I guess I could start by putting on the damn sweats like she wanted.
SEVEN
Harlow
“No shifting in the house,” I started.
“I figured that. I’m not an animal… Oh wait, I am.” Xavier winked at me.
I glared at him through slitted eyes, ignoring the wetness between my legs. It was sickening. I’d known him all of two seconds and was a virgin. Yet I still wanted to jump his bones like I was the animal. “Focus. I’m not very keen on living with a werewolf, so listen up.”
His gaze shifted down, and he smirked. “I can smell your arousal, little witch. You may act as if you hate me, but your body doesn’t lie. You’re thrilled to be taking me in.”
I huffed. “It’s the—” I waved my hand side to side. “—matebond thingy. I can’t help how my body reacts to you. Now can I finish?”
He leaned back on my bed, crossing his arms behind his head. “You may proceed.”
Xavier was infuriating, but it was like my body craved his presence. My brain reminded me that he was dangerous, built to kill. But my stupid heart and body wanted him, no questions asked. And since he had nowhere to go and practically invited himself to stay with me, I couldn’t say no.
I mean, I could’ve. But I didn’t want to.
That was how I started laying down ground rules before we went to sleep tonight.
“Clothes must be worn at all times. At all times, Xavier.” I wiggled a finger at him as he smirked. “And absolutely no biting.”
He chuckled. “I won’t bite you until you beg for it. And trust me, you will beg for it.”
I raised my brows. “I doubt that.”
“You will. Sooner than later, if I had to guess. Now—” He patted the space on the bed next to him. “—come sleep with me.”
Butterflies released in my stomach, but I quickly squashed them. “You can sleep outside, like the dog, or wolf, you are.”
He pouted his bottom lip out. “Harsh.”
I caved with little convincing needed because I was weak for him, and I hated it. I’d have never caved so quickly with anyone else. I wouldn’t have let anyone else stay with me either. I was an introvert at heart, but I guess it was the matebond that made me feel so needy when it came to him. I needed to feel things out with him anyway.
Maybe we could find a way to get rid of the bond. He wasn’t so keen on me either when we first met. But earlier… the way his hands caressed my body, and the rush that came between my legs was surreal. And when those words left his mouth, my heart soared. “I never fucking said that.” He’d growled out the words like the thought of him not wanting me angered him more than anything.
“Fine. You can sleep here,” I said. “But I’m going to the village to buy another twin bed for you tomorrow.”
“Get a queen. My feet hang off these things, and we’re mates so I need to be close to you.” He reached up and yanked me onto the bed with him. Sparks tingled from his touch, and I leaned into him, letting him wrap his arms around me and pull me close.
My gaze fell to his lips. They were so close, all I had to do was lean in a little bit and... I squeezed my eyes shut and flipped around to where my back faced him.
He pulled me back into him and nuzzled my neck, inhaling deep. “You smell fucking amazing.”
Heat raced through my entire body. “Um, thanks.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t bite you until you beg, remember?” He chuckled. “But you didn’t say anything about kissing.” His mouth skimmed the curve of my neck.
I gasped. “I’ve never been kissed, Xavier. Don’t.” But it was too late. He pressed a soft kiss to the base of my neck.
“Good. Then I won’t kiss your lips until you ask, but your neck is fair game.” He peppered several more kisses against my neck.
My core clenched, and I whimpered.
“So sensitive.” Another kiss. “I can’t wait to soul-bond with you.”
“Soul-bond?” I couldn’t think straight. The only thing I could focus on was his lips on my skin.
“Curious, little witch?” He pulled back.
I sighed, flipping back over. “Explain.”
He grinned. “Gladly. So, as you know, soulmates are bonded from the start.”
I nodded. “Right. The intense attraction for each other.”
“It’s more than just attraction, Harlow. It’s love. Mates experience love at first sight and never go back.”
My heart slammed against my chest so hard I thought I’d crack a rib. “Love?”
He nodded like it was the most normal thing to say. “Of course. And to begin the soul-bond, each wolf marks the other at the base of their neck…” He hesitated. “But since you’re not a wolf, I guess I will be the only one marking.”
A shiver worked its way down my spine. “Marking?”
“Marking is elongating our canines and clamping down to pierce the other's skin. Both mates are supposed to feel euphoric, and the wound heals within a few hours of marking. The scar of the canines is the mark itself, and our souls are one step closer to being bonded.”
“What! You have to actually bite me? Like, sink your wolf teeth in my neck?” I sputtered the words with what I was sure was a horrified expression.
“It doesn’t hurt. I assure you.”
“Have you… done it before?”
His eyes clouded over with an emotion I couldn’t pinpoint before he blinked it away. “No. She never wanted to soul-bond or mark each other. She was abused so the thought of being bitten or puncturing skin scared her.”
I swallowed a lump in my throat but nodded. I hated the feeling that wormed its way into my chest, but I couldn’t dwell on that right now. “What’s the next part?”
“To seal the soul-bond, we have to complete the mating process. To create an everlasting link, we have to make love.”
“Make love?”
I’d
