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“What do you think?” Magnus asked, standing in the doorway. He was backlit by the early morning sun, creating a halo of light around him.
“How long until the fair starts?” Alexis asked, contemplating her options.
“About twenty minutes,” Magnus said, checking his watch.
“Then I’m thinking about doing this,” she said, surging forward to meet his lips in a passionate kiss.
Magnus’s hands went to her face, cupping it as he kissed her, tongue slipping out to trace the seam of her lips. She granted him access, moving her hands down to cup his pectorals and rubbing her fingers lightly over his nipples until they stiffened under her touch.
His hands moved down from her face to cup her ass, kneading it with warm fingers. Her body pressed forward, one leg moving up to tug him closer until they were rutting against each other over the clothes.
“Wait,” Magnus said, face flushed as he pulled away from her. “Hang on.”
Alexis’s lips were sticky from kissing, and her body throbbed almost painfully from the heated desire coursing through her. “Why?” she asked, pouting a little at the loss of contact. “Are you worried we’ll be late for the fair?”
“My speech isn’t for another two hours,” Magnus said, rubbing a hand over his face. “I don’t have a problem being late if it means being with you first.”
“Then what’s the problem?” Alexis asked, tilting her head in confusion.
“It doesn’t feel right to sleep with you again before I tell you everything. I don’t want there to be any secrets between us.”
Alexis’s stomach soured, and she felt her breath catch in her throat. “What’s everything?” she asked, trying to keep her voice level.
Magnus closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “You’re my mate,” he said as though that explained it.
“What?” Alexis furrowed her brow, unable to understand what he was saying. “Your mate? Like … a friend?”
“Mate in shifter lingo means something different,” Magnus explained, taking her hands in his and leading her to sit on the edge of his bed. “All shifters have a mate sense. It’s an innate ability to find the person that we’re meant for, the person who is our perfect match, who we’re most compatible with on a biological level.”
Eyes widening, Alexis pulled her hands back. “Sorry, run that by me again?”
“It’s complicated, but it just means that we’re meant to be with one person, and you’re it for me. I sensed it the night of the masquerade but thought it was just the full moon making me more intensely attracted to you. But when I saw you again, my panther confirmed it. You’re my mate.”
Alexis breathed out a long breath. “Okay, so what does that mean for me? Do I even have a choice in the matter?” Her mind raced at the confession Magnus had just laid at her feet. Was she supposed to be his biological match or something?
“As a human, yes, of course, you have a choice,” Magnus said, reaching out to take her hands in his once again. “I’d never force you into anything, Alexis.”
Alexis felt her heartbeat start to slow down, comforted by that thought.
“Even if we’re fated mates, I find myself drawn to you for who you are as a person,” he added. “You’re more than a biological urge to me.”
His words were exactly what she was hoping to hear.
“So what would it mean for me if I chose to be with you and accept that I’m your mate?” she asked.
Magnus smiled, the dimples in his cheeks becoming more pronounced. “I’d be utterly devoted to you,” he said, gazing into her eyes. “I’d be yours forever. You’d be my queen, and I would give you everything you could ever want or need.”
Her heart fluttered as she gazed back at him, the words painting a romantic picture. But when he glanced down at their joined hands, she felt a shift in him.
“There is something else you should know, though,” he added. “A not-so-rosy side. Being with me means being the matriarch of my pride. Not every panther would be accepting of a human in that position.”
“Would I be in danger from anyone who didn’t like humans?” she asked, anxiety spiking inside once again.
“No,” Magnus said swiftly, squeezing her hands in his. “I would take care of anyone who tried to come after you.” He turned his gaze back on her, eyes darkening with his words.
Alexis let out another breath, head reeling from the information she had just been given. “Do I need to decide before you have sex with me again?” she teased, trying to lighten the mood.
“No,” Magnus said, smiling back at her. “But when you do agree to be my mate, I’ll want to mark you with a scratch on your hip while we have sex. Just a fair warning.”
