Samantha groaned at the unexpected pleasure as she gripped Benjamin’s shoulders. He pulled her against him, and she slid across the bathroom counter, knocking over his toothbrush and sending it scattering into the sink. He didn’t stop. His mouth rained kisses over hers, explored her earlobe, and tasted her neck.

He squeezed her hips as he thrust inside her. Her climax built, charging through her flesh, ready to explode in mind shattering sparks of pleasure. She squeezed her eyes closed and gasped as the orgasm rocked her. She felt her body squeeze and throb over Benjamin’s thrusting shaft.

He growled into her ear, nipping at her neck as his cock grew thicker inside her. He groaned, deep in his chest, and came as his flat teeth bit her skin. The pain of his bite made her climax again. In that moment, she feared that he had claimed her. But his teeth never pierced her flesh.

She’d read the stories of how shifters claimed their mates, and this was not how it was done. As the pleasure rose in waves around her, she felt guilty for believing he would have done it without her permission. She felt even worse that she would have objected. The truth was, she wouldn’t. But as he held her there and kissed her forehead, she knew she wasn’t ready. He pulled away and righted her bathrobe over her bare breasts.

“You said you were going to get me dirty,” she teased.

“You are my dirty girl,” he growled into her ear.

She giggled, and he turned the tap in the shower. Naked, they both stepped under the warm stream. Samantha covered a sponge with body wash and ran it over Ben’s body. She enjoyed watching the bubbles wash over his muscular chest, run down his beautiful abs, and across his thighs.

He washed his hair and then washed her, paying special attention to her breasts and her core. They held each other under the warm stream for a long time, just enjoying their closeness and the hot water running over them from the wide rainwater showerhead.

Finally, as their skin was beginning to prune, they stepped out of the shower and began to dry off. Ben left Samantha to dress in private while he went to his room to change. When she was dressed, she opened the door and found him sitting on the bed as he laced up his shoes. She smiled at him, giving him a knowing look. He gave her the same smile back.

The night before had been tender and slow, but their lovemaking on the bathroom counter had been raw and passionate. Holding each other in the shower had cemented their deep affection. She went back to the bathroom and fixed her hair and makeup as Ben went downstairs. She found him sitting at the kitchen table, reading the newspaper.

“Are there any updates on the missing statue?” she asked him.

“Nothing. Some people are speculating that it was witchcraft. Others are calling for a witch hunt against the Midwest Mayhem group. But no one can prove anything, either way.”

“You promised me a ride around the lake today.

“That I did,” he said, folding the paper and rising from his chair.

He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her head before looking down at her with a smile. “I’ve made us a picnic lunch and I’m ready to go if you are.”

“Absolutely.”

They left his house and climbed into his SUV, driving down the road. He lived in a pleasant new neighborhood of Fate Valley with other houses that had been built around the same time. They were all modern, with big backyards that faced the lake. Samantha could definitely imagine living there.

The closer she got to Ben, the more she wanted to change her entire life just to be with him. But she knew she needed more time to adjust to falling in love so quickly. Most human couples took at least a year to decide to get married and commit to each other. For shifters, it was a matter of days, if not hours, or even minutes. It just didn’t make sense to her human mind.

They drove through town and the crowd around the statue was still thick with spectators and tourists. There was a van parked in the square that said Paranormal Society and someone was out under the statue with a Geiger counter. Samantha had to giggle to herself at that. Well, it did seem miraculous that a two-thousand-pound statue could somehow be moved, without a trace, in the middle of the night. She doubted there was anything supernatural to it, though. Or was there?

They left town and drove out into the park that surrounded most of the lake. As they climbed elevation into the forest, the views of the lake from the top of the hill were beautiful and breathtaking. The day was warm and bright for February. Benjamin found a place to stop at a cliff, at the height of the hill that overlooked the lake.

They took a seat at a covered picnic table, sitting together on the bench. Ben opened the picnic basket and handed her a sandwich, a bottle of juice, and a bag of potato chips. They ate their lunch, looking out at the sweeping landscape.

When they were done, they decided to go for a short hike down a trail that circled the lake. Walking hand-in-hand, under the bright blue winter sky, Samantha took a deep breath of the fresh air. Little leaf buds sprouted from the naked winter branches above them. The winter birds sang from the trees. With Benjamin’s hand wrapped warmly in hers, they stopped at an overlook on the trail and leaned against the safety rail as they looked down on the lake waters.

Far below, she spotted families and fishermen in the cabs and on the decks of boats. Ben put his arm around her shoulders and stood close, his body heat radiating between them. She looked up at him and the sun twinkled in his eye. He grinned down at her and kissed her. She inhaled his scent as his lips pressed so softly against hers. He ran the pad of his thumb over her cheekbone and cupped her cheek in his hand.

“You’re so beautiful. I want to hold you like this in my mind forever.”

“Let’s take a selfie,” she said, pulling her phone out of her pocket.

They turned to have the lake behind them as she held her phone up. They grinned into the screen. She clicked the photo and then they both inspected it.

“It’s the first of many,” she said. “We look adorable. I’m posting it.”

She tapped on her screen and Benjamin smiled, seeming to approve. For her, this was a kind of commitment that was normal for humans. She was dating a guy she really liked, they’d gone for a pleasant walk in the woods, and now she was posting their selfie on social media. She looked at her social media page. The post already had three likes from her colleagues back at the paper, and a comment from her college roommate.

“You two are so cute!” it read.

She showed it to Ben.

“That seals it then. We’re a hit on social media,” he said.

She giggled as they held hands and turned down the trail to make their way back to the car.

Her thoughts turned to her relationship to Ambrose Morgan and the mystery of the missing statue. Benjamin had mentioned something about how the Fate Valley Wives’ Club had raised the funds to commission the statue. She still wanted to talk to the chairwoman of the club.

“I’m going to call the chairwoman of the Fate Valley Wives’ Club today for an interview. What was her name again?”

“Becky Black.”

Samantha did a quick Google search for Becky Black of Fate Valley and found her contact information.

“I’m going to call her now,” she said as they approached the car.

They climbed inside, and Benjamin turned on the engine. The warm air blasted out of the heater felt good on her cool cheeks. She dialed Becky’s number and held the phone to her ear.

“Hello, is this Becky Black?” Samantha asked when a woman answered the phone.

“This is she,” Becky said.

“Hi, my name is Samantha Cooper with the Historic Times magazine. I’d like to interview you about the statue of Ambrose Morgan.”

“Oh, I would be happy to,” Becky said.

“Is today good?”

“Why don’t you come over to my house for tea at one o’clock this afternoon?”

“That sounds lovely.”

“I’ll text you the address.”

Samantha hung up the phone, feeling as if she had made a good contact. A moment later she received a text with Becky’s address.

“I have an interview with the chairwoman of the Fate Valley Wives’ Club. I’m meeting her at her house at one o’clock.”