Chapter 25 #2
"Not strong enough." She straightened, and something in her expression shifted. Became more vulnerable. Without warning, she grabbed the hem of her sports bra and pulled it off, then shimmied out of her shorts and underwear until she stood completely naked in my streaming room.
My brain short-circuited. "Callie—"
"This is when I feel most vulnerable," she said, arms wrapped around herself but not hiding.
"Not the nudity itself, but... my body. I know I project confidence, savage energy, but I've never been comfortable in my skin.
Too soft here, not enough there. I see you, how comfortable you are in your body, how you inhabit it completely, and I want that.
Want to feel strong, capable, not just.. . decorative."
The parallel to my own words made my chest tight. I moved toward her slowly, giving her time to change her mind, to cover herself. She didn't.
"You're perfect," I said, letting my hands hover near her waist, not touching yet. "Every single inch of you."
"I'm not—"
"You are." I dropped to my knees in front of her, looking up so she could see the truth in my eyes.
"But if you want to get stronger, to build muscle, to learn how your body can move.
.. I'll teach you. Not for content, not for anyone else.
Just for you. Because you deserve to feel as powerful as you actually are. "
Tears gathered in her eyes. "You'd do that?"
"I'd do anything for you." The words came out raw, honest. "Callie, I've been dying watching Nova and Milo's marks on you. Not because I'm jealous, I mean, I am, but because I want to give you everything too. Want you to choose me too."
She tangled her fingers in my hair, pulling me up until we were face to face. "Then let me."
Before I could process her words, she'd pushed me back onto the workout bench and straddled me, her naked body pressing against mine in a way that made coherent thought impossible. Her mouth found my neck, kissing and nipping at the sensitive skin.
"Callie, wait—"
"No more waiting." She bit down hard on my shoulder, not quite breaking skin but close. "I know my bite can't initiate the bond, but I want to mark you first. Want you to know I'm choosing you, Eli Wolfgang Reyes. Not Blitz, not the thirst trap, not the so-called himbo. You."
The words broke something open in me. When she bit down again, harder this time, drawing blood, I lost all control. My hands gripped her hips as I flipped our positions, pressing her into the bench. She looked up at me with such trust, such certainty, that my vision blurred.
"Say it again," I demanded, voice rough with need.
"I choose you, Eli Wolfgang Reyes. Bite me. Make me yours."
I didn't need another invitation. My teeth found her neck, sinking deep into an unmarked section opposite where Milo had claimed her.
The bond slammed into place with overwhelming force, her emotions flooding through me, her pleasure, her certainty, her love.
It was too much and not enough and absolutely everything.
She came just from the bite, her body arching beneath mine as the bond settled. I followed her over, the most intense orgasm of my life ripping through me without removing the rest of my clothes.
When I pulled back, blood on my lips, she was looking at me with such tenderness that tears started rolling down my cheeks.
"Why are you crying?" she asked softly, thumbing away the tears.
"You see me," I managed, voice cracking. "Not just the abs or the dimples or the content. You actually see me."
"I see someone worth choosing," she corrected, pulling me down for a kiss that tasted like copper and promise.
"Someone who's going to teach me to be strong, not for the camera but for myself.
Someone who understands that bodies are tools, not just decoration.
Someone I love for exactly who they are. "
We stayed there on my workout bench, her still naked, me still mostly clothed, both of us wrecked by the intensity of the bond. Through it, I could feel her genuine admiration, her attraction that went so much deeper than physical, her joy at finally being able to choose me properly.
I could also feel her want, the way her body was responding to mine and even though I'd just come in my shorts like a damned high schooler I was already hard again. For her.
The bond hummed between us like a live wire, her emotions flooding my system — want, affection, that sharp edge of possessiveness that made my alpha instincts roar.
My hands mapped her body with reverence, tracing the softness of her stomach, the curve of her hips, the way her breath hitched when I brushed my thumb over her nipple.
"You're so fucking beautiful," I murmured against her skin, kissing the fresh bite mark on her neck. My mark. The reality of it sent another pulse of heat through me. "Tell me what you need."
