Claimed by the Claws

by Laura Wylde

  “You are talking in circles you know that, right? I mean, you sound about as bad as that old man in there. What does that actually mean?”

  I should have known that I wasn't going to be able to bypass her mind. Bree was too smart for that. Bree wasn’t going to let me get away with it and I took a deep breath and decided that I was going to tell her part of the truth. It was going to be bad enough that she would think that was it, and then I wouldn’t have to tell her the real bit that I was holding then until later.

  “Me and you are going to have to go out into Marken Woods and find a certain root that can be a bit elusive.”

  “A root? That’s it?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Well that doesn't sound so bad.”

  “It is just a very rare root and we have to personally go find it. I have never seen it before and I don’t even what it looks like. It sounds very unusual and the plant that it comes from is a purple black, so it shouldn't be too hard to find. Doc was making it like it was going to be impossible, so I think it will cause a little bit of trouble. I know that you are not too into the woods, and you might not want to do this. but we both have to do it together.”

  “Well that doesn't sound so bad. Even if it is hard to find, it would just give us more time together. This is what we have to do, we have to make you the Alpha so that you can be as strong as possible.”

  Bree was taking it far better than I thought she would and for a second I almost went through with the rest of it and told her the bit that I thought she was going to be upset about. I wanted to believe that she would take it just as well, but I wasn't so sure. Right now, I was going to hold it in and wait until we got everything together first. Then she could know the full truth.

  Chapter 23

  Bree

  I felt like Daxton was still holding something back. It was just the way that he looked at me and there seemed to be a little bit of guilt on his face. I don't know what it was derived from, but I did know that he wasn't telling me the whole truth.

  “So what are we supposed to do about this root?”

  “We have to go get it, now.”

  I certainly wasn't ready to go trucking around in the woods, but if that was the only way, then I didn't see a way out of it. I knew that Daxton was just trying to keep me safe, even though a ritual for mating was embarrassing. I knew that I was going to have to go along with it. I wanted to fit in here so badly, so desperately that I would do anything. This didn’t seem so hard, finding a root.

  “Can we go tonight? Should we take anything with us?”

  He told me that we would go back to his place and grab a few things before we took off. We weren't going to be with anybody else, and it was just going to be the two of us. I couldn't think of a better way to spend the evening, especially after our morning catch up was interrupted with so many people and then Greg Collins again. I knew that no matter how long it took, as long as I was with Daxton, it didn't matter.

  “Do you know how much I love you Bree?”

  I giggled and told him that I did even though it was the first time he had said it out loud. Daxton was expressive, but not in a verbal kind of way, but he showed me that he cared a lot by the way that he touched me and by the way that he held me in his arms. That was all the answer that I needed, but it was nice to hear him say the words as well.

  Daxton leaned down and kissed me and before long I was wanting it to go further. He chastised me and told me that we didn't have time for that right now. It wasn't something that I really wanted to hear. I was under the impression that we could make time How hard could it be?

  After getting a few things and stuffing it into a bag that I could carry on my back and the mode of transportation was finally unveiled. As soon as we were outside, Daxton was turning into a bear and he didn't have to ask me to get on top of his back, I already knew the drill, but it still made me a bit shaky inside. I was wearing short shorts and his brown hair was tickling my inner thighs. I knew that I wasn't supposed to be bothered in this way, not now, not the way that Daxton was at the moment, but I couldn't help but feel something. I just told myself it was because I knew it was Daxton underneath it all.

  He ran fast and we were deep into the woods before I knew it. Before now, I haven't spent much time in the woods. I did enjoy the quiet of the place though. There was a peacefulness that took over when I was in the woods and I didn't know if it was because of my surroundings, or if it was because of the man that I was riding on. At the moment, I think it was a little bit of both.

  Daxton stopped and laid down so that I could get off. He was rather tall and went on all fours and I had never asked for him to do that, but he did seem to do it automatically. Many things that Daxton did to show me that he cared were things that I had never had to ask for. It was like he had just known what it was that I needed and he had been there to fulfill it, every single time.

  “Are you ready?”

  “I ready to go anywhere with you Daxton.”

  “I really hope you mean that Bree. We have a long road ahead of us, but I promise you it will be worth it in the end.”

  I wanted to believe him and I took his hand again. Against all odds, I knew that there was nowhere else that I would rather be. The woods were dark and they seemed to get darker as we went, but Daxton didn’t seem slowed down by that in the least bit.

  “So you can see in the dark?”

  He grinned and said that he could. “Quite well.”

  “So, last night in your bedroom...”

  Daxton had a devilish look on his face and I wanted to slap him. Last thing that I wanted to think about was how well he had seen me. It was part of the reason I had felt so secure in the moment. I think that Daxton knew that, but I still wasn't sure if I wanted to hit him or not.

  “While, I didn't tell you that I can see in the dark, I just want you to know that I love every inch of you. There is not a thing that I would change about you and I mean that truly. I have waited my whole life for you Bree and I don't want you to spend one day thinking that you are not enough.”

