STORY EXCERPT

“I only knew bits and pieces but then my father is pulling me out of school, stuffing me on a plane, and sending me here for fear I might become a whore and walking blood bag to not one vampire but a coven because the leader wants me.” I blinked up at him, keeping my voice calmer than I felt. “That’s a lot to process at my age or I would suspect at any age. I didn’t mean to ignore you.”

“Of course you didn’t,” he agreed, his face softening slightly. Percival pulled me into his arms and instantly I felt safe. This man could conquer anything and defeat armies he was so strong and not just physically. I could feel it coming off of him. “I will keep you safe, Lachlan, but given the circumstances and how late I came into the situation there is only one clear-cut way I can see to do that.”

“What? Anything,” I pleaded as I stared up at him. “I don’t want to be a vampire coven’s chew toy or have my family die to protect me. My family’s new mates seem wonderful and they would fight for me. I don’t want that on my conscience. And you might be nice and UPAC but mostly they’re dickheads. I can’t trust them not to just throw me to the vamps because it’s easier than pissing someone off.”

“Anything?” He raised that perfect eyebrow at me again, showing authority but not cruelty. I want to bare anything he wanted to him when he did that. It practically made me melt in his arms. Did he have that effect on everyone? I gave him the barest of nods. “I’d have to take you as my mate, Lachlan.”

“You don’t have one already?” I blurted out, shocked that such a god of a man would seriously be single. I didn’t care that he was an elder. Actually, it was a negative in my book, but to most that would make him an extra special catch.

“No, I had a couple of human wives over my many years to keep up appearances and hide what I am, but never a mate.”

“Did you not love them?” He talked of them so easily as if he wore a coat to keep from getting cold. That was a person he was talking about with feelings and heart.

“I did but that’s a discussion for another time,” he answered gently but firmly. “Once I feel at ease with you, I would have no problem discussing my past.”

“Of course, I apologize.” I went to move out of his arms but he wouldn’t let me.

“I find I like you right where you are,” he said in a husky voice. “It would help if we had chemistry if we are to mate.”

“I didn’t say yes,” I hedged.

“But you did say you’d do anything to make this go away and have my protection, correct?” He raised that eyebrow at me again and I nodded. “Good. Now is the time for questions though, Lachlan.” He moved one hand slowly down my back and palmed my ass. His one hand almost covering my whole bottom. That was hot.

“Why does it have to be that we mate?” I asked with a whimper. The whimper wasn’t out of distress that we might mate. Oh no, quite the opposite.

“No one would mess with the family mated to an elder.” He grunted as he kissed my shoulder and up along my neck. I got the distinct feeling I was being marked and that his animal was coming out to court me. “Once we mate, your whole clan would fall under my purview and you’d no longer go to the skunk elder for anything. I would help in getting that asshole out of power and someone better in the elder position.”

“And the coven?” I gasped as his other hand moved to the front of my jeans and he cupped my groin. “What will we do about them? They could hurt someone else.”

“You will do nothing but submit and obey your mate,” he growled dangerously. “I will handle that fucking coven even if Elder Lewis doesn’t play nice. They will never threaten what’s mine again.”

And just like that, the lust faded. “Obey you? I’m not a child, Percival.” I went to pull away. “I won’t be treated like one.”

“What I have planned for you isn’t suitable for children, I assure you,” he huffed but let me go. “It’s not about that. And I’d obey your wishes too, Lachlan. That’s what being mated means. However, you need to understand who you’re mating.”

“Okay, one thing at a time first.” I nodded and rubbed my arms, feeling cold now that he wasn’t touching me, surrounding me. I missed it. How crazy was that? “So we mate, that protects me no matter what shit they pull with the contract, keeps them from going after my family, gets us out from under the other elder, and gives you license to just handle this coven the way you want without jumping through hoops because technically it wasn’t your jurisdiction.”

He thought about that a minute, tilting his head back and forth slightly as if bouncing around each point in his mind. “Yes on all accounts. That sums it up nicely. You’re very smart.”

“Oh, I’m a genius, but that’s part of the problem in social situations,” I said with a shrug before gesturing between us. “As you can see.”

“I thought you were doing just fine. This is a lot and you’re handling everything calmly, rationally, very maturely, like someone centuries older, and better than most herd leaders I know. It simply reinforces my opinion that you would make a wonderful mate to an elder.” His lips spread into a wide grin. “As long as that elder is me.”

