Mating Rights Read online

  “Wh-what are you doing?” she asked, propping up on her elbows to watch him. She wanted to slam her legs shut, but the temptation to see what he was about proved too great to deny him.

  “A taste I begged, a taste I will have,” he said on a growl.

  Dipping his head, keeping his eyes locked with hers, he slid his tongue from her puckered anus, up her slit. She jolted on the bed, kept in place by his quick reflexes pinning her hips down. Again, he swiped long and slowly, as if lapping a delightful confection. He stopped at her swollen clit and nipped it with his teeth. She gasped, bucking under his hands.

  “Hold still. I will sup on your body, or you will have no surcease,” he commanded.

  “You would leave me wanting?”

  “Aye.”

  Try as she might, she couldn’t hold still. Mali dropped fully onto the bed, arching her hips up to his face as he latched onto her nub and sucked it into his mouth. His fingers dug into the curve of her buttocks, spreading her labia with his thumbs. She curled her hands into the sheets, moaning as his tongue rubbed magic against her clit. Waves of pleasure rippled inside her. She couldn’t take much more. And then he pushed two fingers inside her cleft, curling and stretching in a mocking salute to his cock.

  “It’s…it’s too much. I can’t take it,” she sobbed, squeezing her eyes shut. But that only intensified his actions. Tension curled and twisted her insides. Sensing her nearing orgasm, he freed her clitoris and replaced his fingers with his tongue. The sound of him lapping her juices strangely increased her desire.

  Mali released the sheets to knot in his hair. “Please. Stop this torture. I need you inside me.”

  He lifted and shifted onto his knees, looking down on her. He ran his hands up her dark skinned thighs. She enjoyed seeing the contrast of his hand on her skin. A shiver of pleasure skated up her spine as he caught her with his gaze.

  “You are beautiful. Your skin and hair. Your eyes. Your body. You were made for me.”

  Slowly, he untied the lacings on the front of her gown and eased it up and off her body. She settled back down, watching him dispose of his breeches. She had no thoughts of right or wrong, of making this forever. Living in the moment and enjoying herself and his body was enough for her. The back of her mind prickled with guilt that she couldn’t indulge her fantasies for longer, but it wouldn’t be fair to him or anyone else to promise mating rights. Not when she knew the likelihood of producing offspring as damaged as she was a possibility. Would he change if she was discovered? Would that intense desire in his eyes disappear? She couldn’t bear to reveal the truth. She wanted to live the illusion, if for only a little while longer.

  Mali trembled, feeling anxious at his lingering look, almost like a touch. The urge to cover herself was great. He caught her hands before she could, kissing her fingertips before pressing them gently onto the bed on each side of her.

  “I’ve never seen such beautiful black nipples. Every inch of you begs a taste,” he said, his voice a guttural tone.

  Mali bit her lip, inhaling a sharp breath when he caught a nipple in his mouth and sucked it taut. Seeing his mouth latched onto her breast brought a surge of desire deep within. She writhed beneath him, curling her hands around his muscular body, reveling in the feel of his rough hands caressing her ribcage and moving lower. He skimmed her belly, rubbing down between her legs until his fingers slipped in her juices.

  Jaxon grazed his teeth along her breast. His lips nibbled a path up to her neck. Hairy thighs rubbed between hers and then the prod of his cock slipped between her folds. She welcomed the intrusion; begged for it with her hands and her thighs, her unspoken whispering sighs. Wildfire skipped through her core as he sank to the hilt. She realized she hadn’t taken him in full before—now he reached hidden places, spots that ignited into a frenzy of sensation.

  He grazed her chin with his teeth, setting a rhythmic pumping that made her back arch off the bed. She clung to his shoulders, torn between looking into his eyes and closing her lids to stifle the unbearable intensity of his face.

  “Don’t close your eyes, Mali. Look at me. Look at who makes you feel this way and remember it when you’re alone,” he ground out with that delicious brogue.

  She met his eyes and moaned as her pleasure increased. She gripped him with her cunt, milking his erection, desperate for that pinnacled release he’d given her before. She felt his control slip. No longer the slow, burning strokes, he moved harder and faster. The thick cockhead wedged inside her body, seeming to swell with every thrust.

