by Cecilia Lane
“That’s it. Come for me, sweet. Let me taste more of your delicious cream. Feel you tighten around my fingers. Can’t wait to feel you around my cock.”
“Yes, yes, yes!” Penelope moaned. Oblivion was one hard thrust of his fingers away and she prepared for the jump.
It wound through her, curling her toes and arching her back. Nerves she thought long dead buzzed to life, shining brightly like fireflies against the night sky. She shattered into a thousand million pieces, spasming around his fingers as he continued to pump into her and flutter his tongue against her.
Luca gradually slowed his movements and brought her back down to earth. She was suddenly glad they’d moved to the bed; she didn’t think her legs would hold her had she been standing. Warmth slithered through her limbs and she collapsed back in an exhausted, satisfied puddle.
***
Luca pulled his fingers from his mate. Her eyes were half closed, but still on him. He couldn’t resist the treat of her taste, and popped his fingers into his mouth to lick himself clean. He almost moaned at the taste on his tongue. Only the thought of pushing his cock into her needy cunt kept him from diving back for more.
He wiped his chin with the back of his hand and slid from between her thighs to stand once again on the floor. His hands worked at his belt as he watched her watching him. Her cheeks were flushed, and the pink of her release swept down her neck and over her chest. Her magnificent breasts were ready for him to taste again, the tight little nipples begging for attention. Soon, he silently promised.
His dragon was too present for any further delicacies. He needed to be inside his mate, preferably marking her with his fangs. But no, that would come later. When they had a chance to speak.
The tiny buttons of his shirt were too much for his clumsy fingers. He tensed his shoulders and pulled at the neck of the fabric, sending the horrible little bits of plastic scattering across the bed and floor. Another rip at the waist of his pants, and the material pooled at his feet. He toed off his shoes and placed his knee back on the bed.
“Penelope, bella, my mate.”
She brought her hands up to her breasts, cupping and kneading the flesh to tempt him. She’d unhooked her bra and let it fall to the side at some point while he undressed so that she was completely naked for his perusal. The little minx.
She slid her feet up so her knees bent and butterflied open for him. Her slick pussy called to him, and he still couldn’t decide if he wanted to taste her or fuck her. The smile on her face was of a pure sex goddess. He didn’t know if he’d be weeping or screaming by the time he was done with her. Probably both.
His dragon growled for him to make his decision, and quick. The damn thing wanted to roll in her scent, like a cat in a pile of catnip. He’d never felt the animal so excited over another human. But then again, he’d never met his mate.
“Luca…” She crooked a finger to lure him closer, and he obeyed.
He knelt between her thighs and stroked his cock from root to tip. Her eyes flicked to his movements and her little pink tongue darted out to lick her lips.
Growling, Luca leaned over her and fit the velvety tip of his cock to her wet entrance. The heat roared from her and up his shaft at just the small touch. Fuck, he had to do better than a teenager. He tried to think of mathematic equations and building plans, but Penelope was too distracting and too delicious.
With a groan, he sank into her awaiting heat. Her slick walls parted for him, sucking him in for more. The silky warmth clutched at him as he went deeper, but his focus was on his mate’s face. Bliss like what she’d felt before echoed across her features, her eyes fluttering closed and her lips parting with swift gasps.
She tightened around him as a shudder ran through her body. He groaned and pulled back, exhaling swiftly as she milked his length. He wouldn’t force her open and cause her pain, but her sweet grasp threatened to overwhelm him.
“So snug.”
“So big.” She hooked her feet around his waist and tugged him back into her.
Luca groaned as she took every inch of him in one stroke. His hips fit against hers and his balls rested against the plump swell of her ass. He shifted slightly, catching her clit between their bodies and enjoying the moan that escaped her lips.
But his mate wasn’t one for waiting. She rolled her hips along his length. “Fuck me, Luca.”
