Bewitched by the Moon [Moonlight Shifters 5] (Siren Publishing Classic) Page 6

  He couldn’t help himself. In that moment, he cupped her face in his hands and lifted her gaze to look at him once more. “I would never betray you, Tiffany. I would never reveal your secret.”

  She nodded her head, as if to acknowledge her trust in him. “I believe you, Zane, but I still can’t tell you.”

  Once again his body had gone on edge. How long did she plan on playing this game with him? He tried being sensitive and kind. Perhaps it was time he tried a tactic he wasn’t accustomed to.

  “Why, damn it?” he snapped.

  Instantly the wolf took over, pinning her against the wall, pressing his body to hers. A sizzle of magical energy seemed to explode within him as he touched her skin. His chest pressed against hers. Zane’s connection to her heightened every feeling whirling around inside him. His instincts told him it was an unbreakable bond. He didn’t understand it. He just knew it to be true.

  Her magic was seductive, and he had to fight with every ounce of his strength to keep from caving to its demands.

  Surrender.

  No!

  He briefly closed his eyes, shaking away the thoughts swirling inside him. His eyes opened, staring at her, struck by her beauty once again. Desperate, he begged, “Tell me what you are…all that you are.” A low growl vibrated from deep within him. “Stop hiding from me.”

  He trailed a finger along her cheek, unable to resist touching her. He prayed she would accept him, hoped more than anything that she would trust him.

  Her hypnotic green eyes softened as she gazed up at him. He found himself growing weaker. He didn’t think he could resist the burning urges flaming inside him. He was lost.

  Groaning, he leaned his forehead against hers and sighed. His heart beat heavily, reminding him just how much he desired her, needed her. The feeling was overpowering.

  “Close your eyes,” he said, sounding breathless.

  She stiffened in his arms. Her eyes searched his. “Why?”

  Smiling, his heart beat faster as he told her, “Because your beautiful green eyes make it impossible for me to think.”

  She gasped, pushing away from him, looking horrified.

  What had he said? Why was she reacting to him like this? Suddenly, he knew from her expression that he said something she hadn’t expected to hear. Now nothing would stop him from discovering exactly what that was.

  * * * *

  “Stop looking at me like that,” Tiffany demanded, her stomach churning with acid.

  How had he seen her true eye color? She had hidden her real identity from the world. Only Sebastian and her people knew what she really looked like. Her body tensed, wondering what else he could see.

  “How am I looking at you?” Zane asked with a golden flicker of his wolf swirling in the depths of his curious brown eyes.

  She shuddered, her body quivering with need. She wanted him and hated that she had to hide who she was from him. Sebastian had ordered her to remain secret, but there was something about Zane that just felt right, like she was always meant to share herself with him, body, soul, and secret.

  As Zane gazed down at her, she could feel the hurt she was causing him, the confusion of her actions plaguing his mind. His frustration soaked into her as if the emotions were her own. Overwhelming sadness filled her and she realized Zane felt betrayed by her.

  She was vulnerable, standing naked in a shower with a man she hungered for, but who seemed more interested in discovering her secrets instead of making love to her. Flooded by shame, she quickly covered herself with her hands and arms.

  “I need to go,” she muttered, turning to escape the shower.

  Zane grabbed her upper arm and pulled her back against him. His arms came around her, capturing her wrists and pinning them behind her. “You’re not going anywhere. You came to me, remember?”

  She heard a low growl from deep within him, and the sound that should’ve frightened her aroused her instead. She nibbled her bottom lip. Her body quivered, his touch igniting passions she tried to resist.

  “I made a mistake.” Squirming against his hold, she begged, “Please let me go.”

  Zane shook his head, his mouth tight as he whispered, “I can’t.”

  He cupped her face and slowly lowered his mouth to hers once more. His gentle lips sampled her mouth slowly, distracting her from wanting to run away. Now what she thought about was her hands exploring his body, her lips and tongue tasting his flesh, and his cock buried between her legs.

