Vulfu (Primal #2)

Chapter 4

Chapter Four

M y feet were completely messed up.

It was the morning after, and the entire group had settled themselves along the creek. Mowha was tending to all my scratches and scrapes, washing off all the dirt, cleaning each cut, and coating them with a strange paste before wrapping it in a thin skin, tying it around my ankles to keep it on. Though I’d been averse to allowing her to apply some strange unknown substance into my wounds, she easily held me down, and the moment she brushed it over the bottoms of my feet, I felt a cool sense of relief. So, I remained still while she finished.

My injuries were nothing compared to Vulfu, who had insisted on sitting close by while the other white-haired woman, whose name I finally figured out was Veshy after Mowha had called to her, helped him clean and bandage up. She also applied generous amounts of paste to each cut.

Each time I risked a chance to glance his way, Vulfu’s heated gaze was locked on me. I could tell that Veshy was talking to him, and though his lips moved very subtly, his voice quiet as he responded to her, his intense stare never drifted. I flushed as I remembered what we’d done last night. I haven’t let myself go like that since I was seventeen, and for the last two years, I’d kept that part of me buried. But Vulfu easily smashed those walls down. Judging by the hooded way his intense regard was fixated on me, it seemed like he was thinking about it, too.

Mowha kept glancing curiously at him, noticing the more amorous sort of looks he was casting in my direction. Once or twice, she curled her lip at him, as though in warning, and he’d let his gaze idly roam, only to return to me moments later.

The other woman was lying to the side in a sunspot, her eyes closed, enjoying the peaceful morning we were having. That was when I noticed two dark heads in the wild shrubbery at their backs. I knew instantly it was Kray and Dow, even if their faces were blurred. They were the only ones missing. The elder male was resting close to Veshy and Vulfu. There was no one else in the group. I watched with interest, wondering what they could possibly be scheming now.

When a wild tangle of insanely dark curls popped up again, I knew at once it was Kray, and he was slinking quietly up behind the slumbering woman, much like a cat would on a mouse toy.

I held my tongue, wondering what on earth was going on as Dow followed, two water skins in his hands. He handed one to his buddy, both moving closer to their sleeping mark. Their shadows were behind them, their figures not interfering with the sun shining down on the snoozing figure, and after a brief pause, they upended the water skins onto the woman’s face.

There was an explosion of chaos, with the girl crying out in shock, a spray of water flying through the air as she whipped about before she furiously turned to face the two hooligans. But by this point, the boys had already dropped the skins and taken off, racing for the trees while she chased after, shouting many words I didn’t understand, but translation wasn’t needed. I imagined it was something along the lines of…

“You two little motherfuckers!”

“I’m gonna kill you!”

“What the hell is wrong with you two?”

“I swear I’ll wring your neck if I get my hands on you boys!”

The two troublemakers scrambled up a massive elm near the north side of the clearing, easily swinging from branch to branch until they were so high, that the woman simply grumbled furiously and stalked away, ignoring the laughing taunting by the two mischievous friends. I thought Vulfu or the other old male would reprimand them for their little stint, but when I glanced over, our injured leader was smirking ever so slightly, like he had enjoyed watching this whole scene play out as much as I secretly had. Even Mowha guffawed a little, shaking her head as she washed her hands off in the stream.

I settled back on the moss and grass, closing my eyes as the warm sun beamed down on me, my body aching from my jaunt last night. Though I wasn’t giving up the idea of escape yet, with my feet so sore and every move I made now under close watch, I’d have to either patiently wait for another opportunity or hope that rescuers eventually decided to head down this side of the river and into the forest. But the thought of coming across one of those Pale Men again was enough to make me want to stay put.

If only Jen hadn’t made us take the wrong way… I thought, before instantly feeling guilty as hell. Jen was gone. It didn’t feel right casting blame. Now all I could do was pray that she would be found by searchers sooner rather than later. Lisa, at least, had made the right turn after the falls. I was sure of it by this point. Surely, she would notify authorities as soon as she could. And Kate… well, she was a survivalist. I had no doubt that wherever she ended up, she was making the best of it and finding a way to persevere. I couldn’t help them; I could just focus on me. And right now, that meant resting and letting myself heal.

