10. Maddy
CHAPTER TEN
MADDY
I crept into the bedroom, my footsteps feather-light against the hardwood floors. Rafe lay sprawled on the bed, his chest rising and falling with the steady rhythm of deep sleep. Bruises crept over his skin, some already fading but others looking as painful as the red welts of the healing claw and bite marks.
Fates, he’d had me worried when he went down. Tara had insisted he just needed to rest and recover, her forehead wrinkled with concern as she tended to the worst of his wounds. But he’d lost so much blood from all those cuts and punctures—nearly lost his throat —that I found her hard to believe.
My wolf snarled at the potential outcome, the circumstances that put us here, and the idea of a single Black Sands wolf still breathing.
I shook my head to clear the cobwebs keeping all that fear trapped in my head. Rafe lived. He breathed. The wounds closed. I had to hold on to those facts.
My shoulders ached as I pulled my shirt over my head and padded for the bathroom. The hot spray of the shower beckoned, a chance to wash away the grime and tension coiled tight in my muscles. The water couldn’t warm fast enough.
I stepped under the pounding stream, letting the water run over my skin in rivulets. The heat loosened my knotted muscles, drawing a sigh from my lips. Rafe would be fine. He had to be. Because the idea of losing such a strong, brave man to fucking useless violence was unbearable.
Days, just days ago, I had been trapped and facing a cruel future. Choice and chance brought me to the Dusk Valley pack house, and I was so, so grateful for the umbrella of Rafe’s protection. He had no reason to keep us.
Bloody, murderous evidence stacked up to make us problems not worth keeping.
The creak of the bathroom door jolted me from my thoughts. I whipped around, heart thundering, imagining another threat breaching our sanctuary.
Rafe stood framed in the doorway, his tousled hair and sleepy eyes at odds with the taut lines of his muscled frame and all the purple bruises and welts. Still, those didn’t stop the lazy smile curving his lips as his gaze raked over my naked form.
Didn’t stop the quickening of my pulse, either.
“Didn’t mean to startle you,” he rumbled, his voice still husky with sleep.
I exhaled a shaky breath, suddenly hyper-aware I wore nothing but hot water. “I thought?—”
“That I was someone else?” He arched a brow, amusement dancing in his steel-blue eyes. “After last night, I’d be offended if you weren’t a little on edge.”
Embarrassment flooded my cheeks, but Rafe didn’t give me a chance to respond. In two strides, he stepped in behind me, hands ghosting down my back. The heat of his body enveloped me, his fingers tracing the curve of my hips with maddening leisure.
“How are they?” His voice was a low rumble against the nape of my neck.
I leaned against his broad chest, savoring the solidity of him. Alive and whole. “Elise is fuming and snapping at everyone. Brielle’s still shaken, but Orion’s keeping her calm. Tara is only holding it together taking care of you and Kai, I think.”
Rafe’s fingers tightened on my hips. “And how is he?”
I winced at the sharp crack of memory. The cruel smirk, Kai’s screams. Delicate bones were hard for our kind to heal properly when the fractures tried mending themselves so fast, and even then, there was a chance of lingering issues.
He loved to sketch, too.
“Hurting. So naturally, he’s acting cocky and defiant.” I tried for a lighter tone, but the words rang hollow even to me.
Rafe made a soft sound of acknowledgment. For a few heartbeats, only the patter of the shower filled the silence between us.
“I thought I’d lost you all.”
The anguish in his voice pulled me around to face him. Rafe’s expression was tight, his eyes shuttered as he stared at a point over my shoulder. I reached up, cupping the rough line of his jaw until his gaze met mine.
“We’re here,” I murmured. “Thanks to you.”
His lips twitched in a pained approximation of a smile. “Yeah, well. Don’t thank me yet. We’ve got Bowen’s whole damn pack to deal with now.”
“Gone. The whole damn lot of them.” I huffed out a breath, pushing back the damp hair clinging to his forehead. “Apparently civility wasn’t what they wanted in an alpha.”
Rafe snorted. “Can’t say I was looking forward to a pack numbering in the dozens.”
His turn to attempt humor and not quite land. Something in his eyes remained dark and troubled.
“Someone told me you were never meant to be alpha in the first place.” I traced the fading bruise along his cheekbone, unable to shake the image of him lying crumpled and bleeding on the ground. “But last night, I saw a man who would risk everything—and that was just the trip to the bar.”
His brows shot together and another snort escaped him.
“I saw someone who would do anything for his pack,” I continued. He tilted his head back as my fingertips trailed downward and skimmed the sides of Bowen’s bite. “I saw someone who tried the bloodless way, and wasn’t afraid to show his fangs when there was nowhere else to turn.”
He took my hand in his, raising it to his lips. The tender kiss he placed on my palm sent a jolt of electricity racing through me. His gaze never left mine as he turned my hand over and brushed another kiss across my knuckles.
“I saw a wolf I would be proud to call alpha, and they’re idiots if they didn’t also see that.”
I gulped down the whine of my wolf. Pain carved itself on my heart. I’d thought about the next words while checking on the others, comforting Kai, watching Rafe sleep. My inner animal hated them; I needed to take away any guilt he might carry.
