“Is that so?” Tanner bit out, nostrils flaring. He took a long breath, trying to find some measure of calm. It eluded him. His pulse just kept on elevating faster and faster. His anger just kept on burning hotter and hotter. A pounding filled his ears, and adrenaline coursed through his veins as if preparing him for battle.
Looking somewhat nervous, she licked her bottom lip. “Yes, it is.”
Another growl vibrated his chest—one that came from both him and his demon. A sick feeling took hold in his gut, and the pounding in his ears seemed louder.
His muscles quivered with the urge to lunge. Take. Taste. Bite. And no matter how hard and deep he dug for calm, he couldn’t fucking find it.
Brow wrinkling, she swallowed again. “Are you okay?”
Not in the slightest. Because he’d soon have to watch the first thing that he’d wanted for himself in a very long time bind herself to someone else. It was going to happen right in fucking front of him—all of it, from the first date to the decision to mate. He’d have a front row seat to every goddamn phase of it.
Desperation hammered at him, feeding his anger, driving him to do something—anything—that would shut this finding-a-mate shit down. “You’re young, you’ve got a lot of years ahead of you, there’s no rush to take such a big step.”
“My feline has made up its mind; it won’t change it.”
“So it’s just your demon that wants this, not you?”
“No, it’s both of us.” She shrugged. “I want to mean something to someone, Tanner.”
Was the woman fucking blind? He put his face closer to hers and growled, “You mean something to me. And that goes both ways, doesn’t it?”
“Look, I—”
“Doesn’t it?” If she denied it, he was going to lose it.
“Considering nothing could come of it, it doesn’t really matter, does it?”
Fisting her hair, he dragged her closer and snarled. “It fucking matters to me.” He slammed his mouth down on hers and boldly sank his tongue inside. Taken aback, she froze. No, he wasn’t having that. He kissed her hard, deep, demanding a response. A soft, broken moan of surrender poured down his throat, and then she was kissing him back.
Tanner growled, tightening his grip on her hair as he feasted on the mouth he’d fantasized about for too long. His demon would intervene any second now; would rise with a snarl of distaste. Tanner would have to pull back to be sure it didn’t lash out at her—it might not like the idea of her mated, but it would have no interest in taking what it viewed as a lesser demon to its bed. But until his demon made its move, he’d make the most of every second he could get with her.
He licked and nipped and consumed her mouth as he skimmed his hands over her, shaping and clutching and squeezing. Her little moans spurred him on, stroking his throbbing cock like slick fingers.
Gripping his hair, she arched into him and whispered his name. With a low growl, he cinched her hip and yanked her closer, grinding his dick against her. The scent of her need spiced the air, and he ached to slide his fingers into that pussy and feel just how hot and wet she was. Ached to strip her naked and shove his cock so deep inside her she’d feel him in her throat.
He tensed as his hound stirred. It didn’t barge to the surface. It moved slowly, edging its way close until, finally, it was pressing against his skin. It let out a chuff of disapproval. Snapped its teeth at Tanner in annoyance … and then it retreated, uninterested in interfering. He stilled for a few seconds, stunned. And then he lost all control.
Devon gasped as he clawed off her dress with a hungry snarl and backed her into the wall. He shoved his hard cock against her pulsing clit and, damn, that was one long, fat dick he was packing.
Stilling, he growled low in his throat. “Your nipples are pierced,” he choked out. He swooped down and sucked one into his mouth, grinding his cock against her clit just right.
Devon’s head fell back and smacked the wall. She’d initially frozen the moment his mouth crushed hers, but the kiss had been so hot, wet, and hungry that it quickly sucked all thoughts of protest out of her head. And every ounce of the control she’d managed to exercise over her need for him had just … dissipated.
Years, she’d wanted this. Years. And she knew by the aggressive desperation in his touch that he’d been fighting that same battle.
She thought her feline would shoot to the surface and attack him. Instead, it had hissed and given her a haughty sniff of disdain, but then it had turned its back on her. And so she’d decided to make the most of however long she’d have before his demon put an end to it. Only … his hound didn’t seem to be interfering either.