“Stevvy?”

My eyes flew open at my name, momentarily panicked when I thought perhaps, I was the next victim of Kray and Dow’s childish games, only to find Vulfu had made his way over to sit at my side. I went to sit up, but he gently pressed a hand down to my shoulder, making me stay where I was and murmured, “Shusha,” which I took to mean, rest . So, I remained where I was amongst the soft, springy moss, my hair fanned out around me after Mowha had brushed it, and stared up at him, wide-eyed and curious. I could feel the pink flushing on my cheeks at the way his eyes moved up and down my body like I could feel his gaze leave a burning trail behind that had my skin prickling.

“Vulfu?” I whispered, bewildered. What did this man want from me?

Wordlessly, his gorgeous, grey-green eyes settled on my face, boring into me, absolutely smoldering as the sun shone behind his head, making it look more chocolate brown than black, the bits of silver shining even brighter. That, with the golden glow of his skin, the dark hair contrast with his eyes and sharp, fierce features, I found myself gaping up at him like a fish out of water. I could make out more silver in his hair in this light, more at his temples and a bit in his scruffy, shortly shorn beard, which I saw him cutting earlier this morning at the river with a makeshift blade. Vulfu was the most beautiful man I’d ever seen, and that included all the film stars pictures I’ve seen in magazines and at the movies. Vulfu blew them all away, and he wasn’t even trying.

Silently, he took my wrist and lifted my hand in the air between us. I watched breathlessly as he carefully pressed a small clutch of flowers to my fingers. I gently took them, bringing them close to see. It was a collection of wildflowers. Some bluebells, white redwood sorrel, and clover. I could feel my face break into a wide grin, my heart fluttering at the gesture. I’ve never had a man give me flowers before. And never would I imagine receiving them from someone like… well, Vulfu. A wild man, primal, strong, and terrifying, but with a gentle side he brought out whenever I was around him.

For a moment, I forgot about keeping my mouth closed, my smile was so broad, but I quickly corrected and pressed my lips together, still incredibly touched and pleased. I brought the flowers to my heart, placing them over it, and blinked back up at him, his eyes watching my reaction closely, the corner of his mouth lifting ever so slightly with his distinctive, little non-smile.

“Thank you, Vulfu,” I said, my voice cracking a little.

Without taking his eyes from mine, he pulled one of the little white flowers that were the redwood sorrel and tucked it into my hair by my temple, that little smirk of his tightening even more, as though he liked the look of it in my dark, floofy hair. He settled beside me then, stretching out on his side, his body facing toward me as I remained in place on my back. He rested on an elbow, his other hand reaching up to idly play with my hair, stroking it, twisting a lock round and round his calloused, rough fingers before releasing it again to do it to another thick strand.

The entire time, his eyes never left mine, and I found myself lost in his stare. We said not a word to each other, the sounds of the forest, a woodpecker in the distance, the trickling of the stream, the gleeful calls from Kray and Dow, they were all background noise as Vulfu and I lay there together, drinking each other in. I have no idea how much time passed when he finally murmured softly, “Stevvy mmahch.”

I furrowed my brow and shook my head. “I don’t know what that means.”

Vulfu finally tore his eyes away, searching around us as though trying to find a way to explain, before he pointed to the flowers and repeated the word, mmahch . He pointed up to the golden light shining through the greenery overhead, the leaves practically glowing. Again. “Faraah mmahch.” At a cluster of western bleeding hearts that were just within my range of sight to recognize what they were, he repeated himself, “Cht mmahch .”

He tapped my chin again, wanting my attention back. When I looked away from the pink flowers and back to his gloriously handsome face, his lips tugged up just a little more as he leaned in, brushing the tip of his nose along my jawline, up to my ear, until his lips lightly skimmed over my lobe, and whispered, “Stevvy mmahch.”

