Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12

R owan

She was perfect.

More than perfect.

As I held her there in the water, steam curling around us, her body soft and warm against mine, I felt that same primal instinct rise up, the one that had hit me like a damn freight train the moment I first laid eyes on her back in that compound.

I’d fought it, tried to bury it deep down, but it was impossible. The moment I saw her, trembling and terrified but still fierce, still unbroken, something inside me had snapped. It was like she’d called to a part of me that I’d thought was long dead, a part that roared to life and refused to be silenced. My instincts, my need to protect, to possess—it had all come flooding back, stronger than it had ever been before. There was no denying it, no fighting it.

I’d wanted her more than I’d wanted air, more than I’d wanted freedom. More than life itself. And it had terrified me just how much I needed her. How much I still needed her.

And when I’d marked her as mine, when I’d sunk my teeth into her skin and felt her shudder against me, there hadn’t been a single shred of regret.

Not for one second.

That bite was the most natural thing I’d ever done, the truest thing I’d ever felt. Kendra was mine, and I was never going to let her go.

Not now. Not ever.

I watched her now, as she sat there in the water, her eyes closed, her lips slightly parted, and the sight of her stole the breath from my lungs. She was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen, and she was mine. The thought sent a surge of heat through me, fierce and unrelenting, and I knew I’d fight a thousand battles for her, tear through anyone who tried to take her from me, just to keep her here, just to keep her safe.

She opened her eyes then, and they locked onto mine, bright green, curious, and I felt my heart stutter in my chest. She was staring at me like she could see right through me, like she saw past the scars and the darkness, and it was enough to drive me insane. I could barely stand it.

“Rowan…” she whispered, and just the sound of my name on her lips had my blood roaring, my pulse pounding in my ears. I leaned forward, my hand sliding up to cup the back of her neck, and I couldn’t stop myself.

Didn’t want to. So I didn’t.

I claimed her mouth with mine, kissing her with every ounce of need, every bit of desire that had been building up inside me since the moment I’d laid eyes on her. She tasted like warmth and honey, sweet and addictive, and I couldn’t get enough. I pulled her closer, my fingers tangling in her hair, my other hand gripping her hip, feeling the softness of her skin beneath my fingertips, and I growled against her lips, deep and rough, the sound rumbling in my chest.

She gasped, her hands sliding up my arms, clinging to me, and it only made me kiss her harder, deeper, as if I could somehow brand myself into her soul, as if I could make her feel just how much I needed her.

My Kendra. My mate .

The world around us faded into nothing, and all that existed was her—the warmth of her body pressed against mine, the way she fit so perfectly in my arms, like she’d been made for me. It didn’t matter that we were on the run, that we were being hunted. All that mattered was that she was here, that she was mine, and that nothing in this world could take her away from me.

When I finally pulled back, she was breathless, her lips swollen, her eyes half-lidded, and I felt a fierce, possessive pride swell in my chest.

“You’re mine,” I growled, my voice low, rough with need. “Do you understand that? You belong to me now.”

She nodded, still catching her breath, and I could see it in her eyes—the acceptance, the surrender. She knew, just as much as I did, that there was no escaping this, no escaping us. And it made something inside me tighten, something primal and raw that sent a shiver racing down my spine.

I pulled away, my heart still pounding in my chest, my breath ragged, and for a moment, I just looked at her. Her eyes were half-closed, her lips swollen from my kiss, and the sight of her sent a fierce, possessive heat coursing through me, every instinct screaming at me to claim her, to make her mine in every way that mattered.

I lifted her into my arms, and she didn’t protest. Didn’t try to pull away. Instead, she wrapped her arms around my neck, her fingers tangling in my hair as she let out a soft, shaky breath. I could feel the way her body melted into mine, how she fit against me like she was made for this, like she was made for me. And it only made the fire inside me burn hotter, made it harder to hold back.

I carried her back to the bed of moss, lowering her down with a gentleness I didn’t even know I was capable of. Her eyes never left mine, and I saw something in them, something that made my chest tighten, made every bit of anger and pain I’d carried with me for so long start to fade. I could see the way she trusted me, the way she’d chosen me, and it was all the permission I needed.

“So damn beautiful,” I murmured, the words slipping out before I could stop them, and I saw the way her cheeks flushed, the way her breath hitched.

I reached out, brushing a strand of hair away from her face, letting my fingers trail down her neck, her shoulder, feeling the way her skin trembled beneath my touch.

“Rowan…” She whispered my name like a prayer, and it sent a jolt of electricity straight through me, made my entire body tighten with need.

Made my cock as hard as a rock.

I couldn’t hold back any longer. I leaned in, capturing her mouth with mine, and this time, there was no gentleness, no hesitation. I kissed her like I’d die if I stopped, like she was the air I needed to breathe, and she responded in kind, her hands gripping my shoulders, pulling me closer, until there was nothing between us but heat and want.

I felt her surrender, felt the way she arched into me, and it was all I needed. All I’d ever wanted.

“Mine,” I growled against her lips, the word rough, raw, as I moved over her, as I felt her legs wrap around my waist, holding me in place, holding me to her.

“Yes,” she breathed, and the sound of it, the way she said it, made something inside me snap. I kissed her again, harder, deeper, my hands roaming over her body, claiming every inch of her, and she let me; she let me take what I needed, what I wanted, and she gave herself to me without reservation, without hesitation.

It was beautiful.

It was fate.

I pulled back just enough to look at her, to see the way her pupils had dilated, the way her lips were parted, and I knew, in that moment, that there was no going back.

I was going to take her. Right here on the forest floor.

