by Bianca D'Arc
But he’d said they were mates. That meant something among shifters. Something permanent. Binding.
Perhaps they weren’t destined to part. Perhaps this amazing man could be hers. For keeps.
Maria fought to get closer to him as his mouth devoured hers. His hands were all over her, moving her, positioning her just the way he wanted her. He stepped forward, pushing her back, and she felt a tree behind her, supporting her. Welcoming her.
Jesse tore his lips away from hers as his hands went to the hem of her skirt. Both of them were breathing harshly as urgency rode them.
“Did you hear what I said, Maria?” Jesse’s words came out in hot puffs of air against her throat as she strained against him. “You’re my mate.” He growled. Actually growled, from deep in his chest, and the sound went straight to her clit.
Oh, yeah.
“I heard,” she agreed.
“You have no objection?” He didn’t pause in his motion. His hands had lifted her skirt out of the way and were now working her panties downward, over her hips, with her full cooperation.
“Nope.” She licked the salty skin of his neck and felt him shiver. Damn. She liked the way he responded to her—just on the edge of control. She wanted to see how far she could push him before he lost it.
She knew him well enough to trust that he would never hurt her. Not even in a frenzy would he allow harm of any kind to come to her. She trusted that as she trusted him, with everything she was and ever would be. It wasn’t logical, but then again, who said love was ever logical. She paused, realizing the simple truth.
She loved him.
“Jesse?” Her panties were off, his pants were open and she needed him. Why was he waiting?
She stretched her neck to look upward, trying to find out what was preventing him from taking her right then and there. She followed his gaze and realized he was checking on Zach. Even in the midst of their mutual need, Jesse remembered his duty and checked the safety of his charge before seeing to his pleasure.
She couldn’t see because her back was to the tree and it probably hid them both from casual view. Some people might be able to see Jesse, but not much of him and certainly not what he was doing. They were completely out in the open yet hidden. It felt supremely naughty to be fucking outside, with the sun high in the sky and people just a short distance away.
“I’m here, my heart,” Jesse replied to her query, looking down to meet her gaze. “You accept that you’re my mate and will be by my side through all that may come?”
The moment felt significant, and magic stirred gently against her exposed skin.
“I am your mate, Jesse.” She felt the need to be formal here in this sacred space. “As you are mine.”
His eyes smoldered as he held her gaze. He pushed inward with one strong, commanding stroke, joining them.
“I’m yours, for now and for always, Maria.”
Words became both impossible and unnecessary as he began a fast, hard glide into her willing body. Breathless with wanting, need spiking with every thrust, she knew this had to be fast. For one thing, they couldn’t leave Zach too long. For another, they hadn’t been together in far too long. It had only been a few hours, but it felt like ages since she’d felt his possession. She needed it like she needed her next breath. She needed to belong to him and have him be hers alone for this short time out of time.
It was a physical necessity she had never experienced before, but she didn’t question it. He was hers. She was his. They needed each other now. End of story.
Why that thought calmed her and thrilled her at the same time, she didn’t quite understand yet, but she thought it probably had something to do with the mysterious way weres chose their mates. She would get the whole story on that score out of Jesse one way or another, but she had more pressing matters to attend to first.
Maria grabbed on to Jesse’s shoulders as his pace increased. He pounded into her, but the tree against her back was as comfortable as a bed, giving her support and even...encouragement? Since when did trees do anything of the kind?
She pushed the strange thought away as Jesse hitched her higher so that her feet were off the ground. He encouraged her to wrap her legs around his waist and she complied happily. The angle and depth of his penetration almost sent her to the moon right then and there, but he paced himself, bringing her with him, making her savor the moment as he prepared her for something...even better? She didn’t know where the thought came from. The somewhat intuitive counsel came from all around. Somewhere outside herself that watched and knew and…blessed their union.
She was supported between the tree and Jesse. His head settled in the curve of her neck as he set up a drugging rhythm with his hips, his cock sliding in hard and fast as he drew them both toward the light that waited. The incredible explosion of feeling and passion that would bathe them in bliss.
When the climax hit, she felt Jesse’s sharp teeth graze her neck and then bite down on the muscle that joined shoulder and neck. The momentary pain added something amazing to the blinding pleasure of the moment. She felt his body tense as she began to spasm around him in the most excruciating, exciting, exhilarating ecstasy she had ever known.
Something about this man, this place, this joining, was special on a very deep level. The pleasure engulfed her, burned her, wiped her away and remade her in that short space of time. No longer was she in her soul alone. A piece of Jesse was there, in the space where a piece of her soul had gone to join with his. They were one in a way she had never anticipated, never expected. Never even dreamed of.
“Wow.”
Jesse chuckled at her whisper of heartfelt awe. Just that easy, she was brought back to earth. To the small circle of very old trees and the man who had taken her places she had never been before.
“Sorry if I hurt you. I didn’t mean to bite.” He licked the words against her shoulder, bathing the small wound he’d made with his tongue while his cock still pulsed gently inside her, reminding her of their closeness.
