Taken Under the Moon, page 16
She shrugs. “Yes, but not fully. It’s like she’s just underneath the surface.”
I smile. “And that’s all that matters. Laila said it’s up to you to figure out how to free yourself. When you’re with me, things get better. Maybe we’re on to something here. All I know is I’m never going to leave your side.”
She lifts on her toes and rests her forehead to mine. “Promise?”
“I promise.” I kiss her gently, waiting to see if she responds. When she does, I deepen the kiss, and she opens up to me, pressing her body desperately against mine. I can feel her want, her need; it matches my own.
Without warning, I slide my hands down her thighs, and lift her into my arms. I don’t want to start this in the living room like the first time. No, this time is different. Before it had been all about primal need, but right now, I need to show her I can protect her … that I love her.
With one arm across Kara’s back and the other under her knees, I hold her close so she can lean into my chest as I take her to the bedroom.
Once we’re there, I situate her on the bed, and she grabs my hand, her steely blue eyes boring into mine. “I think it’s time you made love to me.”
She doesn’t have to ask me twice. I’d stripped her naked first last time, but tonight I want it to be my turn. I yank my shirt over my head with one hand, then pop the button on my jeans as her eyes rake down my body. Her desire hits me full force and it goes straight to my cock. Soon, I’m naked and standing before her, allowing Kara to look as much as she wants.
“I could stare at you all day,” she says, her voice smooth and seductive. Her tongue shoots out to wet her bottom lip and she pats the bed. “Lie down, Chase. I need to taste you in another way.” Her eyes stray down to my dick, and it hardens even more. I know what she plans to do.
Groaning in delight, I lie down beside her. “You’re killing me, princess.”
A spark twinkles in her eyes as she wraps a hand around my cock, pumping my length with the right amount of pressure. Tilting my head back, I moan and suck in a breath when I feel her warm lips close over the head of my dick. She takes me in as far as she can go, up and down, sucking greedily to the point where I feel I’m about to lose control.
“Kara, stop,” I beg.
She giggles and looks up at me, but I grab her shoulders and push her onto the bed. If I don’t make love to her, I’m going to go insane.
Kara snickers again. “I like watching you lose control.”
Slowly, I crawl over her and kiss her as my hands push under her shirt. I rip it off, never once taking my tongue from her mouth. My cock is raging hard with a desperate need to get inside of her. Once I have Kara fully naked on the bed, I kiss down her chest and palm her breasts. I suck one nipple, then the other, into my mouth. Her fingers thread into my hair and pull. When she gets her wolf strength back, I can only imagine the damage she’ll do in bed. I look forward to finding out.
I continue my trek down her stomach, dropping wet kisses along the way. Kara’s body moves in waves as she anticipates where I will strike next. Everything I do is gentle. I trail my fingers down her skin, creating an avalanche of goosebumps as Kara’s moans fill the room. My wolf wants to give her pleasure, to show her just how good it’ll be with me, that I’ll do everything in my power to make sure she’s happy.
Taking my place between Kara’s legs, I lick her clit, and my name falls from her lips. When she’s wet enough, I slide two fingers into her and stroke gently in rhythm with my tongue. Before I moved fast, but this time, I take my time guiding her to her release. Her breaths come out in rapid pants as I feel her clench around my fingers, her orgasm close. Her thighs squeeze my head when her release hits like a truck, making her body arch off the bed.
“Chase,” she gasps, her voice laced with need, “I want you now.”
Without giving her the chance to recover, I position myself between her legs and push inside of her, but not fully. Kara drops her head back and cries out, making her breasts lift in the air. I suck her nipples, loving the way her pussy clenches around my cock.
Kara gasps and moans again; the sound is music to my ears. I run my hand down her face as her fingers dig into my back. The sting is worth knowing that she’s enjoying my touch. Pushing in just a little bit more, I circle my hips to get her ready for me. “Is this what you wanted?” I ask, thrusting in a little deeper.
