Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted (Ava and Lucas)

Chapter 41 Ava: Virgin Heat (I)

I brace myself against the slick tiles, my chest heaving with harsh, ragged breaths as Clayton's eyes blaze into mine. The heat between us is a living, breathing thing, a palpable force that crackles in the air like an electric current.

"Clayton," I manage, my voice a breathless rasp. "We need to... call the guards."

My words would probably have a little more punch if I wasn't still working my fingers between my thighs. His eyes fall from my face to my hands, and he steps forward.

A thrill rushes through me, and I spread my legs a little farther. "The guards," I prompt, even as I bring myself to yet another orgasm, panting as my face flushes with its heat.

I want his fingers, not mine.

I want his tongue, not his fingers.

I want his cock, not his tongue.

I want…

Fuck, I can't handle this.

His nostrils flare at the sound of my voice, his jaw clenching as a muscle ticks in his chiseled cheek. I can see the war raging within him, the primal alpha instincts battling against his ironclad control.

"Ava," he growls, and the sound of my name on his lips sends a fresh wave of desire crashing through me. I whimper, my thighs clenching tight as I struggle to stay standing.

rumble builds in his

gravelly purr that sends shivers racing down my spine. "I can smell your need from here. It's taking

is a living inferno now,

I beg, the word torn from my

me from the inside out. But Clayton seems to understand, his

that has my core clenching with fresh need. "You need to be claimed, don't you, little one? Filled and bred until

he takes me with brutal, claiming force. His knot swelling inside me, locking us together as he floods me with his seed, branding me as his mate

isn't right, that Clayton isn't my fated

No claiming.

Just sex.

from all

But—

I'm trying to maintain rationality, and yet I hold

Clayton's chest as he prowls closer, his eyes blazing like twin emerald flames. "No guards, little one," he counters, his tone laced with steel.

cages me in. I can feel the scorching heat of his body, can smell the heady, musky scent of his arousal mingling with mine in the steamy air. He's soaked from the water, and I struggle with the urge to lick

care of you, Ava," he murmurs, his breath fanning hot across my

crashes down on mine, swallowing my whimper of surprise as he kisses me with a ferocious, all-consuming hunger. His tongue plunges past my lips, stroking against mine in a

in the taste of him, in the blazing heat of his kiss and the hard planes of his body pressed against mine. My fingers tangle in his hair, clutching him

his hands curls into my hair, yanking my head back as