Hate Awakened: Book 3: The Feral

by Hartnady, Charlene

  “It’s not cheating until a commitment is made.”

  “Sex is a commitment, in my opinion,” she countered.

  “Sex is sex. Two people getting off is not a commitment.”

  “It’s more than just getting off.” There was frustration edged in her voice. It was cute.

  “It can be,” he admitted. “It mostly isn’t. I would like it very much if you met Ekon. Spend time with him. Test compatibility.”

  “And by compatibility, you mean what, exactly?” She’d tensed up.

  “Let him mount you and see how you like it.”

  “What?” She made a weird noise and tried to pull away.

  Magnar held onto her. “Easy,” he soothed.

  “Easy, my ass!” she exclaimed. Claire tried to get away some more but because he wouldn’t let her move forward, she ended up bobbing up and down.

  He groaned. “Stop rubbing yourself up against me,” Magnar warned. “My dick might twitch and then I’ll be in trouble.”

  She stopped dead. “Don’t you dare,” she threatened. “No twitching!”

  “It wouldn’t be on purpose,” he responded. “Did your boyfriend tell you what he did?” All this talk of mounting and hard cocks might just make him hard. It didn’t help that her soft body was pressed so tightly against him. It didn’t help that he was injured. That sex would help him heal quicker. Nope, he needed to change the subject and fast.

  “What do you mean? What did Leukos do?” She snorted. “You know what, rather don’t tell me. I don’t care.”

  “You should if you like him so much. You said you have feelings for him. He’s not the sweet male you think he is.”

  “When I said I don’t care, I didn’t mean it like that. What I meant was that I don’t care what you have to say on the matter. I don’t exactly trust you and won’t believe anything that comes out of your mouth. You want to poison my mind against Leukos so that I’ll…” she shuddered, “test compatibility with this Ekon guy. That’s not going to happen.”

  “Ekon is Leukos’ brother.” May as well tell her now. It would be better if she was prepared.

  “Oh my god!” she sounded shocked. Her whole body went rigid. “That’s ten times worse. You want me to sleep with my boyfriend’s brother?” She stopped short. “Okay, I’m not really comfortable calling Leukos my boyfriend but I think we would’ve gotten there if you hadn’t abducted me, so to all intents and purposes, we’ll call him my boyfriend.”

  Magnar couldn’t help the laugh that was pulled from him.

  “What’s so funny?”

  “Ferals don’t do the boyfriend/girlfriend thing. We fuck and we mate. That’s it. No in-between.”

  “That might be true for you, but—”

  “It’s true for all of us, Claire. Leukos and his…subjects might be trying to adapt to some human ways but that’s how we have done things for many years. We mostly fuck and sometimes we mate. Because females were so scarce, they tended to run the show. Then clutch sickness wiped out the few that we had. You would be well within your rights to test compatibility with as many males as you wished. If you were a Feral it would be encouraged.”

  “I’m not a Feral. You called Leukos my boyfriend earlier.”

  “In human terms, I suppose he would be your boyfriend. In Feral terms, he’s one of the males you will test compatibility with. One of several.”

  “I could never! Leukos—”

  “Would be just fine. He is a grown male. He understands our ways. He—”

  “It wouldn’t be right.” She tossed her head, her eyes wide. So fucking cute. “I can’t just…”

  “All I ask is that you keep an open mind.”

  Magnar could tell that it wasn’t going to happen. “So, what you are trying to say is that you’ve abducted me so that I can sleep with my boyfriend’s brother, to decide if I would prefer him?” She sounded incredulous.

  “That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

  “You’re delusional. Out of your mind.” She opened and closed her mouth a few times. He could see that her mind was racing. “I could sleep with anyone and it would be okay?” Her voice had turned high-pitched.

  “Yes.”

  “I could have sex with you right now. Then go back to your…wherever you’re taking me and have sex with Ekon, and then head back to Leukos and pick him in the end? You’re saying none of you would have a problem with it. That no one would have an issue with that kind of behavior?”

