He swung off the bike, pulling free of her grip as he did so, and turned to face her. Leaning down over her, he slid one huge hand under the hair at the back of her neck and kissed her. This was nothing like the earlier kiss; there was no gentleness, only a need that echoed her own.
He pulled back and straightened. “Shit, we cannot do this now.” His eyes glowed feral and a tic jerked in his cheek. “I am so fucking hard. I’m going to burst. But I can’t touch you, not with the moon so close.” He breathed in. “But I can smell your need, and it’s driving me fucking crazy. Fuck.” He turned away hands fisted at his side and stood breathing deeply for long minutes.
He could smell her need? Ugh. That was a little embarrassing. But she couldn’t deny it, not with frustration clawing at her insides. At the same time, bubbles of excitement fizzed in her veins. He wanted her, desperately.
Finally, he turned back, and a little restraint returned to his features. He gave her a rueful smile. “You do crazy things to me. I haven’t felt this out of control since the year I was bitten.” He took another deep breath. “Let’s go.”
She followed him up a steep track probably only used by goats and wild boar. There were few people living up here; most tended to stay in the villages. He halted beside a steep overhang of rock and looked around. “This is perfect.”
She suspected he hadn’t really needed anyone to watch his back—that he had merely wanted to keep her in his sights a while longer while he decided what to do. But that was okay. She was happy to go along with it.
“Can you still think when you’re a wolf?” she asked.
He nodded. “Yes. Some of the younger wolves lose it, but I’ve always had a clear head.”
She perched on a rock and watched as he stripped off his T-shirt. Her breath caught in her throat. Last time, he’d been too damaged for her to really appreciate his beauty, but now there was nothing to stop her. She let her gaze wander over him, taking in the wide shoulders, the broad chest. He had some sort of tattoo on his left arm and what looked like a knife scar down his right side, disappearing beneath the waistband of his jeans. He also had a set of prints on his belly where she had dug her nails into him while they were riding. She liked that she’d marked him.
His jeans hung low on his hips, but not low enough. At last his hand moved to the button and flicked it open. She could clearly make out the bulge of what had to be a truly enormous erection, and she licked her lips.
He chuckled, and she glanced up. “You like?” he murmured.
She didn’t even think to deny it, just nodded, and he chuckled again. “Well, you’ve gotten to see me naked twice now. Should be my turn soon.”
He kicked off his boots, and then stripped off his jeans.
Last time he’d been hurt and vulnerable. This time he was perfect. All long and lean, with dark hair, and golden skin stretched over sleek muscle.
The sun had set and he was gilded by starlight. She couldn’t look away, and he didn’t try to hide himself. Fully aroused, he was huge, almost vertical, the skin pale against the dark fur on his belly.
She took a step closer, her hand coming out…and he took a step back.
Her gaze jerked to his face. His eyes were a wolf’s eyes, more gold than green, the irises circled in black.
“Hold that thought,” he murmured, his voice a rough growl, velvet and barbed wire. His back arched as magic shivered through the air, and he dropped to all fours. A minute later the huge black wolf stood before her.
It padded closer, and she held out her hand. Warm breath caressed her fingers, a wet tongue licked at her palm, and then he turned and bounded away.
Shera didn’t wait. She shifted into her cat form and raced after him. It occurred to her that a cat and a wolf might not be the best of combinations, but she wanted to stay close.
She maintained a small distance between them, but kept up with ease. Another sign of her growing strength. But she wouldn’t think about it now. The moon had risen, a huge orange ball that hung low on the horizon, and the warm night held magic.
This was as close to freedom as she would ever get. Racing across the bare mountainside, she gave up thinking and let feeling take over.
…
Carl woke with the sun, the heat on his naked body tugging him from sleep. He lay under the spreading branches of a tree, dappled light flickering over his skin, Shera wrapped in his arms.
To his disappointment, she was fully clothed. That didn’t seem to worry his dick. It was rock hard and throbbing.
Tightening his arm, he dragged her closer. She was limp, but he felt the moment she came awake, a tension seeping into her body. He rose onto his elbow to look down into her face. Her ebony lashes fluttered, and he was caught in a bright green gaze. She blinked up at him, all sleepy.
“Good morning, kitten,” he murmured.
Her lips curled in a lazy smile as her hand came up. She stroked his cheek, and a shiver ran through him, settling low down in his groin, heating his blood and making his balls ache with need.