Page 22 of Misbehaving With Minotaurs (Haven Ever After #8)

She curls her fingers into my chest fur and strokes, her scent exploding between us.

Tonight’s the night. I know it. She knows it. It’s just a matter of time before I get inside her and please her.

We walk about five minutes, just far enough to get well past downtown. Monsters aren’t overly fussed about nudity per se, but disrobing in the middle of town might get an eyebrow raise or two.

I halt and hand Catherine the bag. “Take this, Sunshine. It’s got everything we’ll need.”

She lifts the bag over her head, careful not to muss perfectly arranged gray waves.

I can’t resist touching her. Reaching out, I twirl a long section around my fingers. “Still so soft,” I murmur. “Just like it used to be.”

She beams up at me. “I guess some things haven’t changed, hmm?”

It feels like she’s talking about more than just the texture of her hair.

I hope we’ll cover that and more on our date tonight.

A level set about my intentions seems in order here.

Have fun. Make her laugh. Make her come.

Not in any particular order. I want dates to be part of our “arrangement,” if she’ll allow me.

They’re not technically against the rules as they’re still fun.

Smirking at her, I reach for my shirt and unbutton the shoulder and down one side, pulling it off my big figure. She watches me, her blush deepening as her scent grows stronger, nostrils flaring.

Gold swirls in the depths of her eyes when I reach for my jeans. Pulling them down, I step out and shove them in the pack she holds.

I’m nude in front of her again, and I love how she stares.

Gray eyes drop down my chest to my stomach, my sheath, my thighs. She trails her gaze lazily back upward, a smirk on her face. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you shift. ”

“Been a long time since I did it, if I’m being honest.” I drop forward onto my hands and close my eyes, calling my power to shift into my other form.

My muscles pop and pull, joints cracking and reforming until everything’s configured four-legged style. It’s the closest I’ll ever look to a bull with hooves.

When the shift’s complete, I open my eyes and look at Catherine. In this form, my senses are sharper. I twitch one ear to listen to her heartbeat.

It’s fast but steady.

Dropping to both forelegs, I wait for her to carefully climb onto my back.

She laughs as her thighs stretch around my midsection. “If I’d known we were doing this, I wouldn’t have chosen a miniskirt.”

I join her in laughter. “I’m glad I didn’t mention it. Feels good that there’s nothing between us.”

“Well, besides my underthings,” she says with a laugh.

“Not for long,” I manage, tossing a wink over my shoulder. “Hang on, Sunshine.”

“I’ve never fallen off you a single time in my life,” she reminds me.

Turning, I walk up Sycamore, feeling for her to get settled on my back. It’s been a long time since I did this with anyone. Allowing oneself to be ridden is significant to most minotaur males. It’s not done lightly.

When she seems comfortable, a hand on either side of my neck, I break into a slow lope, heading toward the skyball stadium.

Catherine lets out a delighted-sounding whoop as I pass the stadium and head up along the twisty road toward the depths of the forest. I canter along for a solid fifteen minutes before veering into the trees.

I ran the path earlier today to make sure I knew what I was in for.

Worst case scenario would be tripping and throwing my Sunshine because I didn’t check the path.

Rookie mistake, and I’m no fuckin’ rookie.

Five minutes later, we come to the gorgeous clearing I staked out earlier. I paid Herschel to come out here half an hour ago and leave a charcuterie setup. Looks like he did it, because there’s a pretty little picnic on a thick striped blanket.

Catherine tickles my side. “You weren’t kidding about a plan. This looks lovely.”

I reach for her, helping her slide off me as I shift back into my usual form. I’m still naked, but I plan to stay that way. “We might just be scratching the itch, Sunshine, but romance is what makes that good, in my opinion.”

She studiously ignores my comment as she looks around at the setup. I bend down and swoop her up into my arms, loving the little squeal that falls from her lips.

“You feel good in my arms.” I smirk at her as I carry her to the blanket and drop to both knees, setting her down. As I do, I fall over top of her, pushing her carefully onto her back. Hovering above her, I reach up and drag my knuckles along the slim column of her throat.

She closes her eyes and lets out a little sigh, arching into my touch. I run my fingers down to the vee of her shirt, tugging it down to stroke her bare skin.

“Still so soft.”