  She moaned as he kissed along her chin, sweeping delicately over her neck and nipping at the sensitive skin of her shoulder. Her nipples hardened just as his mouth clamped onto one, suckling her. She cradled the back of his head in her hand, holding him against her breast. As he licked and sucked the tender bead, her toes curled.

  His hands were no longer restraining her wrists. Now they were touching her, moving down between her legs. One hand cupped her pussy while the other massaged her buttocks. She moaned as his fingers swirled gently over her sensitive clit. She gasped as his finger entered her, and she immediately parted her legs, giving him better access.

  Another finger.

  “Oh, God,” she cried, her nails clawing his back. The fever of release was close. “Don’t stop. Please don’t stop.”

  Her mind went blank. Her entire body hummed with an energy she hadn’t felt before, and it was all because of Zane. He was doing this to her, made her feel crazed with lust.

  His breath on her neck, she trembled, captivated by his touch. He brushed his lips over her tingling flesh. More chills of excitement washed over her. He felt so good. Everything about him had her begging for more.

  Unable to stop herself, she reached down and began stroking his hard cock, marveling at the size and velvety softness of the skin that surrounded it. Groaning, he dragged his tongue over the crook of her neck, and instantly she wanted to wrap her legs around his waist.

  As if hearing her thoughts, he lifted her from the floor, and her legs immediately circled his hips. His firm cock pressed between her damp folds, and her head fell back as his shaft brushed over her throbbing clit. She arched her hips, hoping he would soon be buried deep inside her.

  “You feel so amazing,” he rasped in her ear. “I want to be inside you. I need to be inside you.”

  Was he hearing her thoughts? Reading her mind?

  Again his hips moved forward. She hissed as the thick head of his cock breeched her entrance. His body froze, holding her against him. His breath was hot on her skin.

  “Tiffany,” he whispered, his lips gliding over her throat and up to her chin. “I’m going to ask you only once, so I beg you to tell me the truth.”

  His cock sank a little deeper. The pleasure was almost too much to bear. “Whatever you want. Just ask me.” She squeezed him tighter, digging her fingernails deeper into the tight muscles of his back and shoulders.

  He took possession of her mouth, greedily kissing her. His body was still locked in place like a statue. She dug her heels into his rear, hoping to encourage him to thrust forward, but he didn’t.

  “Are you a witch?”

  “Yes,” she answered breathlessly. “Now stop stalling. You’re killing me.”

  She felt a smile on his lips as he nuzzled his face against her ear. Slowly, he stretched her, another inch. “Oh, God,” she said, gasping as the pressure built inside her. He was driving her insane. She’d never survive another moment without him. “Please, Zane, I need you.”

  * * * *

  Zane bucked his hips forward, teasing her with another inch of his cock. She clung to him, her arms clasped tightly around his neck and her legs anchored around his waist. His fingers kneaded the flesh of her hips. Wiggling, she tried to slide down the length of his shaft, eager to impale herself upon it.

  But his unyielding hands held her steady. He was denying her what she so obviously wanted, and he wasn’t sure how long he could continue to resist the temptation. Everything inside him commanded that he satisfy her, his mate. He knew
that if he did, he’d get nothing from her but a fuck. He had to push her to the edge, make her drunk on desire and captivated by the teasing pleasure he alone could give her.

  He pressed a hand between them, seeking out her sensitive sweet spot. When his fingers parted her flesh to find her clit, her pussy was slick with her desires.

  Pleased to find her so aroused, he grinned, nipping at her earlobe. Slowly, he moved his lips down the delicate curve of her throat, suckling gently. His elongated fangs brushed over her skin, ready to mark her. He marveled at the fact that her skin tasted of warm vanilla sugar. A flavor he would crave for the rest of his life.

  He groaned as he ever-so-tenderly massaged her clit. When his finger began to caress her, she arched her back, bringing her breast up to his mouth, but she quickly moved back and sought out his lips. By the way her lips moved over his, Tiffany was ravenous for his kiss. Their tongues molded together, tasting each other as if starved for affection.

