Barbarian's Mate (12 page)

I
push
Jo-see hard for the first day of travel. I am not comfortable with the amount of metlak tracks that I see all around the cave or covering the trails. This place is thick with the wild, unpredictable creatures and the sooner we leave, the better. Because she walks slower than I do with the snowshoes, I carry her pack. And as the hours on the trail creep from morning to late afternoon, she begins to slow. She does not protest the bruising pace I set, but I can tell she is tired.

So toward the end of the day, I carry her, as well. She doesn’t want me to, but I ignore her words and her small slaps and bend over so she can climb onto my back. She does and I hoist her higher, her arms around my neck, and we continue.

Eventually the metlak tracks disappear and we move into sa-khui territory. These are the fringes of hunter lands, but I know these places. I know where the caves are and where caches are hidden to freeze extra kills when the traps are plentiful. We stop as the twin moons come up into the sky and I take my mate to the closest hunter cave. It is a small one, but well stocked with fuel for a fire and warm furs for bedding. I set her down gently and then sling the packs off my front. “I must scout the area to make sure we are safe,” I tell her. “But let me start a fire first so you stay warm.”

“I can do it,” she says, and pulls out the irestarter she keeps on a thong at her neck. “You do what you’ve gotta do. I can help where I can.”

I nod slowly, rubbing my chest as my khui vibrates in response. That she would help me prepare our camp despite her exhaustion means much to me. It makes me feel as if we are in this together for the first time. That she is acknowledging that we are one. I grab her in a fierce hug and kiss the top of her head again before she can say anything, and then head out of the cave to scout before she asks questions.

I track back on our trail, looking for signs of metlaks, but there is nothing. If we were followed, they gave up many hours ago. Pleased, I return to the cave and my mate, where she has the fire blazing. I am proud that she is not complaining, though she is clearly tired. Instead, she busies herself in the cave and looks up from the fire when I arrive, her eyes brightening.

It has taken many torturous nights to get to the point where her eyes light up with pleasure at the sight of me, but I would trade not a single one. This moment has made all of them worth it.

“Everything okay?” she asks, crumbling a few dried herbs into the stewing pouch to make tea.

“No tracks,” I agree. “The metlaks have abandoned us in pursuit of easier prey.” I did not see much prey at all, which concerns me. Normally these hills are crawling with game.

“That’s great,” Jo-see says, smiling. “Will we be at Harlow and Rukh’s cave tomorrow?”

“If we travel all day, perhaps.” I do not point out that this will be unlikely.

She nods slowly, a frustrated look crossing her face. “So no, then. I’m sorry I’m slowing us down. It’s difficult to keep up with you.”

Does she think I chastise her? “Do not apologize. We are not at our full strength.” I rub my chest, thinking of the khui that has been the bane – and hope – of my existence recently. “We will simply go as fast as we can and not worry about anything else.”

“I feel guilty you had to carry me today—“

“That was because we were in metlak territory. We are safe now.” I lean forward and touch her chin, tilting her head up so she gazes at me. “And I would carry you for days on end without complaint, and be glad to do so.”

She blushes and ducks her head. “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that or I’m going to have bruises on the insides of my thighs from trying to hold on to you.”

I picture her thighs gripping my hips and lust roars through me. If it came to pass, I would not mind her sweet thighs clenching around me endlessly. The only thing I would mind are the bruises she would wear. “I will be more careful with you.”

Jo-see just shakes her head at me, amused.

We pass the dark hours companionably, talking about the weather and drinking tea. I feed Jo-see tidbits of the meat that I roast. Even though her hands are better, I enjoy feeding her. She does not protest the treatment, and after the meat is gone, she starts to yawn.

“Sleep,” I tell her. “There will be much traveling to do tomorrow and you will need your strength.”

She nods and glances over at the blankets, then shivers. “Will you join me? You’re my
fur-nus
.”

“
Fur-nus
?”

“You provide warmth,” she teases, all smiles.

I nod. I will gladly
fur-nus
for her. I settle in to the furs and she moves her body against mine, tucking her smaller form under my shoulder. She gives a little sigh and her cheek rests against my chest, her fist over my heart. My khui sings pleasantly and I close my eyes, content to ignore the hum coursing through my body, demanding that I claim my mate. For now, this is enough.

