by M. L. Briers
His bear growled at the woman, but he held onto it. Jenny was only being protective of her friend and Karl was grateful for it. if she hadn’t of raised the alarm when she had then he didn’t want to even consider what could have happened to his mate.
“We’ll get out of your hair,” Bailey eyed the man. He knew that Karl’s protective gene had kicked in, and he knew that the man wouldn’t be happy having anyone else around until he’d wooed his mate…
“We…?” Jenny frowned. She couldn’t leave Bonnie in case the woman needed her…
“Sounds like a plan,” Karl growled just a little – that one he couldn’t hold onto.
Bailey had a lock around Jenny’s waist and as she tried to step towards the mates; he kept her firmly at his side until they disappeared into the bedroom and the door had been kicked closed.
“What are you…?” Jenny frowned up at Bailey…
“He’s the last person that is ever going to hurt Bonnie, but his bear is hyper sensitive right now because of what happened, and very damn protective. You won’t get near her, and trust me, it’s best not to try.” Bailey assured her.
“But…” Jenny raised her hand and pointed a finger at the closed door.
“Nope,” Bailey gave a small shake of his head.
“Shouldn’t I…?”
“Nope.”
“Ok, but…”
“Not happening.”
“Geez, you’re so negative…”
Jenny watched as a slow to boil, damn sexy grin took his lips, and she couldn’t have looked away if she’d wanted too. The man was temptation personified.
“Not about everything,” he dipped his chin and looked at her from under his dark eyebrows, and he smouldered with sex appeal.
“Good to know – so when do I get to see this positive side of you?” She played along – she liked it, because her pulse raced with excitement and her body hummed with desire.
“Like I said to Mr Sore Head, come home with me…”
“Oh, it’s a request now?” She kept up the play acting, looking suitably smug as she chastised him.
“Not really, no,” he offered back. “I might just pick you up in my arms and carry you off…”
“Kind of lucky that you don’t suffer from a bad back then.”
“Think of me like the battery bunny…”
“You run around in circles bashing symbols together?”
“I keep going long after other mere mortals have given up from exhaustion.”
There was one heck of a promise in his eyes and in that sexy grin on his lips, and her pulse didn’t just race, it hopped, skipped, and jumped.
~
~
~
Bonnie heard the gentle growl that rolled through his chest where her cheek was pressed and it felt somehow soothing to her shattered nerves. Her hand was palmed against his chest and her fingers were absently moving – stroking down over the hard muscles of his six pack as she laid with him in the semi-darkness of the room.
Only the bright moon shining outside the window shed any light on their surroundings and she was grateful for it.
The cold hard light wouldn’t have given her anywhere to hide. It certainly wouldn’t have allowed her to be bold enough to lay like that with him, it may have felt awkward between them, and right then, she revelled in the feelings that being that close to him produced within her mind and body.
They had a connection that went beyond what had happened that night, and she could feel it – she finally understood what the internet had been trying to tell her when she and Jenny had been drunkenly reading up on mates and all that implied.
He’d already found a place inside of her. Just being there in the darkness with him like that had taken away her churning thoughts and replaced them with an inner peace that she hadn’t known for a long time.
Jenny had been the closest thing that she’d ever had to anyone who had given a damn about her. Her parents, whoever they were, had bailed when she was a baby, and she’d been kicked around the state system – sometimes literally.
She’d never known love – not real love, because nobody had ever offered it to her, and she had given up on finding it, but she felt it now.
He offered her the kind of unconditional love that couldn’t be faked, could never be wrong, and she welcomed that alien feeling.
He’d killed for her – literally – and now she was safe, safe in the strength of his arms. She felt protected from whatever life wanted to throw at her.
It was the best, strangest, most amazing feeling in the world to know that someone had her back. That someone was there for her and she could be there for him.
She might not have been able to slay monsters for him, but she’d give it a damn good try.
Karl listened to the steady sound of her breathing and felt content to know that she had finally settled within his arms.
The waves and waves of emotions that had come from her in the kitchen were gone, replaced by a calmness that told him that he wasn’t out of line to be holding her like that.
He was more than grateful, because he liked the feel of her body resting against his. He liked the way that her head rose and feel against his chest and she pressed her cheek closer every time that his growl escaped when his mind wandered…
He knew that he was different then – different to his father in so many ways that he didn’t need to second guess himself – his actions – to worry that he couldn’t show his mate the kind of love that his father had never shown towards him.
He got it. Why his father was so bat-shit crazy all the time – he guessed after losing his mate the man had been barely holding on to some form of sanity for the sake of his son…
It wasn’t his father’s fault that he’d never shown him any kind of love or real kindness – the man had done what he’d needed to do to raise him and send him out in the world – a man – a man who could defend his own like he had earlier.
