Chapter 10
We found the camp by noon the next day. The trip could have taken half as long, but I'd directed Taz in a zigzag pattern to draw out our time together.
If she'd caught on she didn't say, but she'd been avoiding talking to me for the last several hours and I wondered if I'd pushed her a little too far.
I didn't expect her to accept my offers of sex, and I didn't plan on following through on them until she was properly claimed in front of all my brothers. But watching her face turn red and her breathing pick up was so enjoyable I couldn't help but throw out every thought that came into my head.
Taking a mate wasn't something I'd given much thought to while I was enslaved. My life had been a series of short brutal fights, the threat of death hovering on the horizon no matter how many matches I survived.
I'd never expected to be free, and I'd taken comfort from the camaraderie of my fellow turochs. But I'd heard all the stories. There wasn't much to do between fights other than spin tales of home and mates. Turochs took great pride in the pursuit and gentling of their mates.
Every mated male told the story of their gentling in bold, graphic detail whenever prompted.
I'd never touched a female but I knew the inner workings of claiming a mate almost as well as I knew the rhythm of a battle.
Those stories had never held more than a passing interest to me before meeting Taz.
Now I was frantically trying to recall every memory I heard of those lauded tales.
I planned on trying every single thing I'd heard with my female.
I still didn't understand how the bond between mates could ever surpass the connection I felt to Adak or the other males I'd fought with, but I was starting to understand the appeal of having a female.
Especially one as bold and charming as my Firebrand.
Taz parked the truck in a clump of bushes and turned the engine off. When she didn't get out, I craned my head around and peered through the dusty window of the cab. My soon-to-be mate was clutching the steering wheel and muttering under her breath.
I didn't know what her plan was from here. I could smell the burning of fuel chips and the scent of turochs just past the crest of the hill, but I doubted Taz wanted to drive straight into camp. She still saw us as a threat, and she wanted to save her friend from Adak's clutches.
An entertaining thought, considering that Adak was the most peaceful, honorable male I'd ever known. I'd fought beside him in the Pit for years, and no matter how many lives he was forced to take, he'd never once lost himself to a blood rage and never enjoyed the violence.
There was no place on this planet safer than at his side. There was also no way a creature as small as Taz was going to steal his mate away from him.
Taz's friend was in no danger, no matter what my female thought. There'd be plenty of time for her to realize we weren't the enemy but I was enjoying our little stand off and I wasn't ready for it to end.
The slam of a door pulled me from my thoughts and I watched as Taz stretched and surveyed the landscape.
"They're over the hill?" She confirmed.
I nodded, noting the dark circles under her eyes, and frowned.
She'd pushed herself hard through the night and I could see the exsaustion in her posture.
My female was not in fighting form, and while I wasn't worried that my brothers would hurt her, I was concerned about how hard she was pushing herself.
"If you let me go, I could take you into camp. I promise you're in no danger."
She scowled. "Like I'd take your word on that. I'm going to scope things out, don't move."
Taz pulled a bulky-looking contraption out of her bag and crawled up the hill.
I watched her from my perch in the truck and wondered if now was the time to break free and claim her.
If I yelled loud enough, the whole camp would hear my Ulto, and I'd be free to continue our courtship to all the things I'd been thinking about.
But I was enjoying being in her power. I liked the way she bossed me around because she thought she had me trapped, and something told me that if it weren't for the straps around my wrists, Taz would bolt in the other direction.
So, despite the fact that my hands ached from being tied, and my ass was going numb from sitting, I decided to wait her out a little longer. There'd be time to claim her later, once she trusted me a little more.