13. MIA

Chapter 13

MIA

Huddled behind a tree stump in our wolf forms, Theo and I watch the mountain goat intently.

It grazes on a patch of long blades of grass, often lifting its head at the slightest sound like it’s on guard. Any sound from either of us will alert the animal of our presence, and it’ll run off.

‘You've gotta feel it inside…’ Theo speaks through the mind link. ‘Trust your instinct, and let it guide you.’

With his encouraging words, I close my eyes momentarily. To train in on that instinct. To focus on it, allowing it to guide me.

It seems that Theo's mere presence offers me strength. It radiates off him, forming an imaginary shield around us. A protective shield. And one that permeates all the power of the Alpha that he is.

It's quite extraordinary, feeling so effortlessly courageous for the first time in my life. Opening my eyes again, I'm as ready as ever to hunt the goat.

‘I'm going for it,’ I tell Theo as I push my weight down on my hind legs. Preparing for the attack, I lunge over the stump and knock the animal to the ground. Sharp canines distend, puncturing through the mountain goat's flesh.

Warm, rich blood oozes onto my tongue. It's heady and almost seductive as it trickles down my throat. Dropping the animal's neck from between my teeth, it falls to a heap on the ground before my feet.

‘Well done, Mia!’ Theo appreciates as he finally steps out from behind the tree stump. I turn to him, only to witness the marveled glow in his eyes.

Sparkling as if he's just witnessed the greatest accomplishment being made, he's staring at me with astonishment. His awe swells his chest with pride as he finally becomes unfrozen from the spot.

Heat rises in my face. I would be blushing profusely if I was in human form. But even now, Theo must notice my reaction. He whimpers as he comes closer, pressing his muzzle to my neck.

‘You're heating up,’ he observes, stepping back to look into my face. Whatever he sees there stuns him as his wolf eyes widen.

‘What's wrong?’ I ask, feeling my face pull taut as if I'm frowning.

‘I think we should eat…’ he replies, though I can sense that there's something he isn't telling me.

Still, I heed the instruction. The nagging pull in the pit of my belly is too strong to ignore. The pang of hunger gripping me so tightly that I part my lips and chew into the warm flesh of the goat.

When we've left only the carcass, my tongue juts out to lap at my lips. The meal was divine and filling. Yet, the feeling of a void in the pit of my belly remains.

My ears perk up when the rustling sound of Theo's shift sounds in the air. Turning, my wolf instinctively retreats. As if it knows something I don't. I also shift so that I can speak to him.

“Mia…” Theo sucks in a breath through his teeth as he closes the distance between us.

Compelled to melt into his arms, I feel that tug in my belly pull tighter. Coiling until it brings with it realization.

The heat I'd been feeling rise in my wolf is the very same heat I felt when I lost my virginity. Stronger now, as if it's intensified by a full belly.

“What's happening to me?” I whisper the question in the crook of Theo's arm.

Smoothing his palms on my forearms, he draws me back only to gaze into my eyes.

The preternatural glow of his emerald eyes captures my heartbeat. Steals it as I'm momentarily stunned. The awareness in my belly drops as moisture between my thighs.

“You're in heat, Mia,” Theo informs me gently, coercing me to move until my back is against a tree.

The tingling in my fingertips prompts me to reach for his shoulders. Pulling him closer until our lips meet. I can't fathom what's going on with me.

All I know is that I need him as close as possible.

Protesting with a pout when he breaks the kiss, Theo cradles my face with one hand.

“Your first hunt ignited your heat, Mia,” he drawls, staring deeply into my eyes. While the pad of his thumbs smooths my bottom lip, I arch my back, molding my frame to him.

The dire need between my thighs is too much to bear. And when he slips a finger between my breasts and travels down my torso, I shudder from the impact of my arousal.

“Please, Theo…” I whimper as I close my eyes. Letting only my imagination run wild as I feel his hands on me.

His finger skitters across my lower belly, eliciting goosebumps on my flesh.

I clutch his shoulders, nails digging crescent moons on his skin. When he dips his head at my neck, the warmth of his breath fans my flesh. Heating what's already heated.

“I'm the only one who is allowed to take care of you when you're like this…” he purrs, each word filling me with sparks of electric awareness. Desire that pools between my thighs. “... You are mine…”

His raspy voice against the sensitive spot just below my ear causes a shiver. Not one of fear, but one of delight.

Parting my eyelids, I watch him through the veils of thick lashes as he slowly sinks to the ground. When he’s kneeling, he looks up at me through hooded eyes of lust, gently smirking.

“Mine…” he purrs as a smooth, dexterous finger whispers over my folds. The touch is featherlight but powerful enough to make me moan from the sensation it brings.

