Page 28 of Salt and Knot

Forever.

She regards me from the side as she glances between the bedroom and me to her side.

“Okay. I’ll stay with you. Since it’s very big.” A smile tugs at her mouth, and her gaze dips to my waist. “The room.”

I give in with a groan, pushing her against the wall and kissing her. Hard. I grind my erection onto the sweet, soft place between her parted legs. I kiss her, putting all the feelings I can’t express in words into the way I move my lips on hers and coax her into pleasure. My hands make quick work of her clothes, and my cock finds her slick. One hard thrust, and she whimpers as I’m in her again.

It’s a quick, passionate coupling rather than a leisurely knotting with all the tenderness that’s in my heart. But when she’s come on my cock, and claws at my shoulders, her mouth at my neck and her legs around my waist, I don’t care.

I need to be in her.

It’s unlike me. All my feral, animalistic impulses are out of control in a way they’ve never been before. And when I come, the blinding pleasure is followed by clarity.

I’m in rut. My mate appearing, and going into heat, has pulled me into a rut. Something I’ve only ever borne in agony, every decade or so. The desire has always been painful, the arousal an aching hole in my chest. But now, with her, it’s like the click of a lock. And now, I can’t keep my hands off my mate. I need her as much as she needs me.

Perhaps even more, because I’ve been alone for so long.

So very long.

“I should clean up.” She blushes and tries to prevent the copious amounts of my seed from sliding out of her pussy and down her thighs as we put our clothes back to rights.

“I like you wet like this, little omega,” I growl, taking her hand in mine, careless of the mixture of our juices that transfers to me, and the possible mess.

“I’ll drip on the floor,” she points out quietly, her cheeks going pink.

My omega’s slick, and citrus scent, everywhere? Sounds perfect to me. “It’s okay. The cleaning spell will sort anything like that.”

She blinks. “That’s why I didn’t have salt and sand on me when we came off the beach.”

I nod, and I can see her thoughts clicking like an old-fashioned waterwheel, coming to conclusions about me. And my wealth. Thorough cleaning spells are expensive.

“Come on, I’ve got more house to show you. If you can just touch me without jumping me.” I make a mock put-upon face.

“I didn’t!” Her chin snaps up, affronted and embarrassed.

I smirk.

“Dylan!” She smacks my chest, and I catch her hand and kiss the centre of her palm.

“There are lots of living and reception rooms for you to investigate.” I draw her to my side and wrap my arm around her shoulders to keep her closer, and my soul relaxes as she allows the contact.

I take her to the library on the ground floor, and she gasps as I push open the double doors and it’s revealed, the high ceilings and the dark wood bookshelves with little copper plates labelling the topics that were the fashion when I had them installed centuries ago. This house has been one that I’ve lived in since I was young.

“Wow, this is amazing!”

Delight spreads across her face as she takes in my library. I hope she doesn’t look too hard. There are a lot of natural history books on cephalopods, and myths of the sea. Including a huge number about krakens. It’s the library of a man with centuries to understand his ocean home. I don’t think I’ve ever come close to real comprehension, though.

“If you like it, you should read anytime you want.” I might regret this.

“Oh!” Her eyes light up further. “Thank you!”

“Well, I guess it’s only right. I collected most of these books while I searched for you. If you read them, there’s a nice symmetry.”

She pauses. “Searching for me?”

I raise one eyebrow. “What do you think I did for six hundred years, Isla?”

“Um? Said ‘arggghhh’, talked to your parrot, and went swimming?”