“What?” I say after parking the car in my driveway and walking to my front door. Probably not the nicest greeting ever, but I’m already defensive based on what I’ve just learned and I don’t like that he already has an attitude when I haven’t actually done anything to him.
“Anything you need to tell me?” he asks as I slide my key into the lock.
I furrow my brow but I don’t even glance over my shoulder at him. “No,” I say. I turn the knob and step into my house. “Why?”
“So, what you’re telling me is there’s nothing I should know.” Rex follows me inside without waiting for an invitation inside. Asshole. I shut the door behind us quickly, but not before casting a cursory glance around. It’s not like I’m afraid I’m going to get attacked again in broad daylight, but I don’t know who attacked me and I don’t feel like I can trust that completely. “Nothing important that maybe you want to share with me.”
I turn from my door and cross my arms over my chest as he swaggers into the kitchen like he owns the place.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I insist, “and I don’t appreciate you coming into my home and just doing whatever you please.”
“And I don’t appreciate you not calling me after getting attacked in the middle of the night,” he bit back, opening my refrigerator door.
I still. “You heard about that?” I ask.
He glanced over at me before returning his attention to what’s inside the fridge. “Of course I heard about it.” He shakes his head. “I told you. We’re fated mates. I know everything that goes on with you.”
“That’s creepy,” I mutter.
He pulls out a can of soda and clicks it open, shutting the door. “It’s not,” he insists. “It’s just how these things work. I already told you you’re my fated mate. That means my senses are more drawn to you than to anyone else. I can smell your powers on you. I can also smell your distress.”
“So, you knew what happened yesterday and you didn’t come?” I ask. I don’t want him to know I’m disappointed by this revelation. The last thing I want him to think is that I’m some sort of damsel in distress, waiting on him to come save me every time I get attacked – which is starting to be more than I anticipated in my lifetime. However, if he did know what was happening and he chose to stay away, I don’t like that, either.
He took a sip of the soda, leaning against the fridge. “Trust me,” he says. “If I knew…” He lets his voice trail off and I look away. His anger brims from his body and I can feel it even though we’re at least six feet apart. “There would be bloody ribbons of skin littering your house.”
I wrinkle my nose. As sweet as that may be, I don’t like the image that’s popped into my head.
“I felt your distress,” he admits, “but I wrongly assumed it had to do with what I told you, that we’re fated mates. I thought you were still upset.”
“Right, because my distress constantly ties back to you, is that it?” I ask, arching a brow.
He downs the rest of his soda and crinkles the cup in his hand. “Do you recycle?” he asks.
I nod and gesture at my sink. He slides out my trash can, disposes of the can in what I hope is the right place, and slides it back in.
“Yeah, I can admit it was arrogant and clearly wrong,” he says, “and it’s my mistake because you were almost taken. That’s my fault and I’m sorry. I promise that will never happen again.”
His eyes burned into mine and I can’t help but flinch and look away. My stomach turns with something, though I can’t pinpoint what. It’s like the intensity of gaze has complete control of my body, of my insides, and they’re waiting for him to command me to do something. Is this the tug of fated mates or is it something else? I don’t know, and that’s my problem. Are my feelings for Rex genuine? Have they ever been? Or is this scheming by the universe?
“You’re not responsible for me,” I point out, dropping my gaze. I don’t like the thought that he thinks he has to protect me all the time. I am capable of protecting myself. I have magic inside me.
“I am,” he says, his voice tight. “And maybe you don’t like it, but it’s the truth.”
“Just because it’s true for you doesn’t mean it’s true for me,” I tell him, defensive.
“I don’t think you understand –“
“No,” I snap. I don’t care that I’m interrupting him. Rex needs to realize that just because his shifter tradition indicates that he’s fated with me or whatever he thinks is between us doesn’t mean I feel the same way. And yet, looking at him, I can’t stop the heat from flooding inside my body. “You need to realize that I’m not a shifter and I don’t abide by your shifter rules.”
“You’ll abide by whatever I say,” he says. His voice is grouchy, and the words come out through a growl.
I close my eyes. I’m not supposed to react this way. I’m not supposed to like him talking to me like this.
But I do.
God, I do.
“You aren’t the boss of me, Rex.” I force my eyes open, only to realize he’s closer to me. Too close. Our bodies are inches away from each other, like we’re magnets just waiting to attach to each other. “You don’t get to tell me what to do.”
“I hate to break it to you, sweetheart,” he says, tilting his head down so his lips are so close to mine, “but you belong to me. Every inch of yours is mine. And I’ll prove it.”
With that, he lunges for me.
Chapter Seven
We need to stop fucking after a fight. I want to see if Rex can be anything other than rough and dominant. But I can’t deny that his hunger feeds my own, and I get a thrill every time he glares at me. I like knowing I piss him off because he pisses me off.
I swallow after he tears himself away from my lips. There’s something in the way he looks at me, something different, something deep. I’m almost tempted to look away, to pull away from him and throw myself into other things. It’s like it’s too much for me. It’s like I can see straight into his soul.