  I didn't know if he was telling the truth, but he didn't give me time to speak anyways. His lips were on mine before I knew it and I was falling in against his chest. He just felt so good against me and I never wanted to let him go.

  He was one that broke it off and told me that we had to get going. It was hard for me to come back from the false start and I felt bewildered.

  “We don't know how long this is going to take Bree, so we should really get going.”

  I could feel myself nodding a little bit. Last thing that I wanted to do was wait. There was no way that I was going to be able to go another night without this touch. It just didn't seem right.

  When I wasn't right behind him as he walked out, he looked behind me and put his hand out again. It was his way of asking without asking and I knew that my place was next to him. My place was by the side of my mate, even if it wasn’t official yet. There was nothing that could make it any more real than it already was.

  I stayed close to him as we made our through the woods. It was darker than I would have liked it to be and since I wasn’t in the shifter, I didn't get to see in the dark like he did. All I could see was blackness around me that was impenetrable. Even when my eyes had adjusted as much as they were going to, I couldn’t see a thing.

  “How are we supposed to find it if I can't even see?”

  “You will see it, don't worry. It glows at night and that is why it’s easier to find right now. In the daytime, all we have to go on is little blue stalks that can rarely be seen. We would have to pull up plants that we think are it and hope for the best. I'm not leaving these woods until we find it, so the best time is now.”

  I liked that Daxton liked to take charge, more than I would ever admit. There was a part of me that didn’t like it though. He didn’t give me a chance to have an opinion because he thought he knew the best way. While it might have been true, it brought out the rebellious side of me that
didn’t like to be told what to do.

  Keeping my mouth shut for over an hour, it was getting harder for me to be silent. My legs, back, pretty much everything was starting to hurt and I still had this need inside of me to feel him. I had not gotten all that I wanted and it wasn't going to be finished between us until I got it. I felt like he had made me this way and now he leaving me twisting in the wind. I don’t think he had a clue how horny I was and how much it was affecting me. I could barely think at the moment while Daxton was so close but so far away.

  “Daxton, can we stop for a little bit?”

  “Why what's wrong?”

  “I'm just tired and we have been walking for a very long time and it feels like we're doing this for nothing. I don't see anything growing and I can't see anything for that matter. I don't know how I'm going to be helpful.”

  “You just have to be patient Bree, that's all.”

  “You make it sound so easy Daxton, but it's not. I'm not like you. I don't run around in the woods in my free time. I don't think I have hiked like this in a very long time and I'm just beat. I'm not that type of girl.”

  “You're going to be fine.”

  At the moment I didn't feel like I was going to be fine. At the moment I felt like my legs were jelly and my arms were rubber. They were just hanging down beside me and I knew that I was making it harder on him. While he didn't look tired, I had to think that he could feel something.

  “It is not going to be fine. I need time to relax and I can't do that when we're just tromping through the woods, not even sure where we're going. Can we just take a little break?”

  He made a growling sound and it told me that he didn't want to take a break and that he wanted to keep going. But the fact of the matter was that I needed to stop and I just did. He put his hand out like I was going to come to him as I always had, but this time I did not. This time he had to realize that I needed a moment and I wasn’t going to be able to play by his rules.

  “We don’t have time to stop Bree. We can’t stop until we find the root. We cannot wait any longer. Every moment that we wait, just lets Greg grow stronger. I can't let that happen.”

  I didn't want to argue ahead with him, but I wasn't ready to go either. Instead of going to him and carrying on silently as I had, I sat down where I was and put my bag in front of me. I wanted him to know that I wasn't going to wait for him to decide when it was time to stop. I was my own person and I was the one that was going to decide when I was ready to stop. And I was ready.

  “Are you really going to do this?”

  I shook my head that I was.

  “You can see in the dark. I figured that I didn't have to explain myself any further.”

  “We have to get going Bree.”

  “You can go ahead without me, Daxton, but I'm going to take a break.”

  “I have a feeling that you need something else actually, that's why you’re getting this attitude.”

  I don't know why but that just bothered me even more. He was acting like I was a child and it was starting to piss me off. Why did he think that he knew best? He was assuming that I was one of the dozens of brain-dead women that he had been with in the past. There are some things that I wish I hadn’t overheard. I had never been with anybody else and I hated the idea of him with so many other women.

  “I assure you that it has nothing to do with that Daxton. That is the last thing on my mind right now.”

  Daxton didn't want to hear that. He was just toying with me and I didn't like the way my body reacted almost immediately. It was one thing for him to try and manipulate the situation in that way, it was another thing altogether that he was able to. I don't know why it really bothered me and I felt like my body was betraying me.

  I thought he was going to coax me to go on. That was what had started after all. His hands cut across my ass and then the other one moved out between my legs. That got my attention if nothing else. He wanted me badly by the way he was touching me and I was unable to tell him no.

