He nodded slowly, a smile tugging at his mouth. “I love touching you.”
The smile she gave him was nothing short of brilliant, stealing his breath. Had the goddess ever created a woman more beautiful?
“Good,” she said. “Even if you can’t give me more, I’d very much like for you to touch me, or hold me. Do you like to cuddle?”
He grinned. “I’m a wolf.” His heart rose, feeling lighter than it had in a long, long time, as if a terrible weight had been lifted. And maybe it had.
She laughed. “I want whatever you can give me.”
“I could bring you pleasure.” The thought tantalized.
Her lashes swept down, her breath turned ragged. When she looked at him again, her eyes were smoking. But she shook her head. “Maybe later. For now, just hold me, Wulfe.”
His animal whined with pleasure.
“There’s nothing I’d enjoy more.” He lifted her into his arms in a move that felt as natural as breathing, then deposited her on the bed, and joined her. As he pulled her into his arms, his world righted itself, the terrible tension escaping his limbs as he cradled her against him, her precious head on his chest. He stroked her silken hair, filled with an incredible sweetness, marveling at the miracle of her acceptance, and vowed that if he managed to do nothing else right, he would keep her safe.
But deep down, he feared that he’d already failed.
Chapter Fifteen
Natalie reveled in the feel of Wulfe’s strong arms around her as they lay together, fully clothed, on his bed. His body was like granite, his arms as thick as tree trunks, yet he held her so gently, as if she were made of the most fragile glass. He smelled of dark forests and sunlit meadows, and his warm, masculine scent intoxicated her. His jaw rested against her head, her cheek against his shoulder, and nothing had ever felt so intimate, so right.
She’d lain like this with Rick from time to time, but she’d never felt as if they shared the same air, as if their hearts beat in time. And she did with Wulfe.
Her arm curled tighter around his waist as love, pure and bright, rushed up inside of her, stinging her eyes. Nothing would likely ever come of it. Certainly nothing physical. But she longed to pull off his shirt and rub her cheek against his bare chest. She longed to feel his nakedness pressed against hers. The thought shattered her breath. But he didn’t feel the same, he couldn’t feel the same after the damage he’d suffered.
If she could just be something to him, make a difference to him in some way. Sliding her hand across his chest, she looked up at him. “Wulfe, I know what Strome said, that pulling the primal energies through me could be dangerous. But if you ever need to, if it’s the only way you’re going to beat Satanan, don’t hesitate.”
Rolling onto his side, he levered himself onto one elbow and stared down at her with vehement eyes. “I will never use you in that way, Natalie. Never.” He stroked her cheek, his fingers as gentle as rain despite the intensity of his look.
“If the time ever comes . . .”
“No.”
“I’m willing to make sacrifices, too.”
He covered her lips with his finger, his eyes luminous. “I know. But I will never be okay with anything that harms you.”
He tensed suddenly, going still as a frozen pond.
“Wulfe?”
“Shhh,” he said quietly, his gaze rising to the ceiling even as he stroked her hair.
Impatiently, she waited for him to explain, loving the sweet feel of his hand on her head. Finally, his body relaxed on a deep breath and an exhale. His head dipped, resting lightly against her temple and she stroked his hair in return, thrilled to finally be able to do so.
“I heard Inir and Satanan again,” he murmured.
“Anything important?”
He lifted his head and stroked her cheek. “Yes and no.”
His fingers traced her nose, her eyebrows, her ear, his touch so gentle, so sweet. Her heart contracted even as her pulse kicked up, her breathing turning shallow. If only touching her affected him in the same way.
“Satanan’s mad that the Mage keep failing. I’m kind of amused. Inir started out the one in charge, with Satanan nothing more than an advisor, but Inir’s starting to get pushed aside.” He grunted. “That should probably scare the crap out of me.”
“Do you need to tell Lyon?” She stroked his cheek, her finger tracing one scar in particular, the one she knew to be hers.
He watched her, his body tensing slightly as she traced that scar. “I’ll tell him when I go downstairs. It doesn’t change anything.”
“Good. I don’t want you to leave.”
