‘So serious, Kori. Did you find something disturbing?’
‘Not at all, mo anam.’ It amazed him how in tune she seemed to be with his emotions.
‘Then, what’s wrong?’
Her concern for him, so honest, pure, and true made him smile. He rose from his seat and prowled toward her. Her lips parted, pupils dilated, and the pulse along her neck increased. He never slowed, just strode up to her, wrapped his fist in some of her luxurious copper-highlighted hair, drew it back and engulfed her.
He drove his tongue deep in her mouth, stroking, stabbing, and delving all through her heat. She purred and pressed up into him, her tongue dueling with his. The touch of her hand as it slid across his torso sent lust slamming into his loins. Her short nails scored him through the shirt he wore. As long as he lived, he knew he’d never get enough of her. It just wasn’t possible.
With a rumble, he lifted her straight out of the chair with his other arm and molded her curves to him. In the space of a heartbeat, his world narrowed to revolve solely around the woman in his embrace. Her taste flooded his senses, and he tightened the fist sunk deep in her hair and thrust his tongue harder, craving more. Her desire matched his, and his cock was heavy and hard, aching to find release within her.
‘I want you.’
‘Kori.’ Her husky voice propelled him to a harder state.
‘Aye?’
She curved a hand around the back of his neck, teasing the sensitive skin beneath his hair. Hot, primal need roared through his veins. His wolf right there, encouraging him to take his mate.
“Get off my daughter, Kori.”
Dane’s cold, emotionless voice had the same effect as if Kori had dove into the Arctic Ocean. Has about the same amount of warmth in it, too. But at least he called me Kori.
With great reluctance, he backed away from Lera’s luscious mouth. He kept his body in front of her, releasing her hair to swipe his thumb along her kiss-swollen lips. Her eyes smoldered before she brought herself under control. Her tantalizing touch left, and he felt bereft. A slight, embarrassed smile lifted the corner of her mouth.
Slowly, like he had all the time in the world, he turned, keeping himself between Lera and Dane. Not necessary, given where they were, but instinctive for him. Dane wasn’t alone. Another man stood beside him, clothed in dark green robes. Awareness slammed into him.
Herald Siencyn.
Lera peered around him. “Hello, Daddy.”
Her breath caught, and Kori frowned before he could stop it. The forest green robes, black hair, eyes the same rich color as his robes and tanned skin. Kori had seen it many times before—women found Herald Siencyn attractive. Magnetic even. It had never bothered him.
Until now.
He adjusted his stance so Lera could no longer see the Herald. Or so he thought until a soft snort of derision escaped her, and she merely walked to his side.
“Hello, little one.” Dane spoke smoothly, his powerful voice telling everyone there how much she meant to him. Not a flicker on Dane’s expression changed, and yet, Kori could feel the gaze upon him deadly and predatory. Where he was the hunted and his hunter seemed to be waiting for the opportunity to go in for the kill.
The man in green stepped forward, hands hidden beneath the wide sleeves of the robes and meeting at his midsection.
“Greetings, Cormac MacLochlainne.” The words floated across the interior, deep and resonating. He inclined his head once before he placed intense green eyes upon Lera. “It is my honor to meet you, Valera Grace Sidorov of the Haikon. I am Herald Siencyn.”
Kori watched Lera. He doubted she even noticed how her body leaned closer to him, he definitely noticed. She held the dark gaze of Herald Siencyn and said, “Very nice to meet you as well.”
Dane paced Siencyn, and they moved closer until they were near enough for the pleasantry of shaking hands should they so choose. Kori marveled at Lera. He could sense her discomfort at the unknown man coming closer but she gave none of her feelings away. Her expression remained neutrally polite. He knew she trusted her father with her life and knew Dane would never bring harm within her vicinity, yet even so, the approach of a person she didn’t know made her wary. Her body instinctively adjusted into a defensive posture. Unless you knew what to look for, all it seemed she did was move a bit. Kori knew better. And he knew Dane did as well.