She stared up at me, her eyes wide, and for a moment, I saw a flicker of uncertainty and fear. I cupped her face in my hand, stroking her cheek with my thumb, and the look in her eyes darkened with a heat of her own.

I slid my other hand between her thighs, feeling the way her legs trembled as I moved up, grazing her wet, waiting heat. She shuddered, her eyes fluttering closed, and I knew she wanted this, knew she needed it just as much as I did.

I rocked my hips back, stroking my cock up and down her pussy. She was so wet that my shaft slid through her sensitive folds with ease.

Her breathing was heavy, and she bit her lip as I positioned the head of my cock against her opening.

Slowly, carefully, I pushed inside her, the feeling like sinking directly into heaven.

Her heat enveloped me, and I had to take a deep breath, reminding myself to take it slow and not lose control.

When I was buried to the hilt, her muscles tightening around me, I leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her lips, and when I spoke, the words were hoarse, barely a whisper.

“I’d ask you if you’re ready, but I don’t need to, sweet mate. This wet little pussy tells me everything I need to know and right now, you need to be fucked. Hard .”

Kendra shuddered beneath me, and I began moving, rocking my hips, pushing myself deeper into her tight heat. Her eyes widened, her mouth falling open, and I drank in the sight of her, every expression, every flicker of emotion.

Her pussy clamped around my cock like a vise.

I groaned, the sensation almost too much, and I had to grit my teeth, had to force myself not to give in, not yet. Because this wasn’t just about me. It was about her.

We moved together, slowly at first. Every touch, every brush of skin against skin sent ripples through me, grounding me in a way I hadn’t felt in longer than I could remember. I wanted to memorize every detail—the curve of her hip, the way her breath caught each time I traced a line down her side, the way she whispered my name like it was the only word that mattered, the way her pussy clenched down on my cock with every hard thrust.

“Kendra,” I murmured, pressing my forehead against hers, trying to catch my breath. I felt her hands slide up my arms, her fingers digging into my shoulders as if she needed something to hold onto, and it sent a shiver racing down my spine.

I fucking loved it.

As the intensity of the moment built, I could feel her tense beneath me, her body arching, her nails digging into my skin, and it only fueled the fire that burned inside me. I sank even deeper inside her.

Kendra moaned, and I felt her pussy clamp down, her muscles rippling, and I knew she was close. Knew she was right there on the edge.

I drove my hips into her, rocking them just so to catch her clit, to press just hard enough to push her right over that cliff.

And then, without warning, her orgasm ripped through her, and she cried out, her entire body shuddering beneath me. The feeling was exquisite. Her walls clenched down on me, and I felt my own climax building, felt the fire inside me roar to life, but I held back.

It wasn’t time yet.

“That’s it,” I praised, my voice rough. “Look at you taking my cock like such a good little mate.”

She shuddered, her breath hitching, and I kissed her again, trying to pour everything I felt into that single touch, trying to show her that she wasn’t just a passing desire or a fleeting need. She was my world now, the one thing that mattered, and I would protect her with everything I had.

When her shudders subsided, when her breathing had evened out, I pulled back, watching as her eyes fluttered open, her pupils dilated, her skin flushed and glistening.

I didn’t stop fucking her. Instead, I picked up the pace and she gasped, the sound like music to my ears.

The pace quickened, our movements growing more desperate, more frantic, and I felt myself teetering on the edge, caught between control and something far more primal. But I couldn’t bring myself to care, not when she was with me, not when I could feel the warmth of her breath against my skin, the softness of her pussy clenching around my cock.

Her body was slick and hot beneath mine, and I sank deeper, faster, harder, simply because I could. She met my thrusts, her hands clawing at my back, her hips grinding into mine, and the intensity, the heat, the way her eyes locked onto mine, filled with need and hunger, was enough to drive me onward.

I fucked her harder, pounding into her as the slick sounds of sex echoed around us.

And then, before either of us was prepared, her body went rigid, her back arching off the mossy floor, her mouth open in a silent cry as she came once more. The look on her face, the feeling of her muscles contracting around me, the sound of her pleasure, was enough to drive a man crazy.

But I held on. For her.

Then, when she finally went limp, her body relaxing beneath mine, I pulled back, a savage satisfaction roaring through me as I watched her eyelids flutter, her lips parting, the hint of a satisfied smile curving her lips.

Then I let my knot inflate.

As the bulb at the base of my cock swelled, it pushed against the walls of her pussy, stretching her. The feeling was indescribable, the most intense thing I’d ever experienced.

She opened her eyes wide, a slight panic in them before another orgasm ripped through her, making her body tense and her mouth open with another silent scream. Her pussy clamped down on my knot, driving me crazy and sending me steamrolling right over the edge.

I finally let go.

With one last thrust, I buried myself inside her, the knot locking me into place as my orgasm tore through me, the heat, the pressure, the sheer pleasure of it making me see stars. My seed burst free from the base of my spine, surging out the tip of my cock, filling her up to the brim.

My Kendra. My sweet, perfect mate.

We were connected now, in a way that would never fade, would never change, and I felt a sense of peace wash over me, a calm that settled deep into my bones, easing the tension, the worry, the pain. We lay there like that, the only sound our ragged breathing, locked together, my cock still pulsing, her body still trembling, until slowly, gradually, we came back down to earth.

I looked down at her, and a surge of pride, of protectiveness, of love, swelled in my chest.

Because this was the woman who was mine, the one I was going to spend the rest of my life with, the one who would bear my children and help me rebuild this broken world.

My mate.

She looked up at me, her green eyes shining, and I felt something shift inside me, something I hadn’t even known was there, until the moment I saw her.

I’d finally found home.