“But you didn’t.”

“How exactly are you going to feel seeing a stack of empty boxes lying around the front door?”

“Good point.”

“Kind of a buzz kill.” She let out a breath and put her hand on his knee.

He’d always thought living on the outskirts of town wasn’t bad. That things weren’t too far. But right now, he might as well have lived in California or Maine for as long as it was taking to get to his cabin. Emma’s hand slid up his knee, and her thumb rubbed slow circles around the outside of his leg.

He forced himself not to close his eyes. Instead, he took a deep breath in, and her autumn apple scent made him clench his teeth to focus on the road. He pulled down the dirt road to his cabin. The ruts were deep, and the mud had softened a little in the last day. With his speed, clumps of dirt clung to the side of his truck by the time they stopped.

Penny jumped up and down next to the fence. “Get down, Penny.” The thought of his dog, Vivi’s dog, splattering Emma . . . “Get down.” Flint rounded the front of the truck and lifted Emma down. He carried her to the flagstone path out of his mud pit of a driveway. Calling his cousin to come drop a load of gravel on his parking pad had been on his list of things to do for a long time, and now it soared to the top of the list. “This is Penny.”

“I know, I met her yesterday on my way home from work.”

“You met Penny on a leash. She’s a different beast in her own yard.” Flint flipped open the latch.

“Hi, Penny.”

The dog sat at Emma’s feet like she was the queen of the pack. He looked between his overzealous loving dog and back to Emma. He might never have brought a girl home, but he had introduced Penny to females around town and, other than his sisters, normally the dog wasn’t having it.

“Who’s a good girl? You are, that’s who.” Emma scratched Penny’s ears, and Flint became more than a little jealous of the dog. He picked Emma up, sweeping her off her feet.

She wound her arm around his neck and put the other one on his chest.

11

Emma gripped the front of Flint’s T-shirt in her fist before flattening her hand on top of his heart. It beat faster than hers. She nuzzled her head into the crook of his neck and took in his delicious citrus-like aroma.

He’d flexed his steel sinew thigh in the truck, and she’d nearly come herself. And his arms . . . arm candy meant something completely different to her.

She pulled her legs in when he brought her through the door. The rustic cabin and orange scent surrounded her. She pressed her lips to his neck and kissed down the side to the T-shirt opening. He kicked something inside the door with his toe and repositioned her. Her legs were around his waist, and he backed her up against the wall.

She clutched him, and with her bottom secure against the wall, he lifted the hem of her shirt and caressed her sides to the undersides of her breasts.

“Put me down.” Her voice hitched as she said it.

When her feet hit the floor, she pulled at his T-shirt. He helped and flung it over his head. She took her shirt off, and he pulled his pants off while she watched, and then he watched as she pulled off her pants. Like a dance, until they stood a foot apart completely naked.

Her chest was heaving, and she was so wet even she could smell it on her. Flint clothed was hot. Flint naked could start fires. Every inch of him was defined. His abs had abs.

“Wow.”

“Right back at you.” Everything about him was making her short circuit. And now that they were naked, neither of them could step into the territory between them.

Flint dropped to his knees. He pressed his lips to her belly. Emma’s head tipped back, and as she gritted her teeth together, his touch melted her skin. His lips sent her power zipping around her body.

“You don’t have to . . .” Emma clenched her eyes shut. Her neck heated, and if her body was doing the normal thing, a blush was spreading down her cheeks to her chest.

“I don’t have to what, Emma?” he rumbled.

“Don’t you know?”

He pressed his lips farther down her stomach to the hollow between her torso and legs. “I clearly don’t have any idea what you’re talking about.” His kisses trailed closer to her apex.

“You don’t have to go down on me,” she blurted out. Her ex had thought it gross. He’d done it once, making a face the entire time until she’d faked an orgasm, and then he’d rolled over and pointed to his limp cock, waiting for her to return the favor. Which she did, like she always did.

