Barbarian's Bride (Ice Planet Barbarians)

I feel like a goddess.

I'm practically beaming as I stand next to him. Our khuis sing to one another as we stand, hand in hand, and it really does feel like a song. It's like they're humming to one another, the sound becoming more urgent the closer we stand.

Then, Dagesh scoops me into his arms.

I bite back a sound of surprise, because he hefts me into his arms as if I weigh nothing at all. He cradles me against his chest and turns away from the others, walking quickly through the knee-high snow as if it doesn't bother him in the slightest.

"W-where are we going?" I ask as I slide my arms around his neck, breathless.

"To fulfill resonance, my pretty one," he tells me. "We will find a private cave and become mates."

Well, that was rather sudden and decisive. I like it, though. "You didn't even ask me," I point out, a little amused. "Shouldn't you have asked?"

"What is there to ask?" He looks puzzled as he carries me away. "It is resonance. Our khuis have decided we are mates. There is nothing else to be decided."

Well, he’s very confident about that. “You’re lucky you’re cute, then.”

"Cute?" He makes a face as he heads toward the fire that’s been built for us humans. He settles me onto my feet, lays out a fur for me to sit on, and then gives me the cloak off his back.

I curl up under it as others begin to trickle toward the fire, and I’m not entirely surprised when Dagesh sits next to me and pulls me against him. I want to keep touching him. I want to feel what it’s like to have sex while resonating. I want a lot of damn things, and right now, they’re all tied in to him.

“No-rah,” he breathes, his hands roaming over me. A moment later, he’s got them under my tunic and he’s pushing at my pants. Others sit down nearby, but no one’s looking over at us. It’s like they know exactly what we’re doing, and they’re giving us privacy by deliberately not looking in our direction.

Part of me wants to tell him that I want to go somewhere quiet where we can be alone, but the other part of me is far too hot and bothered to care. Under the furs, I shove my pants down to my ankles and slide to the ground. Dagesh is immediately on top of me, tugging my feet free from the too-big leggings and then spreading my legs.

A moment later, he’s inside me.

I let out a gasp of surprise, because he’s big. Not that I mind big. I like big. I was just hoping for an ounce of foreplay. It doesn’t seem to be in the cards, though, because he pumps into me twice, grunting, and then collapses.

And…okay. It’s not exactly a stellar start for my life on an ice planet.

My new mate groans, burying his face against my neck. “I am sorry. That was too quick. I…I did it all wrong.”

“It’s all right,” I murmur, glancing over at the people near the fire. I stroke his long braid, needing to touch him. Needing more than a quick pump and dump. “Maybe we…maybe we go someplace quiet and get to know each other better?”

Dagesh looks up at me and our eyes meet. I can tell he’s chagrined by how fast that was, and how it’s obvious I didn’t enjoy it like he did. He nods, then fumbles with my pants under the blankets. I help as much as I can, and when I’m dressed, Dagesh gets to his feet and adjusts his loincloth, then picks me up, blankets and all.

Without a word to the others, he turns and begins to head away from the group, heading for a distant snowy hill.

“Should we say something?” I whisper. “Tell them we’re going?”

“They know we are resonating. We will be back later. They will not wait for us.”

“Oh, okay.” I watch his face as he carries me like a bride over the threshold. He seems…a little stiff. Embarrassed. It wasn’t exactly great sex. In fact, it might hit a record for the fastest sex I’ve ever had, but I’m not upset. I don’t want him to feel ashamed. If what I’ve been told about the barbarians here is true, they don’t have many females. I’m guessing Dagesh doesn’t get a lot of chances to fool around. I reach up to skim my fingers over his big chin. He really does have great big features. I mean, he's supersized compared to humans, so they don't look strange. I just find his face…fascinating. I find all of him fascinating, really.

Resonance means having sex, Georgie explained to us. It's a mating call set up by our khuis in order to get us to fuck until we get pregnant. I should probably be mad about this, but I'm secretly thrilled. My khui has absolutely picked out the guy I would have picked for myself, and the more I gaze at that big strong chin and wide mouth, the more I want to bite all of it.