He paused in her doorway, his hands gripping the frame, fingertips so white she feared for the wood trim. She'd stopped when his footsteps did, turning to find the man filling the space. His face appeared tight as he leaned against one side of the doorframe with his hip, his biceps so tight veins popped. He stared at her with an intensity she didn't understand. Her breath caught in her chest, assuming he'd changed his mind on the ride over.

"What?" she asked, forcing her tone to appear even, not letting him in on the current fear she felt at that moment; the pure terror of rejection she'd avoided all these years.

"You have to be a hundred percent sure you want me, Tallan. I have to know, to give you one last chance to say no, because if I walk through this doorway, I am going to lose all control. I've held back, these past few hours, thanks to us being out in public, but alone, with you, your luscious body, after struggling with wanting you all evening, I won't be able to stop. My bear, he wants you, too, even though we've just met, like he's never wanted anyone else. I only have the strength to hold him back to an extent. He is animal, and in this form, I'm only a man. You know, as a shifter, our human side can fall to the lusts of the animal. I need to know that you are sure. Not only that, but I need to know that you won't regret this later either. It would kill me to have to leave you, go back to my assignment knowing you regretted this time together."

"I won't. I promise. Only, there is one thing I should tell you first, before you come in. If you change your mind, I get it."

"There is nothing that could make me not want you right now. You have to be able to see how hard I am already, just standing here, thinking about seeing you naked, touching you, imaging your long, raven tresses falling over your porcelain skin and hearing you call my name as you finally let go. Tell me your secret, Tallan."

She swallowed hard, her body frozen in this moment, letting the sentiments he'd related wash over her, before she stood up as tall as she could manage, pushing her shoulders back and gathering the courage to disclose her status.

"I'm a virgin. I mean, I've pleasured myself, but no man has ever touched me there, made love to me. I've never trusted one enough. I'm trusting you, but if you don't want someone so inexperienced, or if that fact bothers you in any way, I get it."

She barely got out the words before he moved forward, slamming the door behind him with one swift push of his hand. In seconds, he had her in his arms, picking her up off of her feet as if she weighed nothing, bringing her level with him and crushing his lips to hers. While at first his mouth pushed hard, ravaged hers like a starved man, when the heat built between them to unexpected proportions he backed off, letting her body slide down his. He pulled back, cupping her face in his hands, his thumb teasing over her swollen lips as his voice came out in a low, growl-laden promise.

"I will be gentle with you. I promise. I am so honored that you would think to give me such a gift, one you've saved your entire life, but you have to be certain. You've waited all this time for a reason. Why now? Why tonight?"

"As I said, no man has ever treated me the way you have, the way you do. No man has ever looked at me the way you do, either, devouring me with your gaze, making me feel special, truly wanted for me, who I am despite my size, and not just another quick, easy fuck. I've never felt this draw to anyone that I feel for you. The emotions you pull from my heart, though scary in a sense, because they are so new, raw, are so intense and there has to be a reason for that, too. I want to see where this leads, where we go from here. Maybe for the first time in forever, I no longer fear rejection or humiliation, not with you. I did for a second there, but now...now I just feel desire, a need to be with you that I can't even explain or rationalize to myself. A call I no longer want to try to deny myself."

Luke ground his teeth, a growl bubbling up from his chest. "If I ever meet one of these men, don't point them out. I don't want to spend the rest of my days in jail because I murdered one of their worthless asses."

He shook his head before kissing her again, this time gentle brushes of his lips against hers, his hands moving through her thick hair and sending shivers down her spine. The heat built between them, along with a pressure in her core she needed to see through, give in to.

Luke pulled back once more, leaving her feeling bereft after the heat of his kiss.

"I want you in the worst way, Tallan," he said in a choked voice, his breathing staccato. "My only fear right now is how I will leave you after. You've captured me. I didn't believe it true before, that it could actually happen... I never understood what others were talking about, you know, what the guys say about 'when you meet her, you will just know.' But, even if we have no future given your parents disapproval, the distance between us, I would at least have this night with you. Something I would cherish for the rest of my days. Although, that is not all I want. Not by a long shot. I would do whatever it took, secret lovers, spending all my money on plane tickets each leave, just to be with you however I could."

