Into the Ashes [The Arcadians 2] (12 page)

he couldn’t sense what she was

feeling, but he was wide open to her.

Savitar had all but given up hope for

finding a woman who would one day

have his child.

He had always believed that he and

his brothers would mate, but he had

convinced himself that whatever

Arcadian female they mated would

have only allowed him to touch her

when it was the three brothers

together. That she would never

choose to allow him to love her

separately, regardless of the bond

between them.

He’d had dreams of playing with

the children a mate would have given

them and the sadness he felt knowing

that none of the little boys and girls

were his nearly broke her heart. He

would

have

loved

them

with

everything in him, but in his mind he

would never be their father because

he would never be loved by his mate

as his brothers would be.

She knew what it felt like to feel

unwanted and she never wanted him

to feel like that with her. Raven

reached down to turn his head to her

so he stopped what he was doing to

look up at her. It took her a moment

to make certain her voice was strong

and sure when she spoke to him.

“You know that all this mating stuff is

new to me, but I consented to be

yours. That means that one day I

would love to have children with you

and if I have to swear to only have

sex with you to prove that when the

time comes then I will.”

His eyes widened in alarm. “You

cannot deny my brothers until you are

breeding!”

She laughed. “I didn’t mean that,

sexy Savy. Since you told me I would

have to learn how to take all three of

you at once eventually there are

obviously other ways to take care of

Kadan and Tristan. What I’m saying

is if you want me to show you how

important you are to me then I will do

whatever it takes to prove it to you. If

you want me to make sure the baby is

yours then that’s what we’ll do.”

She made sure the bond between

them was open so he could feel the

truth of her words. She felt the

emotions swirling inside of him and

knew just how much her offer meant

to him. She yelped as he jerked her to

him so he could bury his face into her

stomach. His grip around her waist

was so tight she could barely breathe,

but she simply rested her head on top

of his and ran her hands through his

long hair. He pulled back and she

saw his glowing eyes were bright

with emotion.

“I would never ask that of you, but

you have no idea what your offer

means to me, my queen. Just knowing

you would do that for me is enough.”

Raven opened her mouth to say

something but a loud growl from her

empty stomach had them both

laughing.

“We must feed you, my love,”

Savitar said. He pulled out a silver

shirt made of a shimmering material

and a black vest similar to the one he

was wearing. “Would one of these be

acceptable to you?”

Raven studied them then ended up

taking both of them along with the

pants before walking back into the

bedroom. She gave Savitar a few

moments alone in the closet as he put

the trunk back where he’d stored it.

She knew he was a fierce warrior,

known for his strength and power and

it was strange for him to be so

vulnerable to her.

For such a giant man, Savitar had a

sweet, softer side that he showed

only to her and his brothers. It made

it easier for her to trust him because

he didn’t hide anything. No matter

what she asked he was always

honest, even if she didn’t particularly

like the answer. In some weird way it

made her feel closer to him because

of the way the rest of his world saw

him. They were frightened of his

strength and power, but there was no

one on Arcadia she trusted more.

Perhaps that was the reason for the

blood bond between mates. It cut

through the bullshit and allowed for

mates to see the real person beneath

the surface.

Raven put on the leather pants and

was pleased to see that they fit. The

pants weren’t really made of leather,

they were simply a leather-like

material that moved and stretched

with the wearer and were so

comfortable that it almost didn’t feel

like she had anything on at all.

She looked down at the vest and

shirt she had laid on the bed and

decided to be bold. Wanting to match

Savitar, she picked up the vest and

put it on. Once she was done

fastening up the front she looked in

the mirror and froze. On a young boy

the vest would have fit properly, but

on her it looked more like a corset

top with the swell of her breasts

showing through the V cut in the

front. With her gypsy curls falling

wild around her shoulders, she

looked provocative and badass.

She absolutely loved it.

She turned as Savitar walked out of

the closet. He stopped abruptly as if

he had slammed into a brick wall.

His nostrils flared as he growled and

stalked toward her. She smiled as she

felt the waves of lust pouring off him

and met him with equal fervor as his

lips smashed down on hers.

The kiss was brutal, wild with

passion, and a little rough. His hand

sank into her hair, gripping hard as he

used it for an anchor to keep her

exactly where he wanted her. They

fed off one another as her hands

stroked over the corded muscles of

his back. He sighed as her stomach

gave another loud protest and rested

his head against her forehead as they

both panted for air.

“Come,

we

must

feed

your

impatient stomach before I take you

on our bed again.”

Chapter Six

“Relax, mate. All will be well.”

