Page 84 of Fated to the Wolf Billionaire

“We don’t really need it.”

“Well, lucky. But I’m going to need a bit more detail than that.”

He smirked at me, briefly glancing up from our hands before settling back against the chaise longue and focusing on the hand massage he was now giving me.

“What do you know about wolves and mating cycles?”

“Not much? I remember reading somewhere that female wolves can’t always get pregnant if their food sources aren’t abundant, but that’s about it.”

He nodded, applying pressure between my thumb and forefinger that made my toes want to curl.

“True. But more than that, wolf shifter mates have heat and rut cycles. They’re infrequent, nothing like the monthly cycle a human woman has.”

“Heat and rut cycles, okay. What’s that like?”

“Heat involves an actual elevated temperature, but it also brings out an insatiable desire for sex. Most last about three days, but if the cycle has been a long time coming, it could be up to seven days.”

I blinked, trying to understand the logistics of a body that could have sex for that long without a serious break. Or, hell,chafing. “Sevendaysof insatiable sex drive? How is that even possible? Don’t wolves have refractory periods?”

He chuckled. “They do, though it’s pretty short on a normal night. But the female going into heat pulls out a similar response in the male mate called the rut. Basically, the male rises to the challenge to serve his mate as many times as necessary until she’s pregnant, or the heat ends on its own without a pregnancy.”

“Oh.”

He glanced up again, gauging my reaction closely.

“And how often does this happen? You said if it’s been a while, the heat can last longer…”

“Many female wolves don’t have their first heat until they’re over a hundred years old, and almost never before being fully bonded with their mate. We’re not a fecund species anymore.”

My mouth dropped into anoof surprise. “Well damn, I guess you don’t need to worry about birth control, then. But how’s that going to work with us, exactly? Will you go into rut if I’m never going to go into heat? Your sperm works year-round, right?”

“Yes, my sperm works year-round,” he answered drily. “Wolves have had children with other species, no rut or heat required, but it’s not very common. A rut can also be triggered by other things, so, yes, it’s possible I could eventually go into rut even if you don’t ever experience a heat.”

My brain briefly short-circuited over the idea of Reed—calm, collected,controlledReed—thrown into a mindless sex frenzy that lasted for days. Hot damn, that had me resisting the urge to rub my thighs together over a suddenly needy pussy.

“Not going to expound on that, huh?”

He pressed harder on the tendon he was working on my other hand, making me sigh. “The rut also comes with a strong urge to bite your mate, but it’s controllable if the receiving party isn’t willing to accept another bite.”

Interesting.

“So, if wolves don’t expect to have babies right away anyway, can I ask… Did it upset you to find out I was on birth control?”

For the first time throughout the conversation, he paused in the middle of my massage. “It came as a surprise, though logically, it shouldn’t have. You’re a beautiful woman operating on human reproductive terms. It’s logical that you would protect yourself against the possibility with other partners.”

It wasn’t lost on me that he’d tacked onwith other partners. I didn’t detect any hints of jealousy, but… that was another important conversation we’d skipped over in the headlong rush into becoming mates. He resumed rubbing my hand.

“I was single and had been for more than a year before you and I met. A few casual dates here and there, but nothing serious for a while. In case you were wondering.”

“My wolf prefers to think you’ve already forgotten everyone before us, actually.”

It was my turn to chuckle. “He’s not wrong.”

That got his undivided attention. “Is that so?”

“Mmm,” I hummed, not wanting to stroke his ego too much, just enough to let him know I appreciated him and how well he took care of me.

Disappointingly, he didn’t take the bait to move that sensual rub somewhere else on my body a little less innocent than my hands.

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