She stood there in disbelief.
Why weren’t they freaking out?
She was freaking out.
Seemed only rational they should be too. In fact, if they didn’t start freaking out soon, she was going to up her panic game to compensate.
Rurik remained in the kitchen as Bill left, whistling a merry tune.
Liberty glanced around at the scene in the kitchen once again, appalled at her lack of control and the fact there were witnesses to it all. It was one thing for Isobel and Daisy to know what she was capable of. They were like her—they were special too. It was an entirely different matter having outsiders aware of what she could do.
If her nightmares were to be believed, she’d already been a guinea pig for demented scientists once in her life. She didn’t want to go for round two.
Didn’t governments slice and dice what they didn’t understand?
Would she be cut up in little pieces if they found out?
Liberty tried to will the items down, but nothing worked. With wide, scared eyes, she glanced at Rurik.
He was standing there, shirtless, looking good enough to lick and like he saw this sort of thing all the time.
“Ohmygod, will you please fucking panic!” she shouted, realizing as the words left her mouth how ridiculous they sounded. Not to mention she’d dropped an F-bomb, something she wasn’t exactly known for.
Lifting his hands more, Rurik eased closer to her, stepping over splattered apple pie on the floor. When he was close enough to touch her, he reached out slowly and stunned her by cupping her face. The next thing Liberty knew, his lips were pressed to hers, making everything else around her fade away, but not before she heard the telltale sounds of items falling to the floor.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Rurik’s tongue darted into Liberty’s mouth, acting as if time was of the essence. As if she’d be taken from him at any second. Pavel had been close to her earlier. Close enough that his scent had lingered on her near the university.
The knowledge that Pavel could have harmed her or even killed her caused Rurik to increase the kiss as fear and desperation consumed him. Deep down, he knew taking her and running far and fast was the smartest thing to do.
Damn if stupid didn’t win out.
He kept going with the kiss, his tongue doing what his cock wanted to, diving in and out of her. “Fuck,” he whispered, breaking the kiss for a fraction of a second.
She bit at his lower lip.
He went right back to kissing her.
The animal in Rurik roared, pushing for him to seize control of the moment, to make sure she was forever his and that no one—especially Pavel—could harm her.
His hand moved to her cheek, seemingly drawn to one spot in particular. He traced his fingers over the area, feeling the smallest of differences under his fingertips. The skin was smoother there, depressed somewhat, almost like scar tissue.
Liberty touched his torso and the second her palms connected with his bare skin, his cock jerked. He was left with an aching bulge between his legs. One that would only find relief in her.
Growling into her mouth, he slid his hand into her hair. The next he knew, he was lifting her and carrying her to the nearest countertop. He swept an arm out, knocking away anything and everything that was hindering him from gaining access to the paradise between her legs.
Something crashed to the floor, the sound echoing throughout the kitchen, but he paid it no mind as he set her on the counter and deepened the kiss.
Good God. He wanted her like he’d never wanted anything before.
She tipped her head, granting him better access to her mouth as her hands roamed downward, and he held his breath, desperate for her to give him a sign she wanted this to happen, that she wanted him carnally, like he wanted her.
As her fingers eased over the button of his jeans, the urge to smile was great. He resisted mainly because he didn’t want to break the kiss. He could only hope Bill was well and truly gone and wouldn’t interrupt the magik of the moment.
Liberty undid his jeans and then froze, her teeth tugging on his lower lip in the process.
Try as he might, he couldn’t stop another growl from breaking free from him. He tugged on her hair, forcing her head back more.
The brazen vixen picked then to shove one of her hands into the front of his jeans and free his erection. A jolt of desire raced through him, leaving him trying to get under her shirt. His efforts were hampered by the apron she was wearing.
The irony that it was of the American flag wasn’t lost on him. He nearly extended a claw and tore it free from her, wanting to get to the good stuff sooner rather than later.
As his bear pushed up at him from within, he realized just how close he was to losing control of his shifter side. “If you don’t want this, you need to tell me.”
“Want this?” she questioned, her gaze on his lips, her hand wrapped around his shaft as best it could be.
He couldn’t help but grin at the sight of her being swept up in the moment. “I want to fuck you. Is that what you want too?”
He held his breath, worried she’d say no.
Her chocolate-brown gaze searched his face. “Aren’t you scared of me?”
He shook his head.
“Why?” she asked as vulnerability filled her voice and her eyes.
He didn’t want the passion-filled moment to end, but it was clear she needed reassurances that he didn’t fear her. He couldn’t think of a great way to drive the point home beyond the fact he’d not cut and run at the first sign of her being more than human.
Her bottom lip began to tremble. “You can’t tell anyone what I did, Rurik. You can’t tell them I made things float. If they find out, they’ll hurt me.”
His bear side kicked up,
