Raven's Return - Ruby Dixon Page 0,75

rub my eyes and look over at him. He has hickies up and down his chest and neck from my eager mouth, and his back is probably all scratched up thanks to my nails. His hair is an untidy mess, too, and he very much looks as if we've been fucking for hours…because we have. "Maybe? Where's your loincloth?"

He looks around, frowning. "Somewhere. I am certain I have others, and if I do not…" He shrugs.

I give him a wry smile. "You might wanna keep that beast under wraps. I don't want the other girls jealous of how good I've got it."

U'dron grins at me, his eyes sparkling with amusement. "It is too bad for them that I already have the best female on the beach."

"Best female on the beach, huh? Flatterer." I can't help but tease him. He's always the sweetest and makes me feel so good. "I'm not sure if the others would agree."

"They would," he tells me solemnly. "Especially after they saw you dance."

He's so very sincere that it takes my breath away. He truly does think that my dancing was amazing, Nothing more, nothing less. He's proud of my skills and not jealous in the slightest. God, I'm lucky to meet a man like this…even if I did have to get dumped onto an ice planet. I don't even mind that part so much anymore. With a smile, I lean over him and give him a kiss on the lips. He still tastes like my body and I chuckle, wiping at his mouth. "Your beard probably needs a bath."

"Never." U'dron grins at me. "I will—"

Someone scratches at the door to the hut. "Ho," calls a voice. "We are coming inside."

Not “can we come inside” or “are you two busy,” but a demand. I pretty much know who it is at that point. Has to be I'rec. No one else thinks he's the Prince of the Beach quite like that arrogant prick. With an irritated sigh, I clutch the blankets to my tits and wait for the door to open.

U'dron sits up as well, moving to block me from the view of the door. It's a chivalrous move, and one that I appreciate, so I loop an arm around his neck and prop my chin on my shoulder, leaning against him from behind as the others of Shadow Cat file into U'dron's hut. A'tam is first through the door, followed by O'jek, and then I'rec arrives. A'tam's nostrils flare as he enters the hut, and he glances back at the other two.

"Oh, come on," I call out, tired of their affected shock. "What did you think we were doing in here? Quilting?" I shake my head. "If you guys are here to disapprove, you can just turn right around and leave—"

U'dron covers my hand with his, making a noise in his throat. "They are here for the proving."

That makes me pause. "What?"

I'rec clears his throat. For the first time, I notice that he's got something drawn in pale white paint on his brow. An arrow, I think at first, but then I realize it's a spear. Right. Keeper of the Spear. His hair is pulled back into a long braid instead of loose, and he has a solemn expression on his face as he gazes at us.

"Do you still wish to have your proving, U'dron?" I'rec asks in a no-nonsense voice. O'jek and A'tam's faces are utterly impassive.

U'dron's fingers brush over my hand in silent affection, even as he answers. "I do."

I'rec nods. "Be ready at dawn. Paint the symbols on your brow and leave everything behind in your hut. No clothes. No weapons. You will enter the proving as you came into this world, but you will emerge from it a hunter…or death will claim you."

I hold back my frown of distress. Having a naked proving on a tropical island is one thing. Naked in the snow here is…not a good idea. But this isn't my culture, and it's something that means a lot to U'dron, so I say nothing even though the words burn on my tongue.

"I will be ready," U'dron says, calm determination in his voice.

"You will be given the details of your proving at dawn," I'rec says. "Remember that you can have no help upon this journey. You must depend on yourself and yourself alone."

"I can do it."

I squeeze him tighter. I know he can. I watch as the others study him, naked and probably hickie-covered, his hair rumpled and our bed smelling