Chapter 32

[ 1,359 words ]

Kiss

32: 32.

Kiss Kade

The forest always breathes differently at dusk.

I feel it the second we step past the tree line—the hush, the hum beneath the earth, the way the air thickens with life most humans never notice.

But Aria… she notices.

I watch her tilt her head, inhaling slowly, her eyes softening as if something inside her recognizes this place.

Good.

My wolf preens.

She belongs here.

Smug already, I mutter under my breath.

When I saw her with Quin earlier, my heart warmed at the thought that she was spending time with others in the pack.

Hopefully, this helps her to settle faster.

Mine, he growls.

My wolf has been feeling increasingly territorial with the lack of claiming so visceral.

All our wolves have.

It’s why I had to make time to spend with her today.

Just to be close,e if that’s all she’ll allow.

The memory of our kiss has my dick waking up uncomfortably.

Claim her.

The command is hot and demanding.

I roll my shoulders, trying to ignore him as Aria steps ahead of me, brushing her fingers along the bark of a maple.

The last light of the sun filters through the leaves, catching in her hair, creating streaks of blue along the cascade of onyx.

“You weren’t kidding,” she says softly.

“It’s… alive out here.”

I lean against a tree, crossing my arms, watching her instead of answering.

“If I knew you’d be impressed by a few trees, I would have taken you out here sooner.”

She glances back, narrowing her eyes.

“I grew up near woods, thank you very much.

And I’ll let you know I’m not so easily impressed.”

“Mm.

Whatever you say.”

She scoffs, but there’s a smile tugging at her lips.

“Why do I feel like you dragged me out here just to argue with me?”

I push off the tree and start walking, brushing past her shoulder—just enough contact to make her inhale sharply.

The bond flares instantly, a hot thread snapping tight between us.

Not yet.

“Keep up,” I say over my shoulder.

*Tease her more.*

“What if I don’t want to follow you?” she fires back, but she follows.

Of course she does.

We move deeper into the forest, the sounds of the pack fading until it’s just us, the wind, and the distant rustle of animals settling in for the night.

I don’t rush.

This isn’t about getting somewhere—it’s about letting her feel it.

Letting the bond root deeper.

Giving us the time we need with each other for our wolves to be content.

Okay, and maybe it’s about me too.

About this draft,w I feel for her and the desire I have to make this transition easier.

Now and then, I glance back.

Every time, she’s already looking at me.

The pull between us grows heavier with each step.

“You’re staring,” I say.

“You keep looking at me.”

“Can you blame me?”

She stumbles slightly, and I smirk, drinking in the notes of arousal blossoming on her scent.

She’s affected.

Her nostrils flare, and having scented my smugness, she mutters, “Don’t flatter yourself.”

“Too late.”

We walk in silence for a moment, but it’s not uncomfortable.

It hums.

The bond stretches and coils, warm and insistent.

Then the trees open up.

The lake appears like something out of a dream—glassy, still, reflecting the deepening twilight sky.

The surface glows faintly with the last streaks of pink and gold.

Aria stops dead.

“Oh,” she breathes.

Yeah.

That’s the reaction I was hoping for.

“Told you,” I say, stepping up beside her.

“It’s beautiful,” she whispers.

I watch her instead of the lake.

“Second-best view of the afternoon.”

She looks at me questioningly.

“You really don’t know what you do to me, do you?

Her pulse spikes just a little.

A grin spreads across my face.

“We should get in.”

Her head snaps toward me.

“Excuse me?”

“The water’s perfect this time of day.”

She folds her arms.

“Absolutely not.”

“Why not?”

“Because I didn’t bring a swimsuit, genius.”

I shrug.

“Didn’t say you needed one.”

Her eyes widen.

“Kade.”

“What?” I feign innocence.

“We are not as weird about nudity as humans, but if you’re shy, you could always turn around.”

She laughs—a soft, disbelieving sound.

“You’re unbelievable.”

“And you’re stalling.”

“I am not stalling.”

“You are.”

“I’m not jumping into a lake in the middle of the woods with you watching.”

“Who says I’d just watch?”

The words come out lower than I intended.

Her breath catches.

The bond surges.

Now we’re talking.

She takes a step closer, chin lifting.

“Oh? So what, you’d join me?”

I lean in slightly, closing the distance between us.

“Try and stop me.”