  The orgasm claimed her, small at first, then continued to grow into wave after crashing wave of ecstasy. Mali cried out, unable to stop herself or muffle the sound. And still the orgasm came, building on itself again as he continued to pound her into the bed. His breathing was hot and hard on her neck, labored. She could feel his slick skin slipping against her and the beat of his heart mirroring her own strenuous pulse.

  He slipped a hand beneath her back, pulling her closer to him. White hot heat exploded inside her. She sobbed with pleasure. He flipped off of her, ripping his cock from her body as his erection convulsed and spewed milky seed over her thighs and belly. He collapsed beside her on the bed, breathing raggedly as he recovered.

  “Men may rule the world, but it is women who tame men. ‘Cept maybe you. You bring the beast out in me, Mali. I almost forgot myself,” he murmured, draping a hand over his eyes. “You’d have a babe for certain if I’d not pulled out.” He peered at her from beneath his arm. “Still might.”

  She stiffened, forgetting to breathe.

  He sat up and propped on his elbow, looking down at her. He traced a circle around one nipple. “Does that frighten you?”

  She swallowed. “A little.”

  “Why don’t you want a mate? You are not like any maiden I’ve ever known or heard of.”

  Mali sat up and got off the bed, looking for a rag to clean herself off with. She found one and swiped at her stomach.

  “No answer?” he said.

  This was her chance to come clean. She was a coward and couldn’t. “I’m afraid I don’t have a good one for you.”

  “Is having a babe the reason? Because it doesna matter that I withdraw. I could still get you with child.”

  She shook her head. “No. I want children. It’s just—”

  Someone knocked on the door. The loud rapping instantly raised her hackles. She scooped up her gown and hurriedly slipped it over her head as Jaxon pulled on his breeches. He walked to the door and cracked it.

  “Nicodemus wants you,” a male voice said on the other side.

  “Now?” Jaxon asked.

  “Aye, sir. Now.”

  “All right. I’m coming.” Jaxon shut the door, listening to the sounds of the man’s footsteps fading. He looked at her. “Duty summons, but that doesna mean you can squirm out of this. What game are you playing with me, Mali?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  He strode across the room and gathered up a shirt and leather vest. “You know exactly what I’m talking about. Let’s stop playing this game right now. You tell me why you’re afraid to take a mate. Now, I want the truth from you. And don’ tell me it’s your dreams.”

  “I don’t have to tell you anything. The choice is mine,” she said, struggling to lace her gown with shaking fingers.

  He locked a hand around her bicep. “You owe me a straight answer.”

  She snatched her arm free. “You don’t have to be an oaf.”

  “So you’d rather I take what crumbs you choose to leave me? I should be content?”

  “Now I’m the one confused. We both had our jollies. I told you I wasn’t looking for more. I don’t know how to be any clearer.”

  “That’s not the point. Maybe I’m looking for more. Maybe I don’t like feeling I’m being used,” Jaxon said.

  Mali snorted. “A dozen men would love to be used in just such a way. No worries on taking care of me or babies. You have the best I can offer.”
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  “Show me these men,” he said in a deadly soft voice that sent a chill up her spine.

  Mali shuddered, shaking the fear off. “You’re the only one.”

  He made a half grunt, half snort noise that was all disbelief.

  She clenched her jaw. “I should have followed my instincts and kept far away from you. I should have never let you touch me.”

  “Aye, gel, now yer using your head instead of that sweet cunny. But trouble likes company. We both know that. You pursued me. You’ve only yourself to blame for this and you know it.”

  Mali opened her mouth to rebuke him then snapped it shut. She’d resisted him about as effectively as snow melting under the sun. One kiss and a rub and she’d parted her legs like a whore. He couldn’t have made her feel worse than making her face the facts.

  “If you canna tell me the truth or offer more than your body, don’t bother coming back. When you’re ready to talk, you know where I’ll be.” Jaxon threw his cloak over his shoulders and stormed out of the house, slamming the door behind him.