She shakes her head. “No, I need more.”
When I enter her fully, she grips her legs tighter around my waist and moves her hips along with mine as I thrust inside of her. I lick and suck her nipples one after the other as I pound my hips against hers.
“Chase,” she moans. The sound sends me over the edge.
The second her nails dig into my back and her muscles clench tighter around my cock, I know it’s game over. She screams as her orgasm starts to hit its peak, but I cover her mouth with mine, and muffle her cries with my own as I come inside of her. I stay between her legs for a few more seconds, letting her body milk me completely.
Still connected, I bite into my lip, and the taste of my blood lands on my tongue. Kara stares at the crimson on my lips, her desire flashing in her eyes.
“Are you ready?” I ask her.
She glides her hands up my chest and cups the back of my head, pulling me in closer. “I am.” Her mouth closes over mine, the force of her need making me want to make love to her again. Her legs wrap around my waist, and I push into her just as I sink my teeth into her neck. Her blood tastes sweet with a hint of cinnamon.
Our surroundings begin to fade away, and everything dissolves all around me. I’m no longer making love to my mate but holding her hand as we stand together in a hazy room, almost as if it’s filled with mist. I can’t see anything but her. My mate. I’m in love with Kara Channon. I fell harder than I ever thought possible. Even before when she hated me, I felt this undeniable attraction to her. And now that she’s mine, I refuse to let her go.
Kara gasps and squeezes my hand, her eyes wide with wonder.
“It worked. The bracelet didn’t stop us.” But then her eyes narrow when she looks around. “Or maybe it didn’t. I don’t see anything.”
When two wolves who are destined to be mates share blood, it transports them into a vision of their future. I look around at the mist, wondering if the bracelet is hindering us. But then, something catches my eye. The fog begins to pull back, revealing the scene around us.
“Look,” I whisper, pointing at the two figures before us.
Kara cups a hand over her mouth as everything unfolds before us. The Kara in the vision sits at my desk, scribbling away on a piece of paper while I pace the floor behind her with the biggest grin on my face.
“I think we have a winner,” the dream me says.
Kara smiles up at me. “I think so, too. If we work hard, we could enter it into next year’s competition.”
The real Kara squeezes my hand. “Are you listening to this? If I heard right, I believe we just came up with a wine recipe together.”
I wink at her. “I’d say so. I’m curious to see what we do.”
We focus back on our vision selves, but in all reality, our visions are real. What’s happening now will come to pass one day. It could be days, years, or even centuries.
The dream Kara waves her hands excitedly and gasps. “I know what’ll make it better.” She writes something else down on the recipe, and the other me leans over her shoulder to see what it is.
He kisses her tenderly. “Perfect.”
He takes her hands and carefully helps her up, revealing her swollen belly. She’s pregnant. The dream me pulls Kara into his arms, and they kiss. The real Kara stares at herself, her mouth gaping.
“This is surreal.” Then, her eyes drift to the paper on my desk. “I need to look at the recipe.”
She rushes over, but I grab her arm, pulling her back to me. “We’ll find out when it actually happens. Let’s just be surprised.”
Kara glances over at the paper one last time and then gives in to me. “Okay. It’s so tempting.”
I’m not going to lie, it is. I’d like to know what we were working on, too.
Kara cuddles up to my side, and I drape an arm over her shoulders. “We look so happy,” she says, smiling at our dream selves, who are still in each other’s arms.
“That’s because we’re together. It’s all going to work out.” I point to her arm. “See … the bracelet’s gone. You figured out how to free yourself.”
Her eyes widen. “You’re right. I do.”
The swirling mist creeps its way in, and our dream selves dissolve into nothing. The last thing I feel before I get sucked back into reality is Kara’s arm around my waist, holding me tight.
“Chase,” Kara murmurs.
Kara’s body squeezes around my cock, and I moan as my eyes begin to focus. I look down at her, and she cups my face. “Do you really mean it?”
