Chapter Sixty-Seven
The lycan in front of her looked feral. Blood dripped to the floor from one of his numerous open wounds. His black eyes were predatory and pinned her to the door. Again his nostrils flared. He stalked toward her. His nose ran over her arms where Lucas had gripped her. His nose traveled up and then pressed against her neck, he recoiled and growled loudly enough to rattle the glass of the door behind her. A clawed hand reached out and gripped her throat, causing her to gasp. His shift was instantaneous. She blinked and her mate was glaring back at her in his human form. His eyes were still pitch black as he looked pointedly down at her neck. His fingers tightened.
“Who the fuck touched you?” he hissed.
“Graham… I…”
“Who. Touched. You?” he repeated, stepping further into her space. She groaned as his erection pressed up against her stomach.
“Some men cornered me and Lucas and…”
“Lucas? Did he touch you?!”
“No… I…”
Graham silenced her by gripping her neck tighter. “I told you to stay with Jensen. Yet you go against it? You may be the alpha’s daughter but you’re my mate. You submit to me, understood?” She narrowed her eyes at him fueling his anger further. “I told you to stay with Jensen. I told you not to provoke me today. What happens next is on you.”
He released her throat but before she could take more air into her lungs his lips connected with hers. Her head swam as her lungs ran out of oxygen. Graham ran his hands through her hair and yanked her head back so his mouth could move down her throat. He growled as he was hit with the other lycan’s scent.
“I’ll kill him,” he hissed.
“Lucas already did,” she panted as his teeth grazed the shirt above her breasts.
“I’ll kill him too.”
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Before she could object, he spun her around and pressed her roughly into the door. His extended claws turned her dress into ribbon that fluttered to the ground around them. Catherine cried out as he entered her roughly. His hands circled her waist as he drove himself into her over and over. He growled low. Her feet lifted from the ground as he sought easier access to what he wanted.
Catherine tried to find something to hold on to, eventually digging her nails into the wood of the door for support. At the moment she expected him to slam one last time inside her, he instead pulled out. Catherine gasped and her sex pulsed at the sudden absence. She felt his seed land on her back as he groaned low. He planted his hand beside her head and hissed through his teeth as he spent himself on her skin.
Catherine was afraid to move, so she waited for his breathing to slowly fall back to normal. His hand beside her head disappeared and she felt it smooth along the skin of her back and around her middle to coat her skin in his cum. That same hand ran up her front and clasped around her throat. He pulled her head back so she was pressed firmly against him.
“Do you remember doing that to yourself after swallowing me for the first time?” he questioned. Catherine could only nod as she waited for his next move. His hand left her throat and he turned her to face him. Catherine’s shoulders fell back against the door while he held her up by her waist. He leaned forward closer to her lips. “Do you know what it means, Baby?” he asked, letting his nose trail over where the lycan’s scent used to be, now smothered instead in the scent of their lovemaking. Catherine shook her head. “It means you’re ready for breeding.”
Chapter Sixty-Seven
Catherine gasped at both his words and the rough way he threw her over his shoulder. He carried her into their room and threw her onto the bed. Before she could even right herself, he was spinning her to her back while he crawled over her. His eyes were still pitch black as he stared down at her. She glanced down to see his cock already swelling again with his desire.
She groaned and tried to scoot further up the bed. They’d had so much sex today, she was sure she’d be sore for several more days. He smirked at her attempt to escape. He sat up, gripped her ankle and pulled her back under him. He clasped her cheek in a gesture that was both warm and full of warning.
“I told you to stay with Jensen, didn’t I?” he asked.
Catherine opened her mouth to answer but only a rush of air came out as he gripped her hair and yanked her head back to lengthen her neck. She groaned as the pain of his dominance sank to a pool of desire between her legs. She clamped her thighs together only to have his free hand pry them apart so he could settle between them.
“Answer me, Catherine,” he demanded, his teeth gliding over her nipple.
“You t-told me to stay with Jensen,” she agreed.
