by Brenda Trim
“I plan on it, mi alma.” His voice was gravel rough and the cords on the sides of his neck stood out.
With a squeeze, Millie let go of his cock and tried to step around him and head down the hall which she assumed would lead to his bedroom. He stopped her when he unclasped her bra before she could pass him. Hayden yanked her back to him and brought his lips crashing down on hers.
Seemed that she had unlocked his inner panther. She sensed he had so much more than that, but she’d always loved panthers. Hayden was her real live wildcat and she couldn’t be happier. His mouth was rough and insistent while her tongue flicked against his, stroking with urgent motions.
Lifting her into his arms fully, he carried her down the hall. Her body melted against him and every step he took rubbed her breasts against his chest. He broke the kiss to gaze into her eyes.
With a laugh, she wrapped her legs tightly around his waist which pressed her core harder against his cock. With a gasp she looked down when something wet touched her stomach. Her shirt had lifted, and she could see the head of his cock pressing into her belly. She’d known he was big, but it didn’t really compute until she saw him poking out the top of his pants. She couldn’t stop from licking her lips.
“Millie you have to stop that, or I might just fuck your mouth.”
There was no filter or barrier between them. Her heart broke wide open and he flooded in to fill all the gaps. Thank the Gods they were at his room and he was kicking the door shut before she lost her mind.
Millie wiggled in his arms and Hayden set her on her feet. She tugged at his shirt and he removed it without being asked. The cotton barely hit the carpet before his hands went to her pants.
“You’re overdressed. It’s time we remedy that,” he informed her.
Smiling at him, she toed off her shoes and Hayden knelt down lifting one foot into his hand. He placed a kiss to her bare stomach and she trembled beneath his mouth. Her body was a live wire.
Her pants hit the floor and his hands caressed the bare skin of her cheeks. He looked at her with a wicked smirk. “No underwear?”
She shrugged her shoulders and stood there with her arms at her side. “Don’t get your hopes up. I usually wear bikinis but there was no way I could put on a dirty pair. And wearing my cousins was not freakin happening.”
Hayden held her gaze. “I don’t care what you wear. You’re fucking perfect. You’re unapologetic about who you are, and I love that.”
Hayden leaned into her and kissed from one hip to the other then bit down on the flesh of one hip. Right when she thought he would lick her clit, he surged to his feet. She didn’t have time to be disappointed as he tossed her on the bed. She bounced with a laugh. He was on her in the blink of an eye. His big body was a sensual blanket draped over hers. Exactly what she wanted.
Millie’s mewls made Hayden’s entire body go taut with need. He felt like a stripling again. Eager as he anticipated being inside her again. It had been centuries since he had looked forward to sex this much.
When he lifted his head and licked his lips, he tasted her. He couldn’t stop thinking about tasting more of her. He wanted to feast on her. Gods, how he wanted this female. His shaft throbbed with need. It was difficult to recall that he returned to the house to get some rest. Now wasn’t the time to indulge in her all day. He would be going out on a dangerous mission tonight.
Millie’s pleas for him not to go were touching, but he had to. It was the only way they would ensure his samples didn’t drive others to hunt shifters. If they didn’t have proof, then it was a myth most in power wouldn’t pour money into pursuing.
Hayden’s animals were ascendant, yet his panther was at the fore. None of them had ever taken the alpha role in his mind until that moment and he knew it was all because of Millie. When she’d demanded he fuck her and called him her panther it had surged forward. The others complied with his dominance because they could plainly see her love of the animal inked into her skin.
Hayden lowered his head and kissed behind her left ear where his mate mark was in her skin. Until they completed the mating it would remain an iridescent mark that only supernaturals could see. After that it would shift into black lines on her skin.
She shivered and moaned. The mark was as sensitive as his was. His powerful nature embraced her, making her open up to him like a flower. His hands trailed over her curves before he sat back. “Spread your legs,” Hayden demanded as he tried to wiggle his hips between her thighs.