  Pushing back, she cried, “Please, Zane. I need you.”

  “Say it again,” he demanded, holding her tight up against him. “Tell me you need me. Tell me you want me.”

  “Oh, God, yes,” she replied breathlessly. “I want you. I need you.” She trembled in his arms.

  He pressed another inch inside her. “Your magic is setting me on fire. Your touch, your scent, it’s maddening.” Another inch. “Are you more than a witch?”

  Her eyes opened, gazing at him as if she’d had too much to drink, dizzy and confused. She shook her head.

  “Tiffany,” he whispered against her ear. “Don’t stop touching me.”

  The moment she no longer caressed his back, kissed his lips, he felt cold and the connection that buzzed so electrifyingly between them faded.

  “I’m scared,” she confessed, her eyes wide and glistening.

  Zane held her tight. “Don’t be. I’m here for you. I’ll always be here.”

  He meant it. He would never be parted from his mate, and she would no longer keep secrets from him. They were now one, and soon she would know that as well. He drove his cock the rest of the way inside her, and she gasped. Her face was aglow with unrelenting passions.

  “I’m never letting you go.”

  Chapter Five

  The world around them fell into nothingness as Zane’s body joined hers. Everything Tiffany had come to accept about her life melted away the instant he completed her. He’d been resisting her needs, but had finally succumbed to the pleasures she was desperate for.

  No longer able to fight the calling of magic between them, the power that connected them, he’d done exactly what she hoped he would. He let go, giving all of himself to her, and the moment he did, an energy unlike anything she’d ever felt before surged through her veins. She wondered if he could feel it, too. Prayed he could.

  As he held her, she knew his heart belonged to her. The ability to feel Zane’s emotions on a primal level was the one thing she had mastered with her magic. She may not have been a wolf, but she was still part of the supernatural world, and being with Zane had always felt right. Now that he was inside her, she knew her instincts had been correct. Even if she wanted to, hiding the truth from him now would be impossible.

  She shivered, not from the cold, but from the burning desires still unquenched and the realization of a bond that had always been there, but had never been explored.

  “Zane,” she whispered, kissing his cheek, brushing her lips over his heated skin. “I’ll tell you everything you want to know.”

  He eased back and stared into her eyes. The silver glow of the wolf was wild in his gaze. He rested his forehead against hers. “I know I shouldn’t pressure you. It’s really none of my business, but I can’t seem to fight the need to know everything there is to know about you.”

  Her chest tightened. “I want so much to know you, too,” she said huskily.

  He arched his hips, slowly driving his cock in and out of her. A jolt of electricity charged between them, pulsing with each of his thrusts. Breathless, she wanted more, needed more. Driving her heels into his buttocks, his pace quickened. Her body tingled, warming as she grew closer to ecstasy.

  “Oh, Zane,” she murmured in his ear. “Please don’t stop. You feel so good. I’ve wanted this for so long.”

  He growled, clinging to her. “I never knew,” he murmured, his voice a whisper of astonishment.

  The instant his lips claimed hers, everything between them exploded. Her body reached a height never before experienced. Crying out, she grew limp, boneless. Zane had wrung every ounce of lust and magic from her. Her mind and body were sated beyond comprehension, but she still wanted more.

  Zane tensed around her as he came. A hot wash of pure bliss blanketed his expression. His face, once strained by the unease of curiosity, now appeared spent and satisfied.

  Holding her close a moment longer, he slowly stepped back from the wall and let her feet fall to the floor. As Zane washed the evidence from their bodies, neither spoke. She didn’t know if she’d made the biggest mistake of her life, falling into bed with Zane or promising to reveal her secret. But she was about to find out.

  * * * *

  Zane felt as if a two-ton elephant was sitting on his chest. He struggled to breathe. Tiffany had been everything he dreamed she would be, and as he hoped, she promised to share the truth with him.

  But at what cost?

  Her words echoed in his mind. “If I reveal my secret to you, I could be killed for treason against my people.” What kind of nonsense was that?