Then, slowly, he cocks his head to the side and pulls my lips back in, except this time, he’s gentle, coaxing. He wants me to lead the kiss and he wants me to know he’s willing to give up this control.
For me.
I’m not sure whether or not I should be grateful. It seems silly but I know this is a big deal for him and I don’t want to take it for granted. I bring my hands up to cup his face. I want to slow things down so my head can break free from the haze. But the second my lips touch his, all rational thought disappears. All I care about is his hands on me, touching me, claiming me. I want to be his. Even that fated mate bullshit. I want all of it, as long as it belongs to him.
I drop my hands from his face so I can clutch his shoulders. I sink my nails into him even though the thin material of his shirt is there. He grunts, approving. My pelvis pulsates with need.
He reaches for the hem of my shirt and yanks it over my head. I’m not sure where it lands, but it disappears somewhere in the living room, despite our position in the kitchen.
So much for slowing things down. I don’t think that’s a possibility for me and Rex. I don’t even care.
His hands cup my breasts, and despite the fact that I’m wearing an old Target bra that is not sexy in the least, I feel as though he’s touching my flesh. My nipples marble underneath his palms and I hiss, pressing myself against him even more.
I need him to touch me more.
I close my eyes as Rex pulls himself away, only to claim my throat. I’m sure he’s going to leave a mark on me like he’s some hormone-crazed boy that can’t control himself during a Victoria Secret commercial. I don’t even care. I want it. Anything he wants to give to me, I want more than anything.
Somehow, I manage to take off his shirt. It helps that he gives me access to his body instead of demanding control from me. Essentially, I can do whatever it is I want to him and he has to deal with it. I run my fingers up and down his bare chest. I’ve seen it plenty of
times, but I still can’t get over how enchanted I am by it. Every muscle twitches under my touch, the solid frame immovable. A thrill sweeps through my body. I’m obsessed with him, with what he feels like. If I can touch him like this when I want, I’d be a happy person.
My hands stop at his waist, at the abrupt shift from skin to denim. My fingers fumble as they begin to unbutton his pants. It’s like I’m a teenager again, not a grown woman with experience. It’s almost embarrassing, but I try not to think about it. Rex has this effect on me. It’s not necessarily a bad thing. It keeps me honest.
All of his talk of fated mates and how the two of us are destined to be together doesn’t bother me the way it used to. If anything, it compels me to want him more.
I tug at the jeans, trying to strip them away from his body. I’m having a good go of it, but he has to step in and help me.
By the time we’re both finished, he’s left in merely his underwear and I’m fully clothed, though probably with a hickey or two on my neck.
Both of us are panting. Both of us are staring at each other. I’ve done this with him plenty of times before. I should be used to it. I know what’s going to happen next and it’s exactly what I want. And yet, I can’t move. There’s an added layer that isn’t there before, and I think it has to do with this whole fated mate nonsense.
I like knowing Rex wants me. I even like knowing Rex is tender underneath all that shrapnel. But I can’t help but wonder if we’d be good again. If we were good at all.
But then he steps forward and begins to strip me down. I don’t move. I let him do it.
When I’m finally naked, his eyes feast on me like I’m Thanksgiving and he hasn’t eaten all day just for this. My insides turn over, they spark, they flame up, and I burn. When he touches my hip, I’m surprised steam doesn’t immediately sizzle off of my skin.
I close my eyes as he drags me to him. He kisses me long and slow as he leads me to the bed.
My knees hit the back of the bed and he pushes me down. I’m waiting for him. I want him. I don’t care about anything else.
He crawls on top of me and I open my legs for him, welcoming him home. He fills me up, stretches me out.
I want more. I claw at him.
He thrusts inside of me until I hit my peak, and then I release. His grip tightens as he does the same.
I’m breathless. I’m panting like I’m the shifter. And my magic buzzes inside of me, satiated.
I shouldn’t be with him, but I can’t leave, and I think that explains our entire relationship.
Chapter Eight
I wake to Rex kissing my shoulder. It’s the last thing I expect from him. Rex isn’t the sort of guy who cares about tenderness. At least, he didn’t prioritize it during our relationship. Not to say that he was a bad lover. Quite the contrary, he was the best I ever had. But he isn’t the sort I expect to recite me poetry and to kiss me just because. Hos love is much more quiet, which I appreciate.
As a result, to see him act this way, makes me feel… strange, but not in a bad way. I like it. I like this side of him that I had never seen before. I think I even want to see more of it.
I close my eyes, allowing myself to enjoy it. His lips trail up my shoulder, chaste and soft, like the ghost of a butterfly’s wing, caressing my skin. It causes my insides to melt even more than they already have and I sink in my bed, waiting for more, needing more from him.
“You are so goddamn beautiful,” he tells me.
I swallow but it does nothing for me. My throat is still scratchy and I can only imagine that my tongue is as rough as a cat’s.
“Hmm.” I’m not sure how to respond to his words so I don’t.
“What’s wrong?” he asks, pulling away from me.
I crack open an eye and wait. “What do you mean?”
“You tensed up,” he says. “You thought of something and it made you uncomfortable. What happened? What were you thinking just then?”
