Page 21 of Salt and Knot

He presses a desperate kiss to my temple.

“My beautiful little mate,” he groans as he pulls me to lean against him, locked onto him with his knot.

I almost didn’t hear it, but the word is like a puzzle snapping into place.

I go still.

“Mate?”

Chapter 11

Dylan

I freeze. The words replay in my head.

My omega is on me, I’m locked inside her. My orgasm is still rolling through me, and for a second I can’t speak.

I should say I misspoke, deny.

“You’re my mate,” I say instead, and the next wave of pleasure has a higher peak rather than receding, and I jet more seed into her. I wrap my arms tighter around her to keep her on me, not just for my own sake but to stop her from panicking and hurting herself, tearing her pussy off my knot wedged so firmly inside her.

Her face is turned away from me, but I can see her partial profile, and she’s staring out over the water with unseeing eyes.

As though she’s feeling the power of the ocean and our affinity with it. The merging of my magic, the kraken, and her. The missing piece for so long.

“Mate,” she breathes, so softly it’s barely a mist of sea spray.

“I felt it the moment we made contact.” I don’t specify when that was, or exactly how. I’ve already gone too far.

“I did too.” Tentatively, she turns her head until she’s looking over her shoulder. “But…”

Our gazes meet. She’s everything I’ve been waiting for, and more. Her beautiful eyes. That lovely hair. The elegant neck that will wear my bites. First from me in human form, then as a kraken.

If she’ll ever allow that.

The thought is sobering.

“That’s okay. You can take as long as you need. I know this is a lot.” I lightly brush her arm with my hand, and every touch emphasises to me how we’re meant to be more tightly bonded. I gravitate to her, and she does to me.

“Yeah.” She blinks and presses her lips together.

“You have options.” It’s almost painful to say this. But I will be better than my out-of-control monster side. “You’re very young. You might want to see the world a bit before you settle down.” Which is fine. If she needs that, I’ll go with her. Possibly stalking her if she doesn’t want me by her side.

One thing is for sure—I can’t be without her now. If she went into heat and I wasn’t there to tend and knot her, I think my kraken would rip me apart from the inside outwards, whatever I tried to say about consent and respect and allowing her space and choices. Half of me doesn’t care.

She’s mine.

“I guess.” She twists her mouth uncertainly.

“I’ve been waiting a long time. I can be patient before we’re bonded,” I lie. The spasm of pain from just saying that has my muscles tightening.

“You can have all the time you need before we’re bonded. You’re young. I know that you might want to think about it.”

I curse silently, because her eyes go wide. She hadn’t even thought about the mating bond yet, evidently. I’m ten steps ahead of her, imagining us together, forever.

“A mating bond. Like a bite?” she whispers.

“Yes.” I take a deep, strengthening breath of her sweet citrus scent. “It means you accept me. And I accept you. Our mate bond is fully in place when we’ve exchanged blood.”