With one eyebrow arched Millie smiled at him. “Not until you take off your pants.”
He smiled with her when his hands went to his waistband. Watching intently, she licked her luscious lips. “You are trouble, and I love it.”
Using his feet, he kicked off one boot, then the other. A teasing smile met her gaze, as he paused with his hand on the waist of his pants. He loved having fun with her. Sexual encounters had become about seeking pleasure and nothing more. With her he wanted her to laugh and smile as much as he wanted her moaning. Reaching out, she flicked the button open. Apparently, her patience was done.
“I can’t help who I am. You should know I come with a healthy dose of snark and a proud Puerto Rican family.” Millie’s words were no surprise to Hayden. He hoped she would finally earn the praise she’d been seeking from her mother. He had a sneaking suspicion her miraculous birth was guided by the Goddess and her mother hadn’t yet told her she’d fulfilled her greatness because she hadn’t yet met her destiny.
On his knees above her, he trailed his long fingers down her body. Stopping at her core, Hayden played with the sensitive, swollen flesh at the apex of her thighs. His actions distracted her from her task and her eyes rolled shut.
Her back arched when one of his fingers slid between her folds and rubbed over her clit. As her body tightened with need, she opened her eyes and focused on him again.
He bit back the groan that tried to work its way past his lips. Her gaze felt like she’d ran her tongue over the head of his cock and licked away his precum. Thankfully, Millie gripped his zipper and shoved it down. His pants were past his hips and pooling around his knees.
Her hand caught his shaft the second it sprang out of the fabric. Hayden had gone without underwear, as well. Most days he didn’t bother with it because it was just one more thing to remove before he could shift. Now, he was grateful. There was nothing between his skin and her fingers.
Her grip tightened around the hard shaft of his cock, making his hips punch forward. He almost lost his seed as his erection pushed in and out of her tight hold. Hayden moved his digits in her body and pressed her clit.
Her flesh squeezed tight at the same time his pleasured groans filled the room. His hand increased speed between her legs, making her reach for release. He pushed her to the edge. Right before she climaxed, Hayden leaped from the bed.
His pants were off before she could ask for an explanation. Then he was back and looming above her. He wanted to return her confession of love. He wasn’t ready to acknowledge his feelings, let alone tell her.
Instead, he opened himself to her. Her essence joined him and amplified their connection. It wasn’t something he was used to and he had no idea what to do with it, except accept it and her.
He knew she understood and knew what he was thinking and feeling when her gaze softened. She stiffened when the head of his shaft pressed against her pussy. “What’s wrong?”
She lifted her hips, trying to invite him inside while her eyes slid to half-mast. “We didn’t use protection the first time. Do we need some?”
Hayden rubbed his erection through her slick slit. “It’s rare for supernaturals to get pregnant. We can use some, but as you likely know, I don’t have any diseases.”
He lowered his chest to hers. Sparks zipped between them everywhere they touched. Being close to her had already ignited an inferno inside him, this turned it into a tsunami that he didn’t bother fighting. He allowed it to suck him under and his lips crashed down on hers
with less urgency than he was feeling.
Soft, at first, Hayden’s fervor ramped up quickly as he kissed her hard and fast. He leaned on one elbow while his free hand skated down her flesh. She was so soft and pliant beneath him. Her eyes flew open when he pressed hard over her clit. Wanting to give her more, he tweaked her nipples then pinched them roughly.
Hayden’s animals were right below the surface, urging him on. “Oh,” Millie cried out, egging him on even more. He needed to taste her before he did anything else. He was addicted to seeing her unravel in his arms.
She moaned as he kissed his way down her stomach. Her spicy coconut scent intensified as he went. Her bronze skin was slick with her sweat and the noises she made almost robbed him of his control. This wasn’t going to be his best performance, but they would both get what they needed.