She shook her head. "I can't think through all of that right now, Luke. For now, just make love to me tonight. If it's all we have, all we ever get, I want it, too. I want this with you. Something different to hold on to, to chase away my past, to know there's at least one real man out there who likes me for me, wants me the way you do. That fact means more than you could ever know already."

"I do, Tallan, oh how I do want you." He moved in on her once more, a gentle giant, caressing her skin, feathering his mouth over hers, tracing a heated path down her jaw to the hallow at the base of her throat. Tender, heat filled kisses as if she were breakable in his hands. Of course, he was a bear shifter, and built like a grizzly, so maybe he could, but she trusted him not to, and he proved her right. When he pulled back, panting, stopped kissing her senseless, she had no idea how much time had passed. He held her to his broad, firm chest for a few breaths, her heart pounding and her own breathing erratic. She could feel the outline of his hardness pressing through his snug jeans and into her belly, leaving no doubt whatsoever of his desire for her and her mind reeling.

Sucking in a deep breath, Luke stepped back, grasped her hand in his large palm, and led her to the bedroom. Given the small apartment she lived in, he didn't really need to ask directions.

When they got there, he closed the door, which amused her as there was no chance of anyone else coming into the apartment. The fact that he had been considerate enough to think to do everything he could to make her comfortable went a long way.

Once he had her in there, him still standing in front of the closed door, his eyes dark with desire, and the crystal clear outline of his rigid cock pressing against the denim, she admitted to herself that the word "trapped" briefly flashed through her mind and sent a jolt of electricity through her already buzzing system.

In between more rounds of kissing, he undressed her, peeling away one piece of clothing at a time. He seemed to enjoy going slowly through these motions, verbally admiring, touching, kissing each curve, every mound of flesh revealed as he dropped the garments to the floor. The growl deep in his throat caused a reciprocating one to erupt from within her, her panther ready for this mating more than she wanted to think about at the moment.

"Tallan, you are more beautiful than I ever imagined. Your breasts, your hips," he said as he feathered his large hands over each inch of her skin, pinching each beaded nipple between his thumb and forefinger until the peaks stiffened to tight points of aching flesh, eliciting moans and groans from them both. Luke bent his head to the softness of her breast, taking one stiff, straining nipple into his mouth, hot against her swollen globes and sensitive nipples as they thrust hard against his tongue. Gently, he swirled his tongue around the base of the tight bud, then lightly grazed its edge with his teeth.

His soft moan sent shivers of need though her body, set her legs to trembling as he continued the exquisite torture over her other breast. Luke tightened his hold on the thickness of her waist, holding her up when she felt as if her legs had turned to jelly. She could spend the entire night right there, him sucking, eternally sucking the sensitive peaks with her writhing beneath his hands. Nothing she'd ever known before came close to the feel of his mouth on her voluptuous, soft body. Nothing.

She shifted, widened her stance a little in an attempt to regain some of her balance lest she topple over right there, and began to stroke his short, dark hair as her involuntary sounds of pleasure escaped her throat. Her chest heaved with deep and difficult breaths as he trailed the tips of his fingers down each side of her body, exploring every curve and valley, combining the sensations of his mouth and hands over her flesh, nearly driving her over the edge right then and there.

"Luke. I can't take it. I can't..."

When he got to the over-heated apex between her thighs, he said only, "Shhhh, it's okay..." then dropped to his knees in front of her. He paused without pulling away, pressed his head against her belly and closed his eyes, his labored breathing evening out a little, the pause of his ministrations helping her quiet her own overwhelming desire. The momentary reprieve didn't last long.

Luke placed soft kisses first on the bottom of her stomach, groaning and growling as he went, his fingers digging into her hips, as if it were all he had to hold himself back, remain in control. She wanted to spread her legs for him, but his grasp on her hips forced her to stand still, not move without his consent as he traced his tongue and kisses over her thighs, her mound, her lips, before he looked up at her, dark eyes flashing with the intensity of his own need.

