Mating the Alpha (7 page)
Authors: Ivy Sinclair
“I was waiting for you to come back.”
I leaned across the edge of the tub, and she met me halfway. Our lips touched, and then I reached out to cup the back of her head and turn it to give me better access. As my tongue found hers, I groaned. I wasn’t supposed to be doing this. Not yet. I enjoyed the taste of her a few moments longer, and then I dragged my lips away. I felt a small measure of satisfaction to see that Maren was slightly out of breath.
“Maren, I love you. I want you to know that because it is the God’s honest truth.”
“I love you too,” she said breathlessly.
The words were music to my ears, even though I felt as if I didn’t deserve them. We grinned at each other, and I wondered how in the hell I had gotten so lucky.
“There’s this thing about you mating someone else though,” she said, a frown settling on her face.
“Fuck ‘em,” I said. I twisted my fingers through the tendrils of her hair careful not to tug too hard on them and cause her any pain. “I told you that you just have to trust me. The council has its ideas about what it thinks is the best course of action, but I don’t agree.”
“It’ll start a shifter war,” Maren said. Her tone had gone completely serious. “You are the alpha now, Lukas. You have a whole bunch of people that you need to think about.”
“I know, but that doesn’t mean that the best thing for them is this treaty in this way,” I said. “I just have to offer them different terms that get us to the same end result.” My mind was already racing, but then I saw the worried expression on Maren’s face. “Hey, hey. Whatever happens, this thing between us is going to happen.”
“Can you get me a towel and help me out?” Maren asked. “I’m feeling a little chilly now.”
“You don’t need a towel yet,” I said. Before she could protest, I stood up pulling her with me. She felt so small and fragile in my arms that it scared me to death all over again that I might lose her. I tucked a towel I pulled from the rack around her and took her into the bedroom. I set her on the bed and pulled back the covers. “You need to get some sleep.”
“I don’t want to be here by myself,” she said.
“You won’t be. I’ll be right here,” I said.
She got under the covers and then patted the bed next to her. “Please?”
How could I resist her? She was the only thing I had ever wanted so badly in my life. Removing my robe, I slid into the bed beside her.
I knew that Lukas was trying to remain a gentleman because he was worried about my injuries. That was sweet and sensible of him. For once though, our roles appeared to be reversed because I didn’t want to be sweet and sensible. I wanted him; all of him.
Hearing him tell me that he loved me was something that I had always wanted, and I still almost couldn’t believe it. He wanted me to trust him, and I was willing to do that. But there was something I wanted in return for that trust.
Lukas crawled into bed with me willingly enough, but he was clearly trying to keep some distance between us. I moved forward and put my hands out so that I could feel the hard muscles of his chest underneath my fingers.
“Babe, you gotta stop doing that. We’re just going to sleep tonight,” Lukas said. His breath sounded ragged though, and I knew that it wouldn’t take much arm-twisting to convince him. All my body’s aches and pains were forgotten. I had one singular need, and only Lukas had the salve that could take this sweet pain away.
“I want this,” I said. “Please, Lukas?”
I moved closer so that my breasts brushed his chest and was rewarded with a long groan. I pushed myself up so my teeth could nip the underside of his chin. I knew I was playing with fire, but I had no intention of getting burned. Not this time.
I felt his muscles tense as his fingertips barely touched my shoulders. I wasn’t sure if it was to pull me closer or push me away, and, for a moment, I don’t think Lukas knew either. So I decided that I wasn’t going to leave the choice up to him anymore. I was a big girl, and dammit, I knew what I wanted.
Sliding my body up his, I enjoyed the exquisite feeling of his rock hard body underneath mine as I pushed him onto his back. This was something I could do to make both of us feel good, and I sure in the hell wasn’t going to let anything stop me.
It still floored me that Lukas had been there watching me in the wings all this time. Somehow, I think I had always known that. It was part of the reason that I decided to come back to Greyelf. Somehow, I thought that my presence, back where it all started, would draw him back to me. The way that he returned wasn’t the way I would have wanted, but that was something to think about for another day. Right now, the only thing that mattered was I was in the arms of the man I loved and who loved me.
