Page 30

TWENTY-FOUR

KIERAN

A s the minutes passed by, Kieran's strength returned in waves, each one stronger than the last. The silver poison that had weakened him was gone, drawn out by Maya's touch and Lena's ancient ritual.

He flexed his fingers, marveling at how quickly his body recovered once the toxic metal had been purged from his system.

Inside the safe house, the younger wolves had finally settled, their whispers about prophecies and hybrids quieting as exhaustion overtook excitement. Kieran watched Maya through half-lidded eyes as she spoke in hushed tones with Lena about her newly awakened abilities.

The moonlight streaming through the window pulled at him like a physical force. His wolf, no longer subdued by the silver, surged forward beneath his skin, demanding freedom and connection with his mate under the moon's watchful gaze.

"Maya." His voice cut through the women's conversation, low and commanding. Both turned toward him, but his eyes fixed solely on the copper-haired woman who had fought for him, healed him, and changed him. "Come with me."

He didn't wait for her response, simply rising from the cot with fluid grace and striding toward the door. The eyes of every young shifter in the room followed him—the deposed heir who'd chosen love over legacy.

Outside, the night air carried the scent of pine and distant rain. Kieran breathed deeply, relishing the clarity in his lungs after twenty-four hours of silver-induced fire. He led Maya away from the safe house, his hand capturing hers with possessive certainty.

"Where are we going?" she asked, her scientist's curiosity never far from the surface.

"You'll see." The corners of his mouth lifted in that half-smile he knew drove her crazy.

He guided her through the trees until they reached a small clearing bathed in moonlight. Here, away from watchful eyes and hushed prophecies, Kieran could finally breathe. Could finally be just a man with his woman, not an heir or a rebel or a symbol.

Maya's copper hair gleamed like a living flame in the silvery light. Kieran reached out, wrapping a strand around his finger, savoring its silken texture and the way her pulse quickened at his touch.

"You saved my life today," he said, stepping closer until barely an inch separated their bodies. His voice dropped lower and rougher. "Drew poison from my veins with your own hands."

Maya tilted her chin up, that stubborn defiance he adored flashing in her eyes. "I wasn't about to let you die when I just figured out what to do with you."

Kieran laughed, the sound rusty and genuine. Her scientific mind, always cataloging and analyzing, was one of countless things he loved about her. Loved. The realization wasn't new, but its intensity knocked the breath from his lungs.

"I don't know who I'd be without you," he admitted, vulnerability raw in his throat.

"Or where I'd be. Lost in tradition, blind to possibilities.

Alone even surrounded by pack." His thumb traced the delicate line of her jaw.

"I love you, Maya. Not because of prophecies or politics or rebellions. Just you."

Her green eyes widened, luminous with unshed tears. The tough, analytical scientist who'd faced down captors and hunters suddenly looked as vulnerable as he felt.

"You know, for someone who kidnapped me and ruined my research, you've become surprisingly essential to my existence," she whispered, her voice catching.

"I've spent my life studying connection without experiencing it.

Until you." Her fingers traced the long scar on his jaw.

"I can't imagine my life without you, Kieran Silvercrest, and that terrifies me more than any shifter or hunter ever could. "

Something primal and possessive surged through him.

Kieran tangled his fingers in her hair, pulling her mouth to his in a kiss that began tender but quickly ignited into something hungrier.

She melted against him, her body fitting perfectly against his larger frame as if created solely for this purpose.

"You're mine," he growled against her lips, his other arm banding around her waist to eliminate any remaining space between them.

"Is that your eloquent way of saying you feel the same?" Maya murmured, nipping at his bottom lip with newfound boldness.

"Scientists require evidence, don't they?" Kieran backed her toward a massive oak at the clearing's edge, caging her between his body and the ancient trunk. "Let me show you exactly how I feel."

His mouth found the spot on her neck where he'd left a small bite mark a week ago, a claiming that had been accidental then but would be absolute tonight.

His lips brushed over the sensitive skin, trailing kisses down her neck as he lifted her oversized white t-shirt and pulled it over her head, tossing it aside.

The cool night air kissed her skin, but his hands were fire as they roamed her body, pulling her leggings off her next.

His mouth soon found her breasts, alternating between them.

His tongue flicked over her hardened nipples, teasing and drawing out soft moans from her as her fingers tangled in his dark hair, pulling him closer.

"Kieran," she breathed, her voice trembling with desire.

He grinned against her skin, the Alpha in him reveling in the way her body responded to him. "You have no idea how much I've wanted this," he murmured, his voice husky with need. "How much I've wanted you. Forever, Maya. Not just tonight."

