
Alinar Publishing www.alinarpublishing.com
Copyright ©2007 by Felicity heaton
First published in 2007, 2007
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Erik closed his eyes and let out a long sigh as soft lips teased the bare flesh of his torso. It was torture, but a pleasant kind. He tensed for her, eliciting a moan as his muscles bunched, revealing his strength. She gave a little faux-purr and licked along the valley between his abdominals, crawling her way up him. This time it was him purring, deep and low, contented to the core.
She was better than sunshine.
He could bask in the heat of her glances, in the warmth of her love, and he would feel happier than he ever did in the sunlight.
Fingertips grazed the sensitive flesh above his hip but he resisted giving her what she wanted. He wouldn't laugh, not right now, not when she was fanning flames inside him that were threatening to turn into wildfire. He breathed in deep when her nails lightly scraped across his stomach and over his chest, catching a nipple in the process and sending a shiver through him. His fingers curled, creating tight fists as he fought for restraint.
She breathed softly against him and the wet skin where she'd kissed turned to goose bumps. His purr rumbled through his chest. She giggled. He lost the ability to breathe when she straddled him, her camisole clad breasts brushing against his stomach. His cock twitched with hunger as he thought about being inside her, encased in her warm wetness. She lowered herself and ground against him, tearing a moan from his throat as her slick arousal soaked through her knickers and onto his length.
God, he wanted her. He always wanted her.
In the two years since he'd met her, his desire for her had only increased. He opened his eyes and watched her kissing his stomach, exploring and mapping his flesh as though this was their first time and she wanted to put every inch of him to memory. She was beautiful, even if she didn't see it herself. Twenty seven years of searching had been worth it to have her here with him like this, his and his alone.
She licked up his chest, pressing the odd kiss to it. He smiled and avoided her kiss when she reached his lips. Gently lowering the strap of her camisole, he pressed kisses to her shoulder and upper arm as he pushed it down. She moaned into his ear, her soft breath tickling his neck.
Closing his eyes, he kissed down her arm, following the camisole strap and savouring the taste of her. She shifted against him, her bare legs pressing into his, velvety soft and warm. He wrapped one arm around her, cupped her backside and pulled her up so he could reach her breasts. His fingers tugged at the camisole, freeing her right breast, and he immediately wrapped his lips around the aroused nipple.
He moaned low in his throat as he suckled it and her fingers threaded into his hair, holding him against her and trapping him as she groaned. He held her tighter, showing her that he'd never let her go. She was his everything, his reason for living. She was his mate.
He purred, low and deep until his whole body vibrated with it. Her light giggle made him smile against her breast, and he redoubled his ministrations.
Rolling her onto her back, he kissed up to her neck as his right hand drew the other strap of her camisole down her arm. He pulled back, watching the progress of it and the achingly slow way her other breast was revealed to him. His breath caught in his throat as the lacy trim of her camisole scraped over her nipple and then slipped away, exposing it fully. His cock jumped and ached, begging him to get inside her, to get as close as he could and sate his desire for her.
She stretched her arms up above her. The camisole bunched at her waist and her dishevelled hair and slight smile gave her a beautifully wanton air. He narrowed his eyes as he raked them over her. Her hands followed his glance, touching wherever he looked, teasing him with the thought of his hands doing that. He moved them away from her body and replaced them with his own. He palmed her breasts, thumbing her nipples until they were hard peaks again, and then ran his hands down her stomach, applying enough pressure to make her moan. He knew that she loved to feel how strong he was, how rough he could be if she let him. It always made her desire soar.
He sniffed and grinned at the scent of her need in the air.
Curling his fingers around her camisole where it was now bunched near her waist, he tugged it down, forcing it over her hips. He lifted her feet, resting them against his chest, and pulled the camisole off over them.
He looked her over, watching her toy with her nipples. His stomach tightened when she gave him a coy look and nudged his shoulders with her toes, spurring him into action. He leaned forwards, skimmed his hands up her legs, and hooked his fingers into the waist of her red lacy shorts. Drawing them towards him, he groaned as the short dark curly hair of her pussy was exposed and licked his lips. He wanted to taste her. The smell of her was driving him crazy with need.
Tossing her knickers to one side, he gave her a sly smile. He took hold of her ankles and parted her legs, spreading them enough that his eyes could drink their fill of her pussy as it glistened with her arousal. He breathed deep, using the scent of her to arouse him further until he was desperate to taste her and be inside of her.
He kept her legs spread as he moved forwards, pressing kisses over her knees and along the inside of her thighs. His gaze remained locked with hers the whole time and he smiled when she closed her eyes and bit her lip, her hands resting lightly over her breasts.
He knew what she wanted. He always knew what she wanted. These past two years together had given them a chance to get to know each other inside and out. Just as he could predict her every need and desire, she could predict his.
Pressing one last kiss to her inner thigh, his eyes finally left her face and dropped to her pussy. He moaned and lowered his head, settling between her legs as his fingers gently pulled her nether lips apart to fully expose her clit.
It was pert and slick, hungry for his attention. He wasn't going to deny it.
He flicked it with his tongue.
She moaned and bucked her hips up. He loved the sound of her moaning.
Closing his eyes, he laved her clit, lapping up her sweet juices and savouring the taste of her. He spread her lips further, wanting to taste more of her, needing to lick every inch of her until she was moaning his name and quivering at the lightest touch.
She groaned again, her whole body tensing this time, and he smiled when one hand came to rest against the top of his head. She didn't need to give him that silent command not to stop. He'd never stop, not if she let him.
Sucking her clit into his mouth, he flicked it with his tongue as he suckled it, arousing it further until it was a hard nub. He slipped one hand down, dipping his fingers in and running them slowly down towards her slick opening.
"Yes," she breathed, her fingers grasping his hair, tugging at it.
He marvelled at her arousal, how wet she was and ready for him to plunge his cock to the hilt inside of her. He plunged two fingers inside instead and groaned into her pussy as she tensed around him. God, he wanted her.
He'd always wanted her.
And now she was his.
He raised his head to look at her and frowned when a flicker of a shadow moved out of the corner of his eye. He looked there, at the silhouetted and blurred figure.
Who was he?
Erik shot up in bed and stared at the far wall, his eyes wide and breathing heavy. His mind reeled with thoughts of what he'd been doing, of licking Kim's pussy and burying his fingers into her warm sheath. It took him a few minutes to realise what had happened.
It was a dream.
No.
It was a vision.
The smile spread across his face before he could contain it but it faltered when he remembered the shadowy figure.
His heavy thoughts were chased away as Kim threw her arms around his neck and dragged him down into bed. He lay motionless, staring at the ceiling as she peppered his face and chest with kisses. When she stopped and pulled back, she was pouting.
"What's wrong?" she said, her voice light and breezy, as bright as the morning sunlight streaming in through the open curtains.
She hadn't seen the man. She must have woken up before he'd appeared. Either that or she hadn't shared the vision.
One look at her said that the latter wasn't true. She was grinning from ear to ear, a little nervous looking, as though she wasn't sure it had really happened. He smiled and reached out to her, pulling her down to him and sighing inside when her lips met his. He kissed her softly, slowly, savouring the closeness and the connection between them. It was reassuring to feel her hands against his chest and her mouth on his.
She broke the kiss and beamed at him, her hands still pressing into his chest as she leaned on him. He lightly ran his fingers down her spine and under the thick duvet. Wind shook the panes of the windows and howled in some distant corridor. He ignored it, safe from the winter chill and warm in the arms of his love.
His mate.
Or at least she soon would be.
His for eternity.
"Nothing is wrong," he said, voice gravelly with sleep and desire. He brushed the fingers of his other hand across her cheek, clearing the sleep tangled ribbons of her brown hair from it, and smiled.
"Was that a dream? Did you have it too?" she said.
She looked like a five year old that had just seen a Christmas tree. Actually, she looked like she had when she'd seen the Christmas tree in the hall downstairs when it had arrived and been put up the other day. He loved her childish excitement about the simple pleasures in life---Christmas, her birthday, going on dates with him. She'd looked ready to have a coronary when he'd asked her to move in with him a year ago.
"A vision," he responded and she sharply pushed herself up, pressing him down into the bed in the process. He raised a brow and she gave him a sheepish smile, settling down again.
"Really?" Excitement shone in her dark eyes.
He nodded.
"It'll be time soon?" There was so much hope in her voice that his heart warmed and ached. She looked so happy.
He knew that she'd been waiting for this moment over the past two years, ever since they'd missed the opportunity to mate. He'd been unable to go through with it then because of his injuries from fighting his brother to protect Kim and himself, but he still believed that it had been the right decision. Back then, she hadn't truly been ready for becoming like him and leaving her normal life behind. Now she had met other shape-shifters and was growing more accustomed to what it was like to live as one. Now she was ready, and now he was going to mate with her. Nothing was going to stop him this time.
He smiled and pulled her down to him, capturing her lips in another slow drawn out kiss.
"Soon we'll mate," he whispered against her lips.
She sat up and grinned. His eyes dropped to her breasts for a moment as she moved, the broad beaming smile still plastered on her face, and he watched her as she literally bounced to the bathroom.
The bath taps began to run.
He stared at the ceiling and sighed heavily.
A horrible feeling twisted his gut and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't ignore it.
Something wasn't right. If it had been a vision, there should only have been her and himself in it. A female in heat only ever had one suitor, one chosen by destiny to be her mate. At least that's what he'd always heard. If that was the case, then why hadn't they been alone in that vision and why did he have the terrible feeling that things between himself and Kim were about to get complicated again?
He closed his eyes and replayed the last few seconds of the vision, seeing the shadowy figure appear from nowhere and slowly come into focus, but not enough to reveal his face.
Who was he?
Kim walked along the hall, a bounce in her step as she thought about the vision and the prospect of finally being able to mate with Erik. It still frightened her on so many levels, but it melted her on others. She wanted to be his for eternity. She wanted to feel the connection again. When they'd first met and she'd been in heat, they'd shared such an intense connection, but it had faded along with her visions until one day she'd realised it was gone. From that moment on, she'd wanted it back, wanted it more than anything. She'd grown strangely used to being able to sense when Erik was watching her, to almost feel his desire and need, his love. Even seeing through his eyes on occasion hadn't bothered her too much. She'd loved that feeling of closeness, especially when they were in the bedroom. It had always felt as though they were one soul in two bodies, meant for each other, destined to be lovers in life.
She missed that.
She bounded down the stairs, not caring about how much noise the old wooden steps made and how loud her footsteps were as they echoed around the hall. At the foot of the stairs, she stopped and leaned against the banister, her attention arrested by the Christmas tree. It was beautiful. She couldn't pass it without stopping to look. In all her life, she'd never seen such a big and wonderfully decorated tree. She wished that she'd had Christmas trees like that when she had been growing up. Her family's one had always been squat and threadbare compared to this. Had Erik's family always gone to town decorating the house? The wreaths and lights that wound their way along the banisters and over the fireplaces made her feel warm and happy. They made her feel as though she'd never really known Christmas before meeting Erik. There were trees in most of the main reception rooms and Rose, the housekeeper, had been baking gingerbread men and sweet treats since they'd arrived a few days ago for the holiday.
Heaving a contented sigh, she continued her hunt for Erik. She closed her eyes, seeing if she could sense where he was yet. There was a distant feeling on the edge of her senses, a glimmer of what it had felt like to sense him last time she had been ready to mate. He'd told her things about the mating process over the past couple of years. Apparently when it was time and afterwards, she'd be able to just reach out and know where he was. She was looking forwards to that. She was always losing him in this house, so much so that she'd insisted that they only ever used a handful of the rooms. It was just too big. She'd counted the rooms once and had stopped when she'd reached over thirty. It was a beautiful house though, and the more time she spent here, the more she could see why Erik had fought to get a share of it from his brother.
Now it was all his.
She knew that the death of his brother at his own hands haunted Erik, almost as much as the fact that his brother had killed their parents. She wished she could take away all his pain, but only time would be able to heal him.
Pushing away from such dark thoughts, she focused on her surroundings and wished that they could've spent the Christmas holidays here last year too. It had been wonderful being together in his apartment in the city, but now that she'd seen this place all decorated, with crackling log fires in each room, it seemed pale in comparison. She didn't even want to get started on how miserable it made her place look at Christmas.
She hummed a tune to herself while following the direction her senses were telling her. They were probably leading her completely the wrong way, her imagination making her feel as though she could already sense the connection again, but she didn't mind. If she didn't find him at the end of it, she'd just keep searching. She had to try though. Curiosity was demanding that she gave it a go.
"There you are," Rose said close to her elbow and she jumped. She hadn't heard anyone approaching; her focus had been wholly on finding Erik.
"Here I am," she said with a broad grin and then noticed the tray of tea and breakfast that Rose was carrying. She held her hands out. "This looks great ... do you mind if I take it in?"
Rose smiled, her old face warming with it and making Kim's smile grow wider. She'd always liked Rose. They'd instantly hit it off when she'd first come to the house and there was something about her appearance that always made Kim smile. It was the wild white hair that refused to stay restrained in the tight bun at the back of Rose's head and the kindness she could always see in her eyes.
She could only picture Rose at this age and looking this way, even when she was imagining what Erik would've been like when he was younger and sneaking down to the kitchen to get some peanut butter on toast. Rose would've been all smiles, even as she told him how naughty he was being.
A weight in her hands made her come out of her thoughts and she stared at the tray she was now holding. She watched Rose disappear down the corridor and heaved another sigh. It must have been wonderful growing up here, with such a loving housekeeper and mother. She wondered how much his parents deaths must have affected Erik and continued searching for him.
When she walked into the drawing room, she smiled.
There he was, lounging limply in one of the big armchairs in front of the grand fireplace. He was staring at the fire, its warm light flickering on his handsome face, making his eyes even more intense and honey-coloured than usual, and making his dark hair even blacker. Heat swept through her when she dropped her eyes to his body and saw that he wasn't wearing any top.
She stopped and couldn't help staring at him. His physique had always been nothing short of amazing, breathtaking. It had always taken hers away anyway. The firelight danced across his bronzed skin, highlighting the taut muscles of his torso as he moved. She could feel his eyes on her, boring into her and raising her temperature higher until it burned her. She didn't stop staring at him, couldn't stop. He knew what he was doing. He knew how much she was attracted to him and that he could easily get her attention by lounging half naked.
When he looked like that, she just wanted to slide into his lap and throw her arms around his neck. She wanted to explore every inch of him, slowly taking him all in and memorising his body all over again.
She tore her eyes away from him but only managed to move them far enough to stare at his legs instead of his chest and stomach. He was wearing black jogging bottoms, his lithe and powerful legs stretched out in front of him.
Swallowing hard and then taking a deep breath to steady her pounding heart, she gripped the tray a little tighter and continued towards him. She cursed her hips as they wiggled side to side, ignoring her when she told herself to act demure.
Erik raised a brow and narrowed his eyes on her legs, raking them upwards to her hips and then her breasts.
So she was acting up a little, trying to get his attention. It was harder for a plain Jane like herself to draw a man's attention, or at least she thought it was.
Erik purred.
The tea cups and pot rattled on the tray, sounding like a discordant melody when the knives joined in, clattering against the plates. She frowned at him, cursing the way he could so easily fluster her, and blushed deeply when he smiled. Her knees trembled and she sat quickly in the armchair opposite him, taking the tray with her and not daring to pause long enough to put it on the small side table.
She busied herself with rearranging everything when she finally put the tray down. She wasn't going to let him fluster her. It had been almost two years since they'd met but he could still make her knees go weak and bring a blush to her cheeks with a single heated look. He'd quickly discovered what effect his purring had on her and he happily abused his power, stirring her hunger for his touch at the most awkward times.
Namely very public places, like her work and coffee shops. He was shameless.
Still, she gave as good as she got. All it took was a tickle behind his ear and she could get anything she wanted.
Composing herself, she poured two cups of tea and pushed his towards the edge of the tray nearest him.
She slowly raised her eyes to meet his and when she saw the hunger in his honey eyes, she dropped them again. She toyed with the spoon and told herself to get a grip.
Her heart leapt into her throat when his hand covered hers, his thumb lightly caressing the back of it.
Bringing her eyes back up, she stared into his, forcing herself to hold his gaze so she could drink up all the love she could see in his eyes. She smiled, wrapped her hand around his, and wondered just when she'd fallen into this dream. It was too good to be true. It really was. Maybe they had died that day they'd got stuck in the lift at her work. The memory of it sent a shiver through her and it was hard to tell whether it was residual fear of lifts or desire from the way he'd touched her.
"Something wrong?" he said, his voice calling her back to him.
She sighed and shook her head and then frowned. She nodded.
"Yes..." she said and her gaze dropped to his body again, hunger rising inside of her as she watched the way his muscles bunched and relaxed as he moved to pick up his tea. Damn, he was Adonis in human form, or lycan form anyway. "How am I supposed to concentrate on eating breakfast when all I want to do is eat you up?"
She blushed at the fact she'd actually said that out loud and he grinned at her, giving her a look that said he'd noticed how much more confident she'd been getting lately. She couldn't help it. It was his fault. Having the attention of a gorgeous man like him made her feel incredibly sexy and not at all plain like she really was. The side effect of feeling sexy seemed to be confidence.
It was no wonder Erik was so confident. Growing up with such good looks and money, he was bound to be sure of himself. At least he wasn't conceited. In fact, he never seemed to notice his looks. Whenever she told him he was handsome, he managed to brush it off, as though he didn't think he was.
He was. She'd never seen a man like him. It wasn't just his beautiful face, athletic build, broad shoulders and to die for abs that made him gorgeous. It was more than that, although it helped. It was all the love he held inside of him, the affection and the need. It was who he was as a whole.
"I can arrange that," he said and a frown marred her brows.
"Arrange what?" She looked at him.
He smiled. "All those naughty thoughts drifting about in the back of your head."
She blushed again. "I thought you'd taken care of that this morning."
His smile became a grin and she could see he was remembering what had happened after her bath. There was nothing quite as satisfying as making love first thing in the morning, especially when they both let go and showed each other everything they were feeling. It was frightening sometimes, but thrilling too.
She sipped her tea and then made a little growling noise when he stretched, muscles going taut as he yawned.
"It's too damn comfortable here. I could fall asleep." He rolled his shoulders and then gave her a look she couldn't quite make out. There was a hint of something in it. Fear? It couldn't be. There was nothing for him to fear, not that she knew of. She was probably reading him wrong. His look shifted into a contented smile and she remembered how he'd looked when she'd first met him. She'd never seen someone take so much pleasure from something as simple as sunlight bathing their skin and warming them. Of course, back then she hadn't known he was a black panther shape-shifter. Now his affinity for the sunshine made perfect sense. All cats loved the sun.
"That's not good. It's barely ten." She stifled her own yawn. "It must be the fire and not having anything to do. You're horribly used to working. I, on the other hand, am perfectly adept in slacking off when needs be."
He frowned, as though he didn't need the reminder of how busy he'd been recently. She was glad they had this time together away from the city and their work. She had to go back to the lawyer's office after Boxing Day, but then they were coming back here for New Year's.
She jumped when he slapped his hands down on the arms of his chair and sat up.
"I need a run," he said and stood.
She watched him, studying his back as he walked. She could spend hours just watching him walk around when he was nude. His body was a work of art.
He opened the French doors that led onto the garden and a chill breeze blew in. It seemed the weather was finally giving up its battle against winter. Up until now it had been quite mild and there'd been no frosts yet. She looked at the garden, thinking about how beautiful it would look covered in snow, and then back at Erik.
Her brow rose when he pushed his jogging bottoms down, exposing his bare backside for a brief second before he was suddenly in his panther form.
He stretched, his long thick black tail swishing side to side, and then he was running out of the door.
She got up and walked over to his clothes, picking them up as she watched him heading towards the maze. She hugged his jogging bottoms to her chest, breathing in the lingering scent of his aftershave on them, and smiled when he disappeared from view.
One day she'd be able to do that.
She'd never asked Erik how he did it. Maybe she should, just to be prepared for when she had to make her first change. She was ready for the pain. She'd seen Erik change a lot since the night he'd revealed what he was, and each time there had been a look of pain in his eyes. The clicking and cracking of his bones as his body distorted into another shape sounded as though it hurt a lot, possibly more than he was letting show.
Walking out into the hall, she retrieved her coat and Erik's and carried them with her back into the living room. She put his coat and clothes down on the chair and slipped her coat on, not bothering to button it. She grabbed his clothes, and his trainers from beside the door, and followed him out into the garden.
The air was crisp and refreshing, chasing away all the sleepiness that had been invading her body and mind. She hugged Erik's clothes to her chest as she walked slowly towards the maze, taking her time so he'd have a good run before she found him.
The wind blew against her, cutting through her clothes and making her feel chill.
Her gaze trailed over the low box hedges that formed the patterns on the gravel in front of the maze. The lavenders and annuals that had been planted in them were all neatly trimmed back and there were no insects to be seen.
She smiled to herself as she thought about the first time she'd walked down this path. It had been the first time she'd seen Erik in his panther form, not that she'd known back then that it was him. She'd had her suspicions though. The fact that he'd always begun to change in her dreams and always purred in them gave her reason enough to believe that there could be a connection between the panther and him.
To think, she'd soon be ready for the mating and then they'd be together for eternity. It seemed like decades since the night Erik had told her he couldn't go through with it. She'd tried to be okay with it, but it had been hard. She knew in her heart that in a way Erik had been right and she hadn't been ready then, but she didn't want to lose him and she had been desperate to make sure that he'd always be hers. Alistair's threat of killing him had shaken her up. In a way it still shook her up. The thought that Erik could've died that day made her heart ache and her stomach turn. She couldn't face life without him.
She walked into the maze and began following the route she'd put to memory so she'd never get lost. How did Erik feel whenever he came in here? It had been at the centre of this maze that he'd killed his brother. Did he regret what happened that day? He never spoke about what had happened.
Neither did she.
Her stomach rolled at the memory of Alistair trapping her in the house and what he'd done.
She stopped, closing her eyes and then screwing them shut as she tried to shut out the memories of what had happened. She hated how it had stayed with her. It made her sick and it was only getting worse as time wore on. She wished she'd told Erik, but it hadn't seemed right to tell him back then, not even if he could've given her comfort and helped her get over it.
A flash of something in front of her closed eyes made everything drift away and she instantly forgot about what she was thinking of. She grinned when another came and she saw the statue at the centre of the maze.
Redoubling her pace, she was almost jogging before long, determined to get to the middle of the maze before Erik moved. Excitement bubbled up inside her and she wanted to scream for joy about seeing through his eyes again.
She turned corner after corner, cursing each one for keeping her from Erik but praising them for bringing her closer at the same time. When she turned the final corner and came out into the small square in the middle of the maze, she stopped dead.
The panther turned to look at her. She had grown used to thinking of it as Erik, and not an animal.
He lowered his head and looked up at her with yellow eyes. They were bright in the winter sunlight, boring into her and flustering her as easily as they did when he was in human form. She kept still, her instincts kicking in as her mind screamed that there was a dangerous animal in front of her, watching her, waiting for her to make a move. She didn't. She knew he wouldn't hurt her, but it made no difference to her instincts. They were telling her to run and it thrilled her in a way.
He growled, a strange short sound that made her heart beat harder, thumping against her chest as blood rushed through her ears, drowning out everything except her breathing. It was rough, ragged as she waited, staring into his eyes, transfixed. He took a step towards her, black fur glossy as it reflected the sun, making him look sleek. His shoulder blades showed as he moved, bobbing up and down with each step, made all the more clearer by his lowered head.
She brought her hands up, holding them close to her chest along with his clothes, and wondered just when he was going to stop his game.
A growl, lower and deeper this time, rumbled through him and a shiver ran through her, making her legs tremble.
He'd never stalked her for this long before.
He raised his head and sniffed the air.
She held her nerve.
She knew if she told him to change back, if she mentioned that he was scaring her a little, that he would return to his human form, but there was something exciting about what he was doing. She felt like his prey, but more than that. It wasn't food he was after, it was a mate. When he was like this, she could see how much this mating meant to him. He wanted another like him to be with and he wanted her to be that one. She knew that destiny had picked his mate for him and that it was exclusive, meaning she wasn't available for mating to anyone else, but it was still a little overwhelming to think that he loved her and wanted to spend eternity with her.
It was a little overwhelming to know that she'd soon be able to transform into a panther herself and that once she'd matured, she'd no longer age and would live forever as long as nothing bad happened to her.
Something nudged her hand and she smiled as she ran her fingers through the thick velvety fur on the back of his head. He was so soft. She'd never get used to how it felt to stroke him.
"It's getting cold," she said and he purred as he rubbed against her hand. "I brought you a coat and your clothes."
He moved away, tickling her palm with his tail.
She forced herself to watch as he transformed back into his human form again and when he was stood naked before her, she held out his clothes.
He slipped into his jogging bottoms and put his trainers on before taking his coat off her. She pouted as he buttoned it up, hiding his bare chest from her. He heaved a sigh and then grinned at her.
"Have fun?" she said, seeing the satisfaction in his eyes.
He nodded. "You make wonderful prey."
She rolled her eyes as he put his arm around her shoulders and drew her close to him. The words she'd been ready to say slipped away as he wrapped her up in his arms and pressed a kiss to her cheek.
"Mmm, you're cold. You should've said something earlier." He drew back and a concerned look surfaced in his eyes.
She took hold of his hand and started walking out of the maze with him.
"I didn't want to ... you weren't the only one having fun."
He chuckled and she couldn't help laughing along with him.
It felt so good to be here with him, spending some much needed time alone together.
Erik's voice broke the silence and shattered her thoughts at the same time.
"I forgot to mention that Sean is coming down."
"What did you say?"
Erik looked across at Kim as she ducked out of his embrace, right into her wide eyes that were full of disbelief. He knew that when they'd come here, he'd said that it would be just them and Rose, but he couldn't see what the problem was, and neither would Kim when he explained himself.
"I said that Sean is coming down for a couple of days."
She put her hands on her hips and her eyes darkened.
He shrugged. "I didn't think that you'd want to go and see him, so I convinced him to come down here instead. We've been telling him for months that we'd meet up."
Her face blanched and all sign of anger disappeared, draining away with her colour.
"Flying?" She swallowed hard.
He nodded and couldn't help brushing the backs of his fingers across her cheek when he saw how frightened that one word made her. He'd thought that she'd just been scared of lifts but last year Sean had invited them up to Edinburgh and she'd had a full scale panic attack when he'd mentioned flying. In the end, they'd driven the five hundred mile distance.
"Hell no, I'm not flying." She backed away, her eyes widening further.
Clasping hold of her shoulders, he guided her into his arms, wrapping them around her slim shoulders and savouring the feeling of her nuzzling against his chest.
"Nobody said you had to," he whispered, feeling her shaking and smoothing her hair in an attempt to calm her down again.
It was always the same whenever he mentioned flying. She'd either completely panic or it would be more subtle, like this. It was hard to spot the signs sometimes, but he was getting used to looking for them. It was worse when she held it inside. He preferred it when she outright panicked so he could be more of a comfort to her rather than having to draw it all out of her carefully. She was so stubborn sometimes, refusing to admit her fear even though he knew all about it.
"That's why he said he'd come down here. He hates panicking you almost as much as I do." He smiled at her as she leaned back, coming out of her hiding place in his arms.
A tiny smile tugged at the corners of her lips.
He pouted and swept a strand of her dark brown hair from her face, smoothing it back into her ponytail. She looked so beautiful when she was scared, looking to him for comfort and protection. Her rich brown eyes were wide with fear and hope, searching his as her soft lips struggled to hold her smile. He ran his hands down over her shoulders, holding her and letting her see that he wasn't going to let her go, or let anything happen to her.
She smiled properly and her eyes brightened with it. He could never understand why she couldn't see how beautiful she was. He'd never met a woman as beautiful as her.
"What are you thinking in there?" she whispered, as though she feared breaking this spell they were under as they stared into each other's eyes.
He sighed. His voice hushed and low, he said, "You're beautiful."
He felt her tense in her arms, a split second jolt as her eyes widened a fraction and her cheeks coloured. He remembered the first time he'd told her that and pulled her close to him, wanting to ignite the same fire in her that his words had that night.
Bringing his mouth close to hers, he took a deep breath and then whispered, "So beautiful."
She leaned into him, her mouth claiming his with as much passion as it had that night but with so much more love. His eyes closed as her tongue met his, sliding along it until all he could taste was her sweetness. He slipped his hands down her shoulders and into her coat, taking hold of her waist and pulling her up against him. She moaned, low in her throat, and he felt the hunger rising inside of her.
Her hands brushed his neck, fingers tickling as they grazed his skin, sending shivers through him. He inhaled sharply through his nose and held back the purr that tried to escape him as she pushed her fingers into the hair at the back of his head.
Her lips danced against his, sensitising them with a touch so light that it almost tickled. Passion surrendered to a sense of peace, lust gave way to love. He tightened his grip, drawing her closer to him until her body was flush against his and he could feel the rise and fall of her chest as she breathed.
He sighed into her mouth as he felt her heart beating in his own chest, felt her blood rushing through his veins. He'd missed this feeling so much. This connection was addictive and he'd craved it for these past two years.
She brought her hands up, pressing them into his chest and kissing him at the same leisurely pace. It warmed him through, chasing away the chill of winter and making him feel as though he was basking in the summer sun again.
A beat.
He smiled when she pulled back.
"Did you feel that?" Her eyes were wide again.
He nodded. "Things seem to be moving quicker this time."
His brow rose as he watched her prodding her chest and then he frowned when she began prodding his. When he gave a slight cough, she stopped and looked sheepish.
"Sorry ... I still don't get how this works."
He opened his coat and took hold of her hand, placing it against his bare chest. She didn't move when he pressed his against hers.
"It's the connection, the bond. This is what you can feel when you can sense me. You can feel me, just as I can feel you. When we're close, we can sense each other easier, deeper," he whispered, holding her gaze and feeling as though he was drowning in the affection her eyes held.
"So when you're looking at me across a room and I can feel you without looking, that's me sensing you or you sensing me?" She looked confused.
"It's both. The connection makes us aware of each other at all times, subconsciously, but when we focus, that feeling gets stronger."
"So I can always feel you ... but when you're staring at me..." She blushed.
He smiled at how shy she could still be around him, even after everything they'd done together.
"I'm focused. It's like I'm calling to you, only it's not your ears that hear it," he ran a lone fingertip along her earlobe and she giggled, "it's your heart."
She swallowed now. "Really?"
He lowered his head and whispered against her lips, "really."
She kissed him again, a sweet reward that he'd never grow tired of. He loved how she kissed him, so raw and passionate, but tender and loving at the same time. Her fingers traced patterns on his bare chest and he growled as she stirred desire, fanning the flames of his need until he had to fight for restraint. He caught hold of her hands and pulled back, chastising her with a smile.
She grinned.
"Steady ... don't want you getting cold." He slipped his hand into hers and went to walk back to the house with her but she didn't move.
"Cold? I'm not cold ... oh." Her brows rose as she looked at him, clearly understanding what he was insinuating.
He grinned and she blushed. He loved it when she did that, her cheeks tinting a deep rose and her look turning shy. He loved that he had the power to make her do that. Every time she blushed, he wanted to find a reason to make her do it again. He wanted to see the effect he had on her.
She'd certainly blush if he went through with his hinted threat and took her right here in the garden in broad daylight.
Although he didn't think Rose would be able to cope with seeing that.
Maybe when no one was around and the weather was a little warmer, he'd go through with it. His cock stirred at the memory of what their first time had been like, hot and heavy, fast and furious in that little private booth at the nightclub. He groaned internally and told himself to get a grip and think about something else before he had to go through with his threat after all, regardless of the potential audience and the cold.
He frowned when he'd gathered his senses and saw that Kim had walked ahead of him.
Striding to catch up with her, he watched the graceful way she moved and tried to imagine her as a panther. It wouldn't be long now until she was ready to mate. He frowned when the silhouette of that man came back to haunt him. He didn't care what it meant. He wasn't going to let anyone take Kim from him. She was his.
That was final.
He slipped his hand into hers and held it tightly.
"So you don't mind Sean coming down over Christmas?" he said with a false cheeriness that he hoped she wouldn't see through.
"Not at all..." She smiled and swung his hand back and forth. "Should be a blast."
He didn't want her worrying, not if she didn't have to. Hopefully she wouldn't see this man. Hopefully it was just a glitch, or something like that, and the shadowy figure wouldn't appear again.
Kim bit her lip as she focused on the gentle sweep of her fingertips over his bare chest. She loved the satin feel of his skin, the heat of it, and the way her touch was causing goose bumps to erupt in its wake. His muscles twitched and tensed as he moved, but she evaded the grasping hands that tried to take hold of her waist. This was her moment. She was in control now and he was going to have to play by her rules.
She frowned when her fingers traced the ridges of the scars still visible on his chest. They cut across it, from his left shoulder down to his right side. A permanent reminder of his brother's death. It was no wonder he still couldn't get over what he'd done.
She stepped closer to him, so her bare leg brushed his, and dipped her head towards his chest. Tears welled up, hot and heavy in her eyes as she pressed kisses full of gratitude and love to the scars, silently thanking him for what he'd done for her.
