If he had to, he would fuck Caitlin into submission.
Now that he’d completed the bond, Arctos wasn’t about to let her go without a fight. She would learn that soon enough. He kept his hand inside her pants and guided Caitlin over to the bed. There he quickly stripped her out of her clothes and slipped between her parted thighs. He was hard enough to drive a hole through an airlock.
“Caitlin,” he said.
She didn’t respond, only continued to pant as shudders wracked her body.
“Open your eyes, my Cat,” he said, palming her wet sex once more.
Caitlin squirmed. “I can’t,” she said, swallowing hard.
“You can and you will.” Arctos slipped an inch inside of her.
Her lids shot open and her hips rose encouragingly. He pushed in another inch and felt her velvet sheath embrace him.
Arctos hid his smile. “You are mine, Caitlin Kelly,” he said, using her given name for the first time.
She shook her head in denial.
“It would be easier on us both, if you simply admitted the truth,” he said, sliding a little further, but not nearly far enough.
Caitlin met his gaze and rolled her hips.
Arctos kept himself still, even though it hurt to do so. “Not so fast,” he said. “Not until you admit it.”
“There’s nothing to admit,” she said.
He did grin then. “You are a very stubborn woman. I look forward to breaking you of this bad habit.” He teased her with his hard length, then quickly pulled back out.
“Hey, not fair,” she said.
He kissed her. “I am a Phantom Warrior at war for a mate. I am fighting to win. Fair is not part of the strategy.”
Caitlin reached between their bodies and clasped his shaft. The breath left Arctos’ lungs. “Okay,” she said. “I’m good with fighting dirty.” She stroked his length to prove her point.
Arctos trembled. “It’s never smart to tease the beast,” he rasped, feeling his Other self rise behind his eyes.
“I’ll take my chances.”
* * * * *
The spot on Caitlin’s neck itched where Arctos had bit her. Her skin felt too tight for her bones and far too sensitive. The aroma that she’d always been drawn to seemed to intensify, filling the room until she smelled it with every breath. Even though she’d just had one of the most amazing orgasm, her channel felt empty and she actually ached to have it filled. That had never happened before. Ever.
His shaft slipped free of her grasp. She clutched his back to keep him in place; her short nails digging into his skin. “What did you do to me? I want…I need…” Her back bowed.
Instead of answering, he pounced on the nearest nipple and sucked. Heat started at Caitlin’s breast and spread like a wildfire through her body. She’d never been this turned on in her life. Was it the brush with death or something else?
Arctos made little growling noises in the back of his throat as he pleasured her. He used his lips, teeth, and tongue to torture the swollen flesh. Every pull of his mouth was answered by growing throb between her legs. It was like his lips had a direct line to her clit.
Caitlin’s grip tightened. The sound he was making increased in volume. It was then that she realized he wasn’t actually growling. He was chanting the same word over and over. Ignoring the riot taking place inside her, she listened closely.
“Mine. Mine. Mine,” he repeated like it was his own personal mantra.
Her heart leapt, then began to race. No one had ever wanted her like this. Sure Michael had been interested in dating her and he’d certainly hinted at wanting more, but he’d never aggressively pursued her. Caitlin was pretty sure that if she’d told him that she wasn’t interested, he’d have been upset for an hour or two, then would’ve quickly moved on. No looking back. No second thoughts. Not so with this man…beast…alien…whatever.
Arctos released her nipple after giving it one last lick, then latched onto the other. He held the lower half of his body just out of reach of her seeking hands. It was beyond frustrating. “Why are you doing this?” she asked.
He looked up at her from beneath heavy lids and slowly blinked. The sheer determination on his brutally handsome face should’ve scared her to death, but somehow it didn’t. Instead, it fueled the fire burning inside of her. Caitlin dug her heels into his bottom and jerked him forward.
