Kane joined them, seeing his shifter’s hackles rise. “Easy, Chase. He can’t help it.”
“But I didn’t do anything but put her on my shoulder. It’s not like I smacked her ass or anything.”
Brogan and Jean-Luc exchanged uneasy glances.
“Respect our company, brother,” Kane advised with a trace of warning in his tone, a growl in his chest. “That’s his mate, and they just found out this morning. She can’t be touched by another for at least a month. Her skin is too…sensitive?” He looked to Marex with raised brows, as if asking, Did I get it right?
Marex’s teeth shrank back, and he stopped seeing red. Nadine cupped his face and murmured not to do anything, that the shifter didn’t know, but now he does.
Fuck. He almost started a fight over nothing. Good thing Kane knew his shit.
“That’s right,” he confirmed. “But only for the first seven days, not a month.”
Chase snapped his fingers and pointed at her. “Got it.”
Speaking of touch, hers was stirring his desire, and if he didn’t stop her, they’d get a little too intimate in front of everybody. Another side effect of “activating” their bond was a constant need to fuck for the next seven nights. It wasn’t something they could control, even if they wanted to, and he hated that they were in an underground sanctuary surrounded by shifters, unfree to make love as much as they wanted and needed to.
“Sorry,” he offered the shifter, so his friends could stop looking on edge. “I can’t help it. It’s an instinct.”
“It’s cool, Marex. Now I know.” Chase gave a respectful nod and sat back on his stool.
Kane’s shoulders relaxed, and he tossed Marex a quick thankful glance he hadn’t lost his shit. “If anyone knows what it’s like to feel a little territorial over their mates, it’s us.”
“I’m not territory,” Nadine remarked.
Kane chuckled and shrugged. “Whatever you say.”
They spent the next couple hours together as a group, with Nadine retelling how she managed to subdue an entire night shift of guards, and two of their four killer wolves, which, Marex learned for the first time, were probably captives.
Despite the fact there wasn’t much evidence to support it, Kane and his crew insisted the wolves in UCC custody were unable to shift back to human for whatever reason, and had been exiled from their pack. There were multiple good men missing from various packs around North America, never to be seen again, with no explanation as to what happened to them. The rumors were that the UCC captured them, stuck them with hybrid steroids, and trained them to hunt down and kill whatever the UCC told them to hunt down and kill.
If it was true, it was sickening.
The subject was thus changed, and they got to know a little more about their host and his beta males, who never really looked him in the eye when they were addressed. Marex thought it was odd, as he’d always suspect someone who didn’t look him in the eye, but Nadine had whispered it was a show of respect for their alpha. No matter how tight their bond, how deep their affection for one another, his distinction had to be recognized at all times.
Later, when Kane determined it was time for everyone to rest, he pulled him aside.
“I’m assuming your pals are okay sleeping on sofa beds and such?” Kane asked and Marex nodded. “Good, because it’s all we can offer. Their feet might hang off the edge, but there’s always the floor. For you and Nadine, I have a bed, down a few yards from the common areas, but there isn’t much privacy, just old sheets hanging on a clothesline.”
“That’ll do just fine, Kane. Gratitude.”
Despite the fact they’d been up and on the run nonstop for hours, Marex was only a little fatigued, and eagerly waited for his fated to return from her shower. She’d taken her time—no doubt anxious to wash off the grime and dirt from their tunnel travels—and it’d driven him crazy. Brogan and Jean-Luc were stretched out on the sofa beds in the living area. Chase and Reed had left to take care of some pack business, with the wolf guard Tony and Kane remaining.
The space reserved for him and Nadine was about twenty feet down from the living area, pushed up against the brick wall, with old bedsheets used as the three “walls” for a sense of seclusion.
After his shower, Marex paced, wearing a pair of flannel pajamas pants from a box of clothes Kane had offered. He didn’t intend to keep them on.
The second Nadine came around the hanging sheet in nothing but a worn Metallica T-shirt, he snatched her hand and yanked her on top of him on the bed.
