Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 120031 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 600(@200wpm)___ 480(@250wpm)___ 400(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 120031 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 600(@200wpm)___ 480(@250wpm)___ 400(@300wpm)
Clare’s mouth fell open. “You found your true mate?” It was a shocked whisper.
“Yep.”
Clare’s face lit up. “This is amazing news!” She hauled Casey into a tight hug. “Oh honey, I’m so happy for you.” She pulled back, practically bubbling with excitement. “What, when, where, how? I want to know everything. Oh, we should throw a celebratory—”
“No,” Casey insisted. She liked parties well enough, she just didn’t like parties that included hundreds of drunken minks. They never ended well.
The kitchen door swung open, and Adrian strode inside. His lips curved as he spotted Casey. “Afternoon. How was soccer practice?”
“Good, thanks,” said Casey.
He grunted. “Now, what’s this I heard about you running with a wolf this morning?”
“Casey has the best news.” Clare elbowed her. “Go ahead, tell him.”
Casey bared her claiming bite again.
Adrian blinked. “Wow.” Shaking himself out of his stupor, he pulled her into a hug. “Congratulations. Who is the lucky bastard?”
“His name is Eli Axton, he’s—”
“The Mercury Pack Head Enforcer?”
“That’s the one.”
He let out a low whistle. “I’ve heard he’s … intense. That wolf has the kind of reputation that make grown men shiver.”
“He’s a wolf?” Clare’s face fell. “Does that mean you’ll be leaving us?”
“I don’t know what it means yet.” Casey shrugged. “We’ll have to see.”
“No matter what, this is great news.” Clare squeezed her hand. “I’m happy for you.”
“I look forward to meeting him,” said Adrian. “I’m assuming he’ll be at your game, so I’ll see him then, if not before.”
Casey nodded. “I have to go. You guys enjoy your burgers.”
Back at home, she did a few chores and then started her enforcer duties. Her shift was fairly uneventful, since she was patrolling the border as opposed to the busy estate. After it was over, she returned to her apartment and changed into a smart, casual get-up of white blouse and black pants. She figured dinner at Eli’s territory would be an informal affair, but she wanted to look like she’d made an effort.
She wanted Eli’s family and pack mates to like her or, at the very least, simply be happy for him. She’d seen how ugly it could get when families didn’t take well to someone’s mate. Gayle and Ira were a perfect example. Gayle’s parents despised him, but although she’d been close to her family, she’d chosen Ira over them when he gave her an ultimatum.
Casey was sitting on the sofa watching TV when there was a hard knock on the door. Standing, she sank her toes into the fluffy, white rug that was the same color as the cushions on her cream, upholstered sofa and then crossed to the front door. Opening it wide, she found herself staring at well over six feet of pure muscle, tanned flesh, and raw male power. And there went her ovaries. Poof.
Eli stood tall and proudly erect with his shoulders back, gut sucked in, and an assertive stance that made several words spring to the forefront of her mind. Dominant. Powerful. Self-assured. Dauntless.
His powerfully built body was utterly still as he watched her with that sharp, penetrating gaze—a gaze that was currently glittering with so much heat that her stomach clenched painfully. Sexual tension flickered to life, thick and hot. It made the air crackle and her hormones go a little haywire. Her mink let out a highly contented purr.
“Well, hello,” said Casey as he slowly walked inside with a predatory grace, sucking the air out of the apartment with just his very presence.
“Hello to you, too.” Unable to fight the soul-deep urge to touch her, Eli caught her face in his hands. It had been a long-ass day that had felt more like a fucking week. The hours had ticked by so damn slowly it was close to agonizing. She’d dominated his thoughts the entire time.
“Missed you,” he said softly. Missed her taste. Her scent. The feel of her skin. Missed those unusual eyes that were framed by thick lashes dark as soot. “Gonna need to feast on this mouth just a little.”
He didn’t kiss her, he devoured her. Held her close as he took and took, wishing he could crawl inside her. Loving that every cell, every bone, every hair on her head belonged to him. Was made for him.
He’d driven to her apartment with his cock hard and his blood hot with excitement, itching to get his hands on the thing he’d been craving since the second he left her. When she’d opened the door, his gut twisted with a ferocious, sexual need that made him want to slam her onto the nearest surface and fuck her raw. If they weren’t scheduled to have dinner with his pack, he’d have done exactly that.
Pulling back, he brushed his lips over hers, satisfied by the flush on her cheeks and the spice of need in her delectable scent. A scent that would be mixed with his own once the mating progressed—he couldn’t wait for that.