Page 7 of Twisted Desire
Five
Cam had no idea what Ethan wanted to talk to her about, and it bugged the hell out of her. She’d been hoping he’d give up on her with her longer than usual hours at the diner, but he hadn’t. He sat there patiently all day and evening, not to mention, well into the night just for a chance to speak with her.
Her heart swelled with joy because he had actually waited for her. Her wolf has been ecstatic just having him nearby. Yet her mind crushed any false hope that had dared to spring to life. There were too many questions running through her mind for her heart to be at ease, or jump for joy.
Nibbling on her lip, she glanced back suspiciously, wondering why now? Why had Ethan waited weeks to seek her out?
She would not. Could not get her hopes up. She already hated the fact that she had spent the last several weeks pining for a man who showed zero interest in her. Until he had shown up at her diner, she’d been convinced he’d rather see her dead than claim her as his mate.
“You’re being a bit dramatic. Don’t you think?”her wolf asked, tired of Cam spoiling the hope she had for a successful union with her mate.
“No. I don’t think I am. I’m being cautious. None of this feels right. Since when does a male wolf wait weeks to claim the mate who’s right in front of him? It’s fishy—that’s what it is. You may think I’m being dramatic, but I’m not. I’m skeptical, and you should be too!”
Her wolf rolled her eyes and tuned Cam out. She wanted to hope and believe their mate had finally come for them, and there wasn’t a damn thing Cam could do or say to change her mind.
She stopped just inside the door frame, and motioned for him to take a seat. She could have moved out of his way to let him pass easily, but she didn’t.
She wouldn’t. She wanted to see his reaction—to look into his eyes when he slid passed her, inhaling her scent. Would he react as he had the first time he’d laid eyes on her? With revolt and disgust, or something else?
Either way, her plan was to get to the bottom of it.
It was now or never.
She was playing with fire…and she damn well knew it.
***
“What the hell am I doing?”Ethan asked his wolf for the tenth time in five seconds.
His wolf didn’t offer so much as a peep let alone a reply. Maybe because he knew that nothing and no one could avoid what the Fates had planned. That it was pointless to even try. That it amounted to nothing more than a lesson in futility. Instead, he let his human believe that he was somehow in control of everything around him, but the beast knew better.
Cam’s scent hit Ethan like a ton of fucking bricks the second she paused in the doorway. His heart pounded. Every single nerve ending in his body came alive with the tiniest of breaths he tried to take.
He told himself countless times that he’d had the upper hand when it came to controlling himself around his mate. That somehow he could resist the temptation to mark her—to claim her. That he could somehow resist fate, but it had been no more than a lie that he’d told himself repeatedly to make himself somehow feel better.
He was well and truly fucked.
There was no avoiding his mate or her delectable scent. The one that haunted his dreams since the moment he’d met her. The scent that made his cock harder than a rock. The only scent that had ever mattered to him in his life. The same one that he’d desperately tried to avoid over the last few weeks.
“Why don’t you have a seat, then you can tell me what you’ve been waiting all day to talk to me about.” Cam motioned to the couch along the far wall.
Ethan wanted to tuck his tail between his legs and run—continue avoiding Cam at all costs, but he knew he couldn’t. The time for running had long passed.
She expected answers. Answers, only he could give.
His wolf, on the other hand, had a very different idea of how he wanted the conversation with his mate to go.
“Mark her. Now!”the beast chanted in his head on repeat.
He tried to slip by her without making a scene—honestly he did. At least, that had been his intent—until he turned sideways to squeeze through the door and Cam’s chest rubbed up against his. A strange energy rippled through him. His entire body came alive at the slightest contact. He felt her nipples harden against him, and he nearly lost control.
Ethan leaned in close, inhaling his mate’s scent—reveling in it. “You smell so fucking good.” His voice was filled with lust and longing. His body trembled with desire—desire so strong his cock throbbed for attention.
The need to mark his mate pulsed through him. The urge stronger than he’d ever felt. His canines itched as they descended, readying to bite Cam.
Gods—he wanted her—needed her. More than anyone or anything he’d ever wanted in his life.
He heard Cam’s breaths become erratic, her heartbeat fluttered. Surprised their closeness seemed to affect her as much as him, he ran his tongue over the pulse point on her neck. His only intent had been garnering a simple taste. One that he could walk away from.
What he hadn’t counted on was his wolf charging forward and taking control at that very moment.
Her blood poured over his tongue and down his throat. He groaned in ecstasy as her arms wrapped around his neck, her legs around his waist. The heat from her core pressed up against his straining zipper.
“Mine!” The only warning Cam gave before her canines sunk deep into his neck, marking him as her mate.
Elation shouldn’t have flowed freely through every inch of his mind and body, but it did. Missing was the trepidation he’d expected.
As if someone had flipped the auto-pilot switch on him, Ethan rocked against her, and again—wanting to bury his cock deep inside of her. Gone were the fucks he was supposed to give. The only thing Ethan cared about was how fast he could get Cam naked.
