Barbarian’s Bride by Ruby Dixon

16

DAGESH

No-rah does not seem upset about how last night went. I could not mate with her in the way she wanted—it felt wrong to me—and yet she is not upset. She kissed me and kissed my cock and made me come with her mouth, and after I did the same for her, she curled up in my arms and we slept.

It was good. I woke up this morning happy, and my mate full of smiles. We pack a few things for our “honey-moon”—mostly warm clothes for my mate and some extra food. I will check my traps along the way, and the hills and streams will provide the rest. I am not yet entirely sure where we are going, but I have an idea. There is a pretty cave a little higher into the mountains, full of purple rock. It is not the most convenient of caves, as there is not much game nearby, but I do not think my No-rah is much interested in hunting.

So…the pretty cave it is.

After the morning meal, I shoulder our small pack and we head out. My mate is bright-eyed, her nose pink with cold, and she is wrapped so thickly in furs that only her head pokes out. She looks at me eagerly, and when I hold my hand out, she takes it and we head along the trails. I slow my steps so she can keep pace with me, and we do not make good time. No-rah is not a hunter, and she has no sense of urgency. We stop to admire the landscape, and we stop near a stream for a rest. We stop to visit one of the nearby hunter caves so No-rah can see what one is like. We check my traps. We pause to collect leaves from a particular bush because No-rah likes the taste in tea.

When I point out that we are not making good time, my mate giggles at me. "This isn't a race, babe. We're supposed to be enjoying ourselves."

"I am enjoying myself," I declare. "But I would enjoy myself more if we arrived at a safe place for the night."

"We have a few more hours before dark, right?" My mate squints up at the suns, shielding her eyes as she does. "Plenty of time to get somewhere."

"Yes," I agree patiently. "If we move faster."

"Oh yeah?" She puts her hands on her hips and arches a brow at me. "Make me."

Make…her? I stare at my mate, dumbfounded. I cannot force her to walk faster. Especially not in the snow. Human legs are short and tend to stumble through the snow instead of plow through it like strong sa-khui legs. "Why would I make you?"

No-rah sighs, her shoulders slumping. "Never mind." She glances around. "Well, if we can't get to where you want tonight, is there another cave nearby? Or should we turn around and go back to the one we passed a while ago?"

I consider the trails and No-rah's speed. "It is probably best to turn around, unless you are fond of sleeping under the stars."

"Nope," she says cheerily. "I am not. I like a warm fire and warm blankets, thank you."

I grunt, turning around on the trail. "Then we will go back."

"You're so grumpy," No-rah teases. She moves to my side and pokes me with her cold finger. "Are you mad we're not getting there today?"

"I am not mad."

She pokes me again. "You're acting mad."

My tail swishes with irritation. "It is fine."

"Is it?" She acts as if she is going to poke me again, and I lightly swat her hand away. Her eyes widen and she giggles, the sound full of mischief. "Are you…are you ticklish, Dagesh?"

"No."

Her fingers slither all over my side. "Are you sure?" Her voice singsongs. "Are you sure you're not ticklish?"

Is she trying to annoy me? I grab her wrist before she can tease me again, and her eyes widen. Immediately, her arousal-scent perfumes the air, thick and heavy. Her khui sings and I realize the small act of me holding her wrist has aroused her. No-rah's lips part and she gazes up at me.

She twists her hand in my grip, but I do not let her go. I feel as if I am on the verge of understanding something very important.

"Dagesh," she pants, and twists her wrist in my grasp again. I loosen my hold so she does not hurt herself, but I keep her trapped at my side. I take a step closer to her, looming over her smaller form. Her scent flares thicker, and the look on her face is one she wears when she is in our furs, underneath me.

I take another step forward, and she moves backward. "You said you liked to be held down," I murmur. "Are you enjoying this right now?"

A shuddery moan escapes her. "Does it gross you out if I am?"

"No." Perhaps it should bother me, but it does not. I find it fascinating. I move forward and cup her jaw in my free hand. "If I held you down in the snow right now, would you come?"

She whimpers. "It depends. Are you going to touch me?"

"Do you want me to?"

She nods, watching me with big eyes.

"Out here in the open? In the snow?" We have never mated outside of our cave, but now that the idea has crossed my mind, I am fascinated by it.

"W-what if I say no?" she asks.

"It depends." I choose my words carefully. I try to think about what No-rah has told me she wants, and her actions. "Would you…use your word?"

