Brawn pulled her close so that only an inch separated their mouths. He breathed her scent, her very essence, into his body, and a deep, low groan left him. His cock jerked behind his leathers at the smell of her. Gone was the aroma of her unease and uncertainty of this situation, and in its place was her burning desire.
It had been a constant hum in her, and he had smelled it on her on more than one occasion when she was around him and his brothers.
He glanced down, saw the big mounds of her breasts under the shift, and curled his hand on his thigh into a tight fist. The material did nothing to conceal the stiff peaks of her nipples. He wanted her desperately, and the urge to breed with her ran him hard, had his dick jerking violently, had his claws itching to mark her body, and had his fangs descending even further.
He stared at her for several long seconds, and then the sound of his brothers coming into the cave pulled him out of his lust at the moment.
Thorque and Lukin came in, a small red-tailed Hyde bird in their grasps, but they stopped when they saw Brawn sitting so close to her.
Brawn cleared his throat and stood. “She has the dialect chip in her, so we can freely speak our language now.”
Lukin nodded and had his focus on Minka, and Thorque shifted on his feet, clearly scenting the arousal in the air, finding it harder to control himself.
“Are you hungry?” Thorque asked and held up the bird.
She made a strangled sound, covering her mouth, and Brawn knew the bird was an ugly thing. No doubt, she worried about the taste.
“It’s actually pretty good, and when it cooks up, you won’t even remember it looking like that.” Brawn smiled at her. The bird was an ugly creature, with bone protruding out of its back, its red feathers oily to protect it from the heat, and its face looking like it was a mixture of swollen and broken.
“It’s also high in protein, and right now to make sure you continue to gain weight so you are at optimum health, you’ll need a lot of protein,” Thorque said and brought the bird into the cooking area. Lukin followed, and for the next twenty minutes, they plucked the feathers, cut off limbs, and skinned the animal.
The only thing inedible on the bird was its head, but there was venom in the bird’s brain that was used for the tips of their blades and could render a being paralyzed.
Once Thorque was finished cutting the bird, Lukin started cooking it over the flame that was opened up from a center rock in the preparation area. The flames beneath the mountain fueled it, and in a matter of seconds, the meat was cooked and ready for Minka to eat. Brawn stood, took the plate Lukin gave him, and brought it to her. When he set the horn plate in front of her, she eyed it hesitantly.
“I promise it tastes better than it looked.” Brawn tried to ease her, even tried to put himself in her position. But although he sympathized with her, he couldn’t see anything but how they were trying to help her, and she needed to understand that.
“Here, Minka. Try this,” Lukin said and walked over to them to hand her a Monel stick.
“Isn’t that what you were chewing on that made you...?” She glanced between them.
“It’ll make you feel at ease,” Lukin answered.
She shook her head. “I’d rather not. I’d like to keep my mind clear when….” She looked down, and although she didn’t state it, Brawn knew she was talking about when they took her finally.
“It’s okay. No one will force you to do anything,” Thorque said once he was in the sitting area and on the chair across from them. For several moments, no one spoke as they ate, but Brawn knew his brothers had their attention trained right on her. The room grew heated from their arousal and thick with their scent of wanting her.
When she finished, she set the plate aside and looked at each of them. “I’m safe here?” she asked softly.
Brawn nodded, but Thorque answered. “You are. We wouldn’t let anything harm you.”
She nodded and looked at her hands in her lap. “But what if one of those creatures comes in here when you’re gone? What if I need to leave the cave? How will I survive the heat?” She started breathing faster. Everything was clearly starting to slam into her, and the shock of her situation was evident on her face. “And water—I don’t even know how you have any.” Sweat beaded her forehead. “This place is like hell.” She gasped out, and the tears started to fall hard and fast. “Oh God.” She rested her head back on the couch, closed her eyes, and for a second, no one moved or spoke.