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“Me, either,” Titus said. “If he asked your sister out right then, his lion is leading him.”
“What does that mean? They’re mates?”
“It’s possible,” Duke said with a shrug.
Ree looked past them to the dancing crowd and then shook her head with a smile. “She always has to copy me.”
Titus laughed. “Gotta love siblings.”
“We’re heading upstairs. Don’t call me.”
Titus snorted. “No worries.”
“Are you ready, Ree?” he asked.
She smiled, rose onto her toes, and brushed her lips over his. “Yes.”
Chapter 4
By the time they reached Duke’s apartment on the second floor, she was very sure she’d made the right choice in staying with him. Even though it was odd to her that a man would make such a serious commitment after spending an hour with someone, she could see in his eyes that he was sincere. She felt a connection to him that defied explanation. It was like love at first sight, but there was more to it than that. It went deeper than a physical attraction, although she’d be an idiot not to be attracted to him, but it was more than even that. He was a lion, and from the way the few pride members she’d met had treated him, he was important, but he didn’t flaunt that.
He opened the door to the apartment and she walked inside. He shut and locked the door, and then he moved to her, standing at her back and hooking his fingers in her jacket and slowly pulling it from her. He dropped it over the arm of the couch and then he brushed his fingers lightly down her arms. She tilted her head with a sigh and he kissed her neck as he made patterns on her skin with his rough fingertips.
He cupped her face, tipping her chin until he could kiss her lips. She turned in his arms and eagerly returned the kiss. He lifted and carried her into a bedroom. He set her down on a bed, and she felt a soft blanket under her hands as she stretched out on her back.
“Do you mind if I turn on a light?” he asked. “I want to see you.”
She inhaled sharply. She couldn’t recall ever making love with the lights on. Then again, she was very positive she’d never actually made love to anyone before. She was curvy, and self-consciousness rose within her but she pushed it away. Duke said they were mates, and he’d had his hands on her in the bar, so he knew she wasn’t slender. If he wanted her, she decided, then he would see what he was getting this first time, and she wasn’t going to hide in the dark.
Besides, he could probablyseein the dark anyway.
“You can turn on the light. I want to see you, too.”
There was a click and the overhead light came on. He turned a switch and the light dimmed some, cutting out the harsh brightness, but she could still see clearly. Feeling emboldened by the bright gold of his eyes, she wiggled around to her knees and undid the zipper at the back of the dress. He watched her as she gathered the dress in her hands and lifted it slowly over her head and dropped it to the floor. His nostrils flared as he looked at her.
She’d chosen a dark pink satin bra and panty set. It had made her feel feminine and pretty, even though she hadn’t expected anyone to see them outside of her. She was very thankful, though, that she’d shaved her legs.
He unbuttoned his shirt slowly, his gaze never straying from hers.
“You don’t know much about shifters?”
“Not really.” Shifters had revealed themselves to the public ten years ago. They’d fought for rights and had been granted them, and allowed to live and work wherever they wanted. Companies weren’t allowed to discriminate against shifters any more than they were allowed to refuse service to someone because of their race. There were towns across the country that were mostly shifters, just as there were some that were mostly human. “There are wolves who come into the bank, but that’s about all the interaction with shifters I’ve had. My hometown is mostly human.”
His nose wrinkled. “We’re not like wolves.”
“I figured. Do you mind that I don’t know much about shifters?”
“No. I’m just glad I get to share everything with you myself. Lions are the best, by the way.”
“And you’re not biased at all,” she said with a laugh.
“Not one bit.”
He shrugged off the shirt and tossed it aside, and she got her first real look at him. Hewasbuilt like a tank. His shoulders were broad, and his arms were covered with ropes of muscles. Every inch of him was defined, from his sexy pecs to the washboard abs that begged to be licked.
“You like what you see, kitten?” he asked huskily as he closed the distance between them.
“You’re gorgeous.”
