The Maverick Pride Tales - Chapter 125: Chapter 125

“Mine.”
Fuck.
He’d whispered that aloud. Thank the gods for the small gust of wind that came, whisking his words away before the beautiful normal could hear them. He breathed deep, sucking in her flavors once more.
Yes, the female was human. But if she knew Uncle Uzzi, she knew about Shifters. Still, knowing was different from knowing. He did not want to scare her off with his growling.
Cool it, he told his beast. Fucking Cat was too damn eager.
“Hi,” she said, smiling brightly. “I’m Annalia Reese. You can call me Anna, though. I hope you don’t mind that Uncle Uzzi set this up.”
Her smile wobbled a little as she waited for him to say something, but he couldn’t talk. Not just yet. She cleared her throat and left him to follow her in or stay in the doorway. He stood there. Like an idiot.
Annalia. Pretty name for a pretty girl.
“I just need my coat. Oh, I’m sorry, you said something when I opened the door, but I couldn’t hear you. The wind was blowing,” she explained.
“Oh, uh,” he muttered.
I’m a fucking idiot.
Lance opened and closed his mouth a few times like a moron. But what could he do? It was her. She was the one. His fated mate. He was certain.
This woman was his destiny. Every instinct screamed at him to cart her off to the bedroom and claim her. He wanted to desperately.
The urge was so strong it almost brought him to his knees. Lance wanted to make love to her in a thousand and one ways. To kiss her, fuck her, bite her, and claim her. To mark her with his scent, his cum, his teeth. To make sure she bore his mark.
Yes. Mine. Do all that. Get her swollen with our cubs.
Shut up, idiot monster.
He was trembling with the strength it took to rein in his Tiger. He just had to remember she was human. The need to fuck and bite and claim were not going to be instant for her. She needed patience and wooing.
Want her. Now. Lick. Kiss. Bite. Claim.
How about I tell her my name first, idiot.
“Oh, um, I’m Lance,” he replied, voice cracking.
Fuck, that was embarrassing. He cleared his throat and tried again.
“Um, sorry. I’m Lance Jacosa and I am definitely glad Uncle Uzzi set this up. I hope you are okay with it?”
“Sure, otherwise I wouldn’t be here. No harm in a date, right?” she asked, and shrugged nonchalantly, but he could hear her heart pounding.
Her breath was raspy, and she looked a little pale. Lance frowned and stepped forward. Was she hurt? He managed to control himself as she turned around, as if searching for something.
Ah, her bag.
She lifted the small black clutch and smiled, doing a little victory shimmy, and grabbing her coat with her other hand.
“Found it,” she murmured and blushed prettily.
“Are you ready?”
He grinned at her. How could he not? She was adorable.
“Yes, thank you.”
Annalia smiled and took his proffered arm. The feel of her small hand in the crook of his elbow made his pulse race, and his beast perk up. The Tiger liked her hands on him.
Suddenly, his whole world had shifted. Annalia was beautiful and her scent was intoxicating. But Lance knew he needed to take it slow. She was human and would not understand his certainty that she was the one for him. Patience was not exactly his strong suit, but for her, he could learn. She was already more than he had ever hoped for.
Once situated in the car, Lance turned the seat warmer on her side. He needed to be mindful of her delicate human nature. She was fragile, meant to be cherished.
Fuck, how he wanted to cherish her—with every single inch of him.
“So, I know this is crazy, and maybe I am being too forward, but well, I met Uncle Uzzi in the building where I am renting a condo and he told me he’s like this dating expert. He also noticed my preferred reading material, and well, he told me some things that might be a little, er, crazy.”
“Crazy how?”
“Well, I don’t really know why he told me the things he did⁠—”
“What did he tell you?”
“He said magic was real, and supernatural stuff, too. I guess what I want to know is, was he telling the truth? Are you a Shifter?” she asked in a whisper.
He could feel her embarrassment and his beast did not like that. She should feel comfortable enough to ask him anything. Biting back his growl at the thought he did anything to make her uncomfortable, Lance answered her questions as best he could.
“Uncle Uzzi has his reasons, and I am not privy to them. But Annalia, I swear I will always tell you the truth. I am a Shifter. Does that bother you?”