There it was, her begging for him. It drove his dragon wild, and his human side agreed. He wanted to please his mate, but he didn’t want to disappoint. She was so tight and so warm and so wonderful.
He pulled out slowly and thrust harshly back into her. Slow retreat, fast thrust. He repeated the motion and Penelope met his every push. His balls ached and throbbed at each noise that he pulled from her.
“Luca, more,” she panted under him.
He bent down and captured her lips in another melding kiss, slipping his tongue between her lips with the same rhythm he slid into her pussy. She moaned into his mouth and he kept his pace, even against her bucking hips. He had to grin at her demands. She’d make a wonderful Consort if she fought against challenges as much as she fought against his slow tempo.
Breaking their kiss, he lowered his head to the sweet mounds of her breasts that called to him. Her pebbled nipples beckoned him and he caught one between his lips. His hips didn’t slow as he flicked his tongue against the little nub.
“Feel so good,” he groaned around her flesh. His teeth entered the fray and soon he fucked her sweet pussy while nipping and licking at her breast.
Each suck and each hard thrust made her tighten around him. Each spasm made his cock twitch in turn. She begged him again, her words lost in the moans he pulled from her chest. His balls drew up against his body, but he pushed on and ignored the thrumming ache for release.
“More. More. More.” Penelope moaned.
Switching sides and taking the other nipple in his mouth, he thrust harder. He couldn’t keep his slow pace. Everything in him desired to match her begged commands. The bed rocked around them, the frame slamming into the wall at the top of each punishing drive.
Luca moaned when her cunt rippled around him. She was everything he hoped for, all soft curves and need for good, solid fucking. His mate didn’t want it slow and sweet. She wanted him rough and he would happily oblige anytime she didn’t threaten to immediately push him over the edge.
He dug half-formed claws into the bed next to her head and slammed into her. She screamed his name and he gave her more. More was what she wanted; more was what she would get.
“Yes!” Penelope arched her back off the bed and her nails dragged down his back. He wanted to wear her marks for the rest of his life.
Thunk, thunk, thunk.
The bedframe pounded in time to his thrusts. Her breasts bounced with each pound. Her pussy tightened and didn’t let go. He closed his eyes against the pleasure of her tight embrace.
“So fucking good, my mate. Gonna fill you. Gonna come.”
The musky scent of their sex filled the air and mingled with the wet slapping sounds of their movement. Her hips met his punishing thrusts. Her lips parted with a smile when she wasn’t babbling and moaning under him. He wasn’t sure which was a more beautiful sight.
Her cunt grabbed onto his dick and he swore. Her bouncing breasts flushed again, turning her milky skin to a bright pink of pleasure. She arched again, jackknifing into his chest as she milked him for all she was worth.
“Luca!” She screamed.
It was all too much. Luca felt his control slipping away from him like sand through his fingers. Her pleasure bounced through his skull and his body. Every ripple and spasm of her release pushed him toward his own. His muscles twitched and his hips jerked as he lost his rhythm.
With a roar, he locked their hips together in a final, powerful drive into her impossibly tight pussy. The heat of her surrounding him overcame all his control. He swelled inside her, twitching as she twitched, pulsing as she pulsed, and panting as she panted.
It was only ironclad control that kept his fangs to himself. He couldn’t mark her as his, not then. His dragon roared and spewed fire at him, desiring nothing but to mark the woman beneath them as theirs. Theirs, and only theirs. Luca snarled at the beast and beat it back into the corner of his mind.
Still buried to the hilt in Penelope, he sank down and pressed his forehead to her shoulder. That’s where he’d claim her, for the entire world to see. He licked the spot in a weak imitation of the mark she’d carry when she allowed him to mate her truly.
“Mmm.” Her voice was soft and tired.
“Mmm, indeed.” He rubbed his cheek against her. Some women didn’t like the harsh scratch of his short beard, but she tilted her head to give him more room.
