Of course, she squinted at his arm. No mark. “You don’t—”
“Not yet,” he softened his tone, “because we aren’t mated.”
“Mated?” She swallowed thickly, her throat tight.
His eyes narrowed in pain. “I couldn’t ask you to choose me, a stranger, when you were fleeing from another male’s offer. You deserve a choice in this.” He scoffed and tossed his head. “That is why I will not kiss you, lass.”
True, she’d only just met him, yet everything about this male mesmerized her. Because of the bonding?
She tore her stare off him and faced the forest. He released her and the splashing of the water indicated he’d resumed his bathing.
The Fates had destined her for this male. Incredulous, terrifying, and yet also, comforting. Her entire life, she’d feared becoming the wife of a heartless scoundrel.
Agrius was not the male of her nightmares, he was the one of her dreams. Worthy, kind, as gentle as he was powerful. Yet, she’d only begun the fight for her freedom. Dare she relinquish it for him?
Eione blew out her breath, long and slow. One truth sang out above the others. She risked nothing by pursuing this path with him.
By surrendering to what just might be the future she’d always prayed for.
***
Agrius froze as the splashing behind him neared. Eione. The rustling a moment ago indicated she’d stripped, and now, she stood behind him. Nude. The greatest temptation he’d ever faced.
Did this mean she’d chosen him?
“Eione,” he growled her name in warning. Who knew what would happen if he unleashed his beastly side with her.
Her slender hand skimmed along his back. “Tell me what being your mate means.”
He lowered his head, focusing on the crisp water and not the raging stiffness in his shaft. “I would desire you and no other female. You, however, would be free to choose another, though it might kill me. And him.” He chuckled and she chimed a laugh. “You would have my undying devotion for the rest of my existence, and in turn, yours would also be much prolonged.”
Another reason she might refuse him. He tensed, but she laughed again.
“Sounds tempting.”
“Does it?” Twisting toward her, he studied her face and no lower. “I would not force any decision upon you.”
She arched a fine brow. “Agrius, my own family could not compel me to any of their whims. What makes you presume to wield such power?” Her lips curved as she shifted closer, murmuring into his ear, “How am I to make this choice without first sampling what you have to offer? Convince me, centaur, of this devotion you promise.”
He whipped around, crushing her to his kiss.
Eione moaned into his mouth, driving his wild nature further from his control.
Her bare flesh was decadence in his arms, one hand sliding across her back, the other forward to close around one perfect breast.
Her nude body presented too much glorious temptation and he didn’t possess nearly enough hands. The water slicked between them, his rigid length pressing up between their bodies. He glided his hand down to cup her bottom, the other gently squeezing her delicate breast. Tearing his mouth off hers, he dipped his head and flicked his tongue across the pert peak.
Her gasp provoked him to do it again while her fingers tangled in his hair and commanded him to continue.
He should stop. Halt this madness.
The yearning to seat himself inside her pulsed through his muscles, manipulating his body according to its own will.
She tasted so damn sweet, stopping seemed akin to dying of starvation.
He shouldn’t be sampling her. Or was it her sampling him? Either way, a mate should be claimed, in the proper manner, but he wouldn’t have the control to do so without first easing some of this excruciating pressure. He would satisfy them both without endangering the fragile bonding. Once their baser urges had been attended to, he’d be able to concentrate on the sacred ceremony. On ensuring Eione would perceive how truly cherished she would be.
“Sweetling, I’m not going to take you, not here, not like this, but I am going to pleasure us both. Trust me?” he panted, resting his forehead against hers.
“Yes.”
At her murmured plea, he wrapped his fist around his width and bent to her, guiding his cock between her thighs, alongside that sweet entrance but not inside her. Then he grabbed her luscious bottom and grunted while he stroked himself across her silken flesh, rubbing his erection against her nub. The water ebbed between them, providing a sleek, slippery indulgence. He rocked his hips in a slow, sensuous rhythm, the glide of his length in and out from between her softness driving a feverish need through his ballocks. Her mouth sought his and he flicked his tongue across hers, relishing in her honeyed taste.
