Chapter 4

CHAPTER FOUR

KILLIAN

As soon as I'm in the corridor, I take a deep inhale. I needed to get away from her, from her intoxicating scent. From the hormones in my body demanding that I claim her. Being in her presence is excruciating, but after only seconds away from her, I'm beginning to suspect that this is even worse.

I know this feeling won't go away until I take her. Until we mate, I'll be edgy and irritable, short tempered and struggling to focus. The longer it goes on, the worse it will be. I'm managing okay for now, but by tomorrow, who knows how wild I'll feel. It's terrible timing, but I'll find a way to make it work. I will do my job and keep her safe, because there is no other option.

I go to Flynn's quarters first, of course. There's no way I would undertake this mission without him. He's the strongest member of our clan, not to mention the best fighter. We don't engage in battle often, of course. But it's a skill he was born with, and one that will be useful if we encounter hobgoblins. It takes me another hour to notify the rest of the group—Conor, Sean, and Liam—and make sure we have all the supplies we'll need. I stop by Sloane's for some extra things, then I gather two meals and return to Natalie.

She's pacing about when I open the door, and it's clear she took the time to inspect my quarters. But that's fine; there's nothing here to hide. My clothes and few personal items are not secrets, even from a human. I doubt there's much she could learn about me from a toothbrush or a pair of pants.

"You're back," she announces when I enter the room.

"I am. And I brought dinner. It's a casserole."

She nods. "Where should we eat?"

My quarters are more than adequate for me, but not especially spacious. I have the small living room, a sleeping chamber, and a bath chamber. The only real option is to eat here, in the chairs. I place the food on the table between them and gesture for her to sit.

I unroll the bundle I picked up from Sloane, one of the smallest females in the clan, and set the borrowed blankets aside.

"I borrowed some clothes for you, for tomorrow." It's traditional goblin gear: boots, fitted trousers, and a plated top that's good for protection. Of course, Sloane being who she is, it's decorated with arm chains and etchings. She's not one for simple attire. I add a belt to the pile.

"A friend is loaning you this. She's the closest goblin to your size."

Natalie looks over the items and smiles. "That's very kind of her. It will be nice to have a change of clothing."

"You may also use the wash chamber to bathe tonight, if you wish. I certainly intend to."

Her face lights up. "That would be wonderful! I'm pretty dirty and scratched up from my fall. A soak sounds heavenly."

I pinch my eyes closed and try to will away thoughts of her lounging in my quarters, bared to the skin and floating in water. I don't need to be any more distracted by her than I already am. All the same, I feel myself getting hard. Dammit.

"Kill? Are you okay?"

I open my eyes and nod, adjusting my position to hide the evidence of my arousal. "Fine. We should eat." My voice comes out gruffer than I intended, but it's for the best. She doesn't need to know how she affects me.

"Can I ask you more questions about goblins?"

"Yes," I say. "But if we do this, it's going to be quid pro quo. You ask me about goblins, I ask you about humans."

"You're interested in humans?"

I level my gaze at her. "I'm interested in you."

NATALIE

It doesn't take long to polish off the dinner Kill brought. When we're done eating, he stands and announces his intent to clean up.

"It won't take me long. I'll get it out of the way and then you can take your time," he says, which is pretty chivalrous considering the situation. I'm sure he doesn't want to be stuck guarding me, and there was no reason for him to stick his neck out to save me, much less get me clean clothes and offer me a bath.

"Thanks. I appreciate it," I tell him.

He nods and peels his shirt off, treating me to a view of his truly spectacular chest. His turquoise skin is lovely, with the occasional scar here and there. His pecs and biceps are as defined as I'd hoped, but something distracts me from all the delicious muscles. My eyes are drawn to the mark on his left pec, a strange glyph I can't interpret.

"What is that?" I ask, pointing at it. I stand to get a closer look. I know I'm invading his privacy, but I can't help it. The tattoo is fascinating.

"It's nothing," he says gruffly.

I give him a playful nudge with my shoulder. "C'mon, I'm here to learn about your

people, and you told me I could ask questions about your life. Tell me about your tattoo."

He sighs. "It's not a tattoo. It's a mate mark."

"A mate mark?"

