The shock of that sight spawned more shock. He’d bitten her as well. Olivia raised her hand to her own neck. Just where her neck met her shoulder, a tender spot. She touched it gingerly, felt the blood, then raised her shaking hand to her face.
Micah caught her hand in his, bringing it to his mouth. He gently licked her fingers, then nuzzled her, licking the area he’d bitten. She flinched and he faltered slightly, then continued.
“Micah? Why did I do that? Why did you…you bit me!” She struggled then, trying to get away from him. Micah rolled back on top of her, holding her still without hurting her, calling her name soothingly until she met his eyes again.
“Easy, Liv, easy.” She took a deep breath, felt him do the same. His eyes changed, turning more gold than brown. He smiled slightly as he soothed her with his touch. “It’s okay, love, really, everything’s okay.” Suddenly his smile widened.
“I want you on top of me.” He flipped them in the bed, faster than she’d have thought possible. Micah lay below her, holding her still, holding her against his chest. He smiled and traced his hands up and down her sides until Olivia could think of nothing else but filling herself with the erection that hardened so quickly between them. But there was something she wanted just as much. Sliding her hands down his broad chest, skirting the mark she’d left on him, Olivia teased his hard nipples until they budded under her fingers. Tweaking and scratching across them with her fingernails, she watched Micah’s eyes flash.
Leaning forward, Olivia licked first one nipple then the other, much as he’d done to her earlier. She traced an imaginary line between his nipples with her tongue, then slid farther down his body so that she straddled his thighs. She was eye level with his gorgeous cock, still shiny from their combined fluids. Not so tentative this time, she reached out to touch him. Micah covered her hand with his, again showing her just how he liked being touched, then let her take control, moving his hands up so that they rested under his head. His eyes never left hers as she sat up and took just the head of his cock into her mouth.
Micah’s eyes fluttered but never closed as she sucked at him. Sliding her open mouth down his cock to the sparse hair at the juncture of his body, she stroked her hand over him in opposition to the movement of her mouth. Micah’s balls caught her attention next, she licked at his sac, feeling it tighten and draw up at her movement. Sucking him into her mouth, she heard as well as felt him groan.
Olivia moved her mouth back up Micah’s cock, sucking at the head again, then opening her mouth as wide as possible and relaxing her jaw to take as much of him in her mouth as she could. Micah jolted, his hands tightening in her curls, his entire body going tight beneath her. Olivia reveled in the power she held over him in this moment. Now, right now, there was nothing more important than giving him as much pleasure as he’d given her.
She sat up to get a better look at him, then gave a shy grin as he shook at the touch of her hand on his cock. “Now please, Olivia.”
His plea shattered her. She’d worry about biting and clawing later. Now, right now, she wanted to be full of Micah again. Rising up on her knees, she crawled up his body and leaned forward to kiss him as she positioned herself over him. Holding his gaze with hers, she tilted back to open her folds for him. His gasp thrilled her as she dipped her fingers inside her own pussy.
“Want me, Micah?” Olivia couldn’t be bothered with being amazed by the wanton woman taking over her body. She plunged herself down on his cock while pushing her fingers into his mouth. The warmth of his tongue pulling the moisture from her fingers matched the pulse of him inside her. Her nipples sprang up as his fingers tweaked at her breasts.
“Ride me, Liv, hard.” His words sent her over the edge of the world again. Olivia braced herself with her hands on either side of his head as she pumped her hips wildly. She leaned back, feeling him deep inside her body and felt his hands at her hips, supporting her, helping to raise and lower her on his hard cock. Olivia opened her eyes to see Micah staring where their bodies were joined.
“You’re so beautiful, Liv. You’re taking me so deep and you feel so good.” She leaned forward for a kiss and found herself caught. Micah put one hand on the small of her back and the other on the back of her neck. He held her against his body and pumped his hips hard and fast.
Olivia moaned her release into his mouth, spurring him on even more. Giving another hard thrust, Micah growled out his own release. For a few moments nothing else mattered as they both struggled to slow their breathing. Olivia felt herself drifting toward sleep.
“Run with me again.” His voice pulled her back to wakefulness.
“What?” Olivia managed to lift her head enough to free her lips so they could move.
