Chapter 14
Kyran
The mood in my house is warm and inviting. Two words I wouldn’t normally use to describe the place, but then a lot has changed. I’m not as driven toward maintaining solitude as I was not so long ago. The girl standing among a cluster of my clan members is the reason why.
“It must seem like everything’s being rushed.” Lucas offers me a brief smile over the top of Tara’s head. “But somebody was feeling impatient.”
“Wouldn’t you, after everything?” I ask as I approach, handing Tara a glass of wine in hopes of loosening her up a little.
She’s nervous, and understandably so. Instead of waiting for the weekend, it only seemed smart to perform the ceremony tonight, one day after I announced I’d claim her.
I’m not taking any chances. I already came too close to losing her.
“Are you nervous?” Jenna, Lucas’s sister, looks sympathetic.
“A little,” Tara admits, which is an understatement.
I sense what she’s going through, and I wish she didn’t have to, but she’s been given next to no time to adjust to all of this.
And she didn’t know until today, when I announced the change in plans, that the ceremony is held in front of the entire clan.
Out in the open, under the sky, with everyone to observe.
“I’ve heard once you get into it, you sort of forget there’s anyone else around.” When I lift my eyebrows, Lucas shrugs. “It’s true. It’s like it’s just the two of you.” Is he lying for her sake? I hope not. I want this to be good for her.
We did a lot of talking about it once I gave her a crash course in what to expect.
She understands. This is the only way the clan will accept her.
We have to abide by certain rules, if not all of them.
It’s bad enough for some of them that I’m claiming a wolf to begin with. We don’t need to upset anybody else.
It was Lucas’s idea to get together with a handful of the fully supportive clan members so Tara can feel a little more accepted and welcomed before we go out to the clearing, which is being prepared by others who might not be completely on board but who know better than to defy my decision.
Everyone knows what happened to Regina and her partners last night.
In a way, the whole thing is a warning in case anyone else decides to go rogue and decide they know better than their alpha.
Joseph promised he would oversee things and make sure it all goes smoothly, and I trust him.
“Here’s an important question.” Jenna’s eyes twinkle with mischief. “Has he tried to cook for you yet?”
Tara bites her lip and glances up at me, obviously fighting off a laugh. “He did his best. I’ll be doing the cooking, I think.”
“You know, some people like having their cousins around,” I muse. “Others end up getting their balls busted.”
“It’s just not one of your strengths, that’s all.
There’s nothing to be ashamed of.” Jenna can’t hold back a laugh now, and neither can Tara.
The way they’ve gotten along so far gives me hope.
Jenna has a lot of friends in the clan—she’s naturally personable and likes to think of herself as the social director.
She also has a lot of trust. When others see she’s given this union her blessing, it will make them that much more likely to get used to it. That’s what I’m hoping for, at least.
I leave her with a few of the other women, pulling Lucas aside. “You would tell me if you thought I was making a mistake, wouldn’t you?”
“I would be the first one to tell you, obviously.”
“But you haven’t.”
“No, because you haven’t,” he replies, eyeing the women as they laugh and gossip.
It’s obvious Tara is a little overwhelmed, but in a happy, dazed sort of way.
She didn’t expect this. Frankly, neither did I.
“What fate puts in motion, we don’t have any place questioning.
It doesn’t really matter what I think. But for what it’s worth, she seems like a nice kid who won’t have any problem with calling you on your bullshit from time to time. ”
“I don’t deal in bullshit.”
“Sure. Lie to someone who hasn’t known you his entire life.” He gives me a nudge with his shoulder as we watch Tara throw her head back and laugh. “I’m glad for you. I really am. I think you’ll be happy together.”
I agree.
With less than an hour to go until the ceremony, Lucas gathers everyone together and ushers them out of the cottage, leaving Tara and me on our own.
“Everyone’s so nice,” she gushes, pink-cheeked, beaming.
“I’m still a little nervous, but they told me it’s no big deal.
It doesn’t even have to take that long.”
I rub a hand over the back of my neck, snickering. “I like to think my stamina is better than that. But no, it doesn’t have to take forever. And as far as I’m concerned, we’ll be the only two people there. Like Lucas said.”
“As long as we get to come back here and do it as much as we want.” She’s wearing a wicked grin when she takes me by my shirt collar and pulls me down for a long, slow kiss that has me wishing we could go straight out to the ceremony now.
Especially with her tongue stroking mine and her body melting against me.
Finally, I have to regretfully break the kiss. “Easy, now.” It takes everything in me to go against what my body wants, but we have to save it for the ceremony. “Not much longer.”
“I can’t believe I’m dreading it and looking forward to it at the same time.” She touches her forehead to my chest and sighs. “And every time I get nervous, I remind myself I get you in the end. That makes it worthwhile.”
She’ll never understand what it means to hear her say that. After spending so many years, decades, telling myself there was no mate for me, here she is. She’s not what I expected, but then sometimes the biggest blessings come by surprise.
The clock ticks painfully slowly, but unlike the meeting last night, there is no dread that comes with the passing minutes.
They can’t move fast enough for me. The sooner she is officially mine, the better.
“Are you ready?” I call out, looking out the front window toward the lights flickering in the trees.
Torches surrounding the ceremonial altar on which I will take her.
Their flames dance between the gaps in the branches, calling to me.
Soon. Soon. My bear is agitated, but it’s excitement, anticipation, finally getting what he wants after weeks of holding back.
The bedroom door opens, drawing my attention away from the torchlight.
She’s dressed in the same simple, white robe I wear, with her long, black hair hanging down her back and looking like raven’s wings against the fabric.
It’s her tentative smile that draws me to her and makes me take her face in my hands.