“I felt it, but it honestly didn’t matter at the time,” she replied, breathless and feeling bone-meltingly satisfied after that amazing climax.
“Does it matter now?” He drew slightly away to meet her gaze.
“Oh, no, Jesse. That’s not what I meant. Surely you can feel…” She didn’t quite know how to put it into words. “We’re joined. Nothing you could do to me is bad. You’d never allow yourself to harm me, just as I couldn’t hurt you. The bite was good. Really good.” She knew her cheeks were heating with a slight blush at the intimacy of talking to him while he was still inside her.
He’d made her more brazen since they’d become lovers, but she was still somewhat new at this level of intimacy. No man she’d been with before had encouraged pillow talk and few stuck around long enough to develop a really close relationship. She had pretty much resigned herself to living alone with only her animals for company when she started the sanctuary. Since then, she hadn’t had a lot of amorous relationships. None, in fact.
Jesse was the first man she’d been with in years. And he’d be the last new man in her bed. The only man from now on. She knew that now. They were the next best thing to married. Their bond went even deeper than the legal tie of human marriage. They were mated in the way of his people. Joined together, soul to soul, magic to magic.
“I think I understand what my aunt was talking about now,” she marveled, remembering those words she’d spoken on the phone about where her magic was centered now.
“Did she warn you about the big bad wolf?” He chuckled next to her ear as he lifted her off his cock, allowing her to straighten her legs but keeping her close.
She swatted his arm playfully. “No. She just said the locus of my magic had changed. I told her I thought it was with you, considering how close we’d gotten so quickly. Now I think she meant her words in a more permanent way. Our magic comingled a bit just now, and I imagine the bond will only grow stronger with time.”
“Really?”
He seemed truly interested in her words, even though he was again searching over her shoulder, making sure Zach and the SUV were still okay. “You can tell that sort of thing?”
“Sometimes,” she confirmed as he stepped back slowly, as if it was hard for him to end their stolen moments together. “I’m not the world’s greatest witch. My skills are small and mostly untrained despite my nona’s best efforts. Until I met you, I’ve been mostly in denial about this other world. I was happy living in willful ignorance on my sanctuary.”
“I’m sorry, honey.” He paused, stroking her cheek with the back of his fingers. “I’d have spared you all this danger and intrigue if I could, but I wouldn’t ever take back our meeting or this joining. This sacred circle witnessed our joining, and by the traditions of my people, we are mated for life now. I won’t ever give you up. And if you still want to live in Iowa, I’ll make it work. I’d give up my Pack for you. I’d give up anything, if only to have you in my life. I’m that serious about this. And about you.” He leaned down to kiss her forehead, and she felt the impact of his words in the far reaches of her heart. He meant it, and that meant the world to her.
“I wouldn’t ask that of you, Jesse. I don’t expect you to cut ties with your family and friends because we’re together.” Doubt crept in. “Unless you think they won’t accept me and you’re talking about leaving your Pack because of that.”
He hugged her in reassurance. “No, sweetheart. They’ll love you. Some of the bitches might cause you grief in the beginning, but that’s to be expected until you prove where you fit in the hierarchy. As magical as you are, and with those martial-arts skills, I don’t think it’ll take long before you settle their minds about where you fit in. And it doesn’t hurt that your cousin is the new Alpha female of the Pack, regardless of the fact that she’s not were.”
He let her go and stepped farther back, helping her right her skirt. “Besides, I don’t really live with the main Pack. I’m Alpha of my own group of ex-soldiers. We live on our own little mountain in my brother’s domain.”
“I see I’m going to have to learn a lot about shifter politics,” Maria said, brushing her skirt into place. She needed to clean up but didn’t want to break the spell of this special moment. This was, for all intents and purposes, her wedding. She wanted to savor it, rushed as it was.
“It’s okay. I’ll be your guide. As I hope you’ll guide me when it comes time to meet your family.” He smiled down at her and she couldn’t help but smile back. She knew at least two of her relatives had already sensed much about her new beau. They’d given their preliminary blessing during that rushed phone call.
“Handsome as you are, Jesse, you’ll have no problem charming two old women.” She reached up and stroked his stubbly cheek with her palm, loving the tactile delight of his masculine features.
“You think I’m handsome?” His eyes danced with humor.
“Come on, Jesse. You know you are. A guy can’t get to your age, looking as good as you do and not notice all the women panting after him. Which is at an end, right? Wolves are supposed to be loyal, aren’t they?” Doubt crept in, though she tried to make light of her words.
“Loyal to a fault,” he agreed solemnly. “Mating with you, Maria, means I’m physically incapable of messing around with another woman. I don’t know how it is for you since you’re not were, but I’ll kill any man who touches you.” She read the serious intent in his eyes and it made her shiver.
“I believe you. But you won’t have to worry. I don’t want anyone but you, Jesse.”
“Good.” Her words seemed to calm the beast that had risen to the fore so easily. “That’s safer for all concerned.”
She wanted to say more on the subject, but the sound of the forest changed and she knew their time in this idyllic place had come to an abrupt end.