Reaching the top of the scars, she kissed across towards his collarbones, tasting his skin and feeling his heat. She didn't stop him when his hands came to settle on her hips, thumbs grazing her overheated flesh and sending her temperature soaring. His caress trailed fire over her skin. The bedroom windows rattled in the winter tempest and the fire roared.
She arched against him, her hips rubbing his as she sought more contact between them. His fingers ran up her back and when he reached her shoulder blades, he pressed his palms into her back, splaying his hands out. She closed her eyes and kissed his neck, mapping the corded muscles as he moaned hotly into her ear. The wind blew down the chimney again, but it didn't chill her as she stood naked with Erik, skin on skin, just how she loved to be.
A gasp escaped her when he wrapped his lips around her neck and sucked. She could almost feel her skin bruising from the none-too-gentle suckling and intense need coiled tight inside her when his hands clasped over her shoulders, fingertips pressing in as he restrained her.
Her head fell back and she stared at the ceiling, giving herself over to the pleasure and feeling desperate for his touch as his mouth explored her neck, suckling one moment and gently biting the next. She dug her nails into his shoulders, eliciting a deep liquid purr from him that turned her insides to jelly and made her knees weak. She clung to him, convinced that she'd fall if he let her go. The pleasure was maddening and with each caress and kiss, she only wanted to feel him more.
Trailing her hands down his back, she focused on the hungry kisses he was pressing to her throat and shoulder. She smiled when she reached the small of his back and applied gentle pressure, coaxing his hips into moving closer to her. He ground his hard cock against her, trapping it between their bodies and igniting an inferno inside her belly. Bringing her leg up, she wrapped it around his and smiled when his hand came down to hold it. He thrust against her again and she moaned, wishing he was closer still. She wanted to feel him moving inside her, exquisitely filling her and making her quiver with pleasure.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and hopped up, encircling his waist with her legs. His hands were immediately on her backside, supporting her as he continued to kiss her throat. She whimpered and pouted when he stopped and then smiled into his eyes when he carried her over to the wall.
Her elbows rested on his shoulders, her hands clasped as they stuck out into mid-air. She waited, anticipation driving her crazy as her mind raced to imagine what it was going to feel like. She tensed her muscles, sending a pulse of pleasure to her clit and feeling how slick with arousal she was. She wanted him back inside where he belonged.
Her breath left her as he did just that, sliding slowly into her and stretching her. He buried his length deep, curling his hips forwards so he could get as far in as possible. She closed her eyes and pressed her forehead against his neck, savouring the closeness and connection between them. He kissed her ear and whispered words into it, not sweet but sultry and sensual. She pulled back to look at him just as he made his first thrust into her, tearing her breath away and leaving her gasping for more.
She threaded her fingers into his hair and kissed him, her tongue exploring his mouth and tackling his own as he pressed her into the wall. She groaned quietly with each slow deep thrust, wishing he'd quicken the pace but at the same time begging him not to. The slowness of his movements inside her was torture but it was a kind of torture she'd happily submit to. It filled her with feelings of deep desire and hunger as he drew out their coupling and she knew that at the end of it, her climax would be all the more mind blowing.
His fingers tightened against her thighs, holding her as his cock pushed into her over and over again. Silence descended, cut only by their combined breathing as they both sought release together.
He moaned against her lips and started purring, sending vibrations through her body that had her groaning and pressing her back into the wall as she clenched his cock. It was too much. The sensations running through her pushed her in another direction. She roughly grabbed him and kissed him harder, desperate now for him to take her and fuck her, regardless of her own orgasm. She wanted to feel the roughness and the power he held inside, power she'd been shown occasionally. It thrilled her to be at his mercy and she was sure it would be her undoing like it had been many times before.
He didn't rise to the bait. Instead he slowed his thrusts until each meeting of their hips seemed to take forever. She clung to him, kissing his neck and listening to his heavy breathing in her ear. He'd never gone so slow before. With each thrust he drew his cock almost all the way out of her and then slid back in. Her senses scattered a little more each time he buried himself in her, and she tensed her muscles, wanting to heighten the delicious feeling. It was such a different kind of pleasure from what she'd experienced before. She could feel every inch of him as he filled her up and left her empty again. Each inch sent tingles racing to her belly, warming it and tightening it as she clawed her way towards release.
She opened her eyes and stared at the far wall as Erik continued to move, pressing kisses against her neck, holding her to him. She lost herself, her eyes going out of focus as she concentrated on the divine feeling inside of her. Just a few more strokes and she'd be there. She whispered words of encouragement into his ear and felt him begin to tense. He stopped kissing her throat and breathed heavily against her as he began thrusting harder into her, sending her mad with the pleasure.
She moaned loud, not caring if anyone heard her because she knew this was nothing more than a dream, a vision. Here, no one could hear her.
The fire in her belly exploded in a warm rush, sending her thighs quivering as her pussy milked Erik's cock. He growled, making another wave of delight wash over her, and thrust deep into her, spilling his seed.
She held him to her as he breathed hard, his heart pounding against her chest, faster than her own. Kissing his throat, she drew patterns on his sweat slicked back and held him inside her with her legs.
Her eyes darted as something moved out of the corner of her eye and her heart began a different kind of beat.
A slow steady thumping.
She swallowed and held Erik closer to her when she saw it was someone watching them.
It was a man, but she couldn't see his face.
Kim shot into a sitting position on the edge of the chair, her hand pressed against her chest and her mind reeling as she tried to gather her senses. Where was she?
Her eyes came into focus and she saw the fire and the small table beside her. The drawing room. She must have fallen asleep and had a strange dream. She remembered the man. It couldn't be a vision. A vision was only her and Erik.
She realised she wasn't alone and looked across at Erik where he sat in the other armchair. He was watching her. His eyes were dark in the low firelight but she knew it wasn't that which was causing his look.
He knew.
This was why she'd seen fear in his eyes earlier.
He knew that something was wrong. He'd seen the figure too.
"Who is he?" she said, voice trembling with nerves as she remembered the man stepping out of the shadows.
A mating was exclusive. There shouldn't be anyone else involved. That's what Erik had told her two years ago. What if something was wrong, what if there was another mate out there for her? What if that man found her? Would Erik have to kill him too? Her head ached as she thought about it. Before she'd gone to sleep she'd been happy, content that soon they'd mate and they'd be together forever. Now she was scared that something, or rather someone, was about to try and come between them again.
She looked deep into Erik's eyes, hoping to see if he knew more than he was letting on. Maybe he'd only seen the man in the vision. Was that why he wasn't answering her question?
His brows rose into a worried look and her heart clenched to see it. He was as frightened of this as she was. He didn't know who the man was either. Had he only seen a shadow of a man like she had?
"What's happening?" she said, wishing he'd speak and comfort her.
Erik's look shifted, flickering between fear and hope, and he came over to her. He placed his arm around her shoulder as he sat on the arm of her chair and she put her head in his lap. He stroked her hair as she stared at the fire, drawing as much comfort as she could from his presence and touch.
"I don't know," he said, his voice deep and soft. "But Sean might."
The garden looked greyer today. The sun had gone in, trapped behind the thick banks of clouds and only peeking through occasionally. The temperature had dropped too, but there still hadn't been a frost. She wrapped her arms about herself, stroking the soft material of her fleece in some subconscious effort to comfort herself. Heaving a sigh, she turned and began to pace back along the length of the patio at the rear of the house.
Her eyes drifted over the shrubs and bushes as she walked, her thoughts drifting over something else. The same thing she'd been thinking about since her vision last night.
That man.
Not even Erik had been able to give her all the comfort and reassurance she needed. Probably because he didn't feel reassured about the situation himself. It wasn't as though she'd never seen him edgy before, but this time it unnerved her. When he'd thought that he was going to lose her when she'd first discovered his secret, he'd turned himself inside out, holding his heart out to her for her to treasure or smash to pieces. Last night, he'd shown hints of what he'd been like that night. He'd held her close, not letting her get more than an arm's length away from him at all times. He'd told her so many times that he loved her, and each time had made her ache inside because she didn't know how to reassure him that everything was going to be fine. All she'd been able to do was hold him, tell him she loved him, and that she was never going to leave him.
She was thankful she hadn't had a vision when she'd finally fallen asleep, wrapped safely in Erik's arms. Her dreams had been turbulent, haunted by what she'd seen and what it could mean.
Was something wrong? It was clear to her that Erik thought there was. She wished that Sean would get his backside down already and convince them both that this was just a glitch and didn't mean that the mating couldn't take place.
She knew that that was floating around Erik's mind as well as hers. It wasn't just the fear that there could be another mate for her, another man sniffing around and wanting to make her his, that haunted them both. It was also the fear that this could mean they weren't destined for each other and that they weren't meant to mate.
She wasn't about to mate with anyone else. She loved Erik with all her heart. Since falling in love with him, she'd become so dependent on him, needing to feel his arms around her at the end of a long day, wanting to spend her life with him and no one else. There was no one else for her. Erik was her everything.
Muttering a string of obscenities that those words hadn't come to her last night when she'd been trying to wax lyrical to ease Erik's mind, she paced back along the length of the patio.
There was something else that scared her, more than anything.
It was the fact that in all her visions, she'd never felt in control. They had been like dreams, where she was just a player and some higher power decided what happened. She didn't want the man in her dreams, and she certainly didn't want things to happen that could jeopardise her relationship with Erik. She hated the lack of control now, whereas before she'd been happy to accept it.
Now it truly frightened her.
What if the man came closer? What if she couldn't stop herself from doing as her vision commanded? She couldn't imagine touching another man, especially not with Erik around. And what if it went further than touching?
The idea that someone else could be involved in their love play made her stomach turn and tighten. She didn't want another lover, not in her dreams and definitely not in reality. She just wanted Erik.
Would Erik hate her if something happened in the visions and she couldn't stop herself from touching this man?
She screwed her face up and pushed away from that thought, turning sharply and heading back along the patio.
It didn't bear thinking about. She would fight it as much as she could and would try to make Erik understand that what happened in her visions wasn't what was going to happen in reality.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she pulled it out, flipping it open at the same time. It was a message from Erik. She read it and smiled. He was on his way back with Sean, but more importantly than that, he'd told her that he loved her. Hearing, or just seeing, those words was exactly what she'd needed to brighten her mood.
But she still didn't have the energy to get ready like she knew she should be. She'd thrown on whatever clothes she'd come across first this morning and hadn't even bothered to shower, telling herself that she'd get ready once she'd had breakfast and was feeling a little better. The only trouble was, she didn't feel any better. If anything, she felt worse. She felt too lifeless and tired to even comprehend getting washed and ready for Sean's arrival.
"You'll catch your death out here," Rose said, startling her. "You look troubled."
Kim blinked to clear her head of the heavy thoughts dwelling there and forced a smile.
"I'll be all right." She walked up to Rose.
The housekeeper's look turned to one of worry and she placed her hand over hers. Kim looked down at it. Hers were so pale compared to Rose's. Maybe she was too cold. She could feel the warmth from Rose's hand seeping into hers. Flexing her fingers, she realised how stiff they'd become.
"I've made biscuits and there's a fresh pot on the stove." Rose smiled at her. "Come and warm yourself in the kitchen."
Kim didn't need such encouragement to get back inside, but biscuits and tea did sound good. Nothing lifted her spirits like chocolate, and she got the feeling that the biscuits would be chocolate cookies. Rose always made them to cheer her up. She only hoped it would work today too. She was beginning to think that nothing was going to lift her mood and she didn't want to spend the whole of Christmas moping about things that might not even happen.
Even if Erik wasn't destined to be her mate anymore, she was staying put. Nothing was going to part them. Nothing. She'd bash the head in of whoever tried. Erik was hers, and she was Erik's, and that was final. She didn't need to mate with him to be his. They'd spent two very happy years together without being mated and nothing was going to change now.
She followed Rose into the house, wrinkling her nose as the heat of the rooms made it feel numb as it began to warm up. Her fingers felt hot and fat, and she flexed them again to get more blood into them.
Unzipping her fleece, she walked down the steps into the kitchen and closed her eyes briefly as the warmth of the room hit her. It was like a comforting blanket wrapping around her. She slid into a chair beside the old wooden table near the fire. Her eyes followed Rose as she went about placing cookies on a plate and gathering the tea things, her mind emptying.
"You and Erik have been very quiet today," Rose said, setting the tray down on the table and taking the seat nearest her. "Nothing's wrong is it?"
Kim shrugged and then smiled when Rose put a cookie onto a small plate and pushed it towards her. She wrapped her hands around the tea cup as it came to stop in front of her and breathed a deep sigh as it warmed her up.
She picked up the biscuit and took a bite out of the corner of it. It was delicious, the chocolate chips still soft enough that they melted in her mouth. She took a sip of tea and stared at the table.
"You looked as though you were thinking hard out there ... are you sure you're all right. Yesterday you both looked so happy."
She couldn't miss the concern in Rose's voice and when she looked at her, it was written in her eyes too. Rose smiled at her, her face wrinkling with it, and Kim realised she was trying to coax her into talking. She supposed that talking about it to someone else, someone she trusted, might help her find her strength again and might chase away some of her fears.
"We just ... I'm sure it's nothing really, but something just isn't right." She toyed with her cup, turning it this way and that as she avoided looking at Rose.
"Neither you or Erik are in good spirits."
Her throat tightened and went dry as she thought over the words she was about to say. She trusted Rose, and right now she needed someone she could talk to, someone she could be honest with. Her sister was no use at a time like this. She couldn't tell her that Erik was a shape-shifter and that their mating was potentially going horribly wrong.
She took another sip of her tea, wishing it was champagne or wine, because that always loosened her tongue. She smiled at the memory of all the times Erik had taken her out for dinner or to the club. He knew the effect wine had on her, making her shed her inhibitions and find her confidence. She always made the first move after a couple of glasses.
Erik.
Her heart clenched at the thought that she might lose him.
"I think something is wrong with the mating," she blurted out and then stared wide-eyed at Rose, waiting for her reaction.
Rose's hand came to rest over hers.
"I was frightened once too," she said, her voice gentle and soothing.
Kim couldn't hide how stunned she was. She'd never given it any thought before, had never even suspected that it could be true.
"You're a lycan?"
Rose offered her another cookie, her hand remaining on hers. She patted it in a way that made Kim think about her grandma. Whenever something had gone wrong when she was little, her grandma would pat her shoulders as she cried, telling her that everything was going to be just fine.
Would it be fine now?
Rose nodded. "I was human once, just like you, but a lot older. He was a beautiful snow leopard, mature in years like myself. I was so scared of the change."
"Wow ... I never knew. Erik never said anything." She drank the remains of her tea and ate another piece of cookie before frowning. "What was it like?"
"The change?" Rose said and she nodded. "Frightening, but not as painful as I'd been expecting it to be. He was gentle with me. If Erik knows that ... no, what am I saying, Erik will be gentle with you regardless. He loves you, Kim."
She bit her tongue and then blurted, "I'm scared of losing him!"
Her gaze dropped to the table and she stared at the worn grain of the wood and the rings where hot cups had been placed on it without coasters. She heard chair legs scrape on the stone flags and then comforting arms were wrapped around her. She closed her eyes and silently thanked Rose as she drew all the reassurance she could from the hug.
"That's something that will never happen," Rose whispered, hands smoothing her back.
Kim frowned when Rose sat back down and poured her another cup of tea. She didn't want to push the housekeeper into saying more, but she knew that there was definitely more to say. How did she know?
She gave her a questioning look, hoping to encourage her into saying what she was so obviously thinking about.
Rose placed her cup back down in front of her and offered her the sugar. She took two lumps and stirred them into the tea, waiting.
Rose sighed. "You've been all he's wanted for in life."
Her heart leapt into her throat, pounding there as it began to accelerate. She'd heard Erik tell her countless times that he loved her, but she'd never heard anyone else tell her that he had feelings for her. It seemed strange to have Rose tell her, but good at the same time. Hearing these things from her was reassuring her more than having Erik tell her.
"He used to talk a lot when he was younger, about all kinds of things, about what he'd do when he met you. He was such a happy young man. He'd talk about you all the time at first, but then less when the years drew on and I think he began to lose hope of finding you, until the day his parents died and he became quiet." Rose paused a moment and Kim saw the fleeting sadness cross her eyes.
She knew that Rose had come to see Erik as family, and that she must have loved his parents and his brother too. Erik saw her as family too. She couldn't imagine what they'd both felt when his parents had died. She couldn't imagine losing her parents. As annoying as their bickering was, she loved them both. Along with her sister, they were her only family.
"Now he's like he used to be. He thinks of nothing but you, Kim. I've never seen him so happy."
Kim's heart lifted, feeling light for the first time that day, and she opened her mouth to say something but her words fled her lips when the door opened.
"I thought I'd find you down here," Erik said as he walked in and she stood, rounded the table and buried her face against his chest.
He was still a moment, as though he was trying to figure out what had just happened, and then he sighed and wrapped his arms around her.
"Everything all right?" he whispered close to her ear and she thought about nodding, but knew that he'd see right through it. She shook her head. His arms tightened around her.
She pushed against him, wanting to look into his eyes and see his face. He was smiling at her as she looked up, but there was a lingering hint of sadness in his eyes. She touched his cheek, lightly caressing it, trying to silently show him that she loved him and there was no need to fear---she wasn't going anywhere.
His smile widened a little and his honey eyes brightened with it this time. He dipped his head and kissed her, his lips playing tenderly with hers. She kissed him a moment, enjoying the connection she could feel to him again, and then remembered that Rose was still in the room. Drawing back, she blushed ten shades of red as she looked from Erik to Rose and back again. He grinned and then gave Rose a look she could easily interpret. He was asking about her, asking Rose if she'd been all right without him. She looked at Rose and was thankful when the housekeeper nodded.
"There's more cookies and I can make more tea if your friend would like some," Rose said, standing and moving over to the sink. She was already filling the kettle before Erik could answer her.
"I'm sure you and Sean are freezing after your trip from the airport. Tea would be great, Rose." She held Rose's gaze a moment and then added, "Thanks."
Following Erik from the room, she felt so much better than she had done all day and even managed a genuine smile when he looked at her. She didn't want him to worry.
"Where's Sean?" she said.
"In the lounge warming up. He's already complaining about the English weather. I told him it's a lot bloody warmer down here than it is in Scotland." Erik grinned at her.
She wondered if he knew that she melted a little inside whenever he grinned, his eyes sparkling with it. She'd missed him today, badly. He'd only been gone a few hours, but it had felt like eternity.
Squeezing his hand, she was about to walk into the lounge with him when she remembered that she hadn't showered and was dressed like a pig farmer. She stopped dead and looked at herself and then Erik.
"You look fine, Kim," he said in a bass melodic voice that made her swallow. She bit her lower lip as his eyes raked over her and she wondered how, with just a look, he could make her feel as though she was wearing a million pound designer dress and not jeans and a fleece. He stepped up to her, capturing her lips again. She got the impression from his tight grip on her waist that he'd missed her too.
She pushed him off her and waggled a finger. "We've got company now ... and I need to change."
She went to walk up the hall towards the stairs but he growled and grabbed her arm, pulling her back into his embrace. His arms were like steel bands around her, impossible to break free from, and she didn't want to when he kissed her with gentle force, his tongue tangling with hers as he bent her over backwards.
Her body went limp in his arms, her hands sliding up to hold the sides of his face as she began to kiss him back. He was right. So what if they had company. She still wanted him too. A moan pushed its way out of her as he deepened the kiss, one of his hands moving up to support her neck and stop her from falling. She knew he wouldn't let her fall. He'd never let her fall.
She frowned as the familiar heat settled in her belly, growing into an ache as Erik's tongue swept along her lower lip. She groaned, wishing that this could lead to what she wanted it to, but knowing that they didn't have time for it. If they did, Sean would know from their prolonged disappearance what they'd been up to and she'd never be able to face him.
"Erik," she mumbled against his lips and he reluctantly pulled back. He didn't release her though. He kept her bent over backwards and held tight in his arms.
"Yes?" He smiled, passion in his eyes and seduction in his voice.
"Later," she said with a smile of her own.
"I'll hold you to that." He pulled her up and let her go. "Chop chop."
She heard him laugh as she ran up the hall, obeying his command to hurry. She laughed too. It felt as though her thoughts from this morning were a million miles away now, gone.
Reaching their room, she hurriedly found something to change into. The blue jeans she was wearing would do but she needed a top that said casual, not loafing about like her fleece did. Besides, dressing up a little might put her in a more positive mood.
She slipped out of her boots as she searched for the right top. Was everything in the wash? She rummaged through her drawers and pulled out a black long sleeve top. It had a scooping neckline, low enough that it would show a little cleavage, but having Erik's attention with her tonight would probably be a good thing. The feeling of him watching her, wanting her, always made her more confident and happy.
She pulled the top on and sprayed herself with perfume before bounding out of the room and back down the stairs.
When she made it to the hall, she walked demurely down it, smoothing her hair back and hoping she at least passed for neat. She wasn't sure why she was bothering though. It had been a while since she'd seen Sean, but in all the times she'd met him, he'd never been anywhere close to neat with his straggling jaw length blond hair. It was no surprise that his animal form was a lion.
She couldn't help smiling when she walked into the lounge and saw Erik and Sean sitting on the couch by the fire. Both men turned to look at her. Sean gave her a wide smile, exposing perfect teeth and slightly sharpened canines. Erik would never tell her how old Sean was, but she'd gathered from this tiny sign of a change in his human form that he was very old. It seemed odd to think that he could be over one hundred years old when he looked as though he was in his late thirties.
He patted the seat next to him and she rolled her eyes, taking her place next to Erik instead. Sean pouted at her.
"Did you have a nice journey?" she said for want of something else to say.
He grinned and said in a thick Scottish accent, "If by that you mean, myself and lover-boy are having a little trouble and can you help shed a little light on what caused the hiccup, then the answer is yes."
She looked at Erik for an explanation.
"It might have come up in conversation on the way back from the airport," he said, an apology in his eyes.
She didn't mind that he'd already told Sean about their potential problem. Sean was, after all, Erik's best friend and they had known each other for years, ever since Sean had agreed to act as the managing director in the Scottish office of Erik's family's company. The two had apparently become fast friends and it wasn't surprising when she compared their style, personality and backgrounds. They were incredibly similar, both of them exuding confidence and charm, both of them sharing a dry sense of humour.
Sean swept the tangled locks of his blond hair from his face and leaned back into the corner of the couch, crossing his legs as he did so. Erik leaned back too, his arm coming to rest around her shoulders and drawing her closer to him. She snuggled into his embrace, waiting to hear Sean's opinion on their mating.
"So, Erik tells me you've got a little love triangle problem..." he started and shrugged when Erik raised a brow and frowned at him. Kim frowned too. She didn't like him speaking about the other man as though he was already a part of their relationship. If she had anything to do with it, he was never going to become a lover of hers, not even in the visions. "I'm just saying it as I see it."
"Erik told me that the mating was exclusive. It's what he was told. Is there a chance that it isn't exclusive now?" She placed her hand on Erik's thigh, hoping her touch would comfort him as she voiced her fears. She knew that he liked hearing them as much as she did, but she had to be honest with Sean and it was best that her and Erik were honest with each other too.
"I've been thinking about it ever since Erik told me and the only answer I have is that your failure to mate the first time around has resulted in Kim's call being picked up by another. I've only heard of something like this happening once in all my years."
"But you have heard of it," she said, leaning forwards.
"I have, and I'm sorry to say that the story goes that it wasn't pretty. Two contenders for one female in heat can only lead to trouble." Sean's look filled with worry, his eyes darting between her and Erik. "It's best that you're prepared ... and remember that you've got little control over the visions."
Kim swallowed, her stomach dropping as he confirmed her worst fear. She looked at Erik, staring deep into his eyes as they met hers. She could see he was thinking the same as her and it cut her up inside to think that something could happen in their vision that could jeopardise their relationship. They both knew how little control they had, and that she wouldn't be able to stop herself from doing things with this other man, but it didn't mean that Erik wouldn't start to resent her if she did. If their roles were reversed and there were suddenly another woman involved in their visions, she'd be jealous as hell about it and would probably be angry with Erik even though whatever happened wouldn't be his fault.
She gave him a shaky smile when he took hold of her hand. He smiled at her, looking into her eyes with so much love and understanding in his.
"We've come through worse than this," he said, pressing a kiss to her cheek. He whispered into her ear, "I won't let him have you. I'll fight for you again if I have to."
She rested her forehead against his cheek. She didn't want him to have to fight again. Last time had scared her witless and had caused him so much pain, both physical and emotional.
"In that case, I'm never leaving the mansion, at least not until we've mated," she said, resolute and confident that it was the perfect answer to their problem. "I'll never meet that man then."
Her smile disappeared when Sean spoke.
"What if the man came here?"
She frowned. "How would he come here?"
Erik shifted and she looked at him. He looked uncomfortable.
"Well, you are hosting this year's Christmas Ball after all." Sean looked as innocent as a new born baby as he shrugged again and smiled.
"We are?" She stared at Erik. He gave her a little smile, one that spoke volumes. "We are."
She wondered just when she was supposed to get some alone time with Erik. It seemed some higher power was determined to rob her of a relaxing Christmas break. She just wanted to spend lazy days snuggled up with Erik watching rubbish on the television or walking the grounds. It was bad enough that she had to go back to work before New Year's. Heaving a sigh, she told herself that if it was Erik's turn to host this mystical ball she'd heard so much about in the past, then they had to do it. She didn't like the idea that a group of shape-shifters were about to invade though, and doubly didn't like the idea that amongst them could be the man from the vision. She moved closer to Erik, wanting to feel his arms around her. She wanted to feel he'd protect her.
He held her tightly, so tight that she could barely breathe, and she could sense that he was as worried and reluctant as she was.
Sean looked disappointed. "Come on, you agreed that after your non-attendance to the ball at my house last year you'd make up for it by hosting the ball this year."
"Kim doesn't like to fly," Erik said, his voice laced with the anxiety she could see in his eyes.
"I really don't ... I'm petrified of falling to my death in some big lump of metal that clearly shouldn't be able to break the laws of gravity and fly." She blushed when Sean gave her a look that said her explanation was a little over the top. She couldn't help it. Whenever she thought about flying or being in a lift, she became a babbling nervous mess.
"We'll host the ball." Erik took hold of her hand and squeezed it. "I won't let anyone come between us and it might be a nice distraction for you. You could help Rose plan it all."
She perked up at that. She'd never had to organise so much as a birthday party before, and now she was going to be arranging everything for a grand ball. Well, if she was in charge, it was going to be the best party the lycan community had ever seen. Throwing herself into planning it would be the best cure for her worries---she'd be so busy that she wouldn't have time to think.
"It's been years since we hosted the ball," Erik said, looking around the room as though he was looking around the whole house and remembering the last time they'd held the party.
"The last time was just before your parents..." Sean trailed off when Erik's gaze dropped to his lap and he fell quiet.
She placed her hand over his so she was holding it in both of hers, and chafed the back of it. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly and then fell again. She could see the hurt in his eyes, could feel the pain in him.
"So how many people are we talking about?" she said, hoping to draw Sean's attention away from Erik so he'd have time to gather himself. "Thirty?"
Sean laughed. "Try nearer to one hundred..."
She gasped. How the heck was she supposed to arrange everything for one hundred people this close to Christmas? She really hoped that Rose knew some great caterers that weren't going to be booked up already. Surely Sean should've dropped this bomb a little earlier in the year, say July. Every musician, caterer, ice sculptor and all the other little party businesses were bound to be booked by now. Still she wasn't going to let that deter her. Even if she had to raid the local supermarkets and cook everything herself as well as play all the instruments, they were going to have a good ball.
"...and we've got a special guest this year." Sean finished, still grinning.
"Who?" Erik and her said in unison.
She was glad Erik was back with them again.
"Prince Kristian of Denmark."
"A prince?" Kim's brows rose and her heartbeat accelerated. "A real prince? And he's a lycan?"
"A real prince," Sean said.
She looked at Erik. He didn't look very impressed. She tried to act cool too. So a prince would be coming to the ball. It didn't mean she was going to flip out and go over the top with the food and decorations. Everything was going to be exactly the same as it would've been had there not been royalty in attendance. Except maybe she'd order finer champagne and more ice sculptures.
And some caviar. Rich people liked that stuff, didn't they?
She smiled absently.
A real prince.
Kim ran into the bedroom, eyes darting about as she tried to find her mobile phone. It was bound to stop ringing before she got there. Hopefully it was the caterer phoning back to confirm they'd be available for the Christmas Ball. She was amazed by the contacts that Rose had, stunned that some were still available for the party, but what surprised her most was that all of the businesses were run and staffed by lycans. She told herself that there were ordinary lycans too. Not all of them were part of the elite like Erik and Sean. She remembered the bouncer at the club Erik always took her to and the bar staff there. They were all lycans holding down a steady job.
It was like a world within a world.
She grinned when she found her phone in the bathroom and flipped it open.
"Kim speaking!" She beamed brightly.
"Kim?"
Her smile disappeared. It was her sister. She'd completely forgotten that her sister had mentioned the possibility of coming to visit on Christmas Day. Since their parents had moved away, they'd barely seen each other, even less than they had before if that was possible. It must have been months since their last get together and in that time something drastic had happened.
Her sister's husband had filed for divorce.
"Yeah, it's me. What's wrong?" she said, walking into the bedroom and sitting down on the end of the four-poster bed. The madness of organising the ball disappeared as she flopped back, stretching her other arm out as she sank into the bed and stared at the canopy above.
There was a long silence. Kim hoped that this wasn't about to turn into one of those long calls with even longer silences that she didn't know how to fill that she'd frequently had since Sherry's bastard husband had ditched her.
No matter how many times she told her sister that her ex was bastard son of a bitch, Sherry still didn't believe her.
She tilted her head and stared through the thin net curtains at the darkening sky outside, waiting for her sister to speak. She would eventually. Sometimes Kim got the feeling that her sister just wanted to know that someone was there. She was happy to do whatever her sister needed in order for her to get over her husband and on with her life.
Of course, that was as long as that didn't involve her coming up from London on Christmas Day. A pre-emptive strike was needed.
"So, I was thinking about you coming up for Christmas Eve," she said, congratulating herself on getting in there first so she avoided a sticky situation such as convincing her sister that she still loved her but saying she couldn't come up for Christmas Day. The last thing she needed was her sister at the Christmas Ball. She had no doubt that it would easily take Sherry's mind off her ex, but she couldn't risk her sister discovering just what her boyfriend was.
She smiled to herself. Boyfriend? She couldn't say she'd ever chosen to call Erik that, but she supposed that he was, even if it felt as though he was so much more.
She wished they could get engaged or married, but he'd told her at the start that lycans didn't officially marry. It was hard enough for them to fake their own deaths and reappear in the world as their own children, or disappear for good if they were that way inclined. She was leaning towards disappearing with Erik when they reached that stage. Being born again would bring too many complications, such as the fact that her supposed son and daughter were terribly intimate.
"Christmas Eve?" Sherry said, a hint of disappointment in her voice.
"Erik's friends have invited us up north for Christmas Day. I think he's got relatives up there that we're going to visit." She gritted her teeth, trying to swallow her own lie. She hated having to lie to her sister but she really couldn't risk her being around all those lycans.
"Oh ... I suppose Christmas Eve will be nice. We can listen to the church bells together as it turns midnight. I used to like it when we did that when we were little."
Kim smiled. When they were little? They used to do that when she was fifteen and her sister was nineteen. Hardly little. At least Sherry was buying it.
"Will it just be you, Erik and that housekeeper?"
She raised a brow at the tone Sherry's voice had adopted when she'd mentioned Rose. When Sherry had first met Erik and given him the third degree while prying information about his life out of him, she'd shown nothing short of intense jealousy when Erik had mentioned the house and Rose. Sherry had always wanted a cleaner, so she supposed it shouldn't have surprised her that her sister was jealous that Erik actually had a full blown housekeeper. Still, it was a little amusing to hear the edge entering her voice at every mention of Rose.
"Yes ... I mean no ... Sean will be here." She really hoped that Sean wasn't going to prove to be a complication in her otherwise flawless plan to avoid her sister's world and her own world colliding.
How the hell would she explain a shape-shifter to her sister? Her mind was so fragile right now that the shock would probably put her in a hospital.
Erik knew the drill when it came to her sister, as did Rose. But Sean? A horrible twisting feeling settled in her stomach when the voice at the back of her mind said that he'd probably shift into his lion form just for a second or two of amusement.
"Sean?" her sister said, interest showing clearly in her voice.
She frowned. No way was she going to let Sherry get together with Sean.
She wondered if they could get Sean to go out for the day and then realised it was probably too late for that tactic since she'd already mentioned him. Her sister would think it weird if he suddenly disappeared on some errand or visit to friends. Besides, she didn't think she'd be able to convince Sean to leave anyway. He'd want to stay. He'd want to shamelessly flirt with her poor sister just to make her cringe inside and die a little with the fear of him revealing his other side.
