6. Thalia
THALIA
“ W ho’s Micah training with today? I’ve never seen him before,” Zephyr asked, and my brows furrowed, my attention drawn from the group of trainees whose sparring I oversaw.
I’d tried to avoid looking at the male since he’d met my gaze earlier, but it had been difficult to keep my eyes from wandering.
He was tall, his blond hair swept back from his face, save for the few strands that had slipped free during their training.
Where had he come from? He hadn’t been at the morning’s roll call.
“He looks a bit out of shape,” I said, noting how he panted in the brief moment before they exchanged blows again.
Zephyr huffed a laugh, his massive arms crossed over his chest as he tilted his head. “Definitely new to fighting.”
“I wouldn’t quite say that,” I said as my eyes narrowed in assessment. He was still standing, and I wasn’t sure if Micah was going easy on him or if he was truly holding up.
Wait—was I defending this male?
I shook the thought away, but as I tried to focus on our own recruits, I couldn’t seem to keep my attention from them.
Not from Micah, whose brow was coated in sweat from training, veins popping on his forearms, and not from the strange male whose throat bobbed as he swallowed, his eyes locked on my bonded.
Gods, why was I staring?
“Did we get a batch of new recruits?” Zephyr asked, and I blinked, praying I didn’t look as obvious as I felt.
“Recruitment happened three days ago, and he was not among the thirty who made it through the preliminary testing,” I said, tilting my head as I assessed his movements.
It was something I had to do as a trainer.
I couldn’t improve any weaknesses if I didn’t pay close attention to their flaws. It was strictly professional.
There was an unorthodox way with which he fought, as if he learned to fight more through necessity than training. Yet, at the same time, I could see similar steps the recruits used.
Something tugged in the back of my mind, something familiar and strange.
The beast deep in my chest seemed to purr, and my cheeks heated at the implication.
What the fuck?
I grumbled internally. In case you hadn’t noticed, that’s our bonded he’s fighting.
The beast seemed to huff at that statement. Then tell me why your heart races, little one.
I internally rolled my eyes at the name. I hadn’t been a little one for over fifty years.
As my attention returned to them, I couldn’t help but let my mind wander, letting my eyes do the same. Gods, they were beautiful, bodies powerful as they held each other off at every step.
“His name is Barrett.”
I stiffened at Lucia’s voice, even more so at the knowing smile on her face.
“Where’d he come from?” Zephyr asked. “I don’t recognize him.”
“That’s above your rank,” she said with a tilt of her head before leaving us in silence.
I frowned, glancing at Zephyr, who looked just as confused. He was third in command. if it was above his rank, then... That meant only she and Damien knew. Who the hell was he?
I had a shift to assist Damien with his work in a couple of days.
Perhaps I could learn more then. Surely there was information on his file for The Order.
Did I really want to know, though? I couldn’t help but feel a sense of guilt for the way my heart fluttered at the sight of him.
It was stupid. He was just a pretty male, with his fancy blond hair and hardened steel eyes that shined in the sunlight.
The beast within me seemed to huff a laugh. That’s an awfully detailed description of his eyes.
I growled and shot back at the beast. Shut up!
“Thalia?” Zephyr said, and I cleared my throat before turning my attention from the two males who had somehow sent my heart racing.
I blinked, internally scolding myself when the beast’s amusement flitted through my mind. “Sorry?”
“You good?” Zephyr asked, and I lifted my gaze to find him staring at me hesitantly.
“I’m wonderful,” I said far too fast before I turned to walk away. “I have a lot of work to do, so I’ll see you later.”
I couldn’t let myself get distracted. There was work to do, debts to be repaid.
I sat atop the roof that night, taking in the night sky. Even ten years later, it still felt strange to stare up at a single moon instead of two.
“I was wondering where you were,” Micah said, and I smiled at the warmth of his voice. His magic caressed mine, our bond humming within the markings of our binding tattoo between my breasts. I lifted my hand to it, feeling the warmth beneath the fabric of my shirt.
He sat down behind me, his arms coming around to pull me between his legs. I eased back against him, the feel of his arms around me the only thing I could ever need, could ever want.
A whisper of his magic flitted between us, and my eyes fell to a bud developing and unfolding into a brilliant blossom in his hand.
“I thought you were above wooing me with flowers,” I said with a smile as he held the delicate bloom out for me. I took it, and leaned closer against him, twisting to feel him press his lips to my temple.
“I’m above nothing when it comes to making you smile,” he said. “What’s bothering you?”
“Why do you think something is bothering me?” I asked, looking back up at the stars.
