Chapter 9

Kane POV

Erin leaves Elara’s quarters just as Axel and I approach. She nods in our direction and walks away.

I crack my neck and enter Elara’s quarters, and Axel shuts the door behind him, clicking the lock into place. As if anyone would dare disturb us.

Instead of standing as a sign of respect, Elara leans back onto the couch, crossing one knee over the other, and folds her arms across her chest. Her mouth is pulled into a line of determination as she glares at us.

The urge to turn her over my knee and redden her ass for her disrespect was a monster racing through my veins. A very lustful monster … which shocks me. Where did that image, that desire, come from?

I return her scowl and shove the thought away.

“It’s time to mate,” I say brusquely, still irritated with her disrespectful demeanour.

“Wow,” Elara makes a show of looking at the clock on the wall on the other side of the living room. “You’ve allotted me a whole forty-five minutes for mating.”

She un-crosses and re-crosses her legs, and I get a fresh whiff of her scent, sending my wolf into a frenzy of excitement. Slowly and deliberately, she looks me up and down. “Then again, we probably only need a few minutes.”

“Oh, well,” she leans forward and unties her golden sandals. “Let’s get this over with.”

I open my mouth to snap at her, but before I can form any words, Axel is in my head.

“Leave it alone, Kane,” he hisses urgently. “Let’s just get this done and do what we need to do so we can proceed tomorrow.”

I release my breath slowly, he is right. We must do this and move forward, there is no time for anything else.

I stalk through the living room towards the bedroom, unbuckling my belt. When I reach the threshold, I stop and turn to look back at Elara, yanking my belt out of the loops for show.

“Well, come on then,” I smirk.

I turn away and walk into the bedroom, shedding my shoes, pants, and shirt before standing at the foot of the bed in my boxer briefs, waiting.

Staring through the doorway, I see Axel smirking and walking toward the bedroom, shedding his own clothes as he makes his way to the bedroom. Elara finishes untying her shoes and kicks them off before rising from the couch and sulking her way in here.

When she reaches the door and sees Axel and me, both half-hard and in our boxer briefs, she hesitates, and her eyes widen. The pulse in her neck beats rapidly, and she swallows before making eye contact.

We know the effect we have on women, and I did not expect it to be any different with her, but I am still pleased by her reaction. Elara is feisty, and she has already insulted me. Now, she must eat her words.

“Like what you see?” I spread my arms out, flexing my stomach muscles.

She lifts her chin, narrowing her eyes before she slips her long, black dress off her shoulders, and it puddles around her feet on the floor.

“I can ask the same thing,” she glares at me, stepping over the dress, and my mouth turns dry.

Axel POV

Holy shit, I did not expect that. She is beautiful. No, that would be an insult to her. Beautiful does not do her justice. She is breathtakingly exquisite.

I am unsure what I was expecting. I have eyes – she has a pretty face, and the black dress showed promise of a beautiful body, but this! There is something about all that flawless porcelain skin and those perfect, full breasts in a simple black, lacy bra that made me speechless.

Would her nipples be as pale as her skin? Or would they be darker, like strawberries or raspberries? Suddenly, I cannot wait to find out.

I have been dreading mating with her, dreading what we had to do, but now … now I want nothing more than to do her.

I reach down and adjust my cock, which is now fully and painfully hard.

From the corner of my eye, I see Kane reach down to do the same, and I look at him. When his eyes meet mine, they are glassy with arousal, and I nod.

Good. We are on the same page. And if Elara’s scent was any indication, so is she. Her scent fills the room and wraps around us, heightening our desire.

My wolf, Blade, is pawing at the inside of me, eager to taste Elara, and I am sure Kane’s wolf, Hunter, is doing the same.

“You only want her because she’s in heat and you’ve never been with a woman in heat before,” I scold Blade, but his only response is a low growl. Hell, if I know what that even means.

My legs develop a mind of their own, and suddenly, I am in front of Elara, my hand gently cupping her chin. Her skin is delicately smooth under my touch, arousing me even more.

“Before we start,” my voice is hoarse with desire. “Kane and I must know if you’ve been with anyone before.”

“Ex … excuse me?” She steps backwards, her face flushed with surprise. “Um, what does that even matter? How is that any of your business?”

Her reaction speaks volumes, and I smile softly. Kane walks and stands beside me, stroking the back of his fingers down her arm. Instantly, she is covered in goosebumps, and I develop an overwhelming urge to count them … with my tongue.

“Because,” Kane’s voice is thick with lust as he strokes up and down her arm, over her shoulder, neck and finally grasping the back of her head. “If you haven’t been with anyone before, Axel and I will proceed a little differently.”

A soft frown nestles between her perfectly shaped eyebrows, and she looks at us with slight bewilderment, telling us everything we need to know.