Ordinarily Trey’s trigger for waking was either a hunger pang in his stomach or a full bladder. This morning, it was something else. As he lay there with his eyes closed, he felt something nagging at him. Something was different, wrong, something that agitated his wolf and had him reaching for the surface, annoyed with his human side for not realizing the problem.
Taking a deep breath, Trey scrubbed at his eyes. He hadn’t had to open them to know what was disturbing his wolf. Taryn’s exotic scent had instantly shot up his nostrils, but it was too faint. Which meant that she wasn’t there.
As his lids flipped open, his eyes confirmed it. The rest of his senses told him she wasn’t in the en-suite bathroom, which meant that she had woken before him and snuck out of the room – there had to have been sneaking and creeping involved or else he would have easily woken. Unlike Taryn, he was a light sleeper.
Never since the morning after the anniversary of her mom’s birthday had Taryn left the room before him. They always had a little play in the mornings before going for breakfast together. It seemed that she was establishing a distance between them, and apparently it wasn’t just going to be an emotional one.
Well fuck that!
Yeah he had messed up. Yeah he had said shit he shouldn’t have. And yeah he had hurt her. But he was still her mate and if she had just given him five minutes of her time she would know that he was sorry. Okay, maybe she would never have mated with him if it wasn’t for their deal, but their mating had created a connection between them. It was a connection that wouldn’t allow for distances – something that he had discovered the hard way. So now his wolf was highly agitated and fighting for control of the situation. His wolf wanted to hunt her down and show her just what he thought of this distance she wanted.
In fact, Trey didn’t think that was such a bad idea at all.
Within minutes he was washed, dressed and storming his way through the tunnels. He found the little witch in the kitchen sitting on the counter, nibbling on a slice of toast while reading a magazine. She didn’t even look up as he entered. He noticed she was alone and wondered if the others had scarpered, suspecting this might happen.
In three long strides he was in front of her, placing a hand on the counter either side of her to cage her in. Slowly she raised her head and arched a brow questioningly, as if she couldn’t possibly imagine what his problem was.
“You weren’t there when I woke up.” The words rumbled out of him.
“True. And?” Taryn hadn’t actually expected him to react so badly. She had considered that his wolf might feel cheated out of what had become his morning ritual and maybe she’d end up with a nipped lip – that seemed to be his favorite thing to do when she had annoyed him – but it wasn’t his wolf looking back at her. It was Trey. With his mouth a harsh line and his eyes smouldering, he looked incensed, determined, and pretty damn horny. Her traitorous body responded to that lust. There was something else there too…if she didn’t know any better she’d have thought it was hurt.
“I like making you come in the morning, hearing you moan, having your taste on my tongue. This morning, you weren’t there.”
“Huh. Well my aim in life isn’t to please you so…”
He placed his face closer to hers. “Spread your legs.”
Her stomach clenched. “What?”
“I want my morning taste of you. So spread your legs like a good girl.”
“Not a chance, asshole.”
The fire in her eyes had his already hard cock aching painfully. “Don’t talk about assholes unless you want me to fuck yours. You know exactly what my problem is so stop playing dumb. You snuck out of my arms and out of our bed – snuck being the key word. Believe me when I tell you that it’s in your best interests to not push me any further because I’m seriously pissed off.”
She cocked her head. “Do I get extra points if I fake giving a shit?”
Growling, Trey tangled his hand in her hair and mashed his lips to hers, thrusting his tongue inside and exploring her mouth. It was a hard, possessive, punishing kiss, but of course his little mate wasn’t prepared to take that punishment. She bit his tongue and pulled away.
“Go force your will on someone who’ll bow down at the wonder that is you.”
Out of patience, Trey gripped her ass and tugged her to the edge of the counter as he boldly cupped her and leaned forward to lick over his mark. As always, she shuddered. “That’s it, baby, relax for me. That’s my good girl.” He unsnapped the top button of her jeans and went for her zip. Shocking him to complete stillness, a slice of toast was slapped onto his face.
Before he could react, Taryn had slipped off the counter, ducked under his arm and was running out the door. Bitch. Amusement and anger warred within him for supremacy. He chased after her through the tunnels, out the main door, down the narrow flights of stairs and into the forest. He was stunned by just how much distance she had been able to place between them. Christ, she was fast. And so unbelievably agile.
Knowing she was nearing a pond and would soon need to turn left, Trey detoured through the trees and came at her from the front, springing in front of her. She froze and smirked smugly, further inciting his wolf. He was insisting that Trey take her, take her now. Liking that idea, Trey stripped off his clothes, holding her gaze the entire time.
Helpless to the effect the naked body of her mate had on her, Taryn licked her lips as she ran her gaze along Trey. He was so gloriously male. His form seemed designed to seduce, seemed created especially to deliver raw, carnal pleasure. And Taryn was eager for it. Eager to feel that long, thick shaft tunneling in and out of her. A wave of savage need had her stomach clenching and her body quivering. Afraid that she would end up giving him exactly what that hard-on said he wanted, she backed away. His cautioning growl made her halt.
“Is this your new thing, Taryn – putting space between us?” He shook his head, tsking. “It won’t work. We’re mates.”