STORY EXCERPT

Smiling, Tripp placed his hand lightly on the small of Eddie’s back and moved them through the thinning crowd. He nodded at Vicus, who faded more into the shadows before disappearing, and stopped to ensure the lead detective had control of the situation. Outside, he steered Eddie to his police car and put his mate in the passenger seat.

“Hungry?” he asked once they were driving.

“Hmm…yeah, a bit. I missed lunch.”

“Great, I’m starving. This can be our first date.”

Eddie was quiet a moment before untying the teal scarf and winding it around his hand instead. “About this…mate thing. Are you sure?”

Why did humans always doubt a paranormal? It bewildered Tripp, and bears didn’t like being confused and bewildered, it sent them into a frustrated rampage. As his mate wouldn’t appreciate that, Tripp wracked his brain to come up with a response the human apparently needed, so he could understand what this between them meant. In the end, Tripp went for simple and straight forward.

Bears weren’t subtle, after all.

“Yes. Most shifters scent their mate. I’m a bear shifter. I scented you as mate. But, I’ve seen you around for a while which has set off a—how to explain it?” Tripp tapped the steering wheel with his thumb while turning a corner. “I guess it’s like an alert on your phone. You have a dozen different musical tones that you can attach to various alerts. When I saw you in the city, an alert would go off with its own tone, but it wasn’t one that said ‘hey, mate alert!’ It was just an aware alert. By the time I could manage to get close to you, I pretty much knew you were my mate.”

Eddie mulled that over quietly as they drove to a bistro Tripp liked but didn’t often come to during a work day as it was too far out of his way. As they pulled into a parking space and Tripp turned off the car, Eddie undid his seatbelt and shifted in his seat so they were facing one another. The man was pretty darn hot. It wouldn’t have mattered if he were average, stunning, or plain. A paranormal would always be attracted to their mate and lust after them. There wasn’t any divorce or separation, the unique connection between mates ensured they stayed together and mostly happy. That didn’t mean there weren’t problems from time to time. Tredd and Trent were a good example of difficulties and miscommunication, but being mates, having that mate pull and joining when they bonded, helped ease a lot of the problems other couples had to contend with. The bond, the mating pull, brought them closer emotionally and mentally as they could feel what the other felt, unless one blocked or closed off from the other.

“I talked to a lawyer this morning. He gave me a rundown on some of the paranormal laws pertaining to mates and how my rights are limited.”

“That’s true.” Tripp didn’t believe in lying over important shit like this. “It seriously harms a paranormal to be apart from their mate, but your lawyer would have said the laws are there to protect both parties in the mateship. No one can force us to mate. In the end, it’s our choice, but the law is there to make sure that both of us give it a go. I’ll tell you what, mate. As I don’t believe in forcing anyone to do something they don’t want, and as you’re human with nearly no creature biology—”

“Wait, what?” Eddie gasped.

Tripp grinned and winked, tapping his nose. “I can scent different creatures, and you don’t appear to have any in your ancestry, except possibly a wizard too far back to give you any type of gift.”

“Really? I have wizard ancestry?”

“Probably your great grandparent seven times removed.”

“Oh.” Eddie frowned, nodding. “I guess I never considered I might actually have a paranormal relative…of sorts.”

“It’s rare for humans not to have at least one in their biology somewhere along their lines. Anyway, how about we do that thing humans like to do, and shifters don’t bother with.” Tripp took the teal scarf that Eddie was winding around and around his hands, and straightened it before looping it around his mate’s shoulders. “We date. If after two weeks you really can’t stand me and don’t want to mate, then I’ll bow out ungraciously.”

Eddie looked dazed. Then those lovely eyes of his narrowed. “Did you say ungraciously?”

“Well yeah.” Tripp laughed, getting out of the car. “I’m a bear. We don’t take rejection gracefully, cutie. And you’re my mate.”

Chuckling as he opened the passenger door and got a disgruntled look and comment about not needing to be helped out of the car, he waved Eddie ahead of him just so he could check out his mate’s damn fine ass.

Yeah, that was one beautiful ass. Tripp didn’t go for creatures that were small as he was concerned about breaking them. He was very glad to see Eddie was solid with some flesh on his bones. At five foot eleven, Eddie had a solid physique with a well-rounded butt Tripp wanted to grab and enjoy. The man was solid in all the right places, and with his fiery, somewhat snappish attitude, Tripp found himself sporting a very hard, throbbing cock, and wanted nothing more than to bend his mate over one of the tables in the bistro and claim that fine, rounded ass. While he could clearly see Eddie wouldn’t appreciate Tripp doing that at this time, he noted that the anger over being paired up with a paranormal had faded from Eddie’s scent, and there was actually a little interest if Tripp was interpreting the quick little looks he was receiving correctly.

Leaning forward, he pushed the door open for Eddie to walk through first, and received a slightly exasperated look, which Tripp just smiled over.

