ASHTAR

She trusts me, and I have lied to her. When we mate, our minds will be linked irrevocably, and I have not told her. I still have not yet told her such a thing, because I do not know how I will react if she does not want this bond between us. I should tell her about it beforehand, so she has time to get used to the idea.

I should.

Instead, I watch silently as she greets Zolaya, and proceeds to show him around our crude camp. She exclaims with joy as he sets up a tent for us, unrolling furs and offering her dried meat and makes hot tea over a fire that burns from dung chips. In less time than it takes for me to make my mate come against my tongue, he has transformed our living space into one of comfort. He has made it a far better home for her than I have, and it galls me.

My sweet Veronica is thrilled. She eats the food given to her and gives me happy little looks over the fire, handing me tidbits to gnaw on while Zolaya tells her of how he met his mate and how the other humans came to land on this planet. It seems that his Air-ee was one of the first humans here, along with Vektal's mate. She gave birth to their son and is now expecting a second child with him. He fingers his long, ugly braid and comments that he misses her because she braided his hair for him, but it is clear that it is much more than that. He gets a distant, melancholy look in his eyes when he speaks of his mate.

He has been taken from her. How can he be so calm when he should be burning with resentment? He has been away from her for weeks. She could be in danger. Their young could be in danger. It is clear he misses her. Why does he listen to his chief when he demands that they stay away?

Any ease I felt about returning to the tribe slowly vanishes and the fear returns. How do I trust that they will let me stay with my Veronica when we go back? When they have separated Zolaya and his mate? And the others have left their mates behind in their small village across the plains? I do not want to leave Veronica for one day, much less dozens of them.

No. Better that we stay on our own.

"I hope no one's upset that we disappeared," Veronica says shyly as she lifts a cup of fragrant tea to her lips. A moment later, she closes her eyes and inhales deeply, pleased. "Oh wow. Tea. I've missed it so much."

I scowl. Hot water with a few leaves in it? Easily done. "I can make you tea."

Veronica looks startled at my words. "Of course you can. It's just different when it's someone else’s. Here, taste." She offers the cup to me, a smile on her lips, and slides a little closer to me. When I take the cup, she puts her hand on my thigh and gives it an affectionate squeeze, and some of my irritation disappears. The tea is good. Maybe not as good as some of the blends I've had on distant planets as part of the spoils of a good victory, but it is still a nice drink. I nod at Zolaya, and my mate beams at me as if I've complimented him.

Zolaya only watches me closely, as if he somehow has picked up on what I am thinking. He pulls out the tea pouch and offers it to my mate. "For you, for as long as you both choose to stay out here. I can make more."

"Thank you," she tells him, beaming.

He gives me another wary look. "I am glad to see you both whole and well. Vektal was very concerned when Ashtar changed forms and raced away with you. Vor-dis had to tell us that all of your people shift forms like this. Is this true?"

"Truth," I admit after a moment.

"Yet you did not fly despite your great wings."

"Oooh!" Veronica makes a happy little noise and bounces in her seat. "His wings! I healed one of them! You should see it. It's so beautiful. Not that he wasn't beautiful before, but it's just gorgeous now. He's going to fly beautifully again when I'm done." And she gives me a look of such fierce pride that my khui sings even louder.

I am not worthy of such sweetness. My mate has such a good heart and she is so pleased with her healing efforts that I do not complain when she asks me to shift forms so I can show Zolaya. I hand her my tea and press a fierce kiss to her mouth that leaves her blushing, then pace away to shift safely. Once I am back in battle form, she moves to my side and I extend a wing for her, the healed one. She points out the healed scars—and lack thereof—to Zolaya, who listens intently.

"Show him your other wing, Ash, baby," she coaxes me with a caress on my scales. I automatically nuzzle her, pleased at the nickname. I love that she is being so openly affectionate for me in front of another. Before, she was shy, her cheeks permanently red when the others commented on our resonance. This is progress, and I am pleased with it. If she claims me just as boldly as I claim her, perhaps it will not be such a problem to return to the tribe.

Perhaps. I still have not decided. I flip back and forth between wanting them all gone and wanting to please her.

I remain still as Veronica and Zolaya admire my wings. "Strong healing," the sa-khui hunter admits at last. "You did this all yourself?"

"Yes. I'm getting better with it every time, too. I still pass out a lot, but it's not as bad."

He grunts. "Perhaps when you return, you should make arrangements to visit Maylak at the village. Have her mentor you. She never loses consciousness when she heals. Maybe there is something she could teach you."

My mate's eyes widen and she looks over at me. "I…I don't know. We'll talk about it, I think. We're not quite ready to leave this place yet."

