Page 4 of Secret Guardian

“Hey, I’m Aarick. I heard you’re having an issue keeping it cool in here,” he jokes.

God, he has no idea. Because with his reappearance, the unbearable need hits me full force again, and my fingers ache to trail across his chest, the hair peeking over the top of his T-shirt begging for me to twirl my fingers in it. If he recognizes me, he hides it well. I find myself leaning in closer, inhaling the musky male scent that inexplicably pulls me in. As I exhale…is it my imagination or does he shudder?

Suddenly, Tiger nips my shoulder with his teeth. “You little shit.”

Aarick smirks at my reaction, and I pull myself out of whatever is wrong with me. Clearing my throat, I step aside to let him in. “I’m Darian. The kitchen is—well, I guess you know. All the apartments are the same.”

He nods, brushing by me to fit himself through the doorway. It’s as if he’s grown since last night. His shoulders seem broader, his arms thicker. He walks in front of me to the kitchen, and my eyes move down his body. I’m no better than a man, staring himdown like a piece of meat, but the jeans form to his figure like a glove, and all I can think about is what else he’s hiding in those pants.

“Holy shit.” He halts at the open doorway, dropping his bag of tools as he surveys the chaotic state of the room. “What happened?”

“I have no idea, honestly.” I lean against the wall, scratching Tiger absentmindedly as I imagine the kitchen through Aarick’s eyes. And I’m still not sure how I feel about him being here. It’s too much of a coincidence. But for now, my refrigerator needs repairing, so I’m just keeping an eye on him. Tiger jumps out of my arms and lands with a soft thud on the tile, then pads into the other room as if he lives here.

Aarick crosses the space in no time, dropping to a squat to peer at the hinges. “The screws are just stripped. It should be an easy fix.” He glances over his shoulder, his eyes locking on mine. “Would you hand me my bag?”

I freeze like a deer in headlights, my heart rate increasing rapidly at the way his gaze darkens. Then I whimper.

I. Fucking. Whimper. The heat blooms in my belly, reignited by his attention, and he moves like liquid, turning over on all fours, and he crawls to me. The man crawls to me on hands and knees, his eyes boring into my soul. I’m no stranger to sexual tension, but the charge pouring off his body is on a whole other level.

When he stops before me, settling on his knees, he stares up at me almost defiantly. Then his hands wrap around my calves, the electric touch of our skin meeting a jolt to my system. My brain registers what’s going on, but my body does nothing to stop it as Aarick buries his face between my thighs. A shudder racks his body as he inhales before releasing a low moan. It’s muffled against the fabric of my shorts but still audible, and it takes every bit of my self-control to keep myself upright.

“What the hell?” I manage, clenching my hands into fists at my sides. “I don’t even know you.”

Aarick teases his nose along my belly, a soft smile playing across his face. “You may not know me yet, but your body does. It’s calling to me. Aching for me.”

His hands move up my legs to grip my hips. He pulls me to the floor effortlessly, and I let him, the craving within me too powerful to resist the common sense that I don’t know this man from Adam.

“Darian, I’ve been searching for you for years.” He squeezes my waist, his eyes flashing over my face as if he’s searching for something.

“Why have you been searching for me?” I’m turned on by his closeness, but his words are a little more than I’m prepared for.

“You’re my mate,” he says simply, arching an eyebrow at me as if I should know this. As if it’s common sense.

“Okay, I’m…I’m not anyone’smate.” I press myself into the wall, clenching my thighs together to alleviate the need for friction. I’m on fire, horny as hell, and this man seems to know all the right places to touch me, but I’m suddenly very aware of the situation.

He studies me quizzically. “Don’t you know? You’re…”

“I’m what?” I lash out, shifting my ass on the floor in an attempt to alleviate the throbbing between my legs.

“You’re my mate,” he repeats, and I can’t help but roll my eyes.

“So you’ve said.” I’m beginning to get irritated. If he doesn’t get a move on with taking me to pound town, I may have to just take care of myself again. Maybe it’ll work out better this time.

“You’re in heat, baby. I’m here to get you through it. To take care of you.”

A bark of laughter slips from my lips before I can stop it. “In heat? What are we, animals?” I tease him, my mind still reeling from the term of endearment he used.

Aarick watches me with concern, but I don’t know why; he’s the one who’s acting insane.

“We are animals, Darian.”

I’m still laughing, my shoulders now shaking. “Sure we are. Sure.”

He leans back on his haunches, his lips pinched in a displeased smile. I attempt to gain control of myself, straightening up and stifling my giggles. After all, I do still want him to touch me, if he’s willing. Forget all of my being-on-guard, safety bullshit. It’s down the drain now anyway. And if Aarick was going to hurt me, he would have done so by now.

I open my mouth to invite him to touch me, to do whatever he wants to me, as long as this burning stops.

But right before my eyes, Aarick’s body begins shaking, twisting, and turning, until with a low growl, he shifts into a large black panther, his dark eyes still boring into mine.

---