"That's it. Take it. You're going to take every last drop I give you." I was going to fill her with my seed and keep her stopped up until it overflowed out of her pussy past my shaft. She was going to be mine forever.

She gasped. "I'm not on the pill. You have to pull out."

"Too late, babe."

The pressure of the plug combined with my swollen shaft stretched her to the limit. Her tight sex clamped down as I rutted her hard and fast. This was primal and savage. Mating was the most primitive urge of all.

My name fell from her lips like a mantra as a drove her toward her climax.

I zeroed in on her pulse and lunged, clamping my teeth around her neck.

"Mine," I growled as my sack grew tight. I released into her, plunging balls deep into her and staying there. As she came, her muscles spasmed and milked my seed from my shaft as I flooded her with my cum. Her back arched off of the desk, her entire body seizing like a creature possessed.

It went on forever, her sex draining me of cum until finally, she went limp and the caress of her pussy became weak tremors. Nestling my face against her neck, I placed a soft kiss on my mark. Realization dawned on me that this was what it was going to be like for the rest of our lives. She was mine at last. Happiness swelled in my chest.

Finally, my shaft deflated and we were able to detach. I grabbed the base of the plug and removed it slowly and gently. She let out a wince as the bulge popped out.

Wrapping my arms around her, I carried her over to the leather couch and went to the mini-bar to dampen a hand towel. After we were cleaned up, I joined her on the couch and gathered her on top of my chest. Our mating had sapped all of her energy, and she made happy noises as she placed her head over my heart and closed her eyes.

Claiming my mate was more than I had ever dreamed of. A part of me still wasn't convinced it was real, or that it could last.

Chapter 8

KATIE

The Song family mansion loomed against the twilight sky like something from a Gothic novel. Its dark weathered stone made an intimidating impression and the ornate towers and spires reached toward the clouds like claws. It was a relic from another time, an era of robber barons and gilded age wealth. Bare trees lined the circular drive, their gnarled branches creating strange shadows in the gathering darkness. Everything about this place was screaming at me to stay away. I did not belong here.

Reeve’s hand was warm and steady as he helped me out of the car, his touch lingering protectively at my waist. The mate bond hummed between us, still new and fragile, yet as natural as the beat of my own heart. It was only a week after we mated and already I couldn't imagine life without this connection. His presence was a balm to my frayed nerves, but even his nearness couldn’t fully quell the unease coiling in my stomach.

"We don't have to do this," Reeve murmured. "Mother's emergency family dinner can wait." Even though I could feel his anxiety through the bond, he still prioritized my comfort and safety.

I smoothed my hands over the navy silk of my dress. It was a straight-line dress that had cost a month's rent, but Reeve bought it for me without blinking an eye, as if a four-figure sum was spare change in the bottom of his pocket. The dress was beautiful, elegant, and utterly out of place on someone like me. I felt like an imposter, a girl playing dress-up in a world where I didn’t belong. But I straightened my shoulders. Reeve had chosen me, and I had to be the best version of myself. The version who was deserving of being mated to a Song.

I managed a smile that felt braver than I was. "Running won't help. Besides, how bad can it be?"

The answer came as soon as Grayson, the elderly butler, opened the massive front doors. Power rolled out like a wave, suffocating me under its weight, sending shivers up my spine. My breath hitched, and the hairs on my arms stood on end. This wasn’t just a home. It was a den of predators, and I was the prey who stumbled into their lair. I was in the presence of old money, older magic, and the wild energy of a house full of wolves.

Grayson led us to a formal parlor where twenty members of the Song family waited. The room was opulent, with high ceilings, crystal chandeliers, and walls lined with portraits of stern-faced ancestors. As soon as Reeve and I stepped past the doorway, all twenty pairs of eyes shifted to me with predatory focus.

Bits of information flowed into my mind through our bond. Not words, but impressions, emotions, and fragments of his memories that gave me a sense of Reeve's relationship to each person in the room, and where everybody stood in his family's complex hierarchy. The younger and lower-ranking members of the pack lingered around the edges of the room, their voices hushed and their heads low. But at the center of the room, seated in ornate throne-like chairs, were the dominant wolves. And among them was Reeve's mother.

Victoria Song rose from her seat with a calm, deadly grace that was as beautiful as it was terrifying. She wore a simple black dress and a strand of pearls. Her movements were deliberate, each step a reminder of her authority. She was the embodiment of centuries of breeding and tradition, the queen of her domain.

"Reeve. Ms. Clark," she greeted us. Her smile didn't reach her eyes and it resembled a predator baring its teeth in a snarl. "How unexpected to see you accompanying my son."

"Mother." Reeve's hand tightened on my waist, his body growing tense. "You invited us both."

"Did I?" She gestured to the assembled pack members, all beautiful, all powerful, all watching me with varying degrees of horror and fascination. "I merely suggested you bring a guest to tonight's family dinner to discuss some concerning developments regarding the company. I didn't realize you'd bring your assistant."

The way she said "assistant" dripped with judgment. Hushed whispers rippled through the room, punctuated by the occasional warning growl. The words human, disgrace, and bloodline drifted across the room. I lifted my chin higher. The mate bond flooded with Reeve's pride at my defiance. It was a warm, steady presence in my mind.

"Katie is my mate." His voice carried the strength of an alpha wolf making a declaration that made even the strongest wolves step back. Power rolled off him in waves. "She has every right to be here."

"Does she?" A man who could only be Reeve's brother stepped forward. He was younger than Reeve, but unlike the hidden vulnerability that my mate possessed, this man was all sharp angles and barely contained aggression. Daniel Song had the same dark good looks as Reeve, but where my mate radiated controlled power, his brother's energy felt volatile, a ticking bomb waiting to explode. "Why does she have the right to destroy everything our family built?" His eyes gleamed with malice.

My eyes darted between the three of them in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

Victoria pinned me with her razor-sharp gaze. "Perhaps we should move this discussion to your father's study. You too, Ms. Clark, since you're apparently involved."