Chapter 27

W hen they entered the tent, the fire was roaring. Someone had stoked it while they'd mingled with the pack outside. It was almost fully dark, and he could feel the moon rising. Soon the full moon would beam down at them through the hole in the ceiling. He wanted to time it so that they completed the bond at that exact moment. He wanted it to be perfect for her.

The glocken berry would be wearing off any day now, and the need for her to claim him back had risen with every hour they'd been in camp. A sense of urgency stole over him, and he led her to the bed, his stomach in knots.

She tilted her head. "Are you nervous?" The incredulity in her voice made him wince and shrug.

"Gods, yes. I don't even remember being this nervous when I got married."

She sat on the edge of the bed and leaned forward to unlace her boots. "Tell me about her?"

Wulfric reached behind his head and tugged his shirt off. It was probably against some rule to talk about a previous wife to his new mate, but he wouldn't deny her. She could ask for the moon itself, and he'd hunt the heavens and Eoni itself to bring it to her.

He tossed his shirt into his chest of clothes. "She was the daughter of the tavern owners. I first noticed her at our village school before I could even read, but never talked to her until we were older. She always had her group of friends, and I had mine."

Scarlet set her boots by the chest at the foot of the bed. "Was she beautiful?"

He paused, picturing her easy smile with the dimple on one side. "I always thought so. Deep brown hair like newly varnished oak and eyes to match. Gods, those eyes. She could've had anyone in the village. Hells, in all of Busparia. Yet she chose me, much to her parents' dismay."

He shoved his pants down, throwing it into his chest.

"They didn't like you? Why ever not?" Her surprised anger made him chuckle as he laid on the bed, hands behind his head and ankles crossed. He watched as she unlaced her vest and set it on top of her boots, her face indignant on his behalf.

"I wasn't good enough. My parents had raised me to run the general store, but her parents had lofty goals for their precious daughter. They wanted a noble who would provide for her. She loved to read, and they wanted someone who would let her read to her heart's content instead of working her hands raw."

"So they spoiled her." Scarlet's voice was flat now as she pushed her pants down and folded them, adding them to her pile of clothes.

He shifted on the bed, growing impossibly hard as he watched her undress. "Not really. They just loved her so much and wanted the best for her."

Scarlet paused and frowned in confusion. "But that would've been you. You're the best."

Her sincerity made his chest swell with emotion, and he leaned up on one elbow. "Ah, bunny, your words are a balm to my soul. Look at what you've done to the captain now."

He waved a hand at his crotch, and her eyes dropped as she grabbed the bottom of her borrowed shirt. She licked her lips as his shaft lengthened out of its sheath, growing thick and heavy. She shook her head and chuckled, eyes glancing away and head going high as she pulled her arms out of the shirt.

"Seriously, that nickname is ridiculous."

He grinned and palmed his dick, sliding his hand up slowly. "At least I remember now why I call it that."

"Your wife?" Scarlet paused, but he shook his head.

"No, actually. Shortly after I arrived in the army's camp in Glathen, I was promoted to captain. Then the camp followers started hounding me. They gave it that nickname, and it sort of stuck."

Her shoulders relaxed at the explanation, and she swept her shirt up and over her head. It only caught a moment in her little antlers, then she was tossing it to the floor with the rest.

"Did you fuck the camp followers?" When she met his gaze, her cheeks were flushed and her gaze accusatory.

He sat up, his hands settling on either side of his hips on the bed. "I did, yes. I'm not proud of it, but I'm not going to pretend that I've been celibate since my wife died or in the past ten years since I've been a Growler."

Her breathing changed, growing shallow, and her pupils dilated, pushing the deep green aside."Very well, but if any of the Growler women in camp make a reference to intimately knowing the captain , I'll gut them before they even see the blades."

He laughed, reaching for her hips just to be able to touch her and swinging his knees to brace her between them. He looked up into her fierce face, his chest full of emotion. "Ah I love when you get all protective and growly."

She scowled and tried to pull away. "Well, don't get used to it. Just because we're completing the mate bond and are working together to keep the forest safe doesn't mean we're going to live happily ever after."

He heard her words, saw her stiffen and hold herself away from him. The scent of fear emanating from her was palpable. Not the frantic, fight-or-flight fear of imminent danger, but a more subtle and complex fear. The fear of vulnerability and potential heartache, the fear of taking a chance on someone new. It wafted off of her in waves, mingling with the natural fragrance of her skin and creating an aura of trepidation around her.

His fingers flexed on her hips, his claws growing as his own flare of possessiveness made his chest burn. He wanted her to give in and trust him to not leave, to take care of her, to be a true partner in life. He didn't want to take away her independence, but there was no way he could let her go now that he'd found her.

He tugged her nipple into his mouth, making her back arch as she gasped. Her hands fisted at her sides as she stood proud, not bending to his will.

Gods, she was amazing.