“Your khui is loud,” Jo-see murmurs softly, and her fingers pet my chest, stroking the hard ridges over my heart.

She is not wrong. Though the song is pleasant, it is throbbing loudly. I grunt acknowledgment. “Ignore it.”

Jo-see says nothing, but her hand continues to stroke the ridges on my chest, and my cock – already ready – grows achingly hard. I keep my eyes closed and my body still, determined not to react. If she wants to pet me harmlessly as she goes to sleep, I will welcome it without protest. Her every touch is a gift.

Moments pass and her fingers continue to stroke my chest.

Then, her hand slides lower, away from my heart and down my belly.

My mouth goes dry. My cock jerks against my breechcloth, stabbing at the air. Perhaps…she does not realize what she is doing? I wait in rigid silence, my hand fisted at my side as her fingers glide over my belly, teasing at the edges of my breechcloth. I listen to her breathing to see if she is sleeping and her hand is simply wandering.

But then I smell her arousal in the air, faint but growing stronger.

The groan I have been biting back escapes me. “Jo-see?”

“Is it okay if I play a little?” Her voice is hushed and soft, and her fingers
stroke stroke stroke
my belly. Over and over. “Do a bit of exploring?”

I give a jerky nod. As if I would refuse this? No male could.

Her hand moves lower. “I never thought about you being a virgin,” she confesses in a hushed voice. “I admit it changes my perspective on things.”

“How…how so?” My voice cracks as I speak, and I clear my throat.

“It’s weird, but I feel like I understand you now. Why you’re so scared of me being ‘weak’. And it makes it feel like, well, like you’re all mine. Funny how that’s so appealing, isn’t it?”

It is not strange to me. The thought of another male touching her fills me with helpless rage. “I belong to no one but you,” I tell her through gritted teeth.

“I know,” she says softly. “I kind of like that.”

And then her hand slides over my leggings and cups my shaft.

I choke on my own breath, my fists tight against my side. Part of me wants to pry her hand away so she does not torment me further…and part of me wants to grab her by her small wrist and have her pump my cock until I spurt all over her fingers.

“You’re really hard.” She sounds fascinated. “And big. I’m impressed.”

“You…have seen me…unclothed…before.” It is difficult to get the words out when she is touching me. My mind cannot concentrate on anything but her hand, gently stroking.

“Yeah, but seeing and feeling are two different things, you know?” Her voice is breathless with wonder. “And I’m definitely feeling something impressive.” Her hand leaves my cock and I could cry out in frustration – but then I feel her fingers move to my leggings. The knot in the waist-cords give and then the material loosens.

And she pushes it down, exposing my cock to the air.

“Can I keep going?” she asks, sitting up.

The breath gusts out of me. As if I could stop her? Precum slicks the head of my cock and dribbles down the ridges on my length. My sac is tight. At any moment, I feel ready to explode. At the same time, I do not want to come too soon, not before she is finished.

She takes my silence as permission, because her hand returns to my cock and she lets her fingers lightly dance along my length, tracing the veins and ridges. It feels better than anything I have ever imagined, her hand on my cock, and I close my eyes and think of hunting and tracking and metlaks and snow – anything to keep from losing control.

“Your skin is so warm,” Jo-see’s voice is soft. She leans closer, and then I feel her breath on my cock. “And you’re so thick.”

A groan escapes me. How can I think of metlaks when her lips are less than a finger-span from my length? How can I think of
anything
?

“And these ridges,” she says with a little sigh, tracing her finger over one. “I think you might have the perfect dick, Haeden. I can’t believe I’m the first woman to touch it.”

“Only,” I grit out, voice ragged. “You are the
only
female that will ever touch me.” Because I am hers and hers alone.

Instead of being afraid of my words, she gives a throaty little chuckle that makes my sac tighten even more. “Just me,” she says, and the tease is back in her voice. Her fingertips lightly stroke up and down my length. “Only me.”

Then, she leans in and presses her mouth to the flat of my belly.

The breath hisses from my throat. I am in agony. Pure, perfect agony, and it has been created by my mate’s soft mouth.