"Yeah, Sean. I'm sure you remember me mentioning him before? He runs the Scottish office of Erik's company. He's down visiting, came to see some friends. We're all going back up to Scotland on Christmas Day."
"Cool. The more the merrier." Sherry sounded as though she was smiling.
Cool? The more the merrier? She wondered if her sister would say that if she'd said 'Come up on Christmas Day, we're having a grand ball with a hundred or so shape-shifters. You and I can play guess the animal they change into'.
Not that she'd ever played guess the animal they change into. Well, only once or twice when she was bored. Normally she was right. It was like that whole dogs are like their owners thing. Shape-shifters in human form seemed to inherit some traits of their animal side. In Erik it was the black hair and honey-coloured eyes. Sean had inherited the hair and the laid back attitude.
"You'll be okay driving up?" she said.
"I'll come up nice and early and we can stay up nice and late."
She could hear the grin in her sister's voice. She wasn't excited about seeing her. It was the prospect of meeting a potentially available and possibly rich young man. Still, it would cheer her sister up. Now all she had to do was get Sean to behave himself.
"I'll see you then," she said and waited for her sister to say goodbye before she closed her phone.
"See who when?" a deep male voice said and she jumped, swiftly rolling over onto her side to face the owner of it.
She smiled at Erik as he leaned in the doorway, arms folded across his chest. He looked so damn good in his black roll-neck jumper and jeans. She didn't want to speak, she just wanted to lure him over and slowly unwrap him as though he was her Christmas present.
"Sherry, on Christmas Eve, so please tell Sean I want best behaviour from him." She sat up and then placed her hands behind her and leaned back.
Her head tilted to one side as her smile turned seductive.
"It's cold in this room." She looked down at her thin t-shirt, drawing his attention to her hardening nipples.
"You need something to warm you up," he purred back at her, his voice husky with the desire she could see in his eyes and feel in him.
"Why don't you do just that?" she said, leaning back a little more to entice him into coming over to her.
A smile teased his lips.
"What about Sean?" he said.
She frowned. "No offence to him, but he's not my type and I'd rather it was just us."
He laughed and pushed away from the doorframe. She jumped when he kicked the door closed and it slammed. He turned the key in the lock.
"I'd rather it was just us too."
She caught the real meaning behind those words. He wasn't talking about Sean now. He was talking about the man in their visions. He hadn't appeared since the one she'd had while sleeping by the fire, but each time she went to bed, she felt anxious, wondering whether he'd return to them that night. She didn't want to see him again, but she was curious about who he was and she wanted to see his face. All those dreams she'd had without seeing Erik's face had driven her crazy. Would this be the same? Wouldn't she see his face until she met him in real life?
Erik had told her that it was unusual. Normally you could see the face of your intended in the visions before you'd met.
She raked her eyes up him as he stopped beside her at the foot of the bed. The black jeans did nothing to hide the shape of his powerful legs and her gaze lingered on his crotch for a moment, her heart thumping hard against her chest as she took in the outline of his cock. She forced her eyes to keep moving, and they wandered upwards to his stomach and chest. The jumper was tight enough that it emphasised his build, showing how well toned he was beneath his clothes. She knew firsthand just how good his body was. It was divine, a beautiful landscape that she loved to spend quiet hours exploring.
She shuffled forwards on the bed and parted her legs so she could get closer to him by allowing him to stand between her knees. Her stomach hummed with anticipation as she edged her hands towards him. Her fingers settled on his hips and she slowly slid them up and under the hem of his jumper. He stood motionless and she could feel his gaze boring into her, his attention overwhelming as he focused wholly on her.
Her fingers touched bare skin. It was warm and soft, but hard at the same time, and the silken feel of it made her want to purr as her fingers traced the contours of his sides. She moved her hands towards each other, trailing them over his abdomen, and when he tensed his muscles, she released the moan she'd been holding at bay since her fingers had begun their exploration of him.
Slowly lifting the hem of his jumper, she pushed the black t-shirt he wore underneath up with it and half-closed her eyes when she finally revealed his stomach. She'd never grow bored of touching him and mapping each valley and peak of his body. Her eyes closed fully as she brushed her lips across his skin, creating a path of soft kisses as she moved across to his navel and over to the other side of his stomach. He smelt warm and enticing, but comforting at the same time.
He sighed and she could almost picture him standing before her with his eyes closed, head tilted back slightly as he basked in her kisses and love, and restrained himself. This had to be slow. Slow was what they needed right now.
His fingers closed over her shoulders, applying gentle pressure as he held her as though she was an anchor to this world. She smiled and pushed his jumper up further. Her eyes widened when he moved backwards and pulled his jumper and t-shirt off over his head at the same time. She watched the muscles of his torso tense and relax as he moved, his arms raised above his head. A pulse of desire made her pussy throb and she tensed her own muscles, making the most of the arousal he'd stirred by something as simple as revealing his body to her.
His arm lowered and he dropped his tops to the floor. She faux purred at the sight of him, standing before her, waiting almost, ready for anything. Ready for her.
Her stomach heated and tightened, her belly aching with her hunger for him. He looked stunning standing there, muscles visible even though he wasn't tensing them, a monument to power and strength. The thought of all that strength being used on her made her weak. She wanted to feel his power.
But tonight was a time for taking things slow. They both needed to reaffirm their feelings for each other. They needed to strengthen their growing bond and this was the best way to.
She held her breath when he moved towards her, leaning over her. His fingers caught the bottom of her top and lifted it. She obeyed his command, raising her hands above her head and letting him remove her t-shirt. He dropped it to the floor with his own. The cooler air made goose bumps sweep over her skin but they were chased away by fire as Erik's hands ghosted up her sides towards her breasts. She swallowed and closed her eyes, falling back into the bed and sighing out the breath she'd been holding.
Her back arched off the bed as his hands cupped her breasts, thumbs teasing her nipples through the lacy material of her bra. She bit her lower lip, pressing her breasts up into his palms and silently begging for more. His touch was electric, always fire and lightning, making her body burn with desire.
She gasped as his hands slid downwards, fingers pressing in as they travelled over her stomach. A smile wound its way across her lips when began to undo her jeans. God, she could just lay here and let him do as he pleased with her, be a slave to his desires. She was sure it would feel as intense as she'd imagined it would.
He tugged her jeans off her legs and pulled her towards the edge of the bed. She frowned when nothing happened for a few seconds and then sighed when his body pressed against hers, covering it. His skin was warm against hers, his body hard. He nestled between her thighs, his crotch pressing into hers, and she realised that he'd removed his jeans.
Opening her eyes, she smiled into his and lured him down for a kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck as his lips met hers and they began their dance. It was slow this time, intense with feeling and unspoken words. Sometimes they didn't need to speak. They knew each other so well now that things had begun to transcend words.
His mouth left hers and he kissed down towards her neck, teeth teasing her at the same time as fingers tortured her right nipple. She mewled, begging him to touch her properly. She wanted to be naked, needed to be skin on skin with him.
He seemed to hear her silent plea because he pushed himself up off her and caught hold of her wrist. He pulled her up into a sitting position and knelt before her. She studied his face as he unhooked her bra and peeled it off her at a painfully slow pace. The minute changes in his expression were beautiful, reflecting every feeling he had for her and how much he needed her.
She closed her eyes again when he dipped his head, his lips wrapping around one of her nipples while his thumb brushed over the other. They both hardened instantly, sending throbs and waves of desire and pleasure down to her belly. She tensed her thighs, loving the slippery sensation in her pussy and the way her clit pulsed.
His fingers crept into the waist of her lacy shorts and she lay back and raised her backside off the bed to assist him as he removed them. She waited when he pulled them off over her feet, not wanting to open her eyes to see what he was doing. The anticipation only heightened her every feeling, making her whole body hum as she tried to sense what he was doing and where he was. A tiny gasp escaped her as fingers swept over her thighs, a touch so light it left her wondering if she'd imagined it. She focused, waiting for it to happen again. Fire trailed across her abdomen just above her hip and then he ran his fingers downwards, setting her whole body aflame with desire.
She felt light as his hands dipped inwards, harder now as they headed towards her pussy. They spread her legs, exposing her. She wanted to lift her legs onto the bed and look at him, watch him, but she remained still and squeezed her eyes shut even harder until her other senses heightened to compensate.
Something brushed across her curly hair, sending a spark shooting through her, and she tensed for a split second. His touch left her and she almost mewled to get it back, but he didn't steal away the pleasure of his hands on her for long. The next thing she knew, he'd nudged her knees further apart and was sliding one lone finger down the length of her pussy.
She groaned this time.
It was joined by her body arching off the bed when he parted her and ran his tongue over her clit. She tried to move closer, wanting more pressure, but he held her down, forcing her to stay where she was and endure this light caress of his tongue over her pussy. It was maddening, driving her out of her mind with a need for more, an urgent desire to feel him inside of her.
A shudder ran up her spine when he flicked her pert nub with the tip of his tongue and then laved it slowly, torturing her. She curled her fingers up until her hands were tight fists above her head and moaned out her encouragement to the ceiling.
Tensing her muscles, her mouth fell open as it made everything so much more intense. Every stroke of his tongue, each flick of her clit, made tingles spread over her like a warming blanket and made her stomach tighten. She brought her feet up and struggled to get a foothold on the edge of the bed. When she did, she raised her backside up, giving him easier access to her. He took full advantage of her move, sliding his tongue lower and thrusting it into her slick channel. She moaned, her clit aching as he sucked on her opening. The idea that he wanted to taste her so badly that he couldn't wait for her to cum made a new flood of arousal leave her. He groaned and it vibrated against her pussy, making her throb with need.
Before she could beg him to keep going so she could find some sweet release, he'd licked back up to her nub and was sliding two fingers deep into her core. She clenched them, loving the feeling of them inside her and wishing it was his cock. He began thrusting, slow and long into her, bringing her closer and closer to the edge until she was moaning with each thrust.
It was too much.
Just as she was about to fall into bliss, he pulled his fingers out of her and stole her breath away before she could speak.
He ran the head of his cock up and down her pussy, rubbing it against her clit. She raised her backside higher, desperate to encourage him to do what she needed. She needed him, needed to get as close to him as he could, wanted to feel him filling her with his seed. She didn't care anymore about going slow and it seemed he didn't either. The look in his eyes said he wanted her and he was going to have her.
She sighed out as he inched his cock into her, stretching her slightly, and then opened her eyes when he went that bit further than normal. She could feel his balls nestled against her backside, his cock buried to the hilt inside of her. He tensed her muscles and held him there, loving the way she felt full and complete when he was inside her.
He groaned and she tensed her muscles harder around his length. His face screwed up, his hands coming down to support her backside as he stood, holding it off the bed so she was almost diagonal. She hoped he didn't let her go. She'd fall off the bed if he did.
He bent over her and she let her legs fall open as wide as possible, not caring if it made her look wanton.
She silently begged him to move, to give her the completion she so badly needed.
He pulled out of her and thrust back in, hard and as deep as he could go. So deep it stung a little.
She sighed and smiled up at him.
He sneered, drew out of her and tightened his grip on her backside. She closed her eyes and groaned as he rammed his cock back into her, setting a hard and fast pace that made her breasts wobble with each meeting of their hips. Her heart pounded in her ears, smashing against her chest as she tensed around him, desperate for him to be rougher. The helpless feeling inside of her only made her even hotter, making her desire soar until she was almost screaming each time he thrust.
Her moans were joined by his groans, low grunts that made her body tremble. The feeling of his cock pounding her, fingers almost bruising her flesh he was holding her so tight, balls slapping against her backside with each thrust, and his deep growls of exertion was too much. Her stomach clenched, her whole body followed it, and her eyes shot open as the tightened string inside of her snapped and heat spread through her. She breathed hard, thighs quivering as her inner walls clenched around Erik's cock.
He grunted hard, pounding her rougher, his face screwing up as he neared his own orgasm. She watched, holding him tight inside her and making the most of his thrusts, using them to draw out the last spasms of her orgasm. He sneered and then moaned harshly as he came, filling her as his hips continued to thrust against her, gradually slowing down until he finally stopped, his cock still buried deep inside her.
She smiled as he opened his eyes and looked at her.
He grinned and leaned over her, hands resting either side of her head, his breath warm against her face as he panted.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him gently and with all the affection she could muster. For the first time since she'd had that vision, she felt as though things were normal again. It was nice.
She wondered how long it would last.
Kim was dreaming. Or maybe it was a nightmare.
Whichever it was, she knew it was a dream because that man was back.
She was pressed between two bodies, being slowly driven insane with need as they both touched her, taking her to dizzying heights with light sensual caresses. She felt too delirious to even try to resist them. One of them began to purr as fingers swept down her spine, over her shoulders and breasts. The other joined in, a deep rumbling sound that turned her stomach hot and made liquid heat pool in her knickers.
Her hand tickled Erik's side as she faced him, studying his face and searching out the minute changes in it that could signal some sign of his feelings about what was happening. They'd tried to resist at first, she'd tried to change the vision, but it had been impossible.
Now, she felt as though she was on fire.
She licked her lips, her eyes sweeping over what she could see of Erik's body as the man behind her cupped her backside. The warm firelight made the beads of sweat on Erik's golden skin glisten like diamonds. She could feel her own perspiration mix with his, sticking their bodies together, as she lifted her knee and draped her leg over his hip. His hand lowered almost instantly, fingers rubbing the front of her knickers, applying gentle but arousing pressure to her pussy.
She didn't resist as he moved away, pulling her up so she was kneeling on the plush rug. The heat of the fire scorched her, but not as much as the feeling of their hands on her. She felt as though she was caught up in a competition to make her explode with need and whoever won would be her mate. She'd never seen Erik so focused. He was transfixed on her, cock hard and ready, fingers teasing her, touching her in all the right places to heighten her already painfully aroused senses.
The other man moved around her, taking Erik's place as he kissed over her shoulder and across her back. She tried to look up at the man, but her eyes wouldn't cooperate. She could only see up to his collarbones and she was desperate to see his face. How was she supposed to know him if she couldn't? Could he see hers and Erik's?
All sense and reason, all thoughts, were shattered when Erik removed her bra and began to palm her breasts. Her hard nipples brushed against his hands and she moaned, leaning back into him as he kissed her neck. He thrust against her backside and her clit throbbed, sending a delightful shiver through her.
She trembled with passion when the other man moved forwards and Erik snapped, growling at the man and tugging her to him. The man growled back and she saw a flash of his true nature, of plush white fur with black bands. Her mind raced to figure out what kind of creature he would be if he changed.
A white tiger?
A thrill sent a shiver across her body and she stared at his body, wanting to see the beautiful markings again.
He moved back for a second, his hand running down his body. Her eyes followed it as Erik pushed her knickers down her legs. She bit her lower lip when he slipped a hand over her pussy, a lone finger dipping inside to touch her pert nub. She could feel how wet she was, turned on by having the attention of two men, knowing that whatever happened here, she didn't really have any control over it.
In a way, it made her feel dirty. It felt so wrong to be doing this, to have this other man watching her with Erik, but on a different level it felt good too. It was thrilling and exciting. She moaned when Erik's fingers danced on her clit, drawing her arousal up and teasing her. The man's hand drew her eyes downwards and she stared as he wrapped his hand around his long cock, stroking himself as he watched her with Erik.
It felt so dirty. She knew that she should try and wake up or do something to stop what she knew was going to happen if she let things continue this way, but she couldn't.
There was a part of her that said it was just a vision, a dream. Lots of girls probably had dreams about having two men.
But the rest of her said that this was more than a dream. These visions were about a mating, about something that took place in real life. There were going to be consequences.
The man seemed to drift into the background as she focused on Erik, turning and kissing him hard in an attempt to relieve some of the pressure building inside of her caused by her need and desire. She ran her hands down his sides, over strong muscles and the perfect globes of his backside. She pulled him towards her, forcing his cock against her belly and trapping it between them. He thrust against her and she moaned, wanting to get the connection back by getting him inside her.
Turning her back on him again, she rubbed her backside into his cock, listening to him moaning with each slide of her body against his. She smiled when he bent her over, slipping his length into her as his hands claimed her hips. The intensity of it as he began to move was overwhelming. He slid easily into her with each thrust, her slick arousal coating him and slowly oozing down towards her clit.
He leaned forwards, his hand coming down to her pussy and she groaned when his fingers circled her clit, using her juices to increase the slipperiness of it. She stared directly in front of her, her eyes losing their focus as she concentrated on the rough glide of Erik's cock into her, filling her and reaching deep inside.
It was too much. She tensed her muscles and only made it worse, sending her arousal soaring as she caused Erik to pump her harder and faster. Her breasts swung with each plunge of his length, the heels of her palm hurting as pressed them harder into the rug to support herself.
Something shifted and her eyes moved across to it, focusing. She swallowed and stared at the man's cock. It was hard, the soft head tipped with a shiny pearl of pre-cum. She wanted it. She wanted them both. She was too hot, so hot and high on passion that she didn't care about the consequences. She wanted to feel dirty, to have that extra edge to her orgasm when she finally came.
He was touching himself, hand stroking slowly up and down, balls moving with each thrust into his fist. He was begging her for attention.
Reaching out with one hand and trying to maintain her balance with the other, she eased her fingers towards him. He moved forwards to meet her, a sigh escaping him as she finally touched him, running her fingers down his silken cock.
She should stop.
But she couldn't, didn't want to. No matter what she told herself, how wrong she said this was, it didn't seem to have any effect.
She wanted him too.
"Do it," both men said in unison and she groaned.
Erik's fingers dug into her hips as he began to thrust deeper into her, his hips curling against hers.
The man moved in front of her and she eyed his cock, swallowing as she thought about what she was going to do. She decided not to think at all.
Taking hold of his cock, she held the base of it and tentatively ran her tongue up the length of it to its head. She swirled her tongue around, moaning as Erik drove himself into her depths, harder now, taking her closer to the edge. She wanted to cum so badly, but knew that she wouldn't until she had the other man inside her too.
She wrapped her lips around the head of his cock and he groaned, purring deep and melting her.
She closed her eyes and sucked him into her mouth, holding his cock so he couldn't thrust into her like she could feel he wanted to. His hands came to rest on her shoulders. Her tongue ran over his length, exploring it as she sucked him deep and hard in time with Erik's thrusting.
When Erik growled, everything became too much and she moaned against the man's cock as she came, her knees weakening with it. She waited for Erik to stop but he didn't, he held her tighter and kept pounding into her, filling her with his cock and stirring her arousal again.
The man took hold of her hair and thrust into her mouth, slowly but deep enough that she was forced to relax as much as possible so she didn't gag. She didn't stop him. The feeling of him using her like this, fucking her mouth while Erik fucked her body, made everything hotter and her stomach tightened again, warning of another impending orgasm. She clenched her muscles around Erik, choking his cock and loving the sting of pain it made her feel as he rammed into her.
Erik growled again and her whole body quivered when the man echoed him. She pushed her backside against Erik and moaned, sucking the man harder and tightening her hand around his cock. She moved her hand in time with her mouth, controlling his movements. He moaned each time she took him in and sucked him hard on the way out.
She gasped when Erik's fingers pressed deep into her waist and he forced her legs apart, fucking her deeper and forcing his cock into her over and over again. The roughness and dominance of it was too much for her.
It seemed it was too much for the men too.
They both growled and came at the same time, the man filling her mouth with thick strings of warm cum at the same time as Erik spilled himself inside of her. She swallowed down the cum and tensed around Erik's cock. Her whole body jerked as she came, her pussy pulsing and throbbing around Erik as he gently massaged her clit.
Releasing the man, she got up onto her knees and leaned back into Erik, breathing hard as she came down.
Kim shot up in bed and immediately looked around at Erik. Heat swept over her cheeks, setting them on fire as she blushed over what she'd done. Embarrassment was swiftly followed by guilt and a sense of dirtiness. She couldn't believe she'd done that.
She moved away from him when he sat up and went to catch her arm.
She should've tried harder to stop it from happening. She shouldn't have let herself get lost in the moment. Her gaze fell to the bed and her knees. She couldn't bring herself to look at Erik as tears stung her eyes.
What had she done?
How was he going to be able to look at her now without thinking about what she'd done?
Had she ruined everything?
Her heart ached and raw emotion tightened her throat, making it hard to swallow. Tears blurred her vision and she tugged the blanket up, wrapping it around herself and hugging it to her chest. She wished it could cover up what she'd done, but he'd seen it all, been there when it was happening. She felt as though her indiscretion had been in this bed and in reality, not in something that was nothing more than a vivid dream.
She started as his fingers swept gently up her arm to her shoulder, clearing the rogue strands of hair from her throat. He slid his hand around the back of her neck under her hair and she bit her lip to hold the tears in.
The moment he applied a little pressure to the back of her neck, making it clear he wanted her in his arms, she dropped the blanket and almost threw herself at him. She focused on the soothing motion of his hand against her back, his arms wrapped tight around her, and listened to the quiet words he was saying to her.
"There's nothing you can do, Kim," Erik whispered close to her ear, his cheek resting against the top of her head.
The way she'd looked just now made him ache inside. He hated this as much as she did, but it was so much worse for her, having to be the one in the middle. He frowned as he felt hot tears against his neck and held her a little tighter. He pulled the blanket up, covering her so she'd feel more safe and secure.
He sighed.
"They're not real, baby ... just visions." He kissed her hair, hoping his words were going some way towards comforting her.
"They feel real," she mumbled against his neck.
"I know they do, but they're not. It's just a shared dream, that's all. It isn't reality..." He moved back slightly and took hold of her shoulders, peeling her off him and looking at her face. His right hand left her shoulder, thumb brushing away the tears on her flushed cheeks. He hated seeing her like this. He didn't want her to be hurting, he never wanted her to be hurt. It made him feel powerless to protect her when she was like this, as though he was a failure in his part in life as her man. He leaned forwards and kissed her, relief blooming inside of him when her mouth moved slightly against his in a tiny kiss. "This is reality."
She was smiling when he pulled back but it was a fragile one and in her eyes he could see more tears coming. It would be time soon for them to initiate the mating, but even once that was done, there was still time for this mystery man to show up and ruin everything. Kim wasn't wholly his until he had changed her and sealed the bond.
"I need a shower," she whispered, slipping from the bed and padding silently across the room. He watched her, sensing her sombre mood and wondering if there was anything he could do to cheer her up.
He was surprised when she paused at the doorway to the bathroom and looked back at him.
"Erik?" she said, her voice as tiny as she looked right now.
"Yes?"
She hesitated a moment, her eyes dropping to the floor briefly before they came up to meet his. She looked over her shoulder at the bathroom and then back at him.
"Bathe with me?" There was so much hope and fear in her voice that he was straight out of bed and walking over to her.
She'd told him once about her desire to get him into a bath with her but they'd never done anything about it. Did she want to share this moment with him because she felt it was something the other man couldn't do with her? Did she want the reassurance being so close to each other would bring her? He wanted it. He wanted it for himself and for her. If they were going to make it through this, they had to be open and as close to each other as possible. Last time, they'd both craved the connection the mating had placed between them, the closeness of being intimate and open. He'd missed it as much as she had when it had gone. Now it was coming back and it was just when they needed it most.
He filled the tub for her. It was a large whirlpool bath that he'd had installed a few years back. The motion of the water, swirling around his body, had always soothed him after a long week of work. He'd never really thought he'd have a girl in it with him, let alone his future mate.
He turned and looked at her, watching her as she toyed with the items on the bathroom shelf and around the basin on the washstand. She was nervous and he didn't know whether it was the dream that was making her this way, or what they were about to do. He was sure that she had some idea of how this was supposed to go in her head and he was going to have to read her closely to get it right. The last thing he wanted to do right now was cock something up. He wanted this to be perfect.
He wanted everything to be perfect.
When the bath was full, he held his hand out to her. She blushed, her cheeks tinting a subtle shade of rose. He wondered what she had to be shy about. They were both standing naked in front of each other and it wasn't as though they'd never seen each other's bodies before.
He looked at the bath and frowned.
Maybe there was more to this bath thing than he'd first guessed. Was it a fantasy of hers? He wished he knew what she was expecting so he could get it right. When she'd mentioned bathing with him all those months back, he should've asked for more details. At the time, he hadn't given much thought to it, hadn't realised how important it would be.
He came out of his thoughts when her hand slipped into his. He smiled at her, raising her hand to his mouth and pressing a light kiss to the back of it. She blushed again. He loved it when she did that.
He held her hand, steadying her as she stepped into the deep bath. His eyes raked over her legs and he groaned inside at the sight of her naked body. She was so beautiful, whether she saw it or not. He loved every inch of her, inside and out. Every part of her was beautiful.
Stepping into the bath behind her, he sunk down into the water and sighed as it enveloped him and Kim moved to sit in front of him, between his legs. She leaned back, her body against his. He flicked one of the switches to start the jets, keeping them gentle.
He swept her damp hair up, pinning it with the hair clip that had been on the side of the bath. She sighed when he placed soft kisses against her back, working his way along the curve of her shoulder. The water bubbled around them, hot against his skin, heating him through.
"You're not responsible for what happens in the visions," he said and was surprised that she didn't tense.
She sunk a little further into the water and he bit his lip to stop himself from groaning when her backside rubbed against his crotch. Now wasn't the time for that. He'd figured out what she needed. She needed to be in control. He'd do whatever she said today, anything to make her happy again and comfort her.
Squeezing some soap out onto his hands, he lathered them and then gently moved them over her back. He massaged the soap into her skin and then washed it off. He pressed his thumbs into her spine, working the tension out of her and smiling as he remembered how he'd rubbed her shoulders for her in the lift that time. She moaned and it ended in a long sigh as he kneaded her shoulders and neck.
"It'll be time soon." He worked his way back down, running his hands over her shoulder blades.
"How soon?" she said, a note of hope in her voice.
"Shortly after the ball tomorrow by my calculations."
He squeezed more soap onto his hands and washed her arms for her. She sighed and leaned right back so her head was resting against his shoulder.
"I wish it was sooner." She ran her hands over his knees and he closed his eyes, trying to keep a little self control so his body didn't respond to her touch as it wanted to.
"It's only a day or two," he said, "but I wish it was sooner too. I wish it was now."
She leaned to one side and looked up at him, her eyes searching his.
He gave her what she wanted.
"It scares me as much as it scares you, Kim. I've waited so long to find you, most of my life. I can't lose you now." His brows furrowed as he stared into her eyes.
She smiled and craned her neck to kiss him. It was soft, slow and spoke volumes about her feelings. She drew back a little, just enough that he could see her eyes again.
"I promise you that I'm not going anywhere." She placed her hand against his chest and he closed his eyes briefly when he felt her heart beating along with his. "I'm staying right here with you. I love you too damn much, so much that it frightens me sometimes."
He smiled broadly at her honest declaration and wondered if she knew that it was exactly what he'd needed to hear right now. Dipping his head, he kissed her, showing her without words how much he loved her and that he needed her more than anything.
When she broke away and leaned her back against him again, he put his arms around her waist. The hot water was soothing, tickling his skin as the jets made it bubble. He rested his chin on her shoulder and couldn't stop his eyes from dropping to her breasts. They were just out of the water and were dewy, tantalising. He reached across for the soap and lathered his hands again. Kim shifted and he could see she was watching him.
A frown flickered on his brows when he cupped her breasts, his soapy hands slipping over them. His stomach tensed for a moment, the feeling of his fingers sliding easily over her flesh stirring desire in his veins. He groaned when she moved against him, her backside nudging his balls and cock. He told himself to keep control, to keep it to nothing more than slow caresses and kisses.
Her skin felt divine beneath his touch, slick and warm. His eyes followed a patch of suds as they slowly inched down her right breast, catching on the nipple and stopping there. He raised a hand and caught the underside of her breast with his fingers, bringing them up over the nipple to wipe away the soap. She moaned and then sighed, her hands coming to rest on his knees and sweeping up towards his hips, cutting through the turbulent water.
Dipping his hands into the water, he drew it up over her stomach, washing away the soap with a gentle caress. When her stomach was clear, he scooped more water up, bringing it to her breasts and letting it fall onto them. The suds dashed into the bath and revealed her breasts, their nipples taut. He couldn't resist brushing the tips of his fingers over them, teasing them until they were as hard as possible.
She moaned again, her arms coming up above her and hooking around the back of his head. The shift in position made her breasts look so enticing that it was almost impossible to resist his urge to move her onto his lap and suck one of them into his mouth.
He didn't have to move her, she turned in his embrace, straddling his legs and coming to face him. He groaned and it turned it a low purr in his throat when she ran soapy hands down his chest. It was too much.
Bringing his hands out of the water, he supported her back and lowered his mouth to her breasts. He kissed them, not caring about the soapy water that coated them. She arched against him when his mouth caught a nipple, the tip of his tongue flicking it as he suckled. His hands lowered to her backside and he held her close to him as he continued his ministrations. Her fingers buried themselves into his hair, clutching him to her as she moaned. He purred deeper, wanting to fan the desire he could sense in her. He knew that she loved it when he purred; she loved the way it felt as it rumbled through her and the power it made her feel.
She pushed against his shoulders and he frowned and closed his eyes as her mouth descended on his in a passionate kiss. He returned it with gentle force, probing her mouth with his tongue and loving the way hers slid against it.
Her teeth clashed with his and his cock stirred, desire boiling inside him as she poured out her hunger into her kiss and he realised how much she wanted him. He relaxed, letting her lead their dance, knowing that she needed to be in control at the moment and happy to submit to her again.
He could play the subservient one when she needed to feel in command of her life.
He'd do anything if it made her happy.
But he wouldn't lose her.
He'd kill the other man before that happened.
Kim heaved a sigh as she put the phone down. She couldn't believe that she was still trying to arrange things for the ball on the day before. At least it hadn't turned out to be as impossible as she'd thought it would. With Rose's contacts and Sean's too, she'd been able to get everything together and by the looks of things it was going to be a great ball. Now she just had to spend half of her day tomorrow getting it all set up before everyone arrived in the evening. Rose had promised an early Christmas dinner to give her time to get the house ready and get her relaxed and into a party mood. She didn't want her whole day to be about the ball. It had to be about Christmas too---presents, bad television, too much food, and getting tipsy before it was even the afternoon. She just needed to segregate it. Morning through to lunch was Christmas Day. Everything after that was a headache.
She wondered if they'd have enough room at the house for people to park their cars and then remembered that Erik's parents had held the ball before so there had to be. Rose had spent the past few days furiously making up the bedrooms and taking the dust covers off everything. She'd helped whenever she'd had a spare few minutes.
Erik had been busy with Sean and work, and also inviting everyone. All the people he called seemed say yes and she was beginning to fear there were going to be far more people than the estimated one hundred.
She stopped in the hall when she heard Erik talking in his office. It sounded as though he was inviting someone to the ball and she couldn't help being nosy.
Walking into the room, she watched him staring out of the window, his pen tapping on the desk as he sat with his back to her.
"It'll be great to see you again. It's been too long," he said and then paused for a moment.
She smiled at first but it quickly disappeared when he spoke next.
"I'll see you tomorrow then, Charlotte." He placed the phone down and turned to look at her.
She stared into his eyes for a moment, trying to shake off the jealous thoughts crowding her mind.
Her heart jumped into her throat when the front doorbell rang and she thanked it for providing a much needed distraction.
She bounded down the corridor towards the door. She'd been listening for her sister for over two hours and had been starting to wonder what was taking her so long to arrive. She'd been starting to panic.
She pulled the door open and threw her arms around her sister, squeezing her tight. It seemed like forever since they'd seen each other. She wondered if that was why she was so on edge tonight.
No, it was probably the prospect of her sister meeting Sean. Erik, she could control and he knew not to do anything that might be suspicious. Sean, however, was a wild card and even though Erik had had words with him about his behaviour tonight, she wasn't prepared to let her guard down.
"Wow, either you really missed me, or something is horribly wrong. You're not dying are you?" Sherry said.
Kim pulled back and frowned at her sister. She'd always thought that her sister had got the better looks out of the two of them. Her bright green eyes contrasted well against her tanned skin and long dark hair. They added a sense of difference to her that she'd always wished she'd had. Her eyes were a boring brown. Not that Erik would let her believe that. Sometimes they'd lay in bed together for most of the day, just talking and kissing, and the odd caress. He'd always tell her how beautiful she was, and every time he did, her eyes were a different colour. Sometimes they were a rich chocolate satin with gold flecks, and others they were a dark sinful brown with a hint of green tracing their edges. Either way, he always made them sound exotic. She could never think of anything poetic to say about his eyes, even though they were the most unusual intense shade of honey with dark flecks in their depths.
"Don't be so ridiculous," Kim said, stepping aside to let her sister into the house.
A cold draught came in with her and Kim quickly shut the door. The temperature had dramatically dropped since yesterday and tonight there was a sign of frost. One day she'd see a white Christmas, but she was beginning to get the impression it wouldn't be in this country.
"Oh my god!"
She turned quickly to see what the problem was and found Sherry standing with her mouth wide open. She was staring at the Christmas tree, her eyes shining with what looked like excitement.
Kim wondered if she looked like that when she was looking at the decorations. If she did, then it was little wonder Erik had been so amused by her reaction when she'd first seen it.
