Page 27

??The Beast’s Claim

Dorian

I didn’t mean for the words to come out as harsh as they did.

She could’ve died. That’s all I kept thinking. She could’ve died, and I wouldn’t have known until her blood hit the wind.

And now… she was standing in front of me, hurt, shaking, still so damn stubborn, but alive.

The scent hit me before she spoke. Her blood. Sweet. Metallic. Wrong.

I inhaled sharply, and my heart dropped. “Ember,” I said, but it wasn’t a growl. It was a plea. My voice broke around her name like it’s the only thing holding me together.

She was pale, lips chapped, dried blood streaked down her back. And even then, she’s the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.

I took a step forward, slowly. My hands shook as I reached out and gently brushed the hair away from her face. Her skin was fever-warm, trembling beneath my touch, but she didn't flinch.

“You’re bleeding,” I whispered, not as a warning, but as a wound I couldn’t bear to see open.

“I’m fine,” she lied. She always did when she was trying to be strong.

But I could feel it, beneath her skin, the damage done. Not just by the werewolves. By the fear. The running. The way she’d rather fight the world than lean on me.

I placed a hand against her back, where I knew it hurt, and let the healing begin. The magic stirred instantly, responding to my panic, my relief. Light hummed from my fingers as flesh knitted together, the dried blood disappearing.

She gasped, startled, but didn't pull away.

Instead, her hand reached up, fingers curling into my shirt like an anchor.

“I thought I lost you,” I murmured, brushing my thumb across her jaw. “You were gone. I didn’t know if—” My voice cracked, and I bit it back. I couldn’t say it. I couldn’t even let the thought of her dying take shape in my mind.

She looked up at me, eyes wide and wet. “I was scared,” she said. “Not of you. Just… scared.”

“I know.” I pressed my forehead to hers, closing my eyes as I breathed her in. “But you’re here now. And I swear, Ember, if you ever run again…”

I trailed off. There’s no threat. Just the crushing truth: I didn’t think I could survive it.

Our mouths collided. Hungry. Breathless. Her fingers dug into my chest, tugging my shirt, trying to ground herself, and I responded with a low groan that vibrated deep in my throat.

Her lips brushed mine, soft at first. Testing. Apologizing. Thanking.

I responded without thinking, mouth moving against hers like it was instinct, like it’s oxygen. The kiss deepens, fast. Desperate. Her hands clutched at my shirt like she’s trying to crawl inside me, and I let her. I needed her just as badly.

I slammed her back against the nearest tree, my hands already roaming her sides, her thighs, the curve of her hips.

She gasped into my mouth, arching into me, and it ignited something feral beneath my skin.

Her body was warm against mine, her pussy already slick and pulsing through the thin fabric between us.

“You’re okay,” I breathed between kisses. “You’re okay, you’re okay, you’re okay…”

My hands tugged her torn shirt over her head, and she shivered as the cool air touched her skin. I dragged my mouth down her throat, over her collarbone, tasting her, worshipping her like she’s the only thing in this world that mattered.

Because she was.

I took her nipple into my mouth, sucked until she cried out, then soothed it with my tongue. My teeth grazed it again just to feel her buck against me.

“Dorian…” she gasped, clawing at my belt. “I need you.”

My pants hit the forest floor in seconds. Her underwear ripped easily under my hands, soaked and warm, begging for me. I kneeled between her legs, lifting one thigh over my shoulder, and burying my tongue in her like I’d been starving.

She screamed, raw and unfiltered as I licked her pussy with feverish hunger. Her thigh clamped around my head, and I groaned into her, devouring her, tongue circling her clit in tight, brutal strokes.

“Don’t stop, please, don’t stop,” she moaned, rocking her hips against my mouth.

I gripped her ass, holding her steady as she trembled. Her orgasm hit fast, hard. She shook, gasping my name as her pussy clenched around nothing. But I wasn't done. Not even close.

I stood, lifted her again, and pressed the head of my cock to her entrance. She met my gaze, wild, wide-eyed, and I whispered, “You sure?”

She grabbed the back of my neck, lips crushed to mine. “Yes. God, yes.”

I thrust into her in one long, rough stroke.

She cried out, nails digging into my shoulders, and I swore it took everything in me not to come right there. She’s so tight. So fucking wet. Her pussy gripped me like velvet heat, like she was made to take me.

“Fuck,” I groaned against her ear. “I didn’t know how much I needed you.”

I set a brutal rhythm, fucking her against the tree, our bodies slamming together in wild, reckless need. She moaned with every thrust, her voice echoing through the forest.

Her legs tightened around me. Her hands clutched at my back. Her teeth sunk into my shoulder, and it only fueled the fire between us.

“Say you won’t leave me again,” I growled, slamming into her deeper. “I can’t, fuck, Ember, I can’t lose you.”

She gasped. “I won’t, I won’t, I swear, Dorian—”

I kissed her hard, tasting sweat and blood and the promise of something I never thought I’d have again, hope.

I fucked her like I needed to remind her she’s alive. That I was. That this was real.

Every thrust was desperate, brutal, but wrapped in reverence. I kissed every inch of her I could reach, her mouth, her neck, the underside of her jaw, like I was stitching us back together with lips and heat and hunger.

She moaned my name, her body shuddering with every movement, and I lost myself in her completely.

Her second orgasm hit fast and hard. Her walls clenched around me, milking my cock as I lost control, emptying into her with a roar that shook the air.

When it was over, we were trembling, gasping, clinging to each other like the world might fall apart if we let go.

I lowered her gently to the forest floor, keeping her wrapped in my arms. Her fingers traced my chest, soft and slow.

“You meant it?” she whispered.

I nodded. “Every word.”

She sighed, resting her cheek against my skin. “Then maybe… maybe I won’t run again.”

I closed my eyes and held her tighter.

“Good,” I murmured, voice shaking with relief. “Because I don’t think I could survive losing you again.”