  “If you and I had sex, you wouldn’t pick Leukos, that much I can tell you. Having said that, we won’t be having sex.”

  “It was a hypothetical scenario, you conceited asshole,” she spat. “I definitely don’t want to have sex with you…ever.” She snorted.

  “It’s Magnar, not asshole. Although I don’t mind. You can call me whatever you like.”

  “Asshole suits you best.” She looked put out. It seemed like the little human was pissed he didn’t want to fuck her. Little did she know…

  Magnar would like nothing better than to mount this little hellcat. “I wouldn’t want to share with my best friend,” Magnar admitted. “It would feel wrong.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Ekon is my best friend.”

  She huffed. “So, you’ll share a woman with anyone but your best friend?”

  “I would.” He shrugged. As of yesterday, he realized that he might even do the sharing with the other male actually in the bed as well. Three might not be a crowd after all.

  “It doesn’t make any sense. This whole thing is crazy. I might not be cut out to be the mate of a Feral after all.” She leaned back on him, deflated.

  “You are. You’re perfect.” He had to keep himself from touching her hair.

  She shifted in his arms, looking uncomfortable.

  “Look, once a couple mates, it’s for life. It’s done! No more fucking around. We’re fiercely protective of our mates. With so few females, we’ve had to learn to share and to get along. It’s a way of life for us when we are single. ‘Single’ being the operative word.”

  “It’s not for me.”

  “You’ll never know unless you try.”

  “I know…okay.” Her voice was hard. “Just drop it already.”

  “You wouldn’t be forced into anything.”

  “Oh really?” She pulled away and he let her. “Like you aren’t forcing me now?”

  He exhaled a hard breath. “I’m going to force you to meet Ekon and to spend some time with him, but beyond that…” He shrugged. “You wouldn’t be made to do anything you don’t want to do.”

  She nodded once. “I wish I could trust you.”

  “I’ve never once lied to you.” Magnar held her gaze. “I will take you back if it doesn’t work out and you have my word on that.”

  The human didn’t say anything. He wanted to tell her all about Leukos. About what the male had done. How he had kicked his brother while he was down. He burned to divulge everything, but it wasn’t for him to do so. Truth be told, he also didn’t want to see her upset. Not out here, they needed to survive. It would be better if she kept her sass.

  “You’re looking much better. Should we go and find something to drink? Maybe get cleaned up?”

  “Yes, that sounds like a good idea. I only wish I had something to wear,” she mumbled the last.

  Chapter 17

  Claire looked at the water longingly. “I’d love nothing better than to get clean,” she sighed, glancing down at her body. At this point, his blood was flaking off her skin. She had streaks of dirt all over her. She touched a hand to her hair and, yep, just as expected, it was a mess.

  “It’s cold but refreshing.” She watched as Magnar waded into the river. It was crazy how quickly he was healing. The wound on his shoulder was pink and puckered. It was fully closed on both sides. His coloring was better after his sleep and better still after drinking his fill not so long ago. “Come on.” He gestured to her to follow.

  Claire went
down on her haunches on the water’s edge, careful to keep her girl bits as hidden as possible. She had an arm clamped over her breasts and her legs were firmly closed. Her cheeks heated at the idea of him having seen her. The sun was out. It was bright. Wouldn’t be hard to make out every hair and freckle. Every stretch mark and all of the cellulite. Where had that come from? It made it sound like she cared what Magnar thought about her. Like she actually wanted him to find her attractive…which wasn’t true. She didn’t care. He was an arrogant asshole. An abductor. A…terrible person. Well, sort of. Mostly!

  Magnar dove into the water and then stood up, running his hands through his hair. A very good-looking asshole, but still an asshole. A kidnapping one at that. A kidnapping son of a bitch with very strange ideas. He wanted her to have sex with Leukos’ brother.

  It was insane.

  Crazy.