She arched into my touch, her fingers digging into my shoulders. "I need you to stop being so gentle and fuck me like you mean it."
The words went straight to my cock, already painfully hard again. I growled, the sound vibrating against her collarbone. "You sure? Because I can be very thorough when I—"
"Eli." Her voice dropped into that huskier register, the one that made my name sound like a command. "Less talking, more—"
I cut her off with a kiss, swallowing her words as I finally, finally gave in to what we both wanted.
My hands slid under her ass, lifting her as I stood, her legs wrapping around my waist instinctively.
The movement pressed her against my erection, and the sound she made, somewhere between a gasp and a whimper, nearly undid me.
Two steps and I had her against the wall, the cool surface making her gasp as it hit her back. I broke the kiss just long enough to yank my shorts down, freeing my cock. The first press of me against her had us both groaning, the heat between her legs almost unbearable.
"Fuck, Callie. I'm not even inside you and you already feel amazing."
Her answer was to sink her teeth into my shoulder again, hard enough to draw blood. I surged forward in one smooth motion, burying myself to the hilt.
Fuck. Fuck. The feel of her, tight and hot and perfect, had my vision whiting out for a second. Her nails dug into my back as she adjusted, her breath coming in sharp little gasps that went straight to my cock.
"You good?" I managed, holding perfectly still even though every instinct screamed to move.
"Better than good," she panted, her inner muscles clenching around me experimentally. "Fuck, you feel—"
I didn't let her finish. With a growl, I pulled back and snapped my hips forward, setting a rhythm that had her head falling back against the wall. The bond between us flared with every thrust, her pleasure feeding mine in a feedback loop that had me seeing stars.
Her legs tightened around me as I changed the angle, finding that spot inside her that made her curse. "Right there, don't you dare—oh god—"
I did it again. And again. Her nails raked down my back, the sting of it only making me harder. The room filled with the sounds of skin slapping, our ragged breathing, the little noises she made every time I bottomed out.
"Eli, I'm—" Her words dissolved into a cry as her orgasm hit, her body clamping down around me so tight I nearly followed her over. I gritted my teeth, forcing myself to keep moving through her climax, drawing it out until she was boneless against the wall.
Only then did I let myself go, my release hitting like a freight train.
My knot popping into her as I buried my face in her neck while I came spilling myself inside her over and over again until it felt like my balls were completely empty.
My teeth found the fresh bite mark again, but I didn't break the skin, just sucked and licked at it which made her coil tight around me with pleasure.
I couldn't seem to stop myself as I coaxed another orgasm from her using just the bite alone and the gentle rocking I was able to manage with my knot keeping us together. She squeezed my cock, her body milking it for all it was worth as the orgasm rolled through her, making her gasp my name.
For a long moment, we just stayed there, pressed together, our breathing slowly returning to normal.
The bond between us hummed with contentment, her emotions warm and satisfied in my mind.
A purr vibrated through my chest surprising both of us, but I loved it.
Any way I could show her how much she meant to me and how happy she made me was good in my book.
I finally pulled back enough to see her face. She looked thoroughly wrecked, hair messy, lips swollen, my mark dark on her neck. Perfect.
"Still think I'm just a himbo?" I asked, unable to keep the smirk off my face as I helped her down.
She swatted my chest half-heartedly, her legs still unsteady. "Asshole. That was—"
"Incredible? Life-changing? The best sex of your—"
"Don't ruin it," she laughed, but her eyes were soft as she reached up to cup my face. "It was perfect. You're perfect."
The words settled something in me, something that had been tense and uncertain since the moment we met. I pressed my forehead to hers, breathing her in.
"Love you," I said, the words coming easier than they ever had before. "Not just the bond talking. I love you, Callie Odette Cross."
Her breath hitched. "Eli Wolfgang Reyes," she said, her voice thick with emotion, "I love you too. Now take me to bed before I decide to ride you again right here on your gym floor."