Chapter 19
Chapter Nineteen
Sofia
I’m no longer on the couch when I wake. Nope, I’m in bed with my leg thrown over Luca. A practically naked Luca.
Fuck. My. Life.
I go still, maybe if I don’t move, the universe will reset.
I’ll open my eyes and be back on the couch where I fell asleep.
I squeeze them shut. No such luck. His heat seeps into me, his chest rising and falling steadily under my face, his arm heavy around my waist. His scent—amber and sandalwood—wraps around me like it belongs there. Which it absolutely does not.
I slowly work to extricate myself from him without waking him, but my wolf lets out a wounded little whimper as soon as I’m no longer touching him.
Backstabbing bitch.
I freeze, pulse hammering, praying to the goddess that he didn’t hear that.
But of course he did. One of Luca’s arms reaches across my waist, and he hauls me back to him in a spooning position.
His hot breath against my neck causes goosebumps to erupt over my skin.
His cock—hard, thick, impossible to ignore—presses against my ass, and his strong, corded arm now rests just beneath my breasts.
I’ve had sex before. With men. With women. I’ve been kissed, touched, fucked. But I’ve never done this. Never slept with someone’s arms wrapped around me. Never woken up with someone like we were something real.
It feels…intimate. Too intimate. And my wolf is purring. She’s so at ease, I almost feel bad for her. This is the most relaxed I think she’s ever been since I first started sensing her a decade ago.
Would it be the worst thing in the world to enjoy this? Yes. Yes, it absolutely would be. I elbow him in the stomach and shuffle away to the edge of the bed.
“Do you have to be such a brat?” he grunts, his voice sounding hoarse and winded. He rolls over, his arm reaching across where I was lying only a moment ago. His muscular arm moves over the sheets, searching for me half unconsciously until he grasps my wrist and pulls me back in.
His arm bands across my waist, and he nuzzles into my neck, letting out a sleepy sigh of contentment. Half-asleep Luca is drowsy and almost cute. It’s horrifying.
“How did I end up in your bed, Luca?”
“I carried you.” His tone is lazy, smug. “You were curled up on the couch like a stubborn little stray. And for the record? You cuddled up to me all on your own.”
“I was asleep! Obviously, I didn’t know what I was doing. Stop being such a creep.”
“You wound me,” he says with a sigh before finally letting go of me, and shit if that doesn’t leave me cold. “It’s early. Go back to sleep. In the bed. I’ll even let you cuddle me again.”
Ugh, he’s unbelievable. Absolutely fucking unbelievable.
I fling myself out of bed, storming into the living room.
My body’s a live wire, buzzing, thrumming.
This is exactly what I don’t need right now.
I’m so fucking horny, and waking up with him—feeling every hard inch of his body pressed against mine—molded against my curves is not helping.
I’m hot all over, and my pussy throbs—almost painfully as I pace back and forth in the living area of Luca’s place. Electricity surges through me, and this is not happening. I’ve been taking the damn medication Doc gave me, and we haven’t had sex yet.
Shit. Yet? How did I even think that? We haven’t had sex, and we never will. Because Luca Taylor is the absolute worst. But seeing as sexual contact with your mate is the only way to bring on a she-wolf’s first heat, then this must be just basic run-of-the-mill horniness.
I am so screwed.
I could scream. But instead, I opt for a shower where I definitely don’t find my mind wandering to thoughts of Luca as I get myself off.
Nope, the way he kissed me yesterday never crosses my mind.
I certainly don’t imagine what it would have been like if we had been minus a few items of clothing when I kissed him.
And that absolutely wasn’t him I imagined bending me over the kitchen counter as I came on my own fingers.
I am so completely and irrevocably screwed.
I wrap a towel around my body and leave my curls down to air dry.
I haven’t unpacked any of my hair products yet, and it’ll be a disaster, but I can’t deal with styling my curls today.
Not when my insides are still liquified with need.
Plus, I have my emotional support hair tie on my wrist for when it starts to bother me.
I exit the bathroom at the same time as Luca walks out of the bedroom. He’s in boxers and nothing else, and I’m in a towel. I just came, but the need is already building again low in my stomach, and suddenly this cabin is way too small. The air is too thin.
I take in his smooth skin and the dark tattoos that snake up one of his arms. The smattering of hair that trails from his belly button before disappearing into the tight boxers he’s wearing.
The slutty little tattoo on his thigh I’ve never noticed before.
What even is that? A crown? I don’t want to gawk at it long enough to get a proper look.
Luca’s eyes rake down my body and—unlike me—he makes no attempt to hide that he is checking me out. And my treacherous body reacts instantly under his gaze.
“Have fun in there? It sure sounded like it,” he says with a smirk.
“Listening in while I shower? Creepy much,” I shoot back, determined to ignore the way he looks like he wants to eat me up.
I walk past him to find my bags, where my clothes remain unpacked.
Because I won’t be here long enough for that.
Grabbing the first bag of clothes, I lift it to the kitchen counter because this towel does not allow for bending over when I can feel Luca’s gaze is on me.
The sooner I get out of here and reject Luca, the better for my mental health. If Ryan’s situation were any less precarious, there is no chance I would be in this position. I rummage through clothes, ignoring the way his heat crowds closer.
“Need help picking out your panties?”
“No, Luca,” I say with a heavy sigh. “I get that you think of me as an incompetent child, but I’m more than capable of dressing myself. Shocking, I know.”
He pushes against me, pinning my hips to the stone counter. His hard cock grinds into my ass, his arms caging me in. My pussy clenches, traitorous and needy.
