Chapter
Thirty-Five
The drive homefrom the hospital passed in silence, and Brie could feel something had shifted in Hunter’s energy. The streetlights painted shadows across his face as he gripped the steering wheel.
In her apartment, Brie set down her purse. Hunter stood by the window, staring out at the dark mountain. The tension radiating from him was unfamiliar. Something deep and primal.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, moving toward him.
He turned, and the raw need in his dark eyes made her breath catch. “Holding Adrian today... watching you with him...” His voice was rough, scraped raw with emotion. “It made me realize what I want.” He stepped closer, his hand coming up to cup her face. “I need to claim you properly. Completely.”
Brie’s heart thundered in her chest. “I’ve been thinking the same thing,” she said. “We’ve survived so much, but we haven’t completed the bond.”
“Once we do this, everything changes. We’ll feel each other. Our emotions, all the pain and joy. We’ll share it all.”
“I want that,” Brie said, as they undressed each other. “I want to be yours in every way.”
Hunter pulled her against him, his mouth capturing hers in a kiss that was desperate and reverent at the same time. Brie melted into him, her bear rumbling with satisfaction as their bodies pressed together. He laid her on the bed, then stood for a moment just looking at her naked body.
“Come here,” Brie said, reaching for him.
Hunter climbed on top of her, his familiar weight filling her with desire. His mouth found her throat, and then he kissed down her body. When his teeth grazed the sensitive skin of her thighs, she gasped, and her legs trembled around his shoulders.
When his tongue traced along her folds in one long, slow stroke, her hips jerked toward him. He held her steady, hands gripping her thighs. With soft kisses and gentle licks, he explored her body like he had all the time in the world.
“Hunter...” Her voice came out breathy.
He hummed against her, the vibration making her gasp. His tongue found her clit, circling it with feather-light touches that made her squirm. Every time she tried to rock her hips for more pressure, he tightened his grip on her thighs, holding her in place.
Her hands fisted in the sheets, then moved to his hair, fingers tangling in the dark strands. He flattened his tongue, licking her in long, firm strokes from entrance to clit. She moaned, her back arching off the bed. He did it again, and again, establishing a rhythm that had her panting. Then he’d switch back to those maddening circles around her clit, never quite giving her enough.
“Hunter...” she mewled.
His mouth sealed over her clit, sucking gently while his tongue pressed firm and direct. The change from teasing circles to focused pressure made her cry out. He worked her with steady intensity now, no more easing back, no more teasing.
The pleasure built rapidly, coiling tighter in her belly with each pass of his tongue. Her fingers tightened in his hair. She was so close, trembling on the edge.
He increased the pressure, his tongue moving faster. The orgasm hit her hard, radiating from her core through her entire body. Her thighs clamped around his head as wave after wave of pleasure rolled through her. She heard herself crying out his name, unable to control the sounds escaping her throat.
He worked her through it, only gentling his touches as the waves began to subside.
“I need you,” she gasped, pulling him up to her. The heat of his cock made her pussy clench in anticipation.
Hunter pushed inside slowly, both of them gasping at the new sensation. They’d been together many times, but never without a condom. It felt more intimate, more permanent, more real.
“God, Brie,” Hunter groaned when he was fully seated. “You feel so good.”
His hips rolled into hers, and her body answered immediately, meeting each thrust. Their breathing synchronized. His exhale became her inhale. Her fingers gripped his shoulders. His mouth found her throat, lips tracing the pulse point that beat wildly beneath her skin.
She felt every inch of him, the drag and slide, the way her body gripped him. Heat built low in her belly with each stroke, radiating outward through her limbs. The pleasure was sharper, more immediate, like her nerve endings had been rewired.
Then something else stirred beneath her skin. Her bear, restless and urgent, pressing against the boundary between human and animal. Her vision sharpened. Colors intensified. The blue of the sheets looked richer. Hunter’s skin seemed to glow in the low light.
His scent hit her with overwhelming force. It filled her lungs, made her bear rumble with possessive satisfaction. Her nails sharpened and pressed against his skin. Hunter’s rhythm faltered for just a moment.
His eyes met hers, and she gasped at what she saw there. Gold flickered through the dark blue like lightning, bright and feral. His pupils elongated, narrowed to slits for a heartbeat before returning to human roundness.
His wolf was right at the surface and barely contained. “I need to claim you.”
