Page 23 of Monstrous Baby
She was Kroktl’s mate, first and foremost. No one doubted their close bond, even our alpha. If anyone else were to mark her, surely it’d be Axxol. He probably wouldn’t even ask her primary mate, though I’d amuse myself by imagining it. Asking for anything, especially permission, would stick in his craw and choke him for days.
Her head whipped around, and she pinned me with a challenging gaze. “If anyone in our squad wants a mark, all they have to do is ask.”
Kroktl snapped his teeth together in a fierce grin. “Nicely.”
Shock sizzled through me, sending my implements into a nest of snakes to match her hair. “I want. Please.” Immediately, I winced at the harsh, desperate tone in my voice. The lack of intelligence and elegance I usually took great pride in.
Though she smiled softly and nodded.
:Me too,:Rizan said immediately.:Please, please, please!:
:I would wear your mark proudly,:Lohr added.:Please, mate of our squad, mark me as you wish.:
No one was surprised that Axxol remained silent, at least for now.
“Snryx will be next since he asked first. Though I’m going to take a shower and do something to tame my nest of snakes first.”
Shame turned my core into a frozen glacier. I hadn’t meant to mock or ridicule her hair in any way. “I love your hair, Natalie. We all do. Please forgive any perceived disparagement to your unparalleled beauty.”
Kroktl moved toward the shower to start the water, and she walked closer to me. Then closer. Touching me. Her cheek pressed to my chest. One hand lightly stroked up to my nape and shoulder, while her other touched my implements. Willingly. Touching me. Them.
I was so rattled by her willingness to mark me—us—I hadn’t even noticed that I’d clamped them back into a thick, stiff bundle down my back.
Her fingers danced over the tense knot, loosening them one by one. Touching the horrible tentacles she’d found so alarming the first time she looked at me.
She tugged carefully on one implement, drawing my head down closer to hers so she could whisper in my ear. “Do you want to mark each other now?” Her voice dropped to a sultry slumbrous purr. “Or later in bed?”
Reflexively, the implement curled around her hand and down her arm. I couldn’t make my brain connect to my mouth. Not in words. Heat flooded me. Saliva filled my mouth. Remembering the softness of her skin. The indescribable taste of her desire on my tongue. I didn’t need to be inside her. As long as I could occasionally touch and taste her again.
“Okay,” she whispered, giving the implement another light, playful tug. Then she released me.
Though her tongue flicked across my skin, leaving a faint trail of moisture. I immediately absorbed it, including the traces of milk she’d smeared on me. A shudder rocked me back on my heels. The base of my spine burned and throbbed.
Okay? What did that mean?
As she stepped beneath the spraying water, she winked at me. “You’ve absorbed my blood before, haven’t you?”
A painful jolt jabbed from my spine through my entire abdomen, drawing a grunt from my lips. Pure, unadulterated lust.
:He has sampled your blood in a medical capacity,:Lohr explained for me, though his normal scientific demeanor had been replaced with wry amusement at my predicament.:Not for the indescribable pleasure of marking our mate.:
She massaged cleanser into her hair and rinsed it again before she spoke. “Axxol’s tasted my blood before too. He even bit me. Why didn’t that create a mark like this one?”
Kroktl let out an unhappy growl. “Injuring you because he fucking swallowed you whole doesn’t count as a mate mark.”
Turning slowly beneath the spray of water, she closed her eyes, seemingly relaxed, enjoying the simple human activity. Though on the grid, her mind sparked and leaped from thought to thought. Making connections faster than I could follow. Granted, my entire body throbbed with lust, but her mental acuity had improved significantly.
She made a low sound of disgruntlement and rolled her eyes. “Don’t start commenting about my inferior human mind now.”
My core temperature dropped again, this time so quickly I swayed off balance. Appalled at insulting her yet again, I feared saying or thinking anything else. For the first time in my existence, I regretted the grid that connected the squad, exposing her to my careless thoughts.
“I’m not upset,” she chided lightly. “I’m glad I’m starting to understand more about how the grid works, especially if it gives me immediate access to all of you. I never even imagined a fraction of this was possible.”
She turned the water off and Kroktl wrapped her in a thick towel. I thought she might retreat to the bedchamber, but she moved to the basin and began working a comb through her wet hair. “I do want to understand exactly what made this mark happen, though. What makes it different so I can do it again for each of you. Right now, it feels more like magic. Ouch.” The comb hung up in her hair, making her wince. “Stupid knots. I should just cut all of this mess off.”
Kroktl picked her up, sat her on the edge of the countertop, and took the comb from her. “Don’t you dare.”
She crossed her arms and stuck out her bottom lip. “Sn’s right. A tangled nest of snakes would be easier to deal with.”