She let out a surprised yelp, then a pleased moan as her body melted on his. Their first kiss in hours was long, slow, but greedy. The lights were turned off, and the tunnel was dark as night, even though it was mid-morning aboveground.
He lifted his head off the pillow, burying his nose in her neck, and inhaling. She smelled like bar soap and warm, luscious, healthy female. With a growl, he flipped them over with him on top, pushing her shirt above her breasts. “Why wear this at all?” he whispered, pressing kisses on her chest and nipples.
She arched, running her fingers through his hair with a moan. “We shouldn’t.”
“But I need you.”
“We’re not alone.”
He let out a frustrated sound, bringing his face up to hers. “We haven’t been since the moment we met.”
“Gods, so true. I can’t wait for the night we’re utterly, completely, blissfully, finally alone.”
“You know their presence isn’t going to stop me,” he warned her, then coming back between her legs to press his erection against her naked center, causing her to groan. He kissed her sweet lips, hooking his thumb in the elastic waistband of his pajama pants and pushed them down enough to free his cock. “I’ll be quiet,” he promised gruffly.
She softly giggled. “But I can’t be.”
“You were in the car.”
“Eisley had the music on full blast. It was a buffer. You could hear a pin drop now.”
With his cock rubbing between her slick folds, throbbing to thrust inside, he squeezed his eyes shut at her denial. “Please, baby.”
She kissed the top of his nose. “I’m sure we’ll find a time to be alone later. Let’s talk for a little while.” To his total disappointment, she wriggled from underneath him and turned to face him on her side. “Tell me about your chat with the big bad wolf.”
He chuckled, turning to face her. “It was surprising. He’s not as much of an ass as people said, but he is arrogant, which is not surprising.”
“Hmm. People said the same things about you when I started to track you down.”
“Is that so?”
Her mouth moved wryly. “Hmm.”
“We have a few things in common other the obvious. I respect him.”
“Already?”
“It’s mutual. We both have a lot on the line. We could easily drop this mission and move on with our lives, but I think he feels the same way I do, that big changes don’t begin with cowards.”
She smiled at that, tracing a finger along his jaw.
They lay like that for a while, whispering under the covers, caressing, touching, kissing in between. Later, her head was on his shoulder, leg over his, asleep, but Marex remained awake, unable to welcome sleep just yet.
He heard the steel door being opened, then Kane’s deep voice speaking, followed by a feminine one. Sounded like the alpha was entertaining. The woman’s husky laughter carried through the air.
“Who’s on the sofas?” she whispered as they drew nearer to where everyone slept.
Everyone except him.
“Those vamps I told you about,” he told, seemingly ushering her past them. “Come on. This way.”
When he saw the sheet in front of the bed move, Marex knew they were walking by, and heading to the other side.
“I’ve missed you, Lila.”
“I know.”
A match was struck. Candles lit. Moving his head to the right, he saw their figures in shadows, Kan
e’s huge form towering over this Lila, who appeared petite next to the alpha. They undressed quickly.
Kane bent down and kissed her, a very animalistic growl tearing from his throat, before he picked her up and threw her on some kind of hard surface. “Spread your legs,” he whispered.
Lila had an attractive body by the outline cast in candlelight as she leaned back on her hands and did as commanded, opening her knees. Kane came to stand in front of her, yanking her ankles so forcefully, Lila landed flat on her back, and she liked it, telling Kane to fuck her, fuck her good.
Marex’s jaw clenched; he shouldn’t be watching this.
He chose to move his gaze to the ceiling. The sounds coming from on the other side of the sheet were erotic and primal. When they started fucking, it didn’t sound as if the leader had any qualms about being quiet, groaning and growling, their shadows flickering across the sheet with every position they changed to. At one point, he had her bent over the table, thrusting in her from behind, grabbing her hair, giving her soft but gritty commands to slow down, speed up, take all of him.
Holy shit. He was hard.