He ran a hot, wet tongue through her slit and over her clit. Using his thumbs, he spread her folds and laved the area, skirting around the engorged nub. Her hips followed his mouth, seeking her release. He was going to keep her on the edge this time.
A cry escaped when Hayden blew hot breath on her throbbing clit. He looked up and met her gaze when he inserted a finger inside her channel followed by another. With her eyes on his, he extended his tongue then circled and pressed on her sensitive nub. When Millie’s hips grew more urgent, Hayden stopped and sat back on his knees. His cock was hard as stone.
“No!” Her pupils were dilated, and her head thrashed on the pillow. “Mas, necesito mas. I’m so close.” Her body shuddered and her back arched.
“What do you want, mi alma?”
“You…your dick inside me. Ahora.”
Pressing his lips to her overheated skin, Hayden’s brown gaze looked through to her soul. He twined his fingers with hers and rubbed his cock through her slit. His shaft slid easily through her copious juices. Once he was coated, he pulled his hips back and angled his cock at her center.
Hayden entered Millie in one hard thrust. Holding her gaze, he moved in and out of her in a fast and furious rhythm. He had pushed himself right along with her and now his control had snapped. “Can’t slow,” he informed her.
“You’d better not.” Her growl was sexy and left no doubt she was right there with him. He couldn’t form words as the connection between them intensified while he thrust into her welcoming body. His pleasure spiked when her muscles clamped down on his shaft. It restricted his movements and intensified his pleasure.
“I’m trying to be gentle,” he assured her as he plowed into her and bit the flesh at her neck. He wanted to mark her with his teeth. It was a primal urge that came from his animals.
“Gentle is overrated.” Millie grabbed his ass and pulled him closer.
Hayden chuckled and kissed the side of her neck. I love you, Millie. More than anything.”
Hayden stopped her reply as he slammed into her then reached between them and rubbed her sensitive clit with each harsh thrust. Within seconds, she exploded and her back arched. Her breasts were pressed against the hard muscles of his chest.
Her climax had him moving in and out of her body with supernatural speed, rubbing against her clit with each move. Before she came down from her orgasm, Hayden’s spine tingled, and his balls drew up tight. He stilled inside her and threw back his head as he shouted his release.
His cock pulsed inside her, marking her as his. There would be no one else for either of them. She collapsed against the pillow several seconds later when they were completely spent. He pulled out of her body, wanting nothing more than to thrust back inside. Not yet, give her all of you first.
“I want to show you something,” he said as he stood up by the side of the bed.
Millie sat up against the headboard with the pillows behind her back. “What’s that?” He loved seeing the excitement in her eyes as she gazed at him.
“Stay right there and don’t move. Stay exactly like that with your beasts on full display.” His animals prowled beneath his skin and his cock hardened once again.
She stretched her arms to the top of the bed. “Alright, mi negra.”
Hayden closed his eyes and called up his panther and let the shift take him over. Within seconds he dropped to all fours and lifted his head to watch his mate. Her eyes were wide and shinning with unshed tears.
“Dios, you are stunning. Can I pet you?” She crawled to the edge of the bed and sat naked on her knees.
In answer, Hayden approached her and butting her hand with his head. Energy sizzled over his skin at the contact. He would never tire of how his mate’s touch soothed and incited him at the same time.
“I will cherish your trust for the rest of my life and protect you with my life.”
Hayden jumped onto the bed and knocked her to her back. In his panther form, he stood over her and relished the sight of her petting his sides while professing her love for him. He had his other half and would never let her go.
In a second bright flash of light, Hayden shifted back into his human form and brought her close then kissed the top of her head. “Want to go shower?”
“Not yet. I want to enjoy having you close.” Her voice was low and sleepy. “Thank you for showing me your animal.”
“That’s only the beginning. I will show you each one I carry inside.” Fatigue weighed him down more than he expected. It had been an eventful two weeks. Hayden grabbed the blanket from the foot of the bed and spread it over them. “Get some rest, mi alma.”
