"Aye, easily," he said, making her want to preen. "And what about you? You're more attracted to me than you were to your boy demon."
"Boyfriend. I said he was my boyfriend. And even if I was more attracted to you, I'd never feed your ego by telling you."
"How did you get him to let you go?"
"Why?" she asked, feeling herself softening even more toward MacRieve. "Do you think he had a hard time of it?"
MacRieve gave her an impatient scowl as if her question was ridiculous. And for the second time, Mari thought, I might be in over my head with this male.
But I'm thinking I like it.
"How long were you with him?"
She shrugged. "Almost seven years."
"That's nearly a third of your life!" he thundered. "Christ, I doona care for that. Did you... did you love him, then?"
"Yes," she answered honestly.
His voice broke lower when he asked, "Do you love him still?"
Over her shoulder, she said, "I guess a part of my heart will always be his."
When she realized MacRieve had stopped, she turned. She found his jaw clenched, his irises turning ice blue once more, and his claws shooting longer and darker. She was witnessing more of the beast even than before.
Mari swallowed, again reminded that this was an adult Lykae male. And one who thought she was the mate he'd ached for over centuries. She was playing with fire. No more teasing, no more toying with the sex-starved werewolf. "Just forget I said anything - "
He pressed her against a tree, out of sight of the others. "I want to stab my claws into this demon's neck and rip out his goddamned spine."
"MacRieve, just wait... "
His hand shot out, covering the back of her head. He leaned down to her ear. "Tonight, I'm going tae make you mine, Mariketa." His accent was thick, his voice rough, as if even his vocal chords were altered as he began to turn. "This other male might have part of your heart, but I will possess all of your body." He ran his other hand from her neck down to her br**sts, cupping them both in turn. Under his hot, rough palm her ni**les were still throbbing - just as he'd promised. "Mark my words, I will claim you so thoroughly you will no' recall any other."
Intensity... Gazing up at him, she felt so small and vulnerable and recognized that she should be afraid. Instead she was aroused once more - from his deep voice, from his hand fondling her, from the idea of his taking her hard, possibly within hours.
"After this night, you'll arch tae my touch and crave my kiss. When the heat is upon you, every inch of your body will recognize mine as its master."
She gave a shaky breath, shocked - and yes, excited - by his words and by his confidence.
"It's as good as done, witch."
32
"Oh, no, no. I've seen this movie," Mariketa said when they came upon a wooden bridge hundreds of feet above a river gorge. The height was so marked, the river below looked like a thread. "And it wasn't a comedy!" She scrambled directly back into Bowe, then stiffened. Before she could retreat, he'd wrapped one arm over her upper chest and the other down to her waist.
He'd spooked her earlier - had known it was happening, even at the time. But he'd been filled with jealousy the likes of which he'd never known. And he'd been confounded that her revelation of loving another had felt like a booted kick to the ballocks.
Bowe didn't need to have Mariketa's love, he told himself. Just as long as he had her.
So why was he so envious of that faceless demon - the soon-to-be-dead demon who knew what it was like to be loved by Mariketa?
Now when she pressed back against him, as if for support, he gave her a quick nuzzle against her soft hair to praise her. "Mariketa, you're trembling."
"I'm petrified of heights."
"Rydstrom told me. Why this fear? Did something happen to you?"
"Yeah, sea level happened to me. As in, I'm rarely above it."
"Aye, then." Bowe asked Rydstrom, "Can we no' find another way across?"
Cade had just returned from scouting and answered, "Not without adding two more days."
Two days would be too late for him and Mariketa. He shot a look at Rydstrom.
"The bridge is sturdy," Rydstrom assured her. "These armies have been driving trucks over it. It's the way we must go."
Tera said, "All right, who's doing the obligatory thing with the rock?"
"What thing?" Bowe asked.
Mariketa said, "You know, someone drops a rock, and we all silently watch it fall while contemplating the plummet to our deaths?"
Oh, that rock thing. "Mariketa, there will be no falling. This will be safe to cross. There are even rope rails on the side. But we are doing this." She gave a muted whimper at his words. Knowing how important she found it to appear strong in front of the others - and rightly so in the world of the Lore - Bowe drew her aside. "How about I jog across the bridge to show you it's safe, then return to carry you over?"
She shook her head emphatically. "Y-you could be incrementally weakening it with every step."
He curled his fingers under her chin. "Lass, I will no' let you be hurt. Ever."
"I've got a bad feeling about this."
"Aye, you're acrophobic - there's no way you could have a good feeling about this. I'll just be right back."
"No, wait," she whispered, snatching his hand. "Don't go."
He waved the others on. "We'll catch up."
Tera said, "You okay, Mari?"
She gave a pained smile. "Ducky."
"Let me carry you over," he said again once they were alone. "Then you can keep your eyes closed."