Page 15 of The Hunt
“I found my precious little moon.”
6
ISABELLA
The instant I hear his voice, every thought stills.
I found my precious little moon.
It’s part reverence, part threat, and I cannot control the shiver that runs down my spine at the gutturally spoken words. Low and rough—threaded with something darker that I cannot name but yearn for all the same. Our mating has always been powerful, but as I stand here and watch him take me in, it feels different somehow. New. Hunger, unlike anything we’ve shared in the past, presses against my chest until my knees nearly buckle.
Instead, I step forward, the cloak moving with each step, exposing more of my nakedness to the man who knows me inside and out. He’s seen me at my worst and my best, but the eyes following my movements are full of a desperation I can’t name—it’s hotter, hungrier, stripped of every ounce of restraint he’s ever held.
He’s losing himself to the rut.
He’s had them in the past; they’re as common as a female’s heat, but my wolf has always held on to his control. Even at his most fevered, the look in his eyes remained soft and loving. His touch was dominating, yet careful not to hurt me.
The naked man standing across from me, though, this one wants to make me bleed.
And more damning, I want him to.
To break. To claim. To make me take his knot and breed his mate.
“My alpha,” I croon, my tone coy, and his head tilts to the side. His lips curve up in a dangerous grin, knot swelling as his shaft thickens further and the angry tip glistens, causing my mouth to water. Then, there’s the fur across his half-shifted form while black-tipped claws glint in the filtering light. I’m not sure if it’s the moonlight or the aurora shining through, but in its glow, he’s beautiful.
A beast. An animal.
King Xadiel Evergreen is magnificent and terrifying, yet I’m aroused. The apex of my thighs is wet and swollen, my skin flushed and slick with need. He’s the cause and effect: my mate’s nostrils flare, and he takes two steps forward, pausing when a branch above breaks. A tiny one, and the culprit is scared.
A small marten falls, landing near my mate before scurrying away in fright.
Neither of us speaks. No one moves. Our eyes maintain contact, though, deep penetrative stares that say what words fail to at the moment.
I love you.
I live for you.
Catch me.
The latter comes from me, and I take off into the trees before Xadiel can react. It’s not lost on me that I’ve broken a sacred rule: never turn your back on a predator. But I do, and the answering roar that Alpha Evergreen lets loose is delicious. Loud. Full of dominance.
It demands I drop to all fours and spread wide, but I won’t make it easy on him.
“Enough,” Xadiel grits out, the garbled sound more wolf than human, and I ignore it just the same. I head deeper into the ravine, following a trail of rocks near a stream that leads to near complete darkness. Very little light streams through, but my vision is sharp enough to detect objects near me.
That is, until I hear him.
Feet pounding the ground. His chest purring in a new cadence, yet the underlying edge is clear. Submit. Obey. Come. And while all three sound wonderful, tonight my mate will need to earn the right.
Pushing harder, I undo the clasp of my cloak and let it fall behind me. It’s cold, yet the rush of adrenaline and his nearness keep me from feeling the full depth of winter’s bite. Instead, I feel warmer the closer he gets, and just as he skims a claw down my right asscheek, the cut deep enough to sting, I turn right where a cave sits empty.
It’s large and spacious, perfect for tonight, and I’d had help cleaning it out.
A week ago, while Xadiel was on a short trip to North Dakota, helping an expanding pack, I asked my brother and his fae mate for some help. We cleared out the enclosed space. Stocked it with firewood and food—furs atop a thick mattress with plenty of pillows to satiate my nesting needs.
The place is my gift to him, and in return, I expect to be worshipped the way his ancestors once loved their mates. Untamed. Savagely. Without modern restraints or proprietary notions.
I want to be fucked. I want to be bred.
