Page 64 of Smoke and Blood

She shook that off, and instead of focusing on her bizarre thoughts, she curled in closer to the man in the bed beside her.She inhaled and enjoyed Chanin’s scent.His dark, earthy spice with rich mahogany undertones was opulent and alive inside her.She could pick apart everything that made up the deliciously sexy man who had loved her fiercely and hard for hours.

Nuzzling her nose into the firm muscles of his chest, it seemed too easy for her to sift out the clean, eucalyptus fragrance of his body wash or the lighter scent of the detergent weaved into the bed sheets.She could also isolate out her complex scent of a gentle woodsy musk with its hint of vanilla, made more intense by the robust and lush odor of sex tangled into the sheets and their bodies.But removing it all, she only smelled the man.Her man.Her mate.

She expected the heat to fill her face; however, only her heart and core warmed.Odd?

I’m sure you're hungry, mate.You need to eat.Chanin’s words were accompanied by his fingers doing something magical behind her ear.

A scratch.She identified that deep, clawing action, and it felt so good that she followed her urge and bowed her head lower, pressing into him and begging for more.She’d never known that spot behind her ear to be so susceptible, but oh, lord, it was so wonderful.As he continued, his hand crossed more territory, and his fingers dug in from her ear down the side of her neck and back up.

A moan rumbled up her chest into her throat, but when it broke from her mouth, it came as a whine, a high-pitched whimper, a begging sound.It was unrecognizable to her ears as if it wasn’t her voice but someone else’s.But that didn’t make sense.

Feels good.Doesn’t it?Chanin continued to make those delightful movements of his hand as he spoke.

She realized she was hearing a voice from inside her mind, not outside of her.How’s that possible?

It’s very possible, now, little bunny.

Morlie popped opened her eyes.She blinked and blinked again.She tried to make out what she was seeing, and why, it seemed that her color spectrum was off.Chanin lay stretched out before her in the dark, but she could see his form clearly, as if a light was on.The dark grey tones in his room looked white or a pale gray when she knew they weren’t that color before.

Chanin shifted back and glanced down at her.His blue eyes were electric and magnetic; they were the most vivid thing in the room, drawing her in.She could see there was a large amount of concern there.

Why?

I want to make sure you're alright.It’s your first time and can be the hardest on your body.

As the warmth spread through her core, she figured Chanin was speaking about them having sex, but her shyness was waylaid as she stared at his mouth and now knew for sure he wasn’t talking...but somehow his voice came to her crystal clear.

You’re beautiful.I’m proud of how you went through the change.

Her sharpened gaze momentarily spotted his fingers' small movements an instant before he lifted his hand to her face.

But he didn’t cup her cheek.Instead, he stroked his fingers along the bridge of her nose and up between her eyes.

Morlie watched his gesture and felt his touch as she became aware of multiple things simultaneously: Chanin’s touch felt more intense, causing shivers to race along her body, but more important was her nose.She could see it before her face in a way that had never been possible.However, it wasn’thernose; it was a snout.Dark in color and surrounded by brownish-gray fur.

Change.That was the other thing that she understood.Chanin had said her first time, but he meant changing.

I changed.I’m no longer myself but a wolf.That knowledge didn’t freak her out.She’d expected it.She just wasn’t sure it would happen so soon.

“Shifted is what you will do from here forward,” he informed her, stroking over her wolf’s head and behind its ears again.

Her foot started tapping fast on the bed from the extraordinary pleasure.Every fiber of her being wanted her to roll to her back and let Chanin continue the glorious touches down to her belly.

He chuckled.“Belly rubs later.Are you alright, mate?”

Her wolf’s ears flicked, and its tail wagged at his voice's deep, rough timbre.The beast loved the sound of it.It could listen to Chanin count leaves on a tree, and it would beg at his feet for him to speak some more.

Morlie took stock of her body.Outside of the minor aches already beginning to fade, she felt fine.Good, I think.Then she asked the question she’d been wondering about.Why can I hear you when you're not speaking with your mouth?

Her wolf sat up and shifted back onto its haunches in the center of the bed.

We’re mated now, Morlie.With your shift, we can communicate through a mental link.

Can I do this with everyone in the pack?

In wolf form, yes.He gave her a short stroke under her muzzle.But with mates, we can communicate no matter the form.

Oh.It was strange, but she admitted she enjoyed its intimacy.

---