Chapter 22: Chapter Twenty-One

SAVANNAH

Dax’s mouth fell open, his eyes shimmering in the soft light of our bedroom, his throat working as he swallowed. The silence hung heavy between us, and I could see the surprise in his eyes, the internal dialogue he was having with his wolf.

~“Make him say yes,”~ my wolf urged, always the instigator.

“Savannah, are you sure about this?” Dax asked, his voice thick with uncertainty.

I swallowed, my nerves fluttering in my stomach. But standing here, in front of my one true mate, everything fell into place. This was it. This was the moment that would bind me to Daxton Allaire for the rest of my life, and the thought was overwhelmingly perfect.

We were young, ~so young~, but this wasn’t the world I’d grown up in. This wasn’t a world where you dated for years before getting married, making sure he was the one. I already knew Daxton Allaire was the one. He was my mate, my forever, and nothing would stop us from sealing our fate.

“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life, Dax. ~Please~, mark me.”

His eyes glowed gold, his muscles tensed, and his fingers flexed as if he was struggling to keep himself together. Or maybe he was struggling with his wolf. I could only imagine the things his wolf was saying to him, because my wolf was doing the same. Daxton stepped closer, tucking a loose strand of my hair behind my ear.

“There’s no going back after this. I didn’t show you our home so you’d let me mark you.”

I laughed softly, tracing my fingers down his shoulder and arm to his wrist. “I never thought you did. Tomorrow, I’m going to be officially welcomed into The Legion Pack, and I want to be yours before that. I want to be yours tonight. I want to be mated, bound, married, marked, whatever you want to call it. ~Now~.”

The fact that he’d spent years building this home for us, without even knowing me, was the most perfect thing I’d ever seen. If that wasn’t true love, I didn’t know what was.

A smug grin tugged at the corner of his mouth, and I could feel the presence of his wolf vibrating just beneath the surface. It was a new sensation, one I knew was because my own wolf could sense it. I loved it. I loved that he couldn’t control himself in certain situations. I loved the look of desire on his face at any given moment.

Dax closed our bedroom door behind him with his foot, never breaking eye contact. A shiver ran down my spine as I backed into the room, my body humming with anticipation.

The gleam in Dax’s eyes was more intoxicating than any drink I’d ever had, and the deep breath he let out was full of relief. Relief that he could finally have me the way an alpha and luna should, or a husband and wife. Or maybe relief that I’d finally submitted to him in this way.

He stepped closer, his fingers trailing up my arm, over my shoulder, and into my hair. Leaning in, he whispered, “I’ve been dreaming about this for years.”

I closed my eyes, savoring the taste of his breath against my lips and the rough feel of his calloused fingers against my skin. “What are you waiting for?” I whispered back.

Dax chuckled, wrapping his free arm around my waist and pulling me against him. “Don’t rush me,” he said. “It’s taking everything I have not to rip your clothes off. Let me enjoy this. You only get marked once.”

“What will it taste like?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

Dax looked up at me, his eyes completely gold now, and my stomach clenched. “There’s only one way to find out.”

He kissed me then, like he had that first day at the gym, but rougher, more desperate. It was as if he was battling his wolf internally, but I didn’t care. I was just along for the ride.

The way he bit and sucked at my lips made my knees weak, and before I could stumble, Daxton lifted me onto his waist and carried me to our bed. He lowered me onto my back, standing over me with an expression I couldn’t quite decipher on his handsome face.

Slowly, he crawled on top of me, peeling his shirt off in that slow, deliberate way that only boys do, making my wolf howl inside of me. It was the first time she’d howled, but I understood her frustration, her need, because I felt it too.

Dax placed his hands on either side of my head, taking his time as if he enjoyed making me wait. I hooked my leg around his hip and pulled him closer, earning a smirk.

Finally putting me out of my misery, he bent down and nipped at my jaw. “Now,” he said in a husky voice. “Where am I going to mark you, ~hmm~?”

His mouth moved down to my neck, his tongue tracing a slow path along my skin. “Here?” he asked.

My fingers clenched in the sheets, and I tightened my legs around his hips. “Yes,” I breathed out.

“Hmm, I’m not sure,” he said, his hot breath against my skin. He pulled my shirt over my head, and his gaze dropped to the curve of my breast over the edge of my bra.

“Maybe, here,” he suggested, his fingers tracing over one breast and then the other.

“Daxton,” I hissed. “Please stop teasing me.”

Dax’s smirk was playful as he gently unzipped my jeans, sliding them down my thighs and tossing them aside. “Maybe here,” he suggested, his lips finding my inner thigh.

~“What a coy bastard,”~ my wolf commented.

A chuckle escaped me, causing Dax to glance up. “What’s so funny?”

I shrugged, watching as he climbed back up to meet my gaze. “My wolf thinks you’re a coy bastard.”

His laugh was deep, resonating from his chest. “She wouldn’t be wrong,” he admitted. “I love you, Savannah.”

His words felt so right, not just because we were on the brink of sealing our fate, but because they were meant to be.

“I love you.”

