Not knowing what to say to that, he lay on top of her gently, not wanting to pull out just yet. He was still hard, the head of his cock throbbing softly in the aftermath. He cupped her jaw and traced her bottom lip with his thumb. He kissed her, then kissed her again. Their tongues battled for a long while, Claudia moaning and sighing. Her body was deliciously tired and soft under him, and he realized he never wanted that moment to end.
However, her arms and shoulders were obviously aching, so he reached out and untied her wrists.
At first, Claudia didn’t know what to do with her hands. She wanted to touch him, but she was afraid that if she did, he could only reject her, pull out of her, and storm out of the room. She didn’t want that. She clenched her muscles around his cock and sighed at the sweet sensation of being so close to him, of them being one. She wanted to take off her blindfold and look into his mesmerizing green eyes, but if he hadn’t removed it yet, then it meant he still didn’t want her to see him. “What a strange man,” she thought. They stayed like that for what felt like forever, Karl caressing her face, and Claudia keeping her hands spread to the sides. This was probably as close to cuddling as they would get. She wasn’t complaining, but she did want more. This was the perfect moment to tell him about her clever idea.
“Karl, I was thinking…”
“Mhm?”
She swallowed heavily and took her time to find the right words.
“I was thinking that, maybe, we should have the mating ritual.”
He was silent. She couldn’t tell if it was a good kind of silence, or a bad one.
“The full moon is in two days, and I’m ready. I hope you are, too. I don’t know… this feels right. Us, I mean.” She hesitated a bit, wondering if she wasn’t actually lying. Yes, she wanted to be with him, but did their relationship really feel that right? She dismissed her doubts. “Also, I… I want to take the cure. I want you to bite me so I can take the antidote for the werewolf venom and turn into a hybrid.”
Karl’s stomach did a painful flip. He immediately sat up, pulling out of her, and ran his hands through his short black hair. He inhaled and exhaled slowly, afraid that if he lost control of his heart, stomach, and breathing, he would vomit all over her.
“Karl?”
She raised her head a bit, focusing on the shadow she could see through the black silk. What was happening? She was seriously considering removing the blindfold.
“Are you okay? What do you think?”
“No.”
Her heart skipped a beat. “No what?”
“We can’t have the mating ritual and you can’t become a hybrid.”
“What… why?”
She sat up and cringed a bit when his seed leaked onto the sheets. She needed a shower. But more importantly than that, she needed an explanation.
“Why not? I’m your bride. You want me, I want you. We have to do it at some point, so why not this full moon? Why wait another month?”
“No.”
He moved to the edge of the bed and started putting his clothes on. When Claudia figured out what he was doing, she got really mad. This was stupid. Why did he have to be so childish and stubborn? Couldn’t he give her a simple, straight answer? In a swift motion, she took off her blindfold and immediately gasped in surprise. Karl was sitting with his back turned to her, and his skin was covered in old, deep scars.
“Oh my God! Who did this to you?”
Karl’s eyes widened in panic. He stood up and threw his shirt on, then turned to her.
“I told you not to take off your blindfold!”
“What the hell? Is that what you were hiding from me? Seriously? Did you think a couple of scars would scare me away?”
Karl took a couple of deep breaths, struggling to control his wolf. The beast was angry and it wanted out.
“Claudia, you don’t understand.”
She moved to the edge of the bed, now kneeling before him.
“Then tell me. Help me understand.”
He shook his head and reached for his shoes. He needed to shift, but he didn’t want it to happen in her room. This was the huge disadvantage of living in an apartment, in the middle of a big city. He couldn’t just shift when he wanted to, when he needed. Sure, he could shift in the living room, where there was more space, then go up on the terrace, pace around a bit, then sleep on the grass in his wolf form, but he had to do it at night. Even though humans knew about the existence of shape-shifters and were getting used to them, there was no reason to give the neighbors something to talk about.