Chapter 25

TWENTY-FIVE

N atalie laughed despite the danger, adrenaline making her giddy. “You have serious issues, you know that?”

“So I’ve been told.” He pressed her against a wall as footsteps thundered past their hiding spot. “Though you seem to like my issues.”

“God help me, I do.” She fisted her hands in his shirt, pulling him down for a fierce kiss. When they broke apart, she whispered, “For luck.”

His eyes glowed wolf-gold in the darkness. “I don’t need luck. I have you.”

More gunfire interrupted the moment. Marcus cursed, then lifted his phone. “Jax? Now would be good.”

Seconds later, screeching tires and shouts filled the air as Jax’s team converged on the vehicle with the gunshots. Marcus kept Natalie behind him as they edged toward the street, though she noticed he didn’t try to stop her from picking up a piece of pipe as a weapon.

“My car’s two blocks east,” he murmured. “Ready to run?”

She kicked off her heels, gripping them in one hand and the pipe in the other. “Born ready.”

They made it halfway to the car before Vanessa appeared, gun raised. “Going somewhere?”

Natalie’s blood ran cold. “Vanessa? But... you screamed when we found a spider in the lab!”

“Amazing what money can motivate people to overcome.” Vanessa’s smile was sharp. “Now, about that research?—“

Natalie threw her shoe.

The stiletto caught Vanessa in the face, making her stumble. Marcus moved faster than humanly possible, disarming her in one fluid motion. Jax appeared seconds later, subduing Vanessa as she cursed colorfully.

“A shoe?” Marcus raised an eyebrow as they rushed to the car. “Really?”

“Hey, it worked.” She grinned, still high on adrenaline. “Though I liked those shoes.”

“I’ll buy you new ones.” He helped her into the car, then slid behind the wheel. “A whole closet full.”

“Careful,” she warned as they peeled away from the curb. “A girl could get used to that kind of treatment.”

His hand found hers, squeezing gently. “That’s the idea.”

They drove in comfortable silence for a while, both processing the evening’s events. Hopefully, the mole inside the company tried to access her fake files just like before. The Vale computer techs were ready to lower the boom. If not, this whole plot was for nothing.

Marcus’s phone rang and he tapped the icon on the navigation screen.

“Tell me you got him,” Marcus said.

“Sorry, sir” was the reply. “No activity. Maybe they knew we were on to them.”

Marcus grumbled and squeezed the steering wheel until the wood creaked. “Thank you. Keep me updated.”

“Yes, sir.” The connection ended.

“Damn,” he said. “I really thought that would work.”

“Logic would agree,” she replied. “Maybe the fact we got Vanessa spooked whoever it is. Back to the drawing board.”

He sighed, not happy with her conclusion. Finally, as they pulled into his building’s garage, Natalie gathered her courage.

“So,” she turned to him, “about what you said earlier. About this being more than attraction.”

“You mean about you being my mate?” His direct gaze pinned her in place. “About how every instinct I have screams to protect you, to cherish you, to make you mine in every way?”

Her breath caught. “Yeah. That.”

He killed the engine but made no move to exit the car. Instead, he turned fully toward her, his expression intense. “What do you want to know?”

“Everything.” She met his gaze steadily. “But maybe we could start with why kissing you feels like coming home.”

The smile that spread across his face was breathtaking. “That, sweetheart, is because you are home. For both of us.”

When he kissed her this time, there was no audience, no pretense, no mission to hide behind. Just them, and a connection that defied scientific explanation.

She pulled back and tried to catch her breath. “How about we move this somewhere more private?”

“I couldn’t agree more.”

They were in Marcus’s penthouse in a flash. He pulled her straight to the bedroom, not giving her a chance to catch her breath. Once there, he began kissing her ferociously and pulling on her clothes. She gripped his shirt and clung to him. Having his massive hands caressing her body as he got her naked was a new way to get her even more turned on.

She sat on the bed and scooted back, never breaking eye contact with him. Then she motioned him over with her finger, letting him know what she wanted. The way his gaze scanned down her body made her feel on fire.

Naked, Marcus looked good enough to eat. Time to partake in the meal. Natalie gripped his arms and pulled his lips to hers. His mouth was hot, she wanted more of him. Needed more of him.

Natalie loved the feel of his lips on hers.

“You are mine.” His words skyrocketed her need.

