“I’ve been such a fool,” she rasped, her breath hot against his ear. “Will you forgive me?”
Her sudden movements took him aback, and without thinking, he untangled himself from her embrace to stare warily at her.
“What?” he sputtered.
She scowled.
“What’s going on?” he asked slowly, instantly wanting to kick himself for backing away, but he could tell that something was not right about the way she was approaching him.
Lora pouted slightly and cocked her head to the side.
“Why are you resisting?” she asked, sounding offended by his hesitation. “You said I’m not married, didn’t you?”
“Well…yes…” he agreed, feeling a rush of heat wash over him as he stared down at her. He couldn’t deny that he had hoped to have her in his arms again, but given the way he had just left her, he wasn’t sure she was acting the way she was supposed to be.
Or maybe this is the real Lora with her confidence restored.
The thought fueled his desire.
“We’ve already been together, haven’t we?” she pressed. “Was it that bad?”
“No, of course not!” Tav sputtered. “It was…”
He faltered and flushed slightly, barely able to understand the Lora who stood before him.
“Then why are you fighting me?” she purred. This time, when she moved toward him, he didn’t stop her. Their mouths met, and instantly, Tav was thrust back to the first time they were together. He had no idea why he had tried to resist in the first place.
The memory of her ecstatic squeals was fresh in his ears, and suddenly Tav knew he needed to feel himself inside her again. Without warning, he grabbed her by the shoulders, shoving her back against the wall, mouth crushing her surprised lips.
At first, it seemed she was too off-guard to react, but when his arm snaked down against her buttocks, yanking her tiny waist toward him, she responded eagerly.
“That’s what I’m talking about,” she breathed, her words only enhancing the surge of warmth battling through his veins.
Tav rubbed his scruff against her cheek, inhaling the sweetness of her skin as his lips closed around her earlobe, nibbling deliciously as she panted softly.
His free hand slid across her front, slipping beneath the waistband of the too-big bottoms he had loaned her, fingertips meeting the cleft between her legs.
She was already ready for him, that much was clear.
He wedged her deeper into the wall, one hand massaging her butt cheek, the other teasing between her legs.
Lora gasped and moaned as his movements grew more intense, but she made no gesture to slow him down.
“Jesus,” she mumbled, and his head jerked back in shock, amusement lighting his eyes.
“You don’t have to call me that when we’re alone,” he rasped, breath hot in her ear.
Instinctively, her arms reached out to hold his waist, and he placed one of her palms on his growing erection, hips thrusting toward her gently as he encouraged her to touch him.
They fell into a slow, dizzying rhythm, Tav’s mouth finding the lines of Lora’s neck and shoulders, feeling the prickled flesh as he explored every part of her again.
Her hand tightened around him, her free palms sliding his jeans lower.
“Take me,” she begged, her eyes pleading with naked desire. “I need you inside me.”
Tav lifted her head and smiled at her, his digits still touching her middle.
“Of course,” he growled. “Your wish is my command.”
But he didn’t stop, not yet until he felt her body tensing, poised for a release, and Lora cried out again.
“Please,” she moaned. “I need you—"
Her sentenced was cut short as he spun her around, her hand falling away from his body, her frame pinned up against the wall as he fell into her.
Heart pounding, Lora tried to turn and look at him, but his face was pressed into hers, his mouth against her ear.
The steam of his breath snaked down her spine as he positioned himself, ready to give her exactly what she demanded.
In one fluid motion, Tav filled her, and Lora cried out, contracting against him. He groaned at the feeling as her hands splayed against the wall.
They melded together, a gasping chorus as he began to plunge into her, deliberately and deep, hard and strong.
Tav was finding it difficult to breathe, this position somehow taking him higher than the last time, and he yelped, his thrusts becoming ruts of pleasure, the grunts from his mouth becoming cries of passion.
Lora could barely hold herself up, and if not for Tav keeping her in position, she would have fallen into an unceremonious pile on the floor. His bulging forearm embraced her waist as he withdrew from her, carefully keeping her from collapsing. Tav spun her around once more, his eyes boring into hers.
“God, you’re beautiful,” he rasped, his breaths still uneven and hoarse. Lora smiled, but the haze in her eyes had not dissipated.
For a long, strange moment, Tav felt as though he was staring at a stranger. Lora looked exactly as she always had, long-lashed dark eyes peering at him alluringly, dark hair framing her pale face. In many ways, she looked healthier than she had before, but she was unfamiliar, as though something else had overtaken her.
“Are you all right?” he asked slowly.
“Of course,” she chirped, slowly picking up her discarded clothing from around the kitchen. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
“I don’t know, but you don’t look right,” Tav said, his words faint as he abruptly realized what was happening to her.
She’s changing. She’s shifting already.
It took him several seconds to notice the way her snout elongated, the gleam of her eyes shining in the darkness of the kitchen. Without warning, Lora bared her fangs and lunged for his jugular, shocking him and driving him back.
“Lora!” he choked, throwing up his arms to defend himself from her gnashing. Saliva dripped from her fangs, and she fully attacked, her need for blood overwhelming the horror that the human in her must have been experiencing. “Lora stop!”
The beast huffed, slashing at his face, but by now, Tav had gathered his senses and rolled out of harm’s way. He knew he had no choice but to shift also, and in seconds, he had morphed into the majestic black dragon that stunned Lora into temporary paralysis.
She gaped at him, tongue lolling out against her russet fur as she tried to make sense of what she was seeing.
A low whimpering growl emanated through the kitchen as they stared at one another.
I don’t want to hurt you, he told her silently, willing her to fall back. But if she understood him, Tav could not say.
Abruptly, she spun away and sprinted on all fours toward the front door. Tav cursed himself, knowing he had not bothered to lock the door, but the door was not where Lora was headed. He rushed after her, the sound of splintering glass meeting his ears. He stared in disbelief as she crashed through the front window, shards stuck to her fur before she barreled off into the pouring rain.
Oh, this is not good, he thought, flying out after her. This is not good at all.
His wings beat against the rain, this time barely noticing the water. What would normally annoy him, flying about in the pelting water, had barely scratched the surface of what was weighing so intently on Tav’s mind in those moments. The storm had lessened in intensity, soaring over the mountain woods at night made it next to impossible to track a newly shifted wolf who was undoubtedly looking for shelter and a place to figure out what was going on with herself.