Page 61 of Chieftain
"What now?" Her voice was curious, and she trailed a finger down the center of my chest at the words.
“We wait for Charick and Bartuk to rescue us,” I pulled her closer, feathering small kisses against her temple.
"Not that." Emmy raised on her elbow, and her beauty stole my breath. Not that she isn't always the loveliest woman I've ever seen, but now—with passion-mussed curls, flushed skin, kiss-swollen lips, and her full breasts with nipples hardened to a deeper color of pink.
She is breathtaking.
"I mean us." The blush on her cheeks darkened, and her lashes fluttered downward over her sparkling green eyes.
“Us.” I rolled the word around on my tongue, enjoying the taste of it before answering. “You are my mate, blessed by the Valana. My place is always at your side.”
A faint gasp caused Emmy’s full lips to tremble, her deep green eyes sparkling. My hand stroked through her mess ofcurls, cupping the back of her head and bringing her lips to mine. Emmy gave herself to the kiss with a soft moan, her body melting against me.
“I could do this all night,” she sighed when our lips parted, her breath fanning over my face, a scent more delicious than any I'd experienced.
"It is tempting," I agreed, trailing a finger down her cheek. It was more than a temptation. It was a need, screaming through every muscle, even though I'd just claimed her. There is another need that wars with desire in my body and mind—ultimately winning out. I need to protect my mate. "But we need to rest while we can, myvika. It is only a few hours until dusk, and I fear it will be a long, sleepless night." With another gentle kiss on her forehead, I shifted onto my back, drawing her against me.
Emmy rolled to her side, throwing a leg over my thigh and cuddling against my chest, using my shoulder for a pillow. Her long, heavy sigh preceded the feeling of her body relaxing against mine.
“Khaion can I ask you something?”
“Anything myvika.”
A faint chuckle escaped her lips. “What does that word mean—vika?”
I pressed a kiss to her head, her silk curls tickling about my face. “Vikais the Vaktarian word for heart”
A deep happy sigh was her only response until much later, after I believed sleep had claimed her.
“I love you,” her voice is barely audible, punctuated by a deep yawn.
"I love you, Emmy," I whispered against her hair.
It takes only minutes for her breathing to slow into the deep, slow rhythm that I knew by now meant she slept deeply. I did not intend to sleep. Our mating did not go unnoticed by the guards outside. While some handled the knowledge with the decorum befitting a warrior, comments from others disrespecting my mate only added to the number I needed to kill before we left the moon. I needed to stay alert.
My body had other ideas. The feel of her—knowing that my mate curled at my side, sated from my touch, and wrapped in my arms brought forth a feeling foreign to me.
Contentment.
It stole into my soul, wiping away everything other than the woman in my arms.
My mate.
My life.
My hope.
Letting myself bask in the feel of her, I drifted slowly to a point near sleep where my mind filled with images of her and our future together. The home we would build and how her belly would swell with our young.
I was so lost in fantasy the rattle of Emmy's comm atop the small table by the bed went unheeded until Emmy stirred against me. My arm was long enough to snag it before waking her further.
“Emmy?” The voice on the other end sounded rushed and urgent. Bartuk’s voice. “Is the Chieftain awake?”
“I’m awake,” I muttered, feeling Emmy shift, a small frown puckering her beautiful face.
“Chieftain, thank Valana you are well.”
“I am fine. Where is Charick?”
