Page 20 of Sasquatch's Claiming

After their shower, he built a fire and they snuggled up together, where she fell asleep.

It was heaven.

As much as he wanted to stay here, next to her, he couldn’t.

She was his mate now and it was his duty to protect her. And he had no doubt these visitors were coming to try and take her away from him.

There was no way the council could deny the claiming. It had happened. Reluctantly, he got out of bed and pulled on his clothes to head them off. He slipped out of his cave quietly, knowing that Bernadette was safe.

No one could smell her with his scent all over her, so he wouldn’t have to worry about imps or other nasty creatures that lurked in the dark shadows. Besides, they couldn’t break through the barriers. As soon as he stepped outside, he could see his brothers coming up the hill and then Aoife appeared next to him, appearing out of thin air. Her belly slightly swelled his Adam’s offspring, making him bitter that his brother could have his family, but he couldn’t.

And it had nothing to do with Bernadette’s infertility. It was the fact they were obviously here to take Bernadette away.

“Ben,” Aoife said softly.

“Aoife, I know what you’re going to say, but she’s mine,” Ben responded.

Adam came up to join his mate, and his other brothers held back, knowing that they should keep their distance.

“This is setting a perilous precedent,” Aoife responded. “If we let you claim your mate, yourhuman mate, then we have to let others claim humans and that means exposing ourselves.”

And Ben knew that she was referring to his brothers, in particular. When King Tiene ruled over all the realms, before the northern realm was created with the protective barrier, it was something he and his brothers talked about all the time. Finding mates.

Their mother had been human, until King Tiene tried to tear her away and she died. It wasn’t long after until their father passed on.

Their kind had been restricted far too long. Young ones stolen for secret armies. Female Sasquatches were scarce. Yet, Aoife stood up to King Tiene and his son Prince Ivar. They wereprotected now; screw the council. Cillian was right, they needed to mix their blood freely with humans. Enough with the hiding.

“I have claimed her,” Ben replied hotly.

Aoife glanced at Adam and then at his other five brothers, before letting out a sigh. “The love spell?”

“Yes. It’s fully engaged,” Ben stated. “If you take her from me, I’ll die.”

Which was true. His heart, his soul, the essence of his being, was bound to Bernadette.

Aoife ran her hand over her belly. “I’ll make sure the council sees sense. I mean, you’re right. My father was human, my mother a witch descended from Death. There is powerful magic to be had when mixing.”

Ben was half expecting Cillian to pop out of the shadows, but he didn’t.

“Thank you,” Ben replied. “I will keep her safe.”

“And what about us?” Ethan asked. “Are we free to mingle and find mates?”

“Not yet,” Adam said sternly.

“Why?” Gideon asked. “Why does he get to claim his?”

“He mated with her before our treaty with Tiene,” Aoife explained. “I tried to separate them.”

“This is a first step. There’s a council meeting tomorrow night and we’ll present Bernadette to the newly appointed head. We’ll make the council see sense that this is the right thing to do, and then we can take it slowly. I will make this clear, no carrying off brides in the middle of the night. No raiding for women like what was done a long time ago,” Adam warned.

“Everything must be consensual in this new realm,” Aoife stated.

“And everyone under this realm must abide by that?” Ben asked.

“Of course,” Aoife replied with a curious tone. “Why are you asking?”

“Bernadette, my mate, ran into your half brother and a woman who was tied up.”

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