“I can’t see anything,” she murmured, her fingers finding his wrist.Vikan felt his chest puff at the contact and he only resisted for a moment before catching her around her waist, guiding her deeper inside.It was damp and chilly, from the shore that didn’t lie that far away, but he helped her to the furthest spot within.He would sleep with his back to the entrance, to shield her from the icy spray from the sea.
Without hesitation, he stripped his thick tunic from his body, baring his chest, and he laid it down on the floor of the cave before guiding her down to it.
When she realized what he’d done, even though she couldn’t see, she hesitated for a moment and then said, “I don’t want you to be cold, Vikan.”
Just as before, when his name fell from her lips, his Instinct rumbled within him, masculine satisfaction emanating to every nerve of his body.Her voice was the sweetest sin and in his dreams, he’d heard her moaning his name in his ear as she took his lusts.
“I will not be,” he told her, his tone darker, his throat thick with wanting.“We will warm each other.”
Her breath hitched.In the darkness, he saw her eyes widen slightly.“I…I don’t know if…”
But she trailed off when a shiver racked her body.He was discovering that his mate was a practical female, something he admired about her.She would understand the need for body heat, since they had little else.
“Fine,” she whispered.“Let’s just get some sleep, okay?”
“We will begin the journey once the suns rise,tev?” he told her softly, lowering himself onto the cave floor beside her.
Right as he molded his body around her, he realized too late that his thickened, hard cock might…unnerve her.He positioned her so that her back was flush against his chest so he could wrap his arms around her front to keep her warm.
Yet, his cock was pressing into her lush backside and feeling her against him did nothing to help ease his desire.The opposite, in fact.
“Is that…” she trailed off again, her voice going slightly higher pitched.“Please tell me that’s not what I think it is.”
“Ignore it, female,” Vikan bit out gruffly.“I do.”
Taylor sucked in a breath.“That’sa little hard to ignore.”
“My Instinct has control over my body,” he told her, “over those needs.I will be in this state for as long as I am around you and even when I am not.”
She made a strange sound in the back of her throat that Vikan didn’t think a Luxirian could reproduce.“That…that can’t be healthy.”
“It is natural,” he told her, his voice going husky.Her scent surrounded him and he dragged in each breath greedily.
Then, with guilt, he realized he hadn’t held a female in his arms since Nitav, had thought never to again.He’d missed it, the feel of a female, warm and soft.
His muscles tensed and he bit out, “Sleep.We have a long span ahead of us.”
If she noticed the way his body went tight around her, she didn’t comment on it.She said nothing at all as she tried valiantly to do as he bid.And after a while, her body slowly relaxed, her limbs going from tense to limp.
Eventually, her breath evened out, her chest brushing his arms in a calm rhythm and Vikan knew that she’d fallen into her dreams.
Vikan hadn’t planned on sleeping, but he was too intrigued and curious and perhaps a little trepidatious about the connection they shared.
Would she dream of him again?He couldn’t help but wonder.And he couldn’t help but hope to meet her there.
So, when his eyelids slid shut, he met sleep head on.
* * *
It took him only moments to find her once he actively sought her out.Like alipikixato its beloved nest, he was drawn to her like a magnet and followed her like she was a beacon.Vikan should’ve been unnerved by how quickly he discovered her, but he’d be lying to himself if he said he was surprised.
When their bond flared to life, he was catapulted into her dream.Dreamwalking had never been Vikan’s strength.His mother’s sire had been a revered dreamwalker, but Vikan’s main gift had always been foresight.
So, it felt strange at first as he waded into hers, like a thick fog that he couldn’t break.But the moment he saw her, that haze lifted from his mind in an instant.His Instinct filled his chest, his pupils dilating.
In dreams, he felt more free.In dreams, he wasn’t plagued by pain.Often, he controlled his own dreams, using them as a way to keep Nitav alive.He visited her there often, her memory, their memories.
But for once, he didn’t feel guilt.He felt changed, more like himself, or perhaps who hewantedto be for his mate, if their circumstance was different.He would allow himself this, he decided.He wouldn’t allow his torn mind or guilt-ridden duty to follow him there.
