Page 72 of King Luna

I smile, unable to keep my voice steady. “I-it’s o-okay. I’m wa-arming up.”

“Oh, shush.” Waimarie chuckles, turning to the shores and waving her arm over her head. “Alpha Noah, your mate is a shivering little bunny over here!”

In unison, Noah, Tane, and Viktor freeze in their wolven romp. I almost can’t tell them apart, each of their black wolves towering over the other Alphas playing further down the lakeand in the forest. But as my eye catches on a particularly fluffy Alpha on the left, I’m right about who it is; Noah shifts back into his human form in a blink, hopping on one foot along the shore as he slips into his pants. Viktor’s wolf shakes out his luscious black coat, nipping at Tane’s equally dark fur to instigate another chase. They dart down the shore, shrinking into black specks in mere seconds.

But as Noah jogs over, Waimarie sputters out a laugh. “Steamy Alpha!”

Noah quite literally steams before our eyes, his overheated chest smoking against the frigid air with wisps of evaporating water. As he tugs on his jacket, I laugh with our ally Lunas, reaching for him. Dropping his stare with a smile, Noah joins us on the blanket, helping me climb into his lap.

“Goddess, thank you—” I hum, loving his delicious warmth.

Noah bundles me inside his jacket with him, soaking me in his body heat. Slinking his arms around my belly, Noah chuckles beneath his breath as I break into satiated purrs. “My poor girl. You really are a shivering little bunny.”

“Aww, look at you both! I want in.” Annika nuzzles up to my side.

Within seconds, we’ve created a new wolf pile, Annika and Waimarie curling against us as Noah kisses the top of my head.

But as I lean back, I gasp, gazing up at the tall trees stretching into the sky and framing my mate’s face. “Oh, wow. It’s absolutely beautiful out here... But maybe we should go inside before your fingers freeze off, Noah.”

He laughs, kissing my forehead. “I just sprinted four miles and back, so I’m fine. I think we should actually go inside foryou.”

Waimarie laughs. “Aliya, aren’t you used to the cold in Oregon?”

“It’s only just starting to cool off at home for autumn, so I’m not used to it yet after a ridiculously hot summer. Otherwise, I’m just pregnant and anemic.” I sigh. “Hey, wait—how areyounot freezing? Isn’t it even hotter where you are?”

Waimarie rubs her cheek against my arm, grinning. “Oh, I’m used to being a little cold. Tane and I may or may not have regular outdoorexcursionsat night, out in the wop wops.”

Annika and I exchange a puzzled glance, breaking into giggles.

“Thewhat?” Annika asks.

Waimarie bursts into laughter with us. “The wop wops! You know, somewhere out in the forest or mountains? Where no one lives—as in, no one’s going to interrupt us.”

“Like ass-crack nowhere,” Noah mutters.

“Excuseme?” Waimarie laughs so hard she snorts, spurring us all into laughter. “There sure are ass cracks involved, but I don’t think that’s a requirement for the wop wops.”

Tears form in my eyes as the four of us melt into silent laughter, Noah’s belly shaking my whole body in his lap.

Annika hugs both Noah’s arm and mine before releasing us with a sigh. “Speaking of which—Waimarie, do you and Tane want to join us for a couple’s massage tonight? And then head upstairs for some other fun?”

My jaw drops. That was perhaps the wildest conversational transition I’ve ever heard, but I can’t fully laugh along with everyone else; Viktor and Annika reallydoinvite everyone to join orgies.

After Noah brought it up, we didn’t get to talk about this possibility, at all, and I’d never consent to something like this without him. I don’t even know if I’d want to join. What in the world am I going to say if we’re invited next? What if I offend her, no matter what I say?

“Don’t laugh, Waimarie, I’m serious!” Annika reaches over me, shaking Waimarie’s arm.

She takes Annika’s hand, giving it a quick squeeze. “We’ll ask Tane in a minute, eh?”

I’m flustered to my core, unable to keep myself from stiffening in Noah’s arms. He chuckles, and as I lift my eyes to check his expression, I find him shaking his head over me, his smile growing at my wide-eyed stare.

“Stop laughing at me!” Annika chuckles. “Luna, your mate makes fun of Vik and my sexual hobbies, every Summit. But you’re going to turn down my offer too, aren’t you?”

“O-oh, um—” I erupt into heavier giggles, my face flooded with heat.

“Don’t torture her, Anni,” Noah says. “And I don’t make fun of your sex life. I make fun of your not-so-well-disguised code words. You and Vik have sex in front of everyone at least once every Summit, so at this point, you might as well straight-up ask to have sex with people.” Noah’s sudden sass, spoken with such a flustered shyness, spurs us back into laughter.

But Annika straightens. “Wait, are you jealous? Does this mean you’re finally interested, now that you’ve found your Luna?”

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