Page 44 of Wolf Marked

“I couldn’t take my eyes off you all night,” he said. With Erec being so close, she could smell the musk of his arousal and hear the call of his wolf to hers through their pack bond. Its howl vibrated behind her eardrums, only meant for her to hear.

A small voice floated from somewhere in the back of her mind, reminding her that she had questions to ask him about Jerrick, and that she shouldn’t be allowing him this close without more answers. But before her common sense could kick in, Erec twisted her around and drew her in close. She gasped in surprise, and he took that moment to claim her mouth. She felt his aggression—his desperation—through the kiss as his tongue tangled with hers.

He pressed her closer, and Astrid’s head reeled. The ache inside her was becoming all-consuming, and her blood seemed to be burning beneath her skin. She wanted him, all of him. She didn’t want to fight whatever this was between them anymore.

Not waiting for him to take control, Astrid’s hand slipped down the muscular lines of his chest to the waistband of his pants, teasing the gap between the fabric and his stomach. Desire rolled off him in waves, swirling around her, strong and demanding. She breathed it in, and instantly, urgency skated through her veins. The fever was running so wild within her that if Erec had tried to take her right there, in front of the fire and the other couples, she would have let him.

Right before her fingers could dip any farther, Erec caught her wrist and broke the kiss. When she peered up at him, the same hunger shone in his blue eyes. “Not here,” he growled. “I’ve been holding back for so long—envisioning this moment so many times—that there will be nothing quick or gentle to it when I take you.”

The words should have scared her. Instead, they sent delicious tremors through her. Lucky for him, quick and gentle wasn’t what she wanted. Not at all.

She smirked, challenging him. “Perfect.”

He growled deep in his throat. Not wanting to waste another second, Astrid took his hand and tugged him to her tent. The moment the flaps closed behind them, she pulledErec down to claim his mouth again. With her free hand, she slid past his pants and grabbed his length, his hot skin searing her palm as her hand closed around him. His surprise came out in a breathy gasp. Having seen Erec naked before, he was a lot bigger than he had looked. Thicker, too. She swallowed in anticipation.

Erec nipped her bottom lip, not hard enough to hurt but enough to send her pulse into a frenzied dance. Then, she realized they were moving—Erec was guiding her backward to the bed with their lips still locked in a passionate kiss. In the next second, her back hit the cushion and her head cradled into the pillow. His movements were so quick that she hadn’t even felt the clothing leave her body until the cool air kissed every inch of her flesh; she lay bare and completely naked before him, and his gaze drank her in slowly, leaving a trail of goose bumps in its wake.

“You’re so beautiful, Astrid,” he whispered and discarded his own pants and fur coat. His erection stood straight up, strong and a little intimidating. He crawled over her body, and she trembled. The heat coming from his skin had her mind reeling, and when Erec pressed his manhood against her inner thigh, she thought she might combust. She arched her back and spread her legs wider, all too ready to feel him buried deep inside her. Instead, he shifted his body down hers until his face hovered over the most private part of her. He lifted her knees to rest on his shoulders, his breath tickling her core.

“Erec… What are—” Her sentence was cut short by the tiniest flip of his tongue. She gasped. Another flick had her head clouding. Astrid peered down the curves of her body to meet his eyes. He held her gaze as his tongue teased her, stroke after stroke. She could barely breathe as a tingling sensation spread across her skin and a pressure began to build low in her belly.

His hand came up and palmed her right breast. He fondled and squeezed as his mouth continued its relentless assault. When his fingers pinched her nipple, her body jerked in response. Erec’s soft chuckle vibrated between her legs, and he returned to licking the sensitive spot, his pace and demand increasing. As her body twisted and arched, his fingers dug into her hips to hold her in place. A molten force slammed into her, making her shake and her muscles twitch. Unable to help herself, she cried out.

Erec didn’t stop however, not even when the waves of tremors ended. Not even when she gripped his shoulder, a silent plea to cease his sweet torture. It wasn’t long before she was soaring again, her mind floating somewhere above the earth. This time, as she rode the waves rushing through her, Erec moved up her body and drove his length greedily into her heat, filling her completely.

