Page 63 of Moon Claimed

“That’s just, uhm, leftover.” I pressed a hand to my cheek in case Little Miss Grope took over again.

The massive werewolf didn’t stop his stare. “Is it?”

Was he asking himself that question or me? “It feels kind of like the heat, but I’m not mindless.”

His eyes rounded a fraction.

“What is it?” I asked. Was this unusual or something?

Sascha pressed his lips together. “We’re not ready for sex, little bird.”

That’s a shame. Because in this state—vulnerable, tired, and horny as hell, I was more than ready to make a delicious mistake. “Why? Out of interest?”

Sascha walked us to a boulder lining the lake and sat down, still holding me close. “From what I witnessed between you and Logan, you use sex as a weapon. Or at the very least, you don’t view sex as emotional. More a need to be fulfilled rather than something… more.”

My mouth dried. An angry retort balanced on my lips, but I refused to give it voice. That wasn’t how I used sex at all. Ilikedsex. Sex was fun. It felt good.

And boy, had it been a long time. My eyes narrowed.Are you influencing me somehow?

My wolf didn’t answer.

Dang. This was all me.

I looked up at him. “I thought you wanted me.”

“I want you so much that I cannot take that gift from you yet. Not like this. Not until we are one in other ways.”

Yeah,he really wasn’t getting the memo on that front.

I winced as the ache between my thighs became acute. Seriously, it was out of control.

I needed to get home to deal with it myself.

“But I am a man who takes care of his mate’s needs.” Sascha’s voice hitched.

Warmth pooled in my belly. “What do you mean?”

Please mean what I think you mean.

His expression was solemn. “If it comes down to me having front row seats to what will inevitably happen or imagining what you’re doing to yourself for the hour after I drop you home, I choose the front row seats. No sex doesn’t mean we can’t touch.”

My chest rose, and I processed for the first time that we were both naked. He’d been clinical until now, but that dam broke as he dragged his gaze to my breasts and across my stomach.

“Andie,” he said softly. “It comes with conditions.”

“What?” I breathed.

I wanted his hands on me, his mouth on my breasts, and his fingers crooking in just the right spot.

Now.

He didn’t do it. “You tell me, truly, that it’s what you want. That you won’t regret it.”

“Yes.”

“Yes, what?”

I bared my teeth, feeling my claws lengthen, and he grinned. “Easy, beautiful wolf. You know this is important.”

---