My face contorts with the ramifications of torture. Because he’s tormenting me. Teasing me with the slightest of touches, having me yearning for so much more.

And the way he breathes a slow exhale of warm air on my pelvis tells me that he’s going to take his sweet time.

Seconds seem to slow down as he first presses a chaste kiss on my bundle of nerves. His plush lips feel divine on me, and when the heat of him is lost, I whimper in protest.

“Please, Theo…” I plead again, bucking my hips forward as I beg him for more.

He only grants me a stroke of his finger down my slit. It’s too frustrating, painfully so. And despite how insanely pleasurable it is, the heat I feel overpowers any sense of patience.

Grabbing a fistful of his dark locks, I give it a gentle tug so that he’s compelled to rise. Towering over me, I get to my tiptoes to crush my lips to his. Hungrily devouring his essence through the kiss, I use all my strength to push him up against the tree.

“Woah…” he chuckles, clearly bemused by my actions as I begin to sink to my knees. “... What are you doing, Mia?”

“Something I’ve wanted to do for a while…” I simper as I bat my eyelids at him. Satisfied when a flash of lust crosses his gaze, my eyes flit to the distended length hanging hard and heavy in front of my face.

Slowly wrapping my fingers around the base of his cock, I appreciate his immense girth. My fingers barely touch as they form a circle around the velvety shaft.

Licking my lips in anticipation, I lean in and wrap my lips over the bulbous head.

Smooth and silky, it flows over my tongue with ease as I take all of him into my mouth. His guttural groan as his cock sinks to the back of my throat fills me with more wanton need. It’s pleasant to my ears, a sound I wish to hear again.

Taking liberties with his cock, I begin a steady pace of bobbing my head back and forth. Listening to every moan and groan the man makes as he enjoys being in my mouth.

“Fuck…” he rasps as he runs his fingers through my hair. Loosely, just as a guide as I hollow my cheeks and pull him in again.

I can feel every pulsing vein mapping his length as he fills my mouth. The throbbing pulsation of his cock is forceful, signaling that he’s on the brink of spilling in my mouth.

His loose fingers in my hair tighten as he pulls me off his manhood. In one fluid motion, he has me upright, capturing my lips in a hungry kiss. He spins me over, pressing me against the tree before grabbing the backs of my thighs.

Our lips never part as he picks me off the ground and wraps my legs around his waist.

His breath comes in hot pants when he breaks the kiss. Maintaining the most intense eye contact, he reaches between us to line the tip of his cock with my aching flesh. With one languid thrust, he enters me, filling me to the brim.

The deliciously full feeling is all I need to be brought to the tip of my peak. The lingering climax builds as he pounds into me, fingers biting into the backs of my thighs.

The fine line between pleasure and pain is blurred as I’m pushed against the rough bark of the tree behind me. All while the friction he creates is the gift to all my senses.

“Oh-my-Goddess!” I moan, bordering on a scream. “Theo!”

“Yes, my love…” he husks against my lips, his thrusts turning shallow as he wrestles against my tightness. “Come for me…” he encourages, slowing down only to allow me the freedom of unraveling.

When I do, I see stars behind my eyelids. Theo’s slow thrusts help me ride out my high as his name falls from my tongue like a mantra.

Dropping my forehead on his shoulder, Theo squeezes my thighs as a guttural groan reverberates from his chest.

I wind my arms tightly around his neck, encouraging him to his peak. His body tightens, and one firm thrust is all it takes for him to spill.

Warm ropes of cum fill my constricting walls. Walls that milk him for every last drop. He releases his grip on my thighs just so my feet find the floor again. He pulls me flush to his chest, arms forming vices around my frame.

As we both take a moment to catch our breaths, he lifts his head to stare into my eyes. Lips tugging into a smile, he cups my cheek and tenderly strokes my skin with his thumb.

“I love you, Mia Alvarez,” he professes suddenly, stunning me as my brows knit slowly. “I really love you.”

His confession tugs my heartstrings, and I feel obliged to admit that I feel the same way. But the words are caught on the tip of my tongue, silenced by the dreams I’ve been having lately. Dreams of a village on fire that have me questioning my past. And questioning my sanity.

Dreams that make it impossible to explore a future with the Alpha when I’m unsure of my past.

Struggling to say the words, all I can do is offer him a smile as I press my cheek against his chest. “I love you too, Theo,” I whisper so softly, that I can barely hear my own voice.

I can only hope that he knows how I feel. That he can sense it, perhaps through the mate bond. And when he holds me tightly, I know that he isn’t concerned that I haven’t professed my love properly.

After all, he knows who I am. He understands my pain from past hurts. And he offers me the safe space to figure myself out, so that I can fully commit to the mate bond.

And to him.