She felt possessive, desperate, and needy. So fucking needy.
Chapter Seven
He wanted to fuck Rebecca again, to christen his bedroom, but he could wait. He’d gone a lifetime without a woman of his own, so a few more hours wouldn’t kill him.
“Let me show you around the property,” he said. They held hands as he took her out the back door. She’d done well with his friends. He’d worried about her feeling anxious and wanting to leave. It pleased him how she handled herself, and that she loved his home. It would soon be their home.
“It’s like a dream here,” she said. “Heaven.”
Liam had the perfect spot for the homestead. His packmates’ new cabins were out of sight, but not too far off. There was plenty of space for privacy. He’d had enough of stepping on toes for the past year with six extra people in his house. No way could he stomach listening to them fuck another day. Going forward, the main house was for his own family.
Pinecones and leaves littered the forest floor, but it would soon decompose into new black earth. He remembered his father telling him the legend of the great oak, showing him a small acorn and explaining how it would one day grown mighty. His father had done a lot to prepare him to become alpha, to take his rightful place in the pack. Liam knew full well the importance of keeping the bloodline alive. It was one of many reasons he was thankful for finally finding Rebecca. One thing he’d never been taught was how to prepare for a human mate.
“Most women think it’s too rural here, too far from shopping malls and nail salons,” said Liam.
She shook her head. “That’s not me. I left the city because it was too much to handle. The noise, the pollution, the fake smiles. I couldn’t do it anymore.” Rebecca bent down by the river, running her fingers through the crystal-clear water. “This is real. I don’t have to pretend to be someone else.”
He tilted his head. “Who would you be?”
“I don’t know. The woman on magazine covers—beautiful, confident, and refined.”
“You’re all that and more.” He sat down on the riverbank, wrapping his arms loosely around his knees.
“Do you know me at all?”
He smiled. “Baby, I don’t want a fake woman. You’re natural, honest, and perfect exactly the way you are. Don’t change.”
She flicked some water at him and giggled. The sound made his cock hard. Breeding her kept creeping into his thoughts, and he hoped he’d already impregnated his mate.
“It’s so quiet here. All I can hear are birds and insects.” She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. “Do you ever get scared living this far off the grid?”
“Never.”
She turned and smirked at him. “You’re fearless, aren’t you?”
“I’m only afraid of losing you.”
Her smiled faded as she stared back at him. “I’m surprised you’re still single. You said you’re around my age?”
“Maybe a bit older. Does it matter?” Liam had recently turned fifty. Although shifters didn’t age as quickly as humans, the number still sent him into a tailspin. His biological clock was ticking, and he’d been the only one in his pack left unmated—until now.
“No, it doesn’t matter at all. I’m just curious.”
r />
“What if I told you I’m fifty? Twenty years older than you.”
She bit her lip. “I’d say you’ve taken very good care of that body.” Rebecca winked at him before returning to the water. He couldn’t believe the weight that lifted from his shoulders. He swore she’d be turned off by his true age.
“The forest looks good on you,” he said.
“I’m kind of surprised how much I love it out here. I’ve never been camping, never roasted marshmallows, or ate over an open fire. My anxiety kept me from doing a lot of things in my life.”
“Things are going to change now. I’ll make sure of it,” he said.
Rebecca stood and came over to him. She knelt down and straddled his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him hard, her tongue pushing in his mouth. “Teach me everything.”
He was about to roll her to her back when his peripheral vision picked up movement. Two wolves dashed through the underbrush toward his home, barely disturbing a leaf. A human would never have been able to notice them—Liam was not human. He held Rebecca a little tighter as his wolf thrashed within him. There were trespassers on his land, and that was one thing he would not tolerate, especially now that he was a mated male.