She was gorgeous. Everything he wanted and needed rolled into one delightful package. Now he just needed to convince her to let him sink his fangs into her and complete the mating ritual.
“My mate—”
She rolled her hips. His eyes crossed and his cock twitched to life in her sheath.
Talking could come later.
Chapter Seven
The hunger woke Penelope. Her stomach rumbled loud enough to startle herself out of sleep. She was surprised when she turned over to find Luca still dead to the world. She curled in on herself with determination to wait for him to wake. If she waited, then there was a high chance of a morning repeat to their night.
Her stomach had other ideas. After a night of intense bodily workout, she was in need of a recharge of the tasty variety. And quick. She pressed her hands against the next rumble that threatened to summon the police for a noise complaint.
“Quit your bellyaching,” she ordered her body. Maybe if she spoke, Luca would wake.
A quick glance to her side showed he hadn’t moved an inch.
She poked his side. He grumbled something unintelligible and rolled away from her, but his breathing didn’t change. If she weren’t so hungry, she’d find his need for sleep endearing.
Well, if there was no waking the dead, then her only option was to hunt and gather for herself.
She rolled out of bed and immediately stumbled when her feet hit the ground several inches further than she anticipated. She caught herself on the nightstand, where loose coins and his phone jangled together. Another peek at Luca showed he still hadn’t returned to the world of the living.
With a huff, Penelope draped one of his shirts over her frame and buttoned a small handful of buttons. She smiled at her own reflection. Sex goddess didn’t begin to describe how messy her hair looked. The braid had only partially come undone, but strands of hair were sticking up all over. Fucking for the good of girlkind looked good on her.
She stomped out of the bedroom and through the main room. The view was as impressive as she imagined the night before. The glass panes ran from floor to ceiling and ran the length of one entire wall. She wondered if they were on the top floor of the building. The city spread out below the building and even the next highest skyscraper was still lower than Luca’s apartment. His dragon probably liked the view, too.
She trailed her hands down the rich leather of his huge, comfortable couch. It was definitely something that would be featured in style magazines of the rich and famous, but it looked like it was well used. The magazines always appeared so staged and uncomfortable, but she could imagine Luca chilling on the couch with friends gathered around to watch the large television mounted on the wall.
The open floor plan tucked the kitchen away in a corner. A breakfast bar topped with a thick slab of granite, if her supermarket magazine browsing had taught her anything, cordoned it off from the rest of the space. The cabinets were a dark, rich red that matched the heavy furniture of his living room. All the appliances were shiny silver and black. While her fridge clunked and hummed in equal ferocity, there was utter silence in his kitchen.
For once in her life, the rich lifestyle didn’t intimidate her. She didn’t feel anxiety creeping up her spine and ready to sink sharp needles into her mind. This was all Luca, and Luca was wonderful. They were at opposite ends of the financial spectrum and it didn’t bother her.
The only thing that bothered her was the sheer number of cabinets she needed to look through to find a frying pan. She wondered just how often he ate out because most of the cabinets were bare of food or cooking implements. Perhaps she’d be able to talk him into having more meals at home and owning more than one large pan.
The thought gave her pause as she searched through the fridge. She’d gone home with him expecting it to be a one-night deal. She hoped for more but made her peace with the likelihood that she wouldn’t see him again. Now she was planning their morning breakfasts and evening meals.
He had called her his mate… She didn’t know much about shifters, but he said the word in such a charged way that hinted at much more than a casual night together.
The fluttering butterflies in her stomach took flight at the possibility of more with Luca. Sexy, wonderful Luca.
She’d just finished putting a carton of eggs on the counter when the jiggling of a door handle caught her attention. She glanced back to the bedroom, but the door remained closed. The front door, however, opened wide and let in a striking woman. Penelope froze with the fridge door open behind her. The cool blast of air offset the heat in her cheeks.
