“It’s good, Kettah. It’s really fucking good.” She burst out laughing, and he blinked at her, not knowing what was so funny. “What?” She wiped a few stray tears from the corners of her eyes and shook her head.
“Nothing, well, it’s just you’re so coarse, even when thanking someone.”
Okay, now he felt like a major asshole.
“I’m sorry.” He set his fork down, not sure how to proceed. He knew he was gruff and harsh on the best of days, but he also knew that wasn’t something he could just get rid of overnight. He would always be this way, and as helpful as his attitude was at keeping others at bay, it wasn’t too good at bringing mates closer.
“You have nothing to be sorry about. I kind of like the fact you’re all gruff.” A pink coloring dotted her cheeks, and the sweet smell of hyacinth came from her like a wave of blooming flowers. He had never smelled anything as glorious as Kettah, had never wanted anything as much as he wanted her, and he had to force himself not to clear the table with one sweep of his arm, sending everything crashing to the ground, and take her right there. Her breathing had increased, and her pupils dilated right in front of him. Fuck, had she sensed how feral he truly was, and that he needed to take control and forget about everything else for a short, sweet time? The smell of her wet pussy was intoxicating, and Maverick gripped the edge of the table hard enough that the wood beneath his now retracted claws gave way. She was aroused. Her pussy was soaked, that much was really fucking clear, and the low growl that came from him couldn’t be stopped. The sight of her nipples hardening right in front of him had his dick punching forward, demanding to be inside of her so that there would be no denying who she belonged to. And Kettah belonged to him, in every way imaginable.
He gripped the edge of the table even harder, curled his fingers into the wood, and tried to keep his lion in check. The beast was right there, wanting to come out, needing to come out. He knew his black eyes flashed gold from the need to shift, could see it in her face, and loved that it turned her on instead of frightening her. He was right on the line of losing it, and it was all because he had denied himself and his animal since he first saw her, and it was growing stronger, more dangerous, with each passing day. The sound of the wood splintering beneath his fierce grasp pierced the air. She lowered her eyes to where he held the table, and her breathing hitched with unrestrained desire. There was no denying the fact that the thought of him being a little bit dangerous had her aroused.
“Maverick—” He cut her off with a low growl, and her eyes widened from the sound. She needed to stay quiet, to be still if he was going to get control of himself. “Your eyes.”
He let a low rumble leave him again, because trying to speak was beyond him right now. His lion was taking control, and there was nothing his human side could do to stop it. The fucker paced, clawing at the inside, trying to break free, and succeeding because there was a part of the human side of Maverick that was tired of fighting this.
“Your hands, Maverick.” Her voice was low, but despite that she knew he was partially shifting, there was no fear in her voice.
“Go to the room, Kettah.” He gritted his teeth as he spoke to her. His voice was distorted, low, and held a rough edge to it. Right now it wasn’t Maverick speaking to her, but the animal that was about to fuck his mate, and if she didn’t leave, he was afraid of what he might do. “Lock yourself in the closet, behind the escape door, and don’t come back out until I tell you it’s safe.” He wasn’t going to last from shifting, maybe only seconds longer. When he didn’t sense her move he let out a deep growl that was strong enough to vibrate the walls. Her arousal grew, coated the air, and made this whole situation even more dangerous. Fuck, she should be really damn afraid right now. He could handle her wanting the human part of him, but smelling her arousal grow when his lion was emerging was too damn much for him to try to control himself. “Go, Kettah.” He roared out and slammed his hands down on the table just as his lion finally broke free. His bones broke and realigned, his muscles stretched, and his human body contorted into that of a massive lion. This had been a long time in coming, and he had not been smart enough to either send her on her way before now, or find a female to fuck before it got to this point. But even just thinking those things, Maverick knew he wouldn’t have been able to do either one.
She stood quickly, the chair that she sat on sliding across the floor from the swift action before tipping to its side. She should have feared him, should have been running, screaming, and grabbing a weapon to keep him away, not standing there looking at him like she wanted to come closer, run her hands through his mane, and let her Pallas’s cat out to rub up on him. Fuck, this was bad, like really, really fucking bad.