Her tongue lightly touches my skin. “Haeden?”

“
What
.”

“I need to ask a favor,” she says, and then licks my lower belly again. Her mouth is so close to my cock that obscene, fascinating images scroll through my mind, faster and faster. I do not dare to hope that her mouth will go lower. It does not seem like something she would enjoy. And yet…

“Anything,” I rasp. She could ask for my arm and I would gladly remove it from my body.

“I need…”
Kiss
. “You….”
Kiss
. “To hold off…”
Kiss
. “And not come until I’m done playing, okay?”
Kiss.

And then her mouth – her soft, wicked mouth – goes to the head of my cock and she presses a small kiss to it.

Fire ignites my body. I clench at the blankets, sweat breaking out on my forehead. What she asks is impossible, yet I hunger to please her. “I…
will try
.”

Her sultry giggle at my response makes my skin prickle with awareness. Her breath is on my cock, her hand gripping my shaft. My belly is wet from the touches of her tongue and her lips. My khui is throbbing an intense beat that seems to have settled itself into my cock.

Do not come
? With her mouth so cruelly, wonderfully teasing? Surely a hunter would be more likely to be struck by lightning.

But my Jo-see wants to play, and I will do anything for her.

So I lie very still, my nails digging into my palms as she lowers her head. My tail thrashes wildly against my thigh as she moves closer, and then she presses another kiss to my cock head. Her other hand seeks out my spur – the hard length above my cock — and she rubs it, dragging her fingers back and forth. Pleasure bursts through me, and I hold my breath.

Metlaks.

Metlaks hunting outside the cave. Jo-see in danger.

Metlaks with their tearing claws—

Her mouth closes over the head of my cock and her tongue swirls against the tip.

The breath I’ve been holding explodes. My hand goes to her hair, as if I am no longer in control of my body. When she raises her head to laugh again, I push it back down, dying for more. I am so close to coming that fire burns in my belly, and I can feel my seed rising in my cock, the throb of my khui making it unbearable. And I need her hot mouth, her tongue, her lips on my cock again.

She makes a small humming noise of pleasure and her arousal spikes the air around me even as her mouth closes over my cock again. Then she pulls, sucking with her mouth and taking me deeper even as her fingers play with my spur.

I thrust my hips, unable to stop, and push deeper into her mouth. She makes a noise of encouragement and sucks harder, and then, despite my vow, I spill my seed violently. I can feel it spurting into her mouth, her tight, hot mouth that feels like nothing I have experienced before. My entire body trembles with the force of my release even as she makes small, humming noises and waits for me to finish.

Shame grips me as she releases my cock and gives it a final lick. I let go of her hair and close my eyes as she sits up. “I…am sorry. I failed you.”

Her sweet laugh fills the cave. “Haeden, I was just teasing you. Don’t be so serious.” She moves to my side and curls up against me. “I was deliberately trying to make you come.”

“But you said — and I grabbed your hair —“

“Which was sexy,” she agrees and settles in next to me. Her arm goes around my waist. “Unexpected but sexy.”

I am utterly confused by her. Confused, but also oddly pleased. “So I did not disappoint you?”

“With that cock? I’d have to be crazy to be disappointed.” She pats my chest. “We’ll work on your stamina. Tomorrow.” Her fingers brush over my skin, and she’s still feeling, still touching. Her aroused scent still lingers in the air, and I realize she has not come, herself. This was all for me.

I am…humbled by such a gift.

“You know what else I’d like to practice?” She muses. “Kissing. Mouth kissing. Let’s put that on the schedule for tomorrow, too.”

I want to please her. I want to hear her come. I want to see her come. I want to taste it. My arm goes around her and I stroke her shoulder and her soft, soft skin. “We can practice tonight.”

“My mouth is tired,” she teases, but I feel her thighs squeeze, as if pressing them together.

An idea strikes me and I roll to my knees, then pull her thighs open. If she has done such for me, can I not do it for her? “Lucky for you that your male has a strong mouth and an even stronger tongue.”

She sucks in a breath and then falls back on the furs, a moan escaping her throat. “I
am
lucky.”