Millie arrived at Brody’s house as the golden rays of sunset glowed in the tall pines. She’d worn a dark blue dress that hugged her waist and accentuated her curves.

Brody had wanted to wait, and take things slow. When he’d told her she was his mate, she didn’t know what to do. But she had enjoyed her time with him so much, and every day they spent together she felt more attached.

She didn’t know what shifters felt when they found their mates, but just knowing she meant so much to him did something to her. She was more open that she usually would be to creating a relationship with someone she hadn’t been dating long.

Millie could see herself with Brody. From the moment he’d told her she was his mate, she’d envisioned what life would be like with him. She wished she’d known him before the death of his friend. She could see how difficult it was for him, with his simmering anger underneath his good-natured friendliness.

She walked up the front porch steps, her black pumps clicking on the wood. Brody opened the front door before she knocked. The smell of cooking food wafted out the door. He looked adorable in a red flannel shirt unbuttoned at the neck and a second-day beard.

His blue eyes smiled as he welcomed her inside. “You look beautiful,” he said, taking her hand. He faced her, kissed her cheek, and then led her into the kitchen.

“What’s that wonderful smell?” she asked.

“Honey baked ham, honey biscuits, and honey baked walnuts.”

“Mmm. That sounds so delicious.” She bent over, opening the oven door to look inside. “Looks delicious too. When do we eat?” she said.

“Soon. Mind setting the table? The nice dishes are in that cabinet.” He pointed at a cabinet with his carving knife.

“That’d be great,” she said, opening the cabinet. Traditional china was stacked in the cabinet and she pulled out some plates and platters for the table. “Where did you get this china?” she asked. It looked like wedding china.

“My parents. They died a few years back. After I finished college.”

“I’m sorry,” she said, turning to him. His back was to her as he carved the ham. She could see the sadness in the way he held his shoulders. It made her want to go to him and touch him, and offer whatever comfort she could. He’d lost his parents and his best friend at such a young age.

Millie had only ever lost a job. It had been devastating, but nothing like what Brody had been through.

“It happened,” he said. “Nothing anyone can do about it now.”

He turned, putting on a bright smile, but the strain in his eyes told a different story. “Dinner’s done!” he said, carrying the food to the table. Millie grabbed the bottle of wine from the counter and opened it with the bottle opener beside it.

They sat down and she poured the wine while he dished up their food. She took a bite of the ham and she moaned. The flavor was rich, sweet, and savory. It was so good she had to put her fork down.

“Wow, you can cook!”

“It’s the honey,” he said.

“I’m seeing a theme here,” she said, laughing as she pointed at the honey-themed meal.

“I wanted to share some of my best honey recipes with you. It means a lot to me.”

“When did you start keeping bees?”

“The bees belonged to my father. After he died, I continued his legacy. He taught me how to care for them when I was a child. I hadn’t expected to return to the country life. But when they died, I realized how much it all meant to me.”

“Are you happy you stayed?” she asked.

“Most of the time. What about you, why are you here?”

“Oh, that’s a long story,” she said. Talking about how she lost her job was difficult and painful for her.

“We’ve got all night,” he said.

She sighed and gave him a pursed smile. “Okay.” If she was going to make this thing work with him, she had to learn to open up to him. Millie took a sip of wine.

“I used to be the head of surgery at San Francisco General. It was the busiest hospital in the city, and I was at the top of my game. There was this kid from one of the poor neighborhoods who came to me in cardiac arrest. I had to operate.”

“Did you save him?”

“I saved the kid. But a major contributor to the hospital died while I was in surgery. His issue had been stable. It was a freak occurrence that he should have died due to complications. I never could have foreseen it.”

“You lost your job for that?”

“I’d refused to let the kid die to babysit the contributor’s heart monitor. I never could have seen it coming. But when he died, the board voted to let me go. Losing that job was like a nail in the coffin of my career. No one would hire me at any of the big hospitals. I had to find something, start over.”