“Does this feel like I see you as a child?” he growls. His voice is low, rough, predatory. His mouth hovers near my ear. “How about you drop the towel, and I show you exactly how I see you?”
My breathing comes in rapid breaths, and my pussy clenches around nothing.
Of course, he’s managed to pin me in exactly the position I fantasized about him fucking me in while I brought myself to an orgasm this morning.
Heat coils low in my belly. My body screams yes, even though my brain screams don’t.
Maybe I need to fuck him and get it out of my system.
But then, no. That’s stupid. He’s my fated mate, damn it. Of course, it’ll be amazing.
“You’re a fucking goddess, Sofia. That’s how I see you.”
Fuck, this is not what I need to hear. The last thing I need is to let him bait me into sex and get me drunk on orgasms so he can get what he wants. Once we accept the bond, there’s no going back, no matter how badly he treats me or how much I know he doesn’t really want me.
“Luca,” I whisper.
He leans in, lips brushing my neck. I slam my elbow back into him, hard.
He lets out a whoosh of air, and I pivot past him, taking my bag with me as I stalk into the bathroom.
I turn back as I get to the door and glare at him.
He’s doubled over, but I could swear it’s not anger in his fiery gaze.
It’s something altogether more dangerous.
“You want to fuck, asshole? Try your own fist.”
With my parting advice delivered, I slam the door shut and let out a silent scream. He is infuriating. And way too fucking sexy. I’m going to murder him. Damn it, he’s turning me into a mess, and it hasn’t even been twenty-four hours yet.
I start to pull on my clothes when I hear Luca knock on the door. “Just letting you know,” he says, voice wicked with amusement, “I’m keeping count.”
Of what? How many times I shoot him down? He’s more persistent than I thought. I’ll give him that. Curiosity wins out—as much as I’d like to tell him I’m surprised he knows how to count—and I ask him what he’s counting.
“How many times you act the brat. I’m going to enjoy punishing your sexy ass when you accept that we belong together. Hope you enjoy a good spanking. At the rate you’re going, you won’t be able to sit for a week.”
I hear his footsteps retreat as I clutch the sink to stop my knees from giving out.
My heart races and my pulse thunders in my throat.
I’ve never been spanked before. Would I enjoy it?
Judging by the wetness in my panties, the clenching in my pussy, and the want coiling in my lower belly, I definitely fucking would.
I emerge a few minutes later—wearing fresh panties—determined to ignore him, but the sight of my bags stops me cold.
They’re no longer in the living area; they’re inside the door of his bedroom.
I slept on the couch last night because I didn’t want to go snooping, but surely, he can’t think this will be a thing? That we’ll be sleeping together.
My stomach sinks. “Where’s the guest room?”
“There isn’t one,” he says casually, leaning against the kitchen counter, coffee in hand, like he’s been waiting for this. Dressed now in jeans and a tight henley shirt, his hair is a mess, but it works. It works way too fucking well.
I blink. “Excuse me?”
He shrugs, infuriatingly calm. “Got rid of the guest bed when I redecorated. It’s not like I’m going to be letting anyone sleep over anymore. One bed. Mine. Ours.” His grin is wolfish, unapologetic.
My mouth drops open, and my blood boils. This was intentional. “What the fuck, Luca? You planned this.”
“Damn right I did.” His eyes glint silver as his wolf presses forward. “You’re mine. The sooner you accept that, the better.”
“In your dreams, Beta,” I grit out, turning on my heel and stomping over to my bags. “Anyway, the couch was plenty comfortable last night,” I mutter to myself, but he hears me.
“I know it is,” he says, his tone cold, and I grin to myself, surprised at how easy that was. Except then he stands behind me, crowding me against the wall. He grips my arms so that I can’t send any more wayward elbows his way.
“But my mate doesn’t sleep on the couch. You might be a stubborn brat, but your wolf and your body are more than happy to be all over me. But sure, keep fighting the inevitable. It’ll only make it even sweeter when you do give in to what we both know you want.”
“I don’t want you,” I say. It’s an obvious lie. He can smell how much I want to fuck him. Stupid hormones and mate bond magic.
“Sure, you don’t. You ready to be scent marked?
” he whispers in my ear, and I swallow the lump that just developed in my throat.
Why the hell did I suggest this? Part of me wants to say no.
I’m already way too fucking amped up. But that would involve admitting to my current state, which I absolutely won’t be doing.
“Fine,” I say.
Luca nuzzles into the crook of my neck, his stubble scraping across my sensitive skin as his scent pours over me.
He drags his jaw down to my collarbone, licking over my pulse points.
Next, he takes my hands, and staring into my eyes at all times, he licks over the pulse points on my wrists.
My wolf shivers at the primal claim, and my nipples pucker at the unexpected intimacy of the act.
His scent clings to me instantly, mixing with the undeniable spike of my arousal and sinking into my skin, wrapping me up in him.
He steps back, and the intensity of his gaze has me burning up, but for once, he’s not smirking at me like he knows he’s the Goddess’s fucking gift to all female shifters. There’s a vulnerability there. A longing that goes further than the sexual need that we’re both obviously feeling.
“Make yourself at home, Sofia. I wasn’t sure if you still liked the same stuff as before, but I stocked the kitchen with your old favorites. I'd better get going to training. I’ll see you later.”
He steps backward again for a couple of steps. Like he can’t take his eyes off me. But then he heads out of the cabin, leaving me with my heart pounding and my pussy throbbing.
Fuck, fuck, fuck.