I cleared my throat. “He’s still sending me images.”
She glanced at Nightshade before splashing at him, and he squeaked.
“Turn around.” She spun her finger, and he huffed. “Nightshade, you are making your warlock uncomfortable. Turn around.”
He listened and faced the wall before the image dissipated in my mind.
“Thank you.” I let out a breath.
“Kian, you’re my mate. I don’t mind if you see me naked.”
The sloshing of water started up again, and I assumed she started to clean herself. I was thankful that my perverted familiar stopped violating her privacy.
“How did you bathe at the village? Were there showers?” I ran my fingers through the grooves of the wooden door.
“No showers, so I always took baths. The cold water wasn’t bad or anything, but it feels really good to have a warm bath. I experienced something similar once before.” Her voice had a nostalgic tone to it. “My parents and I stopped by a hot spring once. It’s one of my favorite memories with my parents. Dad convinced Mom to stop at one, and we got to enjoy the hot spring before getting back on the road.” Her voice cracked as the water moved around again.
Another image pushed into my mind of her standing with water dripping down her body. Desire flooded my body as my brain seared it into memory. Her breasts were round with little pink nipples, and what lay between her legs was a dream.
My throat tightened. “Nightshade,” I choked out.
Wren’s lips parted before she shook her head at my familiar. She grabbed the towel from the floor before drying off and getting dressed. Nightshade showed me every bit of it.
I’d never been so hard in my life, and I had been hard constantly around her. It wasn’t a problem I’d had before. I didn’t even have that problem as an adolescent.
She opened the door and whimpered. “I can smell your…” Her icy blue eyes traveled down to my pants, where she paused.
There was a tent in my pants from my erection. I let out an embarrassed sound that sounded more like a squeak. “I’m sorry.”
“I smell you.” She inhaled a whiff of the air as her eyes glazed over with desire.
I licked my lips, not taking my eyes off her. I had never had a woman stare at me like that. I’d seen her stare at the others in a similar way, but I never thought I would see it.
“If I’m honest, it smells really good,” she murmured.
“Nightshade kept sending images to me,” I croaked, pulling at my collar.
“Ah, Shade, that’s not nice,” she scolded him. “Even after I made you turn around.” She turned her head away from him, and he squeaked before jumping up on her wet shoulder and grabbing her face to make her look at him. “Fine, I forgive you.” She pecked him on the nose, and he squeaked before looking at me.
‘She gave me a nickname and kissed me on the nose,’he gloated.
I hung my head and let out an ironic chuckle. “To think you’ve kissed my familiar before me.” But then, I realized what I had said, and heat flushed up the back of my neck and ears before cascading over my face. “I didn’t mean that. I’m so sorry. Please forget that I said that.”
Her bare feet padded forward, and she grabbed my hands. “It’s okay. You don’t have to be so nervous around me.”
I let out a shaky breath. “I’m sorry. I don’t—”
She cut me off by pressing her lips to mine, and surprise riddled through me as my mate gave me my first kiss.
Our magic surged at each other before melding together, and the matebond snapped in place. Both our eyes popped open, but our lips still touched.
A rush of desire and magical essence flared through me as I grabbed my mate by her lower back and pulled her further against me as I continued the kiss. Our magic intertwined through our veins almost as if we were one being, pulsating from me to her and back again through every part of our bodies that touched.
I needed her, desperately. My body begged for her kisses, and our bodies trembled against each other as a white-hot climax rippled through our souls. Her muscles spasmed as her arms tightened around my neck. She pushed her breasts against my chest as we tore at each other to get closer. My tongue slipped into her mouth to meet with hers, and she moaned.
Our bond combusted, fully sealing itself as I felt myself release in my pants. Passion burst through our bond, and I knew she had experienced the same thing I did. Following my instincts, I pressed my tongue to the side of her cheek as magic burned through it, branding her as my mate.
She gasped, breaking the kiss.“Mine.” She elongated her canines before biting into my neck, marking me as hers.
