Page 6 of His Curvy Mate

“Good. Then if you’ll give me your word you will not consort with wizards or lead the Shadow League, I’ll forego the pleasure of driving one of my ice axes through your heart.”

“Bloodthirsty little thing, aren’t you?” he chuckled. “I had almost forgotten that hellhounds let their females fight and train to become warriors.”

She shook her head, growled, and went back to dressing, which was a shame as Andreas really preferred her naked.

“Let me get my things and we’ll leave this place together,” he stressed the last word.

“We’re not going anywhere together. I’m going to get my things and head back down the mountain. Other than worrying about you fucking and turning other females without their consent, I am leaving and will never give you another thought.”

Andreas rumbled down the bonding link that was quickly coming into being. He watched as her body shuddered with arousal tinged with fear. He knew it wasn’t himself that she feared, but her own reaction.

“We will both be safer if we travel together.”

“I can simply slip into the In-Between…”

“Not for any length of time. You are no longer fully hellhound.”

“You bastard,” she hissed as she turned to face him.

“There is a threat. You were followed.”

“I was not.”

“You were. Place your hand on the rock where I claimed you. You will feel the malevolent vibrations in the earth. I don’t know how well I can fly in this damnable cold.”

“You flew up here, didn’t you?”

“Yes, but that’s not the point. I think it would be best to travel together.”

“For the record,” she said, placing her hand tentatively on the altar. She snatched her hand back as though she had felt the wickedness rippling through the rock itself. He nodded. “I hate you.”

Andreas chuckled. “That is a fine and honest place to start. Come, my mate…”

“Stop calling me that.”

“I have nothing else to call you,” he said, waiting patiently.

She sighed. “Cayetana South.”

“Cayetana,” he said, allowing her name to linger on his lips.

“Caye. And get a move on. We’re losing daylight, and I’d prefer not to have to camp overnight on the side of this glacier.”

“I will keep you warm and dry,” he said as he finished dressing. He looked at her meager clothing and reached into the trunk—one of the few things he had brought with him to the cave. Over the years when he would open his eyes, it would taunt him until he was reminded it also was a promise of a future yet to come. He threw a heavier garment to her. “Take this. I think you’ll find it will keep you warmer.”

Reluctantly, it seemed to him, she removed her heavy coat, pulled the sweater over her head, and then replaced the coat. She nodded. “Thanks. That is better.”

Andreas picked up the pack and looped them together. She held back, starting to balk but then realizing it would be safer for both of them. Smart and sexy. His fated mate would appear to be someone worth waiting for.

The icy wind howled through the caverns of the glacier, the sound bouncing off the walls like the wails of lost souls. Caye and Andreas trudged forward, their breath visible in the frigid air, each step a cautious maneuver on the slippery terrain. Stalactites hung from the ceiling like frozen daggers, and the floor beneath their feet was a treacherous patchwork of ice and rock.

"We need to keep moving," Andreas urged, glancing back at Caye. His voice, though muffled by the layers of his scarf, held a note of urgency. "The storm outside is getting worse. We need to get off the glacier."

Caye nodded, closing her eyes for a moment.

“Can you still feel it?” he asked.

She nodded. “It’s not just the storm. There’s a malevolent force, and it isn’t you or the storm.”

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