Beautiful… he’s calling you beautiful, Stephanie, a voice whispered. My heart clenched at this realization. When was the last time anyone called me beautiful? Even from my parents? Years, that’s how long. It had been literal years since anyone said anything to compliment my appearance in any way. And here I was, wearing nothing but a deerskin dress, my hair wild around me, covered in a strange cream from all my cuts and grazes, feet bandaged up… I was scrawny, my blue eyes wide unseeing and the cupid’s bow of my upper lip was fuller than my lower one. I wasn’t a classic beauty at all. Especially standing next to my friends. If Vulfu saw Kate or Lisa, he’d push me aside and chase after them with pretty bouquets.

My heart sank as this hit me, my chin wobbling slightly before I looked away from him, concentrating on the pink bleeding hearts sitting several feet away, all while clutching the small clutch of wildflowers he’d given me.

“Tch!”

Vulfu didn’t like that. He called my name, but I ignored him, my smile quickly disappearing as I squeezed my eyes shut, hating how much I hated myself. I wish I didn’t. Truly. But I couldn’t believe that something like this was actually happening to me. There must be some reason he was doing this. Was it a game? Or because I was convenient?

Shut up, Stephanie! None of this is true! It’s those bitches from school getting into your head again! That voice angrily scolded me, but the darker, more cruel voices were louder and easier to believe.

“Stevvy!” I could feel his hand grip my chin and forcibly turn my face back to him. But I kept my eyes closed, too fucking broken to let him see the pain in my eyes. I’d done my best to bear my abuse in silence, so my parents wouldn’t worry, so that the girls who made my life absolute hell couldn’t see the pain, and the boys who broke me wouldn’t get the satisfaction. No, I held it in. I soaked it all up like a sponge. The one time they succeeded in seeing me cry, it’d only spurred them on. It was that night, after the flagpole incident, that I’d snapped, and I started to…

At the thought, I carefully pressed my arms to my body, hiding the marks I’d given myself two years ago when I’d been so fragile, so broken and done with the world. But Vulfu suddenly gripped my wrist, forcibly turning my arm around, as though he had just noticed what I’d been hiding from him and the others. No one, not even my parents and a few friends had ever seen them. To know he was getting a glimpse of those ugly white scars scratched into the underside of my forearms was actually physically hurting me. I let the flowers fall, twisting away from him to free myself, but he refused to let go.

“No, Vulfu, please,” I sniffled, desperately and in a panic, trying to pull my arm free. “Let me go, please don’t!”

Terrified now, I tried getting up to run, hoping my weight on my feet tugging against him would help free me, but the moment I stepped down, I hissed between my teeth in pain, forgetting about how they were coated in cream and wrapped, the bottoms completely useless to me.

Vulfu pulled me towards him so that I sank to my knees and snagged my other arm, and he turned them both over, his sharp gaze taking in every single scar I’d inflicted upon myself. Silent tears were streaming down my face, my cheeks burning in shame and humiliation.

What would he think of me now?

Slowly, he raised his head, his expression a mixture of alarm, sorrow, and perplexity. I could feel him reading my face, seeing the hurt there, the embarrassment, the fact I was hiding them telling him so much. I could see it in his eyes but, would someone like him be capable of understanding? Yet I could see that something was clicking, even if he didn’t fully comprehend. Instead of looking disgusted or angry, Vulfu leaned in so close we were sharing breath, his hands still gripping my wrists, and he gave them a gentle squeeze.

“Stevvy mmahch,” he said firmly, his tone absolute, his face unflinching. As tears swelled in my eyes, he bowed his head and pressed his cheek to the lines, each scar, stopping every so often to whisper, “Stevvy mmahch.” Whenever I flinched or tried to pull away, he wouldn’t let me. He held me fast and kept going, not stopping until he’d nuzzled each one. When he finished and raised his head to see the tears falling off my chin, he softly wiped them away with his thumbs. Leaning in, he gave me that affectionate little touch to my head that I’d caught the others giving each other. Finally releasing my wrists, Vulfu let his forehead rest to mine, closing his eyes, his lips pressed tight, as though he was sharing my pain.

