Page 40 of Hunt Me Down

With an effort, Erin managed to tear her mouth from his.Hardto do, because Jude’s tongue was freaking magic. “Come upstairs with me.” She didn’t want to take him down there. Not with the memory of blood just a few feet away.

Upstairs. Safety.

And a big bed they could wreck.

Theywouldwreck.

The beast stared out from his eyes. “Don’t tease me, sweetheart. I’m not the kind of guy you can screw around with.”

He was exactly the kind of guy shewantedto screw around with. Erin caught his hands. “I want these on me, everywhere.”

Mine.

Hell, no. Not that sick bastard’s. Her body was her own, and tonight, she’d give it to Jude, and she’d take the pleasure he gave her.

I can’t hurt him.A reassurance that played again.He’s strong.

Not human.

Tiger.

“Come upstairs,” she repeated, her voice soft. She took his right hand and trailed the fingers between her breasts. “Come to bed with me.”

She felt the tension in his hand. The leashed strength. “I can’t...do soft and easy. Not tonight, not after a shift.”

The beast still coursed through him.

Erin smiled. The beast within was exactly what she wanted. “Good.” She turned from him and stalked toward the stairs. Silence thickened the air behind her.

“One minute you’re telling me to keep my hands off, now you?—”

She jerked off her silky gown and tossed it behind her, not bothering to look back.Can’t.“Now I want them on me.”

The wood of the stairs seemed cold beneath her feet. Clad only in a pair of white bikini panties, Erin climbed the steps. Almost to the top. He hadn’t moved. He wanted her, she’d felt his lust rising against her, but he hadn’t moved.

I need you.Tonight, she needed him more than she’d ever needed another.

Erin glanced down. Her claws were out, sharpened points. She could smell the scent of her own arousal in the air and knew he had to catch the scent, too. For a male shifter, the fragrance of a female shifter’s need was rumored to be nearly impossible to resist. While she wasn’t fully a shifter, she’d still thought?—

The stairs shook when Jude raced up them.

A smile curved her lips.

Erin reached the landing and turned to hurry for her bedroom. Inside, the lamp on the nightstand poured out soft light. Her curtains were drawn over the windows. The bed sheets were rumpled.

She took one more step forward.

Jude pounced.

His arms caught her, lifting her off her feet, and spinning her around. His eyes—blazing, too brilliant—trapped her. His mouth took hers.

Yes.

Fear wasn’t in her mind, not then. No memories. No nightmares. Just him.

She wrapped her legs around his waist and felt his thick cock push against the crotch of her panties. He had to feel the wet touch of the silk, and she wanted him to know how much she ached.

Four steps, and they fell onto the bed. Kissing, touching, stroking.

---