"Fun." He slid his hand over her jeans and rubbed against her c.l.i.t, relishing her moan. "We can have that, can't we?"

"I take it by fun, you mean s.e.x." Surprising her, he flipped her around to face him and cupped her face. His expression was serious.

"I'm not just talking about that. I'm talking about us spending time with each other the same way people who are in a casual relationship do."

"What's brought all this on?"

Unable to resist those lips, he leaned forward and nipped at them. "When you froze me out earlier, it hurt, but I realized I deserved it. I got to thinking about the way I've been acting, and the way I haven't been acting. Like I told you that first night, I claimed you and you're my mate whether this is short-term or not. It's time I started treating you like it." He licked his tongue along the seam of her mouth, tempting her to open for him. The little witch didn't. Obviously his explanation wasn't good enough. "I'm not much good at verbal apologies, baby, but I am good at oral ones."

"Oral ones?" His meaning became clear as he gently pushed her onto her back and began sliding down her body. She gripped him by the head, keeping him still which happened to place his mouth level with her b.r.e.a.s.t.s and so he grazed one the nipples poking through her sweater with his teeth. "Where do you think you're going?"

"I need to apologise. It's really very important."

She wouldn't laugh, she wouldn't. "Look, as much as it would be nicer if we could actually interact, that doesn't mean that s.e.x has to enter the equation."

He stiffened. "Are you saying you don't want me?"

"I'm saying I don't want someone who doesn't want me."

"Where the h.e.l.l did you get the idea that I don't want you?"

"I'm not your type, don't even dare lie and say that I am."

"I admit you're not the type I've gone for in the past, but I've realized it's been a mistake to overlook slender blondes with heart-shaped a.s.ses and b.r.e.a.s.t.s like these." Leaning up on his elbows, he bunched up her sweater and cupped her bra-clad b.r.e.a.s.t.s. "See how perfectly they fit in my hands."

He sounded awfully pleased about that, enthralled by the idea. "Trey, I -"

"Just this once, baby, don't fight me. I'm not saying submit," he added quickly before she snapped his neck, "I'm just asking you to lie back and let me make you come. This isn't foreplay, this is me wanting to make you feel good. Me apologising."

"You don't want anything in return?" she asked, doubt clear in her voice.

He shook his head. "No s.e.xual favors for me, no f.u.c.king. Just me making you come. In a way, I'm sort of being your slave right now. You might want to make the most of that because it won't happen again."

Was he really suppressing his need to dominate a need she knew was intense? Was he really seriously offering to make this all about her? It wasn't sympathy driving him, she could see that. He was genuinely contrite and genuinely wanted to simply give her pleasure with no demands attached. "Then get to it," she said with a smile.

Returning her smile, Trey tackled the front clasp of her bra and brushed both cups aside so that they framed those b.r.e.a.s.t.s he'd missed. He latched onto her nipple and sucked hard, making her gasp and moan. At the same time he shaped her ribs, the flat of her stomach and her hips with his hands.

G.o.d, he loved her body, loved the way his large hands could span her waist. She fit his body in a way that no woman ever had. It still amazed him that the difference in their size didn't make things awkward. Instead, it was as though her slender form had a perfect groove against his body for her to fit into, and that only increased his possessiveness.

When he transferred his attention to her other breast and closed his mouth over her neglected nipple, Taryn moaned again and clutched his head to her. She knew that her grip on his head had to be causing him some pain, but she couldn't quite let go of him. The pleasure was building the friction within her, and he was the only anchor she had to keep her from going mindless.

A part of her thought she'd given in too easily to him, that she should have told him to go shove his apology up his a.s.s. But one thing she knew about Trey was that, like all alphas, he had a lot of pride, and one thing that was hard for him to do was admit he was wrong. Not only had he done that, but he had apologised. And now he was reaffirming that apology in the only way a highly s.e.xual being who was in unfamiliar territory knew how.

Releasing the taut bud with a pop, he told her, "I'm going to taste you now." Trey could smell the mouth-watering scent of her arousal from where he was enticing him and luring him. He began to nip and suck and kiss his way down her body. He couldn't hold back a growl as he saw that most of his marks had completely faded. The only one that would never fade was his claiming mark, and Trey told himself and his wolf that that was enough.

