Page 14 of Make Me Bleed (Sanctuary #2)

CHAPTER 13

HANK

“ S o… this Julian fella. That the vampire I catch watchin’ you when I ’m the only one who’s supposed to be watchin’ you?”

I’ll give Hank credit. He waits until he can longer sense Bridget and Conall on his immediate territory to lead me back inside his den.

Turns out, the main cave has multiple narrow entryways just big enough to fit Hank in his human form. The one on the left leads to the enclosure that he’s made his bedroom. Another is his workshop. A third—to my shock—is wired to a near-silent generator with a mini-fridge, a small television, and a computer about a decade out of date.

I got a quick explanation through our tour. He wasn’t born and raised in Alaska like Conall was. Instead, he grew up in Georgia—hence the accent—and lived there until his early twenties. His parents weren’t mates. At least, they weren’t bonded mates. They fucked enough to create Hank, but never marked each other. After his mother was pregnant, his father took off.

His mom is a black bear who still lives in Georgia. Hank came to Alaska about fifteen years ago, searching for his dad. When he couldn’t find him, he decided to spend some time in the wilds, getting in tune with his grizzly side. He found a den, made it his, and never left.

There’s a slight distracted note to his voice as he explains, though he’s careful to tell me that while he might be a grizzly bear like his old man, he’s nothing like him. As soon as I’m ready to finalize this thing between us, he won’t hesitate to bite me. We’re mates, come hell or high water, and he won’t be leaving me.

As much as I appreciated the assurance, I just knew what the cause of his distraction was. And after he showed me each part of his den before we somehow ended up back in the bedroom, he raised his eyebrows at me and asked about Julian.

Jealousy is part of having a dominant male for a mate. Granted, he has no reason to be jealous at all, but I’d be more surprised if he let that pass.

He knows the details about Peter. Just like how I felt compelled to explain my nyctophobia, between Bridget and me, we gave a quick rundown over my former relationship with Peter. I could just see his mind working as he flexed the muscle in his cheek. Peter wanted his mate. Peter couldn’t have his mate. Peter would either be taken care of by Conall, or by Hank.

Because Peter’s presence is as much of a threat to the rest of Dyea as it is to me, Hank understood that Conall got first dibs at tracking the human. It especially worked out for him since he got to stay behind at his den with me.

But Julian…

I nod slowly. “Yes.”

“I gotta worry about him?”

If I tell him that Julian propositioned me even knowing that Hank is my beloved, that might be the shove that pushes my bear over the edge. He’s so sweet. So good-natured. So earnest… but he’s a bear. Give him a reason to rage, and I don’t think even I could stop him if I had to.

“I have no interest in Julian,” I tell Hank as firmly as I can.

His gaze roves over my face. “Alright then.”

“That’s it?”

“That’s it. Toldja, Lise. I trust my mate. I trust you .”

And that’s the end of our discussing the other vampire.

Since Hank brought him up, though…

“You never saw a human out there, did you?”

Hank shakes his head. “Caught a whiff a time or two, but despite Dyea bein’ a ghost town-turned-some mixed supe community, humans come through the woods. I mind ‘em no business, and they leave me alone.”

Of course. Whether he’s a six foot-five male or a eight-foot-tall grizzly when he’s rearing back on his legs, anyone with a brain would avoid Hank Barrett.

Good thing I’m not looking at him with my brain. I’m looking at him with my heart… and other needier parts of my anatomy.

“But if there’s a human out there who thinks he can target my mate? If the wolf don’t find him, I promise you, I will.”

I lay my hand on his forearm. “Thank you, Hank.”

He grins. “Honey bear.”

“Honey bear,” I agree softly.

“I woulda gone after him now. If you wanted me to,” my possessive mate feels the need to add. “But you stayed.”

I run my fingers over his warm skin, eyeing the inviting mattress just behind him. “I did.”

“I’m mighty glad. I was hopin’ you would. You know, of your own choosin’.”

I step into him, closing the slight gap between us. My hand slides from his arm to the center of his chest. “Mm.”

Hank peers down at me. My pulse quickens as he stills, like a predator afraid to spook his prey.

But I’m not his prey. I’m not a prize. That’s what he said to Bridget. I’m more than that.

I’m his mate … and it’s time I start acting like it.

I reach for him first. Going up on my tiptoes, parting my lips in invitation, I wait to see if he’s going to respond, or if he’s going to kindly reject my advances. After all, he’s at least a foot taller than me. We’re going to have to get creative to be intimate, and it starts with something as simple as a kiss.

