It had been months since Loveday had left the kingdom, and to be honest, she wasn’t very excited about it. Dimitri had offered to have her accompany them on a routine scouting mission just past the Held border as sort of a prize for her hard work, so she accepted gratefully. There wasn’t really a good way to explain to him that her whole world had become the Calleigh.

She didn’t need to return to the Held for a single thing. Not anymore.

The Calleigh had a decent amount of trucks and one small bus, which they rarely used these days since the war had ended any outreach of their people and they also just preferred to run everywhere…

Loveday was currently jammed in the tiny middle seat of one of their trucks, between Dimitri in the passenger seat, and an older Calleigh gentleman named Pod, who seemed to barely tolerate her presence.

In the bed of the truck there crouched a handful of Calleigh, a few of whom Loveday had passed in the halls once or twice, but no one she really knew. Unless the King himself counted.

Dimitri wasn’t watching the dirt road, instead, he was leafing through the maps the Noxier had sent over while referencing a map of the land on a chipped clipboard in his lap.

Loveday squeezed her shoulders a bit closer to herself to give the two Calleigh on either side of her more room and awkwardly twiddled her thumbs.

They had crossed the Calleigh/Held border a few minutes ago and after doing the customary survey of the divide between the two lands, mostly so Dimitri could make sure the maps the Noxier sent over and the ones the Calleigh had were actually true to life, (and also to lawfully spy on the Held border outposts just in case) they had gone west and were skirting the border, moving even further away from the hustle and bustle of the Held city and toward the outskirts.

There were no Held settlements out here anymore, ever since the events when she was just a teen. Now it was a neutral space between the Held and Calleigh. Neither could build or own the land. She was grateful it was so…

“You’re suspiciously quiet.” Dimitri said after a moment.

Loveday just stared out the windshield and watched the fields they were driving by and the spots of color that were wildflowers growing through cement…

The King sighed, “What’s wrong? Are you missing home?”

For some reason Loveday was startled. Her eyes flew to Dimitri as if he could suddenly see through her, and when he caught her gaze his expression turned strangely guarded.

“What?”

She nodded, gesturing at the field they were driving by as the distance between them and the Held city grew and the mountains behind the Calleigh castle grew closer.

“This was where I lived until I was a teenager,”

And for some reason, she felt her heart race a little when she added-

“…with my family.”

The silence was stifling for a moment, and then she heard Dimitri let out a breath and she watched him set down the maps he was looking through.

“What do you mean? I thought you said-“

She shrugged, “Everyone comes from somewhere. My parents were very poor and when they had me and my sister we had to live in community housing. It wasn’t anything special, just some cottages with a single room, usually three or four families per house. The government had set up a stipend fund for the poverty-level households and that’s how we managed to scrape by.”

Loveday’s eyes followed the edges of the field even after they’d gone over a hill and it was fading into the distance…

“I was thirteen when the entire community was burned to the ground. There was nothing left, and the survivors were not expected to make it.”

Loveday let out a deep breath and subconsciously lifted a hand to trace the scar on her neck. It still ached some days. Tight, like it was constricting her voice. Even so, she never let it stop her from saying what needed to be said.

Dimitri was quiet for a moment, and then coughed a bit awkwardly, muttering under his breath-

“Well, I guess it’s a good thing you did. For us, I mean.”

He looked at her, mouth open like he was going to say more, but then the truck went over a pothole and they jolted, Pod grumbling an apology over the sound of the engine sputtering while Dimtri picked up the maps from where they’d fallen on the floor.

Loveday mostly tuned out the rest of the excursion, and even after returning to Ruhundy Keep, she felt a heavy melancholy feeling weighing her down. It shouldn’t have been so hard to be near that place- she’d visited before… nevermind. It was good to be back with the Calleigh. Loveday was needed here, appreciated. She didn’t have to be a survivor anymore, she could just be herself.

It had been an exhausting day, so when Dimitri had rather bruskley invited her to dinner later that evening, she had really wanted to say sorry but no thanks. She stopped herself only because any offer like that from the wolf King was just one more olive branch between them that would better their understanding of each other.

Loveday remembered their kiss, the heated moments shared in a castle alcove when Dimitri had given her his mating bite. It warmed whenever she was in his presence and reminded her of how tied she was to him.

It wasn’t a bad feeling.