“Stevvy? Vulfu?”

I could feel him reluctantly pull away to look over his shoulder. Veshy, Mowha, and the elder man were watching us curiously, though my stand-in mother seemed more suspicious than intrigued. She reminded me of those parents who chase teenage boys out of their yards after catching them throwing pebbles at their daughter's windows. “Wahoe?” Mowha called.

He just shook his head, turning back to me only to collect the bundle of flowers and firmly pressed them back into my hands. Leaning in, he gave my chin a little nip of his teeth, before he got up, and moved toward the thicket surrounding the clearing, disappearing from my line of sight.

For days I had difficulty walking. While Vulfu bore his injuries with much more dignity and grace, I had to be carried around from place to place. The cream on my feet, combined with the makeshift bandages they were wrapped in proved to be slippery and difficult to walk on. Not to mention, it was still painful from the healing cuts and gashes on the soles. I had a horrible suspicion the strange, rubbery wrapping I wore as socks was a thin layer from animal intestines, but I shook the thought away.

Mowha, meanwhile, seemed to have no qualms about lifting me up, sometimes piggyback, or cradled like an infant, and moving me around. When she wasn’t, it was Vulfu who insisted on it. Once, when Dow had offered to carry me over to the stream for a drink, Vulfu had exploded from the treeline, barreling towards us and emitting an enraged, throat-ripping snarl when Dow’s hands slid beneath me to pick me up.

The young male instantly dropped me, and when I say drop, I mean he actually let go and I fell several feet onto my butt while he took off, putting as much distance between himself and his over-the-top grouchy leader. I rubbed my backside, my tongue also a victim of the situation as I had bit down on it upon impact with the hard, grassy ground.

Vulfu chased after Dow for several feet, even lingering beneath the elm he’d clambered up. The young boy shouted down at him and even broke off a thin little branch to throw at Vulfu when he retreated. The fearless leader’s head whipped around to look up at Dow, who retreated even higher up at the look he received, suddenly realizing that throwing things at someone like Vulfu probably wasn’t the smartest idea.

But when he returned to me, my arms were crossed, my eyes narrowed, and I pouted my lip out to show how furious I was with his behavior. As I couldn’t communicate verbally, I started doing it visually, expressing my emotions on my face by exaggerating my features. I’d found greater success in that over the past few days than by trying to teach them words or learn theirs.

Vulfu ignored the obvious displeasure on my face and scooped me up, his ultra-masculine, alpha facade fading as quickly as it had come, now becoming Mister Nice Guy. He carried me over to the stream and set me down on a moss-covered log. When he pulled back, his eyes immediately went to my pouty, lower lip and he instantly leaned in and nipped at it between his teeth, causing my head to lurch back.

“What is wrong with you? He was helping me!” I scolded him, pointing up at poor Dow who was still seeking refuge in his tree. Below, Kray was taunting him, calling up and huffing in that strange laugh of theirs.

Vulfu positively glowered when I gestured to the young male and shook his head vehemently before he snapped, “Stevvy jugra Vulfu!”

He quickly turned and headed back into the brush lining the clearing, something he did often when we were outside. I got the feeling he was circling us, on watch around the perimeter, keeping an eye out like a faithful guardian.

At this point, Kray had climbed up and was now hanging off of Dow’s ankle, the two bickering away while Mowha and Veshy meandered over to sit with me.

I learned more about them while I healed.

First, my suspicions that Vulfu was their leader were only confirmed. He acted like one, always watching. If there was a sound in the night, it was he who climbed out of the home to investigate. He got to pick what to eat first, where to lounge in the home, and though Mowha and Veshy bickered with him, he usually won their arguments, getting his way. Like, if he felt like lying next to me in the hollow home, resting on a fur as the setting pink sun shone through the cracks to light up the space and Mowha wanted him to move away, he just wrapped an arm around my waist, settling his hand over my stomach, and ignored her. Though she grumbled to herself, she did back off.

