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Chapter Twenty-Four

SUNNY

W ith the blanket in her hand, she set off down her stairs. She was safe, and Asher would take good care of her.

Excitement built her stomach with each step.

As she entered the woods, it got darker, but she knew the path. Not only that, but the closer she got to the mountain, the more the magic started to swirl around her, helping her find her way. By the time she got to the stream, she knew she was getting close.

With the reflected light from the moon, she found the steppingstones to get across.

Something in the woods rustled on the other side. A chill ran up her spine. There were many things it could be, but she knew what it was, and that sent a different kind of chill up her body.

As she continued down the path to their meadow, the feeling of being followed had her senses heightened.

It was Asher.

She kept saying that, but every now and then, she would swear she saw those glowing red eyes in the woods. She was legitimately scaring herself instead of becoming aroused.

She took a deep breath and blew it out. If she wanted this to be over, all she would have to do would be to call out for Asher to stop, and he would immediately comfort her.

But being scared was part of the fun, as there was something about the excitement that kept her journeying deeper into the woods.

“Now, what have we here?” a low voice rumbled behind her.

She recognized it as Asher’s voice... but it was more. His wolf was right there with him.

She didn’t acknowledge the voice until it growled, “Run.”

And she did. Taking off in the direction of the meadow, she ran. It wasn’t long before she was huffing and puffing. Her calf muscles burned in protest, but her adrenaline was in control, and she was running full tilt through the forest.

As she passed a thinner pass of the path, branches pulled at her nightgown, leaving scratches along her legs. She had to turn and yank her nightgown free from the branch, accidentally tearing the fabric. As she slowed, a rustle came from behind her again.

She saw the meadow ahead of her, and she pushed past the pain burning in her legs and her lungs. As soon as she made it into the moonlight of the meadow, a big black wolf jumped out in front of her with a terrifying growl.

Screaming, she clutched her heart, reminding herself this was Asher.

Her body didn’t seem quite soothed...

No, her body didn’t know exactly what to make of what was going on.

She was terrified but suddenly grew more aroused than ever.

She turned to run from the wolf, who was right alongside her before disappearing into the woods.

She couldn’t see him anymore, but she could hear him growling. That growl sent chills through her body.

Then big strong arms wrapped around her and carried her swiftly into the middle of the meadow. A scream ripped from her throat and echoed through the woods. She kicked back, and the arms dropped her, and she took off, only for him to catch up within seconds.

“You’ve been a bad witch,” the voice growled in her ear. “Now, what am I supposed to do with you? I think I need to teach you a lesson.”

He put her on the ground. “On your knees.”

She lowered herself as Asher walked around to face her.

The moonlight shone down on him, revealing the naked form of the man she loved, but something was feral in his form caught between wolf and man.

His yellow eyes burned with heat. It filled her with excitement.

She opened her mouth, still breathing heavily.

He brought his hand to cup her chin and pulled her gaze to him. “I stop when you say stop.”

“I know. I don’t want to stop.”

He nodded and took a deep breath before a low rumbling growl left his body. “Open your mouth.”

As he moved closer, his cock was hard, with a bead of precum on the tip.

She reached out and licked it off.

“Good witch. Now, relax,” he said as he fisted his hand into her hair. He moved his hips forward and shoved his dick into her mouth.

She tried to move deeper to take him in more fully, but his hand was fisted tight in her hair and did not allow her any movement. He was in control, and she was ready to let him use her body.

He slowly thrust his cock into her mouth again. “That’s it. Take all of me.” He hit the back of her throat, and tears gathered at the corner of her eyes.

His eyes connected to hers, and he held her gaze as he pushed in farther. After that, he started fucking her mouth. The pull of her hair and the way he was fucking her mouth had her dripping wet down her legs.

Without thinking, she rubbed her clit as Asher continued.

He pulled her head back. “Ah, ah, ah. I didn’t say you could touch that perfect pussy.”

Why did that make her want to come on the spot? Damn, she did not remember it being this hot. Giving her a gentle shove, he pushed her onto her hands and knees and moved behind her. She had brought a blanket, but it lay discarded beside them.

Asher took no time, falling to his knees behind her.

She was preparing herself to be impaled, but to her surprise, that is not what happened.

Instead, what she felt was his tongue licking her.

His hands gripped her ass, holding her open as he slowly licked her from her clit all the way up to her ass.

She gasped, “Asher!”

He stopped. “You know what to say to make me stop.”

Then he was right back, licking her again. This time, he thrust his thumb into her pussy as he rubbed her clit.

“Oh my god,” she groaned, rocking back into him.

Only then did his tongue make contact with her ass again. This was an entirely new sensation, one that felt so fucking good. She moaned again as Asher continued to work her. He thrust his hand in and out of her as his tongue continued to lap at her hole.

The sensation was building, and it was almost too much. Too good. She couldn’t take it anymore. She tipped her head to the sky and screamed as her orgasm ripped through her.

Asher didn’t even give her a chance to come down as he straightened behind her and began driving his cock deep inside of her. He gripped her ass with one hand, and with the other, he pushed her chest into the cold ground.

He let out a sound that didn’t resemble anything human or animal but all Asher.