Arctos’ weight came down upon her, driving his cock into the cleft of her sex. Caitlin gasped, relishing the feel of his hard shaft, but it wasn’t enough. She wiggled until he was notched against her clit. A fresh gush of moisture flooded her channel. His nostrils flared. This time Arctos did growl, sending vibrations through her nipple, before the sound spread through the rest of her body.
The grip she had on his back tightened. There was a tearing sensation followed by a warm trickle of moisture. Caitlin yanked her hands away, only to find them slippery with blood. “Oh my god!” She tried to push Arctos off her, but he refused to budge. “You need to move. I think I’ve re-opened your wounds.” She stared at her hands in horror.
Arctos smiled at her.
“What’s the matter with you? Why are you smiling? This is serious. They could become infected,” she said as her lust-soaked brain tried desperately to switch gears.
“I am smiling because you’ve marked me,” he said.
“I did no such thing.” Caitlin stared at her short—okay not so short—nails as if she’d never seen them before. There were crescents of red beneath each one and they were longer than before. When had they grown? “You need to get up so I can put more salve on.”
His grin grew and he slowly shook his head. “I am not finished with you yet. I’m not going anywhere until you admit that you’re mine,” he said.
“Then we’re going to be here a long time,” she said tartly.
This time when Arctos smiled, he didn’t bother to hide his very sharp, very white teeth. “I sincerely hope so.”
Caitlin balked. This was crazy. This whole situation was crazy. Maybe she was lying in the snow dying. That would explain the bear hallucinations and the whole invisibility trick.
“I’d be more than happy to thaw you out.” His eyes sparkled in amusement.
“How did you? Wait, what? Did you read my mind?” she asked completely flabbergasted and utterly horrified at the thought. The last thing she wanted was for him traipsing around in her brain. There were things in there she didn’t want him to see. Things that she wasn’t ready to face yet.
“Yes,” he said unrepentantly. “Though I must say that it would’ve been easy enough to do by your expression alone.”
“How?” she asked, not really sure she wanted the answer.
“You are my mate. I have marked you as such. Just as you have marked me,” he said. “Soon you will be able to do the same.”
“That was an accident. I didn’t mean to scratch you,” she said.
He arched a pale brow. “Didn’t you?”
Caitlin opened her mouth, then closed it quickly. Had she meant to somehow mark him? It didn’t seem likely, yet she couldn’t deny the urge had been there.
“Enough! You’re thinking too much, when you should be feeling.” Arctos surged inside of her.
Caitlin’s thoughts exploded, leaving only sensation behind. This was what her body wanted, needed. A man filling her. No, not a man—Arctos. Only he could take her to such heights, wring every last drop of pleasure out of her, and still leave her panting for more. Of course, she’d never tell him so.
His lips quirked.
Too late, he already heard. She stuck out her tongue, only to have him capture it with his lips. He sucked it into his mouth, daring her to play. And play she did. Caitlin wrapped her arms around him, pulling his big body against hers, so she could deepen the embrace.
Lips and teeth collided in a battle for supremacy. She chased Arctos’ tongue with her own, swirling and dipping, laving and flicking. It wasn’t enough. She wanted more. Her hips rose to meet his n
ext thrust, fusing them so tight she thought they might never be separated. Each stroke plunged deeper and harder until she felt him touch the wall around her heart.
Arctos’ expression turned to one of sheer determination.
* * * * *
He was so close he could feel it. Arctos continued to ride her body, demanding without words her acceptance. She was cracking. He could hear it in her thoughts, see it in her face. His hips bucked wildly. He’d never been so hard in his life. Already Caitlin’s scent was changing. It was still sweet, but becoming more like his own.
She closed her eyes and threw her head back, gasping for air.
Arctos saw his chance. He closed his eyes and morphed his form, passing straight through her. The first time he’d done it to save her life. This time was to solidify their bond. He flipped Caitlin over before her brain could process what had happened and impaled her on his cock. Her eyes flew open in surprise as she straddled his waist.
