8. Roen
ROEN
“This should tide you over for now.” I carry in the last bag of Nova’s groceries and set it on the counter. “As soon as the new parts arrive, it’ll only take a day or two to fix up your car.”
We share a silent look. A part of me—more than I’d like to admit—had hoped Olivia found some kind of magic solution. But the answer was there all along. I knew when I bit Nova the only choice left was to face her rejection.
As long as I know she’s safe, I’ll deal with the consequences. She’s smart and sexy and has her whole life ahead of her. A life she’ll share with someone else. I turn so she can’t see my snarl.
“Wait,” she calls as I head toward the door. She hesitates, splaying her palm on the counter. “I wanted to say this without, you know.” She gives a nervous laugh. “Without being in the middle of a crisis.”
I reach out, feeling her calm as my hand brushes hers. Dammit, we shouldn’t be touching. But I can’t see my mate struggle and not do anything about it.
She glances down and entwines our fingers. “Even if we didn’t have a bond, I’d want to be with someone like you.”
My guard slips as both our heartbeats threaten to split apart my chest. It’s hard to tell where her emotions end and mine begin.
“I wish I could be a better mate,” she whispers.
It takes every ounce of restraint not to gather her close and never, ever let go. “Nova.” I press our palms together and use my other hand to tip her chin up. Her soft brown eyes fill my entire universe. “You are the perfect mate.”
As soon as the words leave my mouth, her energy shifts. It’s not the first time I’ve felt this from her, either. I frown. “What’s bothering you?”
She tries to look away, but I keep my hand on her chin firm.
“Can’t you tell with your wolf powers?” she mumbles.
“You still need to communicate properly.” Any good partner—human or lycan, mate or dominant—knows that’s the first and most important rule.
“It’s silly,” she insists.
“Not to me.”
She nibbles her lip. “My ex used to say these little comments about my body, then blamed me when he cheated. My coworkers talked behind my back. I guess those voices never went away. I’m just a bit self-conscious, is all.”
Her body language says she’s more than a bit self-conscious. I want to track down her ex and claw out his vocal cords so he never speaks again.
“I understand.” I drop my hand and step back for a better view. “Take off your shirt.”
She flushes deep red. “What?”
“You’re perfect, and I’ll tell you as many times as I need to. Now take off your shirt so from now on, the only voice you hear is mine.” No matter what happens at the end of the week, she needs to know exactly how I see her. How starved I am for her .
She takes an unsteady breath and fingers the hem of her shirt. “It’s daylight. And the windows are open.”
“No one comes near you without my permission,” I growl. “It’s just you and me.” The natural light only makes her more tempting. My eyes catch on the bite mark, and whatever look crosses my face must eliminate the rest of her doubts.
The scent of her arousal goes straight to my dick. As if I hadn’t been semi-hard all day.
One inch of skin at a time, she bares herself. I suppress another growl. “I’d mark you everywhere if I could—because I want it all. There’s not a single part of you that doesn’t deserve my devotion.”
She pulls the shirt over her head, exposing a soft stomach and breasts that fill out a simple black bra. Her shoulders hunch slightly, as if she’s still trying to hide, but she doesn’t shy away as I take in every lush curve.
“If I was your submissive, what would it be like?” she breathes.
I step forward and bring my pointer finger to the hinge of her jaw. “I’ve never claimed someone as mine. You’d be the first that belongs to me.”
She sighs as I trace the mark of my teeth on her neck. “I’d bruise deeper than your skin. I’d want your heart tender and dark, your soul burning as deeply as I burn for you.”
I follow her collarbone and watch her chest rise as she inhales. I trace to her other shoulder, then use both hands to straighten her posture and smooth down her arms. She’s soft, but I can feel her strength. Nervous, but waiting to be set free.
I guide her hand to my cock, straining in my jeans and fighting to shred through the denim. “This is all you.”
She looks up through dark lashes. “Would you train me to take you as an alpha?”
We’re crossing into dangerous territory, playing it too close to the line, but I’m as wrapped up in the moment as she is. It’s like there’s a live wire zapping between us. An instinct too strong to ignore.
“You’d have to accept the pain.” I grab the nape of her neck and press my thumb over her pulse. “Surrender while I push in my knot and breed you.”
It’s a fantasy, nothing more. Even if her body learned to take mine, I’d have to remain in control. I’d have to be able to stop myself, and despite years of practice, I can barely keep from coming as it is.
She leans in close enough that her warm breath puffs over me. I part my lips, but the air scorches my lungs. My dick throbs in her hand.
“What if it’s possible?” she whispers.
My hips thrust into her palm, seeking friction and heat. I’ve never felt so on edge. So raw with need. “I’d give anything for it,” I admit.
