Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Kiera
I stare at Silas, the massive forest guardian, as his words echo in my head. I’m not letting you go, Kiera. But if you’re very, very obedient, I might be inclined to save your brother.
Obedient? What does he mean by that? Why does he keep touching me, and why am I quivering with need?
The steady pangs of heat in my core are almost too much. It’s difficult to think clearly when I’m so flustered and desperate for a release. If I were alone right now, I would touch myself.
But I’m not alone.
Silas is holding me captive.
I swallow past the dryness in my throat. “What is it you want from me?” I’m pissed as hell at Daniel, but I can’t let him die.
The forest guardian’s eyes glimmer with dark excitement. He likes that I’m capitulating so quickly. He likes having me at his mercy. When he steps closer, I feel the hardness encased in his pants. I gasp as the heat continues pulsating between my thighs.
He shifts to cup my face, and using his thumbs, he draws slow circles on my cheeks. He stares at me unblinkingly as that glimmer of dark excitement morphs to a look of victory.
“What is it you want from me?” I ask again, and this time there’s a note of anger in my voice. I can’t help it. My brother’s life is hanging in the balance, and Silas is toying with me.
“I want you to submit yourself to me, little girl. I want you to submit yourself to my teachings. I want you in my bed.” He leans nearer and takes a deep inhale. As he remains intimately close, his warm breath dances along my neck.
I want you in my bed. I flush as the full weight of his proposal hits me.
If I want him to consider saving Daniel, I’ll have to share his bed and submit to him.
I’ll have to do whatever he desires. My stomach flips even as warmth spasms in my core.
A deep yearning stirs within me. The yearning to belong to someone who will protect and guide me.
“How long?” I ask. “How long will I have to stay here?”
His eyes briefly flash with what I think is hurt, but a second later his visage hardens with a severity that causes my pussy to clench. For a reason I can’t fathom, his sternness makes me quiver with desire.
“You will stay here for as long as it pleases me, little girl.” Despite his austere expression, his voice borders on warm and patient. “Who knows? I might decide to keep you forever.”
Forever. Oh, gods.
Am I really about to agree to his proposal?
The idea of submitting to his teachings is making me breathless with anticipation, and I don’t understand why I’m not more afraid of him. I should be screaming and begging him to release me, but I’m not.
“Well? I need an answer, little girl.” His breath caresses my ear, sending shivers down my back. “Do you agree to submit yourself to me?”
“Only if you promise to save my brother.” The floor beneath my feet seems to sway, and I find myself reaching for Silas so I don’t collapse. I grasp his shirt, and I clutch the fabric so hard I’m surprised it doesn’t rip. “You must explicitly promise to save him.”
The forest guardian heaves a deep, almost dramatic sigh. He releases my face and steps back, though he places his hands beneath my arms to help hold me steady. He gives me an earnest look. “Very well. I explicitly promise to save your brother.”
“All right.” Again, the floor seems to sway beneath my feet. “In that case, I agree to your proposal. I will… submit myself to you.” My face grows hot, and disbelief surges through me, along with more waves of surrender.
I’m fairly certain I just agreed to become a forest guardian’s pleasure slave. Oh, gods. What will he make me do first? Virginal apprehensions arise, and I tremble in his arms.
I’ve never even kissed a man before, and I’ve just agreed to belong to Silas for as long as he wants to keep me. Possibly forever.
“Excellent,” he finally says, and his eyes sparkle with triumph.
A sudden bout of shyness descends, and I’m unable to hold his gaze for a second longer. I stare at his chest as I await his first command.
Will he order me to strip off this beautiful white gown?
I almost laugh when I recall the fantasy I’d entertained earlier in the day. The fantasy that I was a princess and it was my wedding day, and I was about to marry a handsome prince from a faraway kingdom.
Instead, I’ve become the captive of a shapeshifting forest guardian who’s mentioned wanting to hurt and mark me. Dominance radiates from his huge, muscular form. Perhaps he just plans to be a little rough with me. I suppose I’ll find out soon enough.
Without warning, he lifts me in his arms and carries me to the bed. He places me down atop the soft blankets, and I rest my head on a pillow as I watch his every move. I can’t stop trembling, and the aching in my core keeps mounting with every rapid breath I take.
He stands beside the bed, gazing down at me with an affectionate expression that doesn’t make sense given the circumstances.
Yes, I agreed to submit to him, but I’m also his prisoner.
