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De’drik
Unwilling to listen to the noise or wait for whatever Ivy’s kin would come up with, I carried her from the house back into the forest. We didn’t want to risk leading any pursuit to the clan, so after creating a crazy trail and spending the night curled together at the base of a tree, I took her back to the shallow cave where she’d first awoken with me.
An anxious Wulf followed behind us, trailing as if he was trying to guard our escape. I settled Ivy into the cave, hoping not to go any farther until I was sure her foot was better, but she convinced me we were still too close to her home. I couldn’t stand the thought of losing her again when I’d only just got her back, nor did I want her endangered for being with me.
Unwilling to waste a moment to go through the house for her things, we’d left without even a set of shoes or a change of clothes for her, much less anything for a nest. Unlike others of my clan, I didn’t have a stash waiting in my home cave, but a few good hunts and my skill tanning hides could remedy that.
We found another cave higher up in the mountains near a lake where there was good hunting, settling in to wait until she’d healed. By the time I thought it was safe for her to walk, the leaves had already started turning as fall crept in a pushed summer’s warmth away.
And Ivy’s heat was approaching.
I knew she was growing impatient with me, wondering why we hadn’t left for the clan when I’d told her how far away it was, but she didn’t realize what was happening until the first cramp struck.
“De’drik!”
She clutched her lower belly, pain written across her face, and I couldn’t help the predatory grin that pulled my lips back.
“What—?”
Her eyes went wide as the realization dawned.
“It’s time.”
I could only nod as she smiled until another cramp drew her brows back together. She’d been standing in the water at the lake’s edge, and she sloshed out once her discomfort had passed before giving me an odd look.
“You hunted me down once before, think you can find me again?”
She was running before her words registered through the haze of lust overtaking my brain. The chuckle I released was half growl, my cock standing stiff against my belly as I watched her disappear into the brush around the lake. Her scent was ripe, and I’d have no trouble following it, whether she decided to go back to the cave we’d been using as a temporary home, or if she chose a new hiding place.
Wulf raised his head, staring after her before looking up at me.
“I’ve got an omega to chase and claim, Wulf. Guard.”
The infernal pup only cocked his head before dropping it onto his paws again, but I wasn’t worried about him. He could fend for himself for a few days until my mate’s heat broke, and this high in the mountains, we were as safe as we could get.
It was amazing how fast life changed. I’d gone from always being alone with no plans to find a mate, to having an omega by my side day and night, and there was nothing in this world that would stop me from placing my mark on her neck. We’d be bonded for life, and there was nothing I wanted more than to spend the rest of it with her.
The gods had blessed me, and I swore never to ask them for anything else.
I had all I needed.
Ivy
Iraced between tree trunks, and around the thick blackberry bushes. There was a slight ache when the foot that had been injured hit the ground, but it was easy to ignore. So were the cramps, though they were growing stronger and closer together.
I’d been unusually warm for days but had thought it was just summer resisting the steady approach of fall. I hadn’t even noticed my discomfort or that I’d been nesting until the first cramp had hit and it all clicked into place.
I was going into heat.
I grinned as I ran, excitement thrumming through my veins. For the first time in my life, I could say I was happy.
Truly happy.
My days of loneliness and drudgery were long behind me, and the alpha of my dreams was going to claim me, making me his forever.
I dodged away from the entrance to the cave we’d been using as I healed, hoping De’drik would assume I ran straight to our bed. It would buy me a little more time to get to the other nest I’d built. The weather had been warm and dry the entire time we’d camped by the lake, and I hadn’t been able to resist bringing the nicer furs out to line the bower I’d created amidst the trees.
Sweat trickled down my spine and my chest heaved from the exertion, but I was giddy at the thought of De’drik hunting me through the woods.