The smell of her wetness rose to slap him in the face, and he sucked in a breath. He nuzzled her breast as he went to the other, saying, "If you think I'm letting you go, you're crazier than I thought."

She arched a brow, her soft smile slipping into a flash of vulnerability. "Are those the vows we're supposed to say to finish this mate bond?"

He licked his lips and shook his head, his hands spreading around to knead her ass. "Our vows are our own. There's no set order or requirement for them. I'll go first. I promise to always protect you and put your needs before my own. The goddess might have thrown us together, but I want to spend the rest of my life with you. This I vow."

Her eyes went dark as the canopy of the forest outside as she softened, yet still she held herself stiffly in front of him. They didn't touch, except where his hands stroked her ass.

"Very well. Here's mine. I promise to always protect you and fight by your side for as long as we're together. This I vow."

He felt the magic weave between them, hovering like a caress. Her eyes turned from side to side, widening, and his brows rose. "Can you see it?"

She licked her lips and nodded. "I can't always see magic like I can auras, but I see this one."

His chest swelled and he pushed her hair behind her rabbit's ear. "That's amazing, bunny, and now you're all mine."What else didn't he know about her? It'd take a lifetime to peel back all her layers and learn everything, a lifetime he was looking forward to.

She swallowed hard, the scent of her fear to believe in them flooding his nose. She planted her hands on her hips. "We'll see if it lasts. Are we going to finish this or what? I need to bite you or something?"

He slid back on the bed, releasing her hips and trying to draw her to him. Like their first night together, he had to let her come to him. She had to realize on her own that they belonged together.

"Yes, at climax we'll both bite each other. It'll be an urge neither of us can refuse, from what I understand."

"Fine, but I'm in charge." She crawled on hands and knees to him on the bed, the scent of her nerves mixed with her desire.Gods, her emotions were all over the place tonight. It made his mouth water, needing more of her in every way possible.

She kept herself from touching him but slid over the top of him, straddling his waist. His cock jumped and his knot and balls pulsed. By the gods, she was glorious. Wild, red hair tangled in her little horns, the haze of desire in her eyes, naked above him, breasts heavy and just begging for him…

"You're a goddess sent to torment me, aren't you?"

His need for her grew by the second, and on the last word, she ground her breasts flat on his chest. They both groaned at the contact, and he gripped her hips. One hand went around to her ass and the other rose up to tweak a nipple. He rolled it between his finger and thumb, and finally finally she rubbed the rest of her body against him.

The length of him as their hips aligned, and he growled as her slickness coated him. He lifted her breast to his mouth, so perky and ready to be worshiped. His tongue swirled around her nipple, making her groan and squirm closer.

His other hand slid around her hip, encouraging her to rock against him and tease them both.

"My, my, what a big dick you have," she panted.

He grinned and released her nipple as he bucked, making her squeal. "All the better to fuck you with, my dear."

Without another word, she rose to her knees and whimpered. He reached between them and guided himself inside. Only the tip, but she eased down inch by inch, not stopping until his knot pressed against her opening. He stilled, his hands gripping her waist as he sucked in a breath. His nose flared, and he fought hard to control his shift. He wanted to howl mine, mine, mine.

She rocked forward, her delectable mouth forming a breathy O . Fire raced between their bodies, demanding more and more as she leaned back. He cupped the underside of her sweet mounds, feeling the weight of them in his palms as he rolled her nipples.

Her head thrown back, her hands on his chest, he groaned in ecstasy. Her breasts bounced with each savage thrust. His hips slammed up into hers, seeking more, wanting to find that secret spot inside her soul that made her cry out his name.

She stretched and melted around him, but when his fingers shifted to claws and drew blood on her chest, he went crazy with lust. The scent of her blood pushed him toward feral. He struggled for control. He needed to bite her before he lost himself.

He rolled her onto her back and thrust inside with a savagery that made her scream, his knot stretching at her opening. Her pussy tightened around his shaft as he pumped with hard, rough strokes.

"Yes, yes, more." She clawed his back and began to shake violently.

Each thrust pressed his knot against her opening, and her inner muscles squeezed him wildly, preventing him from pushing the last of him inside. His mouth grew, shifting into a muzzle as he bowed to her neck. He bucked and clamped his teeth into the tender flesh as he exploded inside her.

She screamed at the bite, shaking uncontrollably beneath him as her orgasm went higher. Then she bit his shoulder, piercing the skin and making him jerk inside. He held himself still, growling and grunting as he was paralyzed by the pleasure rippling through him.

Stars burst behind his eyelids as the mate bond snapped into place. Magic wove around them, binding them together until it was finally finished.

He felt her contentment and satisfaction, and he sighed, happy for the first time in a long time. The stress of the past melted away, and he fell onto his side, tucking her against him and staying inside as best he could. Still panting, he drifted into a dreamless sleep.