“Why do you say that?” he asked, looking at her with genuine concern.
“My mother's here. I smell her scent,” she revealed. Her words seemed to impress upon him the seriousness of their situation. He looked pensive, but still he seemed to be so much more confident than she was.
“Something's amiss,” he whispered, “but it'll be alright. Whatever it is we'll be alright.” His words were the only thing that calmed her. If he told her that it would be alright, then it would be. Even before she had come to be his mate and to know him intimately, she'd known he was honorable and a man of his word.
“OK,” she sighed, doing her best to appear brave for him. She didn't want him to think that she was weak. She needed him to know that she could be the brave wife of a warrior. It was then that a male she had never seen before came to fetch them for the chief.
The lodge was just as she remembered it. The walls were lined with the thrones of the elders, with the largest throne positioned along the furthest wall that was reserved for the chief. He and the elders were all in their places and she saw her mother and siblings sitting in the gallery of extra chairs on the other side of the room.
Luke made a direct line to his father, pulling her along with him without ever relaxing his grip. He seemed unwilling to allow even an inch of space between them, and she was glad for it.
“Luke, Kalia, thank you for coming here on such short notice,” the chief said, attempting to look welcoming, though she could sense that he was no more pleased to have to call them there than they were to have been summoned.
“Yes, sir,” Luke said respectfully. Still, the edge in his voice was apparent and his father definitely took notice.
“I have unsettling news,” the chief continued, having no interest in beating around the bush.
“What could it possibly be?” Luke demanded.
“Your mating has been challenged,” the chief said bluntly. A series of gasps erupted from those assembled and hushed voices filled the room.
“What?” Luke asked, looking murderous.
“No,” Kalia cried, her eyes locked on Luke as though she was afraid he would vanish right in front of her eyes.
“Who's done this?” Luke demanded.
Kalia was still in shock. Moments before, she'd been considering how lucky she was to be so happy. Now, she knew she was facing the loss of that. He didn't love her. She knew he would let whomever have her and move on to a new mate, forgetting her entirely. He was a practical man and practical men did not risk their lives for women they did not love.
Any girl of the tribe could easily do what she did for him. They could cook and clean and give him the pleasure of their bodies. It would be as though his mating with her had never happened. Meanwhile, she would belong to another, serving his every need, both domestic and carnal. The thought of it broke her heart in to a million pieces.
“Bertram has challenged it,” the chief answered directly.
The thought of having to give herself to him made Kalia’s blood run cold. He had seemed like such a dark soul on the one occasion they had met and she could picture no version of her life where she could be happy without Luke. But the thought of belonging to Bertram was so much more painful. Knowing Luke was letting her go to a man he hated would be all the proof she needed that he had never loved her at all.
“I'll kill him,” Luke seethed through clenched teeth.
Through all of it, he had not loosened his grip on her and that brought her some comfort. She tried to memorize his scent and feeling of his grasp before he came to his senses and turned her over to Bertram.
“You'll have to if you choose to accept his challenge,” his father warned, his eyes locked on his son.
“What else would you have me do?” Luke demanded and Kalia dreaded what was to come.
Now, she knew, he would realize that it would be better for the tribe and for him if he let her go. All she could do was hold her head high as it happened. She would not beg or grovel. She was the daughter of a warrior. She would beg for no one.
“I don't care to see you die for a woman. You could take another mate after,” the chief said without looking at her at all.
She held her breath, waiting for the blow of Luke choosing to sacrifice her. What happened next was something she'd not even imagined in her wildest dreams.
“No,” Luke said steadily, tightening his grip on her arm. She looked up at him, unable to hide the shock on her face. Luckily for her, his eyes were locked on his father, challenging him to dispute his choice.
“What?” the chief said in disbelief. He was clearly not a man who was used to being told no. He was also not accustomed to his son doing things he deemed reckless. Still, Luke did not flinch under his gaze.
“No, I accept his challenge. When does he want to do this,” Luke said, looking murderous, as though he would have torn Bertram’s heart from his body had he been standing there in front of him.
“Tomorrow. That's all the time he will give you,” the chief warned.