She mewled and gripped his shoulders tighter as he pounded harder. He could almost imagine he thrust inside her, and the utter bliss of having her at his mercy proved too much.
He slipped a hand between them and rubbed her bud until her whimpers grew to airy cries and she dug her nails into his flesh. His frenzied release followed hers, his shaft jerking as it sputtered his seed between her thighs. She squeezed her legs around him, milking the last drops from his body and whimpering in his arms while the next climax seized her. As mates, his release on or in her would spark her own rapture.
His scent perfumed her skin, his centaur nature exultant. A howl of triumph rumbled from his chest.
Mine.
***
Eione wobbled while Agrius released her and steered her to the embankment. She’d never been nude in front of a male, but with him, she experienced no modesty. He’d devoured her as though no female had ever sated him so. To be the sole object of this male’s lust was a heady intoxication.
Above everything, she trusted him. Centaurs could not be as savage as her brothers claimed, because Agrius wielded control over his beastly nature with exceptional restraint. Had she refused his offer, he would have kept his promise to guide her safely to his lands.
Eione plucked her clothes from the ground and gathered them in her arms before facing Agrius. In the water, she hadn’t been able to fully admire his nude form. Striding toward her, he was the most majestic vision she’d ever beheld.
The wound from her arrow had indeed healed, the slight scar joining several others across the etched muscles of his front. She cast her approval across his wide shoulders, down that carved abdomen, to rest on the thick, jutting proof of his virility.
A huntress raised among three elder brothers, she hadn’t been sheltered from the act of coupling, yet never had she witnessed even an ounce of the passion Agrius had unleashed upon her.
Perhaps centaurs were simply better at lovemaking than other species.
She bit the inside of her mouth as he approached her, pressing a soft kiss to her cheek. “As badly as I crave you in this moment, we shouldn’t dally here. When I claim you, I don’t want to be on the run. I need you to know you’ll always be safe with me.”
“I agree.” She tilted her chin toward him.
He bent and purred into her ear, “And when I claim you, you won’t be leaving my bed, not for days, weeks.”
Heat flushed her body, fanning across her cheeks. He winked at her and gathered his clothes, then donned them. Steadying her breaths, she copied him, following after him up the embankment to their camp.
She frowned once more at their expired fire and twisted to chide Agrius, but jerked back to scan the embers.
No. The ashes had been stirred.
A boot scuffled behind her and a thick arm lashed across her body. She squirmed, but the edge of a blade pressed against her throat.
“Please, milady,” a gruff voice rasped. “Don’t struggle.”
Agrius’s wide, panicked gaze raked across her and landed on her assailant. She twitched her head slightly, begging him not to act, while she grasped for the knife at her belt.
“Forgive me,” the male mumbled into her ear as
the blade sliced across her throat and he shoved her to the ground.
She struck the earth and blinked at the ground, wheezing. Agrius’s roar rumbled in her ears while scuffling echoed around her.
Eione rolled over, prodding her throat. No warm, crimson liquid streamed between her fingers. Am I dead? She scrambled to her feet.
The centaur had launched himself atop the other male, pounding his fist into his opponent.
“Agrius, stop!”
At her voice, he froze, gaping at her.
“I’m fine.” She uttered the words, hoping they were true, and rubbed her throat. Her necklace was missing. The one from her mother. She never removed it. After scanning the camp, her focus landed on their attacker’s hand.
Eione squinted at his familiar face—dusky features and a slight crook in his nose. “Abiron?” The middle-aged male led her brothers’ hunts. He’d taught her a few skills also. She’d considered him a friend, so why had he attacked her?
“Please accept my apologies, milady,” he repeated, wheezing and holding up the necklace. “I wasn’t certain you’d part with it.”