She was tall. Penelope was short. She looked like she could take down ten black belt martial artists with the flick of her hand. Penelope was…. well, curvy. Big and curvy. She knew her anxiety magnified her perception, but she was sure the other woman could easily fit into one of her pant legs.
If she’d been wearing pants. Her fingers quickly worked at the rest of the buttons of Luca’s shirt. Thankfully he was taller than her, and though the material strained around her bust, it hung to her thighs so there was no chance she’d be flashing the newcomer.
The door of the fridge shut behind her. Penelope jumped, and the woman turned her head toward her. Her full lips turned into a vicious scowl in a second.
As quickly as Penelope sized her up, the woman did the same. She found her wanting. Penelope could hear the whispers of the women at the restaurant all over again. The woman thought her much too big and plain to be with a man like Luca.
It made her angry. How dare this woman stroll right into Luca’s apartment like she owned the place. How dare she try to make Penelope feel small with just her eyes. She straightened under the woman’s gaze and smoothed her hands down her hips. Luca hadn’t minded her curves one bit.
But the dark voice in her head had something to say. It’d been quiet when she saw the rich decor that Luca lived in. It stayed silent when she dared to hope for more than a one-time fling with the man. It swooped in and now called attention to the woman’s key and her tall, fit body. Maybe curves weren’t the only thing Luca enjoyed.
The woman stalked through the apartment. Her dark hair was loose around her shoulders and looked like the mane of a lion about to pounce. Her eyes were anything but normal and black ate up all color inside them.
Shifter. A pissed off one, to boot.
Penelope tried to stand her ground. She didn’t want to let the woman bully her, but what chance did she stand against someone who could turn their fingers into claws and teeth into fangs? Luca could have carved her up last night, but was gentle when he tore her dress away from her body. She doubted the woman would be so kind.
The woman pressed her back. Her skin bit painfully into the counter, but the woman didn’t let up. She bent low and inhaled the length of Penelope’s neck. Penelope tried to squirm away, but the woman held her locked between her arms.
“You were with him.” Her voice was filled with hatred and loathing.
Penelope met the pure black eyes with a lifted chin. The woman was just as awful and entitled as her former boss. She was tired of other women claiming the people in her life and she was tired of men taking them up on the offer. Did loyalty no longer exist in the world?
But did
she have a claim over Luca? Her eyes flicked down to the key still in the woman’s hand.
“Leave her alone, Alexa.”
The sharp command jerked both of their heads toward the newcomer. Penelope flushed with relief and fought against the wave of arousal that rode through her. Only a tight pair of briefs that slung low on his hips and did nothing to conceal the heavy length hidden inside covered his bare body. Luca would certainly rescue her and they could continue their morning. Alone.
Then she remembered how familiar the name sounded on his tongue and the stinking words that had spewed from the woman’s mouth.
It was a nightmare come to life.
“Luca,” Alexa purred. She let go of Penelope and swayed her way to Luca.
He stepped past her and took Penelope in his arms. “Are you okay? She didn’t harm you, did she?”
“Harm me? Who the hell is she?” She demanded and scrambled away from them both.
“Luca and I are...intensely involved,” Alexa smirked.
“Were. Were involved. Not anymore.” Luca’s jaw tightened and a vein stood out on his forehead.
Penelope exchanged venomous looks between them before settling on Luca. “Does she know that?”
“Yes.” Luca glared.
“Why, of course not,” Alexa spoke over him and pasted a dumb smile on her face.
Her chin quivered, but she bit her tongue to hold back the cry of despair she wanted to wail. She would not collapse in front of them.
She turned on her heel and rushed back into the bedroom. Luca tried to follow her, but she shut the door in his face and turned the lock. Not that it would stop the dragon if he so wanted, but at least it would be something to stand in his way.
She started to gather her dress and found the tattered remains. Her panties were not much better, but at least her bra was intact.
“Dammit. Shit,” she muttered as she surveyed her options. She wouldn’t go racing naked into the street, but she needed to get home.