She’d been like that with Cavan and Cairenn. The knowledge she had willingly touched Kori and trusted him enough to allow him the same made him long to smirk with arrogance, and yet, it also humbled. Showed the depth of her trust for him.
Herald Siencyn glanced down to the black wolf who’d situated himself on Lera’s other side. He didn’t speak, just stared at Aldric for a few moments.
“Herald Siencyn is one of the few who can recall firsthand tales of the Haikon,” Dane said.
“Dane wished me to tell you what I know.”
“Could you?” Lera asked. “I mean, if it’s no bother.”
A smile filled Siencyn’s face, making him even more handsome. “I don’t mind at all. Perhaps, though, we could go outside so I can feel the sun.”
“Of course,” Lera replied.
Siencyn turned and headed for the entrance. Dane never moved, and Lera took a few steps. When Kori began to follow his mate, Dane froze him with a single look. As if she sensed he didn’t follow, Lera cast a wondering glance at him. Siencyn never slowed and had soon vanished.
“Coming?” she questioned.
“No, he’s not, little one. Not yet. We’ll be along in a minute,” Dane answered.
Kori bit back a growl. Lera didn’t question Dane, just continued on her way, Adric at her side. He held his tongue until she, too, could no longer be seen.
“She may be your daughter, Sidorov, but she is my mate,” he bit off. “Don’t try to come between us.”
Dane stared at him with what Kori could only call a bored expression. Which only agitated him further. It bothered him to no end she would take an order from Dane and not even see if Kori was okay with the decision.
“Calm down, pup.”
Dane spoke in a tone Kori had not heard since he had been under Dane’s tutelage for becoming a soldier. His wolf raged deep within him, desiring to prove he was no longer a pup, but a man more than capable of making his decisions, especially when it came to his mate. He opened his mouth, only to close it when Dane leaned against the thick table, hooked his ankles and crossed his arms in front of his chest.
“You need to listen and listen well, Cormac.”
A flicker of warning snaked up his spine. He reached for Lera along their link.
‘Are you okay, mo anam?’
‘Of course I am. Why do you ask?’ Her love sped back to him.
‘I worry, Lera.’ He couldn’t begin to explain his relief at hearing her sultry voice in his head. She laughed lightly then was gone.
“What’s going on?” he questioned, all seriousness. He wasn’t only faced with Daddy Dane who wanted his daughter safe, but also the Enforcer who had almost no equal in battle.
“The news has spread about Lera.”
Deep within, a need grew. A need to bring her close where he could protect her. He hadn’t lied to her when he’d said the safety of their mates came before everything else.
“How?”
Dane shrugged, an easy ripple of movement. “The drefklen have spies everywhere. The forest is full of many ears.”
With a nod, Kori said, “I will keep her safe.”
The power of the tiger flashed in Dane’s unique gaze. “You’d better.”
Kori shifted his feet. “Something else is bothering you. What did Herald Siencyn say?”
“He spoke of a prophecy. Unfulfilled until now.” Dane ran a hand through his hair and Kori saw the worry the man tried to hide. “You know how prophecies are.”
He did. Death was usually involved. He also knew the last prophecy Dane got involved with he’d lost part of himself.
“What’s th
e prophecy?”
The emotion which flashed in Dane’s gaze would have been fear if it was on any other man. On the father of his mate, Kori had no idea what to call it.
“Herald Siencyn can tell you. This won’t be an easy trip you two will be making.”
“You’re not coming?”
“Thought you didn’t need me to help protect your mate.” Dane lifted a brow. “Or was that a lie?”
Kori walked to the entrance. “You know it wasn’t.” Without slowing, he pushed through the protective barrier and scanned the area for Lera. Not that far away by a grove of towering trees, she stood across from Herald Siencyn, one hand buried deep within Adric’s pelt.
