Chapter Six
“Tell me again how it works,” Willa requested unexpectedly.
Ryker glanced over at her, finding she hadn’t moved from the window seat of their beachside rental house. Her eyes were still pointed out the window, toward the rolling waves of the Pacific, but he doubted she saw the ocean.
It’d been a couple of weeks since he’d had to rip out Nash’s throat.
A couple of weeks since he’d had to awkwardly explain to his destined mate that he was a weretiger and she was supposed to be his. But in the end she’d been right, it hadn’t been the time to finish that conversation. She’d let him drag her out of town with surprisingly minimal resistance to the idea of abandoning the life she’d been leading.
Even so, nearly a week had gone by before she’d awkwardly brought the subject up again. She hadn’t yet let him share her bed. But he understood she needed time to process everything. It was a lot to handle even without having had it all thrown in her face at once.
Willa finally turned enough to look in his direction. “Mating,” she clarified. As if he’d misunderstood.
Ryker held his seat on the large sofa, not wanting to crowd her and scare her off. “We lock ourselves away for a couple of days. Make love literally until we pass out. Legend goes we’ll wake with the next sunrise, the female—you—will climb on top and focus solely on bringing herself to orgasm. The male—me—isn’t allowed to touch, or kiss, or otherwise actively participate. Your orgasm should trigger mine automatically. Somehow this synchronizes our bodies, binds our life forces, and allows us to communicate even when I’m shifted.”
Willa arched a brow, her reaction much more contained than the first time he’d explained this process, and said, “But conveniently, we won’t have confirmation of this destiny thing until after the endless hours of mind-blowing sex?”
He couldn’t stop the grin this time. “And that’s only if I can control my need to taste you in the morning.”
Her cheeks flushed adorably and she looked away. “Ryker,” she said, voice soft. “This whole destiny thing is overwhelming. But … I’ve never felt the way I feel around you. I’m not usually the kind of woman who trusts a stranger enough to share a table with them, let alone all this.”
“Baby, if you’re not ready—”
“That’s just it,” she interrupted, drawing a breath and gifting him with another small smile. “I’m scared, and uncertain, when I think about it. But it’s all I can dream about now. I feel like my body is physically itching for you. When you go out, to get groceries or walk the beach or whatever, I miss you. I worry as soon as the door’s shut. It’s crazy.”
Ryker stood and stepped up to her, letting the tips of his fingers brush her jaw as he tilted her head up to meet his gaze again. “None of that’s crazy. Not to me. When I leave you alone for anything, I can’t help but worry something’s going wrong.” He took a breath and lowered his lips to hers for a slow, wet kiss. “You are everything to me, Willa.”
She was smiling again when he pulled back enough to see her expression. Tears clouded her eyes, but he smelled no sadness or fear. Only mild hesitation and excitement. “Can we … have dinner first?”
****
The first thing Willa registered as the fog of sleep faded from her mind was warmth. An all-encompassing, comforting, yet tantalizing warmth. She knew without a doubt it was because of the magnificent man wrapped around her. Ryker’s arms were locked tight around her waist, his nose pressed against her throat. Their bodies were flush, her breasts pleasantly crushed against his chest while a delicious hardness poked her hip.
Though how in the world his body could have recovered from the night they’d shared was beyond her. It was a mix of erotic images and tingling, explosive pleasure in her memory. He’d kissed her and touched her everywhere. Of course, she’d done the same things to him in return.
Her body warmed with the thought.
She’d run her fingers and her tongue and her lips over every single muscle she could reach. The taste of his skin was branded on her tongue. It made her want to taste him again. To see if he tasted differently in the morning.
Willa blinked her eyes properly open, squinting briefly into the bright morning sunlight. The air in the room was cool, telling her that despite the light filtering in, it was probably still early. And now she understood how he could be ready to go again, because reflecting on the way he’d made her feel the night before had woken her up, too.
“Ryker,” she whispered, knowing with his enhanced feline hearing there was no way he would sleep through her voice.
The arms around her tensed for a moment before loosening and Ryker lifted his head. “Mmm, good morning.” His deep, enticing voice danced a sensual rhythm down her spine. She let him pull her in for a slow kiss, enjoying each stroke of his tongue along hers. But just for a minute.
Willa planted her palms against his chest and pushed lightly. She clucked her tongue, looked into his beautiful eyes, and said, “Lie back.”
Ryker released his hold on her with a heavy, lingering touch and adjusted himself until he was properly on his back. With one hand on his stomach, the other still warming her skin, he arched a brow at her and asked, “Like this?”
“Exactly like that,” she assured him. She gently moved the forearm he’d rested across his abdomen as she climbed over and straddled him. Her tangled hair fell to either side of her head as if creating a curtain around them. “I know you said I’m supposed to focus on my own pleasure, but I promise you, we’re both going to enjoy this.”
His eyes darkened with desire and he smirked. “That is the general idea, yeah.” He deliberately raised his arms up and shoved his hands beneath the pillow supporting his head. “I’m all yours, baby.”
Willa smiled and teased his cheek with a light kiss before straightening over him. She licked her lips, the rampant, burning lust in her veins barely even cooled by the brief flash of nerves rolling through her stomach. But they faded before she could give them any thought, so she trailed the tips of her fingers down his perfectly sculpted chest. Down, until she had wrapped both hands around his cock. She adjusted her weight, rolled her hips, and impaled herself thoroughly.
Ryker groaned, his head falling back to the pillow again, as Willa smoothed her hands once more over his abdomen. The sensations of his enjoyment were as thrilling to her as the feeling of having his rigid cock buried in her core.
And all at once she had to move.
Body burning with need more powerfully than she’d ever imagined, Willa gave in to her instincts and threw her head back as she began a bouncing, rocking rhythm. She curled her nails into his skin, occasionally adjusting her angle or her pace, and focused on the glorious feeling of him.
She wished he could touch her. Wished she could feel his calloused hands around her breasts or his skilled lips at her throat. Instead she lifted her hands from his skin and cupped her breasts herself. It wasn’t quite the same, but she imagined her hands were his and followed the pattern he’d developed the night before. Rolling, pinching, rocking, grinding. She moved over him, her eyes closed, and lost herself in bliss.
He was groaning and half growling beneath her, his body tense in restraint.
When she opened her eyes again to look at him, he was watching her intensely. His gaze burned up and down her body. As she studied his expression, he swallowed heavily and his jaw tightened. He wanted her. He wanted to touch her, to take control. She could see it clearly.
He was right.
It hit her like light flooding a darkened room, dawning over her heart like the barely finished sunrise outside. She understood now. They were destined to be together.
The realization overwhelmed her and Willa released her nipples in favor of anchoring herself on his chest. She kicked up the pace, grinding harder into his hips, and finally, finally, her release burst inside her. She barely even heard herself scream out his name.
When her senses settled again several minutes later, Willa was on her back, covered head to toe with Ryker’s body. He was dropping kisses along her face. Just light, sweet, chaste kisses.
Her heart melted.
“Ryker,” she murmured, reaching up and curling her fingers into his sides. She teased one of his calves with her toes.
“That was so fucking beautiful,” he whispered, his voice rough and thick, as his lips grazed her ear.
Willa opened her mouth to ask the all-important question. But just before the first word could fall from her lips, she realized she didn’t need to. She already knew. Tears stung her eyes as a smile lifted her lips and she wound her arms around him as best she could. “I love you.”