I sigh. “I’m thinking, I want to know why suddenly you want to be with me after we broke up,” I say. I can’t keep the words in my mouth so I don’t even bother to try. “I want to know if you’ve suddenly decided to be with me because you realize I’m your fated mate, if your feelings for me are only because of that.”
Rex breathes out, his nostrils flaring as he does so. I don’t like that I’ve made him feel bad about his feelings for me but I do want to know the truth. This Rex, the sweet, tender Rex, is amazing, but is he only here because we’re destined to be together? I want to know he’s here because he loves me, not because fate told him to.
“Is that what you think?” he asks, his golden eyes tracing the shape of my face.
I squirm underneath him, unsure how I feel about the intensity of his gaze on my skin.
“Well, as usual, you’re wrong.” He wraps a lock of hair around his finger and gently tugs on it, but not too hard.
“Am I?” I ask, already annoyed with him.
“You are,” he says. “Fated mates isn’t something that just happens and we’re powerless to control it. It isn’t something we can control, however, and it’s something you should understand. You aren’t sacrificing yourself by agreeing to it. Think about it, Andrea. You have to agree to it in the first place. You have to give your permission. It’s not something that just happens to you.”
I frown. He’s right, of course. From everything he’s said about fated mates, there seems to be this component of consent that plays into it.
“Think about it like this,” he says, shifting where he is, “you’re destined to be a doctor. Being a doctor is something you’re naturally good it. You will serve your community and your people by allowing yourself to be a doctor. However, you could go to law school, be a lawyer, and still be happy and successful if that’s what you want to do.”
“So, you don’t have to be with me?” I ask him, my eyes on him. “You just…” I let my voice trail off as realization dawns on me.
“Want to,” he finishes. He doesn’t flinch as he says the word. He doesn’t do anything that says he’s unhappy with his current predicament. “Yeah, I want to. And that’s why I’m asking you what you want. I’m asking you to consider this.”
“You could be happy with someone else,” I point out.
“I’m happy with you.”
“We fight.”
“I like fighting,” he says. “Especially the making up part.”
I press my lips together. My face is getting hot. I have to look away. I think I’m doing the right thing. I’m trying to point out all of the reasons why this won’t work and it’s falling on deaf ears. Hell, I’m not buying what I’m selling either.
“Why do you want to be with me?” My voice cracks. It’s helpless. How can I convince him that this isn’t a good idea when I can’t seem to convince myself? “We could barely stand each other, being together.”
Rex scoffs as though he doesn’t believe that. “I’m crazy about you,” he says. “And I want you to want me. But I’m not going to force you. You make me a better person. And I love you for it.”
He loves me?
I’m not expecting that.
I kiss him with as much fervor as I can.
When I pull away, I give him a shy nod. I hope he understand what I mean by it. I hope he gets it.
“I…” He’s surprised. “It’s a nip on your neck. That’s it. Is that okay with you?”
I nod my head.
Rex swallows and kisses me again. He pulls back and takes his hand in mine, lacing his fingers through mine, resting his forehead on mine. For a moment, we just breathe.
And then, he tilts his head down and positions his lips on my throat before sinking his fangs into my flesh.
Chapter Nine
As much as I wanted to report that my life changed because I let Rex bite me, that didn’t happen. In fact, we make love again. The thrill of being claimed by him as rocked my senses more than I expect, and when I climax this time, there is something different, somethi
ng more meaningful than I anticipate.
He holds me close in his arms and we fall asleep together. I actually feel safe in his arms and I’m mystified by just how much I care about him. I’m not sure if fated mates can actually affect me the way it affects him. If so, I’m feeling it already. And I don’t mind as much as I thought I might.
My happiness and contentment with Rex doesn’t last long, however. We’re both woken up to the front door to my place splintering. The sound shocks me awake, like a bad dream.
Except I know this isn’t a dream.
I scramble out of bed and throw on whatever clothes I can find. I don’t even check to see what they are or who they belong to. All that matters is that I’m fully clothed. Rex, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to care as much about properly attiring himself as I do. Unlike me, he gets out of bed with purpose, casts his eyes in front of them, narrowed, as though trying to figure out what ‘s going on. He positions himself in front of me though he doesn’t actually say it. He’s trying to protect me.
A flare of annoyance shoots through my system but I manage to temper it down. He’s being protective. I don’t want to take that away from him, not when I know it’s a big deal to who he is. Instead, I search within myself for my magic.
I reach deep inside of myself and I can feel tendrils of magic wrap around me. My heart skips. This is it. I’ve never connected to my magic before. Granted, I don’t realize I even had magic until recently but I can’t believe I can access it with relative ease. I swallow and shift. I need more of it.
Can I call it forward?
“Andrea,” Rex growls, snapping me out of my thoughts.
I realize he’s thrown on his pants, though the way they dip on his hips, he hasn’t made an effort to find his boxers. Which, fine, whatever makes him more comfortable. I just wish I wasn’t so drawn to the sight of him, especially considering I need to focus on whoever’s trying to attack me. I would bet the deed of this house that it’s the same person who sent those assholes to get me from before.
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