Page 7 of The VaDorok's Unexpected Mate
Kull’s head snapped toward him, his eyes narrowing, but the chief gave him an apologetic smile. It was all a lie, of course. Borax was getting exactly what he wanted. That he was capable of containing his glee so well was just part of what made him an effective leader.
“Consider it a personal favor to me,” Borax added. “After their captivity, we want all the humans to be as comfortable as possible... and welcome.”
Kull’s ears flattened and twitched, unimpressed, but when he glanced down at the female—Katie—and saw the way she was bracing herself as she quietly regarded him, as if waiting for him to reject her again. He sighed heavily. It appeared he was not getting out of the ulukskinon so easily. He would just have to avoid her as much as possible within his den and spend long hours hunting through the icy woodlands around his home until he could finally be rid of her. It was going to be a true test of his will. And torture.
“Very well,” he growled sourly. His ears flattened, his tail flicking unhappily, when she smiled and released her death grip on him.
“You have my thanks,” Borax rumbled with a dip of his head. “I will stop by in a few days to check how you are getting along. Now, please excuse me, Kull, but I need to arrange shelter for the remaining females, as well as speak to A’Jular and Vidok before they go.”
Kull dipped his head, his eyes following the chief momentarily as the male turned and walked away to join his mate, who was already speaking to a handful of warriors that had gathered near the waiting females. The priest stood a short distance away with his ulukska. His eyes met Vidok’s stare, andhe grimaced. It seemed that the male was intent on watching him to make sure that he left with the female.
Growling quietly beneath his breath, Kull turned away and glanced down at Katie. She stared up at him, meeting his gaze cautiously. She should be cautious. She should be more than cautious. She should be worried about the way the heat from her body against his arm was causing the heat to surge and spread through him again. But... she had no way of knowing. It was not her fault.
His growl quieted, and he sighed heavily. “Come on, then. Time to go home.”
She nodded but gave his arm a tiny tug that drew his attention back to her. “Thank you, Kull,” she whispered. “You won’t regret it.”
That remained to be seen. And even if he came to not regret it, he could not so confidently say that she would not.
Chapter 7
Katie did her best to keep up. Even with Kull keeping a slower pace to compensate for her much shorter legs, it didn’t help much. While she had initially enjoyed the freedom of walking without restraint, it didn’t take long for her to miss the warmth she’d previously enjoyed when she was being carried by him. What happened to that male? Sure, she didn’t want some alien’s broodmare, and the extra attentiveness that the other males seemed to show the rescued women made her skin crawl just watching them, but she hadn’t expected the gentle and considerate male who rescued her to completely disappear. Here she was freezing and starting to lag behind him—and making no effort to disguise how cold and tired she was—but he was acting as if she wasn’t even there.
Her brows beetled as she considered the soft, dense fur of his back and the long, pale mane that hung down nearly to his waist, the white color only broken up by the red and amber stones woven into his braids. That had been her view for the last few hours—those swinging beads and the swish of his long tail. Not once had he even glanced back at her to make sure she was keeping up okay. It was not normal. Who didn’t at least casually glance back when they knew they were being followed? Hell, she did so often enough when she was walking alone. And yet Kull was rigidly looking ahead, his head barely moving. That was far too intentional.
Was he hoping that she would just give up and turn back?
A scowl drew her brows lower as she struggled through the suddenly deepening snow. Kull’s stride, even at his slower pace, was far wider than hers, so she didn’t even have the luxury of walking in the path he cut through the snow. Snow was slipping inside the boots and soaking through the leather and fur thatshe had been provided before setting out with Kull. Since leaving she’d almost lost him twice among the trees, and had fallen into no fewer than three snowdrifts, and they hadn’t even been out for more than an hour. Her eyes narrowed on him as he wove deeper through the trees, slipping among them agilely rather than keeping to the open path. With the striated gray of the trees, the big male seemed to disappear within them far too easily when the shadows weren’t doing a fine job of concealing him.
He was definitely trying to lose her.
