Chapter 17
Gracie
An hour and a half later, with the promise to speak to my brother tomorrow about their decision, I stared at the tonic sitting on the vanity of our guest suite.
It was a cozy and warm space—a living room in the center with two bedrooms on either end.
Would the same feeling of comfort translate into dinner tonight with Alpha Lacey?
Each of our experiences in the other territories had been so vastly different from this.
My mates had claimed the smaller bedroom to get ready for the evening, leaving me to the larger one with the promise of a bath and an hour of quiet before we needed to leave. I had taken them up on it immediately.
Picking up the tonic, I read the note attached. This dose should be good for twenty-four hours. Make sure to continue to take it daily. - Starr
I was so thankful for her. My anxiety about my own medical care had reduced drastically since our appointment today, and with the medicine from the jet, I was still feeling far better than I had hours ago.
As I opened the tonic bottle, the scent of oranges bloomed through the air. I brought it to my lips—
The bottle was plucked right out of my fingers.
My eyes widened as I looked up to find Thornar leaning against the bathroom vanity, holding the open bottle balanced on his palm and offering me an affectionate look. I tilted my head, noticing something behind his usual warmth that I couldn’t quite name.
“Little flame, we don’t drink things without checking they aren’t poison first.”
My brow furrowed. “She’s a healer though.”
“Doesn’t matter.” He flashed me a smile that absolutely didn’t match his tone.
“Okay so how do we even—Thornar!”
He drank it. He actually drank it. Not all of it, but a full sip—before capping the bottle and setting it back on the vanity like he hadn’t just done something insane.
“What?” I stared at him, mouth agape. “What was that?”
“Now we wait and see.” He winked. “I’m sure it’s fine. Like you said, she’s a healer.” And then he was walking away.
I moved before I could think, nearly tackling him from behind. Thornar caught me instantly, chuckling as he pulled me up his massive body and walked backwards until he could lift me onto the counter. I gripped his shirt as he stepped between my legs and raised a single curious brow.
“Yes, Gracie?”
“If it’s poison you could die,” I hissed.
My throat felt tight as anxiety flooded my body. I hadn’t considered that it could be dangerous, it was medicine! Now I had to sit with the possibility that my mate could get hurt because of me.
“But then you won’t,” he mused, like it was the simplest solution in the world.
Everything slowed down for a second. I tilted my head, examining the lightness of his expression that sat so differently from the look in his eyes.
Thornar had just drank potentially poisoned medicine to make sure it was safe for me.
“Why?” I whispered. “Why would you do that?”
Thornar’s expression shifted, the lightness disappearing as his jaw tightened. He usually always had an answer, but this time he said nothing at first. He just looked at me before bringing his hand up to cradle my face, his thumb brushing my cheekbone.
“Thornar?” I asked again, my voice softer than I intended. His scent was surrounding me, brown sugar and bourbon, and the way he wrapped me in his shadow had my thoughts scattering and cheeks warming.
“Gracie,” he said simply. It didn’t escape my notice that he still hadn’t answered.
Thornar’s gaze dropped, tracing the line of my neck down to where my plush robe had loosened.
His other hand tightened on my waist, pulling me closer until I was pressed tight against his frame.
His mouth found my collarbone, my throat, the curve of my shoulder.
His pace was hot and unhurried, like he had all the time in the world and intended to use it.
My skin broke into a heated flush. I was acutely aware of how little the robe covered and even more aware that he knew it. The fabric slipped from my shoulder as he continued, and I found myself wanting him to keep going but also desperately needing him to kiss me.
As he trailed back up my throat and jaw, I realized he was purposefully avoiding my lips.
“Thornar.” My fingers tightened in his shirt, my voice coming out in a plea. “Kiss me?”
Thornar pulled back just slightly, apology and heat fused in his gaze, before dipping his head to brush his nose against mine. “Not until we know it’s safe, little flame.”
My heart broke open at his reason.
“Don’t be disappointed. I’ll make you forget about it.” His promise was followed by his fingers finding the tie of my robe, pulling it loose slowly.
The material fell away, pooling around my elbows, my chest bare to him. My nipples were already pebbled, and he let out a low, pained rumble as he took me in.
“So fucking beautiful,” he murmured. The words were so raw and simple that my entire body shifted forward, just to be as close as possible to him.
Thornar stilled me immediately, his natural dominance coating the bond between us as he offered me a wicked grin.
His lips found my collarbone again, then moved lower—a trail of hot, open-mouthed kisses setting my skin on fire.
When he reached my breast his mouth closed over the sensitive peak and pulled a moan from my lips.
The warmth of his tongue teasing, circling, flicking was enough to have me shifting against the counter, desperate for any kind of friction.
He lifted a hand to cup my other breast, his thumb brushing the peak in that same devastatingly perfect rhythm.
“Thornar.” My whispered moan was honest and full of need. More. Please, more.
He wasn’t rushed, though, despite the need pulsing through our bond.
Instead he lavished attention on one side then switched to the other, his movements entirely focused on slowly unraveling me.
I could feel how wet I was, embarrassingly so, with nothing but the cold counter beneath me and the robe twisted around my body, trapping me so I could barely move.
I tangled my hands in his dark coiled hair, holding him to me, feeling the scrape of his teeth and then the soothing lap of his tongue afterward. I needed more. I had a feeling he knew that but had absolutely no intention of giving it to me yet.
My desire left me feeling emboldened, and my hands slipped down from his hair to slide against his hard length through his pants.
My touch instantly had him biting down in a slightly punishing way that drew a whimper from my lips.
