Prowled Darkness (Dante's Circle, #7)(13)

She closed her eyes and a tear fell down her cheek. “I was just using the fate crap as a shield and I didn’t do a very good job with it.” She met his gaze. “I want you as mine, Malik, and I’m scared. So scared that if I don’t mate with you now that I’ll lose you forever. Be with me, Malik. Please.”

He couldn’t ignore her words, couldn’t say no. So instead of dealing with more of the emotions that could take over his mind and his heart, he pressed his lips to hers in a promise. He loved her, and he knew that if she opened her heart, she could love him, too. He would mate with her, be with her, and show her the man he could be. They’d deal with the Pride, her friends, and whatever realm her new life would fall into once they were mated and she was his.

His lion couldn’t hold back anymore and, frankly, neither could he.

She moaned into him and he growled softly. His hands went to her sides and down her stomach. When he pulled back, they were both breathless.

“I’ve never made love to a pregnant woman before,” he breathed. “Can you at this stage? Will I hurt either of you?”

She shook her head. “My doctor told me I could, though I never really thought I would.” She blushed and he cupped her face.

“I have a better idea,” he growled, though his cock was hard as a rock. “I can mark you as mine. It’s a bite on your shoulder that marks you as a lion’s mate. It will fade over time, but all lions will know it’s there. It’s how lions mate. The sex is usually a bonus.”

She chuckled. “So you’d bite me and we wouldn’t have sex.”

He kissed her softly. “I think we both need time to get to know one another before we make love again. I don’t want to rush things.”

“But mating us so we’re connected for all eternity isn’t rushing things?”

He scrunched his face. “I didn’t say I made any sense.”

She sighed. “I know what you mean. I know you’re mine and I can’t explain it, so letting you bite me so I’m yours forever makes sense to me. But…I kind of like waiting for the physical part of our relationship. Are we crazy?”

“Yes,” Malik said instantly. “Crazy as hell, but I’m okay with that.”

Eliana nodded. “Okay, then. So you bite me and we’re mates. Then what?”

“Then I make you dinner?” he asked, rather than answered. “Or we go to your friends. Or the Pride. I’m not exactly sure. But we’ll do it together. No more running.” That was a promise he knew he’d fight like hell to keep. He’d deal with the Pride in his own time. He’d have to return home soon to deal with his father, but he hoped, this time, Eliana would be by his side.

“There’s a chance that I’ll change if this is the way mating works for you,” she said suddenly.

He cursed. “I know, and we’ll deal with that. I’m yours, Eliana. I’ll be with you no matter what.”

She didn’t say anything and he knew he deserved that. He’d win back her trust one day, even if it took him until his last breath. She was worth that and so much more.

“Where are you going to bite me?” she asked.

“Your shoulder,” he repeated.

“I mean, in the house. Do you want me in the bedroom? Or right here? Do you need music or something?”

He smiled and rested his hand on her belly. The baby kicked him and a smile spread across his face. “We can go to the couch, Eliana. We can do this slowly and I’ll show you that you’re mine. You and little squirt here.”

“Okay, then,” she breathed and took his hand, leading him to the couch.

He sat down next to her and pulled her hair away from her face, pushing it over the opposite shoulder. He loved the slope of her neck, the curves on her body. He loved everything about her. And maybe, one day soon, she’d believe that. He never thought he’d be so lucky as to have her for his—and he’d almost lost it all.

“Will it hurt?” she asked, a little bit of fear in her voice.

“No,” he answered before licking her neck. She let out a moan, and he couldn’t help but grin in satisfaction. “My bite will feel like pure bliss.”

“Bite many women, have you?”

He licked again. “Only you, Eliana. Only ever you.” And with that, he bit down. She gasped before reaching out to hold his arm.

He wrapped her hair around his fist and kept his bite firm and still so he wouldn’t hurt her in any way. His lion roared, scratching at him, wanting out so he could have their mate in their arms.

The bond between them snapped into place, a thread of pure joy, promise, and heat. He let his fangs slide out of her skin and threw back his head, letting out a roar that spoke of his line, his duty, and his mate.

Eliana’s grip on his arm tightened and he lowered his head so he could kiss her, taking her as his.

Only he couldn’t.

Instead, her eyes widened and her body glowed a fiery red and gold. She let out a silent scream and clutched her stomach with her free hand.

“Eliana!”

Flames skittered around her body but didn’t burn him; instead, the warmth calmed his cat and he tried to figure out what to do next. His mate was changing…her body becoming who she truly was rather than the woman she thought she had to be.