Jessie took Dana’s hand and they walked down the stairs from the patio, headed toward a small beach on the lake. The sun had sunk into twilight and the world glowed in shades of purple and blue. The full moon rose above the lake from behind them, its white face covered in wispy clouds.

Jessie pulled her down the path, her heeled shoes clicking on the pavement. He laughed and trotted faster. Giggling, she followed, her breath catching in her chest as they approached the beach. They stopped and kicked off their shoes, moving down into the sand with bare feet and full smiles.

He gathered her in his arms under the crystal moonlight. It rained down on them as the clouds passed overhead, casting them in brilliance. She gazed into his face. His skin bright and his eyes shining. Her heart pounded and a tingle of desire drove down her spine, her fox bleating inside her mind. He leaned into her, capturing her lips mid-sigh. She groaned at the taste of him, his tongue flicking over her lips as soon as he pressed against her.

She felt him grow hard against her stomach as he held her. He caressed the curve of her ass then cupped it with his strong hand. She groaned, pressing against him. Her nipples pricked painfully against her bra.

His hand slid between her legs from behind, only the thin fabric of her dress and panties separating them. Her sex clenched as his fingers slid over her inner thigh, brushing against her pussy ever so slightly.

She bit his lower lip, needing more. Needing it all. Now. Jessie cupped her breast in his other hand, sliding his thumb over the rise of her nipple. She released his lip and pulled back from their kiss, resting her forehead against his.

“Ready to go home?” he asked.

“The sooner the better,” Dana breathed.

It took less than ten minutes to make it back to Jessie’s cabin. Dana sat in the middle of the bench seat, next to Jessie while he drove. His hand roved over her body as he sped home. He came to a stop in the parking lot, and they hurried up the path to his front door. Giggling, they stumbled inside, kissing and touching the whole time.

“I should have carried you over the threshold.”

“Am I your bride now?” she asked, pulling his shirt up over his head.

“You will be,” he said, as she led him to the bedroom. He slapped her ass as he followed, and she turned to gasp and giggle at him.

“You’re so confident,” Dana said as he ripped the dress up over her head.

She wore her black push up bra and panties with pink heels. She felt sexy as hell with Jessie standing before her, shirtless and gleaming with pent up desire and sweat. He pulled off his shoes, the bulge in his pants making her mouth water.

He pulled off his slacks and walked over to her in his red boxer briefs. He gripped her ass and growled, backing her into the bed. She went down, falling onto her back, and he followed her, climbing over her body with the light of his bear in his eyes.

He growled again, leaning in to sniff her neck, her chest, her pussy.

“You smell so fucking good.”

“So do you.”

“I’m ready for a real shifter ritual. Screw brides and thresholds. I need your body. I need to make you mine.”

“Jessie,” she groaned, running her fingers through his tousled blond hair. “I’ve never…”

“I’ll take care of you, baby. Don’t worry.”

All Dana could do was breathe and close her eyes as he slid his fingers into the hem of her panties, drawing them down her thighs and over the pink heels. She arched her back for him to unfasten her bra. Jessie growled, his bear so close to the surface as he flung her bra across the room. Her inner fox was doing laps inside her mind, rolling over on her back and scratching behind her eyes. She wanted her mate. Badly.

Jessie kissed her mouth and nibbled on her ear lobes. He ran his kisses down her body until his tongue slid up the wet slit between her legs. An electric shock of pleasure coursed through her entire being. Her breasts swelled and her nipples went tightly erect. She leaned up on her elbows to look down at him, unable to comprehend what he was doing to her body.

He licked her again, this time deeper. Wet and warm and soft, he pressed against her nub, lapping at it with his thick tongue. He rolled it in waves, each one bumping her clit. The tip of his tongue curled up and pushed inside her, making her call out in surprise.

He twirled his tongue and pressed the tip to her clit, circling and pressing with intense speed. She gasped and threw back her head. Saliva ran down Jessie’s tongue, coating her sex with moisture. He reached up and tweaked her nipple, sending her into ecstasy. She fell on her back, her pussy contracting, throbbing for more.

He climbed over her, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. He yanked down his underwear, his dick popping out in front of her face. She rolled over on her side and licked it from balls to tip in one fast motion, not knowing where her brazen need was coming from. He looked down at her like he’d just seen an angel. She grinned, diving in to lick him again. This time she caught the head in her mouth, sucking at the slick flesh. She tasted his precum and the flavor sent her fox into a frenzy. She dropped down on his cock, taking him deep into her mouth.

She pulled back, gasping, soaking wet. Jessie pushed her on her back and climbed between her legs, his cock sopping wet from her mouth. He pressed his dick between her legs and she rose against him, ready to feel him inside her. The need was too much as he held her hips and angled himself against her.

In a torturously slow motion, he pushed inside her, inch by inch. Her pussy clenched around the ridges of his dick as he eased into her untouched core. Dana groaned at the feeling of being filled by her mate. It was the most exquisite sensation she had ever experienced. Her body throbbed around his thick rod. He had pushed something inside her that had never been triggered before, breaking her virginity as her fox howled with awakening desire. The pain sliced through her, but it only seemed to heighten her need.

She kissed him, open mouthed and wanting. She groaned as he slid deeper, triggering all those magnificent sensations beyond the pain.

"Jessie, Jessie," she begged. "It feels so good."

"I need you so bad, Dana," he growled, his hot breath tingling over her damp skin. "I've needed you for so long."

His teeth grazed her flesh, sending a trail of goosebumps down her neck and chest.

"I need to make you mine," he growled, his teeth pressing into her neck.

"I want to be yours," she gasped, her own sharp teeth descending in her jaw.

She angled her mouth against his neck, licking and nipping at his hard flesh. She groaned as his teeth broke her skin, his hips working her soft body. She felt another orgasm rushing toward her as Jessie's cock grew in width inside her. She pressed her teeth to his neck, licking up the flavor of him. Jessie's bite hurt so good. Her teeth pressed deep into his neck as her fox howled with release. She felt the whirlwind of their connection slamming them together.

The shifter bond awakened like a resonating chord that wound around them forever. Becoming at one with Jessie was both violent and beautiful. Pleasure entwined them as blood ran down their necks and trickled into their throats.

Breathless and throbbing, they pulled back their teeth, gulping air into their lungs. Jessie held onto her, resting against her hips. They stayed together like that for long moments, their blood-tinted lips softly pressing to each other. She tasted the tang of her blood on her lips as she knew Jessie must taste his own. Their primal connection radiated through them. In depths of their minds and souls, their love budded like a lotus blossom. Her fox clung to his bear, their hearts and minds so close. It was as if all their neurons fired and connected with each other's brains. She had never felt so close to anyone, not even her parents, and definitely not her pack.

Jessie was a bear and she was a fox, but in the moment of claiming, there was no difference between them. They were one and the same. A bonded pair. Mates. Forever. Her heart beat and burst as Jessie kissed her and slowly slid away, pulling her onto his chest as he lay down on his back on the mattress. He caressed her head and back, kissing her forehead with his warm full lips. The feel of him, his hard-muscled body under her soft cheek. His strong arms around her, cradling her curves, and protecting her from all the worries of the world, it was too exquisite to bear. But she knew Jessie would always be there for her now. She could feel him deep inside her. He would never let her go. 

She felt his heart beat against her cheek and breathed in the deep musk of his skin. He pulled the blanket up over them and they rested there in the light of a single bedside lamp. She wanted to believe that everything would be okay from now on. And deep down she knew that in the end it would. She could count on it. But Dana also knew there was so much unfinished business. Who had killed Chuck Updike? Would the hyena pack come after her?