“Part with it?”
“You know him?” Agrius released Abiron, stepping off the male’s body and aiding him to stand. “I feared you’d killed her.”
Abiron shook his head. “Your family is searching for you in the south, but I followed your trail. I found your den and read the clues. Centaur blood. The barren shelves. The hasty trail.” He pegged her with his dark stare. “If I could follow you, so could they. So I did. I had to be sure you’d gone off with this male of your own accord.” He rubbed his jaw and glared at Agrius.
“I did.” Eione set her shoulders. “But why attack me, Abiron?”
“Pray pardon the offense, milady. It wasn’t my best plan.” He chuckled and twisted the necklace in his hands. “I didn’t think you’d part with this and you startled me.”
“I startled you?” She laughed. “Why do you need it?”
“I erased your trail, but I must make certain they conclude you are somewhere else. I intended to pawn this off in Sepias.” A southern village.
Tears stung her eyes at Abiron’s loyalty. She stepped forward and closed her hands around his. “Then it is yours. Thank you, my friend. I will repay you, someday.”
He bowed his head.
Eione withdrew the chest of silver from her saddlebag and added several coins to his palms. “Take care of everyone for me and know that, somehow, I will make things right.”
Agrius sprinted through the forest toward Mount Pelion, his hooves pounding the earth. After having been so easily caught by Abiron, he’d convinced Eione of their need for faster travel. This deep in the woods, his centaur form would be a lesser risk than their slow pace. She rode astride his back, her fingers linked around his waist. Her cheek pressed against his spine and her steady heartbeat rang in his ears.
Under different circumstances, he would savor this moment. As it was, he rushed to their destination. Had he made the right decision? Should he have brought her safely home first, then sought the waters for his brother?
The questions unsettled him, yet Eione insisted this might be their only chance to retrieve the cure for his brother.
With her family scouring the borders, it would prove impossible to trespass again.
Her caring nature warmed his heart. Lingering in Lapith country meant hazarding her future, yet Eione didn’t hesitate to take the risk to aid a male she’d never even met.
She was an exceptional female, and he would do everything to prove himself worthy of her.
Agrius skidded to a halt in front of a narrow waterfall. This was the location the nymph had described. He sniffed the air, tensing for any threats.
Eione slid from his back and he performed the morphos into a man. He grabbed her hand and guided them toward the cavern behind the waterfall.
“Are you certain this is the place?” she whispered.
“Aye, but whether this well truly exists, I have my doubts.” Reservations which grew greater with each passing second. Had he been a damned fool by listening to a nymph’s tales? Had his decision to help his brother grieve the loss of his mate put Agrius’s own mate at risk?
He shook off his concerns and trudged forward into the cavern. The rush of the waterfall drowned out any other sounds, so he treaded cautiously forward. In the dim light, he discerned the wet stone walls, the rock floor. Ahead, a light beamed at the end of the corridor.
Gripping Eione’s hand, he led her behind him, stepping into the opening. Blinking, he shielded his eyes with his forearm. In the middle of the expanse stretched a small meadow and in the center stood a stone well. At least the nymph hadn’t lied.
Eione squeezed his hand and passed him a flask. He released her hand and strode to the well. The gleaming waters seemed like any other well’s. Yet, if legend bore truth, these waters could heal Oreius’s devastating grief.
Agrius pulled the rope, hand over hand, raising the full bucket. Pausing, he frowned at the enchanted liquid. “Mayhap you should fill the flask, sweetling.” Who knew what would happen if he touched those waters.
“Allow me.” After accepting the flask from him, she filled it and tucked the vessel inside her saddlebag. “Well, I suggest we head home.” She bit the corner of her mouth, tugging that plump flesh inside.
He tore his gaze off her, suppressing a groan. Hearing her speak of his home as hers flooded his horse with pride. “Aye, come, Eione, and let’s begin our future. Together.” Hands clasped, they trekked through the tunnel once more, out from behind the waterfall.
