vice around me and only seemed to get tighter. I thrust up against her, eager to join her in my own release, and a few seconds later, I did. The mate bond between us solidified, and I felt a lightness and affection flow through me that I’d never experienced before.
Neve was everything I ever wanted and didn’t know how to ask for. As she collapsed against me, sweaty and breathing hard, I wrapped my arms around her and silently vowed to make her feel like the queen she was every day of her life.
19
Neve
I didn’t know how I knew where to find Seren, but something in my gut told me he was at the paper, so that was where I went. Lo and behold, that was exactly where he was. I wasn’t sure whether it was this mate bond thing the guys kept talking about or because I’d only seen Seren at the paper and rarely anywhere else, or at least not without a reason relating to the paper. As I walked in, he looked up from his laptop and a smile spread over his face, making my heart get all light and fluttery.
“I wasn’t expecting to see you tonight,” he said as he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms behind his head, which made my mouth go dry, especially when I noticed the sliver of skin showing from between the bottom of his shirt and the top of his pants.
“Well, here I am.” I did a weird little fake curtsey thing and immediately felt like an idiot. Why did I get awkward around Seren? To cover it up, I took off my coat and scarf, using the moment to regain my composure.
“And what brings you back to the paper? I know it can’t just be my magnetic presence.”
“And what if I said it was?” I sassed back.
“Then I’d say you were lying.”
“Or maybe I just wanted to see my mate?” I asked, throwing the term around like I actually understood what it meant.
Seren’s eyes seemed to darken, and it made something within me tighten with need. I couldn’t believe the way my body was reacting in all honesty. I’d had more sex since I arrived in Silver Springs than in the last few months combined. Now, even though I’d only just been with Niklaus, my body wanted Seren as well. Greedy body.
“Be careful little witch. I might only be a hare, but I still have some natural shifter instincts.”
“Such as?”
“The need to devour my mate,” he growled out.
“Do snowshoe hares really devour anything?” I teased.
“Why don’t you come over here and let me show you?”
I walked over, taking my time as excitement began flowing through my veins. Seren stood, and by the time I got to him, he had moved around the edge of his desk and was waiting for me. When I was just out of arm’s reach, I stopped, wanting to see what he would do. Instead of waiting for me to give in, he stepped toward me, his long legs eating up the distance in a single stride.
His hands cupped my face gently as he stared down at me, his blue eyes blazing in the low light. “I’m sorry I’ve been a complete ass to you. If I’m honest, the mate bond scared me. I didn’t expect to find my mate here, since all the other snowshoe hares are up in the Yukon. It may have had something to do with why I chose to move so far away. So for it to happen…it was a shock, to say the least. I shouldn’t have taken it out on you though. For that, I’m sorry, and I can only hope that I didn’t damage our bond permanently. Can you forgive me?”
“Shut up and kiss me,” I breathed out as I grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him toward me, closing the last few inches between us.
If I thought the kiss at the ice rink was hot, then this one blew it out of the water. His lips moved effortlessly over my own, his tongue invading my mouth and encouraging me to claim him right back, which I did. As soon as I tried to take control though, he made a noise like a growl low in his throat, vibrating through his chest to me.
“Why did I wait so long to do this?” he muttered to himself as he kissed a line down my neck from my ear to my collar bone and