Chapter 14

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

“ N ow?” Clarice asked, her tone so indignant that Rudi would have laughed if he hadn’t been so nervous.

He took her hand and brought it to the red lines on his chest. The marks pulsed brighter at her touch, responding to her presence in a way that both thrilled and terrified him.

“These are... mating marks,” he said gruffly. “My people get them when we find our true mate.”

The words hung in the air between them, and he tensed as he waited for her reaction. The thought of losing her now, after experiencing such happiness, sent panic coursing through him. But she deserved to know the truth—that the marks would become permanent if they continued their physical relationship. That his people mated for life.

He drew in a shaky breath, struggling to find the right words to explain without frightening her away. His antlers cast a soft glow over the water’s surface, betraying his emotional turmoil despite his attempt to remain stoic.

“They indicate that you’re my mate, but... they will fade if we don’t make love. If we do, they’ll be permanently marked on my skin.”

The steam from the hot spring floated around them, and he found himself holding his breath, praying that the permanence of their bond wouldn’t frighten her away.

Instead her eyes lit up, and a radiant smile spread across her face.

“I like that,” she said, tracing the glowing marks again. “Everyone will know you belong to me.”

Relief flooded through him, making him dizzy. He’d expected shock, hesitation, maybe even rejection. Instead, she claimed him with such easy confidence that it stole his breath away.

“Are you sure?” he said roughly. “Once the marks are permanent, there’s no going back.”

Her eyes met his without hesitation, clear and steady.

“Very sure.”

She spoke with such conviction that he couldn’t doubt her. Her hand pressed firmly against his chest, right over the glowing marks. The simple touch sent waves of warmth through his body that had nothing to do with the hot spring.

Something deep inside him cracked and fell away. The walls he’d built over years of isolation, of protecting himself from rejection and pain, crumbled beneath the weight of her certainty. He felt exposed, vulnerable in a way he’d never allowed himself to be before. Yet instead of fear, he felt... free. Free to trust, to love without reservation or doubt. And he did love her, more than he could have imagined possible.

He swallowed hard. “You’re really choosing me?”

The corners of her eyes crinkled in amusement.

“You say that like there was some other choice. No one else has these.” She stroked her fingers over his antlers. “Or these.” She ran her hand over his marks, and a shudder went through him. “No one else is my mate. No one else will ever make me feel the way you do.”

A low groan escaped him, and he kissed her hard, pouring all his emotions into that contact—the passion, the need, the gratitude for her acceptance and trust. She responded with equal fervor, her fingers tangling in his hair, her body arching against him. When they broke apart, both were breathing hard, their faces flushed.

“Make me yours,” she whispered against his lips.

With a growl, he gripped her hips, and positioned himself at her entrance as her legs wrapped tightly around his waist. Her body resisted at first but slowly, carefully, he pushed inside her, feeling that narrow, untried channel stretch to accommodate him. A low, guttural sound rumbled from his throat as her heat enveloped him. She was so tight, so perfect, it was all he could do to hold himself back from thrusting wildly.

She gasped, her tiny nails digging into his shoulders.

“Are you okay?” he managed to ask.

“Yes.” Her voice was breathy. “So much better than okay. It feels so right.”

Her hands stroked trails of fire down his arms and back, urging him closer. He withdrew slightly, then pushed forward again, deeper this time and she started shaking. He forced himself to stop, his own body trembling with the effort of restraining himself.

“Do you want me to stop?”

“No, it’s just...” She squirmed slightly, adjusting to his size, and he gritted his teeth. Then she relaxed, her body melting into his. Her legs tightened around his hips. “You feel incredible. Please, don’t stop.”

He thrust a little deeper, and her eyes widened at the sensation. He paused to give her time to adjust, but she rocked her hips, urging him on.

“I want all of you,” she breathed. “Make me yours, Rudi.”

He refused to hurry, refused to hurt her, watching her face as he slowly pressed deeper. Twice he forced himself to stop when her eyes widened, her inner muscles rippling and clenching around him. He stroked a soothing hand down her hip, petting her until her body relaxed enough for him to gain another inch. When he was finally fully sheathed within her, he held himself still, giving her time to adjust to his size.

“Are you okay?”

His voice came out rougher than he’d intended, his own body screaming for him to move, to take her fully, but his concern for her outweighed his own needs. He would never do anything to harm her, not for all the pleasure in the world.

“Yes,” she whispered, her hands stroking over his shoulders, his neck, his face, as if trying to assure him through her touch. “You’re so... you fill me. I can feel every inch of you. I can even feel your mating marks pulsing inside me.”

Awe tinged her voice, and he leaned down to claim her mouth in a deep, searing kiss. She responded eagerly, her tongue twining with his. Her hips lifted, her body begging for more even if she didn’t say the words.

He began to move, slowly at first, withdrawing almost entirely before sliding back in. Her body gripped him so tightly he had to grit his teeth against the urge to drive into her harder, faster. He kept watching her face as he moved, adjusting his position in response to her small gasps and sighs, learning what made her writhe and beg for more.

