Chapter Seven
Her hands trembled as she pulled her pants up. Every inch of her felt like it was on fire. She tried to breathe deeply but her lungs didn’t want to work like that; her breaths came in pants and bursts, and there was a distinctive hitch every few seconds. Heat flowed through her bloodstream and even though her eyes were open, it seemed like she could see Tristen standing before her. That beautiful, muscular form. The dark hairs that went from his navel to his hard length.
Serena swallowed dry as she put on her bra. Her breasts felt too heavy. Her stomach twisted itself into knots.
The feeling of his body against hers had done something to her. Something she couldn’t explain, something she couldn’t define. At least, not in polite terms. Serena pulled on her shirt, wondering if things would have ended differently if Robert hadn’t been there. Her bear growled and paced, demanding satisfaction.
Serena had desired men before. Strong men, smart men, sexy men. Even if she never acted on it, that desire was there. But she had never had this raging fire before.
Robert slipped back into the house. Her mate. Despite what she had said before, this wasn’t grounds for her to refuse him. He was doing what he was meant to do—protecting her. Even if it wasn’t the way she’d have liked. Her mind rolled around like stones in a rock tumbler, thoughts crashing into one another. The heat still burned through her, demanding fuel.
He was her mate. Tristen wasn’t.
She launched herself at him. Her arms snaked around his neck and she pulled him hard against her. He opened his mouth and she swallowed his words. He jerked, but kissed her soon enough. He spun her in a circle and pressed her against the door. With a growl, he moved to her neck and lifted one leg over his hip.
Heat continued to swirl through her. Her eyes fluttered shut and she saw Tristen in her mind’s eye. Tristen smiling at her. Tristen’s mouth inches from hers. Tristen pressed up against her. Tristen’s hard hips between her thighs, his hard length inside of her. His mouth on her neck, her breasts, trailing over her ass.
She gasped.
Robert pulled away. There was a flush to his face. His hair was all messed up from her digging her fingers into his hair. He panted, swallowed, and shook his head. Looking like he wanted to do anything else, he stepped back from her. A rueful smile crossed his face as he ran his hands through his hair. Serena panted for breath. The heat was still inside of her. Trickles of worry started to come through, though.
Was she destined to forever lust after her mate’s brother? After all, she had just been naked with Tristen. Of course he would dominate her thoughts. She had to erase him from her mind, though.
“If I thought that you actually wanted me, I would be the happiest man alive right now,” Robert said. “But you want Tristen.”
Humiliation flooded her. “It’s just a silly crush. I will get over it.”
Robert put his hands on her arms. “Do you really believe that?”
She lowered her gaze. “I would never act on my feelings. You are my mate, not him.”
“No. I don’t really think I am.” Robert tucked his fingers under her chin and lifted her gaze to his. To her surprise, there was no condemnation in his eyes. Instead, he smiled at her. “Listen, I was never all that sold on this mate thing. I entered the fights because Tristen asked me to. And the more I’ve seen the two of you together, the more I understand why.”
Serena sucked her lower lip between her teeth. “That doesn’t matter. I need to be with you. You won me at the games. If you’re not going to be my mate, it has to start all over again. I can’t be the matriarch if I’m unmated. I have no choice, I live for my clan.”
Robert nodded. “Yeah. It’s clear that you do. You would do anything for them. But here’s the thing, Serena. I don’t.”
She really couldn’t blame him. It felt as though she had been stabbed, though. The guilt was stronger than she had anticipated. After everything that had been said and done, she had truly thought that she would be able to get over Tristen. And maybe this was only the second day she had been with Robert, but even that day… it felt like she had been cheating on him the whole time.
And it would only be worse for her clan if things went further. What if in a month, a year, five years, she couldn’t resist anymore? It was unfair to Robert and unfair to the clan to make a promise she wasn’t completely certain she could keep.
She turned away from him and cursed. That felt good, so she cursed again. And again, until she ran out of swears to say.
Robert laughed. “Wow. That’s intense.”
“I’m sorry. I know this must hurt.”
“Eh. Stings, maybe.” Robert laughed again. “Honestly, I knew from the start that you didn’t really want me. I just didn’t know that you wanted my brother. So why didn’t you just take him? You know that the fights were just a formality, right? You could have chosen anybody from our clan to be your mate.”
