Desert Wolf (The Wolves of Twin Moon Ranch) by Anna Lowe Page B

accept Ty would be harder than she imagined. But what could she do?

CHAPTER TWO
    It was unfair, really, because Ty was nothing like his overbearing father. He was a good mate: giving, loving, true. Tender, even, when the two of them were alone. Which wasn’t often enough on the ranch, where pack business always seemed to knock at the least opportune time. Not that Lana resented Ty’s job or her own growing role in leading the pack. But she sure had been looking forward to this trip—a chance to take a break from being an alpha pair and be just another happily mated couple.
    Which is exactly what they were, this beautiful spring morning. Just Ty and her and the warm cocoon of the sheets, with duty and responsibility far, far away. Lana fingered the spot on his side where the worst bruise had been, but Ty didn’t so much as wince. He was right, of course. A good thing shifters had enhanced healing abilities.
    Ty must have been thinking along the same lines. “Your brothers play hard.” His eyes sparkled. “You, too.”
    “You know how it is. Give an alpha an inch, and he’ll take a mile.” She smiled, remembering all her unfounded fears about mating with as strong a character as Ty. For all the brute power in him, he treated her as an equal, a partner. Not only someone to cherish and protect, but a trusted confidant and advisor.
    Right now, though, the look in his eyes said
lover, mate
. She pulled the blanket higher over their shoulders and ran another exploratory stroke over Ty’s torso. Those layers of muscle were always tight, but right now, all she felt was the right kind of hardness in his body.
    “Like you would have been different if your sister brought home a new mate,” she said, chuckling even as the heat pooled between her legs.
    “No, I would have taken him for a nice little trail ride.” Ty ran a light hand over her flank, making her purr. “Let him ride one of our best horses, like Diablo or Faust.”
    Lana laughed out loud at the mention of the ranch’s fiercest broncs. No one had ever lasted more than five seconds on either of them.
    Ty laughed, too, and she captured the sound in her memory like the call of a rare bird.
    “Thanks for coming,” she said, growing serious again. This trip had been a long time in the making. “You did really well, dealing with everyone.” She cupped Ty’s face and rubbed her thumbs over the stubble on his chin. It felt so good, she had to lean in for a nuzzle.
    Ty’s lips played along her neck. His hands skimmed over her breasts until she was arching eagerly into his callused palms. It never took much for her mate’s touch to set her on fire. She slid her leg up his thigh, pushing her hips toward his.
    Lana did her best to turn her moan into a not-quite-as-brazen sigh but failed miserably, making her mate chuckle. The unmistakable pressure of an erection pressed against her belly, so she let her hand drift south. When she nudged his cock, it twitched in hearty agreement, sending a zing right through her veins.
    “No bruising here?” she teased.
    Ty gave a husky laugh. “Not where it counts, sweetheart.” Then he rolled, pinning her under his weight. His body radiated the heat of raw desire. He kneaded the soft flesh of her breasts while she closed her fingers over his pulsing shaft. Then it was Ty’s turn to hide a moan while she let out a triumphant giggle.
    “That was a purr,” Ty insisted, even as he shifted his hips to give her better access.
    “I thought wolves didn’t purr.”
    “This one does.”
    The sound hummed through his chest and into her body, triggering a flooding sensation inside. One brush, one word from him, and she’d be pleading for release. Lana fingered the velvety tip of his cock, finding the cleft, then circling the crown. For all the madness in the world, focusing on her mate—his body, his love—always made things all right.
    He had a way of making her feel like a taller, more clever, more beautiful version of herself.