That was the best sex she ever had. Words couldn’t even begin to describe it.
They didn’t say anything for a long time. Both were riding the afterglow. He withdrew from her, leaving a trail of sticky wetness.
He caught her gaze and smiled.
She wanted to say something but couldn’t find the right words. Maybe there wasn’t much to say. Thousands of emotions stirred inside her heart. He pulled her against him and kissed her deeply.
Maybe they didn’t need any words. He’d conveyed his feeling with his body language. And that was so sweet. For a long time, they only touched and kissed until the sky outside the window became completely dark.
Chapter Three
Quinn woke before dawn, leaving Vanessa asleep under the comforter. He was an early riser. After a quick shower, he put on clothes and went outside only to shed everything again, transforming into his beastly form. He had to sate his animal’s need. His tiger had demands and having spent the night with Vanessa, his beast wanted to be let free. She had practically been in his hands and yet he couldn’t claim her properly. That woman was his true mate. He was sure of it.
His blood called for her.
His tiger called for her.
Once he marked her during lovemaking, he’d bind her to him forever.
The problem was, he needed her consent beforehand.
A weretiger couldn’t bind a woman blindly. It was against the code of his clan. In order to do that, first, he needed to come clean about who he really was. Which lead him to problem number two: Vanessa was an ordinary human female who was blissfully unaware supernatural creatures existed. He couldn’t predict her reaction.
If she freaked out, it would be incredibly difficult to win her back. A man in his position must tread lightly with matters like these. A slip and a big scandal would haunt him and his family forever.
He wasn’t the only one who woke up this early. His brothers Trent and John had gone out too. His sense of smell sharpened in his tiger form. His family owned the land surrounding the vacation house, mostly so they could roam free without being spotted by humans. Quinn was a full-blooded shifter. His mother came from the Siberian clan while his father was a Bengal. His mother had abandoned the shifter side of herself since his father passed away. These days only he and his brothers liked to run on the estate.
Quinn leapt on the big wooden log and swished his tail. There was a rustling noise behind the bush. Trent and John trotted out seconds later.
Brother mine, said Trent in mindspeak. I hadn’t expected to see you here. I thought you were still busy bedding your woman.
My mate, Quinn corrected. Soon to be.
John looked at him with his yellow eyes, grinning as far as a tiger could grin. Congratulation. Mother would be pleased.
Way to go, said Trent. I thought it was a one-sided crush. She wasn’t your woman before you brought her to meet us.
Mate, Quinn corrected again. He was a bit miffed. Vanessa wasn’t just anybody. She was special. It doesn’t matter, does it? She’s mine now.
Trent made a rumbling noise in his throat which was equal to human laughter. How did she come up with Coco? That was hilarious.
Is that what tipped you off? Quinn asked.
Well, for once, she didn’t completely go googly-eyed lovey-dovey, like your previous girlfriends.
I’m glad you didn’t pick that girl you used to date as a mate, John joined in. What was her name? Annabelle? Damn, she was annoying. She kept pestering me to produce her album. She didn’t have talent and her voice gave me a headache.
Yes, she was something, said Quinn. Annabelle stalked me for a year. I was tempted to file a restraining order. Thank God I didn’t need to. She finally moved on to her next boyfriend.
A gust of wind alerted them to the presence of another beast. A big white wolf ran across the snow-covered landscape in their direction. Quinn sniffed the air and knew who was coming. It was Jason Bishop, the alpha of the Aspen pack. The town underground scene was ruled by three shifter families: The Bishop pack, the Westeros lion pride, and the Alexander tigers.
As the head of the clan, Quinn replaced his father in the underground council. He worked behind the scenes mostly, helping in finances. The Bishop pack provided the security to keep Aspen shifters in line. But Quinn knew why Jason came to his estate today and it had nothing to do with peacekeeping. Suddenly, he dreaded the werewolf visit.