Desire and lust warred for control in her chest. Then his lips were all over her, not the soft, sweet kisses from before, but ones that left her trembling with need. He gently pushed her back on the bed and crawled over her and kissed his way down her body again.

He bit down on her belly. His downward travels stopped when he reached her bare sex. He licked her inner thigh and she groaned. “I’ve been dreaming of having a taste of you, Natalie.”

She bit her lip. Words stuck in her throat. Her legs spread wider, wanting more of him. His lip curled in a fuck-a-licious grin.

“Know what I want?” He licked closer to her pussy but not close enough. God, that was nowhere near close enough and she might lose her mind if he didn’t hurry it up. She almost yelled at him. Could he be any slower?

“I want to feel your pussy soaking my face.”

Oh. My. God.

A sharp electric current shot right to her clit, making it twitch. Her body trembled and all he’d done was a few licks around her pussy. At this rate, she’d never make it another five minutes.

He licked at the crease between her pussy and her leg. So close but still so far.

“Please, Marcus,” she moaned. She let go of her nipples and gripped clumps of his short hair.

“Ah, fuck, baby.” He licked over her pussy lips. “Wiggle those hips and show me how much you like my tongue on your clit.”

She whimpered, pressing close to his mouth—if that were possible—and waited. If he didn’t do more, she’d be the first woman she knew to come with words alone.

“You are so beautiful, Natalie. I’m so hard seeing you slick, hot, and wet,” he groaned. He rubbed his face on her slick folds. “You smell delicious. Like a wet dream. Only you’re real and this won’t be a dream that goes away when I wake up. You’ll be mine. All mine.”

The ragged sounds of her breath filled her ears. She couldn’t think. All she could do was hope he’d lick her again. Soon.

She spread her legs even wider. “Marcus . . .”

His gaze caught hers at the moment he flattened his tongue and licked a slow trail up to her clit. It ended with an agonizing suck of her tiny hard nub.

“Yesss.”

Her nipples puckered so damn tight.

Everything was perfect as long as he was doing those wonderful things to her body.

Marcus licked her clit in quick hard swipes. One after another, they left her breathless and begging.

Her body tensed so fast, it caught her off guard.

Marcus reached his hands up to cup her breasts and tweak her nipples. Desire flowed through her in waves of heat and fire, and a storm raged in her core, pushing her closer to the edge. She rocked her hips, rolling them back and forth on his face.

“That’s it,” he muttered between licks and sucks. “Ride my face.”

She liked the sound of his voice. Liked the way he encouraged her to be naughty. Not that any encouragement was necessary. She was one lick away from coming on his face and that thought alone made her even hotter.

“Come, baby.” He pushed his tongue into her sex. She almost came on the spot. “Once you do, I promise to lick up every bit of your sweetness.”

She wanted that, oh, so badly. Her body vibrated with the need to ride the orgasm wave. She was at the peak; a little push and she’d go over.

Marcus’s actions became more aggressive. He pressed his tongue over her clit and then sucked her harder.

Her body trembled with his low growl over her sensitive flesh. That definitely caught her off guard and pushed her into the abyss.

She screamed. Her back bowed. Her head thrashed with the eruption of pleasure rushing through her body.

Her breath reeled, pumping hard into her lungs. She kept coming, her orgasms pushing each other until she was spent and almost passing out from the amount of energy she’d expended.

He pulled her into his arms and held her close.

“Tell me what you want.”

She rolled him onto his back and placed a leg on either side of him and slid his cock into her entrance.

“You. I want you.”

She rode him hard, her body gliding up and down and tensing with every slide down. He was hot and thick, pulsing deep inside her. He gripped her hips with every single slam down.

She wiggled more. He helped her, biting his fingers into her hips and lifting and dropping her on his cock.

With every slam, she moaned and whimpered his name. He grunted, telling her how much he loved her curves. How gorgeous her body was. Then she was going faster and faster, her body slick with perspiration and the tension inside her ready to snap.

She slammed down a final time, taking him as deep as she could. Pleasure flowed as tightness snapped.

He growled, lifting his hips, driving deeper into her. His cock felt harder, hotter, and bigger inside her. Then he was spilling his seed into her. She took large gulps of air while her pussy contracted around his cock.

“That’s it. Take it. Take me.” He yanked her head down and met her lips for a ferocious kiss. She lay in his arms, her body still trembling and her mind trying to understand just how deep her connection to Marcus truly was.