Chapter 25

I'm glad she enjoyed seeing the stars over the water,Nathair mused, as he climbed onto the top ledge of the ship's alcove.

Now that it was safe to do so, he placed her feet on the ground and bent down to lean on his elbows. He sparked her stupid fire rocks together until the oil-soaked cloth caught flames and then proceeded to quickly light the candle with the use of his claws so he didn't get burned.

He gave it to her to hold, knowing he would need his arms free to speak soon, and led them towards the entry of his tunnel. However, instead of turning left to return to his nest area, he took her southwest.

"Where are we going?" she asked, just like he knew she would.

"There is somewhere I wish to show you," he explained, taking in the subtle way his claws clicked in the darkness as he signed. "I made sure there were no Demons earlier today while you were playing in the sun."

"Ohhh," she stated, lifting the lantern towards him. "So that's why you left me to defend myself alone." She chopped the air with the side of her hand. "Do you know how many Demons I had to fight while you were gone?"

He chuckled at that, soaking in her lies. "Must have been a formidable fight, then."

She lifted her free hand to shrug. "I won, of course, and tossed their bodies into the ocean before you returned, which is why there weren't any left for you to see."

She's cute when she's playful like this.It was nice to see her being this way on her own, rather than Nathair instigating it.

Nathair's chuckle deepened as his orbs flared bright yellow.

The deeper they went through the declining tunnel, the warmer it seemed to grow. He would have preferred to make his home in the bowels of this cliffside due to the heat, but he didn't like being trapped and cornered. His underwater lake gave him an escape, whereas down here had no exit.

They passed a small alcove, in which her lantern light showed nothing but vacant nests. They journeyed on. A few times in their travels, he had to squish himself down shafts and have her carefully slide down to him. They went further down below sea level, sometimes moving through twisting, narrowing paths.

She occasionally mentioned her ears popping, when going deeper made them pressurise. He did not have the same issue.

A cavern opened up. There was nothing notable here, just different coloured rocks and sediment, but he did show her the area to appease her curiosity. Then Nathair lifted off his tail to place her in a dark hole in the ceiling. Seated near the ledge, she shuffled back to make room for him with the lantern shining right in his bony face.

"Holy shit, Nathair," she rasped as he pulled up the heavy weight of his torso while pushing off with what remained on the ground. "Just where the hell are you taking me?"

You'll see, little female.

He'd been wanting to bring her to a special cavern for days, but... he hadn't trusted his lucidity. If his consciousness slipped in here, she would be utterly trapped in the dark.

He did truly feel well today, the voices not as pressing as usual. It was temporary, he knew this, but he was pleased nonetheless. Between her quieter hums, the sleep she often gifted him, and just Linh feeding him joy, he had plenty of energy for once.

Energy he hadn't felt in centuries.

He cupped the underside of her chin affectionately, his orbs bright yellow in appreciation for all she'd done for him, then lowered his face to hers. He opened and closed his maw to mock her silly question, since he had no intention of ruining the surprise.

Her cute, full, and pouty lips quirked with humour. "Is this the part where you hand me a shovel and tell me to dig my own grave?"

Nathair licked across those pesky lips, letting a single fork of his tongue press between them. Her soft moan in return was the sweetest sound, revealing how at ease she was in the dark with him, how much she trusted him. He continued to lead, and she came up beside him since it was wide enough for her to do so.

The night was early, and she seemed invigorated by all the movement and the adventure. A smile shone constantly, as if the very emotion behind it thrummed steadily beneath the surface.

Regardless of what happened between them in the future, he just hoped she remembered the beauty he was about to share with her.

The area opened into a large cavern that looked fairly similar to his main cave. An underwater lake reflected the low light of her lantern, but the water was even more blue, clear, and clean than his.

He gingerly took the metal handle from her and placed it on the ground. The air was light, but there was enough of it coming from the way they'd ventured to give them both oxygen, as well as what already lingered here. It was too deep beneath the earth for anything to grow.

"I don't understand," she said, her cheer falling. "I-I don't mean to be rude, but isn't this like where your nest is?"

The humour in his chest was evil. His surprise wasn't ready, and it would require his intervention.

"We swim," he signed, before waving his hand towards the water.

The bottom of the lake was pitch black, and he doubted she could see what glinted on the bottom of it with her measly human vision.

"Ugh, really?" She groaned, letting her head fall back. "Another swimming lesson?"

