~

 

“I see you just fine.”

“And let me guess — you don’t like what you see,” Rick growled out again.

“I see an idiot.”

“Yep, kick a man when he’s down…”

“You put yourself in that position, not me.” Elizabeth’s tone was still accusing, and Rick didn’t like it.

“So I did.” He knew that he’d regret it for however many days on earth he had left.

“Like I said, idiot.”

“Like I said, you weren’t invited.”

“That’s all you have to say to me?”

“Sorry, I don’t do flowers and hearts.” Rick’s wolf growled long and hard at him. The beast thought he was an idiot as well.

“I noticed,” Elizabeth said.

She folded her arms and tipped her head to one side, raising her eyebrows at him, and questioning his sanity with just a look.

“You’re already standing in the doorway — just turn around and walk.” Rick didn’t want to see her walk away from him, but he knew that there was no other way.

Elizabeth dropped her hands to her sides and her gaze to the threshold at her feet. Then she lifted one foot and stepped over that small piece of wood.

Rick growled long and hard. Her other foot followed.

“I’m not good at following orders,” Elizabeth questioned him with her eyes. There was more than a hint of a challenge in the way that she looked at him.

“What witch is?” Rick offered back, feeling the need to head-butt the nearest wall.

“You’d better get used to it.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Rick growled.

If his wolf had been a cartoon dog, then the sound that it made was definitely a Scooby Doo moment.

“Like I said — idiot.” She tossed up a hand in his direction.

“I killed a human,” Rick offered back to her as if she was insane.

“Well done. Am I supposed to supply the bunting and the cake?” Elizabeth asked.

“Huh?” Rick couldn’t quite get his head around what she was saying, but it wasn’t for a lack of trying.

“If you hadn’t of killed him then I would have. Do I look like a monster to you now?” She demanded.

“What? No!” Rick growled again.

“Idiot!” She tossed up a hand once more.

“Wait — what?” the man was still trying to wrap his head around her words.

“Double idiot.”

“We established that. What the hell are you saying?” Rick demanded.

“Do you want me as a mate or not?”

“Yes!”

“Then what’s the problem?”

Rick held in place just staring back at her. His mind was tossing questions and not a lot of answers – except — she was looking at him. Right at him. Not anywhere but at him, and she didn’t look at him like he was a monster.

“I killed a human,” Rick said again.

“I was there.” She shrugged.

“A — h-u-m-a-n.”

“I — was — t-h-e-r-e.”

“Oh hell, I’m confused.” Rick tossed up his hands in frustration.

Elizabeth started a slow walk towards him. Rick’s whole body snapped to attention.

Her scent was thick in the air, and her presence was sending him entirely the wrong signals. Or maybe they were the right ones – he didn’t have a damn clue.

“I’m your mate,” Elizabeth said.

“I know.”

“I still want to be your mate.”

“I didn’t know that you did.”

“See, idiot.” A small smile tugged at the corners of Elizabeth's lips, and he watched transfixed as it became a full-blown grin.

“I am.”

“You are. But the question is; are you going to continue to be an idiot, or are we going to mate?”

Elizabeth watched as the man chewed on his own tongue. Then she almost jumped in her skin as he growled hard and rushed toward her. He snatched her up from the ground and against his hard body before she had a chance to think.

Then he brought his lips down on hers.

Elizabeth wrapped her body around his like a vine. She’d never been so bold in her life before, but there was just something about Rick that made her throw caution to the wind and act on instinct alone.

She felt her back hit the wall and his hard length pressed against her sex, and she embraced the freedom that she felt just to be herself. She let her body do the talking as she kissed him right back and her hands sought the muscles of his back beneath his shirt.

Elizabeth’s fingernails raked over his flesh, and his cock twitched against the confines of his jeans. He couldn’t help but move his hips, and when he did, the sound that caught in her throat was worth more than gold.

He broke free from her lips and dipped his head to take her scent at the source. He wanted to bite — his beast wanted him to bite.

Not yet, he wanted to be buried deep within her, feel her come undone around his cock, and then he could bite — claim — be bonded to her – with her forever.

He ran his tongue against her neck and felt her hips move against his. Her sex rubbed against his hard length, and she made that sound again.

Rick tore her away from the wall, moving fast across the room and into the bedroom. He had to make her his.

He needed to taste her — to know her — to connect with her in a way that neither of them had ever felt before.

“Hurry…” Elizabeth bit out.

“Too fast?”

“No. Hurry up,” Elizabeth demanded.

“Be careful what you wish for,” he grinned as he took her down to the bed and started to strip the clothes from her body.

