I flinched and shook my head. Shame flowed through me, and I averted my gaze.
Oh, baby. I didn’t mean it like that.He nuzzled my neck, and my skin buzzed where he touched me.Each pack member has a spot in your chest that you can sense. You can get a general idea of how each member feels if they choose to open their link and share that with you. The alpha always feels everyone. That’s how we link and communicate.
My limbs lightened. Those spots had to be pack members, and from what Bodey said, he had over two hundred wolves in his pack.That’s what I’m feeling.
You’re part of my pack now.His tongue lolled out again and hung to one side.
The largest spot closest to my heart pulsed with his emotions.And since you’re my alpha, your spot is the largest?
And we’re mates. Yours is now the biggest for me, too.
That was so romantic.As it should be,I teased.
Oh, I agree,he replied, licking my face.
Can I link with Jack, Lucas, and Miles?Bodey could, and we were mates.
He shook his head.My bond with them is an odd one, and we didn’t form it on purpose. It happened after the king and queen passed, and the advisers—our parents at the time—spent a lot of time together, trying to settle the unrest. The four of us hung out constantly. We didn’t submit to each other, and our parents were just as perplexed as we were as to how it happened. But it works well for us.
It’s like you four forged your own separate pack.What had it been like growing up with such close friends? Stevie and I were friends and sisters, but we hadn’t forged a bond like that. Granted, my wolf had been blocked.
You’re right. I hadn’t looked at it that way. Just know thatyou’remy home, Callie. In this entire fucking world, you’re the one who matters most to me.He rubbed the side of his head along mine.
The sizzle of our connection had my lungs seizing. I’d never experienced anything like this, and I became even more addicted to feeling him.
Gods, I can’t stop touching you, even in wolf form.He whined, and it wasn’t from pain.
I wanted to do a whole lot of things with him, but not here while members of our pack were nearby.Why don’t we go back to the house?My need for his body had officially surpassed my need to be in nature.
He huffed.You’re right. It’s late, and we have an early start tomorrow. We should head inside and make love one last time before we sleep.
That sounds better than perfect to me.Though I hated thinking about him leaving me tomorrow for the coronation, that separation would be temporary, and he had to be there. I’d just force him to make it up to me multiple times when he returned home to me.
Home. I needed to call my parents and Stevie in the morning to inform them I was no longer part of the pack. Dread knotted in my stomach, but it didn’t lessen my happiness. Bodey was mine forever.
I won’t wait long to chase you,he teased.
I took off, and he ran after me. My muscles burned in pleasure from the workout as well as from knowing we’d soon be home and naked again.
We ran out of the woods, and Samuel was on the back patio with the door open. Bodey must have asked him to let us back in.
Glad to have you back,Samuel linked to us.Now I’m going to bed.
Good night, Samuel. Thank you!I raced past him toward the stairs. Though I cared about him, there was something way more important to focus on, Bodey naked in our bed.
Inside the bedroom, I paused. I wasn’t sure how to shift back into human form. I turned around as Bodey joined me, and my wolf retreated. She inched back from my mind, and magic poured into the area that had always been cold.
I braced for the torment, but only slight discomfort shot through me. My skin tingled as the fur vanished from my arms and my spine reshaped. Soon, I was standing before Bodey, both of us in human form. And naked.
He wrapped an arm around my waist and tugged me to the bed. My skin sizzled everywhere we touched. Then his lips were on mine, and the world fell away.
* * *
Buzzing sounded,and my consciousness fluttered awake. I found myself warm from the large arms wrapped around me. I’d never woken up being spooned before, and I never wanted to wake up any other way again.
Bodey groaned and leaned over to turn off the alarm. Just when I thought he’d crawl out of bed, he snuggled more deeply into me. His lips touched the base of my neck in the very spot he’d bitten me the night before.
A new type of buzzing rocked through me, need pulsing between my legs. Bodey turned me onto my back. His lips found mine, and he slid between my legs. I was already desperate for him, his arousal mixing with mine. He pushed himself inside me, filling me whole. He tore his mouth from mine and kissed down my neck, thrusting into me slow, hard, and loving.