The Mating Ritual (6 page)

Cormac took Toni by the upper arm and pushed
her in the direction of where Lila and another woman sat. He forced
her down next to them. She glanced up and met his eyes.

“You eat now, and then sleep.”

Sleep?
It has to be the middle of the
day.

He exchanged a commutative glance with Lila
and left. Without speaking, Lila got to her feet and walked to the
fire. Toni watched her pick up a wooden plate and put some food in
it. She handed it to Toni before sitting back down.

“Thank you.” The food looked and smelled
good, but Toni was too nervous to enjoy it. She ate because she
needed nourishment and strength, and glanced around to see what the
others were doing. “Is this where you all live?”

“We spend some winter months here.”

Spring was right around the corner. “Where do
you live in the summer?”

“Deeper north, further into the mountains,”
the other woman answered.

She looked a little older than Lila and was
dressed in the same way. Instead of a braid, her graying hair was
pulled back into a tight bun.

“My name is Didi,” she said. “Lila and I are
sisters.”

Toni could see the resemblance. “Were you
both born with the Bigfo–Oh-Mah?” She put a piece of fish into her
mouth, surprised to find that it cooked to perfection.

“Yes.” They answered simultaneously.

“Finish,” Lila commanded. “Then we sleep. We
have many miles to travel after dark.”

What?
Toni glanced around, and her
stomach fell. The children were already sleeping, curled against
their mothers. More than one couple were engaged in sex. She met
the eyes of Malik. He was staring at her while fucking his partner,
the same young woman he’d taken earlier. It seemed that
doggie-style was his favorite position. Toni quickly looked away.
She searched for Cormac, surprised to find him relaxing against the
wall, his eyes trained on her, too. What was he thinking?

Toni pulled her gaze away, but something
compelled her to return her gaze to him. A flashback of their
intense lovemaking made her pulse race. Cormac was a thorough,
skilled lover, and saw to her every need as well as his. He liked
sex, there was no doubt about that, and Toni was astonished at how
fast she’d given in to him. In the few relationships she’d had, sex
had never been that important to her, but now she was suddenly
craving it.

She lowered her gaze and finished her food.
The empty plate was taken from her hand without warning, and she
was left alone with Didi.

“Come, child.” Didi was staring down at
Toni.

Toni reluctantly got to her feet. She was led
to a spot against the wall, where several soft pelts were spread
out. Thank goodness there were extras, because she was beginning to
feel cold.

“You sleep here.” Didi turned and walked
away, rejoining Lila, and both women lay down without a word.

Toni slowly sank down to the soft fur bed,
pulling one of them over her body. It didn’t cover her all the way,
but at least she didn’t feel so exposed. Sighing, she knew there
was no way she was going to be able to sleep, not when the only
thing on her mind was escape.

She turned on her side to face the wall. She
was surprised by how cool and dark it became once they’d put out
the campfire. Light noises indicated that some were still moving
about. Heavy breathing and moans told her that others were engaged
in their favorite past time. She tried to tune them out, her
thoughts going to Cormac, and she was suddenly hungry for him.

Toni couldn’t understand why she felt horny
all the time. Just thinking about the Oh-Mah leader aroused her. It
was an impossible situation. She didn’t belong with these people,
and as soon as the chance presented itself, she was going to make a
run for it. And go where? She didn’t know where she was, and if
they moved deeper into the mountains, she was really screwed.

People went in there, never to be seen
again.

Without warning, Toni felt a presence settle
behind her. She opened her mouth to scream, but a hand covered it
before she could get out a squeak. She was flipped onto her back,
and the hand was replaced with a firm mouth as the man settled his
weight on top of her. Thinking it might be Malik, Toni struggled
and twisted, but he easily subdued her by pulling her arms over her
head, and pinning them to the ground.

“Don’t fight me, little one,” Cormac said
against Toni’s lips. She relaxed, accepting his kiss when he
returned his mouth to hers. As his kiss deepened she moaned,
kissing him back, hating herself for showing such weakness when it
came to him.