His gaze sharpened slightly, his nostrils flaring, and he buried his nose against her neck. “You smell like heaven.” Slowly he lifted his head, longing filling his eyes. “I want to touch you.”
Her breath trembled out, heat racing straight to her core. “Anywhere. However . . . wherever . . . you want.”
She felt him shudder, watched his eyes fill with soft wonder as his warm hand burrowed beneath the hem of her shirt to palm her abdomen.
Her breath caught. Mesmerized, she watched his face lower, felt his lips on her jaw, then her neck. She turned her head, giving him full access, gasping with pleasure as his tongue stroked her pulse point.
As heat suffused her body, she buried her fingers in his hair, trailing them down his neck to his broad shoulders. “Does it bother you that I’m so affected by you when you can’t . . . reciprocate?”
His lips brushed her jaw. “I’m in awe that you’re affected by my touch.” The truth rang in his words and throbbed in the tenderness of his lips as he rained kisses on her cheek, her temple, her brow. “I love the way you smell, the way you taste.” His hand slid up and over one breast. His breath hitched. “The way you feel.”
As his strong fingers caressed her breast through her bra with infinite tenderness, he rose to look down into her face, his eyes shining with a soft need that lacked a carnal sharpness. “I want to see you.”
Arching her back, she reached behind her and unhooked her bra. Pulling her shirt off over her head, she tossed both onto the far side of the bed, then lay back. With a shiver of excitement, she watched as Wulfe reached for her, the most reverent expression on his face.
His big hands stroked her with featherlight touches as he gazed at her breasts as if they were the most beautiful things he’d ever seen. His thumb traced one tight nipple, making her gasp. With a flick of his gaze to hers, he lowered his face, tracing that same bud with his tongue. Sensation shot straight through her, making her gasp and arch into his touch. Her hands slid into his hair and she cradled him close as his lips explored her, tasted her, sucked her flesh into his warm mouth.
By the time he lifted his face and met her gaze again, her body was flushed with need, her breath a wreck. In his eyes, she saw joy tempered by uncertainty.
“What’s the matter?” she asked, caressing his cheek, running her thumb across his bottom lip.
He kissed her thumb but continued to watch her with that intent gaze. “Will you let me pleasure you?”
Her limbs went weak. “I’m yours, Wulfe. All I am, all I have, is yours. In any way you want me.”
A small frown appeared between his brows as if he didn’t precisely know what to make of that. And perhaps she didn’t either. All she knew was that it was true. In some strange, elemental way, she’d been made for this moment, for this man.
She reached for the button of her jeans. “Will you tell me how I can pleasure you, too?”
His fingers moved hers aside. “You are pleasuring me.”
With slow, easy movements, he unzipped her jeans and removed them, leaving her in nothing but a pair of white lace panties. Then, with gentle hands that belonged more to a man admiring a fine piece of sculpture than to a male in the throes of passion, he stroked her legs, one after the other, ankle to thigh, then her abdomen, and again, her breasts. Pleasure drenched his features, if not in the carnal way she might have liked.<
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Finally, his fingers dipped beneath the waistband of her panties and he pulled them down and off, tossing them aside.
His gaze found the juncture of her thighs, his body stilling. “Let me see you.”
Lifting her knees, she let them drop, opening herself to his sight, to whatever he wanted. Fire licked between her legs as he gazed at her, as wonder once more lit his face.
“How I wish . . .” he murmured with a sorrowful shake of his head. He looked up at her, meeting her gaze. “You are the most beautiful woman ever created.”
It was flattery in its finest form, but she saw truth in his eyes and knew he believed it. Holding her gaze, he slowly lowered himself between her thighs to kiss her belly, then lower still, finding the place where her need coalesced.
At the first brush of his tongue on that sensitive spot, she cried out.
She heard him growl, a low sound of male satisfaction and stroked her again, a long stroke that traced the full length of the place she longed for him to fill. If only . . .
As if sensing her need, he slid one thick finger into her, and she moaned with satisfaction. As he stroked that finger in and out, he licked and sucked and tugged with his lips and teeth until she came with a startling crash, convulsing around him, gasping.
