Page 19 of Guarding the Doctor
She turned back to the TV, obviously irritated with me.
Normally I wasn’t one to play games, but I was so desperate for a reaction from my mate I subtly scooted closer, pressing my leg against hers. Kathryn ignored me, continuing to stare at the television set.
Tentatively, I reached out, running my fingers along her thigh. I thought she’d ignore me. Or scold me and tell me to keepmy hands to myself. Or maybe beg me to make her mine. Instead she moved, faster than I would have expected, pushing me backwards until I hit the cushions, my mate landing on top of me. Before I could ask what she was doing, her lips crashed down on mine, somehow both hard and soft.
Yes!My inner vampire sent me an image of a fist pump. She usually spoke in images, not words, but I could feel the wordyesvibrating inside me over and over again.
My arms slid around Kathryn’s waist, holding her close as she slid her tongue into my mouth, tangling with mine. I’d heard about this – the way a supe’s body felt electrified when they touched their mate, the way kissing them settled their inner beast, the way a single touch made everything else fade away – but I’d thought it was overblown. Exaggerated. But it wasn’t. As Kathryn kissed me, I felt all that and more.
Her fingers slid into my hair, tilting my head as she deepened the kiss, rocking her little body against mine. Her aggression surprised me, but I liked it. I liked it a lot.
I moved my hands downward until I could grip her ass, squeezing her cheeks in my hands, using my grip to grind her hips against mine. The pressure only amped up my own excitement.
Kathryn pulled away, gasping for breath as she stared into my eyes. She looked a little dazed. I knew the feeling. I lifted my head, and she lowered hers, meeting me in the middle for another long kiss.
This time when she pulled away, Kathryn dropped her head to my shoulder, her lips pressed against my pulse point, sucking lightly. My fangs tingled, pressing against my lips as I reined in my inner vamp, half mad for a taste of our mate’s blood. But we couldn’t mark her. Not yet. Not until she was ready to accept me as her mate.
As if she heard the wordmatein my mind, Kathryn stiffened. She jackknifed off of me, coming to her feet next to the couch.
“Oh my God, Darla, I’m so so sorry.”
I sat up, my hard nipples pressing almost painfully against the confinement of my sports bra.
“For what?” I asked in confusion.
“For jumping you like that. It was… unprofessional. You’re my bodyguard. I had no business kissing you. I mean, obviously there’s an attraction between us, but that is not an excuse. And I know you’ve got that mate thing. I shouldn’t lead you on. Plus, your coworker is in the next room. What is wrong with me?”
She was cute when she was babbling, such a departure from her usual calm composure. I wanted to tell her it was the mate bond she was feeling, but instead I said, “I kissed you back.”
She shook her head. “Again, I’m sorry. I’m going to go to bed.”
As she flew out of the room I flopped back on the couch with a huge sigh. Who knew having a mate was so complicated? Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I texted my sister.
Darla:How did you get Lucy to accept you?
Bella:She took one look at me and couldn’t resist. LOL.
Darla:I know that’s not true. I heard she made you work for it. Come on, I need your help.
Bella:She was hesitant, but as the mate bond strengthened, it was too hard to resist. For both of us. But really I just spent a lot of time getting to know her. Letting her get to know me. Humans aren’t like us. They need time to fall in love and to accept what we are.
Darla:I always thought things would be easy when I found the right person.
Bella:They are, but you have to go through the messy hard part before you get to the easy part. After we moved past all the resistance, things got incredibly easy.
Darla:My mate kissed me. Then she ran away.
Bella:It’s probably for the best. You need to focus on the case. Her safety needs to be your top priority. Kissing will just distract you.
Darla:You heard about her condo I assume?
Bella:Yeah, they’re not afraid of hurting bystanders. Remember that.
Darla:I will.
Bella:I can’t wait to get to know your mate. Lucy wants to have her over for dinner as soon as you’ve worked things out.
This was why I’d moved to Seattle. Bella and I had been close growing up despite the fact that she was five years older than me, but once she’d graduated high school and entered the military, our bond faded. We’d see each other maybe once a year when we were in the same part of the world, or we were able to coordinate leave, but other than brief emails, we didn’t talk hardly at all.
