Page 24 of Beauty and the Alien Beast
“Stay away from Gladiator lands. Those animals are too territorial. We’ll post patrols around their sector. Just try to stay out of their view. We don’t want to start a war with them, especially when the Omers are trying to lure them into doing business with them.”
Patrols around my sector? This is bad news.
Ella and I would have to hide in the caves until the catchers either gave up or I found a way to sneak past them.
I closed my eyes, trying to focus.
I must get a warning to my pack that the slavers are sniffing around our territory.There had to be a way to alert my brethren. And I would find one, no matter what it took.
Slowly and carefully, I made my way back to Ella, not entirely sure in which direction the slave catcher would fly off. I doubted the cyborg would be able to spot me, but I didn’t want to take any chances with Ella’s safety.
Ella.I had no idea how I was going to communicate to her that our next few hours would be rough. We would have to make it to the caves before dawn and wait out the slave catchers, since trying to bypass the area they were searching was too risky and relied on guesswork.
I scowled, thinking about a night alone with her, trying to resist the urge to coax her into sex. This was not a matter of a simple coupling out of sheer attraction. If I went too far with my true mate, even as much as a kiss, I was done, and my primal urge to claim and mark her would overtake any rational thought. If I resisted, my Wulfaen would rise to take over. And if that happened, nothing would keep me from completely losing myself to lust until I caught enough of my own scent on her skin and inside her womanhood to know she was claimed by both the Gladiator and Wulfaen.
The mating frenzy was part of the reason that sex with our female was a private, intimate affair. Casual rutting was just scratching the surface of what a Gladiator really desired. The first time with one’s own mate was both sacred and carnal.
After marking our sheleki with the mating serum that coated our fangs and permanently leaving our scent on her so other Wulfaen knew she’d been claimed, the mated couple would rut for days, only stopping to eat and catch a few moments of sleep. Then they’d resume fucking until the fire within their loins cooled… slightly.
Once the frenzy flame ebbed, both partners would be sated but too exhausted to do anything but sleep for hours. If that happened, I would have to send Brax back to my pack with a message that I needed help. With Brax gone, we would be left with no guardian while we rested.
Too dangerous. I can’t dare touch her.
But what if I lose control, slipping into the mating thrall? Would she understand the primal pull that would surge through my veins? Or would she think I’m just some wild pup that cares about nothing but fucking her?All of those ideas were intolerable.
When I returned, Ella and Brax were safe—thank the gods—and relaxing where I’d left them. The only greeting I got from Brax was a thud of his tail, but Ella’s reaction was surprising. She jumped up, lunged forward, and threw herself against my chest. I froze at once, stunned and delighted, and hugged her back gently as she spoke low and rapidly in words I didn’t understand.
I closed my eyes, cradling her small, soft, lush body against me and feeling my own respond even through a layer of armor. My resolve wavered as I gasped for air.
Too much…
Her being in my arms bombarded me with so many emotions—awe, joy, hope, and ecstasy.
Her chatter took on an urgent, pleading edge as she clung to me. And from her tone and the passionate, intense shake in her voice, I realized she must have been worried about me while I was gone.
I moved back slightly, looking down at her in confusion. I tried to pick out specific words from the jumble and managed a few—the filthy epithet for “slaver” that I always used, Brax’s name, my name, “escape.” But it was still almost all nonsense to me.
She stood against me lightly, hands sliding up and down my chest as I struggled to ignore just how good her touch felt. This was not the time—and certainly not the place—to become intimate with my mate, especially when doing so would take over too much of my consciousness, making it nearly impossible for me to get us to safety.
Maybe… just one kiss?
I wanted so badly to take her from behind, sinking my serum-coated fangs into the tender nape of her neck and marking her forever as mine.
No. I must resist.
It took everything I had to let go of her and step away completely.
My determination to maintain space between us almost splintered when she made a small, sad sound and I saw first disappointment, then frustration in her eyes.
I shook my head, holding up two of my hands, and spoke in as gentle a tone as I could muster. “I’m sorry, sheleki. I want to, but I cannot. Not while we are still in danger.”
She frowned. “Sheleki?” she repeated. It was a word she had not picked up yet.
I nodded and gestured to her. “You’re my one true mate.”
I knew she didn’t understand the great honor my Wulfaen and the gods had bestowed upon me. Now I had something all Gladiators prayed to the gods for—a mate to love, cherish, and protect. It was a gift I wouldn’t squander.
She stared back at me and then, to my great relief, simply nodded, moving back over to Brax.
