He parted our lips and opened his eyes, judging my intentions, grazing his teeth over my bottom lip.
“Sloane,” he said huskily.
I pulled his face back to mine, kissing him ravenously. He kissed my cheek, my ear, my neck, the place where his mark would go. My back arched as his teeth toyed with my skin, pulling and teasing it but not marking me. I breathed out in anticipation.
He leaned back once more, looking over my face, checking if I was okay. I nodded so slightly, and he kissed my lips in a fast motion and dove back to the skin on my neck. I tiled my head back, and he relished in the room.
I felt his canines on my skin, and I braced myself for the fast moment of pain before the pleasure I had heard of. His teeth sank into my neck, and I gritted my jaw at the pain. It rivaled the burn of the silver but in a different way, like all the nerves in my body surged at one moment, and I was frozen in the time-lapse.
The pain faded quickly, and the feeling of pleasure and warmth covered the most intimate parts of me. I squirmed under Rush’s body, but his hand gripped my waist and held me in place. His teeth retracted from me, and he licked at the mark, sealing it, cleaning it. His lips caressed his mark on me, and my legs clamped shut.
As quickly as Rush retracted his canines from my neck, mine were diving into his. He handled the pain better than I did and didn’t make a sound when my teeth punctured his skin. It was such a quick moment, but feeling our marks tingle with the connection between us felt like Heaven.
Rush leaned back, smiling wickedly at my flushed skin.
“Gorgeous,” he murmured. “You alright down there?” I nodded, and a squeak of denial erupted from my vice locked lips. His eyebrow hitched. “I can smell you from here. You’re intoxicating.”
“Then help me out.” My playful words ignited a spark under Rush’s hands, and they roamed freely over my body. I didn't intend for anything further to happen, but as his warm, large hands ran over my body, my mind could find no reason to stop.
“Gladly,” he pressed on. He lifted the bottom of my shirt, ducking his head to kiss the skin just above my waist. He continued kissing as he lifted the shirt higher and higher and then eventually off my body.
He stopped to stare at my small breasts before pulling one of them into his mouth. His tongue brushed across my nipple, and heat spread from my stomach to between my legs. His left hand reached up and played with the other, and I closed my eyes.
He kissed down my stomach again, tongue dipping in my belly button, and I fought a laugh. His fingers hooked in the belt loops of my pants.
I lifted my head and saw his teeth unlatch the button and pull the zipper down skillfully, bringing me out of the haze I had fallen into. I sat up on my elbows as he shimmied my pants down my hips.
“Wait,” I breathed out, surprised that the word came out of my mouth.
Rush lifted his head, and his hands steadied. “What’s wrong?” he asked tenderly, apprehension filled his features.
“I-I don’t know if I’m ready for this.”
Rush’s hands slipped out of my belt loops, and he sat up, nodding his head understandingly, but worry still held in his eyes. He sat beside me, waiting for me to tell him what was wrong. I tried to find the right words, but I just covered my face with my hands.
“Sloane, it’s okay,” he told me, his hand rubbing my shoulder gently.
“No, it’s not,” I whispered, peaking at him. “It’s not okay.”
“Sweetheart, if you aren’t ready-”
“I want to be.”
“I know.” He half-smiled that crooked grin. “We can take this slowly. Hopefully, I can show you the kind of mate I want to be, the kind of mate you deserve, and eventually, we can move forward. Until then, we’ll take this slow. It doesn’t bother me if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“I want to be with you,” I told him earnestly.
“You are with me.”
“Okay,” I told him. He squeezed my shoulder again, kissed the side of my head, and rolled off the bed, adjusting his pants as he went. I tugged my pants back up my hips and buttoned them. “Rush?” He stopped and looked back at me, hand on the doorknob. “Thank you.”
“Of course.” His smile didn’t reach his eyes.
East Of Us
Jonah brought his mate Jahida over for breakfast a few mornings later. The pack chef, Melrose, prepared a few different items while I sat at the counter peeling and cutting fruit. Melrose tried to take the knife away from me multiple times, but I promised her I needed a distraction.
Rush had been moping around the packhouse for days, trying to figure out some way to make up for his mistakes. I didn’t want to stay mad at him, but the issue was still burned into my memory. There was some small, stubborn part of me that wanted him to make a grand gesture and apologize, and there was another part of me that wanted to move past it.
Jonah’s booming voice called to us from the entrance of the house. I continued peeling apricots for Melrose’s glaze, sliding the fruit in a large bowl in front of me.
Rush pattered down from the third floor and greeted Jonah and his mate. They wandered into the kitchen, and I smiled at Jonah since my hands were covered in raw fruit.
Jonah’s mate entered behind him slower, her wheelchair nearly bumping into Melrose’s foot as she bustled around the kitchen. Melrose nearly cried and apologized profusely to which Jahida laughed and waved her