Zolaya nods, stepping away and returning to the fire. "I thought you might say such a thing. I imagine you will both remain here until resonance has been fulfilled, yes? Sometimes it takes many, many matings before the kit is planted in your belly."

Veronica makes a strangled sound in her throat. "Uh, right."

He shrugs. "Just as well."

My mate hesitates, her gaze going to me. She frowns and puts a hand on my scales. "What do you mean, just as well?"

Zolaya glances over at me, his expression impossible to read. He crosses his arms over his chest and shrugs. "We found your friend Will-uh and the beast-man Gren. He has been holding her captive in a cave not too far from the beach, and he will not let anyone approach. So far she seems to be safe, but we worry for her because he cannot be reasoned with." He shrugs again. "But it is just as well, because he is dying."

"What?" Veronica's hands fly to her mouth. "How?"

"He has been badly wounded. By snowcats, we think. He will not let us close enough to look. As I said, it is just as well." His expression is unreadable, tail twitching. "If he will not let us come to Will-uh, we will take her back when he is dead."

"But you'll just let him die?" Veronica cries.

"Do we have a choice?"

And my mate turns and looks at me with huge eyes. I know what she is thinking. I hate it. Gren is unstable. He will put her in danger if he gets near her. But I can tell by my Veronica's face that none of this matters. She wants to save him, and there will be no talking her out of such things.

I start growling even before she speaks.

"I can save him," she tells me.

I growl even louder.

"Don't take that tone with me." Her voice gets sharp. "I can't sit here and play cave with you while someone's dying and I can help them." Her hands go to her hips and she stares me down defiantly. "I can't believe you would even suggest such a selfish thing, Ash."

Zolaya takes a step backward, gesturing at the fire. "I will give you two time to talk." He makes a hasty retreat, and I do not blame him. My mate in a fury is magnificent, even if she is wrong.

I immediately shift back to my two-legged form, stretching out as I do so. I hate that I must shift back and forth simply to talk, when she could know my thoughts if we were already linked. Before I can even straighten, she is glaring at me.

"I know what you're going to say, so don't even bother," she tells me.

"You are not going."

"Oh yes I am!" Her bellow takes me by surprise. "You think I'm going to sit around while someone's dying? When I can help them? Are you crazy?"

"He's dangerous—"

"Newsflash! I know someone else that's dangerous and it's been perfectly fine!" Veronica gestures at me. "I'm not scared of a little danger."

"You should be!" I don't know what I'd do if she was hurt. I think of feral Gren, and his constant wild thrashing to get free of his bonds. His ferocious snarls and enormous fangs. And I think of my sweet, trusting Veronica who would rush to his side to heal him, because he is suffering. "Let him die. It will be better for all of us if he does."

She gasps, visibly staggered by my words. "You don't mean that."

"Don't I? He is a gladiator. He knows his life is cheap."

My mate looks as if I have betrayed her. "I can't believe you of all people would say such a thing. Life matters, Ashtar. Even his. We don't know that he's a bad person."

"He stole your friend!"

"You stole me!"

"He's a beast—"

"And you turn into a dragon." She gives me a challenging look. "Go on, keep making my point for me, because I'm not backing down."

She's not, I realize. In this, my mate is utterly fierce. She senses someone in trouble and wants to help. Even though I am utterly furious with her…I am also aroused. When a drakoni female wishes to entice a male, she challenges him. In a way, this is Veronica challenging me. She is ferocious and her eyes are blazing, her chest heaving with indignant breaths.

I have never wanted her so much in my life.

I growl low in my throat again, but it is nearly drowned out by my khui's insistent song.

Her nostrils flare and she scowls at me…and then realization hits her. Her gaze flicks to my cock, hard and erect and jutting into the cold air. She looks over to the little encampment, but Zolaya is gone, off walking some distant ridge to give us privacy. Did he know that this would happen? He has a mate, so perhaps they have argued just the same.

"I am so pissed at you," she says, and even as she does, her voice grows husky. I can smell her scent blooming in the air.

"Are you?" I stalk forward, all slow, predatory movements.

Her breath quickens. "Don't think you can kiss me and make this all better."

"I was not planning on kissing," I tell her, my voice low. "At least, not your mouth."

She moans. A second later, she gasps and covers her mouth with one hand. "Zolaya's going to hear us."

"Let him hear,” I growl. “If he does not want to know I am with my mate, he can leave. I would be glad of such a thing." I grab the front of her tunic and bunch it up in my hand, watching to see her reaction. If she acts upset, I'll immediately back off.

Her lips part and she looks both outraged and full of need. Her mating scent overwhelms me, so thick and rich I can practically taste it on the air. "You're completely outrageous," she whispers.

