Not quite yet, my dear.
My hands skimmed up her thighs to the roundness of her backside, reveling in her lushness. I could have lingered there happily until the ages had passed us by, but other soft mounds of flesh were calling to me. I cupped one breast, luxuriating in the weight of it, before lowering my lips to the point jutting through the silk.
Natalie buried her fingers deep into my hair, arching her back into me and gasping with pleasure. I moaned in response, unable to contain my desire. I took the other breast in my mouth, tracing the outline of her nipple with my tongue.
“Oh Markon,” she sighed, gripping my hair to the point of pain. The sound of my name on her lips nearly drove me mad.
I kissed my way up her chest until she was forced to tip her head to the side to allow access to her long, creamy neck. I sucked gently, savoring the taste of her, then pulled her earlobe between my lips. Her fingernails dug deep into my shoulders and she sucked in air through her teeth. I loved the effect my kisses had on her. I couldn’t wait to see how she reacted to what else I had planned.
13
Natalie
Never in a million eons would I have guessed that I’d simply stand in one spot and wait for death to take me. But that’s exactly what I’d done on that little stage, as the enraged Warg monster lunged for my throat. No matter what he said about only wanting to give me the bite, I saw murder in his black eyes.
As I stood there, time had seemed to slow down. I thought about how I really would have liked to find a cure to the baby drought before I died. I thought about my sisters, and how devastated they would be when word of my death reached them. I thought about my parents, assholes that they were, and how grateful I was that they’d sent me to the Training Center. If they hadn’t been such selfish cowards, I never would have met my true family.
Or Markon.
Markon, who tackled a fully formed Warg to save me. Markon, who was the only other person in the universe, aside from my sisters, who’d ever defended me. Markon, who was now kneeling between my thighs, driving me insane with passion.
Is this what Sienna felt with Solan? The sensations rolling in and around me were almost too much to bear. My middle-of-the-night fantasies about various handsome guards at the Center were nothing compared to how Markon affected me. The physical attraction was almost painful, and definitely distracting. This wasn’t just pheromones and chemicals acting on the pleasure centers of my brain. This was much more intense.
For the first time in my life, I wanted someone. Really wanted him. And he wanted me back. The notion made me giddy — or was that just the reet spirits going to my head? Either way, I closed my eyes and relaxed in Markon’s arms, letting him guide me through this intoxicating experience.
His hot breath tickled my ear as he sucked on my lobe. An involuntary moan escaped my throat, and I tucked my heels between his legs for better purchase. His impossibly hard bulge throbbed against me, the silk of my covering rubbing deliciously on the sensitive, bare flesh underneath.
My body seemed to know exactly how to respond to him — I didn’t even realize my hips were grinding into his until a low growl rumbled from deep within his chest. Almost like a cat’s purr, only ten times louder and a million times sexier.
And still, we hadn’t kissed. The logical part of my brain gave one last feeble attempt to reel me in, but the rest of me told it to fuck off. This was what I needed, and it was happening no matter what.
Finally, after an eternity of waiting, Markon’s soft yet hungry lips nibbled their way down my jawline until they paused a hairs-breadth from my own. I panted with need, with anticipation. Suppressing the urge to lean forward and close the minuscule distance between us, I opened my eyes. He stared at me greedily, his eyes flashing from a green as bright as an emerald to the color of the forest at night.
“Please,” I whimpered, pleading for him to put me out of my misery and kiss me already.
His lips pulled back and his gaze dropped to my neck. For a moment, I thought I saw fangs forming, but one swipe of his tongue and they were gone. Then his mouth plunged down on mine.
The feel of a man’s mouth on mine was nothing like I’d imagined. The sharp scent of reet spirits mingled with something sweet, like dragonberries. The contrast produced a new flavor that I would forever associate with Markon’s lips.
His big hands, rough with callouses, cupped my face gently, as if I were the most precious treasure in the world. My heart leapt in my chest that someone — no, not just someone, Markon — might possibly think of me that way. I twined my arms around his neck and sank into the kiss with a sigh.