“That's all the time I need. Kalia, are you ready to go?” Luke asked, addressing her for the first time since they had entered the ceremonial hall. His gaze nearly took her breath away and she found it hard to find the words to speak.
She was finally able to muster a “Yes.”
With that, he swept her from the room without the chance to speak to anyone else. He dragged her through the woods at top speed, never stopping to take a breath or to look back, dead set on putting as much space between them and the elders as he possibly could. It was not until they reached the clearing that surrounded their tent that he slowed down.
Still, he did not speak. Instead, he pulled her in to a bone crushing embrace that calmed the fury of thoughts in her mind. Through the entire journey home, she'd tried to imagine why he'd chosen to fight for her. She did all she could to keep herself from believing it was because he loved her. If she allowed herself to consider it and it proved not to be true, her heart might never recover.
She chose to simply savor the feeling of being with him, surrounded by his scent and his warmth. There, in the silence of their sanctuary, it felt as if the whole world was far removed from them and she felt safe in his arms. It felt as if nothing could touch them there and she knew that very soon, the outside world was to come crashing in on them. Luke would either have to kill or he would be killed, and the thought broke her heart. She pushed it from her mind and wrapped her arms tighter around him, willing him to never let her go.
It felt as though they just stood and held each other for an eternity before he spoke. Finally though, he could not help but ask, “Are you alright?”
“I think so. I feel a bit numb,” she answered, still holding tightly to him. He seemed in no hurry to let her go either, keeping his arms wound around her.
“I'll make sure that you are OK,” he said, without a bit of doubt in his voice.
“How are you?” she asked him, pulling her head away from his chest so that she could watch his face as he answered her.
Perhaps,
she thought,
his expression would give her a hint as to why he was choosing to fight to keep her.
“Well, I would very much like to kill him, so we're halfway there. I just need to want him dead more than he wants me dead,” he answered with a playful smirk on his face.
He seemed to be trying to lighten the mood, but she couldn't bring herself to laugh for him. She knew it must be bothering him to see her so scared, but she needed answers before her heart could be light enough to laugh at his jokes.
“Why is this happening?” she asked tentatively.
The last time they'd discussed Bertram, he'd made it very clear he didn't want to tell her what their history was. They had come to be so much more comfortable with each other since then that she hoped he might tell her now.
“Was the process of a challenged mating never explained to you?” he asked, feigning an innocent expression but she was not fooled. She would not be put off this time. He owed her this answer.
“Yes, of course it was. What I don't understand is why Bertram is doing this,” she continued.
The proper thing for her to do would've been to leave the subject alone. He clearly didn't want to share the past with her; still, she needed to know and this was her only chance to get him to tell her.
“Do you really not understand how wonderful you are?” he said, stroking her hair and looking down at her with an expression in his eyes that very well could have been love.
She pushed that thought from her mind. She could not let herself consider that he loved her. It was enough that he valued and respected her.
“This doesn't have anything to do with me and you know it. What's the history between the two of you?” she asked bluntly, earning her an indulgent half smile from her mate.
“I don't really want to see you burdened with that knowledge. Besides, it's not my story to tell,” he said, still guarded but his resolve to keep it from her seemed to be weakening. She could see that on his face.
“I need to know why this is happening to us. It's a part of our story now,” she said, taking his hand and lacing her fingers through it.
“Alright. You do deserve that. I put you in the middle of this. The least I can do is be honest with you,” he sighed. He pulled their interlocked hands to his mouth and kissed the back of hers.
“Please? It won't change anything between us,” she insisted, so pleased that he trusted her enough to consider sharing the story with her. It proved to her that Bertram did not really know her mate at all, which told her that Luke would have the advantage when they met in battle.
“It might, but I'll tell you anyway. You're familiar with my younger sister, aren't you?” he began, looking off into the distance instead of at her as he began his tale.
“Yes, of course I am,” she whispered in surprise.
This was not where she thought the tale would begin. His younger sister was named Namia. She was one of the great beauties of their tribe and she was also a kind soul who was well loved by all.