Everyone had their own private space, except for Kray and Dow who shared one, the two best friends getting a larger burrow to accommodate them both. Initially, I’d thought they were brothers, but after studying them closely, I could see how wrong I was. The only thing they shared was their dark hair colour, but the angles of their faces, and their features, were all unique from each other. Dow’s hair was straight, while Kray’s was curled. Dow had sharper more angular features that were closely linked to Vulfu, as well as the same grey-green eyes. I figured they must be related somehow. Kray’s resemblance, however, matched more with the woman named Krahu, with his rounder, dark eyes, more square, masculine face, and almost boyish charm. I think they were just best friends as they appeared to be so close in age, most likely having grown up together.

The three females in the family all had small, cozy burrows to huddle up in individually, save for Mowha who still shared with me. The older male, whose name I discovered was Dahkha, had a private space close to Vulfu, and acted like his second in command. He was always close behind him, always on his side. Then there was Vulfu’s space. He always came out of the same narrow opening each day, and I’ll admit, I got curious. More curious than I was about any of the others.

The next morning, when he got up and left to do what I assumed was a perimeter run, I snuck around The Dome while the others were going through their stores of medicinal plants and food, using the distraction as cover while I snooped. Though I was still limping a little, by this point I could move around without needing so much help. Using the wall to lean against while I quietly made my way, I checked one last time over my shoulder to make sure I hadn’t drawn attention and crawled in.

Vulfu’s dwelling was actually in the base of the redwood tree. The tree had grown through the rock cracking it open to make a small little burrow in the ground, the high ceiling going up a good ten feet before the tree closed in, sealing the space. He had a bed of soft furs, creating a circular space to cuddle up in, in the middle of the hollow. Around us, carefully arranged, were an array of different makeshift blades out of sharp stone, spears, even a sharp twisted antler that had been elaborately carved into to resemble a curved blade, and a few extra hides for clothing.

Being in here alone, knowing that this was his personal spot, felt… peculiar.

The night he killed that feral man and brought me back here was very much on my mind. Though he hadn’t initiated any other intimacies besides a few touches here and there, or small licks over my skin, his version of a kiss, he didn’t push things any further. Part of the reason was that when he got “too close”, Mowha would chase him off, or rally up the other girls and move in, forcing him back. It was the only time where he didn’t pull his “leader card”. Because his conduct had changed around me, I hadn’t dared let myself think of that private moment between us… until now.

Seeing his bed, knowing he slept there, I felt my skin prickle with excitement at the thought of his glorious, naked body spread out on the furs, his eyes closed in sleep. The picture in my mind had me sagging back against the inside of the tree, the bark surprisingly smooth as though it had been intentionally worn down and lost myself in my daydream.

Imagining him stretched out, his golden skin shining with a light layer of sweat, his muscles tensed and flexed as he touched himself, stroking his cock…

I sighed and closed my eyes, my hand slowly moving down the front of my dress, over the small mound of my pubis, until I was cupping myself over the soft hide. Would he want me there? Watching him touch himself? Would he let me touch his body? Stroke him… would he want me to wrap my lips around his swollen tip to swirl my tongue around its velvety head, licking up the salty taste of him…

“Stevvy?” a growling rumble murmured much too close to my ear.

My eyes shot open, my body freezing at the familiar voice, and found myself staring up at a very surprised Vulfu. He stood before me, his eyes trailing over my body, noting where one hand was holding myself, the other pressed over my heart, a light sheen of perspiration on my forehead and cheeks flushed. I was sure my eyes were probably sparkling with arousal, too, so it didn’t take a genius to figure out what I was doing, and understanding quickly replaced his look of bewilderment. The corners of his mouth curled up slightly, his gaze moving down again to where my hand remained completely frozen, my embarrassment level now at an all-time new high as everything caught up to me.