"This place is amazing, Kim." Sherry turned to face her, her voice dropping to an almost whisper. "Tell me you're gonna marry this guy. You can't let all this get away from you."
Kim frowned.
"Marry me, eh?"
Both her and her sister jumped and then turned to face Erik. He was grinning, his thick black roll-neck jumper conveniently covering the lovebite that she'd marked his neck with in the tub that morning. He looked good, even hotter after their lazy morning making love. When they'd come down, it had been to some seriously dirty comments from Sean.
She really hoped he didn't bring that up tonight. She'd die of embarrassment.
"Hi," Sherry said, her voice shaking enough that Kim could hear how nervous she was.
Kim looped her arm around Erik's and smiled up at him. "So, how about it? Apparently I should marry you for your house."
He shrugged. "Say the word and it's yours ... without the ceremony."
She smiled but it faltered enough that he frowned at her. She couldn't help reading into the double meaning of his words. He couldn't marry her, no matter how much she wanted that to happen. Lycans didn't marry. His parents hadn't officially married. The change of name took place but it was done through other means, one without a ceremony or a public announcement. One day his mother had had one last name, and then next it was different. It had just happened. No celebration of love, no wedding. No one knew about it unless they were a lycan. It was like her old self disappeared and a new person appeared.
The brush of his fingers against her cheek did nothing to comfort her and she didn't hide her disappointment. When she was little, she'd dreamed of getting married to a man like him at a house like this, or in a little church. Even the mating wouldn't make up for her missing out on that. She wanted to be married to him, joined in the human way as well as the lycan way.
She forced a smile and went over to her sister, feeling terrible for leaving Erik's side but needing a little space. Everything was so overwhelming at the moment and it was beginning to get to her.
"Come on, it's much warmer in the lounge. I think Rose has made us some food to nibble and there's plenty of booze," she said, holding her smile and hoping her sister couldn't see through her false cheeriness.
Walking down the corridor with Sherry, she didn't look back at Erik. She could feel him watching her, his eyes boring into her back, and she could guess his thoughts. He was trying to figure out whether there was a hidden meaning to her words too. Was there? Was her reference to the cold about him?
She pushed her thoughts away, not wanting to dwell on such things right now. It was Christmas Eve and it had started out so well. She didn't want to ruin it now by starting to ponder the mystery man and the reasons why Erik wouldn't marry her.
Would he marry her if he could?
She cursed her stupid thoughts and realised that the longer she was silent, the more her sister was going to start suspecting that something was wrong.
"Was the journey bad?" she said, unable to think of anything else to say.
Sherry looked thoughtful for a moment and Kim wondered what she needed to think about. It was either a horrible journey or it wasn't.
"It was long and dull. Don't you miss London when you're here? There doesn't seem to be much in the way of entertainment. That village is tiny. I swear there isn't even a pub."
Kim glanced across at Erik as he fell into step beside her.
"I like it here. It's cosy." She caught his eye, holding his gaze and hoping he'd see her words as a form of apology. She really did like it here with him and he wasn't cold. She understood why they couldn't get married but she wished things were different. "London can be too demanding. Sometimes you need to get away from everyone."
Only tomorrow she was going to find herself surrounded by people at a time when she really did want to be alone with Erik. The corners of his mouth tugged slightly and it was enough of a sign to convince her that he was thinking the same. Tomorrow was going to have them both on edge, both looking to see if there was someone in the room that could be the mystery man in their visions.
She ushered her sister into the lounge and didn't bother introducing her to Sean. He was out of his chair before she had even thought about speaking. He came across the room to them, taking hold of Sherry's hand and covering it with both of his. There was something about the way he did that, and the twinkle in his eye, that made her think of Alistair. Her stomach lurched as the memories of his touch and that kiss came back.
"What's wrong?" Erik said, his hand gently resting against her back as he moved around her.
She looked up at him but didn't know what to say. She couldn't mention what Alistair had done in front of her sister and Sean. Maybe tonight she'd find the courage to admit to what had happened that day when she'd come to warn Erik about his brother's intentions to kill him and take everything.
"It's nothing," she whispered, her eyes fixed on his chest and avoiding his. If she didn't see the frown she knew he was wearing then she wouldn't feel worse than she already did.
He pressed a kiss to her forehead, holding her a moment, and then released her when her sister squealed.
"I love these things," she said and Kim looked past Erik to see what all the fuss was about.
Her sister held up a plate of hors d'oeuvres, grinning like a crazy woman.
Kim raised a brow and then used her sister's distraction to her advantage. She stormed up to Sean when Sherry turned her back on them and grabbed his wrist. He looked at her, eyes dark and tousled strands of blond hair falling down across his face.
"No flirting. My sister doesn't know what you are. She doesn't know about lycans," she whispered with a frown.
He gave her a broad grin and she knew that he wasn't about to take her warning onboard.
"You didn't know either before you and Erik got a little intimate, and look how well that turned out ... morning sex sessions that keep you in your room past twelve."
The urge to slap him was overwhelming. Her hand shook where it held his arm and her temperature rose to boiling point.
"Listen to her, or you might find yourself sleeping outside for the rest of your stay," Erik said, so close to her that she could almost feel his body touching hers.
Sean sighed and rolled his eyes. "Fine, but innocent flirting won't do any harm."
"She's just got divorced. You hurt her, I'm gonna kill you once I'm a panther." Kim stared him down, letting him see that she wasn't joking. Besides, she was sure that Erik would back her up if it did come to a fight and with two panthers against one lion, they'd have the upper hand.
When Sean walked away, her attention strayed to Erik. She could feel him staring at her, could sense the intensity of his look right inside her chest.
"What?"
He was grinning like a crazy person too. The whole world had gone crazy.
"When you're a panther?"
She smiled too. She hadn't even thought about what she was saying at the time. Maybe her words were a reflection of how she felt subconsciously. Deep inside she knew that the mating would go ahead and she would become like him. It was only when she started thinking about things that the doubts crept in.
His hand caught hold of hers and he held it tightly, leading her over to where Sherry and Sean were now talking. Sherry was stuffing the bite-sized treats into her mouth as though they were going to disappear any second and Sean was using every trick in the book to make her sister giggle. It was a little sickening to listen to, but it was nice to see her sister smiling again.
She picked up one of the hors d'oeuvres and raised her brows at Erik. He opened his mouth and she popped it in, watching him as he chewed it and then swallowed it down.
He frowned. "They're not poisonous."
Confusion washed over her. "Poisonous?"
"You're watching me like you're waiting for me to drop dead. Like one of those royal food tasters."
"They have food tasters?"
He laughed and shook his head and she got the distinct feeling she was being mocked for her lack of knowledge.
She picked up another one and shoved it into his mouth, silencing him. He scowled at her and then grabbed one too, forcing her mouth open with his free hand and pushing it in. She almost choked on it but by the time she'd managed to swallow it, she was laughing.
Pouring the champagne, she handed a glass to everyone and toasted them before taking a sip. She smiled, feeling light inside as she watched her sister laughing at something Erik and Sean were saying. She felt so relaxed right now, calm and peaceful. She looked at the garden beyond the French doors. The frost on the plants made them blue and they sparkled like diamonds beneath the full moon.
She couldn't wait to go out there at midnight and listen to the church bells ringing in Christmas.
She sighed when Erik came up behind her, his arms wrapping around her waist and his hands coming to settle on her stomach. She leaned back into him, heaving a contented sigh and staring out at the still and twinkling world. It looked magical.
Her eyes half closed when Erik placed a long kiss on her cheek and then pressed his against it.
She sipped her champagne as her other hand found his. She lightly rested it over the top of them where they were clasped in front of her. His fingers were locked together and it gave her the impression that he was forming a barrier around her, subconsciously showing her that he had no intention of letting anyone take her from him. She tilted her head and kissed his cheek, nuzzling it with her nose.
"I love you," she whispered against his skin and felt him smile.
He shifted away from her and captured her lips with his own before breathing his response against them, "I love you too."
She smiled broadly, unable to contain it as warmth filled her. She looked at him, studying his handsome face and thinking about how he made her feel and how much she loved him. She couldn't imagine life without him. He was such an integral part of her now that she'd probably die if he left her.
Her hand left his and she placed it gently against his cheek, fighting the overwhelming feeling of sadness her thoughts were bringing to her. He'd never leave her, she knew that, but her heart still ached at the thought that there was a chance that this happiness she had, this love, could be broken. If that happened, she knew she'd never feel this way again. All chance of happiness would leave with Erik.
"What's wrong?" he whispered and she thanked him silently for not drawing Sean and Sherry's attention to them by speaking any louder.
"I just love you," she said.
"And that makes you sad?" he said, holding her tighter and then releasing her. He moved around to stand in front of her and ducked slightly so he was staring straight into her eyes. His fingers brushed her cheek while his other hand held her shoulder. "Speak to me."
"I ... Erik ... I'm frightened. I'm scared that someday you'll be gone and I won't be able to go on without you."
"I'm not going anywhere..." He paused and a look of recognition entered his eyes. A smile tugged at the corners of his lips. "Eternity, Kim. I'm yours for eternity. You'll be sick of me by the end of it."
She frowned and threw her arms around him, grimacing a little when she spilled her champagne on the carpet. She hoped he wouldn't notice.
"Never," she whispered into his ear and closed her eyes tight as he held her. "I'll never grow tired of you. I love you so much, Erik."
"Shh," he said, his hands pressing into her back as he drew her closer to him until she could feel the heat of him against her. She gave a shaky smile when she felt his heart beating strong and steady, and it felt as though it was calling to hers, telling her that he was speaking the truth.
He'd never leave her.
Eternity was theirs.
She only had a few more days to wait.
"I love you, Kim. I won't allow anyone to take you from me ... because I feel the same as you."
She kissed his neck and then his cheek, moving back enough to capture his lips and show him how much those words meant to her. The idea that he couldn't live without her too, that his only chance of happiness and love was with her, made her melt inside.
He looked as calm as ever when he broke the kiss and his eyes met hers.
And then his brow twitched.
"Sean and Sherry are staring," he whispered.
She tensed and composed herself. She knew she was going to get some funny looks when she turned around, but she didn't mind, as long as they believed she was just making out with Erik and didn't know what she'd been telling him.
He moved past her and she walked with him to the fireplace, settling on his lap when he sat down in the armchair and patted his knees.
She wanted to make the most of tonight, of how relaxed and cosy this was, sitting here with her sister, her lover and his best friend.
Tomorrow was a big day.
She just hoped the bad feeling it was giving her was just nerves about people's opinions on the grand ball she'd planned and not about the mating.
"Kim, this looks fantastic," Erik said, walking into the ballroom and seeing her stood in the middle of it.
She turned, a smile curving her shiny red lips. His eyes stayed fixed there for a moment as he listened to the tempting words they whispered to him. He wanted to gather her to him and kiss her breathless.
When his eyes travelled lower, it was him who was breathless.
"Kim, you look fantastic," he whispered, unable to tear his eyes away from the slinky black dress she was wearing. It looped around her neck, open at the front with a deep v that revealed the curve of her breasts.
It was tucked below them, emphasising their size and shape and hugging her stomach until it reached her hips. The soft material swelled out from there, hanging loose around her but still accentuating the subtle curves of her legs. It finished at her ankles, where the pointed toes of black heels were just visible.
His heart thundered.
The desire to walk up to her and feel what he could only see with his eyes, to run his hands over her body, was impossible to resist. She was a siren, calling to him with her smile, luring him in for the kill.
She raised a hand and crooked a finger.
He instantly walked over to her, obeying her command like a mindless zombie.
She pressed her hands against his chest when he reached her and his eyes tried to follow them but she slid them upwards to his shoulders. He stopped breathing when she tiptoed and he could feel her breasts pushing against him. He closed his eyes and resisted the desire to lean his cheek against hers.
"You look damn good too," she uttered quietly into his ear, her soft breath tickling it and sending a shiver down his spine.
She giggled when he growled and grabbed her, pulling her hard against his body. The black wrap she'd been wearing around her shoulders fell away and he groaned when his hands touched bare back. He slid them downwards, wondering just how much of her was exposed, and felt his cock twitch when he'd reached the small of her back before hitting material.
God, she'd be the death of him dressed like this.
"How am I supposed to focus on our guests when you're going to be walking around in this little number?" he whispered against her neck, peppering it with kisses.
She laughed again. It was such a light and happy sound, and it warmed him to hear it. After all these days of worrying, last night and today she'd been close to her old self. He just hoped things could stay this way until after the mating was complete.
"Maybe I don't want your focus to be on them." She sounded so serious that he was surprised to see her still smiling when he pulled back to look at her.
She turned away and he stared at her back, studying the beautiful curve of it and the line of her spine until it disappeared beneath the dress. He couldn't figure out how the hell the dress was staying on her, but he wasn't about to waste precious time thinking about it. He stepped up close behind her, his hands covering her stomach and holding her to him.
She moaned quietly and shifted against him. His fingers tightened against her. Was she trying to get him hard?
He kissed her earlobe, sucking it into his mouth and wondering if she'd get angry if he made a move on her.
"Wow, this is stunning." Sean's voice shattered the moment and Erik growled when his friend stopped next to them. "Not you two, you just need to get a room or get a hormone check."
Kim giggled again and Erik's anger over being disturbed disappeared. She'd really bonded well with Sean over the past few days and it was nice that they had a shared friend now, and that he was a shape-shifter. Once she was a lycan too, they'd have to visit all the elite families and introduce them. A lot of them had refused to come tonight because of the presence of a human. He wasn't about to tell Kim that.
He looked at her where she stood in the middle of the ballroom a few feet away, her eyes scanning the room.
It was beautiful, incredible considering the short amount of time she'd had to arrange everything. The theme was a traditional Christmas one of gold and red. At one end of the room were tables with pristine white cloths and centre pieces of gold candles and red roses. Gold candelabras decorated the long tables where champagne and food had been laid out. Even the ice sculpture had gold flecks in it.
He smiled when he saw it was a panther climbing a tree trunk.
The main chandeliers had been lit, lending a soft glow to the already golden walls. The light reflected off the long mirrors that lined them. The curtains had been pulled back to reveal the three sets of tall French doors that led onto the balcony.
It was strange to see his house so bright and cheerful. For so many years it had been dull but he hadn't realised that until now. Seeing all the bedrooms opened and the fires all lit, and hearing all the excited chatter from Rose and Kim, reminded him of how Christmas here used to be when his parents were alive.
When Alistair was alive.
He frowned but it was chased away by Kim when she touched his cheek. There was so much concern in her eyes and he knew without question that she'd felt the hurt in him.
The start of the mating was close, maybe closer than he'd thought.
She was ready now.
Kim stared deep into Erik's eyes, wondering what he was thinking as he looked at her. The pain she'd felt in him was gone, replaced by something that she couldn't sense. She was glad that the connection was back to full strength again. She couldn't wait to start the mating now.
She dragged her attention away from Erik when the musicians came in and she directed them to the far end of the ballroom where a stage had been erected. She hadn't known what kind of music to go for, so she'd opted for one that played mostly classical music but with the odd old tune thrown in. She'd specifically asked every band she'd called if they could play 'White Christmas' and this was the only one who had said yes.
She'd hired them immediately.
She hoped to God they were good.
Her eyes strayed back to Erik as he laughed with Sean. He'd said she looked fantastic tonight. He was one to talk. In his crisp black tux he was a sight to send her temperature soaring to that of the sun. He glanced across at her, his honey eyes intense with desire and his lips playing into a seductive smile. Her whole body flushed, her cheeks burning up. Damn, she wanted him when he looked at her like that, like she was prey to his predator. She coyly swayed her hips, giving him a sweet smile in return. He swallowed hard and she saw the muscle in his jaw flicker as it tensed.
He stared at her, making the whole world disappear as she kept her eyes fixed on his. There was such an air of power and strength about him tonight, a confidence that he radiated and that she felt in her very core. It made her tremble with the desire to feel his strong hands on her body, to feel him touching her and taking her to dizzying heights of pleasure.
When he growled, a thrill ran through her, shivering down her spine and washing across her every nerve ending. They screamed for him, begging him to come to her and take her like she knew he wanted to.
He smiled and she blushed again.
"I wish you two would do it and get it over with already," Sean said.
She blushed for a different reason, dying a little when she remembered that her and Erik weren't alone. It wasn't just Sean that had stopped to stare. She could almost feel the eyes of the band boring into her back. She quickly covered it with her shawl and was silently thankful when the doorbell rang.
"I'll get that, I need an excuse to get out of here before I do something I wouldn't regret." Sean winked at her and she frowned until she'd got what he'd meant.
"Like I'd ever," she said to his retreating back, disgusted at the thought of Sean wanting her body.
"No one gets to touch you but me," Erik said, melting her and making liquid heat pool in her knickers when he stepped up against her, his body flush with hers.
She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Mmm, I second that, and you're mine, buster."
He grinned and kissed her, light enough that he was obviously trying not to get her lipstick all over him. When he pulled back, she smiled, answering the question she could see in his eyes.
"It's okay ... it's this new stuff that never comes off. The shine is just a clear gloss."
"So I can kiss all I want then?"
She nodded and squeaked when he grabbed her around the waist and dipped her backwards over his knee as he kissed her.
"Looks like the party started without us."
She pushed Erik off her on hearing the strange voice. He pulled her up onto her feet so fast that her head spun and her hair fell across her face.
She straightened herself out, stifling the blush that threatened to creep up to her cheeks and clearing her throat.
When she finally looked up, she saw Erik greeting a fat old man. Next to the man was a pompous looking old lady wearing an emerald green dress, her yellow-white hair piled high on her head. Kim walked over to them, trying not to laugh at the couple's eccentric appearance and wondering if everyone was going to be as old as them tonight.
She hoped this Charlotte character was old.
Like ancient.
She fixed on her best smile as she went to greet the couple.
"This must be the human," the woman said with such a note of disdain in her voice that Kim couldn't stop the shock from reaching her face.
She blinked and looked at Erik, waiting to see what he was going to say.
"This is Kim. I believe I mentioned her on the phone." He put his arm around her and she thanked him for the show of solidarity. She hadn't been prepared to meet with this kind of reaction.
"Make her ours, quickly." The man dismissively waved a hand in her direction and walked off.
Ours?
She mouthed the word at Erik. He tugged her closer and sighed.
"Don't let the old ones get to you. Some of them have a strange view of people."
People? Humans? Did these lycans really see a divide like that? Were humans below their notice?
The questions crowded her mind as more people entered, this time a young group that didn't bat an eyelid about her being human. More than one of the men did give her a hungry look she didn't like though. She shuffled a little closer to Erik and wasn't surprised when his hand settled firmly against her waist. She held it, letting everyone see that she was spoken for.
What annoyed her more than the men eyeing her, was the way some of the women flirted with Erik, completely blanking her. Would it always be like this, even after the mating? Erik was an attractive man, handsome and confident, rich and powerful. There was no doubt that women were always going to be drawn to him, but she knew that he wouldn't flirt back. He loved her too much.
When the room began to get more crowded and people didn't seem to be arriving any more, she followed Erik across to the table where the champagne was. She needed a drink after enduring such a mixed reaction. Half of the room clearly hated her presence. She wondered why they'd bothered coming.
Her heart melted when Erik pulled out a box from under the table and opened it to reveal two bottles of Dom Pérignon Rosé covered in ice. He popped the cork to the amusement of people nearby and handed her two glasses. She held them steady as he filled them and then giggled when he hid the champagne again. It was a sweet touch that reassured her more than he could possibly imagine. It showed her how much he cared about how she felt and how much he loved her.
Kim found herself swept along by the music, the chatter and the champagne as the evening progressed. Coming out of her shell hadn't been hard after a few glasses and a few dance requests. Erik had danced with her the most. He didn't seem to be able to let her out of his sight for more than a few minutes before he came back to claim her from whomever she'd fallen into conversation with.
Sean had shared Erik's work getting her introduced to the younger set and she was grateful for his attentiveness. Without him and Erik leading her around the room, she was sure she would've been sitting in the corner all night long.
She laughed as the couple she was talking to said something amusing and then sipped her drink again. Realising that she'd reached the bottom of her glass, she made her excuses and went off to get it refilled. She hadn't seen Erik for a while now and she was beginning to wonder what was keeping him.
The room was so full of chatter that it was hard to hear the music and she wasn't tall enough to see over most of the guests. It had been an exciting night so far. She'd met all breeds of lycans, from leopards to cheetahs, lionesses to tigers, and even wolves and bears. Her head spun a little as she thought about how amazing it would be to see the whole room in their animal forms. Of course, that would mean that everyone but her would be naked when they changed back.
Heat flushed her face and she pressed her fingers to her lips, giggling at the visual.
She paused when she reached the dance floor and looked back over her shoulder. Clearly, she'd taken a wrong turn somewhere because she was further away from the champagne now, not nearer. She shrugged and watched the dancers. It was stunning, an exotic mixture of colours all blurring past her as they danced to a fast waltz. There was no way she could do that.
Her eyes widened and she almost dropped her glass when she spotted Erik dancing with a beautiful blonde woman. The red dress she wore revealed so much it was bordering on indecent and her blood boiled when she saw the woman smiling up at Erik.
That wasn't just any old smile.
She'd smiled that smile at him.
That 'come fuck me' smile that he always loved to see.
What made her even sicker was the fact he was smiling back. Okay, it wasn't one hundred percent seductive but there was more than a hint of it in there.
She went to turn away but found her feet wouldn't cooperate. All she could do was stare at Erik as he danced with this woman, too close for her comfort. She looked around her to find everyone staring at them too. She even heard and old couple a few feet away mention that Erik should have chosen Charlotte over her. She knew that they'd said it loud on purpose. They hated her.
Intense jealousy mingled with her residual upset at the way she'd been met with insults by half the room and it coursed through her, eating her up from the inside out and whispering poisonous words into her ear.
The waltz began to slow and she still couldn't move. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck prickle in the way they always did when Erik was looking at her, but when she caught sight of him, he was staring straight into the woman's eyes.
Tears burned her eyes but she wouldn't let them come. She was overreacting. It was the champagne making her feel so out of control of her emotions.
It wasn't the woman.
It wasn't everyone else in this damn room.
When the music stopped, her feet seemed to be suddenly freed and she panicked as she looked for an escape route. She went to dodge into the crowd to go and get a much needed drink, but Erik stopped her.
"Kim!" he said and she froze, cursing him.
She plastered on a smile, turned and swallowed every ounce of hatred she was feeling towards the woman walking towards her with Erik.
"I'd like you to meet someone." He smiled at her.
She could guess who this gorgeous skinny blonde bombshell that was draped all over him was.
Charlotte. The 'it'll be great to see you again' and 'it's been too long' phone call.
"This is Charlotte," he said, still smiling.
Her stomach dropped and she barely contained the sneer that twitched her lip.
"Lovely," she said, her voice carrying just enough sarcasm that both Charlotte and Erik raised a brow at her. She waggled her empty glass. "I'm all out of champagne."
She went to leave again but then stopped herself. Who was she running away from? She couldn't spend her whole life running away from the competition. Erik was hers and she was damn well going to fight for him.
There was an awkward silence in which Erik looked as though he was trying to understand what was wrong.
"Erik," she said, voice commanding now. "Dance with me."
It wasn't a question. It was an order. On the dance floor she'd be safe and Erik would be away from Charlotte.
"How can I refuse you when you put it so bluntly?" There was a hint of annoyance in his voice but she didn't care.
She just handed her glass to Charlotte. "Lovely to meet you."
Grabbing Erik's hand, she dragged him onto the dance floor and as far into the crowd as possible. She huffily placed his hands on her hips and wrapped her arms around his neck. When her eyes met his, he laughed, his whole face brightening.
"You seem a little tense," he said, his hands sliding up to grip her waist and making her belly heat through.
She cursed the way he could do that, could chase away all her anger with just a touch and steer her feelings down a different course.
"What's wrong?"
She looked back in Charlotte's direction.
He laughed again, turning with her on the spot and starting to dance.
"She's just a girl I knew in my youth."
She frowned, searching his eyes. "You knew her, or you knew her?"
He sighed and shifted her arms, one hand clasping hers while the other held her waist. He danced with her in silence for a few seconds and more of her anger dissipated, drifting away on the notes of the music.
"Kim?" he said, voice heavy with emotion, so much so that she looked straight at him to see if she could make them out in his eyes. "You're being ridiculous. I only met her after I started having my visions of you."
"And?" She wasn't satisfied with that answer. It didn't mean he hadn't done anything.
He lowered his mouth to her ear. "I've not been with anyone since they started."
She stopped dead and stared at him, and then realised that everyone was stopping to see what was going on. She started dancing again, her pulse racing as she thought about what he'd said. He'd not slept with anyone in the twenty seven years before he'd met her. Dear God. No wonder he'd come after her with a vengeance and he'd been intent on winning her.
No, it was more than the lust. He needed her. He'd waited half his life for her, from when he was barely in his twenties to after he'd matured and stopped ageing during his thirties. Literally waited. She was more than flattered. She was speechless.
Not knowing what else to do, she kissed him, hard. She unleashed everything she was feeling and hoped he could feel in her kiss how his confession had made her feel.
When she broke the kiss, she swore that he was blushing.
He swept her up in his arms, turning on the spot with her feet dangling inches above the floor.
The moment her feet touched the floor again, she continued their dance, battling him for the lead. She relented when he growled, the low dangerous sound sending a flash of heat racing through her.
Their song turned into another and so did their dance. It was a slower piece this time and she frowned when people began to change partners. Before she had a chance to tighten her grip on Erik, she was in Sean's arms. She was thankful that her temporary partner was a friendly face.
"You two still not found that room then? You've both got the old folks grumbling about propriety." He was beaming at her. Clearly he didn't share the older generation's opinion that her and Erik should get a room. He found their moments of public intimacy a source of amusement. "If it wasn't for Prince Kristian attending, I'm sure most of them wouldn't have come. It's not a mark against you, but the old types prefer to mingle with other lycans and keep their distance from humans."
She didn't really hear what he'd said after 'Prince Kristian attending'. Her eyes scanned the room. She'd completely forgotten that he was coming and when she cast her mind back, she couldn't remember greeting anyone that could've passed for royalty. Surely he would be wearing something that would make him stand out. She wanted to meet him so she could tell everyone back at the office that she'd met a real prince.
She was just about to ask Sean to point him out when everyone shifted partner again and she was in the arms of a slightly rotund middle-aged man. He smiled, moustache bristling. There was more hair on his face than his head. She wondered what possible animal he could change into and then reminded herself that it was rude to stare. She looked around again, still trying to find a sign of the prince.
Two more partner changes and she was growing tired of both the constant switching and her search for the prince. Screw him then. So she wouldn't meet royalty tonight after all, but she had got to meet a whole group of depressing old fogeys that had barely touched her while dancing and had given her looks that made her feel diseased.
She was about to call it quits and make her excuses when her next partner took hold of her.
And he really took hold of her.
The surety and tightness of his grip on her waist and hand made her think it was Erik at first. The way she felt on being in their arms, close to them, was exactly how Erik made her feel. She opened her mouth to speak, raising her eyes at the same time. Her voice left her. In place of honey eyes were dark ringed ice blue ones that sent a shiver through her.
He smiled, exposing perfect white teeth. All she could do was stare, and she didn't care how rude it was.
Or the fact she was staring at royalty.
There was no one else this man could be. The power he emitted, and his looks, even his poise and clothes screamed of prince. He was dressed in black, a tall collared and very military looking jacket with a long white and red sash that darted diagonally across his broad chest. His hair was cut short around the sides but longer on top and was pure white, as white as fresh snow. His eyebrows were dark, knitted into a frown of sheer concentration as he looked at her, sweeping her along without her even noticing where they were going or what was happening around them.
She had to think of something to say before he got the utterly wrong impression that she thought he was hot. Because he wasn't. That winsome but sinful smile that tugged his full lips, causing cute dimples in his cheeks, was not making her tremble inside.
No one but Erik did that.
Or the mystery man.
Her eyes widened when she sensed a change and the man's hands tightened against her back and around her own hand, almost painfully.
She looked into his eyes again, this time not seeing him but seeing herself being swept along in his arms. She felt his heart pounding steadily in her own chest, a beat that made her stomach dance and jig with it.
"Hell no," she said, frantically pushing against his chest as the panic crashing through her sent her own heart thundering.
He held her tighter, the smile still there, his eyes intent on her.
"I do not believe we have met," he purred, his accented voice making her shiver in a way that was wrong---it felt good.
"We bloody well have," she muttered and tried to get free again. He wasn't letting her go. What was she supposed to do?
The thought of kicking him in the balls crossed her mind, dredging up memories of Alistair again, and she felt sick to her stomach.
"Let me go," she said, almost pleading.
"Never." His voice was a deadly whisper, too close to her ear for comfort. "Not until we have been introduced. Such a beautiful woman as you must have a name."
"Let's just say I'm not yours."
He laughed and the timbre of it sent another shiver through her.
"I am Prince Kristian of Denmark, but you, my sweet, may call me Kristian."
"I'm not your sweet and I don't give a damn what your name is." She shoved him hard and he lost his grip for a split second but before she could move, she was back in his arms again.
Surely someone had to have noticed their struggle by now?
An electric shiver bolted through her.
A second later a roar split the air.
She didn't need to see them to know whose it was. Her heart rocketed as she redoubled her effort and managed to break free of Kristian's arms. He gave her a hurt look, holding his hand out to her as though she was going to go back to him. He clearly didn't know how to win a girl over because he'd made one hell of a bad first impression on her.
She squeaked when a hand closed around her wrist and she was yanked backwards, her face pressed against someone's chest before she could see who it was. Not that she needed to see. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes as the comforting scent of Erik's aftershave calmed her.
He roared again and it was loud in her ears. It felt like a warning to her too, not just Kristian.
The music screeched to a halt.
Murmuring filled the silence.
"I believe we have met," Kristian said, his tone snide.
"Never a pleasure," Erik answered him in the same cutting tone.
She tried to look up at him but he held her against him, not letting her move an inch. She forced him backwards, whimpering when he hurt her by refusing to budge. He relented and loosened his grip enough that she could raise her head and see his face. She nestled close to his side and glared at Kristian. The whole room had stopped to watch.
Erik growled.
She'd forgotten just how commanding he could be and just how hot it made her to see him like this---protecting her possessively, not letting her get out of his reach.
When he bared his teeth at Kristian, revealing slightly extended canines, and Kristian replied with a growl of his own, it thrilled her. She'd never had two men fight over her before. In a way, it was exciting, but that was only if Erik won and the other man went away. She looked at him and wanted to look away when his eyes met hers but she couldn't. There was disappointment in them. She felt like telling him it wasn't as though he'd charmed her by forcing her to stay in his arms when she'd clearly wanted to leave, but she remained silent.
An odd sense filled her and she looked up at Erik, finding him watching her with a darkness in his eyes that would make midnight moonless skies pale in comparison.
He stared at her for a moment, conveying everything silently. He wasn't happy and a part of it was because she'd been looking at Kristian. She placed her hands against his chest and tiptoed to kiss him, but something else flickered in his eyes. Was it anger or desire? Hunger and need, or disappointment and hurt? Before she could reach his lips to kiss away any fear he had of her leaving him, he was dragging her towards the French doors.
His grip on her wrist was so tight it hurt, his pace so swift she was stumbling along behind him.
Behind her, Kristian roared and she turned to face him, catching a glimpse of him being restrained before he disappeared from view.
Kim rubbed her wrist and listened to Erik apologise for what seemed like the millionth time. She knew that he hadn't been wholly in control of himself back in the ballroom. His emotions had been ruling his actions and his fear of Kristian taking her from him had driven him to hold her too hard.
Her rubbing moved up to her bare arms and she gave Erik a grateful smile when he stopped her, removed his jacket and handed it to her. She slipped her arms into it, savouring the warmth it held from his body.
Her gaze fell to his hand nearest her. It was clenched into a tight fist and she could almost sense the tension in him. His dark look hadn't shifted yet. Every time she looked at him, his brows were knit into a pensive frown.
Moving her hand across, she brushed the back of it against his and then wrapped her fingers around it, holding it and coaxing him with gentle caresses into opening it up. She wanted him to relax again because she was beginning to get the terrible impression that he was angry with her too and she hated the feeling that gave her.
When his hand eventually uncurled, she slipped her fingers between his, interlocking their hands and holding his tightly so he'd know that she was still here.
Her eyes wandered the moonlit garden. It looked beautiful tonight, even more magical than it had done last night when they'd stood on the balcony with Sean and her sister and listened to the church bells ringing in Christmas Day and calling everyone to mass.
She moved closer to Erik when they approached the fountain. His thumb brushed against hers, chasing away a little of the chill in her body. She never felt the cold when he was touching her.
The church clock chimed in the distance as they reached the fountain. She watched the water cascading down, catching the moonlight and shining. The edges of the pond below it were beginning to freeze.
So were her legs.
She wondered how long Erik was going to want to walk for. They'd already been outside for over ten minutes and he had to be getting cold too.
"Erik?" she said and he turned his head to look at her. His eyes looked brighter in the moonlight.