He nods. "This doesn't hold for all goblinkin. But when males of my particular species meet our mates, we undergo a series of physical changes, including the development of a mate mark. It signals to others that we are taken. Our biology ensures monogamy; a mated male will never experience attraction to anyone but his mate."

A crestfallen wave surges through me, which I barely even understand—it's not like I want to date this goblin who has me on lockdown—but I paste a smile on my face. This mark is like a wedding ring, but without the option of divorce. A completely unbreakable bond.

"Wow, I've never heard of anything like that. Humans sometimes try to be monogamous—at least some do—but it's always a choice. We're never bound. Your mate—have I met her? Or him?"

"Yes," is all he says, leaving me to wonder which of these goblins managed to claim the male I'm oddly attracted to.

NATALIE

I'm not sure what to do once we've both cleaned up, but Killian announces that it's bedtime. "You can take my bed," he says. "I'll be fine out here on the floor."

"Are you sure? I don't want to put you out. And I don't mind sleeping on the floor."

"It's fine. I have plenty of blankets to make things soft." He points to the pile on the floor. He brought some of them back with him from his earlier excursion, so I guess some are on loan.

He still hasn't put on a shirt, and not even a bath was enough to cool my heated blood. He looks positively lickable. The bulges of his biceps, the slight smattering of hair on his pecs, his flat nipples and the mark above his heart. The dips of his abs and the V-shape of his hips. I want to touch every single part of his torso.

And then he takes off his pants.

He's not naked; he has on the goblin equivalent of boxer briefs. The goblin style of dress is sort of more ornate than what humans generally wear, but his underwear seem normal enough. I try not to stare, but it's hard not to notice the bulk he's packing. And he's not even hard.

I swallow and make a quick retreat. "Good night!" I call as I throw myself under the covers of his bed, which is a platform that has, once again, been carved from the rock. The mattress and bedding are soft and comfortable though. His bed that smells like him, like pine and weirdly, fresh snow. A delicious, masculine scent that's everywhere.

Dammit.

I'm so worked up, I'll never fall asleep.

After my bath, Kill loaned me a sort of cloak thing to wear, so that I wouldn't have to put my dirty clothes back on. But it's too billowy to sleep in, so I stand back up and shrug it off. Should I feel weird sleeping nude in a strange goblin's bed? One hundred percent. But do I? Nope.

I decide not to examine that too closely.

Instead, I slide a hand under the covers and graze it over my chest. My nipples are both taut, which is no surprise. I give each one a pinch, and my breath comes out in a hiss. I immediately sink my teeth into my lip. Kill is right in the other room. I cannot make any noise.

I consider dragging this out, but that's ridiculous. I've been turned on ever since Kill yanked off his shirt, and it's time to do something about it. I pop a finger in my mouth to keep myself quiet. With my other hand, I coast down my body, over my belly, and in between my thighs. I slip a finger between my folds and nearly cry out.

I'm soaked. I drag the finger up to my clit, which is swollen and beating in time to my pulse. I give it a firm press and shudder as pleasure careens through me.

Good lord. This won't take long at all.

I draw my fingers down again, teasing my entrance and getting them good and wet. Then I swirl them against my clit, playing with the pace and pressure. My eyes flutter closed and images of Killian—especially that sexy-as-hell V-shape along his hips—flood my mind.

A tiny whimper escapes my lips and I suck my finger harder. I can't let him hear me. Except…the thought of him hearing me, of wandering in here and seeing what I'm doing…it makes me even hotter. Even wetter.

I circle my clit again and feel it swell against my fingertips as my hips buck. Shit. I make an upside-down V with my fingers and slide them over the swollen nub, gently applying pressure to both sides.

It throbs, and there's a tingling sensation in my belly. The pressure is perfect. Enough to make me feel good, but not quite enough to send me over. As much as I need to come, I don't want this to be over. It feels too good.

Just then, I hear Kill make a noise. A kind of…grunt. It could be a sleep thing, like maybe he has a kink in his neck or something. Or maybe he's doing what I'm doing. Or maybe he's about to get up and come in here…

I jolt at the thought, my hand inadvertently tensing against my clit. With a gasp, I tip over the edge, coming long and hard. I shudder and bite my finger to quiet my moans; my hips flex a few times as my orgasm crashes through me in a hot rush. I'm quivering and too warm, and I'm possibly wetter than I've ever been. Good god. I can't believe how intense that was, considering I'm alone.