"You swim fine now," he responded, leaning down to pick up one of her feet to remove her shoe, before doing the other. He then pushed up her pants until they were bundled around her knees.

"I... don't want to get in the water and be cold," she admitted, hesitating when he slithered backwards while clutching one of her hands to bring her with him.

He placed his palm over his heart and brought it to the middle of his sternum. Trust me.

Nathair slipped into the fresh water, and bliss had his scales puffing along every inch of his body. It felt so good it rippled his muscles until even his seam clenched and his nipples hardened.

He didn't pull her in; he just waited for her with his tail swivelling to keep him afloat in the deep water.

"Fine. Let me see how cold it is before I stupidly follow your reptilian butt in," she whined, just as she went to dip a toe in.

She gasped, only to shove her foot in. He caught her when she almost fell, not wanting her to enter the water fretting. He wanted this whole experience to be enjoyable.

"It's warm," she stated with a smile, her face barely an inch from his own as he pushed her back onto the ledge. "Like... really warm."

Nathair knew there was a reason for it, although he hadn't worked out the why. He also didn't care. The water was warm, blissful even, and she had no idea just how close she was to her people's mountain. At least... he believed so from his mental orientation.

The entire time, he'd been taking them southwest. He figured the lake next to his nest eventually drained into this one in an underground network of tiny tunnels he couldn't access.

She backed up when he thought she would have climbed in to be with him now that she knew the water was agreeable. He tilted his head and forced his orbs into a questioning glow. He reached his hand up, claws facing upward, and beckoned her closer.

She gripped the bottom of her dress garment with tight fists. "I-I don't want to get my clothes wet," she grumbled.

Disheartened, Nathair lowered his hand in disappointment. But I cannot show her without going to the other side. He didn't wish to force her, but if she didn't get in the water, all of this was pointless.

To his utter shock, she lifted her dress off her body. When she pressed the bundled material to her chest, her softened gaze was shier than normal. He noted that her knees had knocked inwards, yet she still dropped the garment to reveal the white cropped undershirt beneath it.

Warmth, hotter than the water surrounding him, swelled in his chest.

He didn't believe his sight when she then pulled at the ties of her grey pants, and suddenly his mouth went dry. Nathair had seen peeks of Linh's creamy thighs, but only when they flashed at him yesterday with her pink dress and the day she first fell in his nest.

Which was why, when she lowered the material and kicked it off from around her knees, he lowered himself to drown his immediate purr. Her underwear was a strip of pale-green cloth, with two ties resting over her curved hips, and she looked like fucking heaven.

With his gills submerged, he also stifled his groan when pressure surged behind his seam with a desirous throb.

She looked so awkward standing there, barely clothed for him. Her knees were still knocked, and her arms had crossed to hide the fullness of her generous, weighty breasts and her pubic mound. Her flush was so deep it blotched on her chest and biceps.

But she looked so damn cute, with her long pigtails and curved yet petite body, that he considered her divine. Her breasts propped up by her arm offered more cleavage, and they sat above a narrow waist, wide hips, and perfect-looking thighs.

There didn't seem to be a mark on her, and her fawny skin reflected the glow of the firelight like a hypnotic dance.

Had she stripped completely, he may have taken it as an invitation, and he would have forgotten why he brought her here in the first place.

So, instead of trying to see if he could rut her like he desperately wanted to, he reached his hand out once more. He didn't need to ask her to trust him; he knew she did by the fact she was scantily and teasingly dressed.

Bring that little arse here, female,he thought, waving his fingers at her.

Linh came closer. As soon as she was at the edge of the water, she removed her hand from her pubic mound and slipped her palm in his. Nathair helped her to sit on the ledge so she could glide into the water with ease.

He didn't let her go, even when he swiftly dragged her to the centre of the large lake. Her underwear clung to her plump, round arse cheeks, and all he wanted to do was grab them both with his hands. They looked soft, had felt soft in his palms the occasional times he'd kneaded them, and he wanted to play with their moulding forms.

Just as he halted them, and was about to sign something, he had to sink his gills beneath the water again to drown out his groan. Fucking hell. She should have kept her damn dress on.

Her white undershirt was apparently so thinly made... it'd turned completely see-through. How was he supposed to keep his hungry hands to himself when her perky breasts were showing? Even her pale-brown nipples didn't look a shade different from how he normally saw them.