ADULT EXCERPT

Edward pulled back, breaking the kiss and dragging in a lungful of air. Tripp followed, his mouth covering Edward’s and kissing with that deep, needing sensuality that drove all thoughts from their minds and left only feelings, a need that may never be quenched, consuming them both.

“More,” Edward whispered against Tripp’s lips. “Want you.”

Tripp pecked kisses. “You’re not ready for me to claim you.”

“No…I need this, Tripp. Show me what it is between us.”

“More than sex, cutie, so much more.”

“Yeah, this isn’t sex, it’s…exploding dynamite.”

Tripp pulled back and looked at Edward seriously, panting heavily. His lips were kiss swollen, pupils large, and that honey hazel was now so dark it was like heated liquid.

“Tell me what you need, cutie.”

“I need to know what this is I’m feeling. I haven’t felt anything in a long time except pain and anger and like I’m mediocre, but with you, I’m coming alive. Give me something to think about other than the bitterness and pain I drown in. Tripp, give me something to hold onto.”

“We hold with our hearts and minds, Eddie,” Tripp said quietly.

Eddie nodded. “Then show me.”

No more was said. Tripp swept Edward up into his arms and kissed him deeply before carrying Edward to the bedroom. The apartment was small, and there were only a few doors, making it easy to guess where the bedroom was. Tripp didn’t dump Edward on the bed, which was rather classy as far as he was concerned. The shifter laid them both down together, keeping their bodies close, their lips not leaving one another. It was the most tender, sensual moment he’d experienced, and he was glad it was with Tripp.

Their clothes just seemed to melt away. He knew that wasn’t possible, but to Edward, that’s what it felt like. He trailed his fingers and hands over huge muscles and through a thick patch of hair across wide, hard pecs, abs, and then down to a long, thick cock that was pressing for attention between them. The bear of a man was all hard muscles, covered by hair the same color as on his head. It tickled Edward’s palms as he ran his hands over the man’s amazing body. It had been so long for Edward that he was on edge, ready to spurt immediately. Tripp was laying over him, pressing against him and rubbing their cocks together. It was such a temptation, he stopped giving a shit if he couldn’t hold back from coming and just enjoyed, rubbing himself vigorously against that long thick rod while attacking Tripp’s lips with his own.

They came together in a tangle of limbs and devouring mouths, hands everywhere at once, and still, they couldn’t get enough. This felt right, oh so right to Edward. He managed to wiggle a little and flung his hand out to his bedside table, fumbling to open the draw.

“Lube. We need lube.” He glanced down at the bear’s huge cock. It was so thick Edward couldn’t get his hand around the entire width. He’d tried. “Yeah, lots of lube.”

Grinning, Tripp grazed his lengthened fangs across Edward’s neck, as one hand reached past Edward’s to the drawer to open it. His balls shot up at the first brush of fangs, and with a loud groan, Edward spurted a little pre-cum, groaning louder when Tripp wrapped a large hand around his cock and slowly stroked. It wasn’t enough to make him come, but it kept him right on edge and teetering, his body taut like a violin string. Tripp had the lube and moved between Edward’s spread legs, a finger finding his hole and rubbing lightly. Edward’s balls released another load of pre-cum, and he groaned.

“No to claiming?” Tripp pressed a finger inside.

“Holy shit!” Edward wasn’t sure if it was Tripp’s finger or dick inside him, the digit was so big.

Then he groaned at the touch of little nerves tucked in his channel and urged Tripp on. The big man wouldn’t be rushed, though, saying he wasn’t going to hurt Eddie, and soon there was no more protesting over going faster, just grunts and groans as Tripp swallowed Edward’s dick down and worked his hole, opening him up for that mammoth rod he called a cock.

Edward wasn’t passive, and between the moans and now riding two fingers in his hole, he pulled the cord holding back Tripp’s hair and let it loose, fanning it through his fingers and guiding the big man’s head as his cock was quickly ready to spurt again. He loved the feel of Tripp’s bristling chin brush against his balls and thighs, the sensations adding the experience. When the third finger pressed inside, Edward winced, but then Tripp’s tongue did something amazing, adding just the right amount of pressure. Any discomfort was lost in the pleasure of Tripp’s warm mouth with that amazing tongue. Coming for the second time, pleasure exploded through his body, his balls emptying with long spurts. Edward only had time to remember to breathe out when Tripp removed four fingers from his ass and pressed the thick head of that big cock into Edward’s well-stretched hole.

The pleasure was worth the burn. Tripp took it slow, stopping to let Edward breathe through it a few times, but, when he finally hit bottom, the big shifter growled in a deeply primal way that had Edward’s flaccid cock springing back up hard and full.

Tripp lifted Edward’s legs and wrapped them around his waist, well, as far as they could go, and with a grip on his hips, used that long thick cock in a way that had Edward begging for more. Tripp grabbed Edward’s wrists in one hand and stretched him out on the bed, their mouths fused together.

Every stroke lit a wave of pleasure through his channel. It was like he was coming alive from the inside out with each powerful thrust.