Page 15 of Bred By the Barge

His expression sweeps the floor right out from under my knees.

The Barge won’t hurt me. Not like that.

He gathers me into his arms and stands.

I sob as he tucks my head against his chest.

He just throat fucked me, but tears of relief pour down my face. I’m still alive. I have food and seed in my belly, bandages over my wounds, and an alpha who’ll never go back on his word.

He promised to take care of me.

I trust him.

I trust him so much I’m willing to place my sister under the care of his people.

As another flash of heat steals my breath, I let go of my worries and give in to the truth.

No other alpha would hold back this much.

I need him. I want him. He’s mine.

I bite his chest and moan in bliss as his coppery essence fills my mouth.

Chapter 6

Tide

My legs give out. I sink to my knees and cup my omega’s head as she mewls and grinds her teeth deeper into my flesh. Light bursts behind my eyes and pain spears through my chest even as joy wraps around my heart.

A partial bond forms between us. I ache to complete it, but she bites harder when I try to pull her away.

Her scent ripens. My cock pulses and leaks.

With my omega curled against my chest and water dripping down my naked body, I kneel in the center of our living room and eye the ladder to the upper level.

She deserves a better nest than the couch and throw pillows.

I grit my teeth and force myself to stand. My legs wobble like jelly. I haven’t felt this weak since I lost my parents. I stumble to the ladder and grab the nearest rung as a wave of excruciating pain spears through me. My grip on the ladder saves us from tumbling to the ground.

“Pearl, stop. Let go, little love,” I manage through clenched teeth as she grinds her jaw and deepens her bite.

She stiffens and snaps into awareness. My breath of relief catches in my throat, and I lean my hip on the ladder and hang my head, willing it to stop spinning.

The scent of her tears bothers me more than the coppery aroma of my blood as she extracts her teeth. The salty tang sours our mingled pheromones. Her sorrow cleaves my heart in two, and resolution settles over me, overriding my pain.

She licks my wound and wraps her arms around my neck. The bandages on her hands prevent her from scratching my nape, but she clings to me as best she can and drops her forehead to my collarbone. She runs her tongue over her bite mark in apology and licks her silent tears before they sting my torn flesh.

She’s too fucking sweet. Too resilient. Too precious.

“Wrap your legs around my waist and hold tight, tiny treasure. Let’s get you somewhere more comfortable,” I murmur through the buzzing in my head.

It hurts. I hurt. The incomplete bond stabs deep into my heart and steals my strength, but I power through by sheer force of will and climb the ladder. Her soft tongue continues to caress my mating mark even after I step into the upper room and close the hatch over the ladder.

She doesn’t lift her head when I stalk across the room and stop in front of the sleeping pad.

I prop my forearm under her ass, bite back a groan at the slick coating her legs, and reach back to unlock her arms, but she hiccups and nuzzles harder against me. A lump of emotions lodges at the base of my throat. I distract myself by pulling the stash of food from the closet and filling a pitcher with water from the small sink tucked in the corner and placing both on the shelf closest to the sleeping pad.

She refuses to lift her head with gentle prodding, so I grab her hair and force her to look at me.

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