Mating Season (9 page)

Although the brute could have easily mauled her, she'd known he wouldn't. She didn't feel any such restriction in return. Ears flat, she went for his neck, biting with her fangs and raking him with her claws to do maximum damage. The scent of fresh blood blazed across her senses, intensifying her need to rend and kill.

Tartok used his weight and strength to fend her off, but he was definitely taking care not to injure her. She caught movement beside her and reared back just in time to see Koll jam the tip of his spear into Tartok's eye. The enormous frost bear roared in agony and backed away.

His brother tried to take advantage of Koll's distraction. Shila slammed into his side before he could reach her mate and tried to follow up with a bite to his throat. He leapt out of the way at the last second, causing her teeth to close with a loud snap. Both brothers retreated, getting away before her very eyes. Although they were hurt, she hadn't thought they'd give up. Then she heard the yelling.

"Gilby.” Still breathing hard, Koll turned toward his approaching friend.

For such a small man, Gilby could make a lot of noise. Tartok and Cikuq must have thought half the village was coming after them. Already disabled, they wouldn't have wanted to risk that.

"Are you two all right?” Gilby asked.

He still didn't look as if he was comfortable with her in her bear form, but she was touched that he cared.

Koll glanced at her and waited for her nod. “We're fine."

"I'll gather the men of the village. We'll hunt them down and finish them off."

That's what Shila wanted. Hunt, tear, kill. She wanted to eliminate the danger to her and her mate right away.

By the look on Koll's face, she could tell he wanted that too, but he shook his head. “They're faster, and it'll be dark soon. Injured, they'll be even more dangerous."

"So we just let them go?” Gilby asked the question she wanted to.

"No.” Koll followed the word with a growl. “First thing tomorrow I'll gather everyone and start the hunt. Those two will be nursing their wounds tonight."

Gilby agreed.

Shila knew they were right. Even the two men together would find it nearly impossible to put down the frost bears. That didn't mean she liked it. The fury she'd caged finally broke free, released as an earsplitting roar that had Gilby stepping back. When even that failed to calm her, she paced.

Koll murmured something to Gilby before his friend left. Then he stepped directly in her path, forcing her to halt.

"Change back."

Shila didn't want to. She was angry and, yes, scared. Adrenaline still flooded her body, making her edgy and mean, and she felt safer in this skin.

"Now,” he ordered.

Her temper finally found a target. With a brilliant flash, she transformed and stood naked before him. She opened her mouth, ready to rip into him verbally where before she'd wanted physical violence. He sealed her lips with his before she got the chance.

A startled gasp escaped her, which gave him the opening he needed to thrust his tongue behind her teeth. Torn now, she was still debating between returning the kiss and nipping at him when he pulled his head back. She definitely should have gone with the nip. He wrestled her to the ground and shoved her on to all fours. Then he covered her, and she had a last moment of outrage before he opened his fly and shoved his cock inside her.

Koll didn't hurt her—no, not one bit—but he didn't give her time to adjust, either. He rode her with sure, hard strokes that filled her to bursting. Anger instantly transformed into passion, making her wild.

"More,” she cried. It was a word she used a lot around him since she never seemed to get enough.

He dug his cock into her more deeply. “I'll give you everything."

The snow compacted into tight fistfuls beneath Shila's hands. Each smack of his pelvis against her buttocks sent her rocking forward, and it took all her strength not to collapse beneath the storm of sensation. She was creaming hard now, giving him an easy glide, and the thick head of his cock sawed back and forth across her most sensitive nerves. Being taken from behind was natural for her people, so this position satisfied something primal inside her. The back and forth caress of his coat against her back only sharpened her impending orgasm. The fur rubbed her from her thighs all the way to her shoulders.

Shila loved coming with her mate inside her. Every orgasm seemed bigger and more powerful with him, and this one was no exception. It was growing ... growing...

