She eyed the bulge in his jeans. "You appear to be super-sized, too."
He smiled as his jeans and underwear hit the floor. "It's the animal in me." He crouched at her feet. His nostrils flared. "I can smell your heat."
Her thighs squeezed together as more moisture seeped from her.
He lifted a foot and nuzzled the arch. Then he licked her toes and nipped at them. Her leg twitched.
"Are - Are you sure you should bite?" She thought that was how a werewolf was made.
He nipped at her ankle. "Are you afraid of turning furry, sweetheart?"
"Well, I think I have enough problems already, just being me."
He chuckled. "I love you just the way you are." He licked a path up her calf. "I would have to bite hard, break the skin, and get my saliva into your bloodstream."
He tickled the back of her knee with his tongue. "And I'd have to be in wolf form at the time. So, you're reasonably safe."
"Reasonably?"
"You can't reason with a beast."
Her heart stuttered when he growled low in his throat. He moved around her body on his hands and knees, nuzzling her naked body, rubbing his nose across her tingling skin, licking her, tasting her. No part was off limits. Her ears, her neck, her armpits.
With another growl, he pounced on her br**sts. He licked them, squeezed them, suckled the ni**les hard. They turned red, the tips distended and tender. She groaned, arching up into his mouth.
And then, with a push of his hands and his nose, he flipped her over. Her br**sts, overly sensitized, scraped against the horsehair blanket. She pressed her legs together, close to climaxing.
He nuzzled the back of her neck, tickling the tiny hairs and making her shiver. Then he licked a path down her spine. He kneaded her rump, licked and nipped till she was squirming.
She gasped when he pulled her onto her side and nudged his head between her legs. With his head pillowed on her thigh, he lapped at her.
She squealed and pressed her thighs against his head. With a growl, he nuzzled his face deeper into her. His tongue seemed to also have super speed. She screamed, her body shattering with a massive convulsion.
"You're mine." He nipped at her bottom, then pulled her onto her knees.
"Wait." Her knees were rubbery. Her body was still throbbing with aftershocks. She rested her forehead against the blanket, struggling to catch her breath.
"I've got you." He grabbed her hips, supporting her with his hands as he plunged into her from behind.
She cried out. He was incredible. He filled her completely. He pulled out slowly, dragging the sensation, setting her on fire. "Phil!"
He plunged back into her. He supported her with one arm, then leaned forward to nuzzle her neck and hold her hand. He pumped faster. The tension started to build once more. He growled in her ear, then reared up onto his knees, taking her with him.
She leaned back against his chest. His hands slid up her body and squeezed her br**sts.
"You're mine," he whispered in her ear.
"Yes."
He reached between her legs and tweaked her clitoris as he ground into her vagina from the back. She screamed when the orgasm slammed into her. He let out a hoarse cry, eerily similar to the howl of a wolf. As he tumbled onto the blanket with her, she knew her future had been decided. The beast had claimed his mate.
"Are you all right?" Phil asked when her breathing finally slowed.
"Yes." She cuddled against his body.
He was flat on his back, still in the cellar. He wrapped his arms around Vanda and rubbed her back. He was relieved she knew his secret, but now he had another problem.
Brynley had seen his display of Alpha power. She'd been the leader of that damned group that had scared Vanda so badly. No doubt that had been Bryn's intention - to scare Vanda out of his life. Where his sister had managed to find the rest of those young cubs, he had no idea.
They were probably in the woods now, hunting fox or rabbit. As normal werewolves, they would be in wolf form all night, changing back to their human bodies shortly before sunrise.
The last thing he'd wanted was to let Brynley in on his secret. Achieving Alpha status was a major event in the Lycan World. She'd let Dad know about it as soon as possible.
The firstborn son was Alpha. Phil had proven his worthiness to be Heir Apparent.
"How did you become a werewolf?" Vanda whispered.
"I was born this way."
"So you were a beastly child?"
He snorted. "Lycan children don't usually have their first change until puberty. I was thirteen."
"It must have been scary. And painful."
"Yeah, a little. But we were prepared for it. When you've heard the stories all your life, about the rush of freedom you'll feel when running through the woods, the thrill of the hunt, and the victory of the first kill, then you're really happy when it finally happens."
She stroked her fingers through his chest hair. "How did werewolves get started? Was there some kind of strange, rabid wolf that bit a human?"
"It's a very old story. I remember sitting in front of the fire, listening to my parents tell it." He rubbed her back. "Would you like to hear it?"
"Yes." She rested her head on his chest. "Tell me."
"My family are the descendants of an ancient line of Welsh royalty."
She raised her head. "So you're a prince?"
"I wouldn't go that far. These ancestors were more like wizards than kings. They possessed many strange powers, and one of them was the ability to transform into any sort of animal. Over time they developed personal tastes for what sort of animal they liked to change into. The favorites were wolf, bear, wildcat, and hawk."
"The hunting animals," Vanda murmured.
"Exactly. Why change into a mouse when you can be a lion? My direct ancestors preferred the wolf. Everything was fine until the Romans invaded. The Celtic tribes were falling in defeat. My ancestors realized they could escape Roman rule by living as wolves."
"Did others live as bears, wildcats, and hawks?" she asked.
"Yes." Phil assumed that was the beginning of Howard's family of were-bears. "While my ancestors were in wolf form, they mated. They discovered those children were bound permanently to the wolf. They could no longer choose which animal they wanted to turn into."
"And werewolves were born," Vanda whispered.
"Yes. Every now and then the Romans would kill a werewolf, and it turned back into human form. They were superstitious and fearful of some sort of supernatural retaliation if they didn't keep our secret. They called our tribe the Philupus for those who loved wolves. The name has been passed down in my family for centuries. It's my name, actually."
She gave him an incredulous look. "Philupus?"
"Now you know why I prefer Phil. After the Romans left, my ancestors thought it would be safe to go back to living in human form. But a few generations had passed and they found they couldn't stay human all the time. They changed on the first night of a full moon."
"So they were doomed to turn into wolves every month for eternity," she whispered.
He smiled. "I wouldn't call it 'doomed. I've never met a werewolf who didn't love that burst of freedom we get every month when we can toss all human rules and conventions out the window and act like...animals."
"You find it liberating."
"Yes." Phil sighed. "Or it should be. There are some among the Lycan World who think we should adhere to our own traditions. Supreme Pack Masters can be very powerful, and they try to force everyone to do as they say."
Vanda sat up. "You had trouble with someone like that?"
He nodded. "My father."
She winced. "I'm sorry."
"It's all right." He caressed her arm.
"He wouldn't approve of me. Your sister doesn't either." Vanda glanced at the trapdoor. "When is she getting back? That's an awfully long hike - Oh." She slapped her forehead. "Your sister's a werewolf."
"She was one of those wolves who scared you."
Vanda made a face. "She really doesn't like me."
"She doesn't know you yet. And don't worry about her. I'll have a good talk with her."
"Were all of those wolves werewolves?"
"Yes, but they won't bother you again. They know you're under my protection." Phil sat up. "So how come you're so afraid of werewolves?"