Chapter 42
42
“ K awahnee! He has taken her!”
Kwaku looked at his wife and laughed. “Yes!” He threw his arms out wide. “Isn’t wonderful?” He laughed some more, not caring who heard them far below.
“But he might harm someone thinking he needs to protect her.”
“No, Pretty One. Dis place is like a giant cage. He will take her as far from de humans as he can. He will not risk leaving de park and venturing into de city.” He slipped down to the next branch. “Let us eat.”
“But Kawahnee…”
He laughed some more and kept going, knowing she would follow. “He will go deeper into de woods, noting more.” Kwaku scrambled down the tree, reached the bottom branches and jumped to the ground. He went behind the big tree where he’d stashed the food, opened the cooler and took out a huge deli sandwich. When Zara joined him, he handed her one.
“You knew this would happen, didn’t you?” she said, not hiding her accusatory tone.
“I suspected. Melvale will merge wid his Alpha side, but dere will still be two sides of him.” He grinned. “He is coming along nicely.”
“But what of Pari? She understands nothing of what is happening.”
He chewed and swallowed. “He will explain it.”
“Melvale is having a hard enough time as it is,” she pointed out.
He laughed again. “I do not speak of Melvale, Pretty One.”
Her eyes widened. “Oh. I see.” She smiled. “And you are not afraid the Alpha side of him will try to mark and claim her right here in the park?”
“He will not. Dey are not properly bonded yet. De Alpha still has work to do to win her.” He smiled at Zara. “He knows dis. He will play wid her. Bond. She will have fun, if she allows herself to.” He took another huge bite of his sandwich.
Zara shook her head in resignation. “Are you going to follow them?”
“We will keep watch at a distance.”
She looked at the table and chairs they’d set up earlier. “We should give Al and Leo their things back.”
Kwaku chuckled. “In time.” He reached into the cooler again and pulled out a whole pie. “Dis looks good.”
Zara rolled her eyes. “You are impossible at times, my love.”
He leaned down and kissed her. “And you are beautiful.” He waggled his eyebrows. “Hungry, beloved?”
She smacked him on the arm, took the pie, and brought it to the table.
“Where are we?” Pari asked. Carrying her through the woods of Prospect Park, Melvale managed to move in such a way so she didn’t get scratched up by brush and tree limbs. “Bondrah?”
He stopped, not even winded after his sprint, and looked around before sniffing the air. “Hmmm.” He looked at her. “Pari.” His voice was deep, and dare she say, sexy?
She swallowed hard. “Um, yeah?”
He looked into her eyes, then rubbed his nose against hers. “Pari, Kahtala Miah. You are safe here.” He let her slide out of his arms and stand but didn’t let her leave his embrace.
“Um, what was that?”
He stared down at her and cocked his head. His eyes were practically glowing. “What?”
“Running through the woods. Carrying me off?”
“Protection.” He looked around then without warning sat cross-legged, pulling her down and onto his lap.
“Okay,” she drawled and looked up at him. He held her cradled in his arms and was looking at her like she was the most wondrous thing in the world.
He moved a hand toward her face and brushed her bangs to the side, then continued to study her with such a look of awe, she almost couldn’t stand it. “Pari,” he whispered, his voice low, guttural.
“Y-yes?”
“You are… lovely.” He ran the back of one finger down her cheek, then up the other. “So soft.”
“Um, yeah. I swear half my money goes to good skin care products.”
He cocked his head, then stuck his nose in her hair and breathed in.
“Oh, wow, you are like… sniffing my hair…”
He drew back and looked at her. “You object?”
“Um, well, not really. I mean, it’s kind of nice.” She swallowed hard and tried to relax. “Bondrah?”
His chest rumbled, and he almost sounded like he was purring. “Yes?”
“Why did you bring me here? Where’s… Melvale?”
His head tilted the other way. “You summoned me.”
She blinked back her confusion. “What?”
He gave her a single nod. “You called me forth, Kahtala Miah. Here I am.”
Her jaw went slack. “I… called you?”
Another nod. Another sniff of her hair, and his forehead was resting against hers again. “I will always come when you summon me.”
She sucked in a breath. “You… you mean when I said Bondrah?”
“Yes, precious one.” He gently adjusted her in his arms and looked into her eyes. “My beauty, Kahtala Miah.”
Pari wanted to melt into a puddle. “Oh… erm… I don’t mind, I guess… but…”
He nuzzled her neck.
“Ohhhhhh my goodness… um… well…”
He pushed his nose into her cheek and sniffed, before his tongue touched her skin.