“We have to go,” she said in an urgent voice, reflecting the new tenor of the trees. “Something’s happening. I think the storm is coming.”
The clouds had been spreading all day, darkening and deepening. The early morning rain had stopped and faded into an overcast sky that hadn’t produced any more rain. But she sensed that was all about to change.
Chapter Nine
Maria was right about the storm. A moment after they reached the SUV, the heavens opened up and rain gushed forth. Luckily, she’d had time to stop in the rest room and clean up a bit on the way.
She was fairly certain Zach had some inkling of what they’d been doing up in the woods, but she’d rather not advertise. She could only guess how sensitive a werebear’s nose was and hoped she’d been able to wash enough to tone down the smells of what they’d done. Jesse had sniffed her when she came out of the ladies room and nodded, so she guessed she’d been good enough to pass the muster of a werewolf’s nose. That would have to be good enough.
“I don’t like this weather,” Jesse said, watching the clouds as he pulled out of the rest stop and back onto the highway.
“I don’t either, but aren’t we getting awfully close by now?” she asked. “The sooner we find the source of this storm, the sooner we can stop it.”
“Yeah, we’re close. While you were in the bathroom, I checked in with my brother. They’ve got confirmation from the local bloodletter, and Dmitri vouches for the guy. That’s as solid intel as we’re going to get.” Jesse’s face was grim as he handled the SUV through increasingly difficult conditions. “Zach, your parents are still alive. We know where they are and we’re going to get them out. My men are approaching from the other direction and should get there only minutes behind us, but every second counts.”
“Are they okay?” Zach sounded understandably anxious.
“As near as the vamp can tell, their magic is being used to power this storm against their will. It’s not good for them right now, but they’re still fighting. They’re still alive, and where there’s life, there’s hope.”
“Well, one good thing is that we know where we’re going now and don’t have to guess. Will the vampire help or is he strictly there as a lookout?” Maria asked, wanting to know more. This entire situation was so different from anything she’d ever dealt with before, but yet it seemed only natural to go riding into battle at Jesse’s side.
Not that she expected him to just let her tag along. He’d probably tell her to stay with Zach in the car or something. She’d try to follow that directive, but she knew deep down she’d be too worried about him to stand idly by while he walked into the heart of the storm. Zach wouldn’t sit still either while his parents were in danger.
And something about this situation called to her. On a magical level, she understood the power of the storm and felt it reaching out to her. The storm itself wasn’t good or evil. It merely was. But it was susceptible to the control of strong magic, and right now it was being controlled in a malevolent way.
Something inside her told her she could change all that. She didn’t quite know how, but when the time came, she would be ready. A lot of her magic was intuitive. She’d learned not to question her instincts. At the moment, every last one of them was screaming at her to seek out the heart of the storm with her mate.
Her mate. Just thinking those words caused a warm glow to spread through her body and brought a tiny hint of a smile to her face. Mother Earth had truly blessed her with the man She had sent in Her infinite wisdom.
Sure, they’d gotten off to a rocky start when he broke down her door in the middle of the night, but he’d been making it up to her ever since. Making it up in the most delicious, delectable, delightful ways…
“The vamp is an unknown quantity to me. I’ve heard of him but never worked with him directly. Dmitri says he’s a bit of a recluse, even among his own kind. He’s very old. Ancient, in fact. His name is Marco and we speculate he goes back to the time of the Roman Empire.”
“Seriously?” Maria was impressed. “That’s pretty cool.”
“Being an ancient means he’s very good at what he does. By the time a bloodletter has a
couple of centuries on him, usually he’s gained a level of control over his abilities the younger ones lack. If he makes it to the five-hundred-year mark, he’s got both skill and control. Those who are older than that are usually either Masters or hermits. This one is among the latter, at least in recent memory. Dmitri fought alongside this guy the last time the Venifucus threatened our realm, which says a lot for the kind of man he was back then. What he is now? I really can’t say until we get to know each other better.”
Jesse’s eyes were constantly moving as he drove through the downpour. She assumed he was talking more for her and Zach’s benefit than because he suddenly had become chatty. And it was working. His running narrative was definitely helping keep her mind off the storm and the treacherous conditions through which he drove.
The sky was dark green in spots and the clouds were so dense and gray that Maria couldn’t tell if it was day or night. She wondered if the vampire was limited by the position of the sun regardless of the weather conditions. She knew so little about this world, really. There was going to be a lot to learn…if they lived through this little adventure.
The estate where Zach’s parents were being held was large, which could work to his advantage, Jesse thought as he drove through the increasing storm. Getting in would be relatively easy, but traversing the ground to get to the captive grizzlies was another thing entirely. The cavalry was on its way, but the bears didn’t have a lot of time, judging from the building intensity of the storm.
It was growing fast now, as if the bears had held out as long as they could. Jesse had to act now, but how could he with Maria and Zach in tow? He doubted either one of them would stay put if he told them to hang back. And being a realist, he had to admit he admired them both for it.