Page 24

Chapter 23

Horace

M ine. She’s mine.

My lips claim Carina’s in a kiss that leaves me lightheaded.

But I won’t fall. I can’t. My arms are wrapped around precious cargo, and I will do anything, be anything I need to be, to keep her safe and sound.

And with me. Always with me.

“need you, Horace,” she whispers, and it makes me ache.

My cock is so hard, I could pound nails with it. But I’d much rather sink into my mate’s tight, wet heat.

The fact she is just as hungry for me is just icing.

“Easy, mate. I got you,” I tell her, and I do.

I lift her off the floor and carry her to my bed—scratch that. It’s our bed now.

Or, it will be, as soon as I convince her to move in.

I like the sound of that, and my chest rumbles with my Bear’s approval.

Next, I peel the borrowed t-shirt and boxers she has on, stopping to stare at all her pale, smooth softness on display.

She lets me look for a few seconds, then she is moving. My mate is nothing if not demanding and fierce in her passion, and fuck, I love every minute of it.

“Too many clothes,” she says, and grabs the hem of my shirt, pushing it up.

She’s so tiny she can’t quite reach, and I grin and finish the job, undressing quickly and joining her on the mattress.

I want to lick her from head to toe.

I want to swallow her sweet nectar right from the source.

Everything about her turns me on.

“I don’t know where to start,” I tell her.

I kneel between her splayed legs and smooth my hands over her shoulders and chest.

Pausing to cup and weigh her soft, ripe breasts, I moan at how good they feel in my palms. Her nipples get hard, their peaks bite into my skin.

Seeing how my touch affects her makes my cock even harder.

Next, I rub her sweet belly, and I’m careful not to tickle her.

I memorize the precise spot where her waist indents, then flare as I get to her rounded hips and fantastic ass. Then it’s down her legs to her shins and back up again.

Fuck, I love the way her skin gets so soft on her inner thighs.

Every inch of her is sublime. Every hill and valley, perfection.

I want to consume her. To stamp myself all over her.

I want to claim her. Again.

Fact is, I am ravenous for this woman.

Head over fucking heels for her.

And it is the best I have ever felt in my entire life.

“Start here,” she says, and tugs me closer.

Then her lips are on mine, and I can’t think anymore. Running on instinct now, and following her cues, I chase my mate’s pleasure as I worship her with my body.

“Please, Horace,” she begs, and I growl as I lick the spot where I already marked her.

“What do you need, Mate?” I ask, sliding my hand to her throat and tilting her head up so she has to look at me.

Her pupils are blown, and she is panting with need.

So fucking sexy.

So mine.

“I need you inside me. Please,” she says, and I am so there.

I flex my hips, and it's like my dick is a homing device programmed to find her g-spot. I push in and out. In and out.

Finding my rhythm, exploring her body. And I know when I slide against her internal bundle of nerves just right because my woman doesn’t just come for me—she detonates.

The symphony of our bodies slapping together is drowned out by the keening moan that slips from her lips, and I can’t help myself. I pound into her, reveling in the tight squeeze of her pussy around my shaft.

Then I come, painting her womb with my seed, marking her with my scent.

Carina’s mouth is wide, and she nods, turning her head, giving me more than I would ever ask of her.

And I strike.

I bite her again.

Claiming her as mine.

Her pussy clenches. She is in the throes of another orgasm spurred on by my bite, and fuck me, I am still coming.

Everything about this, about her , is magical, intense and so damn perfect, I don’t ever want it to end.

She is the best damn thing in my life, and I know without a doubt I am never leaving her.

She is mine, and I am hers.

“Mate,” I say the moment our bodies stop twitching.

Carina is still trying to catch her breath, and I don’t blame her. I am having a hard time myself.

After several moments, I slide out of her sweet body, missing her warmth immediately.

“Stay here,” I tell her, and I get a washcloth from the bathroom and clean her up best as I can.

Then I slide into bed next to her and gather her in my arms.

“You’re shivering, are you cold?”

“No. That was,” she says and exhales.

“Yeah. It was,” I reply, knowing exactly what she means.

Mate, my Bear chuffs and Carina gasps and lifts her head.

“Was that?” she asks, and I grin and nod.

“You heard him? That’s amazing.”

“What does it mean?”

“It means you really are meant for me. See, only the truest of mates form a bond that quickly,” I say and once again I am humbled by this amazing woman.

I nuzzle her cheek, dropping soft, nibbling kisses on her skin everywhere I can reach.

“Will I always hear him?” she asks.

“Probably. Our matebond will only get stronger as time goes on. Don’t you feel it?”

She nods and I swear even my Bear is smiling.

“I do. I feel it.”

Carina looks at me and bites her lip, then she moves, sitting up.

“What is it, Sweetheart?” I ask, and tuck her hair behind her ear.

“Well, you got to explore me earlier,” she says, and her brown eyes are full of mischief, “I think it’s my turn now.”

She runs her small hands down my chest and stomach, pausing when she finds what she is looking for.

I suck in a breath as she cups my balls with one hand and strokes my cock with the other.

Holy fuck.

This woman is going to kill me.