Theron pants against my neck, his arms wrapped tightly around me as if grounding himself as he whispers, “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
Sorry? “Why?” I ask, turning my face toward him, searching his gaze.
“I...” He exhales sharply, his breath still uneven. “I found release too fast.”
Before I can process his words, he stands, lifting me in his arms with my legs straddling him. It’s only then that I feel it—the warmth pooling between my thighs, the slick mess dripping onto the floor from my arse. Theron nuzzles me as he walks, holding me close. With every step, his fur brushes against my clit and sends small sparks of pleasure through me. I’m dazed, needy, and completely lost in him. I don’t mind that he found release too soon.
55
SLICK FLOORS AND VOLKIN ROARS
“Even the fiercest bond wilts when the winds of war blow, Rose and Guardian. Hold fast to each other.”
—Elder Aïna, during the bonding ritual
Theron
Ican feel her thoughts. She’s disappointed.
What kind of male am I to disappoint my mate? After centuries of control, after seeking release countless times over the past four hundred years, I can’t even hold myself back?
But she’s so tight. So beautiful, lying between the most precious blue roses. It drives me mad. I nearly lost it the moment I was inside her, just the tip, and I was already on the edge. Goddesses, give me strength. I swear I’ll leave more offerings. I spilled my release on the floor. I didn’t want to do it inside her. Not yet. I want her to take my knot, to feel me fully, to tremble beneath me as I bring her to the peak of pleasure. My mate. My sweet mate.
I’m so sorry.
She’s nestled in my arms as I carry her to our nest. Having our first time on the floor wasn’t what I planned, but something in my—our—minds changed. Instinct overtook plans.
Even though I only found release moments ago, I’m already hard again, swollen with need. I lay her on the furs, and for a moment, I can only stare. She is beyond beauty. My Noël, my little dove, is a goddess of both strength and desire.
The urge to be inside her again is unbearable. My shaft throbs at the thought of it. Taking a slow breath, I rise to my knees. She looks so small beneath me. A furless little dove, with dark eyes and curls between her muscled thighs. Hooded eyes, flushed cheeks, legs spread, waiting for me to make her mine.
And I will. That is my intent.
“I’m going to devour you,” I groan. Before she can finish her gasp, I slide my cock into her swollen little cunt.
She slaps a hand over her mouth, stifling the breathless moan that escapes her lips.
I push her hand away with my snout and growl in her ear, “I want to hear you.” And then I start moving.
I thrust into her, dragging her tight, slick heat around me as she grips my fur. The sounds we make—the wet, desperate slap of skin, the broken gasps leaving her lips—will be the end of me. She will be the end of me.
One arm wrapped around her waist, my other braced against the furs above her head, I lift her, then thrust faster, harder. I pull her up in time with every drive of my hips, forcing her to take me deeper. Every time she meets my swollen knot, she holds her breath.
“Theron,” she pants, eyes glazed, nearly closed.
“Mine, Noël.” I snarl the words, a primal claim, and I lose myself in her. My breath is ragged, saliva slipping past my lips and onto my mate’s breasts. The droplets slide down her skin to pool in the hollow of her throat before rolling to the furs beneathher. The faster I move, the faster they fall. “Always mine,” I growl. “From the moment you were born, you were mine.” Another deep, guttural growl tears from me, vibrating against her skin as I rut into her like the beast I am.
“Ye”—she struggles to form words—“sss.” Her beautiful crystals shine bright, nearly blinding me.
Yes, yes, yes. Mine.
Her abs tense every time I thrust. Her cries are breaking apart, ruined and perfect.Because of me.I drag my tongue along the curve of her throat, tasting the salt of her sweat, then I grin against her ear. “And, now.”
With a final, brutal thrust, I force my knot into her, and the world goes white.
A violent snarl rips from my chest as I lock us together, as her body clenches down, so tight. It burns. The pressure is excruciating. My vision tunnels, black and red and pure instinct. My knees nearly give out, my entire body shakes.
Goddesses above.