"Grab on to my shoulders, Tallan, and do not let go." he ordered, his voice gruff, hard, leaving no doubt he meant every word.

She did as he bid her, looking down over him with her eyes wide, curious, her fingers biting into the hard flesh so hard she worried it would bruise but she said not a word. She couldn't.

Luke had grasped her broad hips and pulled her sex toward him, moving his hand to curl into the thatch of hair. He trailed one finger down to the crease and circled it slowly to trace over her folds, making her suck in a fast breath at the contact.

She bit down hard on her bottom lip as his fingers played over the tension in her blood-engorged sex. She'd become so wet, so slippery she could smell her own musky scent as it drifted upward from the dark curls nestled tight to the apex of her thighs and he'd only just begun. That fact alone sent heat rushing into her cheeks.

He ran his tongue down her belly, stopping just before he reached her folds. He used his fingers to carefully separate the labia and then brought his face against her heated core, forcing a deep growl to bubble from her throat. Her panther dangerously close to the surface now, with all these new sensations and emotions running rampant through her body and mind. She was a little concerned about her ability to maintain her control, not allow the animal within her to shift at this point.

She pressed the beast back, mentally reassuring herself she could do this, concentrate enough on Luke's actions and still keep her animal at bay. After all, this may be new to her but she knew control was a must, even if she felt like she were about to explode.

He blew gently against her heated skin, sinking a slick finger into her slick channel and she keened low and long at the welcome feeling of pleasure that ripped through her at the intrusion. She gasped, sucking in another deep breath and biting hard on her lip as he flicked the very edge of his firm tongue to the tip of her swollen clit.

Her head shot up and she arched, bucking her hips, and for a split second almost losing her grip on his shoulders as he darting his tongue in warm circles around the tight bud.

He followed her movements easily as she whimpered, howled, and shook as she released all the pent up tension, her desire, fear, everything in a rush of her juices leaving beaded moisture covering his lips and chin. As the last of her climax retreated in delicious spasms, Tallen buried her face in his hair, still holding his shoulders tight.

Luke grasped her generous buttocks, buried his face against her belly and held her tight as the aftershocks of the most amazing orgasm she'd ever had rippled through her.

Not sure what to expect next, she startled when he scooped her up off the floor, one arm cradling her legs and the other wrapped behind her back. She couldn't imagine any man could lift her, but he did so without even a grunt of effort. She let the thought pass as quickly as it had come and settled into his hard chest with a soft sigh, her head cradled under his chin.

Laying her out on the bed, Luke then stood back, admiring her, looking her over every inch of her without hurry or haste. A smile grew on his face, slow and perfect to convey how he felt about what he saw. He backed up, looking her up and down. It was like he sought to memorize the sight of her flushed cheeks, her unfocused eyes, her sated and lethargic body, and imprint the sensual view of her into his mind.

Her whole body tingled, begging for his touch. His eyes only teased, though they brought every ounce of her, inside and out, to life. The fact that she laid there, bare to his roving gaze, post-coital and letting him view her this way seemed to heal something deep inside her that had been ripped apart, shredded by the actions of others long ago. In a short amount of time, this man, his loving treatment and consideration for her, made her feel like a whole woman again, one ready and willing to give herself to a man. Maybe even to love. She bit back the intruding thoughts of what it would feel like when the time came for him to go and she would lose him.

"Open for me," he requested, his voice heavy with need, though soft and yet demanding all at the same time.

She obliged, and he put a hand over his heart, shaking his head, his eyes wide, as if he'd never laid eyes on anyone so beautiful. She knew this couldn't be true, but for the time being, she let it be anyway. Her lack of hesitation to reveal herself, to let herself be vulnerable, astounded her, sucked the very breath away from her lungs for a heartbeat, only to bring it back more rapid, more frantic than it had been before.

"You take my breath away, Tallan," he said, as if having read her thoughts. "I want you so badly it hurts. But, I shall go slow. For you. I want you to remember your first time forever, to be thinking about me, wanting me long after I am gone. Are you ready for this? There is no going back."

