Page 52 of The Demon of the Wood

“Who do you belong to, Melina?” he asked, pulling her up slowly, letting her feel every inch of him as he left her resting right on his tip.

“You, you, you, Kaemon,” she gasped out.

“Good,” he replied, pulling her down roughly, and hearing her moan in his ear, he came hard, her pleasure finishing only moments after his. He held her to him, his length still throbbing inside of her, as he walked through the water and up to the cabin, her head resting on his shoulder. They toppled onto the bed, and he clung to her, blissfully happy.

twenty-eight

Melina

Thecabinsmelledoffreshly baked cookies, and Melina stared at them hungrily as they cooled over the stove. She and Kaemon were going to visit their friends in Orc Haven and announce they were officially mates, though she suspected they had figured it out already. She’d decided to take cookies as part of the announcement, but her stomach growled, and she grabbed one to eat beforehand, convincing herself to stop so she still had enough to share. They had spent the last week in each other’s arms, barely bothering with clothes, only bothering with food when they needed a break, swimming in the stream and making love.

She had thought surely she would get tired of it, but she didn’t. Even now, she could spend another month only in bed with Kaemon. Her mate. She couldn’t believe it. It just so happened that all that activity made her ravenous as well. She packed a few more items and took them outside, securing them in Apple’s saddlebags.

Kaemon was by the smokehouse, gathering pelts to sell. She stopped and stared at him, leaning her head against Apple’s side as the horse nuzzled her hand. She kept pinching herself, waiting for the dream to be over, but it never happened. They just kept going on, carried away in bliss. He turned, his unruly curls flopping over his forehead, and gazed back at her, sending her heart fluttering.

“What are you thinking?” he asked.

“About how handsome you are.”

He grinned sheepishly, his cheeks tinged with color, and she ran to him. He grabbed her in his arms, pulling her off her feet and kissed her deeply. She pulled back and brushed her hand across his cheek.

“What if we just stayed here another week?” she asked.

“Let’s do it,” he replied.

“And we will just forget about the rest of the world and everything.”

“I already have. You are my whole world, Melina.”

“And you’re mine, too, Kaemon.” She kissed him again, lingering in the moment. “But maybe we should check in with our friends.”

“We don’t want them to worry.”

“And I do have a business to run.”

He pecked her cheek, then let her down, giving a gentle swat to her rear as she walked back to Apple. She gathered the cookies in a satchel, placing them in the bags on the horse, then she mounted. Kaemon would fly over them, carrying the pelts he’d gathered (the weeks during their separation he’d done nothing but hunt and had accumulated many he needed to sell), and she would ride Apple back. She missed his arms, but she loved the freedom being with Apple gave her.

He trotted beside her through the forest, chatting, stroking her leg absentmindedly, until they broke through the trees. He squeezed her arm, then shot into the air. She nudged Apple into a steady trot. Kaemon’s shadow kept her company as she rode, the large wings shading her from the sun. She looked up often, and he’d look down, smiling.

Fields passed by in a host of colors, wildflowers bursting across fields in a sea of purples, yellows, and reds. The spring air filled her nose with nectar, and she breathed it in deeply.

Her ears pricked as an odd sound came nearby and she whipped her head around, only to see the shadow that covered her tilt. Kaemon let out a cry, his wings curling around him as he plummeted, an arrow in his wing and blood falling to the ground. She nudged Apple toward him, to where he was falling in the river.

A loud crash filled the air, and water splashed on the bank. Apple rushed over the fields, jumping a hedgerow.

She pulled the mare to a stop as men surrounded Kaemon. Her breath stilled as her mind whirled. They were Hunters. She recognized their armor, the white capes, the dusty blue tunics. And with them were her uncle, cousins, and Gregory. Fear flooded her senses. Fear for Kaemon, fear from all the times these men had harmed her.

Kaemon lay on the riverbank, blood mixing with water and streaming off his wings. Her heart lurched. What could she do? She wished she knew how to fight, how to do anything. Apple neighed angrily, turning all the eyes to her.

She froze.

Gregory shouted and pointed and the men on horses kicked the sides of their beasts, running towards her.

“Run!” Kaemon shouted, and she obeyed, turning Apple and nudging her to full speed.

But Apple was older, and the men were far better riders than her. She heard them advance, and she nudged harder, begging Apple to go faster.

“Slow down, girl!” the Hunter on her right cried out. “We are trying to help you!”

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