Page 25 of Foxin' Around

Picking up his pace, he jogged back to the cabin. He was tempted to assume his four-legged form, but he resisted the urge. Although he was a fox spirit, he wanted to return to his mate in the way of men, his anticipation sweetening with every step closer he came to the cabin. His steps slowed, his heart in throat, when his eyes fell upon the female who had claimed him completely.

She was a vision—like a gift from the gods delivered to him on the beams of moonlight that all foxes adored. Krystal stood on the porch, his blanket wrapped around her, her gaze drifting sightlessly over the shadows. He knew she did not see him—not yet—but he smiled as stepped into the moonlight just outside the tree line, his heart lifting joyfully in his chest when her expression immediately brightened.

“Syrix, what are you doing out here,” she called out to him, and his smile widened into a grin.

“I could ask the same of you, lovely one,” he replied. “I thought you wished to sleep.”

“That had been my plan, but I could not sleep.” Her lips twisted ruefully as her gaze followed his approach until he arrived at last at the bottom step of the porch. “What about you, handsome? Why are you out here prowling. I thought you said that the lamia would likely go to the ground for a while to digest that fucking bear.”

He chuckled in agreement, though he inwardly preened at being called handsome. He knew he was attractive as foxes tended to be, and he had certainly been invited into many beds over the centuries of his life, but hearing it from his mate’s lips was sweeter than he could have imagined. Her opinion of him was the only one that mattered in his eyes.

“That she did. I decided to verify the matter and made a quick trip around the perimeter of my territory. If it is nesting somewhere, it is not within the land that I have claimed as mine.”

Her expression softened. “That is excellent news.”

He hummed in agreement but made no effort to ascend the steps to her. Instead, he grinned playfully at his mate, struck by a sudden idea. “Since you have come out on this lovely night, would you care to take advantage of the situation?” he crooned up at her.

Krystals brow knitted faintly in confusion. “Take advantage of it?” she echoed.

He nodded eagerly. “I did promise you a moonlit walk and now would be the perfect moment,” he offered, his hand extending in invitation to her. “Do you trust me?”

Her eyes brightened in the soft glow reflecting off them as she stared thoughtfully at his hand. Her lips curving with a smile, she slipped her hand into his and he immediately felt as if he could breathe easier as his fingers curled around hers. He sent a wave of affection to her and delight filled him with the way her eyes briefly widened in response. She felt that. He was certain of it. His mate was more than just keenly perceptive, she was extremely sensitive, not just to her environment but also to him, as her mate, in nearly the same fashion that he was sensitive to her. How had he not seen it before? It seemed that his heart had sharpened his clarity toward his mate more than he had expected.

He bit his tongue so that the sting of pain kept him from yipping in excitement and gathering her into his arms. He could not seem to cease smiling, however, as he helped her down the porch steps and led her onto one of the nearby paths that took them through his garden within that part of the forest. His heartfluttered with excitement as he walked with her, his eyes never straying far before returning to her again.

How could one be so beautiful and perfect to him? And out in the holy light of the moon, she looked like a goddess walking beside him. The fact that her eyes frequently flitted to him to steal little glances charmed him to the tip of his concealed tail as they walked, surrounded by the night bloomers that awakened with the setting of the sun. A hint of lilac teased his senses, mixing amid this perfume and the scent of damp herbs releasing their fragrance in the cool night air. They mixed with his mate’s scent in an intoxicating blend that made his head spin with desire and adoration.

Tipping his head back, he breathed in the energy of the moonlight and smiled up at its glorious sphere peeking through the trees.

“The moon is beautiful tonight,” Krystal observed quietly. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen it quite so big before.”

“It is the perigee, the point at which the moon’s orbit is closest to this world.” He breathed deeply, drawing in more of the moon’s energy, and smiled, his gaze drifting to his mate. She was radiant in profile and so incredibly precious to him at that moment as she was caught up in wonder. “It is beautiful. There was a time when I thought that nothing could possibly compare to a night like this where the moon dances so close. That is until now.”

Her gaze snapped toward him in surprise. “Until now?”

The corners of his lips curled, and he inclined his head. “Until now,” he agreed. “Though the goddess who dwells upon moonbeams might strike me down, I cannot lie. For there is nothing as beautiful in my eyes as the female by my side.”

Krystal’s eyes widened and lowered bashfully. Not wishing her to be embarrassed while still wanting her to know the truedepth of his feelings, he hooked a finger beneath her chin and tilted her head so that her eyes met his.

“Do not by shy,” he whispered. “Though I am so enamored that even this is so sweet to me, I want you to feel empowered by my declaration, not embarrassed by it. They aren’t merely words to win your favor, but a truth that could not be contained or hidden any longer.”

“And what reward is this truth worth?” she whispered. “I confess that I feel… things, but I’m still figuring out my own truth amid all of this.”

He brushed his thumb of her plump lower lip and smiled. “Take all the time that you need. I will take nothing that you are not willing to give.”

“A kiss?” she quietly offered, and he nearly growled with the shaft of pleasure that slammed through him at the very thought of it. “Will a kiss be a sufficient offering?”

“A kiss from your lips alone would be more precious than even gold from the vaults of the gods,” he rasped.

A shiver ran through her and he was unable to restrain the quiet rumble of the growl caught within his throat as she tipped her lips up in offering. They brushed his bottom lip like the wings of a butterfly, the nectar of her lips like honey. His tongue swept over the offering as she pulled back just far enough to study his reaction, and he trembled as her flavor hit his blood. It was utter perfection, and he had not nearly enough.

Syrix closed the distance, his arms sweeping around her as his lips descended to hers once more. Holding her to him, he drank of her, his tongue twining and dancing with hers as the moonlight caressed them and ivory moths rose up around them to wing their way through the night.

It was a kiss, but it was more—it was everything, as the all the countless years of his existence became defined within that single moment, as if every breath, every hunt, every joyand pleasure had been shadows building up to this moment. Preparing him for her. His Krystal, his precious jewel.

Chapter

Nineteen

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