He’d gone crazy and given into his need to rip and tear the man apart for even daring to threaten his mate – to lay his dirty hands on her – and he’d seen that red screen come down on his moral compass, but he’d do it again, and again to protect Bonnie.
Hell, he’d willingly die tomorrow to protect her – just not right then.
He wanted to woo her. Bond with her. Make her his mate for life – forever, and he refused to damn well die until he’d spent one night with her in his arms after taking her body, mind, and soul as his, and giving her every ounce of love that he felt within his heart.
He wanted cubs with her – little butt-headed terrors that would keep him on his damn toes. Little princesses that needed her daddy’s love and attention.
He’d dress his bear up in a damn tutu if she asked him too.
His bear didn’t growl or grunt at the prospect…
Mine…
Yeah, that mean old bear of his was going to go all soft centred around pups – as soft centred as it was around Bonnie.
“About this bonding thing…” Bonnie’s soft voice jarred him from his thoughts and made his heart try to leap out of his chest…
His bear rushed towards the surface at that one little word … bond.
CHAPTER TWENTY
~
Karl swallowed down the lump within his throat and tried desperately to hold onto the growl that was rolling through his chest and upwards … every inch of his body had responded to that one word – bond – like it was the sum of all being, the meaning of life – and he guessed that for him, it was.
She was.
“What do you want to know?” Karl asked with his heart in his mouth.
“If you’re ready for that…”
“Me?” Karl twisted his head on his neck and looked down at her face as she turned her face up towards him. “Are you?”
“I asked first,” she scoffed.
“You’re the human here…”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” she gave a small chuckle that t
ime.
“Not bad – just … if you were a shifter then we probably would already have been bonded.”
“Oh!” She hadn’t read that part. “Why?”
“Because once we know we’ve found our mate then we know it’s forever … why waste time, I guess?”
“I … guess…” she smiled to herself.
She hadn’t thought of it like that either. In so many ways she had to say that made sense.
What would you be waiting for if you found the one – the absolute one – one hundred percent not a mistake … not taking a chance … not Mr Right Now, but the sure thing?
Why wouldn’t I jump in with both feet?
It’s not blind faith.
It’s not take a chance and hope it works out.
A split-apart.
My other half in every sense possible…
Why wouldn’t – shouldn’t, I let fate have its way?
“You’re human, Bonnie – there’s no rush to mate. I told you that I’m not going anywhere. I can wait – I can wait just as long as you need to get things straight in your mind…”
“Shut up,” Bonnie said on a grin as she pushed up onto her elbow and met him face to face in the moonlight.
She edged forwards, bringing her lips towards his, and felt his hand reach around the back of her head and palm it. He stretched his head forwards and met her halfway – bringing his lips against hers – soft – warm lips that made her heart melt and her body ignite with desire for more.
Bonnie opened for him and he deepened the kiss.
One strong, muscled arm wrapped around her body and he eased her up against him, bringing her soft curves on top of his hard ones as she lay down the length of him with room to spare…
Mine…
Karl almost lost the will to keep the bear caged deep inside of him as he revelled in the moment – kissed her into submission and back to feisty again – and he growled at the feel of her body squirming down the length of his.
His rock hard length begged to be released from the confines of his sweatpants. It had plenty of room inside the material to twitch and be jostled by her body, but like him – he guessed that it wanted skin to skin contact – wanted to be buried deep inside of her and feel her tight channel clamp down around it…
He was driving himself almost crazy with wicked thoughts, dirty ideas, and flashes of them naked – her wrapped around him like a damn vine as he took her over and over…
His hands ran down over her back and he fisted the hem of her shirt – whipping it up over her head and breaking their kisses for just a moment. He tossed the shirt away and palmed the soft smooth skin of her back, growling at the feel of skin against skin – wanting more – needing so much more…
He ran his hands up and unhooked her bra, freeing her breasts to press against his chest – now he really did want skin against skin. He craved it.
He rolled her over onto her back, and yanked his skirt off over his head before he came down on top of her, caging her in with his body, and feeling the press of her hard nipples against his skin…
He growled at the sensation, the need, and the desire that rolled through him. Every inch of him was alive with wanting her, needing her, and the feel of her hands against him sent him almost wild…
Karl reached out and captured her wrists in his hands. He pressed them back against the mattress and kissed her dizzy – then he started a long overdue and much needed tour of her body.
He nuzzled between her neck and her shoulder and took her scent – revelling in it as he pushed her hands up over her head and held them there with just one large hand as the other found her breast and cupped it.
He used his forefinger and thumb to roll the nipple, and her back arched with a sound that caught in her throat and sounded so damn sexy that he needed to hear it again, and again.
He dipped his head and replaced his finger and thumb with his mouth, closing his lips around that hard bud and suckling until she rolled her hips against his.
His cock begged for mercy – begged to be free, but he wasn’t done with her breasts or the rest of her body just yet.