“And that’s why I will understand if you turn Kai and I out. We brought this trouble to your pack, and we will accept banishment if that’s your choice.”
My words hung heavy in the air. Fear threatened to choke me as I waited for his reply, my eyes never leaving his. I wished I could take comfort in the steady, calm expression he wore, but my stomach lurched like I was in free fall.
Rafe was a good alpha. The best I’d ever known. But this was more than most males had taken on without complaint. We were the threat to his safety. We were the catalyst for Bowen’s fury.
But none of that stopped the aching in my chest at the thought of losing this closeness with my mate.
He lowered his head, his lips brushing against mine in a whisper-soft caress. “I’m never letting you go, little wolf.”
The words were a vow, spoken in a low rasp that sent shivers down my spine. His hand slid around to the back of my neck, pulling me closer. My lips parted in a gasp as he deepened the kiss, claiming me with an intensity that stole my breath.
The water beat down on us, washing away the day’s worries with every drop. I moaned against Rafe’s mouth, my body melting against his as desire coursed through me. He growled, the low sound reverberating through me, and the sting of his teeth nipping my bottom lip nearly brought my knees out from under me.
I clung to him, desperate for more, the raw hunger in his kisses sending me spiraling higher. When he finally broke the kiss, I was panting, my chest heaving as I struggled to catch my breath.
Rafe rested his forehead against mine, his eyes closed as he drew in a deep, shuddering breath. “Fuck, Maddy...”
The rasp of his voice was pure sin, and I could feel his growing arousal pressing against my thigh. I leaned into him, tracing the tip of my tongue along the shell of his ear and smiling as I heard his breath catch in his throat.
“Let me take care of you,” I whispered, letting my fingers trail down his chest. “Let me show you my gratitude.”
A shudder wracked his body as I took his cock in my hand, the growl of his wolf thrumming through the room. He groaned as I began to stroke him, long and slow, his fingers digging into my hips hard enough to bruise.
“Fuck,” he breathed, the word a guttural sound in the back of his throat. “And how do you plan to do that?”
I made my way to my knees, rolling my thumb over the swollen head of his cock and slicking my movements with his precum.
“I might have been a virgin, but I’m not entirely naive. I’ve touched myself.” I raised my eyes to meet his, flashing him a wicked smile. “I’ve given head.”
“You’ll just have to show me.” Rafe swore as I licked him, my tongue swirling along the length of him and catching the underside of his shaft. He tangled his fingers in my wet hair, a low groan of pleasure rumbling through his chest. “To make sure you’ve had a thorough education.”
I parted my lips, letting him sink into my mouth, slow and inch by glorious inch. His grip on my hair tightened, a hiss slipping between his teeth. He tasted salty and clean, and I hummed as I began to suckle him.
The urge to swallow him whole, to make him lose control, gripped me in its talons. My tongue swirled over the velvety tip of his dick. I pushed forward, relaxing my jaw to take in a little more, a little faster.
Rafe’s groan filled my ears, spurring me on. I wrapped a hand around the base of his cock, pumping it in time with each bob of my head. He shuddered, the muscles of his thighs tensing as I found a steady rhythm.
I could lose myself in the delicious act of worshiping his body. His scent flooded my nostrils, driving away any rational thought left in my head. My wolf whined and clawed and howled in my head. Desperation ran through her, utter need for me to acknowledge the piece of the puzzle she’d known from the moment we stepped into Dusk Valley territory.
Rafe was my mate. My fated mate.
And my wolf was relentless in her insistence that I admit the truth.
Not just convenience. Not just someone to hide behind. I’d picked him instinctively, following the unknown siren call to the exact place I needed to be—with him. I needed someone to have my back and let me make my mistakes. I needed someone to let me breathe and stand on my own. He didn’t want some meek thing, he wanted me. He wanted me as his equal.
I didn’t have anything worth actual money to my name, but I had my heart and soul and body. I was entirely his.
I lifted my gaze to find Rafe staring down at me, his eyes dark with lust and his teeth digging into his bottom lip. His fingers flexed in my hair, tugging me toward him. A wave of heat washed over me, desire pooling in my core as his cock slid deeper into my mouth.
“Fuck, that’s good,” he groaned, his grip on my hair tightening as he guided my movements. “Are you as wet as you smell, little wolf? Show me how you touch yourself.”
I moaned around him, the vibration causing his hips to jerk forward. He held me in place as he thrust into my mouth, fucking me with a new level of hunger that left me trembling. My hand drifted lower, rubbing the bundle of nerves at the apex of my thighs.
The combination of having my pussy played with, and the sight of Rafe’s face contorting in ecstasy... I was helpless against the building pressure, the coil in my belly winding tighter and tighter with every flick of my fingers.
A growl vibrated through his chest, a feral sound that sent shivers down my spine. His pace quickened, his grip on my hair turning almost punishing. The taste of him coated my tongue and I swallowed around him, taking him as deep as I could.
His breath turned ragged, his head dropping back against the wall. “I want you to come for me, Maddy. Right now. I want to hear you moan while your filthy mouth is full of my cock.”
