Chapter 30: Chapter 30

LUXURY

I had spent my entire life feeling the land.

The way the ground shifted beneath my feet, the subtle vibrations of the trees moving in the wind, the scent of the earth after a storm. I had memorized every inch of Nightshade territory through touch, through instinct, through the sounds of life that carried on even when the world had always been black.

But now, I wanted to see it.

Even if it was still blurry.

Even if my sight was weak, untrained.

I wanted to see my land, and I wanted to do it with her.

I turned to Selene the moment we left the council chamber, my wolf pacing restlessly beneath my skin, itching for something more. Something wild. Something ~ours~.

“Run with me,” I murmured, my voice low, rough.

Selene blinked, surprised, but something warm flickered in her gaze. ~Heat.~

“Now?” she asked, a teasing lilt to her voice.

A slow smirk curled my lips. “Now.”

Her golden eyes narrowed slightly, assessing me. Testing. “Your vision is still adjusting.”

“I know.”

“And you just got through a fight with the council.”

“I know.”

She huffed a quiet laugh, shaking her head. “You’re impossible.”

My smirk widened. “That’s not a no.”

She exhaled through her nose, but I caught it—that tiny, telling shift in her stance. The way her fingers twitched at her sides, the way her wolf pressed against her skin, just as restless as mine.

Then—she stepped closer, her chin lifting slightly, mischief flickering in her golden gaze.

“No,” she murmured. ~“It’s not.”~

And then—she reached for the hem of her shirt.

I stilled, my wolf freezing with me as she peeled it over her head, baring smooth, golden skin to the midday sun.

My breath hitched.

Selene didn’t smirk, didn’t gloat. She just ~watched me~ as she worked the button of her pants, sliding them down her hips, leaving nothing between her and the wild.

She was ~daring me~.

I swallowed hard, heat coiling in my gut, my fingers flexing at my sides as my wolf prowled beneath my skin, torn between the need to ~watch~ and the need to ~touch~.

She knew exactly what she was doing.

I took a step toward her, but before I could close the distance—

“Race you,” she whispered, her lips curving—

And then—she shifted.

A sleek, dark wolf stood where she had been, golden eyes flashing before she bolted into the trees.

For a heartbeat, I just stood there, my pulse hammering, her scent thick in my lungs, my wolf snarling at the loss of her warmth.

Fuck.

I growled, letting the shift take me, feeling my body snap into form. My paws hit the earth, my senses exploding outward as I lunged forward, tearing after her.

And gods—

It was incredible.

The land moved beneath me, with me, and though my sight was still unfocused, still fuzzy at the edges, I could see the blur of the trees, the way the world moved when I ran.

It was a rush.

It was freedom in a way I had never known.

“~You really thought you could keep up with me~?” Selene’s voice teased through my mind, full of warmth and challenge.

I growled, pushing myself faster. “~I’ll do more than keep up, little wolf~.”

She ~laughed~, the sound ringing through the bond, and I felt her joy, her exhilaration.

Kora stirred.

And so did Fen.

He was loving this.

Loving the run, the way the wind tore through our fur, the way the ground belonged to us as we raced.

But more than that—

He wanted his mate.

“~She’s fast~,” Fen rumbled, his voice dark, primal. ~“But not fast enough to get away from me~.”

Kora’s answering growl was almost taunting. ~“Then catch me, Fen~.”

A sharp, hot thrill shot down my spine.

Selene laughed through the link, but her breath hitched slightly as she felt the shift in energy, in the way Fen was ~zeroing in~ on his mate.

And I wasn’t stopping him.

The chase became something else.

Something hungrier.

Selene must have sensed it too, because she pushed herself faster, twisting through the trees with sharp, calculated movements.

But I was made for this.

For tracking. For hunting.

I cut through the trees at a sharp angle, closing the distance between us, my body moving purely on instinct, my muscles tightening as I lunged.

I tackled her mid-stride, twisting our bodies so that I landed over her, my paws braced on either side of her form as we tumbled into a small clearing, the sound of our snarls and laughter tangling in the space between us.

She growled, her teeth flashing as she tried to twist out from under me.

I ~pressed~ her down.

The sound that left her was somewhere between a growl and a whimper.

Kora shivered beneath us.

“~You’re playing dirty~,” she taunted, her golden eyes flickering with something darker, something dangerous.

I bared my teeth, my muzzle inches from hers. ~“Who said I was playing~?”

Her breath hitched.

Fen rumbled low, pleased, ~possessive~.

“~She’s ours~. ~Always~.”

Selene shifted under me, but this time, she wasn’t fighting to get free.

She was ~testing~.

Pushing.

Waiting to see if I would give her what we ~both~ wanted.

I let my teeth scrape against her throat—just enough to feel her pulse jump beneath my fangs.

Her growl turned into something ~needy~.

Fen pressed in harder.

“~Let me have her~,” he growled, his control fraying. ~“Let me take what’s mine~.”

Kora let out a sharp, eager whimper, and I felt her body press against mine, the subtle arch of her back, the way she offered herself to me, baring her throat just enough, submitting—but not entirely.

Not yet.