Katie’s jaw clenched as she waded through the snow following after him—or, at least, as near as she could tell. Even the path in front of her was becoming a confusing mess, the tracks virtually disappearing before her eyes, no doubt due to a clever use of his long, furred tail. Why was he fighting so hard against her presence? She didn’t get it. Was he worried that she was going to push mating onto him? If that was the case, the joke was on him because the last thing she wanted was to mate with anyone. Mating meant touching, and it meant—her mind swerved violently from the subject as she gave a shudder of revulsion.
Gods, her desire to be with him had nothing to do with sex at all. Whatever curiosity she’d had upon leaving Earth regarding inter-species sexual compatibility had been cured by first the Buto, and then the Agraak. She didn’t deny that she felt some sort of connection to Kull, but above all he represented safety. Watching him tear apart the guard threatening to harm her had solidified that for her. She was afraid of being alone, or really with anyone else, terrified that she would wake up a captive again. She was afraid to be alone with other humans because she had seen first-hand how quickly they not only betrayed each other but how easily other species were capable of physically overwhelming them. And she didn’t feel comfortable aroundunknown aliens. That just left Kull, and she refused to accept losing that sense of safety without one hell of a fight. Even if it meant going head-to-head with her stubborn-ass rescuer.
Gritting her teeth in attempt to keep them from chattering from the cold, she plunged forward through the snow, kicking up icy sprays of it all around her. She couldn’t see Kull at all now, and she could feel tears icing on her lashes with her fear and frustration. A heavy sigh just inches from her left startled her so badly that she fell to the side. Caught off balance, her entire body hit the deep snow and rapidly began to sink before a large, clawed hand abruptly grabbed her by her furs and hauled her back out again.
Shivering miserably, Katie peered up at Kull as the male frowned down at her. She hadn’t realized how close she was to him. He did that on purpose. The thought made her sad and suddenly very anxious, but also incredibly angry. She didn’t recall the last time she’d been genuinely angry. Agraak had exhausted her beyond anger until there hadn’t been anything left inside of her except hopelessness. It feltgoodto be angry.
She glared at him and swatted violently at the hand that continued to grip her fur cloak. “What the fuck was that?” she snapped, her breath wheezing in sharp, icy gasps from the cold. “First you disappear and then try to give me a heart attack—what kind of game are you playing with me?”
He shook his head, his hand falling away and releasing her as he took a step back. She immediately felt her anxiety spike at the distance he enforced between them, and she clenched her hands together to keep them from noticeably trembling.
“That was not my intention,” he grumbled sourly. “I just noticed the distance and wished to give you a chance to turn back now while we are close enough to the meeting grounds for you to return safely before nightfall.”
“Since all of your attempts to lose me and discourage me with your neck-breaking pace have failed?” she replied derisively.
Kull’s ears flattened, and a look of embarrassment and guilt briefly crossed his face. Good. She hoped that he choked on that particular bitter pill. She continued to glare at him as she readjusted her furs around her in a vain attempt to warm herself. To her surprise, he didn’t attempt to make an excuse for his actions. He merely nodded in agreement.
“I told you that it is better for you to remain at the meeting grounds with the others. It is safer. You may feel safe now, but I am not a male who can be depended on for that,” he said gruffly, his head turning away from her, refusing to meet her eyes. “My efforts were intended as a kindness.”
A kindness? Did he really think so little of himself? It was hard to reconcile that with the image of the powerful male tearing apart her captors.
“That’s now how I see it,” she muttered under her breath, and he grimaced, telling her all she needed to know about just how acute his hearing was.
His expression hardened, however, in the next moment as he regarded her. “As I said, I am not a good male to pin your hopes on. I have no intention of taking a mate. You will be alone more often than not in my den. I will not seek to keep you company. I will feed you and protect you, nothing more. I suggest that you do yourself a favor and return to the meeting grounds.”
Katie’s eyebrows rose. Far from sounding like the threat he obviously intended, that sounded absolutely marvelous as far as she was concerned. “You promise?”