He didn't say anything in response. He just slid his arms into the jacket and settled his hands firmly on her waist. She went to him, not daring to ignore his silent command or question him.
When he began to dance with her, slow and sensual, she placed her hands on his shoulders. He shifted closer, until his body was brushing hers with each step and she could feel his heat through her dress. His hands slid forwards and his fingers skimmed slowly up her back in a light touch that sent fire to her belly. She wanted to get closer to him.
She trailed her fingertips up his neck, tickling him behind the ear briefly and smiling when he closed his eyes. She felt so powerful when he did that, responding to her touch so dramatically.
His hands dipped down to her thighs, drawing the hem of her dress up with them when he moved them back to her waist. He turned with her, his leg moving in between hers and brushing her crotch. She wondered if a dance was all he wanted. Was he planning to lead her in a different kind of dance out here? She glanced around at the empty garden, a little panicked by the thought, and then didn't care when his thumbs brushed the underside of her breasts.
She leaned her head back and buried her fingers into his hair. He pressed his palms into her back, pulling her flush against him and planting wet kisses on her neck that caught the breeze and froze to her skin. The fire he was stirring inside her chased away any cold she was feeling, leaving her burning for him.
A sigh left her, her breath opaque in the air, and she stared at the sweeping rainbow of the Milky Way as he teased and tickled her, arousing her senses with barely-there caresses. She melted in his arms, weak for him as he moved her and she felt his cock against her leg. She wanted him, wanted to let him do whatever he pleased with her. She was powerless to resist him when he was like this, so attentive and focused on her.
She couldn't fight him.
He was right about that.
All those times he'd told her not to fight him. Why would she fight him when he made her feel like this? Hot all over, burning inside with need for him and only him.
He stopped dancing, his lips still playing against her throat, peppering her with passionate kisses.
Her eyes closed when he pulled her dress up, his hands ghosting along her thighs until they reached her hips. She gasped when he tore her panties, the show of aggression sending arousal like fire sweeping through her veins, and her heart beat harder.
She complied when he hooked his hand under her knee and raised her leg, making her place it on the side of the pond. Her eyes shot opened again when he brought the hem of her dress right up, draping it over her thigh and exposing her pussy to the world. The cold made her shiver.
It was short lived as he moved closer to her, his hand sliding over her flesh and then her curly hair. It covered her mound and she breathed out hard as he dipped one finger into her pussy. He stepped back a little and stopped kissing her neck as he circled her clit with his finger, sliding it down towards her opening and bringing her slick arousal back up with it. She moaned, concentrating on the intense desire spiralling out of control inside her and the heat of his hand against her cold body. She looked at him and found he was watching her, his eyes fixed on her face while his fingers danced on her pert nub. She was so exposed, but it only made this all the more hotter and exciting.
She breathed hard as he touched her, his finger dipping into her tight channel, drawing out all her arousal and coating it and her pussy with the warm juices.
It was too much to bear. She reached out and ran a hand across his caged erection but he removed it.
"No. Don't move," he whispered, voice low and seductive.
It was so commanding and she felt it in every inch of her body.
Her hand fell away from his, back to her side where it gripped her dress as his finger slid deeper inside her, thrusting. She didn't stop him, the thought of him taking her like this, of being unable to stop him, was thrilling, sending her desire soaring and making more liquid heat flow from her. He growled and the sound of it only made her need him even more.
Focusing on his face as he brought his fingers out of her again, teasing her clit, she could see that his eyes were bright, too bright for the darkness of the garden. She knew this was partly a reaction to Kristian, but there was something else happening here too.
Her thoughts were stolen from her when Erik's hands left her body. She stood still, panting and exposed to the world, and watched him as he undid his belt and trousers. She groaned as he pulled out his hard cock, stroking the length of it to reveal the sensitive head. She wanted to touch it too, wanted it inside her more than anything, but she couldn't disobey his command.
She stared at his cock as he stepped towards her and then stopped close to her. He bent his knees and she grasped his shoulders as he swiftly impaled her on his length, thrusting it in so fast that it stung. His fingers grasped her hips, tight enough that she was sure he was going to bruise her. She dug her fingertips into his shoulders as he began pounding into her. It was rough and demanding, reminding her of their first time. He growled and it sent sparks of desire shooting through her. She held onto him, clinging as he held her thigh with one hand and her hip with the other and fucked her.
She looked into his eyes, lost in them as he stared at her, sneering as he took her, plundering her body.
No, this was different from their first time. It was more primal.
His eyes were so yellow and cat like. It was the closest he'd ever been to changing on her during sex. She couldn't tear her eyes away from his. Their breath mingled in the air between them like fog as they both breathed hard. An inexplicable urge for him to thrust harder rose inside her and she moaned as he seemed to sense it and responded. She pressed her forehead against his, holding onto him for dear life as her knees weakened beneath her, her legs trembling as he pounded her roughly, filling her deep with his cock with each long stroke. She didn't care if someone heard her, she couldn't stop moaning in time with his movements. She tightened around him, clenching him and feeling as though she'd explode if she didn't cum soon. He growled again, the sound of it almost sending her over into bliss, but it wasn't enough. She needed more but she didn't know what.
He thrust harder, deeper and faster, until she was breathing so quickly that she felt dizzy. He grunted and groaned with each plunge of his hips and his grip shifted to her waist. Her whole body shook when he came with a growl so feral that her head spun as she came too. His thrusts slowed, his cock pulsing inside her at the same time as her inner walls milked him. She held him close as he breathed hard against her neck, his breath hot in the cold air.
She felt different. It wouldn't have been noticeable if she hadn't been looking for it but she did feel different. It was easier to sense Erik now, to feel his heart beating along with her own.
She also had a suspicion about why he had been so close to changing on her.
The clock that had chimed in the distance had been striking out midnight.
He'd started their mating.
Kim smiled at Erik as she came out of their bedroom. The walk back to the house had been a little breezy without any underwear and she'd wanted to get cleaned up, so she'd made Erik come with her to the bedroom rather than leaving him alone to field what were probably going to be some very awkward questions.
He pulled her into his arms and kissed her, and she loved the new closeness she felt to him. What had been there before seemed like nothing more than a shadow of what she now felt when she reached out to sense him. She could feel his heart without even trying, without even touching him. She could sense the way she made it pound, the adrenaline running through his veins as he kissed her. She wondered if he could sense the way he made her feel too. Did he know now exactly how fast her heart beat for him and how he made her tremble inside?
He stepped away from her, his hand claiming hers, and led her down the corridor towards the stairs. She still felt flushed from their moment in the garden and she knew that when she walked into the room downstairs, all eyes were going to be on her. Would they be able to tell from her rosy cheeks and slightly dishevelled appearance what had happened? She hoped not.
She kept behind Erik as he entered the room again and only came out when Sean spoke.
"I was wondering where you two had got to," he said.
She looked around Erik's arm at him and then at the room. It looked as though they'd never been gone and the argument with Kristian had never happened. Everyone was dancing, or chatting and laughing over champagne.
Erik walked a few more steps into the room and she saw Kristian dancing with Charlotte.
She frowned and stepped out from behind Erik.
The whole roomed stopped dead and all eyes were on her. Her cheeks blazed.
Kristian roared.
Erik answered it.
She gave them both confused looks---Kristian as he pushed his way through the crowd and Erik as he stepped in front of her.
Was this why everyone was staring at them? They'd been expecting another fight?
She realised that everyone wasn't staring at them. They were staring at her.
She blushed harder when she saw them whispering to each other and she realised what the topic of conversation was and why Kristian was storming towards them.
They could smell the sex on her. They knew exactly what her and Erik had been up to.
She dodged around Erik just as Kristian arrived, wanting to place herself between them so they couldn't fight. It wasn't going to solve anything.
She yelped when Kristian yanked her into his arms and kissed her hard, forcing his tongue into her mouth. It reminded her horribly of what Alistair had done and she shoved him off her and punched him.
He rubbed his jaw, half glaring and half smirking at her.
He roared and she flinched, stumbling backwards and away from him.
She was surprised when he ripped his jacket open, sending buttons flying, and began to change. There was a familiar ripple of white fur with black bands across his body and in the blink of an eye a white tiger was staring her down. She moved closer to Erik, fear making her heart thunder.
He was bigger than she'd expected him to be in animal form. He was bigger than Erik.
The tiger snarled at her, exposing long canines that made her swallow hard. She turned and dashed into Erik's arms, shaking as she hid in his embrace.
His fingers closed tightly around her upper arm. She noticed that his heart was beating steady but not fast. He wasn't scared. She pressed her hand against his chest and looked at Kristian.
He roared.
It was even more frightening than it had been when he was in human form.
She swallowed again, waiting for him to attack. He stared at her for the longest time and then turned away. The crowd parted to allow him through and his entourage gathered his clothes and hurried after him.
She didn't know what to do, so she just stayed in Erik's arms, staring in the direction Kristian had gone. She could taste him in her mouth and the memories of Alistair touching and kissing her mingled with the memories of him.
Erik frowned when Kim buried her face into his chest and began to cry. He looked down at her, wrapping both of his arms around her. The idea that Kristian had kissed her upset him too, but he got the feeling that there was more to Kim crying than that.
He looked at the room, at the shocked faces of his guests, and then at Sean.
"I'll be back in a minute," he said. "Get the party going again."
With that, he turned away from the room and led Kim towards the door. Keeping her here was only going to make her worse. He had to get her somewhere she felt more comfortable and safe, somewhere they could talk. He needed to know what was wrong.
He took her up to their bedroom and settled her on the edge of the bed before going back to the door to close it.
He walked back across the room and knelt in front of her, helping her wipe away her tears. When they were all gone, he held her cheek in his palm as gently as he could. She looked at him, eyes red and slightly puffy. There was so much pain in them that it made him ache inside.
"I'm sorry," she said in a shaky voice.
"What for?" He frowned.
"I should've told you back then. I've tried so many times since..."
"Tried to tell me what?" He stroked her cheek, hoping to comfort her and make it easier for her to speak. Tears were filling her eyes again.
"About Alistair."
Her voice was so quiet that he barely heard what she'd said. The look in her eyes and the pounding of her heart sent anger sweeping through him.
"What did he do?" His tone was venomous, his frown heavy as he looked at her.
"That day that I came to warn you ... he said he wanted to take everything from you ... even me." She took a deep breath and he could see she was barely restraining her tears. "He caught me upstairs..."
"What did he do, Kim?" He couldn't believe that he might have missed something that day, that he hadn't known all these years that something else had happened. All he had seen was Kim running. He'd been scared that she'd be hurt. He hadn't realised that she already had been. Terrible images of Alistair hurting her, touching her, sprung into his mind and he couldn't shift them. The sense of panic, of anger at both himself and Alistair, made his insides twist and tighten.
When he looked at Kim again, she was staring at him with wide eyes.
"Did he...?" He couldn't bring himself to say it, couldn't entertain the thought that his own brother had gone that far.
"No, he didn't ... but he touched me and he kissed me ... and when Kristian kissed me it felt the same and I can still taste him in my mouth."
He wrapped his arms around her when she began crying again and held her, rubbing his hand in small circles against her bare back to soothe her. She shook with her sobs and he no longer felt any guilt over what he'd done that day. Alistair had deserved to die for trying to take advantage of Kim. Clearly she'd fought back, as she had done with Kristian, and he was thankful that he'd got to the house when he had so he'd stopped anything more from happening.
When she pulled back and looked into his eyes, he did as she wanted and kissed her, keeping it slow and soft and erasing the kiss that Kristian had given her. She leaned into it, as though desperate for more, but he kept it as gentle as possible. She needed this right now more than anything. She needed to know that while others had hurt her, had taken advantage of her, he never would. He'd protect her until he died.
He sighed and sat back on his heels to look at her. She seemed brighter now and the tears had gone. How long had this been eating away at her? She'd said that she'd tried to tell him before. He couldn't imagine how hard it had been for her to say what she had today. It had been her secret for so long it must have become almost impossible to tell.
"We've begun the mating," he said.
"I know." She smiled and he was relieved to see it.
"It won't be long now." He brushed the hair away from her face and sighed. "You need some sleep."
She nodded, her eyes heavy. He pressed a kiss to her forehead and then removed her shoes for her. He stood and took hold of her hand, helping her onto her feet. She didn't stop him when he removed her dress, she just smiled when ran his eyes over her, unable to help himself. He placed the dress over a chair and then came back to her.
Drawing the thick duvet on the bed back, he waited for her to slip into bed before covering her. She smiled again as he tucked her in, wanting her to feel as safe as possible so she could get some sleep.
"Do you want me to stay?" he whispered, kneeling in front of her.
She shook her head. "Your guests are waiting. I guess this made it a party to remember."
"It was one to remember anyway. You did a wonderful job." He kissed her again and then stood. "I'll come back to check on you."
She smiled and closed her eyes.
"I love you, Kim."
Her eyes opened again, her smile broadening. "I love you too."
Turning, he walked as quietly as possible to the door and glanced at her briefly before opening it and stepping out into the hall. She needed to get some sleep. The burden her secret had placed on her heart had been lifted and the mating had begun. At least now they knew who the other man in their visions was.
Closing the door, he paused for a moment, his heart telling him to stay with her, and then walked down the corridor back towards the stairs.
Sean was waiting just inside the ballroom door when he got there.
"Thought you could use this." Sean held out a glass of whisky.
Erik took it and considered downing it in one go but sipped it instead. He couldn't get drunk. He had to be on alert in case Kristian came back.
"I know who you're looking for and he's gone," Sean said.
Erik looked at him. He hadn't even realised that he'd been scanning the room.
"Gone? Definitely?"
"Saw him myself. Driven away in some fancy car by a fancy driver with his fancy lackies."
Erik knocked the drink back and sighed.
"You started the mating didn't you?" Sean said.
"Yes," Erik replied and moved further into the room. He had to see with his own eyes that Kristian was gone.
"It's a little rough bringing a fresh from sex girl into a room full of shape-shifters." Sean took a swig of his own whisky. "You should've known that Kristian would react."
Erik paused and then smiled. "I knew."
Sean's eyes widened and his brows rose into a look of disbelief but it quickly melted away into a sly grin.
"So, a prince for a suitor ... that's pretty hefty competition. What are you going to do now?"
Erik took the remaining bottle of Dom Pérignon Rosé out from its hiding place and held it up to the light. There was enough left for one glass. They should've shared it. It should've been a toast to the start of the mating. He looked up at the ceiling and sighed, and then poured the champagne into a glass.
"In three days she'll be ready to mate." He sipped the champagne and looked at Sean. "All I've got to do is protect her for three more days and then I'll never have to worry again."
Kim closed her eyes and moaned as she leaned back into Erik's chest. She was straddling his knees as he knelt on the bed, her body pressed against his and the beads of sweat on their skin causing them to stick together as they moved. His hands were firm against her hips, holding her as he moved her on his rigid cock, impaling her at an achingly slow pace. He'd been doing it for what seemed like hours, sliding up inside her as he whispered sweet breathy words into her ear and kissed her neck.
She ran her hands over his and then brought them up, running her fingers into his hair and playing with it.
Kristian was watching her. She could feel his gaze burning her body as he raked it over her. He was a different kind of person now, no longer aggressive and rough. He had become gentler, as he had been in her previous vision. She opened her eyes and looked at him, her gaze taking in his toned body and settling on his hard length. He was ready for her, rigid and long. She wanted to reach out and touch his cock, wanted to draw him into this moment and share it with him. When he was like this, when they were away from reality, she couldn't help feeling attracted to him.
She moaned low and deep when he moved closer and palmed her breasts. One hand was swiftly replaced by his mouth and sparks of desire shot to her belly as he swirled his tongue around her nipple and sucked it into his mouth. She was tempted to take one of her hands away from Erik's hair to hold Kristian to her breast, but knew that it would upset the careful balance of the vision. When Erik was in command, they both felt less guilty when they woke up. It seemed the vision understood that and the need to keep the intensity between all three of them at boiling point, and never overstepped the mark.
They were all just pawns in its game after all, players on a stage when it came to the visions. None of them had any true control and she'd given up trying to change the events to stop Kristian from taking part.
Erik kissed her neck, tickling and teasing it at the same time as Kristian moved across to her other nipple and laved it, licking it and drawing it into a hard peak. She could barely keep control as Erik kept the pace so slow and casual that she felt as though she was never going to cum. She wanted to feel him cum inside her, wanted her hot juices coating his cock, and needed to feel that bliss that came with her orgasm.
She gasped when Kristian touched her pussy, sliding long fingers into her folds and circling her slick clit. Her brows furrowed and she whispered pleas to them both to put her out of her misery. She wanted to cum. She felt close to exploding as they tortured her body, sending her to dizzying and painful heights of arousal.
Kristian ran his fingers downwards and she felt them leave her. Erik moaned against her neck and Kristian smiled. Had he touched Erik? A thrill coursed through her at the idea that the two men were enjoying this. It only made her hotter and her mind raced to imagine the kinds of things that could happen. Her pussy throbbed with the idea of them touching each other, their cocks both sliding into her flesh and taking her at the same time. She tensed her muscles, sending a pulse of pleasure to her clit, and moaned when Kristian's fingers rubbed it again.
She desperately held on as Erik took her, raising and lowering her on his cock, and Kristian touched her, suckling her nipples. She wanted Kristian to touch Erik again, wanted to hear him moan as Kristian fondled his balls while she rode his cock.
Erik thrust hard into her and it was too much. She cried out her orgasm and shuddered with the heat that engulfed her, sending tingles sweeping outwards from her stomach.
She was surprised when Erik didn't stop. His grip tightened and he kept thrusting into her, making her moan with each stroke. She quivered around his length, wanting to collapse and leaning into him for support as he took her. She closed her eyes again as Kristian continued to tease her nipples. Neither of them were willing to relinquish her. It was divine torture. They ran their hands across her overheated flesh, tickling her with light caresses. Her senses felt overloaded and she didn't know whether she was coming or going as she gave herself over to them, letting them do as they pleased.
Erik's grip on her waist tightened and he began to move faster and harder inside of her, reigniting her hunger and desire, and fanning the flames of arousal until she was begging him for more so she could cum again.
She groaned when he growled hotly in her ear, nipping her earlobe and then her neck. It was so dominating and aggressive as he bit her with blunt teeth, his cock pounding her senseless.
She opened her eyes when Kristian kissed her breasts and fingered her clit, his body pressing against hers. He pulled back, fingers still dancing against her pert nub and a hunger in his eyes that made them dark.
He moved back a little and she stared at his cock as he started masturbating in front of her, fisting himself hard and fast. She moaned, imagining him taking her at the same time as Erik. He closed his eyes, face screwing up as his hand frantically slid up and down his length. She reached out to touch him but he groaned, jerked forwards, and came on her chest. She followed him, her whole body convulsing as she came and she felt Erik thrust deep into her pussy as he spilt his seed and growled in her ear.
Erik paced the porch, looking at the frosty garden as the sun rose. It was beautiful, but he couldn't take any pleasure from it, not today. He was so tired, but he'd been unable to sleep for more than a few minutes. The vision had woken him and while Kim had remained asleep, he'd come down to find a little space to think.
He knew that what happened in visions was beyond their control, but there was a small part of him that was beginning to resent Kim for the things she did. It wasn't her fault. It was Kristian's. He'd told himself that a million times but he still didn't feel any better.
There was a niggling voice at the back of his head that said that Kim was influencing the visions---that she liked doing those things with them both.
He sighed. What were they going to do tomorrow? For today they were safe, shut away in their mansion with so many guests around that Kristian was unlikely to return and do anything. By tonight, everyone would be gone, including Sean. It would give them the time alone that they needed to reassure each other. Some old movies and ice cream would work a treat for that. It had been a while since they'd spent a whole evening on the sofa together, just holding each other and watching television.
But tomorrow?
Tomorrow he had to go back to work and so did Kim. Back in London they were exposed and it would be easier for Kristian to get to Kim. With him stuck at the office all day and her across London, he wouldn't be able to protect her. He had half a mind to tell her to call in sick, but he knew how important work was to her and he'd caused enough havoc with her job in the past for selfish reasons.
He couldn't believe this was happening all over again. When he'd first met her and she'd discovered he was a shape-shifter, he'd been so scared of losing her that he'd opened himself up, turning himself inside out so she could see everything he felt about her and would know that he'd never hurt her.
He'd shown her how weak he was for her and only her.
He'd thought she'd break his heart if she'd left back then.
The hurt he would feel now if she left him would be his end. It would kill him. He couldn't go on without her. His heart was hers and if she chose to leave, she'd take it with him, leaving him hollow and dead.
He jumped when he felt her kiss his cheek and her arms slid around his neck. He'd been so lost in his thoughts that he hadn't sensed her. She prodded his shoulders.
"You're so tense ... what's wrong?" she said and moved around him.
He looked at her, taking in the thick black jumper she was wearing and the loose blue jeans. Her eyes were still puffy from crying yesterday, but other than that, she looked cheerful and as though nothing had happened last night.
Was he the only one worrying?
"It's nothing," he said.
She frowned.
"You left the bed when it was still dark and didn't come back." Her tone was deadly serious and it demanded that he looked at her, so he did. "Are you worried about us too? About Kristian?"
He could see the fear surface when she said that name. No, he wasn't the only one worrying. She was petrified.
"I don't like the way we are in the visions," he said, watching her closely. "You like it too much."
She smiled and sidled up to him, her hands resting on his shoulders. "I like the way you are ... dominating..."
Her cheeks flushed a vivid shade of crimson.
"It was thrilling," she whispered to her feet.
He caught her under the chin with his finger and raised her head back up so he could see her eyes again. She was telling the truth.
"I can be dominant. Easily," he purred in a low voice. Her cheeks blazed brighter. "Even more than I've been before. I can be very dominant."
He sniffed and the sweet scent of her arousal filled his nostrils. She wanted it, really wanted to be dominated by him.
She stroked his neck.
"You put yourself at my mercy once ... I'd like to experience that." She pressed her finger against his lips when he went to speak. "I want to show you that I really do love and trust you ... that I want only you."
He growled and swatted her hand away, tugging her into his arms as he kissed her hard.
"I love you, and I don't doubt that you love me..." he whispered against her lips. "But if you want a little domination, then I can arrange that."
She giggled and he was surprised that she wasn't blushing when she pulled back.
She stroked his cheek and sighed, the fire in her eyes melting into worry again. It brought his own feelings back to the surface, extinguishing his desire.
"I'm worried that something will happen and I won't be able to protect you this time," he said.
She stared at him for a moment and then kissed him. It was softer and gentler this time, reassuring.
"I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to stay right here." She smiled and there was a hint of pride in it, as though she was happy she'd come up with such a foolproof plan.
"What about work?" He burst her bubble and her face fell.
"I'd forgotten about work." She heaved a sigh and pouted, her fingers tracing patterns on his chest now.
When he'd got up this morning, he'd slung his shirt and trousers from last night on and grabbed his black fleece. It was still cold even with the several layers, but her touch was starting to warm him through.
"It's been so nice just being out here with you, relaxing..." Her smile returned but this time it was coy and carried a trace of seduction.
"I'll take you into London tomorrow." He put his arms around her waist and drew her close, both to warm him up and keep her from freezing. "We can stay in my apartment in the city."
She laughed. "Will you drive me to work every day too?"
His expression remained serious. "Yes, if you'd like me to."
There was a look on her face that made him wonder what she was thinking. Her eyes were twinkling, her beautiful mouth bowed into a smile and she was looking at him with so much love that the cold was forgotten. Did she think he was charming for offering to protect her? Was it because it showed her just how much he loved her? Girls liked that kind of thing didn't they? She'd shown on more than one occasion how much she loved it when he became possessive of her, defending her and looking after her.
Her fingers swept across his cheek and she sighed up at him.
"Don't worry so much," she said and he frowned. How was he supposed to not worry? There was a man after her, and he had the terrible feeling that last night wasn't the last they'd seen of Kristian. "I'm not interested in some shoddy prince."
"But he's interested in you," he countered.
She held his gaze for a moment and then looked away at the garden. When she looked back at him, she was smiling again but it did nothing to mask her fear.
"I want to go to London tonight. I want to go out."
Her words stunned him so much he was surprised he remained on his feet. He stared at her, unsure whether he'd imagined her saying what she had.
"I'll be safe if you're with me," she spoke fast and he could sense a change in her feelings. Fear was nerves now. "I want to celebrate."
"Celebrate what?" he said, not at all convinced. He wasn't about to take her straight into London and then out into public where someone could spot her and report back to Kristian or worse, Kristian could spot them.
"It's almost time, isn't it?" She was beaming now, all fear gone and only a lingering trace of nerves left behind as excitement took over.
He loved to see her so excited about the mating and he knew that her reaction wasn't anything to do with Kristian. She wanted to mate with him as soon as possible because she loved him, because she'd waited so long and had been so patient. The excitement had been steadily building inside of her these past two years, just as it had been building inside him. Her smile was infectious and he had a hard time not smiling back at her. He couldn't smile. If she saw that, she'd think that she'd won and convinced him to take her out in London.
"I can feel it ... come on, let's celebrate."
"It's still a few days away---"
"But it's started and that's why you were showing your panther side last night out here with me. I saw it in your eyes." She cut him off.
He nodded and kissed her ardently, holding her so close that he could feel her heart beating and loving the way she held onto him in return.
"You always bring out my primal side," he whispered against her lips and then sighed. "You win."
"I do?" she said, shock written across her face as she pulled away from him. She searched his eyes and grinned, bouncing on the spot when she saw what she was looking for. "I do!"
"We'll go into London tonight when everyone is gone. I'll take you to dinner. Wear your best dress." He looked her over, remembering her in the slinky black number from last night. "Wear it again."
"Wear what again ... oh, the dress from last night?" She blushed and he pressed kisses to her cheek and neck, breathing her in. He loved the smell of her so much. "You really liked it?"
The nerves were back and this time he knew it was about her appearance. She could never see just how beautiful she was. She was always putting herself down.
"You looked delightfully fuckable."
She pushed him backwards and he stumbled away from her. Her eyes were wide and he wondered if it was something he'd said.
"What?" he said.
"Nothing ... just I remember thinking that when we first met ... that you looked delightfully fuckable. It was the night we went on the date to the club, when I said you looked pretty too."
He grinned. "I remember. So pretty wasn't your first option?"
She shook her head. "I believe there was an insanely sexy and a delightfully fuckable in there first ... but pretty came out."
"Never mind. I know the dirty truth now. You were after more than just drinks that night."
Her eyes went wider. "You were the one pouring the fancy champagne and turning on the impossible to resist charm."
"Yet you bought the condoms in the little girls room and started this sordid affair," he said and her whole face went red. He wondered if she was red all over and raked his eyes down her body. "Damn but you looked good that night ... and last night."
"And every night?" she said, stepping up to him again.
He nodded.
"So where are we going to dinner?"
She was so beautiful today, so full of life and happiness. It was such a change to how she'd been on Christmas Eve and yesterday after Kristian's appearance. He wanted to do something that would make her smile like this again, that would erase all her bad memories or at least some of them.
He smiled as it came to him and his heart battled against his sense. This was the right decision to make. He was never one for traditions anyway.
"There's only one place special enough for what I have planned," he said.
"And that is?" She looked so eager, so desperate to hear where he was going to take her. She'd love it. She'd never been there before. Where better to do what he planned.
"The Ivy."
Kim followed Erik across the gravel drive, pausing for only a moment to wave goodbye to Rose. They'd be back for New Year's but she was going to miss her. She'd grown so used to lazing around Erik's house with him.
She was thankful that all the guests were gone now. They'd said goodbye to the last of them just two hours ago, and Sean had left shortly after that. He'd threatened that he'd be down for New Year's but she'd just ignored him, not rising to the bait.
By then, she'd be Erik's mate and all she wanted to do was spend some quality time with him. Preferably naked.
She frowned when she came out of her thoughts and found that Erik was just standing by the driver's side door of his black Aston Martin Vanquish, holding it open.
He nodded towards the seat.
She frowned, not moving but staring at him.
"Get in," he purred.
She did, unable to deny such a wonderful sounding command. She wasn't going to refuse his offer of letting her drive his car. She'd been waiting years for this.
She slid into the seat and was surprised by how different it felt. She looked across at the passenger seat. It was the same as the driver's one, but sitting here made her feel as though this was a whole different car. Her fingers wrapped around the steering wheel and she flexed them, trying to get control of herself.
Erik slid in next to her and buckled his seatbelt. He pointed to hers. Her hands were trembling so much that it took her several attempts to get it into the hole.
Safely buckled up, she stared at the dashboard listening to the contrast of Erik's steady breathing compared to her frantic puffs.
"Well?" he said and she jumped.
He was seriously going to let her drive the car.
Swallowing hard, she looked at hm. "This is your car right ... because this morning you said there was another present for me."
"This is my car. Your present is not a car, although if you want one so much, I'll think about getting you one for your birthday."
"Really?" Her voice squeaked and she coughed to clear it. He'd buy her a car. God knew how much this one cost but she wanted one just like it, right down to the colour.
"Really. Now start the car or we'll miss our reservation."
She hitched her long dress up so it didn't get tangled with her shoes and was thankful that she'd chosen to wear black sling back sandals with low block heels tonight and not the stilettos she'd considered.
She shook as she started the engine and it roared into life, raw power at her command. She looked across at Erik, her eyes drifting over his body. He was strong, powerful. Something about that made her so hot, adding to the desire he could stir in her with just a single smile or look. He looked good tonight, damn good. He was wearing black slacks that hugged his muscular thighs now he was sitting, and a plain black shirt that was open at the collar to reveal a tantalising flash of his collarbones and chest muscles.
He raised a brow.
She focused on the car again and revved the engine. It growled. No, it was more of a purr, as deep and as seductive as the purr of its owner.
She released the handbrake, shifted into gear and pulled away.
At a snail's pace.
She leaned forwards as she drove, the headlights cutting the dark and illuminating the tree lined avenue that led from the house to the main road.
Erik sighed.
"We'll never get to London at this rate. Shall I drive?"
She shot him a black look. They'd get there, it was just that the moment she'd started driving, she'd realised that this was a very powerful car and she wasn't that great at driving. Plus, if she scratched, dented, crashed or utterly destroyed it, Erik was going to be angry. Very angry.
Hitting the open road, she applied a little more weight to the gas and was nipping along before she knew it. She kept it to a moderate fifty, excitement making her stomach flip as she thought about what it was going to be like when they made it to the motorway.
Or The Ivy.
She was going to pull up outside The Ivy in this car with one hell of a sexy man and all the paparazzi were going to be there.
Would they know Erik? He'd made it high up a list of the most eligible bachelors in the UK this year and had also made an appearance in the list of the richest people. She'd baulked when she'd seen the figure next to his name. Of course, she'd not asked him about it or even cared. It was just a little shocking to know he was worth so much when she was worth so little.
The only thing she owned in this world was her car, and it was probably worth less than five hundred pounds.
When they reached the motorway, she moved into the middle lane, increasing her speed until she was doing just over sixty. There was hardly anyone on the motorway. Everyone was probably celebrating with friends and family. It was Boxing Day after all.
"Go for it," Erik said and she glanced at him just long enough to see he was watching her. "Just don't kill us."
She stared at the open road. It was begging her to go faster, the car was begging her. The fastest she'd gone in a car before was seventy. Her Clio would probably break down if she went any faster. She put her foot down a little and the car growled, enticing her into opening it up and going for it just like Erik had said.
She swallowed her nerves and hit the accelerator.
The little dial went straight from seventy to ninety in the blink of an eye and before she knew what she was doing, she was pushing a hundred.
She giggled and it broke out into a full blown laugh as she felt the purr of the engine running through her and watched the world flying by. It was no wonder Erik liked this car so much. It was so incredibly powerful, effortlessly easing into high speeds.
It coaxed her into going faster.
She opened the window, wanting to feel how fast they were going as they zoomed down the motorway towards London. The wind whipped her hair around and she gave a brief thought to her appearance. She could always stop at a service station to straighten herself out before their grand arrival at The Ivy.
She put her foot down a little more, pushing it past one hundred miles an hour. Exhilaration left her breathless.
She grinned. "This is better than sex!"
Her eyes flicked to Erik for a split second and she caught the dark look in his eyes. It was coupled with a hint of a smile that spoke of desire and seduction as he lounged in his seat, watching her intently. She whimpered at that look.
"Well, almost better than sex."
The flash of the cameras blinded her as they walked towards the entrance of The Ivy. It seemed the paparazzi did know Erik after all. He held her hand tightly and she almost felt like waving at the photographers, but kept her cool.
The buzz of the room stopped for a second as they walked into the restaurant and she looked around at the people staring at her. She was surprised to see it so busy on Boxing Day. A moment later and everyone was chatting again. Were they talking about her and Erik?
The maitre de showed them to their table and she was barely able to contain her excitement as Erik held her seat out for her and pushed it in when she sat. There were countless famous faces around her and she had a hard time not staring at them at first but then she saw Erik. No celebrity could make her as excited as he did when he looked like that---a twinkle of happiness in his eyes as he looked at her.
She didn't hear what he said when he ordered for them. She trusted him not to order her something hideous like snails or caviar. She knew he wasn't fond of that fancy food either.
