Page 273 of Bride of Choice

“I not rip Rek’s arms off for provoking… me,” he grumbled finally.

“For any reason,” I pressed.

Sounding like he was going to argue, Celuk let out a loud chuff, grudgingly grumbling, “Celuk won’t hurt Rek for Jo.”

Turning to him, I smiled up at him. “Thank you.”

“Welcome,” he grunted out, frowning down at me at how happy that made me.

“Why?” he grunted out after a long moment, curling his arms around my back loosely to hold me to him.

“Why what?” I was lost on this one.

“Why-” Celuk stopped as a sound echoed in the distance. With a growl, he dipped, bumped our foreheads lightly, kissed my lips, and reluctantly released me to take my hand in his. “He comes,” he rumbled out ominously.

“Who comes?” I was so damn lost.

“Not Celuk,” I thought I heard him say on a soft sigh under his breath.

Stomping footsteps pounded our way.

As we rounded the corner to the front of the house, I found Rek lifting his fist to pound on Celuk’s door. Celuk’s hand shot out in front of me, holding me back, as he barked something in beast speak at Rek.

Rek whipped around, muttered something at Celuk, and rushed over to us. He only had eyes for me as he bent and scooped me up in a death grip of a hug.

“Mine,” he muttered. That was all he said before he started placing kisses all over my face, anywhere he could reach, making his way to my lips. “Mine,” he muttered between searching kisses.

Right. Well. This was so not the way I’d imagined things would go after he hunted me down, but I couldn’t say I was upset about it, not one bit.

“Hello to you, too,” I mumbled in confusion, frowning worriedly.

Celuk rumbled something at Rek that had him glancing between us. With a sharp nod and one last peck of a kiss to my cheek, Rek set me on my feet and nudged me towards Celuk.

Panic hit me tenfold. “I don’t- What do you want me to do? Why do you suddenly keep shoving me at other beasts like that?! Like you need to get rid of me! Then lie to me about being somewhere important and it’s just fucking archery! I don’t understand!” My voice came out sounding hysterical, much louder and squeakier than intended.

Celuk gave Rek a look as he bent, curled his arms around me, and laid one on me that had me struggling to recall my own name.

Once more, my claws were digging into his shoulders, body on fire with want.

Celuk barked something at Rek as he let me up for air that had him grunting in surprise. Lifting up my hand, he held it out to Rek to take, though the look on his face said he’d much rather practice his arm ripping technique on him.

Rek looked as plumb shocked as I felt. Taking my hand in his, to curl me close and wrap an arm around me, that mystified look on his face remained as he nodded at Celuk gratefully.

I finally snapped out of my shocked stupor about halfway home. “Do you want to tell me what the hell is going on?” I spluttered.

“No,” Rek said simply. His grip on me tightened.

I knew pestering him wouldn’t do any damn good. “Fuck!”

“Rek loves Jojomine,” he said into the silence that followed.

“You lied to me,” I mutteringly replied.

“Rek go to Kirch’s for important things, like Jojomine did,” he haltingly confessed.

“And it just so happened to take place during an archery practice, with a bunch of other males present?” I sputtered, incredulous.

“Rek find Jojo’s Male Cubs peoples. Ask them what Jojomine tells them.”

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