It’s nice living far enough off the grid to maintain our privacy while still being close enough to society to eventually find and claim human mates.
This is not how I expected to claim a female. I certainly never intended to bond one to me against her will or without herknowledge. But there hadn’t been another option. Hopefully she will be able to forgive me.
I cringe as it occurs to me that she could possibly already belong to another. Not a shifter. I would scent that on her. But a human. There’s no way for me to be able to discern if she’s in any sort of human relationship. Their bonds are not as strong as ours. Getting married or even engaging in sexual intercourse does not alter their essence in any way. If she’s married or in love with another man, there would be no way for me to know.
All I can do is pray to the heavens that when she awakes, she isn’t furious to find she’s been bonded to me in a way that isn’t reversible. Chances are before she wakes up her body will begin to align with mine. She will already recognize me as her mate the first time her eyes blink open.
I can’t wait to see her eyes. What color are they? How deeply will I be able to see into her soul when she looks at me? I have no choice but to wait and see.
For now, I need to get these soiled clothes off her, clean her up, and then feed her. Hopefully she’ll be able to take a bottle. I’m counting on her instincts to kick in so she automatically suckles when I put a nipple in her mouth. If not, I’ll have to hook up an IV. She desperately needs fluids.
Instead of bothering with the button and zipper on her jeans, I simply cut the rest of the material up to her hip so that I can slide the ruined denim down the other leg.
She’s wearing pale-blue bikini panties, and I cut both sides before carefully easing them out from under her. Her essence is strong and fills the room. I’m so drawn to her that I want to lower my mouth to her pussy and suck her juices. I won’t, but the desire is strong.
My mate doesn’t rouse at all as I pull the tank top over her head and then unfasten the matching blue bra. As I lower the straps down her arms, freeing her breasts, I inhale sharply.
She’s fully naked now, and even though there are minor scrapes on her arms and smudges of dirt, she’s stunning. Perfection.
I note several details. Her hair is messy, but it’s obvious it was recently washed and conditioned. She wasn’t wandering around in the woods for days or anything. I can smell her shampoo. When I run my fingers through her locks, they easily untangle. Her hair is soft. I could stroke it for the rest of my life.
I check every inch of her for other injuries and find none. The bottoms of her feet aren’t even very dirty. She did not walk around in the woods with no shoes, which means someone left her there.
Fury consumes me as I piece together the facts. My mate did not cut herself on anything in nature. She also didn’t cut her own leg. A knife was used, and whoever cut her left her for dead.
If Orion and Pryce hadn’t stumbled upon her, she would have died soon. Wild animals would have found her body and torn her to shreds, making it impossible for anyone to have ever located her.
My blood boils. Someone wanted her dead, and they did a good job of making sure she would never be found. Perhaps years from now, a hiker or logger might have discovered a femur or other bones, but by then there wouldn’t have been any evidence to indicate how or why she died. A DNA match could have proven her identity, but beyond that, nothing would have ever happened to her killer.
Chapter Two
Navin
For over a year, I’ve had a box of supplies in my closet, waiting for a day like today. A day when I might suddenly find a mate and need to be prepared to take care of her.
Every one of us has what we need to care for a female in our cabins. Gathering the necessities was one of our top priorities when we finally discovered this location in the mountains and settled into the logging business.
I’m grateful for thinking ahead as I gently clean my mate’s soft skin with a warm washcloth and mild soap. I’m careful around her injury, and I take my time.
It’s no hardship staring at her body. She’s perfection. When I’m done washing her, I decide to spread her legs and shave the tight curls from her pussy. She’ll be diapered for the time being. I want to keep moisture away from her skin as much as possible to prevent her from getting an infection.
Her pulse is stronger since I claimed her, but she’s still completely unconscious. It’s easier this way. Being careful withher injury, I position her knees wide and remove her pubic hair without her fretting over the simple act.
My experience with humans and females is limited, but I’m aware that they can be modest and uncomfortable with their nudity. My girl isn’t likely to be pleased when she finds out I’ve seen her naked without her consent, but it can’t be helped, and a part of me isn’t sorry that I have this opportunity to stare at her soft curves and admire every inch of her while she’s completely relaxed.
I’m careful as I shave her pussy, forcing myself to focus on my task and not get distracted by her scent and the view of her pink folds.
When I’m finished, I take far more time than necessary to examine my mate. My cock is harder than it’s ever been as I part her labia and lift the hood from her clit. The little bundle of nerves is a darker pink and wet even in her unconscious state.
I mustn’t continue down this path. There will be time to explore every inch of her inside and out later. For now, I need to get fluids in her and nurse her to health.
From my bin of supplies, I remove a diaper and ointment that will protect her tender skin. She’s so out of it that she never flinches while I apply the cream and wrap her in the soft absorbent material.
I shift my attention to the wound on her thigh. It’s no longer bleeding. I’m impressed with how well I stitched her, considering the fact that I was high on her pheromones at the time.
Deciding to leave the wound open to the air, I gently wrap my mate in a blanket and lift her, cradling her against my chest. I know she’s average-sized for a human, but she seems so small in my arms.
Careful to support her head, I use my free hand to dig out a bottle and a container of powdered formula. Keeping her tightagainst me, I head for the kitchen, prepare the bottle, and then settle in my recliner to feed her.