Ignoring the urge to replace his marks, he tackled the b.u.t.tons of her jeans and peeled both them and her black lacy thong from her body. Then he settled himself between the V of her thighs, inhaling deeply to take that feminine scent inside him. Satisfaction flooded him at how wet her p.u.s.s.y was. Gently pulling her glistening slippery folds apart, he bent his head and swept his tongue between them. And groaned. f.u.c.k. Her spicy, seductive taste burst on his tongue, urging him to feast on her. So he did.

Taryn writhed and moaned as he worked her into a frenzy using long sensual licks. His tongue constantly teased her opening, but never delved inside. It was torture and it was pleasure and it was G.o.dd.a.m.n unfair.

Frustrated, she was helplessly squirming and arching. If he was hoping she would beg, he was in for a disappointment. She had warned him in the beginning that she never begged, not for anyone. But she couldn't take anymore teasing, she couldn't. She tried escaping his hold, but his hands tightened on her thighs, claws digging warningly into her skin, and he growled. The rumble sent vibrations shooting up her core and through her body, sizzling all the way to her extremities.

She was ready to smack him over the head when she suddenly felt the lash of a tongue to her c.l.i.t. Then his tongue was swirling around it as a finger speared inside her and she groaned, melting into the mattress. He growled again this one was approving.

Trey knew that Taryn wouldn't last much longer, that she really needed to come, but he couldn't bring himself to part with her taste. It was like an aphrodisiac to him because it was creamy and zesty and his. For as long as she was mated to him every part of her was his, this p.u.s.s.y that he loved the feel of around his c.o.c.k was his, and he needed to hear her say it.

Abruptly he shoved another finger inside her, making her cry out and buck. "Who does this p.u.s.s.y belong to?" he gritted out as he curved his fingers inside her while pressing his thumb on her c.l.i.t so that his hand was clamped around her. Eyes glazed with l.u.s.t met his.

"Shut the f.u.c.k up, Trey, and make me come."

He thrust his fingers deep and again she bucked and cried out. "Whose is it, Taryn?"

"As I'm the one who cleans it, waxes it, keeps it tidy and has it medically checked, I'd say it's mine. But you can borrow it if you like."

He couldn't hold back a smile. "If you want to come you better be careful, baby, or I might just stop."

"That's fine. You've laid the foundations. My vibrator will take care of the rest."

"No fake c.o.c.ks. This" a thrust of his fingers "is mine. The only c.o.c.k that goes inside here is mine. Nothing else, no one else. Say it."

"I would," she rasped, "but I don't believe in telling lies."

"I mean it, Taryn. Nothing and no one goes inside you except me." He flicked her c.l.i.t with his tongue. "I don't share what's mine."

"Now that's a lie because I've heard that you and Tao have double-teamed some of your girlfriends in the past."

It surprised him that Tao had told her. "That was different." He suckled gently on her c.l.i.t, smiling at how close she was to coming. He wouldn't let her until he'd heard what he wanted to hear. Needed to hear.

"Yeah?" she breathed.

"Yeah, I didn't consider them mine. I didn't mark them as mine. And if you don't tell me right now that this hot little p.u.s.s.y here is mine, I'll keep you hanging like this."

"You motherf.u.c.king a.s.s-licking son of a G.o.dd.a.m.n c.o.c.k-sucking b.i.t.c.h!"

It took effort not to laugh. "All the teasing will be over the second you tell me what I want to hear." Instead she shook her head, growling. He rose to his knees and gripped his c.o.c.k through his jeans with his free hand. "See this, baby? This is yours. I'll give you as much c.o.c.k as you want whenever you want. It's yours. And this" he plunged his fingers hard inside her "is all mine. No other c.o.c.k except mine. Say it."

Again she growled, clawing his pectorals enough to tear his t-shirt but not enough to draw blood. "Just make me come you miserable b.a.s.t.a.r.d!"

