In A Wolf's Embrace

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Matthias found himself gently massaging Grace's diaphragm after the explosion that tore through her body. She was trying to laugh and gasp for breath at the same time, her face flushing with an edge of embarrassment.

He was still locked inside her, his muscles tight and rippling with the final spurts of his own release. His long black hair fell over his face and hid her expression, like a dark cocoon, insulating them from the world.

Tenderness filled him, as her soft gray eyes watched him with a pleasure reflected in her gaze. Her hands stroked his shoulders so gently, as his palm pressed beneath her ribcage, easing the tightness.

"That's so embarrassing," she finally whispered stroking his hair back from his face, as he kept his gaze locked on her.

God he loved her. Loved her until he could think of nothing but her.

"Overexcitement," he whispered, kissing her cheek tenderly, as he felt his cock finally, blessedly, ease in its stiffness. "And a bit of fear, perhaps?"

Her lips tilted teasingly. "You have a few aspects that are a little overwhelming," she admitted. "But it's not totally your fault. Sometimes, I panic a little."

A little? Her diaphragm was relaxed now, and her breathing, though a little quick, was coming easier.

"Has it happened often since you were a child?" He questioned, easing from her, shuddering at the snug grip of her pussy as he slid out.

"Oh." She breathed out hard at his movement. "That still feels good."

Her hands slid over his shoulders and stroked down his chest, as he moved to lay beside her. She was a gentle weight against his chest now, one slender leg tucked between his, as she pushed his hair back from his face once again.

"It doesn't happen a lot," she finally answered him. "It used to happen all the time when I was little. New situations or if I got scared or excited. My dad was in the army. Every time we heard of a new battle near his area, or if he was late coming home on leave, it would happen."

Stress perhaps. Matthias thought as he tucked her closer to him.

"It hasn't happened since I hit my twenties. But then again, I've never been so excited in my life," she laughed, pulling her head back to stare up at him.

"Or perhaps so frightened?" he asked.

She shrugged, a wry smile on her face. "But it didn't happen when I saw you in Albrecht's suite. Or when you kidnapped me."

"Because you trusted me." He cupped her face in his hand, feeling his chest tighten at the knowledge of how much she had trusted him without even knowing it. "You knew I wouldn't kill without reason, Grace. Just, I think, as you knew that Albrecht was all he was accused of being."

She didn't turn away from him now, nor did she avoid his look. "I knew," she finally whispered. "Inside. But you still scared the life out of me."

"Not enough to steal your breath," he reminded her.

A soft smile from remembered pleasure shaped her well-kissed lips, this time as she shifted against him, her hand stroking down his arm. "No, it's your touch that steals my breath, Matthias. Maybe, if we practice a whole lot, I'll learn how to control it."

"Hmmm, perhaps that's the answer." He leaned down, allowing his lips to rub against hers, to feel the passion and desire in her acceptance of him.

He hadn't expected this. The price of keeping her wasn't so very bad, though. No more assassinations. He could live with that. Jonas could use him at the Bureau of Breed Affairs. He had requested his help there on a full-time basis many times, and Matthias had refused. Maybe he could talk to the director about that now, see what was needed.

There were very few Wolf Breeds in the bureau. The pack leader, Wolf Gunnar, was now on the Breed Ruling Cabinet and met often with the human and feline sections of the Breed community. The separate Breed races were slowly coming together, adapting and learning how to ensure their place in the world. Matthias could help with that. Grace could help with that. He had seen her at the hotel managing the staff. She was like a little general directing the running of the establishment.

"I think I'm hungry," she finally sighed, as his head lifted. "Starving, actually."

Matthias touched her cheek with the backs of his fingers. "Then I better get you fed," he said. "Because the heat will build again, Grace. And soon."

Grace stared back at him in surprise, as he moved from the bed, then helped her rise as well. The surprise quickly changed to admiration. He was hard from head to toe. His body was lean, his muscles flexed with power without being ungainly.

She could understand now why her childhood panic had returned. Her difficulty breathing was due to stress, to emotional overloads, as the doctors had coined it. That was Grace, too damned emotional sometimes. She could handle watching her lover kill a suspected monster, but she couldn't handle the knowledge that he was imperative to her happiness.

Just as her father had been. Just as the knowledge of the danger he had faced had brought on the emotional attacks.

She had thought she was over them. Her father had just retired from the army a few years before, but she hadn't had an attack in more than six years. Until Matthias.

Because she loved him.

She shook her head as she followed him to the shower. They washed quickly, hunger of a different sort driving them now.