In that one mesmerizing moment, there was only the two of them, and the worldaround them seemed to fall away. The pack tie between them strengthened, and a tidal wave of sensations drowned her. Erec’s unquenchable hunger showered over her first, hot and heavy. Next, there was a prickle of determination and unwavering desire. Confidence and then trust.

And surprisingly, at the distant fringes of his subconscious, Astrid sensed the twinge of fear—a feeling that had been suppressed but still lingered in the background. It was a fear of losing her.

Could he feel her innermost feelings just the same?

But then Erec pushed into her again, even harder this time, driving away any questioning thoughts. Wrapping her legs around his waist, she met him stroke for stroke. He moaned, head falling back and eyes closing briefly.

Sweat clinging to his brow, he pumped into her, deeper and with more urgency, his breathing harsh. His dark gaze drank her in, watching her breasts bounce from his powerful thrusts and her lips part in a groan of pleasure. It was almost as if he couldn’t get enough of her. In touch, in sound, in taste. He dove for her mouth again and caught her with another fiery kiss.

Erec had been right about one thing—there was nothing gentle about his movements, but she welcomed all of them.

The sounds of their bodies, along with Erec’s grunts of need, was enough to send her over the edge again. She bit her bottom lip, trying to hold back, but soon pleasure spiraled through her, making her head spin. A strangled noise tore from her throat that sounded more like Erec’s name than anything else as the convulsions took hold.

Erec came with her this time, his warmth spilling into her. He collapsed on top of her, his weight nothing she couldn’t handle. She loved it—the pressure of his body on hers, the feeling of his hot breath caressing the hollow of her neck, and the sensation of his muscles twitching underneath her fingertips. She could get used to this.

When he finally did roll off her to lie at her side, she noticed he was still hard, and another rush of fire shot over her skin. Breaths ragged, Erec gave her a sidelong glance, his dark eyes weighted with lust. A tilted smile teased his lips, hinting that he had plans for her and the rest of their night together, more than just this.

“Another dance?” His voice was nothing more than a low rumble, but it sent Astrid’s heart drumming against her rib cage.

She smiled seductively back at him, meeting his challenge. Little did Erec know thatshe wasn’t done with him yet, either. Not even close.

Chapter Fourteen

Astrid drifted awake from a distant, peaceful place. First came the sweet ache between her thighs—a throbbing heat that radiated up into her lower belly, reminding her of her long, passionate night with Erec. He hadn’t lied to her when he’d said the sex wouldn’t be quick or gentle. And that was quite all right with her. She preferred the hard, fervent kind anyway. It was a good thing their kind didn’t become fertile until after they’d found their soul mate and broke the curse. Otherwise, after a night like that, she had no doubt in her mind that she would have fallen pregnant.

Erec’s soft breathing and his steady heartbeat were the only sounds; silence had replaced the thundering music outside the tent. The recoil of her wolf told her it had to be some time during the day. Just what time it was, she couldn’t be sure.

Then came the scents—the strong tickle of cedar and smoke, the wisp of lilac, and the sweet aroma of sex. She and Erec had enjoyed each other’s company three more times before exhaustion swept them both into a heavy sleep, forcing them to squeeze close together on Astrid’s tiny bed.

Cracking her eyes open, she was greeted by a harsh brightness that stung and quickly shut her lids again. Maybe she’d just stay here for a while longer. With the light pressure of Erec beside her, accompanied with the hypnotic sound of his breaths, it would be easy to find sleep again. Being here with him was a comfort she wasn’t ready to leave just yet.

It wasn’t long before she visited that blissful, dream-filled place again. Over the next hour she glided in and out of consciousness. She would have continued to chase sleep for much longer, too, if a frantic stirring beside her hadn’t jerked her awake. Snapping up in bed, Astrid’s mind leaped through all the worst possible scenarios, most involving Jerrick and some kind of unheard ambush. Then she peered over at Erec, who was thrashing about, his lips pressed tightly together, a bluish vein jumping under the skin of his forehead. Despite his heavy breathing and the sweat glistening across his brow, his eyesremained closed. He was still asleep. It seemed the only real threats were the ones invading his mind in a very violent, very forceful nightmare.

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