Chapter 9 #2
"Eloise," I groaned. "Don't say that unless you mean it. Because my control is gone. The concussion knocked the sensible part of my brain offline."
"I mean it," she said.
She leaned down. She kissed the bruise on my ribs. Her lips were soft, cool.
I hissed, my hands gripping the sheets.
She kissed her way up my chest. Over my heart. Along my collarbone.
"You’re playing with fire, Mouse," I warned, my voice a low rumble.
"I’m cold," she whispered against my neck. "Burn me."
She kissed my mouth.
It wasn't a question this time. It was a demand.
I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her down onto the bed with me. She landed softly on top of me, her legs straddling my hips.
Her weight was perfect. Grounding.
I kissed her back, pouring everything I felt into it. The fear of losing her. The rage at the game. The overwhelming, crushing need.
My hands slid up under the t-shirt. Skin. Warm, silk skin.
She gasped into my mouth, arching her back.
"Jack," she moaned. "Please."
"Please what?" I growled, nipping at her jaw.
"Touch me. Everywhere."
I slid my hand down her back, over the curve of her glutes, to the waistband of her jeans.
"These have to go," I muttered.
"Help me," she whispered.
I sat up, wincing at the pain in my ribs but ignoring it. I fumbled with the button of her jeans. My hands were shaking. Not from the concussion. From want.
I got them open. I shoved the denim down her hips. She kicked them off.
She was wearing tiny black lace panties that matched the bra she’d taken off.
Mercy.
I lay back down, pulling her with me. She settled against my chest, skin on skin.
"You’re beautiful," I said, my voice thick. "So beautiful it hurts."
"You’re not so bad yourself, for a monster," she teased, tracing my lower lip.
I captured her finger in my mouth, sucking gently. Her eyes went wide, dark.
"I’m going to ruin you for anyone else, Eloise," I warned her, my eyes flashing gold. "You know that, right? Once a wolf marks his mate... there’s no going back."
"I don't want anyone else," she said. "I just want you."
"Then you have me," I swore. "Body and soul."
I kissed her again, rolling us over so I was hovering above her. I supported my weight on my elbows to spare my ribs.
I looked down at her. Her hair fanned out on my pillow like a halo. Her lips red and swollen. Her chest heaving.
"Are you sure?" I asked one last time. "You’re tired. I’m concussed. We’re a mess."
"We’re perfect," she whispered.
She reached up and pulled my head down.
And the rest of the world—the party, the game, the wolves—faded away.
There was only this room. This bed. And her.
I kissed her neck, right over the pulse point.
Mine.
And this time, she didn't argue.
Eloise
He was heavy. He was hot. He was everything.
When Jack kissed me, I didn't feel weak. I didn't feel like the fragile glass doll my father saw. I felt powerful. I felt like the only thing in the world that could hold this man’s attention.
His hands were everywhere—reverent, possessive, skilled.
He didn't rush. Despite the hunger I saw in his eyes, he treated me like something precious.
He kissed my collarbone. My shoulder. The hollow of my throat.
"Jack," I sighed, my fingers tangling in his dark hair.
He moved lower. His mouth found the peak of my breast through the thin cotton of the t-shirt. He sucked the fabric into his mouth, teasing, biting gently.
The sensation sent a jolt of lightning straight to my core. I arched off the mattress, a cry tearing from my throat.
"Too much?" he rumbled against my chest, the vibration maddening.
"Not enough," I gasped. "Take it off."
He sat back on his heels—kneeling between my legs like a devotee at an altar. He reached for the hem of the t-shirt.
I lifted my arms. He pulled it off and tossed it aside.
The cool air hit my skin for a second before his gaze warmed me. He looked at me with such raw, unadulterated worship that I felt tears prick my eyes.
"Perfect," he whispered.
He leaned down, pressing a kiss to the center of my chest. Then he moved lower. Over my stomach.
His hands gripped my hips, his thumbs brushing the lace of my panties.
"Can I?" he asked, looking up at me through his lashes. His eyes were pure gold now. The wolf was very close to the surface.
"Yes," I breathed.
He hooked his fingers in the lace and pulled them down slowly.
I kicked them away.
I was naked. Completely exposed.
I should have been terrified. I was a virgin. I had never done this. I had never let anyone see me like this.
But with Jack... there was no shame. Only instinct.
He moved back up my body, settling between my legs. The friction of his jeans against my bare skin was torture.
"I’m not taking my pants off," he said, his voice strained.
"Why not?" I whined, frustrated.
"Because I don't have a condom," he reminded me, his forehead resting against mine. "And I meant what I said at the cabin. I can't risk it."
"But—"
"But," he interrupted, kissing me hard. "There are other ways to claim you, Mouse. Other ways to make you mine."
He moved his hand down between us. He found me. Wet. aching.
"See?" he murmured against my lips as his fingers slid against me. "Your body knows who it belongs to."
I gasped, my hips bucking instinctively.
"Relax," he soothed, kissing my jaw. "Let me take care of you."
And he did.
He didn't use just his hands. He moved down the bed. He kissed my stomach. My hip bones. The sensitive skin of my inner thighs.
When his mouth finally touched me, I shattered.
I screamed his name. I tangled my hands in his hair. I lost every shred of control I had ever possessed.
It wasn't elegant. It wasn't polite. It was raw and messy and beautiful.
He didn't stop until I was shaking, sobbing, completely undone.
Then he crawled back up the bed, gathering me into his arms. He held me while I came down, stroking my hair, murmuring soft praises in my ear.
"Good girl," he whispered. "So beautiful. So responsive."
I buried my face in his neck, inhaling his scent.
"Jack?"
"Hmm?"
"I think I’m in trouble."
He chuckled, a low rumble in his chest. "Why’s that?"
"Because," I whispered, closing my eyes. "I think I love you."
He went still.
I held my breath. Had I ruined it? Had I scared him off?
He tightened his arms around me. He kissed the top of my head.
"You’re not in trouble, Eloise," he whispered into the darkness. "You’re home."
And for the first time in my life, I believed it.
I fell asleep in his arms, safe in the center of the storm.
I didn't know that the storm was about to break. I didn't know that by morning, the world would try to tear us apart.
But for tonight... we had this. And it was enough.