Lance could not stop the pounding of his heart. He could not believe how much her answer mattered to him, but it did. Her comfort and safety were paramount to anything he might be feeling, and Lance would do his best to soothe any fears she might have about his Cat.
“Oh, wow. So, you are? Shifters are real,” she muttered, more to herself than to him.
Lance stayed silent, waiting for her to process the information. Eyes on the road, he listened to her breathing. Raspy again, and he frowned.
“Uh, what kind of Shifter are you?”
The scent of her nervousness had his Cat yowling mournfully, but he reined in the beast. She was a human. This was new for her.
Go slowly. Don’t fuck it up.
As far as pep talks went, it was the best he had. Lance sucked in a breath, savoring that spicy chocolatey scent that was all Annalia.
Anna, she’d said to call her, but he liked her whole name. It was unique, just like her. She was so perfect, but fear and lies did not belong between them. So, he decided to just straight shoot it.
“I’m a Bengal Tiger Shifter,” he explained. “I can Shift into my animal at will, and though we share our existence, he has his own personality quirks.”
“Wow,” she answered, a smile splitting her face. It was like the sun coming out, seeing her grin so widely, and Lance knew he wanted to make her smile as often as possible.
“I love tigers. They’re my favorite animal. So, what are some of his quirks?”
“Well,” he replied, clearing his throat. It got all growly when she said she loved tigers. His beast was practically strutting now.
“It’s not a quirk per se, but right now my Tiger is thinking you smell fantastic.”
“Oh,” she replied, lips forming a perfect circle.
That mouth of hers was so fucking hot. Gonna get them both in trouble if he didn’t keep imagining it wrapped around his cock. He squirmed in his seat. Damn this fucking suit.
The slim fit pants Elissa had insisted on were cutting off the circulation to his balls. Or maybe that was because his entire blood supply was currently in his dick.
“I am glad he likes how I smell,” she told him, and damn, he was definitely gonna throw this fucking suit out after tonight.
“I like it very much,” he told her, loving the way she seemed to glow under the small praise
Compliment her often. Check.
His sweet mate had the cutest little smile, bringing her dimple out, practically begging him to trace it with his tongue. Lance was already imagining what it would feel like to be able to kiss and nibble on her whenever he wanted.
Slow. Go slow.
Grrrr.
Yep. It was going to be a long night. He caught her watching him watch her and he tried to relax. He didn’t want to frighten her with the strength of his desire, but fucking hell, that was going to be hard.
Hard.
Yes, hard. For her.
Oh, that was great. Now, he was thinking about his dick again.
Change the subject, growled his Cat.
“Like music?”
“Sure,” she agreed.
“What kind?”
“Anything is fine,” she said.
“I insist, you pick,” he told her and nodded to the dashboard.
“Okay, but I am warning you, I don’t play around.”
“What does that mean?” he asked, liking her spunk.
“It means I am not going to tune into something I think you’ll like. If you are telling me to pick something I like, then I am really going to choose what I want to hear.”
“Good,” he said and meant it. “I want to know what music you like, Annalia. I’m curious about you.”
“Really?”
She blinked slowly, her soulful brown eyes ever watchful before she turned her attention to the satellite radio.
“Yeah, really. I know it is soon for you, but I like you, Annalia.”
“You like me? Oh. Um, okay. Well, then, this is our first compatibility test.”
Lance laughed as she tuned into a retro eighties station. The Go-Go’s were going on vacation, and why the heck not? He winked at her, then started singing along in his deep baritone. The beautiful woman laughed aloud, relaxing visibly beside him.
Good, he thought.
His Tiger chuffed softly inside his chest, the noise mimicking a purr. Shock and then absolute pleasure rolled through him when she joined him in singing.
Fuck, she was so cute.
Her voice was delightfully off key, but it was music to his ears. The trip to the event was over far too quickly. He pulled up to the valet attendant, a smile on his face, looking forward to the ball.
Elissa and Jessica had been right. Uncle Uzzi had found her. This woman was it for him. His destiny. His mate.
Mine.
Now, he just had to win her heart.