Chapter 6

Danielle stands slowly, placing the flagon of wine in her now empty chair. My sweater hangs around her, hiding her beautiful body from me. Slowly, she tugs the knit up, and my mouth goes dry as she reveals her long, muscled legs. The strange, short trousers she wears stop before the curve of her bottom, and my eyes follow the fabric to the top of the soft hem of her shirt.

I am a selfish, selfish male, because I want nothing more than her mark to be hidden on the most private parts of her body.

Danielle tugs the sweater overhead, some of her thick hair falling loose and swinging over her shoulders. I bite back a moan, scrubbing my face with a hand. She is so beautiful. There's uncertainty in her eyes, though, her chin jutting out defiantly, as though she means to prove me wrong.

I grin lazily, and she crosses her arms over her chest, stepping closer to the fire.

"Well? How do we find it?"

"It will be in the shape of Capricornus." This much I know. How to find it? I know only the legends we pass down amongst ourselves.

She looks down at her legs, lifting her feet and turning her calves to inspect them. "I think I would've noticed this before now."

I push my hair back off my face. "It won't light up until we touch."

She scowls at me. So fierce, my little mate. "That's convenient. Besides, we've been touching all day. How come it hasn't shown itself until now?"

"Perhaps it did." I shrug. "Perhaps we could not see it." I pray that it is the case, that I will touch her, and she will willingly bare her body to me. My cock grows hard with the mere thought of it. "I will not touch you without your permission. Harming a mate goes against our most sacred tenants. I would do nothing against your wishes."

She taps her foot, mulling it over. "Don't you think it's a little misogynistic that only the women get marks? Like, I'm not a bovine, branding me doesn't really seem all that great."

I squint at her. "What is a bovine?" And then I shrug again. "Perhaps I will receive a mark too; it has been too long since there was a mated couple in this realm."

"That's what you want to know? What bovine means? It's a cow." She frowns, and I would give anything to wipe the expression from her face. I would give anything to see the certainty I feel reflected on her face, and a pang goes through my chest.

Patience. I must be patient. Luckily, I am the most patient man I know. The stars smiled on that attribute; it seems.

"You are nothing like a cow." I step closer, seeing how she will react. I will not be dissuaded by her talk of cows. This close, her scent is enticing, spicy and mouth-watering. I quirk an eyebrow at her. "May I touch you?"

She nods an assent, still before me, her only movement the slow rise and fall of her chest, the only sound the soft pant of her breath and the crackling of the fire. Slowly, I reach my hands out, rubbing them lightly over her biceps. She is not as muscular as my warriors, which is no surprise, but she's not all softness, either. She has a strong, athletic build, and I make a wordless noise of approval.

I may have held her all day, desperate to return to the wards of my home, to see her safely here. But now? Now I touch her with her approval, and I can take all the time in the world.

I run my hands slowly down her arms, and I grunt as I feel the zip of her starlight answering the call of mine.

"Did you feel that?" She shifts under my hands, her chin tilted up at me, eyes luminous in the moonslight.

"It is the stardust in our blood. Our power calls to each other," I murmur, gazing into her dark doe eyes. Her lashes are long and black, making her eyes appear even wider as she stares at me in shock. "Do not be afraid, my Danielle. This is a good thing. It is strong in you."

She stills again, her eyes darting to the fire before resting on my face. "I feel…"

"I can stop, if you are uncomfortable."

She blows out a breath, her lips pursing adorably as she thinks it over.

"No, I want to know. I felt something. I need to know if you're telling the truth."

"May I remove your shirt? Unless you feel the mark appear, perhaps we should continue this." My cock grows harder, and it's my turn to shift, uncomfortable with need.

"Ah, okay." She tosses her wayward hair and braids over a shoulder, beginning to unbutton the sheer fabric.

"Let me," I say. I want to do it. I want to be the one to undress her, to savor the first time my mate shows me her body, her skin. I am jealous of her own hands, it seems.

She stops, letting her arms dangle at her sides, and I work the small buttons slowly. Her throat bobs as she swallows, the smooth column of her neck tantalizing. I stroke my knuckles across the soft skin there, pausing undressing her. Savoring.

A low moan escapes her parted lips, and I chase the sound with my fingertips. Her lips are full yet delicate, and so soft under my touch. She stares at me the whole time, open mouthed, and as I watch, goosebumps pebble across her flesh.

"Are you cold?" I am selfish. I have only thought of claiming her, of seeing my mark across her skin, and not thought of her physical comfort.

"No," she answers, and relief floods through me. I skate my fingers across her cheekbones, the tenuous connection between us growing stronger as we touch. She sighs, leaning her hand into me, her eyes half closing.

Good.

"That feels nice," she says. I smile, stroking her hair from her face. Her shirt is still on, and I am afire with anticipation. Slowly, I trace the curve of her neck, her collarbones, unbuttoning her shirt and baring the soft swells of her breasts underneath.

I frown at the undergarment blocking my view, then tug the shirt over her shoulders gently. She pulls it the rest of the way off, her eyes still closed.