The garment was pointless, and now his cocks were threatening to push through his seam. Given his aquatic nature, he did have extra feeling around his seam within the water to know when or if he was about to extrude, but it still softened the muscles. This could become awkward at any given time, but he just hoped he could contain his control on his dicks and not ruin this for her.

With strain, he signed, "I need you to hold your breath."

Her lips tightened, but she nodded obediently. She did as he asked when he wrapped his arms around her torso, making sure not to grab her anywhere she would be uncomfortable. Her body slipped against his, and he drowned any sound that could come from him in the euphoria of it.

Her soft, sinful thighs nestling around the scales of his sides and hips felt divine. Just her breasts and bare abdomen against his scaled torso clamoured at him to bring her closer. Even the weight of her arms around his shoulders felt wonderful.

Ignoring all this, Nathair stopped swivelling his tail and let himself sink. The moment they were a foot below the water, he arched backwards to tip them upside down. The long length of his tail crested the water in a loop before he flailed it to dive.

Nathair saw well in the dark, but even he had to partially navigate by the vibrations of the water speaking back to him as he moved through a narrow tunnel. He protected her head, just in case he didn't see something jagged, and swam as fast as he could.

Linh clung to him, but she didn't need to hold her breath for long. Within seconds of passing through the sharp and deadly spiking walls, Nathair swam towards the surface.

Darkness greeted them, and her breaths echoed in the large cave. He chuckled from the way his orange orbs glinted all around them, so he directed his skull in a way that would minimise it before she could notice. After sputtering for a moment, she lifted her face to his.

"Okay... so now what?"

Since she couldn't see, Nathair lifted one of her hands and placed it over her eyes. When he pushed away from her, she flailed in the water. She wasn't confident with swimming, so he steadied her and made her cover her eyes again.

"I'll keep them closed," she argued, while lowering her hands so she could use them to keep herself afloat. Nathair answered with a soft growl. "I promise!"

Fine. You better keep them closed. With a snorted huff, Nathair sunk once more.

He made an incision in his palm. Pressing it against a large and smooth edge in the ground, he waited for his magic to come to life. The moment it did, he shot to the surface to make sure Linh had kept her promise.

His heart sped up in excitement, and he softly poked her cheek.

She opened her eyes, only for them to immediately widen as she took in all the white quartz crystals glowing around her. Her lips parted as she gasped, and she turned, seeing that every part of the wall, the ceiling, and even the floor had crystal jutting from everywhere.

She looked down to where it was brightest in the water. It also had an orange glow due to his magic circle having the strongest reflection in the quartz shards.

"Oh my god, Nathair," she muttered quietly, as she sightlessly reached for him while gawking at every surface. "This is breathtaking."

He didn't drown his purr this time. Instead, he took her forearm and pulled her towards him until she crashed against his torso. It vibrated into her very hands, her arms, and her chest, and he nuzzled the end of his snout against her neck.

Lying back, he propped her against his chest, and she subconsciously mounted his waist as she looked up at the ceiling. Flaring both his forearm fins, he stopped them from moving too far as he used his tail to keep them buoyant.

"I can't believe something like this exists," she continued, and her surprise evolved into pure adoration.

Nathair observed the glow mirrored in her pretty brown eyes, and his chest swelled at the way they glittered.

The red jewels dangling from her lobes glinted, only adding to the treasure before him. Her pink lips were parted in awe as she relaxed with him in a magical place so deep beneath the ground. Her long hair seemed darker while wet, and clung to her chest on one side to curl against a breast and highlight its fullness. Her dark lashes sparkled from the water, and the many droplets covering her reflected the light, his light, as much as everything around them.

When he removed one arm from the water, they slowly spun in a circle, and that seemed to please her more. Cupping the side of her head, he brushed his thumb back and forth beneath one of her eyes to touch her captivating face, and she didn't even seem to notice. He liked that she didn't; it meant his touch felt so natural to her that it didn't steal her attention from the mesmerising beauty surrounding them.

This cave, this place... he'd lingered here for a long time when he first found it. There was evidence of his violence if she searched for it; places he'd broken as he tore at himself when the voices were loud and refused to leave him be. Times when he tried to sleep, only to wake up writhing and in pain.

Every time he'd slipped back into lucidity, he allowed this place to fill him with hope and enthral him into a peaceful stupor.

There was even a large and flat prism in which four of himself could curl up to rest upon right near the ledge. Water trickled throughout the cave, and all of it led to the lake they floated in. The sound was soothing for an aquatic being such as himself.

