Page 5 of Pleasure and Mane
Then her scent hit him with physical force.
Lavender and rain and something indefinablyherflooded his senses, sending his lion surging forward with primitive recognition. The beast inside him roared with sudden, fierce possessiveness, demanding immediate action. Every instinct screamed at him to move, to close the distance between them, and to establish the connection his soul suddenly craved with desperate intensity.
Caius rose from behind his desk chair with fluid grace, his imposing frame unfolding as he crossed the office toward this woman who had just shattered his carefully ordered world. Her bright green eyes tracked his approach, wariness flickering across her features at his sudden intensity.
"I'm Caius Haider." The words emerged rougher than expected. "You must be Quinn."
"Quinn Marrow." She extended her hand with professional composure, though something vulnerable flickered in those remarkable eyes.
He reached for her hand, and the moment their skin made contact, the world tilted sideways.
Mate.
The mate bond slammed into him with the force of a freight train, electricity racing through every nerve ending as recognition blazed between them. His knees wobbled, threatening to buckle beneath the overwhelming sensation, and Caius gripped the edge of his desk with his free hand to steadyhimself. Time slowed to a crawl as her scent intensified, flooding his system with intoxicating waves of lavender and rain that made his lion roar with triumph.
Mine. Claim her. Mark her. Make her understand what she is to me.
The primitive demands crashed through his mind as he stared down into those green eyes that seemed to pierce straight through to his soul. She hadn't pulled her hand away—couldn't seem to, judging by the slight dilation of her pupils and the way her breath caught. Something deep within her recognized him, he realized with fierce satisfaction, even if she didn't understand what was happening.
"Pleasure to meet you," Quinn managed, though her voice carried a breathless quality that made his chest swell with male pride.
Caius held her hand longer than propriety dictated, the mate bond pulsing like fire under his skin as he memorized the feel of her fingers against his. Soft. Warm.Perfect.Everything about this moment felt inevitable, as if the universe had been conspiring to bring them together in exactly this way.
Next to him, Gerri's delighted chuckle cut through the charged silence. "Well, isn't this interesting?"
Lavinia's eyebrows had climbed toward her hairline, her blue eyes dancing with barely contained amusement as she witnessed her brother's composure cracking. "Caius? You're... holding her hand rather intently."
Bertram coughed into his fist, clearly stifling laughter at watching his unflappable Alpha come completely undone by a human midwife. "Should we give you two a moment?"
Damn it.
Caius forced himself to release Quinn's hand, though every instinct screamed in protest. She stepped back, confusion flickering across her features as she flexed her fingersunconsciously. The loss of contact felt like a blow, his lion prowling restlessly as the distance between them increased.
"Sorry, I—" Quinn shook her head, color staining her cheeks. "Long drive. I'm not quite myself yet."
You're exactly who you're supposed to be.
The thought blazed through his mind with absolute certainty. This woman—this beautiful, intelligent human—was his fated mate. After thirty-two years of convinced solitude, after building his entire identity around protecting and providing for his pride without personal complications, fate had delivered the one person who could upend everything.
What the hell is Gerri doing to me?
Frustration simmered beneath his skin as the implications crashed over him. He'd been set up, manipulated into this meeting with surgical precision. The timing wasn't coincidental—Gerri had orchestrated this entire scenario, from Lavinia's pregnancy concerns to Quinn's too convenient availability. The matchmaker sat in her leather chair radiating satisfaction, clearly delighted by his reaction.
A human mate.The logistics alone made his head spin. How could he explain lion shifter politics, territorial disputes, and the complexities of Alpha leadership to someone who lived in the human world? How could he protect her from the dangers that came with being an Alpha's mate without terrifying her? And how the hell was he supposed to concentrate on anything else with her living at his estate and her scent constantly in his space?
"Quinn will be staying in the blue guest suite," Lavinia announced, her tone filled with the casual authority of someone delivering news she'd already decided. "It has the best view of the gardens and direct access to the medical wing we've prepared this morning."
Six months.The timeframe echoed through his mind with both promise and panic. Six months of this impossible woman living under his roof, testing his control, and making him want things he'd never allowed himself to consider.
Quinn nodded gratefully. "That sounds perfect. I brought everything I'll need for monitoring the pregnancy and handling any complications that arise."
Her professional competence should have reassured him, but instead it only intensified his attraction. This woman had dropped everything to help his family, committing six months of her life to caring for his sister without hesitation. The selflessness inherent in that choice made his chest tighten with emotions he couldn't quite name.
I don't have time for this complication.
But even as the thought formed, Caius knew it was a lie. Time had just restructured itself around Quinn Marrow, whether he liked it or not.
THREE