Marex couldn’t take it anymore. He moved on top of Nadine, nudging her legs open with his knees, his lips close to her ear so no one would hear him as he whispered, “Wake up, baby.” Then, while she made little noises and started to stir, he pressed open-mouthed kisses along her neck, running his palm along her outer thigh. So soft and womanly she was.
She stretched, bowing her body, and he captured a nipple in his mouth and slid his arm beneath her to keep her at that angle.
Kane’s teeth-gritting grunts caught her attention, and she turned her head to the right, finally noticing the activity going on the other side of the sheet. “Marex,” she whispered hastily, but he kept going, too far gone to stop. He moaned short in response, moving to the other breast, cupping it and licking the peak, before swirling his tongue around it.
Nadine’s head dropped back, and she bit her bottom lip, suppressing her moans. Marex hungrily sucked on her breasts, his sole purpose to drive her mad so she could also be at the point of no return.
Next door, Lila was being drilled from behind, panting wildly.
“Give me that pussy,” Kane’s command rumbled softly through the silence, lightly smacking the female’s ass. “So good.”
Marex’s thoughts exactly. He pulled the shirt off Nadine and met her mouth, plunging in his tongue slowly and deeply, the way she liked, pushing cock against her wet sex.
“All right, my love, all right,” she whispered after she broke away, and held his face close to hers. “I know—”
“I’ll be quiet,” he uttered with a plea in his voice.
“So will I.” She pushed at him until he turned to his back and she straddled him. The sight of her on top, the glow of the muted candlelight showing half of her beautiful body, was more than he could bear.
Marex couldn’t help it, he sat up, holding her to him and sucking more on her nipple as she watched Kane pull out of Lila, pick her up, and fuck her against the brick wall. They were going at it fast and hard now by the harsh breathing of both. It was a thrill, listening to their lovemaking, and Marex was beginning to think it turned Nadine on, too.
She drew him off her breast and kissed him, biting down on his bottom lip. Trying to be quiet was no easy task, but it was also a bit of a rush, knowing the pair next to them likely weren’t aware of what was going on.
He lifted Nadine by her waist, and she wrapped her hand around his girth, sinking on him slowly, taking him in. Gods! It’d been hours since he was inside her but it felt like the first time with her so snug and slick, his eyes widened, a cry ready to rip from his chest and out of his mouth. Her hand smacked on his lips and she began to ride him, shifting her ass up and down, eyes rolling back a few times when he pumped his hips to meet hers.
His cock was so ready to release, but he wanted her to come, too. The bed didn’t make any noise, and with Kane and Lila’s ragged breaths and bodies slapping, they wouldn’t be able to hear him and Nadine doing the same.
She removed her hand from his mouth, running her fingers down his chest and abdomen, riding him with slow, sensuous rolls of her hips, hair tickling the tops of her breasts. Damn, he was a lucky man. And he was going to orgasm if he didn’t shut his eyes and just enjoy the ride. When he opened them again—couldn’t help it—her hands were raked through her hair, eyes closed, breasts wiggling with every thrust of her hips.
He cupped her breasts, circling the nipples with the pads of his thumbs, pressing his lips together hard to keep from moaning. Gods, he was so close.
When she brought up her knees and set her feet on the bed, he nearly lost it, and was unable to stop a short, guttural cry as she bounced her ass up and down on him.
Goddamn. How was he going to stop from screaming when he came?
Nadine’s teeth descended, and she threw her head back, her hips bucking wildly, riding him with a fervid speed. The sight was so hot, Marex could hold back no more. Gripping her hips, his contracted his abs, head off the pillow, coming so hard he was certain the tip of his cock exploded, while his mind went blank with the ultimate, highest form of physical pleasure.
Nadine collapsed on him, hair wild all over him, heaving for breath.
It wasn’t until the stars started to evaporate from his sight that he realized Kane and Lila were silent, their shadows unmoving, but their voices whispering.
Had they heard them?
Marex didn’t care. And he was finally too exhausted to pay attention to anything now other than sleep. Nadine kissed his chest and moved off him, bringing the bedsheet over their bodies and snuggling in the crook of his arm.