It was one of the few reasons he'd been hesitant about leaving this continent before he met her. He didn't know if he'd find a place – untouched and not ruined by Demons – like this again.

I'll always remember her face in this moment,he thought, as he continued to caress it. How I was allowed to come back here, and finally appreciate it in the quiet she gifts me.

Even just her echoing breaths seemed to lull him, and his orbs bled with bright pink for the first time as he gazed upon her against his chest.

Part of him wished his magic would reflect the colour of his emotions, so she could see it in everything around them. So she could see... the way he adored her, as if this very cave was the inside of his heart and they lay within it.

I want it to glow in her eyes, like she feels it with me.

She did eventually turn her smiling gaze to him, and the tiniest dots of his pink orbs merged in with the mess of lights in her brown eyes.

"Even the cracks in your skull glitter," she stated softly, cupping the sides of his head. "You look really beautiful right now, Nathair."

A tremor racked his spine, and they sunk a little as it disturbed his swim. To keep them afloat, he flailed his tail faster, and they shot through the water. She giggled, and the sound had him sinking his head beneath the surface to escape the way it ripped at his heart with elation.

Resurfacing until only the back of his skull and horns were submerged, he kept his humanoid torso flat and moved them through the water. He directed with his arm fins, while using them to keep his dense and heavy torso from sinking as she partially knelt upon him.

He moved close enough to a jutting quartz, and she did exactly what he thought she might. She touched it.

"It's warm." She smiled down at him. "Can we take some of it home?"

Home?Nathair slowed. Did she just call my nest, my cave, home?

His heart doubled in its pace, and he nodded.

She could take whatever she wanted. If need be, he'd fucking claw through the very earth to bring her the biggest damn shard so long as it kept her content. So long as it kept her with him.

Because, with every waking moment in her presence, Nathair knew he was losing his will. If she kept stealing all the pieces of his battered heart, she'd find herself trapped in it like this cave – without his aid in escaping.

His cocks were already half swollen behind his seam. Everything she did, everything she said, every tiny breath, had them jerking.

Needing to separate them before he did something foolish, like attack her with his growing need and affection, he took them to where the ground was a horizontal flat shard of quartz. He found something to hook his tail around to keep them up so he could use his arms.

He let his body and the wall of crystal behind her keep her steady, while ensuring she had space so she didn't feel trapped.

"Do you want to explore deeper?" he asked, pointing to the back of the cave. "There are other c-r-y-s-t-a-l-s and o-r-e."

There was more to be seen, although he would need to carry her through all this so she didn't potentially cut the bottoms of her feet. There are even opals in a deeper chamber.

She wrapped her arms around his neck with her lids low, and whispered, "No."

Linh shot forward and pressed her soft lips at the very centre of his segmented jaw – right where his tongue could slip forward with ease.

Fuck!Nathair's arm darted out next to her head so he could let out the aggression that suddenly burst within his muscles. He bashed the crystal ledge. He clawed it as he dragged their bodies closer to the wall and cupped the side of her head to keep her to him while also protecting it.

More,his mind groaned. Just a little more.

His tongue flicked out so fast she didn't have a chance to stop it from penetrating past her lips, and he whimpered at the sweet taste of her. She moaned in answer and parted her lips, willingly allowing him deeper. Nathair took it and slid more of his forked tongue inside to forcefully brush it over the top of hers.

Claws gouged into the quartz as his pink sight deepened into purple, and he huffed against her lips moving against the bone of his maw. Her legs wrapped around his waist as he squished her against the wall, her arms clinging to his neck and her breasts pressing against his scaled chest.

S-shit,he groaned, jerking in the water as he fought against the hold he had on his body. Shit. If I don't stop, I'm going to extrude.

Nathair pulled back with strangled chokes. They were nullified the moment she yanked him back into the kiss again.

Fuck, Linh.He quickly gave in as his seam parted and his cocks and tentacles came out in a mess; his profound lust and the heat of the water disorientated his insides. Nathair licked across her tongue as the pressure within released and he panted against her.

He gripped her thigh to shove her against his waist. When she didn't flinch or react, he grabbed her arse and squeezed. She moaned, and he knew he was irrevocably fucked.

She was half naked against him and kissing him. All he could think was: I want to fuck her so hard I split her in two. He wanted to shove into her sensual, feminine body until her mind broke and she did nothing but scream in relief.