“Now you’ll have to pay for disobeying,” he said, slicing his cock into her with one harsh thrust. Catherine cried out, shocked at how sore her muscles already were. He ran his nose between her breasts. “I can still smell Lucas on you… You shouldn’t have gotten in his car with him. I’ll have to do something with him.”
“Graham…”
He pulled back and thrust again, silencing whatever she’d wanted to say. She gripped his shoulders only for him to wrestle her wrists away and pin them above her head. His eyes flashed and deepened in blackness turning nearly matte with their intensity. He snarled down at her as he slammed into roughly several more times. Tears ran down her face at the intensity of pleasure and pain.
“I’m you’re new Beta,” he growled, showing his canines. He lowered his teeth to her neck. “Tomorrow it’ll be official and I’ll mark
what’s mine.”
Graham released her wrists so that he could sit up. He pulled her legs together, wrapped them around one arm and held them against his shoulder. Catherine reached out to grip the bed sheets with her fists as he drove into her deeper than ever before. In the back of her mind she went over what he said. Tomorrow they would be bonded… Something tickled her memory though. She suddenly recalled what Jensen said.
“It will be some time before I give him my blessing to mark you,” Jensen had said.
Graham lowered himself over her, pressing her legs to her chest as he sought to reach as deep into her as their bodies would allow. Catherine closed her eyes, searching through the veil of the shift suppressant to seek out the wolf always lurking in her soul. She trudged through her subconscious, fighting through fog and quicksand, trying to prevent her from reaching that side of herself. She felt the familiar feeling of an electric buzz she’d come to realize was her soul’s energy. She pictured it, she held out her hand for it until it burned along the nerve endings of her fingers. All at once, she felt her other sides wrapping around her like a gripping riptide. She could feel it rolling over her shoulders, down her stomach and around her legs.
In the throes of reality, Graham groaned, his hips jerking slightly as he subconsciously felt her entire being pulsing out and wrapping around them both. She couldn’t hold on to this feeling forever. Her eyes flew open and she gripped Graham’s face with both of her hands. His eyes snapped open. They widened at her expression, his hips faltered and his eyes faded to brown.
“Graham,” she began, her voice filled with an edge of authority she didn’t know she possessed. “Mark me,” she commanded, pushing her aura out and then swiftly pulling it back to encompass them both. His muscles locked, his body arched against the pressure. “Don’t fight this. Mark me now, Graham!” she commanded again.
Graham’s eyes snapped open. His pupils turned to pinpoints before exploding until his entire eye was pitch black. His teeth lengthened. He snarled, his hands tightened in her hair before yanking her head to the side. Graham lurched forward and sank his
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teeth to the hilt in one bit. Catherine felt the moment his teeth connected with the tether of her soul. She felt Graham’s jaw lock against her and he moaned as his venom leached into her bloodstream. Her body locked and she let out an ear-splitting scream as her entire soul splintered apart. As his venom coursed through her body, her soul started to piece itself back together, this time interweaving hers with fragments of her mate’s.
Images began to flash in her mind, memories that did not belong to her. Feelings swept through her that were not her own. Emotions, echoes of the past, all converged and coursed through her mind. Graham made a sound between a growl and a moan before his jaw unlocked and he managed to retract his teeth from her suddenly burning skin. Darkness creeped in her vision and she
gripped the sheets to try to help her mind from spinning. She shut her eyes hard but felt Graham’s cold fingers play along her
cheeks.
“It’s okay, Catherine. This is normal. Don’t fight it, let it take you under. I’m going to be here… I won’t leave you… Catherine…” Darkness swept her away.
Surrendering to Destiny
Chapter Sixty-Eight
Graham held Catherine to his chest as he waited for her to recover. He glanced at the clock beside him and sighed. The sun would be rising any moment. He glided his hand down her arm for the hundredth time. Her skin had cooled considerably which was good. He knew from sex-ed class that a male lycan’s mark could cause the female to fall into a deep sleep while her body incorporated his venom into her system but five hours seemed to be longer than he remembered the teacher saying.
