Satisfied that she was dry, I wrapped the towel around her and stepped back when she took the end and tucked it away above her breast. “Thanks.”
“My pleasure.”
I returned to the bathroom, threw my armor in the tub and rinsed it clean. That done, I left it to dry and wrapped a towel around my hips. I glanced at myself in the mirror above the sink and stared into the eyes of a changed male, a beast with a mate, a warlord who was no longer alone.
My beast was sated and content. Why was I so restless? On edge?
Perhaps because my mate was still in danger? Because the Hive hunted her?
Perhaps because my cock was diamond hard and aching, the taste of her pussy an aphrodisiac on my tongue. I wanted more.
I turned on the cold water and splashed my face in an attempt to clear my head. When I finished patting my face with a small towel, I looked up to see her leaning in the open doorway. She wore a pair of dark jeans and a muted yellow blouse with a row of buttons down the front. The blouse stretched over her breasts. I wanted to tear those buttons off with my teeth and explore the soft mounds she’d hidden from me. She rolled a packed suitcase to a stop beside her.
“You ready to go get the pictures?”
No. Fuck no. I was ready to strip those clothes off her, lay her down on her bed and make her lose control. I was ready to fuck her until we both collapsed with exhaustion, until she had so many orgasms she would never think of another male’s touch, never crave another, forget every touch but mine. No, I was not ready to give her up and share her with the world. Not yet. “Yes. My armor will be dry in a few minutes.” It was probably dry already, the material made to adapt to its environment.
“Okay.” She studied me for long minutes, her curious gaze tracing the lines of silver in my flesh. “What’s on the pictures that everyone wants so badly?”
“I do not know.”
Abandoning her suitcase, she walked into the bathroom and stopped in front of me. The air froze in my lungs as she placed her small hand on my chest. “Are you okay?” She tilted her head back to look up at me. “You’ve been in here a long time.”
Had I? How many minutes had passed as I stared at myself in the mirror, wondering if this female could ever love me, ever care for me? Such thoughts were weak, dishonorable. Her love for me, or lack of, was irrelevant to my purpose, the honor and privilege of caring for a mate. No male of worth worried about such things. She wore my mating cuffs. She accepted my claim. It was done.
So why did my past haunt me? Why were memories consuming my happiness like vultures devouring the dead?
“Kai?” Larkspur’s touch should have been enough to ground me in the present, but the past maintained its icy grip.
“I’m fine.” I grappled with the very human response I’d learned over my months on this planet. “Give me a minute. I just need to get into my armor.” I nodded at her suitcase. “You ready? That everything?”
She glanced over her shoulder. “Weird how you can have a house full of stuff, but most of it doesn’t matter.” She turned back around to face me. “I’ve packed the important things, mostly pictures. I got Lav’s stuff, too.”
“Very well. I will be out shortly.”
Larkspur took the hint and left me, closing the door behind her with a soft click.
I winced at the sense of foreboding that came over me with that small sound.
Larkspur was perfect. I found her, protected her, claimed her. She was mine.
What the fuck was wrong with me?
8
Larkspur, Emergency Vet Clinic, 9:00 am
* * *
The thick mating cuffs on my wrists clattered on top of the reception counter as I leaned over to talk to the young man behind the computer. Not that Josh, the Vet Tech working this morning, noticed. No, he was far too busy staring, slack-jawed, at the warlord standing behind me. Understandable. Kai was a sight to behold.
“Josh, you hear me?”
“What?” My twenty-year-old co-worker tore his gaze away from the obvious threat and blinked. Hard. “Right. You left something in the back?”
“Yeah. You mind if I run back there and grab it? I left in a hurry last night. Thanks for covering for me.” My gratitude was genuine. Josh always said yes when I called. He needed the hours as much as I did. His mom was disabled, and his dad struggled to feed five kids on his own. Josh was the oldest and started working as much as possible the week after his High School graduation. I respected the hell out of him.
“Sure.” I was about to walk through the door to the clinical area when Josh stopped me. “Hey. We had an emergency not too long after you left. It’s still a mess back there.”