“Wow. I don’t know if I could come back from that. Getting my career wiped out from under you for no reason.”

“There was a reason. Greed,” she took a sip of wine. “It was nothing compared to what you’ve been through. Losing your parents and your best friend within few years.”

Brody’s face fell. Darkness shaded his bright blue eyes. A frown etched over his face. “Chris’s death is having an effect on me that I’m not comfortable with.”

“He was your family, wasn’t he?”

“We’d known each other since we were kids. He’d lost his family too. But we had each other. Not many people are lucky enough to have a friend stand by them through their entire lives. I was the lucky one who did.”

His eyes glimmered with unshed tears.

“Brody,” she said, standing to throw her arms around his shoulders. He put his hand on her arm and leaned against her cheek.

“Millie, this was the worst time for us to meet.”

“But we did meet. Now we’ve found each other. We can help each other get through this.”

“Millie.”

He pulled her onto his lap and wrapped his arms around her warm curves. Taking a deep breath of her scent, his eyes rolled back with pleasure. She tilted her face toward him, and he caught her lips with his, kissing hard and deliberately.

She let out a little moan, her body opening to his touch. His tongue slid into her mouth, making her moan from the pleasure of it. The taste and smell of him sent electric signals of desire through her whole being.

He growled and stood, scooping her up in his arms. She yelped and the chair toppled backward. He lifted her, looking down into her face before he planted another kiss on her lips. When he released her from his forceful kiss, he was already in the living room, bending her over the back of the couch.

Millie’s eyes widened at his unbridled lust. His hands slid up her thighs, moving the skirt of her dress over her ass. She breathed his name as his fingers hooked into her panties and pulled them down over her heels.

Hands slid into the front of her wrap dress and pulled her breasts into the air. “What happened to waiting?” she breathed as he angled her face to kiss her from behind.

“No more waiting,” he grunted. His hands rubbed over her breasts and he pushed her down onto the back of the couch. She heard his belt buckle open behind her as he kicked her legs apart. Millie gasped and bit her lip. His hands gripped her hips and his shaft pressed against her wet opening.

She almost stopped him, but she was on the pill. Even if she wasn’t, she didn’t know if she’d stop him. His fingertips gripped hard into her flesh as he thrust forward, sinking inside her.

They both let out a moan. His hands rubbed her waist and her breasts. He kissed her before sliding his hand down her front and flicking her clit as he held her breast with his other hand. He pulled back and thrust again, his finger pressing on her nub.

Groaning his name, she felt herself closer to exploding with each thrust. Primal, sensual, overpowering lust flowed from his hips into her core. The sound of flesh on flesh and Millie’s rhythmic moans filled the room.

Her moaning began to lengthen. The pleasure began to build. All of the sudden it spilled over, throbbing around his naked cock. He didn’t stop for her to rest.

Gripping her breast and hips harder in his hands, he lifted her off to get deeper inside her body. The sensation blew her mind, and her body responded with another bursting climax.

She felt weak and light-headed, but Brody didn’t quit. She slid away, gasping, and turned to him, reaching up to put her arms around his shoulders.

He growled and lifted her up on the back of the couch as she wrapped her legs around him. He grabbed her ass and hips, moving her up and down on his thick cock. Millie was in a complete daze, and shock after shock of pleasure pulsed in her as she clung to Brody’s chest. Something had gotten into him. Something she liked.

With a growling groan, his entire body clenched. Hot liquid shot into her core and she moaned, taking it deep inside her. Brody held her still on his body, as he slowly fell away. He set her on the back of the couch and tried to fix her dress, looking bashful.

“I… fuck. I don’t know what got into me. I can’t control myself when I’m around you.”

“Please don’t control yourself,” she said, breathlessly.

“Millie. I’m an animal.” He still held her against his damp chest.

“I like animals. Especially you.”

He looked down at her, the light in his eyes showing their true color. “You are a special woman, Millie. I wish I could give you more.” Then he pulled away.