WARREK

The hunters of the village are hard at work, bringing in last-minute kills and preparing their weapons for the chief’s rescue hunt. The village was deserted this morning, but we have flooded back in with the setting of the twin suns and will spend late into the night getting ready.

I think of Suh-mer. I want nothing more than to crawl into the furs and hold her close until the suns rise once more and I must leave her. But there is much to do this night, and I must help the tribe. So many lives depend on it. I cannot be selfish.

“Have you seen our chief?” Sessah asks, ducking into the longhouse. Normally this is a friendly gathering spot, but tonight, it is filled with hunters preparing their packs and readying weapons for the trek into the wild tomorrow. “He is not in his hut.”

“He is somewhere in the village,” I tell him, stretching a long length of thin leather to bind several spears together. “He will be here soon.”

“Warrek?” A voice calls my name and I glance up from the bundle of spears I am lashing together. It is Hemalo, wiping his hands clean of filth from an afternoon of scraping leathers. “There you are,” he says when his gaze meets mine. “Asha said that Suh-mer is looking for you. It is urgent.”

A hint of fear courses through me. Urgent? “Is she unwell?” I drop the spears I am bundling, and they clatter to the stone floor, scattering everywhere. Sessah looks up at me in surprise. Normally calm, I find I am flustered, grabbing one spear only to have another drop away. The thought of Suh-mer calling for me because something is wrong tears at my mind.

“I will finish that,” Sessah offers, giving me a curious look. He scoops up the spears scattered at my feet. “Go and see to your female.”

I nod, rubbing a hand down my face. “I thank you.” I turn to Hemalo. “Is she in our hut? Did Asha say anything more?”

“I believe she is waiting for you at the edge of the village,” he comments in a mild voice, unruffled at the sight of my clumsiness.

I nod again, then realize I am just bobbing my head over and over at this point. With that, I head out of the hut, my thoughts scattered and wild. Is Suh-mer sick? Has she hurt herself somehow? Is that why Hemalo was sent to find me? My stomach churns at the thought of leaving her to journey with the others, but it is something I must do. I cannot abandon my people, and she is safe here.

But the thought of leaving her behind? It fills me with a helpless frustration and a deep-seated, gnawing hunger that feels foreign to me, almost as foreign as the overwhelming lust I feel at the thought of her, smiling over her shoulder at me.

Or smiling at another hunter. What if, while I am gone, she decides she wants a different hunter in her furs? One as talkative as her? Sessah is closer to her age, for all his youth, and the new hunters we will pull from the pods will be looking for mates.

I nearly double over at the jealousy that rakes through me.

I never thought of myself as one to snarl at another male glancing at my mate. But never has another female consumed my thoughts like Suh-mer has. What would my father say, I wonder, as I race through the village, looking for the sleek dark mane of my human. Would he even recognize his son?

Perhaps he would. Perhaps he would encourage me to capture every moment with Suh-mer. I remember how keenly he missed my mother when she was gone. He would understand why I feel so strongly.

And he would be happy for me.

A hard knot lodges in my throat at the thought of my father, gone these last few seasons. He would have liked my Suh-mer and her endless talk. He would have admired how brave she is. How clever. And he would tell me not to let her get away. That I should spend every day making her feel cherished, like my father did my mother.

It is something I vow to do…just as soon as I find her.

I stalk past a cluster of the human females, barely noticing that they giggle as I leave. They are not Suh-mer, so they are not important. Not right now.

“Warrek?” her sweet, familiar voice calls nearby.

I whirl about. There she is, standing in the doorway of one of the storage huts at the very edge of the village. She waves me forward, one arm hidden behind the doorway.

Relief courses through me at the sight of her. She does not look injured. “What is it?” I ask, and my voice is louder than it perhaps should be. “What is wrong?”

She just waves me over again. “Come inside. We need to talk.”

Talk? She is not injured? There is an odd look on her face that concerns me, but as long as she is well, I can deal with everything else. I move to her side, ducking into the hut, and cup her cheek. “You are not hurt? Not injured? Not feeling ill? Shall I call the healer?”

Her expression goes soft. “Oh, it’s nothing like that. I’m sorry to have scared you.” She keeps her hand carefully behind her back as she tilts her head up and gazes at me. “Can I ask you to do something for me?”

“Of course.” I stroke her cheek, unable to stop touching her. She is just so beautiful it makes my heart pound in my chest as if I have been racing along the trails all afternoon. I love her flat human face with its small nose and funny brow. I love her golden skin and her slight body. I even love her tail-less bottom. I especially love the way she smiles up at me, like I am the best thing she has ever seen. It is how she smiles at me right now, and my heart pounds even harder.

