Pride and relief surged through him that she hadn’t judged his pathetic want to be a part of a ragtag misfit crew. They were a mixed bag of nuts—the crazy kind. Bears with scars in their middles that made them dangerous to the world but not to each other. A human, a raven, and a little baby dragon who didn’t fit anyplace else, and for some reason, Kong couldn’t think of a better batch of people to surround himself with. Layla’s approval meant more than anything in the world. He grinned, unable to help himself, and dropped his gaze so she wouldn’t see how pathetic he was for needing to please her.
Layla lifted his chin, and her gaze dipped to his lips. Canting her head, she whispered, “You always smile for the shifters, but you don’t do it around me.”
Inhaling deeply, he gripped her hand, plucked the rag from her palm, and pressed her touch against his cheek because, damn it all, it felt so fucking good to be this close to someone who was so real. “I couldn’t, Layla. And I can’t again after I leave tonight. Any attention I give you puts you in danger, and if anything ever happened to you, I couldn’t live with myself.”
“You can protect a harem of female gorillas, but you can’t protect me?”
A deep ache sliced through his middle as he shook his head in weak admission. There were too many of his people, and they didn’t care about human casualties. Not when it came to the continuation of their shifter species. They would see Layla as a threat to their precious breeding program and eliminate her.
A wave of devastation darkened her eyes for a moment before she replaced it with an empty smile. He hated that one. She gave it to assholes who wouldn’t stop hitting on her at the bar. She gave it to Barney at the end of the night when he was slurring drunk and pestering her. Kong didn’t want her to have vacant smiles for him. He wanted the genuine one back.
Before he could change his mind, he leaned forward and kissed her. Too hard, too hard. Be gentle with her. She deserves gentle. Kong slid his hand up her neck and gripped it softly as he angled his head and moved his lips against hers. She froze under his touch, but then softened as she leaned forward and stood. Kong gripped her waist as she straddled his hips and settled right over his erection. Her arms tightened around his neck, and a soft, happy-sounding moan whispered up her throat. Damn, this woman…she was everything. Filling his head, pushing out thoughts of danger. She didn’t grind her hips against him or push the kiss to be more than it was. She just seemed to want to be close to him, up against his skin. His inner gorilla was alert and ready, senses perked but quiet, enjoying the moment and ready to kill anyone or anything who interrupted it. Kong slipped his tongue past her lips and tasted her. Damn, she was perfect. Her body was calling to his, drawing out his needs. Be gentle.
He plucked at her lips, then froze when she disconnected and curled up against his chest, arms tucked in and cheek against his neck. He sat there, arms suspended in the air. What was happening to him? He’d felt protective before, but she was hugging him so strangely, as though she trusted him. As if he wasn’t terrifying.
And then she whispered, “I feel safe when I’m with you.”
Fuck. She wasn’t safe at all, and this had been a really bad idea. What harm could a cup of tea cause? The worst kind since his inner monster was now laying claim to his mate. No, no, no, this wasn’t supposed to happen. Silverbacks didn’t do a single mate. They did family groups.
He was panting now. Don’t hug her. Wrap your arms around her warm body, and you’re done for. “I have to go.”
Layla eased back, a frown marring her beautiful face. Big blue eyes, questioning, petal pink lips, rosy cheeks that were deepening with color by the moment. “Did I do something wrong?”
“No,” he gritted out, “I did.” He gripped her shoulders and settled her on her feet, then strode for the door. This was it. This was the goodbye that was going to save her life and end his simultaneously. He’d been careless. Gotten too close and was losing control. Losing his head. He couldn’t protect her and make the right decisions if he felt numb like this around her.
She was dangerous to them both.
He ran his hands roughly through his hair and turned at the door, feeling like every step away from her cut a slice into his guts, exposing his insides to air. “Layla, I’m sorry.”
She crossed her arms over her chest like a shield, and he imagined her doing the same when her parents had left. When Mac went into hospice care. When everyone in her life had left her, and now he was just another letdown.
He ripped his gaze away from her broken eyes and forced himself out the front door. He closed it and pressed his shoulders against the cold wood until he could see straight because his gorilla was banging on his insides. Go back to her, he roared from his middle. She’s ours.