I cup her chin, confused. "Why do you not look, my mate?"

Her eyelids flutter open. "I, uh, I was just enjoying how it felt." She gives a tiny shrug, which makes her breasts do interesting things.

"That is good then." Fierce pride floods me. "Making you feel good will always be my priority."

She gives a low chuckle. "Why do I believe that more than anything else?"

I give her a sly grin. "Because I've already shown it to be true."

She snorts, but doesn't contest it.

I continue my inspection, searching for the truth of our connection printed on her body, proof of our entwined destinies. I run my hands over her shoulders, and she makes a soft noise when I tug the straps of her undergarment from her shoulders. No mark.

Ah, well, I must continue searching. I skim my hands over her waist, the soft curve of her belly, the flare of her hips.

"I think… I think I feel it," she says, breathless, and I look up at her. My need for her is an inferno, burning out of control.

"Show me," I command.

Her dark eyes glitter in the firelight, and I drop to my knees before her, undone. Her eyes get even wider, her mouth parting on a soft exclamation, as I pull her close. Like this, my face is nearly even with her breasts, and I long to press my mouth to them.

So I do. She sucks in a breath as I tease the tips of her breasts through the fabric, growling in satisfaction as they harden at the attention. I stop, turning my attention to the other breast, lavishing it with the same strokes and gentle nips.

"My side." Her voice is tight and breathless, and I growl again. I want more; I want it all. But showing her the mark —showing her proof— and earning her trust is more important. I can be patient.

I skim my hands over her ribcage, searching for the telltale glow.

"Here," she says, and the undergarment falls away as she unclips it. Danielle shrugs out of it, and the thing falls to the ground.

I rock back to my heels, overcome. "My Danielle," I murmur.

Her breasts are full and pert, the perfect handful. I cannot resist touching them, and I watch her reaction as I reach for them, squeezing both gently. I run my fingers over her nipples, and she arches into my touch.

"That feels good," she moans. "I feel something else, too."

Her arousal perfumes the air, and I long to press my face there, too. To lick her until she's screaming my name and clenching around my fingers, deep inside of her. I'll follow my fingers with my cock when she is slick and hot for me. The thought leaves me breathless.

Need overwhelms me, and I replace my fingers on her breasts with my mouth, and her hands go to my hair, pulling me closer.

"My side," Danielle says, "it's warm." Her voice is shocked.

I pull away from her perfect breasts, pressing a kiss between them before looking to where her arm is raised.

I growl in satisfaction.

There it is.

Glowing red against her ribcage, the stars of the constellation Capricornus, now linked by gossamer strands of red starlight.

"Beautiful," I tell her, running a finger over them. My heart is pounding against my chest, my cock painfully hard.

"How is this possible?" She doesn't sound pleased. She sounds… scared.

I stand quickly, holding her face between my hands. "You are the fruit of the Starbound women who left this realm many, many years ago. And because fate has shown you back to me."

"Fruit?" Her nose wrinkles. "That sounds so gross."

I press a kiss to her nose, loving the way my Danielle sounds, the way she tastes.

"How do I know that you didn't just, like, put that there?"

Her hair blows in a faint breeze, and I pin a lock of it between my fingers. Instead of being irritated by her mistrust, I am amused and concerned.

"Have you been hurt so badly that you cannot believe the truth? Do you sense that I am lying to you? Have I given you reason to think this?"

She huffs, covering her bare breasts with her arms. "I… no. I don't think you're lying. But I do think you are motivated. It doesn't seem like there's any women here. Any you want, anyway."

I make a noise of impatience and rub the back of my neck. I know she wanted me, I could smell her arousal, felt it in the way her body responded, the way she pressed her hands into my hair and sealed my lips tighter to her nipples.

When I look down at her, she's staring up at me with a lost expression.

"Have I displeased you?"

Her mouth quirks to the side, and then she slowly shakes her head. "No." A sigh. "No, that was really nice. Better than nice," she adds grudgingly, and I bark out a laugh.

I cannot resist touching her honeyed skin, and I do so. "You are perfect," I tell her, and she shivers at my touch, her eyes closing briefly. "I want to honor your body. I want to give you pleasure."

She rolls her eyes skyward, sighing heavily.

It is not a good sign, and I wince. I have pushed her too fast; I fear.

But then she speaks again.

"Can we maybe put a pin in the whole ‘mate' thing?" Her voice is small and shy.

I blink.

"I don't want to mate. But that felt, erm, really good." She nudges a rock with her foot. "Maybe we can just make out? For fun?"

I tilt my head. "Make out?"

She laughs, a musical sound that makes my cock jerk. Patience.

"Kiss." She flutters her eyelashes at me, and I am lost. "I want you to kiss me."

I groan and sweep her into my arms. She squeals, and then it turns into another laugh. I slant my mouth over hers, peppering her perfect lips with short, teasing kisses, and the laugh turns to a moan.

Her mouth tastes of sweet wine and honey, and I cannot get enough.