Primal (Alpha Brotherhood 2)

This was so different than anything else I’d felt before.

This felt like fate.

Chapter Four

Luna

I stayed in Vikar’s arms for the longest time. With my ear pressed against his chest, I could hear the sound of his heart beating. It was strong and steady as a drum and soon I found my own pumping in tune with his. It was exceptionally soothing, and I quickly found myself drifting off to sleep before I knew it, no matter how much I tried to keep myself awake.

I rested for much of the remainder of the day, exhausted from the entire ordeal of my very first spanking and the shameful things that happened on his fingers. When I woke, the sun was already beginning to set on the horizon, and it was too late to travel any further into the darkness of the forest.

I finally climbed off of Vikar’s lap and started to get dressed once again. He said nothing although he kept his eyes on me the entire time, deliberately watching me as I covered myself with clothing. He stared at me like I should have asked permission to dress, but I didn’t say anything at all. The night wasn’t especially cold though, so I decided not to put on my cloak. Instead, I laid it on a soft patch of moss on the ground and curled up on top of it. I closed my eyes for a little while longer as an effort to conserve my strength should I need it later, resting for a while longer.

When only the moon and the stars cast their light through the branches overhead, Vikar started making camp in the same place that he’d punished me. Since then, he hadn’t asked for anything more from me even though I’d felt how hard that had made his cock. He hadn’t made me take him in my mouth nor did he force his knot inside me like I had expected. He simply made the fire and prepared a soup over it with dried vegetables and cooked meat for me instead. It was a bit strange having a man cook for me, but I found that it was far tastier than I gave him credit for.

We ate in silence, neither pressing the other for information just yet. I picked at my food, too riveted by trying to get a read on his body language and his true intentions to really enjoy my own.

I didn’t feel like I was in danger. In fact, I started to feel just a little bit safe and that was unnerving on its own.

The longer I was around him, the more confident I became that he wasn’t going to take me against my will just because he could and just because he was an alpha. He’d taught me the lesson he intended and nothing more. His behavior was strangely comforting, and it made me want to trust him even though I knew that I shouldn’t even think it. It wasn’t in the cards for me. Not right now.

There were far too important things at stake for me to fall for a man like him. Even though he’d shown me kindness in a world where alphas reigned over omegas like me, I had to remember that he could turn on me at a moment’s notice. I still didn’t know his true intentions and I couldn’t fall for his games when my child’s life was at stake.

I sat down on the fallen log by the fire and glanced into his silver eyes. The light of the flames lit up the flecks of blue and green so that they looked like they were ablaze from within. He smiled warmly and I knew it was time for me to try to begin figuring him out.

“Where are you taking me?” I asked softly. I needed to know so that I could plan my next move. I had to figure out a way to get away from him, but it would need to be the right time. I had to come up with the perfect escape plan.

“You’re going back to Valgertha with me. I was tasked to find you and return you to the castle,” he answered. I chewed the inside of my cheek, trying to figure out if I believed him or not.

I wasn’t going to do what he wanted. It wasn’t an option for me.

“I need to get back to Ravenrath. I have business there,” I answered.

“What need do you have to return? King Thranar is dead. From the rumors I’ve heard, there is already a new person that’s been crowned to rule over the city,” he pressed. The furrows around his eyes wrinkled as he narrowed his gaze in my direction. He was suspicious now. I needed to tread carefully so I decided to lie. I would do whatever it took to protect my daughter.

“I had a handmaiden there. If I ever ran, Thranar threatened her well-being. I need to return and get her out of there,” I replied.

“I have people for that. I’ll send someone for her,” he answered carefully. His gaze held mine, as if he was trying to read my reaction and I gave him nothing.

“It needs to be me. She won’t go with anyone else after what Thranar put her through,” I lied.

“I see,” he answered. He licked his lips and cocked his head to the side as he studied my expression far more closely than I wanted. He pressed his feet to the ground and the leaves crunched under his feet as he turned away and returned to the fire. I held my hands out, warming my fingers by the flames and trying to remain as cautious as possible with my every move. I said nothing else for fear of casting suspicion on myself.

The fire flickered into the night and I would occasionally catch his eyes on me, but he never moved to force anything else after that. Instead, I asked him about himself and turned the conversation back to him every time he tried to ask about my past or my life back in Ravenrath. I couldn’t tell if he was suspicious and if he was, he did a very good job covering it up. There wasn’t an ounce of skepticism in his expression.

As the hours passed, the night started to grow warmer and a little muggy. Vikar shrugged off his cloak, revealing the thin cotton shirt he was wearing underneath. His arms flexed as he rolled up the long sleeves and I found myself enamored by the sight of his strong muscles. Even though his physique was covered by fabric, it was more than obvious that he was incredibly well-defined. I took a moment to really admire him. He stood at well over six feet tall with a wide set of chiseled shoulders and a narrow waist. My eyes dropped to his thighs, thick and sturdy and perfectly sized for him to bare my bottom and spank me over.

I licked my lips, trying to ignore the nagging feeling of desire at the base of my core. A soft pulsing sensation was radiating outward from the center of my belly and I did my best to push it away. If he had noticed the wayward nature of my thoughts, he said nothing, and I was thankful for that. I stared into the fire, hoping he hadn’t sensed anything at all. For a while, the crackling of the flames consumed me as I watched the brilliant reds, oranges, and yellows flicker before my eyes.

“We should get to bed so that we can wake up early enough in the morning to make some headway back to Valgertha,” he said, his voice steady with his command. I lifted my gaze to his and nodded. I wanted to seem amenable to his wishes so that I could gain at least some semblance of his trust before I ran away.

“Okay,” I answered, mostly because it appeared as he was waiting for my agreement. He lay down on the moss and offered me his hand, clearly expecting me to take it. I didn’t see any other option other than to place my fingers within his, so I did. He pulled me into his chest and his breath was comforting against the back of my neck once he brushed my hair aside. His fingers splayed flat against my belly, possessive and strong. It didn’t take long for his breathing to become steady and defined, although his arm never relaxed enough for me to slip free unnoticed.

I tried to stay awake for a while, hoping that I would be able to escape his grasp once he let down his guard, but his warmth proved to be too relaxing and even though I fought it with everything in me, I eventually fell asleep.

The next morning, I woke feeling sore and tender to the touch. Before I opened my eyes, I took stock of my body. My bottom ached and I was reminded of the hard lesson over his thighs. I felt myself flush when I remembered where he’d put his finger and how he’d made me come that way. I didn’t move, but I knew that I’d awakened with discernible wetness between my thighs and my face warmed at the realization.

“Even with your clothes on, I could smell your slick from a mile away,” he murmured.