Page 100 of Owning His Mate

Sitting between my mate’s legs, his arms wrapped around me, I feel a sense of calm. This is exactly where and with whom I’m supposed to be—no matter what happens in the future, as long as I have him, everything will be fine. I truly believe that.

I glance over at Savannah, who is building daisy chains with a very pregnant Tessa. Her pup is going to drop any day now, and I wish we had a safe place for her to have her baby, but that is not how things have worked out. All we can do is try to future-proof her child’s life.

“How many more do you think will turn up?” Halle asks.

“Hopefully enough,” I say.

“It would be helpful if that white-haired bastard would actually tell us something of use,” she mutters, plucking the grass underneath her with more violence than is necessary. “He knows the answers we need, and he could fix all of this in a heartbeat, or at least try to make amends for his behavior.”

I understand her frustration. Halle is desperate to find her mother. She saw her once before, during an attack on the Sanctuary, but since then, there hasn’t been even a hint of where she might be. I can understand how much she wants to set her free—the person who gave up her freedom to protect her.

“At least you know we’ll be able to repair her mind when we do find her,” Roux tells her.

Halle grimaces, and I know why this information isn’t as welcome as it should be. Hester had known it all along—how to remove memory blocks, how to repair minds broken by magic—and yet she did nothing when Dove needed her help. I thoughtshe was the good guy in our story, but now… I don’t know. The truth is far more complicated, and while she is not entirely the villain, she’s not far off.

Doyou think Savannah will be okay for an hour?Kye’s voice echoes through my mind.

As always,I feel the warmth spread through me from his presence.

I think so.Why?

He pats my back,and I sit forward, glancing over my shoulder at him, the question dancing in my eyes. He stands, offering me his hand, which I take, allowing him to pull me to my feet.

“We’ll be back. Keep an eye on Savannah.” This is delivered as an order, but the girls smirk, as if knowing why he wants me alone.

I hope that is the reason. He’s been pretty overprotective of me since I was laid out like a sacrificial lamb and almost bled to death. But I miss my mate, and considering how dangerous things are about to get, we have to remember to live every day like it might be our last.

Since everyone turned up, things have gotten overcrowded, which means we’ve moved back into the building I used to live in with my coven and the other males. Kye isn’t too keen on having so many people around us, but there really is no choice. A lot of the new people are having to bed down in the main hall. So we’re lucky to have rooms at all.

The building is quiet as we step inside, though that peace won’t last long. He leads me up to the bedroom, pushing thedoor open and stepping inside before guiding me in. As well as our bed, there is a small single pushed against one wall for Savannah. With space at a premium, there’s no way she can have her own bedroom here.

As soon as the doors close, I expect him to pounce on me, but he doesn’t. He walks over to the bed and sinks onto it, clasping his hands between his parted thighs.

My heart sinks, breaking into pieces at how dejected he seems. I sink down next to him, wrapping my arm around his back and nestling my head into his side. Instantly, he hugs me close, and as always, I feel happy in his arms.

“What’s wrong?” I ask.

“I feel unsettled.”

I trail my fingers over his hip, leaning my head against his chest. “That’s hardly surprising. Everything is a mess right now.”

“I nearly lost you twice.”

Right, so that’s what this is about.

“You’re not going to lose me. I survived being used in a blood magic ritual, I think I can survive anything after that.”

My joke falls flat, his expression so concerned, it makes my stomach dip. I sit up properly, pulling away from his grasp so I can take his face between my hands. “I’m not going to die, Kye. I have too much to live for.”

His lips quirk into a smile that does not reach his eyes. “We both know that’s not how this works. It’s a miracle all of us have survived this long, but eventually, luck runs out, Apryle. We are all on borrowed time.”

I pull his head down and brush my lips over his, soothing his concerns in the only way I know I can. He reciprocates immediately, his hand wrapping around my nape so he can deepen the kiss. I open my mouth to let him inside, moaning against his tongue as it caresses along the length of mine.

There’s been a lot of things happening in the last few weeks, and it would be so easy to get lost in the despair of it all, but we have to keep fighting. We have to keep being strong. Even if we left and went on the run, there is no way all of this would not catch up with us at some point. There is no outmaneuvering what’s coming.

So I kiss him as if this is our last moment together. The passion, the desire, it burns between us as he pushes me back onto the mattress, settling between my parted thighs. My body sings with need as my fingertips press into his back and I pull him closer.

I need him inside me. Forget foreplay and all that buildup, I just want to feel every inch of him in me and around me. It’s been hard to find a moment alone with Savannah in our room and I’m desperate to have him.

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