He threw a right hook, then a left one, and despite not connecting with an actual body, the hologram faltered from his hits. His anger grew when he thought of Genet and Raimi. They were insatiable with other females they had fucked, but when it came to their mate, they were almost docile, giving her the space that she requested.
He wanted to rage at them because doing so would drive her further away. She may be forced to stay with them while they traveled, but once they landed, she would run. That he had no doubts about.
Once he realized what she was to them, he’d rerouted his course to home. It would take several weeks to reach Aktulla.
She had no idea where they were headed, but he didn’t doubt she would attempt to escape. He would hunt her, find her, and claim her in the way only his kind claimed their mate: all-consuming.
Rearing his arm back, feeling his muscles tense, bunch, and strain, he put all his strength in this hit. His arm went through the hologram’s face, and the image burst into a thousand little pieces of sparkling light before disappearing.
Erak braced his hands on his thighs and breathed in and out, forcing himself to calm. Maybe he should have used the program that materialized an actual form, one that he could slam his fist into repeatedly?
Instead of feeling exhausted from the fight, he was even more ramped up, ready for rounds two and three. It had been hours since he left Luna in her room, but he knew Genet and Raimi had stayed to tend to her.
They were far more understanding than he was and clearly had a lot more self-control.
Sitting on the floor, he brought his knees up, rested his head between them, and forced his cock to go down. Damn, he was so damn horny for her, and he couldn’t do anything about it.
“You good now or do you want to go a few rounds with me?” Raimi’s voice held a hint of amusement. Erak lifted his head and looked at his brother. He stood in the same attire as he did: low hanging black sparring shorts, a pair of knuckle guards, and nothing else.
Erak’s sword was off to the side, and even though that was his weapon of choice, hand-to-hand combat was far more exhilarating.
As much as he wanted to go a round with a living person, see the blood flow and feel bones break, he just wanted to clean the sweat from his body and pass out into oblivion.
Shaking his head and then standing, he walked over to Raimi and clapped him on the back.
“Nah, I think I have been up for far too many hours, and if I don’t sleep, I’m liable to lose it.” Raimi raised a brow, and Erak chuckled before he said, “More than I already have.” He started making his way out of the training pod, but his brother’s voice stopped him.
“You went too far with Luna, Erak.” That had Erak stopping and looking over his shoulder. The way Raimi said it had his hackles rising.
He turned fully around so he faced Raimi. “What is that supposed to mean?” Raimi stared at him, but Erak couldn’t read his emotions. That was the thing with his youngest brother: he was far too good at keeping himself in control.
Erak took a step forward and then rolled his head on his neck. His patience was waning, and he wasn’t in the mood for fucking games. “If you two want to stand back and watch as our mate pulls away from us, then so be it.
“I want her, and I’m not about to apologize for wanting to claim her.”
Just for a second, Raimi just stood there, but then he ran a hand over his short hair and spoke. “We want her just as fiercely as you do, brother, but we also know she’d been through living hell.”
Erak didn’t stop the growl that left him. “You think I don’t know what she went through? I fucking found her near death when we first took off.” His anger rose to a dangerous level, and he reminded himself this was his brother, his blood.
“I’m not about to fight with you over this. I know what rage and energy you harbor inside. I have seen it in you my whole life. All I am saying and asking is that you give her time to get accustomed to us. She is human, so very fragile, and needs to come to realize what she is to us in her own way.”
The silence beat between them, and Erak’s blood roared in his ears. He knew Raimi was right, but that didn’t mean it didn’t piss him off to hear it. Suddenly, all of that pent-up energy released, and he exhaled. Running a hand over his hair and feeling the sweat coat his fingers, he forced himself to stare into his brother’s eyes.
“I’m not disagreeing with what you’re saying, but it’s fucking hard to back off.” Rami’s look was sympathetic, and that annoyed him.
“Okay, I’m glad you at least realize it. Now, go get some rest.”
Erak nodded because, if he said what he wanted to say, that Raimi should back the fuck off and leave him the hell alone, it would just end up causing them to fight, and neither of them needed that right now.
He nodded once and turned to leave. Yes, sleep was what he needed, but he didn’t know how much he would actually get, not with this heaviness settling inside of him.
Shit, he needed to go work out again because his exhaustion had left as quickly as it had come. Of course, Raimi had been right, and Erak knew he had gone too far with Luna, but none of that changed the fact he still wanted to claim her.
He turned on his heel and made his way back to the training pod. Looks like he and Raimi were about to do a little one-on-one sparring.
ChapterSixteen
LUNA