His icy fingers dipped between her folds to tweak her clit and flung her right over the precipice. Throwing her head back, she screamed in triumph as her vagina contracted in long pulses that made her thighs quiver. Against her back, Koll stiffened and shuddered as he released his hot seed. He didn't remove his hand from between her legs, and he kept wiggling his fingers to draw out aftershocks.

When Shila grew too sensitive, she pushed his hand away. He straightened and withdrew his cock, causing his warm cum to spill and trickle down the inside of her thigh. Her pussy clenched one more time as if it wanted to hold on to every drop.

Koll picked her up and headed through the door.

"How did you know?” She cleared her throat, surprised by how hoarse he'd made her. The man always got her to scream. “How did you know I needed that?"

"Because I did,” he said. “You stopped my heart when you jumped forward to shield me. Don't ever do that again."

No, she wouldn't promise that. If he were in danger, she'd fight for him.

The thought was shocking. It went against half of Shila's nature, but she realized then that she would give her life to protect her mate. The woman in her loved him that much.

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Still holding Shila in his arms, Koll lay very still in bed the next morning. The sight of her sleeping was the greatest compliment he'd ever received. It proved she trusted him to stay on guard and keep her safe, and he'd done exactly that. Although he'd felt confident Tartok and Cikuq would not return during the night, he'd nevertheless slept lightly, alert to danger. There had been no further sign of the brothers.

They would be back, though. Koll didn't have any magical ability, but there was nothing wrong with his instincts. Right now, his gut told him that, despite their injuries, the two would return. His time with Shila had taught him that her people were a complicated mixture of man and bear. The way these males were stalking her outside of the breeding season definitely wasn't their furry half's doing. Frost bears were lethal, but men could be even more dangerous.

These men wanted her—no, were obsessed with her. They would not give her up so easily. Although he had seriously wounded them, partially blinding one, he knew that wouldn't deter them. If anything, the men would seek revenge against him now.

Koll hoped he could gather enough villagers to hunt them down. Had the brothers been a threat to the entire community, he knew every able-bodied man would have lent him their aid. But this attack was specifically aimed at him and Shila. Just because his people liked her, and even seemed to have accepted him more fully, didn't mean they'd risk their lives to help. Because of his size and disposition, Koll had always been a loner.

This time he couldn't do it alone. It galled him to admit, but he'd be dead already if Shila hadn't thrown herself in front of him, not once but twice. He'd learned what true terror felt like when he'd seen the massive bear slam into her smaller body. Knowing they wouldn't want to hurt her wasn't much comfort in that moment. His woman had held her own, though.

Looking at her now, he felt a smile break across his face. He was proud of her. She was so brave, and her love made him want to conquer the world just to lay it at her feet. For the moment, though, he'd have to settle for another method of worshipping her.

Still wearing a grin, Koll slipped beneath the covers. He didn't touch her just yet, not wanting to wake her, but her body was a wonderland to explore: firm breasts like the mountains in the distance with pink peaks as pale and perfect as the dawn; then the plane below, softly rounded into womanly curves. And, of course, the deep crevasse between her legs—not icy, but as toasty and welcoming as a hot spring, tempting him to dive in.

Yesterday she'd woken him in the most enjoyable way. He wanted to return the favor. Careful not to jostle her awake, he eased her legs apart and settled between them. It was best to make himself comfortable since he planned to be there for a good long while. He used his thumbs to spread her nether lips and breathed in her intoxicating scent. Her clit was hiding at the moment, but that would soon change.

Keeping his tongue soft and relaxed, he licked right up the length of her slit over and over again until she creamed for him. She restlessly shifted her thighs. Koll nuzzled deeper until her little nubbin popped out to play. He laved it firmly, making sure to lavish it with extra attention on every upstroke. Shila rewarded him with a gasp of pleasure as she came awake.

Oral sex always seemed to take her by surprise, which probably meant her people didn't practice it. His woman was nothing if not a hedonist, though. He knew she liked it.

"Koll.” She moaned his name when he quickened his strokes and then thrust the tip of his tongue inside her opening.