At first, his lips were insistent, desperate, but they quickly moved to inquisitive, probing. His tongue slicked lightly across my lower lip, as if asking for entry. I gladly accepted and met his tongue with my own. I had no idea if I was doing it right and I didn’t care. It felt too good to worry about it.
Like a dance, I followed his lead. Where his tongue moved, so went mine. If his lips softened, I followed suit. If he nipped at my mouth, I reciprocated. I couldn’t get enough of him, and his roaming hands and heavy breathing told me he felt the same.
Markon broke away and buried his face in my neck, wrapping his arms tight around me, holding me like he didn’t dare let me go. I let my head fall back and panted his name over and over again, hoping he’d take me right h—
“Natalie?”
My eyes flew open and I gasped at the sight of Jorek rounding the corner of the koshu. When his gaze landed on Markon and me, he skidded to a stop and stared.
“Shit!” I hissed.
Shame curdled my blood. I pushed Markon away from me, pulling my silk covering lower to protect my modesty. Markon turned his head slowly, then took an eternity to stand to his full height. He didn’t seem bothered at all that his wrap tented out in front of him, but he also didn’t appear to be gloating.
“Jorek,” he said, his voice thick and deep.
Jorek blinked a few times, his gaze flicking between us. I couldn’t tell from his expression what he might be thinking. That was one of the problems with him — he could have been embarrassed, hurt, angry or simply curious. He was impossible to read.
“I’m sorry,” he mumbled and hurried back the way he came. I moved to go after him but Markon grasped my shoulder before I could stand.
“Stay.”
My body yearned to comply but my brain buzzed in confusion. Jorek was my friend, if nothing else, and I’d taken it for granted that we’d try each other on for size after we solved our puzzle. I had no idea if he felt the same, but there was an easiness between us that I appreciated. Get us talking about our project, or anything related to science, and we’d get lost in conversation until the wee hours of the morning. There was no doubt that Jorek was my intellectual match.
But Markon…
He made my insides turn to mush. From the moment I laid eyes on his taut, burly form, I wanted him. I didn’t even know what that meant until now, but it was so clear. Physical attraction drew me to him like ferrite particles to a magnet. And I couldn’t forget that he’d risked his own safety to protect me.
But Jorek…
Jorek. Something about Jorek tickled the back of my mind. My memory of what happened on that stage suddenly came into sharp focus.
Strabo leaping toward me, all teeth and claws. Markon’s half-shifted body plowing into Strabo’s side, sending them both tumbling into the dirt. And Jorek stepping away from me, leaving me to fend for myself.
“What’s wrong?” Markon asked, sitting down next to me and wrapping a comforting arm around my shoulder.
“Nothing. I just…” I huffed out an incredulous chuckle. “All my life, I had to take care of myself. My parents couldn’t wait to get rid of me. Everyone at the Center, except for the other orphans, thought I was either too big or too smart, usually both. Even when they were going to ship us off, there was no one there to save us but ourselves.”
I locked onto those mesmerizing eyes
of his. “Thank you, Markon. Thank you for saving me from whatever Strabo had in mind.”
“It was my honor.” His smile left me breathless, then it fell away. “But I have so much more to do.”
“Do?”
“To make up for your kidnapping.”
Clouds darkened his face and he dropped his gaze to his lap. I’d tried to forget about all of that, pretend it never happened, but it lingered just under the surface, like a strong rip current ready to suck me out to sea. Only after he spoke did I realize that.
“A handful of Thrane’s more exuberant warriors decided to launch a surprise raid after hearing him rant about how Solan ‘stole’ you three. They were so proud when they brought you in.”
Markon’s fists clenched so hard I thought blood might start dripping out of them. A strong urge to comfort him, to tell him it was okay, came over me. But it wasn’t okay. Reliving that day brought the fear and hopelessness I’d experienced rushing back. The memory of Arlynn being dragged from our cell, kicking and screaming and crying, and then her terrified shrieks as they… I clamped my throat down on the sob — and memories — that tried to escape.
