Shit, I never thought I'd be the nervous one.
I've always been the loud one, the reckless one, the girl who swears too much and laughs too hard and never thinks twice before diving headfirst into trouble. But standing outside the guest chamber with Enoch at my side, my heart is doing something unfamiliar, it's stuttering, like it doesn't quite know the rhythm yet. As if it has forgotten how to beat properly.
My wolf shifts restlessly beneath my skin, alert in anticipation. Excited, nervous, aware of what is about to happen, in a way my mind is unable to catch up to.
The castle is quieter here, the stone walls warm with soft lights and shadows curling along the floor. He opens the door for me, not in a stiff, formal way, but like it matters that I go first. That I'm choosing this, as if letting me know I am in control of this situation.
"After you," he says softly.
I step inside nervously.
The room is large, but welcoming, dark wood, heavy drapes, a fire crackling low in the fireplace. It doesn't feel like a guest chamber. It feels… intentional. Like someone expected us, someone set this up. Did he ask someone to set this up?
My wolf presses closer to the surface, an awareness in my chest. She's aware, pleased at what he has set up, she knows his intentions, she recognizes him.
I swallow and turn back to him. "So," I say, trying to sound calm and missing by a mile, "this is happening." Eyebrows rising to my head.
His mouth curves into a smile that makes my chest tighten. "Only if you want it to."
Gods. That alone makes me want it more. I bite my lip nervously.
I pace a little, nerves buzzing under my skin. "I just," trying to form the right words and failing, "my last relationship was a disaster," I blurt. "Lots of fighting. Making up. Fighting again. It was loud and messy and I kept pretending that it meant we were meant to be." My wolf shakes her head at the unpleasant memories.
He doesn't interrupt. He just listens.
"I don't want that again," I finish quietly looking away.
Enoch steps closer, slow enough that I don't feel crowded. "Neither do I," he says. "I want something steady. Something that doesn't hurt just to prove it's real."
My throat tightens. "What do you want?" I ask. "Really."
He reaches out, brushing his knuckles gently against my hand, grounding, but not claiming. I feel my wolf urging me to lean into his touch. "A partner," he says. "Love that lasts. A home. A family someday, maybe pups, if my mate wants that too."
My chest warms at the word mate.
"I do," I admit. "I want all of that. I just didn't think I'd get it."
His gaze softens, like I've just told him something precious. "You will," he says. "With me."
He kisses me surprisingly, but naturally, unrushed, careful. Not the desperate kind I used to mistake for affection, but something deeper. He touches me like he's learning me, like every reaction matters. When he pulls me closer, I don't feel consumed. I feel chosen. My wolf sighs in satisfaction, a sensation of the bond tightening spreads through my chest. He groans and I know he feels it too. It is as if threads are being crocheted together to make a perfect creation. Not a creation, but a connection filled with layers upon layers that settle into place.
His hands roam down around my body as if learning every curve, every dip and every imperfection. He slowly dips his hands around my ass and lifts me. I instinctively wrap my legs around his waist. Goddess this man feels like perfection.
Dragging my hands through his hair as our tongues do a mating dance with each other. Not wanting to separate from one another.
He walks slowly to the four-poster bed and sets me down gently hovering over me. Pulling back whispering into my lips "Cameron I want you." I push him slightly back and remove my dress, "then have me, all of me." His eyes bulge open as he rushes to remove his clothing. Goddess this man is a work of art. His body is perfect, thick hands that have me drooling. Eyes glowing, I know his wolf is riding him. I would be lying if I said mine wasn't riding me.
He came down on me again and his lips instantly found mine, this time hard, claiming. My hand wrapped around his neck pulling him forward, needing more of his skin, his warmth, needing more of him.
A moan escapes me, his hand roams down my body slowly reaching down to the part where I desperately need him. He starts leaving open kisses down my jaw leading down my neck, his hands lightly feathering my most sensitive spot making me arch my back into him.
His hands feel different than anyone else ever has, steady, certain, like they already know me. When he touches me it's like fire igniting ablaze, melting my mind, my wolf howls in approval beneath my skin.
He finally finds one of my breasts and his lips latch at the hardened bud.
"Fuck!" I whined the sparks shooting through me like fireworks. "Enoch, please," breathless "I need you... now."
He gives a dark menacing laugh.
It's low and rough, vibrating deep in his chest sending shivers down to my sensitive bud. It's a laugh that is felt more than heard, edge with heat and amusement, softened with intimacy, dangerous, pleasurebale and fuck I can come from it alone. "Someone is impatient. Beg for me dulcecita." He growls out.
He fucking speaks Spanish! He continues to chuckle at my reaction.
"Please no more waiting, I need you now." I beg.
Taking my other breast into his mouth he settles himself between my legs, I part without hesitation. With one hand he draws circles on the inside on my thigh, teasing menacingly, as he looks up at me. Those eyes, beautiful round eyes filled with desires, hunger and need. His tongue working magic on my breast, flicking, biting, and sucking with a need that has me driving my hips into him with desire.
His hand that's on my thigh rose higher, circling dangerously near my folds, as if asking permission for entry.
"Enoch," I can barely say through gasps.
Sliding two fingers up my folds, reaching my clit drawing a long moan from my lips. "You're all ready for me Dulcecita. Mmm, my personal delicacy."
"Please, Enoch, I can't…"
That's when I felt it. The bulge of him teetering at my entrance.
I gasp in anticipation, bucking my hips forward urging him on.
With a soft delicate kiss to my lips, he moves, pushing forward. Giving me that perfect sweet stretch that I was desperately craving.
The rest of the night unfolds in quiet intimacy, shared warmth, whispered reassurances, dirty words, and connection. Fuck the man really knows what he is doing. I'm spent, I can't even remember how many times he had me screaming his name in release.
"Ahh!" I groan into his ear as I straddle him, coming down from our countless releases. Our bodies drenched in sweat. Chests moving rapidly trying to catch our breaths. My hands wrapped around his neck, head thrown back. His arms around my waist, he is still seated inside me, head resting on my chest.
Lifting his head, "Cameran," he heaves barely breathing out…
"I know," I say, my voice shaking with the emotions of the orgasm that shook my body. "I want it."
The bite was brief on my shoulder, sharp, and then warm, energy blooming through me like something ancient waking up. I bite him on the opposite shoulder, another surge of energy blast through us, he rehardens, I scream in ecstasy and he groans as another orgasm rips through us harder than the last.
The bond settles, strong and sure, wrapping around my heart instead of constricting it.
Mine.
When he pulls back, his forehead rests against mine. "I'll protect you," he promises. "Always."
For the first time in a long time, I believe it.
And as sleep claims me in the arms of my mate, I know, without doubt, that this is not the beginning of another mess.
It's the beginning of a home.