forward. Beau’s breath was warm against her cheek, the heat of his body almost overwhelming.
“Then you probably should.”
Annie gasped as his lips brushed against her, warm and soft. It was a gentle touch at first – but even that was enough to take her breath away and leave her heart pounding in her chest. The same tiny shocks of electricity as before ran through her, sending waves of heat all the way through her body, and settling deep in her belly.
The touch of Beau’s lips was only gentle for a moment, however – a second later and his mouth had opened hungrily, his hands coming up to cup her face.
Annie had never felt so overtaken by a kiss before – not that she’d had many of them, and she felt it might be a little unfair to compare her one or two tepid high school fumblings to this.
She leaned her head back as her mouth opened for his, allowing his tongue to sweep greedily between her lips. A groan forced its way up her throat as sparks tingled through her stomach and up her spine, her head clouding with desire. Not only had Annie never been kissed like this before – she hadn’t even known kisses like this were possible.
Moaning again as her body responded to the heat and power of his, Annie reached up, grabbing at Beau’s shoulders, trying to draw him closer. She felt dizzy with need, her head spinning.
“Annie,” Beau said, his voice leaving his lips as a husky whisper. Annie shuddered at the sound, but right now, talking was the last thing she felt like doing.
Beau pulled away when she tried to lean into him again, however, and she groaned with need, wondering why he was suddenly hesitating.
“Annie, before we go any further, there’s something I have to tell you about the mated bond,” Beau said. She could hear the shake in his voice, and it was clear to her that he was forcing himself to hold back. Annie shivered at the thought – that Beau, with all his strength and power, was only barely able to resist her, of all people!
Still, she swallowed, trying to focus on what he was saying. “What is it?”
“If we do this, the bond between us will be sealed. And once it’s sealed, it can never be broken.”
Annie blinked, trying to sort through the meaning of his words. “You mean –”
“I mean that I’ll belong to you forever,” Beau said. “That feeling between us – it will always be there. Nothing will ever be able to come between us again. I’ve always known this would happen when I met my mate, and I’ve been preparing for it all my life. But you’re only just finding out about it. I need to know that you accept it – that you accept the bond – before we do anything else.”
Annie felt as if all the air had been forced from her lungs.
Nothing will ever be able to come between us again.
All her life she’d felt like an outsider. All her life she’d longed to belong. But she’d always known that she’d never settle for anyone other than the person who was right for her.
In the short time she’d known Beau, she’d felt more connected to him than anyone else she’d ever met. She’d kept having to remind herself not to fall for him – that she had agreed to spend this time with him knowing it would have to end, and she shouldn’t get too attached to him.
I kept telling myself it was only for three days, and that was all, she thought, looking up into his eyes. But my heart kept having other ideas. It kept trying to pull me in, and I kept resisting.
Knowing what she knew now, Annie realized it had been the mated bond all along, trying to tell her that she and Beau belonged together.
And now, here was Beau, asking her if she accepted it.
In the end, the answer was obvious.
“Yes, of course I do,” Annie said, her voice little more than a gasp. “Of course I accept it.”
A thrill ran through her as she said the words. She couldn’t help but think she was standing on the brink of something new and exciting – a world she had never even imagined existed.
And more even than that, she wanted him.
She’d never wanted anyone – anything – more than she wanted Beau.
His lips on hers were like fire, hot and demanding, and leaving her breathless in their wake.