“I told him to release you immediately, but he wouldn’t listen,” he continued, even though I wished he wouldn’t. “When he refused, I rushed down to the Valley to tell Solan, but we must have passed each other. By the time I got back to our village, Thrane was lying in the dirt, bloodied and broken.”
He turned to me, the earnest look on his face making my heart lurch.
“I swear to you, Natalie, I had no idea he gave your sister the bite against her will until my return. If I had known—“
He choked on his words, but I still couldn’t bring myself to comfort him.
Coming back here had been a mistake. Thoughts whirled around my brain like zeze flies after dark, my gut a tangle of emotions I couldn’t control, much less define. I’d worked hard to block out the fear and rage I experienced at the hands of Markon’s brother, but it rolled out from the depths of my psyche unbidden and unwanted. My skin itched and eyes grew hot with tears. I’d always thought myself above such irrational behavior.
Guess not.
Finally, I met Markon’s earnest gaze. More than anything, I wanted to dive into their viridescent depths and continue what we started, but the idea of anyone touching me at that moment made my skin crawl. I needed to get out of there. Now.
“I need some space to work this all out in my head,” I said, leaving out the embarrassing truth that I also needed to sort through these annoying things called emotions. “And time.”
Time away from Markon’s distracting presence.
14
Markon
After a night of tossing and turning, dreaming of Natalie’s creamy flesh responding to my touch, I woke up energized. Things hadn’t ended as I’d hoped they would the night before, but she just needed some time. I would prove to her that I was trustworthy, and I’d do whatever she needed to make up for what my brother had put her through. She’d come around.
“You’re looking chipper, sir,” Rikor said when he caught up with me in the commons.
I took a deep lungful of crisp mountain air. “It’s a beautiful day, Rikor. The tribe is happy and we’re getting closer to uniting with the Valley tribe. Of course I’m chipper.”
He shot a sideways glance at me as we stopped to watch the bustling activity in the village. “Huh. And here I thought it was because you sneaked off with the alien last night.”
Shit!
“Uh…”
Rikor leaned in close and kept his voice low. “Sir, pardon me for saying, but are you sure that’s wise? Your people might not like the alpha of their tribe messing around with an alien interloper, especially considering your argument to unite with the Valley scum is that the aliens are intent on decimating us.”
I hated that he had a point. But there was an undeniable connection between Natalie and me. I’d never felt anything remotely close to it with the women of my tribe, even former lovers. No matter what he or anyone else thought, I wasn’t going to just give up on her. On us.
“I hear you, Rikor, but she could be my fated mate.”
He barked out a nasty laugh. “She’s not a Warg, sir. The Valley scum…sorry, I mean tribe. They recaptured her before we could turn her. Only after being administered the bite will she be able to recognize her fated. And what happens if it’s not you? The last thing this tribe needs is an alpha distracted by a broken heart.”
I blinked in surprise at his words. It honestly hadn’t occurred to me, and I didn’t care for the twist in my stomach at the idea.
“Anything to report, Rikor?”
He tried to stare me down but I just smiled and waved to a group of women herding their whelps through the commons. They waved back happily. Rikor huffed in exasperation next to me and filled me in on what our guards at the border had reported earlier that morning — no alien or Valley activity, as I suspected.
“That’s good to hear,” I said, slapping him on the back with a grin. “Yet another thing to be chipper about, wouldn’t you say?”
He grumbled, then perked up when he spotted Teema hustling across the commons holding a bouquet of wildflowers. All the mated men seemed happier since I’d eased the restriction on their mates’ movements.
“Happy day to you, Markon,” she said, holding the flowers out to me. “A few of us picked these for you as a thank you for letting us be with our mates again.”
I couldn’t help smiling at the way she snuggled into the nook of Rikor’s arm, as if it was made to fit her and only her. Rikor’s tension eased immediately, and serenity filled his previously cloudy features.