The waiter came back with some champagne and she wasn't surprised to see it was her favourite. It seemed to have become Erik's favourite too since that night at the club. She felt a little giddy as she sipped from her glass and stared across the table at Erik. He held his hand out to her, resting it on the crisp white tablecloth. She placed hers over it and held it. She couldn't believe that she was at The Ivy and all she wanted to do was stare at him.
Their starter came and she picked at it, prodding it and trying to remember what Erik had ordered. It looked like scallops. She'd never had them before. She watched Erik for a moment and he stopped eating and laughed.
"It won't kill you. They're nice, honest," he said and squeezed her hand. She loved that he wasn't relinquishing it, not even to eat his food. She didn't think that their main course would be one they could eat with just one hand though. He was going to have to let her have her hand back soon. For now though, she was happy to sit here holding hands.
But it was making people stare and they looked quite expectant. What were they expecting?
She drank the remains of her champagne and Erik topped hers up again but left his empty. She frowned and then remembered that he would have to drive them to the apartment after dinner.
When the main course arrived, Erik's hand left hers and she felt a little cold because of it. She looked at him. He looked so hot in his black shirt, skin warmed by the candlelight. She stared at the patch of chest she could see and let her thoughts drift to how it always felt beneath her fingers---hard but smooth, beautifully defined and sensual. When her eyes met his again, there was a seductive edge to them. They were darker, more intense as he stared at her, his eyes gradually trailing down to her breasts. Her stomach tensed. He smiled and she knew he'd sensed the spark of desire he'd ignited in her.
She ate her main course of duck as demurely as possible, not wanting to make a fool of herself in front of so many people. Another glass of champagne later and she was starting not to care what people thought. She leaned her elbow on the table, pushed her plate aside and sighed at Erik.
He smiled, clearly amused by her.
"What's for dessert?" she said.
His smile widened. "I've saved the best for last."
She frowned and sat up. When he looked over her shoulder, she looked there too and saw a man approaching with two glasses of champagne.
More champagne? They still hadn't finished the first bottle and she didn't want to get drunk tonight.
The man stopped beside Erik and she watched him take the glasses. She went cold when Erik placed one in front of her.
She stared at it.
She stared at the intricate thread of black ribbon that was wound around the glass and tied with a bow near the rim.
It was tied with a bow that held something that sent a shiver sweeping through her and she wondered if she was dreaming.
It was a diamond ring.
She swallowed hard and then stared at Erik.
"I thought you couldn't," she said, not daring to get her hopes up about the purpose of this ring, but needing to ask if only so she could get everything clear in her head.
What he said next made her heart stop.
"To hell with tradition."
He reached across the table and she noticed his fingers were shaking as he untied the bow and slipped the ring free. Her heart started again at a painfully fast and hard pace as he stood and the whole room descended into silence.
She couldn't believe this was happening.
He knelt beside her and it was a little hard to see him through the tears filling her eyes.
"Marry me?" His voice shook with those words.
She pressed her hand to her mouth, trembling all over and unable to say anything.
She nodded and hiccupped on a sob when he slid the ring onto her finger. It was snug, but at least she'd never lose it.
Cupping his cheeks in two shaking hands, she kissed him and giggled as he wrapped his arms around her, deepening their kiss. She didn't care about anything anymore. Not the room staring at them, or Kristian.
She frowned.
This was bound to be in the morning paper. Kristian would see it. No, Erik would never propose to her for that reason. He loved her and that was why he wanted to marry her, because he knew how important this was to her.
Releasing Erik, she smiled into his eyes, surprised to see a few tears of his own in them. She could feel his heart pounding as fast as hers and it made her warm inside to know how much this meant to him too.
Maybe this was that slice of normal that he'd been looking for all his life.
She jumped out of her skin when people nearby began congratulating her, the ladies commenting on him being a fine catch much to the annoyance of their partners. She smiled meekly, barely stifling the blush trying to push itself onto her cheeks.
The manager and maitre de came over and Erik finally got off his knees.
"Would you like desert? It's on the house," the manager said.
Erik looked at her.
"I don't think the kind of dessert I want can be served in public," she said.
Erik grinned. "It can't?"
The blush made it to her cheeks this time as she remembered their first time and the garden the other night.
He held his hand out to her and she slipped hers into it, smiling happily as the lights glinted off her ring and made it sparkle.
She waited for him to pay and before she knew it she was walking out into the street. The cameras flashed again and she raised her left hand to shield her eyes. She was amazed when the flashing doubled and then realised that she was showing off her ring.
Kristian was definitely going to see now.
Erik put his arm around her and kissed her cheek before leading her to the car.
She looked at him, seeing the happiness written across his face and a hint of desire darkening his eyes. She hoped it wasn't far to the apartment. She was dying to be in his arms already.
Kim led Erik into the apartment. She waited for him to lock the door and then took hold of his shirt as soon as he turned to face her. She walked backwards towards the bedroom, her smile luring him on. He purred at her, sending liquid heat to her belly and making her knees tremble. She loved the way she could make him do that.
"Will I be able to purr too?" she said.
He nodded and his hands came to rest on her hips. "It takes practice."
She giggled at the notion that she'd soon be like him, and that they'd always be together without any more worries of people trying to come between them.
She ran her hands up and caught him around the neck, her fingers tickling the spot behind his ear. He stopped, rolled his eyes closed and leaned into her touch. His purr deepened.
Continuing to tickle him, she led him towards the bedroom. The apartment was quite dark, but she knew the way. She'd stayed here often with Erik. It was such a contrast to the house. Here it was very city chic, all clean lines and modern with block colours.
She turned the lights on low when they reached the bedroom and looked at the large windows that looked out onto the city.
The curtains were open and she felt as though she could see all of London.
It twinkled at her.
Erik shifted and she caught hold of his shirt again, stopping him from going anywhere. He watched her hands as she lowered them to his waist, running them over his chest and aching to feel his bare body against hers.
She tugged the hem of his shirt out from his trousers and swept her fingers across his stomach. It tensed, rock hard and perfect beneath her touch. She swallowed and hurried to undo his buttons so she could see it in all its glory. He had the body of a god but she knew he worked hard to achieve it. He ran so much, twice as far as she could ever manage.
She slowly peeled the two sides of his black shirt open to reveal his chest. Her stomach tensed and flipped as she ran her fingers over him, tracing the lines of his muscles as he tensed them for her.
To think that all this was hers, that he was hers.
It was so overwhelming.
Her thumbs brushed his nipples and he groaned, his eyes closing slightly. She smiled and coursed her hands down to his waist, slipping her fingers into the band of his trousers and bringing them around to the front. She eyed his crotch, moaning internally at the sight of his stirring cock as it pushed against the black material. She was so tempted to touch him, to tease him into full hardness, but instead she stepped back and raised an eyebrow at him.
"Strip," she said.
Both of his brows shot up. "What?"
"Strip," she purred, her eyes narrowing on his.
He went to move and she stopped him with a hand against his chest. "Leave the curtains."
He looked uncertain for a moment. The buildings around them were far enough away and the lighting was low enough that no one would see him, but the idea of them getting naked in front of the world was thrilling.
She sat down on the end of the bed, fingers smoothing the rich brown covers as she waited.
He shrugged and fingered his belt, undoing it. She couldn't quite believe that he was going to do what she'd said. She tried to keep her face emotionless, not wanting to him to see just how excited she was by what they were doing. He'd probably think she was silly.
Her eyes followed the slow movements of his hands as he removed his belt and then worked to unzip his trousers. He slid them down his legs and she felt a little jealous when he stroked his legs on the way back up. He kicked the trousers to one side and then smiled cheekily as he hooked his thumbs into his black boxers, teasing her by pretending to pull them down and then pulling them up again. She pouted, over eager to see him naked and unable to keep still.
He slowly pushed his boxers down and flicked them off his feet to join his trousers.
She groaned when he ran a hand down his cock, revealing the sensitive head, and she clenched her pussy to make the most of the thrill that came from seeing him do that. She could feel the slip slide of arousal in her knickers and her clit throbbed when she thought about the things they could do tonight.
This was always a fun place, somewhere they could let go a little and be more adventurous. They couldn't do things like that at home, not with Rose always in the house. But here, they could do anything, and probably had.
Hunger coiled in her stomach, sending fire to her abdomen as she followed the steady stroke of Erik's hand over his hard cock.
"What do you want for dessert?" he whispered and her heart beat a little harder.
She had to be confident.
"Something nice ... or naughty?" His voice was a sexy seductive rumble that her body instantly responded to.
What did she want?
She smiled. "What did you have in mind?"
"Anything you want me to do," he said and took a step towards her.
She raked her gaze over him, taking in his beautifully toned body---from his hairless square pectorals, over the ridges of his abdomen to the little line of dark hair that pointed down to his cock. He was so perfect. He was a god.
"Close the curtains," she breathed.
He laughed. She realised that she was suddenly going back on what she'd said earlier but she didn't want to risk people watching them do what she had in mind.
"You don't want to make love then?" he said, the laughter still in his voice as he finished drawing the curtains closed.
He walked back to his spot in front of her and touched himself again.
"I'm hungry," she whispered, staring at his cock.
She crooked a finger and he walked over to her. She licked up the length of his cock and swirled her tongue around the head. His hips bucked forwards.
"It's the mating," he said, his voice a little harsh as though he was struggling for control. "I've heard it can be quite demanding, but it does bring extra stamina with it."
She stopped what she was doing and looked up at him. "Sounds interesting."
He smiled and then his eyes flickered to her breasts.
"Stand up." He stepped back and she did as he'd said.
She was disappointed when he walked away and she frowned and then bit her lip when he opened the cupboard beside the bed where all the playthings were. Her temperature rose as he pulled everything out, placing it on top of the cupboard and the bed. He took the handcuffs out and a jolt ran through her at the thought of being tied up by him, and then she frowned when he went to put everything away.
"Don't." She couldn't quite believe she'd said that and she blushed furiously as he looked at her. She dragged her confidence up from around her heels. "Use it all. Tonight I'm yours to command."
He straightened up and dropped the things he'd been about to put away back onto the bed.
"Strip then," he said.
She kicked her shoes off, not caring where they landed, and then slowly removed her dress, teasing him by flashing her breasts before letting it slide to the floor and pool around her feet. She stepped out of it and went to peel her stockings off but he shook his head.
"Leave them on," he whispered and the husky tone of his voice made her knees feel weak.
She slipped her lacy shorts off and waited for his next command.
"Come," he said, crooking his finger.
She walked across the room to him and he sat down on the bed. He shifted her so she was facing him and ran his fingers up from her hips to her breasts. She closed her eyes and sighed out her breath when his thumbs circled her nipples, turning them into sensitive peaks, and then she frowned when he trailed his hands back down again.
He pushed her legs apart with his feet and she opened her eyes, waiting for him to touch her, her body screaming for it.
He brushed his thumbs through her curly hair and then turned his hand and slipped two fingers into her folds. She swallowed when he ran them down to her opening, collecting her arousal and drawing it back up to her hard nub. He teased it, rubbing and squeezing it until she was panting for more.
"Look at me," he said and she did, staring into his eyes as he stroked her clit.
He kicked her feet further apart and lowered his hand, easing one finger inside her tight slick channel. She rolled her eyes half closed and then remembered what he'd said and focused on him again. It felt so dirty to be standing here before him in nothing but her stockings, letting him thrust his fingers into her, utterly at his command.
She moaned and he pulled his fingers out of her.
"Touch yourself," he whispered and she gave him a look that said 'seriously?'. He nodded.
She swallowed, feeling incredibly self conscious as she hesitated and built up the courage to do what he'd said.
"Touch yourself." His voice was firmer, more demanding, and her hand went to her pussy.
If she'd felt dirty before, she didn't know what she felt now as she dipped her fingers into her pussy and began rubbing her clit. Her eyes followed him as he leaned across and retrieved a few things from the top of the cupboard. She groaned at the thought of him using the warming lubricant on her and she shoved her fingers inside her as he picked up the vibrator.
She watched him eagerly as he flicked the cap of the lube open, placing the vibrator down on the bed beside him.
He removed her hand from her pussy and she waited with bated breath as he squeezed some of the gel onto his fingers. She half sighed and half moaned as he spread her nether lips and smeared the lubricant along the length of her. He plunged his fingers into her, making her even slicker, and then pulled them out again. She closed her eyes briefly as the lubricant began to heat her though, making her feel as though she was burning up and tingling.
Her eyes darted to the vibrator and her whole body buzzed with the idea that he was going to use it on her. He seemed to take forever to coat the vibrator and she was almost ready to grab it off him when he finally closed the cap on the lubricant.
He smirked at her and she moaned when he used the remaining gel on his hand to coat his cock. He fisted it a few times, teasing her and making her hungry for him.
His knees nudged hers and she spread them as much as she could without falling over.
The vibrator began to buzz.
She groaned low in her throat when it brushed against her clit, sending tingles through her and making her lick her lips. He eased it downwards and then up into her. The heat combined with the vibrations made her knees tremble and she couldn't stop herself from starting to move up and down at the opposite time to Erik's thrusts. He frowned at her, his cock bobbing and hungry for attention. She wanted to touch it but wouldn't unless he ordered her to. She was surprised he was allowing her to move like this, to ride the vibrator.
Her thighs quivered and she moaned, a harsh sound in the quiet room. She brought her hands up and toyed with her nipples, wanting to push herself into release.
"If you keep wriggling, this will end up somewhere else." Erik's voice was low and sultry, a promise of what was to come.
Sure enough, the vibrator slipped from her and nudged her anus, sending shooting sparks through her and making her bark out a moan.
Erik growled.
"Bend over." He withdrew the vibrator and she turned away from him and bent over. She looked over her shoulder, wanting to see what he was going to do next. His looked darkened as he stood behind her and she mewled, begging him to get inside her. "I want to feel you cum on me."
Her whole pussy throbbed at those words. Before she could say anything, he thrust his slick cock into her depths. She waited for another thrust but none came. She wondered how he was going to make her cum if he wasn't going to move.
He nudged the end of the vibrator into her anus.
Her whole body shook and she groaned, gripping her knees to steady herself. She squeezed her eyes shut as he swirled the vibrator in her, sending sparks of white light darting across the darkness she could see. She pushed against him, her pussy clenching his cock. She needed him to thrust. He eased the vibrator in deeper and the feeling of it was exquisite. She groaned and bucked, unsure of what she wanted anymore. She just wanted to explode.
She panted hard, desperately waiting for each time the vibrator hit the right spot and sent her mind reeling with pleasure.
"God, fuck me," she uttered, hanging her head forwards as she clung to her knees. "Please."
"No," he said and the hardness in his voice made her even hotter. "Cum on my cock. I want to feel you cum."
She groaned, throwing her head up and almost screaming his name as he moved the vibrator out and then back into her anus, fucking her with it. He pushed it deeper and stars exploded in front of her eyes as she came.
Erik purred, sending more vibrations through her as he continued to swirl the vibrator in her anus.
"I love to feel you cum," he said and she flushed with prickly heat at the honesty of those words.
He stayed inside her, torturing her senses with the vibrator. Her knees wobbled and she realised she couldn't take any more.
"Please, take me to the bed. I'll fall." She gripped her knees tighter and was thankful when he pulled the vibrator and his cock out of her.
She went to move but he growled, a command that she understood on some base level. She remained bending over and moaned as he spread her lips and licked up her juices, noisily sucking them out of her. She quivered and groaned as his tongue lapped at her and then frowned when he disappeared.
"Come to the bed," he said and she turned to see he was already laying on it, stretched out and looking deliciously edible.
She faux purred and crawled onto the bed. He smiled as she kissed up his legs to his thighs and then gave a meaningful glance at his cock.
"Give me some relief," he whispered and nodded towards his cock. "But come up here."
She frowned but did as he'd said. When she reached his side, he took hold of her knee and swung it over him so she was astride his face looking towards his cock. He licked up the length of her again and she moaned. His hips jerked and she took the hint. Leaning over him, she got down on her elbows and gently ran her tongue around the head of his cock.
She stroked his length, fully revealing the crown, and explored it with her tongue as though this was their first time. The movements of his tongue slowed until he was steadily teasing her back into arousal. She wrapped her lips around his hard cock and closed her eyes as she sucked it into her mouth. He groaned against her pussy and she giggled. He was so hard with need that he wouldn't last long.
Her tongue flicked and danced along his length as she sucked him. She reached over and fondled his balls, rolling them in her fingers and eliciting another pussy trembling moan from him. He flicked his tongue against her clit and then sucked it into his mouth, adding a hint of pain that made her groan against his cock. She sucked him harder and faster, swallowing his cock as he tortured her pussy, his grip tight on her thighs.
He thrust his cock into her mouth and breathed hard against her clit as he came. She swallowed it all down, not relinquishing him even when he was done. Instead, she continued to lick him and moved further down so she could suck his balls. He moaned with each little thing that she did and then went quiet as he focused on her pussy, thrusting his tongue into her one moment and then suckling her clit the next. She tensed her muscles, wanting to cum too, and moaned when she was close.
He stopped.
She frowned again.
He rolled her onto her back and she looked at him, desperate for him to finish what he'd started. He licked his lips and got off the bed. Her eyes followed him as he walked around it, his cock soft. She knew it would be hard again soon and hopefully it would be inside her.
"Lie down," he said.
She did, resting her head against the pillows and wondering what came next. She wanted it rougher, dirtier. She wanted him to really be in command.
Her heart skipped a beat as he took hold of the handcuffs and she realised she was about to get exactly what she wanted. The metal was cold against her wrists and she studied his face the whole time he was chaining her to the headboard. She tugged her wrists when he was done and was thrilled to feel how secure she was.
What thrilled her more was what he did next.
He picked up a blindfold and before she could blink, he'd placed it on her. She breathed hard, desperately trying to listen now that she couldn't see. What was he going to do to her? Anticipation coiled in her stomach and her heartbeat went off the scale as she tried to make out what he was doing. Her imagination ran riot as she waited, conjuring up images of what he might do.
She moaned when his hands swept over her torso. Everything felt so different, so much more intense. She wriggled her hands again as he palmed her breasts and was thrilled by how helpless she was. He could do anything to her and she wouldn't be able to stop him.
He disappeared again and she frowned, wanting to feel his touch.
"We'll slow things down a little now," he said and she gasped when something tickled her skin.
It was soft and barely a whisper against her overheated flesh. She focused, wriggling each time it tickled, and wondering what it was. He traced a line up her body with it starting at her feet. It caressed the inside of her calf and then her thigh. She smiled when it brushed over her pussy and then up and around her navel. She could feel Erik shifting on the bed and bit her lip when, what she had now figured out was a feather, circled her left nipple. It hardened as he teased it with the feather and then blew cool air against it. He did the same to the other one and she wished it were his thumbs or his lips touching her. She wanted to feel the ecstasy of his kiss.
He traced the feather across her lips and trailed it off her. She wondered what came next, what sense he was going to spark now. All of them were off the scale since he'd taken her eyes and her touch away. She could hear him moving things around, searching for something to tease her with. She tensed her muscles, making the most of the throbbing between her thighs. She'd do anything to have his cock in her, filling her up, taking her when she couldn't stop him.
Her eyes widened behind the mask when his mouth closed around a nipple, tugging harshly as he suckled it and flicked it with his tongue. She grasped the headboard rails, holding them tightly as she arched her back off the bed, thrusting her breasts against him. He kissed and licked everywhere he'd just touched with the feather, leaving fire flashing through her. His touch was so light, so gentle, that it was a stark contrast to the fact she was tied up and helpless.
He purred deep as he kissed around her breasts, exploring her and taking her desire to new heights as she wriggled and tried to convince him without words to come to her. She wanted to kiss him, needed him thrusting inside her.
His mouth left her and the next moment she felt something cold and liquid against her body. He massaged it into her breasts and then blew on it. A shiver danced through her as the lubricant made her nipples tingle and then she moaned harshly when he licked them, lapping up the sweet gel, torturing her so much that she bucked off the bed and pleaded him to touch her pussy.
He laughed.
"You want me to touch you?" he whispered, his voice husky by her ear.
She could feel his hand hovering over her pussy, her curly hair moved by it.
She nodded.
"I can't hear you."
She swallowed and furrowed her brows when his palm brushed against her. "Please."
He laughed again, a light one that made her realise that it wasn't going to be so easy to get him to do as she wanted him to. He was in command now. She'd wanted to be dominated and that meant submitting to him completely, giving him control over what happened.
"I think ... I might touch you later." She felt him draw away from her. "When I want to."
She mewled and tugged the handcuffs.
He silenced her by smearing chocolate sauce across her lips. She licked them clean and wondered what he was up to.
Something else that tasted like chocolate touched her lips but it wasn't his fingers. She groaned when she realised it was his hard cock. She barely had time to open her mouth before he'd thrust it in. Her lips wrapped around it, suckling it and licking it clean as he moved to kneel astride her. She swirled her tongue around the head of his length, cleaning up all the chocolate as he made shallow thrusts into her mouth. She ached inside at the way it made her feel to be doing this, unable to do anything but comply with everything he did to her, helpless and vulnerable. She trusted him implicitly, but it was still thrilling.
His thrusts deepened but remained gentle and she relaxed her throat, diligently sucking his cock and wishing she had her hands free so she could hold him. Her clit throbbed, slick and desperate for attention. Erik moaned above her and she sucked him harder, driven on by her desire and wanting to feel him cum.
He pulled out and she whimpered, wanting him back again.
The bed lifted at her side and she focused again, trying to guess what was coming. She was so hungry for release, for completion. She could think of nothing but him thrusting inside of her. There was a sound of running water and she frowned, listening in an attempt to figure out where Erik was.
"You look so good like that," he said and she figured out he was across the room. What had he been washing in the bathroom? His cock?
She wriggled, giving him a little show. For some strange reason she felt good like this. Even though she was completely at his mercy, she felt she still had a sense of power over him.
He growled.
A thrill bolted through her, making arousal slicken her pussy.
The bed depressed by her hips and she waited, silent and patient. What was he up to?
He pushed her knees apart. She resisted a little and he used more strength on her, heightening her arousal as he showed her just how powerful he was compared with her.
She moaned harsh and loud and flung her head back as he thrust the vibrator deep into her and began moving it. It was rough and fast and she couldn't get enough of the way he was using his knee and his free hand to brace her knees apart. She tried closing them but he growled and held her tight. It was so wrong that this thrilled her, that him taking her with the vibrator made her so hot like this, but she couldn't help herself.
Her whole body lifted off the bed as the vibrator plunged into her, fast and rough, just the way she wanted to feel his cock in her. She tried to hold on, didn't want to cum just yet, but he was relentless. She groaned continually, one for each thrust he made with the vibrator and then arched and jerked her hips up as she came. His movements slowed, drawing out her orgasm as his free hand ran in smooth circles against her thighs.
She breathed hard, collapsing into the bed and trying to recover herself as he pulled the vibrator out of her and moved away. She was about to say something to him when he flipped her onto her front. She shuffled forwards, her cheek pressed against the downy pillows as she fought to catch her breath.
His hands were against her hips, raising them until she was kneeling. He pushed her knees apart and ran his fingers up the length of her pussy. She felt the hot liquid as he smeared it along the crack of her backside. He gathered more, slicking her up, and she almost held her breath as anticipation rose again in her stomach.
She moaned and screwed her eyes shut as the end of the vibrator buzzed against her anus.
"Shh, nice and quiet now," he said and she bit her lip to stop herself from moaning again at his commanding tone.
He edged the vibrator in deeper, moving it in the same circling motion he'd done earlier in the evening. She gripped the headboard and tried not to move or make a sound as the vibrator sent tingling sparks along her nerves, rekindling the embers of her desire.
She let slip a groan when Erik's cock moved against her pussy, flattened between her body and his, and rubbing her clit.
He stopped.
"I said to be quiet." He went to remove the vibrator and she whimpered. He stopped again. "Can you be quiet?"
She nodded.
And then wondered if he'd gag her if she kept talking. A wave of heat prickled her skin and she told herself that she'd have to remember that for next time. After tonight and how incredibly sexy and thrilling it was to be helpless at his hands, there was definitely going to be a next time.
The vibrator moved again and she had a hard time stopping herself from moaning as it slowly thrust into her backside, stinging a little but maddening her with the pleasure at the same time.
Erik's cock rubbed against her again, the length of it pressed against her slick pussy.
She edged backwards, hoping to encourage him into fucking her. She was almost delirious now, so hungry for his cock that she would do anything to feel it inside her. She had to have him thrusting into her, taking her. She needed it.
The vibrator left her and his fingers thrust into her pussy.
"You want this?" he said, echoing those words she'd said all those years ago.
She nodded and gasped for air as his fingers plunged into her.
His fingers left her too.
She was surprised when he took hold of one of her hands and undid it. He pulled them both behind her back and cuffed her again. She lay face down on the bed, her backside raised in the air.
He moved her, guiding her so she was on her knees and she wondered what the buzzing was. Maybe he'd left the vibrator on.
She almost fell but his hands held her wrists tightly. He lifted her knee and she realised she was straddling him.
Her breath was torn from her throat when he grabbed her hips and swiftly impaled her on his cock, not waiting a second before he was moving her, one hand against her hip and one holding the handcuffs.
"Fuck me," he uttered and she did, she moved in time with him, wanting to please him and desperate to ride him.
She felt the buzz of the cock ring against her clit with each down thrust and she didn't care if Erik punished her for not being quiet. She moaned hoarsely with each thrust, desperate for more and loving the extra thrill the vibrating part of the cock ring gave her each time it met her clit. Erik was groaning beneath her, his hands holding her tightly and moving her roughly on his cock. He purred deep but it was cut with each harsh groan, and she knew that the buzzing ring was teasing his balls but holding him off at the same time.
Closing her eyes and breathing hard, she rode him as fast as she could, reaching for a release that she knew wasn't going to come swiftly because she'd cum so much already. She was so slick that she could feel it oozing down onto his length, coating his balls and the cock ring as she bounced on his length.
He groaned and gripped the cuffs tighter. The spark of pain as they bit into her wrists and the feel of him so in command made her quiver.
She loved riding him, loved feeling his hard cock pounding her, sliding into her flesh, and it was only made more intense by the buzzing against her clit. Her breathing quickened as her heart thundered and she tried to keep going, desperate to cum and to feel him cum inside her.
He tugged her harder and she realised she'd began to slow.
"Keep going, keep going," he uttered, his tone so pleading that she tried harder.
She was too tired. So close but too tired to make it.
She squealed when she was forced forwards and Erik disappeared. He pushed her face down into the bed as she knelt on it and then thrust into her, hard and deep. She turned her head to one side, groaning with each rough plunge he made into her. The cock ring was gone but they were both so ready to explode that it wasn't going to take long.
She clenched his cock, desperate to cum and thrusting backwards against him. He pulled on the cuffs and she moaned as he shoved his cock rough and deep inside her.
His movements were frantic and fast as they both raced towards release. He was growling as he fucked her and it only made her hotter, driving her closer to the edge.
She bit her lip and clenched his cock as hard as she could as he shouted her name and came. He thrust a few more times, his balls slapping against her clit and sending her over the edge with him, ripping his name from her throat as she came. White spots danced across the darkness of her eyes as her whole body trembled against him.
She slumped into the comfortable bed as he pulled out of her and smiled when he undid the handcuffs. He lay next to her and she rolled onto her side, still smiling as he pressed soft kisses against her neck and removed the blindfold. She sighed and closed her eyes when he wrapped his arm around her, holding her close as she drifted off to sleep.
Kim was still smiling from ear to ear when she walked into the office. She grabbed a coffee from the machine on the way past and dumped her bag down on her desk when she reached it. There weren't many people in today, probably less than half the office. The other half had clearly been quick off the mark in booking their holiday. She wished that she'd thought about it earlier, before they'd decided that everyone else had to come in over the Christmas period.
Taking a sip of her coffee, she sighed at the warm relief and the way it made her instantly feel more awake. She was so tired and stiff from last night, sore but in a good way. She grinned when she remembered what her and Erik had got up to. A night to remember had become one she'd never forget.
She waved a hello to her friends around the office as they looked up from their computer screens. There was never much to do during the Christmas break so she suspected they were probably already surfing the Internet or playing games on their computers. By midday they'd probably all be in the break out room drinking coffee and chatting about their Christmas's for the rest of the day.
There was a sound of swift footsteps and she barely had time to turn before they'd reached her.
"What's this?" Laura waved the paper in front of her. She'd not seen one this morning.
She took it off her and stared at the article in question.
Millionaire meets his match.
Her brow rose and her gaze fell to the picture. It was a good picture---her and Erik outside The Ivy. They were both smiling, Erik's arm firmly around her shoulders and her hand raised and showing off the ring perfectly.
She handed the paper back.
"It's the proposal that goes with this," she said and held her hand up so Laura could see the ring.
Laura almost snapped her arm off as she yanked it towards her. Her eyes were wide, her face drained of colour as she stared at the sparkling diamond and white gold ring.
The other girls came over, crowding around, and the room was filled with the buzz of voices as they pawed her hand to get a look at the ring. Simon walked past. For a moment he looked as though he was going to stop but then he gave her a dark look and walked on. She knew what that was about. He'd been growing distant since Erik had revealed to her the fact that Simon fancied her too and she'd completely lost the ability to act normal around him. She liked Simon, but never in that way.
"Delivery for..." The man holding the massive bouquet of red and white roses stopped dead when everyone in the room turned to look at him.
Laura bustled over to him, snatching the card from the roses and then unceremoniously shoving it back into the flowers.
"They're for you," she said, her tone snide and just a little jealous.
Kim smiled, a little surprised that they were for her but happy too. Not only was she getting engaged and getting flowers sent to her, but she was making Laura jealous. It seemed strange to have the power to make the perfect blonde bouncing Laura jealous.
The man walked over and rifled about in his bag. He handed her a delivery slip to sign, desperately clinging to the oversized bouquet with his other hand. She signed the slip and then stared at the flowers. Who were they from?
She frowned at herself. Of course they'd be from Erik. After last night's event, he was bound to send her flowers.
The man placed the flowers down and walked away. Everyone stared at her, obviously waiting for her to open the card. She picked it up and then froze, her insides trembling when she finally looked properly at the flowers.
They were in the shape of the Danish flag.
"Are they from lover boy?" Simon said, making her jump.
"No," she said idly, staring at the card and too scared to open it.
She swallowed her nerves and slipped her finger into the envelope, opening it. Her hands shook as she drew the little card out and read it.
My kingdom for my mate. Kristian.
She stared at it and then shook her head as though that action alone would erase it, would make it as though this had never happened.
"Take them away." She grabbed them and hurried after the delivery man. The low chatter behind her sent a shiver down her spine. There were going to be questions about this. The man turned and frowned at her, as though she'd gone crazy. "I can't accept them. I don't want them."
He looked at her a moment longer and then took them off her. "Sign here then."
She raised a brow at the fact there was a box for refused delivery on the slip. Shrugging it off, she signed her name in the box and then went back to her desk. She drank all her coffee in one go, scalding her mouth in the process but needing to do something to calm herself down.
"Who were they from, Kim?" Laura sidled up to her.
Kim grabbed her bag and opened it, bringing out her case notes and starting up her computer with trembling fingers.
"No one," she said and focused on her work.
The people slowly dispersed but she could hear them talking and knew it was about the flowers. How could he be so stupid?
She realised that she hadn't given the card back. It was sitting on her desk, face down. She hoped that no one had seen it while she'd been giving the flowers back. Growling in frustration, she buried her face in her hands. What was she going to do? Something inside her said that Kristian wasn't going to be happy once he saw the papers and discovered his flowers were returned.
He'd been so possessive at the ball, so rough with her. He wanted her and he wasn't going to give up on her, just like Erik hadn't. She groaned into her hands. Were all male lycans like this when their potential mate was in heat? Didn't the fact that her and Erik had started the mating mean anything? Could Kristian still intervene?
Her head ached and she decided to focus on her work, trying to put both Kristian and Erik out of her mind.
The hours trickled past and no one said anything to her but she could feel them talking about her. It was a horrible feeling and it made her angry. If it hadn't been for Kristian's flowers, her friends would've been saying good things about her, not whispering conspiracy theories about who the flowers were from.
She ripped the note up into as tiny pieces as possible and threw it in the bin.
There was a rise in the volume of chatter when someone stormed into the office. Their footsteps were heavy and quick, determined. It was probably Laura coming to tell her off about something ridiculous as always.
Someone sat on her desk.
The hairs on the back of her neck rose and prickled.
Her head shot around to look at him.
He leaned back, stretching out and drawing her attention to his lithe body and how good it looked in the black trousers and deep red shirt. Her eyes followed the line of his neck up to his face. He ran his fingers through his white hair, preening it back, and she noticed he was smiling at her.
How could he smile?
"I am so sorry for how I acted such a fool the other night at the ball," he said in a hushed tone, words laced with a Scandinavian edge.
She stared at him. He continued to smile, his eyes narrowed on her, suave and seductive as he draped himself across her desk as though he had every right to be there. She wanted to shove him off, to push him away, but she couldn't move. Another part of her whispered that he was more handsome than she'd remembered and he was apologising.
