Cullen
Anya’s grief cut through me and called to me. I was angry with her. She hadn’t answered my texts. She had no idea how close I’d come to losing her tonight. But, as she fell to her knees in front of me, none of it mattered. It only mattered that she was here with me. She laid her heart open as tears spilled down her cheeks.
I could barely understand her as her words spilled out of her with no breath or pauses. She clutched something in her hand. As we sank down to the floor together, I pulled her into my lap and covered my hand with hers.
“Baby,” I whispered. “I’ve got you. Tell me.”
She looked up at me and my heart broke along with hers. “I’m alone,” she choked out. “I knew it all along, but tonight it’s real.”
She spilled out her story. I heard it with my heart and guts more than my ears. Avery had come here just as she suspected. Arkady knew her. My blood boiled at the thought of it. He’d been playing Anya since the moment she walked into that bar. I had my own story to tell, but it could wait. She told me about the other waitress, Gloria. She didn’t have to mention the Bear Trap. I could smell it all over her. She’d been near wolves. I did my level best to keep my breathing even and the blood rage out of my eyes. So many things could have happened to her tonight. I should have been more careful. Whether she liked it or not, we were going to have to play by my rules from now on.
Finally, Anya uncurled her fist and showed me the mate to the broken heart she wore around her neck.
“She’s dead, Cullen. I’ve carried that secret for over four years. This is the first time I’ve ever said it out loud.”
I let out a sigh and ran my hand over the curve of her skull. It was dangerous for me to hold her like this, but I had no intention of letting her go. “It’s just a necklace.”
“No.” She shifted so she faced me. “We made a promise. We had two quarters between us when we were twelve years old. We got them out of gumball machine at the mall. We said no matter what happened, we’d never take them off. She took hers off.”
I nodded hooked a finger beneath her chin. “Maybe she just wanted you to stop looking for her. She knew what you’d think if you ever got that necklace back.”
Anya shook her head. “Cullen. I’m alone. I’m completely alone. Gloria said she was sick. They did something to her. I feel it in my bones. Arkady knows what happened to her. God. He was probably the one who did it. You have to tell me the truth. What’s the worst thing it could be?”
She asked me for the truth and it was the one thing I couldn’t give. She saw the answer in my eyes. Arkady and his clan could have done anything to Avery. They could have taken her against her will. If she fought hard enough, they might have killed her.
Anya’s back stiffened as her eyes searched my face. For a moment, I thought she saw me as Arkady. A part of me would have understood it. He wasn’t my clan, but he was a bear. She didn’t have all the answers she sought, but she could have easily taken her grief out on me. Instead, something else shifted inside of her.
“I don’t want to be alone anymore.” Her voice was soft and small. She brought her hands to my face and ran her thumb across the split, swollen flesh at the corner of my left eye. Tobias had sucker punched me there. He was lucky Anya came back to me in one piece. If she hadn’t, I’d have a different score to settle with him later tonight. But, for now that could wait.
Anya moved first. Her hands slid down to my shoulders and she went up on her knees. I kept my hands curled into fists at my sides. I couldn’t want this. She couldn’t know the risk it put her in.
I’m a strong man and an even fiercer bear. But, when Anya pressed her soft lips against mine, no power on this earth could have kept me from responding. My bear flared to life, bold, ferocious, and filled with ancient lust and magic. Anya’s magic. It flowed through her veins even though she couldn’t possibly understand it yet. Neither could I. I only knew that she was mine.
So I took her.
“Cullen.” She gasped. The kiss ignited a maelstrom inside of her that called to me, and awakened a hunger I’d tried so long to keep contained. No more. I could think later about what came next. For now, Anya was my clan. She was mine to keep and protect.
I lifted her. She was weightless in my arms as I carried her into the living room and away from the front window. I laid her down gently. She still wore that ridiculously tight cocktail waitress dress. Her breasts heaved and her legs parted as she lay before me. My eyes raked in the sight of her. She wore black fishnet stockings that had torn at the knee. I growled as I went to my knees in front of her and cast my jeans aside.
“Cullen!” She gasped louder as she looked at me. She’d seen me naked before but never like this. I was huge, hard, and I throbbed for her. I knelt before her and put my hands on her knees. I had to find the strength to form words. In another minute, lust would drive away all thoughts but claiming her.
“Are you sure?” I said.
She nodded. “God. Yes.”
