Page 23 of Deception

Summer,he nearly said.I need you, too.

He wanted so much. Her body. Her love. Her company, day in and day out. He wanted a future with her. He wanted her as his mate.

But if that didn’t make him a greedy prick, what did?

So he backtracked and focused on her. “Tell me what you need. Tell me what you want.”

“You,” she said, letting her hand stray downward again. She rested it on his abdomen, a good six inches higher than he would have liked. “I want us.” Then a cloud passed over her eyes. “But I’m scared, too.”

“Of what?”

“Remember who I am, Drew.”

Well, that was easy. “You’re the most amazing person I know. The person I want.”

She stared at him then shook her head. “Isn’t it wrong for me to want you after what I did?”

“You did what you were forced to do. And wrong?” He took her by the shoulders. “You didn’t do anything. Hate is wrong. Love… Love is right.”

“Love?”

He nodded firmly. “God, Summer. From the second I met you, I wanted you. I still want you. For forever, I mean.”

She bit her lip. “I knew it before I even saw you. Even before you stepped in the door, I knew.”

“So why fight it? Don’t you feel it, too?”

“I feel it,” she murmured, but she still looked so sad. As if she was determined to deny herself happiness for the rest of her life.

No way,his bear growled.Not letting her do that.

Without thinking, he stepped closer, barely leaving an inch of empty space between their chests.

“You feel this, right?” he asked in a husky voice.Thiswas the heat that built between them, the crackle and lick of invisible flames.

Her eyes fluttered, telling him she did. And how could she miss it? He could feel the threads of destiny wrap around them both like the strands of a cocoon. He could hear the earthy voice of fate chanting,mate, mate, mate.

He wrapped his arms around her before she could revisit her past, then dropped his chin until he was within kissing distance of her rosy lips.

“You must feel this,” he said, sweeping his hand through the space between them. “This energy. This need. The call.”

“The call…”

“The call of my mate.”

There. He’d finally said it. She might slap him or call him crazy or run away, but at least he’d said it.

“Mate?” Her lips trembled.

“Mate,” he said.

His bear gave him a high five.

Summer took a deep breath and nodded. “I feel it. I want it, too.”

The words just about made him explode. She wanted him, too!

Every star in the sky seemed to cheer him on.So kiss her! Kiss her! Come on!

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