“Well, she's a bit of a romantic. The idea of falling in love and choosing her mate as humans do has always been a fascination of hers. Several years ago, she encountered Bertram in the forest. He's objectively a handsome fellow. She was easily convinced he loved her, which had her falling head over heels for him. He convinced her to run off with him,” he explained, his voice still heavy with anger as though it had happened only days before.
“Oh my goodness,” she exclaimed.
She could not imagine the scandal of the daughter of the chief had run off with a bear of the other tribe. It would've been a horrid scandal even if her lover had been a member of their tribe. For any bear to go outside of the mating ritual was to disrespect centuries of tradition. No bear in recent times had done such a thing, but there were tales about those who had tried in the past, only to be turned away from the tribes as outcasts; forced to face the world on their own, some had even been killed by their own families or the families of the lover they had taken for the shame brought on them. If the chief’s daughter had done it, it would have thrown the whole tribe into a frenzy and weakened the chief’s rule. It would've made them all easy prey to Bertram and his tribe.
“Yes, he knew who she was. He knew she was the daughter of the chief. He wanted to shame our family and the entire tribe. If she had mated outside of the ritual, it would've been a scandal, but if he had loved her at all, I might have let it happen. I have a soft spot for my little sister. I want her to be happy more than I want the tribe to thrive. One scandal would not ruin our entire way of life,” he said, though his expression told her that he did not quite believe that.
A scandal of that magnitude would have rocked the very foundation of their way of life.
He continued, “Still, I'd heard talk of him before he began sneaking around with my sister. I could smell him on her and I know her well enough to know when she had a secret, so I tailed her on one of the walks she was so regularly disappearing on. I only had to watch him with her for a few moments to know there was no sincerity in what he was saying to her. I confronted her that night but of course she denied it all.
"The fact that I knew put a bit of fear in her because father would never have overlooked her behavior. He would've killed Bertram. I knew that, too, and it was why I did not tell him. Still, she told Bertram I knew and he used that to convince her to run off with him. When I realized she was gone, I tracked them down and dragged her back. She was livid, of course.
"Then, though, he showed his true colors. He railed at me for foiling his plans, not for keeping him from his love. He threatened to get his vengeance one day because he knew that he would never have a better chance to gain power. She realized it then, the whole truth of it. It broke her heart. But soon enough, she was mated with a man who adores her. He treats her well and Bertram is just a long forgotten memory to her. It was the fancy of a young girl, not the love of a woman.” His eyes lit then, as though he had something more he wanted to say to her, but he stopped himself.
“Oh my goodness, this puts his appearance after we first mated into perspective,” she said, recalling his odd statements and lingering stares on that day. It felt like so long ago now. His anger and darkness had been evident and now she understood just why he hated Luke so much. Luke had thwarted his chances to ruin their entire tribe so he had decided to ruin Luke.
“Yes, he wanted to scare you and to let me know that he had chosen the path for vengeance,” he said, his voice sharp with anger. He hated that Bertram had even been in her presence, let alone spoken to her. If he could have, he would have killed him then.
“You could've told me, you know,” she said, placing her hand gently on his cheek and caressing his face.
“I'm so sorry. I know now I should've. I never thought it would come to this. He has a temper, too much of one to wait for something like this. His elders must be encouraging this. It's the only explanation I can come up with for why he hasn't just attacked me and gotten it over with. When he didn't, I started to get nervous. That's why I've been around a bit more. I didn't think he would attack you, but I couldn't take the chance,” he explained and, though the words should have comforted her, they struck cold in her heart.
So he didn't care for her, after all. He was just too much of a gentleman to see her harmed. She tried to keep herself in check but in the end she could not stop herself from speaking.
“So that's why you stayed with me the other day. I thought ... well, it doesn't matter now what I thought, does it?” she said, trying her best to keep from admitting how she felt for him and how she hoped he would one day feel about her.
“I stayed with you that day and every other moment, because I wanted to be with you. It was not just for your protection. I find it difficult to be away from you for many reasons that have nothing to do with your safety,” he said, his eyes glowing with more than anger now. He was clearly hungry for her and she felt a similar desire rising in her. He might not love her, but he wanted her and she told herself that that was enough for now.