Cormac released her wrists, letting Toni
lower her arms. She caressed his wide shoulders and back roughly,
arching beneath him with renewed desire.
Oh, my God!
Her
body was a prisoner to his unquenchable demands. What was she going
to do? She came alive with a wanton lust when he touched and kissed
her. Now, with his hands on her breasts, he was igniting a fire
inside her blood that only he could extinguish.

Their tongues battled for dominance. Toni
raked her nails down Cormac’s back, feeling his muscles tense
beneath her attack, but to a man like him it was a sensual prelude
to the kind of pleasure he craved. She sensed that. He liked it
rough and raw and he gave it the same way. His hands moved over her
curves as though discovering them for the first time. Then he tore
his mouth from hers and began kissing his way down her straining
body. Without warning he pushed Toni’s bra up over her full
breasts, and for the first time she felt the intense effect of his
warm mouth, tongue, and teeth against her bare flesh.

Toni moaned with rapture, bowing beneath
Cormac’s hot, exploring mouth. As he neared her pelvis, she quickly
removed her thong and automatically parted her legs in silent
invitation. He teased her clit, sucking it into his mouth, and then
rolling his tongue over it. Toni bit her bottom lip to keep from
crying out with pleasure, putting her hands on his shoulders, and
trying to urge him up her body.

“Cormac!” She twisted and wiggled beneath
him, gasping for breath, feeling an orgasm spiraling through her
body at record speed. “Please…!”

Comprehending her need, Cormac jabbed his
tongue over her clit several more times before crawling up her
body. His mouth covered Toni’s again as he positioned his dick at
the entrance to her buzzing pussy. Toni moaned deeply, swallowing
his tongue, and waiting impatiently for sheer bliss to overcome
her. It happened when he thrust his hips forward. His enormous sex
parted her plump pussy lips, slid over her clit, and tunneled
further beyond.

He seemed content to lay there unmoving. Toni
felt his cock pulsing inside her, filling her completely. She
thrust up, encouraging him to fuck her. His grunt was followed by a
return thrust down. Then he began to plunge in and out, slow at
first, building to a speed that took Toni’s breath away. His
climatic release fueled hers.

Cormac’s bear-like roar drowned out Toni’s
cry of release. He held her by the hips, pulling her tightly
against him while grinding his cock as deep as he could. Overcome
with blinding, toe-curling pleasure, she lost control and bit
Cormac on the chest. He hardly seemed to notice, and once their
convulsions had stopped, Toni collapsed, feeling his rapid
heartbeat against her breast.

She was caught off guard when his lips
brushed against her mouth in a feather light caress.

“Sleep now.” Cormac rolled, bringing her with
him as he settled on his back. He dragged a hide over them before
wrapping his arms around her.

I have become a nympho overnight because,
God, help me, I want Cormac all over again. What’s wrong with
me?
Toni began to wonder if there was something in his semen
that made her feel that way. No, that was silly, wasn’t it?

Eventually she slept.

“Toni.”

The sound of her name seemed to be coming
from far away. She resisted the pull and tried to snuggle deeper
into the pleasant warmth beneath her. A sigh escaped her when she
felt a gentle, intimate caress on her bare bottom.

“Toni, wake. We go now.”

Go where?
She was having the most
delicious dream, an erotic dream that she didn’t want to interrupt.
But the sound of her name on Cormac’s lips for the first time had a
strange and powerful effect on her. Her hand smoothed up his
ribcage and defined pecs before coming to a rest on his taut
nipple. With the fog of sleep clouding her judgment, she tweaked
the nub maybe a little too roughly because the next thing she knew
Cormac grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her up his body.

She gasped; wide awake now, her eyes growing
round. How had she ended up sleeping on top of him? “I’m sorry,”
Toni said, thinking that she’d hurt him.

“No time for mating now,” he rasped with a
fire in his eyes. He gave her a hard kiss, and then rolled to his
feet, bringing one of the furs with him.

Toni watched as he covered his lower body. He
helped her to her feet, his gaze making a lingering sweep down her
body.

