If they blow over, a voice chimed in. He hoped Diskant found Ava and brought her home safely. If not, the shit was going to hit the fan in a messy fucking way.
Licking her lips nervously, she asked, “And then?”
“We’re buying it and moving in, of course.”
“Of course.” Her words deepened, becoming husky. With her fear gone, they were back to square one. The second stage of the bloodbond ramping her libido. Making her ache for him in a way she probably didn’t understand or comprehend.
Fuck, she was tempting. Too tempting.
He left her side and kept his thoughts to himself. Food first, the rest later. Damn if it wasn’t hard to concentrate with her so close, knowing she wanted him as much as he wanted her. On top of that was his concern and worry for the pack. If he hadn’t found Mary he’d be with them now, searching for Ava. He didn’t like feeling divided, as though he needed to go but had to stay.
“Hi, big guy,” Mary said softly and Emory spun around.
Diskant’s beloved mutt Oscar stood in the door way. The huge dog was one of the ugliest mongrels most people had ever seen, unnaturally large with thick fur and a bulldoglike face and ears. Oscar stayed where he was, waiting to see what Mary thought. Everyone in the pack found it odd that the mutt understood the word ugly and got incredibly riled-up when people referred to him as such.
“Aren’t you sweet?” Mary crooned and held out one of her hands. “Come here, cutie.”
Oscar’s ears perked and he wagged his tail. Emory almost laughed when the dog trotted to Mary with his head held high, like a fucking dog prince.
“His name’s Oscar,” Emory said, studying the canine that was larger than his mate. The mutt soaked up her attention, licking her hands as its tail whipped from side to side.
“Oscar? You’re not a grouch, are you?” Mary laughed when Oscar snorted and licked her chin.
Emory hissed when he burned his finger. He left Mary and Oscar to their introductions, making sure he didn’t char his digits a second time. When he finally finished and brought her soup and sandwich to the table, Oscar gave Mary one final lick and left the kitchen. She watched the dog go, an enormous smile on her face.
“I’ve always wanted a dog. We moved too much to get one when I was a child.”
When she looked up at him, her eyes were happy and unafraid. Emory felt on top of the world. This was how he always wanted her to be.
“Then we’ll have to get you a puppy,” he murmured, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear. “So you can get the full experience from start to finish.”
She continued smiling but didn’t speak as she removed a napkin from its holder and placed it in her lap. Even now her manners were impeccable. He remembered thinking she’d be horrified if she saw the pack chowing down on game day, watching football as they devoured food with their hands and fingers.
She moaned with her first bite of the soup, licking her lips. His softening dick did an impressive U-turn. He went baseball bat hard, the wolf inside determined to take over. It wasn’t easy to force the animal back, to watch as Mary took bite after leisurely bite of her food. She wasn’t doing it on purpose, was legitimately enjoying her meal. But she might as well have been waving a red flag in his face, daring him to take her hard and fast against the wall. He’d been soft with her before, wanting to introduce her to lovemaking in a way she’d understand. Only now he didn’t want to make love.
His wolf wanted to fuck.
Damn it, he snarled in his head. Back the hell off.
Mary finished her sandwich and dabbed at the corners of her mouth. Most of the soup was gone, only a small amount coating the bottom of the dish. He wondered how long it would take her to eat the rest, if he could hold himself back until she got to the finish line. To his shock, she dropped the napkin on the table, looked at him and grinned.
“Emory?”
“Yeah?” He sounded like a man walking the line, holding on to his restraint by a rapidly fraying thread.
“You can take me upstairs now.”
His head bolted up, his eyes meeting hers.
Son of a bitch.
He’d been wrong. She had been trying to seduce him while she ate, the tempting flashes of her tongue done on purpose. Not a single bite of food she’d taken had been innocent, it was her playing a game and taunting him.
He knocked over her chair when he yanked her close, lifting her into his arms. She yelped when he took off, dodging obstacles in his path as he rushed for the bedroom. Once they made it to the bed, he intended to pay her back for every single minute he’d suffered, tormenting her as she’d tormented him, until she didn’t know which end was up. Right now they both needed the distraction, something to take their minds off the craziness of the world around them.
For a moment he remembered he had to turn on the alarm. Then Mary giggled and ran her hand up his chest. To hell with it. Nathan was home and Oscar had probably returned to his place in the basement, so the house was protected. With his mate’s earlier teasing, she’d be lucky if he made it past the starting gates. After they finished he’d make sure things were in place. Until then, everything else could wait.
He made it to their bedroom and closed the door with his foot. Then he stomped to the bed and deposited her on top. Her hair swept around her shoulders, blonde strands thick and bouncy, her eyes dark.
“Mary?” he drawled, advancing on her.
“Hmm?” She rubbed her legs together and leaned back, balancing her weight on her arms.
“I’m going to eat you up.”
He growled in satisfaction when she grinned. “My very own big bad wolf?”
In one swift motion, he had her trapped. He caught her hands in one of his and lifted them above her head, using his weight to keep her in place. Lowering his head, he paused when they were nose to nose, gazes locked.
“That’s right. Your very own big bad wolf.” He swept his mouth over hers, using light circular motions. “But there’s a catch.”
“There is?”
“Oh yeah.”
He intended to wring every sound he could from her, to have her begging and pleading for more. Looking into her eyes, he allowed the wolf to shine through. They both wanted her, needed her.
“Show me,” she whispered.
The wolf howled, his head spun and he thrust his tongue into her mouth, sampling her above before he ventured down below. She didn’t hesitate, returning his kiss, shifting her hips so that he felt her hot cunt rubbing the length of his cock.
Dangerous.
Out of control.
Totally fucking perfect.
Leave it to Mary Shepherd to bring out the beast in him.
Chapter Thirteen
Somewhere deep down Mary knew what she was doing was wrong. This wasn’t the time or place to cave to sexual cravings. Ava was in trouble, Diskant was suffering in her absence and the pack was obviously unstable. She should have focused on the important things and not her raging hormones, but heaven help her she couldn’t help herself.
Not when Emory was looking at her like that.
His beautiful brown irises had become a glorious shade of amber gold, his pupils dilated so the color contrasted perfectly against black. The tic in his jaw was sexy as hell. It had taken all of her control not to jump into his lap in the kitchen and press her lips against his, to tease his lips with hers. Her breasts felt swollen, the ache between her legs increasing with each passing second. If she had been made of ice cream, she would have melted on the spot. Her body felt as warm as liquid caramel, heating from the inside out, leaving her a weak puddle of lust on the bed.