Page 25 of Tomlin

His features shifted, growing more wolfish, and his fangs lengthened. He laughed again, the sound oddly distorted by the difference in his face, and then he was gone, loping across the plain with the same easy, ground-eating pace that Tomlin used.

She pulled the box back inside and quickly locked the door, her hands shaking. Who was he? And why had he shown up now? She’d been here for six months. Too upset to return to work, she paced anxiously, waiting for Tomin to return. Even though she kept watching for him, he still surprised her. She jumped when she caught sight of his big body outside the door, afraid for a moment that the Vultor had returned, then hurried over to unlock the door.

As soon as she got the door open, she threw herself into his arms, fighting back the tears.

“What’s wrong, sweetheart?” His arms suddenly tightened, his soothing tone disappearing beneath a growl. “Another male was here.”

“Y-yes. A Vultor.”

“What did he do? Did he hurt you?”

She shook her head, hiding her face in the softness of his shirt, breathing in the reassuring scent of him.

“No. He just threatened me.”

“What did he say?”

His voice was still harsh and guttural but he made her feel safe.

“He… he said humans didn’t belong out here. That it was too dangerous for us, especially s-small human females.”

His arms tightened around her, but then he stiffened, growling again.

“He touched you. I taste his scent on you.”

“He just grabbed my wrist,” she said quickly but he didn’t seem to hear her.

“Myfemale.Mymate.”

His eyes blazed blue fire before his mouth descended over hers, hungry and demanding.

CHAPTER 13

Another male had touched his female.

Tomlin’s ability to think disappeared beneath a tidal wave of possessive instinct. The last week had not eased his driving urge to claim her. Instead it had intensified it to the point where he had become uneasily aware that it might already be impossible to leave her. And he certainly couldn’t leave now, not when another male had dared to touch her, not when he could still smell him on her skin.

That’s not the only reason I don’t want to leave, the rational part of his mind whispered, but he ignored it as he lifted her into his arms and carried her into the lab. Even her clothes carried the taint and he ripped them away, leaving her bare and pale against the black stone worktop. His mate. His woman. He stripped off his own clothes with the same desperation, the need to replace another male’s scent with his own becoming overpowering.

His cock pulsed and throbbed against his belly, longer and thicker than it had ever been before, and her eyes widened as he bent over her. He kissed the tempting curve of her neck, his teethscraping against her skin as he made his way down across her collarbone to those small, perfect breasts. She urged him on with soft, wordless cries, her hands moving restlessly over his skin.

Her nipples were already thrusting eagerly into the air, waiting for his mouth. He growled again as he sucked one deep into his mouth, clamping his mouth around the tempting little bud. He was vaguely aware that he wasn’t being as careful as usual but it didn’t seem to matter, not with the scent of her arousal filling the air and her hands urging him on and her flesh sweet and willing beneath his mouth.

She tasted of home and family and acceptance, of everything he had ever wanted, driving his need even higher. He probed desperately between her legs, seeking the sweet, slick entrance to her body. He knew he needed to prepare her but she was already arching against his hand, her passage slippery wet as he thrust two fingers into her body. She cried out, the sound high and startled.

It was not a cry of pain, but it was shocked enough to penetrate his haze. He jerked his hand away and forced himself to lift his head from those enticing breasts, breasts so clearly marked with the evidence of his passion. His pleasure at the sight was immediately followed by guilt. How could he have treated her so roughly?

He flung himself away from her, fighting to quell the still rampant need as he reached blindly for the door. He had his hand on it when she spoke.

“Don’t you dare.”

Her voice was low and furious, harsh enough to make him stop. He deserved whatever she wished to say to him - but he had to regain control first.

“I need -”

“If you leave me now, don’t bother coming back.”

What? As often as he’d told himself that he should leave, he hadn’t anticipated that she would send him away.

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