Chapter 20
Gunnar
It’s a long, long time before we pull up in front of the lodge.
My beast has been tearing at me the whole drive.
Alexandria’s scent is everywhere—on my hands, in the air, clinging to me—and it’s driving me out of my mind.
I don’t dare look at her. Don’t dare speak.
All I can do is keep my eyes on the road and hold the wheel steady, forcing myself to stay in control.
At last, I park up and switch off the engine.
My muscles twitch, keyed up, my body still charged. For a moment, I just sit there, breathing, trying to get a handle on it.
Then I turn my head.
She’s watching me. Her eyes are dark in the fading light, her cheeks faintly flushed. There’s something in her expression—open, unsure—that hits harder than anything else.
“Wait,” I say, my voice rough.
I’m out of the truck, circling to her side and pull the door open. When I offer my hand, she takes it without hesitation.
Small. Soft.
Something in me tightens.
“Thanks,” she says, a hint of that familiar sass still there.
But she doesn’t let go. Her fingers stay curled around mine.
We go inside together.
The lodge is warm when I push the door open, the heat from the fire still hanging in the air.
There’s a note on the hallway table. I grab it.
Out for the night. Enjoy yourselves ;-)
A smile pulls at my mouth.
“What’s that?” Alexandria asks.
Her cheeks go pink as she reads it.
I watch her. “What is it?”
She bites her lip, thinking. I can see it happening—the way she turns things over, quick and careful.
“He knows,” she says at last.
“Yeah,” I say. “He’s not wrong.”
Her gaze flicks to mine. “About what?”
“About wanting you.”
She looks up and down the hallway.
“This is a lot,” she says quietly.
I take her hands in mine.
“Nothing happens until you’re ready, Alexandria.”
She lets out a breath, like she’s been holding it.
“Okay,” she says.
“Come sit down,” I add. “I’ll make you something warm.”
She hesitates, then nods. “Actually… I think I might go shower first.”
“Perfect,” I say.
She disappears down the dark hallway. A moment later, I hear the bathroom door close.
This time, I listen unashamedly—the sound of the door closing, the water turning on. That brief pause while she undresses, and then the soft creak as the shower door opens.
She steps inside.
Water cascading over her naked body.
A body I’ve already glimpsed.
My cock is so hard it hurts.
I force myself to concentrate on making the tea, while all the time her intoxicating scent fills my nostrils.
By the time she comes back, I’m standing at the counter, waiting.
She pauses in the doorway.
She’s changed into a soft plaid pajama set, the fabric loose against her body, her hair still damp where it falls around her shoulders. She lingers there for a second, combing her fingers through it, like she’s not sure whether to step fully into the room.
I catch the scent of her skin, her hair.
“No bra,” my beast notes, low and satisfied.
My grip tightens on the edge of the counter.
I don’t move.
“It’s ready,” I say instead, nodding toward the mug.
She crosses the room and wraps her hands around it, lifting it to her face. She lets out a soft sigh as she takes a sip, then sets it back down.
For a moment, she just stands there.
Then—
“Shall we take it to bed?”
The words hit me like a jolt.
I go still.
Her voice is quiet. Almost careful.
When I turn, her pupils are huge, her lips parted.
“To bed,” I repeat, slower this time. “Are you sure?”
She wets her lips, swallows.
“Yes,” she says. “Never been surer.”
Every instinct in me is pushing forward, urging me to close the distance, to throw her over my shoulder and carry her to bed.
But that’s not going to happen. I’m going to make sure every moment of this is perfect.
So I make myself slow.
“Come here,” I say.
She does.
She comes to me like she’s already decided.
Mine.
I pull her into my arms, and this time I don’t hold back.
I kiss her, deep, hungry.
She makes a sound—low, surprised—and then she’s kissing me back, and it’s that shift, that instant where she meets me instead of yielding, that snaps the last thread of restraint.
I run my hands up her back, feeling her bare skin, and she shudders against me.
“Gunnar—”
My name breaks against my mouth and I drag my lips from hers, down her jaw, feeling the way she reacts to it. The way her body answers before her mind can catch up.
She lets out a shaky breath that sounds nothing like caution.
Her hands are on me now—everywhere—uncertain at first, then bolder, exploring.
That’s it.
I lift her right off her feet.
She gasps, but as I sweep her into my arms, she clings to me.
I carry her straight to the bedroom and set her down on the bed.
Her hair is damp, falling loose around her shoulders. Her lips are swollen from my kisses and her chest is rising and falling rapidly.
My hand comes to her face, thumb brushing along her cheek, and she leans into it with a soft sigh.
“You tell me if you want me to stop,” I say.
Her gaze doesn’t waver.
“I won’t.”
I move in again, my mouth on hers, trying to stay slow. I can’t. Not with the way she responds. The way her body keeps moving closer, like it’s trying to get to mine.
My hands go to the hem of her pajama top.
Her breath catches, her body stilling in a way that tells me she’s paying attention to every movement.
I lift the fabric slowly.
Her gaze stays on mine as I do it, steady, unflinching, even as the cotton slides up over her skin, exposing her inch by inch.
My beast purrs at the sight of her bare breasts. Two perfect, round mounds, topped by the sweetest pink nipples. I drop my head and take them into my mouth for the second time today.
She moans. She’s wilder now, more confident, and it’s as sexy as hell. When I grasp the waistband of her pajama pants, her breath catches, but she doesn’t stop me.
Slowly, slowly, I ease them down, exposing that sweet dark triangle between her soft thighs. I push them apart, and desire shudders through me as I see her bare pussy for the first time. So pink and perfect. She squirms a little as I hold her right there, taking her in.
“Gunnar,” she whispers.
“What?” I say.