“Ahhhhh, oh, wow…”
“Do you like that, Kahtala Miah?”
Pari found it hard to form words. “Erm… I…”
His tongue found her lips, and he ever so softly ran it across them. It wasn’t a kiss, exactly, more like he was exploring. “ Kahtala Miah, yeh nah maylho sol .”
“I don’t know what that m-means,” she stammered as he tasted her lips again.
“My heart, you are my life,” he translated.
“Oh, well, that’s good to know.” She swallowed again and looked into his glowing blue eyes. “Wow, um, this is new.”
He cupped her face with his hand, and she wondered if he was about to kiss her. But no, he put his cheek to hers, and the rumbling in his chest started again.
“Are… are you… purring?”
He didn’t answer, he simply held her cradled against him, sounding like a giant cat. The thought made her wonder if Q purred like this. Were the two races somehow related? No, they couldn’t be…
“If you need me, Kahtala Miah,” he whispered into her ear. “Summon me, and I will come.”
She thought about earlier. “By calling you Bondrah Miah?”
He drew back, his face taking on a serious look. “I am your Bondrah.”
Something deep within her responded, and she was nodding before she realized it. “Yes.”
“And you are mine…”
She nodded again without thinking. “Yes…. wait… what?” She shook her head. “Bondrah…”
“Yes?” he drawled happily.
“What do you mean I’m yours?”
He smiled as his eyes got bluer. “Yes. Mine.”
“Uh… you know, I don’t think I got that memo.” She gulped, unsure of how to take this or handle him.
He nudged her cheek playfully with his nose. “Mine.”
Unable to help it, she began to squirm. “I’m not sure about that.”
To her surprise, he released her, and she scrambled to her feet. When he got to his, he smiled and poked her in the belly with a finger. “Mine.”
A tiny giggle escaped. “You are beyond weird, you know that?” Pari backed up a step, and he smiled again.
This time he reached out with both hands and tickled her. “Mine?”
She laughed. “No! Stop with the mine stuff, will you?”
Pari tried to escape him, but he wrapped an arm around her waist and tickled her with his other hand. “Mine?”
“No!” she said through her giggles. “Stop it!”
He tickled her harder. “Mine?”
“No!”
He released her, his eyes still bright, and put a hand to his chest. “Kahtala Miah?” He gave her a playful smirk.
Pari laughed. She didn’t know why; it wasn’t like he was still tickling her.
He wiggled his fingers at her and lunged.
She squeaked in alarm and ran.
The chase was on.
Pari half screamed, half laughed as she dodged bushes and branches. He was right behind her, also laughing. The sound fueled her flight, and she knew he could catch her if he wanted. But he didn’t, not yet anyway.
“Kahtala Miah!”
She laughed some more and ran faster. Pari couldn’t remember ever running so fast. There was a park bench just beyond the faint trail she was on. She surprised herself by vaulting over it and racing across a paved path and into the woods beyond.
Bondrah laughed deep and throaty behind her and followed her into the woods where he caught her by the arm and swung her around to face him. “Mine?”
Pari couldn’t talk, she was breathing too hard. “N-n-no,” she said with a wide smile.
He laughed. “Mine…” he said against her hair then kissed it.
Her insides melted, and she leaned against him for support.
He scooped her into his arms and looked her in the eyes. “Mine, Kahtala Miah?”
She shook her head, unable to speak. The wonderful peace she experienced yesterday was surrounding her, and she wasn’t sure what to do.
He buried his face in her hair. “ Keyah dolah miah… ”
“Wh-what does th-that mean?” Speaking took effort at this point.
He drew back, looked at her, then promptly sat cross-legged again in the bushes as he smiled. “You will see.” He ran a finger down her cheek like before, and goose flesh rose everywhere. She was still breathing hard from their run, and she realized she could use some water. But really, when one is being held in the arms of a gorgeous man in the woods, who needed any? But how long would this last? It was the same old question.
“Kahtala Miah?” he said with concern. “What is it?” His voice was still low, but not as gravelly.
She shook her head. “Nothing.”
He frowned. “You will tell me.”
Her heart stopped a moment. “No.”
He bent his face to hers. “Yes,” he whispered.
Her heart warmed. “Oh, why do you have to be so perfect?”
Bondrah drew back and cocked his head. “Because I am yours.”
She stared at him slack jawed and slowly shook her head. “N-no.”
He cupped her face with his hand again. “Shhhh…”
Her eyes widened before her eyelids started to grow heavy. If the sensation of blissful peace surrounding her wasn’t so darn pleasant, she’d fight it. But Pari couldn’t, and within moments, drifted off to sleep in his arms.