“Give yourself.” Her hand reaches under my shirt, my abdomen flexing as if she burned me. “If I’m going to break, I want it to be with you.”
Then she covers my mouth with hers. I splinter into a million pieces.
All at once, my fist tangles in her hair, and pleasure races up my spine.
She gasps, letting me delve deeper into her mouth, and I feel the sticky, wet mess of cum in my pants.
It’s not enough. It’ll never be enough. I trace my tongue over her teeth and bite her lip, savoring the sweat on her skin and sucking on the tender spot under her jaw.
She accepted me as her mate. There’s no going back now.
“Why would you want this?” I growl. Even as the words leave my mouth, something clicks inside me. The peace I’ve been missing all these years.
“I trust you,” she answers. “This is my home—I can feel it. You are my home. I’d rather take a risk than regret walking away for the rest of my life.”
“We can’t undo it.” I lick over the bite mark, making her arch as I tug her hair a little harder. The need to have her overpowers every thought. It’s my sole purpose. “Once I’ve had a taste, I won’t be able to go without.”
She starts to reply, but it comes out as a groan when I rip open her pants.
The button flies across the kitchen and skitters on the floor.
I lift her onto the counter and tear off the rest of her clothes.
Her nipples are dark and stiff as I catch one in my mouth, rolling it over my tongue until she squirms.
“I need to come,” she gasps.
“I know.” I move to her other breast and tease it with my teeth just so I can hear her moan louder. “You belong to me now, and I’m going to savor every minute of it.”
I’m not yet convinced we should go through with this, but I also can’t help myself.
I push her knees as far apart as the counter will allow, and take in the full scene: small quivers of her stomach as she tries to hold herself together, thick thighs spread on either side of my hips, and the swell of her clit at the center of it all.
“Please, Roen,” she begs. “The heat…it’s coming back.”
I press her legs so she can’t move. “My brave, beautiful mate…” Leaning down, I drink her in with another kiss. “You’d have to endure much more than this.”
If she wants to take me, then we’ll both have to prove ourselves.
“What should I do?” She’s panting harder, bracing her hands on my biceps.
“Take deep breaths.” I skim lower and nuzzle into her sex. It’s like shooting an aphrodisiac straight into my veins. My tongue darts out for a taste, a quick flicker. She bucks into my face, and I grind against the cabinet. Our groans fill the room.
Ravenous, I go in for more, sucking all of her into my mouth. Her clit pulses as I nibble on it like a ripe berry. Her legs tremble, but she follows my command and evens out her breaths. I rub as much of her into my skin as I can. I want to bathe in her scent. I want it embedded in my DNA.
She cries out as her orgasm ripples through the bond. My dick kicks in response. When I’m finally able to pull back, she’s made a puddle on the counter. A sound I’ve never heard before rumbles from the back of my throat.
“I need more.” I drag my eyes up her body and slowly press two fingers into her cunt. “I need you so wet that you’re dripping onto the floor.”
She stares back at me wide-eyed. Then her head tips back as I curl my fingers and find her sweet spot. It exposes her neck, and I bare my teeth, pulling away at the last second before I bite her again. “Eyes on me, mate.”
“Can’t…think…” she pants, fighting to meet my gaze.
“You’re doing good,” I praise. “I’ll make you come until it gets better.” This is her first true heatwave, and I need to gauge how much they affect her. I shouldn’t even consider it . But if there’s a chance—if there’s a way to keep her—I have to try.
I add another finger and pick up the pace. Her pussy is so tight, it barely fits past my second knuckle. I guide her hips to help her fuck my hand. The clutch and flutter of her walls is enough to drive me wild.
“Ah,” she moans. “It’s too much.”
“Don’t you dare slow down.”
Her eyes dilate until they’re almost black. We both shudder with her second orgasm. She whines and gasps for air. “More.”
I eagerly lick my lips. “Take what you need.”
Then I dip my head and lap her up. Her thighs clamp around my head. My fingers work her pussy harder as my tongue circles her clit, and I lose all sense of reality. I don’t even register that she came again until she’s yanking at my hair.
“Roen, the heat’s fading. Roen! I’m sensitive and you’re—I’m—” She almost rolls off the counter with a shriek. My dick pulses painfully as she orgasms a fourth time. I shove my face into her thigh, growling with the effort it takes not to keep going.
Her fingers loosen from my hair, petting me like a dog. “Are you okay?”
I grunt. She laughs.
Holding my breath to block out her scent, I raise my head and bring our foreheads together. “If we’re really going to try this, I don’t want to skip the important parts. So, Nova, can I take you on a date this week?”
She kisses my cheek. “Absolutely.”