Serena lifted one shoulder and let it fall again, feeling miserable. “I went to him. He refused me. I figured he saw me as just some kid, he kept saying that I was so young.”
Robert laughed again.
“Well, I’m glad that you find this so amusing.” She glared at him.
“It is amusing! I mean, it’s clearly not the case. He doesn’t think of you as some kid.”
She thought about how he looked standing naked before her and a swirl of heat went through her again. Frustration rose with it. Couldn’t she control her body in the slightest?
“He kept saying that I was young,” she repeated.
“Probably because you are quite a bit younger than him,” Robert said. He grinned at her, clearly still very amused by this whole situation. She would have been angry at him for it, except for the fact that it meant he wasn’t angry. “You know, I’ve known my brother for a long time. He’s always been very proper about things. Odd, considering some of the people I’ve met that are in the military with him. But let’s sit down and really talk.”
She followed him into another room. He pulled a sheet off a couch and a mouse ran across the floor. Serena watched it and shook her head. There could be a nest in the couch; who kept furniture like that in a place like this, when it was rarely lived in?
They chose to sit at the table in the dining room instead. Robert broke out a couple of beers from the cooler he’d brought. Serena gratefully downed half of her bottle, just for something to do. Like coffee, alcohol really didn’t have an effect on bears.
“I knew from the start that Tristen cared about you. A lot. I mean, he was very insistent that I enter the fights. That wasn’t for my benefit. He wanted you to be with someone he could trust. Enter me. Now, it did confuse me for a bit about why he cared so much. I thought at first it was because your uncle is his friend. But after today? It’s obvious. He’s in love with you. But afraid to act on it because he thinks the age difference is squicky.”
“Squicky?”
Robert nodded. “Socially, not really all that acceptable. I mean, random people are going to give you nasty looks. But that’s okay because the two of you are obviously head over heels.”
Serena hesitated. “But the games… we can’t really just say that it didn’t work out after two days. It’s going to be a huge upset if we back out of this, people are going to say that we put the games on for nothing. Not to mention the people who will go crazy about me breaking tradition. They’re already expecting me to because of my mother.”
“Then I will back out of it.”
“And people will wonder what’s wrong with me.”
Robert sighed. “No, they won’t. I’ll say that I wasn’t ready for the commitment and I’ll sing your praises. And then since we haven’t slept together nobody can say that we’re really mates and insist on making it work. You and I haven’t made any commitments to one another. All that’s necessary is that you take a mate from my clan. Tristen is from my clan.”
It was Serena’s turn to sigh.
“Okay, fine. Then we can wax poetic about it. Say that I won you in a fight but Tristen won your heart. Heck, we could even fight for you if it’ll make people feel better. I’d be more than willing to take a dive.”
Despite the situation, Serena found herself smiling. If he wasn’t so insistent about this, she wasn’t sure she would have allowed herself to be convinced. Maybe because she was so used to sacrificing her personal happiness, being presented with a solution that would benefit both her and the clan seemed too good to believe.
Her shoulders relaxed and the tightness in her chest eased. At least her desire had faded away so it wasn’t at the forefront of her mind.
“Then I guess the only thing that’s standing in our way is Tristen, huh?”
Robert shrugged. “Yeah. Convincing him might take a little work. I just wanted to say… In the twenty-four hours that we’ve been a couple, I’ve learned a lot about myself. I never thought I’d want a mate, really. And now? I want someone that looks at me the way you look at Tristen. So, thank you for that. Now.” The sincerity on his face morphed into a devilish gleam. “We have to figure out a way for you to claim your mate.”
“Claim,” Serena repeated.
“Seduce.”
Heat flared in her face and she ducked her head. Even though sex was a normal part of life, she had never really had anybody to talk about it with. Natasha was too busy being a mom to her. Clifford just seemed too awkward. The matriarch was too focused on getting her ready to take over after her. And her paternal grandmother… well, Serena just didn’t trust her not to make it too crude.
She let out a shaky breath and nodded. “I do need advice. I don’t know how to be seductive.”
Robert smiled. “Well, you have the first part down. Being wicked hot. Now, as for the rest of it… We’ll have to set the scene. Do you know how to cook?”