Maybe he should have waited. He certainly wasn’t in the best frame of mind when he came home. He’d killed thirteen men in order to make it out of that arena. His lycan was in full control by the time he’d finished and went looking for his mate.
The first spike of anger happened when he scented her with Lucas rather than Jensen. The second was when he’d found the three lycans covered in her scent. The third when he saw Lucas shove her out of his car. The fourth when he scented her fear at seeing
him in his lycan form.
Though he had the presence of mind to shift, he was far too lost in the carnality of the full moon to think of anything other than dominating his mate… a plan quickly foiled when she commanded him. Was that why she was still asleep? Had overriding her father’s command taken that much out of her? Maybe it was her power manifesting?
Her mind was filled with images and thoughts that filtered through their bond. So much so that he felt dizzy himself and wondered if he should try to sleep. Either way he didn’t want to prod too far into their connection until she woke and they could experience it together. The tethering of their souls was so pronounced and intimate, he hadn’t expected it. Everyone always talks about it. Theo even tried to explain it to him. Theo described it as finding a missing piece of yourself and having it restored. Naturally everyone is different. What happened between him and Catherine, felt more significant and intense and they’d only completed half of it.
He sighed and glanced at his phone. He was debating calling Nancy when he felt her fingers curl against his chest. A sleepy sigh left her lips as she rubbed her cheek against his pec. Catherine stretched and winced when she pushed her legs out. He smiled, knowing now through their connection that she was sore from all of the full-moon coupling they’d done. She burrowed herself deeper against his chest and the feeling of love and contentment seemed to cloud the air around them.
Her eyes shot open. Catherine sat up and touched her neck. She turned to look down at him: her eyes were wide, filled with joy and unshed tears. She grinned and he couldn’t help but return the expression.
“We did it,” she whispered.
A tear escaped down her cheek and he swiped it with his thumb before it could touch her lips. “You did it,” he agreed.
Catherine flung herself down and he grunted at the impact. He wrapped his arms around her back and held her tight.
“We did it, we’re really mates now. We’re bonded. I belong,” she said, her voice filled with emotion. His chest became wet with her tears. He ran his hands up and down her shaking back.
Catherine sat up again and helped him to wipe the tears from her face. She bit her lip, trying to stifle her cheek-splitting smile. She touched the tender spot of her neck. She squealed and jumped off the bed. Graham chuckled as she ran butt-naked into their bathroom. He slowly got to his feet and followed. He came to stand in the doorway. He leaned one shoulder against the doorframe and crossed his arms.
She stood in front of their mirror, studying the bite he’d left on her shoulder. It was still red and raw with some purple bruising around the edges that would soon fade. Within a few days the mark would heal completely, leaving behind his unique marking. Anyone who saw it would know by its size and depth that she belonged to a high-ranking lycan. If someone got close enough to inspect it, they would scent him on her too.
Other than the mark, he noticed a few other new things about her. Her chestnut hair seemed to hold a new goldish gleam. Her face was flushed with excitement. Her brown and blue eyes seemed brighter, and sparkled. What bruises and scars remained from her various encounters over the last few weeks were long gone. Graham walked up behind her and placed his hands on her waist. She
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lowered her hands over his. He planted a delicate kiss on her shoulder and her head fell back against him. He trailed kisses up that same shoulder until he came to his mark. He placed his lips over the bite and sucked. Her hands tightened against his, her skin pebbled and she let out a throaty moan. Her arousal beat out the smell of cleaner in the bathroom.
“That feels… wonderful,” she sighed as he released his mark to trail open-mouthed kisses further up her neck.
“Hmm…”
Graham turned her in his arms, picked her up and placed her gently on the cold counter. He cupped her face and kissed her until she was clinging to his shoulders as if she meant to climb them. He pulled back and kissed her forehead.
