There,she sobbed, her nails raking down his back almost hard enough to draw blood.Right there, don’t stop, please don’t stop.
He didn’t stop, couldn’t stop, driving into her with increasing desperation as her pleasure fed back through the bond, amplifying his own until he was drowning in sensation.Every thrust sent shock waves through both of them, the mate bond carrying their combined pleasure until the intensity was almost unbearable.
Come for me,he demanded, his voice rough with command and desperate need.I want to feel you fall apart around me.Want to watch you lose yourself in what we have.
She moaned, her body tensing beneath him as she teetered on the edge.I’m so close, so close—
Let go,he growled, reaching between their bodies to find her clit, stroking the sensitive bundle of nerves in time with his thrusts.Come for me, my beautiful mate.Show me how good I make you feel.
When her release hit, it crashed through both of them like a tidal wave, her body clenching around him.The sensation of her coming apart beneath him, the way her pleasure flooded through the mate bond, sent him over the edge with a roar of completion that seemed to come from the very depths of his being.
He buried himself deep inside her as his release claimed him, his vision whiting out as pleasure unlike anything he’d ever experienced tore through him.The mate bond exploded between them, binding them even more tightly together than before.
But even as the aftershocks of their climax rippled through them, Conall found himself still hard, still desperate for more of her.The mate bond demanded completion on every level, and one joining wasn’t enough to satisfy the primal need coursing through his veins.
Again,he growled against her throat, his teeth finding the spot where her neck met her shoulder.I need you again.
Yes,she gasped, her legs wrapping around his waist to pull him deeper.Again.Please, again.
He began to move inside her once more, slower this time but no less intense, their bodies still sensitive from their first joining.The mate bond doubled their pleasure until they were both gasping with the overwhelming intensity of it.
I can feel everything you feel,she whispered in wonder, her amber eyes wide with amazement.Every touch, every sensation—it’s like we’re one person.
When their second climax hit, it was gentler but deeper, a wave of pleasure and absolute completeness that left them trembling in each other’s arms.
They collapsed together, both breathing hard, hearts racing as they tried to process what had just happened between them.
That was…Nadine started, then trailed off, apparently as lost for words as he was.
Amazing,he finished, pressing a possessive kiss to her shoulder, his teeth grazing her skin in a way that made her shiver.
She turned in his arms to face him, her eyes soft with satisfaction and something deeper, more profound.No regrets?
None,he said without hesitation, pulling her closer until there wasn’t an inch of space between them.You?
Only that we waited so long,she said.
CHAPTER 19
AS THEY LAY TANGLEDtogether for long moments afterward, heartbeats gradually slowing, Nadine allowed herself to relax into the kind of peace she’d rarely felt before.
What are you thinking?he asked.
That this complicates everything,she admitted.
Or simplifies it.Some things are meant to be, Nadine.
Her expression softened.I’ve been alone for so long.
You’re not alone anymore.That’s what the mate bond means.
The peace didn’t last though.When Nadine woke to find herself wrapped around Conall like she belonged there, contentment gave way to her habitual wariness, and her old fears began to surface.Vulnerability had always been Nadine’s enemy, and in the gray predawn hours, her defenses rebuilt themselves with ruthless efficiency.What had felt like surrender now felt like exposure.
What had felt like destiny in the darkness seemed suspiciously convenient in the harsh light of day.
Panic set in, and once Conall woke, Nadine was talking before he’d barely opened his eyes.What are the odds that I’d find my ‘perfect match’ in the exact pack I was sent to investigate?The math doesn’t work unless someone’s pulling strings.
What?Conall blinked away sleep.