Retrieving the waters was the easy part. Now, they must continue their journey through Lapith lands and cross the borders into his home in Thessaly.
Without being detected.
Once outside the waterfall, he switched into centaur form and Eione hopped onto his back.
A few more days and he’d have her safe. Home. And in his bed.
***
Four days later, Eione peeked past the branches and held her breath. Two sentinels paced their horses on this side of the Lapith border. The forest hid them, but a mile of barren meadow stretched before them. No trees to conceal their presence.
She huffed in frustration. With luck, they’d manage to sneak past these guards. It made little sense for her family to hunt for her this extensively, yet they’d positioned sentinels along the entire stretch of borders. She shuddered to think what they would do to her, or Agrius, if they were captured.
Eione held a finger to her lips as she guided Agrius several feet into the safety of the forest. “There are guards everywhere, searching for me.”
“Nay.” His brows knitted together. “I fear they are not entirely a result of your escape. Something more sinister brews.”
A shiver slithered down her spine. He was right. The guards may be looking for her, but one betrothal wasn’t worth this effort. Her hand was insignificant compared to her sister’s.
“Come.” He led her deeper into the forest. “We’ll wait until cover of dark and make our attempt then. In my centaur form, they’ll stand little chance of catching us.”
She swallowed her concerns. Fire was too much of a risk, so they huddled together on the forest floor. Agrius’s immense warmth soothed the chill from her bones and she entwined her fingers with his as they awaited the setting of the sun.
Finally, the last rays vanished, darkness settling over them. No moon this night, only clouds, which would aid their cause.
“It’s time.” He helped her to her feet and pressed a firm kiss to her lips. “Once we cross the border, you’ll be safe forever.” His thumb brushed across her cheek. “Then, I’ll make you mine.”
His wickedly low chuckle sent quivers through her body. She rose on her toes and murmured against his lips, “Perhaps, once we cross the border, centaur, I’ll make you mine.”
She squirmed from him before he snared her in his arms, and they spent the night pursuing ambitions other than freedom.
>
Together, they crept to the tree line. The two guards continued to pace to either end of their perimeters, switching and meeting in the middle to carry on in opposite directions.
Before them, centaur lands stretched. Wild, free, and so close she could almost grasp them.
Her blood pulsed in a thudding rhythm, the anticipation burning through her. Yet she steadied her breaths as she did before loosing an arrow.
The guards met in the middle, each pacing atop their steeds to the opposite boundary.
As they neared their bounds, Eione and Agrius stole forward, creeping down the grass embankment into the meadow.
He seized her hand and tossed her atop his back, bolting forth from the cover of the bushes. Silently, he galloped across the boundary, his hooves barely crushing the tall grass.
Eione held her breath. So close.
“Halt!” one of the guards barked.
She tensed, clutching Agrius’s waist and praying they’d gained enough distance.
“Almost there.” He patted her hand, hooves tearing up the ground. The edge of the meadow rose before them and hope sprang into her chest.
Just make it to the tree line. Great Artemis, please aid us—
Agrius howled, collapsing to his knees and sending her tumbling over his side.
Oomph! She crashed into the ground ahead of him, a few feet from the trees. The air knocked from her lungs, she wheezed. “Agrius!” She scrambled around, scanning behind her.
His hand shot out toward her, not reaching, but urging her away from him. “Go, Eione. To the trees. Run!” He staggered to his feet as dozens of soldiers charged them.
She wavered, glancing between the trees offering freedom and the men closing in on her mate.
“Run, Eione,” he barked at her, one last time before facing his opponents, gripping a blade in his hands.
Oh gods. She couldn’t make this choice. He was too far away to make it to the trees with her, yet if she joined him, they would kill him.
“Drop your weapon,” she shouted. “Don’t fight them.”
Wicked Lord of Thessaly (Halcyon Romance Series Book 3) Page 4