them around his head and force him to put his mouth on me is strong, but I resist, wanting him to enjoy whatever this delayed gratification is.
Dusting kisses and nips across my belly, from one hipbone to the other, Ben’s warm skin on mine is heavenly, but when his fingers travel lower, stroking and dipping quickly inside me, I’m about to combust.
“Or maybe, somewhere else.”
Whimpering when he pulls away once more, I shift positions, lifting my body to meet his touch, but he continues agonizingly slow and relaxed, taunting me with featherlight touches and frustrating words. Ben’s hands rest on my waist as he smiles down at me.
“You’re a bad man.” I chastise him gently, feeling hot and bothered after just a couple of minutes of this game he’s playing.
With a wicked smile, he flips me over, face down on the cotton sheets, and presses his hot chest to my back. I feel the dusting of hair from his chest as he leans down and whispers against my ear, “Wait till you see just how bad I can be.”
His erection presses against my ass as he nips my earlobe and lets the vibrations of his growl rumble through me. A finger swipes over my dripping entrance as he teases me, dipping in an inch and then returning to stroke my clit, driving me crazy with pent-up sexual frustration.
My body clamps down each time he presses a finger inside me, as if it can stop him from retreating once more, leaving me angry and empty.
“Ben.” I snarl, face pushed against the mattress by the weight of him on top of me.
His other hand holds my wrists stretched above my head, keeping me immobile. I would have thought I’d hate this, being completely dominated, but I kind of love it. And my beast is more than willing to submit to him, confident that he’d never take advantage or hurt us.
Squirming beneath him, my clit rubs against the bed, and I moan, thrilled to get some firmer pressure there. But when Ben drags the broad head of his cock through my wetness, and I feel him stroking it up and down, the back of his hand brushing against the back of my thighs on each pass makes me freeze. I’m barely able to breath as the anticipation sends chills through my body.
Ben notches the tip of his cock against me and presses soft kisses up my spine, from between my shoulder blades to the base of my neck, inhaling deeply and nibbling at the sensitive skin there.
I might come just from the tingly sensation dancing along my skin and scalp. Moaning, I feel myself growing even wetter; my mate plays my body like a fiddle.
“Mine,” he whispers confidently but quietly as he presses forward before feeding his thick length inside me, inch by delicious inch.
I can’t move except to part my thighs to ease the way. It’s tight and full, and oh so delicious, made even more tantalisingly good when he slides a hand up the front of my neck and grasps my throat when I start to nod.
The pressure is slight, just enough to remind me that he’s there, but between that and his heat pressing me down, I’m in heaven, powerless to do anything but enjoy.
“Do you trust me, Vanessa?” His voice is thick and gravelly as he draws back before slowly easing his way back into my body.
“Yes.” Once again, the easy agreement flies from my lips.
Ben’s grip on my throat tightens, ever so slightly, and he breathes against my ear, ragged and fighting for control. In and out, he thrusts, so deep in this position, dragging against every inch of me, pleasure swirling around every frazzled nerve.
Tensing up, I resist the climax already building. That’s too fast. He’s still trying to talk to me, for heaven’s sake, but I can barely focus on anything other than holding back my orgasm.
“Then give in to me, Vanessa. Trust that I can take care of you, of us. We’re going to be so good together.”
There isn’t a hint of doubt in his voice, and I feel my eyes growing teary at how unwavering he seems in his certainty that everything is going to be okay. His hand cups my chin and forces my head higher, arching my back until there’s a slight discomfort there, but it’s more than compensated for by the way he rolls his hips, brushing against something delicious deep inside me.
A strangled moan passes my lips as leans forward and grips my chin, turning my face to the side so I can see him. He locks eyes with me and holds my gaze, his own glowing irises flashing between the man and the beast. My pussy clamps down around him, and my fingers and toes warm, a liquid feeling spreading from them toward my centre, which is ready to combust.
“I’ve got you, Nessie. You're okay.”
With those words, I fall apart, convulsing around him and arching back as an orgasm crashes over me. Dazed, I slump forward when Ben lowers my head back to the mattress, kissing my cheek, murmuring words of devotion as he chases his own release.
Pounding harder and faster, he drives into me, and I gasp again, another climax sneaking up on me when the base of his cock starts to swell, stretching me… His knot.
The sensation is strange and overwhelming, and from the grunts and growls coming from Ben, it’s a lot for him, too. His claws slash the sheets beside my head as he continues to move, less frantic now, but more intense as each tiny movement sends off a riot of sensations. With a roar beside my neck that sends goosebumps skittering across my skin, he comes, and somehow, I feel each jet of hot cum as he paints my insides with his seed.
“MINE.” His hot breath fanning my shoulder is the only warning I get before he sinks his teeth deep into my flesh. After an initial pinch, my veins flood with a feeling of euphoria unlike anything I’ve ever known. Each breath ghosts over my skin, anywhere our skin touches, feeling electrified with pleasure.
I practically purr as he withdraws his teeth and licks the wound to seal it.
“Guess I’m more traditional than I thought,” he mumbles proudly, kissing the spot where he’s marked me as his, forever.
Locked together by his still swollen knot, I chuckle and then curse as it drags yet another mini orgasm from my overwrought body.
Ben moans and spills more seed into me, his forehead now resting on my back as he admires where he stretches me so completely.
“Wow,” he murmurs, his hand stroking gently over the curve of my ass and the lines of my hip and waist.
“Mmmm.” I can’t hardly speak as my eyelids grow heavy, even as his knot remains thick inside my body.
I’m vaguely aware of him tugging a blanket over me and rolling us onto our sides so that he’s not lying on top of me but still connected. Bundled up in his arms, warm and safe, I don’t think I’ve ever felt happier.
“That’s it, mate. Rest. Because I’m not done with you yet.”