With his claws latched onto the crystal and keeping them together, he released her head to sign, "Stop." Stop as he twirled the forked tips of his tongue around her flat, softer, singular one. Stop as she danced it with his, as her lips moulded and brushed the bone of his maw like he had lips to play with. Stop as every urge, every instinct, demanded he cut the crotch of her underwear, rise up, and slam one of his cocks inside her.

"Nathair," she moaned in an airy tone, giving him just a sliver of a chance to back his head away from her.

He obtained a second of relief before she lowered and dipped her head to lick across his gills.

Once more, Nathair signed, "Stop," but he realised her fucking eyes were closed.

His cocks swelled and released bubbles of precum when she sucked and kissed the sides of his neck, over the flaps that tickled his lungs and around his heart.

With a curt whine bursting from him, he rose up while grabbing a fistful of both her hair tails and yanked her head back. Her eyes, half-lidded and almost delirious, peeked up at him.

Fucking stop!He signed both words, and her lips pouted into a devious curl. She was killing him with her wiles, and she didn't seem to realise how much a Mavka didn't like to be beaten.

A hand descended their bodies, and he instantly bucked into her soft, wet palm when she grabbed the head of a throbbing cock. Oh fuck, so soft.

"Inside me, Nathair," she rasped, before licking at the seam of her mouth. "I want you inside me, please."

His entire body pulsed. With the last tether of control over whatever sanity he had left and his hand shaking, Nathair asked, "Are you sure?"

Shit, even his fingers were trembling.

She caressed her free palm down the side of his skull. "The fact you asked means I know I'm making the right decision."

Nathair released a growling purr as a heavy pant fell from his maw. He released her arse so he could pull on one tie of her underwear, then the other, and let it slip away to wherever he would find it later. His cocks thrummed in unbearable anticipation, as weeks of need made him feel like they'd turned as hard as the very quartz around them. They jerked so much, pressing apart and curving slightly from being this engorged, he felt the vibration of their movements against his scales and frills.

Sheathing the claws of his right hand, he grabbed her arse while dipping his fingers into the slickened slit of her pussy. Even in the water, she was so wet that her arousal clung to her.

He slipped his middle finger up until he petted her clit.

"You want me inside your pussy, Linh?" he signed with one hand, hoping she understood the half-gestures. His purr deepened when she bit her bottom lip and nodded, only to let out a shallow rasp as he penetrated her with his finger. "Fuck, you're so wet for me. If you wanted me this badly, you should have just mounted one of my cocks while I was swimming."

Nathair pumped before quickly adding a second finger to stretch her in preparation.

"Hurry," she pleaded, her long nails clinging to his shoulders.

"All you would have needed to do was place your cunt over my seam, and I would have emerged straight inside you."

"Oh gods. Please!" she cried, her pussy clamping around his fingers.

"Off," he signed, pulling at the bottom seam of her undershirt.

When she struggled to fight the clinging material, Nathair helped her and threw it into the water.

He removed his fingers, thinking two should be enough to prepare her so she didn't feel pain, but not enough to take away how he planned to stretch her tight little cunt. Because, as much as he would like to remove all possible aches, he wanted her to feel him spreading her.

Nathair lifted and held onto the ledge to prop himself up while keeping her neck-deep in the water. With her lathering kisses against his pectoral muscles, her hands against the sides of his back, and her arse in his palm, he lined up one of his purple cocks.

He nudged the hole of her pussy. Her slick was removed by his earlier prodding, but his cocks were covered in thick lubricant. She lifted her knees and spread them further by pressing her feet against his sides when he sunk the partially pointed tip inside.

Heat touched him, and his entire groin spasmed in pleasure just from the meagre contact.

He'd meant to enter her slowly; it's what he'd always planned. He'd intended to be gentle, and good, and not let his excitement get the best of him.

However, the moment his groin spasmed, his cock jerked and his hips along with it. She gasped as he mounted her halfway, fast and hard, and a curt whine burst out of him like a fucking scream. Hot!

His claws unsheathed and stabbed into her arse and the crystal behind her. Fuck! Hot. She's so hot inside. He tore at the quartz as he tried not to smash his way deeper inside her until that blissful heat swallowed every inch of his cock.

His body temperature was too low, and he needed her to cuddle him with hers while he lost his ever-loving mind.

She did tighten around him, but she was quick to soften despite the snug fit. Linh bucked against him, using her feet to draw him in, and Nathair's head tilted back. He slipped further in until he bottomed out inside her.

His mind dissolved into goo, just as his cock wanted to melt within the heat of her pussy. The other nestled right against her clit, and when he pulled back only to shove forward, he grazed it.

