“I
don’t know what I’m doing.” She finally claimed, throwing her hands in the air
and for the first time since we’d reached the cabin, stopped pacing like a
panther.
“Of
course you don’t. I hope you don’t.”
“I’ve
only ever kissed one other guy besides you. And he certainly wasn’t looking for
me to bite him on his…”
I
made no attempt to hide my smile. “His what? Come on give me some clue.”
She
froze in front of me. “You’re enjoying this? You are, aren’t you?”
I
took her waist in my hands the way I had when we’d first met and dragged her
hips against mine. “I’m not enjoying seeing you like this—no. Am I enjoying
having my female to myself? Absolutely.”
Circumventing
her mouth, I brushed my lips on her neck, just under her soft earlobe. It ended
her ranting and raving and in their place blossomed her growing love.
“I
can’t think when you do that.” She choked on the words.
“That’s
the problem. You’re thinking about this too much. Let nature take its course.
We were made for this. We were made for each other.”
Her
breath hitched as I moved further down, across her collar bone.
“Your
hip.” She croaked out. I’d heard her loud and clear, but I wanted to hear it
again.
Plus,
I loved to torture her.
“What?”
“Your
hip. She chose your hip”
Skittering
my lips north, they landed on her ear so I could make her shiver. “You chose my
hip, love. Say it.”
She
shook her head.
“Say
the words, Dahlia. There’s no embarrassment here. There’s nothing to be ashamed
of. It’s just you and me.”
Squaring
off her shoulders, she gathered her bravery. Her walls reinforced themselves.
“I
chose your hip. The second time we shifted together. That’s where I want your
mark. And that’s where I want you to bite me.’
A
little nudge and my girl flipped her courage on like a switch.
“It’s
your call. You tell me when you’re ready. I feel like I’ve been ready for
years, but it’s your choice, love.”
“Are
you just saying that or do you mean it?”
I
knew that calling her love would become an issue sooner or later. I wanted it
to become an issue. I wanted her to ask.
Creator
above, let her ask the question.
“Do
I mean what?”
“You
call me love. You can’t love me already. You don’t even know me.”
A
laugh rumbled through me. I knew her. She just didn’t know it.
“I
know you. I know that only a female of worth cares about her family as much as
you do. I know that you treat my mother with the utmost respect. I know that
your sisters look up to you and your father is hesitant to let his little girl
go. All of those things make me know you. I might not know the little things,
but I know you. I know your soul. And that’s enough for now. It’s enough to
know that I love you and I’m not afraid to say it.”
“I’m
afraid to say it. But that doesn’t mean I don’t feel it. You can hear her. Your
bear can hear its mate, right? You know how we feel.”
Taking
her face in my hands, I paused before covering her lips with mine again. “I
know you love me. Take your time in saying the words, but I know you love me
and that’s plenty enough for me.”
I
didn’t allow her to answer. This time wasn’t like the others. She was sure of
what I was offering, my complete and unfiltered love through that kiss. Nudging
her lips open with my own, I began a slow torture that was enough to lull us
both into oblivion.
With
her hands on my chest, she gently pushed back from it, taking a second to
recover.
I
loved that she had to recover from me.
“I’m
ready. I have to do this now before I lose my courage.”
“Okay.
I’m taking my pants off, but that’s it.”
“I
had to pick that spot, huh?”
“Yeah,
you did. You might thank yourself on the night of our mating ceremony.”
“I
might.”
I
held her gaze and never let it go while I disrobed in front of my mate. It
wasn’t a big deal for me. We shifters stripped in front of each other all the
time to turn into bears, but Dahlia wasn’t used to that kind of life.
“Shit.”
Her hands were shaking and I had to take a second to calm her once again. “I
don’t know the effing words.”
“Hey,
just speak from the heart.”
She
whooshed out a breath that held the world on its shoulders.
“Reach
down deep, Dahlia. Close your eyes and let your bear take over. She knows the
words that you want to say. Let her take over.”
I
watched the transition happen before me. She closed her eyes slowly. Her
shoulders relaxed at once and the tension lines on her face diminished.
And
when she opened her eyes again, the glitter in her stare was purely her bear
looking back at me. She and her bear were the same. We often referred to them
as two different entities, but really, in the core of things, they were the
same soul, torn between two very different bodies.
Like
the sky that was pulled between night and day.
“I
am yours, Tarrow. And you are mine. I place this mark on you to signify our
eternal bond and the promise that one day we will be mated. You love me, right?
Tell me please.”
“I
love you Dahlia, heart and soul, I love you.”
“Then
accept my mark as my love for you.”
She
bent down and before I could process what was going to happen, teeth broke
through skin and only stopped when they hit bone. The pain lasted only seconds
and the joy of her mark triumphed any lingering agony.
She
raised up and wiped away the trickle of blood from the side of her mouth. She
had a skirt on and I wouldn’t propose she take it off, I would just pull it
down as much as I needed to.
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