A few moments later, the candles were blown out, and darkness overwhelmed the tunnel once again.
Five
Already, life was proving much, much different with Marex Daulton as her fated.
Two of the three times they’d made love, it’d been in someone else’s presence, and although this morning had been kind of hot, she couldn’t wait until they had their own home so she could scream as much as she’d been dying to.
They were awakened by smells of food and the unmistakable sound of someone hitting a punching bag. The hour showed it was early evening, and the shifters were done being quiet, eager to eat dinner and work out. Not that Nadine could blame them. She imagined being holed up in an underground tunnel was the last choice in a shifter’s list of living arrangements.
At least their company wasn’t nearly as unsettling as she’d assumed.
Chase and Reed, for instance, were nothing she thought beta male shifters would be. Though they were tall and large like their leader, they weren’t as…barbaric as some vampires had painted all shifters to be. Chase was well-dressed, handsome with his light brown hair and blue eyes, quick with his smile, and eager to impress with his stories. Reed, on the other hand, had an edge his younger brother did not possess. He had long hair, which he wore back in a ponytail, gray eyes, and a sinister kind of smile. Though he wasn’t nearly as talkative, he was still nice and hospitable, and she felt comfortable around him.
Brogan and Chase got along well, whereas Jean-Luc and Reed kept sizing each other up every chance they got.
After she and Marex got up and dressed, they joined the common area, finding Seth—the one who’d greeted them at the main door—giving jabs and hooks to the punching bag, while Jean-Luc held it in place, giving a few pointers in between. Chase and Brogan were in the kitchen cooking, talking sports, and Reed was talking to Kane in the corner, nodding his head while his leader spoke.
Nadine felt her face heat when she spotted Kane, vividly recalling his hulking shadow thrusting in a very wanton woman who couldn’t seem to get enough of him last night. Not long after she and Marex had finished making love and the candles were put out, Kane and his companion were at it again, except they were much quieter the second time. Their sexual energy was intoxicating, rousing her desire and need for Marex, but sh
e’d been too exhausted to do anything about it, and had fallen asleep a minute after hearing them.
Though, with all the noise and smells going on when they woke up, they took advantage and made love again. She was always wet and wanting, and he always hard and needing, and to deny it for as long as they did last night would’ve been impossible. They were quick about it, though.
But the second Kane looked over as they approached, there was a glint in his eyes, and she knew that he knew they’d heard him last night.
She prayed he wouldn’t put it on blast. Shifters were blatant and open about their sexual prowess, and fucking in front of each other wasn’t totally unheard of either. She wondered what it would be like to be a shifter female.
Speaking of, where was the one Kane had been with last night? She must’ve left by the looks of it, which was a little disappointing, since she’d been constantly outnumbered by men nonstop lately. It would’ve been nice to have a female to talk to for a change.
“Did you get enough sleep?” Kane asked, speaking to Marex.
Her fated couldn’t seem to help quirking his mouth, as if he also knew Kane was aware of their dual lovemaking this morning. “Good enough.”
Kane winked at them and moved to the kitchen. “Sorry, but once we get hungry, it’s hard to keep quiet.”
Marex and Nadine exchanged amused glances.
“What’s on the menu tonight, Chase?”
Chase started scraping the food from the frying pan to a casserole dish. “Ham, potatoes, black-eyed beans, corn on the cob, wild rice, squash, roasted vegetables with a cider glaze, ribs. Oh, and green beans with bacon.”
Nadine’s eyes widened at the long list. “You cooked all of this today?”
“Nah. Our girls brought some down.”
“That sounds like enough food for twenty.”
Kane turned and leaned against the high-top counter. “Eighteen, actually. Hope you don’t mind but I invited a few more to join us for dinner.”
Marex frowned. “That sounds like a lot of people who know where we are.”
The alpha gave a look of warning. “I told you not to doubt my pack’s loyalty. And I think if they are going to be loyal to you, they should at least meet you, so they see what I see.”
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