I pressed forward again, easing deeper, and felt her stretch and open around me. The sensation was indescribable—not just the physical pleasure, though that was enough to make my breath catch and my vision blur, but something else. Something deeper. The bond between us flared bright and hot, and I could feel her through it, feel the way her body was adjusting to me, the slight burn giving way to something warmer, fuller, the tension in her thighs softening as she relaxed into it.
I was shaking. My arms were locked on either side of her head, holding my weight off her, and every muscle in my body was screaming with the effort of going slow when everything in me wanted to thrust hard and deep and claim her completely. But I held back. I would always hold back for her. I would always put her first.
"Safe?" I managed, though the word came out barely recognisable.
"Safe," she breathed. "So safe. You feel… oh…"
I pressed the rest of the way in with one slow, steady push, and the world narrowed to the point where our bodies joined. The tight, slick heat of her surrounded me completely, gripping me so fiercely that I had to close my eyes and concentrate on breathing, on not moving, on giving her time to adjust to the sizeof me. Then I withdrew slowly, feeling every inch of the slide, then pressed back in, and the sensation was so intense that the bear surged forward, not threatening, just present, just aware, claiming. Mine. Mate. Mine.
I set a rhythm. Slow and deep, each thrust deliberate, controlled, even though everything in me was screaming to go faster, harder, to lose myself in the tight heat of her. But I wouldn't. Not this first time. Not when she was still learning the shape of me, the weight of me, the feel of me moving inside her.
Her hands slid down my back, nails dragging across my skin, and I groaned. The small bite of pain only heightened everything else, sharpening the pleasure until it was almost unbearable. I angled my hips slightly, changing the depth, and she cried out, her back arching off the furs.
"There?" I asked, my voice rough.
"Yes, oh… there…"
I held there, feeling the way her body clenched around me when I hit that spot, and then I did it again, angling my hips to find the same place, watching her face as pleasure rippled through her. Her eyes were closed, her lips parted, her head tipped back against the furs, and the sight of her like this—open and wanting and mine—made something possessive and primal roar through me.
I shifted my weight to one arm and slid my hand between us, finding the swollen bud at the apex of her thighs. The moment my fingers made contact she gasped, her eyes flying open, and I circled slowly, matching the rhythm of my thrusts, deep and steady and relentless.
The bond pulsed between us, hot and bright, and I could feel her climbing toward release, feel it building in her body the same way it was building in mine, that coiling tension low in my spine, that tightening in my balls, that desperate need for more, harder, deeper. But I held back. I kept the rhythm steady, keptmy touch gentle on her, even though my arms were shaking and my vision was starting to blur at the edges.
She came first. I felt it through the bond a heartbeat before her body clenched around me, felt the wave of pleasure crash through her and echo back into me, tipping me over the edge with her. I tried to hold on. Tried to keep control for just a few more seconds, give her time to come down, but the tight pulsing of her body around me was too much. My control shattered like ice under a hammer, and I thrust myself deep with a groan that came from somewhere primal and ancient, feeling my release tear through me in waves that left me shaking.
The pleasure was devastating. Not just physical, though that alone would have been enough to unmake me—but the bond amplified everything, feeding her pleasure back into mine until I couldn't tell where one ended and the other began. I could feel her satisfaction, her contentment, the way her body was still humming with aftershocks, and it prolonged my own release until I thought I might actually die from it.
I buried my face in her neck as the aftershocks rolled through us both, feeling her body pulse and clench around me, milking every last drop of release from me. My whole body was trembling, my breath coming in ragged gasps against her skin, and I could feel her heartbeat racing beneath my lips, as wild and unsteady as my own.
When I finally came back to myself, I was collapsed half on top of her, my face buried in her neck, my chest heaving like I'd just run up a mountain. My arms had given out at some point, though I'd managed not to crush her completely—one forearm was still braced beside her head, taking most of my weight, but the rest of me was sprawled across her smaller frame in a way that would have mortified me if I'd had any capacity left for embarrassment.
I didn't. I was wrung out, hollowed clean, every muscle in my body trembling with exhaustion and satisfaction.
“Daska," she whispered, her fingers threading through my hair. "That was..."
I lifted my head to look at her, suddenly worried. "Did I hurt you? Was I too—"
"Perfect." Her eyes were bright, her smile soft and wondering. "You were perfect."
Relief flooded through me so intense that I had to close my eyes against it. The bond had settled to a warm, steady hum between us, contentment replacing the desperate hunger, and the sensation was so profoundly right that my chest ached with it.
I rolled to the side, pulling her with me so she ended up sprawled across my chest, and wrapped the furs around us both. She came willingly, tucking herself into the curve of my body like she'd been made to fit there. I wrapped my arms around her and held on, feeling the steady beat of her heart against my chest, the warmth of her breath against my skin.
Ellie's fingers traced idle patterns across my chest, following the lines of ochre that had smeared and faded during our joining. Her touch was light, exploratory, and I felt my body begin to stir again despite the bone-deep exhaustion.
"Are you all right?" I asked after a moment, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "Truly?"
She nodded against my chest. "More than all right." She paused, then added softly, "I didn't know it could be like that."
Something in her tone made me pull back enough to see her face. There was vulnerability there, mixed with wonder, and I remembered what she'd told me weeks ago, sitting in my cave with her arm bandaged and her voice hollow. Three years with Nathan. Three years, and he'd rejected her for Megan.
"He was a fool," I said quietly.
She blinked up at me. "What?"
"Nathan. He was a fool to let you go." I brushed a strand of hair back from her face, tucking it behind her ear. "The biggest fool I have ever known."
Her eyes went bright and wet, and she pressed her face back against my chest. I felt her shoulders shake slightly, and panic flared in my chest.