“I’m yours,” he said. “Take me.”
She hesitated, but for a moment, then rose to her knees and dropped back down. Arctos reached up to play with her pert nipples. The heavily engorged nubs called to him. He leaned forward to pop one into his mouth. He loved the feel of the rigid flesh against his palate. He couldn’t seem to get enough of the taste of her. Arctos doubted he ever would.
Caitlin pushed him onto his back, forcing him to release her. Arctos scowled playfully, then switched his attention to her sex where it remained locked. From this angle, he could see his shaft sinking inch by inch into her wet channel. Every time she rose, it came out covered in her sweet dew. Caitlin ground her hips against him, eliciting a groan.
“Like that, do you?” she asked.
“You know I do,” he said, licking his suddenly dry lips. He should’ve let her take him like this sooner. From this angle, Arctos could see everything—her sex, his shaft, her swollen breasts, and best of all her eyes. The light grey now held a ring of red. He’d never seen anything more beautiful in his life.
He tried to keep his hands to his sides, but with every bounce she was becoming more feral. His beast had scented her. To him, she smelled like a female in heat. And in a way she was. Caitlin was changing rapidly and she didn’t even know it yet.
Her face flushed and her body lost rhythm as she neared her release. Arctos found the hidden bundle of nerves, now fully engorged with blood, and began to slowly stroke it. The pace was maddening, he knew. Caitlin jerked, nearly slipping off him. One hand found her waist, while the other continued the pleasurable torture.
“You are mine,” he snarled.
“No,” she snapped back, her voice lower and far more guttural than it had been earlier.
“Yes, you are and I’ll prove it,” he said, keeping her on a razor’s edge.
She bit her lip, drawing blood, and tried to find release with his fingers, but Arctos denied her. She whimpered.
“What was that mate? I didn’t hear you.”
“Don’t make me beg. I need…”
He pressed down on her clit. “I know what you need, but I need something first.” Arctos knew he wasn’t playing fair. He’d warned her that he wouldn’t. Not when so much was riding on his success. She had to face the truth. She had to accept him for who and what he was.
“What? Just tell me what you want me to say,” she said, grinding her hips on him. Already her nails were lengthening, along with her teeth. Soon she’d have trouble speaking.
He wanted her to tell him that she loved him. That they were meant to be together. Arctos knew he’d have to settle for the latter, since Caitlin wasn’t ready to face her emotions yet. “Admit that you’re my mate and I’ll help you find release.”
Caitlin cupped her hands over her breasts and began to play with her nipples. Arctos yanked them away.
“No, you will not find release by your own hand. Not today,” he said. His beast rose to the surface.
She snarled back at him, her eyes going ruby red.
The leash that held Arctos’ beast snapped. He grabbed Caitlin by the waist and lifted her off his body, then quickly pinned her beneath him. Her soft back brushed his chest as she tried in vain to escape. His sharp teeth latched onto the base of her neck as he kneed her legs apart. With one thrust, he buried himself in her. Caitlin lashed out, trying to get free, but it was too late. He had her right where he wanted her.
She hadn’t shifted yet, but it wouldn’t be long now. He wanted her admission before she did so.
Arctos dominated her as only a Phantom Warrior from the Claw Clan could do. He held her in place with his strong jaw and clamped his claws into her sides, then fucked her.
Two hours later, he was still drawing whimpers from her raw throat, while one release blurred into the next. Painfully hard, but more determined than ever, Arctos continued to work her body. “You’re not done are you?”
“Not again,” she mewed. “I can’t.”
“You will,” he said, building her toward another orgasm. It was then that Arctos felt her finally submit.
Caitlin’s body went limp beneath him and she carefully tilted her head, baring even more of her throat. Arctos instantly released his grip on her neck and licked the spot where he’d bit down. Her grumbles turned to a strange sort of murmur. He sniffed the air to determine the cause. Pure unadulterated satiation filled his lungs.
