Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Barrett

It's been a very strange day – nothing like the regimented drills and patrols that I'm used to. But that's okay. I like the change.

I watch as Cedara shuts the door after the last of her family leaves. Torrin and Elara are exuberant teens who just spent the last hour telling their cousin about how they've been exploring the town. Before that, Allard had arrived with the younger twins, who'd turned the place upside down. I observed Cedara through it all, and she took it in her stride. Not a single moment in which I was afraid she'd lose control.

She turns now, leaning her back against the front door, looking across at me. It feels like there's too much distance between us, even though the apartment isn't particularly spacious. It's perfect, though. Enough for two people to be very comfortable.

Two people like us.

I stand when she doesn't move from the doorway. "You okay?" I ask, moving toward her.

"Yeah." She nibbles her lip. "Yeah, I think I am."

"You think? Or you know?" I stop in front of her, aching to touch her. So I do, stroking her hair back and tracing her cheek.

"I'm pretty sure. I had a tiny moment earlier when Casey arrived. She startled me. But I just thought about you, and it went away. I think I can handle this, Barrett."

"I'm really glad to hear that. It means you could be past the worst of it. I'm not surprised. You're so strong."

Her beautiful lips curl into a smile, and I want to taste them. I lean down and brush my mouth over hers. She sighs.

"I've been wanting to do this all day," I say against her lips. Her arms curl around my neck.

"Funny you should say that because—" The rest of her words are swallowed by my mouth. When I lift my head, her cheeks are flushed. She licks her lips. "What…what did your Alpha want?"

She doesn't need to know.

"Just a security issue," I hedge. "You were great today. I thought you'd struggle with everyone around you."

"I was worried, too, but I kept it together. And then, after you arrived, everything was better."

"It was, huh?" I graze another kiss over her sweet mouth.

"Yeah." She's breathless. "So much better." She pulls back a bit. "I like it when you're near, Barrett. I like it a lot."

"I like it a lot, too."

"That's because you think I'm your mate?" Her expression has shifted slightly.

"I know you're my mate, Cedara." I cup her jaw, tilting her head up so I can hold her gaze. "I've never been more certain of anything."

She licks her lips again. "Well, I… I think I feel it too."

My heart clenches so tightly that I feel like I may never breathe again. "You do?" I finally manage to say. I can't remember hearing anything that made me feel better.

"I do." Her eyes are still locked with mine. "Barrett…" She pulls in a deep breath, then launches on, "Will you mark me? Like I did to you?" Her eyes drop to my throat where I can feel her bite tingling.

I pause. "You want to seal the mate bond?" It's amazing to me that my voice can sound so calm when my heart is galloping like a mustang.

"Yes. Yes, I want to seal the mate bond." Her eyes are earnest.

"You're sure?" God, if she's not sure, my chest will implode.

"I'm sure, Barrett. I want this. I want you."

"Because you can control your wolf when I'm around?" I need to know this.

"No. Because I can't imagine a life without you in it anymore. I know it's only been days, but I can't remember what it felt like before you."

"That's because they had you in a daze, Cedara." My thumb traces along her jawline.

"Actually, I think I was in a daze before they ever took me. I think maybe I spent my whole life just waiting for this…this connection."

I can't argue with her because that's what it feels like for me, too. "If you're sure…"

"I'm so sure, Barrett. Being with you today…seeing how we could be when things aren't messed up. That's what I want."

"Is that all you want?" My mouth curves up.

"Oh, there's more," she breathes. "A lot more. Let me show you." Her arms wrap around my neck, and she pulls my head down to her. This time, she's the one kissing me, and it makes my balls pull tight.

I let Cedara take the lead, her mouth devouring mine with an urgency that leaves me dizzy. Her hands roam over my back, nails raking through my shirt as if she can't get enough of me. I growl into her mouth, the sound low and bestial.

She responds by winding her fingers into my hair and tugging, arching her body against mine. The softness of her breasts crushed against my chest has me hardening instantly. I slide my hands down to cup her ass, pulling her tighter against me.

