Page 30 of Captured

The wobbling brought his focus back to the issue at hand, and he dragged his eyes over the approaching ground. He extended his wings a little further, but he couldn’t open them any more without risking ripping open the tear again and possibly wrenching the injured joint out of socket. With no water to land in, his only option was to glide as long as possible before coming down.

Gra’ar hitched Flea a little higher, pinning her hips in place when she tried to wiggle. He had to keep their weight perfectly balanced to keep from causing further injuries to himself but the adrenaline likely flooding her system was heightening the effects of her cycle.

“Behave, Flea. You’d think the first time would have taught you not to do this.”

His words were pulled away by the wind of their decent, but she heard him well enough.

“You said you were fine.”

Her lips brushed his neck when she spoke, sending a shiver down his spine that tightened his balls. It really had been too long since he’d had a woman, but none had made him want them as bad as this crazy little omega. She defied everything about her dynamic, and it was her feistiness that made him want to do all the depraved things he could think of to her.

Not to break her.

No, Flea was perfect the way she was. All that fight and fire was pure passion, and he wanted it directed at him.

Giving her ass another squeeze he angled his wings to turn them away from a clump of buildings toward a more open area. There hadn’t been as much of a population issue when they built these older levels, so things were a bit more spread out, and he’d been aiming them away from the denser areas. They wouldn’t make it much farther, so he lined up with a wide path between a pair of fences separating two large houses.

“Hold on,” he warned. As much as he wanted to keep the little female safe, he wasn’t sure the landing wouldn’t turn into a tumble.

Gra’ar spread his wings wider, grimacing as the ache turned into sharp pain, but he ignored it and lowered his feet. He couldn’t back wing to land, so his only choice was to hit the ground running and hope they didn’t fall.

He stumbled through the first few steps, hunching forward, wings wrenching to keep him upright. Once he caught his stride he was able to slow, flicking his wings behind him and trying to roll the pain from his shoulders and back as he finally came to a standstill.

It took a moment for Flea to lift her head and look around, brow crinkling as she took in the stone walls on each side.

“Where on Eighth are we?”

Gra’ar shrugged, not caring for the moment as he shifted his hold on the female.

Her eyes jerked to his with a gasp when his palm connected with her bottom. He landed a second smack before she released her legs from his waist and tried to get away, but he refused to release her. The fabric between his palm and her bottom lessened the blows but it still made him feel better to deliver them.

“That was dangerous! It was risky, and dumb, and you could have gotten yourself killed.”

He continued to spank her, emphasizing his words with the weight of his hand. Flea growled and writhed against him, trying to get loose but only succeeding in rubbing against his erection trapped between them. Despite her struggle he could smell the way it affected her, the sweet notes of her slick rising to tickle his nose.

But there was also the scent of another alpha.

“It saved us from Deacon’s men. Now let me go!”

He growled low again before releasing the band of his arm around her back. Catching hold of her wrist, he refused to let her get beyond his reach. She couldn’t be trusted not to run off and get herself in more danger, especially with her cycle so close.

“You’re not going anywhere Flea. You’re too close to your heat. We have to find a place to hide until it passes. And why do you smell like another?”

Her small body froze, pupils going wide as she stared up at him. The area they’d landed in was dark enough he doubted she could see much more than the shape of him, but he could see her expression clearly. The need. The desire.

The refusal to give in.

“No! I need to get down to Ninth. Just tell the Director you couldn’t find me, or that you lost me to Deacon’s gang.”

Gra’ar was shaking his head before she finished speaking. Letting out another growl, Flea slammed her fist into his chest. He caught it and held it to him before she could pull back to swing again.

“No. The air on Ninth has gone bad, and I’m not going to leave you undefended. Now answer my question.”

Her snarl bit through him, his instincts rising with the need to put the omega in her place. He was alpha. He was the one in charge.

“It’s the clothing I snatched. You just want to take me back to claim your bounty. I’m just a payday to you. Don’t you see I’m not worth it? Let me go!”

The growl he released drowned her out, the scent of fresh slick rising to appease him. It was a struggle not to push her against the fence and force her to submit.

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