Chapter 20 #3
The raw honesty in his voice undid me in ways mere physical pleasure never could. This wasn’t just sex. This was recognition on the deepest level possible. This was being truly seen.
“I spent so much time building walls,” I confessed, my voice barely audible over our synchronized breathing. “Telling myself I didn’t need this. Didn’t need you.” My fingers traced the lines of his face, memorizing contours I’d once known by heart. “I was wrong.”
Something broke open in his expression, hope and wonder and fierce joy mingling into an expression so naked with emotion it almost hurt to witness. “I’ll spend the rest of my life making up for lost time,” he vowed. “If you’ll let me.”
I began to move, finding a rhythm that sent pleasure between us, the physical expression of a promise my words couldn’t fully capture. “I’m counting on it.” I gasped, feeling the place where our bodies joined become a conduit for something greater than either of us alone.
His hands twitched against the sheets, clearly desperate to touch me.
“Please,” he groaned. “Rozi, please.”
“Not yet.” I gasped, increasing my pace. The power of controlling his pleasure as well as my own was intoxicating. Each time he tried to thrust upward, I lifted slightly, denying him the control he sought.
“Hands above your head,” I commanded, voice breathless but firm. “If you move them, I stop.”
He immediately complied, stretching his arms above his head, the position emphasizing the cut of his muscles and the breadth of his chest. The sight of him like this, powerful but yielding, controlled but not diminished, pushed me closer to the edge.
I leaned forward, changing the angle, and the new friction against my clit made stars explode behind my eyelids. My pace grew frantic, control slipping as pleasure built to unbearable heights.
“Now.” I panted. “Touch me now.”
His hands were on me instantly, one gripping my hip, the other sliding between us to circle my clit. The dual stimulation sent me hurtling toward release, my inner walls contracting around him in a rhythmic dance.
My pussy clenched around his cock, every nerve ending screaming for release. Pressure built at the base of my spine, radiating outward in molten waves. My vision blurred at the edges, sweat dripping between my breasts as I rode him with frantic, desperate movements.
“Fuck, Rozi,” he groaned, his hands bruising my hips as he thrust upward to meet each downward stroke. “I can feel you getting tighter.”
The scent of our mingled arousal filled the air, sex and sweat and primal need. My inner cheetah clawed to the surface, golden eyes bleeding into my human vision focusing on the spot between his neck and shoulder.
When my orgasm hit, it wasn’t just pleasure, it was transformation. Every muscle in my body locked, my pussy spasming violently around his thick length. A feral sound tore from my throat as I slammed down onto him one final time, taking him to the hilt.
Without conscious thought, I lunged forward, my teeth sinking into the junction of his neck and shoulder. His skin yielded easily, hot copper flooding my mouth as the claiming instinct took over.
Brody’s roar shook the very foundations of the dwelling, the sound more beast than man.
His muscles bunched beneath me as he flipped us with animal strength, pinning me to the mattress without breaking our connection.
His cock somehow grew even harder inside me, stretching me to the point of exquisite pain.
“Mine,” he snarled, his face transformed, human features sharpened with wolf aspects, eyes blazing pure gold without a hint of human gray. Saliva dripped from elongated canines as he bent toward my throat.
I arched up, offering myself willingly. “Yes.” I gasped, digging my nails into his shoulders hard enough to draw blood. “Claim me. Make me yours.”
His teeth broke my skin with savage precision, the pain instantly transmuting to blinding pleasure. Blood trickled down my collarbone as the claiming magic ignited, fusing our souls on a cellular level.
The mate bond didn’t just activate; it fucking detonated.
Reality fractured around us, my consciousness exploding beyond the boundaries of my body.
His cock throbbed inside me, each jet of his release triggering another wave of pleasure so intense it bordered on agony. My pussy milked him greedily, inner walls rippling in spasms I couldn’t control.
I felt him in my bloodstream, his essence merging with mine. His presence filled my mind, not thoughts but pure emotion flooding through the newly forged connection. Fierce joy. Desperate relief. Years of tightly leashed love suddenly set free, washing over me in a tsunami of raw feeling.
“Brody,” I sobbed, my body convulsing beneath his as another orgasm ripped through me, this one centered not in my core but in my very soul.
His husky growl vibrated against my throat, his hips still pumping as he emptied himself inside me. Through our bond, I felt the exact moment his pre-feral symptoms began dissolving.
I sensed his wolf, not as a separate entity but as an integral part of him, howling in triumph as it recognized its mate, finally claimed after an eternity of waiting.
And for the first time, I willingly let my cheetah answer, her purr rumbling through my chest as she twined herself around his wolf in the metaphysical plane.
Our animals mated as our bodies did, the double claiming creating a feedback loop of pleasure that transcended physical sensation.