Showering with Matthias was a unique experience, though. He loved the water, and he hogged it. She had to push him back several times to get her share, and a wrestling match ensued for possession of the stream of water. She lost, of course, but he did hold her close enough to make certain she was both washed and rinsed from head to toe.

Then he made certain she was dry as well. By time he finished, Grace was ready to head back to the bed rather than to the kitchen.

"Food first. I need my energy." He inhaled slowly, his lashes lowering, as sensuality filled his expression. "Then we'll go to bed. Perhaps we'll even sleep sometime tonight."

He backed her against the bathroom wall, the heavy length of his cock burning against her lower stomach, as her hard nipples raked his chest.

Grace ran her palms over his biceps, then his shoulders, as his head lowered, and he licked the small spot where he had bitten her earlier. Sensation sang through the small wound, a clenching pleasure so deep and hot she rose to her tiptoes to prolong it.

He was definitely a bad boy. Tattooed, pierced, and arrogant as hell. She had seen that arrogance more than once over the past weeks. But he was gentle with her. He touched her like a dream, and he kissed her like fire.

"Food," he whispered regretfully against her lips, drawing back and staring down at her somberly. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine." She was so damned horny now she thought she might melt in a puddle at his feet.

They dressed in the bedroom and headed through the cabin to the kitchen.

The refrigerator was filled with cold cuts, vegetables, and cold water that the caretaker had stocked before her arrival. The freezer held a variety of packaged steaks and other frozen goodies.

She grabbed the meat from the refrigerator and some lettuce and tomatoes. Thick, fresh bread was wrapped and stored in the cabinet. She removed it and set it on the counter.

Matthias was unusually quiet as he moved through the kitchen, the living room, then back to the kitchen. His expression was somber, the way he watched her finally grating on her nerves.

"Is there a problem?" She laid the bread knife down and watched him closely. "If you're still considering killing me, I should point out that has to be against the rules, or something."

His lips quirked as he shook his head. "That would be worse than suicide."

"Then what's bothering you?" She set the bread on plates and began heaping them with meat, cheese, and veggies.

"I just thought of something." He slid his hand into the pockets of his leather pants as he faced her. "What were you doing in Albrecht's suite?"

"He left a message on my machine, demanding my presence. I thought I would see what his problem was before I left."

"Why did you come back?" He was frowning curiously.

Grace waggled her brows. "My bikini. I forgot it. It was new, and I wanted to wear it while I was on vacation. I love swimming in the lake."

The frown eased away, as his whiskey eyes lit with arousal.

Grace snickered at the look, as she picked up the plates and moved them to the kitchen table, before grabbing two bottles of water from the fridge.

"A bikini, huh?" he asked, taking his seat across from her. "What kind of bikini?"

"A little black bikini." She clenched her thighs, the burning in her clit was becoming a bit irksome. Surely to God she could get through a meal without attacking him?

"I'd like to see it," he murmured, picking up his sandwich and biting into it with strong, white teeth.

Teeth that had bitten her. She could feel the mark at her shoulder throbbing and irrationally wished he would lick it again.

She ate her sandwich with more determination than actual hunger now. After they finished, she quickly cleaned the dishes. And Matthias was still quiet.

He had moved from the kitchen to the living room, where he stood in front of the wide picture window, staring out at the lake.

He looked almost regretful.

Maybe Breeds didn't like women with a weakness, she thought morosely, remembering how her breathing had seized up. It was a stress reaction, it wasn't like she was terminally ill or anything. To be honest, her climaxes had terrified her. She had never come so hard, never felt such pleasure ripping through her. It was no wonder she had panicked a little, especially when his cock had thickened, spreading her further and sending her into another, sharper series of orgasms.

"The panic attacks aren't a big deal," she finally said as she stepped into the living room. "They go away eventually."

He turned to stare at her, his eyes narrowing, flicking to her breasts. Her nipples were poking against the soft material of her dark blue shirt, and her pussy was clenching in need.

Violent need.

It didn't make sense. Before, she hadn't ached like this, not to the point that it was physically painful.

"I'm not worried about the panic attacks. If you were ill, I'd detect the scent of it."

Okay. That told her.

She pushed her fingers through her hair and glared at him.

"Then why are you moping around like it's the end of the world? Did I do something wrong?"

Maybe she hadn't pleased him sexually. A man could get a little out of sorts when a woman failed to pick up on something he was wanting but was too stupid to ask for it.

His jaw clenched as he inhaled roughly. "You didn't do anything wrong."