He caught me feeling myself up in his burrow. Oh… dear… God…

Sucking in a sharp breath, I went to retract my hand and run away, but quick as a whip, he seized my wrist, keeping it in place over my privates, the other grasping my other one and pressing it high over my head against the tree. Moving so slowly, so deliberately, towards me, I felt my body tremble as he buried his face into my hair, his lips lightly touching the shell of my ear, and whispered, “Brahda, Stevvy.” I could hear the smile in his voice, and I got the feeling that he wasn’t at all mad to find me here. In fact, it felt like the opposite. He seemed pleased. A little too pleased, because the next thing I knew, he pressed my hand down over my pussy, guiding my movements as he made me continue what I’d started.

My breathing hitched as the rubbing continued, but I didn’t need the fantasy now. I had the real thing right in front of me, and he helped that slow build begin again, I couldn’t help but sigh and relax into his control. He pressed a knee between my legs to hold me up, still rotating my fingers around and around, pressing harder against the material over my clit.

“Mmmm,” the sound vibrated in his chest, and he licked his lips, his shining eyes watching me closely. “Stevvy brahda… Vulfu gwukh.” He grinned, surprising me when he showed his teeth. His fangs were slightly but noticeably sharper than mine, as though years of evolution had made them that way and ran his tongue over the points. He then pressed my fingers down harder and began to swipe them back and forth, picking up pace. I closed my eyes, tilting my head back, pressing down against my hand as I gasped, breathless and quivering beneath him. Having him in control like this, moving me the way he wanted, getting me off, it was so erotic and naughty I was surprised to find how much I enjoyed it, giving him the power and letting him call the shots.

Vulfu bent his head again and latched onto the side of my throat, sucking hard on my neck as he had me rub harder and faster, my legs shaking and squeezing around his thigh. I was close… so close! That hot coil was tight, threatening to snap any second. He growled against my skin, the tremor of it only adding to the build, and I exploded. I cried out, my voice echoing up into the hollow of the redwood. Vulfu released my hands, and for a split second I thought he was just going to leave me in the middle of this intense orgasm, except instead, he dropped to his knees. He viscously yanked up my dress, his hands clasping the swells of my ass, and pressed his face there, licking my clit.

I was still trapped in the wave of my first orgasm, so when he began to eagerly eat me out, it only prolonged it, and I had to bite down on my wrist to keep from shrieking, alerting the others to what we were doing. His mouth closed over, sucking hard, his tongue teasing, and my body convulsed, twitching and squeezing around him as tears squeezed out the corners of my eyes. I couldn’t take it! I felt like I was being tortured, while at the same time, I didn’t want it to stop.

He began to lap at my pussy lips, his tongue tasting the wetness between my thighs, and moaned against me, that vibration only adding to the pleasure of it all. He laved at me, like he wanted to drink all of it, like it was the best thing to ever touch his tongue. When I tried to push him away, feeling like I couldn’t take anymore, he growled a warning, his fingers digging into my skin as he held on while he energetically kept going.

“Vulfu!” I gasped, my voice breaking as I began to shake, the build starting once more. “Please… I-I can’t…”

But when his tongue began to snake over my clit, the swift flick of it accelerating and pressing harder, I lost it. Unable to hold back any longer, I screamed, my hands running through his hair, gripping fistfuls of it, as I exploded once more.

I could hear a commotion at the entrance of his burrow, but I felt like my ears had popped, the sound of my blood rushing through my body loud in my ears, my focus entirely on Vulfu and his wicked tongue. I was vaguely aware that we were no longer alone, but surprisingly, I didn’t care. This had been so fucking amazing and freeing that I just smiled, my eyes shut, and slithered down to the ground and into his arms. He pulled me against him, resting my face into the side of his neck, his arms wrapped around me protectively as he sat there with me in his lap, my legs wrapped around his waist.

After a minute, as the quaking in my body began to slowly subside, the voices of others, the rumble of Vulfu’s voice, started to drag me back to reality. And reality was something far less pleasant.

Mowha was losing her shit.

In fact, Veshy and the other woman were holding her back, shoving her out of the hollow while she raged at him, pointing and hollering like she wanted to wring his neck. Dow and Kray were standing at the side, smirking knowingly at me. The moment I caught their gazes, they just chuckled and leaned back against the tree, watching the scene unfold like we were providing them with great entertainment. Jerks. Dahkha, meanwhile, was standing between us and the girls, ever loyal to Vulfu, his calm demeanor still present, though he was clearly commanding that they go.