She wanted to be taken, but she wanted me to earn it.

A low growl rumbled from my chest, vibrating through both of us, and Selene’s breath hitched, her tail flicking restlessly.

I could feel the heat rolling off her, the way Kora was clawing to be claimed, to be wrecked by her mate.

Selene whined softly, her tail flicking against my leg, her body twisting slightly beneath me in an invitation so blatant that my restraint snapped.

I lunged.

Teeth sinking just into the thick fur of her neck, fangs pressing against the sensitive skin beneath as she yelped, her body thrashing instinctively—

Not to fight me off.

To ~provoke~ me.

To push me further.

~Fuck~.

I growled, my grip on her tightening, my hips pressing against hers as she ~whimpered~, her legs spreading just enough…

I ~slammed~ into her.

Her entire body ~jerked~, a deep, broken sound ripping from her throat as I filled her in one hard, punishing thrust.

Her claws dug into the dirt, her back arching, a strangled howl escaping her lips as her body clenched around me.

I didn’t wait.

I didn’t ease into it.

She didn’t want that.

I ~knew~ what she needed.

What she was ~begging~ for.

I pulled back and drove into her again, harder, deeper, making her wail, her hind legs trembling as she tried to press back against me, to take more.

I growled low, dark, pressing my chest against her back, claiming her the way we were always meant to be.

Mine.

~Mine~.

She howled, her body stretching, taking everything I gave her, begging for more through the sharp, desperate sounds that left her throat.

She was drenched, her body ~gripping~ me, pulling me ~deeper~, her walls fluttering around me with every thrust, every sharp snap of my hips.

More.

I snapped my jaws around the back of her neck, holding her in place as I fucked her ~ruthlessly~, making her ~feel~ what she ~belonged~ to.

She ~screamed~ for me.

Her walls tightened, her body locking up as pleasure ripped through her, her climax hitting so hard she nearly collapsed beneath me.

I didn’t stop.

Didn’t ~let~ her come down from it.

I chased my own high, my movements turning brutal, driven purely by instinct, by the raw, desperate need to claim my mate completely.

She whimpered, trembling, her tail curling around my leg, her body still clenching around me as I felt my own release snap deep inside me.

I roared, my body tensing, my knot catching at her entrance as I emptied myself inside her, making her feel it, making her take all of me.

Selene whined softly, satisfied, pressing herself into me, letting me hold her against the earth, our bodies still connected, still trembling.

I licked at the back of her neck, soothing the mark where my teeth had dug in, my breath still ragged.

She sighed, shivering, and pressed back against me.

Kora hummed, satisfied.

“~That~,” she purred. ~“That is what we were waiting for~.”

Fen rumbled his agreement, his presence lazy, sated.

I nuzzled against Selene’s fur, inhaling the scent of her, of ~us~, letting the bond hum between us, golden and unbreakable.

~Mine~.

And this time—she was never leaving.

Selene was wrecked beneath me.

Her body trembled, her fur slick with sweat, her golden eyes half-lidded in the aftermath of what I had just done to her. I could feel her heart racing, her body still clenched around me, pulsing with the aftershocks of her release.

She was ~soaked~ in me.

My scent. My seed. Mine.

And fuck—I loved it.

Kora let out a soft, satisfied whimper, pressing her head against the ground, still recovering from the way Fen had ruined her.

I huffed a dark chuckle against her fur, licking the back of her neck, feeling the way she melted into it, still lost in the haze of what we had just done.

But I wasn’t done with her yet.

With a sudden burst of movement, I pulled away, slipping out of her heat and feeling the slick warmth of my release drip from her onto the ground.

Selene let out a sharp whimper, her legs wobbling as she tried to regain her footing.

She should have known better.

I took off.

Tearing through the trees, my paws barely touching the earth.

“~Let’s see if she can keep up now,”~ Fen laughed.

“~Are you serious?”~ Selene’s voice came through the bond, stunned.

I barked out a laugh, not slowing. ~“You started this chase, little wolf. Keep up.”~

She growled, irritation and amusement tangling together.

Then, she lunged after me.

That’s my girl.

I pushed myself faster, muscles burning with ~freedom~.

“~You can’t just fuck me like that and run away, you bastard!”~ she snapped through the bond.

I laughed. ~“Sure I can. And you love it.”~

Her growl sent a hot spike of pleasure through my blood.

She was chasing me.

~Mine.~

Selene burst through the trees, chest heaving, golden eyes blazing.

She wasn’t smiling.

She was ~pissed~.

She lunged, tackling me hard, sending us both crashing to the ground in a tangled mess of claws and snarls and heat.

She landed on top of me, pinning me down, breath hot against my fur, body still twitching, still needy.

Kora’s voice dripped with promise~.~ ~“You think you get to run from me, Fen?”~

Fen growled, thrilled. ~“I like when you catch me, mate.”~

Selene snapped her teeth inches from my muzzle, growl vibrating through my chest.

“~You think I won’t make you pay for that?”~

I bared my fangs in a grin, rolling my hips up just enough for her to ~feel~ how hard I still was for her.

“~I’m counting on it.”~