He groaned in relief when her head twisted toward him. A light, previously missing, filled her eyes. Her entire person seemed somehow softer. Once he reached her side, he slid a hand around her waist and brushed their mouths together.
“What’d I miss?”
“Herald Siencyn was filling me in on the Haikon.”
‘You’re tense, mo anam, why?’
‘This is a lot for me to digest.’
He snuck a peek down at her. A gloved hand gripped Adric’s hair, and her breathing was shallow and faster than normal.
“Forgive me, Herald, may I have a word in private with Lera for a moment?”
Dark forest green eyes met his. “We were done for now anyway.” The man nodded and walked away without a sound.
Kori gripped her upper arms and rotated her so they were face to face. For a few seconds, he held her gaze, searching along her thoughts for why she seemed so sad.
“You know I’m here with you through everything, right, mo anam?”
She blinked a few times and tried for a smile. His words didn’t make her feel better. He knew that.
“I will never let anything hurt you, Lera. I’d die first.”
“I can fight my own battles, Kori. And what the hell do you think you dying would do, huh? Make me happy?”
He brought her in close, her back to the trees and him blocking her from view. Cupping her face, he kissed her. Slow, steady swipes of his tongue. She remained stiff for a brief moment before she melted into him. His shaft, hard and wanting, dug into the material of his pants, and the touch of her feminine yet muscled body brushing against it only made his craving grow.
‘We can’t do this, Kori.’
‘Why not?’
‘People are around.’
‘I don’t give a damn, Lera. I don’t like you upset, and if you won’t tell me what’s wrong, I will do what’s necessary to put your focus on something else.’
He slid one hand between them and found her nipple pebbled. With two fingers, he plucked at it through her shirt. Lera whimpered and bucked against his erection.
‘Kori!’ Her voice, throatier than normal, fanned his own desire.
‘Yes, mo anam?’
She nipped at his invading tongue. ‘Stop.’
He tugged on the nipple again. ‘Is that what you want?’
Chapter Twelve
Lera swore flames and electricity replaced the blood in her body. Her breasts cried out, desperate for his touch, the area between her legs wet and needy for the relief only one could give her. Only Kori.
‘No, I don’t want you to, but Kori, I also don’t want to do this here.’
She nearly cried in disappointment when he released her nipple and put his hands along her hips. The kiss ended, and he pulled back, his gray eyes swirling with passion. She could see hints of the amber his wolf had and knew he was close to the edge.
‘Mo anam.’
She shuddered. Two words. Two words she didn’t know the meaning of, and yet, the way he spoke them made her feel so special, unique.
So his.
“Kori?”
“Aye?” The single word hung in the air, drenched by his thick brogue, and made things right in her world.
“What if I’m not strong enough to do this?”
Although he no longer caressed her as intimately, his touch still made her shiver. He readjusted his hand and settled it along the side of her face. She could still feel the length of his hardness pressing into her stomach.
“Mo anam, you have the strength within you. I know it.”
“Just…I felt so weak for so long, and now, to know people are counting me. It’s a bit daunting.”
“What did Herald Siencyn say to you?”
She licked her lips; his gaze followed the movement of her tongue. It amazed her how something as innocent as licking her lips could hold a man like Kori mesmerized. A man whom, for so long, she had believed to be made of stone. Unflappable.
‘You’ve always affected me, Lera.’ Even his words in her mind were laced with his brogue and made longing flare again within her.
‘Stop reading my mind, Kori.’
“But I love your thoughts about me,” he said in an even thicker brogue, and she almost didn’t understand him. “Stop distracting me; tell me what the herald said.”
She smiled. “He knows of an old cave system which can lead me to the old stronghold of the Haikon. But he has no idea where others are.” She struggled not to let fear seep through. It didn’t matter, Kori knew.
“Why so much fear, Lera?”
Grateful he asked versus taking the information from her mind, she told him. “The entrance he knows is in the Ramulius Mountains.”
“I know you don’t fear dragons, Lera. What?”