“You’re so beautiful. Have I told you that enough? ”
Her eyes sparkle like emeralds in the sun. “Not really.”
“Then I have lost time to make up for, little wolf.” Touching my lips to her forehead, I close my eyes. The enormity of what we’re about to embark upon settles on me, but I wouldn’t change it for anything. “You are beautiful. And we’re going to be late if we don’t get moving.”
“Wouldn’t want to be late for our own ceremony.” Her laughter is weak. She’s trying.
We need to get this over with before she loses her nerve. Engulfing her small hand in mine, I whisper, “Let’s go.”
It’s a cool, cloudless night. A million stars twinkle overhead, and I would swear the air around us crackles with energy.
I’m sure it does—it’s fate itself finally being satisfied.
It brings with it magic, something so palpable I can almost taste it as we walk in the direction of those flickering torches.
Her hand clenches in mine, and I can’t ignore the clammy sensation.
“Not much longer now,” I promise as the tree line breaks, and the clearing comes into full view.
They’re waiting, all of them, wearing the ceremonial robes with the hoods raised.
I sense Tara relaxing—no doubt she imagined looking around into the faces of so many strangers, but those faces are concealed in darkness.
Without a word, the circle parts to make room for us to pass through.
“Tonight,” I call out, “I claim my mate beneath the moon, and in full view of my clan. What is joined together tonight, no one—mortal or shifter—may break apart. My mate now comes under the protection of all who witness this deed.”
Voices rise up, soft, almost musical. “So it shall be.”
With that finished, I lead Tara to the altar. She’s trembling when I turn her to face me, though I get a sense of more than anxiety in her now. It’s inevitable. There is no pretending the craving doesn’t exist. The desperate, ceaseless yearning to complete our bond and be cemented together forever.
She follows my lead, unbelting the robe, allowing it to slip off her shoulders until it falls in a pool around her ankles.
“Look at me. Just at me.” With those words, I help her perch on the altar’s edge before standing in front of her, then slowly lowering her until she’s on her back and painted by silvery moonlight.
My cock is rigid, dripping with anticipation as I watch her chest rise and fall with every breath she takes.
Slowly, I part her thighs, stepping into the gap they create.
Lowering my head, I take in the scent of her arousal and let it wind its way around me, almost hypnotizing me, wiping away everything but this.
Desire. Need. The drive to come together.
When she trembles again, I remember how nervous she is. The sooner I make my mark on her, the better. Taking myself in one hand, I guide my swollen head through her pink folds, making her roll her hips and spread her legs wider in a silent plea.
There is nothing like the sensation of invading her. Sliding in, stretching her, filling her with all of me. Her back arches, a silent moan tumbling from her parted lips.
“So it shall be… So it shall be…” The clan’s whispers are barely audible over my pounding heart.
Two heartbeats, in fact. Mine and Tara’s, perfectly synced, like the drumbeat of the symphony we’re creating together.
I pull back and push forward again, again, while my hands lay claim to her ripe body.
Luscious tits sway gently with every stroke—I take them in my hands, molding them in my palms, before sliding down to her hips and pulling her against me. Harder. Harder.
It isn’t enough. It takes nothing to pick her up, her legs wrapped around me, and I climb onto the altar so I can pin her body with mine, hands clasped over her head, my hips rising and falling in an almost desperate rhythm.
She stares up at me, breathing as hard as I am, and I see a different light swirling in those green depths. Something soul-deep, something beyond intimacy. Body and soul, I am hers. I’m giving myself to her, promising myself from now until our final breath.
“So it shall be…” Their voices rise in volume when I pull back, making Tara’s mouth fall open in surprise and disappointment. That doesn’t last long before I have flipped her onto her knees so I can pierce her from behind, and take her like the animal I am.
She pushes back against me, grunting the way I do, her muscles tightening around me with every stroke. “Yes, yes,” she moans, and her cries rise and mix with the other voices, like a tapestry woven around us, driving me on.
I can’t wait any longer. She’s so close, practically snapping my cock off.
I run my hands up her back and take her by the shoulders, pulling her up until her back presses against my chest. She moves, and I cup her mound to tease her clit while wrapping my other arm around her, holding her tight. Mine. She is mine.
“Kyran!” Her lustful cry is my cue. That and the fluttering of thousands of tiny muscles milking my cock, demanding every last drop.
And the second I let go, my teeth sink into the fleshy part between her neck and her shoulder.
The coppery tang of blood touches my tongue, invading my senses.
Finally. She stiffens against me with a strained gasp but cups the back of my head, holding it in place, shuddering in her release while I fill her with my seed.
The world spins, and the moon glows, and there is nothing but the two of us.
Our heavy breathing, our frantic heartbeats which soon slow into something more peaceful.
By the time I realize the night air has gotten chilly, we’re alone.
The ceremony has been completed. We’ve been left to our privacy, finally.
There’s nothing to say after something so profound has been shared.
Without a word, we get down from the altar, and I help her into her robe before thrusting my arms through the sleeves of mine.
It’s a short walk back to the cottage, and we make it hand-in-hand the way we walked to the clearing.
“Are you all right?” I murmur, but all she does is nod.
She’s overwhelmed. So am I, but the need to protect her is stronger.
There’s nothing to protect her from, as it turns out. As soon as we’re inside with the door locked behind us, she launches herself into my arms. “I love you,” she whispers with her cheek against my chest. “I love you so much.”
I’m holding the world in my arms. Stroking her hair, fighting to make sure my heart doesn’t explode. “I love you, little wolf,” I whisper back, kissing the top of her head, reveling in the peace that’s followed, finally giving in to what was meant to be. We were meant to be.
And somehow, we’ll find a way to make this work. We have to. It’s fated.