Authors: Karen Benjamin
Stefan materialized as Caleb spoke, and Max was glad he’d warned her of his impending arrival. People popping in and out like bread from a toaster put her nerves on edge.
“Take her to the cabin,” Caleb told Stefan. “If she resists, you have my permission to put her under.”
Max opened her mouth to protest, but Stefan tapped her forehead with his finger, and the world went blank.
Max awoke to the feel of a hard body beneath her, and she inhaled deeply, enjoying the fresh, masculine scent that was pure Caleb. A calloused hand moved over her bottom, causing a familiar dampness to settle between her legs and Max moaned as pleasure spiraled up her spine. If this was the way Caleb planned to wake her each morning, she’d probably never get out of bed. The man smelled better than her morning cup of Joe, and she certainly liked the way he pushed her alarm button. Max rubbed herself against him, smiling at the thought that she was acting like a cat in heat, when her memory suddenly came rushing back.
“A-hole!” she screeched, trying to knee him. “You had Stefan knock me out!”
Caleb blocked her knee effortlessly with one hand and rolled her beneath him in one smooth movement.
“And I’ll do it again if you ever try to argue with me in the middle of a battle.”
“You had no right!” Max shouted, glaring up at him.
“I had every right, woman. You belong to me.”
“Says who?” Max said, trying to push him away. “This is the twenty-first century, not the dark ages.”
“Doesn’t matter,” Caleb shot back. “You’re my mate, and nothing is more important to me than your safety.” Caleb grabbed her flailing arms and pinned them above her head. “And stop trying to fight me, you know you can’t win.”
“I’m not trying to fight you,” Max retorted, trying to twist from beneath him. “I’m trying to kill you.”
Caleb grinned down at her, clearly amused by her anger, and Max did her best to head butt him, but he jerked back with a shout of laughter.
“Woman, one day you’ll be the death of me, but until then, I’m going to enjoy the hell out of taming you.” He rolled off her and, ignoring her efforts to strike him, pulled her into a sitting position. “I know you’re pissed, babe, but before you try to take my head off again, don’t you want to know how the battle ended?”
Max stilled, all the fight going out of her. “God, Caleb,” she whispered, her eyes filled with concern. “Is everyone all right?”
“We didn’t lose a man, and the dark mage’s are considerably fewer in number. But the leader got away. We still don’t know who he is, but I caught his scent. He can run, but hiding from me is going to be a lot harder from now on.”
“But he’s not going to stop, is he? The prophesy is coming true. There will be a battle to end all battles.”
Caleb sighed wearily and pulled her into his arms. “I’m sorry, babe. I wish things were different. I wish I could give you the normal life you’ve longed for but—”
Max placed a finger against his lips, effectively cutting off his words. “You’ve given me everything I need, Caleb. Everything. And I’ve come to realize I’m not cut out for a life in the suburbs with two-point-one kids. Instead, I’m going to be a mage slayer, perhaps
the
Mage Slayer foretold of in a six hundred-year-old prophesy, and mate a
future
Lycan king. And in my off hours, I’m going to teach third grade and raise little wolfies who look just like their daddy.” Grinning, she said, “Not bad for a mutt from the back waters of Louisiana. Think you can keep up with me.”
Caleb snorted and pressed her down onto the bed. “Why don’t we put it to a little test?”
“Okay,” Max said, hiding her smile as a plan quickly formed in her mind, “But if this is going to be a test, we need to establish a few rules.”
“Such as?”
“I’ll be the big bad wolf, which means I get to be on top. And you get to be Little Red Riding Hood.” She flashed him a saucy grin. “That means you get to be on the bottom. First one to drop their basket of goodies, so to speak, is the loser.”
“Baby you don’t have the right equipment to be a big bad wolf.” He shifted, positioning his erection at the junction of her thighs. “I on the other hand, have what it takes and then some.”
“Show off.” Max moaned, as he rubbed the head of his penis against her creamy heat. “Having a penis doesn’t make you a big bad wolf. It just means you have a smaller brain. Anyway, this is my game, so I get to make the rules. Get off me.”
Caleb reversed their positions, grinning widely, as Max quickly straddled him. She positioned his erection at the opening to her body and with a blissful look on her face, closed her eyes and sank slowly down, seating herself to the hilt. With her head thrown back, and her eyes closed, she rode him relentlessly, using the muscles of her feminine core to squeeze and release his cock until they were both panting with need.
Caleb let out a deep moan, a sound of impending surrender, and Max opened her eyes to look down at him with a smirk of satisfaction on her face.
“Looks like you’re going to lose the bet big man. The games barely begun and you’re close to begging for mercy.” She propped her elbows on his chest and grinned into his face. “Guess this makes me one badass wolf cause I just pussy whupped a future Lycan King.”
“Max?”
“Yea, babe.”
“I can prove I’m the better wolf by making you come with just four little words.”
Smiling widely, she shook her head in denial; certain she had the upper hand. Caleb tightened his hold on her hips, holding her against him as his gaze met hers.
“Do you want to know what those four words are?”
She did, but despite her efforts to look unaffected, her body was on fire. She was ready to end the game so he could give her what she wanted, but she didn’t want him to know it. She liked to win. And since she had a feeling she wouldn’t be winning many bets against the big guy in the future, she wanted this one to count.
She nodded slowly, uncertain what to expect as his yellow-gold eyes deepened, turning the color of aged honey and a smile, filled with joy slowly lifted the corners of his mouth. He stared at her for a long second, and finally, he whispered,” I love you, Max.”
Damn, if he wasn’t right.
Her body flooded with warmth, and the thing resting just below the surface of her skin rippled, signaling its approval. She’d lost the bet, but that was okay. She and her wild magic were finally home.
The End
I live in the beautiful hills of La Mesa, California. I have always enjoyed writing, but as a navy wife and working mother of two, there was never enough time. The kids are grown now, the husband is semi-retired, and writing the kind of stories I love to read has become a reality. To me, reading a well-written romance is the equivalent of popping my favorite chocolate into my mouth. Writing one is to savor each bite. Satisfaction without the calories. It totally works for me!