  Utterly nuts and it wasn’t going to happen. Not ever. She wasn’t having sex with anyone. It sounded like he planned to take her back once he realized this very important fact. Otherwise, she hated to admit it, but he didn’t seem like a bad guy. A pig…yes. Arrogant as anything…for sure, but a bad guy…no. Although, she hadn’t known him very long…she might be wrong. Claire needed to stay on her guard.

  Magnar dove into the water again, hardly even making a splash. He stayed under this time.

  She cupped some water in her hands and used it to wash her face. Claire pulled in a sharp breath. It was freezing. She’d do her best to clean up without actually submerging herself in—

  There was a loud splashing noise. She realized at the last second that it was Magnar running towards her. Then he was grabbing her, lifting her off her feet.

  “Hold your breath,” she heard him say and managed to do it just before he pulled her under the surface.

  Freezing!

  Help!

  No!

  What?

  Dying!

  Within seconds, he was lifting her out. She wanted to scream but it felt like the air was stuck inside her lungs. It took a few long moments before her body began to function again. Claire pulled in a deep breath. Then another and another.

  Magnar was holding her hips. The water came up to her belly button. She was dripping wet.

  Magnar laughed. “You should see your face.” He laughed harder, holding onto her. Thank god, because the current was strong.

  Claire smacked him on the side of his arm. Leaving one hand on her hip, he used his free hand to grip his injured shoulder. His face immediately contorted in pain.

  “Oh no!” she gasped.

  His eyes were squeezed shut. Magnar groaned in what sounded like pain. Maybe he hadn’t healed as much as she thought. She shouldn’t have hit him. She hadn’t hit him that hard, had she?

  “I’m sorry.” She touched the side of his arm gingerly, almost expecting blood to well from the almost healed wound. She put a hand to the puckered flesh. “Are you okay?”

  Magnar grinned. He laughed again. “I’m only teasing.” He laughed harder. “Your face. Nice to know you care after all.” He winked. “I’ll bet you definitely stayed so that you could keep me safe last night.”

  She could feel that her mouth was gaping. “You asshole!” She laughed as well. It just slipped out. Claire smacked him again.

  Magnar pulled the same move, pretending to be hurt.

  “Stop that!” She laughed some more, unable to help it.

  His laugh turned into a chuckle and then he turned serious…quickly. He looked up, his golden eyes glinting in the sun. He cleared his throat. “I think we should get you onto dry land. I’ll find us food.”

  Claire wasn’t sure why his mood had changed so suddenly. Magnar took her by her hips and turned her around, but not before she’d glanced down. She sucked in a breath, trying hard not to react to what she had just seen.

  He ushered her to the side. “I just need to finish washing my…my hair.” She heard a splash as he dove back into the icy water.

  No need to freak out. He was a guy. It was normal. So what if she’d just seen the head of his erection sticking out of the water. So what if she’d seen lust in his eyes when he looked at her. They had darkened somehow. They narrowed. His jaw had tensed and then…boom! There it was in all its glory. The big, thick head of his cock. Hard.

  She swallowed thickly, forcing herself to move. Her feet felt like ice blocks. She didn’t think she had to worry. He wasn’t going to hurt her. His reaction to his own body had been proof enough of that. Claire turned back. Magnar was still in the water, facing the other way. She heard him make a grunting noise and then a soft groan.

  Her heart sped up. The groan was…it was…pleasure. Her heart beat harder in her chest. Long seconds went by until Magnar finally stood up, his ass to her. His muscles bunched.

  She was sure she’d just watched him jerk off. She got a strange sensation in the pit of her stomach. Biting down on her lip, Claire turned around. She didn’t want to be caught spying on him. She went to work running her fingers through her hair, trying to brush out the knots and tangles. She felt shaky. Probably from the lack of food. It had to be.

  “Stay in this area.”

  Claire jumped when she heard him speak behind her. “You shouldn’t sneak up on a person,” she mumbled as she glanced back.

  Magnar stayed serious. There were no smiles or laughs forthcoming. “I saw some persimmon trees back there. The fruit looked ripe.”

  She nodded, continuing to brush her hair. “Food would be good.”