“Mean what?” I ask, leaning into her hand and kissing it.
She smiles, and I can see the vulnerability behind it. “I heard you, Chase. I heard what you were thinking in the dream.”
It’s going to be interesting knowing she can hear my thoughts. It doesn’t matter anyway because I have nothing to hide. I want her to know I love her. “You mean the part where I said I’m in love with you?”
Kara nods and a tear rolls down her cheek. “And also, the part where you said you fell harder than you ever thought possible.”
With our bodies still connected, I brush her tears away with my thumb. “Yeah, I did say that. What do you have to say about it?”
She closes her lips over mine, and her need engulfs me. I don’t have to hear her say the words to know she loves me back; I can feel it inside of her.
Kara breaks from the kiss. “I want you to hear it,” she whispers. “I love you, Chase.”
Hearing the words makes me want to claim her even more. Feeling her body clench around my cock makes it harder to resist.
“And do you want to know my favorite part of your monologue?” she adds, sliding her hands away from my face to rest on my back.
“What?”
Her gaze lands on my lips. “I love the part where you said now that I’m yours, you’re never going to let me go.”
“Never,” I murmur.
Kara smiles again. “Good. I don’t want you to. Especially now that I think I know what to do.”
Smiling, I push into her. “About what? Do we need to switch positions?” I tease. Seeing our vision makes all my doubts slip away. I know Kara’s going to be happy with me.
Kara rolls her eyes, arching her back off the bed when I thrust harder. “No, we’re good like this. But I’m being serious.”
Slowing my pace, I eventually come to a stop and gaze down at her. “Then tell me.”
Her crystal blue eyes twinkle. “I know what I have to do to get the bracelet off.”
“And that would be?” I ask.
She shakes her head. “I’ll tell you in the morning. Right now, we need to finish this. I can’t seem to get enough of you.”
Her pussy clenches around me, and it feels so fucking good. I thrust into her, again and again, loving the way her nails dig into my back. Finally, Kara screams out her release, her body bucking beneath mine and milking me to completion.
Once her breathing settles, I slowly slide out of her and pull her onto my chest. “I’ll never get enough of you.”
28
KARA
Chase and I made love the entire night, giving me only about two hours of sleep. I’m not complaining, though. Feeling my wolf and how content she was to be around her mate was euphoric. I got a taste of my magic again, and I’m going to do everything possible to get it back completely.
Chase stirs beside me, and his eyes slowly open.
“Good morning,” I say into his mind.
I was terrified about the mind link, and in a way, I still am. I can block Chase from my thoughts if I so desire, but that’s not how I want our relationship to begin. So, last night, I let him in and showed him my deepest, darkest moments. The main one was the war that tore my family apart. I’ve never let anyone see my pain or any of my vulnerabilities. Hell, I didn’t know I had any until my magic was torn away from me. Chase knows who I am now. It took over two hundred years, but I think I know myself better as well.
“And do you like what you see?” Chase asks while he trails a finger down my bare arm.
I lay my head on his chest, loving our silent bond. “I do. You helped me find myself.”
Chase kisses the top of my head, and this time, he speaks aloud. “What do you want to do today? We were kind of busy last night for you to tell me your plans.”
“That’s right,” I say, laughing lightly. My body is sore, especially the spot between my legs. “I thought maybe I could give you a tour of Channon Vineyards today?”
Chase’s finger pauses on my skin, and he doesn’t answer. A few seconds pass, and still nothing.
Finally, I sit up and stare down at him, only to see a wolfish grin spread across his face. “Why didn’t you answer me?”
He chuckles. “Because I’m shocked. I never thought you’d want me there.”
“Eh,” I shrug like it’s no big deal, “you have a first-class ticket inside of my brain. If you’re going to steal my ideas, you don’t have to be at my winery to do that.”
Chase’s expression turns serious. “I would never do that, Kara. You know that.”
I do now. “And I would never steal your ideas,” I admit in all honesty.
