Page 9

They stopped and stared out into the darkness. They were at the back of the building and could see several other buildings nearby, mostly obscured by the swirling snow.

“You’re thinking really hard,” Winter said, shoving his hands into his pockets.

“Am I?” she asked.

“You got quiet,” he said. “And you’re biting your lip.”

She let go of her lip, not even realizing she’d been biting it. “Nervous habit.”

He smiled and it made her stomach flutter.

Holy crap, he was handsome. Her owl had never really cared one way or the other about males, and True had always assumed it was because she hadn’t met her mate. But now that she was in his presence, her owl was hooting and happy.

She was aware of everything with Winter. The way he walked next to her, shortening his longer stride to match her shorter one. The steady rumble of his voice. The way his bear growled whenever their bodies brushed against each other.

Her owl let out a satisfied hum in her head.

Mate.

“Yeah.”

“Yeah what?” he asked, his voice dropping a little.

“You’re… we’re…” She fumbled, wondering where the confident feeling she’d woken up with had gone.

“Mates,” he said. He hooked an arm around her waist and drew her close fast enough that her breath gusted from her lungs. The air charged between them, like someone had plugged in a cord and lit her up from the inside out. His bear rumbled again, the sound making his chest vibrate where she was pressed against him.

“I’m thinking about a lot of things,” she murmured. “But I can’t stop thinking about us.”

“I can’t either.”

“You didn’t say anything. About us being mates, I mean.”

“You nearly died out in the storm and woke up two hours ago. I’m not trying to rush you.” He lowered his head slightly and his eyes turned deep amber. “You’re my mate, True, and I want to strip you bare and lay you down, and feast on you until we’re both sated. But I’m not going to do that.”

“You’re not?” she asked, her voice squeaking out at the end.

“Not until you’re ready.” He pulled her a little closer and she felt the ridge of his erection against her belly and she immediately wanted everything he’d just said and more.

Oh, she was ready, all right.

She tilted her face toward his. “I’d like all of that, Winter. You’re mine and I’m yours, and I think we should celebrate finding each other under impossible circumstances. Jack Frost might be an asshole, but he brought me to you.”

Winter growled softly and lowered his head, pressing his lips to hers. The world dropped away until it was just them, and their very first kiss. Lips parting, tongues dancing, heat swirling in her belly, her whole body pressing hard against him. She would have climbed him like a tree if they’d been somewhere private, but in the distance she heard footsteps heading their way and the sound broke the spell.

They parted, both panting.

“If I take you to bed, I’m going to make you mine,” he said roughly. She could see his control was hanging on by a thread, and hers was too.

“I’m definitely yours. And I’d like to find out more about that until we’re both sated thing you mentioned.”

A smile curved his lips and he kissed her once more, swiftly but with a promise. “Hell yes.”

When they reached his apartment, he swung her up into his arms and carried her across the threshold, kicking the door shut. He strode through the dark apartment and didn’t put her down until they were in what she assumed was a bedroom, but because it was pitch black and there were no windows, she had no clue.

She liked the darkness right now. It heightened all her senses.

He backed her up until she bumped against the bed, but she didn’t sit because he cupped her face and kissed her. She closed her eyes, letting herself go into another incredible kiss. He had the most perfect lips imaginable and knew just how to kiss her. As he made his way from her lips to her jaw and down her neck, the kisses mixed with nips at her skin, electrifying her nerves. His fingers flew down the buttons of her top, his rough fingertips making her skin feel even more sensitive as he swept the top off her shoulders and tossed it to the floor. She pulled at his shirt and slipped her hands up the ridges of his abdomen, wishing she could see in the dark, but enjoying the exploration as he pulled his own shirt off and then went back to kissing her.