Page 37 of Feral
Being filled with him felt more than right. It felt like a primal need that had become unbearable was finally being sated, and she couldn’t get enough, even if he was too much already. His lips found hers again, his tongue forcing its way into her mouth, taking control in the same way his body had taken command of hers. With each jut of his hips, he seemed to reach new parts of her, strumming chords she didn’t even know existed until her body became a symphony of ecstasy, punctuated by gasps.
“Sterling,” she moaned as his mouth found her neck, his teeth grazing deliciously against her flesh. Her nails dug in deeper, begging him to bite harder. She wasn’t even fully aware of what she was doing until she felt him tense up, the steady rhythm of their lovemaking interrupted for once.
“Ella,” he warned, studying her with barely restrained hunger. “If we’re not careful, I could mark you.”
She was too deep in lust to see what the problem might be, and kissed him harder, eager to taste him if he wouldn’t give her the sweet pain she craved. His tension melted away as he became fully enmeshed in her once more, their tongues tangling as their bodies merged. His hands groped the parts of her she was most self-conscious of with a fervor that left her incapable of feeling anything but perfect. He was everywhere, everything she could taste, feel, hear and touch. She lost sight of the lines between them as their pleasure built to a crescendo.
When his seed filled her, satisfying a craving she hadn’t even realized she’d had, another wave of pleasure even stronger than the last came crashing down over her. Her fingers dug into his hair as her body clenched and released around him, every shiver sending aftershocks of bliss through her that seemed to echo through him as well.
His low growl of claim and possession would have been enough to push her over the edge itself. He buried his face in her neck and his breath was cool and soothing against her sensitive flesh. The sharpest edge of the heat had been ground away, but her desire for him had only multiplied.
By the time she caught her breath, she realized he was gazing down at her with an indefinable look on his perfect face.
“What is it?” she asked in a breathless whisper, still overwhelmed by just howmuchit all was. The pleasure, the satisfaction, the feeling of him inside her, even now. The deep arousal that lingered, as thoroughly satisfying as the encounter had been for both of them.
“I was just thinking how beautiful you are,” he answered, stroking her flushed cheek. As absurd as it seemed for someone like him to see her that way, his voice was so sincere she didn’t dare to doubt it. Instead, she kissed him and realized it had the same earth-shattering, heart-quickening effect on her as the very first one had.
“How are you feeling?” he finally asked as they lay together, her head resting against his firm chest.
“Tired,” she murmured. “And like I want to do that again.”
He gave a throaty chuckle, stroking her hair. Her strands of white mingled with his inky black. “It is your first heat. It’s going to take more than mating once to ease it.”
Ella snuggled closer, breathing in his enticingly masculine scent. There was a primal satisfaction in the fact that her scent was mingled with his, marking him as hers, even if it was only temporary. “Then I think I was wrong.”
“About what?” he asked curiously.
“About heat,” she murmured, listening to the steady sound of his pulse as she began to give in to the exhaustion weighing her body down. “I’m starting to see the benefit.”
Chapter 18
Ella
Ella awoke to the sunlight streaming on her face, warm in comparison to the way her skin had cooled so considerably overnight. There was still a burning core deep within her, and she felt her arousal resurging as she regained consciousness and realized the other side of the bed was empty, but it wasn’t the maddening thing it had been the night before.
She’d woken up twice in need, and Sterling had tended to her dutifully each time. She could still feel the echoes of his skin brushing against hers, and when she looked down at the fingertip-sized bruises forming on her hips, fond memories of riding him as the sun rose through the cabin windows resurfaced.
Ella had imagined that giving in to the heat would resolve it, but she realized it had only opened the floodgates. She hardly recognized herself in the ravenous, shameless creature she’d become, but when they were in the throes of passion, it was hard to care.
She saw Sterling’s shirt on the floor and pulled it on, buttoning the top few buttons before she ventured out to the main room. She froze when she heard two deep, familiar voices.
“She’s sleeping, but I’ll see what she says when she wakes up,” Sterling said in a tense voice. Whoever he was talking to, it was clearly far from a friendly conversation.
“I’m not going anywhere. And you’re not really in a position to tell me otherwise.”
Bishop.Ella felt a familiar blend of longing and wariness the moment she realized he was there. The threatening edge of his words only echoed it.
She stepped out into the main room to find both men in the kitchen, facing each other down. There was food on the stove that Sterling had obviously been cooking when Bishop had arrived. Unannounced, if the tension between them was any indication.
“Ella,” Sterling said, his gaze softening as he looked over at her. “You’re awake.”
“What is he doing here?” she asked, turning to Bishop.
Bishop took a step closer and stopped short when he seemed to notice her unease. She didn’t miss the hurt in his gaze, but she didn’t feel badly enough to let her guard down. “I came when I got back to the Academy and found out you were gone,” he answered, his words pointed, as if he expected an explanation. When he seemed to realize he wasn’t getting one, he sighed and continued. “I figured there was only one reason you would’ve left the lodge, and when I found out Mr. Bryant was gone, too, I put the two together.”
“So you’re stalking me now?” she challenged, folding her arms.
He frowned. “I was worried about you, Ella. You haven’t been answering my calls or texts.”