He extended a hand to her and her throat went dry as she looked at it. Her heart fought against the stupid voice at the back of her head that was telling her she was hungry. It was just the mating doing that. It was because he was a potential mate for her and it wanted completion. Erik had warned her about this.
"Come to lunch," he purred.
She glanced at the room, seeing everyone standing now to watch. This was going to cause even more rumours and dirty looks.
"I've already taken it," she lied.
He chuckled and then his eyes darkened to a more intense but even icier shade of blue.
"I would like to know why you sent the flowers back."
She hesitated, not knowing what to say when he looked at her like that, his expression a mixture of hurt and anger.
She held her hand up. "Someone already got me a better present."
He took hold of her hand and pressed a soft kiss to the back of it. He smiled, lips curving seductively with it.
"That means nothing to me," he whispered, leaning forwards and still holding onto her hand. It burned where he touched her, stirring fire in her veins that she tried to deny. She was caught in his gaze as he stared deep into her eyes, holding her with them. "I want you, and I will get you."
She didn't have time to react when he pulled on her arm and stood at the same time, sweeping her into his embrace and kissing her. Her eyes slowly closed at the gentle persuasiveness of his kiss. It was slower, more tender this time, and she almost kissed him back.
She stopped herself and pushed him backwards. He released her, his eyes flashing with hurt.
"Get out of my dreams," she said in a low dangerous voice. "Get out of my life."
He stepped up to her, towering over her and growling so quietly that she knew only she'd be able to hear it. It made her heart race, her blood thundering through her body as she stared into his eyes.
"I can't do that." He lowered his head to her ear and she flinched when he cleared the hair from her neck. "You are more beautiful than anyone, than anything. I can't stand by and watch you be with such a low creature. You deserve to be with a true king of beasts."
She wished she could step away from him, but she couldn't move as he ran a finger down her throat.
"I thought that was a lion," she said idly. "And isn't the black panther the king of the jungle?"
He growled and his eyes flashed as he stepped back.
She could feel the whole room staring.
"Leave," she said, feeling more confident now. She had to get him out of her office before he did something that could ruin her career, or worse, reveal to everyone here that there were some people on the planet that could turn into animals. Her brows furrowed when he didn't move and she pressed her hands against his chest. "Leave. Please? If you give a toss about me..."
He sighed.
"I won't give up on you. I won't let him have you."
She swallowed the dry lump in her throat and was actually thankful for once when Laura stormed into the room.
"All right, what's the disturbance up here," she shouted as she approached. "No visitors, Kim. If he's not a client, he'll have to go!"
Kristian's eyes flickered into their cat state for a moment and she wondered what he was going to do. He'd confused her so much by coming here and acting like this. Why couldn't he have remained the way he'd been at the ball? Why did he have to become so attentive and seductive?
He smiled at her, sighed as he looked right into her eyes with his brows furrowed, and then turned away.
Laura stopped dead the minute he did.
Kim stepped forwards to watch as Kristian approached Laura.
"My apologies, beautiful lady." He took her hand and kissed it, bowing at the same time. "I am Prince Kristian of Denmark. I was merely here to ask Kim a question about business, but it seems she is too busy to attend to me."
Laura practically swooned.
Kim rolled her eyes, half thanking Kristian for playing along and not getting her into trouble, and half wondering if this was the reaction he'd expected from her. She wasn't prone to fainting fits around men, not even when they turned up the heat in the seduction department.
Seeing her chance, she snuck off and made her way up the stairs to the roof. She sighed when fresh air wrapped its cool arms around her and she pulled out her mobile phone.
She was just about to call Erik when someone licked her neck.
She jerked backwards and growled. "I said piss off!"
The world blurred as she was spun on the spot, strong hands tightly gripping her upper arms.
Erik was frowning at her, expression blacker than midnight.
"Piss off?" he said.
Her eyes widened. "Erik?"
"Who were you expecting?" There was venom in his voice, anger that was dark and frightened her.
She'd never seen him, had never felt him, like this.
"K ... Kristian." She stumbled on his name when Erik's look blackened further. "He was here."
Erik growled and she flinched, hunching and instinctively making herself small. He grabbed her arm and dragged her along with him as he stormed towards the door to the stairs.
"He brought me flowers, but I sent them back," she said, desperate to clear the air in case Kristian was still in her office and he said something about them. If she didn't say anything, Erik would be angry with her too. He'd think that she had feelings for Kristian and she didn't want to lose him over something as ridiculous as that. "He kissed me."
Erik stopped dead, his face still away from her and his hand now gripping her wrist so tightly that she could feel him trembling.
He roared, the sound echoing across the rooftops, and a shiver danced down her spine.
She stumbled down the stairs behind him, practically running to keep up as he went straight for her office. A part of her hoped that Kristian wasn't still there. She didn't need them to start a fight in the office. If that happened, she'd definitely be out of a job.
He pushed the door open so hard that it slammed against the wall. No one looked up this time. She couldn't blame them. The anger was radiating off Erik in waves so tangible she was sure that everyone would be able to sense them.
There was a white card on her desk, embellished and fancy looking. She didn't get a chance to see what it said before Erik had screwed it up. He turned sharply to face her and she expected him to shout at her, but he didn't. He looked at her with eyes that clearly betrayed his internal struggle as they flashed between anger and fear.
"I can't control it," he whispered and hung his head, staring at his feet. "I can't let it control me ... that's the step, the path, anger controlling it."
She frowned, trying to understand what he was saying. She lowered her head and searched his eyes. They were flicking between their human and panther state.
"I can't be like them," he said, so quiet she barely heard him.
It clicked that he was talking about his father and his brother. He didn't want to be like them, he'd always made that clear, but he'd never mentioned before what made them different to him. Was his primal side, his panther side, sometimes controlled by anger or rage? Anger was an instinct, something base that everyone had but had little control over. Maybe it affected the panther side of him and drew it to the surface.
She reached up and touched his cheek, stroked it, hoping to soothe him.
"Fight it," she said in a low voice so no one but him would hear her. "You'll never be like them."
She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him, slow and with as much love as she could pour into it. He leaned into it, as though seeking the comfort it provided, and her heart went out to him.
"You're too good to be them," she whispered against his lips. "You're like your mother, remember?"
Erik frowned and closed his eyes to hide the tears. He put his arms around her waist and held her close, flush against him. He savoured the way she stroked the hair at the nape of his neck, twirling it around her fingers as she soothed the beast inside him. A moment ago it had felt as though it had been pacing back and forth in his heart, fighting to escape its cage, and he'd been so close to surrendering to it. Now, it was calm, docile as Kim stroked him.
He couldn't let the anger control it, not like his father and brother always had. He never wanted to be like them, to do the things they'd done. All lycans were susceptible to their emotions. The animals inside them reacted strongest to fear and anger, to negative emotions. It drove them to react, sometimes with explosive consequences. He'd seen the way it had controlled his father, paving the way for his primal instincts to take over until all he was interested in was sex, fighting and food.
Taking a deep breath, he rested his chin on Kim's shoulder. He wanted to tell her how much what she'd said meant to him. He was like his mother, but there were times when the anger inside of him was so strong that he felt as though he was going to succumb to it.
The idea that Kristian had kissed her again, that he'd come after Kim when he wasn't around to protect her, turned his stomach and made his blood boil. He wanted to look after her, to make sure that Kristian wouldn't get his way and steal her away from him. He couldn't lose her. He'd fought so hard for her, searched for decades to find her, and now that he had her, he couldn't lose her.
"Don't leave me," he whispered, voice shaking as he held her tight. Her grip on him strengthened and she pressed a kiss to his cheek. "You're everything to me, Kim, and I'm nothing without you."
He didn't care how weak he sounded. She knew in her heart already that she was his only weakness, that for her he'd do anything. He'd open his chest and tear out his heart so she would see that he loved her.
She pressed kisses to his cheek and he silently thanked her for every one.
"I love you, and only you. I was born to love you," she said and pulled back. He looked into her eyes, seeing the truth there as her words melted his heart. "It's destiny, remember?"
He smiled and she did too. He could see relief in her eyes and knew it was because his eyes were back to their human state now. He hated scaring her like that, hated to see her frightened of him like she had been on the roof.
She cupped his cheek and gave him a concerned look.
"Do you want me to take you home?" she said.
He shook his head but was touched by how worried she was.
"I have to go to a meeting." He caught her hand and brought it away from his face, holding it.
Kim melted in his arms as he kissed her deep and slow. He always made her feel so liquid and hot. No one else kissed like him, with so much love and tenderness but so much raw passion too. She felt a little flushed when he pulled back and smiled at her, all trace of earlier gone as though it had never happened.
"You'll call me if anything happens?" he said.
She nodded and he kissed her one last time before leaving. She watched him go, cocking her head to one side as she idly stared at his backside.
When he was out of sight, she sat down and sighed. What a day. She wished it was over already but it was still barely past one in the afternoon. This afternoon was going to be a long one. She could already feel it dragging.
By three, she was bored but distracted.
There was again a man beside her desk.
Her desk that was lost under four massive bunches of red grand prix roses. The card sat on her desk and she glared at it, trying to figure out what to do. Her eyes scanned the words.
I think I love you. Meet me. 9pm. The Ivy. Kristian.
She picked it up and tapped one corner of it against the table as she tried to make a decision. There had to be a way to tell him that she wasn't interested. Something that would sink in this time.
She smiled.
"Listen love. Either sign the received box or the refused. I can't wait all day." The man huffed and held the slip out to her again.
"Is there a name on the slip?" she said.
He frowned. "Your name is on it."
She frowned too. "Okay, I'll sign, but I want you to take them to someone else in this office. Is that okay? Just take them up and make out that they're for her."
He sighed. "Anything to get out of here."
She signed the slip and directed him to Laura's office. When he was gone, she grinned and leaned back in her chair. With any luck, Laura would be stupid enough to go along with it and Kristian would realise that she just didn't want him.
She wanted Erik.
Her brows knitted again when a woman came in with a white box tied with a big white ribbon.
"Miss Clark?" she said and Kim nodded. "Sign here."
Kim took the slip and signed it. When the woman was gone, she took the little cream card from underneath the bow on the box lid and opened it.
I love you. Erik.
She smiled and opened the box, excitement bubbling up inside her as she untied the ribbon and then lifted the lid. Inside was a beautiful hand tied bouquet of pale pink peonies, white gerberas and lilac cornflowers. She pulled the bouquet out along with the bubble vase it was in and placed it on her desk.
The raffia ribbon that tied the flowers set them off and made her think of the country house as she looked at them.
She couldn't wait to get back to the peace of the country and wondered if Erik would ever hire her as his legal counsel.
Maybe she could convince him to work from home too.
It would be wonderful to spend every day there with him.
The room was dark, barely lit. The candles were burning low and still she hadn't found what she was desperately searching for. She closed her eyes as he moved against her, cock thrusting deep and slow, driving her insane with hunger and need. She wrapped her arms around him, whispering breathy moans of encouragement into his ear as he breathed hard into hers.
Their skin was slick with sweat, sticking together and hindering their movements as they both continued their search for completion. She closed her eyes and then opened them again when he rolled onto his back, taking her with him. She stared down at him. He smiled.
There was a flash of fire in his eyes as she began moving, wringing his length in her depths as she raised herself up and down on him. He groaned and then growled, the vibrations of it making her moan as she stared into his eyes.
They were so pale.
She'd never seen eyes like his. Just like she'd never seen eyes like Erik's.
He moaned again, thrusting slightly as she rode his cock, but not breaking the slow pace of their coupling. She couldn't bring herself to believe this was happening, but it was.
She closed her eyes and groaned when something cool and wet touched her skin and then someone moved up behind her. She bit her lip when skilful hands rubbed the gel into her nipples, torturing them and adding to the pleasure she was feeling.
Her eyes shot wide open when that same gel was squeezed onto her backside.
"Wait," a husky voice whispered. "I need to be inside you too."
She stopped her movements, much to Kristian's dislike, and leaned forwards, knowing what Erik wanted. He massaged the gel down the crack of her backside and into her anus, slicking her up and making sure she was ready for him. She looked over her shoulder at him as he slathered his hard length with the same gel and then dropped the bottle to the bed.
Taking a deep breath, she tried to relax as he slowly eased the first inch of his cock into her anus. She breathed hard, panting against Kristian's smooth defined chest as Erik inched his cock into her. It stung a little, but she knew how good it was going to feel once they were going. He picked up the gel and squeezed more onto her when she flinched a little, and his cock slid right in.
He pulled her back up and it took a moment to adjust to the feeling of two cocks inside her. The sense of dirtiness and the sensuality of it was maddening. She groaned when Erik's fingers closed around her hips and he pulled out of her. When he thrust back in, he lifted her off Kristian's cock and both men moaned. She knew it was the friction of their two cocks against each other making them groan, rubbing each other as they drove in and out.
She lost herself in the feeling of them moving inside her as they took her, their cocks alternately thrusting into her. She leaned into Erik, panting hard as the pace increased, taking her out of her mind. She wouldn't be able to take much more. Her body quivered in Erik's arms and she moaned when Kristian's fingers teased her clit. It was too much. Her eyes screwed shut, her heart thundering as she let them take her. She relaxed and gave herself over to them, loving the dual thrusting and the way it sent sparks racing along her nerves and into her belly, tightening it and heating it up until beads of sweat were trickling down her breasts.
Their thrusts deepened, quickened, and she tried to hold on but couldn't. She came hard, stars dancing across her eyes as warmth spread through her. She clamped her muscles down and Kristian followed her, thrusting and spilling himself inside her. Erik moved quicker, pounding into her and groaning hard by her ear as he shot his hot seed into her.
She sighed as she felt them both throbbing inside her, their cocks moving as they made a few last slow thrusts.
She felt so sated and sleepy, so perfectly at peace.
In moments like this, having two men wanting her didn't seem so bad.
Kim finished tying her wet hair up as she walked into the kitchen and tightened the belt on her white bathrobe. She absently flicked a smile at Erik and then looked at him properly when he grinned at her. There was mischief in his honey eyes and she wondered what was so amusing when he gave a low chuckle.
"Something to do with you?" He pushed the paper across the kitchen island towards her.
Staring up at her was a very uncomfortable looking picture of Laura and Kristian outside The Ivy. He looked positively enraged. Laura looked rather oblivious as she smiled for the cameras.
"He won't let you go that easily," Erik said.
As much as she hated to admit it, he was right. Kristian wasn't going to stop pursuing her just because she'd set him up on a blind date with her superior.
Erik stood and her eyes followed him as he crossed the room to the coffee. She raised a brow at the small white towel wrapped around his waist. He always looked so good dressed like that---fresh from the shower with wet hair and only a towel to protect his modesty. The stark white towel and his bronzed skin almost glowed in the bright light filling the room, and was a contrast against the dark wood cupboards of the kitchen.
He refilled his mug and then took another down and filled it. She was still staring at him when he held it out to her. The movement made his muscles tense and shift. It was glorious to behold.
He cleared his throat, dropping what she could only think was a not so subtle hint, and she blushed as she took her coffee from him.
"He won't, you know," he said, driving his point home.
She sighed and sat on the stool by the newspaper. Her attention focused on it, on Kristian in particular. There was so much anger in his eyes, as much as she'd seen in Erik's yesterday.
"You're right, but he won't win me over." She raised her head and looked at Erik as he sat back down on the seat he'd been in before. "I've got all the man I need."
He grinned and pushed his breakfast plate to one side.
"You liked the flowers then," he said.
She hopped down from the stool and moved around the kitchen island to him. She slipped onto his lap as he turned to face her and looped her arms around his neck as she kissed him.
"I loved them," she said. "Nobody knows me like you."
He locked his hands around her waist and smiled. "What did Kristian send?"
She shrugged. "About a hundred red roses."
He laughed and she poked him in the chest. When he scowled at her for telling him off, she rubbed him behind the ear. He instantly purred and then frowned again.
"Stop that," he said, trying to evade her hand.
She just smiled and kept rubbing. His purr deepened, rumbling through both him and her, and turning her bones to jelly.
Erik tried to push her hand away again, but she went rigid, making it impossible to do so without risking accidently hurting her.
He ran his eyes down to her bathrobe. It was falling open slightly, revealing the curve of her breasts. His cock twitched as his heart began a steady thumping against his chest. He slipped his hand into her robe and cupped her breast. The motion of her fingers against his ear slowed as he palmed her, grazing the nipple with the heel of his hand.
When her hand stopped completely, he pulled her closer with his one around her waist and kissed her slow and deep. She sighed and then moaned against his mouth.
"We'll be late to work," she said, trying to pull away from him.
He tightened his hold. "You're sick. You can't possibly go to work today. I'm calling in for you. As for me, I own the place. I don't think anyone would ask why I'm late."
She shrugged and kissed him, as though that was all the reasoning she needed to take a day off work. He was glad that she wasn't going to fight him on this. He didn't want her going into work, not now that Kristian knew where her office was. He was bound to go back there today.
Kim's fingers dragged him out of his thoughts as they trailed down his chest, nails scraping. He growled and kissed her harder, circling her nipple with his fingertip. It hardened and his cock ached at the thought of sucking it into his mouth.
He pulled back and looked at Kim. She was smiling and there was dark desire in her eyes. It sent a silent message to his heart and stirred his own passion. He grabbed her waist and set her on the ground.
She gasped when he swept his arm across the kitchen island and sent everything smashing to the floor.
"Erik!"
He laughed and grabbed her. "I've always wanted to do that."
She laughed along with him. "Me too."
Her laughter was cut off by a moan as he lifted her onto the kitchen island and nestled himself between her legs. He untied her robe, kissing her as his hands slid inside and forced it to fall open.
He pulled her forwards until her backside was against the edge of the island and ran his hands down her body. He loved watching her face as she moaned each time his thumb circled her nipples or found a sensitive spot. She leaned back, splaying her hands out behind her for support, and he couldn't help stopping to look at her. Her eyes shone with passion and seduction as she sat there, robe open and her naked body exposed to him. Her hair was falling loose from her ponytail, wet strands of it cascading down over her shoulders and back.
He reached across and pulled the band out of her hair. Now she looked beautifully wanton.
Licking his lips, he trailed a lone fingertip down between her breasts, around her navel and slipped it between the folds of her pussy. Her nub was pert and when he dipped his finger lower, his cock twitched. She was so slick already, so aroused. He had to have her.
He dropped his towel away and ran a hand down his cock, pulled the skin back. She groaned and he loved the sound of it. She wanted him too.
Stepping closer to her, he teased her clit with his fingers, swirling them around it and squeezing it. She moaned again, her eyes closing and her head falling back. She looked so beautiful like that. He spread her knees further apart and took hold of his length, guiding to her. She sighed out her breath when he slid inside her tight sheath, burying himself as deep as he could go.
His fingers gripped her hips and he held on tight as he began thrusting into her. He wouldn't last long, but she didn't feel as though she would either. He stared at her as he drew his cock out and then plunged it back in. He gave her long strokes and went as deep as he could. She moved forwards and his grip shifted to her backside to stop her from falling. He groaned when she lay back, stretching her arms out above her.
Her breasts wobbled with each deep thrust he made into her pussy. He wanted to go deeper. He wanted to always stay inside her.
"Harder," she breathed.
He obeyed, pulling her closer and picking up the pace until he was panting with each meeting of their hips. He curled his hips, pumping her as hard and fast as he could, and desperately trying to hold off when she clenched her muscles around him. She brought her feet up and hooked them over his arms.
He moaned at the change in position and how much deeper he could go. Thrusting harder into her, he was mesmerised by her face as she screwed it up, groaning harshly with each plunge of his cock into her. He fucked her harder and harder until was moaning so loud he was sure the neighbours would hear. She arched her back, tensed around him, and jerked as she came. Her walls milked him, throbbing and pulsing as her thighs quivered against him. He thrust deeper, at a fast frantic pace as he pushed for his own orgasm. It came swift and hard, blinding him as he shot his seed into her depths and his hips thrust of their own accord.
His breathing was harsh in his ears, a disjointed noise when combined with hers.
He pulled out of her and rested his head on her stomach, listening to her heart pounding and feeling her whole body shaking. He was shaking too. He knew what this meant.
"It's almost time," he whispered against her belly as he kissed it.
Her fingers toyed with his hair and then she stroked him. He smiled and looked up at her. She was smiling too.
"Maybe tomorrow?" she said with an air of hope in her voice.
He nodded.
"Tomorrow."
Kim gave a frustrated growl when her mobile phone rang for what seemed like the millionth time that day. She ignored it and continued to tidy the flat. Her and Erik had only been there a couple of days and they'd already turned the place into a bomb site. She dreaded to think what the country house would look like if Rose wasn't there to tidy up after them all the time.
She looked at the window, at the sheet rain and the grey cityscape. She was glad Erik had convinced her to take the day off sick today. After everything that had happened at work yesterday, she really didn't feel like facing everyone and she didn't want to risk Kristian finding her.
The phone stopped ringing.
She breathed a sigh and tumbled the sheets into the washing machine. Once it was starting its cycle, she filled the kettle and decided that she needed a break. She made herself a cup of tea and leaned against the cupboards. She'd been flat out since Erik had left for work. Actually, it had been since the first phone call.
She'd foolishly answered it then.
She hadn't realised it was Kristian.
How he'd gotten her number was obvious. Jilted by him, Laura had decided to get a little revenge and had given him her mobile phone number, something which definitely contravened the company privacy policy.
She'd ended the call the second he'd said who it was, but he'd been ringing back every five minutes since then.
He was definitely persistent.
Very persistent.
Cleaning the flat had seemed like the only task monumental enough to keep her distracted and stop her from answering the phone again. After ten phone calls though, she'd realised that she might miss calls from people she actually wanted to talk to and she'd begun checking the phone each time it rang.
She sipped her tea and went back into the lounge.
It was always Kristian though. His number was ingrained on her memory now.
The phone started ringing.
She was actually starting to consider changing the ringtone it was getting that repetitive and annoying.
When the ringing stopped, she came up with a better plan. She put it on silent and vibrate and slung it on the couch. At least now it wasn't so irritating.
She threw herself back into tidying up but soon she'd done everything she could think of. She'd cleaned the bathroom, polished everywhere, vacuumed, cleaned the kitchen and had done all the washing that she dared do without asking Erik which of his clothes needed to be dry cleaned. The last thing she wanted to do was ruin one of his fancy tailored shirts.
They looked so good on him.
She stared at the city outside the window. It was still raining heavily. She couldn't go shopping in weather like this and she didn't have any money in her bank account anyway. Sitting in a coffee shop was no good as she'd only annoy everyone with her constantly buzzing phone.
It set off again, as though she'd given it a cue.
She sighed and leaned over the back of the sofa to look at the display. Kristian again.
Her eyes drifted to the Radio Times magazine on the coffee table. Nothing else to do now but watch Christmas television and wait for Erik to come home. It wasn't even that late. It was barely past two.
She went into the kitchen and took down a big mug from the cupboard and then the jar of hot chocolate mixture. Spooning it into her mug, she made sure it was going to be extra chocolaty before going to the fridge to get the milk. She filled the mug with it and then put it in the microwave and set it going.
A minute later she was sipping perfect hot chocolate and a few seconds after that she was flicking the television channels in the search for something good to watch. There were numerous old movies to choose from, but she settled on Star Wars and curled up on the sofa.
And ignored her phone.
She turned the volume up on the television so it drowned out the sound of it buzzing.
Sipping her drink, she thought about what Erik had told her this morning. It would be time soon. Possibly tomorrow even. It was frightening in so many ways but exciting in others. She didn't quite know what to expect and wished that she'd asked Erik more about it.
She knew that he was going to have to bite her to make her like him. It was something about blood. The voice at the back of her head said it was going to hurt like a bitch.
And then she'd have to learn how to transform into her animal side. Whenever Erik did that, it always looked painful. She could easily see why. All his bones had to shift and change shape. It must be excruciating to go through that, to have something so solid shrink and become something else.
Her phone started again, grating on her last nerve as she tried to focus on the movie. It was ruining her day.
She picked it up.
"What?" she said, grinding her teeth to emphasise how much he was annoying her.
"Meet with me." He was so hurried that it almost came out as one word.
She stared at the television, watching Luke Skywalker almost drowning in a waste disposal unit.
She wished Kristian would drown.
Her patience snapped and she decided that she had to do something about him. She had to make him understand that she was never going to be his, that she didn't want him. She wanted Erik.
She'd waited two years to be truly with him, and now that it was finally time, she wasn't going to let some prince ruin it all.
"Meet you?" she said, leaning back into the sofa. "Why?"
"I want to talk to you," he said. "Please?"
She supposed that it would be best to speak face to face with him, to get it all out in the open once and for all.
"Funny, because I want to talk to you about a few things too." She didn't hide the annoyance in her voice.
"Come to my place."
She laughed. Did he honestly think she was stupid enough to fall for that one? She wasn't going anywhere near his place. No, it had to be somewhere public. It had to be somewhere that there would be too many people around for him to try anything. Somewhere they knew her.
"The Ivy," she said.
He was quiet for a moment.
"I'll pick you up."
She laughed again. "I don't think so."
"In that case, I will meet you there in one hour," he said, sounding a little too happy for her liking.
She'd never had to break up with a man before, and she'd definitely never had to break up with a man she wasn't even going out with.
"Fine," she said and hung up the phone.
She stared at it. What was she doing? She couldn't go and meet Kristian at The Ivy. What if the paparazzi were there? Surely they'd recognise her? They were bound to recognise Kristian from last night. She really hadn't thought this through but it was too late now. She had to face him.
She went into the bedroom and put on a pair of jeans, a black hooded top and her best sunglasses. It was a little over the top, but she couldn't risk being recognised.
In an effort to make sure that Erik wouldn't worry where she was and that if her and Kristian were snapped together he wouldn't think she was cheating on him, she left him a short note.
She read it back to herself.
"I've realised I need to sort things out with Kristian. Sorry. Kim."
She nodded, pleased with herself and then left the apartment.
The journey to The Ivy was long and dull. The tube was almost empty and there were only a few shoppers sharing the carriage with her on the one that brought her close to the restaurant. She walked the rest of the way, huddled under an umbrella and desperately trying not to get too wet. The bottom of her jeans were soaked by the time she arrived at The Ivy.
Kristian was waiting.
There was no sign of the paparazzi.
He smiled at her and her stomach flipped, her heart rocketing as she told herself that she could do this. She just had to tell him that she loved Erik and that she wasn't at all interested in him. He was probably a nice man once you got to know him, but she really didn't want to know him.
He opened the door for her and she wondered whether it was wise to go in. With no cameramen out on the street, she could just say everything she needed to right here and then leave. She was about to speak when he pressed his hand into the small of her back and she was walking into the restaurant.
The maitre de gave her an odd look as she shook her umbrella out and she smiled sheepishly as she removed her glasses. She gave him a look that said that this really wasn't what he thought it was when he raised a brow and looked from her to Kristian and back again.
She was really beginning to get the feeling that this was a terrible mistake.
She was ushered into a seat by Kristian and tapped nervously on the table when he sat down opposite her. He smiled, so broadly that she could see his slightly extended canines and was left wondering how old he was. Erik had told her that traits such as teeth begin to show once you reached a certain age and that was why the bouncer at the club they sometimes went to had quite pointed teeth. Apparently he was well over one hundred.
"You wanted to speak with me?" Kristian purred and poured her a glass of water.
She stared at it rather than him, not trusting herself. He was handsome, and whenever she looked at him, he made her skin feel as though it was on fire, but it wasn't him that she wanted. This feeling he gave her was just because of the mating.
"Clearly you cannot find your tongue, so allow me to begin. You have decided to leave that man and come with me."
She snorted. "No."
There was a low growl but still her eyes remained locked on the glass.
"Kristian, I'm sorry, but I don't want you. I love Erik. I want to be with him." She sighed and tried to find the right words to explain everything to him. She'd done a lot of thinking since Christmas Day and had drawn a few conclusions about what was happening. "Listen---"
"No," he interjected, voice dark and full of anger. "You listen. I love you, and only you. I want you as my mate, as my wife. Come back with me and leave this fool. I can give you so much more than he can."
He fell silent and she realised that someone was standing beside him.
They poured two glasses of champagne. She continued to stare at her water. Something fizzed in the bottom of the champagne flute and her attention switched here, watching the bubbles dancing their way to the surface.
She jumped when Kristian continued.
"I need you, Kim. I'd give my country to have you as my mate."
She didn't know what to say to that. Suddenly she felt terrible and all the lines she'd practiced over the past hour had disappeared. He really did sound as though he loved her, and she was beginning to believe that it was more than just an act to win her over. She had to break someone's heart, and she was afraid that it had to be his.
Swallowing down her champagne to give her some false courage, she prepared what she was going to say in her head.
She raised her eyes to meet his.
He looked so forlorn.
"Kristian ... I..." The room swayed a little. The champagne must have gone to her head.
She picked at a bread roll, eating it and hoping it would give the champagne something to absorb into as she tried to gather her words.
"Kim, please, I honestly love you. I cannot return to Denmark without you."
She frowned. Denmark? But she hated flying, and boats made her queasy.
He topped up her champagne and she drank it all again, hoping it would help the words come.
"Kristian," she started again but he wobbled out of focus. Her head spun and she felt as though the floor was moving. She furrowed her brows and looked into his eyes, searching them. "I don't feel so good."
He smiled, wavered and then everything went dark. Soft arms caught her and cradled her close to a firm chest. She curled up against it, drowsy and cold, seeking warmth and comfort as the world drifted into the distance.
"It would seem that the wine has got to her." She heard Kristian's voice coming from far away. He sounded as though he was down a well. Or was she down the well? "I'll take her home."
Home?
To the apartment.
Or to Denmark?
Erik wearily pushed the door open and was surprised when silence greeted him. He'd expected Kim to be home, curled up in front of the television. He closed the door and moved further into the apartment. There was no sign of her in the lounge, or the bedroom. He checked the bathroom and then headed for the kitchen.
Maybe she'd gone to see her sister.
Still, it wasn't like her. She wouldn't leave the flat when the mating was incomplete and Kristian was sniffing around, not unless something unavoidable came up.
He stopped dead when he spotted a note on the kitchen counter. Frowning, he went over to it and picked it up. His heart beat a little quicker.
"I've realised I need to sort things out with Kristian. Sorry. Kim."
She needed to sort what out with Kristian, and why was she sorry? His chest ached and tightened as he read it over and over again, trying to make sense of it. He told himself that she had just gone to talk to him, not anything else. She'd come back soon. The voice at the back of his head whispered that she'd left him. That's why she was sorry. She'd gone to make up with Kristian.
She'd gone to be his mate.
He slumped into a stool and stared at the piece of paper. It blurred slightly, but cleared when he blinked. He wouldn't believe that she'd left him. But why hadn't she called him to tell him if she was just going to meet Kristian to tell him to leave her alone. Why go to see him at all unless she intended to leave with him? She could have told him over the phone that she wasn't interested. Clearly Kristian had been in contact. Why hadn't Kim messaged him to tell him that?
His stomach turned over when he remembered their last vision, remembered walking into it and watching Kristian make love to her.
Make love.
There was nothing carnal and base about what they had been doing. It was slow and intense, just like it had used to be between them in the visions.
He screwed up the note and tried to gather his feelings. He was blowing this out of proportion.
But then, none of it made sense. If it did, he wouldn't feel so confused; he would know what she'd meant by the note and why she'd gone to see Kristian.
Why had she left the flat to see him? She'd been safe here and that's why he'd told her to stay home from work.
Why would she go and meet him?
He pressed his palm against his forehead and leaned his elbow on the kitchen island, supporting his aching head as tears blurred his vision. She wouldn't leave him, not Kim, not after everything they'd been through together.
His phone vibrated in his pocket.
He pulled it out and slid it open. It was a message from Kim.
"I've realised my feelings for Kristian and can't be yours. I've gone to Denmark with him. Don't try to find me."
He felt like throwing up as he read it out loud several times over until his eyes were swimming with so many tears that he couldn't see it anymore. He swallowed, trying to shift the dry sticky lump in his throat.
She'd really left him.
This couldn't be happening.
His whole world fell apart.
He blinked away his tears and cleared his throat, picking up the pieces of his shattered heart at the same time. It was over. She'd killed him.
He read the message again and then stopped.
Denmark?
He frowned at that.
Kim wouldn't go to Denmark. She loved him but she wouldn't even go to Scotland with him if he said they had to fly there. She'd never get on a plane to a country over two hours away if she couldn't stomach a thirty minute journey.
He had to find her. Something was very wrong here and he was beginning to get a terrible feeling about everything. Kim's note was mysterious, but if she'd been in a hurry when writing it then maybe she wouldn't have realised how bad it sounded. To her, it might have sounded perfectly clear and fine.
Plus, the more he thought about it, the more he remembered that she hated trying to resolve things over the phone. The only time they'd argued had been when she was in London and he was in the country. She'd refused to speak to him over the phone and had driven all the way to the house to see him face to face. She'd done something similar with her sister when her husband had given her the divorce papers.