He tenderly kissed my lips, his touch more human than wolf, and wrapped his fingers around my neck, angling my mouth towards his. “I think here,” he decided.

I nodded slowly, feeling him move to shed the rest of his clothes. I didn’t dare look, fearing I might faint. When his fingertips slid underneath the hem of my panties, my thighs instinctively tightened.

Dax paused, taking his time to crawl back over and meet my gaze. “You said you were sure. We still on the same page?”

I swallowed. “Yes, I feel high… like I can’t breathe until you do it.”

Daxton nodded, tore my panties in two, and pressed his mouth against my neck.

“It’s going to hurt.”

“I know,” I whispered. “But it hurts now, because I need it,” I mumbled.

Daxton positioned himself between my legs, angled himself against my most sensitive place, and locked eyes with me one last time. “Last chance to back out.”

I shook my head. “No backing out. Mark me.”

Daxton lowered his mouth to my neck, his teeth grazing my skin like sharp fingernails, and he pushed against me.

In one swift moment, he entered me, breaking through the barrier that had kept us apart.

My back arched, my fingers dug into his shoulder, and my legs wrapped tightly around his hips. Every part of me soared, lust clouding my vision, and I felt the trickle of blood run down my neck.

Daxton made a noise that I’d never heard from him before. In that moment, my entire life changed. I was now officially marked by Daxton Allaire, Alpha of The Legion Pack.

And there was no going back.

***

The next morning, I woke to the sound of wildlife nearby and a deep ache in my back. Groaning, I turned over, realizing I was on the floor of our bedroom instead of the bed.

Daxton was sleeping beside me, a thin white sheet covering his lower half, but I knew he was naked because I was too. I stood up, grabbing a blanket from the bed, and noticed the evidence of our night together.

The small spot of blood from our marking still stained the comforter, and I reached up to touch where he had left his mark. It was sore to the touch, but I was so thrilled to have it that I nearly tripped on my way to the bathroom mirror.

Carefully, I walked inside, flipped on the light switch, and cringed at my reflection. Poor Daxton, having to see this on top and underneath him all night.

I combed my hair back, revealing the light blue crescent moon on my neck, accompanied by a star above it. I bit my lower lip in excitement, unable to tear my gaze away.

“You look beautiful,” Dax said.

I spun around to face the doorway, my eyes wide at the sight of him. He wore a blanket wrapped around his lower half, the lines of his stomach and obliques making my thighs tremble. The size of his bicep alone made me hot.

It’d been one wild night between us, marking one another. My gaze lowered to his neck where my mark adorned his tanned skin.

It was different than his. I didn’t know much about marks, but I guessed each wolf had their own. Mine was a full moon, tinted red with no stars.

“They’re different.”

He nodded, stepping closer, pulling me into him, and kissing my face down to my mouth. “Every wolf has a different mark.” His gaze moved to the mirror to examine it and he froze.

“What’s wrong?” I asked after a few moments of his silence.

“It’s a full moon,” he said, sounding puzzled.

“Is that bad?” I asked, fear creeping in. Had I done it wrong? He had guided me through the entire thing. I thought I had done it right.

He shook his head. “No, I’ve just never seen a full moon before. I like it,” he said, tracing his fingertips over the red edges. “It suits me.”

I sighed in relief. “Yeah, it does. So,” I said, tucking my hair behind my ear, suddenly embarrassed about everything we had done the night before.

Dax laughed. “Let’s get a shower, and head over to the house. Mom has texted me a thousand times. It’s nearly lunch. We slept most of the morning away.”

Daxton tugged on my blanket, startling me, and hoisted me over his shoulder as he turned on the shower. “My wolf is right,” I said. “This is a great view.”

***

Lunch was waiting on the table when we walked in after one in the afternoon. It looked like everyone else had already eaten, but Mrs. Allaire had left us some.

“About time,” Mrs. Allaire said from the kitchen. “I thought I was going to have to send one of the pups over—” She stopped mid-sentence.

I glanced over, watching her stare at Daxton as if he had grown two heads. She then looked at me, her gaze dropping to my neck. Embarrassment flooded my cheeks, and I suddenly didn’t feel very hungry.

I tried, unsuccessfully, to hide behind a curtain of my hair and kicked at the wood floor beneath me. ~Were we not supposed to mark each other? I thought that was the thing to do.~ My coronation was that night.

She cleared her throat, a hint of amusement in her voice. “Well, that would explain why you two overslept.”

~Oh God…~

Daxton, ever the gentleman, scoffed lightly and pulled out my chair for me. “Come on, Savannah. Let’s dig in. I’m famished.”

Mrs. Blaire offered me a smile, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. I waited until she was out of earshot before I turned to Daxton, my voice barely above a whisper. “Is there something wrong with my mark, Dax? Are you keeping something from me?”

He patted my leg reassuringly, all while devouring a piece of bacon in one go. “No, Savannah. It’s just… unique. There’s nothing wrong with it. I suspect it has something to do with you not having shifted yet. It’ll sort itself out. Don’t fret.”

But I couldn’t help but worry. Something just didn’t sit right with me.