Chase lifts and takes my chin in his grasp. “To answer your question, I’d love to tour your winery. I’ve wanted to do it for a long time now.”
Closing the distance, I kiss him. “Great. I’ll give you a special tour.”
Chase’s eyes darken with need. “Oh yeah? I can’t wait.”
My cell phone rings, so I roll across my side of the bed to the nightstand where it sits. Evangeline’s name flashes across the screen, and my stomach turns jittery. I haven’t heard a single word from her all night about how it went with Xavier.
I snatch the phone up quickly and answer, “Hey.”
“Good morning. Did you have a good night?” she asks.
My cheeks burn with all the thoughts running through my head. Chase laughs under his breath, clearly seeing visions of us in bed together.
“It was fantastic,” I answer.
Evangeline giggles. “Yeah, I bet it was.”
“All right, enough about me. How did it go with Xavier?”
The line goes silent for a second, but then her voice comes back with a hint of sadness. “Not bad. I know he still has feelings for me, but he agrees we can’t be together the way he is now. Power is too important to him. So I told him he’ll know where to find me if he wants to talk more.”
“And where is that going to be, E? You move around all the time.”
Evangeline clears her throat nervously. “That’s the thing. I was hoping I could come with you to California. The Timberwolf pack could use a good witch. Plus, you could use a friend. I know how hard it is for you there.”
I blink hard to keep the tears at bay when I look over at Chase.
He brushes the hair away from my face and nods. “She’s more than welcome to fly back with us. I’d love to have her join our pack.”
Excitement bubbles in my veins. “Did you hear Chase, Evangeline?”
“Yes,” she laughs. “Please tell him thank you. I’ll see you guys in a little bit.”
We hang up, and I can’t remember the last time I felt so happy. I set my phone down on the nightstand and roll back over to Chase to kiss him. “Thank you. I could use Evangeline in California.”
Understanding flashes in his eyes. “I know.”
I bite my lip. “I could also use her in Wyoming.”
His eyes stretch wide. “Wyoming?”
“Yes,” I reply, slowly sitting up. Staring down at Chase, I sigh. “We got a little distracted last night when I mentioned I knew what I had to do to get the bracelet off.”
Chase squeezes his eyes sheepishly. “Sorry about that. I got carried away.” He sits up and takes my hands in his. “What do you want to do?”
A sense of warmth spreads through my belly. I know what I’m about to do is the right thing. But, hard as it may be, I have to face it.
After taking a deep breath, I let it out slowly. “I’m ready to apologize to Amelie and Zayne.”
Chase smiles as if he already knew that’s what I had to do.
“I know what I did was wrong,” I continue. “It’s time I face them and ask for their forgiveness. The Royal pack members are your friends. Even if they don’t forgive me, I want them to know I’m not a threat.” I shrug and avert my gaze. “Maybe Laila will see the truth and take the bracelet off.”
Chase’s hands cup my cheeks, and I willfully turn to face him. “I’ll be by your side the entire time.”
Placing my hands over his, I can feel the tension leave my body. “I know. It’s one of the reasons why I feel like I can do this.”
Chase brushes his lips to mine. “When do you want to go?”
“Today. I don’t want to waste any more time.”
29
KARA
This morning went by quickly, and now I’m on a plane heading to Wyoming. I already gave everyone at the vineyard a raise, and they’ll see it reflected on their next paycheck. Brooke agreed to keep watch over everything for when I return. When will that be? I don’t know, but hopefully, soon. I’ve missed Channon Vineyards. Especially with Valentine’s Day being only two days away.
Chase smirks over at me, and I know he heard my inner thought about the infamous day of love.
“Valentine’s Day, huh? Are you a romantic, princess?” he teases.
Evangeline snickers, and when she swivels her chair around to face us, I glare at her. “Don’t humor him.”
She faces her chair forward again, her seat shaking from her silent laughter. “I like the whole private jet thing. The seats are huge, and I can get up whenever I want.”
