as I do. I need to know if that honestly wasn’t the most intense sexual experience of her life.
It feels like a rock drops in my stomach at just the thought of her denial.
She looks down, and her lips tighten. “And if I said it was normal?”
My stomach sinks more. I grasp her chin and force her face up. “I wouldn’t believe you.” But even I hear the desperation in my tone.
She scoots away from me and sits up. Before I can protest, she’s hooking her bra in place and slipping her shorts on.
“Brianna…” I plead.
But she’s already standing and pacing. She rakes a hand through her hair, then does it again. She’s so wild and beautiful, that once again, my breath stops. How did I get so lucky to be mated to a woman like this?
But her next words completely ruin my high.
“This is crazy, Collin! You’re on the run from the law, I have a life back in Quintin Valley, and what the hell are we doing anyway? There’s no future between us.”
My nostrils flare when I sit up. Her gaze strays to my abs. At some point in the past twenty minutes, I lost my shirt. The fact that I can’t remember when it came off just goes to show how nothing is normal between us even though she’s claiming it is.
“Of course there’s a future between us,” I growl, my irritation rising.
“No there isn’t!”
“How can you say that? How can you deny what’s right in front of you?” I stand, too, and take a step toward her. She doesn’t shrink back. “You’re made for me, Brianna, and I’m made for you. Nothing about what we just did is normal. I’ve never come like that with another woman before, and I sure as shit know no man has ever made you scream like that.” My chest is heaving now, and the beast is snarling. He’s no happier about this conversation than I am.
She glances away, but the stubborn tilt of her chin remains. “You don’t know that.”
I close my eyes and take a deep breath. I even count to ten before opening them. Fucking hell, this woman knows how to push my buttons. “I do know that because we’re fated, and you’re mine. No man on earth can pleasure you the way I can. My soul knows how to please you. I was born to pleasure you.”
“Stop saying that!” she hisses.
“Why? Because you don’t want to accept it?” I take another deep breath. “It’s okay if you’re not ready. I said I’d wait for you, and I meant it, but don’t you dare start lying to me and saying that what we have is the same as what you’ve experienced with other men.” I glare down at her. I can’t stomach the thought of another man licking her like I just did, but I know she’s lying. It’s the only thing keeping me from completely losing my shit.
She glowers at me for another long moment, then groans and collapses to the ground. She sits on the edge of the blanket and picks at a loose thread. She still hasn’t commented on the beautiful night sky, which solidifies that I’ve completely taken over all of her thoughts and senses.
“I don’t understand any of this.” She covers her face with her palms.
Some of my anger diffuses when I see how torn she is. I remind myself that she’s not a werewolf, so all of this has to be very overwhelming for her.
I walk silently to her side and sit down. Before she can protest, I haul her into my lap.
Brianna squeals, but when I lock my arms around her waist and press my mouth to her neck, she goes quiet.
“I’ll give you all the time you need,” I say quietly, “But don’t ever compare what we have to what you’ve experienced with other men again. It … hurts too much.”
I know I’m opening my soul to potentially being tormented by her. This woman has the power to break me. But when the vulnerable words leave my mouth, her expression falls.
“I’m sorry,” she whispers. “I don’t want to hurt you. I really don’t. I just…” She hangs her head. “I don’t feel in control, and I don’t like it. It feels as if—” She shakes her head, and her mouth presses into a thin line.
“That something bigger than you has taken over your life?”