Page 53 of Pleasured By the Panther
“You’ll always be you, my lovely one—and thank the Goddess for that, for you’re the only woman I want. But you will remain as you are for as long as we are Bonded. “His voice dipped to a low, intimate growl that made the small hairs on her arms lift. “Because we are Bonded now and you are mine forever.”
Miranda felt his words settle between them like a pledge. It was both thrilling and terrifying to think that the rest of her life would be spent with the big Monstrum by her side. Hanna wasn’t the only one who had gotten married tonight—only Bonding to a Monstrum was much more intimate and permanent than any human marriage.
“Didn’t you say you want to Bond me again?” she asked, giving him a flirty smile.
“Yes,” he said simply, looking down at her. “I would like to Bond you to me again—properly. I want more than a few minutes this time—I want all night with you.”
A shiver of desire slid through Miranda. The day’s strange, intense hunger—so painful at times—stirred in her memory. Though he had stopped the urgency of her Second Heat, she still felt the aching desire for him between her legs.
“I’d like that too,” she admitted in a low voice. “I want to feel you inside me again.”
A low rumbling purr of desire rose in the big Monstrum’s throat. He took her hand then, one big, warm palm closing around hers.
“Then come with me—my ship is not far. Let us spend the night together. I want to taste you again, to make love to you properly and fill you deeply.”
The words, though more guarded than those she’d heard in the bedroom, still stirred something deep and feral within her. Miranda felt an answering pulse heat between her thighs and an aching need that made her heart fist in her chest.
“Yes,” she breathed. “I want that too.”
Before she could say anything else, Korrath swept her up into his arms with a fluid motion that startled her into a laugh.
“Oh! I can walk, you know!” she protested.
“But I want to carry you, my lovely one. Besides, is it not a human tradition for the male to carry his mate over the threshold of their home after their Joining?”
Miranda laughed.
“Yes, but we’re not to your ship yet!”
“That doesn’t matter. I just want you in my arms.”
Korreth carried her through the lawn, under the glow of the lanterns and past the remaining guests…out past the hedges toward where his shuttle waited folded like a golden jewel in the grass of an empty lot.
Miranda rested her head on his shoulder as they moved, the world contracting to the rhythm of his heartbeat beneath her ear. Despite all the confusion and anger that had surged earlier—Hanna’s fear and anxiety about the wedding and the questions about how the big Monstrum called her daughter in the Draft to get to her—Miranda felt oddly, fiercely content.
None of it mattered now that they were together and she never wanted to be parted from Korrath again.
The big Monstrum seemed to hear her thoughts because he glanced down and gave her a small, private smile.
“I’ll take care of you, lovely one,” he promised. “No matter what comes to us, we’ll always be together.”
Miranda held on a little tighter, feeling the promise like a warm cloak around her shoulders. She had the feeling that she was finally going home.
40
MIRANDA
The inside of Korrath’s ship glowed faintly, as though welcoming them inside. He carried Miranda down the narrow passage, his steps steady and his arms warm and reassuring around her. When he reached the rear chamber, the door slid open with a sigh and revealed his quarters.
The room was warm and softly lit. The bed was massive and grown from the living vines, just like the one they’d shared on the Monstrum Mother Ship. It pulsed faintly, like a heartbeat, as though the ship knew what was about to happen within it.
Korrath set her gently on her feet, towering over her with his emerald gaze glowing like coals in the low light. He brushed his knuckles over her cheek.
“I want to see you again… taste you again… before I take you.” His voice was a low growl, thick with desire.
Miranda’s breath caught. She was already wet, aching for him—needy despite their earlier quick Bonding.
“Yes,” she whispered. “Please.”
