His Purrfect Mate (23 page)

“
Dane,” she murmured,
tucking some hair behind one ear.

“
Solnyshko
moyo
.” He strode to her, gathered her in
close and kissed her. Gentle but branding. Tender yet possessive.
Her taste flooded him, and his tiger roared in response. Dane took
all she offered and backed off when she arched into him. “Are you
okay?” he questioned, cupping the sides of her face.

“
I am now.” She touched
the pendant positioned at the base of his neck. “How about
you?”

“
I feel…better than I ever
have.”

Her gaze warmed, the gold seemed to melt and
swirl in with the browns. “You still need to rest and take it
easy.”

He grinned. “For now. I think I need to
convince you I am nowhere near a tabby.”

Aida flushed. “You heard that?”

“
In a manner of speaking,
yes.” He remembered his amusement when his tiger had shared that
with him.

“
Figures,” she groused,
wrapping her arms around him. “Can you tell me what all that
was?”

“
Yes.” He skimmed his
thumb along her lips. “But you know that’s not all we have to deal
with.” There was no way he wasn’t going to claim her as his mate,
not now.

Shivers moved through her. Aida kissed the
pad of his thumb. “Good.” She stepped away and went to the kitchen.
Dane followed, loath to leave her even for a moment. Sitting at the
table, he touched the pendant and looked at her.

“
Tell me about
this.”

This? I’m facing away from you. What this
are you talking about?

Dane grinned at the sound
of her sultry voice in his mind again.
I’ve missed this connection with you, my love.

As have I. Now what are you talking
about?

The necklace.

He could both see and feel her body tense.
Dane got up and moved to stand behind her. Sliding his arms around
her, he pressed into her figure. “Why the tensing?” he murmured,
stroking her arms and feeling the rigidity slowly begin to
dissipate.

Aida sighed heavily. “What did you want to
know about it?”

Dane picked her up and held her to his
chest. “Everything.” He carried her to the mattress on the floor
and sat, positioning her so she straddled his lap. “Tell me about
it.”

“
My cousin, Len, was
a…what do you call it…a petrologist who loved to dabble in
astrological gemology. He made it for me; it was the last thing he
gave me.”

Dane could feel her pain, and it ate at his
gut. He opened his mouth to speak when she lifted the pendant from
his skin, stared at it, and a sad look of remembrance filled her
face.

“
This reddish pink one is
Rhodochrosite, it’s used to attract your soul mate. In the middle
is Sugilite, there to protect the soul on its quest and deflect
negative energy. Then the final one is Rhodonite. Len said this one
restores inner balance and peace, helps resolve conflict and heal
past trauma. It also promotes love and peace bringing the wearer
balance, steadiness and calm.”

“
And he made it for
you?”
Attracting a soul mate?
That worked. In fact, each of the stones made
sense to him. And explained the pink light he’d seen around him for
that brief moment.

“
Yes. He…he gave it to me
at our fave hangout. Len was like my brother, my
protector.”

“
What happened to
him,
solnyshko moyo
? Why does his memory make you hurt so bad?”

Her large eyes stayed
transfixed on the pendant she continued to hold. Dane stroked a
hand down the side of her face, his thumb brushing away the fat
tear which began a trek down her skin.
Tell me, my love. Let me share your pain with you.

No words escaped her lips, but while the
tears fell faster, Dane could see the memory as she relived it.

The bar was loud and crowded. She and Len
sat at a tall table near the back with beers and burgers before
them. Len took Aida’s hand and placed the necklace in her palm.
“Oh, Len,” she said. “It’s so beautiful. Why?”

“
Because you are my best
cousin and I wanted to give you something. Keep it close to your
heart, Aida.”

She slid the leather thong over her head and
smiled when it sat around her neck. “Thank you.”

Two men approached the table, and one
reached for Aida. Len pushed the man’s reaching hand away. He came
back swinging, and in seconds, the two were scuffling. As quickly
as it began, it ended, with Len as the winner. The attacker and his
friend slunk off before the bouncer could get there.

“
You shouldn’t fight,
Len.”

“
Some things are worth
fighting for.”

“
Crazy man.”

They settled back into eating and Len told
her about the stones inlaid in the charm. Not even five minutes
later, someone shouted at them, and a man stood there. The same one
Len had fought earlier. He pulled a gun from the waistband of his
pants and shot Len twice in the chest.

Her cousin never stood a chance.

The memory faded, and Dane stared at Aida.
Her eyes still shed tears, and her fingers were clenched around the
teardrop pendant. “Aida,” he whispered, wiping away more of the
falling tears.

“
It was my fault. If I’d
just danced with him, Len would still be alive.”

“
No, baby. That was not
your fault.” Dane raged and longed to rip the man apart for causing
her this much pain.

“
I left America as soon as
possible and have no desire to go back.”

“
Solnyshko
moyo
.”

Aida released the necklace and buried her
face into his neck. Dane allowed her to cry it out, sharing his
love with her, not rushing her to work through her feelings.
Eventually, she fell asleep, and Dane kissed her after laying her
on the couch and covering her with a blanket. Then, he picked up
the living room, replacing the mattresses back upon the beds and
putting on fresh linens. Once that was finished, he checked the
food then knelt back down beside her.

“
Solnyshko moyo.
Aida, come on, baby. Wake up.”

Her lids lifted slowly, exposing her
beautiful eyes to him. Her entire expression softened as she
smiled. “You’re here. I was afraid it was a dream.”

Dane bent down and nuzzled
the side of her face. “No dream,
solnyshko
moyo
.” Her scent wound around him, and his
body hardened painfully. He licked along her jugular, and his cock
pulsed insistently in his pants.

Mine!

She mewled and slid her arms up around his
neck, drawing him in closer. “Dane,” she moaned.

