Zurlo, Michele - Riley [Daughters of Circe 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (5 page)

She leaned her head against his shoulder. “I have to go to work.”

He nodded. Having been the person in charge of a large pack for so long, he understood the burden of responsibility. When she had stayed with him, his responsibilities had taken him from her side on many occasions. “You won’t have to worry about that guy who attacked you. I took care of that.”

Her heart beat faster, but she couldn’t tell if she felt more horrified or safe. “You killed him?”

Soren’s senses made him aware of every change in her body’s chemistry or rhythms. It had always been difficult to hide any emotion from him. He chuckled. “No. I figured you wouldn’t want me to do that, though I will kill him if you change your mind. Tracking him won’t be a problem. I chased him down and scared the shit out of him. Literally.”

The image he evoked made a giggle erupt from her, though she knew nothing about the situation was funny. She turned in his arms and pressed her breasts to his chest. He grinned down at her, very aware that she’d found his statement amusing. “Thank you for not killing him. I wouldn’t mind seeing him arrested, but I don’t want anyone to die.”

“I haven’t forgotten what a big-hearted fool you are.” He tucked a wet strand of hair behind her ear. “It’s one of the things I love about you.”

Riley’s heart sank at his soft declaration. She slid her hands between them and pushed at his chest, hoping he’d allow some space between them. He didn’t ease his hold on her one bit. “Soren, I’m not sure about this thing between us.”

He shook his head. “It’s too late for that, Riley. I’ve claimed you. You’re my mate, and when a wolf takes a mate, he takes her for life. Until death do us part, my love. I’m yours and you’re mine.”

Her gaze slid to the teeth just beginning to change shape. With the tip of her tongue, she explored her own eyeteeth. Though the teeth felt exactly like they always had, something didn’t seem right, but she couldn’t pinpoint what it was. The feel of his arms around her and his hard cock pressing into her soft belly certainly felt right. She couldn’t imagine ever not having him in her bed and her shower.

She looked up at him. “Just like that? No ceremony, no promises?”

Soren shook his head. The spray of water didn’t reach his hair, though droplets reflected from his shoulders to dot drops of dew on the lower curls. “Not just like that. You make what we shared seem trivial.”

“I’m not the first person you’ve shared that with.” She merely pointed out the obvious, but his face darkened anyway.

“I’ve fucked others, but so have you. In your heart and soul, you know last night was different. I claimed you. I made it clear from the beginning what I wanted. I made love to you. And you made love to me.”

Riley shook her head, uncertain about the implications of their action. “You make it seem simple, Soren. This isn’t simple. After the things you’ve done to me and to my sister, I can’t just decide to spend the rest of my life with you.”

The ferocity glittering from his eyes didn’t dim. “You can’t keep throwing that at me, Riley. I made mistakes. I admit to committing some pretty horrible and violent acts in the name of my compulsion. However, I’ve removed myself from that situation. I left Lyton. I left my position as leader of my pack. The demons are attracted to power. I have none, and I never will again.”

The fear welling inside Riley had everything to do with the fact she didn’t want to fall in love with someone who could break her heart so callously. She didn’t want to fall in love with a man who would crush her with a whispered word from an invisible demon. She stared at his chest because she didn’t want to see the pain and pleading she knew she’d find in his eyes.

“Honey, look at me.”

With her fingertip, she traced a drop of water as it followed a path down his pectoral muscle. “Soren, I don’t know if what I feel for you is real. How can it be real when the only time I’ve spent with you, I was under a charm that made me think I was in love with you?”

A snort issued from his nose. Combined with his growl, she knew he was exasperated. “The charm simply made you forget you had anywhere else to be. The fact that you wanted to be with me, that you found me attractive, that you tried repeatedly to seduce me—all that was you, honey. I didn’t tamper with your feelings except to make you forget to be worried or afraid. I couldn’t stand to see you that way.”

She sighed. He wasn’t going to leave. He’d said as much. “Why now? Why, after all this time, did you try to find me again?”

He smoothed back her wet hair and tipped her chin up so that her gaze met his. “It took me a few months to get my shit together, but once I decided what I wanted most in this world, I lit out of there. I’ve been looking for you for a very long time.”

The shade of teal in his eyes darkened to nearly green. They drew her in, mesmerizing her until she couldn’t look away. She saw truth there. Beneath that, she saw his misery and loneliness. She saw his sorrow and his determination. He wanted a life with her.

“No lies.” The demand escaped on a strangled breath. Nothing seemed real. Their consciousnesses, linked, floated free from their bodies. “No charms. You will not use magic on me ever again.”

Never breaking her gaze, he nodded. “Okay, Riley, but you need to stop using your magic on me, too.”

She blinked, breaking the weird spell. “What do you mean? I’m not a witch.”

Soren smiled a small, sad smile. “No, you’re not, but you are magical. I don’t know how you do it. I can’t smell your power, but I can sense it. I don’t know how much you have, and I don’t want to know. I prefer thinking you have less than me. The magic you used just now had no odor. When a witch uses her powers, wolves can smell it.”

Riley frowned. She had no idea what he meant, yet she knew something out of the ordinary happened when she looked into his eyes. “I don’t know what I did.”

“I don’t know what you did, either. I just know that you were pulling me out of my body. I don’t know where you were taking me. Since you obviously don’t know either, I think we should stay put.” He grinned and kissed the tip of her nose.