“When is it enough time for me to…”
Graham opened his eyes to find her staring at the unmarked skin of his neck. “Females can complete the bond as soon as they wake up so… whenever you want to.”
Catherine nodded and bit her lip. “I feel so sticky and gross. Could we take a shower first? I just want it to be perfect and maybe stay conscious for it,” she added with a chuckle.
He kissed her. “That’s fine, Baby. Whatever you want.”
Graham picked her up and she wrapped her legs around his waist. Her face turned an adorable shade of crimson when he kissed his mark. She placed her hand over where she wanted to sink her own teeth. He walked them to the shower and continued to hold her until the water was warm enough. He walked in and pressed her back against the wall. She hissed as her bare skin met the cool tiles. He adjusted the shower head to get them both. He reached around to grab a soap when he felt her try to slide down.
“Where do you think you’re going?” he asked, grabbing the meat of her ass to hold her up.
“You can’t possibly want to hold me while we shower?”
“Why not?” he asked, beginning to rub the bar of soap over her chest. Her eyelids fluttered closed as his lathered hand coasted down her stomach. “Is this where you’re dirtiest?” he asked, using his soapy hand to glide through the wetness of her sex. He groaned as she rubbed herself against his fingers.
“You would know better than I, Caveman.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Do you have an issue with me being so obsessed with you that it is ingrained in me to a primal level?”
She shrugged. “I know if you tell me I must submit to you again, I might have to throttle you.”
His eyebrow rose even higher. He took his hand away from her core. He pressed her harder against the wall with his hips so his hands could run the soap along her thighs. He knew her skin was far more sensitive than normal due to his marking. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head just by him touching her calves. While her eyes were closed he positioned himself and entered her. She gasped and one hand landed on his shoulder. The nails of that hand dug into his skin as he started at a slow pace.
Graham continued to rub soap gently into her skin with both hands while grinding his hips against hers. Catherine panted and urged her hips faster against him. He stopped moving causing her eyes to open and a growl to rip from her lips. He chuckled, ignoring her gaze as he refused to move against her.
“Graham…” she whined, trying to move.
He stilled her movements by clasping her throat. The soap kept him from getting a good grip but her eyes still fluttered and her pussy pulsed against his member letting him know that even if she didn’t want him commanding her, she did in fact like being dominated by her mate. He pulled back and entered her slowly again.
Chapter Sixty-Eight
“Who has the power here, Baby?” he asked with a smile.
She opened her eyes and glared. “Me.”
“Is that so?” he stilled his hips again and she tried to push him away in frustration. Even with both of his hands busy, she couldn’t budge him. He pressed into her again. Her eyelids fluttered closed. He gave her a few quick thrusts before stopping again. “Who has the power?” He thrust roughly into her once and she groaned. “Come on, Catherine,” he said, leaning closer to her and placing one hand against the tile by her head. “Say it.”
Catherine’s eyes flew open: one black, the other a blinding blue. “Me.”
Catherine suddenly shoved forward. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, growled and sank her teeth into his neck. Graham grunted against the assault. Both of his arms wrapped around her and he pushed them both against the wall to keep from falling to the ground.
“Deeper, Baby,” he encouraged.
Catherine growled again and her canines sunk farther into his muscle until he felt her touch against the connection. Graham grabbed the back of her head and pushed down, allowing her to get the last few centimeters to the tether of his soul. When she hit it, he nearly dropped her. His mind exploded and he gasped as he felt his soul reaching out for hers. He knew the male lycan only experienced a fraction of the female, but when the emotions, memories and the essence of his mate wrapped around him, the feeling made his mind go completely blank.
All at once, his mind came back to him and he was hurled into a cacophony of feelings. His skin hummed like an electric current was buzzing beneath it. His muscles became taut. His cock, still inside her, pulsed and throbbed, begging for a release he had no mind to appease. He groaned as the pleasure and sting of her bite became interwoven and impossible to distinguish. It all swirled within him, blackening his vision and causing him to collapse to the shower floor unconscious.
Surrendering to Destiny