I shivered in his arms and Vulfu pulled back just enough so he could look down at me, the fierce demeanor he carried as leader temporarily replaced with that smoldering, heated look he saved just for me. Upon seeing me in my current state, a sweaty, shaky mess, he just beamed with male satisfaction and pride and nuzzled my neck.

But now that the women were gone, Dahkha turned and fixed Vulfu with a stern look, his disapproval evident.

“Wahoe?” Vulfu snapped, sounding much too defensive.

Dahkha grumbled something about Mowha, gweenbruh, and another few choice words I didn’t know, which only resulted in Vulfu squeezing me tighter. From the side, Kray and Dow suddenly erupted into a series of whoops and cheers, like they were applauding us! Oh lord, kill me now. I buried my face into Vulfu’s chest as I blushed hard, realizing everyone had heard and seen it all. In the moment I hadn’t cared, but now? All I could think about was the fact that every single person who lived here walked in on Vulfu eating me out like I was a free dessert buffet. Having these two cheering like it was the best thing they’d seen in ages? Well, I didn’t need that.

Vulfu seemed to agree because he swung an arm in their direction. Unfazed, they both kept going, though they headed out of the hollow, chuckling and chuffing the entire time. The older two males just rolled their eyes and looked back at each other, sobering up fast as they talked softly. I had no idea what their discussion was all about, but I could tell that Vulfu didn’t agree. He shook his head angrily, snarling in response, and squeezed me tighter, like he didn’t intend to let go.

“Vulfu!”

Mowha’s voice called from The Dome, her tone full of displeasure and rage. The two men sighed heavily like they knew we were all about to get a serious talking to. I didn’t realize that what we’d done would be taken so badly. Why was that? Were these people celibate or something? Had we violated some sacred oath or belief of theirs? I pulled back and raised my brows at him in question, now nervous to face the rest. But all he did was shake his head at me, the corner of his mouth lifting just slightly, before he stood up, carrying me with him, still wrapped around him like a baby monkey, and headed out to face the others.

The three women were lined up on one side of the hollow, all glaring daggers over my head at their leader, while the men convened on the other side. Kray and Dow were both settled on the edge, sharing a leg of meat, chewing slowly as their gazes moved from one side to the other, almost hovering on the edge of their seats as though they were fully expecting some amazing brawl to break out.

Vulfu stood before them, easily looming over their figures, his extra height and muscle giving him an edge. But to the women’s credit, it didn’t seem to intimidate them at all. They just scowled up at him, Veshy with her arms crossed, the other tapping her feet like she was seriously disappointed in him. Mowha, however, was pressing her lips together so tight, you couldn’t even see them. You could seriously cut the tension with a knife.

Unable to take it anymore, I cleared my throat and said, “Stevvy gwukh Vulfu.” I’d learned that word a few days ago, linking that it meant ‘like’, ‘want’. Maybe if I could explain that I liked what Vulfu was doing to me, that I had wanted it, too, he wouldn’t be in so much trouble.

But the moment I spoke, the words they all knew so well falling from my lips for the first time, everyone slowly turned to look at me, eyes wide, even Vulfu.

There was a pause, a heartbeat, and then Kray and Dow exploded in laughter. They hooted and hollered until finally, Vulfu joined them. Before I knew it, even Dahkha was chuckling, followed by Veshy and the other woman. Mowha took the longest to break before finally, her lips twitched and she sighed, shaking her head like she didn’t know what she was going to do with me. My face burned, but I felt such relief that I just smiled at the others and let my head rest on Vulfu’s shoulder.

As they all slowly started to calm, Mowha held her hands out, and to my surprise, Vulfu walked over and passed me to her, still chuffing away as he laughed. Mowha sternly narrowed her eyes on me, to which I just pouted out my lip, hoping to look as innocent as possible. She sighed and rolled her eyes again before she moved away to set up our breakfast.

Crisis averted.