Slowly, he pulled away from her. As she tried to reclaim her breath, he lay down beside her and gathered her against him.
“You’re so beautiful,” he murmured against her temple, then kissed her there.
As she laid her head on his chest, she heard his heart beating, strong and steady. Far too evenly. “That didn’t excite you.” She sighed. “Not at all.”
“It delighted me.”
But there was something wrong about taking from a man to whom she couldn’t give. As she lay beside him, naked and sated, while he remained fully dressed, she felt suddenly awkward. Pulling away, she sat up, reached for her clothes, and dressed quickly.
“I’m sorry, Natalie.”
“It’s not your fault, Wulfe.” Down the hall, she heard voices and the sound of a barking dog. Skye must be upstairs.
“I know.” His mouth twisted ruefully. “I’m sorry for both of us.”
“Would you shift for me?” she asked, slipping on her shoes. “I miss my wolf buddy.”
He smiled slowly. “You do realize he’s just me.”
She laughed “Of course. I still want to see you like that again.”
“Are you sure you’re not just trying to get me naked?” He was teasing, yet a gleam entered his eyes that she found too endearing.
She grinned. “I love you naked.”
Without hesitation, he stripped for her, and she thoroughly enjoyed the sight. Then, in a spray of sparkling lights, the man disappeared, the wolf taking his place.
A different kind of pleasure burst within her at the sight of her old friend. Kneeling on the rug, she opened her arms and he ran into them, licking her neck as she wrapped her arms around him and rubbed his fur. Joy vibrated through his wolf body.
“I don’t entirely understand where you, your wolf, and your animal spirit begin and end, but the spirit is stronger in you in this form, isn’t it?”
Hmm. I’d say no, but my animal’s disagreeing. At least, where you come in. He feels closer to you in this form. He feels that he’s yours. Or perhaps thinks of you as his. Definitely the latter. You’re his. Ours. I think he adores you as much as I do.
She stroked him, looking into those intelligent eyes. “Do you . . . adore me?”
You know I do.
A rap sounded at the door. “Wulfe? Is Natalie in there with you?”
Natalie glanced at the door. “Can I let her in?”
Sure.
Rising to her feet, she crossed the room, the huge wolf all but pressed against her side. She opened the door to find Olivia and Skye. Both women grinned and reached for Wulfe, stroking his head.
In Natalie’s head, Wulfe chuckled. There are advantages to being a canine. Even the puppy, Lady, went crazy, trying to greet her oversized pack mate.
“We’re having happy hour in Lyon’s room with Kara,” Olivia said, smiling at Natalie. “Come join us.”
Natalie grinned. “I’d love to.” She glanced at Wulfe, stroking his back. “Do you mind?”
A smile lit those dark wolf eyes. She can come if you take responsibility for her, Olivia. Lyon’s orders.
“I’ve got it,” Olivia said, lifting her hand solemnly. “I promise not to let her glass get empty.”
Wulfe snorted. That’s not the responsibility I meant.
Olivia threw Natalie a quick grin.
Natalie bent and kissed Wulfe’s furred head. As she stepped away, he lowered himself to the floor, lying flat where the puppy could finally reach him, yipping and pouncing with delight. All three women laughed.
I’ll bring her to you in a few minutes, Wulfe assured Skye. We need a little playtime.
Natalie watched the huge wolf and tiny puppy romp for a few moments, grinning at the sweetness of it, then followed the two women next door. Lyon’s room was no bigger than hers or Wulfe’s, which surprised her considering Lyon was the chief and Kara the Radiant. Then again, it didn’t surprise her at all. Kara, especially, was as unpretentious as anyone Natalie knew.
The room had been painted a rich orange-gold, the curtains dark brown. Paintings covered most of the walls, an eclectic mix—everything from sailing vessels to jungle animals to landscapes.
In the center of the massive bed sat Kara, lounging against half a dozen pillows, dark circles under her eyes.
“Hi, Natalie,” she said cheerily despite her less than healthy pallor. She patted the bed. “Have a seat.”