“I like mating with you.” He touched her
hair. “You have a nice body.” Frowning, his hand went to her
breast. “I don’t like this.” Before she could guess his intentions
he took the thin fabric between her breasts and easily tore it
apart.

Toni’s breasts bounced free as he tugged the
bra away. She watched it float to the floor before having the
presence of mind to cover her nudity. Bringing her hair forward,
she glanced around nervously to see if they were being watched.
Thankfully, everyone seemed busy as they prepared to leave.

Cormac seemed to sense her uneasiness and
reached up to run the back of his hand over her cheek. “Go with
Lila.” He turned to join the men where they were gathering.

Toni glanced to where the women were. Lila
smiled and encouraged her over. Noticing some of the women were
gathering up the unclaimed hides and tying them into bundles, she
reached for the hide she’d shared with Cormac, rolling it as she
walked to join Lila. Toni knew she wouldn’t be allowed to use it to
cover her nudity, but she wanted to keep it in case she got the
opportunity to make a run for it.

Lila reached for it.

Toni pulled it against her. “I’ll carry it. I
want to help.”

Lila shrugged her shoulders and turned. “We
go now.”

Didi was on her knees, burying something in a
hole. Toni watched her out of curiosity for a moment, returning
Didi’s smile when she paused long enough to glance up at them. What
was she burying? The answer came when one of the other women
brought Didi some primitive looking utensils. Didi took them
silently and added them to the hole. It then dawned on Toni what
she was doing. She was burying the things they wouldn’t be taking
with them. She supposed so that way if someone stumbled upon the
cave, there wouldn’t be any signs that someone else had been
there.

“Toni, come,” Lila said with a touch of
impatience in her tone.

Before the main fire was doused, several men
lit torches to lead the way. Cormac was at the head of the group,
so Toni stayed close to Lila. They moved through a maze of damp
tunnels and room-like caverns until eventually they reached the
entrance to the cave. Toni took a deep breath of fresh air when she
stepped outside, not realizing until that moment just how damp and
musty the cave had been.

It was dark, but the sky was clear, making
the moon and stars appear brighter and closer to the ground than
usual. The torches were extinguished and tossed into the darkness.
Before they left the area, several men disguised the cave opening
with large tree limbs and leafy branches.

“Why do you travel after dark?” Toni asked.
She could barely see anything.

“It’s safer for us.” Lila took her hand. “We
are too close to civilization here. After tonight it will be safer
and we will be able to move by day.”

Too close to civilization? Toni knew that the
nearest town was an hour away and decided that Lila must be
referring to the people who lived scattered throughout the mountain
region. “How far are we going?”

“We go to Horseshoe Mountain.”

That didn’t really tell Toni anything. She’d
never heard of Horseshoe Mountain, so she assumed it was a landmark
that only they knew about. As they walked along an invisible path
she realized why Lila had taken her by the hand. It would be easy
to step off the path and become separated from the others. She was
surprised by how silently they moved through the forest, even the
children seemed to know to stay quiet.

Toni knew that if she were going to run she
would have to do it before day light. The further they moved away
from the cave, the more lost she became, but the cover of darkness
would be to her advantage. As Lila pulled her along, she ran
through several scenarios in her mind of how she would pull off her
escape. The first priority was to get to the very end of the line.
Instinct told her that the further away she was from Cormac and the
other men, the better her chances of escape were.

Will he come after me?
Toni had a
feeling that he would and that it wouldn’t have anything to do with
his wanting her. Their staying under the radar so successfully had
to be the result of making sure that they went undetected and
stayed out of sight. Toni doubted that they would allow an outsider
to escape. Deep down she knew that if she didn’t make a run for it,
and make it count, she wouldn’t get another chance.

She concentrated on putting one foot in front
of the other, wishing that she had on shoes. Lila kept up a good
pace for being elderly; she was apparently in good shape. Toni
realized that she was going to have to do something to slow her
down. She thought that if she pretended to step on something it
might work in her favor. Taking a deep breath for courage, Toni
knew that it was now or never. She let out a gasp and pulled back
on Lila’s hand, causing the other woman to stop. The others
continued around them without breaking stride.