My son did not know my face, my touch, my voice.
But his mother did. My mate melted into my side, soft and sweet and more beautiful than I remembered and it had only been ten days. Her face was slightly rounder, her luscious curves more pronounced. I could not wait to strip her naked and claim her once more, remind her that I was her master, just as she’d vowed. And yet, the small body resting with such trust, such vulnerability against my chest exerted his own influence, and I remained locked between them, powerless to resist.
“What took you so long, Roark?” My mate’s arm draped over my body, just below our son.
“They held me prisoner, gara.” The pain of those days felt distant now, as distant as Trion was from Earth, my new reality so overwhelming and vibrant that the time spent chained in that tent felt hazy. “I came for you, mate.”
She tilted her chin up so her eyes met mine. “It’s been thirteen months, Roark. More than a year.”
A year? I shook my head. “I don’t know how that is possible, Natalie. But we will get answers. For me, it has been just ten days. Eight days of torture. My escape. Half a day in the ReGeneration Pod. And then the medallion. You.”
A soft sound escaped her throat and I turned my attention from the sleeping perfection of our son’s round face to hers. “ReGeneration pod? They tortured you?”
“My apologies. I do not wish to cause you upset. It is over now. Of no consequence.”
“Of no consequence?” Her fingers gripped my shirt. “It matters to me.”
I should have kept my mouth shut, for I was a universe away from the danger on Trion. The Drovers couldn’t harm either of us here. Noah, either. I wished my words hadn’t made my little mate’s fair face flush pink with outrage. Not only did she get up, moving away from me, she took my son from me and walked to the door. She called for a woman and asked her to take Noah to his crib and watch over him for a few hours. She was of similar age to Natalie and seemed to be a maid or childcare giver.
I stood then, ready to tell Natalie no, that I didn’t want my son to go with anyone. I just had him in my arms and he was mine. I didn’t want to ever let him go.
The woman, though, had a kind smile, and Noah nestled in her arms without waking. Natalie seemed to trust her and I must as well. It didn’t make it any easier.
I could see the woman carrying Noah up the stairs through the open doorway. With Noah out of my sight, a small growl escaped.
Natalie closed the door and turned to face me. “Don’t worry, she’s just taking him to his room for his nap. She’ll stay with him.”
I nodded, knowing she was right, and relaxed my hands from the fists I hadn’t realized I’d made. Noah would be fine while he slept.
She crossed her arms over the full swell of her breasts, eyed my body. “In the meantime, take off your clothes, mate. Now.”
I arched a brow at her demands. I was not used to her being so commanding, so in control. I liked it. So did my cock.
I had no wish to argue. This was her world and she knew it better than I. She knew our son was safe and I would trust in her on that. She also knew we needed to settle some confusion between us. For her, a year’s worth of confusion. If she wanted to do it while I was naked, I would not deny her.
The room was warm and comfortable, the rug on the floor before the hearth soft and thick, the perfect place to spread my mate wide and fill her with my cock. But I would let her have her way. For now.
I undressed quickly, not caring if she had meant for me to remove everything or not. My reward was there, in the quickening of her breath, the dark lust rising in her eyes as she inspected my body. Remembered.
She walked around me slowly, her fingers tracing the new, pink scars on my back, the wounds still not completely healed on my chest and thighs. My muscles flexed and I could barely breathe as she touched me gently. Reverently. “Why aren’t you healed? I thought you guys had technology that could heal almost anything. God, were you hurt that badly?”
A shudder raced down my spine and my cock thickened, growing impossibly large. When she came around from behind me, she’d see it almost touched my navel. My balls were heavy, aching to fill her again. If fucking her for just one night made Noah, we could certainly do it again. “Now you sound like the doctors, mate.” My voice was deep, rough with need.
“Answer the question.”
“There was no time.”
“No time?” Natalie walked to stand before me and I looked down into her upturned face, trapped by the need I saw burning in her bright blue eyes. “I don’t understand.”
“It would have taken long hours to heal completely.” I raised my hand to her lovely face and traced her cheek with my fingertips. Her skin was as soft as I remembered. “But I refused.”
“This is crazy, Roark. Why? Why wouldn’t you let them heal you?”
“It had been ten days, mate. Ten days and they said you were dead. I was frantic. I had to find you, to know for sure. If you were out there, I had to get to you. And I did.”
Natalie leapt into my arms and I caught her, tucked my hands under her ripe ass as she wrapped her legs around my hips. Her fingers threaded through my hair and pulled, hard, demanding I lower my head and kiss her. Her mouth was soft, her kiss hot and she was so responsive. She opened to me and I tasted her, my tongue tangling with hers.
She pulled back, her breath ragged. “God, it’s been over a year.”