He was hungry for her – hungrier than he’d ever been in his life before, and he was determined to touch and taste every inch of her…
Karl worked his way down her body, finally releasing her hands so that she could touch him, only because he had no other choice. He removed every barrier between them, and revelled in the feel of her body against his.
Bonnie wasn’t content to let him have all of the fun – she wanted to touch – to taste him – to fist his cock and see how it fitted within her hand – to feel the satin skin in her mouth and taste him on her tongue, but the moment that she tried to reach for him, he just moved away…
“I wanna play too,” she breathed, just as he was settling those large shoulders in between her open legs, and with one hell of a damned hungry growl, and a very sexy look up her body with his jet black eyes – he dipped his head and licked up her sex, making her gasp, making her eyes close briefly, and causing her to push her head back against the pillows…
“Not right now, honey…” he growled with the bear in his voice and her body responded by kicking a lot of excitement her way…
And then she was lost to what he was doing to her, for her, as he devoured her sex and savoured the taste of her on his tongue…
There wasn’t a chance in hell that she could ever have held back the tide of her orgasm – with his hands locked around her thighs – she couldn’t have dragged herself away if she’d wanted.
Bonnie couldn’t move – every inch of her had melted from the intensity of the release – she had to try to remember how to breathe, but her body kicked in and did that for her – and she pried open her eyelids to the sight of Karl, looking every inch the predator as he climbed up and over her body … all of those hard muscles on display…
His jet black eyes were hungry and locked on hers as though if he looked away she might take off running. She was certainly mesmerised by the sight of him – naked, and with every muscles moving under his taut skin – he was an Adonis…
She reached out with the need to touch, to feel the power of those muscles as they moved – to capture his cock and love it the way that he had loved her sex … and yet, he ducked her hands once more, captured them in his own – laced their fingers together, and pushed them down over her head against the mattress…
“I’m not going to be able to control myself with your hands on my body…” he warned on another deep, hungry growl…
“Good…” Bonnie grinned, but it was a damned dirty, sexy, and very wicked grin that she offered him.
Karl used his knees to spread her thighs wide, and he lowered his hips down towards hers – the feel of her wet sex greeting the head of his cock as he rubbed it back and forth against her juices…
“Be careful what you wish for, honey…”
“I read some very wicked tales about shifters online – and I want you like that – I want you to let go…”
“Not yet, baby…” He found the opening to her channel and pressed in – demanding that her tight muscles give way for the girth of his cock…
Bonnie’s lips parted and she caught her breath at the size of him as he pressed into her…
He rocked back and pressed onwards once more. He felt the fever that was in his blood start to really heat up.
Her inner muscles willingly gave way to his demands, as he stretched her wide around him – her muscles clamped down and he growled like a hungry and tormented man…
“Now that’s gonna send me wild…” he warned her, and saw the wicked smile spread her lips.
Karl pulled his hips back once more before he pushed right to the hilt on a growl of pure pleasure.
Her mouth opened involuntarily and she cursed at the depth and width of him stretching her wide…
“Did I hurt you?” Karl froze in place…
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
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�
�Not a damn chance…” Bonnie bit out, clamping her inner muscles around his cock and pressing her hips up against his… “Let me on my knees – I wanna feel you behind me…”
“I can’t…” Karl growled at the thought.
His bear went wild inside of him trying to push forwards…
Mine…
“You don’t like that?” Bonnie asked and he almost choked on his tongue in denial…
“I love that. But if you show me your back, Bonnie … I’m not gonna stop myself from marking you … bonding with you…”
“Isn’t that what we’re doing?”
“Is that what you want?” Karl held his breath for what had to be the longest moment of his life to date…
“Yes – I thought you did…”
His lips came down on hers with so much passion that her head spun. He didn’t say how he felt with words because she’d driven him wild with passion.
He moved his hips, drawing his cock almost out of her before he pushed back to the hilt. Over and over, he kissed her like a demon, and took her down his hard, thick length, until neither of them could take another moment of the slow torture of it all…
“More…” she begged, and Karl wrenched his body back away from her.
He reached out and lifted her up from the bed, turning her onto her hands and knees, and his hand came down on one hip as he fisted his cock and guided back inside of her…
Then he thrust to the hilt with a grunt of pure satisfaction and pleasure. Her head came back on her neck and her backside came up to take him as deeply as she could get him.
Karl’s hands grasped her hips and his lower body moved of its own volition. He took her deeply – his hips slapping against the curves of her backside, speeding up until the sound of skin on skin was so rhythmic, so erotic that he couldn’t have stopped if he’d wanted to, and he didn’t want to stop – not then – not ever…
He knew that he’d never get enough of her, and he hoped to hell that she felt the exact same way…
His thick cock was touching all the right places and creating a delicious friction that her body couldn’t ignore…