Hank’s Adam’s apple bobs nervously. His tongue darts out, dabbing the corner of his mouth, but before I can shift my position and draw away from him, his big hand lands carefully on the middle of my back. He gives a gentle push, just enough to have me arching, before he lowers his head, slanting his lips over mine.

He’s hesitant at first. So am I. His mouth shares that same spiced honey scent as his blood, but it’s been so long since I kissed someone, I want to make sure I’m doing it right. I also don’t want him to think this is some ploy of mine to take his blood by accidentally cutting him with a fang.

Hank is even less practiced than I am. I find that charming, and I moan a little in encouragement.

That’s all he needed. As though everything snaps into place for us, we’re kissing each other, me clinging to Hank’s t-shirt while he keeps his hand a possessive brand on my back.

You know what one benefit to have a giant grizzly bear for a mate? All it takes is Hank sliding his palm over the curve of my ass before he hefts me right up, urging me to wrap my legs as far as I can around his thick waist without even breaking the kiss.

He growls into my mouth, low and deep, pulling me close even as he allows me to guide the kiss. Now that he’s lifted me up, our faces are right in front of each other. I lay my hands on his cheeks, pinning in place as I pepper small kisses across his lush lips.

It’s hot. Possessive. Wild . Our bond is thrumming between us as he drops down on his bed, holding me on his lap as he takes control over the kiss, deepening it.

When he breaks enough to breathe, I whisper his name, obvious proof that I’m choosing him .

“Hank.” I nuzzle his cheek with mine. His stubble is scratchy, but I like it. “My beloved. ”

“There’s no rush,” he pants, breath warm on my skin. “No pressure, darlin’. I’m yours. No matter what. You take all the time you need.”

I love how, even with his fated mate basically writhing on his lap, his only concern is for me. I’ve been with countless males who would’ve already had me flat on their back beneath them, using my mindlessness against me to take what they wanted.

Not Hank. Not my honey bear.

He’s not just some lover who fed me and now I’m slipping away so that he could bounce on top of me until they finish. He’s my mate, and if I take him and he really is a virgin like he said before in jest, I’ll be the only one who ever has.

That’s a sobering thought in the middle of the pleasure I’m finding with him. There’s no rush for him, either. No pressure.

I don’t tell him so. I don’t need to. He already knows, though if this is going to go any farther right now, I need to hear it from him.

Leaning back so that I can search his ruggedly handsome face, I ask him, “Before, when you said you were innocent… is it true? Have you ever…?”

I don’t even have to ask him point-blank. He knows exactly what I mean.

He shakes his head. His cheeks are flushes, his lips plump from our kissed, but though he seems rather matter-of-fact about it, there’s something hotly intense in his gaze. “Shifters usually wait for their mate. I’ve been waitin’ for mine in the wilds a long, long time.”

Just not as long as I’ve been waiting for mine .

I nibble on my bottom lip, reveling in his taste even as I admit, “Vampires don’t. I wasn’t kidding, either, when I said I wasn’t innocent.” I wait a moment for him to understand that while I’ll be his first, he won’t be mine. “Does that bother you?”

Pure honestly reflects in his pretty eyes as he says simply, “No.”

I exhale, and he holds gooses my side before adding, “As long as there won’t be anyone after me, that is.”

“There won’t be,” I promise. “All I’ve ever wanted was my beloved.” I stroke the underside of his jaw. “I found him.”

“Beloved,” he echoes. “That’s a vampire’s fated mate, ain’t it?”

I nod.

He grins. “I like the sound of it. Never though my mate would be a sweet li’l vampire like you, Lise, but you’re my beloved, too.”

That’s just another reminder that, though I feel like I’ve known him my entire life, that’s no true. It’s never bothered me that Hank is a bear shifter.

Can he say the same about my type of supe.

I flash my fangs. “Your mate is a vampire. Is that okay?”

Hank drops his head, pressing a kiss to the tip of the nearest one. “Of course it is. Not only do you have me just about comin’ in my jeans when you feed on me, but in case you haven’t noticed it, I’m a big fella, darlin’. You’re such a wee thing. If you were human, I’d be afraid to mount you. Knowing you’re a supe, whether you’re a vampire or a shifter like me, it’s just a relief that you’ll be strong enough to take me. I won’t have to worry about accidentally breakin’ ya.”

I’ve thought about that. About his size. I wondered if that might be something that would worry him. I had no doubt in my mind that we would work, but hearing him say the same?

All my life, I’ve been treated like a delicate toy. A petite vampire, born to be sweet and docile in person and a hunter behind closed doors. Constantly underestimated despite the fact that I’m a supe with supernatural strength and speed.

But not by Hank.

Hank sees me. He sees all of me.

