he rolled away from her, landing on his soft human belly in the cushioning leaves. His powerful erection under him, hard and aching.
Though he knew she had to have seen it, at least he could lay this way, breathing the scent of the wild forest, until his arousal subsided. Breathing hard, he closed his eyes and willed her to go away, to leave him to come to grips with the act of being human once again.
This time, the horrible sense of loss he always felt seemed to have vanished. Puzzled, he tried to understand, but though the wolf normally lurked just under the surface, the beast appeared to have retreated further into the dark recesses of Ruben’s psyche.
“Ruben?” she said again. “Are you all right?”
Evidently she wasn’t going away until he answered her.
“I’m fine,” he ground out, his body pulsing with need. “Please. Go back to your tent.”
“But—”
“Go. Away.”
If he expected her to comply, he was more delusional than he’d realized. Instead, she did the opposite, crawling across the pine needles and dead leaves until she reached him. This time, she tangled her hand in his hair rather than his pelt. This time, she pressed her body close as she stroked and caressed the man rather than the wolf.
And this time, when she pressed her soft lips against his jaw, he lost all control.
He rolled, pulling her down on top of him, pressing himself into her. She let out a soft cry, one of encouragement rather than fear, and impossibly he felt himself grow even larger, even harder.
He locked her in his arms. Now fully man, they gazed into each other’s eyes. Naked, his skin tingled where she touched him, and he dimly realized her clothing was a barrier that would have to go.
As if she had the exact same thought, she pulled her sleeping shift over her head, letting it drop to the forest floor. Naked, her full breasts gleamed in the predawn light, her dusky pebbled nipples inviting his tongue.
Her grip tightened as he took her into his mouth. She arched her back, making a soft sound of pleasure. Though he wouldn’t have believed he could get harder, the sudden surge of desire had him stretching to huge dimensions, throbbing.
When she closed her small hand around the hard length of him, he jolted, nearly losing his already tenuous control. Her fingers seared him, the movement hot and sensuous, pleasure and pain combining in her touch.
Just when he thought he could bear no more, she rose up and settled over him, taking him deep inside her. The moist heat of her body surrounded him, welcome and titillating.
He writhed beneath her, pushing deeper. Her hands came up, tangled in his hair as she pulled him to her. He crushed her mouth with his, blazing hot, his tongue mimicking the movements of his body.
Flesh silky against flesh, they moved together in exquisite harmony. Blazing, a bright torch soaring in an explosion of need and desire.
When she shattered, her climax pulsing around him, he gasped in agony, trying to hold on to the last shreds of his control. Failing, he crested on the wave of a release so powerful he swore the earth moved under his body.
Panting, they clung to each other, wordless and awestruck. He didn’t pretend not to know what this met—his kind found their true mate only once.
But Willow? She was Sidhe, neither human nor Pack, and she came from a place that existed in another space and time.
Shoving away his disquieting thoughts, he kissed the smooth swell of her shoulder. She made a sound, a quiet murmur of contentment, then reached for her sleep shift. Smoothing the garment, she dropped it over her head and smiled at him.
“I brought you peace,” she said. “Your wolf is very troubled. I can help him, I think, if you’ll let me.”
Whatever he’d expected, it hadn’t been this. He opened and closed his mouth, biting back the instinctively harsh words he’d been about to say.
He didn’t need her help. He hadn’t asked for it, and for her to offer... With a sigh, he dropped his head.
This was something that would require thought. For now, he had other, more pressing issues.
Pushing to his feet, conscious of his nakedness, he held out his hand to help her up. “Come on. We’d better get back to camp before we’re missed.”
Eyes huge in her heart-shaped face, she bit her lip but did as he’d asked.
They walked a few feet, the silence feeling absurdly loud, before he