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A fallen log blocks my path. I leap over it with supernatural grace, landing in a crouch that sends thorns spiraling up my legs in response to the magic flooding my system.

Behind me, I hear wood splintering as he crashes through the obstacle instead of around it.

Fuck, that’s hot.

The thought makes fire spiral through my core. This beautiful, powerful man tearing through the forest to reach me. Choosing the direct path because nothing matters more than closing the distance between us.

I push harder, lungs burning with effort and anticipation. The forest streams past in a blur of green and gold, ancient magic recognizing its queen and clearing the way.

But he’s faster. Built for this kind of pursuit in ways that make my newly liberated nature sing with recognition.

Impact drives breath from my lungs as we crash into moss thick enough to cushion the fall. His massive frame cages me against earth that still holds the warmth of our magic, one arm curved beneath my head to protect my skull from roots while the other pins my hip to prevent escape.

“Caught you,” he growls against my throat, his weight pressing me into the earth in ways that make every nerve ending spark.

“That you did,” I breathe, and for the first time since the trials began, I feel completely present in my own body.

His hands bracket my wrists above my head, holding me gently but immovably while he studies my face. “You’re not afraid.”

“Should I be?”

“Of what I want to do to you? Maybe.” His smile turns wicked, revealing those sharp canines. “But you trust me to do it right.”

“Prove it,” I challenge, arching beneath him in blatant invitation.

The sound he makes is purely animal. His mouth finds the sensitive spot where my neck meets my shoulder, and he breathes me in deeply.

“You smell like earth magic and lightning, beautiful thing. Like everything I’ve been searching for.”

Sharp canines press against my pulse point, not breaking skin but marking territory with enough pressure to make my vision blur. The claiming bite sends lightning forking down my spine to pool molten between my thighs.

“Say it,” he demands, lifting his head to meet my eyes. “Tell me what you want.”

“You.” The word emerges without hesitation, carrying all the certainty I’ve been missing. “I want you, Orion. I want to feel claimed by someone who’s seen every dark truth about me and still thinks I’m worth protecting.”

“You’re precious to me,” he vows, voice breaking with emotion. “Sacred.”

Sacred flames flicker around his shoulders where they touch my skin—not dangerous but warming, responding to the depth of his feeling. Where they dance across my arms, pleasure blooms like flowers opening to sunlight.

“The magic responds to you,” I breathe in wonder.

“Everything responds to you,” he corrects, positioning himself between my thighs with reverent care. “The forest, the elements, me—especially me.”

His massive hands span my waist, thumbs brushing the underside of my breasts with reverent precision. The size contrast makes me feel delicate and cherished despite the power flowing beneath my skin.

When his mouth closes around my nipple, the sensation fractures through nerve endings that didn’t exist yesterday. I arch off the forest floor, my magic responding by spiraling thorns across the moss in intricate patterns.

“Please,” I gasp, beyond shame now.

“Please what?” His amber eyes meet mine, pupils blown wide with desire and something deeper. “Tell me what you need.”

“Touch me. Really touch me. Make me forget everything but you.”

“I want to taste you, little wildfire,” he growls, voice rough with barely leashed control. “I want to put my mouth on you and make you scream my name so loud the whole forest knows who you belong to.”

Fire climbs up my throat at his words, but I spread my thighs without hesitation. “Yes. God, yes.”

He spreads my thighs with gentle reverence, amber eyes drinking in the sight of me completely open and vulnerable beneath him. “Beautiful. So fucking beautiful.”

When his mouth finally makes contact, I nearly come off the forest floor. His tongue licks through my folds with devastating skill, building pressure until I’m sobbing his name.

“That’s it,” he growls against me, the vibration sending shockwaves through my system. “Let the whole forest hear.”

His massive hands grip my hips, holding me steady as he devours me with single-minded focus. Each stroke of his tongue sends wildfire racing through my veins, building toward something that feels bigger than just physical release.

When he slides two fingers inside me while his mouth works my clit, the combination destroys what’s left of my control. The orgasm hits like wildfire, pleasure so intense my magic explodes outward in spirals of blue-green light while moss beneath us glows soft green in response.

But he doesn’t stop. His mouth stays on me, working me through the aftershocks while building toward something even more devastating.

“Too much,” I gasp, trying to pull away from the overwhelming sensation.