A strange look flashes across his face. He shifts impossibly closer to me, inhaling deeply as his nostrils flare.

I cock my head. “What?”

The look turns to an expression of marvel. “No more fear,” he drawls. “Only arousal. ”

Yeah, well, no denying that.

I know he doesn’t want to push me. I know he says he’s willing to wait. But, suddenly, I’m not ready for this charged moment to end.

I scoot closer. “I have a confession to make.”

“You can tell me anything, Lise.”

“I’m not a virgin. However, there is something I’ve never done before,” I murmur against his lips. “Something I was saving for just my mate.”

His eyelids turn heavy. “You have him at your mercy.”

“You know how you just kissed my mouth?”

“Mm.”

“Think of doing that, just on my pussy.”

Poor Hank. I think I surprised him with the coarse language. And while I present as lady-like, there’s no room for that in the bedroom. If he wants to mate, he’s going fuck me, and he’ll use to cock to do it.

Just like how it’s my pussy that’s currently weeping for him…

He jolts, then shudders. “Really?”

“Mm-hmm. It was too intimate. I was afraid they would take advantage and bite me.”

On my vagina, or my thigh… it wouldn’t matter. They would just have to make me bleed with their teeth and taste the blood for it to count as a blood exchange. I might let them have my body, but my blood? That was saved for my future beloved.

To be honest, I wouldn’t even kiss some of my lovers for fear that they might slip and nick me with a fang. There were times I was reckless and I regretted the close calls after, but I’ve been careful.

With Hank, I don’t want to be.

With Hank, I don’t have to be.

His body stiffens beneath me. “I wouldn’t do it. Bite you, I mean. If you honored me with such a gift, you could be sure that I’d never betray your trust like that, darlin’. Not sayin’ you have to… You’re mine. I just want you to know that I’m willin’ to do whatever it takes ‘til you understand that I’m yours .”

He’s such a sweet gentleman. I expected him to respond like that, even if he’s basically vibrating in place with need.

I shift my hips. I’ve got to be soaking through my panties at this point. There’s no way he can’t tell. He already picked up on my arousal, and it’s only increased as I think about what it would be like to have Hank between my thighs.

“I know you are,” I tell him. “And as my beloved, whenever you’re ready, I want you to know that I’d like you to be the only one to do that to me. I mean, if you want to.”

No pressure.

He swipes the back of his hand over his mouth. “How ‘bout now?”

“Now’s goo— oh.”

I barely had the chance to get the words out before he’s cradling my back, shifting me so that I’m sprawled out beneath him. With hands that are careful as they are determined, he shimmies the skirt of my dress up so that my panties are right there in front of him.

He doesn’t even waste the time in helping me get them down. If asked, I’d thought he might be the sort of fierce predator who just fisted them and tore them. I would be wrong. That’s not the big teddy bear’s style, and like he promised me when he said that he would never betray me, he won’t ruin my clothes, either. Instead, he hooks a trembling finger around the clearly soaked material, eases it over my mound so that he has full access to my pussy.

Hank was an instinctive kisser when it came to my mouth. Whether he’s spent decades wondering what it would be like to have his tongue inside his mate’s pussy or the act itself is just fairly intuitive, I’m not sure, but he buries his face against me, lapping at my entrance with such fervor I squeal.

That might be because my clit is engorged and his face is large enough to bump it with his nose as he goes from lapping to licking. He’s so hot, I’m on fire, and with his hands pinning me down so I can’t escape him, I’m left to clutch the sheets behind me as he finds out just how I taste.

The consensus?

“You taste fuckin’ delicious, my mate. If my blood tastes half as good as your pussy tastes to me, I’ll never stop lettin’ you suck me. So long as, when you’ve had your fill, you let me get mine.”

I gasp. “You know… some males… don’t like… to do this,” I tell him, stumbling over the words because it just feels that amazing .

“Then those males are idiots, darlin’. I promise you that,” he swears before sucking on my clit, making me see stars .

“Hank. Hank .” I let go of the mattress, grabbing his head, twisting my fingers in his hair. “Please, Hank?—”

“What’s that?”

“Honey bear!”

“That’s more like it,” he says right before he returns to my clit and, this time, I don’t just see stars.

I explode .

I ride out my orgasm on Hank’s face. When I’m done, laying flat on my back, panting and keening in pleasure, I release my hold on him.

Clumps of dark hair are wrapped around my fingers. I show it to him. “If we keep doing that,” I say, my voice hoarse from my scream, “your bear might have a few bald spots.”

He smiles proudly, face shiny with my juices. “Worth it, darlin’. Totally worth it.”