"Yes," she managed, watching him as he undid his belt, then the button and zipper of his jeans.

His erection sprang out from his boxers when he pulled them down along with the rest. He kicked off his pants as he removed his t-shirt, until he stood naked before her, a specimen of man unlike any she'd ever seen in person, even rivaling the ones she'd seen play superheroes in the movies. And, he wanted her. Her!

Climbing onto the bed, he moved to lie beside her, skin touching skin, and moved his fingers to cover her mound. He began with butterfly light caresses over her skin, making her want to scream for more after a mere few seconds of such attention. Instead she gripped that sheets, writhed beneath him, as he opened her, flicking his thumb across her still-swollen bud, until she screamed with need, her body begging for more.

"Shhhh," he soothed. "You are going to have to wait. I'm not done savoring you yet. Your body... So much beauty to explore, so much to feel, to taste. There's so much I want to give you for your first time, too. This needs to be done right."

From him, now, she believed the things he said were genuine compliments, and said a silent prayer that he would never prove her wrong. She then belittled herself for thinking less of him, for letting that doubt seep back in if even for a moment. It had spoiled one with him, and she grew bound and determined not to let another be. Tonight, she would be the woman she never let out, the one capable of trust, of accepting and giving love of a physical nature. She'd believe him, believe in him, and take for herself what he offered, all of what he offered.

She jolted back to the moment as Luke slipped a single digit into the heat between her legs. Simultaneously, he began kissing up her stomach, over her ribs, up to her breasts and nipples, paying each one special attention, driving her mad. Just when he pushed up, thought him done ravaging her, he turned her over, and began at her shoulders, kissing, licking his way down. He lost a bit of his control when he hit her ass, squeezing the globes a bit hard, though she didn't mind at all. His kisses turned to bites, followed by apologies. She could only moan and writhe under his ministrations.

Finally, he turned her back over, and began to move his body over hers.

"Wait," she demanded.

He froze, his eyes going wide.

"No, I don't want to stop. I want to touch you first. You kissed every inch of me, don't I deserve the same chance?"

"You do if you wish."

"I do. You are amazing. Beautiful, handsome, whatever I call it doesn't come close to the truth of who I see here before me. You are perfection."

"I am glad you think so, because I think the same about you." When she began to protest, he leaned over and kissed her, silencing her. When he'd quieted her, he continued on, his mouth inches from her ear, his cheek warm against hers as his five o'clock shadow scraped roughly over the skin of her chin and neck, "I believe that for every man there is a perfect woman, one with the right build, the right curves. For me, I never thought I'd find her, yet here you are, every inch of you flawlessness in my eyes. I only want to make you view yourself in the same way. I'd hoped my attentions would be a start. Yet, in all honestly, I had selfish motives as well, to explore and memorize every last amazing inch of you."

She smiled up at him when he moved away, forcing her mind silent of retorts. Not tonight. Not now. As he came to stand at the foot of the bed, her heart swelling, her eyes filling, she willed it all away and changed her smile to one more devious. Simply set to follow every lust-filled thought that came to her head, she moved to all fours and crawled down the bed toward him, not self-conscious about her belly brushing the soft sheets as she moved, not concerned he may think her anything more than beautiful, sensual, and, now, giving as he had done to her. She brought her lips to the engorged purple tip of his erection. A sound unlike any she'd ever heard before ripped from his chest, as a drop of moisture built there. She licked the pearl drop away, eliciting another throaty growl, before she moved on to kissing and licking the taunt skin covering his cock.

She ignored the quick flashes of doubt sent out by her brain—that the length and girth of the man would fit inside of her—as she slid her tongue over one of the bulging veins running down the side, moving her hand down to his balls. She touched the small, tight sac gently, afraid to hurt him, hesitant to do something wrong where she knew a man to be the most vulnerable. His reactions to the feather light brushes of her fingers sounded anything but negative.