“Just need a little…” her voice drifted off and her breathing evened out.
Hayden allowed his eyes to close. “We didn’t have the best beginning, but you’re mine now. I want to mate you as soon as all this is behind me. I’m not letting you go.”
As if in answer, Millie turned fully into him and burrowed closer. Having his Fated Mate in his arms was surreal. He refused to think about what he had to do when he woke up. He was going to enjoy the moment while he could.
Before he drifted off, Hayden said a silent prayer to the Goddess asking her to look over them as they went on this mission. He accepted full blame but needed to ensure the safety of his friends and the warriors.
Chapter 19
Hayden’s heart was all he could hear as it pounded in his chest. He couldn’t catch his breath and his mind refused to settle into the calm he was used to before they walked into a battle. He had so much to lose now that he’d found Millie. How the hell did his friends walk into danger so readily? He was nearly paralyzed with fear for her.
The base in front of them was alive with the buzz of activity. The soldiers had tripled from the night before. Most were patrolling on foot. They carried the guns Millie had warned him about.
A gunshot wouldn’t kill him unless they managed to remove his head from his shoulders. A bullet to his heart would slow him down. In a normal situation against humans, it wouldn’t be enough to make him vulnerable, but with the numbers they were looking at he wasn’t so sure of his chances.
Hayden blew out a breath and forced negative thoughts away. “Does Killian have an extraction team nearby?”
Zander rolled his eyes. “Aye. I told you that an hour ago. They’re hidden on the streets of the closest neighborhoods.”
“Do you think Jack is in there, too?” The asshole better be. Not only did Hayden want to exact vengeance for what he’d done to him, he also wanted to eliminate the threat to his kind and his mate.
Zander paused as he checked the sgian dubhs he had strapped under his arms. “Shite. He’d better be. I doona feel like hunting him doon to ensure he has no samples anywhere.”
Evzen’s grip tightened on his seven-foot-tall staff. “Let’s hope so. Especially since the search of his house came up empty. I have two sorcerers infiltrating his company as new employees to ensure there is nothing in those buildings either.”
Hayden wanted to kick his own ass. It hadn’t taken long for Killian to discover Jack’s address. They sent a team there right away. The male hadn’t been there, but they’d talked to his
wife and searched his house. And had come up fucking empty.
It was enough to piss him off. It felt as if there was this atomic bomb heading their way and they had no way to send it off course. They hadn’t found his personal computer, had no idea who he worked with or for, and no idea how many of Hayden’s samples he might have in his possession. To top that off they were facing about a hundred soldiers before they could destroy any and all evidence of his existence.
Rage fueled his adrenalin and Hayden was eager to get the show on the road. He was still weak. Apparently, healing from having pieces cut from his heart and body took more time than anticipated. He should be at one hundred percent by now, but he wasn’t. If it continued, he would have to ask Jace about it.
Zander clapped him on the shoulder. “We will find him and eliminate the threat. The situation is no’ as bad as it could be. They didn’t move anything oot of this lab during the day. They thought there were only three of us and searched the base for us all day. They assume we’re still there somewhere. Because you never showed them exactly what you are capable of, they are underestimating us. Right now, let’s focus on this battle.”
Hayden nodded and turned to face the Dark Warriors and his Lieutenants. “You all know the building we need to focus on. Getting through the gate will be easy. You know the plan. Don’t underestimate these soldiers just because they’re human. If you are hit by a dart get the fuck out of there. You’ll be weakened and vulnerable.”
“Once I enthrall the gate guards, follow us through,” Zander interjected before he turned and walked to the car they’d rented. Hayden piled in followed by Evzen. Bhric and Zeke remained behind to lead the rest. Over two dozen lives were on the line because he’d fucked up and he wasn’t even sorry.
His decision is what brought him to his Fated Mate and there was no way he felt bad for doing that. He wished it didn’t create such a big disaster, but he would never change it if it meant not meeting Millie.