Staring up at him, I find that I’m afraid to even breathe, just in case it all goes away. “Then why did you do it?”
“Because I was weak.” Now that the words have started, he seems relieved to keep them going. “Because I let my father’s teachings about strength and weakness poison everything. Because I thought it was the right decision, not realizing how deeply it would hurt us both. Especially you, Aurora. I—I never meant to hurt you.”
“Kieran…”
He doesn’t let me finish. Reaching for me with his broad, calloused warrior’s hands, he pulls me to him. With gentlehands, he tilts my chin up and cups my cheek. I know that I should pull away again, but I’m just so tired of running from this. I don’t have the strength to protect myself from him anymore—not when he’s all my heart wants.
When his thumb brushes across my skin, I lean into his touch, my eyelids fluttering. A whine rises in my throat, and suddenly I find a deep, yawning hunger within me for so much more than this simple touch.
“Aurora,” he breathes, then his mouth crashes down onto mine.
There’s nothing careful or slow about this kiss. It’s raw need, desire and arousal exploding between us. His tongue sweeps into my mouth like a conquering army as he backs me up against a tree. One broad hand grips my hip and draws me against him, while the other slides into my hair and holds me still. I moan, hands clutching his shirt, the rough bark of the tree pressing against me as I lose myself in the taste of him.
He slides his hand under my shirt and heat blossoms everywhere he touches. The bond sings between us as I wrap my arms around his neck and press closer, his cock firm against my thigh. His body is hard and hot against mine, all solid muscle and barely restrained power. When he growls low in his throat, the sound makes desire pool low in my belly, my thighs instinctively parting for his muscular thigh.
He slides his hand further beneath my shirt, callused fingers skimming the underwire of my bra, and I arch into his touch. He breaks the kiss to trail his lips down my neck, pausing and sucking on a sensitive spot just below my ear in a way that makes me gasp and shudder.
“Fuck, you’re perfect,” he murmurs into my ear. “So beautiful. I don’t know how I resisted you for so long when just inhaling your scent makes my cock harder than it’s ever been.”
His words, filthy and full of praise, go straight to my core. No one has ever touched me like this or made me feel this way. Every brush of his fingers is like a branding. When he pulls my shirt up toward my shoulders, I lift my arms without hesitation, letting him pull it over my head and discard it.
The cool night air hits my heated skin, but my arousal can’t be abated. Kieran’s eyes darken as they roam over me, and the hunger in his gaze makes my breath catch, especially as it stops on the peaks of my nipples pressing up against my sensible bra. He cups my breasts and brushes his thumbs against my nipples until I shudder and whimper.
“My Aurora,” he says, “I’m going to make you feel so good.”
Then he captures my mouth in another passionate, dominant kiss, proving himself right. I reach for his shirt with shaking hands, desperate to feel his skin against mine. He helps me pull it off his broad, muscular shoulders, followed by my bra, so that there’s nothing between us but heated skin as he presses me back against the tree.
But when his hands skim my abdomen and reach for the button of my jeans, uncertainty creeps in. “Wait,” I gasp, pushing at his chest and biting back a moan at the incredible, masculine strength of him. “Kieran, wait.”
He pulls back immediately, although I can see how it pains him. Even through his thick denim jeans, his arousal is obvious, and he trembles from restraint. The black of his pupils has almost completely eclipsed his ice blue irises. “What is it?”
“I’ve never…” My cheeks burn as I realize there’s no way not to admit this aloud. “This would be my first time.”
“You’re a virgin.” His nostrils flare as he takes in my scent, hunger and possessiveness flashing across his handsome face. “You’re sure you want this? With me?”
“Yes.” I’m never been more certain of anything, even as nerves flutter in my stomach. “I want you so fucking badly. I’m just… nervous.”
“Don’t be.” His voice is gentle, as is his hand as he brushes my hair back from my face. The tenderness of the movement makes my heart skip a beat. “You’re so beautiful, Spitfire. So perfect. Too good for me by far.”
A shiver goes through me, and he pulls our bodies together again, rubbing circles over my lower back. “You’re just saying that.”
“No, I’m not.” Cupping my face, he forces me to meet his eyes. The earnestness in his expression steals my breath away. “You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. So kind and strong, so loyal and fierce. Your eyes are gorgeous and your smile lights up a room. The way your passion comes to life when you talk about the things you care about, how you’ll stand up for anyone, even a stranger…” He swallows hard. “You take my breath away, Aurora Blackburn.”
Tears prick at the corners of my eyes. No one has ever looked at me like this, or said so many wonderful things about me. To have it come from Kieran, the mate who rejected me, heals something inside me that I didn’t know still ached. As the tears fall, he brushes them away with his thumbs, his gaze never leaving mine.
Then he kisses me again, softer this time, but still hungry and raw. When his hands return to my jeans, I let him unbutton them, shifting my hips so he can pull them down my thighs. He follows with his jeans, then his boxers, then finally my panties, until there’s nothing between us but our mate bond. The air between us feels like everything and nothing at all.
Licking my lips, I take a step back to look at him, and he lets me, his hands loose at my waist. His chest is broad and muscular, his abdomen chiseled, his hips V-shaped. Everywherehis skin is perfect, the scar on his face the only blemish. And between his thighs, rising thick and straight, is quite possibly the biggest cock I’ve ever seen.
I’ve never looked at Kieran naked for long, never let my eyes linger, but I’ve seen plenty of naked shifters. Most are well-endowed, at least compared to what I know of human men. But Kieran’s erect cock is like nothing else—thick and long, and so huge that I feel nerves fluttering in my stomach.
Surelythatcan’t possibly fit inside me. I drag my eyes up to his face, uncertainty spreading through me. “You’re so big,” I whisper, a blush rising to my cheeks as my gaze drops back down again, and I take in the large, flared head, the thick shaft, and the impossible length of it. “What if you don’t… what if it won’t…”
“Hey.” He tips my chin up, his touch impossibly gentle for such a large man. “It will fit. Don’t worry, we’ll take it slow, Spitfire. I would never hurt you. I promise.”
The tenderness in his voice is undeniable. Rising to my toes, I press my lips to his in a soft kiss that slowly deepens. His hands tighten at my waist as he pulls me flush against him, arousal and all. I can feel every hard inch of him against my belly, and it sends electric tingles racing along my nerve endings.
“I just want to make sure you’re certain about this,” he says again between tender and delicate kisses, his breath hot against my lips, then on my neck as he nips at my jawline. “We can stop here. I can stop.”