He swept her up in his arms, cradling her to his chest. His lips crashed down on hers as though he was trying to stake a new claim upon her and she was glad for it. She took full advantage of her new found position, weaving her hand through his thick hair while keeping the other on his cheek. She relished the feeling of his lips upon hers and hoped against hope that he might feel half as much as she did in that moment, for his lips were upon her mouth, but they were touching her heart.
“Oh my,” she gasped when he pulled his mouth away.
He looked for a second as though he was about to put her down, but she gently caressed his cheek again, giving him all the invitation he needed to carry her in to their tent and make love to her. When they got inside, he placed her on her feet just beside their bed. He turned her so that he could undo the ties that held her dress. With each lace he undid, he placed a lingering kiss on her neck, sending electric shock waves through her body. When the ties were finally loose enough for him to pull the buckskin dress from her body, he slowly pulled the straps from her shoulders and allowed it to drop to the floor.
He stepped towards her then, still fully clothed himself. He bent to kiss her gently on the shoulder, caressing her skin with his tongue. The sensation of his lips upon her as his buckskin shirt rubbed against her exposed breasts was intoxicating. The dual sensations were delicious and only grew more intense as his lips traveled along her collarbone and then explored the sensitive skin of her neck. Heat was pooling within her, but it was not until he used his teeth ever so gently upon her neck that she felt her knees buckle with pleasure.
He seemed quite pleased with himself as he felt her lose her balance. He wound an arm around her to hold her up as he continued his sensual exploration. His hands were warm and possessive as he used his free hand to cup her aching breast. She had never wanted him so much as she did in that moment. She felt like such a wanton, but she was only moments from begging him to enter her.
This slow torture was too much for her to bear after the emotional day they had had thus far. She needed to lose herself in his body but he seemed in no hurry, teasing her already hard nipple with his thumb as his tongue traveled the distance to her other shoulder, leaving a trail of electricity across her skin.
She pushed herself into his wandering hand, hoping to show him with her body what she could not find the words to say. She needed him within her. The dark grin that formed on his lips told her he understood exactly what she wanted. Slowly and gently, he laid her down on the bed they shared together. She thought that he would remove his clothing quickly and join her. Instead, he knelt below her on the bed and gently opened her knees to allow himself access to her most feminine area.
She felt suddenly very shy and began to pull away, but he placed his hands on her hips to hold her in place. Gently, he placed the lightest of kisses on her inner thigh and she thought she might go mad with want. He continued to kiss her there, each time moving closer and closer to her core. She could feel herself growing wetter and wetter and she could feel herself blushing as he stared at her most intimate place.
She looked up and found his dark, sensual eyes locked on her. Their eyes met and she felt as though something in their relationship was shifting and changing. It was as if this time, this lovemaking was a new vow between them and she was no longer embarrassed. She understood now. He wanted to know every inch of her, to claim every part of her as his own. She closed her eyes, too overcome by emotions to do anything else, so she was completely shocked when she felt his tongue exploring her womanly folds.
She gasped aloud but he did not stop. He licked and sucked, until his mouth settled on her clitoris and she thought perhaps she would lose her mind entirely. Her hips bucked in response and he gripped her hips tighter, keeping her in place so that he could explore her at will. She felt herself writhing shamelessly beneath him. Soon, she felt her orgasm take her. It was as though her entire body was coming apart at the seams. She felt boneless, as though she had been broken apart and put together anew.
It was only then that he rose from the bed to remove his own clothes. She was so worn out from his lovemaking that she simply lay there watching him reveal his beautiful body to her. She lay there, her damp skin chilled by the night air, completely open to him. She made no effort to cover herself. Instead, she savored the possessiveness of his gaze as he took in the sight of her.
It was only a moment before he was upon her and she felt as though she was within a tornado. His hands and lips seemed to be everywhere at once and she was helpless to stop it, not that she wanted to. The feeling of being swept up in him was the sweetest thing that she could imagine. When he finally thrust himself inside of her, she felt complete.