“Thank you, Teema,” I said. “But you didn’t leave the village to pick these, did you? I gave strict instructions—“
She waved a hand at me. “No, we gathered them from the perimeter. That’s why they’re limp and a little sad. If only we could have gone to the meadow…” Her tawny eyes gazed up at me, eyelashes fluttering.
“I’m sorry, Teema. I know what you’re getting at, but we simply can’t risk it. It’s too dangerous.”
Taking a step away from Rikor, she squared her shoulders and shook her long brown hair away from her narrow face. The fire in her eyes surprised me.
“The women of the Hill tribe are not as weak and helpless as you think, Markon. We can be just as ferocious as you men.”
Thrane might have shouted her down, or locked her away in the koshu for questioning him, but I preferred a more diplomatic approach.
“Teema, my own mother was one of the fiercest warriors our tribe has seen in generations. You know the stories as well as I do. But after what happened, the council voted to keep you all as safe as possible, and you all agreed. For our tribe to survive, we can’t lose any more females. As strong and formidable as I know you all are, the risk is too great. It’s for your own good.”
Her cheeks flamed red and she opened her mouth to argue when tribal council member Pimmit approached.
“Markon, may I speak with you?” he said.
Rikor and Teema nodded and left us, but that glint in Teema’s eye told me this conversation wasn’t over. Once we were alone, Pimmit gripped my arm tightly. I couldn’t help but be impressed by his strength. He may have been the junior council member, but he was still old.
“I,” he started, then stopped abruptly. He swallowed hard and tried again. “I was wrong.”
I could scarcely believe my ears. One of our most opinionated, strong-willed and downright grumpy tribesmen just admitted he was wrong about something. I had no idea what, and before I could ask, he explained.
“If you’ll remember, I was against the proposal to unite with the Valley scum.”
“I seem to recall something about that,” I hedged, remembering vividly how he tried to attack my brother in the council meeting, and how he balked at the suggestion to merge tribes.
“Well, you’ve convinced me, son.” He patted my back with a gnarled ha
nd, a sentimental gleam in his eye. “I can’t remember the last time I had reet spirits, but I could get used to them. And that alien female…”
He whistled low, tipping a knowing look up at me.
“She’s most certainly someone to fight over. That idiot Strabo got what he deserved, if you ask me. Well done, alpha.”
The beast within me puffed with pride, but guilt tempered it. Guilt that I’d inadvertently taken Thrane’s place as alpha, and guilt that people thought I was a good replacement.
“It’s too bad your brother left like that,” he continued, “but I knew you’d make a good leader.”
“Thank you, Pimmit,” I said, bowing my head.
He turned to shuffle off then turned back. “And Markon?”
“Yes?”
“Don’t screw it up.”
His words echoed in my ears as I crossed the commons. Men and women alike stopped me to praise me for the party, to compliment me on taking Strabo down a peg, or to thank me for letting the females and whelps roam freely in the village. Perhaps Pimmit was right — maybe I was turning out to be a good leader after all. Now all I had to do was remember his advice: Don’t screw it up.
I didn’t intend to.
And the first part of that was to continue making amends to Natalie for my brother’s behavior. The flowers Teema had given me would be a good start. They were common fare, nothing special — tiny, pink billowberry blossoms, reddish-purple spirals of helixgrass, and some fragrant limon leaves. Some of our more spectacular specimens were found in the meadow, but this would have to do for now.
Riding on the high of the goodwill flowing through the village, I practically floated over to Natalie and Jorek’s lab. Knocking on the doorjamb, I thrust the flowers through the door first and waited for her to gasp in happiness and throw herself into my arms. After standing there like an idiot for a few seconds, I poked my head in.
My smile fell away at the sight of Natalie and Jorek hunched over a piece of equipment, their heads almost touching. Her silk-covered breasts, no longer constrained by the gray costume she’d worn on the hike to our village, pressed against his arm as she leaned over to inspect whatever was in front of him. My beast threatened to burst forth and tear the man’s head from his shoulders.
Markon's Claim: A SciFi Shifter Romance (The Last Alphas of Thracos Book 2) Page 7