It had all been worth it. Every shred of doubt. Every tear. Every time I wracked my brain and cursed his name. I thought that I might not have fully appreciated the experience if it had come easily. Lukas and I would fight for each other now, and that made me bold.
I tasted his bottom lip, and I heard the growl in his chest which told me I was awakening another side of Lukas as well. There wasn’t anything about his animal side that scared me. If anything, I saw his protectiveness of me in that part of him. There was something infinitely wonderful about that feeling.
Lukas wrapped his long arms all the way around my body and squeezed me against him. I loved the feeling of his skin against my skin. I wanted to spend hours exploring every inch of him, and I would. But first things first. I knew what I had to do, and I didn’t think that Lukas would protest.
I kissed him and moved my hips against his until I felt his hardness press against my thigh. No matter what he said, that part of him was more than ready for what I had in mind. I planned to enjoy that part fully, especially after the delightful experience in my living room earlier which had only served to whet my appetite for the main course.
No, that would come soon. I let my mouth slide from his and then began a slow progression of kisses over his temple. I sucked his earlobe and enjoyed the gentle bucking against my hips. My alpha was excited and wanted to move things along, but I kept him pinned down. It wasn’t his turn to take control. Not yet.
As I found the crook of his neck, I paused as I considered what I was about to do. It was something that I didn’t think I’d be able to take back, not even if I wanted to. But as I felt Lukas’s heartbeat under my fingertips, I knew that was the reason why I needed to do it now. Everything was fresh and right. Tomorrow, things would be confusing again. Lukas wanted me to trust him. This was how I would be able to give him that trust.
I bared my teeth and sunk them deep into his skin. I heard his gasp of surprise. I gently lapped my tongue around the marks just as he had done to me. Lukas took my waist and flipped me over onto my back in a flash. I had forgotten how strong he was, and there was something arousing about being with a man who could dominate me so easily. But that wasn’t the way Lukas had ever been when it came to me; he wanted me to come to him willingly, and I had.
He sat over me, his breath coming in hard waves as he stared into my eyes. I felt as if he was looking into my soul. “This is done then,” he said. “You are my mate. Forever.” His eyes were so dark that I thought I might lose myself in them.
“Yes,” I said. My heart threatened to beat right out of my chest. “Yes, Lukas. I am your mate. Forever.”
As his lips crushed mine, I pulled my knees up to lock my legs around his waist. I wanted to culminate every emotion we had just shared physically as well as verbally. It felt right, and if it didn’t happen soon, I was fairly certain I was going to explode from ten years of anticipation.
Lukas moved between my thighs, and I gave a small cry of disappointment as he slid down my body. But as his tongue found my nipples, I let my head fall back against the pillow. He had me squirming in no time as the wave of pleasure began to build inside of me, and just when I thought I couldn’t stand it anymore, his hard shaft tickled the entry between my legs, and then he slid inside of me.
I gasped as much from the hard thrust as from the way that he filled me to the hilt. I had forgotten how tightly he fit inside of me as if my body had been made as a glove that was meant to fit only him. My memory of the last time was a pale comparison to what I was experiencing now. My fingernails drove into the muscles of his back as he moved against me.
“Harder,” I gasped. “Please, Lukas.”
It was the third time that I pressed him to be with me, and this time he didn’t hold back. I started my ascent to the heights of that ultimate pleasure, but that wasn’t all. Lukas wasn’t done with me yet. He kissed me fiercely, and then he turned me again so that I was on my stomach.
His hands cradled my breasts as he entered me again, and then I felt his teeth on the mark on my shoulder. This time, I barely felt the pain even though I knew that he had broken the skin. What had been there before might have been only temporary, but this I knew was a mark that would be there for the rest of my life. And I was glad. My muscles squeezed hard around him, and I heard Lukas’s answering groan of pleasure. He was close, and I thrust my backside against his hips asking for more. Always more.