Falkyn, Delaney, and Julianne strode into the room, Falkyn carrying two bottles of wine in each hand, Delaney holding a large water bottle and corkscrew, and Julianne a platter of canapés, which she placed in the middle of the bed. A row of pretty hand-painted wineglasses sat on the dresser.
Olivia and Skye each uncorked a bottle of wine and began filling the glasses.
“Melisande popped out for a minute, but she’ll be right back,” Kara told them. “She decided we needed chocolate-covered strawberries to go with the Chardonnay.”
Olivia lifted a brow. “Where’s she going for those?”
“California.”
Delaney smiled. “Only an Ilina could pop across the country and back in ten minutes. Well, ten seconds. The minutes will be for the actual purchase. Sit,” Delaney commanded. “All of you. I’ll serve the wine.”
“You should sit,” Skye countered. “You’re the one who’s pregnant.”
“Yes, which is why I’m not drinking the wine. It makes perfect sense for me to serve it.”
Skye shook her head with a smile. “Yes, ma’am. Thanks, D.”
Natalie joined the others as they climbed onto the bed to sit cross-legged in a semicircle around Kara and the platter of food. Delaney handed them each a glass, then joined them with her water bottle.
“We do this every afternoon,” Olivia said. “It’s our way of thumbing our noses at the Mage, even if those pricks don’t know and don’t care. We refuse to give in to the fear of what might happen. And if worse comes to worse, we’re going to continue this ritual of sisterhood. Because we’ll still have each other.”
As one, Delaney and Olivia gripped Falkyn’s knees, one on either side, their expressions pained. “Most of us.” Falkyn would share the fate of the Ferals.
Movement caught Natalie’s eye on the far side of the room as Melisande appeared suddenly, a white box in her hands.
“Success!” Melisande announced. “I bought three dozen because they’re exquisite.”
“Strawberry. Now,” Delaney moaned. “I’m suddenly having a massive craving.”
Melisande grinned and joined them on the bed, placing the box beside the tray of canapés, then taking the extra wineglass Skye held for her.
When they were all seated, Olivia lifted her glass. “To sisterhood.”
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“To sisterhood,” the others replied.
Natalie lifted her glass with a smile, saying nothing, and noticed that Julianne did the same. The pretty brunette with the bright blue eyes was a wife, but not a Feral wife, if Natalie remembered correctly. Yet both of them had been included in this extraordinary group.
As Natalie took a sip, her gaze roamed the circle, and she marveled at the welcome she’d received from every single one of them. They were a wonderful group, women she’d love to keep as friends. When and if the day came for her to return home, for Wulfe to take her memories again, she was going to lose so much.
As the women shared wine and strawberries, the talk steered resolutely away from the topic that Natalie knew must consume them all—the Ferals’ waning immortality. Soon, she found herself the focus of their attention.
Olivia eyed her curiously. “So . . . what’s up with you and Wulfe? You like him. Maybe more than ‘like’?”
Natalie looked down at her wineglass, startled by the sudden rush of emotion. She loved him. But that was a foolish thing to admit when it was still all too likely she’d be sent back to her world with no memory of him. It was best for both of them if he never knew how she felt.
“I do like him,” she said evenly, looking up to meet Olivia’s gaze. “Wulfe is one of the finest men I’ve ever met. Wolf eyes or human, his soul shines through, and it is truly beautiful. He’s beautiful.”
Olivia smiled. “I like you, Natalie. You’re the real deal.”
Natalie smiled. For several moments, they sipped their wine in silence, but the pall they’d pushed to the corners of the room began floating forward to hang, once more, heavily over their heads.
“There has to be something we can do to stop all this, to stop Inir,” Kara murmured. “There is so much cruelty, so much evil in that man. And he’s nothing compared to Satanan.”
Natalie opened her mouth to ask more, then closed it. Then decided if anyone would tell her the truth, these women would. “Will you tell me about the Daemons?” Natalie asked. “At least the wraith Daemons. I was attacked by one, but I have no memory of it. I keep hearing that life will be terrible if they’re freed, but I need to understand.” For a moment, the others were silent, shadows in their eyes, and Natalie regretted bringing it up. “This wasn’t the time or place, was it?”
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