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Ah gods… the way she said my name. “Aye.” That lone word was gruff and serrated from my lips.
“I don’t know you. I’ve never seen you before,” she said softly but kept her distance from me, her hand still clenching her shift. “Yet… I have the strange and inexplainable sensation that we’ve met before.”
Her brows were pulled down even lower, and the tone of her voice suggested she was speaking to herself, confusion thick in the melodic tone.
“But that’s impossible.” Those last few words were whispered so low that if I hadn’t been a Lycan with supernatural hearing, I wouldn’t have caught them.
“No. Ye donna know me in the sense we’ve met before,” I said harshly and exhaled, willing myself to calm down, ordering my Lycan to stay back lest we scare our tiny female. “But even still… no’ impossible. Lass, donna ye recognize me for who and what I am tae ye?”
The delicate, dark arches of her brows pulled down once more, a little furrow between her eyes. The confusion on her face was thick but adorable. She didn’t speak for several long seconds, and I didn’t pressure her, didn’t rush.
I had all the time in the world. Everything I’d ever done, experienced, felt, was for this one moment, when I finally looked at my mate, when I finally felt the Linked Connection solidify in me. Finding your Linked Mate had a sensation moving into every cell, seeping into bone and marrow, making me fully whole for the first time in my life.
Gods, the loneliness, hollowness, and the deep-rooted ache of suffering I’d felt for over two hundred years just… vanished as I stared into her cerulean eyes.
“Are you a warrior?” Her voice was soft.
I was a warrior, but that wasn’t what I was anymore. I took a small step toward her. “I’m yers.”
She slowly shook her head. “Mine? I don’t understand.” Her little hand went to her chest, right over her heart. “It’s beating so fast,” she whispered and stared at me with wide eyes. “I should be terrified of you.”
I took a step forward. “I’d never hurt ye.”
“I know.” That furrow between her eyes deepened. “That is what scares me the most… that I can feel you’d never harm me.”
I was moving closer to her, and a roar of triumph sounded in me that she wasn’t retreating. There wasn’t any scent of fear from her, only curiosity and confusion.
I was only a single meter from her now, and I stopped, inhaling deeply, smelling how sweet she was, how perfect. There was a hint of sea salt that surrounded her, and when the wind picked up and her hair ruffled behind her, I got another shot straight up my nose and into my body.
I swayed again, never before feeling this type of intensity. Adrenaline rushed through my body, one that not even battle could mimic. My Lycan, although pacing and wanting to come out, knew we had to tread lightly. One wrong move could ruin everything, could break the fragile bond I could grow with her.
“What is yer name, a shùgh mo chridhe?” My sweetest. I couldn’t stop myself from saying the endearment.
She licked her lips again, and I forced myself not to groan at the sight. It took her several more seconds before she answered, but I was in no rush. I didn’t have to be anywhere but here, never again for the rest of my life.
For the rest of my days, this female owned me.
“Larkin,” she finally said. “I am called Larkin.” She finally loosened her hold on her shift and smoothed her hands down the material. It billowed softly around her bare feet. “What are you? Of the Otherworld, yes, but I do not know of all the species and have never met one such as you. So—” she paused, and on her face I could see her trying to figure out how to say the words, “—big and fearsome.”
A low growl of pleasure left me at the compliment. Nothing had ever sounded sweeter than my female speaking of my virility.
I puffed out my chest and said, “I am Lycan.” I brought my closed fist to the center of my chest and slammed it against my rib cage once. I wanted her to see how strong and powerful I was, how I’d protect her and provide for her, care for her above all else.
“Lycan,” she said softly and glanced to her left.
I saw the sunlight catch a silver chain hanging around her neck, the delicate necklace hidden beneath her dress. When she looked back at me, I swore my heart stopped beating as our gazes locked.
“I’ve heard of Lycans. You have a beast within you, a wolf you can shift into?”
I stood a little taller and was a little prouder. Did she know of the prowess of my kind? Did she know how strong and powerful we were? I wasn’t bragging or boasting. But I wanted Larkin to know I’d rather die than let anything happen to her.
“Aye. A strong species. The strongest.” She smiled at that, just a tilt of her perfect, red, bow-like lips. I slammed my fist into my chest again but then felt foolish for the act. I didn’t want her to think I was some brutish caveman.
“And you know what I am?”
I nodded, because I didn’t trust my voice.
Finally, I cleared my throat and said, “I do, lass. Although I have never come across your kind in my travels, I’ve heard the tales of the earth and water nymphs.”