“I’m not a peach, Percival. I’m not very good at fancy parties or being arm candy as you would need as an elder.”

“Oh, I think you would look wonderful on my arm,” he growled as he closed the distance between us. “My arm, and my arm alone.” He crushed his mouth to mine when I went to argue and I whimpered as his tongue invaded my mouth. So this was what it was like to really be kissed? Not by boys at school that I had crushes on but to have a real man kiss me.

ADULT EXCERPT

He crushed his mouth to mine when I went to argue and I whimpered as his tongue invaded my mouth. So this was what it was like to really be kissed? Not by boys at school that I had crushes on but to have a real man kiss me.

Holy hell, it was wonderful.

Percival’s hand went back to my pants where he undid the fly of them and pulled them down slightly. Then he moved his thigh in between my legs. He helped me rub against him like a cat in heat.

“How much experience do you have, Lachlan?” he asked gently as his hands grabbed my ass and rubbed me against him.

I thought about that. An experienced elder wouldn’t want some untrained, untapped loser. And technically he didn’t specify what kind of experience he was asking about. “Tons.”

“Lies will not be tolerated when you’re my mate,” he warned in a dark voice. “Honesty is rewarded but I’ll let it slide since I understand it’s a very personal question and you barely know me. Let’s try this again though, shall we?”

I didn’t know what he meant. I glanced up at him as he held his index finger up to my lips. I wasn’t sure what to do so I opened and was rewarded with a smile. Going with the flow, I sucked on it until he thought I was done. Percival slowly pulled it from my mouth, his nostrils flaring when it made a wet “pop” sound. Then seconds later I felt it against my hole. Oh, so that’s what he’d been wanting it wet for.

Were we really going to do this in my cousin’s study? Apparently I found the only kinky elder on the planet. Then again, we were talking of mating and he was right that we should see if we had chemistry. Nothing would be worse than mating a man I couldn’t get it up for.

Not that I foresaw that problem with Percival. I was so hard it almost hurt and I wasn’t even naked yet.

“Would you take direction well, Lachlan?” he asked as he teased my hole. “I know you don’t know what it takes to be the mate of an elder. I wouldn’t want you to be one of those dense twits though. I like that you’re smart and could hold your own, but you’d need to take my direction. Would you do that?”

“I can’t see why I wouldn’t unless I didn’t feel comfortable with what you asked.”

I’m sure he wanted a blind yes, so he tried again. “Would you want to please me, Lachluv?”

“Yes, I want to please you so much already,” I admitted. I liked the nickname too. I was rewarded with his fingertip pushing in my ass. Then he moved us. I blinked up at him in shock as I was suddenly leaning partially against the back of a chaise lounge. “How did you do that?”

“I’m very old and an elder, Lachluv. Is that going to be a problem?” He raised that eyebrow and I melted.

“No, not of course not.”

“Good.” He pulled out a handkerchief out of a pocket inside of his suit jacket and then pulled out my cock, stroking it with the fine silk.

“Fuck me!” I gasped.

“Oh, I plan to,” he growled. “But for now I want to take care of my mate-to-be. You’ve been through so much, stressed out, and not treated as you should. You need this release, don’t you?”

“Yes. Oh yes.” I moaned and then whimpered when he stopped stroking and grabbed the base of my cock.

“Does that mean your answer’s yes and you submit to me, Lachlan?” I blinked up at him a moment in shock. He was stopping the fun and demanding an answer now? He worked his finger a little deeper into my ass and kissed that hot spot on my neck again. “Say yes, luv. Say you’ll be mine.”

“Y–You said I–I had to know wh–who I was saying yes to,” I panted, trying to focus with less than half the blood normally in my brain.

“Very true but I don’t want to scare you off either.”

“I don’t scare easily, Percival,” I whispered, not sure who I was trying to convince when I said it.

“I’m powerful. You know this. But you need to understand what that means. I’m not just old, or leader of a herd, Lachluv. I’m elder of my people. I’m the boss. Always. Do you understand that? Do you know what that means for my mate?”

“But I get a vote, right? I mean, you won’t force me to do things. You’d listen to me?” Now I was a little scared. I didn’t want a boss.

“Of course,” he cooed as he started stroking me again. “I will always do what’s best for you. Aren’t I now? Aren’t I being so good to you? Giving you what you want?”

“Yes, yes so good. Please, Percival, I want to come,” I admitted.