He wasn't unaffected by what he was doing. The sounds she made, combined with the flavor of her cream and her sweet, wild scent, scrambled his thoughts and intensified his arousal. His cock was stiff and aching, the head already capped with moisture. With every swipe of his tongue, he pumped his hips to rub his dick against the bed, mimicking what he wanted to do between her milky thighs. It would have felt so much better to have her hot pussy wrapped around his shaft, but he was willing to wait.

Another slow swipe of his tongue. Her legs tensed beneath his hands, and her breathing changed, alerting him to just how close she was to coming. She always broke into short, hard pants right before she climaxed. He sucked her clit again and then speared her with his tongue and flicked it inside her as fast as he could. At the same time, he reached up to tweak her gorgeous nipples.

Koll growled in approval when she came apart in his arms. He didn't wait for her orgasm to finish. Sliding up her body, he aligned his cock and thrust inside her sheath, right past her contracting muscles all the way to her core. His withdrawal was an easy glide that stimulated every one of his nerve endings. Then he pumped back into her, again and again.

He caught her mouth with his for a long, searing kiss before letting his weight press her more deeply into the mattress. The dominant position had his balls tightening almost painfully. A shift of his knees allowed him more leverage so he could take her as deeply as possible.

Despite his mounting urgency, he didn't rush. He was determined to give her a good long ride. The scene from yesterday kept replaying in his mind, reminding him he could have lost her. This morning he wanted her safe and keening beneath him, proof that he hadn't failed to protect her. He ground against her, wanting to reaffirm life and the bond between them in the most elemental way.

Although her breasts were pressed against his chest, teasing him with her nipples, Shila didn't complain that he crushed her. Instead, he felt her wiggle as she fought to lift her hips in counterpoint. Her nails bit into his shoulders, urging him to go faster.

Koll's orgasm rose along his shaft, ready to pounce. When he felt Shila's pussy drag at his cock and heard her scream, he finally let himself go. With his lips peeled back from his teeth and his blood pounding, he arched his back and thrust one more time. The strangling grip of her channel had him shouting through his release. Long, fiery ribbons of cum stroked the inside of his cock on the way out and spilled back to coat his crown. He trembled helplessly until the last pulse quaked through his shaft.

Koll wasn't aware of falling asleep, but he must have drifted. The next thing he knew, Shila had him flipped onto his back beside her. Her show of strength was another reminder that she was a different kind of woman. Something primitive inside him found that both challenging and arousing.

"Mmm. That felt good.” She wasn't bashful, certainly not about her pleasure.

Koll liked that. Her praise made him feel extra smug.

Unfortunately, their situation didn't let him enjoy the feeling long. He had a lot to do this morning, not least of which was summoning as large a hunting party as he could muster.

"Today we hunt,” he announced.

"I'll track."

Koll had known she'd say that. The thought of her anywhere near the Suinnak males terrified and enraged him. He wanted to tell her he could use Greyfell to track them so she didn't have to come. But Greyfell was a sled hound, not a hunter, and she had the better nose. With her help, they could end this far sooner.

Shila must have seen the grudging agreement on his face because she nodded. She threw back the covers and hopped out of bed just as he got up to get dressed. The sight of her made him catch his breath.

"You're hurt."

Shadowed by the blankets, he hadn't seen the bruising across her shoulder and down her ribs. The blemish looked obscene against the white perfection of the rest of her skin.

Koll was so horrified he swayed on his feet before he lurched toward her. He reached out to grab her arms but froze, afraid of harming her further.

"Did I do this?” He'd been too rough with her. He'd overpowered her with his big body. She was so strong he'd thought she could handle him, but—

"No.” Her word was final. “I took the full brunt of Tartok's charge. My people are excellent healers, but shifting requires a lot of energy. It will fade completely with a day of rest."

Her assurance did little to calm him. Although he was relieved he hadn't been the one to hurt her, he was sickened that he'd allowed one of the males to mark her. If this was what it looked like this morning, how much damage must she have taken yesterday?

"Back in bed. I want you resting now.” He couldn't regret making love to her, but he hated himself for not noticing the injury sooner.