“Arik,” I whispered, my voice husky with something too close to fear. I needed to say more, to slow down, to speed up, something, but my tongue refused to force out any other word but his name.
A talisman. A lifeline.
Arik growled. The sound rippled up my legs and down my spine to meet low in my pelvis. His eyes shed their amber glow, throwing stark shadows across his face, making him appear animalistic. Or maybe that was his griffin rising beneath his skin. Whichever it was, it captivated me, made me burn, made me want to relax onto the mattress and spread myself for him. But something held me back, something I’d seen in his eyes when I’d first stepped into the office.
Rage. Frustration. Hate.
Whatever had happened tonight while he was gone, it had been powerful. The emotion it engendered lurked beneath the hunger suffusing Arik’s expression now, burning me down to my core, even deeper than his need could go. Searching his face, my heart stuttered, caught, tumbled over itself into a frantic pace, and yet all the while, those beautiful, intense eyes held me in thrall.
“Arik, what’s going on?”
The words came out too breathless, too hesitant, but at least they came out. Arik didn’t seem to register the question, didn’t hesitate as he crawled, one hand, one knee in front of the other, up the bed. I let myself go soft, relax back onto the pillows, surrendering to his approach despite the warnings blaring in my head.
His gaze dropped to my body, trailing over me as if he owned me, tension threading through his muscles until they stood in stark relief under his taut skin. My throat went dry at the lure of that dark desire. My mind blanked when he reached my feet. Wrapping a single palm around my ankle, he jerked, quick and hard, laying me out flat before him. Socks were removed, pajama pants, panties. His head lowered. His nose trailed along my ankle, my calf. The sound of his deep inhale, the vibrating purr that escaped him should have reassured me, but when his tongue sneaked out to trace the line of muscle, I tensed instead. Arik rubbed each cheek along my skin, marking me—no, this felt like his griffin marking me. Laying claim. I was no longer sure which animal I was in bed with, wasn’t sure I cared.
And when he reached my pelvis and paused to nuzzle into the apex of my thighs, I knew for certain I couldn’t care either way.
Then his fangs pricked my skin.
*
Readers, this sexy griffin shifter is sure to make you melt! <3 <3 <3