Instead of answering, she bites her lip.
Oh, I get it. It feels good. Weird, and exposing, but good.
I spread her with my fingers, revealing her tiny, closed entrance, barely big enough for one finger.
Soon my cock is going to break through it.
It seems impossible. But I know she’s gonna take me, because she’s my mate, and her pussy is made just for my cock.
I’m burning to make her mine forever. But first I need to taste her.
I dip my head and lick her the length of her slit.
Her hips buck and she gives a wild cry. She’s so sensitive, my girl. It drives me crazy. When I flick my tongue across her little bud, she cries out again, and her fingers tangle into my hair.
“Oh, Gunnar, that feels so good,” she mutters as I lick her back and forth, figuring out her rhythm. My beast might be feral, but it senses what she needs.
Soon, I feel her body trembling, her hips rising rhythmically to meet my lashing tongue.
“Oh my god,” she cries out like she can’t quite believe it. “I’m going to come—” she wails, and explodes right in my mouth. Her honey-sweet juices flow out of her as the orgasm surges through her body.
It’s a long time before she’s done, and she falls back limp against the pillow, breasts rising and falling in time with her breathing. She’s not embarrassed now, all spread out in front of me, eyes soft with sated pleasure.
Now, my beast growls. At last, it’s right. I strip my shirt off carelessly. Then I notice her eyes burning into me, taking in my body.
Suddenly, she sits up and runs her hands all over my chest before planting kisses on my belly. “You’re so sexy,” she murmurs.
I’d never thought of myself as sexy before, but I sure love the way her eyes feast on me, like she can’t get enough. She grabs the back of my neck and pulls me down for a kiss.
Then—I can hardly believe it—she unfastens the zipper on my jeans.
I’m not wearing any underwear and my cock springs out, massive and rock-hard.
“Oh—” she says, taking it in the first time. She’s wondering how it can fit inside her. Maybe she doesn’t want it to—
Holy crap. She reaches out and suddenly, her small dainty hand wraps around my throbbing shaft.
Fuck.
I hiss out a groan through gritted teeth. Pre-cum is leaking from the end. She rubs it all over the head of my dick and up and down my shaft.
“Alexandria,” I grit out.
She looks up at me, lips parted expectantly.
“I need to be inside you—now.”
She smiles and lays back on the pillows again, her beautiful thighs spread wide for me.
I fall on her, arching over her beautiful body, so I don’t crush her with my beastly weight. Then I press the head of my cock to her tiny entrance. She’s so slick, it slides right in.
“Give it to me, Gunnar,” she murmurs. “I’m ready for you.”
Fuck. The last of my willpower dissolves and I break through her virginity. She gives a cry of pain, and pushes back on my chest.
I go still, studying her expression.
“No, it’s okay,” she gasps. “I want it. I want it all.”
My beast surges and I push in, slowly sliding my entire length into her.
When I hit home, my beast roars inside me. I’ve got her. She’s mine now.
“Oh, god,” she mutters. “It’s in me.”
“All the way in, baby,” I growl.
“Fuck me. Fuck me like you want to.”
I gaze down at her—my fierce, beautiful mate—and something in me breaks loose. I pull out and thrust back into her again.
She gasps as I plunge into her again and again, her body tightening around me, her hands gripping my shoulders as if she needs something to hold onto.
Jesus, it feels incredible. She so tiny, gripping my cock so tightly. I grit my teeth, forcing myself to stay controlled.
She meets me with every thrust, matching the rhythm as it builds between us.
“Gunnar—”
My name breaks from her again, breathlessly, and it drives me harder.
I set the pace.
Deep. Certain.
“Like that,” she gasps. “Don’t stop—”
That’s it.
My movements grow rougher, my beast taking over. The sound of her, the feel of her, the way she reacts to every thrust—it all feeds into something primal inside me.
Mine.
The word pulses through me, louder now, undeniable.
Her body tightens suddenly, her breath catching, her nails biting into my skin as she cries out—louder this time, breaking apart beneath me.
I don’t stop. I ride through her climax, drawing it out as long as I can.
When her hands slacken on my shoulders at last, I pull out and flip her over. She makes a sound of surprise. I raise her hips, positioning her lovely ass just so, and I drive into her again.
She cries out as I push into her from behind, driving deeper in this new position.
It’s wild, feral, and she moans and groans as I fuck her faster now, my beast rising to the surface.
“Gunnar, I—”
Holy fuck, she’s coming again. Her tiny pussy spasms around my shaft, and it pushes me over the edge.
My jaws ache as my beast’s canines break through. I move her silky hair off her neck, exposing the vulnerable spot. Then I bite down, my sharp teeth breaking through her tender skin.
Her body jolts beneath me, a gasp breaking from her as the bond connects.
Mine.
A moment later, I explode, flooding her womb with my hot seed.
I hold there, braced over her, breathing hard, my body still shuddering with the force of it.
She collapses beneath me, face turned to the side against the pillows, hair spread out, breath coming fast and ragged.
Then I shift carefully, easing my weight off her, guiding her onto her side.
I pull her in close, one arm sliding around her waist, the other coming up to cradle her, keeping her tucked against my chest.
She fits there perfectly.
Her back against me, her breath slowly evening out, her hand drifting over mine like she needs the contact.
I press my face into her hair, breathing her in.
“I love you, Alexandria,” I whisper.
I feel her stiffen, and I hold my breath.
“Oh, I love you too,” she says in a rush.
I smile to myself and my beast purrs.
The bond hums between us—steady, constant.
A satisfaction spreads through me.
She’s mine.
My mate.
My arms tighten around her, holding her closer.
She lets out a soft breath, relaxing further into me, like she feels it too.
And I keep her right where she is.