I slipped a finger inside of me, slicking my clit with my own wetness as I worked myself into a frenzy. I craved release, the ache inside me desperate for him to fill me completely. My eyelids fluttered shut, my moans coming faster as I rode the edge of oblivion.
And then I tipped over the brink, my orgasm ripping through me with an intensity that left me reeling. I groaned, the sound muffled around him as I clenched my thighs, trying to ride out the waves of pleasure that left me weak and quivering.
With a final snap of his hips, Rafe yanked me off his cock and hauled me to my feet. He spun me around, slamming my back into the cool tile wall, his gaze locked on mine. There was no mistaking the hunger burning in those blue depths, the desire to take and possess.
I gasped as he dragged a finger through my folds, biting back a whimper as he dipped a finger into my dripping center.
“Mmm, yeah, you’re fucking soaked.”
A wicked smirk curled his lips. My wolf preened, delighted by his obvious approval, and I knew I was in for a wild ride.
“Are you soaked enough for my cock, little wolf? Enough to take me into your tight cunt?” He kissed a path up my neck, scraping his teeth across the sensitive skin of my mate mark. “Do you need to come again before I fuck you senseless?”
With one swift motion, Rafe plunged two fingers inside me, hooking them up to find that secret spot within. A gasp tore from my throat, the sudden pressure sending me teetering on the razor’s edge once more.
He leaned in, trailing a line of biting kisses down my neck and collarbone, and I moaned as he sucked a nipple into his mouth. He swirled his tongue around it, teasing it to a hard peak, and then bit down lightly before moving to the other one.
It was all I could do to cling to his shoulders, my fingers digging into the hard planes of his muscles as I struggled to keep myself upright. His free hand tangled in my hair, tugging my head back to expose my throat. He continued his torturous assault, marking my flesh with his lips and teeth until I was gasping for air.
I felt him smile against my skin, reveling in my unraveling. He slid his hand from my hair down my body, dragging it across my breast before drifting lower to settle on my hip. He dug his fingers into my flesh, holding me in place as he rocked against me, grinding his hardness against my clit.
“Yes. No.” The words came out as a ragged breath. “I want you, Rafe. Fuck me.”
His eyes darkened, and in a heartbeat, he had my legs wrapped around his waist and his cock pressed against my pussy. He leaned in, his lips brushing the shell of my ear as he whispered, “I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of you, Maddy.”
And then he slammed into me, sheathing himself to the hilt in one thrust. My head kicked back against the tile, my body arching against his as he stretched and filled me.
Fuck, he felt so good. So right. As if he were made for me.
Mine.
He didn’t give me a chance to recover from the overwhelming sensation. With a grunt, he drew his hips back and thrust into me again, his strokes deep and deliberate as he claimed my body. I dug my nails into his shoulders, hanging on for dear life as he set a relentless pace.
Desire surged through me, molten heat burning through my veins. My skin felt electrified, alive with each touch, each caress, each nip of my shoulder and neck. His scent, his taste, filled my head, drowning out everything but the feeling of him inside me.
“Fates, Maddy.” His voice was a ragged murmur in my ear, his breath hot against my skin. “You feel so fucking perfect. Like you were made for me.”
I ground against him with every stroke, seeking that perfect friction that would send me spiraling over the edge again. He read me perfectly, angling his hips to hit that hidden spot with every thrust. Pleasure coiled deep in my core, white-hot and irresistible, begging to be unleashed.
More. I needed more.
More of him, like this, for the rest of our lives.
Just... more.
I mouthed hot kisses down his neck and across his shoulder. More, more, more. My gums ached with the press of fangs. “Want to claim you.”
Whatever control he still had snapped like a twig. He growled, low and feral. His grip on me tightened, holding me in place as he fucked me harder, deeper, his strokes taking on a desperate edge.
The feeling of my slick skin sliding over his was divine. The hard slams of his cock buried deep in my pussy had me moaning in sheer bliss. His growl shook the very walls around us, his beast ready to tear apart anyone who dared lay a finger on his mate.
The sound, the desperate pounding of our bodies coming together, the hot water cascading over us, it was all too much. My climax struck like lightning, stars exploding behind my eyes as my orgasm crashed over me. I struck, hard and fast, my fangs sinking into the muscle of his shoulder.
His fingers tightened on my ass, and he let out a strangled cry, his hips slamming against mine as he chased his own release. His cock throbbed inside me, filling me with his hot cum as he tumbled over the edge, biting down to claim me in return.
My wolf howled, delirious with delight. Rafe was mine. My mate. Mine.
Rafe slumped against me, his face buried in the crook of my neck as he tried to catch his breath. I tangled my fingers in his hair, and relished the feeling of him still inside me. My entire body felt like jelly, my bones reduced to liquid. I never wanted this moment to end.
“Mine,” he breathed, the word barely audible as his arms tightened around me. “You’re mine, Maddy.”
And I was. I had always been. My heart, my mind, my wolf, they all recognized the same thing.
Rafe was mine. My home. My protector. My mate. Mine, mine, mine.
I was his. Completely, utterly. And nothing would ever come between us and live to tell the tale.
Nothing.