Page 56 of Primal Vow

Their eyes met, a charged moment passing between them as the crowd faded into the background. Rhys's heart raced, his body thrumming with a now-familiar longing. Before he could second-guess himself, he closed the distance between them, claiming Taryn's lips in a needy kiss.

Taryn responded instantly, his powerful arms encircling Rhys and pulling him flush against that solid, muscular frame. The kiss was passionate, all-consuming, a celebration of their bond's resilience in the face of adversity. And yet, beneath the intensity burned a profound tenderness, a depth of emotion that still left Rhys breathless.

When they finally broke apart, Rhys was flushed and dazed, his lips tingling from the force of Taryn's affections. The Borraq warrior's eyes smoldered with a mixture of desire and adoration as he gazed down at his mate.

Before Rhys could even fully process the need in Taryn's gaze, the Borraq swept him up into his arms, cradling Rhys against that powerful chest. Rhys let out an undignified yelp, his cheeks flushing even as a secret thrill shot through him.

"Taryn! Put me down," he huffed, though his half-hearted struggles did little to deter his mate. "I can walk perfectly fine on my own, you know."

Taryn merely chuckled, that deep rumble reverberating through Rhys in a way that set his pulse racing. "But why should you have to?" He nuzzled against Rhys's temple, his lips brushing over the sensitive skin there. "Allow me to indulge myself, my mate."

A shiver raced down Rhys's spine at the heated endearment, his body melting against Taryn's despite his feeble protests. He knew there was no use arguing — not that he truly wanted to.

He'd always been alone, looking out for himself. There was something intensely gratifying about being held so securely in those powerful arms, about allowing Taryn's impressive strength to support and cherish him.

"You're impossible," Rhys grumbled, though the effect was somewhat ruined by the way he nestled closer to Taryn's warmth. "Absolutely impossible."

Taryn's only response was another low, heated chuckle as he carried Rhys away from the crowd, back towards the privacy of their shared home.

Or… not?

Rhys frowned in confusion as Taryn carried him not towards the comforting coziness of their little house, but right past it.

"Taryn?" he asked, his voice rising. "Taryn, where are we going?"

The Borraq didn't answer. His powerful strides ate up the ground as he carried Rhys through the village and out the other side, heading straight for the dense greenery of the surrounding jungle.

Oh. Rhys's heart began to race. He knew exactly where this was headed.

He also knew that Taryn knew that he knew, and that the Borraq was pointedly ignoring the rising mix of embarrassment and anticipation in Rhys's pheromones.

The rest of the village was busy celebrating the new warriors in the safety of the dining hall, surrounded by the familiar sights and sounds of their home. But here, out in the depths of the jungle, with the sun setting and the calls of alien beasts beginning to echo through the trees, here was the Borraq's true home.

Here was the wilds, the heart of Vasz, the place where the instincts of the golden-skinned aliens truly came alive.

Here was the place where, after the heat of the rite of passage and the heady mix of pride and camaraderie, a certain something else stirred in a Borraq's blood.

And now, here was the place where a certain something else could stir as well.

"Taryn," Rhys protested, his voice coming out in a half-hearted whine. "Taryn, come on. You can't be serious. Taryn!"

His words were met with nothing but the sound of Taryn's steady footfalls as he carried Rhys deeper and deeper into the jungle. Soon, out of earshot of the village, Taryn put Rhys down and pressed him against a tree.

Despite his protests, Rhys's body betrayed him. He squirmed in Taryn's grip, the thick muscles of the Borraq's arms holding him securely against that broad, armored chest. His hips shifted, rubbing against the hard planes of Taryn's body, the thick muscles that promised exactly what the Borraq had in mind.

"Please, Taryn," Rhys half-begged, half-teased. "Have mercy on this poor, delicate human—"

His voice trailed off into a breathless gasp as Taryn's thick thigh pressed between his legs, rubbing against the growing hardness there.

"Rhys," Taryn rumbled, his voice low and dangerous, thick with the primal heat that swirled around them both. "I'm going to remind you exactly what kind of creature claimed you as his mate — and exactly what kind of treatment I know this 'poor, delicate human' enjoys."

Despite the embarrassment that colored his cheeks, Rhys couldn't help but smile.

Taryn's desires were anything but human, but in the deep, wild heart of an alien world, they were exactly what Rhys needed.

Rhys gasped as Taryn's powerful hands roamed over his body, the heat of the alien's touch searing through the thin fabric of his clothes. The Borraq's fingers dug into the curves of Rhys's hips, pulling him flush against the hard planes of Taryn's muscular form.

"Taryn," Rhys breathed, his voice a desperate whine as desire coiled low in his belly. He arched against the delicious friction, his neglected flesh straining for more of that maddening contact.

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