Chapter 73 – Ryder
Seventy-Three
RYDER
My first-ever shift was one of the most exciting moments of my life.
My first kill, hunted all alone, was a moment of great pride.
When I was of age and attended my first quarterly meeting, it felt like I was officially part of the pack.
None of those moments hold an ounce of comparison to this. To holding my mate in my arms as she slumbers without the worry of her leaving in the morning, or the stress of pulling away from what I’ve deemed to be forbidden.
It’s only her and me, and everything is finally as it should be.
She nuzzles into my side, sighing in her sleep. She passed out quickly, her body drained from sex and whatever her day consisted of before coming here.
She ran to me.
We have a lot to talk about, yet a part of me hopes we never do. I don’t want to hear whatever she feels she has to say. She has nothing to apologize for, nor to explain. From the start, I intended to give her choice, and choice is precisely what she had.
Burying my nose into her hair, I inhale, not only her signature scent, but the trace of myself. It’s already attaching to her, and I plan on re-laying it at every chance.
We have the rest of our lives, so for now, I throw my leg over hers, pull a pelt over our bodies, and sleep.
We never got the chance to celebrate our mate bond, so before the rest of the pack wakes and sees our newest member, I wake her by lapping much of her body.
She moans lightly, reaching for where I nip at her chest. “Mm, what time is it?”
If I died now, I’d be a happy wolf at the sight of my mate flush from sleep, hair mussed from fucking, and stretching from contentment. It’s everything a male needs and more.
Well…almost.
“Early. Come with me.”
Her eyes pop open almost comically. “Where?”
“Learn to trust, kamahki.” I tug the furs down before linking my fingers in with hers and pulling her upright.
She rubs a hand in her sleep-filled eyes and allows me to lift her up, bypassing my shirt discarded off to the side that she reaches for. “You ever going to tell me what that means?”
“Obey and follow, and maybe.”
Irritated by her slow pace, I scoop her up and stalk from the cave, quickly ducking into the attached hall before anyone spots us.
The closer we get to the spring, the more steam dampens my skin with a light mist that’s as warm as she is. Her expression sparkles more than the ice-blue water when she looks from it to me, grinning.
“Okay, update for the future. Wake me up whenever you want if it means coming here.” She wiggles her legs. “Put me down so I can get in.”
At the edge of the cliff, I spread my arms and toss her in, instantly met with a shriek that probably wakes half the pack. By the end of our time in here, she’ll be shrieking a lot more.
Her body cannonballs, forming a decent-sized splash that reaches my legs before she sputters to the top, arms and legs kicking against the self-made waves. “You’re an ass.”
I hop into the water far enough away to ensure I don’t land on her, but once up for air, she’s latching her arms around my neck and tugging me in for a kiss.
“It’s nice in here,” she murmurs, pulling back.
Water clings to her lashes and drips to her cheek, dancing along her nipples.
“I said that the last time, but since we didn’t get in… ”
“We can come whenever you want.”
This time, however, she doesn’t smile. Her hold loosens until hands rest on my shoulders. Somberness replaces cheer, her eyes sinking alongside her mouth. “I’m sorry for everything.”
“I don’t want your apology.”
“But you’re getting it.”
“I’m not accepting it.” Tugging on her hips, I propel her closer, creating little waves.
“You told me you needed space, took it, and still returned. Being here is all I care about—not the process to arrive or how long it took. You had to digest the changes and not feel as though you were forced into anything, which is essentially what I was inadvertently trying to do.”
“Not on purpose. Your instincts were pushing you into it.”
“Which was my problem, not yours.” My hand slides from her hip and up her back, tangling in the wet strands inky dark hair. “My instincts were not your issue, and I hope that’s not why you came back.”
“I came because I wanted to. Because I missed you. Because—”
“That’s good enough for me. I would have waited forever for you, so thank you for coming so much sooner.”
Her lips crack a near smirk but the reflection of reality quickly replaces anything good.
“Darkness has been kinder to me—more controllable, I mean. It hasn’t really spoken since that day, which Freya claims is thanks to my wolf side.
You were right; I was making excuses to get away.
Until yesterday, I ran out of excuses, out of lies, and got tired of pretending I wanted to be a High Priestess when all I really want is to be an Alpha’s mate. ”
My wolf howls. It’s all he—we—wanted as well.
“I’m still worried about the future, but I swear, Ryder, I’ll protect this pack with everything I have.”
And I’ll protect you with everything I have.
“It’ll be a while from now.” Hopefully. “Let’s not stress about it. Especially not this instance, since it’s not why I brought you here.”
Her gaze flicks around the cavern before she releases me and bobs backwards.
“I don’t want you to forgive me so easily.
Me leaving must have hurt. You’ve been hanging around the town because you had to.
” She pauses her backwards descent and instead kicks in place.
“You’d spend your entire life there if I never returned. ”
Unable to give her the answer verbally, I jerk my chin.
“That wasn’t fair.”
“It was the choice I made, and I wouldn’t have done anything differently.”
“Not one thing?”
“Nothing. Not if it got us here.”
The past month lingers within the mauve of her eyes, but she releases it all with a deep sigh before tipping onto her back. Gentle waves created from her arms push her away. Every so often, she pushes her arms down in a V to keep her trajectory going.
With her distracted and clearly still lost to the past, I slip beneath the water’s surface and pop up between her spread legs. My tongue swipes up her pussy to her clit where I tug it between my teeth.
She lurches, losing her balance in the water, but I grip her thighs to keep her in place.
“Last night was nowhere near enough. You passed out much too soon. You left me ravenous a week ago, and it’s your job to stay on your back and be the perfect little mate and let me sate myself on your cunt until full.
I should warn you—shifters have a massive appetite. ”
The sharp inhale of her breath from anticipation is simply the start, and it turns into a full-on gasp as my tongue slides in as deep as possible. With a bit of focus, my tongue shifts into that of a wolf and reaches deeper inside.
Her cry echoes around the cavern, her hands scrambling for purchase against the water that doesn’t give her any. Her focus remains on her balance, which leaves her completely in my mercy, dragging her up and down my tongue, feeling her clench around me every so often.
After a moment, her limbs get stiff. Flavour assaults me seconds before the orgasm hits her. My hands massage her inner thighs as I keep her in place, my tongue slowly dragging from her before placing a chaste kiss over her clit.
“One of many. Catch your breath.”
“You can’t kill me. The earth ending already has its hooks into me.”
While she’s joking, it creates a deadly kind of fire through me, until my claws shed and dig into her skin. Even as she flinches, she murmurs the three words that’ll forever quell my wolf.
“I love you, Ryder.”
“I love you too, Carina.”