I smiled genuinely. “My time in each country has been incredible. I have learned so many new things, experienced different cultures I’d only ever dreamed of.” I left out the part about how I enjoyed my time in Romania the most… because I’d met him.
Ren was by far my most enjoyable reason for taking this leap in life.
And given the fact that we’d just met yesterday, it seemed like admitting that to him now would be just the thing to send someone running in the other direction.
“I’m glad.” He cleared his throat again, the wind softly blowing in the car still. “I’m glad you decided to come here for your trip.”
I smiled again, even blushed. God, what was it about this man that made me feel so alive?
It was only another ten minutes driving and then Ren was pulling into his stately driveway and up to the massive home. I had a feeling he’d taken the long way to get here, but I didn’t mind. And as I looked at him as he pulled the luxury car to a stop and cut the engine, I knew I wanted to see how far things could go with him. I wanted to experience things with Ren I’d only ever fantasized about.
“Shall we?” he asked and looked at me.
I nodded and went to open the car door, but his hand on my knee stilled me. My heart started racing, my breathing quickening. And all from that small touch. It was like fire on my body.
“Please, allow me?”
I licked my lips and nodded. This man was very old school. And I liked it.
He was out of the car and moving around the front of the vehicle, his big body causing my breath to come in short pants. He was just so… fearsome in appearance.
I spent some time with Mini today before Ren picked me up, and I wanted to ask her about Ren, but given the language barrier, and with Andrei still in the city, I was at a dead end. But as I’d been looking toward the forest, no doubt having this faraway look in my eyes because I’d definitely been daydreaming about Ren, I caught her gaze on mine. She had this knowing smile on her face as she murmured soft words in her native tongue.
He led me up the cobblestone walkway, the feel of his big hand on my lower back more arousing than it probably should’ve been.
And then we were inside, and I was frozen as I looked around at the opulence, at the hand carved wood accents, the detailing… the everything.
“God, Ren…” My words trailed off as I walked around. A gorgeous wide staircase was directly across from the double front doors. “It's magnificent.” The flooring was also hardwood, polished, and a deep, rich brown color. There were exposed beams above, and the second story walls showed the same stone that graced the exterior of the home. I took note there were wolf details throughout the wood accents, large, violent animals with snarling jaws and aggressive stances. Yet they were also devastatingly beautiful.
He hadn’t responded, so I glanced at him and saw his attention was wholly on me. I swallowed at how much I felt that look.
“It pleases me to no end that you like this home.”
I shivered at the tone of his voice, sweet and thick and being poured over me in the most delicious of ways.
“Will you give me a tour?”
His smile told me I’d all but made his day, and when he held his arm out like a gentleman, I slipped mine through his and let him show me around.
And the entire time, I felt the strangest way about being here.
I felt like I was home.
16
Ren
I’d given my mate a proper tour of the manor—of the home I built for her. To know she enjoyed it, that it pleased her immensely, had pride swelling my chest. I’d taken my time showing her as much as I could before I felt her hunger, and my need to provide for her overrode anything else.
And here we were, dinner finished, my mate seated across from me, the whole atmosphere lethargic in the best way… in the way that told me she was satiated by her meal and her surroundings.
And I could smell her desire.
She was confused by it, a scent in my nose that tingled. She didn’t understand why she felt this undeniable and extreme pull toward me. I knew that, even though she didn’t speak the words out loud.
Mikalina was unsure why her body softened toward me without so much as a touch from me. She wondered why she was aroused, her pussy soaked and sensitive—something I could very much smell with approval. She kept squirming on the chair, her little nipples hard as diamonds under her top.
Christ, just thinking about her being primed for me, ready to let me claim her—my need to mark her—under the full moon, had me nearly snarling, baring my canines. I let my gaze drop to her throat, stared at the slender, pale column of her neck. My mouth watered to pierce her flesh, to let my Lycan canines slide right into her skin, leaving my mark so all males of my species would see whose mate she was.