S. Yule - Lycan Heat

“Like what?”

“I don’t know. Just intense or something.” Her voice trailed off.

“You’re beautiful.”

His body flamed hotter when he saw the lovely shade of red that stained her cheeks.

She was embarrassed by his compliment. She was so young, so innocent. She deserved much better than him. He’d grown to be a hard man over the years, and she shouldn’t have been destined for him. He was not gentle or romantic. He’d never hurt her, but he was a man of experience and had grown weary of all the feuds and fighting amongst his kind.

Yet, he’d do his best to make her happy and to treat her with the respect and tenderness she deserved. Would it be enough? Where she was soft, he was rough. Where she was gentle, he was a warrior. Where she was innocent, he’d seen the selfish, deprived acts of others that were carried out for the simple pleasure of hurting others. Why would fate bring someone like her into his world?

But he knew the answer to that. She was the light that would show him the way to his redemption. She was the only one that could save his damaged soul, make him whole once again. Simply sitting here by her soothed him, calmed him, put him at peace. And the turmoil she would cause inside him when he finally touched her would be ecstatic turmoil born of desire, not of anger or regret at the monsters his race was slowly becoming.

“No. I’m not, but thank you.” She reached out tentatively and scraped shaking fingers through his hair as if silently thanking him for his compliment.

White-hot lightning shot to his groin when she touched him. Her fingers were like magic on him. He closed his eyes for a moment, reveling in her touch, and slowly opened them as her hand fell away from him, as if in slow motion, to her side.

She studied him. Her eyes dropped down his body as she perused him from head to toe, and when her eyes settled on his groin, his erection jerked in reaction. Her cheeks flamed bright red, and her full lips formed a small “o.”

“You’re so big. I mean, you’re body is…” She hid her face in her hands in embarrassment. “I didn’t mean, oh! Just forget it.”

Her innocence was endearing to him, and he couldn’t wait to show her how they could appreciate each other’s bodies without embarrassment. He reached out and pulled her hand to him, placing it flat against his chest and then covering it with his own, the action done without thought. She gasped when she came into contact with him and electricity sparked between them.

“Don’t ever be ashamed to tell me anything. You can always be yourself with me.” He gave her hand a gentle squeeze of reassurance when it trembled against him.

“I don’t know you.”

“Yes, you do.”

She shook her head in denial and he gave her hand another squeeze.

“Close your eyes.” He didn’t think she’d do as he asked, but after a few moments, her lids fluttered shut, and her dark, amber lashes rested against her pale skin.

He scooted closer to her, and her breath hitched. He kept her hand firmly over his beating heart. When he reached out and lightly stroked her cheek with the pad of his thumb, he barely kept a groan from escaping.

“Can you not feel the fire that burns between us, Sherry? Can you not feel how my heart beats for you under your fingertips? You and I are kindred spirits.”

He couldn’t resist any longer and leaned in toward the slim column of her throat. He breathed her scent deep before his lips gently grazed her skin. She jumped, but didn’t pul away from him, and he cupped her nape with his free hand to coax her against his mouth.

As he continued to kiss her neck, her taut body began to relax and she melted into him.

He kissed a trail along her jaw line and to the corner of her mouth. Every instinct screamed at him to claim her, but he held on to control by a mere thread.

“Can I kiss you?” His voice shook with desperation.

Her eyes opened, and the passion that burned in their depths scorched him, matched his own desire. The slight nod of her head was all the response he needed, and unwilling to allow her the time to change her mind, his mouth crashed down on hers. A low growl clawed its way from his chest, and she moaned in response. She tasted like the sweetest honey, the forbidden apple in the Garden of Eden. She tasted like…his.

When she moaned again, he took advantage of her parted lips and slid his tongue into the recess of her mouth. She drove him crazy, mindless with wanting her. One kiss, one simple taste, one stroke of the tongue, and he was lost. He deepened the kiss, and his control snapped. Every urge, every demand that insisted he claim her roared to the surface.

He released her hand against his chest, and her fingers trailed up and over his shoulders, lightly massaging his tense muscles. He tangled his fingers in her hair and held her tight against him as his other hand snaked up the hem of her shirt. When he covered her breast, need so strong coursed through him that it blinded every last shred of common sense.

He pushed her to the ground. The breath that whooshed from her lungs as he covered her and wedged one knee between her thighs only made him burn hotter. He massaged her breast and rolled the peaked nipple between his fingers, aching to taste her…all of her. By the time he realized she was pushing against his chest, she’d disappeared.

His eyes flew wide, and he stood. His breathing came in ragged pants, and he dug his fingers through his hair. There was only one explanation why he had finally been able to see her so clearly, talk to her—she was near. His mate was close, and his heart beat in rapture. Every muscle in his body clenched in anticipation while his cock strained against his jeans, almost screaming for her. No, not her... Sherry. Her name was Sherry.

He wanted to find her right this instant, wanted to claim her and never let her go. She could bring so much joy to him. Joy he thought he’d never find, and love. While he’d prayed that she’d been out there somewhere, he had very little hope of ever finding her. She could be anywhere in the world, and the probability of him finding her had been infinite. It had been the worst, gut wrenching feeling he’d ever had, knowing she was out there and being unable to protect her. He turned and punched the cave wall, welcoming the pain that shot through his fist.

He’d felt useless. Rogues could have gotten her, and he’d never be able to stop it, but no more. She was close now, and he would find her. As soon as he took care of the business concerning his brother tomorrow, he would search for her to the ends of the earth if he had to. He would never stop until he found her, and he would find her, and he’d never let her go once he did.

The problem now? She’d remember him from the dream, and he had frightened her. He had no one to blame but himself. He had lost control.

He’d taken things too fast. But she had responded to him, and that gave him a small amount of hope. Dusk would be here soon, and he could get business taken care of. Afterwards, he’d be able to focus his full attention on her.

Sherry’s eyes flew open, and a gasp escaped as she shot upright from her bed. Her breathing came in ragged gasps. The man she’d just dreamed about…Piers had seemed so real. She put her fingers to her lips. She swore she could feel them tingle from his kiss, and her body was hot, achy. She’d never felt such intenseness with a man. He’d practically oozed sex, and had made her melt. Her hesitation of him proved no match after he’d plastered her hand against his chest.