For one breathtaking moment, I understood everything, the geometry of the COL moss, the mathematical precision of shifter bonds, the perfect balance of human and animal that defined our dual nature.
Most astonishing of all, I could feel my own cheetah responding, not with submission, but with equal claiming power. This wasn’t about dominance or surrender. This was partnership in its purest form, two predators choosing each other, stronger together than apart.
My consciousness expanded beyond the boundaries of my skin, merging with his in ways science could never explain.
“Mine.” I gasped as a second, even more powerful orgasm tore through me, not just a physical release but a spiritual one, my very soul realigning itself around this new reality.
“And you are mine,” he replied, his voice reverent as he followed me over the edge, his release pulsing deep inside me as the claiming solidified between us.
As the initial shock wave subsided, the bond settled into something quieter but no less miraculous, a bond connecting us heart to heart, mind to mind, unbreakable and eternal.
Our claim was complete, irrevocable. Whatever came next, we would face it together.
He collapsed beside me, gathering me against his chest. The bite marks on our necks were already beginning to heal. But the scars would remain, permanent, visible symbols of our bond.
“That was…” he began, his voice rough with emotion.
“Worth waiting for?” I suggested, a smile playing on my lips.
He laughed, the sound rumbling through his chest and into mine. “Worth waiting a lifetime for.”
I traced patterns on his chest, marveling at the sense of peace that had settled over me. I’d defined myself by my independence, by my ability to stand alone. I’d thought accepting the mate bond would mean surrendering that identity.
Instead, I’d found something unexpected. Something miraculous.
Completion.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked, gently trailing his fingers along my spine.
“About thresholds,” I replied honestly. “About how crossing them changes everything.”
Just like the moss at the edge of the COL, not fully submerged, not completely dry, but existing in the space between, I’d found myself in that liminal space between past and future.
“I never thought I’d have this,” he confessed, his voice soft in the darkness. “After what I did, I thought I’d lost my chance forever.”
I pressed a kiss to his chest, right over his steadily beating heart. “The universe is more forgiving than I am,” I said with a smile. “Lucky for you.”
He tightened his arms around me, and I felt him press his lips against my hair.
“The luckiest,” he agreed, tracing lazy patterns along my spine.
Through our newly formed bond, I could feel his contentment mingled with a building desire.
“Though I believe there’s still more research to be conducted. ”
I raised my head, meeting his gaze with a raised eyebrow. “Is that so?”
“Absolutely.” His smile was pure sin, a promise of pleasures yet to come. “I seem to recall you mentioning something about ‘everything.’ That’s a rather extensive experimental protocol.”
Heat pooled low in my belly at his words, my body already responding to the promise in his voice.
Through our bond, I felt his satisfaction at my reaction, his own arousal building in response to mine, a feedback loop of desire amplified by our connection.
He gave me a quick kiss then said, “Let me take care of the condom.” Getting off the bed, he removed his condom and cleaned off with a towel.
“Now, get on your knees, mate,” he growled, his voice dropping to that bass register that vibrated directly against my clit. His hand smacked my ass with just enough force to sting, the sharp crack echoing through the room. “And present that sexy ass to me.”
The command sent molten heat straight to my core. Precome leaked from his rapidly hardening cock, the scent of his renewed arousal making my mouth water. The claiming bites on our necks throbbed in unison, still fresh and sensitive.
This wasn’t about submission; it was about choice. About knowing exactly what I wanted and taking it with both hands. The greatest power lay in willingly surrendering control to someone I trusted completely.
He rolled a new condom onto his erect cock.
I got onto my hands and knees, the position making me feel deliciously exposed.
Cool air caressed my swollen pussy lips, still sensitive.
I arched my back, deliberately presenting myself to his gaze, spreading my knees wider to give him an unobstructed view.
Looking back over my shoulder, I caught his gaze, his eyes still glowing with feral intensity. I ran my tongue slowly across my bottom lip, leaving it glistening and plump. With deliberate provocation, I reached back and spread my ass cheeks, exposing everything to his hungry stare.
“Come and get it, wolfie,” I said, voice husky with renewed desire. “Unless you need a rest, old man.”
His answering growl was pure predator, his hands gripping my hips with bruising force as he positioned himself behind me. The blunt head of his cock nudged against my entrance, teasing but not penetrating.
“I’ll show you old,” he snarled, leaning over to bite the claiming mark on my neck, making me keen with need. “I’m going to fuck you until you can’t remember your own name.”
Then he slammed home in one powerful thrust, filling me so completely I saw stars.
The fire in his eyes as he moved toward me promised that our claiming was just beginning.
The night stretched before us, full of possibility and passion two decades in the making.
And for the first time in my life, I was exactly where I belonged, balanced perfectly on the threshold between strength and surrender, past and future.
I claimed and was claimed in equal measure.