  Chapter Nine

  What the hell just happened?

  Mali walked through the bustling streets in a fog. Fleeting pleasure wasn’t worth this much emotional upheaval. Why did she continue to push her limits? She wanted to blame the heat and the moon, the presence of the clan, anything but herself. She didn’t know what she was doing anymore. The goal of keeping aloof from the mating heat wasn’t working. Despite their tiff, she found herself thinking about him touching her, plundering her body. She needed a dunk in ice water. Or maybe a mallet to the head to set her straight again. Anything was better than admitting she had another weakness to add to her list.

  Wood smoke and fat hissing on flame caught her nose and guided her through town. The packed dirt road was easily traveled though rutted out by wagon wheels in the center. She passed other women dressed in white as she was, thronged together in small clusters as they watched what the clan menfolk had up for grabs. Mali was more interested in assuaging her hunger than ogling men. Her stomach rumbled, and she tried to remember the last thing she ate, but couldn’t.

  The wolf effigy was gone, replaced by a newly constructed fire pit dug into the ground and lined with flat stones. Oak smoldered in the pits, wafting delicious smoke through town. Gangly youths kept spits of meat turning. Dozens of chickens glistened and browned over one section. Another section held mutton. An enormous blackened cauldron bubbled with some type of stew with chunks of carrots, onions, and turnips boiling to the brim. Another with some kind of porridge, and another simmered what smelled of wine. Rows of tables and pews had been set to either side as well as a stage for entertainment. She presumed that would be for the evening.

  A boy, not more than fifteen, rushed past carrying an armload of pewter plates to stack on one end of a serving table. The plates clattered. The top of the stack scattered across the table.

  “Ralph! Can you do nothing without a calamity? Come here, lad,” a plump older woman yelled, her hands on her hips and her face exasperated. He hastily restacked the plates and rushed to the red cheeked woman. Tripping over his feet, he stumbled and stopped in front of her where she returned to stirring the cauldron of wine.

  Mali walked to the woman laboring over the stews where the boy had gone. “Is there anything I can help with?” Mali asked. She was used to helping her mama in the kitchen. She didn’t like twiddling her thumbs with nothing to do all day.

  Ralph took a list from the cook. “Make certain you get all of these for the mulled wine. Off with you boy. Hurry back and add them to the wine.” She looked up at Mali. “Gel, you’re a guest. You’re welcome to a plate if you’re hungry, but that’s as much as we need from you. Save yer energy for the dancing tonight. You’ll need it. The menfolk are champing at the bit to entice themselves a lass as pretty as you.”

  Mali flushed and ducked her head. She knew she was no great beauty. Before she could laugh off the compliment, however, she felt a tap on her shoulder. Whipping around, she saw Kimber. She hugged her, laughing and smiling.

  “I thought you’d snuck off for good, Mali! Maybe been tied to a certain someone’s bed never to be seen again.” She waggled her shapely eyebrows.

  Mali rolled her eyes and returned the smile. “You don’t know me well if you think I could laze about in bed all day. Mama had me up at sunrise every day.”

  “My ma and da were much the same. Some of the girls here act like they’re highborn. The other girls were still abed when I left.”

  Mali moved to the feast tables covered in platters of cheese and fresh baked bread. Older women bustled back and forth from a nearby kitchen, carrying baskets of more bread, fresh fruit, and sugary confections. The list seemed endless and enticing. She snuck a wedge of cheese and popped it in her mouth. Kimber grabbed two apples and handed one to her.

  “There’s a dance tonight. Everyone will be wearing masks,” Kimber said.

  Mali arched a brow. “Oh? I didn’t know that.”

  Kimber chuckled. “You’d know more if you came to the announcements. I thought we could go make masks together. Fix each other’s hair too. That will take a few hours.”

  “I’d like that. Why masks?”

  “I think it’s to give all the men a fair shot at winning your heart. Level the playing field so you aren’t just falling for a pretty face when you choose your mate tomorrow night.”

  Mali wondered if Jaxon would show bearing something over his face. There were enough women in town with dark skin and hair that she could conceivably hide herself amongst them. They would have a little anonymity at the dance. She could pretend to be someone else to tease Jaxon and see if he was immune to all women or only her. It would be interesting to see where his heart lay.

