CATRINA

I wake up with a start, looking around myself in the darkness of the night, not really knowing why I woke up. My slight movement alerts Connor and he stirs beside me, pulling me closer in his arms and then looking around the room over my head.

"What happened?" he asks but his voice comes out growly and a little husky too, which makes me shiver, the throbbing once more making itself known. However, the rumbling in my stomach is louder which immediately tells me why I woke up.

"I'm hungry," I whisper even when I know he heard me, desperately trying to not focus on my nakedness rubbing against his.

"Oh, okay. I'll see what I can get," he whispers, his voice huskier now when he takes a deep sniff of my heat, kissing my head. I let him go, staring at his sexy ass when he walks out of the room and get me food.

The moment he disappears from my sight, all the memories of how he saved me from Lance and then everything that happened afterwards rushes into my mind.

The burning. The arousal. Then Connor's mouth on me. The sex and... then the marking. I can't believe he marked me. More so, I can't believe that I love it. Ever since he's said that he loves me and that he'll never leave me, it's like I am on cloud nine. Floating in the cloud, high on love?

Giggling at the silly thought, I gasp when the mark tingles and I lift my hand to caress it. The skin around the bite is swollen and hurts a bit but more than that it tingles, matching the tingling that's now started in my belly, alerting me of another wave of my heat.

Shivering in need, I turn my head to watch Connor as he enters the room with a tray. There are perogies in it from the smell of the hot food. I can't believe I just smelled perogies, may be that's the perk of having a wolf.

Connor comes up to sit beside me on the bed and holds the tray for me. I take it from him and take my first bite. Ah! Mumma's food! Tastes heavenly but I am thirsty too. Spotting a water bottle on the bedside I grab it and take a few sips, feeling good and then continue eating it.

Halfway I realise that Connor's watching me and I didn't offer him the perogies. "Sorry, do you want some?" I ask when he continues to look at me with a quizzical expression as if not sure that eating after having such hard sex is normal or not?

"What?" I ask when he doesn't respond back.

"No, you eat. I'm fine," he replies and then settles behind me.

"I'm done," I say after polishing off my plate with the remnants and drinking a few more sips of water.

Connor takes the plate from me and walks out of the room. He returns after a minute and I blush when I spot his hard cock.

"We are sleeping now, baby. No sex till another heat wave," he says, getting into the bed and letting me snuggle beside him. I frown beside him not really knowing why no sex till another heat wave?

"I think the heat's much faster now," I whisper, pushing any negative thoughts, feeling my womb contract and relax as if having a contraction. The sensation is odd and yet so very arousing that I feel my core get wet when Connor palms my left breast.

"It will. I'll scent it before it becomes painful. I said no sex because I know you are tired and sore," he says, and I breathe in a sigh of relief. Not knowing things is very scary as I have experienced very recently.

We both lie down on the bed and I turn on my left side, with Connor's body spooning mine. One of his arms acting as a pillow and the other palming my breast. The action is more soothing that seductive and I snuggle deeper into his arms, pushing my ass against his hips and feeling his cock nestled between my ass cheeks.

Connor growls in response, biting my earlobe and squeezing my breast in reprimand. "Don't tempt me baby. I am letting you rest for some time," he growls in my ear and then licks my earlobe making me shiver in need.

"But I am not sleepy," I whimper when his lips trail kisses along the length of my neck. I think I even sense his tongue on my neck.

"Then what do you want to do?" he asks. I turn around to look at him then, his arms settling once again on my body, this time on my hair, playing with the strands.

"I want to tell you something," I say, not really knowing if this is the right time but this time seems good with only me and him and no disturbance in the night. I am not sure if I'll be able to tell this to other people, I still feel that I won't be able to face them alone. Not without Connor at my side.

I don't know why but I feel its very important now that I have recalled the incident.

"Go ahead, Solnyshko," he whispers, his dark green eyes looking down at me as if I am the most precious person in his life. I try not to feel giddy and focus on the conversation at hand.

"Do you remember that time when I had called you and you thought that I am in danger?" I ask."Yes," he nods in response.

"I actually had an incident that day," I whisper and continue before he says anything else, no doubt to scold me for not telling me.

"I had a trespasser in my apartment. He had written "BEWARE, Catrina Vlček" on my bathroom mirror. I even saw him sitting on the window. I screamed at that time and after a few seconds when I reopened my eyes, my bathroom mirror was clean with the window panes back in place."

"I knew there was a problem with the bathroom window," he growls the moment I stop speaking and somehow his anger makes me feel ashamed. I should've told him before.

"I am sorry," I whisper but Connor's shaking his head and then brushes his lips over my head and then my lips, staying a bit longer, prolonging the kiss making all the stiffness leak out of my body.

"Yes, you should've told me earlier. It just means that Xanthos was aware of you way before than I was," he says and this time I feel his shame.