“Dragons scare me, but that’s not it. I…I…don’t do so well underground. Or in closed spaces, for that matter.” Beside her, Adric growled low in agreement. Her insides quivered at the thought of being below the earth’s surface for so long.
‘Vaj. I don’t like it either but we’ll get through it together.’
Adric’s belief in her combined with Kori’s and she felt a bit better. She petted Adric and glanced up at Kori. There sat an odd expression on his face before it smoothed away.
“Herald Siencyn said it wouldn’t be easy. He says the Haikon are not very trusting. Ever since the betrayal by one of their own. We should seek the entrance in the darkness of night.”
Her mind whirled with all the information. It wasn’t like there was a lot on her people but more the fact of what was she was being told.
“Tonight? Then, we should go sleep now so we can leave, well rested.”
She hesitated. There were more books to search through, more information to digest.
“No, Lera. You need to rest.”
‘Adric?’
‘Rest is advisable, vaj. But information is also important.’
‘Thanks.’
She could feel his amusement along their link.
“Lera.”
With a sigh, she shook her head. “I will sleep later, Kori. I have more to do inside Agnitio infinitus.”
“That can be done later. We need to rest.”
His tone, while deeply seductive, didn’t cover the compulsion he let slide in. With a frown, she stepped back.
“Don’t presume to order me around, Kori,” she snapped. Avoiding his arm when he reached for her, she stomped around him and headed back to Agnitio infinitus.
‘Lera!’
‘I’m not a child who needs a bedtime.’
‘You are my mate.’
She never slowed, despite the hesitation her limbs gave her. As if they longed to obey him and stay with him.
‘Mate, not kid.’
His growl filled her head. Goose bumps erupted along her skin.
‘Do not test me, Valera.’
‘This isn’t a test, Cormac. This is me exercising my God-given right to think and do for myself.’
His displeasure rumbled darkly in her mind. She ignored it, yet hesitated at the wall. A different feeling skated along her skin. She glanced to her left and past the beautiful sparkling blue waters, lush green grasses, and snow-capped mountains. Her peripheral view contained Cormac. He hadn’t moved but she could sense him trying to see what had grab
bed her attention.
Without meeting his stare, she proceeded into the room. A smile lifted her mouth when she saw her dad sitting in her seat, skimming the information before him.
“Daddy.”
He turned toward her. Lera moved to his side, pressed a kiss to his cheek then dragged up another chair and sat beside him.
“How are you doing, little one?”
Adric lay at her feet, and she rubbed along his side with her boot. One hand reached for another book and she flipped through a few pages before answering.
“I don’t know. Scared.”
A heavy sigh filled the room. “Do you remember when Grigori fell down into that crevice?”
Man, did she. “Yes. We’d been exploring and were on our way home. It was getting dark when he went in.”
“And without thinking of how scared you’d be in there, you climbed down to stay with him until we got there.”
She shrugged. “I had to stay with him. He was unconscious. I didn’t know what else to do.”
“My point, little one,” Dane said tucking some hair behind her ear, “is you have the strength to face your fears. Deep within you, the same courage which had you protect your brother will rise when you go into the cave. Plus, you have Adric and Kori.”
‘He’s right, vaj. I’ll not leave you.’
She blinked slowly. “Kori thinks I should be sleeping.”
Dane smiled, and she realized how handsome her dad still remained. “I’m sure he does.”
“You don’t order Mom around; why does he think he can order me around?”
“Because that’s what we do. I tried ordering your mom around.” He turned some more pages. “Still do.”
“And?”
A small chuckle. “Your mom would be sitting where you are, and I would be sulking across the way like Kori is now.”
Her head snapped up. Sure enough, Kori stood across the cavern, arms crossed and a definite frown in place. His eyes never left hers as he prowled toward the table. He remained silent, just sat and opened a book. She smiled.
‘Thank you, Kori.’
‘You will have to concede sometimes, too, mo ghrá.’
A Love For Lera (Haikon) Page 16
