"Ahh! Don't stop!" she cried, and gripped the strong muscles of his back with her nails and clung to his powerful body.

Her words seemed to snap his control. He gathered her closer and thrust in hard, full thrusts. He was building her up higher, towards an unreachable peak. He pulled back before slamming back in again in a hammering, rhythmic pattern that had her squealing sexy little moans in his ear.

"Oh, oh, oh, oh!" She moaned as her orgasm quickly escalated. Her muscles quivered and tightened, preparing for the onslaught that was to come. Her skin drew up tight and her womb trembled, needing only a few more strokes to toss her over into the abyss.

Vane saw the look on her face and nearly came. He squeezed has thighs and ass hard to keep from shooting his load just then. God, why did she have to sound so sexy? He gave her what she wanted, what she needed and plunged deeper, harder, faster. Her face grew red, her cries louder and higher, until finally he slammed in and she burst apart like a firework. She screamed his name as her sex seized over his cock, gripping and pulling him, stroking his own orgasm from him.

"Mine," he growled and thrust one more time. Her muscles worked him, and he sprayed his hot cum into her channel for long, endless moments.

They fell against the shower wall together fighting to catch their breaths. Sarina tightened her arms around him, hugging him close. For the first time since she could remember, she felt good, really good. Life wasn’t perfect yet—her father was going to be furious she escaped and the Prince maybe even more so. But with Vane at her side, they seemed like such simple problems.

A hard knock sounded at the door. Sarina jumped.

Vane growled in frustration. "What?"

"You've had enough time alone. We need you both downstairs." Vane wanted to strangle his sister in that moment, even though he knew she was right. The last thing he wanted was to break away from Sarina's perfect, luscious body and have a serious discussion with his family over his mate’s crazy father.

"Coming," he yelled through the door.

"Yeah, we all heard that." Vera’s snicker could be heard through the door.

Sarina burst out laughing at Vane's serious expression. She laughed until his lips twitched and they were laughing together.

"They can hear it, but that's about as much of you as I'm willing to share, lumara."

"Ditto, luma."

It didn't take them long to get dressed and return back downstairs hand in hand. At the sight of the Kategan family together, it was quite apparent they were related. They each had thick hair, dark eyebrows, high cheekbones, and the same tan skin. Vane and Sarina took a seat together.

"All right, Vane's already told us what's been happening. What we need to know next is when the marriage is set for?" It was the same man who’d yelled at them to go back at her father’s house. He had dirty blonde hair, mix of dark brown and blonde.

Sarina cleared her throat and looked at Vane. "Tomorrow."

"God dammit," cursed the other brother with dark, shorter hair. She recognized him too from her escape. He kept to the shadowy corner. She reminded herself to thank them both later for all their help. "That doesn't give us a lot of time."

Just then, the sound of a door opening had everyone turning to see Alison coming down the hallway. With her wet hair slicked back, her skin reddened from the shower, and her glasses perched on her nose, she looked fresh and very feminine. She made a quick glance at the blonde brother then quickly scooted to sit in a seat furthest from him. Sarina saw the blonde brother frown.

"Sorry I'm late." Alison looked better, but her voice was still just as wretched. Everyone in the room winced.

Vane spoke up. "I have some tea. Vera would you mind?" She rolled her eyes dramatically, somehow making the action look sophisticated and strolled into the kitchen. Bringing Sarina's hand to his thigh he continued, "Actually, I don't think you've formally met my brothers. This is Darien," he said, nodding to the dark-haired man, "and the one with the smirk is Roman, but everyone just calls him Rome."

They each exchanged hellos and nods. "And who is this?" Rome asked nodding towards Alison who looked like she was ready to bolt.

"This is Alison Bennson, a good friend of mine. Sorry her voice is hoarse, she sacrificed it to aid in my escape" Sarina smiled at her friend.

Rome came forward and held his big hand out to Alison. She blushed. For a moment, she didn't move and Rome looked curiously at her, but then she clasped his hand quickly and released it as if it burned. He tilted his head at her.

"Nice to meet you." She didn't reply, just nodded, and squirmed uncomfortably in her seat.

Sarina was dying to know what her friend thought of Vane’s brother. She hadn’t seen Alison blush at a man in years.

"Now then,” Vane continued, “back to business. The only way to negate the Prince's marriage contract is to perform the mating ritual on the next full moon."

"Which is tomorrow," said Rome.

Sarina's gut clenched in worry. Perform the mating ritual with Vane? Bind her to him permanently and be his Queen? The idea both thrilled and scared the crap out of her. She looked at his handsome face and couldn't help but wonder does he really want me? The breeding cycle exerts a tremendous amount of hormones to both the female and males in the vicinity. What if what he felt was just that? But then why did he just plaster me to the shower wall like was trying to get to it through her?

"That's what we’ll do. We wanted to bond together anyways."

"We do?" Sarina asked quietly, her voice bringing all the heads in the room to hers.

"You don't wish to bond with me, Sarina?" Something dark grew in Vane's eyes.

Hers flicked nervously to the other faces in the room. "I don't know. I mean I do, I was just wondering...um, that is, if you only felt for me because I was in my breeding cycle. I wouldn't want you to be shackled with an unwanted mate for the rest of your life."

He laughed. He actually laughed at her! Sarina frowned, and he snatched her up too fast to stop him. But then he she was in his lap and he was kissing her with long, drugging kisses.

"Sarina, I love you, lumara. Of course it wasn't just the breeding cycle. Besides, I have been around other women's cycles before and never have I felt for them what I do you. I told you, we didn’t meet by coincidence. You will be my Queen, and you will be a wonderful."

"Say it again," she said, her eyes soft and round. "Say you love me again."

He smiled widely at her, a dimple popping up in his right cheek. "I love you, Sarina. I would be the happiest, proudest Alpha if you’d mate with me."

"Yes, yes, yes! I love you." She flung her arms around his neck and pressed kisses all over his face.

Vane groaned at her teasing lips, at her words, at her soft body sitting on his. He wanted nothing more than to pull her clothes off and sit her back on top of his hard dick. Something or someone coughed not too delicately, another cleared their throat.

"Well, I for one, am not going to sit here watch my brother get naked," Vera said and handed a hot cup of tea to Alison.

"Amen to that." Darien scowled. Sarina laughed, a blush reddening her cheeks.

"We must do it tomorrow," Vane said.

"But what if her father and Prince Conlin show up?" asked Rome.