Page 71 of Howling Eve

He gave another growl at her teasing and abruptly pulled away from her, narrowing his eyes at his beautiful female standing within his reach. Her scent was so incredibly sweet and rich, her eyes and smile so warm and inviting. His mate. His.

Raskyuil stripped off his pants, enjoying the way her eyes lustfully followed his every movement as he allowed them to drop and kicked them away. Her throat worked, her eyes widening as her musk grew thicker in the air. This was more than just lust. He recognized the need fed by Ha’shena between them, but it was so much more than that. This was the simple mutual need and sharing of comfort and touch—of bonding contact—with one’s mate, reassuring each other in the most primal way of their connection and support. The perfume of her desire contained a sweetness to it of a bonded female, and he breathed it in gratefully.

His cock grew even harder, his pleasure rising in direct response to his female’s scent. His need for her lit through him and he took several steps toward her before he realized what he was doing. When he did, he didn’t bother to rein it in or restrain himself. She wanted him exactly as he was. She wanted the real him and everything he had to give her.

He had to remind himself of this as he quickly closed the space between them with silent footsteps and pulled the loose blouse she wore from her, spilling her breasts out before his eyes. He trailed his knuckles over the soft flesh as she quickly tugged her skirt over her hips and just as quickly bared her cunt for him. He pinched her nipple and smiled when she jerked and gave a tiny needy cry before wiggling against him urgently. He grinned down at her, pleased when she didn’t flinch at the sight of his teeth. Instead, she quivered with desire that equaled his own.

Her eyes were hot as she stared up at him, her fingers curling once more around his cock, as much as she could reach, to give him a warning squeeze.

She was ready.

He gripped her throat lightly just under her jaw, holding her still for his kiss. Her heat flooded over him as she leaned into the kiss, her tongue mating with his until he broke away with an impatient growl and stalked around her. Her eyes followed him with interest, but she remained in place, trusting him entirely. He smiled at that with genuine delight and moved in.

Catching his mate from behind, his one arm banding around her hips and belly and the other crossing her chest to close possessively on her throat once more, he lifted her up against him. Her weight supported on his forearms, he held her there, the bulge of his cock pressed between her thighs. MaryAnne whimpered, her lush little bottom twitching against him as her legs curled back so that her knees were pressed against his hips as he buried his cock in the clasp of her hot cunt.

He held himself there within her grasp for a moment, a shiver of pleasure running through him, savoring it until his impatient little female began to twitch demandingly against him. Rocking back, he pressed into her, pleased when she squeaked and moaned from the force of her desire. He rocked in and out, his hips thumping her bottom, his sac slapping against her with every thrust. He shivered violently at the pleasure of it all, breeding his little mate as she begged for more and leaned into his embrace, trusting him to hold her as they spent their pleasure together.

Nothing was more erotic, and nothing touched his heart deeper than to see that submission. To know he had his mate’s trust that she finally relinquished all control to him. His hips moved faster, her tiny body barely bouncing within the firm brace of his arms, all except for her breasts pressed against his arm that rubbed against him in time with his movement, her hard nipples scraping back and forth across his skin.

She cried out, her cunt rippling and squeezing him, her arousal dripping between them and coating his cock and balls, driving him a little more insane as her pheromones covered him more and more. Never relaxing his hold for even a minute, he lifted and dropped her against him, his hips swinging up each time. She spasmed tightly around him with a shout, releasing another flood of her nectar, and he only fucked her harder. He bred her through her orgasm, thrusting through the tight clench of her sheath, his cock shuttling in and out of her, every stroke kissing her womb making her scream for more, her little human claws digging uselessly into his arms.

He would give her more. He would give her all that she desired. Dropping his head, his teeth clamped on her shoulder, holding her immobile against his body. She gasped, her channel squeezing around him, and he let his hips free in a loose swing, driving up into her, rutting her in place, her body rubbing enticingly against his, driving their shared pleasure higher.

They gasped and moaned together, her soft cries of pleasure becoming the tempo to which he mated her, his primed cock filling and twitching within her as his own growls grew louder and more vicious by the second, stirring his mate’s lust higher as they coupled.

She sagged and trembled when he finally lowered her, belly down, on the bed, her ass in the air as the lips of her cunt gleamed up at him. He pierced her with his drooling cock and moaned as she suddenly thrust back against him, swallowing his cock in one move that impaled her completely once more. She gasped as he filled her more completely in this position, but she didn’t remain still for long before she was pressing back against him as he covered her body with his and drove into her like a beast possessed.