She smiles, even though her eyes remain closed. “You seem to have an obsession with my softness. That’s your second or third comment on it this evening.”

“Who wouldn’t?” I bend down and drag my snout up between her breasts, nuzzling against her neck to breathe her in more fully. “Your lack of fur entices me; it makes you seem extra naked.”

Gingerbread, crisp apples. She’s a godsdamned pie.

“Let’s get you fed, Sunshine,” I manage, even though all I want to do is lie here with her and talk about the last few hundred years and all the things we haven’t had a chance to cover yet.

She shifts onto her elbows, a glint in her eyes. “Are we eating lying down?”

I manage a laugh. “Lovely as that sounds, I don’t need a choking hazard situation. That being said,” I sit upright and pull her into my lap, a thick thigh on either side of mine, “I don’t plan to let you go far.”

Reaching to my side, I grab the picnic basket and open it, pulling out a variety of cheese and crackers and some of the fancy grapes Herschel told me she loves.

A small tray of chocolates comes next. I ordered those from a tiny shop in Arcadia the day I arrived in Ever and realized I was gonna ask her out.

Catherine’s eyes flash at seeing the chocolates. She looks up at me, eyes wide. “How did you manage this?”

I take a chocolate and lift it to her plump lips, dragging it along her skin. “There aren’t any lengths I won’t go to to make you smile, Cath. And I remember everything .”

She sucks in a deep breath and presses my hand away from her lips. Before I can ask what’s wrong, she leans forward and peppers the tip of my snout with soft kisses.

I can’t kiss, not like other monsters, not with a snout this shape—too flat. It’s possibly my only regret about being a minotaur. Everything else is fucking fantastic, but kissing looks like a lot of fun.

That being said, there’s a lot I can do with this mouth.

Catherine settles back, eyes glistening. “Thank you, Nor.”

I slide a hand up her back, pressing her closer to me. She sinks down, legs spreading wider so she’s nestled perfectly against me.

“Eat,” I encourage. “Because, once you’re nice and full, I’m going to fill you in other ways. ”

Gold swirls in her irises again, her power rising to my dominance.

“There she is,” I murmur. “You gonna use that power on me, Sunshine? Maybe beguile me until I’m wild with need?”

“Would you like to be controlled, Manorin?” Her irises have gone full gold, and I can already feel my agency leaving my body. All there is is Catherine, and what Catherine wants. Whatever she wants. Whatev…

She chuckles, slapping my stomach playfully. “Too easy, Nor. You gave in too easily.”

I shrug and lean back on both hands. “It’s been a long time since you used your power on me like that. Maybe I’m desperate to be at your command.” I sink onto my knees and tuck my hands at my back like I’m chained. “Keep me on my knees, Catherine. Take what you want.”

When we were younger, we played a lot with her power to beguile.

I’ve always loved it, that total loss of control, and she’s the only succubus I’ve ever met who could fully bewitch me.

Catherine’s might is a nearly unstoppable force.

She could topple cities with it. She chooses not to. She earns trust.

And that’s why it’s so hot when she binds me up in that power and makes me do whatever she wants. Because when she controls me, there is nothing but the desires of my mistress.

I level her with a teasing look. “I’ve dated other succubi, you know, and I’ve never done that with them.”

She feigns surprise. “No? Missed me too much?”

I smile. “Something like that. I’ve never let another woman ride me either. Not since you—the last time.”

Her teasing smile falls, her expression serious once more. “That’s been two hundred years!”

“Mhm.”

Silence stretches long between us as I rest on my hands, staring at her. Finally, I break it .

“You’re smart, powerful, beautiful, kind. There’s never been anyone who could live up to you. I’ve often regretted our breakup over the years. If I’d been smarter as a young male, maybe I could have kept you.”

It’s a truth I think about a lot.

She shakes her head. “There were lessons I needed to learn.” She stares off into the distance, squinting as if the memory’s almost too painful to conjure. “They were so costly, but I guess someone up above thought I needed them.”

I dip down and nuzzle her shoulder. “What could you have possibly needed to learn, Cath? Perhaps some things are just shit that happens to us.”

She sighs. “I stopped trusting so easily.”

I bring my gaze to hers. “That’s not necessarily a good thing, Sunshine.”

