Page 77 of The Hidden Guardian

Lust trickles through the bond. I can only imagine him thinking the same memories I am. A few feet down a Guardian rises to the edge of the cliff and raises her hands. Slowly, the clouds in the sky trickle and float away, leaving the expanse of the night sky unhindered.

Stars twinkle against the ink sky that seems to go on forever. The round, luminous full moon is as large as I’ve ever seen it, stark against the dark night. Breathtaking. Absolutely breathtaking.

That’s when I notice the bond has gone silent. I glance over at Renall; he, too, is mesmerized by the large moon before us. Full moon. Werewolf.

“Would you like to transform?”

“Not yet,”he responds as he places his arm around my shoulders and pulls me close. Once again, he smells of freshly mowed grass.

Barely restrained excitement trickles through the bond. “Yes, you do. Show me.”

He nods before rising, the lack of his warmth causing me to shiver as he takes a step forward. His spine and snout elongate, his hair spreads, and soon, a wolf is standing on all fours before me. The wolf looks to the moon. Admiration sinks into the bond, and power fills my gut. Slowly, a vibration tickles inside me; silent at first, until I hear it in the wolf’s throat. His jaws open and a howl echoes into the silent night.

I understand it. Feel its meaning through the bond. To some it just might seem like a wolf howling at the moon, but it speaks to something deeper, appreciation, respect. It’s their way of bowing to a deity, the Moon Goddess. Others join in. One or two howls at first, then more. Renall howls again. The howling is like a chorus of song that resonates around us, bouncing off the moon and back.

The wolves on the edge and cliff all around sit howling at the moon. My wolf, he looks so regal against the halo moon backdrop. He’s meant to lead. My Renall is an Alpha.

When we are mated, I will see it through. If Alpha is what he desires, we will attain it. Together we will lead the pack into the new era. We are strong enough, smart enough, cunning enough to survive it all. I can see it all clearly under the power of the moon.

Then suddenly, in a flash of energy, Renall is in human form. Slipping beside me on the picnic blanket and kissing me deeply. Could he have read my mind? His kiss is slow and gentle. But as the power and frenzy of the moon soaks into my skin, all I want is passion and fury.

He reaches for a piece of fruit and dangles it between my lips. I toss it aside. “Renall, I appreciate the seduction, but maybe that’s for later down the line. Right now, I need you inside of me.”

His shoulders tense as his eyes darken. Those fingers around my waist grip me tightly to him as he growls, low, and his vibrations tickle in just the right places. I whimper, pulling him over me.

“Not here. Because once we start, it is not to be interrupted all night.”

ChapterThirty-Nine

AUTUMN

Renall shifts back into wolf form in a flash of fur. He tosses his head back motioning for me to hop on. Slowly, I climb onto his back, fingers digging into his coat as he starts to walk. Then once I’ve learned to squeeze my thighs around his belly, he breaks into a run back toward the cave. Wind whipping wildly around me as we make our mad dash through the rustling, moaning and wailing sounding in the cliffside all around us.

Renall isn’t heading back the way we came, I realize, as the ledge off the lagoon comes into focus. Before I have a chance to brace myself, he leaps from the edge of the smaller cliff. Air leaves my lungs and never returns as we are flying through the air toward the waterfall. My stomach drops. Water crashes over me as we burst through the waterfall, tumbling onto the damp floor of the corridor.

I lose my grip on his fur in the tussle, and when I rise to my feet again, my mate is in human form. He approaches me, his eyes glowing in the deep green darkness as he pins me against the wall, kissing me like it’s our first time.

His hands slip under the neckline of my dress shooting fire across my skin. Then they slide back out and down my back until they grab my ass and he lifts me into his arms. Unable to break away from his kiss, I wrap my legs around him and Renall carries me back through Luna Cavern.

Anticipation growing with every step closer to our cave. Our home. Gods, this is finally happening. My hands tangle in his wet hair, desperate for more of him.

We burst into the room, slamming the door behind us. We are a blur of lips, tongues, and teeth as we stumble over the back of the couch. He’s naked as usual, but I still have my dress on. Renall must realize this the same time I do because he rakes his teeth down my neck. I moan, gasping at the pleasure of it. Sliding his hands down my wet arms, the dress slides down my shoulders. His kisses follow.

Gods, he’s torturing me. My dress falls to the floor.

I stand naked before him, and he’s lost his breath. Renall takes a step backward, trailing his eyes up and down me, drinking me in. His lips still flushed from kissing.

Beautiful.

Renall’s voice rings clear in my mind, but his lips did not move and he’s not touching me.

He’s speaking to me telepathically, the rarest kind of mate, a soulbonded mate. Renall was right. He’d been sure all along. My loyal wolf, and he chose me again and again. I leap for him and he catches me with ease as if he were expecting me and carries me over to the bed.

He lies me down on the bed ever so carefully. Trailing kisses and teeth down my entire body. The perfect mix of pain and pleasure bubbling through me. His lips are ice against my fiery skin. It still does nothing to quench the raging inferno ignited inside of me. He reaches the apex of my legs and falls to his knees, pinning mine open. With one singular glance, our eyes meet. My heart twists in anticipation. Then, he devours me. Not soft and subtle, but passionate, desperate even.

“Oh Goddess.” My back arches, hands clenching the sheets. All too soon I’m tipping over that edge, making sounds I’ve never heard come out of me before.

Tension releases from his shoulders as he crawls up me planting kisses over my abdomen and up to my neck.

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