  “I’ll be back in a few minutes. I hope I can trust you to stay put?” He kept his eyes on hers.

  She turned and gave him what she hoped was a dirty look. “I think we established that I don’t have much choice. I need to stick with you if I want to stay alive.”

  He kept his eyes on hers for a few beats before nodding. “I spotted some bear tracks down by the river.” He pointed a little upstream. “Are you any good at climbing?”

  She shook her head. “I climb worse than I run.”

  He raised his brows and his mouth twitched but he didn’t say anything. “I’ll be extra quick then.”

  “Okay.” She swallowed once.

  “Unless you want to come with me?” he asked. “I could carry you. I know your feet took a bit of strain getting here.”

  Magnar wasn’t ready to shift yet. Not with his shoulder still healing, so they had walked. It had taken forever. The soles of her feet were soft from wearing shoes. It was tough going on the dry pine needles. The little stones and thorns didn’t help either. She’d insisted – stupidly – on walking unassisted. “No, it’s fine. I’ll be okay. It’s going to take me forever to get my hair looking like anything other than a nightmare.”

  “You look great,” he blurted, then looked slightly startled, like maybe he didn’t dish compliments out easily. There was a bit of panic there too. “For a drowned rat that is,” he added, a cocky lilt to his voice. “Stay put, Claire! Don’t make me come after you.” He turned and ran, heading into the undergrowth.

  She nodded once, watching him leave. It was unreal how quiet he was. Not just quiet but completely silent. There wasn’t a sound of a single footfall or of a twig breaking. It was incredible. She watched him until he was out of sight.

  A couple of minutes went by. She stood out in the sun, feeling surprisingly warm after being dunked in the frigid water. Claire finger-combed her hair, taking it piece by piece. If Ekon was Leukos’ brother, he might be a nice guy as well. Claire could meet him and then ask him to take her back. The end. Hopefully, he was reasonable and logical, like Leukos. It could all be over soon. She’d be back with her soon-to-be boyfriend, getting to know him better. Having plenty of hot sex. Finding out if there was a real connection like she suspected there was. She could forget about this whole ordeal – forget about Magnar ‒ and get on with her life.

  Suddenly her musing was interrupted by a sharp screech. Magnar? Surely not. He said he wasn’t going to shift yet. Had he changed his mind?
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br />   Another screech sounded, closer this time. It was definitely a Feral and most likely not Magnar. It sounded like the creature was calling out. Her pulse raced. For a few seconds, she just stood there, not breathing, not moving, rooted to the spot.

  What was she doing? There was a Feral close by. This was her chance to be rescued and yet she was just standing there like an idiot. Claire sprang into action. She ran further into the clearing, waving her arms. “Here,” she shouted. “I’m here!” She called as loud as she could, fearing it wouldn’t be good enough. That screech had come from far off. Maybe too far. “Help m—!”

  Strong arms banded around her, picking her up off her feet before she had time to register what was happening. He had her under a grove of trees in two seconds flat, his hand clamped firmly over her mouth. Magnar’s body was pressed tightly against hers, pinning her up against the trunk of a tree, under a tight canopy. “Shhhhh!” he warned. He was breathing hard, his body warm from the exertion.

  A screech sounded again…much closer. Had the creature heard her? Her heart thumped so loudly. Racing. She realized that his did too and in time with hers. Seconds seemed to drag by. Then the screech sounded directly overhead. His hands tightened around her, his breathing slowed as hers sped up. Frantic breaths blew through her nostrils. Had the Feral heard? Was he there to rescue her? Were there more of them?

  Please.

  Half a minute later and the screech was further away. Shit! He was leaving. She wanted to cry. Wanted to rage. Claire could do neither right then. Besides, it wouldn’t help. Magnar finally took his hand away from her mouth. He kept his arm around her middle.

  “Let me go,” she begged. “Just let me go, please.”

  “I can’t.” Magnar sounded sorry, which irritated her. If he felt bad, he should release her as she asked.

  “You can.” Her voice hitched and she worked hard to keep from crying.