Nodding, Nari sensed how important this was for him to share.
“My parents met young. They were never apart. Never had a cross word to say to one another. Or so people told me.” He paused as if looking for the right words. “When my mother got sick and died, it was like my father did too. He just withered away. He didn’t care about himself. He sure as hell didn’t care about me. He just wanted to be with her.”
“How old were you?”
“Six.”
Her heart bled for him. “Magnus… I’m so sorry.”
He brushed her hair out of her eyes, a sad little smile on his face. “I swore I wouldn’t end up like him.”
“I understand, and I don’t blame you. You lost them so young.” She cupped his cheek. Nerves started to tingle, however. “And how do you feel now?”
He kissed her. Long and deep and drugging. They were both panting when he finally broke the kiss in favor of air. “Like the luckiest man alive because I came so close to missing out on the best thing in the world.” His smile turned sheepish. “I’m more concerned about how you feel being mated to a dummy.”
Nari laughed. “Hey, that’s my mate you’re talking about.”
He laughed too. As it died away, his eyes began to glow and his hands stroked her skin with increasing demand. “Tired?”
Nari shook her head. To prove it, she pushed him onto his back and straddled his hips. His chest was wide and muscled, inviting her hands to touch and explore. She allowed them to follow the arrow of hair that bisected his spectacular abs.
He smirked up at her. “Do I make the grade?”
She couldn’t keep the impish smile from spreading over her lips. “I’m not sure yet.” Angling her hips, she impaled herself on him. The slow wet slide down his length until they were hip to hip brought a moan from her mate. His hands closed around her waist and pulled her down as he ground upward.
All she could do was exult in the delicious sensation of being utterly filled by her mate.
Nari braced herself against his chest as she lifted herself and dropped back down onto him. The impact of him inside her sparked bright stars in her eyes.
Magnus didn’t look like he hated it either. This time, he lifted her and brought her back down, thrusting up at the same time.
She felt so full. So right. So complete.
She smiled down at him. “I can’t believe I found you.”
A satisfied-sounding hum came from him as he sat up. The change of angle and the brush of his hair-roughened chest against her sensitized nipples triggered a delicious shiver up her spine. Magnus brushed a damp strand of hair behind her ear. “We’re just lucky, I guess.”
The grin was irrepressible. “That’s what it was. Pure luck.”
“Pure you.” He laughed and nuzzled her neck. “I hope you’re ready to live happily ever after.”
“I think I might be.” Grinning at him, she dragged him close to seal that with a kiss.
Epilogue
“I was thinking that we would extend the cabin.”
Nari looked up at him with a smile. “Did you now?”
They stood by and watched as the families of the prey of previous hunts dealt with the goblins that were the organizers of the twisted game. It had taken them nearly two years, and exhaustive trips that spanned the globe, but they’d managed to track everyone involved. Magnus was sure it was because of her luck that they managed to do so easily. Then it took another year to set up the trap they had just sprung. Again, it went off without a hitch. All they had to do now was sit back and let the loved ones left behind thanks to their brutality mete out justice.
Nari watched as one of the men transformed into an enormous, gleaming white tiger. She wouldn’t want to be on the bad side of the byakko, that was for sure. His leap onto the ringleader acted like a starting pistol for the others to transform into their various creatures and attack.
Closing her eyes, she released a long breath, letting the tension out with it. It was over.
As a detour to their happily ever after, it wasn’t that long, but Magnus was eager to move on to the next phase of their lives.
As was she.