Loved by a Beast - Miranda Bridges Page 0,32
my might. It’s a futile action, but my need to act, to gain some distance, won’t be denied, and it overrides any logic that might protest. My nails dig into his skin as I increase my efforts, bucking my hips in an attempt to dislodge him. I continue to fight, but when rationality finally penetrates my mind, I go limp, turning my head and offering defeat.
The entire time, Jaxar watches me with a heavy gaze, and not once does he stop me from inflicting pain on his person. But the accelerated beating of his heart in my ears tells me my struggle for freedom affected him. I just don’t know how. And I don’t care.
Exhaustion, both emotional and physical, winds around me, slowly pulling me to a place far away. Except the sound of Jaxar’s voice brings me back, and then his words tether me to him.
“There’s nothing that could ever take away my love for you.” He lowers his head until his lips brush my ear, and his breath skims my jaw. “For you to believe otherwise…this is something I simply cannot understand.”
I clench my teeth to keep from speaking. With my emotions running high, there’s nothing I can say that will help the situation.
“You and I are at war,” he says, “but you will not win.” I stiffen underneath him, and he chuckles softly. “Yes, my little warrior, you will lose because you’ve already given me your heart, and you will not get it back.”
I glare at him even as my eyes sting with the threat of tears. “Why are you doing this to me? You’re the one who pushed me away, so let me go.”
Jaxar’s tail unwraps from around my neck only to nudge my chin so that I’m facing him. “How have I done this?”
“You’ve hidden things,” I grit out.
“What things?”
It’s hard for me to tell whether or he’s purposefully being obtuse, so I answer with the intention of bringing this conversation to an end.
“Things concerning the tribes, scheduled meetings, conversations with your warriors, your whereabouts at night, the company you keep…I could go on and on, but I’m tired, sore, and fucked off, so let’s just drop it, okay?”
Much to my surprise, he shifts so that he’s no longer on top of me but next to me. Before I can breathe a sigh of relief, he reaches out to grip my shoulders and pulls me to him so that I’m flush with his body. Then he lays his hand on my head, gently pressing down until my face rests on his chest.
“We will continue this discussion when you are well rested, Massela.”
I roll my eyes even though he can’t see them. And then I’m drifting to sleep as his tail drapes over my hips, the tip of it rubbing my lower back in slow, soothing strokes.
Chapter 12
“Masse, you have need of me?”
The male’s voice drifts into my subconscious, bringing me out of sleep but not completely. My body feels as though it’s encased in lead, weighing down my limbs, and my mind is fuzzy, which makes it hard for me to figure out what’s going on.
“Yes, Ahknar.” Jaxar’s tone is a deep rumble, like a distant thunder. The sound of it glides over and through me, and for just a second, I let myself enjoy it. “I need you to keep Grefina from leaving the campsite.”
The confusion in Ahknar’s tone matches that in my mind. “You would have me restrain her?”
Jaxar shakes his head, and his chin lightly grazes the crown of my head. “I am not sure when, but at some point I will require her presence, and I do not want her so far that she cannot answer my summons.”
“Very well. Is there anything else?”
“Notify Belvaire and Rozak that I’ll be indisposed,” Jaxar says. He drags his claws through my tangled hair, gently smoothing it out while he speaks. “With the birth of my son, the Massela will need to be cared for, so I will not leave her side until she is fully recovered. Until then I will need you to act in my stead, conveying and delivering messages on my behalf.”
“Consider it done.”
“You have my appreciation.”
“Masse.”
There’s a small draft that stirs the air around me, the only sign that Ahknar has left. The Boraq are such stealthy creatures despite their size. Well, the adults are.
My son, on the other hand, is not.
His tiny cry has me tensing before I jerk up my head, immediately seeking him out.
Jaxar clasps my face, bringing