He slashed his claws in a diagonal line from her breast to her hip. "f.u.c.king say it."

Taryn kicked at him but he didn't remove his hand, only cupped her harder. She could see by the tight line of his lips that he wasn't going to drop this. "No other c.o.c.k except yours, there I said it!"

"And why is that, Taryn? Why does nothing or no one go inside this tight p.u.s.s.y except me?"

"Because it's yours," she growled.

"That's my good girl." In one quick movement he withdrew his fingers, gripped her a.s.s, curled her hips and stabbed his tongue inside her. Her back arched as she gave a loud cry. Her fingers threaded through his hair, tugging painfully, but he didn't give a s.h.i.t. Not while her taste was in his mouth and her perfect a.s.s was in his hands and she was making those G.o.dd.a.m.n noises.

He continued f.u.c.king her relentlessly with his tongue and then, when he sensed her o.r.g.a.s.m was close, he pulled her a.s.s cheeks apart and plunged one wet finger into her a.s.s. She screamed as her release hit and, unable to help himself, Trey moved his mouth to her inner thigh and bit down hard, sucking and licking and marking. Quickly he realized that he hadn't bitten her to placate his wolf, he'd done it because Trey the man wanted to mark her.

CHAPTER NINE.

Taryn was still panting and vibrating with aftershocks when Trey kissed his way up her body and lay down beside her, gathering her against him. Although his eyes had darkened with l.u.s.t he wasn't making any moves on her. In fact, he seemed pretty content to just play with her hair. As much as she appreciated his selflessness, a part of her wanted him to be a little selfish right about now because she really wanted his c.o.c.k inside her.

"Tell me about your mom."

There went her arousal. When she hesitated answering he gave her a reprimanding look. He didn't want to be frozen out again. "She was...this is going to sound mean. She was dizzy."

"Dizzy?"

"Yeah," she chuckled. "Wherever she went she'd leave something behind. The worst part was she wouldn't even realize she'd left anything until someone asked her if it was hers. Common sense was something she lacked but it was one of the things that everyone loved about her because she could always make them laugh. Oddly enough, though, she was good with money. You'd have thought that her dopiness would have interfered with her money management skills, but no, she was great with numbers."

"You two were close?"

She nodded. "I think one of the reasons she doted on me so much was that I was her only child. Her and my dad tried for more, but for whatever reason, she never got pregnant again. I knew she felt guilty about that, like she'd let my dad down."

"Was your dad just as doting until he realized you were latent?"

"No. As a female, I was already a disappointment to him."

Trey made a derogative snort. "That guy really is an a.s.shole." He gentled his voice as he asked, "How did she die?"

Again she hesitated and again he gave her that look. "My mom and Joey's mom were close friends. Every Sunday they'd go to the market in town and take me and Joey with them. On this one day I couldn't go because I was in the bas.e.m.e.nt -"

"The bas.e.m.e.nt?" There was something in the sound of her voice that had his hackles rising.

"It was my dad's version of a punishment."

"He used to confine you?" h.e.l.l that would be bad for any kid but for a shifter...

"It's all part of that 'him being an a.s.shole' thing. Anyway...On the way into town, some totally blitzed guy in a banged up Chevy crashed into them, sent them toppling over...It was thought that the three of them were unconscious when it went up in flames. The drunken b.a.s.t.a.r.d was fine."

Trey held her tightly to him and kissed her hair. "It's weird just how similar our situation is."

Taryn pulled back to meet his gaze. "What do you mean?"

"Both of us lost our mom and true mate. Both of us were lumbered with a.s.sholes for fathers. Both of us have to deal with bold inner wolves."

"How did they die?" When he just stared at her she growled. "Wait, I'm supposed to lay it all out but you get to remain a closed book? I don't think so, Flinstone. Get talking."

Not wanting to, but knowing she was right, he sighed and nodded. "There weren't just the sixteen of us when I left the pack. My mom came. The separation from my dad...She wasn't strong enough to deal with it and she turned rogue. Then I killed her. She'd attacked Marcus..."

