“Yes. I knew. Not when, but I guessed it would be soon. Your father watched you all night.”

“If he wanted me to be Alpha Male now, he should have just handed it to me.”

“That wouldn’t have worked and you know it. We both know he had to do this or risk one of his brothers or their sons challenging you.”

Holtz finally looked up, giving her a sad smile. “Is that also from your reading expedition yesterday?”

“Pretty much.”

Holtz nodded and pulled his arms away from her body. “Well, thank you. There was absolutely no one else I could talk to about this.”

“I’m glad . . .” Irene swallowed past her nervousness, knowing instinctually what the next step had to be. “I’m glad you came to me. But you’re not done yet.” She’d read about this in one of her books, knew what he had to do to secure his position of Alpha Male. Knew what she had to do.

Holtz turned serious amber eyes toward her. “What do you mean?”

“They insisted I be here for a reason, Holtz. And you know why. You have to finish it.”

He stared at her in confusion for several seconds, then he shook his head. Adamant. “No. Absolutely not, Irene.”

She pushed the chair back and stood, pulling the T-shirt up over her head and tossing it to the floor. “You need to finish this. Now.” Finish it before she lost her nerve.

“No, Irene. I won’t . . .” He cleared his throat. “What we have is ours. No one else’s. I won’t involve you just to . . . forget it.”

Irene walked to the balcony doors and pushed them open all the way, then went to the top drawer of Holtz’s chest of drawers and grabbed the box of condoms she’d found earlier when looking for something to wear to bed. She walked back to him and stared down into that handsome face. She had this weird feeling in her chest. For several moments she worried it was something that would need immediate medical attention. Then Van Holtz looked up at her and the feeling doubled, tripled.

She loved him.

And she’d protect what was hers.

Kneeling in front of him, Irene reached out and wrapped her hand around his cock. It had started to get erect as soon as she’d taken the T-shirt off. But once she put her hand on it, she suddenly held a steel pipe.

“God, Irene,” he groaned. “Stop.”

“There’s no option here, Holtz. I’m not giving you one.” To prove it, she leaned over and took the tip of his cock into her mouth. His breath hissed out and his hand slid into her hair, grasping the back of her head. Relaxing her throat, she swallowed all of him and sucked hard.

The hand massaging her scalp suddenly had claws, and Holtz pulled her off him. He gave her just enough time to put the condom on him before he slammed her flat on her back. He shoved his cock inside her before she could think of what to say.

Irene slapped her handsagainst his hips and gripped them tight, pulling him closer. Letting him know without words that she wanted this. Wanted him. And she didn’t want him to hold back.

He stared down at her with the eyes of a wolf. But even through the cold eyes of a predator she saw more love and caring than she’d seen from any man.

Holtz placed his hands flat on the floor right above her shoulders, bracing his forearms against her body. They held her in place when he slammed into her that first time. And the next time. And the next.

And she didn’t hold back how good it felt. So good she never wanted him to stop.

He powered into her again and again, never letting his eyes stray from her face. Never letting her look anywhere else but at him. It should have hurt, the way he slammed into her. She should have begged him to stop. But instead she raised her knees up so he could get deeper inside her.

It didn’t take long for that orgasm to rush up on her. To slam into her with such force that the scream he tore out of her was real and probably heard as far away as Löwe Pride territory.

She didn’t know when the tears started, but she sobbed through that orgasm and right into the next. By the third, he ordered her to mark him. To make him her own. She found a spot already opened from his father’s claw. Setting her teeth on the wound, she bit down hard.

His grunt told her it hurt him, but then his entire body went stiff and he was coming. The two of them joined in a way so primal they moved on instinct alone.

Holtz dropped on top of her, their sweat and all sorts of other juices commingling. And Irene simply didn’t care. In fact, she’d at least admit to herself, she loved it.

“God, Irene. Are you okay?” His hands moved over her, soothing her.

She nodded, still unsure of her voice. And she really didn’t want to start crying again.

He leaned back and stared at her. His eyes were human again, his incisors gone. “Are you sure? Did I hurt you?”

Irene reached up with one hand and ran her fingers down his cheek, across his lips. She stared hard at his face, taking a snapshot with her mind of every line, every scar.

“I love you.”

She’d said it simply, plainly. The way she said most things. And like that Van’s whole world changed. It became perfect.

He lay on his back, pulling her with him, not letting her go. His condom-covered cock still buried inside her, already itching to go again. “I love you, Irene. God, I love you so much.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head against his shoulder. Nothing in his life had ever felt so right before.

Van gripped both sides of her face with his hands and forced her to look at him. He kissed her nose, her cheeks, her lips. He kissed her and loved her. “This time, Irene,” he said softly while pushing her on her back once again. “This time is just for us.”