The Mating Project Read Online Free

he would look back on this moment and see the
funny side, but right now was not it.
    He adjusted his
throbbing dick through the denim of his jeans, and Maria whimpered.
    "This is
insane."
    He barely heard
that whisper, but the way she looked at him as though she wanted to eat him
alive calmed his agitated wolf.
    He held out his
hand, and after a moment's hesitation she took it. They gasped in unison at the
arc of electricity that sparked between them, and some of his anger fled. This
close to his mate he couldn't help but feel at peace. It was an utterly
ridiculous notion, surrounded as they were by the enemy, but there you had it.
    "What
now?" she asked.
    Malachi smiled
and cupped her chin with his free hand.
    "Now, we
get you out of here, kitty. Stay close to me and follow my lead. Can you
shift?"
    ****
    "I-I don't
know. My cougar seems stronger now that you're here."
    Maria bit her
lip and rolled her eyes. Had she really just said that out loud? So what, if it was the truth? From the minute her beast had
scented this wolf outside her door, she had perked up. Even masked by the
nauseating stench of hyena, she recognized him. It was the wolf from the forest,
and he was even more breathtaking in his human form. He had to be well over six
and half feet tall, because he towered over Maria's five foot eight inch frame.
His lean frame was muscular and broad shouldered, and there was a hint of
shadow on his jaw. Despite the fact that he couldn't be much older than she was,
he carried himself with an air of authority, and there was the underlying sense
of danger that shouldn't really excite her.
    The ratty
t-shirt he wore was blood stained and holey in places, giving her tantalizing
glimpses of his washboard abs liberally sprinkled with fine hair, and the worn
jeans clung to his tight ass. His cock was a hard ridge behind his flies, and
Maria's pussy clenched in helpless need, as more moisture coated the tops of
her thighs.
    She had never
gone past heavy petting with boys, and she had certainly never been this wet,
just from looking at a guy. When he'd touched her, her beast had purred her
contentment. She wanted nothing more than to curl herself around this male and
submit to him in all ways.
    "They gave
you something to stop you from shifting. Hopefully it'll wear off once you hit
the fresh air. This will be so much easier if you can shift.   Two animals in the forest will not attract as
much attention, and we can cover the ground much faster."
    His low voice in
her ear pulled her out of her internal thoughts, and a shiver went down her
spine at the puffs of hot air against her neck as he spoke. This close to him,
his intoxicating smell intensified until no trace of hyena remained, just his
male scent that called to her cougar and made the animal rise to the surface.
Every feminine cell in her body wished they were in a position to take the next
natural step. This insane attraction made no sense, yet it made perfect sense.
There was no point in denying the fact that this wolf had to be her mate. They
could never be together. It went against all the rules, and there was still the
very real question as to what he had been doing on her father's land and how he
came to be here now. None of that mattered, however, not when she could hear
approaching footsteps.
    Maria froze, and
he put his hand over her mouth in warning. She glared at him—really, how stupid
did he think she was?—and the corner of his full mouth kicked up in a fleeting
grin, before he stepped away from her. Gesturing for her to stay he stepped out
of the door, and seconds later there was the sound of a struggle, and a fluid
filled gurgle. He appeared through the door, dragging the dead body of what she
assumed must be one of the guards.
    The human's
unseeing gaze stared at her, and Maria swallowed hard. Her wolf had ripped
through his throat, and the coppery scent of blood filled the air.
    "Come on,
we need to go."
    Half shifted,
her mate made a terrifying sight.