And so, to help their cause and to help this strange newfound partnership with their King, Loveday went to the reception hall outside Dimitri’s office that evening, unsure what to expect.

He’d said it would be just the two of them, and Loveday couldn’t help but blush a little at the thought of potentially sharing such close quarters with him again.

Mating bite or not, Calleigh or not, Loveday had eyes, and Dimitri Veil was an attractive man. He was stubborn, and had driven her up the wall when they’d first met, but he was kind, and loved his people more than life itself…

Dimitri had stayed for them, even when everything inside him had told him to just give up. Loveday was… admittedly weak to that kind of selfless devotion. A kind she had always wanted to share herself.

She went inside the reception hall and after closing the door behind her, froze.

Her eyes first fell on the thick blankets spread out across the floor, not unlike a Calleigh might put out for a nest. Aside from that, the room was lit with candles along the walls, giving the whole place a moody flicker.

Upon the blankets lay a veritable feast, and by Calleigh standards it was ridiculously Held in style and obviously meant to be romantic…

Wine glasses chilled in ice, out of season strawberries dipped in chocolate, cheese, bread, and not a single antelope in sight.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

It took an excruciating long minute for Loveday to even notice Dimitri, standing off in the shadows by the bookcase as he gauged her reaction.

She cleared her throat, heart suddenly pounding as she recognised this dinner for exactly what it is.

It could have been her sharing her story of her rough childhood, or just the fact that they were bonded now, but the King was obviously proposing much more than an olive branch right now, and as Loveday saw the enticing loose-fitting black shirt the man wore, along with his sweet attempt to tame his unruly locks of hair into a low ponytail, she couldn’t help but realize that she wanted this too.

“Um… hi?”

Dimitri took a few steps closer and nervously gestured at the spread. She imagined him choosing everything himself, painstakingly arranging it all, and immediately hid her wide smile behind her hand.

With awkward stumbling sentences and shy body-language, Dimitri looked everywhere but her as he rambled loudly-

“This is just something to say thank you for everything you’ve done. It’s not much, but I uh, hope you don’t mind. It’s… not really the Calleigh way but, this seems to be what your people do when they want to show…”

Piercing eyes gazed up at her and Loveday felt like a butterfly pinned to a wall-

Dimitri swallowed thickly. “Show appreciation.”

Loveday pauses, realizing that somehow she’d never actually seen Dimitri Veil look… shy. It was… fucking adorable, actually. Like one of the pups after they’ve had an accident. His eyes keep skittering away as he stammers out-

“Sorry, it was- I was just being stupid. Forget it.“

Loveday did her utmost to hide her pleased smile as she bent down to take hold of one of the wine glasses. She pretended to inspect it, then poured a splash and took a small sip. When she looked up again Dimitri was staring at her, looking wary.

She swallowed, settling on the floor and managing to maintain her composure as she more or less propositioned the King to his face.

“I understand that since we are technically mated now you probably have some instincts, or… desires that feel unmet. I would be willing to explore those, if you’re amenable. Won’t you sit? It’s a nice meal, shame to let it go to waste.”

For a long moment Dimitri was silent, then he stiffly sat down across from her and didn’t blink as he watched her bite down on a grape rather seductively. She was probably having a little too much fun toying with him, but listen, the bastard deserved it!

“What do you mean… explore?”

Loveday doesn’t miss the way his fangs have partially slid free. Her skin heats. She takes another slow sip of wine and eyes him over the rim of her glass, pulse hammering as she fully decides what she’s about to do.

“What? Does it sound like I’m asking you to fuck me, because I am-“

“I hate you-“

Loveday laughs as Dimitri growls and tackles her, dishes clattering and wine spilling as he pushes her onto the soft floor strewn with blankets and attacks her mouth with long, loud kisses.

“Hah, I know…” she grins, getting a hand in his hair to better steer his descent down her throat.

He mouthed gently over the mating bite and she moaned, chin tilting back. Dimitri grunted, rucking up her shirt to nose and kiss at her bare stomach.

Leaning up on her elbows to watch him, Loveday’s breath caught at the look on his face; eyes half-closed, mouth parted, dazed and drunk on feeling her. When he nosed lower, over the button to her pants, Loveday yelped in surprise. He was moving fast.

Dimitri didn’t stop, just slid his wandering hands there and started unzipping…

“Wanna eat you out-“ he huffed impatiently.