“You don’t usually hide away on the rooftop unless something is bothering you.”
“Perhaps I wanted you to hunt me down,” I said in challenge.
A satisfied hum rippled from his throat, deep and low, and his hands slipped over my stomach. “Is that what you wanted? ”
I smiled, but my breath caught in my throat as his hand found my breast.
“To be hunted?” he added.
My head fell back as his lips brushed against my throat before he dragged his fangs over my skin.
“Is that what you are, flower boy?” I teased. “A hunter?”
He huffed a laugh at the nickname I’d given him when we had first met all those years ago. “I’m yours .”
“Then be mine,” I said. “And I’ll be yours.”
He bit down on my throat then, and a moan slipped from my lips as he drank. One of his hands roamed down my stomach to undo my pants while the other palmed my breast.
“Gods,” I moaned.
My body shivered as he released my throat and whispered in my ear, his voice thick and heavy. “It’s been a while since I’ve taken you under the stars.”
His hand slid beneath the waist of my trousers, and he growled as his fingers found the slick heat waiting for him.
“Always so wet for me,” he whispered into my ear.
My head fell back against his shoulder as he slipped two fingers inside me, and I could feel his eyes burning into me as he watched me unravel for him.
As the need climbed higher and higher, until I felt I might explode, he slid his hand from my pants and pulled me around to face him. Our lips crashed together, and I reached for his shirt, desperate to get it off him, to feel his skin, to feel him inside me.
His lips curved into a wicked grin against mine. He huffed a laugh as we broke apart to peel each other out of our clothes, and then he was pulling me down onto him, his cock sinking so deep inside me that I cried out.
The binding tattoo between my breasts tingled as we fell into a rhythm, my hips rolling as he lifted his to meet me in heavy thrusts. I grasped his shoulder and rested my forehead against his as I rode him.
“Gods, you feel like heaven,” he groaned, and I gasped as his fingers closed around my throat.
He tilted my head back, forcing my gaze to his as his other hand gripped my waist. Pure hunger and need lit his pale, blue-gray eyes as he watched me, and he pulled my hips tighter against him on the next thrust, reaching deep enough to drag a moan from me.
“Fuck, you’re beautiful riding my cock,” he growled, and a smile curved my lips.
Gods, I loved how he watched me, how I could make him feel, the sounds I could drag from him. His fingers loosened as I leaned into him, my fangs lengthening, hunger driving me to the edge. My lips parted, and he tilted his head to the side as he released my throat .
I bit down into his own shoulder, our moans blending in the most delicious way as I tasted his pleasure. His senses heightened, the ecstasy erupting between us. His blood was powerful, sweet and heady, and I drank deeply, feeling his magic—his power—coat my throat with each gulp.
He moaned, his pace quickening, and I rolled my hips, meeting each deep, desperate thrust. I released his throat, panting as my body cried out for release.
A smile curved my lips as I felt the familiar snaking of vines crawling over my thighs, my hands—his vines.
They wrapped around my wrists, farther up my arms, and then my neck, pulling my arms to my sides, forcing my back to arch as he watched me come undone.
His heated eyes met mine as he used both his free hands to grab my hips, pulling me down as he slammed into me harder, exactly as I wanted.
Right as I felt myself tipping over the edge, I felt a brush of his thumb over my clit.
My mouth fell open on a silent moan, the vines tightening their hold as he claimed me. So close. So fucking close.
I cried out his name, my body tightening around him.
“That’s right, fucking come for me,” he growled, pulling me down on him again.
I shattered, my orgasm crashing through me in unrelenting waves, but he didn’t let up. He never did, and I didn’t want him to. He would draw me over the edge, far beyond it, to a place I never wanted to return from.
Tears dotted my lashes as he fucked me harder, drawing it out, intensifying it beyond belief, and on the next thrust, his body shuddered, a moan spilling from his lips as he pumped his release into me. The vines quivered around me before they slackened their hold.
I collapsed against him as the vines receded, my body quivering, my skin sensitive as he caught me. He shifted and turned to ease me onto my back, twisting around to hover over me, his smile warm.
“So perfect,” he whispered, gazing down at me. “My bonded. My Thalia.”
I smiled despite the sadness winding its way through me at the sound of the name on his lips.
His eyes flitted between mine, the same sadness dulling them. He brushed his thumb over my cheek, and it was only then I realized an errant tear had slipped free without my permission. “What is it, love?”
“I wish you knew my true name,” I admitted.
“I don’t need to know your true name to know the true you,” he said, his eyes burning into mine. “To know you are the greatest thing to ever happen to me.”