CHAPTER 5
The sound of rushing water awoke her.
Blinking in the dim light, Nyra took a few moments to regain her senses as she sat up, searching her surroundings.
Domed stone ceilings with the occasional foliage hanging down from holes in a collapsed roof stretched as far and high as the eye could see, the surface rough and sharp where the stone peeked through. Stalactites with lush flora by the hundreds decorated the vast space, the pale streams of moonlight streaking in through the dolines giving the entire place an almost enchanting aura.
Stone boulders of varying sizes were scattered across the endless floor. One in particular caught Nyra’s eye, its flat yet impossibly massive size reminding her of a bed. A giant’s bed. Tall trees and soft grass covered the ground, giving her the undeniable feeling of being in a forest of sorts. Except, it didn’t make any sense. She was in a cave.
The rushing of water reached her again, the sound so foreign in the underground chamber that she had to shake her head just to make sure her ears weren’t playing a trick on her.
“You’re not imagining things, wildling,” the brooding warrior’s smoky voice came from behind her. “That’s a waterfall that you’re hearing.”
Stunned, she turned to look up at him. “But how is that possible? We’re underground.”
Crouching down in front of her, he studied her with his piercing blue gaze. “Yes, deep in the belly of the Kruka Mountains.”
“What?!” her mouth gaped open. “That’s days worth of walking! How long have been I asleep? How the hell did we get here?”
“Not long,” pause, “I carried you.”
Laughter exploded around them. “You must think I’m bloody stupid.”
“I’d prefer to call it very close-minded.”
She scoffed. “You’re an ass, you know that?”
“Yes, but a very handsome one.” His pearly whites made an appearance, eyes glinting with amusement.
“And annoying as fuck.”
His grin widened, tempting Nyra to smack it right off his beautiful face. “That’s not a word I’d use to describe my fucking.”
“How humble of you. I’m sure the ladies throw themselves off a cliff once you’re done with them.”
A chuckle, and then, “I had to save quite a number of them, actually. You can’t imagine the lengths some women would go just to remain in my bed.”
She rolled her eyes. But of course. “I’m sure that’s just so that they can set it on fire, since they can’t exactly wipe the memory of your giant naked body from their brain.”
He bit his lower lip, as if restraining a laugh. “I’m very unforgettable, wildling.”
“And very arrogant, it would seem.”
“You love it.”
“I prefer men whose heads aren’t on the verge of exploding.”
He smirked, the bastard. “No one’s ever complained about the size of my head before.”
Ignoring the obvious innuendo, she said, “Clearly, there’s something very wrong with them.”
“Yes, they’re not you.”
Speechless, Nyra could only stare at the massive male still crouched in front of her, dead serious, eyes scorching, as if all the humor had left him with that last admission and had been replaced with something much more dangerous.
Her heart skipped, the air around them sizzling. “You’re giving me a goddamn headache with all of your changing moods. It’s very confusing, I can’t keep up with you.”
“Then let me make it clearer, pretty girl.” His hand reached out, his knuckles grazing her cheek. “What is it that confuses you?”
“Everything.” She swallowed, blood pounding in her ears. “For starters, you still haven’t told me your name. You went from kissing me like you were starving to almost running me over like a rabid bull. Then in the span of mere moments, you called me an idiot and something akin to a rarity. I have no idea what you want from me, why I’m even here in the first place or how long you plan on keeping me.”
Callused fingers wrapped around the back of her neck, his thumb stroking her thundering pulse. Days seemed to pass as they stared at each other, Nyra’s heart thrashing in her rib cage, her skin on the verge of melting from his heated gaze.
“I already told you what I want from you, wildling. Nothing’s changed,” his voice dropped, eyes lowering to her mouth, sending a shiver down her spine. “There is much that you don’t understand, Nyra. Much that you still have to learn. That does not mean that you are stupid, nor did I ever imply such a thing.”
Her voice shook, breathless, “You said I was close-minded.”
“I did,” his lips brushed her jaw, lightly pecking it as he spoke, “and I stand by what I said. You are not aware of anything other than the world which you have been shown by the people around you. You live in an illusion, a half-truth, completely unaware of the reality of the universe.” His eyes softened, cupping her face with both palms as he lowered himself onto his knees, spreading them so she was nestled in between. “But–the fault doesn’t lie with you. I will teach you, Nyra. I will be your anchor. Your guiding light. All I ask is that you trust me. I would never do anything to hurt you.”
“You stole me away.”
“I did, and I won’t apologize for that.”
