🔞 Surrendering to the monster! 🔥🔥🔥

Eva watched Kael with curious eyes, trying to appear casual. He sat across from her by the fireplace, the blanket wrapped around his hips doing little to hide his magnificence. As an Alpha wolf, he looked very powerful. Every muscle was defined, his amber eyes glowed in the firelight, his reddish-brown hair fell carelessly across his forehead, and his face... God, his face was devastatingly handsome.

Kael leaned his muscular arm against the side table, his admiring gaze never leaving Eva. Not for a single second. He had been watching her from outside for days, silently listening to her breath. He hadn't wanted to come to her unless she wanted him. His entire soul, his body served this small woman.

She glanced at him, then quickly looked away. Her heart was racing, and she tried desperately to slow it down. Because she knew, Kael could hear every frantic beat.

Finally, gathering her courage, she cleared her throat.

"Can you eat and drink?" she asked, her voice slightly breathless. "I mean, I should offer my guest something. Coffee, tea, or wine?"

Kael looked at her slowly, his gaze burning and predatory. A smile played at the corners of his mouth.

"I'm a living creature, Eva," he said, his voice deep and warm. "Yes, I eat and drink." He moistened his lips with a flirtatious move. "And I'll make you coffee every morning. You can offer me wine tonight."

Eva felt the flirtatious tone in his voice like shivers running down her spine, but she tried not to show it.

"Okay," she said, jumping to her feet. "I'll just get the glasses right away."

She went to the counter and set down one glass, then frowned. She hadn't used two glasses since coming to the house. Where were the other glasses? She opened cabinet after cabinet, searching. Finally, she spotted them—on the top shelf.

Being petite had its disadvantages. She stretched up on her toes, reaching for the glasses, but her fingers only brushed air.

"I need a chair," she muttered to herself, still reaching.

Just as she turned around, she collided with a wall of muscle.

Kael stood directly behind her, his bare chest only centimeters from her face. His masculine scent surrounded her.

"Need help?" he asked, amusement in his voice.

Eva's skin burned. Her breath caught in her throat.

"Thank you," she managed to whisper.

Kael reached up effortlessly and brought down the glass, placing it in her trembling hand. His fingers brushed hers for just a moment, hot, electric.

Eva grabbed the bottle and both glasses and practically fled to the fireplace, her bare feet padding quickly across the floor. She poured the wine with shaking hands, then Kael came and sat beside her on the floor. He had deliberately come close to her this time. As he watched Eva...

His eyes drifted to the leather bag near the fireplace, where the journals spilled out.

"You haven't been able to read them yet, have you?" he asked.

Eva followed his gaze and realized what he was looking at.

"You mean the journals?" she asked.

"Yes, the journals," Kael confirmed. "You haven't read them?"

Eva gave him a helpless look. "How can I read a language I don't know?" Then her eyes flew wide. "Wait a minute! You asking means you know this language!"

Kael's lips curved in a mysterious smile. "Considering I'm a mystical wolf, I suppose I do."

Eva set down her glass with excitement and rushed to grab the journals from the bag.

"All this time I've been searching everywhere! Even Elly couldn't figure it out. We were about to go to a library." She knelt beside him, eyes sparkling. "But now I have a living, breathing piece of history right in front of me. Come on, you have to translate this for me. There's a symbol I've been dying to know about."

She flipped through pages until she found it. "Right here!" she said, pointing with her finger. A symbol that looked like an S with an E in the center.

"Here! This symbol," she said, leaning even closer to him.

Kael inhaled sharply. Eva had come very close. Her scent, wildflowers and vanilla, filled his lungs. Having her this close was intoxicating. He felt himself hardening beneath the blanket and tried to focus on something else.

Eva was holding the book with one hand, placing her hand on his thigh for support, leaning in closer. "See? Right here..." she murmured.

"Eva," Kael's voice was strained. "Could you move your hand?"

Eva looked down and froze. Her hand was resting dangerously close to his groin. She jerked it back as if her hand had been burned.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to.." she stammered, her face turning crimson.

Kael ran his hand through his hair with a sheepish, low chuckle, trying to ease the tension in both of them.

"Let me see the symbol," he said, his voice husky.

He opened the journal and touched the symbol with his finger.

"You really don't remember this?" he asked softly.

Eva threw her hands up. "Can we establish something? I lived a completely normal, standard, ordinary life. Yes, I might be your 'chosen mate', though that's what you're saying, not me, and I'm still not convinced, but I'm a normal person, okay? So please don't ask me if I 'remember' things I've never seen before," she whined.

Kael smiled, warmth flooding his amber eyes.

"This is your symbol, Eva. The Rose bloodline symbol. The mark of Rose women," he said.

Eva looked at him, remembering something. She grabbed the medallion around her neck with her hand. "It was on the medallion," she whispered. "I wondered about it so much."

Kael's smile turned roguish. "Actually," he said quietly, "it's on my body too."

Eva's eyes flew wide with pure curiosity. "Are you serious? Where? Can I see it?"

Kael took her hand and placed it on his bare chest, right over his heart.

"Find it, little one," he murmured.

Eva's breath hitched. The heat of his skin beneath her palm was driving her crazy. Slowly, she began to explore. Her fingers traced the hard planes of his arms, the curve of his shoulders, the column of his throat. She leaned closer, and his masculine scent, pine and smoke and something wild, invaded her senses.

Her hands moved lower, over his chest, feeling each ridge of muscle. And then she found it.

"Here," she breathed. "It's right here."

The symbol was etched into his skin, right in the center of the seal mark.

"Yes," Kael said softly. "Right there."