“Come for a run with me.” Micah rolled so that his body was over hers supporting his weight with his knees and hands. “It’s nighttime now. There’s enough moonlight to really enjoy it. Come for a run with me.”
“Can’t move.” Laying her head back down, she felt the bounce of the bed as he laughed.
“No, you’ll be fine once we’re running.” He playfully nipped at her jaw. “Come with me, love, come run with me.”
She felt something stirring in her body, an almost primal urge but she tamped it down. Micah stared at her, waiting for her answer. Olivia shook her head. “I can’t. What if I want to stay a wolf again?”
She shoved on his chest. Micah obligingly moved off her. Olivia walked into the bathroom and shut the door. She took a deep breath then moved closer to the mirror.
God what is that? That’s not a hickey. That is something much more.
She studied the mark he’d left on her neck, just where it met her collarbone. It wasn’t bleeding now. Probing it, she found it tender to the touch-the mark of his teeth still visible. A scent hung in the air that wasn’t Micah but was-only more primeval than the smell he usually gave off.
She shuddered as she remembered she’d marked him as well. Olivia had never been into pain, had never bitten anyone in her life intentionally. Flashbacks of what she’d done to Jackson reeled through her mind. His horror matching hers when she realized she’d drawn blood. His rejection of her-would Micah reject her? No, she couldn’t understand why she’d bitten Micah, but she knew he hadn’t minded. Her biting him had spurred him on, sexually.
Olivia wrapped her arms around her waist as she sank down on the floor. Biting Micah had seemed like the thing to do. She’d wanted the taste of him in her mouth, in her system. “God, what’s happening to me? First he has me eating venison, then turning furry and now this. I’m turning into a cannibal.”
“Carnivore, love.” She didn’t jump at his voice. She’d known he was there without even acknowledging it. Micah wrapped his arms around her and picked her up off the floor. He carried her back into the bedroom then into his living room. She stayed curled up as he sat down with her, wrapping both of them in the fleece throw from the sofa.
Olivia sniffled and scrubbed her hands over her face then glanced at him. “What do you mean?”
“You’re a carnivore, love, not a cannibal. You’ve been denying yourself the pleasure of meat for some time and your health has suffered. Since you’ve been here, since you’ve been eating properly and getting some exercise your body is recovering.”
She gave him a glare along with a pout. “You’re going to keep force-feeding me, aren’t you?”
He laughed as he hugged her tight against his chest. “I haven’t forced you to do anything, love, much less eat.”
“Why do you keep asking me to run with you? You know I’m not into running as exercise.”
“I mean as a wolf, Liv.”
She stiffened then pushed out of his arms and away from him. Micah sat perfectly still as she paced in front of him.
“That’s not possible. You know it’s not. Okay, so I can do that. I’ve decided I don’t want to do that. It’s not normal.”
Micah’s eyes widened as his nostrils flared. “What do you mean
you’ve decided
? You only recently learned how to shift. It’s not a decision you have to make, it’s part of your life, part of you. You enjoyed yourself, Olivia. I was there. You are a beautiful she-wolf with a sunlight and gold coat. We ran together.” Desperation made his voice pitch sharper than she’d ever heard. “You
are
like me. You
are
one of us!”
Her voice rose as her back and forth pattern speed increased. “I’m not like that, it’s not possible. I can’t do that. I’ve made my decision and that’s final. That monster, yes, monster.” She flung a hand up to stop his response. “That is why my parents died. Who knows, maybe I killed my birth parents too. I have blackouts, you know.”
“Not anymore.” His voice broke again. “The blackouts won’t happen now that you know what you are. But Liv, you’ve got to learn to control it. If you don’t…”
The words trailed off into silence as he stared at her. Olivia tried to fill in the blanks. If she didn’t, what? She’d kill again? Her throat began to close as her eyes burned. Shaking her head, she turned away from him.
Micah got slowly to his feet. He didn’t know what to do, what to say to ease her distress. It hurt him somewhere deep inside that she refused to accept what she was. Finally he reached out and pulled her into his arms, holding tightly to her. The tears startled him at first, but he sat back down, holding her in his arms, letting her cry.