Her hands slid down his chest, fumbling with the hem of his black t-shirt. He stepped back just long enough to yank it off, revealing the hard planes of his muscular torso. His jeans followed, discarded in a heap on the mossy ground, leaving them both bare under the moonlight.

He guided her to the soft patch of moss in the clearing, laying her down with a gentleness that belied the hunger in his eyes. She arched beneath him, her bare skin glowing like moonlight against the dark green moss.

"Kieran," she whispered again, her eyes locked on his. "Are you sure?"

He paused, his hands resting on her hips, his gaze softening. "I've never been more sure of anything in my life. You're my mate, Maya. My partner. My equal." He leaned down, brushing his lips against hers. "But I need to hear it from you. Are you ready? Are you ready to be mine, completely?"

Her answer came without hesitation, her voice steady and sure. "Yes. I've never been more ready for anything in my life."

He kissed her deeply, his tongue tangling with hers as he positioned himself between her legs.

His cock, hard and thick, pressed against her wet entrance, and he paused for a moment, savoring the feel of her warmth against him.

He pushed forward slowly, inch by inch, filling her completely, stretching her in such a way that made her gasp and arch into him.

"You're so tight," he groaned, his voice strained as he fought to keep control. "So perfect for me."

Her inner walls clenched tight around him, drawing a deep moan from his chest. He began to move, his thrusts slow and deliberate, each one drawing out her pleasure and sending sparks of ecstasy through her body.

His hands roamed her curves, worshiping every inch of her as if she were the most sacred thing he'd ever touched.

As the pleasure built inside him, his thrusts grew harder, deeper, and faster, a primal rhythm that she matched with equal intensity. Her nails dug into his shoulders, her breath coming in ragged gasps as she neared the edge.

"Maya," he breathed. "Are you ready for my bite? Are you ready to be mine forever?"

She nodded, her eyes dark with desire. "Yes. Please, Kieran. I'm ready."

With a growl of possession, he thrust into her with even more force, driving her over the edge into an earth-shattering orgasm.

Her body convulsed beneath him, her inner walls clenching around him as she cried out his name.

The sensation tore through him. With one final, deep thrust, his powerful release ripped through him, and he spilled his seed into her as he sank his teeth into her neck, fully claiming her as his mate.

A surge of energy coursed through them both as their bond solidified, the ancient magic of the mating ritual binding them together in a way that was as much spiritual as it was physical. Kieran licked the blood from her throat, sealing the wound and their bond permanently.

He collapsed beside her, pulling her into his arms as they both caught their breath. The clearing around them seemed to hum with energy, the earth itself responding to the completion of their mating.

Kieran pressed a kiss to her temple, his voice soft but filled with awe. "You're mine, Maya. And I'm yours. Forever."

She turned to face him, her green eyes shining with tears. "Forever," she whispered, her voice barely audible over the rustle of the trees.

He held her close, his wolf and his heart at peace for the first time in his life.

Suddenly, the air around them seemed to thicken and shimmer, an electric energy pulsing outward from where their bodies connected. Kieran felt it first as a warmth spreading through his limbs, then as something more primal—an ancient recognition awakening in his blood.

"Do you feel that?" Maya whispered, her body tensing.

The ground beneath them trembled slightly, not with threat but with recognition. The moonlight, already bright in the clearing, intensified dramatically, bathing them in silver so pure it made their skin luminous.

"What the hell?" Kieran sat up, pulling Maya with him, his arm still wrapped protectively around her waist.

The energy coursed from them in concentric waves, rippling outward through the Silvercrest territory. Kieran could sense it reaching the borders of their land, washing over sleeping pack members, injured wolves, even the scorched earth from recent battles. Wherever it touched, something healed.

"It's you," he breathed, staring at Maya with newfound awe. "Your hybrid nature. The prophecy wasn't just about uniting our kinds—it was about healing the land itself."

The moon above them pulsed with an unearthly brilliance, as if acknowledging their union. Kieran had never seen it so bright and so alive with purpose.

"Science doesn't explain this," Maya whispered, her scientific certainty faltering as she watched the celestial display.

Kieran gripped her chin, turning her face to him. "Sometimes the oldest magic defies modern explanation." His eyes burned with raw intensity. "You are the bridge indeed, Maya. The first human hybrid mating in centuries. You've awakened something dormant in our world."

The energy continued to spiral outward, and Kieran could feel through his connection to the territory—a connection all Alpha bloodlines possessed—the land responding. Dead areas greened, wounds closed, and springs that had run dry for decades bubbled forth once more.

"My grandmother told me never to go into the deep woods. But I didn't listen." Maya said softly, her eyes wide with understanding. "She knew, didn't she? About what I was?"

"And what we would become together." Kieran kissed her with fierce possession, growling against her mouth as the moon bathed them in its blessing. "The beginning of everything."