The idea of floating free from her body scared Riley. How could she know where to go or how to get back? And she had been taking Soren with her? With a quick jerk of her chin, she agreed with him.

None of the things he had revealed about her kidnapping and imprisonment surprised Riley. Deep down, she knew he hadn’t forced her to feel attraction and tenderness toward him. She remembered the first time she’d kissed him. The bright sunlight pouring through the huge windows had roused her at the crack of dawn. She hadn’t known where she was, but a profound sense of peace kept her calm. For the first time in months, she had felt like everything was as it should be.

She’d found Soren in the kitchen. A very tall, very large woman seared a thick slab of ham in a cast iron skillet. Soren had paused in the middle of sipping his coffee to smile at her. That had been all she needed to fall in love with him.

The fact that the smell of cooking meat didn’t bother her should have tipped her off that something was horribly wrong with the situation, but she had ignored it and focused on Soren. He spoke to her, drawing her in with his low voice, and he looked at her, keeping her close with his piercing teal gaze.

At that exact moment, she had known this man would always belong to her.

Warm water cascaded over her back, but the heat from his hands scorched her ass as he cupped and kneaded her cheeks.

“Are you sore, honey?”

Riley nodded slowly, ashamed to admit her weakness. She wanted him again, and evidence of his desire pressed into her stomach.

Soren dropped to his knees. He kissed her breasts, taking time to swirl his tongue around the pink areolas before he sucked and nipped at her nipples. One arm wrapped around her waist to provide support, and his other hand moved down her abdomen to rest on the short curls of her mound.

Her moan of approval came out as a whimper. In her whole life, she’d never felt this level of need for a single person. Now she understood why her sister and Shade were always sneaking off into the woods when she visited and kept the kids busy. The soreness between her legs ceased to matter. She wanted him to shove her against the wall and impale her with one glorious thrust. She wanted him to mark her as his own.

She threaded her fingers through his hair and held on as he worked his way lower. His hot tongue dipped into her navel. At the same time, the hand on her mound pivoted, and his fingers parted her labia. He massaged her gently, sliding his fingers through her cream to find the most responsive places.

She wanted to feel them slip into her wanton pussy. She thrust against his hand, but he resisted her efforts to guide him inside. Tingles of desire and pleasure shot up and down her spine. She whimpered, begging for more.

“Soren.”

He kissed a trail along her pubic bone, just above the line of her neatly trimmed hair. “I love the way you say my name, Riley. I’ve missed the sound of your voice so much. Keep talking, honey. Tell me what you want.”

“I want to wrap my legs around you and hang onto your shoulders.”

He chuckled low. “Your wish, my lady.”

Before she could figure out what he intended, he planted each hand under her thighs and lifted her into the air. He draped her legs over his shoulders and adjusted his grip to hold her wide open in front of his mouth. Riley looked down in time to realize he purposely misunderstood her request. The wolfish grin he didn’t bother to hide disappeared, and his tongue darted out to lick away the evidence of her arousal.

He tasted her, flicking the tip of his tongue over her clit in short strokes and pressing it flat against her as he took long swipes.

This wasn’t what she had in mind, but the skill of his foray did nothing to make her want to advocate for her original request. She was certain he could only hold out for so long anyway. Eventually, his carnal nature would come to the fore, and he would have to lay claim to her again.

“Soren.” She whispered his name and thrust in time to the tongue penetrating her entrance. Heat rushed through her body, coiling low and exploding in slow waves.

He unhooked her legs and lowered her so that she sat on his knees. Between them, his impressive erection throbbed, begging for release. She wrapped her hand around it as she lifted her body to bring her pussy closer. He stopped her with a light pressure on her hip.

“No, honey. You’re sore. I won’t always be able to be give you time like this to recover. Let me have this.”

Riley wanted to laugh at the way he phrased his request as a command. His eyes didn’t plead his case. The strong, steady gaze underlined his resolve. One thing she never admitted to her sister was that she completely melted under Soren’s commanding presence. Cream rushed back into her pussy, and her vaginal walls throbbed anew.

Still, she knew better than to let him have his way completely. She slid her hand down his shaft, her fingers holding firmly. “Then let me make you feel good this way.”

Soren gritted his teeth and thrust against her palm. His hips moved, already consenting. Finally, he nodded. “Just use your hand, honey.”

Riley had no problem following that mandate. She wasn’t sure he’d fit into her mouth, and she wanted to watch his face while she saw to his pleasure. Cupping his balls with her free hand, she rolled them carefully. Soren hissed, but the way his eyelids grew heavy and half closed encouraged her to continue her dual assault.

His canines elongated, and he bit his lip, not bothering to hide his true self from her questing gaze. She increased her pace, and he thrust faster. His hands flew from her hips to crash into the blue tile behind her. He moaned, and it turned into a howl as his orgasm began. Hot semen shot out, landing on her chest and stomach. Some made it as far as her face. Her rhythm didn’t falter. She wanted to wring every last drop from him.

He growled. The hands gripping the wall behind her changed position. One gripped her ass hard and the other cradled the back of her head. His savage kiss ground against her lips, and Riley knew better than to fight it. She softened in his arms, molding her body to his. Only when he sensed her complete surrender did the kiss morph into something tender.