“Are you okay?” I asked.

He turned, startled at my presence. “I guess. I’m stressed about this meeting. That’s all. I never thought I’d be doing stuff like this, you know.” He shook his head in disgust. “I may be more of a lone wolf than a pack leader. I’m scared I’m going to let these people down. It’s my greatest fear.”

“I know this isn’t the life you expected,” I said, stepping into the room, moving closer to him. “But it’s what you have now. Just because you ran from this responsibility all those years ago doesn’t mean you’re any less of an alpha. Fate knew what it was doing. It brought you back here. It put us together again. This is where you belong. Here and now, so you can lead the pack in the way I know you can.”

“You really have a way with words, you know?” Cole said, a smile finally melting the stress on his face.

“I believe in you. And the town—the pack—will as well. If you want their respect, then you’ve got to give them some. I think they’ll surprise you with what they agree to. You have that effect on people.”

“Do I?” He crossed the room until he was only a few inches from me, and the heat coming from him was like a furnace.

“You do.” I swallowed hard, looking into his eyes. “I think you need to release a little stress before this meeting, don’t you?”

If Cole was surprised by my brazenness, he didn’t show it. He let a low, hungry growl rumble up through his chest. He was close enough that the sound of it vibrated deep in my chest, sending tremors down my stomach and straight to my core.

In the blink of an eye, we were on each other. He kissed me deeply and hungrily, our lips and tongues slipping and sliding across one another. After several seconds, he pulled away and looked at me, his eyes full of unyielding desire.

“God, I want to fucking sink my teeth into you so bad.”

From a human, that would be a horrifying thing to hear, but from a shifter, it meant more. When a shifter claimed his matewith a bite, it was an intimate, binding moment. Hearing those words from Cole’s mouth turned me on more than ever.

I let out a little growl of my own and lunged forward, crashing my lips against his.

Cole grabbed the waistband of my shorts, slipping them down, his fingers sliding along my naked skin. A moment later, he had me naked, the cool air puckering my nipples as he spun me around and bent me over his desk.

“Thisshit,” Cole cursed, sweeping everything off his desk. The pile crashed to the floor, and excitement surged through me. It was like nothing mattered more than me and what he wanted to do to me.

My breasts pressed into the cold wood, and I cried out as his tongue found my pussy. His strong fingers gripped my ass, giving him access to me. Moaning, I rested my cheek on the desk as he devoured me. He sucked and licked me, making my head spin in a frenzy of carnal delight as his tongue explored every inch.

“I want you inside me,” I groaned.

Cole grunted against me, then stood, and I moaned at the loss of his tongue. I heard him undoing his belt and then the thud of it against the floor as his pants landed. An instant later, he thrust inside me, his balls pressing against my clit as his entire shaft stretched me to the limit. Moaning, I arched back against him, urging him even deeper.

With a breathless voice, Cole leaned down and whispered into my ear. “Do you want it hard and fast, or soft and slow?”

“Fuck me, Cole,” I hissed through clenched teeth. “Fuck me hard.”

He wound his fingers into my hair, then pulled back just enough to make my scalp tingle as he began to ride me. There was something primal about him fucking me from behind and pulling my hair. I closed my eyes and gave myself to him. Something about the intensity and ferocity gave it all a dreamlike quality, a dream I didn’t want to wake from.

Cole released my hair and took me by the shoulders, lifting me up until my back was pressed to his chest. The angle had his cock pressing against my G-spot, sending shuddering waves of ecstasy through me with each thrust. His lips found the back of my neck as he reached around and cupped my breast.

“You feel so fucking good,” he said, his breath hot on my ear.

His right hand slid away from my breast and slipped down my stomach to my clit. My legs nearly gave out as he rubbed at me, using my own wetness to lubricate his fingers. The pleasure was so intense that my knees buckled.

“Come for me, baby,” he whispered. “Come like a good girl.”

“Oh, God,” I cried.

The orgasm slammed into me, surprising in its intensity, making my body clench and shiver even as Cole continued thrusting into me. He pushed me back down onto the desk, then grabbed my ass and rode me harder than ever. All I could do was try to catch my breath as climax after climax rained down over me.

Cole’s gasping grunts grew more insistent, and as he hit the right spot, I came again. His body slammed into mine, pressingme into the desk, my sweat-slicked breasts slipping against the wood.

“I’m gonna come,” Cole muttered.

I smiled as he growled. His cock pulsed within me, and he lowered his head, resting it on my back.

“Fuck,” he moaned. “I’ve got to go to that damn meeting.”