Furious, she wrapped her fingers around his wrists, attempting to push him away. “You do realize how absurd you sound. You’re asking me to put my faith in you–a complete stranger. My fucking captor. A man that I met hours ago, that’s holding me against my will.”
“Have I harmed you?” A hand slipped into her hair, gripping it, the other hand wrapping around her throat, his voice so low she could feel the vibrations across her skin.
“No,” she rasped.
“Have I done anything to make you feel threatened?”
Shivers erupted over her, his nose trailing a path down her neck and over her collarbones, her voice breathless as she attempted to form an answer, “No, but you’re unreliable and I have no idea what to expect, if you’re going to crush me or hurl me across the air.”
Fisting her hair, her head tipped back, her neck laid open to him in silent offering as his nose trailed over it. “Make no mistake, wildling, I will do all kinds of wicked things to you. Things you can’t even begin to wrap your pretty little head around. Things that will make you question your sanity and willingness to offer yourself up to me on a silver platter,” he murmured by her ear as his other arm wound around her, crushing her body to him.
She shuddered, his warm breath heating her skin as he inhaled deep.
“You smell like heaven and sin. Like the winds on a cool summer breeze, so fucking tempting that I’m going crazy with the need to claim you.”
He shot up, lifting her along so that her legs wrapped around his waist. Two large hands grabbed her ass, squeezing it roughly as he carried her off.
“What are you doing?” She hung on to his thick neck, her pussy clenching, panties already drenched. “Where are you taking me?”
Oh, gods, I think I might faint.
Two blue orbs seared into Nyra, as if sensing her panic, as if able to see right through to her very soul, his voice dripping with danger as he rumbled, “Don’t worry, little vixen, I’m not going to fuck you. Not yet, anyway.”
Don’t you dare be disappointed. Look at the size of him, he’d rip you apart.
He squeezed her ass again, tucking his face into the crook of her neck as he ground her against his massive erection, inhaling her scent.
She bit her lip, holding back the humiliatingly loud moan. Fucking hell. He’s huge. Her clit throbbed, endless sparks shooting across her wired body.
“Sweet little prey, how I ache for you.”
Breathe, Nyra.
He inhaled again, then dragged his tongue up the side of her neck, her face, her lips. “Give me your mouth, woman.”
Begrudgingly, she shook her head, turning away from him, if only to give herself a break from the intense wave of energy rolling off of him, naively thinking that she would be able to keep true to her promise of never kissing this infuriatingly alluring male ever again.
Something akin to a snarl met her refusal, like the sound a deadly predator makes before attacking his next victim. He yanked her hair, hard, slight pain shooting through her as he dove for her lips again. “Give. Me. Your fucking. Mouth.”
“Make me,” she challenged, her mind and body conflicted, on the verge of shutting down from the heat of his body and the intensity of his gaze.
He growled, shoving her hard onto his erection, “You will obey me, wildling,” then crushed his lips to hers before throwing her into a pool of water.
Waves of warmth washed over Nyra as her head plunged below the surface, enveloping her in a soothing embrace. For a brief moment in time, she forgot where she was, the sensation so sublime, her tired muscles weeping with joy. Her lungs protested, pleading with her to take in much needed oxygen.
Her head burst from the surface, only to see the mountain of a warrior staring down at her, a big smirk on his stupidly smug face.
“I swear to you,” she hissed, glaring at him, her chin still lowered in the water, “I will break your fucking limbs if you come anywhere near me right now.”
His smirk widened, eyes glinting with mischief. “Don’t tempt me, little vixen. Violence makes my dick hard.”
Of course it does, sadistic maniac.
He cocked his head, a wide smile spreading across his handsome features, causing Nyra’s breath to catch as she wordlessly stared back at him. It was blinding, the smile like a knife to her chest, so painfully beautiful that she cursed the heavens for her bad luck.
Of all the times that she could have met such a rare specimen of the male population, it had to be now, while she was hunting for a beast that would kill her the very instant it sighted her, thus ending any possibilities for this attraction that was brewing between them blossoming into something more substantial.
She winced, taken aback by her train of thought. What the hell are you thinking? He’s an arrogant, condescending barbarian and most likely whores himself all over the kingdom. You’d be just another notch on his bedpost.
“No, Nyra, you’d be the last one.”
Sure that she had said her thoughts out loud, she watched his face fall, all the humor gone, replaced once again by his usual glowering demeanor.
“Wash up, I’m going to prepare you some food. And then, I’ll tell you a story.”
Before she could protest, he was already walking away, only his imposing shadow now visible as he stalked out of sight.