Slowly, as she came down from yet another orgasm, Stacy realized that Vonn had begun stroking himself. She lifted herself to her elbows to see his fist pumping his cock with unbelievable force while he pleasured her. The sight was enough to drag her under the rolling tide of ecstasy yet again.
She had just reached the crest of her orgasm when she felt Vonn's whole body stiffen. She opened her eyes and watched him rear back with a triumphant roar, his come arcing onto the mattress next to her, splattering her skin.
Stacy fell back against the bed, exhausted, suddenly unable to summon the strength to move a muscle. Somewhere deep in her mind, an old familiar voice urged her to hide herself in shame, but when Vonn returned from the bathroom with a towel and smiled at her, the voice was silenced.
He cleaned up the mess quickly climbed in next to her, pulling her against his chest. She was shocked to discover that even after that massive orgasm, his cock was still as hard as ever.
"How are you…doing that?"
"What? This?" He nudged between her ass cheeks, sending a shiver through her. "We were only at it for an hour."
Only? "You mean you can…um…" Stacy felt herself redden, but with embarrassment, not shame.
"I can go a hell of a lot harder for a hell of a lot longer," he murmured against the back of her neck. "I'll show you sometime."
Stacy snuggled against him, melting into his arms as though she'd been molded to fit there, and tried to go back to not thinking.
Because no matter how much she wanted to believe Vonn, she knew this was never happening again.
Chapter Fourteen
Vonn wanted to believe that the sweaty, enthusiastic hour they'd spent fooling around would have fixed everything between him and Stacy. After all, she'd come like an omega—so many times he lost count—even if her nature was still locked up inside her.
Vonn knew he was pretty damn good with his fingers and tongue; even before he became an alpha, he'd had plenty of practice, first with a student at the local community college his parents had hired to try to save his failing math grade and then with his boss at the grocery store where he stocked shelves, both of whom had been more than happy to teach him everything they knew.
But even though he was so well thought of by the roadhouse professional girls that they occasionally offered him a free session, he'd never made any of them come as hard as Stacy had. Once they got started, she seemed to forget everything but screwing—and if that wasn't evidence of a bond taking root between them, Vonn didn't know what was.
Unfortunately, as had happened so many times before, Vonn's attempt to turn wishful thinking into reality had failed.
When Stacy's lust had finally been sated, there was some blissful spooning that had allowed him to hope they had exorcised her demons. After he got into bed and pulled her into his arms, she'd snuggled closer and nestled there, her breathing peaceful and regular—until, after fifteen minutes, she abruptly pulled away. She didn't go far, just to the edge of the bed, her back to him.
After that, Vonn could feel Stacy's mind returning to its restless churning as the lovely, delicate scent of contentment gave way to disciplined calculation.
Still, for those fifteen minutes, she'd almost been his, something that had filled him with an unfamiliar sense of…Vonn struggled to name the feeling that had filled him as he cradled her close. The best he could come up with was rightness.
It was as if his entire life had brought him to that very moment. Everything that had come before simply fell away. And it wasn't just the scent or taste of her, or the way his cock surged even when she struggled or writhed against him. It was that for a few glorious minutes, she'd accepted her fate. After all, the only reason Stacy would have stayed in his arms was because she wanted to be there.
Vonn stared at Stacy's back. Her glossy dark brown hair tangled around her shoulders. A tiny rose-colored birthmark decorated the smooth column of her neck.
He refused to let frustration sap the joy from those fifteen minutes. He would be patient. Next time, maybe he could stretch it to half an hour, then an hour, and…
He was getting ahead of himself. Hell, he couldn't be sure there would be a next time. He didn't know a lot of things.
Chief among them, when—or even if—that poison Fulmer had armed her with would wear off.
And it damn well better wear off because if the suppressant had left her nature permanently damaged in some way, Vonn would—would—what?
Vonn's chest rumbled with frustration and anger at the knowledge that even hunting Fulmer down and tearing him apart wouldn't fix the situation.
There could be no future between Vonn and a woman who was caught halfway between being a beta and an omega.
Yeah, he'd heard that down in the lowlands an alpha had mated with a beta woman. Rumor had it they were even expecting a pup. But Vonn knew himself well enough to know he could never live like that.
His reaction to Trace's mate—before she had become his mate and was only a ripening omega—had proved it to him. His reaction to her scent as she transitioned had been so strong that Vonn had been ready to kill his best friend over her, even when his rational mind understood that Trace had claimed her first.
Blame it on his blood or his nature, but Vonn needed a fully-transitioned omega like he needed air to breathe.
He rolled onto his back, the thought making him miserable. He knew what alpha tradition would say.
If Stacy couldn't or wouldn't complete her transition, he had every right to reject her. No one would judge him. Hell, given that most of his brothers wanted revenge for