"No," she whispers, and there is such longing on her face.

I skim my thumb over her lower lip, thinking about how she pleasured me with her tongue last night. "What if I pushed you into the snow and took off my loincloth? What if I asked you to take me into your mouth again? What if I held your head against my cock until you put your lips on it?"

"I'd like it," No-rah whispers. "I'd like the sense of losing control. Of you demanding pleasure from me."

A fierce growl rises in my chest. What is it about this female that makes me so wild? The thought of using No-rah like that is both appalling and fascinating. I cannot imagine her liking it…and yet her arousal-scent is so thick in the air I can taste it. "What is your word?"

"Earth," she tells me, her eyes wide. "But I won't need it."

"What if I am too rough?"

"You won't be."

I force my thumb into her mouth, as if I want to prove that I am too much for her. That she is too fragile. "What if I push you down into the snow and take you as hard as I can?"

She shivers. Her tongue strokes against my thumb. "Do it."

I am torn. Part of me is appalled—how can she want me to be cruel to her? Part of me wants to push her, though. To see how much I can do before she uses her word. I do not like that part of myself, either. There has to be a way that can make both of us happy. There has to be something. "I do not think I can ever strike you," I admit. "Is that something you need?"

No-rah shakes her head, her teeth nipping at my thumb. "I like to be held down. I like to feel trapped. It doesn't have to be a beating."

I move my hand back to her hair. "So if I held you down and mated with you…that would be enough?"

"We can try and see?"

I suppose it cannot hurt to try. I have my word, and she has hers. I stroke my mate's pretty, trusting face again. She is so beautiful, my No-rah. So gentle and loving. I skim my thumb over her soft mouth again.

She bites me.

With a growl, I grip her hair. She sucks in a breath, her eyes going wide, an excited look on her face. "You are provoking me, are you not?"

"I am. Is it working?" Her scent is thick in the air. "Do you want me down on my knees?"

Do I? I eye the snow at our feet. Slowly, I get on my knees and never let go of No-rah's hair, dragging her down beside me. "Hands and knees."

No-rah trembles with excitement. Her eyes close and with a look of bliss, she gets on her hands and knees. She is so beautiful like this. I know she wants me to be rough with her, so I push her legs apart with a bit more force than I usually do. She moans and raises her hips in the air.

Even though I am trying to hold back, I am being pulled in. It is wrong to push my mate down in the cold snow instead of a pile of warm, comfortable furs. When No-rah wiggles her hips at me, I grab one of her buttocks and hold it tightly. She squeals under my touch, trying to wriggle away from my hands, but no word comes out of her mouth.

It hits me.

This is not real hurting. This is a game. She needs to play a game to lose herself in the moment. And…I like games.

I release No-rah's hair and pat her flank. "Stand up."

She makes a sound of protest, turning to look at me. "Dagesh, really, I'm fine—"

"Stand up," I say again, my voice soft. I get to my feet and wait for her to do the same. She does, a look of confusion on her face. I gesture at our snowy surroundings. "Run."

Her eyebrows go up. "Run?"

"Like a hopper," I agree, the blood pumping in my veins. "Evade me. If you win…" I pause, trying to think of a suitable “reward” of some kind. "I will give you my cock," I finally decide. "If you lose and I catch you, we will not mate."

No-rah's mouth opens in protest. It snaps shut again as she studies my face, a glimmer of understanding in her eyes.

Then she turns and bolts, running as fast as she can through the snow. She is not very speedy—her steps churn up too much powder, and her legs are short, but that is all right.

I do not intend for her to win and she knows it. It is the chase that is everything.

I growl low in my throat and then stalk after her, like a predator hunting down its prey. It takes no time at all for me to catch up to my mate, but No-rah is trying. Her steps struggle through the snow, and she is panting hard. She looks back and sees my nearness, makes a sound of dismay, and redoubles her efforts.

I grab her fur cloak, catching it as it flutters behind her. She cries out, stumbling to her feet, and then I am on her. No-rah pants as I fumble with her leggings, eager to touch her, to feel that slippery, hot cunt of hers. I want to feel just how wet she is now that I have chased her and my blood is pumping.

I tear her leggings down her thighs and press my fingers against her folds. She is drenched, my mate, and makes another little cry when my cold fingers touch her heat. I ignore her squirming and push into her with my fingers, two at a time, pumping like I would my cock. Testing her. Part of me feels I am still too rough, but I cannot deny that I am hard with wanting her, hard with the thrill of the chase.

