“Then claim without breaking. But claim soon.” He gestures toward where she still bathes. “That scent draws more than just males seeking mates. Shadow cats hunt territory edges now. Drawn by distress.”
Shadow cats. That changes things. They're apex predators even we respect. If they're drawn by her scent, her chemical distress, the danger multiplies.
“I handle it.”
“Do you? Or do you play with prey while predators circle?” He turns to leave, then pauses. “Three more days. Maybe four. Then someone invokes formal challenge. Perhaps me.”
He disappears into green shadows, but his message remains. Timer has started. Either I claim her soon or fight for the right to claim her.
I return to watching. She's left the water, standing naked on the bank. The sun highlights every curve, every place where the tonic has changed her. But it's her mind that interests me most. She studies scratches on trees, reading the territorial markings different males have left. Understanding threat levels. Planning responses.
She finds my gift from this morning. More of the pain-dulling liquid, meat seasoned with herbs that will help her body process the tonic's effects, and my scales. Three of them, edges sharp enough to become weapons.
She lifts one scale to her nose, breathes deep. Her body's response is immediate. Her knees buckle, pussy clenching so hard she cries out. Wetness flows down her thighs, dripping onto moss below. Her free hand goes between her legs, pressing against the swollen flesh.
My cocks both fully emerge, pressing painful against my belly. The primary is fully engorged, ridges flared, knot at the base already beginning to swell. The secondary writhes, seeking something to wrap around, to stimulate.
I grip the branch so hard the bark cracks. Every instinct screams to go to her. To give her what her body begs for. To fill that empty, clenching space with what it needs.
But not yet. Not until she chooses it.
She forces herself to standing, still holding my scale. Studies it through the haze of arousal. Sees the edge, tests it against a leaf. Watches it slice through without resistance. Her mindworks through possibilities even as her body convulses with another wave.
This is why she's worth waiting for. This control despite torture. This thinking despite need.
But watching her struggle makes my control fray. My tail lashes involuntarily, betraying agitation. The scent of my own arousal is thick now, mixing with hers. Creating combination that will draw every male for kilometers.
She returns to her cave, and I follow. Inside, she's arranged everything for defense. But also for comfort. She's accepted this as her space. Claimed it despite it being my gift.
As darkness approaches, I can't maintain distance anymore. I drop to ground level, approach her cave. Let her hear me coming. No hiding now.
She doesn't startle when I appear at the entrance. Just looks at me with eyes that burn despite exhaustion. She's naked, past the point of modesty. I can see everything. How swollen she is. How wet. How her pussy contracts in visible spasms.
“Two days,” I tell her, letting my voice carry the grinding rumble of my species. “Most females beg by now.”
She shifts position, not bothering to close her legs. Letting me see what the tonic has done. “I'm not most females.”
“No.” The word comes out rougher than intended. My primary cock throbs, dripping steadily. “You map territory. Set traps. Plan escape routes.”
“Survival requires preparation.”
“Survival here requires surrender.”
Her jaw sets in that stubborn human expression. “Surrender to what? You? Chemistry? This torture you call preparation?”
I move closer. My tail reaches past me, not touching but close enough she feels the heat from it. “Surrender to need. Body knows what it wants.”
“My body wants lots of things. Doesn't mean I give in.”
The defiance despite her obvious suffering makes both my cocks pulse. “No? Then why do you leak for me? Why do you clench on nothing? Why do you scream my scent?”
Red colors her face. Human embarrassment. But also anger. “Because chemistry doesn't equal choice.”
“Choice.” I make the sound that poorly translates to amusement. “You think you have choice? After two days? Wait until day five. Day ten. Day fifteen. Watch choice disappear as body takes control.”
“Is that the game? Wait until I'm mindless with need?”
“Game is more complex.” I set down new bundle. Food. Medicine. And fabric saturated with my scent. “But time favors hunter, not hunted.”