She was so beautiful, her head thrown back, lips parted. He wanted to hear his name on those lips. He angled his hips, searching for that spot that would make her cry out, and knew he’d found it when her body arched beneath him. Her nails dug into his shoulders, and her legs tightened around his waist, urging him on. He obliged, increasing the force and speed of his thrusts. Her breath came in short, sharp gasps, and he could feel her inner muscles fluttering wildly around him as she climbed higher.

“Yes, right there,” she moaned. “Please, don’t stop.”

He wouldn’t—couldn’t—stop. Not until he’d given her the pleasure she deserved. He drove into her relentlessly, pounding against that sensitive spot. Her fingers scrabbled at his back, her body arching up off the moss. With a wild cry, she shattered around him, her inner muscles clenching him like a velvet fist. Her climax triggered his own, and he roared her name as his seed erupted from him, filling her in hot, powerful spurts.

His antlers glowed like the sun, lighting the cavern as he shuddered through his release. Her fingers stroked through his hair and he turned his face into her palm. She was here. She was his.

They stayed that way for several long moments, his forehead resting against hers, both struggling to catch their breath. He could feel the wet warmth of her channel still quivering around him, her pulse beating in time with his own. When he finally opened his eyes, it was to find her watching him with a look of such open adoration that it made his throat tighten.

“I never knew it would be like this.”

“Neither did I.”

A new sensation began building within him. His mating marks were growing warmer, and not just from the heat of their bodies. The warmth spread from the marks to encompass his whole being. It was like nothing he’d ever experienced before—a sense of absolute completion, as if his entire life had been leading up to this moment, to finding her and making her his. He felt connected to her on a level deeper than anything he’d imagined possible.

“Is that...” She touched the glowing lines on his chest, and a bolt of heat raced through him. “Did we...”

“Yes,” he managed to answer, his voice rough with emotion. “The marks are complete. You are my mate.”

She gave him a smile that made his heart skip a beat.

“I like the sound of that.”

“I do too.” He very carefully withdrew from her body, noticing that her small entrance was now pink and swollen. “Are you sore?”

Her cheeks went pink and she nodded. “A little, but I like that too. It’s like I can still feel you, a part of you left behind in me.”

He smiled down at her.

“You’re beautiful when you’re shy.”

She gave him a playful swat and he chuckled. The sound startled him. He could barely remember the last time he’d laughed—truly laughed, not the bitter, hollow sound he used as a shield.

She sat up and wrapped her arms around his neck. He drew her in closer, wrapping her in his arms, breathing in her scent. They stayed like that for a long moment before he reluctantly pulled away and lifted her back into the water.

“Let me take care of you,” he said gently.

She smiled and leaned into him, letting him support her weight. He carefully cleaned her, washing away the traces of blood and seed that marked their lovemaking. The sight sent a wave of possessive pride through him. She was his, and everyone would know that when they saw the marks on his chest.

She insisted on washing him as well, her hand lingering over his cock. His hips bucked at the contact, a groan tearing from his lips. He’d never been touched like this by anyone, and the sensation was almost overwhelming despite their previous lovemaking. Her eyes widened as she stroked the thick length.

“Can we do it again already?”

As much as he wanted to say yes, he shook his head.

“Your body needs time to recover.”

She gave him a playful pout and he found himself laughing again as he lifted her out of the water. They curled up together on the moss, and he’d never felt so happy, so light. The sound of trickling water and her steady breathing nearly lulled him to sleep.

“I noticed something during the fight,” she murmured, tracing lazy patterns on his chest. “The crystal in the heating device—it glowed brighter when your antlers did.”

His eyes snapped open. He’d occasionally seen similar reactions before, particularly when working with raw crystals in his workshop. Sometimes they’d seemed to pulse in sync with his antlers, but he’d dismissed it as tricks of the light or his imagination.

“That’s impossible.”

“I saw it,” she insisted, propping herself up on an elbow to look at him. “When you faced the ice beast, your antlers lit up and the crystal’s glow intensified at exactly the same moment.”

He frowned, recalling other instances—the way certain crystals seemed to respond more readily to his touch, how they sometimes appeared brighter in his workshop than anywhere else in the village. He’d always pushed these observations aside, not wanting another reason to stand out from others.

“There have been... moments,” he admitted reluctantly. “Times when the crystals seemed to react to me. But I never thought?—”

He shook his head, still skeptical despite the evidence mounting in his mind.

“So think about it now,” she urged. “If you could amplify their power...” She grinned, a playful glint in her expression. “Imagine how much more powerful they could become.”

His chest tightened at her unwavering faith in him. Where others had seen his differences as flaws, she found possibilities. Even now, her hands ghosted over his skin with such casual intimacy, as if touching him was the most natural thing in the world.

He couldn’t deny that the thought of experimenting with the crystals intrigued him, but nowhere near as much as the female in his arms. She’d changed everything simply by accepting him, loving him. His mate. The word filled him with fierce joy.

He pulled her closer, claiming her lips in a deep kiss that made his newly permanent marks pulse with warmth. She responded eagerly, her fingers tangling in his hair as she arched against him. The heat of her skin and the soft sounds she made in the back of her throat stoked his need for her once more. He trailed kisses down her neck, feeling her pulse jump beneath his lips. He would make love to her again, but slowly, taking the time to learn her body as intimately as he could. She was his, now and always, his mate. And he was never letting her go.