Page 73 of Storms of His Wrath

Akoro could only nod, transfixed by the scene unfolding below. Oppo was kneeling now, bringing himself to the child’s level, his hands trembling as he withdrew something from his robes. Even from this distance, Akoro could see it was the drawing—Naya’s gift to his brother.

The little girl’s face lit up with recognition and delight as she examined the artwork. She moved closer to Oppo, abandoning her mother’s protective proximity to point at details in the drawing with animated excitement. When she reached out to touch his face—her tiny fingers brushing away tears, he was trying to hide—Oppo’s composure finally cracked completely.

Watching his brother’s overwhelming joy, his careful reverence as he held his daughter for what might have beenonly the second time in her life, something fundamental shifted inside Akoro. This was what real love looked like—sacrifice, patience, putting another’s well-being above your own desperate needs. But more than that, it was what true partnership could create. Oppo and Oshrun had created this together, this perfect little person who was loved and cherished and safe. They’d made the hardest choices, endured years of separation, all to protect what they’d loved.

And yet here they were—Oshrun commanding respect from her entire community while openly loving an Alpha. She wasn’t diminished by their bond. If anything, she seemed more powerful for it, more complete.

The contrast struck him with uncomfortable force. Here was his brother, reuniting with his mate and child in full view of her community, their connection celebrated despite the years of secrecy it had required. While Naya...

Naya stood beside him now as she would be standing beside him to face thennin-eellithistorm. She wanted this kind of partnership—to support and uplift and rule as equals. It’s what her parents had, what she had been searching for, and what he knew she had wanted of him. She believed that him taking her as his prisoner had destroyed that possibility, but even if they hadn’t met that way, would the man he was even have been able to be that person?

Akoro ruled from total and complete domination. He never thought about a mate, and even if he’d found her, he wouldn’t expect her to be equal—he wouldn’t havewantedher to be. Tsashokra was his responsibility and he wasn’t going to entrust his vow on someone who could fuck everything up. All of those thoughts and behaviors were in direct opposition to what he was currently doing.

He’d just told the Khesh to trust Naya’s judgment, not his own. Was she doing more for his people than he had? Did thatmean he’d failed his people? Even though he was putting his life and his mate’s life on the line to save everyone?

Something about that made him off-balance in a way that made his stomach roil with discomfort.

“Akoro,” Naya said softly, and he turned to find her watching him with those beautiful brown eyes that seemed to see straight through his carefully constructed walls. “Are you all right?”

The simple question, asked with such honest concern, nearly undid him. She stood close enough that he could see the flecks of gold in her irises.” Yes,” he said, his voice gritty and rough. “Just thinking about what this means.”

And the longer he stood there watching his brother unite with his family, years of solitude, loneliness, and agony sliding from his shoulders, the more certain Akoro was in his decisions. Allowing these Omegas to save their world, giving them the respect and authority they deserved, right his wrongdoings, started to loosen the shame and guilt and anger. Maybe it meant he wasn’t overtly like his family, who would have had an army here the moment Naya walked into the Isshiran Sands with magical protection.

Below in the garden, Oshrun stepped beside her mate and their daughter, the three of them forming a perfect picture of family harmony. A family that existed openly, proudly, despite every obstacle that had tried to keep them apart.

“We need to get the maps and plans Oshrun and her assembly have prepared and then prepare to leave,” Naya said quietly, though her gaze lingered on the reunion below. “We’ll need to reach the ritual site with enough time to set up properly.”

“Yes,” Akoro agreed, but something nagged at him as he watched his brother’s happiness. Something about the foundations upon which real partnerships were built, but he pushed the thought aside. There would be time to examine thoseuncomfortable realizations later. Right now, they had a storm to stop.

But the image of Oppo’s joy, of Oshrun’s proud strength, of little Nnimi’s perfect innocence, all of it burned into his memory. A reminder of what was possible when people chose love over control. When they chose each other completely, without reservation or hidden conditions.

The thought followed him as they prepared to leave the canyon, a whisper of possibility both terrifying and inevitable. But for now, he buried it beneath the immediate demands of saving his kingdom.

There would be time for truth later. There had to be

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Akoro secured the last of his travel packs, the leather straps cutting into his palms with familiar bite. Around him the camp buzzed with controlled urgency—Nrommo barking orders to the remaining soldiers, Oppo checking weapons with methodical precision, the sound ofnniraesnorting and stamping as they sensed the tension radiating from their riders.

Naya stood near the center of camp testing her modified crystal staff with fluid movements that made her borrowed earth-toned clothing shift against curves that never failed to stir his blood. Even now with the fate of his kingdom hanging in the balance, her proximity sent heat crackling along his nerves like lightning before a storm.

She finished her practice sequence and caught him watching. Their eyes met across the distance between them, and electricity arced through the morning air. Her smile bloomed slowly and private, a shared thought between an Omega and her Alpha.

“We should move,” Nrommo said, shattering the charged moment. “We have to ride back through the Isshiran Sands.”

Akoro nodded, though his chest tightened at the idea of leading Naya into danger. She was his Omega, his mate, and hewas about to take her directly into the path of magical forces that could tear them both apart.

His massivenniraestood ready, the beast’s flanks gleaming in the golden morning light. Akoro mounted first, settling into the saddle with practiced ease before extending his hand to Naya. She stepped close without hesitation, her fingers threading through his as he pulled her up behind him.

The familiar sensation of her arms sliding around his waist, her soft curves molding against his back, sent satisfaction purring through his chest. This was how it should be—his Omega pressed against him, safe within the circle of his protection. Her scent wrapped around him, that intoxicating blend that made his mouth water and his cock thicken despite the dangers ahead.

“Ready?” he asked, his voice rougher than intended as her thighs bracketed his hips.

“Always,” she murmured against his shoulder blade, her breath warm through the fabric of his robes.

The single word sent possessive hunger roaring through his veins. He spurred thenniraeforward, setting a punishing pace across the shifting sands. Behind them, the Isshiran desert writhed and moved like a living thing, but ahead lay stable ground and the ancient ruins where they would make their stand.

Naya’s body moved with his as they rode, her balance perfect as she adjusted to thennirae’s powerful gait. Her staff remained secured across her back, but her hands splayed flat against his chest, fingers pressing into muscle with unconscious possession that made his blood sing. Every breath brought her closer, until he could feel the rapid flutter of her pulse against his spine.

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