Chapter 118 Chapter 118
They both stood and stared at the small wooden shack. It was lopsided, with rough boards, not finished or altered to even fit properly. It looked like a small hunting hut, about ten-foot square. Calum had both hands resting on top of his head as he looked at it. “She painted the door pink.”
Shaelan giggled, “Guess that’s her way of marking her territory.”
He laughed. “Do we dare look inside?”
Nodding, she started walking. “With Aunt Marilyn, it wouldn’t surprise me if we opened the door to a solarium and swimming pool.”
Pulling the key out of his pocket, he unlocked the lock and flipped it open. Opening the door slowly, they both leaned in to look and then sighed at the same time to see a sparsely decorated room. There was no furniture to speak of, only a blanket, few pillows and small wood stove.
“Well, that was anticlimactic, wasn’t it?” She asked stepping in.
Swinging his pack off his back, he opened it to get some candles he’d taken from the cave. “I’m actually relieved.”
She nodded. “Yes, I think we’ve both had enough surprises in our lives lately.”
Calum snorted, “agreed.” He lit a few of them and placed them on the small stove. Setting his pack by the door, he took the blanket from her hands and spread it out on the floor. Kicking his boots off, he shoved them out of the way.
She closed the door and leaned back against it, looking at him. He could sense the anxiety coming off her. “Don’t worry about the details right now.” His eyes moved slowly over her, “Don’t worry about mating protocol, or what happens later on.” He tapped a hand on his chest. “Follow your heart, the rest will work itself out.” He held out his hand to her, “Let me show you how it’s supposed to be—now that I’m not in chains and you don’t think I’m some sort of monster.”
She looked at his hand for a second, then shrugged out of her jacket, dropping it where she stood. Her shoes went next before she finally reached out, placing her hand in his. “I never thought that.”
He wanted her to come to him on her own accord, needed her to, so he didn’t pull her toward him. Even his cat had stopped and was waiting. “You did when you came in to treat me. I could smell your fear, even over the stench of the stink weed.”
She stepped closer and nodded, “I’ll admit I was scared, but I had been led to believe you were some sort of dangerous criminal.” She inhaled subtly, “but it wasn’t all fear, it was…”
“My scent turned you on.” He squeezed her hand lightly, encouraging her to take those last few steps.
“Yes,” she gave him a heated look, “and that scared me more than thinking you were some horrible person.” She confessed.
“Let me show you, love.” He whispered.
The way she was looking at him, caressing him with her eyes had every muscle in his body tense. She bit her bottom lip and his hand started shaking, as he fought to not drag her against him. When she took her other hand and ran it over the side of her breast, rubbing where he knew his mark lay, he’d never gotten so hard that fast in his life.
“Will there be biting?” she whispered breathlessly.
Dragging, his attention away from her heaving breasts, he looked at her with lust riding him hard. “There will be biting.” He said with a hoarse tone.
“Good,” she dropped her hand from his and, in one motion, pulled her shirt over her head and dropped it to the floor.
He was sure the zipper on his jeans was going to pop as he stood there, with his hand still held out to her, watching. He could see his bites through the pale material cupping her breasts, her darkened nipples, hard and wanting. Ripping his shirt over his head, he tossed it to the floor, and closed the distance between them. Grasping her by the waist, he lifted her up to his height. “I wanted slow…”
She licked his throat, making his knees almost buckle. “I don’t think we can.” She nipped at the sensitive skin of his neck and he felt his cat go completely still, waiting. “Show me slow in twenty years.” When her tongue stroked over is neck again, he growled deep in his throat. “When you growl…” she moaned softly as he shifted her up higher. Wrapping her legs around his waist, she leaned back and looked at him. “I want to claim you. I want to be yours.”
He’d planned on it, later, first he’d intended to drown in her for a while until the need wasn’t weighing on him to the point he couldn’t think. He tried to remember if there was anything other than he had to let her, of her own free will, mark him first. Her hot tongue licked over his jaw.
Dropping to his knees before they gave out, he buried his face in her throat. “Clothes off before you do, or we’re going back in rags in the morning…” His restraint was already stretched to it’s limit. Calum’s cat was quiet, knowing she had to make the first move in mating, but as soon as her mouth marked him after saying she accepted him… he knew his cat would take over.
He watched her stand and shimmy out of her jeans. If his control snapped… he didn’t want to hurt her. Moving toward her on his knees, he held her hand as she kicked off the pants. She stood before him in nothing but a pale see-through bra and pantie. His senses were spinning out of control from the scent of her. “You have to be ready so I don’t hurt you…” He could barely form words.
“I am,” she panted, then reached around and unclasped her bra. Sliding it free of her arms she dropped it.
