Mating Rights (11 page)

“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.”

“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.

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.