She lifts her eyes to mine. “No? I won’t get hurt like that again.”

“Not if I have anything to do with it,” I confirm.

Her gaze goes shuttered and unsure, but then she plasters a big smile on those pretty pink lips. Her eyes flash with need. “I’m not hungry for food, Manorin. You’ve been teasing me for days.” Gold swirls through her irises again. “It’s time to stop teasing.”

I rise with her in my arms. Turning, I stalk to the glowing green ward that forms a bubble over the entire haven, protecting it from the outside world.

I press her against a tree that sits right at the edge and lift her arms over her head.

Green misty magic—her magic—streams and swirls on the ward’s surface, straining toward her.

Very few monsters in our world know that Catherine’s the mother of the haven system in more ways than one. She created it and the magic that protects us.

This beautiful, powerful woman .

Dropping to my knees, I sit back on my haunches with her legs draped over my shoulders. I spread her thighs wide and stare. She’s soaked the panties through with need, her scent strongest here.

I bend forward and nuzzle at them, licking a rough path over the lace shielding her pussy from me.

She jolts and moans, the soft, needy sound tightening my cock in my sheath. It slips partially out, seeking her heat.

Another lick. Another moan.

Holding her with one hand, I use the other to pull her panties to the side, giving me space to bury my tongue inside her. I lick a hot path along the seam of her pussy, reveling in tasting her.

I didn’t realize just how much I’d missed this, missed her, until I had her in my arms again. Groaning, I lick over and over again, using the flat part of my tongue and swirling it over her clit as her cries rise, echoing through the small glade.

Something hits the ward behind us, and Catherine jolts.

Pausing, I glance to the side to see a thrall—a soul-sucking monster who’d love nothing more than to get in here and turn us—snapping and lunging at the ward. This one looks like it might once have been a shifter. It’s wolf-shaped, with that same twisted, nearly decayed look all thralls have.

It’s her magic that protects us, and it’s her magic that draws thralls to havens all over the world.

Not that many monsters even know that. No. Catherine’s power is a well-guarded secret.

“We’ve drawn a crowd,” I murmur, smiling up at her.

Her nostrils flare as she turns and stares at the thrall. But gold swirls in her irises again when she looks back at me. Seeing the danger amps her power, pushing her to protect, to serve. It’s one of the most beautiful things about what she can do.

And it turns me on. It’s always turned me on.

Rising, I slide her down until I can put her thighs around me. She’s still focused on the glowing ward and the pacing thrall outside it. Gripping her chin, I redirect her to look at me, loving the flash of gold in her irises as she stares hard.

I reach down and unsheathe my cock, guiding it to her pussy. In one swift thrust, I fill her, sinking deep into that impossible heat. Moaning at how good she feels, I marvel at being able to fully fill a woman with no reservations. I haven’t been able to do that with a woman since her.

She feels. So. Good.

Catherine’s head falls back, and she cries out, clenching around me, brows scrunched together in pleasure.

I bring my mouth to her ear as I pull out, then fill her again. “Nobody’s ever taken me like you do. I don’t have to be careful with you, do I, Sunshine? This pretty pussy’s gonna swallow me whole, isn’t it?”

A desperate, lusty moan is my only answer.

Catherine plants both hands on my chest, using the leverage to rock her hips as a flush travels down her neck and chest. She’s still fully clothed, and something about that makes this even hotter to me.

“I like this,” I rumble as I thrust in and out slowly, cock dripping precum that mixes with the scent of her need.

“Feels like I came upon a hapless little woman in the forest and took exactly what I wanted from her. I can see it now. You’d be bent over a log looking at something, and I’d come up behind you and fuckin’ fill you… ”

She levels me with a devastating smile, even as I rock my hips, entering her again.

Heat swirls in my balls, tightening them as I widen my stance and fuck her harder.

“Maybe it’s me who came upon a hapless male,” she says sweetly. “Maybe it’s you who are about to be taken advantage of, Manorin. ”

“Good,” I bark as I snap my hips again, my sack slapping against her ass as pleasure drives higher and higher.

“Stop,” she commands, eyes fully golden.

My vision goes hazy, the snapping thrall outside the ward amping my need to protect her, to serve her. But even that fades away as I stare at her. There is only her and what she wants.

And anything Catherine wants…