Crawling closer to her, he ran his tongue up her leg. With shaking hands, he slid the skimpy cloth down her legs so she could step out of them.
He could barely breathe. He raised up and nipped her hip softly. She grasped his hair with both hands and hissed out a breath. If she didn’t mark him soon, he wasn’t going to make it. Inhaling, he growled softly in his throat and then stood up so he wouldn’t screw this up and bite her thigh. She had to make the first move, he reminded himself.
Shoving his pants down his legs, he got out of them fast, then looked to see her drop to her knees in front of him. With a hesitant, shy look in her eyes, she bit her lip and ran her hands down his waist and over his hips while looking up at him. It was the most erotic thing he’d ever seen. Holy hell. Grabbing her hands, he pulled them away before he lost it.
Dropping to his knees, he lay on the blanket, pulling her with him. Keeping her close, he kept his arm loose around her waist, even though he wanted to pull her tight against him. He watched her lick her lips nervously. Was kissing her breaking the rules? He couldn’t remember. She nibbled his bottom lip and he growled again.
“I was told you’re not allowed to touch me.” She whispered against his mouth, “until after I mark you. I didn’t believe it was true until now.”
He could taste her scent on his tongue, “It’s true.” She pushed on his shoulder so he’d roll onto his back. She shifted until she was on her hands and knees over him. He didn’t dare look anywhere but her eyes. Clenching his hands into fists, he kept them on the blanket.
“But,” she licked her lips, leaning down close to his face, “I can kiss you, right?”
“Yes.” He looked at her lips, then back to her eyes when he started to lift his head.
With the tip of her tongue she ran it over his lower lip. “You can kiss me back?”
He nodded, unable to form any words as the heat from her breath brushed over his mouth. It felt like an hour as she stayed right there not moving. He growled, “Shaelan.”
“I love when you growl,” she whispered against his lips.
He was jut about the break the rule and grab her, when her mouth touched his. Lifting his head, he turned it and took over the kiss, plunging his tongue into her mouth and filling his senses with her taste.
She nipped his tongue and trapped it briefly as she lowered her body onto his and rubbed over him. He could feel how wet she was as she slid over him, and had to squeeze his hands until they hurt to prevent grabbing her.
When she pulled her mouth from his, he tried to catch his breath. She pushed her breasts into his chest as she reached down between them, and grasped his engorged shaft. He stopped breathing completely and continued to hold his breath until she slid him inside her.
The air left his lungs all at once. So tight. So wet. Fuck-ing torture. His growl was closer to a roar as he turned his head to bare his throat to her. She moved up and down slowly and he saw stars behind his eyelids. “Accept me.” He hissed out. Fuck. “Claim me.” His growl sounded more like a whine, “on my jugular, it will mark.”
He was a heartbeat away from grabbing her head, when she lowered her mouth to his neck and licked over the skin. She moaned against his ear as she slid him deeper into her body.
“You’re mine,” she whispered against his throat.
When her teeth clamped down on his skin, he growled, it should have hurt with the amount of pressure she was using, but it only made him and his cat reach a frenzied state of arousal. He didn’t wait until she let go of the flesh between her teeth before he grabbed her hips and thrust up into her.
He rolled her onto her back, her mouth still attached to him and slammed into her again. She moaned and let go, then licked his wound several times before grabbing a handful of hair and dragging his mouth to hers. He tasted blood and his cat screamed in victory. He wanted her on her knees, but Calum wanted her to moan for him first.
Thrusting faster, he leaned down and grasped her breast, running his fingers over the mark as she whimpered with need.
Shifting to his knees, he pulled her hips up with him and continued to pound into her. When she reached her hands up to touch her breasts, his rhythm faltered. She thrashed her head back and forth and moaned as her body started to convulse tightly around him. Slowing, he let her ride it out for a few moments. Imprinted in his brain forever would be the image of her orgasm, she was so sexy and erotic.
When she was panting to catch her breath, he pulled out and flipped her onto her stomach. Lifting her hips, he drove into her and she rewarded him with a deep moan. Leaning over her, he pushed her hair out of the way and nipped the side of her neck.
She was pushing back into him almost as hard as he was thrusting, reaching around her, he grasped her breast and kneaded it.
“Mine,” he growled against her skin.
He bit into her neck, right above her collarbone, so everyone would know she was forever his.
She squealed in pleasure, then her body clamped down on his and his name was growled out in the most sensual way he could imagine.
His whole body was rigid as he exploded inside her, the intense heat washing over him. He released her neck and tried to bring oxygen into his lungs, and gasping each time her tight inner muscles convulsed around him.
They were mated forever and he honestly didn’t know a time in his life he’d ever felt this serene inside.