Loveday shivered.

“Wanted to for so long, fuck!”

“Dimitri-“ she gasped, but already his big hands were on her bare thighs, having torn her jeans off, and then Dimitri was lifting her legs to hook over his shoulders, settling himself kneeling between them and sighing reverently as he began to nose between her legs.

“Ah!” Loveday gasped, reaching out with a hand to steady herself as she felt his breath there, but all she could do was flounder for a moment until she got a hold of his wild locks.

Dimitri grunted, his hands reaching up under her legs and using his thumbs to spread her wider, a full-body shiver working its way through him as he sent his tongue into her pussy for the first time.

The way he held her, urging her thighs to close around his head… Loveday squeezed her eyes shut and moaned, breathy and a little stunned as Dimitri sipped at her clit and then began fucking her with his tongue, slick smearing across his chin and face as if he was trying to climb inside her.

He wasn’t being neat and tidy. Nor quiet. Loveday felt her face, neck, and chest all turn bright red at the sounds Dimitri was making between her legs, the incessant curl of his tongue inside her, the fingers holding her open.

Unaware until moments later that her hand in his hair was pulling, Loveday gasped as she heard Dimitri groan loudly, delving his tongue in harder and faster as his hands moved to pull her even closer by the thighs.

The steady rise of pleasure suffusing her body spiked, and Loveday’s fingers in his hair spasmed, jerking Dimitri’s head sharply and causing him to let out a deep moan. He seemed perfectly content to lay there forever and keep feasting on her, but deep inside Loveday craved more… needed more.

“Get inside me already-“ she hissed, as his tongue circled her clit again.

Dimitri immediately dropped one hand and began rubbing his middle and pointer finger dexterously against her swollen, wet lips.

Loveday’s breath hitched, her hips twitching towards his hand. She could hear and feel him panting, warm breath gusting out between her legs as Dimitri wet his fingers first and then began to slowly slide them in and out.

“…not what I… meant-“

“Mn,” she heard him grumble, fingers still working away. “You want me to fuck you, but do you know what you’re getting yourself into, Loveday?”

Dimitri’s voice was gravelly and seductive, sliding over her skin like satin. She shivered.

“Yeah,” then because she was a glutton for punishment she stammered out the words, “I’m getting dicked down by my mate-”

She heard Dimitri’s answering growl. It started as a rumble in his chest and then when he opened his mouth again, ended with a fierce snarl. Loveday maybe should have been more frightened of that sound, and those impressive teeth this close to her… ahem, but honestly she was just really fucking turned on by it.

“Take your fucking clothes off.“ Dimitri hissed, kneeling and practically tearing off his shirt.

Loveday pulled off her top and stared at the King’s chest as his fingers fell to his zipper.

Dimitri was lithe and athletic. Coiled muscle and rippling abs were all she could see, along with dozens of scars. Clearly he’d been in some battles, and all of the wounds looked like they’d been done by fierce predators.

Loveday had just pulled off her bra and flung it away when Dimitri finished stripping the rest of his clothes. She returned her gaze to find him kneeling right in front of her, completely naked, one hand stroking his hard cock as he smirked at her.

“Having second thoughts?” He grinned.

Loveday gulped.

“…what is that?”

She heard Dimitri chuckle warmly and then he reached out his other hand to take hold of her chin and angle her gaze so she could better see what was quickly filling out to be an eight or nine inch weapon.

Loveday blinked dazedly at the pearl of precum welling at the head, the dark red shade of it, and the surprising extra skin at the base…

Dimitri drew his thumb slowly over that area and sucked in a breath through his teeth.

“My knot.”

When he saw her expression he grinned again and shook his head.

“Don’t worry. You don’t have to take it since I’m not in heat.”

Loveday nodded, once again drawn in by the movement of Dimitri’s hand over his length. He stroked lazily, not really trying to get himself harder since it was clear he was already fully so. Loveday thought it was mostly to be enticing.

And, she was definitely enticed…

“I still want you to fuck me,” she says, unable to care how desperate her voice sounds. When she flicks her eyes up to him, she is pleased to see that Dimitri has stopped moving and is gazing down at her with rapt attention.

“Can you do that while you’re not in heat?”

Loveday shivered as a low throaty moan fell from the King’s lips.

“Oh, sweetheart… just you wait.”