Chapter 4 Mine

Allissa

I could feel the tingles against my skin and slowly opened my eyes. I stared up at the knotty pine ceiling as I tried to remember what had happened. Slowly, it came back to me, and the tiny tingles on my face made me remember about my mate. I turned my head slightly, to the green eyes of the Lycan King, whose thumb was softly caressing my cheek.

“You should be feeling better, but let me know if you aren’t and I will call my healers back.” His voice was calm, gentle, and soothing. It wasn’t what I was expecting.

“I’m sorry,” I muttered and moved to sit up. His arm caught mine as he slowly guided me to a sitting position.

“You don’t have anything to say sorry for.”

“For becoming a burden.” I looked down at my hands, because I was practically eye fucking him. I could see just how defined his strong, muscular arms were, and how I could imagine him carrying me in them. Damn, it sucked that I fainted during the best part. Maybe I should fake it so I can relish being in his arms for just a moment.

His hand grabbed my chin, tilting it so that I was looking back into his eyes.

“You are never a burden. And after what happened to you, I’m surprised how well you were able to stay conscious for as long as you did. You were in a lot of pain, weren’t you?”

I nodded my head as I studied his face. His green eyes, with little flecks of gold. His strong jawline and his big lips. I wanted to taste his lips ... his incredibly sexy lips that I was mindlessly staring at.

“So...uhm—” I cleared my throat and glanced back at his eyes. “Now what? I have to be punished because I was his luna, right?”

“No. They will be hunted down. It’s only a matter of time before we catch them. They were able to drain the accounts before we could freeze them.”

“That’s all the pack’s money.” I began racking my brain, trying to figure out a way to support them.

“Your pack has insurance that’s covered by my kingdom. We will reimburse the pack and I’ll be leaving a couple of handy advisors behind to take care of things.”

“That won’t be necessary. Alfred didn’t take care of anything. I handled all the books, so I can continue to do it without any problems.” He stared at me blankly and then straightened up.

“Allissa, I am Darren, Lycan King, and you are my mate. You won’t be staying in this pack. You are leaving with me today.”

My mouth plopped open as I stared at him in shock. He must have to have a formal ceremony in order to reject me.

“Can’t you reject me here? The pack just lost their alpha and—”

“I’m not rejecting you.” I watched as a wounded expression crossed his face. “I know that a lot happened to you today. I’m not going to force myself on you, but you are my mate. You belong to me. And I’m taking you with me.”

Maybe the poison was affecting my mind, because I swear he just said he was taking me with him. I needed to re-clarify this. “You want me ... as your mate?”

“You are my mate ... my queen.” His hand grabbed mine, and he covered it with his other hand. “There will be a formal ceremony for the marking and coronation. It usually takes place on a full moon. We just had one, so we will have a month to get to know each other before then.” I watched as he swallowed hard and then looked down. “And if you have children, I will adopt them as my own. I hope—”

He stopped talking and then just stared at me. I wasn’t sure what he was doing until he dropped my hands to wipe the tears from my face. I was crying! Hearing him talk about children just reminded me of the child I had lost. I didn’t get to properly mourn their death, and right now it really hurt.

“I promise I will take care of you. I won’t force—”

“That’s not it,” I whispered, reaching my hands up to rub my eyes. He placed his hand on my lap. It seemed he needed to be in constant contact with me. “The pain started two months ago. The pain that I associated with the miscarriage of my child. Right when Ivy arrived—”

“He’s fucking dead.” Darkness. His eyes looked obsidian as his face twisted up in anger. I felt him grip my leg as his chest heaved. “When I find him, I will personally shred him to pieces. How could he do something so awful, and to his own pup!”

Dear lord, this man was going to be the end of me. The tears stopped, as I felt the desire swirl inside of me. Seeing his muscular arm flex in anger had me picturing other occasions when those muscles might ripple. We are animals so it’s natural to get like this around your mate. But I didn’t want him to think badly of me. I wanted him to know that I wasn’t in love with Alfred. Suddenly, it was important to me what he thought of me. Gods, was this really happening? Did this ALL male really want me? The king of lycans and werewolves ... he really wanted me?

His intense, dark eyes were locked onto mine and I could feel the weight of his gaze. The scent of his musky cologne filled the air, tinged with a hint of cinnamon that made my senses tingle. His nostrils flared ever so slightly as he took in my presence, but there was no longer anger in his expression. His hand slowly slid forward, his fingers brushing against my skin as he leaned in closer. His warm breath danced across my face, sending shivers down my spine

“Can I kiss you?”

I felt as if the breath had been knocked out of my lungs. He was asking me for permission. Alfred had never asked me for permission. Our first night together, he didn’t care at all about my emotions or needs. He didn’t consider how awkward it was to be intimate with a stranger. But this man was asking for a kiss?!

I couldn’t respond. There was no voice in my throat. All I managed to do was subtly nod my head. And then words were not needed.

His lips crashed into mine like a tsunami, fiery and forceful. He held me in place, his hand fisted in my hair, as his tongue explored every inch of my mouth. My body ignited with pleasure, and I couldn't help but moan against his lips. I could feel myself growing wet with desire, my body responding eagerly to his touch. The intensity of our kiss was overwhelming, like a storm brewing inside of me, ready to unleash its passion and power.

He leaned his body against mine and I was now laying back on the couch. His hand frantically began to explore my body, and that was when I felt it. His hard, thick cock digging into me. Damn ... my underwear was now soaked.

“MINE!” he growled against my lips, only parting from me for a brief second before he buried his tongue in my mouth again.