  ***

  A parchment with a broken wax seal lay atop Nicodemus’ scarred oak desk. In his unyielding, straight back chair, Nicodemus looked thoughtful as he pushed the thick paper toward Jaxon.

  “Have a read. Tell me what you think.”

  Jaxon scanned the contents of the letter. “They want to meet with us tomorrow night to form a truce. Is this genuine?”

  “Ah broke the seal meself. It’s as real as mah signet,” Nicodemus said in his thick brogue, twisting the gold ring on his right forefinger. Every leader of the original seven clans possessed a ring which bore their animal totem.

  Jaxon scrubbed a hand across his face. “What are you looking for from me? Approval? You’ll do what you want regardless of what ah have to say.”

  “Ah want to know my best man is with me. We’ll go for peace and lay this bad blood to rest. Shouldn’t have taken so long to get around to it, but you know how stubborn I am.”

  Jaxon grunted. “Aye, Alpha. That ah do.”

  “I’ll send my messenger out then.”

  Their meeting adjourned, Jaxon left. As much as he despised the bear clan, he knew they had to make peace for the greater good of their people. The animosity couldn’t be maintained for eternity.

  Jaxon’s house was empty when he returned. He closed the door tiredly behind him, ignoring the pain in his knee that constantly reminded him of past mistakes and foolhardy decisions. He grabbed the leather book stuffed under the mattress and walked to his chair by the window. He flipped the cover open and pulled the drawing of Jen out. How long since he’d seen her face? Heard her voice? Smelled her hair? All he could remember anymore was her long blonde hair and translucent, pale skin. He couldn’t recall the sound of her voice or what color her eyes were.

  Crumpling the paper, he tossed it at the embers nestled in the fireplace. He watched as the paper caught on fire and shriveled into black ash. He’d been holding onto a dream for ten years. It was hard to love a ghost when you had nothing to hold on to. A memory couldn’t compare with the warmth of a lover’s touch. Jaxon sighed and withdrew the drawing of Mali he’d been working on. Without her here, he could still picture the corners of her mouth, tipped up slightly giving her a perpetual bemused expression even when a
ngry. Those lips and eyes charmed him.

  Still, here was another dream. She made it painfully clear that she would not choose him or anyone else as a mate. At a festival designed for the sole purpose of granting she-wolves access to only the best, what cause did she have to settle for someone like him? He was old, all used up, damaged goods. He couldn’t force her to choose him. For the sake of his pride and wounded soul, he would best serve himself by refusing to give in to her desire again. He feared she’d already stolen the last shreds of his heart.

  ***

  Excitement welled inside Mali as she and Kimber descended onto the streets and joined their costumed and masked kindred. Mali wore her hair loose, save for two braids at her temples, which cunningly twined around each other and twisted to the back of her head. She’d woven a crown of grape vines studded with red and gold leaves and sprigs of red berries to match the mâché mask that covered the top half of her face. Kimber was dressed nearly identical as she.

  A cool wind tangled in their hair and caught their cloaks, bringing with it the scent of fragrant cooking and wood smoke. “I don’t know if I can even eat I’m so excited,” Kimber said, grabbing Mali’s arm and pulling her into a skip.

  “We’ll get some mulled wine first. I saw them making it earlier. That will loosen us up,” Mali said with a laugh.

  Over the chattering din of voices, the sounds of minstrels began to play. A lute plucked and a harp rang in a charming melody. By the time they made it to the center, the party was in full swing. Dancing and eating had begun. Mali led Kimber to the wine, getting them both a goblet. She handed a cup to Kimber and scanned the crowd for Jaxon’s familiar build. Would he be here? Knowing him, he would be hiding in the shadows somewhere, observing the gathering and staying apart from the fun. She would drag him to the dance if she had to.

  She couldn’t see him anywhere in the mix. She lifted her glass of wine, enjoying the sweet and pungent scent of herbs before taking a sip. The drink was delicious, encouraging her to down her glass quickly.