16. EZRA

Vanya was waiting for my answer.

What am I supposed to tell her, the truth or a lie?

If I told her the truth, would she run away?

The fear that we’d never have her the way we wanted to kept me silent. She asked me if I’d ever had sex before and the answer was no. I knew perfectly well what she meant by sex since I was no stranger to it, but we just had a different name for it.

“Ezra?”

Vanya’s soft voice pulled me away from my thoughts. I swallowed and glanced over her shoulder, searching for a place to set her down so she wouldn’t feel my arousal.

“No,” I told her after a few more silent debates. “I’ve never had sex before.”

Her sharp breath had my eyes snapping back to hers. Vanya’s eyes were wide open and filled with shock.

My eyes dropped to her mouth. I caught sight of her pink tongue seconds before she slammed her mouth shut.

“You’re a virgin?”

Now where have I heard that word before?

My hold on her waist tightened when she slipped a little lower. A few more inches and her ass would come in contact with my aching shaft. Spinning around, I took careful steps towards the waterfall.

A few feet to the left, there were different sized, smooth rocks. The spray of the waterfall might be a problem, but since we were both already wet, it didn’t really matter.

Vanya’s eyes narrowed when I lowered her onto a rock and took a step back. As her legs dropped, so did her eyes.

I followed her gaze and winced. The water reached up to my groin which left my hardness visible to her eyes.

“Wow.”

Colour flooded my cheeks.

“So the women weren’t lying,” she muttered.

I frowned at her. “Women?”

Vanya shook her head and gave me a small smile. I tensed when she suddenly reached out and placed her palms against my chest. She did the exact opposite of what I expected her to do. Her hands slowly slipped lower.

I shuddered and allowed my eyes to flutter closed when her short nails scraped against my skin.

“You never answered my question.”

Swallowing, I tried to focus, but it was hard to do, especially when her fingers brushed against my nipples.

“A virgin is someone who has never had sex,” I said. “I told you that I’ve never had sex before. So yes, I am what you humans call—a virgin.”

“How?” she questioned. “I mean, you’re not human. You’re a cat-shifter. Do—”

“I know what sex is, Vanya,” I growled. “We call it breeding. I’ve seen Devrim breed with our females before. I’ve also watched videos.”

“Videos?”

I nodded. My hands shot out to grab her wrist so her hands couldn’t slip lower. “Vanya—”

“I really want to kiss you,” she interrupted me. “May I?”

I licked my lips and glanced around. Nervousness made me feel shaky. The thought of her lips on mine… I swallowed the purr that threatened to escape.

“I—”

My words were cut off when Vanya leaned forward and closed the space between us.

The first brush of her lips against mine stole what little air I had left in my lungs. I wanted to reach out and pull her against me, but I held still. I was scared of hurting her, and I was scared that I might do something wrong.

Vanya’s lips parted before they closed over my bottom lip. So softly, it felt like it was barely touching mine. Her small hands cupped my cheeks and tilted my head slightly to the side as she changed the angle of her head.

I think I died and went to that place the humans called heaven.

My body jerked when her tongue brushed across my lip. I instantly parted them and took a step closer to her.  

The purr escaped when our tongues met.

Vanya pulled me even closer and surprised me by wrapping her legs around my hips.

I pulled away and sucked in a breath. Her face was flushed and her lips glistening and swollen.

I should put a stop to this before it got out of hand, but I did the opposite of what I knew I needed to do.

Reaching out, I gripped the back of her neck and pulled her lips towards mine again. Her gasp of surprise was swallowed when my mouth smashed down on hers.  

Vanya moaned and slid her arms around my neck. Her legs slid higher up my hips as her body arched against mine.

My skin started to tingle—a clear sign that I was about to shift.

I gently pushed Vanya away and stumbled backwards. A few steps from her and I couldn’t control it any longer.  

Bones snapped as they were rearranged and fur sprouted along my skin.

A roar fell from my lips when I hit the shallow water on all fours.

With one last glance at her, I turned and ran for the trees.

I need to get away from her before I hurt her.