But what could he do now? He still didn't know what she'd been up to. All he had were theories and both of them could be the truth. He had to find out what had happened. Knowing her, she would've made sure that she'd met Kristian at a public place, somewhere that she felt safe. But where in London did Kim feel safe?
He couldn't waste time by going everywhere he could think of. He had to narrow it down to two or three places at most.
He rang her office and asked the person on reception whether Kim had come in that day. No was the answer. He tried her sister next and her sister went into a blind panic so clearly she hadn't seen her either. It took a few minutes to calm Sherry down and then he was on to the next number. No one had seen either her or Kristian at the club today. They'd been closed until this evening. Finding nothing but dead ends, he tried the last place he could think of.
He called The Ivy. It was the only other place they'd been to together recently and it was the most public one on his list. With the cameras there and the staff who would remember her from his proposal, she was bound to feel safe from Kristian trying anything.
The phone rang for what seemed like hours before someone finally picked up.
"This is The Ivy. How may I be of service?"
"I was wondering if you had a reservation this afternoon for a Prince Kristian?" he said, keeping his tone calm and measured so the person on the other end of the line wouldn't know how flustered he was.
There was a pause.
"We did." Came the reply.
"Can you please put me through to the manager," he said and waited while he was transferred. The manager answered. "Henri? This is Erik Blackwell. I believe you had two guests this afternoon. A Danish prince and my fiancé."
"We did," Henri said.
Erik's heart hammered hard against his chest.
"Did Kim leave with him?"
"Yes ... she apparently had too much wine and passed out. They didn't eat."
"How much wine?" He frowned at the floor.
"Barely one or two glasses of champagne. It seemed strange at the time. She drank a lot more the other night. We just thought she'd probably not eaten anything since she had half a bread roll while drinking the champagne."
Erik's stomach dropped. "That's not like her. She wouldn't get drunk that fast and she wouldn't pass out so easily. I've seen her drink a whole bottle of champagne without eating and she didn't pass out. Did the prince mention where he was taking her?"
"I overheard him saying something about taking her home."
That was it. Kristian had done something to her. He'd done something to make her pass out so she wouldn't put up a fight and it would be easy to blame it on the alcohol.
"Thank you," he said and ended the call.
He dialled Sean's number.
"Hello?"
"Sean, it's Erik. I've got a problem," he said.
"Don't we all," Sean said with a laugh.
"I'm serious. I think Kristian has kidnapped Kim. She went to the bloody Ivy to meet him and mysteriously passed out after only a couple of glasses of champagne."
"That's not your firecracker. She almost drank me under the table at the ball." Sean's words were a comfort. "But you really believe he's kidnapped her?"
"Yes. I got a message saying that she'd gone to Denmark."
"He's kidnapped her then," Sean said, deadpan. "There's no way that lass would get on a plane unless it was Mr. T style."
"Exactly! I need to know where Kristian might have taken her in Denmark. You know all about this bloodline kind of rubbish." Erik started pacing the length of the kitchen.
Time was running out. He had to reach her before Kristian did anything to her. He couldn't let him take her from him.
"There's a castle near Copenhagen. Frederiksborg Slot or something like that. He mentioned it to me when he was at the ball."
"Thanks," Erik said and was running for the door. "I'll call you when I've got her back safe."
He closed his phone and slammed the front door as he headed for his car. Reaching it, he gunned the engine into life and called the airport. It was going to be hard to get a window for take off at this short notice, but his pilot was a good one and he was certain he'd be able to wrangle him one.
He had to get to Kim before it was too late, both for them and for the mating. He could feel it drawing closer and he wasn't going to miss it again.
He didn't care what it took. He'd kill Kristian if that was how far he had to go.
Kim was his.
It was about time Kristian learned that.
Erik stepped out of the black limousine and stared at the imposing building. He could just about make out the size of it in the snow-lit darkness and how far away it was. Between him and the house must have been a mile of open land, but he had no doubts that it would be guarded. Royalty wouldn't be left alone to fend for themselves, even if they were a shape shifter.
He moved and the snow crunched underfoot. It was freezing, so cold that his breath was almost solid white in the night air. He tried not to think about how cold it was going to be between transformations. Once he was in his panther form, he'd warm up quickly enough.
He closed the car door and walked to the front window and tapped on it. It rolled down.
"Wait here," he said.
The reply came in Danish but it sounded positive. It wasn't one of the languages he'd felt inclined to learn.
He looked back at the house as he walked to the rear of the car. Almost every room was lit but it wouldn't make it any more difficult for him to find Kim. Right now, his senses were so honed on her that he could probably pinpoint her from this distance.
Opening the back door of the car, he stripped off until he was only wearing his underwear and put all his clothes on the seat.
He closed the door and then his eyes as he focused on changing. The click and crack of his bones made him flinch, but before the agony could make him scream, he'd shifted completely and it came out as a growl.
He stretched and then picked up his underwear with his mouth. There was no way he was about to get into a fight with Kristian while he was naked.
Sneaking back along the wall towards the gates they'd passed in the car, he eyed the guards. They were armed, but only with swords, and those would be much easier to evade than guns. He crept past them and then leapt over the iron railings of the fence, slipping silently into the grounds.
It wouldn't take him long to get to the house and the run would warm him up. The snow clung to the pads of his paws so he headed towards the trees where the ground was clear. It would be harder for them to spot him there. Against the snow, he'd stand out like a sore thumb.
When he reached the house, he searched along the outside of it, looking for a way in. There were guards by the doors. He'd have to change back and pry one of the sash windows open. Kristian was going to pay when he found him. He was already in foul mood, but all this shifting between his human and panther forms was making it worse.
A pull inside him made him look up and he sensed Kim there. He could feel her calling to him, feel the bond between them. The urge to respond to that call and mate with her tied his insides in knots and it was the sign he'd been hoping for.
Kristian hadn't taken her from him yet.
He changed back into his human form and kept his underwear clenched between his teeth as he shivered with cold. He checked the room in front of him and then used his full strength to lift one of the sashes on the window. It had been locked, but gave easily under the pressure and he slipped inside. He closed the window again and changed back into a panther. If anyone tried to stop him, he would need his panther agility and strength. He'd disable them as best he could without hurting them too much. He wasn't here to kill anyone.
Well, no one except Kristian.
God she couldn't take it anymore. She was either going to explode or die, or possibly both. She arched her back, delighting in each lick of her clit by the man between her legs. It was divine but hellish. Each brush or flick drove her closer to the edge, but seemingly further away at the same time. She moaned and pressed the back of her head into the pillows.
"Erik."
There was a growl and it wasn't the one she'd expected. She was immediately up on her elbows. Kristian looked up. She stared at him and it turned to a look of horror when he changed in front of her, becoming a white tiger. He went to dip his head again and she scooted backwards. Her foot came up, catching him hard across the face.
Kim shot up but collapsed back onto the bed when her head spun and the room turned. Her brain felt three sizes too big for her head and she squeezed her eyes shut, willing the world to stop turning and lurching. She felt sick to her stomach, weak and groggy.
She opened her eyes, not wanting to see the replay of the vision. How could Kristian dare to try that with her and how had she managed to resist him like that? Even in her vision, she'd been repulsed by the idea of him pleasuring her while in animal form.
The room slowly came into focus and a sense of horror chilled her when she didn't recognise it.
Slipping from the bed, she was thankful that she was still dressed. She walked slowly but steadily towards the window, not daring to rush in case the wooziness came back. What had he done to her? One minute she'd been fine and ready to tell him exactly what she'd planned to, and the next she had passed out.
It was something to do with the champagne. When she'd had champagne there with Erik, they hadn't put anything in the glasses to make it fizz. Had Kristian drugged her? She felt as though she'd been drugged.
Where was she?
The room was grand, nothing short of beautiful, and didn't look like any in Erik's country retreat.
Her stomach turned again and a low ache settled in her belly. She frowned and rubbed it, trying to make it go away. It got worse. The ache spread downwards and she felt a little flushed as thoughts of Erik and Kristian crept into her mind. She tried to shut them out, but she was suddenly hungry for their touch. She felt as though she was on fire and only they could cool her down, only they could satisfy this growing need inside of her.
She patted her pockets to see if she had her phone.
What time was it?
Erik had said that the mating would happen tomorrow. Was it still today? Or was it now tomorrow? They couldn't have missed their chance again. She didn't know if she could wait another two years and she didn't want to risk another man turning up in the visions. Two were bad enough.
She pulled the nearest curtain aside and stared at the snowy world outside it. It was pitch black but the light was reflecting off the snow, illuminating the garden enough that she could see for sure that she wasn't at the country house.
Judging from the flag and the strange uniform the two guards stood near it were wearing, she wasn't even in England.
Denmark?
He'd drugged her and taken her to Denmark? She felt queasy. He'd taken her on a plane. Dear God, what kind of crazy man was he?
She grabbed her shoes and quickly put them on. Her only chance now was to escape. She still had her purse in her pocket but there was no sign of her phone. He'd probably taken it so she couldn't call Erik. It didn't matter. She'd get out of here and then find a payphone somewhere.
She was just about to grab the door handle when it twisted and the door opened.
She moved backwards, giving Kristian a black look as he walked in.
"Going somewhere?" he said with a sweet smile.
Her attempt to dodge past him was pathetic at best. He grabbed her but she pushed him away, evading his hands as he tried to catch her again. She breathed hard, her eyes darting about as she tried to figure out another way to get away from him.
He caught her attention by holding her phone up.
"Missing this?" he said with a grin and closed the door. "Do not worry about Erik. You broke his heart nice and nastily."
She grabbed the phone, not daring to believe he would do such a thing until she saw it with her own eyes. She opened the message and read it. A smile curved her lips.
"What is so amusing?" Kristian stepped towards her but she edged backwards into the room.
"Denmark," she said flatly. He didn't seem to get it. She was going to enjoy enlightening him. "Planes, you big cinnamon danish. Erik will know I didn't come here willingly. I refused to go to Scotland by plane. Denmark? So wouldn't happen."
Her head and stomach both turned in unison and she didn't know which one to clutch. What had he done to her?
"Son of a bitch," she grumbled.
He moved across the room and she was too weak and queasy to fight him as he took hold of her shoulders. She was surprised when he sat her down on the bed and moved away.
"It will wear off soon." He wobbled in her vision and the sickness passed, replaced by the hungry desire again. He smiled knowingly. "As soon as it does, we can finish what Erik so kindly started."
She stared at him, stunned and not sure what to say. He really wasn't getting it and she was beginning to wonder if he ever would.
"I'm not going to mate with you," she said and he frowned. "Not now, not ever! I don't love you."
She clutched her stomach when it rolled again.
A sure smile replaced his frown.
"You will, given time." His tone was as certain and confident as his smile. "The children will help keep you occupied and bring us closer."
She laughed at that. He was insane. It was the only answer.
Either that or all lycan males were hard headed and stubborn when it came to women. She remembered that Erik had been relentless in his pursuit of her, but that had been easy to understand when he'd revealed to her the fact that he'd been dreaming about her for almost thirty years.
She stood and shook her head. "That, right there, is seriously not happening. I'm not mating with you and I'm certainly not about to have children with you."
"But I'm royalty. The line must be continued." He took a step towards her, expression still serious.
She moved to the side and then away from him. "I'm not some heir machine! I'm not interested in you, and I'll never grow to love you. Personally, I think you're just a little bit insane ... you practically kidnapped me!"
He went to grab her but she dodged him. He growled and then smiled as he turned to face her. She glanced at the door. It was still too far away. She wouldn't make it. He'd already proven that he was a lot faster than her.
"But I love you," he said in a broken whisper that had her attention. How did he do that, suddenly turn from mean to sweet in the blink of an eye?
He held his hands out to her.
"I mean it, Kim. I love you. What about if Erik doesn't come for you? Could you grow to love me then?"
She shook her head. "No. You just don't get it do you? I love Erik. I know that he'll come for me. He'll find us and when he does, I wouldn't want to be you."
He just raised a brow at her thinly veiled threat.
"Kristian, please? This has gone far enough." Her brows furrowed as she thought about everything. She didn't want there to be a fight. She didn't want either man to get hurt. "Let me go."
"I can't," he said. "You're my mate."
"It's a glitch!" Her patience snapped and frustration got the better of her. If it took getting angry to make him understand, then she was going to unleash hell on him. "Were you dreaming of me for twenty seven years like Erik did?"
He looked a little stunned. "No."
"Exactly! If I mate with Erik like I want to, then maybe your true mate will show up. We're not destined for each other. I've never had a vision of you before now. They've only ever been of Erik. It's just a glitch and it might go away if you just let me go. I don't want to be with you and I'll never love you. I love Erik with all my heart. He's my mate." She sighed and her shoulders slumped as she looked at him.
His expression was pensive as he stared at her. He looked as though he was seriously considering what she'd said.
"Please? With a few more manners and less insanity you could make some lucky girl a great catch ... but I'm not that girl."
He sighed heavily and looked at his boots for a moment before raising his eyes back to meet hers. "I understand. This was foolish of me. I have acted the cad while Erik has been the gentleman. I haven't behaved as I should have. I cannot stand between you and your mate, the man you love, and I only hope that you do not hate me for what I have put you through."
She couldn't believe what she was hearing. He was seriously going to let her go. She'd been expecting him to put up a little more fight than he had. She looked into his eyes and felt bad when she saw all the hurt in them. He really did love her. He loved her and he was still letting her go. Whoever destiny chose as his mate, she was going to a very lucky girl to have someone like him love her. She got the feeling he'd be as attentive and protective as Erik.
She smiled and couldn't stop herself from hugging him. "You will make a girl very happy someday, Kristian."
She kissed his cheek and froze when the door burst open.
"Kim!" Erik's voice filled the whole room and a split second later she'd been pulled into his arms.
She tried to grab his arm as he took a swing at Kristian but was too late. It connected solidly with Kristian's jaw and he stumbled backwards. She was thankful that he didn't retaliate. He merely glared at Erik and growled.
Erik went to push her aside to hit Kristian again but she flung her arms around his neck and smothered him so he couldn't. She raised her brows she felt bare skin. She really hoped he wasn't totally naked. Her surprised look turned into a frown of concern when she realised how cold he was.
"I'm fine," she said, stroking his hair and hoping to soothe him. "It's too late for heroics. I've already rescued myself. Kristian is sorry and has agreed to let me go with you."
Erik pulled back and she rolled her eyes at the disappointment on his face. Clearly he'd been gearing up for a good fight for her.
She stepped away from him and looked at Kristian as he straightened and rubbed his jaw.
Her eyes flew wide when Erik punched him again, sending him to the ground this time.
"That's for good measure ... keep away from Kim in the future," Erik said, voice low and dangerous.
Kristian just shrugged and looked at her. "And you said I was uncouth?"
Erik growled.
She held him back and blushed when a pulse of desire settled in her belly and heated it up. Erik looked at her, eyes bright and yellow, and so intense that she had to look away.
"It's time we left." He grabbed her hand.
She flipped Kristian a smile and the last she saw of him was him smiling back at her and then sighing. She wondered if she'd ever see him again. Could ex-vision lovers become friends? She'd love to know when he found his own mate, and when he wasn't trying to kidnap her or make her his, he wasn't a bad person.
"It's time for something else too, isn't it?" she said and Erik looked at her.
He nodded. "You can feel it too?"
"Like I'm being pulled apart inside and I'll die if you don't put me back together."
He smiled and raised her hand, pressing a kiss to it.
"It's time."
The moment they were safely in the car and on their way to the airport, Erik pulled Kim into his arms and held her tightly. He closed his eyes, feeling a rush of mixed emotions when her hands pressed against his back and her cheek came to rest against his. He was so relieved to have her back, to feel her in his arms again, and so happy that things had turned out so well. At the same time though, there was a part of him that was angry with himself for believing that she would have left him. He should have had faith in her feelings for him, but it had been so impossible at the time. He'd thought that he'd lost her, had lost everything. Having her back only made him realise even more just how much he loved her and that he truly couldn't live without her by his side.
He sighed against her hair and savoured the way her fingers lightly stroked his back, drawing out all of his tension and anger, and replacing it with peace and love. He pressed a kiss to her neck, nuzzling it slightly in the process. He wished that he could tell her how it felt to have her back, to feel her against him again and hold her close, but he couldn't put it into words. It was something he could only feel, and he hoped that she felt the same.
When she pulled back a little, he looked at her, studying her face as though it had been years since he'd seen her. It had felt like that.
She smiled at him, bright and beautiful as always. His chest warmed to see it, to see her looking more like she had done before this had all begun. He could sense the underlying nerves in her and knew it was about the mating. He couldn't imagine how frightening a prospect it was for her, but he was going to make sure it was as painless and as pleasurable an experience as possible.
He smiled back at her when she brushed the backs of her fingers against his cheek. Her eyes dropped to his body and he swore he saw her cheeks colour a little.
His eyes fixed on her lips as she teased them with her teeth and he reached out to her, catching hold of her shoulder and drawing her to him. Her eyes closed, lips parting as though she knew what he wanted. He dipped his head and brought his mouth to hers, barely grazing it. She leaned forwards a little more, pressing into him, and he deepened the kiss until he was pouring into it everything he felt inside. It was desperate, heartfelt and a little rough, but she responded with the same ferocity and fervour, and it melted him to the core, making him purr.
When he drew her closer, she broke the kiss and giggled at him, her hands pressing firmly into his chest.
"Calm down, I'm not going anywhere," she said and he wondered if she knew what magic those words held. They were so reassuring and were exactly what he needed to hear right now.
She shuffled further away and sat sideways, leaning her head against the back of the leather seat and smiling at him. She was grinning so much that she looked a little insane and he felt like teasing her by saying that out loud, but knew it wouldn't be a wise move at a time like this. She was liable to take it the wrong way or start prodding him in the chest like she normally did when he was being annoying.
He slipped his clothes on and by the time he was buttoning his shirt, she was pouting.
"What's wrong?" he said.
"I thought it was time," she said, a little sulky sounding.
He smiled and slid across the seat until their legs were touching. Smoothing her hair back, he sighed.
"It is," he said and then lowered his voice to a whisper. "But I didn't think you'd want an audience."
She looked towards the blacked out panel that separated them from the driver and then back at him. He could see in her eyes what she was thinking. Sex in a public space where they weren't really likely to get caught was one thing. Being watched by a man they didn't know was another.
She slipped her arm around his and cuddled up to him. "So how are we getting home?"
Her voice was full of hope but it was small enough to let him know that she wasn't just worried about the mating.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't get a boat at such short notice ... but I do have an idea for a great distraction method that we could try on the jet." He grinned at her, narrowing his eyes on hers and turning up the heat a notch. He leaned over, brushed his cheek against hers, and whispered into her ear, "How would you like to join the mile high club with me?"
She giggled and he could almost feel the heat burning her cheeks as she blushed.
"Sounds good," she whispered back, nipping at his ear lobe.
"We can complete the mating too."
"Mmm, even better." She kissed down his neck and he wondered if he'd be able to wait until the jet. If she kept doing that, teasing his flesh as her fingers worked their way over his chest, sneaking into his shirt, then he wouldn't be able to stop himself from reacting.
Still, it wasn't as though they had to go all the way and as long as he didn't bite her, they could make out all they wanted without completing the bond between them and turning her into a lycan.
He growled and tackled her onto the seat, trapping her beneath him.
"Eri---!" she started.
He cut her off with a demanding kiss.
Kim ignored the voices at the back of her head that spoke of twisting metal and mid-air explosions as the small private jet took off. It wasn't the first time she'd been on a plane. She'd been on one once and she'd decided pretty shortly after take off that she never wanted to go on one again. The journey back from Paris had petrified her, but it had been necessary in order for her to get home.
Just like this was necessary.
She wanted to be away from Denmark and back home at the country house where she felt safe. Once they were there, she was going to speak to Erik about her plan to become his personal legal counsel and to make him work from home more, especially during the first few months of her being a lycan. She didn't know how different she was going to feel, but she was sure it was going to take her a while to get used to her new life.
She looked out of the window at the disappearing lights of Copenhagen and then realised it wasn't such a good idea when her stomach turned. She swallowed and then looked across at Erik where he was sitting opposite her. He smiled reassuringly and she read the silent question in it. She returned the smile, showing him that she was all right.
The seatbelt lights flicked off and Erik moved over to sit next to her. He looked so concerned and the sight of it touched her deeply. She'd been so scared when she'd woken up to find herself in a strange place but she'd never doubted that Erik would come for her. She wondered how panicked he'd been and if he'd really believed the text message that Kristian had sent to him from her phone. She wished that he hadn't, but in her heart she knew that he probably had, if only for a few seconds. She knew she would've believed it if someone had sent a message to her from Erik's phone.
She would've been devastated.
But everything was all right again now. She cupped his cheek and made him look at her, memorising every dark fleck in his golden eyes. They were back together again and that was all that mattered. Kristian had been out of place, but he'd listened to what she'd had to say and he'd let her go. He loved her and she couldn't imagine how hard that must have been for him. She'd sensed loneliness in him tonight, and even before tonight. There had been a quiet desperation about him, like there had been about Erik when she'd first met him. It was as though neither could live without her. She hoped that Kristian found his true mate and that he would love her with the intensity that Erik did for herself, and that he would be loved in return. Regardless of the things he'd done, she wanted him to be happy. She'd been lonely for so long that she knew how terrible it felt. Finding Erik had brought new meaning to her life. She wished that for everyone.
She closed her eyes when Erik's fingers grazed her cheek and her focus came back to him. He looked even more worried and she knew it was because she'd been so far away in her thoughts. He could've spoken and she wouldn't have heard him.
"Would you like something to drink, sir?" A young man stopped beside them. She figured he was a flight attendant. She'd also figured out that this was Erik's jet. He'd never mentioned it before.
He looked at her.
She shook her head.
"No drinks, but a little privacy until we reach London," Erik said and she stared at him as his deep melodic voice sent fire to her belly.
She knew why they needed privacy and it was both exciting and frightening at the same time.
The man left them and Erik pressed a little button. The lights dimmed until there were only a few dotted around the cabin. She wriggled to get more comfortable on her seat as Erik looked at her, his eyes intense in the low light, setting off a hum inside her as her body begged for his touch.
He lifted the arm of the seat so there was nothing between them and slid closer until their sides were pressed together. She swallowed and tried to breathe steadily. Her heart was jigging about all over the place in her chest, making her feel a little sick with nerves.
She looked around the tiny plane, trying to figure out in her head exactly how this was going to work. There wasn't much room at all. When she'd heard about the mile high club it had sounded glamorous and exciting. This was going to be exciting but she got the feeling it was going to fall very short of glamorous.
Her thoughts were swept away from her as Erik's fingers trailed down her neck and along her collarbone. She looked at him as he slowly lowered the zipper on her black hooded top, peeling it apart when he reached the bottom. Her mouth and throat went dry, her body crying out for his touch as he ran his hands back up and over her breasts, stopping a moment to palm them before moving up to her shoulders. He pushed the top off her shoulders as he moved to kneel in front of her. She shifted on the seat to face him and watched as he removed her top.
He licked his lips and her heart fluttered against her ribs as she thought about what they were going to do. It wasn't just the mating that was exciting her now, it was everything. It was the hunger in his eyes, the fact they were again about to have sex where people could walk in on them, and the fact that by the end of it, she'd be a lycan like him.
She arched her back as his hands pressed against her breasts, fingers kneading as his thumbs circled her nipples through her t-shirt. She sighed, wanting to be skin on skin with him, desperate to feel his warm hands against her overheated flesh. Her stomach tightened, twisting and squirming as desire wound itself up inside her. She had to have him.
Her breath caught in her throat as he skimmed his hands across her stomach and under her top. Before she knew what was happening, he was pulling it off over her head and was removing her bra. Her sigh became a moan as he flicked her right nipple with his tongue and then pulled her towards him as he wrapped his lips around it and sucked it. Sparks of pleasure shot through her with each suckle and she wrapped her legs around him. He ground against her but her jeans made it impossible to feel him. She whimpered and pouted, and then pushed him away.
He sat back on his heels, a confused look on his face until she stood and undid her jeans. Her hands were shaking as she tried to undo them as quickly as possible. She needed to feel him against her. It was a desperate need, one that made her feel as though she'd explode if it wasn't sated soon. He tugged on her jeans and she fell back into the seat with a squeak. She lay there as he pulled her shoes and jeans off and then he stood and removed his shirt and trousers. He didn't even bother to undo all of the buttons on his shirt. Once the first few were open, he tugged it off and threw it onto the seat behind him. He was out of his trousers before she could blink and she ached inside at the sight of his erection pressing against his boxers.
He knelt before her again and pulled her back to him, his lips claiming hers as he ground the full length of his hard cock against her pussy. She moaned into his mouth and nipped his lip, kissing him desperately as her stomach heated through and moisture pooled in her knickers. She wanted him in her. The tightness inside her was getting worse to the point that it was hurting now, and she could sense the mating calling out for completion.
She didn't care if it was rough and hard, she just had to have him inside her now.
He lowered his head to her breasts again and she pressed her feet into his chest, pushing him backwards before he could touch her nipples. She hooked her thumbs into her knickers and pushed them down to her knees. Erik took over, pulling them down to her feet. She took her feet away from his chest and he tossed her knickers onto the rest of their clothes. She breathed hard with anticipation as he took hold of her ankles and slowly spread her legs. She wanted him, needed him so much she felt as though she was going to die if he didn't hurry.
Forcing her legs down, she caught the waist of his boxers with her toes and pushed them down to his knees. She leaned back in the seat and groaned when Erik's cock was revealed to her hungry eyes. It looked so good, so hard and ready for her. She mewled and tried to bring Erik towards her with her feet. He smiled, a sexy little one that tugged at the corners of his mouth, and she noticed how yellow his eyes were.
Their pupils shifted, becoming slanted and like a cats. She swallowed hard and realised that this was it. There was no turning back now, and she didn't want to go back anyway. She wanted this to happen. She wanted to be his and his alone forever.
She rolled her eyes closed as he held her left leg with one hand and ran the fingers of his other up the length of her pussy. Her breath came out in a sigh as his fingertip circled her clit, sending shivers of arousal through her and making the fire inside her belly into an inferno of desire. Her lips parted and she breathed hard and fast, silently begging him to get inside her. She had to feel him inside her. She had to feel him taking her, claiming her as his.
"Erik," she whispered, husky and low.
He growled and pulled her towards him, until she was balanced on the edge of the seat with him between her legs. He kissed her hard and she felt everything he was feeling in that kiss---the love, the desire and the need. It all combined to make her head spin and her hunger worsen. She shuffled further forwards, encouraging him without words to take her like he wanted to. His left hand slid up her thigh to her backside and she looked down at the same time he did. His hand wrapped around his cock and he slowly eased it into her, joining their bodies and making her hum with relief as he buried himself to the hilt.
She closed her eyes and kissed him as he began thrusting inside her, the pace fast and intense, rough and only getting rougher as she clung to him. It felt as though she needed more, she needed it to be harder and faster. She clenched his cock, shifting her hips as best she could and begging him with fervent whispers against his lips to keep going.
He growled and sparks shot through her. Something inside said to growl back but she couldn't. She didn't have a voice to answer that call. She kissed him harder instead, her hands coming down to cup his backside, forcing him to pound her faster. It wasn't enough. She needed more than the frantic thrusting and grunts. She needed more than the growl.
She moaned when he pulled her right to the edge of the seat and thrust deeper and harder, sending shivers through her each time their hips met. It sated her a little but it still wasn't enough. Her lips left his and she bit his earlobe and his neck, her fingernails digging into his backside as he pumped her. She moaned with each thrust of his cock into her, with each pulse of pleasure and spark of pain.
But she still needed more.
An inexplicable craving, a desire like she'd never felt before, was consuming her and she didn't know what to do to sate it. She rode Erik's cock, each thrust into her she made one back, frantically moving against him until he was panting hard into her ear and she was beginning to tire. She felt as though she was never going to get what she needed, that she was never going to reach her orgasm.
She bit his neck, not hard enough to draw blood but hard enough to make him growl and she knew there'd be a bruise there but she didn't care. She bit him again, and again, until she felt something wash through him, something change, and then she cried out her release when he bit down hard on her throat. His hips jerked forwards and he came, filling her with hot cum as her inner walls milked his cock. She clung to him, holding his head against her neck as tears filled her eyes, both from happiness and pain. It hurt, but nowhere near as much as she'd expected, and in a way she wouldn't have cared had it hurt a thousand times more than it did.
Because now she was his.
Kim stood on the balcony of the country house and stared over the garden at the lightening sky. It was a glorious winter morning, crisp and cold, with bright golden rays of sunshine catching the wisps of cloud and lining them with pink.
Everything looked different and felt different. This wasn't just another sunrise. This was a whole new day for her.
She looked across at Erik as he came to stand beside her, a broad smile on his face. She returned it, showing him that she was as happy as he was. This was everything she'd been dreaming of these past two years. Now she was finally his and their worlds were finally joined as one.
There was just one more step to take to make it perfect.
"It always hurts but you'll get used to it," he said in a gentle tone. She knew that it hurt, she'd seen him change and every time he did there was pain in his eyes. "Just empty your mind and it will come to you."
She did. She stared at the rising sun and let her mind go blank. Something surfaced at the back of it and it seemed strange to feel it there. A primal urge lurking in the depths of her mind wasn't something she'd expected, but it made sense. This new side to her was animal, and animals worked on instinct more than humans. It felt instinctive, different. It felt as though she had two minds in one body now.
She flinched when the first flicker of pain danced inside of her, right in the very core of her bones. They ached and then a slow throbbing began to pulse through every inch of her. She looked at her hands, watching the fur as it erupted and swept into her hooded top. She unzipped it, tugging it off along with her t-shirt and wondering if she should've done this before changing. All thoughts disappeared when a growl loomed up inside her, the animal side taking over, and her instincts kicked in. Her head snapped up and she felt queasy as the bones of her face shifted and distorted, long canines replacing her teeth and her ears moving up to the top of her head. She told herself not to panic, repeating it until it was a mantra in her head. It felt as though the change was taking forever, but the next thing she knew she had shifted.
Everything felt sharper and louder. She could see for miles and it was perfectly crisp. She felt as though she could make out even the tiniest details.
Her eyes dropped to her hands, or at least the paws they had become. She didn't feel steady enough to move, but she managed to shake off her jeans and knickers and step out of them.
A laugh made her look up at Erik. He was so high above her. He bent over and she wondered if panthers could blush when he removed her bra.
"Maybe next time we should take this off first?" he said with a warm smile.
She nodded and watched him as he removed his shirt and transformed himself. When he had changed, she realised that he was bigger than her. It made sense she supposed. He was bigger than her in his human form after all. He rubbed against her, nuzzling her and then licking her nose. She wished she could purr like he was, but she didn't know how.
He moved forwards a few steps and she tentatively followed him, trying to convince her mind that it was okay to walk on four feet. She got the feeling that this was going to take a while to get used to. She'd not thought about all the things she'd have to relearn and adjust to.
She looked up as Erik moved away a few more steps, bounding down towards the maze, and then raised her eyes to the sky.
The sun was breaking the horizon, a bright golden orb that chased the cold from the land and filled her with warmth.
She purred.
It wasn't so difficult after all.
Running on wobbly legs towards Erik, she felt as though she was running to meet the sunrise too.
It was a new day.
A new life.
And she couldn't wait to start it.
The End
About the Author:
Felicity Heaton is a great believer in love at first sight and the romantic ideal. Having grown up reading extensively, she developed a deep love of classical literature, ranking Jane Eyre, North & South, and Persuasion amongst her all time favourite reads. The most romantic moment of her life was when her husband got down on bended knee on the steps of Sacré Coeur, Paris, at night in front of several hundred spectators and proposed. She was too drunk on love, and subsequently champagne, to care about the audience. All she could see was the man that she loved. A writer of emotion and life, she always strives to touch a chord of familiarity in her readers and give them characters they can love and a read to remember.
To see her other novels, visit:
www.felicityheaton.co.uk
Enjoyed this story? Email her at author@vampiresrealm.com
Other books by Felicity Heaton
In Heat
A heat wave isn't the only thing making London too hot for lawyer Kim. She's been spending each night with a man who sets her body and heart on fire. The problem? He's a man that always sprouts black fur and purrs, and he's only a dream. Walking into work on the hottest day of the year, the last thing she expects is to meet Erik, a man who send her temperature soaring and who resembles her dream guy exactly.
A black panther shape-shifter, Erik Blackwell has been searching for his mate for twenty-seven years. The visions they share each night are getting hotter but finding her is proving impossible as he's never seen her face. That is, until it turns out she's working as his lawyer on his contract negotiations with his brother, Alistair.
Kim can't deny her attraction to Erik. The heat she feels with him is intense and it's only a matter of time before they surrender to their desires, but something haunts her. Is Erik really the man of her dreams? If so, can he grow fur and purr? And what about the terrible feeling she has about Alistair and the contract? How far is he willing to go to get his hands on the company Erik owns?
What will Kim do when she discovers Erik's secret? Will she turn her back on him, or will she complete the mating and become like him so they can be together forever?
Available at www.alinarpublishing.com
Visit www.alinarpublishing.com for information on additional titles by this and other authors.