I almost always come hard during sex, but solo? It's usually quick and easy, just enough to ease the tension. But this one blew my socks off.

I pant my way through my come-down, almost tempted to go for round two. But I'm exhausted. So instead, I sigh, roll to my side, and pass right out.

NATALIE

Killian makes sure we're up bright and early. Well, figuratively. It's definitely early. Not so much bright, considering where we are. He leaves me to dress and returns a few minutes later with some sort of porridge for breakfast.

When I grab my knife out of my pack, I expect him to object, but instead, he nods with approval. We meet up with the others in a corridor, he introduces me, and then we're off.

Killian said we were scouting west of his clan's settlement, and I have to trust him on that. I'm not great at sussing out cardinal directions even when I can see the sun. Underground? Impossible.

We trudge along for what feels like an hour before a noise gets my attention. There's nothing here, though. Aside from our torches, things seem dark and still, and at first, I'm not sure I actually heard anything. Maybe my imagination is getting the better of me.

I pause, tilting my head, and I hear it again. The subtle sound of a pebble rolling along rock. Killian sees me freeze and stops with me.

"What is it?"

"I'm not sure," I say. "Maybe nothing. But I thought I heard a rock falling."

It seems like a minimal threat, at best, but Kill goes on alert and gathers the others close. "Stay watchful," he tells them. "There could be a nest nearby."

The hairs on my arms stand up as I strain my senses. I'm searching all around and listening for the faintest trace of noise. I'm even sniffing the air, in case the hobgoblins have some sort of identifiable odor.

We're all standing up taller, moving more slowly, all sense of ease and camaraderie gone. Hypervigilant. All six of us are prepared, so there's no way any enemies can surprise us.

You'd think.

When the attack comes, I sense it too late—we all do—because it comes from above . Once again, those damned tubes in the mountains come into play, except this time the hobgoblins are using them on purpose. They've been cultivated for surprise attacks.

The creatures are between two and three feet tall, with sallow green skin, red eyes, and huge ears. They have fangs and claws, and they are far uglier and more vicious than Kill described.

They are also copious .

There must be ten of them for every one of us, and they descend through the ceiling with hideous, high-pitched screeches. Two immediately jump on me, and despite their small size, they are incredibly strong. I scream and try to detach them, but they grip tightly. One has my arms in its claws and the other has sunk sharp teeth into my leg.

Moving so swiftly he's nearly a blur, Kill whirls around to me. He rips away the one on my arm, tossing it into the cave wall. With a downward slash, he rakes his knife through the other one, kicking it when it releases my leg.

"Are you okay?" he asks.

"I think?" I'm definitely injured and bleeding, but it's probably not life threatening.

Kill nods and spins again, taking down another hobgoblin just as it leaps into the air. He slashes under its belly and it howls as it falls to the ground.

"This is a fucking swarm!" someone shouts, and whoever it is, he's not wrong. These little gremlins are every-fucking-where.

They're still dropping from above, stout little things with powerful legs that allow them to leap among us. I catch sight of Flynn using his strength to his full advantage. He plucks one from the ground and breaks its neck with a crunch. He grabs two more and crashes their skulls together before dropping them. I don't know if they're dead or unconscious, but they certainly aren't moving.

I see Conor lift a small, lightweight bow and begin firing arrows left and right. He uses his superior height to shoot right through their faces and necks, taking them out in the grimmest of ways.

I'm doing the best I can, kicking and slashing with the hunting knife I brought with me, but I'm not a trained fighter. And these things just keep coming. What they lack in size, they make up for in numbers, and suddenly, I understand their tactic. They're driving us apart, herding us in various directions to weaken us. I shout to Kill, trying to let him know what's happening, but a hobgoblin lands on my back and drags its talons down my neck.

I screech and throw myself backward into a wall, completely losing sight of the men I came with. The impact is enough to shake the creature loose, but it accomplished its objective. I've been driven into a side tunnel, completely apart from my group.

And still, more hobgoblins are coming.

Injured and alone, I don't have any choice.

I turn away from the fray and run.