  My heart was pounding in my chest as his lips attached to one of the tips of my breast. I was arching my back as much as I possibly could, wanting nothing but his mouth on me. The hand that was in between my legs was rubbing me, knowing that I wasn’t going to be able to stop him. His tongue teased and his fingers delighted, pulling me closer to the only ending I could have with him..

  As much as I wanted to tell him no, I couldn’t push him away. There was no way that I could. I wanted this and when he started to rub against me, it was clear to him that I did. I knew that I was wet and the remark he made about it didn't help matters. Just sent the flood of fluid down, preparing me for what was going to happen next. He was going to be inside of me, ravishingly and there was nothing I could do about it. There was nothing that I wanted to do about it either.

  “Don't make me wait Daxton. I can't anymore.”

  He was strumming on my center and seemed like he liked to make me jerk. My muscles were already hurting from doing so and there was a dramatic side to me that felt like I was never going to be whole again if his hands weren’t on me.

  It seemed strange, but ever since the first time I had been with Daxton, I realized that I was only complete when we were together. He was the missing piece, not just in my life, but in everything. No one would ever be able to take his place.

  I don't know what it was that made him finally take pity on me and give me what I needed, but I felt the shorts that I was wearing jerked down, complete without a ripping sounds because he was going too fast and then cool air on my backside. I didn't have anything on underneath it I was not fair for him to expose me in such a way.

  Daxton told me that he couldn’t wait either. His fingers were as demanding as his mouth and I moaned in pleasure. No matter how much I liked to think that I was in charge, I wasn't. I don't think I was in charge of my life right now, let alone my own body.

  Seconds more I had to wait before he laid me down on the grass and leaves underneath us. The floor of the forest wasn't as soft as it could be, certainly not as soft as the bed, but as soon as he started crawling on top of my body, I could feel his hard muscles, it didn't matter what was underneath me. The only thing that mattered was what was on top of me and I just couldn't stop myself from latching on to him. My arms went around his neck and my legs wrapped around his waist, hooking my ankles so that he couldn't shake me off. I wasn't going anywhere.

  Daxton pressed down inside of me. I had half-expected to feel the same sharp pain as before, but I knew that it wasn't to be. I was more than willing to feel that pain, especially knowing what kind of pleasure would come afterwards, but I didn't feel any of it. All there was to feel was a stretching sensation that was still hard to describe and unadulterated pleasure. Him being inside of me was like heaven and I never wanted him to stop.

  Daxton tried to shake me, but he wasn’t able to. I was holding on too tight and though he wasn’t able to pull out as far and slam in as hard, I was more than happy with the way things were. He was impossible to ignore, harder to deny and finally I let my legs unhook from him. It was something that I soon regretted, though I’m not sure that regret was the right word. While I knew what would happen if I did, I welcomed it. Daxton was able to move faster and he was also able to push deeper.

  I was lost with the first orgasm ripping through my body and there was nothing more that I could do but scream out. He was pounding into me and I was coming all over his hard shaft. Every push in made it harder for me to do much more. I couldn’t take it anymore and before long I was gripping him with my nails.

  Daxton growled underneath me and I loved the sound of it. I loved how much he gave me and I knew that I was never going to be with another man. Daxton was to be with me for life. I just knew it.

  He roared out loudly, filling me deep with his seed and I couldn’t help but cling to the man that I loved. I loved him with all of my heart and I knew that I had waited all of this time for him. I was waiting all this time and I’d never even known
it.

  Chapter 24

  Daxton

  “Look baby, I think I see the root.”

  I looked to where she was suggesting and I was sure that she was right. The more I thought it was hopeless, the more I was reminded that fate wasn’t one that could be messed with. Of course we were to find the root. It was what was supposed to happen. How could it be any other way?

  “See Bree, I knew that everything was going to be okay. We just had to get a little dirty for it to come to light. Now that we found the root, we don’t have to look anymore.”

  “We can go back now and get started on the next part of the ritual.”

  While I knew what that was, she didn’t and I still wasn’t too enthused to tell her about it. The more I tried to get her to stay in the woods though, the more she wanted to go. I tried to convince her that it would be better off if we had another round of pleasure, but I had done it too well the first time. She was sore and wanted some time to heal.

  “I don’t like the fact that you can tell me no. No one has ever been able to before and I don’t want the first one to be you. It just doesn’t seem right. You’re my mate. You should succumb to me.”

  “I just did, not that long ago, but it’s time to get this root back to Doc. He will know what to do with it and hopefully everyone else has found their part.”

  “You’re really going full steam ahead.”

  “Why wouldn’t I? I’m going to be mated to the man I love. What could be better?”

  It was the best answer that I’d ever heard before and I knew then that it was going to be fine. I wasn’t going to get to touch her again right now, but soon, when all of this was behind us, I was going to keep her in my house and in my bed for at least a week. Then she would not have any clever little things to make it not work and to keep my hands off of her. Soon, she would have no choice.