He could feel his tiger at the surface. Dane
kissed her, thrusting his tongue deep into her mouth. Her fingers
tightened in his hair and she arched into him. Flames burst along
his skin, and fire poured through his veins.

“
Dane,” she sighed into
his mouth.

“
Mine, Aida.
Mine.”

“
Always,” she murmured her
agreement against his lips.

With a low sound of possession, he scooped
her up into his arms and carried her back to her bedroom. Placing
her on the bed, he lowered his body over hers.

“
Protection?” she
asked.

His gaze flew to hers. And he snarled
slightly at the humor he saw in her gold-flecked eyes. Her full
lips turned up as well.

“
Funny,
solnyshko moyo
.”

“
I thought so,” she
quipped, sliding her hands over his bare back to settle at his
waist.

Dane ran a hand up her skirt and closed his
eyes in pleasure the second he felt her center’s moistness. With a
rumble, he snapped her underwear and drove two fingers deep inside
her wet heat.

“
Ohhh!” she moaned, her
hips rising to meet him.

The scent of her arousal was making him
crazy. Her pussy gripped his fingers like they never wanted to let
him go. His shaft grew even harder, and Dane removed his pants
without hesitation, finally realizing the benefit of being able to
do that with just his mind. Her cream coated his thrusting digits,
and he ground his jaw.

“
Please,” Aida
begged.

Pulling his fingers out of her, Dane
maneuvered his thick shaft to her entrance. Slowly, he thrust home
inside her, holding her gaze the entire time. Her pussy held him
like a custom-made velvet glove, handcrafted for him and him alone.
He damn near purred in pleasure.

“
Ahh yeah,” she
whispered.

He couldn’t say anything. The roar of a
tiger crouched on the tip of his tongue. Dane held still, eyes
closing, while trying to give her the opportunity to adjust to his
size.

Move, Dane.

Opening his eyes, he found
her staring at him.
You’re so tight, Aida.
Hot. Wet. And so fucking tight.

Her gaze smoldered; the
gold speckle seemed to become liquid and meld with the
brown.
I won’t break,
tiger-mine.

Dane withdrew, and her
eyes fluttered.
Watch me,
solnyshko moyo
. Watch me
as we make love, as I claim you and as I fill you full of seed and
give you my child.

Her eyes darkened, and her internal muscles
rippled along his cock. Dane pushed forward again. Back and forth,
he moved, their eyes on one another, her moans both verbal and in
his head.

Sweet goddess, what are you doing to me?

Making love to my mate.

Her fingers dug into his
shoulders.
You said we weren’t
mated.

Dane snarled at
her.
You. Are. My. Mate. Mine!
He delivered each word with a stabbing thrust.
Her pulse increased, and he realized whatever the link they had was
extremely powerful. In fact, it seemed as if the thin one had
blended into the mating bond, strengthening what bound them
together, and yet, it still remained incomplete.
Tell me.

Tell you what?
Her body rose and fell in perfect tandem to his.
He stopped moving and stared at her. Frustration and raw need
flared up in her eyes.
Tired already, old
man?

Tell me, Aida.
He groaned as her muscles worked his shaft,
encouraging him to give her what she wanted. What he
wanted.

Give me what I want.

Don’t challenge me,
mate,
he rumbled dangerously.

Not mated.

Dane hissed, seriously
hating those words coming from her.
Mine.
Tell me you are mine.

His cock pulsed within her
when she licked her lips.
You tell
me.

I’m all yours, Aida. Even beyond the last
breath I take, I am solely yours.

Her love sped along their
shared link and embraced him.
And I, too,
am yours.

His tiger grunted its approval, and Dane
rose up and gripped her hips, thrusting hard and deep within her.
Aida’s mewls grew louder, and her slit held him tighter. He was so
close to his release, but he wanted her to find pleasure first.
While he wasn’t claiming her, this was the next best thing.

Come for me, Aida.

“
Dane!” Her voice rent the
air, prickling his skin.

Her body tightened, and with a deep shudder,
she came hard. But it was more than that, she dissolved around him
and launched him over after her. Dane lost control when, in his
mind, he heard her purr a sound of pure pleasure. It resonated
through him, stroking him in ways he never believed possible. He
roared and thrust home two more times before he erupted, bathing
her womb with his life force.

Heart pounding and sweaty,
Dane kissed her and nipped her shoulder. Her pussy clenched around
him again.
Mine.

Her eyes closed, and she
sighed.
More.
Aida lifted her lids and looked at him with a contented
smile.
And don’t hold back this time,
tiger-mine. I want it all.

Dane bit her lower lip and
growled.
As you demand.
He withdrew, flipped her over on her knees,
ripped her skirt off, and with a groan of pleasure, sank his hard
cock back into her welcoming heat.

Her head was down, hands
gripping the blankets on the bed.
God,
Dane. I can feel you everywhere.

He smirked before getting back to the more
important thing to do. Loving his woman. His mate.

Five hours later, he stirred. Aida lay
pressed against him, her back along his side, her naked skin warm
and inviting. Rising up on one arm, Dane trailed his hand down her
curvaceous form. The sexy purr she made filled the air, and Aida
turned her head, gracing him with her smile.

“
Shouldn’t you be asleep?”
she asked, her eyes heavy-lidded.

He tucked some hair behind her ear.
“Probably.”

Aida rolled so they faced each other. “Then
why aren’t you? You are supposed to be recovering.”

His fingers trailed over her hip. “I have
other things in mind.”

“
Me, too. But I have to
know if this is what your life is like. You know with all the
danger and unprovoked attacks.”

Dane stared into her eyes. “It is.”

She sighed and flopped on her back. “I was
afraid of that.”