Dominic started nuzzling my mark again, and then he sank his teeth in, and without any warning whatsoever, I climaxed with him still motionless inside me.

“You are a good mate to me, Penelope. The very best. Sweet as honey,” he mumbled as he pulled away from the mark. The sight of his bloody mouth was more erotic than it should have been. The heat kept dragging me away from rational thought, and I started moving against him again.

“Dominic,” was all I was capable of saying or thinking. And judging by his feelings that now flooded me freely, he wasn’t feeling any more coherent.

???

I moaned as the cold washcloth traveled down my neck.

“What is happening?” I asked sleepily.

I couldn’t feel him anymore.

“Gotta get you cleaned up a bit. Maybe cool you down enough so you can eat.”

“Not. Hungry.”

“Drink something, at least. You’re dehydrated. All that slickness and arousal has to come from somewhere.”

“Yeah, it comes from looking at you.”

He remained silent and I peeked through one eye just in time to see his smile. Talk about slickness and arousal. I’d die of dehydration if this continued, and I’d do it gladly.

“Eat the fruit, Penelope,” he urged as he pulled me up into a sitting position. He arranged us so that his back was against the headboard, his chest to my back, and I was nestled comfortably between his legs. We were both, of course, naked.

There was a bowl of fruit chunks in his left hand. Nectarines and peaches. As he fed me the pieces, I made sure to lick or suck his fingers every time they were near my mouth. I hummed and moaned as I did it.

“I fucking love your hair, I’m obsessed with it.”

“No cursing,” I admonished him.

“How can someone so prim and proper be so horny all the time?” Dominic asked as he licked my ear.

“You feel all that, huh?” I asked, not even capable of shame at the moment.

“I feel it every second of every day, can barely get any work done. Fuck, it’s insane.”

“I wish I didn’t feel that way,” I admitted and he froze behind me. “I wish I was as cold as you.”

He mumbled something into my hair and I soon went back to sleep.

Two days later, I could still feel a very sensual soreness in my entire body as I bent down to throw away what looked like wilted dandelions from a small glass in our bedroom.

The rest of the house was tidy and clean, I guessed Dominic took care of it while I was recovering from my heat. I only remembered bits and pieces of it, but I felt like it was a step forward in our relationship.

My wolf was ecstatic. But then again, she’s been happy with Dominic all along. He had marked her and mated with her, his wolf was extremely loving and attentive to both of us, we lived together and shared a bed, and we had sex more than regularly. She didn’t want for anything more from her mate. But I did. Luckily, I felt closer to him now. And if we became parents – no, I wouldn’t let myself think of that ahead of time. I wanted to be a mother so badly, but I had to be realistic.

I settled in on the deck withThe Age of Innocenceand let myself be swept away by the story. I liked May a lot, and I secretly imagined that Newland looked like Dominic. My mind drifted to my mate again.

The last time I was at the office, I saw his date of birth on some forms, and now I knew I needed to think of a birthday present for him before October. I hoped I’d get to know him well enough by then to get him a really amazing present. Our closeness during the heat seemed to have made a dent in his armor because now I’d occasionally get random little bits of his feelings a couple of times a day, and it made me very happy. I seemed to be getting through to him.

It was really too bad that he had to leave for Texas next week. I could see firsthand that this pack’s work wastruly never-ending. But it was all better now. I’d go to class, to the gym, see Isaac, host the sleepover, and he’d be back before I knew it. In a way, his absences allowed me to carve out a life for myself in the pack that wasn’t tied to him, and it was something I’d never had before.

???

“You know who I saw at the gym two days ago?” I asked Grace as we were frosting the last batch of the muffins for the sleepover. Lynn and Charlotte were already setting up a game of Monopoly in the living room, and Margaret and Mira had yet to arrive.

“Hmm, let me guess, Theo?” she guffawed, and I joined her.