She nodded sharply. "You know, I understand that being a Breed could make you more testosterone-impaired than most men tend to be. But I can't read your thoughts any more than I can read other men's. If something is wrong, I'd prefer you just get it out in the open rather than making me miserable by pulling the silent treatment. Trust me, I have several brothers, I can handle your delicate sensibilities."

His brow lifted, as amusement glittered briefly in his eyes. Amusement, arousal, and something undefined. Anger, perhaps.

"My male sensibilities are functioning fine," he assured her, the corner of his lips tilting wryly.

Grace crossed her arms over her breasts, almost gasping at the feel of the material of her shirt raking over her hard nipples.

"Then what's your problem?"

"You're in pain," he said softly. "Aren't you?"

Grace shifted uncomfortably. "Not really."

"I wanted to hide from you exactly what the mating would do to you," he finally sighed. "There's still so much we don't know about it, or its effects. I should have waited."

"Now, you're starting to frighten me, Matthias."

"Do you know that only two of our wolf mates have produced children? In one of those, the wolf's genetics were so recessed that the scientists theorize that it made conception easier for his mate. The other was so brutally experimented on that she still has nightmares."

Grace flinched at the thought of such pain. "The Felines seem to have no problem."

"More than you know," he sighed. "It's true, the original pride initially had success in conception, but after that, the heat continued during the females' ovulation periods, and no other babies were conceived. It's been ten years. Scheme Tallant, the mate to the felines' head of public relations, is now carrying twins. One child has been born to Merinus and Callan, one to Veronica Andrews, and one to Kane Tyler's mate, Sherra. There is one child born to Dash Sinclair and his mate, and to Aiden's mate, Charity. For the Wolves, conception has proved extremely difficult, and the heat extremely severe."

His voice was heavy, his expression dark, remorseful.

"I tried to be honest with you, Grace." He shook his head, his lips tightening with what she now knew was self-anger. "But I hungered for you." A frown creased his brow, as he stared back at her as though that hunger still confused him. "Even now, my control is less than it should be." His frown deepened. "I tried to tell myself it would be different between us, but I knew better."

Her sex clenched as slick juices spilled between her thighs.

"Do you think explaining it any further to me would have made a difference?" she asked "I'm not a child, and I'm not completely ignorant. Once you told me what you had, I remembered the tabloid stories, I knew I could be looking at more than you were telling me. Evidently, I didn't care."

His head tilted as he watched her with confusion. "How could you not care, Grace? It will change your life forever. Place you in danger. It will restrict your life and will turn you into a target for the scientists out there, who are determined to destroy us."

"And that's what bothers you the most," she said softly. "That danger. Admit it, Matthias. You're frightened."

His lips tightened. "I will protect you."

"No matter the cost," she guessed. "You're afraid that your attempts to protect me will cause me to hate you."

He growled. That sound sent rapid little bursts of near-ecstasy to explode through her vagina, as it tightened her clit further.

"That isn't all," he admitted. "They want our mates." He stared back at her, tortured, desperate. "The mating causes a decrease in aging. The couples who have mated are aging only one year per every five to ten years. You will live far longer than you ever imagined, and it's because of this that the rogue scientists are so desperate to get their hands on mated pairs."

Okay, now that was shocking. Grace stared back at him, her lips parting in disbelief.

"How much longer?" she asked.

He swallowed tightly. "We aren't certain, but there's rumors that the first Lion Breed created more than a century ago still lives, and that he and his mate are still in their prime."

"Whoa!" She breathed out, moving to the chair beside her and sitting down heavily. "That's definitely a decrease in aging." Her hand pressed against her lower stomach. "Does it stop after conception?"

He shook his head sharply. "Not that we've seen. Conception is so difficult that our doctors and scientists believe this is nature's way of ensuring the species. Until the babes have grown and we see how this aging affects them, we can't be certain of anything."

"Well, this definitely throws a little kink into things," she breathed out roughly. "You said Merinus and Callan have only one child? The reports state three. I remember that."

He shook his head. "There are three pride children. The press mistakenly reported the children as all belonging to the pride leader and his mate, and they didn't bother to correct it. They keep their mates closely guarded while they're pregnant, and out of the public eye. It's the only way to ensure their safety."

"And the wolf mates?"

His jaw flexed, a muscle ticking violently just under the flesh.

"No one knows where Dash Sinclair hides his family. Aiden and Charity stay on the Wolf Breed compound in Colorado and never leave it. Their child will be born under as much restriction as we were created in."

"And if I conceive?" she whispered.

"We'll have no choice but to return to Colorado. If it happens."