Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
DANTE
Archer: did you take her home?
Dante: yeah
Dante: she said she saw you shift
Archer: yeah. dont drink and shift, man. i fucked up.
Archer: ill take one of the beds here. can you keep an eye on her?
Dante: sure
Dante: you okay?
I stare at the text for five more minutes, but Archer doesn’t reply. He doesn’t have to. I know he’s not happy. I’ve known him for years and ever since we met, he’s been upset about keeping his true nature from his sister.
It’s a good thing Archer decided to stay at the Grim Reaper. Outside, the rain patters against the windows, a soothing rhythm in the otherwise quiet apartment. It wouldn’t be safe for him to ride after drinking that much.
The bathroom door creaks open. Ava walks out, a cloud of steam billowing around her. My breath catches as I drink in the sight of her, all soft curves and damp skin. The fabric of her pajamas hugs her generous hips and full breasts in a way that makes my jeans feel two sizes too small. I can’t tear my eyes away.
She pads over, a small smile playing at her lips. Leaning in, she presses a gentle kiss to my mouth that sends sparks racing through my veins. My wolf howls inside me.
“You okay, darling?” I murmur against her lips, tucking a wet tendril of hair behind her ear.
Ava sighs, resting her forehead against mine. “I just wish he would have told me.” She shakes her head. “If I hadn’t followed him out, would I ever have learned?”
My heart clenches. I get it, I do. Deciding to let someone in on the secret is terrifying. Memories of the massacre flicker through my mind—the screams, the blood, the soul-crushing fear as I hid, praying they wouldn’t find me.
I tilt Ava’s chin up until she meets my gaze.
“Darling. You know your history. You must have read about the Moonstone Massacre.”
Her brows raise. “Of course. I wrote an article earlier this year about the thirty-years anniversary.” Her brows drop into a scowl. “That shifter was just trying to defend herself. What did they expect? That she would let that guy abuse her? And then, the story was completely blown out of proportion. The hysteria that followed.” She meets my gaze. “It’s the story that made me want to make a difference. The entire city of Moonstone was razed to the ground by a mob of anti-shifters and the government acted like an unfortunate accident instead of what it truly was: a hate crime. An awful, terrible massacre.”
Goddess, I’m so proud of this woman. So proud of her passion.
She blinks twice. “Sorry. I got a little too passionate.”
I pinch her chin. “Never apologize for being passionate, darling. Never.” I press a kiss to the corner of her mouth, then stare at her for a moment, judging. Weighing. “Darling. I was there.”
Her brows shoot up in shock. “You were?”
I nod. “What happened back then... it changed everything. There was prejudice before, yes. But nothing like that. We were hunted, Ava. Slaughtered. I was just a kid when it started. I survived by hiding under the rubble. For days. That’s how King found me—this scrawny, feral thing covered in blood and dirt. He saved my life. We met Archer soon after. And we learned quick—you don’t tell anyone what you are. Ever. It’s not about trust. It’s about staying alive.”
Ava’s eyes shimmer with unshed tears. She throws her arms around me, holding tight like she’s afraid I’ll disappear. “I’m so sorry, Dante. God, I’m sorry. I swear I’ll find a way to help. Hiding forever, living in fear... it’s not right. Something has to change.”
“I know,” I whisper at her. “And I believe you will change things. You changed me.”
I capture her mouth in a searing kiss, tangling my fingers in her damp hair to angle her head. She meets me with equal urgency, lips parting on a gasp as our tongues slide together. My hands roaming greedily over her lush body. I palm the heavy weight of her breasts, then find the hard knots of her nipples through her shirt. My hands curl around her ass delicious ass and I grind our hips together.
She is a fucking goddess and I’m ready to worship at her altar.
Growling low in my throat, I take a seat on the couch and haul Ava into my lap. She straddles my thighs, the heat of her core pressing right against my aching cock. She whimpers, hips rolling in needy little circles like she can’t help herself. It takes every ounce of my control not to rip her clothes off and bury myself to the hilt.
But I want to make this good for her. I need to have her writhing and begging. My wolf snarls its approval, desperate to claim our mate.
“That’s it, baby,” I encourage, starting a slow grind. The damp cotton of her pajama shorts creates a delicious friction. “You look so damn perfect dragging your pretty cunt over my cock.”
