Page 30 of Can't Get No Satyrfaction

Her heart sank, but she tilted her head back so she could see his face, staring grimly at the wall.

“Do you hate me?” she whispered.

“Gods, no!”

His shocked gaze dropped to her face, his answer vehement enough that she relaxed again. The arm around her waist tightened, pulling her closer for a heartbeat before loosening again. A deep sigh rumbled through his chest, vibrating against her cheek.

“I had a sister. Pretty. Innocent. Our parents died while she was still quite young and I raised her.” His voice was rough, like he had to force the words out. “She thought she was in love with a human male and he betrayed her. He and his friends. They hurt her. Broke her.”

The raw pain in his voice made her chest ache, and she pressed her palm flat against his heart, feeling it thudding beneath her hand. No wonder he kept his walls so high.

“When the baby was born, he was half human. She loved him anyway, but I… struggled.” She could hear the guilt in his voice and snuggled closer, trying to reassure him with her presence. “And even though she loved Marsh she eventually just… faded away. She died when he was thirteen. I did not handle it well. I watched over Marsh but kept my distance. He needed me but I was not there for him.”

More guilt. More pain.

“Have you ever reached out to him?” she asked gently, and the tiniest hint of a smile curved his lips.

“In a way. He has a mate now—a human mate—and she has helped bridge the distance between us.”

She sat up so quickly that water sloshed over the edge of the tub.

“Your nephew has a human mate? Then why are you so convinced that it can’t work?”

He looked down at the water, avoiding her gaze.

“Marsh is not like me. He is kind, gentle, thoughtful.”

She poked his chest, wincing when her finger collided with hard muscle, and he gave her a startled look.

“So are you, Thorn.”

“Was I gentle this afternoon when I was claiming you against a tree?” he growled, his green eyes glittering with defiance. “Was I kind?”

She returned the defiant look, wondering if he realized that he’d said he claimed her. “No, you weren’t gentle this afternoon, but you were gentle when you tended to my ankle. This afternoon you were fierce and passionate and exactly what I wanted.”

The arm around her tightened and he growled. She leaned up and pressed a kiss against his jaw. His breathing quickened as she let her other hand drift lower, exploring the hard ridges of his abdomen, the taut muscles that bunched and flexed under her touch. Her fingers dipped lower, searching for his cock, but found only a thick ridge beneath the silky fur covering his lower half. She squeezed it experimentally and he groaned, then guided her hand to one end.

“Press here,” he ordered, his voice hoarse, and she obeyed.

His cock immediately sprang free and her heart skipped a beat. He was so big—and so not human. The blunt point at the tip widened into a thick dark shaft, the darker ring at the base so wide that her mouth went dry. If he hadn’t already been inside her she would have sworn it was impossible. She ran a gentle finger over the wide ring of rough skin at the base and he shuddered.

“Is that your knot?”

The knowledge that it grew even bigger, that it had done so inside her, sent a streak of excitement down her spine. She curled as much of her hand as she could around him and he groaned, his hips thrusting into her palm. The water swirled around them, steamy and scented like herbs and forest. Like him. She stroked him slowly, savoring the way his body responded to her touch. Her thumb brushed over the sensitive head of his cock, making him hiss in pleasure.

The area round the base was equally sensitive. In fact everything she did made his body jerk against her. She stroked and petted and explored, and his cock seemed to grow harder and hotter until she could barely wrap both hands around it. She couldn’t resist gliding her hands along that massive shaft and a shudder wracked his body, his hips arching against her in silent demand. Her lips curved into a small, victorious smile. She might be at his mercy, but he was at hers too.

Her touch grew more confident, her fingers dancing over that dark, swollen length. He was so hard now, his body straining with leashed power, and her stomach clenched in response. She loved the way his breath caught, the way he growled with each stroke of her hand. The way he responded to her.

“Sylvie…”

“Shh.” She pressed a gentle kiss against his chest. “You don’t have to do anything. Just enjoy.”

He growled again, his eyes dark and hooded. His cock jerked in her grip, the tip weeping a single drop of liquid that glistened like a pearl on that dark skin. Her fingers danced across hislength, tracing the veins, teasing the sensitive head until his chest rose and fell rapidly, his muscles rigid with need.

She reached down and ran her fingers across the thick ring at the base of his cock again. He shuddered, biting back a groan.

“Will your knot expand while I’m touching you?”

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