"It was not Xanthos but the rogue, Lance, that you saved me from today," I whisper knowing that he'll hear me. When he doesn't speak, I look at him and watch that he's gritting his teeth, his eyes turning darker green almost black with rumbling sounds echoing from his throat. His arms have stiffened to rock bands around me but instead of getting scared, all I feel is protected.

"Please, don't be angry. I'm sorry for not telling you. Xanthos had his spies on me and that's how he came to know about me. When I met Xanthos for the first time, he told me that my father needs blood to live. My blood," I finish keeping my eyes on Connor and watch as his faces goes pale.

"Tell me you didn't give him your blood," says Connor, his voice going louder and louder. I continue, ignoring his question.

"That day, Henry misled me under Lance's command. He was the one who had plotted to abduct me and I woke up in a room. I heard Xanthos and Lance speaking. That's when I realised that Lance was Henry's father. Later, I came to know that Lance was conducting experiments on female wolves. Xanthos took my blood by biting into my flesh and then gave me to Lance for conducting an experiment to bring out my wolf."

Connor's growls grow louder and louder but I get it all out, unable to give him the details but at least a gist of what happened.

"I'm sorry," I whimper when I feel Connor's arms tightening around me. My words make him focus on me and he pulls me closer, hugging me to him as if not wanting to let go. I hug him back because I don't want to ever get out of these arms. I don't care anymore about Connor's duty and his father's choice. All I care about is that I've had my quota of living without Connor. Henceforth, I'll not let anyone else come in between us.

"Your blood has made Xanthos more powerful," he whispers all of sudden, his beard getting entangled in my hair, binding us more.

"Xanthos has a mate, who told me this. She's trapped like how my mom was. And she's pregnant," I whisper. That's when Connor pulls back and looks down at me.

"Solnyshko, you have the courage of an Alpha Female. I am so proud of you that even after all that has happened to you, you are calmly telling me about the incident, not cowering in the corner," says Connor and I feel the pride in his voice for me. It in return makes me feel worthy enough to be his mate.

"I have you to anchor me," I whisper and it's true. Hadn't I seen him in that cavern, I would have cowered in the corner. I was even scared of Nora and that was before I knew that Connors's my saviour. Knowing that my mate saved me from the nightmare, it has strengthened my belief that he really and truly loves me.

"I promise, I'm not letting you out of my sight. You'll have to bear with it," he growls, sealing the deal with a hard and possessive kiss.

"We'll see," I whisper against his lips, breathing hard.

"How did you find me?" I ask, not really remembering how I came here. I only remember that Connor carried me.

"Dominic tracked you through me. Since we had sex and I had once nicked at your vein, your essence is present in my blood. Dominic has the gift of wielding the blood magic where he can extract your essence from my blood and track it individually to locate you," explains Connor.

"Wow!" Connor nods at my wonder and whispers, "Dominic was the last and most unexpected hope to save you."

"I am glad he tracked my blood," I whisper, shivering in fear of the rogue and the terror that I went through. Connor holds me tight, whispering soothing words in my ear till I calm down.

"We will inform Fenris about all this, first thing in the morning," he says and I nod my head, ready to help saving the females when the thought of Cayden comes into my mind like a switch.

"There was a baby and Cayden and another handful of girls below 15 years," I whisper, ready to get out of the bed and search for Cayden, but Connor stops me with a kiss.

"Cayden is healing. I linked elder Fridolf, who's the pack healer for Fenris's pack. Cayden is out of danger, healing speedily. All of the girls have been saved and in the pack infirmary. The child is also safe. She's resting with Christine," he informs me but I am confused.

"What is a link?" I ask.

"It's a mind-link. Werewolves can communicate through telepathy on a common werewolf path at close distances to aid each other," whispers Connor and I stare at him in amazement.

"Wow. I can also communicate with you?" I ask, excited to mind-link Connor in my wolf-form. Connor stiffens at my questions and his face loses the smile that he had while reassuring me.

"Umm. Yes. We can mind-link each other but after we have our claiming ceremony. Mind-links require blood bonds," he whispers but his voice sounds off, as if he remembered some bad memory. I want to ask him about my shifting into a wolf. If I'll even shift into a wolf or not. Or if I am still a dormant, which I don't care about, as long as Connor loves me unconditionally, and stays with me against all odds.

I forget about all my questions when a sudden wave of heat blazes through my body, making me buck in Connor's arms. I shiver in need as the sudden waves of heat subside and the steady beat of my core echoes through my ears.

"It's your heat, Catrina. Relax," urges Connor as he moves his hands all over my body, soothing me and arousing me even more.

"Please," I whisper, urging him to take away the burning that I feel in my core. Connor pushes me on my back, not wasting any time and bends his head to suck on my nipples and plunging into me, giving me a slight relief yet my body demanding more.

"Relax, Solnyshko. I'll take care of you," he promises and continues to fulfill it while I enjoy the way he makes the most out of his promise.

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Catrina doesn't know yet about Connor's decision. What do you think will she feel? Happy? Or sad for not getting to decide herself?? ;)

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