Raven held Savitar’s hand as they

entered the main hall. At first she’d

been amused that he had wanted to

hold her hand, but through their bond

she could sense that it was important

for him to do so. It seemed like mates

holding hands had become somewhat

of a recent trend and Savitar had

hoped to show their commitment to

one another by embracing the

demonstrative gesture. She wasn’t

usually into public displays of

affection, but if it meant that much to

him then she was game.

Nerves had her clinging to his large

hand, grateful for his support as she

walked with him into the unknown.

The last time she had been in the

main hall was not something she

wanted to remember. Part of her was

embarrassed for the less than stellar

entrance, but it wasn’t like she had

any preparation on how to behave

when getting her ass drop-kicked into

a whole new world.

It was midmorning, but there were

still a few people in the hall eating at

the long tables. It came as no surprise

to Raven when she saw Kadan sitting

at the table up on the dais. For a

moment she was able to study him

unobserved as he spoke to the

warriors he was sitting with. There

was a distance between Kadan and

the other men, as if he was listening

to what they were saying, but his

mind was really focused somewhere

else. His glowing eyes seemed dull

with sadness and it hurt Raven’s

heart to see it, knowing that she was

probably the cause.

There were two women at the table

who sat with the four men. Both had

long, dark-brown hair and they both

had on those ridiculous transparent

dresses, one in a lavender color

while the other wore teal. The

woman in lavender was perched on

the lap of one of the warriors, being

hand-fed some sort of fruit. Raven’s

eyes narrowed as she noticed the

woman in teal wasn’t interested in

what the warriors she was sitting

next to were offering. No, she was

too busy sending covetous glances at

Kadan under veiled lashes.

Oh, yeah. That was going to be a

problem.

A big fucking problem.

Jealousy had never been a problem

before, but Raven felt an irresistible

desire to punch the other woman in

the face for daring to look at one of

her men that way. Holding back a

snarl of rage, Raven’s steps faltered

for a moment at the thought. A snarl,

really? Jesus, she had obviously been

adapting to her surroundings faster

than she’d anticipated.

Normally not a violent person

except when the situation called for

it, she was surprise by the almost

overwhelming compulsion to attack.

She already thought of Savitar,

Kadan, and Tristan as hers, no matter

how stupid the other men had been.

Her temper held as she realized that

Kadan was oblivious to the woman

in teal and her come fuck me looks.

Savitar told her that they wanted no

one but her. However, that didn’t

mean Raven couldn’t warn others

about what belonged to her. If she

was stuck in this world, mated to the

three of them, she would make damn

sure they weren’t involved with any

other women.

She knew the moment Kadan finally

sensed her approach and watched as

his head snapped up and turned

toward her. His glowing eyes

brightened and his smile of welcome

made her heart skip a beat. It

seriously wasn’t fair to look that

damn good.

She could practically feel the

sorrow fade inside him to be

replaced with a hunger so powerful it

nearly drove her to her knees. Her

clit pulsed and her pussy became

slick with the need to feel Kadan

thrusting into her. Her grip tightened

on Savitar’s hand and he shot a

worried look down at her as she

stumbled. It became clear to Raven

that she was feeling Kadan’s

emotions and his need was being

increased by her own desire. She

mentally threw up a wall and Kadan

flinched as if he were physically hurt

by the loss of the connection between

them.

To make up for it, she let go of

Savitar’s hand and strolled forward.

Taking a firm grip on Kadan’s hair,

she leaned down and pressed her lips

to his. She felt his surprise and

happiness

mix

together

as

he

welcomed her kiss. Kadan growled

with pleasure when she took the kiss

deeper, stroking his tongue with hers

over and over again until there could

be no denying that he was hers.

It was a kiss of passion, of

ownership.

It made her hot and she could feel

her nipples tighten as they ached to

feel his touch. Refusing to give into

the lust pushing her to take it further,

she pulled back. It shocked her just

how much she liked kissing him, but

she did. For a moment she’d

forgotten

herself

and

her

surroundings as she sank into him,

into the heat.

She smiled shyly at him. “Good

morning, Kadan.”

“Good rising, sweetling,” Kadan

growled back as he shifted in his

seat.

Raven had to commend his self-

control since she could feel that he

wanted nothing more than to pull her

down on his lap so they could

continue that kiss. Instead, she felt the

burn of his gaze as he took in what

she was wearing as she sat down

next to him. Savitar chuckled as he

pressed a kiss to her forehead and sat

down on her other side. Raven shot a

friendly smile at the others at the

table. The woman in lavender

beamed a smile back at her but