Chapter 17
There was a roaring in Murphy’s ears as Nessa took possession of his mouth.
He froze, surprise holding him immobile as his mate’s soft, full lips fit perfectly against his, the sweet aroma of berries and vanilla invading his senses until there was nothing but her.
She pulled back, opening her eyes and staring up at him with an unreadable expression.
Dazed, he could only stare back, the roaring in his ears growing in its intensity.
Was it his bear? His heart, perhaps, beating ferociously in his chest?
He didn’t know, his mind a haze of need.
His hands itched to pin her beneath him, to rut her into the mattress until he was too spent to move.
He went rigid as the image flashed through his mind, his need for her battling against his need for restraint.
He’d planned on taking months to build up to this kind of intimacy. He’d expected he would be the one to broach the subject, to eventually make a move when his mate was ready. But knowing Nessa craved him enough to initiate this kind of sweet contact, that she wanted him like he wanted her …
Murphy needed more.
Nessa’s gaze became shuttered as a taut silence stretched between them, the tension crackling through the air the longer they stared into each other’s eyes. Eventually, she looked away from him, nervously licking her lips.
And then her shoulders slumped, the scent of her hurt filling the air.
“I-I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.” She released her hold on his nape, and he mourned the loss of contact as she looked down at her lap. “I thought you—I mean, I just really like you, Murphy, and what you said at dinner … I just thought—”
Tenderly, Murphy touched the side of her face, turning her head until she was staring back up at him, a flicker of rejection and confusion shining in the dark depths of her eyes. He wanted to take that hurt away, to worship her so thoroughly the emotion never resurfaced.
“I’m going to kiss you,” he growled, anticipation tightening in his gut as Nessa’s eyes widened, her uncertainty disappearing as a tiny flame of hope took its place.
“You are?” she breathed, her desire perfuming the air. Sweet. Decadent. Just for him. He shuddered as he inhaled, drawing that tantalizing aroma into his very soul.
Murphy leaned down and nuzzled her cheek, his lips trailing over her smooth skin. Her breath hitched, a soft noise catching in her throat that had lust coiling tightly around him, his erection pressing against the zipper of his jeans.
“I’ve thought about this for months,” he admitted roughly, brushing his lips against the corner of her mouth, savoring the feeling of her skin against his own. Committing it to memory. “How you’d taste. How you’d feel pressed against me. The sounds you’d make for me.”
Nessa’s hands slid to his chest, her fingers shaking. The contact was featherlight against his clothing, but it seared into him, branding him as hers. Marking him as totally as a bite would.
“Really?” she asked hesitantly. “But you said you didn’t want me. That it was only your bear—”
Murphy closed the small distance between them, his mouth fitting gently over hers. Warm and soft, her mouth cradled his, and a fierce, wondrous ache built in his chest.
Perfect. Nessa felt perfect.
Murphy’s fingers slid into her hair, fisting the heavy strands as he angled her head back, giving himself better access to her mouth. His teeth sank into her lower lip, a small sting of pain that he kissed away a moment later.
“I want you so much,” he murmured, his mouth finding hers again.
Her arms moved to wrap around his shoulders, and she turned her body until she was straddling his lap, her knees on either side of his thighs.
Hesitantly, she settled over him, her slight weight pressing against his erection, the heat from her center threatening to undo whatever restraint he had left.
“Nes,” Murphy groaned, teasing the seam of her lips with his tongue. He coveted the feel of her, desperate for more. His hand trailed from her waist to her ass, slipping under the shirt she wore to palm the bare globe. “Let me taste you, little mate,” he crooned.
He squeezed her ass, pushing her hips forward until her pussy brushed against his erection. Nessa’s mouth parted on a small gasp, and he took full advantage, his tongue pushing into that heated cavern and intertwining with hers.
He was out of practice—hadn’t kissed anyone in years—but it didn’t matter. Everything they did together felt right. Every touch, every small, needy sound filled the hole inside his heart, replacing the hurt from his past with something new. Something wonderful.
Something he’d cherish until his dying breath.
Hesitantly, Nessa rolled her hips, grinding her pussy against his throbbing cock. Pleasure shot from his shaft to his balls, a tingling sensation building at the base of his spine as she did it again, working his length until he thought he’d explode.
“You feel so fucking good, Nessa,” Murphy praised, muscles coiling in his arms as he tightened his grip on her, sinking his tongue back into her welcoming mouth.