A whimper escapes her, and she grinds against me shamelessly. The scent of her desire is thick in the air, driving me wild. I trail hot kisses along her jaw and down the column of her throat.

"Barrett…" My name is a breathless plea on her lips.

I growl again in response, nipping at the delicate skin over her pulse point. She gasps and tilts her head back, giving me better access. The taste of her has me frenzied, my wolf raging just beneath the surface.

"I need you," I rasp against the hollow of her throat. "Need to mark you. Claim you."

"Yes," she whimpers. "Oh God, yes, please…"

I slam my mouth back onto hers, kissing her with a bruising intensity. She meets me just as fiercely, all teeth and tongue and desperation. My hands are everywhere, tugging at her clothes, trying to find bare skin.

Finally, I manage to pull her shirt up and over her head. I drink in the sight of her, eyes blazing with naked want. Then I'm on her again, trailing scorching kisses from her neck down to the swell of her breasts…

She's tugging at the hem of my shirt with just as much eagerness. I stop what I'm doing, pulling it over my head and tossing it aside before tasting her some more.

Her hands on me are soft and reverent as she explores my chest, my shoulders, my back. Her fingers clench in my hair again, her body tilting closer to mine. There's nothing tentative about her anymore, and it makes me throb. I can feel her need in every touch, in every ragged breath.

"I need you!" Her voice is husky as she tugs at my jeans. I help her, wanting to get rid of the barrier between us. I run my hands up and down her thighs, smoothing over her ass, which is soft and pliant beneath my touch. She squirms against me in response, and I can't take much more. I need to feel her bare skin against mine.

I stand, kicking off my jeans and shoes in one fluid motion. Then I cup her ass and lift her up against me, feeling her hook her calves around my waist. She wraps her arms around my neck and leans down to dot frantic kisses over my face, my neck, my shoulders as I carry her to the couch.

I sit with her straddling my thighs. The position brings her core right in line with my cock, and I can't stop the groan that leaves my throat.

"You're so beautiful," she whispers, stroking her hands up my chest. "I can't believe you're mine."

Hearing those words, feeling her body against mine, it's too much. I'm at the point of no return.

I shift my hips, grinding us together. She lets out a little gasp, her head falling back as her breasts thrust forward. I take one tight peak into my mouth, swirling my tongue around it.

That earns me a keening whimper, and she starts to move, riding down on my lap with delicious friction. Her hands slide back into my hair, her hips pumping against me. It's the hottest fucking thing I've ever seen, and I can't take my eyes off her.

"You like that?" I husk out, my hand gliding down to cup her ass.

"Oh God, yes." Her voice is strangled, her head still thrown back as she loses herself in the pleasure. "Feels so good."

"You feel good." I nip at her throat, sucking a mark onto her soft skin. It's a mark I'll soon make permanent, and I love it. "So damn good."

Her motions stutter for a moment before she's moving again, a little faster, a little wilder. Her hair spills over her shoulders in a golden cloud, and I thread my fingers through it, holding her in place as I feast on her neck.

"Barrett," she moans. "I… I need…"

I know what she needs.

Keeping one hand in her hair, I slide the other between us, seeking the hot, wet proof of her lust. I find her clit and rub, my fingers slipping easily through her slick folds.

She cries out, her hips stuttering again before she's riding my hand. I stroke her, fast and firm, my thumb rubbing little circles over her sensitive bundle of nerves.

"I want you to be ready," I demand, my voice thick with my own need.

"Ready…God, I'm so ready!" Her own hand is snaking between us, fumbling for the thick ridge of my cock that she's grinding against. It's all I can do to stop myself from exploding against her. When she angles my cock head against the entrance of her pussy, I have to grit my teeth and focus on my breathing to stop myself from losing it.

I feel myself slide in. An inch. Another. A slick, slippery slide that leads me to the gates of heaven. By the time my shaft is completely buried in her, my eyes are rolling back in my head.

