She screamed out his name and her muscles gripped him so tightly he came. Pleasure nearly tore him apart from his balls out as he filled the condom with his release. He bent over her, his fangs tingled, and he focused on a spot on the curve of her shoulder. He salivated, his wolf howled from within, and before he knew it, her blood coated his tongue when he bit into her.

Shannon’s body jerked under his, her vaginal walls quaked, and the haze of rapture seemed to flood him strongly. He came more, his h*ps jerked violently, and he couldn’t stop for anything as he kept f**king her, still coming, and his teeth sank in deeper to assure his wolf she wouldn’t leave him.

A muffled sob finally penetrated his mind and horror struck him at what he’d done. He forced his jaws apart, released her shoulder, and threw himself back to separate their bodies. He nearly fell off the end of the bed in his haste to put distance between them. The wound he’d inflicted showed his teeth marks welled with bright red blood. Shannon’s small body shook but she didn’t move otherwise.

“Shannon,” he rasped, her blood on his lips, all he could still taste as he reached out to her. The second his hand brushed her back she collapsed to her side, panting. He froze. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bite you.”

She didn’t respond. Her hair hid her face from him but she remained curled on her side, blood smeared on his bed from her shoulder, and he didn’t know what to do. It shocked him that sex had turned into violence. He touched her again but she didn’t react. He saw her chest rise and fall but the sounds had stopped coming from her. He crawled toward her to brush her hair back from her face to see that her eyes were closed.

“Shannon?”

She didn’t respond. Panic gripped him. Had he hurt her that bad?

“Shannon!” He yelled her name.

She jerked, her eyes opened, and she did the last thing he expected. She smiled at him. “Wow. That’s the first time someone has made me pass out.”

He gaped at her until he could form words. “You were crying.”

She stretched her legs a little and reached for him as she rolled to her back. Her fingers brushed his cheek. “No. I don’t know what sound that was but it sure wasn’t pain. Can we do that again?”

“No. I bit you.”

She used her other hand to reach up, touched the spot, and then winced. “Ouch.” She glanced at her hand, saw the blood, and paled. “I just thought you nipped me. I didn’t know you drew blood. Is it bad?”

“I don’t know. Don’t move.”

He jumped from the bed to rush inside the bathroom and grab a wet washcloth. He rushed back into the bedroom to find her seated on the middle of the bed with a curious expression. It stunned him that she wasn’t afraid of him after his attack.

“It only hurts when I touch it. And it feels warm. Don’t look so upset. I’m fine.”

She tried to comfort him and it made him feel worse as he circled the bed and sat down behind her. Her red hair had touched the blood sliding down her back from the bite. He’d really tagged her good. He gently lifted her hair out of the way to press the cloth against her delicate skin. She winced and he felt worse.

“I’m so sorry,” he rasped.

“It’s okay.”

“No. It’s not. I really got you good.”

“Why did you do it?” She peered at him with pure innocence.

Anton had to clear his throat. “I lost control.” He couldn’t meet her gaze anymore so he tended to her bite.

“Do you need a muzzle from now on when we have sex?”

He jerked his gaze up, astonished when she grinned at him, making a joke. He wasn’t in the mood to laugh. “No. I tried to mate you, kitten. My wolf tried to, anyway, and I didn’t stop him.” He looked down at his lap, examined the condom, and blew out a breath. “It didn’t break. We’re okay.”

“Oh.” Her gaze skittered away to stare at something to the left of him. She looked back. “What do you mean, your wolf wanted to mate me?”

“My wolf wanted to keep you for good. I’m so sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”

“It’s okay. I just thought you were marking me again.”

“I did.”

He tried to mask his emotions. He’d definitely made sure she’d carry his scent and he’d tied her to him even stronger. No way would his wolf settle for any other female during the mating heat. If she left him, his wolf would go insane, track her down, and could hurt her. He didn’t want to share those facts, afraid he’d scare her, and now he really needed her to want to stay. Worse, that mark would last longer than mating heat. He could feel her blood changing him already, forming a deeper bond, and he could sense his inner beast’s contentment with that.

“No harm done.” She gave him a brave smile. “I’m fine.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It really doesn’t hurt,” she assured him.

He lifted the damp cloth and hid a wince. It wasn’t some love bite just to mark her. No, he’d scarred her so she’d always carry his teeth impressions on her pale skin. He may as well have just become engaged to Shannon. Bites that deep implied a pending mating. It was a sure sign of commitment to do just that when a male scarred a female with his bite.

Calm down, he ordered his wolf when it pressed against his skin, wanting Shannon again. He got the bleeding to stop and bit his tongue enough to draw blood. He hovered over her and licked her wound. She startled a little but then relaxed.

“It will help it heal faster,” he murmured between licks.

“It’s turning me on,” she whispered. “I don’t know how you do this to me but I want you again. I almost hurt from the need.”