The salty sweetness of her sweat filled his nose as he rutted her, one arm wrapped around her hips and the other pressed into the bed. He nuzzled her, loving the scent of her and needing to demonstrate to the depth of his affection as he impaled her. His tail lashed her breasts with every thrust, and when she came apart in his arms again, the burst of pleasure rising from his balls, navel, and spine, his roar mingled with her cry of completion. His legs trembled as he thrust repeatedly into her, giving up his seed in hot sprays with every leap of his cock inside of her.

He came and came until he was certain that all that remained of his heart and his soul was given to her, and their mingled fluids dripped between them, coating their thighs. He breathed in their combined scents, overcome with ecstasy. She was his little piece of joy in the darkness.

He loved her. The realization rose through him like a secretly tended flower suddenly blooming. One that he never realized was there. Somehow, he had found this elusive love. And he found it in the most surprising place—within himself. And it was all hers. His heart had cultivated this feeling, and he silently offered it up to her. He loved his little mate, MaryAnne.

ChapterForty-Three

It was late afternoon, and the sun was making a valiant effort to pierce the fog without much success. It was enough to cast an etheric glow at the edges of the shadows and fog, which just seemed to deepen the darkness within the carnival even if the visibility was a little better overall despite the thick ground cover. And it was at least a little warmer so there was that pleasure added to the morning as Raskyuil led his mate through the carnival grounds. The lightly swaying lamps outside the tents moved with the autumn breeze, and the hushed murmur of voices could sometimes be heard from the occupants of some of the tents that they passed.

No one noticed their passage. There was no halt in conversation nor the faint tread of the fae drawing near to investigate, much to his relief. It was as if they were the ones who were ghosts moving through the fog. He kept watch for the odd patrols, or unexpected appearances, remaining close to the path’s edge in case he needed to duck into the shadows suddenly with his mate, but so far there were none.

Although it had taken longer than he liked for everything to be ready, Raskyuil was filled with a sense of anticipation as he led MaryAnne through the carnival grounds. He hoped it was worth all the work it took pinning the sly goblin down. If Zagrol were to be believed, however, this could give them exactly what they needed.

“Where are we going?” MaryAnn asked, her breathing ragged as she worked to keep up with him.

“Just a little further ahead,” he assured his mate. “Zagrol is waiting for us.”

He was tempted to just pick her up to make it easier for her, but he didn’t dare. If he did, he knew that he would receive an earful for treating her as if she were helpless by not letting her walk on her own. Caring for his mate in a way that didn’t make her feel as if he were unnecessarily coddling her like a youngling was a challenge, but it was one more thing that he loved about her.

He respected the fact that his mate wanted to be strong and have a certain amount of autonomy when it came to getting around, but he also couldn’t help the fact that he wanted to care for her in every way. And if she struggled to keep up, he wanted to make it easier for her. It was a constant battle against his instinct, but he would rather suffer with it than do anything that would make his mate feel diminished.

His eyes skimmed warily over the vacant carnival grounds. Late enough that everyone was back in their tents enjoying a few hours of relaxation, but early enough that preparations for that evening hadn’t yet begun. And no sign of Elwyn restlessly wandering the grounds either. He was likely now fully engaged in his preparations for the Hallow Night. The ritual, however, would be early in the morning, and Raskyuil was certain that the aelf had his hour marked candle ready to wait for the proper hour. The spell said that it was to be done at night, three turns before twilight preceded the rising sun.

That only gave them the rest of the day and into the night to do what needed to be done. He wasn’t sure whether to be glad or frustrated that the carnival was to be closed to prepare for the Feast of the Queen that would officially start the Hallow Night. The lack of crowds would work against them once again, but they could no longer afford caution. Whatever needed to be done had to be done that night before Elwyn’s ritual began.

He had considered simply stopping the ritual, but he didn’t know where the younglings were hidden nor what sort of defenses that Elwyn would have at hand. Without support from the others within the carnival, he had little hope of stopping him. And for that he needed proof.

He hoped to the gods that Zagrol would help him obtain exactly that.

MaryAnne’s brow dipped in a puzzled frown. “Zagrol? The goblin? Why are we meeting with him? We don’t have time for any of his games, Raskyuil. I was thinking that maybe we should start taking our search further outside of the grounds. We’ve already established that they aren’t hidden here, and if they’re hiding now…”

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