Page 11 of Crescent Warrior

Humiliated color flushed her skin. “No, I’m not,” she shook her head in denial, adamant.

He watched her from the corner of his eye. “I can smell it from here.”

“Well, whatever you’re smelling, you’re wrong,” she said primly, fixing her clothes. Her pride stung and she held her annoyance close to her, trying to tamp down the reaction of her body. She couldn’t let him know now. He wouldn’t understand what he was to her, how she felt about him, until he experienced it himself.

He narrowed his eyes, scoffing. “I’m not stupid, Lyta.”

“Clearly, you are,” she told him in a condescending voice. She stood, sweeping her clothes clean quickly with her hands before turning around and walking back toward her home. She heard him stand, doing the same. When he joined her, walking by her side, she felt his gaze like a brand.

“Are you sure?” he asked, tentatively.

“I think I would know.” It was a lie, of course. She could feel the moisture in her panties, knew that her body was preparing itself for him in a way that could lead to things they both weren’t ready for yet.

“Oh,” he murmured, looking away from her. “Sorry.”

She shrugged, grabbing his hand with hers. “That’s okay. It was fun practicing.”

“We shouldn’t do that again,” he said slowly, squeezing her hand with his.

The hope she was carrying that this little experiment would help him recognize her as his was shattered, but she was becoming used to that pain.

“Why not?” she asked, annoyed.

If he thinks that he’s going to find some random human to practice with, then—

“We should save kissing for our mates,” he shrugged.

A small, pleased smile made its way to her lips.

We did, Cole. You just don’t know it yet.

Instead, she nodded, running forward to her house.

Hippolyta’s eyes snapped open, her dream slowly dissipating, the fog of arousal still dragging her down, and she growled with annoyance. Her body was on fire, her pussy aching and wet, and her wolf was howling for its mate.

Why do I always have to dream of him? I hate this so much!

Turning to her back, she wondered how she was going to survive being near him. For years, she used discipline to control her reactions to her memories of him, but it would be something else entirely to be face-to-face with him. Especially when he was fully grown. She saw pictures of him, unwillingly, of course, whenever Ambrosia shoved them into her face.

She may even have one tucked away under her mattress that she would never admit to. He was bigger, stronger, and more handsome. All things that were not helping her libido calm down in the least.

Swallowing, she yanked off her clothes, settling comfortably on the bed and wondering if, for once—just once—she could finally orgasm without thinking of him. Biting her lip, she cupped her breasts, her nipples tight and aching. She moaned in the back of her throat as she squeezed them.

This was the only way she was able to ease her craving for him. She tried so many times to find a male to satisfy her, but her wolf balked, growling at them, refusing to be touched by anyone but the one that she shouldn’t want.

Moving her hands down her stomach, she enjoyed the feel of the muscle under her skin. She wasn’t bulky like her male counterparts, but she was more defined than most of them. She loved her body, knowing just how hard she worked for it.

Biting her lip as she brushed against the soft thatch of hair above her pussy, her fingers settling lower, her body arched as she found her clit. Gasping, she circled it with a finger, wondering if she could race herself to orgasm before he appeared in her mind.

She had never been able to do it before, but maybe now. This could be the moment when she forgot about him. Hopeful, she rubbed faster, biting her lip and spreading her legs wider, a moan escaping her throat.

Gods, yes. This is what I need.

An image of his smile popped into her head. Her eyes snapped open and she froze, annoyed with herself. She struggled to imagine anyone—anyone—else, but she couldn’t. She couldn’t even conjure an imaginary face.

Still, her body was trembling, on the cusp of orgasm already just from picturing him. Unable to help herself, she bit her lip as she used her other hand to slip a finger inside her drenched pussy, her mind pulling up the memory of her dream. The day he kissed her.

Without hesitation, she was flung over the edge, a cry leaving her lips as her entire body shook from head to toe. She rode the waves, keening as she kept rubbing, more images appearing in her mind.