“Mine,” he said, kissing her shoulder.
“Yours,” she repeated, softly.
Arctos brought her to climax, this time with a slow rolling boil, then finally sought his own release. He filled Caitlin’s body with his essence, flooding her with what he hoped would become new life.
He had just slipped from her warm sheath, when a loud crash rocked the small cabin.
* * * * *
Chapter Six
Caitlin fell out of bed at the sound of the door crashing in. The bears were back. Her brain went from replete to alert in seconds. She waited for the familiar slivers of fear to grip her, but they never materialized. Instead, a wall of anger slammed into her, demanding that she fight.
What was that all about?
Arctos was already moving. One minute he was behind her, the next he was gone. As far as she could tell, he was still naked.
More bangs followed. Caitlin jumped up and scrambled into her clothes. She wasn’t about to let Arctos take on the polar bears by himself. Her fingertips burned as she rushed into the room ready to attack.
Caitlin didn’t realize she was snarling until she saw Allie’s startled face. What was she doing here? Where were the bears? It took her a sec to remember that she’d phoned her friend, when she thought she was going to die. Allie must have had the police trace her phone. Well duh? How else could they have found her?
Her gaze moved to the rest of her rescuers. She didn’t recognize any of the faces, except one. Mike stood in the doorway with a shotgun aimed at Arctos’ bare chest.
“She doesn’t look like she needs rescuing to me,” he said. Mike’s finger twitched above the trigger.
In her mind, Caitlin saw the gun go off and Arctos fall. She watched the life drain from his beautiful brown eyes. Pain ripped through her. She couldn’t let it happen. He was hers.
“No!” she shouted. Caitlin didn’t think. She reacted. With one leap, she crossed half the room and landed lightly in front of Arctos, her small body doing its best to block his larger one. She growled again, this time the rumble sounded like a pissed off wolf who’s just discovered her vocal cords.
Allie’s face drained of color and she took a step back.
Caitlin’s eyes locked on Mike. He hadn’t moved an inch, but his expression had certainly shifted. Gone was the concern she’d spotted at first. It had slowly been replaced with…fear.
“Put the gun down,” she snapped, taking a step closer. Her voice came out garbled.
Arctos grabbed her by the waist and gently shoved her behind him. Caitlin tried to push him out of the way, but it was like trying to move a tank. Her bo
dy seemed to have a mind of its own. One moment her teeth were short, the next they were long. The hair on her arms appeared to thicken, then thin. What in the world was happening to her?
“Arctos?” she said, hearing the distress in her voice.
He turned, gathering her close. “It’s okay. Everything will be okay,” he said.
Soothed by his touch, she melted into his body. “I don’t understand,” she said as tears filled her eyes.
* * * * *
Arctos would’ve taken a thousand gunshots over seeing Caitlin cry. Each tear ripped a hole in his hearts. If she kept this up, there’d be nothing left to beat inside of his chest. He glared at the people around them.
“Is she going to be okay?” Allie asked. “She doesn’t look right.”
He sighed. “She’ll be fine. She just needs a moment to calm down and compose herself. We thought the bears had returned.” Arctos had known it wasn’t bears at the door. He’d smelled the stink of anxious sweat and the oil that had been used on the guns. His gaze shifted to the man, who’d very nearly shot him. So this was Mike. He’d snatched the name from Caitlin’s jumbled thoughts, before panic overwhelmed her.
The man continued to glare at him. It probably didn’t help that he hadn’t bothered to clothe himself. Not that Arctos cared about nudity, but it was more than clear that this group did. Everyone, but Allie kept their gazes focused above his waist.
“Give us a minute.” He guided Caitlin into the bedroom and shut the door behind them. The space smelled of sex, heat, and animal musk. Arctos sat her down on the bed, then kneeled in front of her. “Breathing helps control the shift,” he said quietly, knowing that the others would try to listen in.
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