Her Lycan was so strong right now in the face of danger, of harm to her… of the reality that I’d revealed to her. And as much as I was pleased by her wolf, I gave a low warning out to the man, because he was the reason it had come forth to protect her.
“What the hell,” the man muttered, holding his hands out, palms facing us in surrender.
Too late for pleas.
It was then I noticed he had a campsite erected and was clearly illegally living off my ancestral land. I could have let that slide. I wouldn’t have cared about him being here and trespassing. But what I wouldn’t stand for, what I wouldn’t tolerate, was a threat to my mate.
I lowered my head, keeping my eyes locked on him as I stalked forward. The low rumble that left me was one of warning, was a heads-up on what was to come. I wanted to hurt him, to tear his limbs from his body, to use my sharp teeth to tear open his gut.
I kept moving forward, my huge body close to the ground, the rumble a constant from my chest. His fear was tangible now, and if I’d been in my human form, I’d have grinned in anticipation of hurting him. I crouched even more, dug my back paws into the dirt, ready to lunge forward and clamp my canines into his throat to rip out his larynx.
I pounced. The man yelled as he scrambled back, but there was no escape. I had my front paws on his chest, keeping him down, still. I lowered my head, my gaze locked on his, my teeth bared. He was muttering softly, and the scent of his tears made his weakness known. He was a coward in the face of someone stronger than him. I opened my mouth and let saliva drip from my fangs and land on his throat. I’ll enjoy ripping his throat out.
And I was about to do just that, but then I heard a soft whimpering sound come from Darragh, and everything in me focused on her. She was my priority.
I was off the human instantly and facing my female. I heard the human run off and knew he wouldn’t be back, not if he was smart. But if he was stupid enough to come into Lycan territory again… I’d make sure he didn’t get a second chance to escape.
The fact that he could reveal the nature of what he’d seen in the forest wasn’t an issue. No one would believe him, chalking it up to the ramblings of a man who’d lost his mind. They’d never believe there were beasts roaming the woods at night, and if they did, then good; it would keep them away from my property. It would have them afraid of my kind.
Everything in me wanted to go chase the human down, but instead I looked at my mate and noted her confusion and fear, knew she felt like everything was spiraling out of control. She had her hands cupping her face as she slowly shook her head, her back bowed a little bit, her shoulders hunched forward so she seemed even smaller than she was. She was muttering incoherent things, her chest rising and falling as she grappled with these no doubt new and intense emotions.
I couldn’t even imagine how she felt right now as she sensed her wolf for the very first time. And although technically I was also a half-breed, my Lycan genetics had been dominant from the very beginning. I’d never felt a sudden rush of my inner beast rising up. He’d always been a constant in my life.
My sweet Darragh. My precious mate.
I was about to shift back into my human form and comfort her, needing to pull her in close and just hold her, when she dropped her hands to her side and looked at me with wide, still glowing eyes. I expected her to scream, to run. It would be understandable. I expected to feel the defeat pouring off my mate. But what I sensed was something I hadn’t thought she would ever experience, at least not anytime soon.
Acceptance.
“Caelan,” she whispered and took a step closer to me.
I shifted back into my human body instantly and met her halfway, her arms wrapping around my abdomen before I even knew what she was doing. The feeling of her grasping me, almost clinging to me as if I were her lifeline, was the greatest feeling I’d ever experienced.
I’d expected a fight from her for a long while and had only hoped she’d one day come to accept what she was to me, what she meant to me. The situation had certainly turned in a way I hadn’t seen coming, and it was one I wouldn’t take for granted.