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The blood in her veins turned to ice. It was the man she’d been worried about. Before this horrifying ritual had begun, this man had stared at her in a way that had made her whole body ring with alarm. He’d looked large before when they’d locked eyes from a distance, but now…he was massive.
The expression in his blood-red eyes could only be described as hungry.
“An offering for you.” Before her vision went completely black, she heard him say in a deep rumbling voice, “My little wife.”
A species on the brink of extinction suddenly discovered a planet of beings capable of halting that extinction? And moreover, these beings had the ability to awaken sacred mating instincts which had remained dormant for centuries?
Rhaego didn’t take part in the chase often anymore, but when he did, it was known among all that he would catch whoever he chose and woe to anyone who tracked his quarry.
Their eyes locked for the span of a heartbeat, and she whimpered. The sound echoed through his skull, and his hands stilled. Fear? Is she afraid…of me? Uncertainty cut through his single-minded fever, chased by a spike of sadness. But I would cherish you, little doe.
Aurora, so he’d been told—stepped into the square, and suddenly Rhaego felt as though the earth had fallen out from under his feet.
There was no blade on Clecania that could slice him as deeply as that tear.
Her bright blue eyes finally met his. He was disarmed. Breathless. Brows drawing together, she studied him. Oh Goddess. He hoped she couldn’t see how furiously he was blushing.
No, not my bride, he corrected himself. She’s just a human under my care. Then his non-bride appeared, and for a moment, it was as if he had no heartbeat at all.
Aurora remembered what Diana had told her about how it was rude to show teeth when smiling. It was too bad. Now that she’d had the chance to really look at Rhaego, she imagined he had a handsome smile—even with the unsettling fangs.
She could admit more than just his smile was attractive. Imagining what all that muscle was capable of still unnerved her, but now that she could sneak glances without feeling threatened…well, she’d always liked large men.
Even now, he should be isolating and devising contingency strategies, yet only one pitiful thought lingered in his mind: She wants to spend time with me. It was a sappy notion that suffused him with unwelcomed giddiness, but he couldn’t shake it.
She may never want me after what I’ve put her through. The thought liquefied like bile in his mind. Sour and stinging. He donned his jacket, straightened the knots, and scooped up the tray.
Awe poor Rhaego. He’s just been treated so badly his whole life as some sort of blight and he doesn’t think he’s worthy of her affections and does t think she could ever want him
“I crave your natural smile. Your teeth are far too pretty to ever offend me.”
His purr rumbled to life at the sweetness of this female. Still within his grasp, her wrist twitched in response. Rhaego commanded his hand to let her go, commanded his purr to quiet. But his body refused to comply. His fever ached to ease her into his touch. Perhaps if he held on just a little longer, she’d relax.
Just three days ago, she’d been bowel-curdlingly terrified of this man. How had one dinner left her begging to hear him purr again?
In truth, she’d very much like to try all the things he’d mentioned. Tea, a few puffs of indica, a massage, and an orgasm induced by this colossal gentleman demon sounded like the type of bedtime story dreams were made of.
Clutching the flower to her chest, she beamed up at Rhaego. His purr rumbled out of him for a moment before he muffled it and blushed.
A smile bloomed across his face, soothing some of her insecurity. “Good, little doe,” he rumbled as he began walking again.
there was something insidious about insecurity sown during youth. The roots were deep. They burrowed into young spongy bone and grew alongside their host, hardening and aging until there was no distinguishing between what was natural and what was planted.
He’d never been so demanding of a female, and he found that her continued obedience did something lascivious to him. The dynamic was a bit intoxicating. Yet he was unsure as to whether he should be allowing himself to enjoy it.
She wanted to climb her sad demon husband like a tree and make all his grief disappear. Would burying his face between her breasts bring a smile to his lips, however temporary? Or was she being awful and insensitive to even consider it? Aurora bit her lip.
“You’ve started feeling some…affection for me?” The lines in his forehead told her he still wasn’t quite believing what he’d heard, but the telltale red glow pulsing to life in his gray eyes made her think he wanted the words to be true.
“A good deal of affection, yes.”
A sweet, delicious scent pulsed through the air, and she grinned, now knowing what it was. Fluttering erupted in her belly as she felt his face brush against her hair, marking her.
Previously, his marking hadn’t been consensual, but now it was. There was a whole new layer of satisfaction and dark pleasure that came from knowing his female wanted his scent on her.
“The Goddess was unreasonably generous when she formed you.” Aurora’s skin warmed, her body swaying closer to his. He met her eyes. “It would be blasphemous to hide the fruits of her labor.”
What would she do to a permanent space? Rhaego imagined a future in which every part of his home felt like this. Messy and comforting. A place brimming with personality. His chest ached for that future.
Aurora’s next breath was unsteady and clipped with a keening whimper because the musk…tingled. The cold night air breezed against the musk, building the sensation. What the fuck kind of magic substance was his body able to produce?
“How does a witch look when she comes?” he grated, angling her face toward his with the grip at her nape. “Show me, little doe.”
“You’ve already earned me, Rhaego,” she whispered, making him shiver though he rejected her words. “I’m already yours.”
Aiming a hard, uncompromising stare at him, she bent her head to the wide mushroom tip of his cock and said, “You will let me tend to you, husband.”
“I’ve caught you, little mate.” The words dripped off him in a guttural rumbling voice more animalistic than not. Liquid arousal gushed through her core.
“Stretch for me like a good little mate,” he rasped through clenched teeth. His mouth pressed against her ear, his lips pulled back and fangs bared. “I’m going to make your cunt into a mold. Every vein of my cock will be imprinted inside you.”