Encouraged by the groans and hitches of breath emanating from him, she gathered courage, gave into the nudges of her lustful mind. Moving her mouth back up to his throbbing, twitching cock head, she slipped what she could of him into her mouth. His hands fisted in her hair, not too hard, but letting her know she affected him. She took her time, enjoying torturing him, pulling her lips as far back as she could manage and then letting his erection slide into her warm mouth to the back of her throat. His salty taste, the musky smell of him, drew her in.

Letting him go, watching him stay hard and straight before he, she leaned in to kiss his balls, burying her face between his thighs, inhaling, tasting, letting it all affect her like a good drug.

She moved around and over his body, using her tongue and fingers to explore every peak, every valley of flesh-covered muscle on his body. When she got to his ass, so rounded, so hard, she laid her hand against it, fingers spread out, unable to press into the flesh as the muscles tightened. Staring at her pale skin, burgundy nails from the wedding manicure, against his caramel colored skin, she stopped, her breath catching.

"Are you okay back there?" he asked, no trace of frustration or upset in his voice.

"Is it wrong that I want to spank you?"

"Not wrong," he said with a small laugh. "But, not tonight, or not this time. This time is for discovering each other, for me teaching you what a man can truly do to a woman. Then, if you wish it, another time, you may spank me, or I you. I thought the same, I will admit, biting your ass. I had to hold back the fantasies of taking you over my knee and turning those luscious cheeks of yours red. Or of tying you to the bed and doing whatever I want to your body until you begged me to fuck you. For now, though, I only hope for the possibilities of what is to come, of more nights with you. Tonight, I want to take you gently, make love to you so you will never forget any moment of it."

"I couldn't right now anyway, but, for future reference, I think I may be open to all of that." she said, heat creeping over her cheeks.

With a growl, a grumble, he got up and pushed her onto her back on the bed. His movements slow, yet decisive, he slid his body over hers. He held most of his weight with his arms, she could tell by the shaking muscles there, as she opened for him, and felt the tip of his erection probe her swollen entrance.

"I hope not to hurt you, but my size..." he said, the apology deepening his tone, which held no ounce of conceit, only concern.

"I will be fine. I said I'd never been with a man, but I've had plenty of toys. None that exactly meet your girth, or length, but enough I won't hurt as you fear I may."

He smiled as he pushed in a little, and she gasped as he closed his eyes.

"So tight. So warm, my angel."

She grabbed for his ass, digging in her fingers.

"Am I hurting you?"

"In the best way. Push into me, Luke, all the way."

"I will, but a little bit at a time, my eager lover."

He did as she asked, taking her slow, moving in inch by inch, until he managed to push inside her as far as he could. The widening of her body, muscles stretching to accommodate his elicited a feeling of pure bliss. Her stomach tightened and her legs trembled as he thrust in and out in a slow rhythm until he took her up and over that edge, made her scream his name, as he growled hers.

Her hips rose with him, moving in a rushed synchronicity, as she rode out the overwhelming contractions, the ripples of pain and pleasure that destroyed her mind, turned her body to pure heat and nothing else.

Spent, he moved to the side of her, pulling her into his arms and cradling her to his body.

"Tell me I can stay," he asked.

"Please do. May I ask how that was for you, being with someone so inexperienced?"

"Better than any I've ever had. Our animals connected. Did you feel it?"

"I don't know what all I felt at this moment. My mind is mush and my bones like jelly. I am one that will need time, will enjoy going through it all again, over and over in my mind, pulling out this, analyzing that. For now, all I can say is amazing, and that word doesn't come close to what happened here. Thank you for being so gentle, so patient, so giving, and so kind, like I'd never imagined a man could be. I felt comfortable, and free. I experienced lust and passion in some epic sense. Wow, sorry, I must sound so stupid, so ridiculous."

"Never. I took each word you said as a compliment. I hope you intended them to be."

"I did. Thank you."

"Don't thank me. There is no need to when you've just given me one of the best nights of my life," he said, stroking the raven locks of her hair and pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead. "Sleep now, little one. I will be here for you when you wake up."

She fell asleep happier than she knew possible in this world.