  When she spoke those words to him, he thought she was merely exaggerating. But after feeling her power pulse through his veins, catching a glimpse into her mind, he knew she wasn’t lying. Guilt choked him. Even after she’d asked him if learning her secret was worth her death, he still pressured her for an answer. Now that he had discovered she was his mate, everything changed. Her protection was all that mattered to him, her safety. If hearing her secret meant that it placed her in danger, then he would never want to learn it.

  Ashamed of his behavior, he struggled to speak. He had to figure out a way to let her know just how much he cared for her, and how sorry he was for putting her in a compromising position. Selfishness was not a becoming trait, and it was a behavior he was generally not accustomed to. But Tiffany brought reactions out of him he’d never experienced with another.

  He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. “Tiffany.” He breathed her name, a hushed sound that tugged at his heart.

  “You don’t have to say anything. Let’s just pretend this didn’t happen.” She turned to exit the shower, but he gently grabbed her arm. She stared at him, her eyes glistening.

  What the hell was she doing?

  Forgetting how incredible they were together was the last thing he wanted. “Why would I want to do that?”

  Her brows were drawn tight. “I…I don’t know. I guess I thought you might regret what just happened.”

  He cupped her face and tenderly kissed her. “If there is anything I regret, it’s that I was such an ass to pressure you about your secret. It’s your secret to keep, and I had no right to ask.” He lowered his head. The wolf clawed at the back of his mind, demanding that he learn the truth. What if he needed it to help protect her, to keep her safe? He gritted his teeth, forcing his beast back into hiding. We’ll cross that bridge when we need to. “I’m sorry.”

  She trembled as a cold breeze flowed over their damp skin. Shaking her head, she wrapped her arms around his waist, pulling herself up against his chest. The warmth of his body quickly eradicated the chill, a lycan benefit.

  “That’s why I think I should tell you.”

  He frowned. “Because I admitted I was an ass?”

  Giggling softly, she shook her head. “No, silly, I think I should tell you because you would never use what you learn against me. You care too much about me. I know that now.”

  Zane turned off the water and grabbed hold of the towel he’d thrown over the door and wrapped
it around her. “Maybe you were right to begin with. If telling me puts you in danger, then perhaps it’s not such a good idea.”

  She frowned. The deep line between her eyes became more prominent. “Why are you suddenly so worried?”

  He clenched his teeth, not knowing if the time was right to reveal that the fates had brought her to him. My mate. “I don’t like the idea of you being threatened by your people. I don’t want to risk that something bad could happen to you. You’re dealing with enough right now.”

  Her expression didn’t soften. “I’m confused, Zane. First you want desperately to know about me, and the moment I tell you that I want you to know, you do a complete about-face? Why?”

  “I told you—”

  “Bullshit,” she spat. “That might be part of the truth, but it’s certainly not everything. Tell me what happened between then and now.”

  “I…can’t,” he admitted. He didn’t want to frighten her, and he never wanted her to run from him. Even if she did, she wouldn’t get far. He would always find her. The idea that she would leave him made his death seem like a better option.

  Surprise filled her gaze. Surely, she was finding irony in this situation. “What are you afraid of?” She raised her hands up, adding, “And please don’t tell me you fear I’m going to put myself in danger. I’ve had enough with all the doom-and-gloom drama.”

  He glanced away from her, unable to make eye contact. She made him weak when he wanted to be strong. She softened him when he wanted to be ferocious. Resisting her would be impossible. No matter what she wanted, if it was in his power, he would find a way to give it to her.

  “Maybe we should get out of the shower.” Tiffany seemed as if she planned to argue, until he added, “I’d feel better explaining things sitting down.”

  Tiffany scrunched up her face, eyeing him with a puzzled expression. Then she hesitantly stepped out of the shower. He followed close behind, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around his hips. As they entered his bedroom, she faced him with her arms folded over her chest, tapping her barefoot impatiently. She arched a brow, waiting for him to finally answer her.