“Not nearly enough.” His grip tightens, amber eyes blazing with possession as he lifts his head just enough to speak. “I told you I was going to make you scream. We’re just getting started.”

When the second orgasm crashes over me, I feel something fundamental shift in my chest—like chains breaking, like power finally recognizing its true form. Magic erupts from my skin in waves, thorns and flame twining together in patterns that rewrite reality around us.

“Perfect,” he breathes, rising over me. “You’re so fucking perfect when you let go.”

I reach for him, desperate to touch his skin, to feel the warmth and strength of him. “I need you inside me. Now.”

“Look at me,” he commands, positioning himself at my entrance. I can feel how massive he is—pressing against my slick opening. “I want to see your eyes when I claim you completely.”

He pushes into me slowly despite his obvious desperation, his thick length stretching me in ways that blur the line between pleasure and pain. The sensation of being filled by his impressive size makes stars burst behind my eyelids.

“Fuck,” he groans when he’s buried deep inside me. “You feel incredible. So tight around me.”

“Move,” I breathe, wrapping my legs around his waist. “Please.”

He pulls out slowly, then drives back into me with controlled power that makes me cry out. Each thrust sends shockwaves through my system, hitting spots inside me that make rational thought impossible.

“Mine,” he growls with each stroke, amber eyes holding mine. “You belong to me.”

“Yours,” I gasp, nails digging into his shoulders. “I’m yours.”

The claiming bite he gives my throat as he moves inside me sends me spiraling toward another edge. When I come around him, my body clenching him like a vice, he roars my name with enough force to shake leaves from the trees.

But we’re far from finished.

“Turn over,” he commands, pulling out of me despite my whimper of protest. “I want to take you like the wild thing you are.”

I flip onto my hands and knees, presenting myself to him. His hands grip my hips as he lines himself up again, teasing my entrance with the broad head of his cock.

“Such a good girl,” he murmurs, voice rough with approval. “So eager.”

When he slams into me from behind, the new angle hits spots that make me see stars. His massive frame covers mine completely, caging me against the earth as he sets a rhythm that borders on savage.

“Feel how deep I am,” he pants against my ear. “Feel how perfectly you grip me. Like you were made for this.”

Ancient trees lean their branches like voyeurs while my magic pours from our connection in spirals that make flowers bloom and die in time with our rhythm.

“Harder,” I beg, pushing back to meet his brutal thrusts. “Please.”

“Greedy little thing,” he growls, giving me exactly what I asked for. “You love this, don’t you? Love being taken like this.”

“Yes,” I sob, beyond shame now. “I love it.”

When he finally comes, roaring my name like a battle cry, I feel him pulsing as he fills me. The sound echoes through Wild Court territory with enough force to announce to every creature within miles exactly who I belong to.

He collapses over me, breathing hard, his massive frame trembling with the aftershocks. “Fuck,” he pants against my shoulder. “I’m sorry, that was—I’ve been waiting so long for you, I couldn’t?—”

“Don’t apologize,” I murmur, stroking his sweat-dampened hair. “That was perfect.”

“No, it wasn’t.” He lifts his head, amber eyes holding embarrassment and determination. “You deserve better than me losing control like some untested boy.”

I can’t help but smile at his mortification. “Orion?—”

“Give me a minute,” he says, voice rough with promise. “Guardian magic has its advantages.”

I feel him stirring against my thigh, already growing hard again. The recovery time is inhuman—but then again, so is he.

“That’s definitely not human,” I breathe, watching him return to full hardness with supernatural speed.

His grin turns absolutely wicked. “Told you guardian magic has perks. And this time...” He sits back on his heels, hands spanning my waist. “This time I’m going to worship you properly.”

He moves to lean against a broad tree trunk, pulling me with him. “Come here, beautiful thing. I want to watch you ride me. Want to see you take what you need.”

Warmth floods my face, but I straddle his massive thighs without hesitation. His hands guide me until I’m positioned over him, pressing against my entrance.

“Take your time,” he murmurs, amber eyes burning as they travel my body. “Take what you want. Use me however you need.”

I sink down slowly, gasping at the stretch as he fills me completely. From this angle, he feels impossibly deep, hitting spots that make my vision blur.

“Look at you,” he groans, hands gripping my hips. “So beautiful. So perfect.”