I didn’t even notice that it had started to storm outside until that moment, and as the sky lit up with nature’s fireworks outside the windows, I felt the loosening of my vocal chords as I began to cry out. Lukas’s voice joined mine as we climaxed together. He fell against me and pulled me down into the soft comforter as he wrapped his arms tightly around me.
I felt as if I couldn’t breathe for several long moments. I listened to his heartbeat as I laid cradled against his chest. Slowly, the world seemed to come back into focus.
“So, that’s a mating ritual?” I finally asked with a giggle.
“Whatever that was, we’re going to do it again. And again, and again,” he said as he began to tickle me. I squealed and tried to bat his hands away. We wrestled across the bed that way, and before I knew it, Lukas had my arms pinned over my head. My breasts thrust upward toward him, and I saw the salacious look on his face that told me ‘again’ might be happening even sooner than I expected.
That was when I heard the doorbell. Lukas frowned. “I’ll ignore it,” he said. “Pretend I’m not home.”
We waited for a moment, and then the doorbell sounded again. “I don’t think that’s going to work,” I said with a heavy sigh.
“Hang on,” he said. He kissed my nose. “Do not get dressed.” He pulled himself out of the bed, and I watched him with a salacious look of my own as he pulled on a pair of jeans and t-shirt. He winked at me and then disappeared out into the hallway.
I laid on the bed and smiled as I fingered the mark on my neck. I was going to be proud to show it off. I was the alpha’s mate. He loved me, and I loved him. It would all work out. Lukas would figure out a way. I stretched and rolled over onto my stomach as I tried to think of the sexiest pose possible to ensure we picked up where we left off when he returned.
Several long minutes passed, and I started to fidget. I glanced at the clock next to the bed. I watched the second hand sweep around as I waited. When it started its tenth rotation, I knew that something was wrong. Very wrong.
Despite Lukas’s request to stay naked in bed, I got up. I looked at my ruined dress on the floor of the bathroom and knew that wouldn’t do. A quick scan of Lukas’s closet produced a flannel shirt that was long enough that that it skimmed my knees when I put it on. It would have to do.
Pulling the collar tight around my throat, I crept to the doorway. I could hear muffled voices in the hallway below, but I couldn’t make out what was being said. Then I realized that I was tired of being kept in the dark about everything. The time for secrets was over.
I gathered the shirt around me as best I could and then made my way down the stairs. I saw that the reason I hadn’t been able to hear the conversation was because the voices were coming from the room off to the side of the front door. As I made my way down the steps, a figure stepped into the hallway. It was Billy. His eyes widened when he saw me there. As he took in my attire, I saw the alarm on his face. He moved closer so that he was out of view of anyone inside the room.
“Get back upstairs now!” he said in an urgent, hushed tone.
“Why?” I asked.
I heard an unfamiliar voice in the other room. I had expected Lukas’s visitors to be the Greyelf Grizzly council members.
“Who is this you’re speaking to, Mr. Miller?”
The man stepped into the hallway behind Billy, and my breath caught in my throat. It appeared that Mr. Reddon of the Loper clan had joined the party as well, and there was nowhere for me to hide.
To be continued…
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Ivy Sinclair cut her romance teeth on classics like
Gone With the Wind
,
Casablanca
,
An Affair to Remember
, and
Sabrina
. She is a firm believer in true love, a happily ever after ending, and the medicinal use of chocolate to cure any ailment of the heart. Ivy's guilty pleasures include sushi, endless Starbucks lattes, and wine. Readers of Ivy's stories can expect smoldering sweet stories of romance that tug at the heartstrings.
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Titles by Ivy Sinclair:
The Protect Her Box Set: Parts 1-3
The Protect Her Box Set: Parts 4-6
The Protect Her Box Set: Parts 7-9
A Bear of a Reputation (Greyelf Grizzlies #1)
Becoming the Alpha (Greyelf Grizzlies #2)