Page 63 of Claimed By Stone
When her lashes fluttered, I kissed her forehead and whispered, “Sleep well, sweet mate?”
She nodded into my chest, her voice still husky with sleep. “Better than I can remember,” she said with a stretch. "My mate," she said, and her hand came up to cup my jaw.
A sound of pure contentment rumbled deep inside of me. “I love it when you say that,” I said as I took her small hand and pressed a kiss to it.
Her golden eyes sparkled as a smile stretched across her face. I wanted to wake up like this every morning. I wanted to complete the bond and be bound to this goddess before me today and every day.
“I had a lot of fun with you last night,” she said as she traced her finger along my chest.
“It was a wonderful New Year’s feast,” I said, knowing that’s not what she was talking about.
“I mean, it was indeed a great feast, but I was referring to what happened in here afterward, my mate,” she said with a devilish grin.
I flipped her, pinning her to the bed. “That was more than fun, that was everything,” I say as I lazily pepper her neck with kisses. “I cannot wait to be bound to you,” I said as I sat back in bed, pulling her close. She let out a long, contented sigh as she lay her head against my chest.
"Does this mean you want to accept the mate bond?" I asked
She looked up at me with timid eyes before nodding. "Very much, I want that ... but I still want to know more about it."
"What do you want to know?"
"Everything." She looked up at me with those wide eyes, thirsty for knowledge. This is part of what made the fates know we were perfectly matched.
"Well, there is the physical side, which we touched on a little last night."
"Yeah, we did," she said as she traced her finger down my chest.
My cocked twitched under the covers, and a low rumble sounded inside of me. "I won't be able to tell you about orc mating bonds if you keep that up. I'll bury myself in you again and practice the physical connection instead," I said, kissing the top of her head.
She turned and pressed a kiss to my chest. "I'll be good. I want to know."
I closed my hand over hers and laced our fingers together. "For Orcs, mating is something sacred and celebrated. Yes, it is a perfect match given to us by the fates. That soul level devotion and completion. But with the Orcs of the Cridhe Clan, we allow for choice. We cannot complete the bond until there has been a handfasting ceremony in front of others. A public claim and declaration. After that ceremony, we go into the mating caves to complete the bond."
This causes her to look up at me with an eyebrow cocked and a smirk on her face. It is all I can do not to claim her mouth and devour her, but I continue.
"There we will stay for as long as we need to complete the bond."
"Surely it doesn't take too long?"
"The initial mating, no. But after, there is a rut that can last for days. It is an all-encompassing need to be together and do nothing but have my knot buried deep in your perfect cunt," I said as I gently moved my hand down and cupped her ample backside, just because I could.
"When that is over, being parted from your mate can be painful and panic-inducing. That is why mated pairs are usually in there for weeks, sometimes even months. During this time,the clan cares for them and bestows gifts upon them. It is a sacred and special time."
Her fingers curled into my side as I spoke. I tried to keep it clinical, factual. But the longer I talked, the more I imagined what it would be like to bind myself to her fully. To claim her, protect her, cherish her. To worship her with my body until every scar left by the Westerly Clan was rewritten with pleasure.
"Sacred and celebrated fucking, I can get on board," she said.
Then it was as if she read my mind. She leaned in for a claiming kiss as she let her hand slide down my chest before it wrapped around my cock.
"I see the lecture part of this lesson is concluded," I said.
"Time for a little hands-on learning," she said as she began to stroke my cock.
I gave over to my mate, reminding her just how good this could be.
Later, over breakfast in my chambers, I couldn’t keep it in. She sat in one of my oversized chairs, legs tucked up, holding a steaming mug with both hands. The morning light made her hair glow.
“I’ve been thinking,” I said, clearing my throat. “About what I told you this morning, about the bond.”