When he paused midsentence and Taryn saw the pain in his eyes she couldn't help but stroke his chest and snuggling closer. He shot her one of those macho 'I don't need comfort' looks. "I'm not sympathising with you, I'm just cold."

"As for my true mate...Her name was Summer." That was the first time he'd spoken her name in a very long time. "She was two months old when she died in her sleep."

Taryn's heart clenched at the idea. "You said when we first met that you hadn't acknowledged her?"

"I was fourteen, she was a baby...it felt weird and I acted like a dumb s.h.i.t. Then when I heard she was dead...Let's just say I didn't take it too well and I made a mess of my room. My dad put two and two together and teased me about it."

"Teased you?" Rage and protectiveness surged through her, making her wish the b.a.s.t.a.r.d was alive so she could kick his a.s.s.

"He thought the whole thing was funny because something had finally gotten an emotional reaction from me, he wanted me to cry. See, I'd never cried no matter what he did to me, and he hated that. I'd always stay stoic and take every punch, refusing to give him the reaction he wanted. Even as he teased me about Summer I couldn't cry, it's just not in me to do that I guess."

"You're right, he was an a.s.shole. So am I right in thinking that it was the teasing that made you lose it and beat him up so bad you almost killed him?"

He nodded. "I'd put up with his s.h.i.t for years, but everyone has a limit, and that day he found mine and pushed it. I'm not sorry. Not even now that he's dead. If he was here right now I'd do it all over again, and I'd enjoy it." He wanted her to know who he was, what he was capable of. He wanted to know if she could handle it. She didn't disappoint him.

"And I'd be cheering you on."

Sliding his hand to her nape, he brought her face to his and kissed her hungrily, lashing her tongue with his and nibbling on her lips. The urge to plunge inside her and take her over was eating at him. Making it worse was that the scent of her arousal still flavoured the air. s.h.i.t he deserved a G.o.dd.a.m.n award for his restraint.

The sound of her stomach rumbling had Taryn chuckling into Trey's mouth. "I need feeding."

"I've already eaten," he said with a wicked smirk. He tapped her bare a.s.s lightly. "Come on, let's get you some food."

Five minutes later Taryn was fully clothed again and accepting a piggyback ride from Trey who rushed her into the kitchen. The entire pack was there other than Cam who was on guard duty. All were smiling with the exception of Greta, Kirk, Selma, and Hope. Taryn could only a.s.sume they had overheard her and Trey having some quality time together, or had guessed by the sight of his slashed t-shirt which he had purposely left on.

There was someone else who wasn't smiling, she suddenly realized. Tao's expression was carefully blank. Before she had the chance to wonder on that, Grace came and handed Taryn who was sat on the counter with Trey standing beside her a plate on which a few slices of watermelon sat, and also a candy bar just because she was an angel. "It's good to have you back."

She took the plate gratefully. Grace always took care of her. Then she topped it off by handing her a mug of coffee. "I think I love you."

"So the hussy's back, is she?" sneered Greta, glaring at Taryn like she was a giant t.u.r.d.

Taryn only smiled. "Is there no way you could just pull your bottom lip over your head and swallow?"

Dante's drink sprayed out of his mouth as he went into a fit of coughing.

"I'd have shoved this piece if watermelon in your mouth if I didn't like it so much." Taryn saw Dominic biting his bottom lip and just knew he was doing his best to bite back a dirty chat up line. Perv.

"While you and Taryn were, um, busy," said Rhett to Trey, "I checked our pack web for messages. Turns out there're a lot of alphas interesting in discussing an alliance with you, Trey. The new alpha of the Roscoe's pack included."

Taryn laughed. "I had a feeling he might get in touch through the pack web. He seemed too terrified of Trey to come back here."

"There was someone else too." He looked at Taryn then. "Your dad. Only he wants to set up a meeting to discuss it in person. Any idea why?"

"My dad likes to name-drop."

"Name-drop?" echoed Trick.

"There are different levels to an alliance. Most simply want the a.s.sociation with that pack, want to build the number of a.s.sociations to look impressive."

"A little like people on social networks wanting to have a ma.s.sive friends list?"