Page 57 of All for the Beast

She sent a silent thank you to Gerri, now seated in the front row, for everything she had done for her.

At the end of the aisle, her hand was transferred to Vharlk's. She stood in front of him, their eyes holding one another, and everything but him faded. His gaze held a mixture of hunger and pride as his thumb stroked her palms. He was everything she thought she would never have, and she planned to make it very clear that nothing would change her mind about them.

There was a pause as the officiant gave the signal for the vows.

"I've never been the girl who stays in one place," Katy started. "Restless, I spent my time endlessly searching for adventure after adventure. Then one day, my adventures led me to you, and I found what I have been looking for all along, a place to call home. Vharlk, I vow to love you like it's the greatest adventure of our lives."

Katy held her breath as Vharlk smiled at her. The joy that illuminated his face destroyed all of her fears and doubts.

"Katy, before you, I had no interest in mates. After you, I still carry that sentiment. You see, if there were no you, there would be no one. You were created for me. The answer to the prayer I didn't realize I had. I vow to love all that you are, always."

“You may now kiss the bride.”

Katy was pulled into Vharlk's arms. Tilting her head up, she met his vigor as the crowd erupted into cheers. A loud, popping sound caused her to turn her head toward the door leading to the outside of the ship.

Her face was bathed in bright colors as fireworks erupted. She laughed, turning to Vharlk, and she kissed him again. He deepened the kiss, letting his tongue slip against her own before hoisting her up and carrying her into the beginning of their new life.

TWENTY-SIX

KATY

Vharlk all but threw Katy over his shoulder to carry her into their cabin. Katy laughed the whole way. He held her tightly in his arms until they crossed the threshold, and he slowly lowered her to the bed.

“I never imagined,” Katy started, looking into the deep well of Vharlk’s eyes.

“Never imagined what?” his voice was soft and low like the wind through a cave. She felt safer here in their own secluded wonderland than she had anywhere else in the galaxy.

“That I could be this happy.” A smile spread across her face. It was true. She had never felt this bliss before in her short life of misstep after misstep. “When I took this job, I thought I was running from something. Now I know I was running toward something … running toward you. To us. To this.”

Vharlk leaned over her, his impressive bulk blocking out everything else in the room until all she could see, hear, and smell was him, her husband, her mate. He was the love of her life. A lump formed in her throat thinking about it … not a tearful one, but one of happiness and pure joy.

“I ran too,” Vharlk said, swooping down to kiss her.

She kissed back, greedily tasting him and sucking on his tongue. The mark on her hip was sore and raised. She loved the physical feeling of it and the occasional dull ache. She touched it through her dress, feeling a tingle across the mark that made her moan into Vharlk’s mouth. He put his hand on hers and pressed in, making her moan again.

He reached up, pressing on the mark at the nape of her neck as she continued to rub the one on her hip. Feeling both at once made her want him more.

She pulled him down on top of her, wrapping her arms around him tightly. Now that she had hold of him, she was never going to let him go. She was now sure of what she wanted, who she wanted, and what she was willing to do to get and keep it.

They had nowhere to be but with each other. The ship was theirs, the night new, and the moon full.

The smells of his cologne and natural scent spurred her further into desire. His warmth overpowered her until he was all she could feel. She pushed up into him and felt his hip through the layers of her dress. Arousal flowed through her body, ramping up as they kissed passionately. A warmth bloomed in her belly, which urged her to kiss deeper and hook a leg around his waist to pull him closer.

Vharlk thrust down to meet her, sending a shockwave of pleasure through her body. She gasped and kissed him again. In the semi-dark room, they fumbled to lift her dress, baring her skin to the chill of the cabin. She was already wet from just their kissing, and when he rested his hand against her, she soaked his fingers in seconds.

He rubbed against her with the flat of his palm, hooking his fingers in her underwear to move them aside. When he slid the pads of his fingers into her, it was like the fireworks all over again, except this time, her body was the night sky lit up by her mate.

“Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?” Vharlk asked, his voice rough with arousal. The light in the room was bright enough that she could make out his eyes, his pupils blown wide. Hers probably looked the same, lost in each other.

“Feel free to tell me,” she joked and kissed him instead.

He pushed two fingers into her until they were buried up to his palm. She let out a noise of pure need and rocked down to meet the motion of his hand. He curled his fingers and pressed that spot inside her pussy that made her back arch off the bed with pleasure.

Even though they’d had sex many times before, it was better and hotter every time. Their bodies moved in a rhythm known only to them, rocking into and against each other like boats on a harbor. The need within her pushed its way out in a moan that he swallowed with his lips, teeth, and tongue. He was everything she wanted and more.

He curled his fingers again and again until she climaxed with a sharp cry. It was all she could do to not sink, boneless, into the sheets, but he pulled her underwear down in one motion, and that set her off again. She reached for his belt as he came up to meet her in another kiss, pushing his pants down to wrap her hand around him.

He was hot and heavy in her palm, and she stroked him until he was fully firm. He let out a string of whispered praise at how beautiful she was, how much he loved her, how happy he was they were mated. She grew wetter just feeling him in her hand. When he let her push him onto the bed, she sank down on him with her mouth.

---