He muffled a groan. It seemed his sexy little kitten was going into heat with him. How he’d make it through mating heat without forever binding them seemed daunting at best. He just needed to keep control. Yeah, good luck with that. His dick stiffened painfully. He removed the used condom and reached for another.

Chapter Eleven

I really purr, Shannon thought, digesting that concept as her throat hummed, her chest vibrated, and Anton continued to stroke her back. She’d woken up sprawled on top of his large body and to the strange noise she hadn’t identified until her foggy brain cleared.

“I love that sound and your reaction to me touching you.”

She lifted her head and the noise stopped. Anton smiled at her. She couldn’t help but return it.

“Morning.”

“Sore?”

She assessed her body. “No. I’m…” Heat warmed her cheeks. “I’m turned-on again.”

“You’re definitely in heat too.”

“I don’t understand. I’ve never gone into it before.”

Anton continued to rub her back, brushing his fingers and palms over the curve of her ass and then up her spine. “I’ve been thinking about that. I believe I know why.”

“Good. Clue me in because it’s freaking me out a little.” She didn’t want to lie to him and she really wanted an explanation. “I’m a little frightened too. It’s as though I don’t know my own body anymore.”

“You’ve lived around humans entirely since your father died. After you met me your instincts have reacted more than they probably ever needed to before.”

“Yeah. It’s humiliating.”

That drew a frown from him and his hand paused. “Why?”

“I always thought I was pretty tough. Now I leap on you or climb trees whenever I get really scared. Think about it. Your mother, as an example, probably thinks I’m pathetic. A werewolf would have growled at her or something. Not me. I ran to you and practically knocked you down in the shower.”

His body bounced her as he chuckled. “I think it’s adorable.”

“You’re not the one always trembling and so scared you can’t think. It’s like a switch gets hit, my brain shuts down, and next thing I know I’m off the ground clutching you or on top of something. I tell myself to stop it, to get down and be brave but my body doesn’t listen.”

“You’re part puma and I’m a werewolf. My kind usually kills yours. It’s natural for you to flee and seek higher ground. It’s a strong instinct, ingrained in your genes.” His hand rubbed her back again. “Hell, sometimes I see rabbits and take a few steps before I’m able to stop myself. I want to chase the things down and eat them. I’ve been dealing with what I am all my life and still fight those impulses.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I could share all kinds of embarrassing things I’ve done while I adjusted to being a werewolf.”

“Like what?”

“In high school, I decided to date this cute human. I liked her and she was hot. I was fifteen and hormonal. I asked her out, bought flowers, and was really nervous because I wasn’t sure how humans interacted on dates. She answered the door holding her pet cat. That thing went insane, hissed at me, panicked, and it bolted out the door. I was after it faster than you could imagine. It ran up a tree and there I stood under it trying to think of a way to get it when Sally rushed out to see what was going on. I had to hide my face. I’d started to change. I couldn’t talk because our voices deepen. She thought I was a freak and mean for scaring her cat somehow. I just walked away, so add rude on top of it. She avoided me and glared daggers at me every time we crossed paths in the hallways until she moved away two years later.”

Shannon smiled. “Sorry.”

“There was the first pack run I attended after I started to become a man—as in noticed women and knew what a sex drive was.” He paused. “You probably don’t want to hear this one.”

“Go ahead.”

He actually blushed. “Imagine a hormonal teen on his first run with the pack. We strip down by the meeting tree to shift and there were all these na**d women. I got a boner from hell and realized everyone would notice. I couldn’t take off my pants. That’s considered rude to react that way unless it’s mating heat. This was just a pack run, which we do monthly to celebrate the full moon. It’s kind of our version of a holiday and a way for the pack to do something together. My father knew why I stood there, not stripping down, and ordered me to go home. As I was walking away my father yelled out for me to jack off before I came to the next one. I wanted to die on the spot.”

Shannon’s mouth dropped open. “He didn’t!”

“He totally did. I will never forget the laughter and how I ran all the way home. I didn’t speak to him for two days. It embarrassed me enough that I never wanted to go to another one.”

“Your dad sounds like an ass.”

“He believes it’s toughening us up to do shit like that.” He sighed. “There’s no shame in your fear of werewolves, Shannon. On the food chain, we’re something to be afraid of.” He suddenly grinned. “I bet you’ve never had a mouse problem.”

“No.” She suddenly laughed. “I never thought about it but in my first apartment all the neighbors complained about field mice during the summer but I never had any inside my place.”

Anton grinned. “You scent faintly of puma. Those mice would have avoided you at all costs.”

“So you think being around you is helping my shifter blood kind of come forth?”

“Yes.”

She closed her eyes and tried to imagine a large cat. She pictured claws and a tail.

“What are you doing?”

She sighed and opened her eyes. “I can’t shift. I just tried.”

“Do you know how?”

“My mom asked my dad how he did it. She told me to imagine changing, to picture a large cat, and it would happen the way it did for him. It never worked though.”