Paradise; she tasted like paradise.
He thrust up as she rocked into him, swallowing her whimpers and moans, devouring her mouth with a fervent need that left them clinging to one another.
Her desire swelled, he could smell it, growing heavier in the room until he couldn’t think of anything else but sating her lust. Of chasing it with his own, of blending their scents together.
He wanted her surrender, needed to feel her break apart in his arms as she orgasmed. Then he wanted to pin her beneath him, toss her legs over his shoulders and feast on her cunt until she came on his tongue. She’d taste divine. He knew it.
His hands moved to her bare hips, and he guided her, helping her ride his cock, his clothing an incessant barrier between them.
Nessa’s arms wrapped more tightly around him, and she broke their kiss, her breathing ragged. “Murphy,” she moaned, her eyes clouded with lust.
She swallowed hard, and then moaned as he pushed her back down onto his length, his balls drawing up, the pressure building at the base of his spine. Stars danced across his vision, everything in the room fading away to focus solely on his Nessa.
He was going to cum in his goddamn jeans, and he didn’t care.
Didn’t give a fuck as long as his mate came with him.
Her face was flushed, her lips swollen from his kiss as she rode him, her movements growing frantic.
He longed to peel his shirt off of her, to see how far down that pretty blush spread.
Would her nipples be that same stunning shade of coral as her lips? Would they be a tantalizing shade of brown? He was dying to find out.
When she was ready, he’d suck each one until she was screaming with pleasure. His fangs lengthened, the thought of placing a mating mark on the curve of one breast too much to handle.
“You’re so fucking beautiful, Nes.”
Nessa threw her head back, a small whine leaving her throat. “I-I think … I’m so close. Murphy, I’m so—”
He attacked her throat with his mouth, sucking on that smooth column, his fingers biting into her hips. He thrust up into her again, nipping her skin. Her thighs shook, and then she screamed his name, coming undone for him.
Murphy grunted, arms locking around her waist. He snapped his hips, driving his cock toward her sweet cunt, imagining that he was sinking inside of her wet, tight heat.
Pleasure exploded from his spine to his balls, spurts of cum hitting his boxers.
White light detonated across his vision, his heart pounding in his ears.
Nessa went lax above him, dropping her head to his shoulder, her mouth pressing into his neck.
Slowly, he came down from his high, nuzzling her ear, kissing her hair.
He fell back onto the bed, taking her with him.
He stared at the ceiling, his mate lying on his chest as he tried to remember how to breathe.
He’d cum harder than he had in his entire life, and she’d barely touched him.
It would have been laughable if his dick wasn’t already hardening in his jeans, demanding an encore while his seed coated his length.
He needed to clean himself up, but the thought of parting from Nessa, of removing her small body from his, was unacceptable.
Slowly, Nessa lifted her head, peering down at him with equal parts bewilderment and confusion. Not exactly the look a male wanted to see after satisfying his female.
“I …” Nessa snapped her mouth shut, her hair falling over her shoulder and landing on his chest.
Suddenly, Murphy was afraid that he’d pushed her too far, too soon. Anxiety reared its head, settling in the pit of his stomach like poison. “Are you alright?”
“Alright?” she asked, her voice high-pitched. “Murphy, I just dry-humped you until I orgasmed, and I’m pretty sure I wasn’t the only one.”
His lips twitched, and his fears melted away. He relaxed beneath her. “Does that mean you’re better than alright?”
Nessa opened her mouth, a choked noise escaping.
Murphy smirked. “At a loss for words? That’s new.”
She scoffed, narrowing her eyes into thin slits. “This isn’t funny. What are we doing?”
“Lying in bed together.”
Rolling her eyes, she sat up, her pussy still cradling his dick. Her eyes widened as he flexed his shaft, and he couldn’t help the smug grin that spread across his face. The corner of her mouth ticked up in response, and then her smile faded, her brows furrowing.
“What are we doing, Murphy? What’s happening between us?”
He pushed up onto his elbow, resting his other hand on her bare thigh. Her skin was cool to the touch, and he rubbed his palm over the soft surface, eager to warm her. “You know the answer to that, Nes,” Murphy told her softly.
“But I thought you didn’t want a mate,” she argued, looking down at the hand caressing her. “It was just your bear that wanted me.”