She’d marked him and she had no idea what that meant. He knew, though, and the fact that he hadn’t been able to stop himself from marking her in kind shamed him. She wouldn’t accept what she was, wouldn’t fully accept her nature, how could they tie themselves together forever as mates under those circumstances? Until she accepted what she was he had no business claiming her as his mate.
His shifter heritage was strong-a part of who he was, a big part of his life. He’d always known he’d have a shifter mate, someone to share every facet of his life. To have found her and have her not accept what she was…it was unbearable.
Olivia finally slumped in his arms, sleep a welcome relief to her. He held her still, staring down at the woman he loved. A faint smile curved across his face when a soft snore escaped her. She was so precious to him, so beautiful, and now so much a part of him. How was he going to let her go? He knew she’d leave, knew she wouldn’t even try to accept the truth.
Micah tightened his grip and his resolve. He got slowly to his feet, moving toward the bed with his precious burden. He put her down, tucking her in and smoothing her hair away from her face. Placing a gentle kiss on her forehead, he backed away from the bed, his eyes still on the woman sleeping there.
Micah pulled on a pair of jeans and his moccasins and left the room, making his way to his study. It was late, too late, really, to call, but he knew his grandfather would be awake. And the time difference gave him a little leeway. Stoking the fire with one hand, he hit a speed dial on his portable phone.
“
Ya-ta-hey
.
”
“Grandfather, it’s Micah.”
“Grandson, it has been a long time. What troubles you?”
Micah smiled, just like the old man to get right to the heart of the matter. “I’ve found a mate, Grandfather. A shifter female named Olivia.”
“You wake an old man in the middle of the night for this? Call me back when the Blessing Way needs to be sung. Call me back when she is pregnant with my great-grandson.”
“Grandfather, there won’t be a Blessing Way. She doesn’t accept what she is, what I am. She fears it.” Micah waited through the silence, waited while the clock over the mantle ticked the passage of time. When his grandfather spoke again, his voice sounded older, tired. Micah had heard this tone before, when his grandfather spoke of visions.
“She will be made to understand. She will face an unexpected challenge and she will triumph. Keep the faith, Micah, keep your love strong. Keep your heart strong. She loves you, this woman?”
“I think she does. She hasn’t said the words.” Micah settled more comfortably in front of the fire.
“Have you?”
“No, she won’t hear them from me right now. But I do love her. She is mine, Grandfather, just as I am hers.”
“For this I’m thankful, Grandson. You will bring this woman to see me soon. We will celebrate the Blessing Way.”
Micah smiled, knowing his grandfather wouldn’t sleep any more, that he’d be out wandering in the desert and then returning to sit in the sweat lodge before dawn singing and praying. “I will, Grandfather.”
He hung up after the old man disconnected, then sat staring into the fire. An unexpected challenge? What would that be? Surely his grandfather knew that since he’d claimed Olivia as his mate, Micah wouldn’t allow her to face any problem alone. Maybe the old man’s visions weren’t quite up to par anymore. He’d turned ninety this past summer.
Micah put the phone away and stretched out on the floor in front of the fire. He’d let Olivia sleep for a bit then wake her with breakfast in bed. Grinning, he thought of some rather creative uses for the homemade maple syrup he would warm up just for her.
Pushing the shifting could wait for now. He’d let her get used to the idea. They still had to talk about Talia as well. If Olivia were going to accept him as mate, she’d also have to accept shared responsibility for Talia. They’d become an instant family and he wasn’t sure how she’d feel about that. His thoughts chased one another much like the young wolves chased their own tails until sleep claimed him. Dreams of running with Olivia soothed his worried mind.
It hurt to open her eyes. Olivia scrubbed a fist at them in hopes of knocking the salt loose. Painfully she pried one open then the other. Micah was not in the room but his scent lingered. Rolling on to her stomach, she winced when the bunched blankets hit the sore spot on her neck. She scooted off the bed and stretched.
“Oh God, what have I done?” Her heart hurt when she realized that she’d done what she’d sworn she’d never do again. She’d drawn blood during sex. And then, instead of leaving as she should have, she’d made love to him again.
And he’d held on to her instead of pushing her away. Soothed her with gentle touches and strong arms while she’d cried herself to sleep again. Her life was spinning out of control. First this attraction to Micah then the knowledge of what he was-what she was-and then the blood. Olivia shivered as she wrapped her arms around herself.