I slip my hand between our bodies, cupping Ava through the thin fabric. She’s already soaked, arousal bleeding through to dampen my fingers. Groaning, I rub tight circles over her clit, giving her something to rock against as I suck kisses down her throat.
“Dante,” Ava pants, head thrown back in abandon. “Please...”
“I’ve got you.” Hooking my thumbs in her waistband, I drag the pajama shorts down her legs, letting them drop to the floor. She’s bare underneath, and it’s the hottest thing I’ve ever seen, her swollen lips glistening with her arousal.
The scent of her hits me like a punch to the gut and my mouth waters. I want her taste on my tongue again. I want to fucking drown in it.
Gently, I part Ava’s folds with my fingers, revealing the swollen pink of her clit. She jerks when I make contact, a broken moan spilling from her lips. I set a relentless pace—rubbing, circling, flicking—until her thighs start to tremble.
“That’s it. Come on my fingers, darling,” I coax, my free hand gripping the curve of her hip. Ava’s face contorts with pleasure, a beautiful fucking sight, as her orgasm crashes through her.
She rides my hand with frantic desperation, chasing every last spark, until finally collapsing against my chest. I gather her close, dropping reverent kisses in her hair as I let her catch her breath.
I push down the urge to sink into her warmth. I hold her close and let her savor the afterglow.
She glances up at me, her eyes burning. “Dante?”
“Yes, darling?”
“Can I suck your cock?”
Either I died or I’m hallucinating. Either way, I almost come on the spot.
“Fuck, darling.” I grab her around the hips and shoot to my feet. “You don’t have to ask.” I stride with her to my bedroom, dropping her on the bed unceremoniously.
Ava must see the hunger on my face, because she kicks off the rest of her clothes even before I closed the door. I hit the switch on the wall and the yellow light creates a soft glow on her perfect body. I strip down to nothing a moment later. She gawks at me, her gaze going over my muscles and my scars.
I lie down and pull her on top of me, her thighs on either side of my head.
“Wait!” she calls out. “That’s not what I meant.”
“Darling, I need to suck your pussy. You can put your pretty mouth around my cock, but I need to taste you again.”
I try to pull her hips down, but she resists.
“Dante! I’m a big girl. I’m going to suffocate you.”
I scoff. “Holy fuck, I wish. Can you imagine? That would be the best way to go.”
Ava starts another complaint, but I’m too needy for her. I can feel her warm breath on my cock as I dive into her pussy, tasting her sweetness. She moans, her hips tilting.
My mate leans forward, her body pressing to mine. She wraps her hand around the base of my cock. I feel it twitch. It takes everything in me not to pump my hips the second her lips touching my cockhead.
Her mouth feels perfect.
I groan against her pussy, my eyelids fluttering shut with pure delight. She sucks me so well. She laps at me, then lets her saliva drip down my shaft before she catches it with her fingers and pumps. Ava sucks at the head, her little tongue teasing at the slit, while her hand moves up and down.
Fuck. I’ll go off in two seconds flat.
I push a finger into her as I suck her clit. Ava is already sensitive, and she explodes on my tongue, squishing her thighs around my face. I grunt. Fucking hell. She feels better than I expected.
The second her aftershocks pass, I manhandle Ava onto the mattress. Her chest moves up and down as she catches her breath. She gapes at me with eyes hazy with lust.
I desperately need to be inside her.
“Darling,” I breathe out against her cheek. “Let me fuck you.” I spread her knees, taking my spot between them. “Let me feel this perfect cunt around my cock or I’ll fucking die.”
“Please,” she replies, whimpering. “Please, please.”
My body trembles with restraint as I press my cockhead to her pussy. She’s so fucking wet. She’s so fucking warm. I slowly enter her, feeling her tightness envelop me. My eyelids flutter shut as a groan climbs my throat.
My wolf is crying out inside me, wanting to mark her as my mate. It’s so hard for a shifter to take their mate without marking them first. But I’ve grown used with being controlled.
I only risk losing my head with her.
Ava wraps her arms and legs around me, keeping me flush against her. My hips move like a piston. I fuck her hard, loving the feel of her body against mine. Her eyes roll to the back of her head. She climaxes again. I double my speed. Ava screams, her nails digging into my shoulders.
And the pain is bliss.
Pleasure barrels down my spine and I come undone. I come inside her, hard and long, and so fucking perfect I don’t want to ever leave.
I will never leave. This woman has me. This woman has my very soul.