For a second, neither of us moves.

The air crackles.

Then she shoves my shoulder.

“Fine,” she says, breathless.

“But if I get hypothermia, it’s your fault.”

I laugh.

“Don’t worry, I’ll keep you warm.”

Her wolf flashes in her eyes.

“I guess we’ll have to see about that.”

“Careful,” I murmur.

“You’re starting to sound like you enjoy my company.”

She rolls her eyes, but she’s smiling as she kicks off her shoes.

I watch her.

Of course I do.

She hesitates only a second before pulling her shirt over her head.

My breath tightens as bare skin catches the fading light.

The bond slams into me, hard and demanding.

Mine.

I clench my jaw.

Control.

That’s what I need.

She glances at me, catching the shift in my expression.

Something flickers in her eyes—nervousness, anticipation.

“Don’t just stand there,” she says.

“You started this.”

Right.

I pull my shirt off in one smooth motion, tossing it aside.

Her gaze drops—just for a second—but I see it.

My wolf purrs.

We step toward the water together, the tension between us thick enough to choke on.

The first touch of water makes her gasp.

“Oh my god, that’s freezing!”

I wade in without hesitation.

“You’ll get used to it.”

“You’re insane.”

“Come on.”

She glares at me—but then she steps deeper, teeth chattering.

“I hate you.”

“No, you don’t.”

She slips on a rock.

Instinct kicks in.

I catch her before she falls, hands gripping her waist.

She collides with me, water splashing around us.

And just like that—everything changes.

Her scent spikes.

Smoothes into a sensual call that grips my attention.

Her hands clutch my shoulders.

My grip tightens.

We’re chest to chest, breath mingling, the cold water forgotten completely.

“Kade…” she whispers.

I shouldn’t.

I know I shouldn’t.

But she’s ours.

My control snaps.

I kiss her.

It’s not gentle.

It’s heat and hunger and weeks of tension crashing into one moment.

She gasps against my mouth, but she doesn’t pull away—she leans in, fingers tangling in my hair, dragging me closer.

Yes.

My wolf surges forward, reveling in the connection.

Finally.

I deepen the kiss, one hand sliding up her back, the other tightening at her hip.

She arches into me, and the contact sends a jolt straight through my thighs.

The mating bond roars.

It’s overwhelming—her scent, her warmth, the way she fits against me like she was made for this.

For me.

Her lips part, and I take advantage instantly, tasting, claiming.

She responds just as fiercely, matching my intensity in a way that makes my head spin.

Water laps around us, forgotten.

The world narrows to this.

To her.

To us.

“Kade…” she breathes again, but this time it’s different—softer, needier.

I drag my lips down her jaw to her neck.

Her pulse thrums beneath my mouth, fast and wild.

Mine.

My teeth graze her skin—

The snap of twigs draws my attention, but I don’t stop licking her skin as my eyes meet Ronan’s.

His eyes travel over our entertained bodies, and I can feel the interest, the hunger deepening his scent.

Aria jerks back, eyes wide, when she notices him.

I bite the swell of her breast.

“Don’t worry, he likes to watch.”

Ronan stands at the edge of the lake and lowers himself to the ground with the same sense of authority as a king sitting on a throne.

Aria’s gaze is locked on his.

Her blue eyes darken into something exciting and salacious.

A primal curiosity that strokes the flames of my desire.

“What do you say, little wolf?

I murmur into her ear.

“Do you want to give him a show?”

Her pupils dilate.

Well, well.

It looks like Aria might have some interest in being the subject of Ronan’s viewing pleasure.

“Keep your eyes on him,” I order.

Gripping her beneath the water, Wade to the edge where the trunk of a tree just out of the lake and lifted her, pinning her against it.

Water trails down her hot little body, and her white bra is now thrown and somehow more erratic than if she were to be completely naked.

I lick and nip between her cleavage,e and her hands curl in my hair.

Ronan’s growl of approval hits me in the chest.

It pulls and opens something deep inside me, deeper than a kinship or a pack link.

It’s as if we’re in this together.

Touching, tasting.

Teasing.

Drawing out all those throaty little sounds.

I take her covered nipple into my mouth and bite down.

“Shit, Kade,” she pants.

“You like that, baby?”

She grunts, eyes still on Ronan when she says, “Yes. More. Give me more.”

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