Stranded with my mates: Rejected & Claimed

Chapter 70: Chapter 70

Water pressed around my ribs, holding me still in his arms. The pack’s noise behind me felt like it belonged to another world. His hands were tight around my waist. His eyes transfixed in a clouded sort of way, sharp edges blurring with want.

He didn’t pull away as I leaned closer. He didn’t move at all. It was as though his entire body was laying in wait for my next move. A small breeze caught the slope of my chest, cool against the line where the water kept rising and falling over my skin.

Our lips were devastatingly close as I shifted my view from his mouth to his eyes. His head reached for me, the space between us a gap we both needed filled. He pulled at my sides, the motion asking more than speaking.

With a smile, I got close enough that the sweeping of our lips just barely touched when a wave of water interrupted the moment between us.

I fell backwards, wiping the liquid that had collected in my eyes. Grayson’s hold had fallen away, leaving a coolness on my skin as he jumped towards Jax. Another splashing followed as my toes found the bottom of the lake’s floor.

I squealed, pushing the water back as Grayson reached Jax, pulling him below the surface. A roaring laughter came from Marek as he watched us play and suddenly my world grew into the vibrancy of the surrounding landscape.

Pushing myself through the thick water, I escaped back to the bank of the lake while Marek took my place with the others. I sprawled out in the grass watching them play-fight while catching my breath from the swim.

The day had turned out to be exactly what I wanted. Tension had eased, bonds were being built, and the uncrackable Grayson was starting to show his weak spots.

Dominic’s constant whispers at the back of my mind were just a little easier to ignore today as I let the happiness spill in.

I didn’t want the day to end but as the sun neared late afternoon, a breeze picked up over the mesa that sent chills across wet skin. Packing up our things and climbing on Marek’s back, we made our way back. Tiredness fell over me and Marek happily carried me the remainder of the way towards camp.

As tranquil as the day had been, tension snapped back into place the moment we neared the boundary before camp. I felt it in each one of them without needing an explanation. Julien still hid in wait, begging for our permission to join.

Grayson growled and pulled the knife from the sheath on his side, an obvious warning now that I knew of his presence. I yelled out, nearly falling on my rump from Marek’s back. Regaining my footing, I confronted Grayson once again.

"Don’t hurt him."

The others stood awkwardly, not sure if they should stay or go.

"We’re not having this argument again," he sneered.

He was right about that, he was too stubborn to hear any reasoning and I knew I needed a different approach. I silently requested to be left alone with him, letting the authority of my station fall into the air between us as Marek and Jax retreated without me speaking a word.

With the space cleared, I stepped closer to him. His brows furrowed as confusion over my intent took hold.

I could feel Jax beyond the trees watching our encounter, lingering as he prepared for aid if needed. My hand wrapped around Grayson’s neck, thumb pressing into the muscle gently as I pulled him into me.

Stepping in close enough that he was forced to look down to meet my eyes, I held his gaze with a deep desire. The energy I created shifted his stance and drew him in so completely that everything else fell away. My body singing a song that began to enchant him.

He responded immediately, breathe drawing in while a hand reached to twirl in the waves of my hair. My palm found the spot I wanted below his waist, cupping the coiled snake in his slacks. His forehead touched mine as he gripped the back of my neck. The feeling I caused overtaking him.

My other hand fell to his chest before I tilted my head up. His lips landed against mine, drowning me as I teased him from below. I felt him grow, blood pumping throughout his whole body and he groaned into my lips.

Picking me up, he used the closest tree to press my back against so he could push himself harder further into me. Feeling his need through the bond, I used it to drive the desire deeper. My own want echoed, causing his kisses to grow wilder.

He moved to my neck, sucking at the skin. His hands were all over me. It was as though no matter how much he felt me pressed against him, it wasn’t enough. He wanted all of me, wrapped around him in a way that engulfed his soul.

I bit my lip as he pressed me down against his length, wishing for more. Every nerve between us woke up, calling to slide against each other in the dim green glow of the forest that lived around us.

He grinded against me, my call being answered despite the barrier at my hips. His hand gripped at my shorts, the edge giving way just enough for him to slip around my lower cheek. I gasped in surprise. Was the enchantment beginning to waver?

Without its protection, nothing would stop Grayson from taking me and I would have no leverage. Grabbing the hair at the back of his head, I pulled his head back to look me in the eye. His look was dark and heavy, the notion of fucking me overpowering every other thought.

It was so clear in my mind that goosebumps rose on my skin and my nipples hardened. Seducing him was easy, but fighting my own desire was becoming increasingly difficult.

"Grayson." I spoke his name as though I were a witch casting my spell.

His look was mesmerized, caught up in the heat of the moment.

"You know what I want."

His hand moved to my mouth, thumb dragging against my bottom lip before I set my upper teeth against it to stop him. The corner of his mouth lifted, pleasure biting into him as my tongue flicked over the tip of his finger.

He moved his hand across my jaw, gripping behind my ear to pull me back into him. I pushed against his chest, stopping his advance. His jaw clicked with frustration, he didn’t like being denied.

"Give me what I want, and I’ll give you what you want," I said simply.

My proposal spoke loudly in his mind. A tit for tat, quid-pro-quo. My body would be his as long as Julien could join us. Anger broke the spell as he lowered me to the ground and stepped back. My plan was obvious to him now and his upper lip curled at the realization.

"He’s not a threat, allow him to join the pack and you can have what you desire."

On a hunch, I gripped the hem of my shorts and pulled the side down slightly. An inch bunched up before it halted in its progress. The curve between my hip and mound revealed a vein that caught his attention, and I pushed the image of his hand there as he drove himself into me.

Another tightening of his jaw told me he was considering.

"If not," I released my grip and the material snapped back into place. "You get nothing."

I couldn’t help the sly smile that spread across my face and I saw my own dimples in his mind as he contemplated biting the smirk from my lips.

Holding onto the tree behind me, I waited while his mind worked away. I didn’t quite understand his hatred towards Julien, Dominic was much more of a threat. If it was simply control then maybe my proposal would ease his mind.

He gripped his chin, brushing the tight beard as he stared at my nether regions. I was winning and we both knew it. Now that he had had me once, every fiber of his being begged for more. His body was spellbound, under my control.

"Ok," he said.

I lifted at the agreement. My spirit singing with another member joining our pack. Julien’s poetic words adding to our nightly conversation. Jax and Marek having their friend back. Another engraved bowl sitting by the fire each day.

"But," he began and I groaned inwardly.

Of course he would have a catch. He was the setter of rules, needing order for his power. I waited to hear his condition as he took a cunning step in.

"Not until you’re stripped completely of these," he said while pulling at the hem of my shorts.

A calculation tightened as I tried not to react. I hid my doubt away as I nodded.

"Deal," I agreed and his smile grew wicked.

The word hung between us, while the condition felt like a warning to me and a victory to him.

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