No-rah only moans and arches her hips into the air, spreading wider to encourage me.

It is too much. Any reservations I had are lost at the sight of her pink folds spread for me. I rip my loincloth off and shove my leggings down, covering my mate with my heavy body. She squirms under me again, and I remember that she likes to be held down. I put a hand in her soft, tangled hair and hold her tight, pressing her cheek to the snow, pinning her in place.

She gasps and goes still.

Worry floods through me. "Is it—"

"It's good," she whimpers. "It's good. Keep going."

Relieved, I thrust my fingers into her one more time and then press the head of my cock against her entrance, letting her know of my presence before I do more. She moans, wriggling under my hand, and I know this is part of the game, that she wants me to hold her in place even as she makes weak struggles. So I pin her and shove my cock deep into my mate's body.

No-rah cries out, the sound raw and guttural. Her cunt clenches tight around me, her legs shuddering, and I realize she is coming. One thrust, and she is there. With a pleased growl, I thrust into her again, rocking so hard that her flanks ripple with every movement of my body. She cries out again, and again, as I drive into my mate, and all the while, her cunt squeezes me so tight. It is like she is coming hard over and over again. She is so aroused that she makes little choked sounds in her throat every time I push deep inside her, my cock spearing her even as my spur digs into her backside.

When I can hold back no longer, I grip her hip and lose myself in the moment, pounding into her until the release I've been holding back boils over. I come hard, flooding my mate with seed, and then collapse over her, my heavy weight pressing her deeper into the snow. No-rah lets out a giggle but does not get up or even wriggle away. She has told me before that she likes the feel of me over her, and I should have known then that my mate likes to be held down. Sometimes I am very, very foolish and blind.

No-rah lets out a little sigh. She remains still under me, her breathing easy, and when I finally roll to the side, she makes a sound of protest and immediately turns to put her head on my chest. "I don't think I can stand yet," she tells me dreamily. "My legs are noodles."

I run a hand along her jaw. Her leathers and fur wrappings are wet from the snow, but she does not seem to mind. "Did I hurt you? Was I too rough?"

Her smile grows wider. "It was amazing." She presses a kiss to my thumb. "It felt so good. Just what I needed. Did you enjoy yourself?"

I think for a moment. "I did. I liked chasing you."

She chuckles. "I liked being chased."

I continue to play with my mate's soft skin, musing over our mating. Things were a little fierce and I was less cautious with her than before, but it was not…bad. Not bad at all. I thought she needed me to hit her, to make her feel pain, but this was nothing like that. I think about what she said earlier, when she told me she needed me to take pleasure from her, not give it.

I think I understand now. No-rah enjoys the loss of control. She enjoys the game of being preyed upon. It is not about harming her. It is about her bending under me.

That idea…I like.

We lie in the snow, content. I play with my mate's mane, unwilling to lose this moment. I love the feel of her in my arms and I can sense her happiness. Mating with her like that was…different. Normally I must watch for her gasps and her breathing slowing to indicate that she received her pleasure. This day, there was no hiding it. Her cunt seized my cock and milked it as if her walls were a fist holding me tight.

And the way it felt…there are no words. I only know that I will settle for no less from now on. I am filled with a rush of affection and possessiveness for my mate. I may not have had it right before, but now I know the difference. Now I know how I can please No-rah and give her what she needs.

My mate shivers against me, and I realize her layers of clothing are wet and cold. My bare behind is pressed into the cold snow but it does not bother me. No-rah is human and fragile, though, and she needs warmth. I get to my feet, retrieving my loincloth from a short distance away and tying it back in place over my leggings. No-rah stands, brushing snow off her leathers and tying her leggings at her waist. She looks so tousled, her cheeks so pink, that I cannot resist kissing her again. I move back to her side and cup her face in my hand, bending down to kiss her sweet mouth.

She sighs happily and presses up against me. "I love you."

I kiss her again and then heft my pack onto my shoulder. Next, I scoop her up into my arms, ignoring her sounds of protest. "You are cold, and as a good mate, I should take care of you. We are going back to the cave we passed a short time ago. We will warm up there and spend the night. In the morning, we will head on to another, better cave."

"You're the boss." She slides her arms around my neck and nibbles on my jaw.

So affectionate. I need this more often, I decide. Daily. I will chase her around the home cave if it means she will be like this in my arms every night instead of distant.

I feel as if I have finally figured my No-rah out, and I could not be happier.