“Then can you close your eyes and put your hands by your side?”

It is a strange request, but for her, I will gladly do whatever she likes. I nod and do as she has asked, my hands lowering to rest and my eyes closed.

“Boy, Georgie was right,” she murmurs to herself. “You guys are seriously innocent. Hold still, baby.” I feel her body graze against me. It feels as if she is circling around me, and when she runs a hand under my leather vest to brush her fingers over my stomach, my cock rises at the simple touch.

I am so distracted by her that I barely notice she has pulled something taut around my torso until she gives it a yank. “When can I open my eyes?” I ask, curious.

“When I’m finished tying you up.”

That…is not what I expect to hear. I open my eyes, curious, and see that she’s tied a thick leather band around my upper arms. She grabs another band and ties this one around my waist, pinning my arms at my side. There is a look of great determination on her face as she works.

“Why do you tie me up?” I am amused at her efforts, and a little confused. It would not take much to wrestle my way out of the bonds, but I am curious as to why she feels the need to put them on me.

“I’m kidnapping you,” my Suh-mer announces. “I already got the chief’s permission and everything. I’m going to kidnap you and hold you hostage in the cabin here for the next few days and have my wicked, wicked way with you.” She smiles up at me and wriggles her eyebrows.

Now I am truly confused. “You have the chief’s permission to tie down my arms?”

“Well, no, that part was my idea.” She grabs another bit of braided rope and flings herself around me, winding the cord along my waist. “See, I thought the other sa-khui guys kidnapped their women and toted them off to a cave post-resonance, right? I wanted to do that with you even though we haven’t resonated. We’re still mates, and it doesn’t matter to me if we ever resonate. But resonance wasn’t the whole reason I wanted to tote you off, you know? Not that I can tote you off, of course. You weigh, like, twice as much as I do, and it’d be a bit like a housecat trying to carry off a lion. Or a bobcat, I guess, instead of a housecat. Because if our sizes were really that big of a difference, sex would be a hell of a lot more uncomfortable. So yeah, I guess bobcat and lion. I saw both of them at a zoo once, and you don’t realize how big a lion is until you see it up close and personal. That’s how I feel about your dick sometimes.” She giggles. “Lion-dick. The others will think I’m crazy if I tell them that. Not that I would, given all the ribbing they threw at me with the whole G-spot thing. No regrets there, though.” She sighs happily and ties the cord into a big floppy bow. “None at all.”

“You have my heart, my mate,” I tell her gently. “But I have no idea what you are talking about.”

She chuckles again and tugs on the ties at my waist, pulling me forward a bit. “Long story short—though I guess it’s too late for that—I’m kidnapping you here, and you’re not going to leave for days.”

I slowly shake my head. “I would love to roll in the furs with you for nights on end, but the tribe—”

“Has already decided that both you and Sessah are staying behind because you’re unmated, and they don’t want anyone’s cootie going off like a firecracker on the Fourth of July. There’s enough to deal with, you know?” She slides a hand down the front of my leathers and cups the bulge of my erection. “Which means you and I get time to play.”

I am surprised to hear this. Her hand is distracting, but I force myself to stay focused, even when she traces the outline of my cock with her fingers. “Vektal…has decided we shall not go? When did you hear of this?”

She bites her lip and tilts her head. “When I went and asked them not to send you?” She winces. “I hope you’re not mad.”

I am astonished—and strangely pleased—at her boldness. “Why would I be mad?”

“Because if you really wanted to go, it’s not my decision—”

“I do not wish to go,” I tell her quickly. “I would rather be with you. But if the tribe needs me…”

“Not half as much as I need you.” She strokes my cock again, causing the breath to hiss from my throat. “And maybe I’m a horrible beast, but the thought of you resonating to someone else while I’m sitting back here makes me crazy. I’m far too possessive of you to let you get away.”

I can feel a grin spreading across my face. My heart is pounding wildly at her words, at her touch on my cock. She feels this strongly about me, as well? “Then I am not alone in being jealous at the thought of others getting your attention?”

“You’re jealous over me, too?” she gasps, delighted. “Oh my god, that’s so cute. I love it.” Her hands glide up and down my shaft, and I bite back a groan. Suh-mer seems so very pleased. “Something like that deserves a reward.”

“You are my reward,” I pant. “I want nothing else.”

“Seriously, I am going to eat you with a spoon.” Her hands tug at my loincloth. “You’re making my heart race with all this talk.”

Her heart is racing as well? Mine seems to be going faster and faster with every moment that passes. It thunders in my ears, and my world seems to be shrinking to her hands on my cock and the pounding in my chest.

But then…I hear it.

A low, throbbing hum coming from my breast.

Resonance.