Chapter 76 Chapter 76
Chapter 76 Chapter 76
E L A R A
His finger curled deeper inside me, stroking that spot that made my toes curl despite the tenderness, and I bit my lip to stifle a moan.
The soreness in my pussy eased under his careful touch, turning into a warm throb of want.
His mouth returned to my nipple, sucking gently now, his tongue swirling around the pebbled tip until it hardened again, sending sparks down to where his hand worked me.
I arched into him, my scarred hand clutching his shoulder, nails digging in just enough to leave faint marks on his skin.
But then he pulled back, his finger slipping free with a wet sound, leaving me clenching around nothing. He wiped his hand on the sheet, his eyes meeting mine serious now, the playfulness gone.
"I have to talk to you about something," he said, his voice low and steady, like he was bracing me for bad news.
I propped myself up on my elbows, ignoring the pull in my ass and the ache in my thighs. "What is it?"
He shifted, "I will be away to the border. Alric must have caught wind of the wedding, there's been an attack on the northern border."
My heart stuttered, the warmth from his touch turning cold. Alric. The name alone brought a flood of memories, his pack, the old life I'd left behind, the threats that had driven me here. An attack? Because of me? Of us? I swallowed, my throat tight. "When will you be back?"
Kane's gaze hardened, a flicker of anger crossing his features. 'Tomorrow or next. I had thought he would ask to meet, but the bastard has chosen an attack instead one I would not fail to retaliate."
He said it with such finality, his body tensing under my hands, muscles coiling like a wolf ready to pounce.
I could picture it: him leading his rogues into the fray, claws out, teeth bared, tearing through anyone who dared challenge him.
Part of me wanted to beg him to stay, to wrap myself around him and keep him here, safe in this bed where the only battles were the ones between our bodies. But I didn't say anything.
There was no point telling him not to go after all, this was his plan all along. The marriage, the bond, it was all bait to draw Alric out, to settle whatever grudge Kane harbored.
I'd known that from the start, even if the heat of his possession had blurred the edges.
Silence stretched between us, thick as the scent of our mingled cum still hanging in the air. Kane's eyes searched my face, reading the conflict there, but he didn't push.
Instead, he leaned in, pressing a firm kiss to my forehead, then my lips possessive, but brief.
When he pulled back, his hand slid down to my hip, squeezing the bruised flesh there. 'You will be on your best behavior while I am away, right?'
The question hung like a command wrapped in velvet, his tone laced with that dominant edge that made my core clench. Best behavior.
It echoed the rules he'd laid down before the collar around my neck a constant reminder, the leash he'd tugged during our rituals.
No wandering, no talking to strangers, no forgetting I was his.
My body still bore the marks: the bite on my neck throbbing faintly, my ass sore from his last claim, pussy leaking his seed even now. I nodded, meeting his gaze steadily. "Yes, I will."
He smirked, satisfied, and pulled me closer, his cock nestling against my thigh again, thick and insistent. "Good girl."
His hand dipped lower, fingers tracing the cleft of my ass, teasing the stretched entrance without pushing in. "The pack will watch over you. Lila, too. But remember every inch of you is mine. Even when I'm ripping throats at the border."
A shiver ran through me, fear mixing with the heat his words ignited. I imagined him out there, bloodied and victorious, returning to claim me again, harder, to reaffirm what the distance tried to steal.
My nipples tightened against his chest, and I pressed my thighs together, the soreness a delicious ache.
~
Hours later, exhaustion pulled me under like a tide, my body finally surrendering to the deep, dreamless sleep that followed Kane's departure.
The sheets still smelled of him, musk and salt and the faint metallic tang of blood from our rituals and I curled into them, the soreness between my legs a dull reminder of his last claim.
When I woke again, the light in the room had shifted, slanting golden through the curtains, and my muscles protested every movement.
My pussy throbbed with that persistent ache, ass clenching involuntarily as I shifted, the ghost of his fingers and cock lingering there.
Kane was gone.
A knock echoed through the chamber, sharp and insistent, jolting me fully awake. I yanked the duvet up over my bare chest, the fabric rasping against my sensitive nipples, and called out, "Come in."
The door creaked open, and Hunter stepped inside, his broad frame filling the doorway. In his arms was Luca, my little boy, his chubby legs kicking with excitement the moment he spotted me.
"Mama! Mama!" he squealed, wriggling free and toddling across the room as fast as his unsteady feet could carry him. He launched himself onto the bed, clambering over the covers with gleeful abandon, his small hands patting my face.
I couldn't help but smile, scooping him up and burying my nose in his soft hair, inhaling the sweet, innocent scent of him that cut through the lingering haze of sex and sweat.
"My sweet boy," I murmured, pressing a kiss to his forehead. But my gaze flicked up to Hunter, surprise tightening my chest.
Kane had mentioned handing Luca over to him before leaving, a casual order tossed out amid the heat of the moment, but I'd assumed Hunter had been sent away with the others to the border, to fight alongside Kane.
Not left here, lingering like a shadow knowing how Hunter felt for me.
Hunter stood there, arms crossed over his chest, his eyes fixed on me with that intense stare he always had, like he was seeing right through the duvet to the marks Kane had left on my skin.