"I want you, Kade," she whispered against his mouth, her breath shaky, threaded with fear and certainty all at once. "I don't know what tomorrow holds, but I want now."
His heart slammed against his ribs. Her declaration nearly unmade him. He braced himself above her, staring down into her wide, tear-rimmed eyes. "You don't really mean that…"
But she met his gaze without flinching. "I do."
And then her hand slid his down the curve of her body until it rested firmly against her breast. Kade inhaled sharply, heat exploding in his veins. His palm instinctively flexed, giving a gentle squeeze, and the answering sigh from her lips nearly snapped the last chain of his control.
Her scent filled the room. He could smell her arousal, and it undid him completely. The man of steel, the soldier who had withstood battles, and loss, melted into a man who could no longer deny the woman in his arms.
He froze for the briefest moment, searching her face. Her eyes burned with reckless resolve. And he knew—if he denied her now, it would wound her as much as it destroyed him.
With a soft, guttural sound, Kade scooped her up into his arms. She gasped but clung to him, her arms winding around his neck as if she'd been waiting a lifetime for this surrender. He carried her through the house into the sanctuary of his bedroom.
The bed loomed like a promise and a threat all at once. And though guilt whispered faintly at the back of his mind, it was drowned out by the thundering truth: tonight, she was his.
Maybe this was what they both needed—to bleed it out, to burn through the fire and get it out of their system before it consumed them both alive. At least, that's what Kade tried to tell himself as he lowered her onto the mattress. The bed dipped beneath her weight. May didn't hesitate. Her hands flew to the hem of her nightdress, and with a swift tug, it was gone, tossed carelessly to the floor. She lay there, chest rising and falling rapidly, unashamed and unafraid. Perhaps shame had no place between them anymore. Why cling to it when the future held nothing but torment? Tonight was theirs, stolen though it might be.
Kade's breath caught in his throat, chest tightening until he thought he might burst. He dragged his hand over his face as though that might smother the hunger, but the wolf within him surged, clawing at his insides. He gave up the fight long enough to climb onto the bed, his weight pressing into the mattress as he caged her beneath him. Heat radiated from her bare skin, searing him even through the fabric of his clothes. Her nipples, taut and begging, brushed against his chest as she arched toward him, and he felt the raw demand in the shiver of her body. He kissed her neck—just once, he swore, just a taste. But the moment his lips grazed her pulse, hot and racing, the wolf roared to life, demanding he sink his teeth in and claim her forever.
"Damn it," he hissed under his breath, eyes squeezing shut. His control wavered, fraying at the edges. He shoved the beast back, digging his mental claws into the walls he'd built around it. He couldn't—he mustn't mark her. Not when she didn't understand what it meant. Not when another man's ring bound her finger, no matter how weak that bond was compared to the one blazing between them now. But May wasn't making it easy. Far from it. Her fingers were everywhere—sliding under his shirt, mapping the hard planes of his chest and stomach with feverish urgency. Every brush of her touch lit him up, sparks against a powder keg ready to blow.
Her hand trailed lower, fumbling for the buckle of his belt, and Kade swore softly as her knuckles grazed the rigid length of him through his trousers. His hips jerked involuntarily, a guttural sound escaping his throat before he could swallow it down. "May," he groaned, "I am telling you, you do not want this." The warning was desperate, ragged at the edges.
But she only tilted her head back, hair spilling over his pillow, eyes dark with determination. "You keep saying that," she whispered, tugging at the leather with shaky hands, "but my body is telling me otherwise."
With trembling determination, her hands worked at his belt until the leather slipped free, then she tugged at the fabric. At last she managed to free him from his pants, and her breath caught in her throat. The hard weight of him filled her palm, hot and alive, pulsing with power. Her gasp was sharp, startled but it only deepened the hunger spiraling low in her belly. More than ever, she wanted him inside her. Needed it like air. "Kade… Kade, please." She writhed beneath him, shameless in her desperation, her thighs brushing against him in restless invitation.
Kade cursed under his breath, his resolve slipping like sand between his fingers. That one word—please—had him unraveling faster than any touch. "You're going to be the death of me," he muttered hoarsely, and before she could say more, he crushed his mouth against hers. It wasn't just a kiss—it was a silencing, a desperate attempt to smother her cries before Nelly stirred in the room down the hall. The house was far too quiet, every sound carrying farther than he could risk. But the moment their lips collided, restraint turned molten. His tongue tangled with hers, and she clung to him like she might drown without him. He slid his hand down, slipping between her thighs. The heat of her core nearly burned him, and when his fingers slid inside her, his control fractured further. He dug in with three fingers, pumping hard and steady while his thumb teased her clit in sinful circles. Her wetness coated his hand, her scent flooding his senses. Even if he wanted to stop now, it was already too late.