August's POV-
I groaned and moved my head slightly before wincing. I could feel something light smooth my hair back, and it felt like hot fires were running across my scalp. It smelled like I was outside in the woods at home, but I could tell that whatever I was lying on was too soft to be on the ground. I opened my eyes, and all I could make out were frizzy blonde curls. My whole body felt heavy, and my head was spinning, but the smell was lovely, and the feeling of delicate fingers running through my hair made me not want to move anyway.
'I'm starving.'
I groaned, hearing a loud female voice, and picked my head up from the soft mattress. I looked around a minute and then felt gentle fingers trail down my chest, and I looked down to see my beautiful Emerald still lying in bed underneath me. Her skin was glowing, and her eyes seemed brighter than before. She looked like an angel of some kind with all those blonde curls sprawled wildly around her face.
'Do I look different now too?'
I closed my eyes and groaned again.
"Shh, try to speak your thoughts out loud for right now," I said and laid back down on top of her like I was before.
I could feel her lightly scratch my back, and the guilt from marking her was no longer on my mind. All I could feel was comfort and happiness.. and hunger.
"You're hungry?" I asked her, still having my eyes closed.
"Your scent.." she said, and I could feel her small nose brush the top of her head.
"It's delicious." She hummed before going back to scratching my back.
I chuckled lightly and slowly picked my head up to look at her.
"What do I smell like to you?" I asked her with a slight smile on my face.
"I'm not sure what it's called." She said, but her thoughts boomed in my head the next minute.
'Those flowers from my dreams.'
I closed my eyes again, and I could feel her small hands start to rub my temples slightly for me.
"Sorry, it's harder than I thought." She whispered to me, and even though my head was pulsing, her voice was like a soothing remedy.
I opened my eyes and looked at her, and even though I wanted to relish this moment with my mate, I couldn't stop feeling so guilty.
"Emerald, I'm so sorry. I had to do it, though. After seeing you around that Alpha, I couldn't wait any longer."
She didn't say anything for a minute and brushed her fingers through my hair. I wanted her to feel just how sorry I was, but her hands stopped.
"Okay, I get it!" She snapped at me, and my eyes went wide at her.
"Just.. stop feeling like this.. it hurts." She said, trying to soften her tone towards me.
I couldn't help it, though. I could still hear her screams begging me to stop.
"August, please." She whispered, and I could see the tears again in her eyes.
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." I said to her and leaned up to kiss her forehead.
She brought her arms over my neck and pulled me closer to her, and I buried my face in her wild hair and breathed in her earthly pine scent. She began to scratch my back lightly, and I let out a low growl of approval and sunk deeper on top of her.
Before I could fully get comfortable, though, my eyes snapped open, and I took in her scent again. It was faint, but something else was lingering on her, warm and sweet. I could hear her fast-beating heart, and something about that smell she now had was making Zeb perk up.
"Are you.."
"Yes, and if you say one word about it, I will kill you." She said, cutting me off.
I let out a deep laugh and picked my head up to look down at my Luna. She's beautiful, strong, and intelligent, but most of all, she's mine, and she's in heat.
"I probably forced it when I marked you," I said to her, and she had a slight tinge of pink over her cheeks.
I smiled softly and leaned down to place a kiss on her forehead.
"Don't be embarrassed. It smells amazing." I said, and she gasped before slapping my chest and trying to push me off of her.
I moved my hands down and wrapped her legs around me, and squeezed tightly on her bare thighs. She let out a small whimper and gripped my hair tighter in her fingers.
"They call this the honeymoon phase. You won't want to leave my side for the next few days. It will be challenging for you to hold back from me, so don't try to fight it." I said to her as I rubbed my hands up and down her smooth legs. Sparks erupted on my fingertips anytime they brushed her skin.
Her eyes had that glossed over lust look in them, and I couldn't stop smelling her needy heated scent. I dropped my head to hers and went to kiss her, but she put her hands on my chest to stop me.
"I'm not ready." She whispered to me, but her thoughts said something different.
'This is all he wants.'
Even though it was loud in my head, I didn't flinch this time. How could she think that when she could feel how much I care about her?
"Don't think that about me. I want you in every way, not just like this." I said to her softly before kissing her cheek.
She didn't say anything and kept her face stone cold. Nothing was happening in her mind either, and I wondered how she could clear her head so quickly like that? She shouldn't be able to mask her thoughts from me.
'Stay out of my head.'
This time I did hiss a little and rubbed my temple when her loud command came in unexpectedly.
"I can't, Emerald. I'm sorry, but you will get used to it, I promise."
She rolled her eyes and looked away from me.
'I don't want to get used to it.'
I let out a sigh and slowly climbed off of her.
"Let's go get something to eat," I suggested since I knew she was still hungry.
"Alright." She said back lowly.
'I'm craving you.'
Her thought shot straight into my head, and I let a low growl at her.
'The feeling is mutual.' I said, linking back to her.
"Stop it!" She scolded me.
"It's harder than I thought," I said to her, grinning.
She tried to fight it, but a small smile did appear on her lips, and she crawled to the end of the bed towards me.