“No, I’m damned sure this is what I want.”

Rick didn’t need to hear any more. He had her totally naked in front of him a few moments later, and as his hungry eyes took in her body, he growled like a man possessed.

“I’m guessing that’s you and not your beast talking.” Elizabeth chuckled.

“I — that’s…” Rick gave a small shake of his head. “Don’t even go there.” He growled.

The sound of giggles echoed within his ears, and he would have answered her, but he had other things on his mind. His large hands pressed her inner thighs open, and he was determined to have the taste of her on his tongue.

“That’s not necessary…” Elizabeth started to protest, but the feel of his tongue against her sex silenced her to nothing more than a moan.

Rick reveled in the taste of his mate. Her body was ripe for him, and it didn’t take him long to bring her the satisfaction that she needed.

Elizabeth had to wonder why she hadn’t tried that years ago. But then — she hadn’t met him.

Rick climbed up and over her body. His long, thick cock was hanging low away from his stomach and pointing to where he needed to be.

“That’s…” Elizabeth’s eyes widened at the sight of his hard length.

“It’ll fit…”

“I’m not so…” She chuckled.

“Trust me. It will fit,” he growled just at the thought of it.

A heartbeat later and he was pushing inside the tight, warm, wet heat of her channel, opening her, still throbbing, satin walls, and he gave a long, deep, hungry growl of pleasure and pure satisfaction that swallowed up the sound of her moan.

Elizabeth fingernails were practically piercing the skin on his back. He reached for her wrists and pushed her hands back against the mattress.

She liked the feeling of being trapped, caged, and held to his whim and passion. Not that she was — her magic could see to that.

Rick took her down his length until he was buried to the hilt. Her inner muscles tightened around his hard cock, and he almost lost his mind and his self-control.

He grunted and pulled back, almost completely out of her, before thrusting back to the hilt once more.

Elizabeth’s body tried to arch beneath him as her head went back against the mattress. Her mouth opened and she made that sound once more. It was the sound that, this time, he couldn’t deny.

He had to have her melting around him. He had to feel the tight throbbing of her muscles around his cock as she came undone once more.

He needed to know her. To taste her. To bite.

Just the thought of it sent his beast wild. His fangs elongated as he pressed his hand against her back and brought her body up from the bed, and she wrapped her body tighter around his and held on for the ride.

It was going to be one hell of a humdinger.

Rick fisted her hair and dragged her head to one side, opening her neck and shoulder to his hungry gaze. His hips moved faster. He was taking her so damn deep on every thrust.

He could feel her body tightening around him. Not just her arms and legs, but the inner muscles of her channel had started to clamp up so tightly that it made him have to work harder with every thrust.

Elizabeth was on a roll, and she didn’t want to tempt fate in hoping that she would get a second bite of the cherry, but it was looking good so far.

Every inch of her body was begging for release, and one more deep thrust of his cock took her right over the edge.

She cried out once with the explosion of the orgasm that ripped through every inch of her body, and again when he bit down into her flesh with his fangs.

Marked, claimed, and as she reached out for his soul and connected with him on a deeper level, they were bonded.

Rick released his fangs from her flesh and tasted the last of her blood on his tongue as he cleaned and sealed the wound. His beast was sated, but his body had started to burn with a fever — his need to complete the bond clawed within him.

Rick lifted her away from him, turned her onto her knees on the bed, and thrust back inside of her. One large hand clamped against her hip, and the other ran up the curve of her back to her shoulder, locking her body in place, as his hips slapped, skin against skin, against her backside, and he sought his own release.

The way her back was arched, the way her breasts moved freely transfixed him, empowered him and made him crave the moment that she would come undone around him once more.

She was already making those sounds again. Her inner muscles were already tightening around him again.

He grunted with each deep thrust and growled as he pulled back through her tightening muscles.

Rick’s heart was thumping against his ribs. His muscles were on fire and straining with each thrust.

The blood might have been rushing in his ears, but he still heard her cry the moment that she found that sweet release. The hard clenching of her inner muscles sucked at his cock, demanded his seed, and brought him the heady rush of the orgasm that he’d craved.

The mating howl started deep within his chest and burst from within him. The cabin shook around them.

Over and over, he buried his cock to the hilt and gave her his seed until he had nothing left to give. His muscles quivered as he collected his mate against his body and pulled them both down to the bed.

As Elizabeth lay there within the safety of her mate’s arms, trying to remember how to breathe, the sound of a howl went up in the distance.

“Way to go, mum.”