Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 87731 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87731 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
Kaelan took hold of her hand. “Never. Never would the beast hurt you.”
“Then let me feel him.”
Kaelan let go of her hand. “That is not wise to do.”
She spoke softly as she so often did when dealing with people who needed comforting. “If I am to love you, which I believe I do, then I need to know I can love all of you, not just part of you.”
That she believed she loved him brought him tremendous joy but that she wanted to feel the beast brought him equal fear. It could mean losing her forever and yet… it could also be a measure of her love for him.
“You are right,” he said and slipped off his leather vest, then took hold of her hand once again and slipped it inside his shirt to place it against his chest. “Go as deep as you wish.”
She closed her eyes and let herself drift. Warmth and hard muscle were the first things she felt and while her body reacted, sending a stirring through her, she pushed it aside and allowed her comfort touch to lead. His love for her engulfed her in the most pleasant way possible, but his desire for her slammed into her so hard, her eyes shot open.
“When you are ready,” he said, fighting the passion her simple touch had sparked in him.
She shut her eyes again, his desire too strong in his eyes for her to concentrate. It took a few moments, but she got past all those feelings she honestly would not have minded lingering in but she wanted to go deeper, and she did.
A slight gasp escaped her when she felt the pull, and it was like nothing she expected. It was fierce and beyond powerful, but within that fierceness was a longing, a need, a love that longed to be returned. She understood then why the Thornek Tribe loved one mate so intensely for life, it came from the beast and was passed through to the men and women of the tribe.
Bria felt it then, a love so powerful that it nearly stole her breath and as her own heart reached out to it, touched it, joined with it, she realized that nothing could ever tear them apart. They were one now and nothing would ever change that, and she did not want it to.
She sunk deeper into the beast and was able to see the past. At first there was only loneliness. Not the loneliness of an empty cottage or a quiet evening spent alone. This loneliness stretched far beyond anything she had ever known. She watched as years and decades passed, and the beast endured while everything around it changed.
Forests grew and died. Rivers shifted their course. Generations came and went.
Yet the beast remained… alone.
The grief of it pressed against her so heavily that tears gathered beneath her closed eyes. It had not sought power. It had not sought dominion. More than anything, it had longed to belong somewhere.
Then she felt the Thornek; strong, loyal, fiercely protective of their own.
The beast had found in them what it feared it would never know again—family and love. And the Thornek found in the beast the strength to protect those they loved.
Neither had taken from the other, they had given.
It was not a bargain built on greed or conquest. It was a joining, a promise made.
The beast’s legacy lived on through the Thornek, and the Thornek carried forward the best part of the beast.
Love, fierce, unwavering, lifelong love.
A tear slipped down her cheek, and she felt the beast stir, grow heated, grow strong.
“Bria,” Kaelan said and hurried her hand off his chest, concerned over what she may have felt and fearful of what it might mean for them.
She smiled gently. “The beast gave your tribe the best of him.”
“My grandfather often said the same thing,” he said, relieved at her response and smiled. “Now what about that part where you said you believed you loved me?”
“I need to amend that,” she said, her hand slipping inside his shirt to rest against his chest once again.
“How so?” he asked, though knew, feeling the strength of her need for him.
“I no longer believe I love you… I know I love you,” she said and kissed him gently, feeling the beast stir deeply inside him along with his love for her.
“Forever?” he asked.
“Aye, forever,” she said.
“Be sure, Bria, for once we join, we become husband and wife and will remain so for the rest of our days.”
His heart beat powerfully against her hand and while desire was strong in his eyes, love was even stronger there.
“It seems crazy and a bit confusing,” Bria said with a soft laugh, “but I am surer about this more than anything in my life.”
He stood and scooped her up in his arms. “Then we join and become husband and wife.”