"Am I? Or am I just a male protective of his mate?" I push my hand under her tunic's long skirt, seeking the waistband of her pants. After days of practice, I find it quickly and slip underneath the leather to press my fingers against her plump, wet folds. As usual, she is hot and wet for me, and a moan breaks from her the moment I find her clit. "Tell me that you hate me," I demand. "That I am unreasonable and you want nothing to do with me. That I am cruel and selfish." With every statement, I circle her clit, teasing her.

A low, sobbing moan breaks from her throat. She clings to my arm. "You're a real bastard, Ashtar. Keeping me for yourself."

"That's right," I tell her, and I stroke her cunt with bold, possessive movements, mindful of my claws. "This is mine."

She gasps, her eyes closing.

"This cunt belongs to me and I will not let anyone take it away from me. It is mine to touch. Mine to pleasure. Mine to use."

Veronica shudders against me, her folds making slick, wet sounds as I tease her towards a quick, brutal climax. "But Zolaya," she whispers.

"Can watch, for all I care." When she gives a soft cry, I know the thought both terrifies and excites her. "He can watch me claim my mate. Watch me touch her cunt until she cries out with pleasure. Watch her come as I caress her. He will know she is mine."

She leans into my touch, lost in pleasure. "Ashtar…"

"Your mate," I tell her forcefully, even as I graze the pad of my thumb over her clit. "Say it."

"My mate," Veronica whispers.

"Louder," I say, rubbing her just the way she likes. "Tell the world you're mine. That you have been claimed by Ashtar and will receive his fires. That your cunt will welcome my cock, just like your body will welcome my seed."

She comes with a shuddering cry, her release drenching my hand. I pull her close against me and claim her mouth with a pleased kiss and continue to rub her sensitive clit until I've wrung every last shudder from her. She came loudly enough that surely Zolaya heard it, and that gives me a hungry, possessive sort of pleasure. Let him tell the others that there is no doubt she belongs to me.

Veronica pushes at my hand, and when I pull it away, I lick the taste of her from my claws. "You play dirty," she pants, shaking her head at me. "Is that how we're going to do things? Use sex as a weapon until the other agrees?"

"Sex is always a weapon," I tell her, still full of pleasure at her sweet responses to my touch. "And mating is a battleground. Some things are always a fight…but some fights are more pleasurable than others."

"Mmm. You have a point." And my mate puts her hand on my cock and gives me a bold look. "Well, you've won a battle, but the war is not yet over." She grips me tight, stroking hard up and down, and the breath disappears from my lungs. "How's it feel?"

Her hand? Or the way she's taken control of the situation from me? I love both. "Exquisite."

A smile curls her lovely mouth and she slides her other hand underneath my cock, teasing my sac even as she strokes me again. "You made me come so I could do what you wanted. Does that hold true for you, I wonder?"

In this moment, I would give her anything…but I would give her anything, anyhow. "Do you want me to scream your name?" I manage to grit out, lost in her touch.

Veronica chuckles and shakes her head. "Not necessary. I know you want me and only me." Her hand pumps my shaft again, and then she circles the head with her fingertip. "But if you want to make me happy, you'll go with me and we'll go see if we can help Gren. That means going back to the tribe. That means no longer hiding."

I bare my teeth at her, trying to snarl. It's near impossible given that she's stroking and working my cock so well. How can I be mad at such blatant manipulation? I love it. "You're mine," is all I manage to say between panting. "Mine."

"Never said I wasn't," she tells me softly. "That's not the issue."

I can't stop myself from touching her. I slide my hands into her soft, wavy hair and hold her tight against me even as she pumps my length, her eyes bright. "Then…we will go," I pant. "But only…if you are truly mine. You…take my fires. Let me claim you…"

"I thought that's what I was doing right now," she says in the most alluring, playful voice I've ever heard. "I'm challenging you so you'll claim me, just like you said your females do."

And when she squeezes my shaft, I groan, losing all control. I fuck her closed hand, pressing my forehead against hers as I lose myself in the sensation of her touch, of knowing that she wants to be claimed by me. That she'll be taking my fires. My climax builds, sac tightening and my movements growing rougher as I pump into her grip. This female. My female. She's perfect.

Utterly perfect.

With a low cry, I rip myself from her grasp at the last moment and spill my seed into the snow. She watches me, breathless, her eyes shining as I stroke my cock, wringing out the last moments of pleasure. "I wish I could taste you," she tells me, and I shudder to hear that bold statement. It sends another surge through my cock, and I spurt a fresh load of seed onto the ground.

"Soon," I tell her thickly. "Once you have taken my fires."

"And then I'll be yours in every way?"

She has no idea just how right that statement is.