She moaned as she reached up to grab a horn, yanking his head down. This little female then proceeded to use his horn as an anchor to fuck herself with his cock like she desperately needed it.

Unable to deny her beckoning, Nathair began pumping inside her.

"Yes," she cried, lathering his collarbone in kisses. "Oh god, Nathair. I've wanted this for so long."

The groan that fell from him tasted of venom. With the way his fangs had extended down to press against his tongue, it flooded his mouth. He swallowed it as he buried the end of his snout against her hair and wildly huffed against it. He gave her measured thrusts, trying not to go too deep or too hard.

Her sweet pussy clung, rippling around him like his coils did to his prey. Each time her walls spasmed and clenched hard, his dark-purple sight flickered with black in bliss.

From his cock, tingles spread throughout his groin to clutch at his muscles surrounding it. Even his hip bones threatened to disintegrate in her warmth, only making him want to be more ruthless with her as it radiated to his spine. She was so snug, so soft and plump.

Fuck, she feels incredible inside.

Yet the way her body caressed his scales, her thighs brushing over them, had him aching for more. Her breasts slipped up and down his chest, and he could feel her hard nipples gliding over him. Her nails bit into his shoulder, threatening to pluck a few scales from him, and he wanted her to dig harder.

I want deeper.Already he could feel his fingertips buzzing with the desire to lance her abdomen so he could dig into her body until she mounted him to the base. So she could swallow both his cocks with a moan. So she could claim him fully, and give him free rein to fuck her like the rabid beast he wanted, needed, to be.

Nathair wanted to fuck like a Mavka, a monster, like the horny creature she'd twisted him into becoming. He'd panted after this female almost every second of every hour for weeks.

Her little cries made him want to pump into her faster until all she could do was scream and shatter the quartz around them. Yet the anchor for his tail was deep, everything else too small for him to latch onto properly. His frills did little around his hips, as they ended shortly above them. He could only pump slow, with Linh attempting to aid him as she moaned against his chest.

"Faster, Nathair," she pleaded hoarsely. "Please, I'm so close."

I cannot,he thought, yanking her arse down to meet his thrusts, only to realise that made him hit deeper, harder, despite aiding in speed. He immediately stopped when she cringed. She softened for him the moment he backed up.

His cock was too long for her. He tried tilting her hips and changed the angle of his thrusts to make it feel better for her. To hit the places she needed until she exploded for him. For his four tentacles to do more than brush against her inner thighs rather than clutch them together.

Then she did something that had his claws flicking crystal dust everywhere as he gouged into it with a horrible, bubbling snarl. His orbs flared bright red when she licked and sucked his gills at the same time. Fuuuck!

I cannot do this in the water.Not like this, not until she swallowed him whole – then it wouldn't matter how slowly he pumped when he could just take her hard.

With his snarl never ceasing, Nathair yanked his cock from her. She gasped, only to make a weird, strangled noise when he clasped her tightly and leapt out of the water by a violent flick of his tail.

Placing her against the flat quartz, Nathair slammed his hand down next to her head as he grabbed her thigh with the other. He gave himself the barest glimpse of her pretty, pink folds, her loosened entrance, before he dragged her across the ground while lifting her. Linh's back arched as he mounted her as deep as she could take him, and his groan was so profound it was palpable as it shuddered out of him.

He thrust fast, and his damn heart almost gave out in rapture. It deepened when she tightened, strangling his cock, just as the wicked scent of her arousal finally pervaded the air. It sparked on his tongue, in his nose hole, until it tickled his lungs.

Nathair thought she may be coming, but she gave no moan. His hips immediately stilled when the tang of fear mingled with her arousal.

Lowering his skull, he looked down at her beneath him. Her face was contorted, her eyes clenched up, with her hands balled-up above her breasts.

Fuck,his mind spat out. Shit. Fuck.

He'd scared her.

Dark orange morphed into his sight as he took in the way he was clutching her thigh and forcing her legs apart. How he towered over her much smaller form awkwardly bent to meet his higher thrusts. How the little female trembled in uncertainty beneath a monster, who had promised she could trust him.

A monster who had never done this before, despite the knowledge his fragments had shared. He'd been arrogant in thinking he was master of his control – even when he constantly lost the battle to an ill mind.

As he lowered her and let her thigh go, he tried to rein himself in with calming breaths through his bony nose hole.

Gentle, you idiot.