When Eva lifted her gaze, she saw Kael's face at the tip of her lips and suddenly became aware of how close they were. Without realizing it, she noticed she had somehow ended up in his lap.

She moved to scramble away, but Kael's hands squeezed her hips, holding her in place.

"I like this feeling," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "Stay on my lap."

Eva swallowed hard, her breath coming faster. She couldn't even protest. She still couldn't make sense of why she was like this toward this man.

Kael guided Eva's finger back to the symbol on his chest.

"Yes, this seal was on your medallion," he explained.

"Wait," Eva said, her mind racing. "So a Rose woman trapped you in there?"

Kael smiled, though there was shadow of the past in his eyes. "Yes. A Rose woman imprisoned me."

"But why?" Eva's voice rose with emotion. "You said my bloodline were the wolves' mates! Why would they do that to you?"

Kael's hand came up to cup her face, his thumb stroking her cheek and lips.

"Can I tell you on Christmas Eve?" he asked softly.

Eva shivered at his touch wandering on her skin, her breath catching. This man somehow constantly directed her toward sensual feelings.

She turned her head away, frowning with an annoyed expression. "Ugh, you walk around like a living aphrodisiac," she muttered to herself. "And every time I try to focus on something else, you distract me. What's your game?"

"What did you say?" Kael asked, amusement dancing in his eyes.

"Nothing!" Eva said quickly. "I didn't say anything."

But Kael had heard every word. In one fluid motion, he lifted her and laid her down on the rug in front of the fireplace. He moved over her, his large body covering her small frame. Eva lay breathless beneath him, her eyes wide.

His hand gripped her waist, pulling her against him.

"What do you want, little one?" he growled. "You're not my mate yet. We haven't completed the mating ritual. But I'm not old-fashioned."

His lips descended to her neck, trailing hot kisses along her skin. Eva was moaning, arching into him.

Kael was intoxicated by her scent. His longing and passion for her were now at their limit.

"I've thirsted for you," he whispered against her throat. "My moon, my light, my woman. Let me drown in your longing. Let me burn in your desire." It was like lines of poetry.

He pressed small kisses to her lips, teasing, tasting. Eva trembled with pleasure. This man who had felt so real even in her dreams was now truly burning her.

But she tried to maintain control. "Wait," she gasped. "Couldn't you only stay in human form for a short time? Don't you need to shift back?"

Kael's hot breath ghosted across her face as he murmured, "That was a week ago. The seal is stronger now. You're stronger. I can spend the morning with you, beloved."

Eva's heart was pounding wildly. She didn't want to be the girl who gave in on the first date, mystical mate bond or not, this was actually their first real time together. She thought this but couldn't quite say it. Or did she not want to say it?

Because Kael's body heat, his masculine scent, and those lips hovering just above hers were driving her insane.

While in such close contact, why was he stopping? She couldn't stand it anymore.

In a moment of surrender, she pressed her lips to Kael's.

The instant their lips met, Kael's eyes blazed bright amber. With the intensity of that contact, a gentle wind swept through the mountain house. Eva pulled back with a gasp.

"What was that?" she asked breathlessly.

"The seal's first lock, little one," Kael said. As if he too had finally broken free from his chains. Then with hungry need, he claimed her mouth again. He sucked her lower lip between his teeth, his hands gripping her hips and pressing her against his hardened manhood. Eva was moaning with insane pleasure from the pressure at her core. She tried to resist, but she couldn't.

She lifted her hips toward him, her hands roaming his muscular back.

Feeling Eva's sweet surrender, Kael's lips curved in a wicked smile against hers.

"Ah, I may be your soul mate, but you forget I'm a normal man with shameless desires too, little one," he growled. "Don't offer yourself to me like this. With the passion burning inside me, I'm afraid I'll hurt you."

The words only inflamed Eva more. Maybe this was exactly what she wanted. She grabbed the hem of her sweater and pulled it over her head, tossing it aside. Her full breasts with their pink tips were laid bare before him.

"But I want to," she whispered.

With the breathtaking view before him, Kael made an animalistic growl. He pulled her into his arms. He tore away the blanket at his hips, freeing his hardened length and surrendering it to her small hands.

Eva hesitated at first, but soon she was stroking him with passion. As Kael's large hands cupped her full breasts, his mouth found her nipples. Eva writhed with insane pleasure, her womanhood contracting and trembling, seeking the fullness she craved.

When her hands reached for the button of her jeans with impatient lust, Kael stopped her.

"Don't, little one," he said, his voice strained.

"Why?" Eva asked, disappointment clear in her voice.

"I can smell your arousal from here. You're wet! You want me inside you. You want to be crushed under my manhood!" Kael said roughly. "If you undress completely, I might not be able to control myself."

Eva took his face in her hands and looked into his eyes. "I want you to. You don't need to control yourself," she said. A crazy passion burned in her eyes.

Kael smiled and kissed her deeply. "I want to give you a choice, little one. I'm an Alpha. Once you're my mate, you're my mate forever. Decide by Christmas Eve. If you choose to be mine, that night I'll fill you with every part of me. But right now, I can't let you make this choice in the heat of the moment."

Eva was surprised, but his words stopped her. Right now he was acting like a complete gentleman compared to a normal man. But Eva craved mischief more. She swallowed, feeling both disappointment and intrigue.

"Okay," she said quietly.

She moved to cover her breasts and slide out from under him, but Kael caught her.

"Shhh, Rose's daughter," he purred. "I've had a taste. You can't leave that easily."

He pulled her back beneath him.

Eva asked breathlessly, "What do you mean?"

His face was pure masculine confidence. "You've taken me inside you in dreams dozens of times. Let me play with you. I promise it will be pleasurable," he rumbled.

And... the roguish smile on his face promised much...