Why is he looking at me like that? How could he harbor any actual tenderness for me? I tell myself I must be imagining it.
He takes a seat and places a hand on my thigh.
His touch sizzles through me, a heady rush of sensation that causes my entire body to tingle.
As he holds my gaze, a breeze enters through the open windows, ruffling his long, dark hair around his shoulders while providing a much-needed burst of coolness on my overheated flesh. Why do I feel so feverish?
I almost gasp when I hear the whispers again. Whispers on the wind, as though the rustling leaves are chanting something I can’t quite understand. Every so often, I swear I hear my name amidst the strange words. When Silas glances outside and tenses, I suspect he hears it too.
“It’s haunting but beautiful,” I say. “What language is it?”
His head swivels back to me, and he regards me with a stunned expression, his eyes wide and filled with shock. “You can hear that?” There’s a note of awe in his voice. He’s surprised I can hear it, but he also seems pleased by the outcome.
“Yes, I can hear the whispers on the wind.” I flush under his full attention. His hand remains on my thigh, squeezing firmly, and his eyes are boring into mine with an intensity that’s making the air seize in my chest. “Um, I first heard the whispers while I was standing on the altar.”
“You can hear the whispers, but you don’t know the language,” he says, almost to himself, as a contemplative look falls over him. “How extraordinary.”
Extraordinary? I glance at his hand on my thigh.
Through the layers of my white gown, I feel the heat of his hand, and I can’t help but yearn for his touch on my bare skin.
The wind picks up, and the whispers grow louder.
This time, I’m certain I hear my name. The forest guardian peers at me with an expression that can only be described as…
hopeful. He’s looking at me as though I’m the answer to all his problems, whatever those problems might be.
I flush again and wish I knew what he was thinking.
“Can you understand the whispers?” I ask.
“Yes, I can. The wind has always spoken to me.” He pauses and glances toward the window again, then returns his gaze to me. “But it’s an ancient tongue. One no longer spoken by humans.” Warmth flickers in his eyes as he commences rubbing my thigh.
With each upward stroke, the fabric of my gown bunches higher on my legs.
Though it’s incredibly indecent, I’m not wearing stockings, as the Elders’ wives didn’t provide any as they helped me dress this morning, and my bare legs are soon on full display.
Silas’s dark eyes glimmer with heat, and his nostrils flare as he leans down and takes another deep inhale.
Why does he keep smelling me? A lusty growl rumbles from his chest.
“What-what is the wind saying?” I force out. It’s becoming difficult to think clearly, but I somehow manage to utter the question. If I can keep him talking long enough, perhaps it’ll serve as a distraction, and he’ll postpone claiming me. Never mind that I’m aching for his touch.
The antlered male pushes my gown above my waist, revealing the thin white pantalets I’m wearing. At least the Elders’ wives permitted me the undergarment. At least I’m not fully naked in front of Silas. Not yet. But I’m aware of his urgency to claim me. The bulge in his pants keeps getting larger.
He draws in a long breath, then cups the area between my thighs, giving my pussy a hard squeeze over the thin layer of my pantalets.
I whimper and jolt on the bed, but rather than try to escape him, my center lurches upward of its own accord, causing me to push myself against his groping hand.
It’s as though my body has a mind of its own, and I’m unable to control my urges. I need… I need more.
“Do you really want to know what the wind keeps saying?” he asks as he gives my pussy another squeeze.
“Yes,” I gasp out, and my center undulates into his hand. A flush sweeps through me, and no matter how hard I try, I can’t remain still. I writhe on the bed and clutch the covers, hoping he’ll apply more pressure to my pulsating core.
“The wind says you’re my mate.” His eyes blaze with renewed triumph.
For a few seconds, his words don’t quite penetrate my consciousness. They hover in open space, and I keep thinking I must’ve misheard him.
But the wind keeps whispering over and over, still occasionally murmuring my name in between phrases I don’t comprehend.
Silas appears serious. There’s no hint of mockery in his expression. Not this time.
“I’m your mate?” I finally blurt. Panic wars with disbelief, and I feel lightheaded as I try to grasp this information and make sense of it. “How could I be your mate?” I’m human, and he’s… other. He’s a forest guardian. He’s thousands of years old and likely immortal.
He narrows his eyes on me. “The wind has never lied to me before, so it must be true. You are my gift from the gods.” He leans closer and his warm breath wafts over my face. “I must claim you, little girl. I must claim you immediately.”