I didn’t stop though, feeling how massive he was and fighting the urge to rush my exploration.
Thornar pulled back, his eyes darker than I had ever seen them, a shift in his expression making my breath catch. His voice dropped to a deep warning.
“Gracie.” Just my name, but the way he said it this time was different from before. “If you keep touching me like that…”
The smart thing would have been to stop.
Before he could finish, and before I could lose my nerve, I slid off the counter. My robe fell completely as I sank to my knees.
I felt a pure wave of possession surge through our bond, and the moment my eyes met his, his hand caught my chin, tilting my face up.
“I don’t know what to do,” I admitted breathlessly. “I’ve never…I’ve never done this.”
Thornar’s eyes closed, his jaw tight like he was summoning every ounce of control he had left. But I was completely mesmerized by the power of his body, the barely contained tension running through him. My hands found the button of his pants, undoing it quickly before I lost my nerve entirely.
His eyes snapped open the moment I did. His fingers tightened on my chin.
“You want this?” Thornar’s voice was rough, the question genuine. “Are you sure?”
I took a moment to consider it.
“I want you.”
I tugged down on his pants over his hard length, emphasizing my point, and let my eyes roam over the hard planes of his abs and hips as he pulled his shirt up and over his head. A sharp breath left me when I saw his size, and I tugged his boxers down so that he was completely bare to me.
I couldn’t help but stare. I mean—he was magnificent.
I knew my mates were large, but experiencing it in this way had my body lighting up in a way that was overwhelming.
I lifted my fingers to wrap around him as best I could, and I watched his abs tighten in response, his hand rising to hover near my head. Not touching, just there.
I was nervous about not knowing what to do, but the heat of him beneath my fingers was so intoxicating I couldn’t stop myself from running my hand slowly along his rigid length.
Despite having no experience of my own, I had heard enough talk in the barracks to know what women did in this moment, and I found myself wanting to try. So I kissed him, a soft press of my lips against the head. He hissed, a sharp intake of breath, his hips jerking before he caught himself.
My stomach fluttered at the rawness of his reaction.
My confidence, fragile as it was, unfurled a little.
I did it again, then let my tongue venture out, a slow stroke around the crown before I tried to take him deeper.
The salty taste of him bloomed against my tongue, and the gentle brush of his fingers against my hair had my head swimming.
“Little flame…” Thornar’s groan was low and appreciative.
I took him into my mouth, slowly but deeper this time, trying to memorize every reaction—the way he seemed perilously close to snapping despite the iron grip he kept.
I craved his reactions though. They were my anchor.
The low rumble when I tried to take him as deep as possible, pushing myself until my eyes watered.
The way his length pulsed when I brought my hand up to work together with my mouth.
Every sound he made was another bolster to my confidence, pushing me forward.
It wasn’t until I held him as deep as I could for as long as I could that the control he’d been clinging to finally snapped. His fingers tightened in my hair, holding me there, and when I looked up at him through watering eyes he let out a fuck, his cock pulsing hot against my tongue.
“Such a pretty fucking mouth,” he growled, the words sending a pulse of heat straight through me. “Stand up, little flame.”
The command had me gasping as he pulled out of my mouth. I stumbled to standing on shaky legs, barely catching myself before his hands were on me.
“What are you—”
He lifted me onto the sink in one motion, spreading my thighs as he gripped his length and slid it through my wet center.
The moan that left me was embarrassingly loud.
My arms shook as I gripped the counter, my head falling back as he dragged himself slowly against my clit, the sensation so extremely intense.
With his free hand he gripped my chin, forcing my gaze to his. “I can’t come down your pretty throat. Not for the first time. I want to mark up this perfect body and leave my cum exactly where it belongs.”
The Eight. My body felt like it was about to combust, and when I felt him press against my entrance, a whimper broke free before I could stop it.
“Please,” I whispered.
“Please what?” Thornar demanded. “Say it.”
“I need to come.” The words came out breathless and brazen all at once.
Thornar rumbled his approval, but I watched something shift in him as his gaze dropped to my throat. His words were a dangerous murmur against my skin. “Have to mark you, Gracie. I have no choice.”
There was no warning. His thumb moved to swirl over my clit as he pressed against my entrance, and instead of kissing me—
Thornar bit.
Not a playful nip. Not a love bite. A true claiming bite, his teeth sinking into the curve of my throat. The pain was immediate, followed by a bright flash of white that dissolved into a wave of climax so intense his name tore from my lips in a scream.
An explosion of power burst between us as the mate bond solidified completely, not slowly but all at once.
A bolt of lightning turned molten before hardening into a permanent pathway, no longer just between our wolves but now between souls.
The room shifted and the air vibrated. I felt his release spill between my thighs, the sensation sending another wave of pleasure rolling through me.
Thornar released the bite, his lips coming away with a tiny bead of my blood. He licked it away, his gaze holding mine, filled with unshakable certainty.
“Mine.” He breathed the word into existence.
Everything melted into a hazy warmth after that. I was lifted and carried to the shower as Thornar took care of me, his hands soft and deliberate. It was so different from everything that had just happened that it made my heart ache in the best possible way.
It wasn’t until we had been standing there a long time, my eyes closed, that I felt the others’ emotions stir in the bond.
“Hey Thornar…” I whispered.
His arm tightened around me as he pressed his lips to my neck again. I could feel his smile there.
“Oh, I know, little flame.” He paused. “They can deal with it.”
I tilted my head up and he gave me a slow, beautiful smile before dipping down to finally press his lips to mine.
“And now I can kiss you,” he murmured against my mouth.
Because it wasn’t poison.