I waited for no further invitation. I spread Anya’s legs wide. Her skirt fell over her stomach, exposing her black satin panties. Growling, I slid a finger beneath the thin fabric and tore it away. Oh, God. She was beautiful. Her sweet lips glistened with her juices. She was open and ready for me and I had barely touched her. Anya arched her back and thrust upward. I ran a finger down her slick folds and teased her clit. She moaned my name again and again.
“I can’t be gentle,” I said.
Anya shook her head and brought herself up on her elbows. “Don’t. God. Please. Don’t be.”
Lust clouded my vision. Anya’s eyes widened and a slow smile spread across her face. I knew what she saw. My bear eyes flashed and excited her. It shouldn’t be here, I thought. I should take her out in the woods, deep into my clan lands. But, the floor of the apartment would have to do.
I tore at the bodice of her dress like I’d wanted to do since the first time I saw her in it. Her breasts spilled out. They were full and perfect with wine-colored nipples that begged to be teased and sucked. I leaned down and ran my tongue over each one. Anya laced her fingers through my hair and urged me on. She tasted sweet as honey. I couldn’t help myself. I nipped just above her right nipple. She sucked in her breath and arched her back even more.
“Yes!” she cried. “I want you to mark me.” She couldn’t know what that meant. She hadn’t been raised near bears. But, her body knew exactly what I craved. I bit her again, deeper this time. Not enough to draw blood, but enough to set her nerve endings on fire.
Her dress fell away in tatters. Except for her stockings, she was completely naked. I sucked and nipped my way down from her breasts to her hips, to the sweet juncture of her thighs. She spread her legs wide and I nipped her there, sending waves of heat through me and pouring into her.
“Oh God. Cullen. I can’t … I need…”
I knew what she needed. Later, I might take my time exploring every inch of her. Now, an ancient primal urge overcame me and her body called out to mine.
I turned her. She put her hands out and got into position on all fours. I leaned back to enjoy the view. Anya was open and ready, her sweet sex glistening. A tremor went through her as I ran my hands along her supple ass and spread her legs even wider, nudging her forward so her ass angled even higher toward me.
Mine!
Yes, bear. Yes. God, yes. There were a thousand reasons why we should have waited. In the morning, I might regret this choice. Though, I doubted it. We had no clan, she and I. We only had each other and instinct thrumming between us.
I went up on my knees and stroked my cock. She looked back over her shoulder and her eyes widened. She might have worried if I would fit. I tested her slick passage and found her swollen and ready. I teased her, pressing the tip at her opening. She bucked and writhed, trying to draw me in. Oh yes, my Anya, my Anam Cara. She was ready.
I slid in all the way, sheathing myself to the base of my cock. Anya let out a hiss as her body stretched to accommodate me. A perfect fit. She was tight and wet and felt like heaven.
Then, I couldn’t hold back. Later, if fate was kind, we’d have time to savor this and explore each other’s bodies. Now, none of that mattered. Need took over and I pressed myself inside of her. Anya dug her fingers into the soft plush carpet and braced herself for each pounding thrust.
I claimed her. Made her mine. Molded her body. As pressure built inside of me, I leaned forward and bit her between the shoulder blades. Again, not hard enough to draw blood. Anya reared back, tossing her hair over her shoulder as she struggled to meet my thrusts. Her walls quivered around me and I slid my hand around her waist to pull her back toward me. I brushed my fingers over her tight little bud. She shuddered as her orgasm built.
“Let go, baby,” I whispered against her ear. “Give in to it.”
She did. She screamed so loud I’m sure she woke the neighbors and I didn’t care. “Yes!” she cried. “God!”
Juices flowed freely around my cock, soaking us both. She bucked and quivered as I fucked her deep. Then, her body went rigid as she crested down. Then, it was my turn. I’d been holding back with her for so long, when I finally felt my release, I swear I felt ten feet off the ground. I poured myself into her in wave after wave. Anya brought her torso down and rested her chin on her hands, angling herself toward me so I could get even deeper inside of her.
Finally, as I shuddered through my own climax, I brought her back against me. I curled my body around hers. She rested her head against my arm, her ass tucked against me. I would hold her like this forever if she let me. I would protect her. Keep her safe and warm. She was mine. I knew I would have to fight heaven and hell itself to keep her.
And I would. Again and again. If it cost me my life. If it doomed me to hell. I would go with a smile on my face. Because Anya was mine. God help us both.