"Ohhh…yessss…" Her breath hisses out as she impales herself on me. She stops there for a second. Thank God she does, because I'm about to lose myself in her.

Cedara rocks herself on my cock, and fuck, she feels so damn good. Better than anything I've ever experienced. I wrap my hand around her thigh, guiding her as she moves, milking me with her tight, silky heat.

"Barrett," she moans my name, her hips moving in a sensual rhythm that has my entire body clenching.

"Yes…fuck." My voice is barely recognizable; I feel my wolf prowling closer. My fingers bite into her thighs as I tug on her, needing to get deeper. Her nails dig into my shoulders as she cries out. And then her head falls back again, baring her throat to me.

It's what I've been waiting for.

I slow her down with a hand on her hip. Her eyes fly open, her breathing ragged as she looks down at me.

"Barrett…oh…" She doesn't finish the sentence, but my cock twitches inside her.

"Cedara," I pant, my wolf surging forward, demanding I brand her. This is the moment. Marking her as mine. I flick my tongue over that sweet spot on her neck.

"Yes…do it!" she urges.

I adjust my grip on her hip, my fingers digging into her soft flesh. "You have to be sure, beautiful. This is forever." I know this much myself. Since that day, her teeth sank into me, I was ruined. She's woven into my DNA.

Cedara gasps, her eyes searching mine. "Yes, Barrett. So sure." She tilts her head to the side, her throat exposed. An offering.

I can't stop myself after that. My wolf won't allow it, our instincts taking over.

Sinking my teeth into her throat, knowing it's a mark that will remain there, I feel her stiffen against me…the moment draws out. But then she arches her back, a scream of ecstasy ripping from her throat. I feel her pussy clench around my cock, milking me as she orgasms.

"Ohhh, fuck! Yes!" she cries out, jerking hard as her core muscles spasm. The sensations are like a storm of pleasure, sucking the air from my lungs. I follow her over the edge, thrusting up into her as I come harder than I ever have in my life. It feels like I pour my goddamn soul into her depths as I spurt deep inside her.

My hips are still jerking as she sags limply against me, nuzzling my neck, her tongue flicking the mark there. I tighten my arms around her, holding her close. I could stay like this forever. When I lift my mouth from her throat, the sweet copper tang of blood coats my lips. My eyes are hazy as I look down at the crimson circle that highlights the perfection of her creamy skin.

I look into her face, where her eyes are glazed, pupils blown. "You're mine." My voice rasps. Partly from the constriction of pleasure, but also because the wolf is speaking through me. "Mine," I say again because I like the sound of it.

Her kiss-swollen lips quirk up as she stares back at me. She dips her head. "Yours." Her palms cup my cheeks. "And you're mine."

"That's how it works." I turn my head and press a kiss into her palm before looking back at her. "Forever."

A moment passes between us that feels like it lasts a lifetime. And then I link my arms behind her and stand. She yelps in shock, her ankles hooking behind me.

"Barrett!" she says hoarsely, her muscles clenching around my still-hard shaft. "We're still… You're still…"

"I know." I grin. I have no intention of being out of this woman for the foreseeable future. "I'm taking you to bed," I say, "because I've only just started."

???

Barrett

Ifeel the loss of her yet again when I wake. She keeps doing this somehow – slipping away without me noticing. But who could blame me for sleeping like the dead after the way we spent half the night?

I stretch beneath the sheets, then kick them away and get out of bed. The sun is shining golden beams through the frothy white curtains – another thing that's nothing like my barebones quarters back at the barracks.

"Cedara?" I call, my nostrils twitching as I wait to pick up the scent of coffee or bacon. I don't find it.

Maybe she's watching the sunrise again. Although we're well into morning by now. That would have happened a couple of hours ago, at least.

"Are you coming back to bed?" I'd like that, but there's no answer. Frowning, I leave the bedroom and head down the hallway. "Cedara?"

I stop. My heart plummets at the sight in front of me.

Prowling…pacing circles before the bright blue front door is my mate. And I'm looking into the golden eyes of her wolf.