"I'm going to get a shower." She said to me, and I nodded my head.
"Okay, go ahead," I said to her and gestured to the bathroom.
"I will try when you get out." She said through a laugh.
"But you don't want me to," I argued to her, grinning, and she dropped her smile and cut her eyes at me.
"Out." She said and pointed to the door.
I chuckled but listened to her and left the room, and shut the door behind me. As soon as I did, though, I could feel how much she wanted me to come back. I turned around and was about to open the door, but Emerald did instead. She looked up at me sadly, and I gave her a small smile before kissing the top of her forehead and coming back into the room.
"This is so annoying." She muttered as she went to the bathroom and cut the water on to heat up.
"It won't be like this all the time, Emerald. Our mate bond will be slightly different compared to others." I said, and she poked her head out from the bathroom.
"What do you mean?" she asked with one eyebrow cocked up.
"When an Alpha and Luna find their mate, their bond is heightened because of our title, and because of the responsibility that comes with that title, we have to be in sync. Some things will start to calm down after a while, and some things you'll get used to."
"Like what?" She asked again, and I sighed before running my hands through my hair.
"Well, for one, it hurts to even be in a different room than me. That will calm down, but there will always be slight discomfort in the distance between us."
She just rolled her eyes and poked her head back into the bathroom, where I couldn't see her.
"Yeah, how long before I can be in a different room than you without feeling like someone's kicked me in the chest?" She called back loudly as I heard her pull the curtain back and step into the shower.
"Why? Are you tired of me already?" I asked her back while stepping closer to the open bathroom.
She laughed, and it brought warm flutters into my chest and stomach.
'I can't control myself when being alone with you.'
Her thought made me smile, and I started to peel my shirt off and drop my sweat pants and boxers. I walked into the bathroom and closer to the shower.
"I don't want you to control yourself," I said lowly to her, but she did not respond from behind the shower curtain.
'Can I shower with you?' I asked through our mind link.
'Sure, if you want to go blind.' She said back.
I laughed deeply before grabbing the curtain back and stepping inside the hot shower. Emerald gasped and began trying to cover herself and put her back to me. I chuckled again before wrapping my arms around her and bringing her back to my chest.
"Don't hide yourself from me, ever," I whispered.
She let out a small moan and leaned her wet head back against me. She closed her eyes, and I held her to me as the hot water fell on us. She turned around and faced me, and I hugged her naked body up against mine, but I never once looked down at her. I focused on her eyes, and she fluttered her long wet lashes up at me.
'Does he want to kiss me?' Her thoughts asked.
"Always," I said to her, and she grinned at me.
I dropped my head lower and smashed my lips against hers. She growled loudly into my mouth, and I could feel her dragging her nails down my back. I let my own hands roam down her, and the more I did, the more I wanted her. It was stiff, and she knew it because it was pressed right up against her.
'He's too big.'
I smiled against her mouth, hearing her concerns, and gripped her ass hard before pressing her more against me. I pushed her up against the shower wall and kissed her harder, and shoved my tongue into her mouth. She moaned against me, and her heated scent grew stronger even in the steamy bathroom.
Something about that smell drives my nerves insane, and I started to kiss her face before moving to her neck and kissing her mark gently. She shuddered against me and started to leave small kisses on my chest, and her lips felt hotter than the water coming down on us.
'I need more.'
I moved my head from her neck and placed my forehead against hers until she was leaning back against the shower wall and looking at me again. Those wild mismatched eyes that I had been thinking about nonstop were finally all mine to have and stare at as much as I wanted. Everything about her was mine now, and it was hard to keep remembering that Emerald was technically not herself right now.
Between the intense feelings she's having for me right now and being in heat, I can't help thinking that this wouldn't happen if it weren't for those reasons. I wanted her in every way possible, so I wanted to give her what she wanted. Actually, what she needed.
I couldn't, though. She could regret it later on when things aren't so high volumed. She could resent me for it, and even with the mate bond, she would still be able to hold a grudge if she felt angry enough about it. I already felt guilty for marking her after telling her I would wait. I didn't want to force even more on her when she was in this state.
"Thank you." She said to me, and I leaned my head off hers and gave her a confused look.
"For wanting to wait for me. Not many Alphas would do that, and I am fortunate that I got a gentleman." She explained, and I realized she was listening in on my thoughts.
I gave her a small smile and nodded my head before pecking her lips again. Her hands went into my hair, and she pulled me back to her and began kissing me slowly as if to savor me. She broke our kiss but kept her hands in my wet hair.
"I guess you just have those old-school values, hm?" She asked teasingly.
"Are you trying to call me old again?"
She giggled but shrugged her shoulders to say she didn't know or she wasn't going to tell.
"This old man can easily change his mind," I said darkly to her and ran my hands down her waist and to her bare thighs.
Her eyes went wide, and so did the smile on her face. She allowed me to feel any of her skin that I wanted and after I asked her if I could wash her hair for her. I scrubbed her wild curls and felt nothing but content and peace being with her like this. I couldn't wait for us to go back home together and start our lives with one another.
"I'm not going anywhere, August."