Flint licked her clit, and her head flopped back, hitting the wall.

“Do you not like it, Emma?” He licked her again. “Because I like it. I like it so much. You’re not going to take my lunch away from me, are you? You’re not going to keep me from my dessert after we ran out of the restaurant?” He tossed Emma’s leg over his shoulder.

She clutched on the wall to keep her balance. But she didn’t need to; Flint held onto her tightly enough, holding all her weight up. Her fingertips trailed over the rough pine wainscoting. The way he commanded all of her attention with his touch overwhelmed her. Floating—every one of her senses vibrated with each flick of his tongue.

“Emma.” He huffed out her name in short, quick breaths.

Right, he had asked a question of her. “No, please don’t stop.”

“Good girl.” His hand trailed to her backside.

She reached for his head, and his thick, soft dark hair slid between her fingers.

He tilted his head to the side until she was pulling on his hair. “Fuck, Emma.” He gave her one last lick and stood.

Her hands fell slack at her side, her lips between her teeth. They stared at each other, not touching for a moment before he broke the invisible shield between the two of them. Flint lifted her into his arms, cradling her to his chest. He marched the few steps across the room, his steps wide and thudding.

She expected him to put her on the bed behind them. Instead, he flung a stack of books from his table to the floor and sat her on the edge. He held her chin while he devoured her mouth, then gave her lips a last kiss and pulled back.

With a coy smile, he wiggled his eyebrows at her. “Now I can finish my meal.” He put his large hand on her stomach and applied a light pressure.

Emma lowered to her elbows on the cherry wood table. Her breath was uneven. In this position, she could watch as he set about a job that she’d always thought of as unpleasant. In no way did Flint seem to not be enjoying what he was doing. A male challenged would be the best definition.

“Turn that fascinating brain of yours off, little apple,” he said between his nibbles. His warm breath on the inside of her leg set off a rhythm, and she focused on it. In and out, in and out, and the rest of her life faded away. It was only Flint. Only now. She ran her hand over her nipple. Flint had stopped.

She tried to lift her head. But he held her down and moved her hand back onto her breast. He returned his mouth to her clit and gripped the side of her hips. She shot off. Her back arched off the table. The orgasm hit her like none in her life ever had. She reached for the table, but the table was gone. Eyes open, she saw she was floating. Panic set in, and she plummeted but didn’t hit anything. Flint grabbed her out of the air, reflexes faster than any shifter she’d ever seen.

Never in her life had she had an orgasm good enough to float. Not with her human ex and not even with her old witch boyfriend. Although, more than once, she had cast a spell to make it look like she had floated to soothe his sensitive ego.

12

He snatched her out of the air. Holy hell, the witch had floated off the table. It should have scared the shit out of him. Right now, it didn’t. Maybe later. Later, he’d play it over and over and pull apart what it meant. Now he wanted to see her do it again. He wanted to be on top of her when it happened again and again. With his arm locked, he held her to his chest before slowly lowering her feet to the cabin floor.

“That was something. I didn’t realize that was a thing.” He kissed the top of her head. His cock had taken over as a fifth leg for his dining room table.

“What?”

He brushed her hair away from her face. “You’re already back in your head?” His hands looped around her back, his fingers trailing lightly up and down. The floating had scared the crap out of him but was sexy at the same time. He held her tighter to his chest. Their rapid heartbeats matched.

She had her head turned, her eyes closed. The female would be asleep in a heartbeat. He breathed in the apple cinnamon scent with his nose in her hair. When he opened his eyes, his back stiffened. Purple magical flames trailed from his hand—not hers. She’d drained him of every last bit of energy he had, drained him so far he’d thought he might need a nap. How could he have more energy already? She magnified his magic. The flames grew and sunk from him into her as his hands traced circles around her back. His wolf nipped at his own heels. The need to mount her, claim her, mate her pulsed at him. Mate her.