Chapter 6

Luna

I'd been pretty sure if there was a literal heaven, I had found it in this little oasis. And I'd been enjoying it, lost in my own little world until I realized I wasn't alone.

And now here I was, clutching my arms to my chest, my wet shift very transparent. I stared at the biggest male I'd ever seen. And that was saying something since Adryan was a beast of a male.

He'd been huge atop his steed last night, but even standing twenty feet from me, his body was imposing and massive.

I didn't know what to say as I thought about what he'd just told me in response to my question.

"I'm yours and you're mine."

His words bounced around in my head over and over again until I was dizzy from them. I started shaking, not from the cold but from the sudden rush of… everything moving through me.

I felt this off-kilter anticipation, this consuming breathlessness. But most of all, I felt an arousal that quite literally scared me.

He took a step toward me, and I took one back, the water making my movements slow. I very much felt like a helpless prey ensnared by a predator hungry for a meal.

I curled my fingers around the material, feeling the shift sticking to every single part of my body almost obscenely. And although I was humiliated to officially "meet" my mate for the first time this way, there was also a darker part of me that liked exactly what was happening.

Me being unbalanced, nearly naked, and his gaze roaming up and down me as if he'd been starving and dying of thirst and hadn't realized until he saw me.

His focus slowly slid down my body and stopped, his bronze eyes hooded, his nostrils flaring. My heart jackknifed in my chest as I realized I'd been so busy covering my breasts that there was no doubt he could see the blond curls between my thighs.

But it was as if my limbs were frozen in place so I couldn't even move my hand down to cover myself. Or maybe I didn't want to. I didn't know. I was so confused, and gods have mercy, I couldn't get enough air into my lungs as I felt a heavy throb right at the most intimate place of my body.

I ache.

His broad shoulders moved up as he inhaled, his barrel chest shuddering as he exhaled.

He took a step closer, and I lifted a hand, palm out, to stop him although it felt wrong on every level. I wanted to crook my finger for him to come closer, this instinctual part of me telling me his body needed to be pressed to mine, rubbing against me, easing the desperation I felt in my body.

"Wait. Stop." The words were so light, so soft I didn't know if he heard me. But then he instantly stilled.

His chest pumped up and down as he panted, his eyes flashing blue as his wolf showed me a glimpse of how wild and primal it was.

A Lycan. A fierce and protective… a possessive creature in the Otherworld. They were known for their brutality, for their insurmountable strength.

And he was my mate.

A flush of intense heat moved through me at the intrusive thoughts and images that slammed into my mind. They were so filthy, so graphic I felt my body light on fire. I felt my nipples tighten even more, felt myself become drenched between my thighs.

I fluttered my eyes, trying to keep them open as I thought about what a male like him would be like in bed.

His massive body hovering over mine.

His thick arms braced on either side of my head, his muscles bulging as he caged me.

How he'd lower himself against me, forcing me to part my thighs even more so he could fit his huge body between them.

And then… I shuddered again as I thought about him pushing into me, stretching my body to the point I was so full of him I couldn't breathe.

He'd take my innocence, claim my virginity as his, and I'd gladly give it to him because it seemed like the most natural thing in the world.

But then reality slammed back into me painfully, and I told myself I didn't know him. Fated mates or not, giving myself irrevocably and without question was insane, no matter what destiny implied.

I clenched my thighs together and gritted my teeth as my body didn't want to listen to reason, as it became a stranger. Arousal kept thrumming through me. I grew even wetter, wetness sliding down my inner thighs. I was thankful for the shift and water surrounding me to hide the fact. To hide my smell.

Or so I thought.

His nostrils flared, and he got this wild look in his eyes as he stepped closer.

"Aw, sweet lass," he rumbled out. "Ye smell so good." His voice was low and deep, distorted from his animal.

Oh gods, I couldn't stop looking at his body, at how he was all brute strength and cut muscles. At how his biceps were bigger than my thighs, his legs as wide and strong as tree trunks. His tunic molded to his broad shoulders and wide chest, outlining all that… maleness.

And despite telling myself not to look down, I found myself doing exactly that, then felt my eyes widen at the huge bulge he had. The long, girthy length of his manhood pressed against his dark trews and was obscenely thick.

"Lass," he growled. "If ye keep looking at me like that, I'm no' going tae be able tae keep my control."

I snapped my focus to his face and licked my lips. He watched the act of me drawing my tongue along the bottom swell and groaned anew. "Look at you like what?" My voice cracked at the end, and I kept a hand over my racing heart. I felt like my eyes were as wide as saucers as I stared into his still glowing blue eyes.

"Look at me like ye are starving, lass, like ye want me tae devour ye."

Everything in me said to go closer, to feel his body heat moving along my flesh, to take his scent into my lungs. And to my disappointment, I couldn"t smell the latter. I was too frantic, the rushing water, the musky earth mineral-laden rocks clouding my senses.

It made knowing what he truly smelled like impossible. But I could imagine. I bet it was spicy, woodsy. Feral. I bet he smelled like moss and fresh rain, and a hell of a lot of sexuality.

"But even if I did devour ye, it would no' be enough, lass. I'll forever be starved for ye. I'm so hard, feeling this ache in my groin for the first time in my life." He took another step closer, and I strained my shoulders, feeling indignation and frustration move through me.

This was just going so fast, a whirlwind that made me dizzy and confused.

"Don't be obscene," I said with a voice stronger than I'd thought I could muster.

He froze, his body going rigid, his muscles becoming taut. His nostrils flared once more, and he exhaled slowly. "Aye. My apologies. Ye deserve respect, and here I am being a shite mate right off the bat." He curled his hands into fists as his sides, and in that moment I realized something profound.

When it came to this male—my mate—I held all the power.

A few simple words could have him stopping instantly, could control the wild beast that lay within him. And it was that realization that had any kind of nervousness or hesitation slowly ebbing from me.

I exhaled slowly and nodded once, although I didn't know what I was agreeing to. Maybe that I had things under control? That there was rational thought and conversation to be had between us despite this intense and surreal situation we both found ourselves in?

Whatever was happening, I knew I couldn't ignore it. I couldn't turn my back on it. Because the truth was, I didn't want to. I was only eighteen, hadn't even contemplated finding my mate. This was my first real exploration of the big world around me.

The only thing I'd been focused on was traveling, seeing the world, finding my place. Carving out a little spot for just me.

But against all odds, here I was, staring at my over six and a half foot tall Lycan shifter mate.

"We should probably talk about this." He didn't answer for a long second but then took a step back, as if knowing I needed a little bit of space, extra breathing room.

"Aye," he said and lifted his hand, his fingers tipped with lethal looking claws. He ran it over his jaw, his forearm muscles flexing. I was transfixed at the sight of those veins underneath his tan skin, of that dark dusting of hair covering his flesh.

I gritted my teeth at the feeling of a new wave of arousal, and although his nostrils flared once more and I knew he could smell what was happening to me, he didn't point it out, wasn't lewd or vulgar about it.

"How about you get dressed and then we can talk?"

And then he turned, presenting his back and giving me privacy.

Whether I wanted this or not, I was now mated and had to figure out what my life now looked like for the future.