Gripping her ass with a powerful hold, he fucked her hard. He was fairly certain he was going to fuck her in half, and oddly, she wasn’t mad about it. The fire that had her screaming at the sky hadn’t even had a chance to die down before he had it burning inside of her again.

“Are you ready to take my knot?”

“Yes,” she cried out.

She was ready. She’d been ready for this for so long.

The wind blew around them as Asher growled. His strong thrusts continued as his hand found her clit.

That was it.

Sunny let out another cry of pleasure to the heavens as she broke once more, and Asher continued to pound into her.

Asher slammed into her one last time. This time, the intense stretch told her she’d just been knotted. He growled and pulsed inside of her as her climax kept coming in wave after wave.

Her body went limp as he held her close. Somehow, he managed to reach the blanket and wrap it around them as they both fell to the ground, panting. He held her back tight to his chest, smoothing her hair and pressing kisses to her head. His knot was still there, holding them together.

“You did so good,” he murmured in her ear. “Are you okay?”

All she could manage was a sated sigh and a slight nod. He continued to stroke her hair as the world came back into focus.

“You are perfect,” he said as his hands caressed her with reverence.

It was a sharp contrast to what they’d just done, but she loved it just as much.

“I’ve waited so long for that. So long,” he said as he nuzzled into her and held her tight until his knot slipped out.

Finally, she rolled over to face him. His expression and the man he was almost brought tears to her eyes. He lowered and kissed her.

This was a gentle, loving kiss. She wanted his tenderness as a man and his wildness as a wolf. What on earth had she ever done to be lucky enough to get both sides in one man?

He was back to being the human man she was in love with. She brought her hand up to brush a dark curly lock from his face. The moonlight caught its curls, and she was almost breathless again just looking at the man Asher had become.

When she’d left, they were barely twenty-one. Four years later, he still looked the same, but there was something deeper in his eyes.

“I love you,” she said before kissing him again, hoping he could feel just how much she meant those words.

How could a series of words ever convey the depth of emotions she felt for him?

He slid a hand into her hair and let his thumb graze over her cheek. “I love you, too, Sunshine. More than I could ever say.”

She laid her head back on his chest, letting the beat of his heart and the sound of the crickets relax her. All she would ever need was right here. With this man by her side on this mountain, there was nothing else she could ever want.

“You really went all out with the white nightgown with the little red ties. Leaning into the little red riding hood.”

She chuckled. “If I’m going to be caught by a big bad wolf traipsing through the forest, I wanted to do it right.”

“How are you feeling? Did I hurt you?” he asked, tracing his fingers up and down her back.

“No. It was intense, but I’m not hurt. I think I might have some scratches from running and getting caught in some branches, but that’s about it.”

He moved the blanket from her legs and inspected them. “Yeah, it does look like you have some scratches, but it’s hard to get a good look out here. Should we head back so I can clean those up for you?”

Sunny sat up and realized she was sore. “Yeah, that’s probably a good idea. Can you help me find my sandals? I know they made it to the meadow, but besides that, I’m not sure where they got to.”

He dropped one more kiss on her head before moving to stand, making sure the blanket was covering her. He followed the path he had chased her down and picked up her sandals.

After he brought them to her, she couldn’t take her eyes off the way the moonlight illuminated his naked body as he walked over to the edge of the woods. He came back with some pants and a T-shirt.

“You plan ahead,” she said as she stood and wrapped the blanket around her shoulders.

“Well, I figured I’d stay at your house. I really should keep some clothes there—especially since Abe is coming over early in the morning so we can get your roof fixed before the cookout.”

After slipping into his clothes, he came over, put his arm around her shoulder, and guided her to the trail. “It’s getting late, and you might need a shower.” He pulled a leaf out of her hair.

“I think you might be right,” she said, looking down at the smear of mud across her chest. “It was worth it, though. That was fun.”

“It was more than fun. It’s never been like that before.”

He held her hand as they made their way back to the house, enjoying the soothing sounds of the woods. After he helped her across the stream, the welcoming light from her front porch came into view.

The warm glow from that light and the lamp in her living room was a stark comparison to the dark, run-down house she’d come home to weeks ago. It looked like a lovely little house. Sure, it could still use a coat of paint on the outside, but it was a home.

Running away from all of this had been cowardly. While there were still things to figure out, with Asher by her side, she felt like she could do just about anything.

When they got home, he got her set up in the shower. Warm water fell over her, relaxing her muscles.

Asher joined her, which was good because she feared she would collapse. He took over and washed her. The feel of his strong hands roaming her naked body should have set a fire inside of her, but this felt different. He was taking care of her. All she had to do was let him.

When he finished, he got her out of the shower and wrapped her up on a warm fuzzy towel before setting her on the counter in the bathroom to tend to the scratches on her legs. Then he guided her to bed.

He pulled back the covers as she settled in.

“Did you change my sheets?” she asked as her mouth cracked open with a yawn.

“Just wanted to take good care of you after that.” He crawled into bed with her.

Instinctually, she reached for him and settled her head on his chest as he stroked her hair.

“That was incredible,” she said as her eyelids got heavy.

“It always is with you. We’ve had some incredible moments in that field. Life-changing moments.”

A weight grounded his words she didn’t have the brain power to understand. So, instead, she just hummed a sleepy mm-hmm .

“Get some sleep, Sunshine,” he said before pressing a tender kiss to her forehead.