Knights of Stone - Lachlan (16 page)

Sure,
Bryce replied.

Aye
, Mason said.

Calum was the most enthusiastic.
We can play as ourselves on the isle once more.
Bloody brilliant idea!

Lachlan shouted over the din. “I have a suggestion.”

The elder witches looked his way, no longer eying him with suspicion. Had his sacrifice with the magic elevated his status on the isle?

Once the murmurs quieted and all eyes turned to him, he continued, “Since we’ve all come together to bring back peace to the Isle of Stone, we should have a celebration to mark our new future.” After several seconds of mumbling and questions, he said, “We can have it here, tomorrow night.” With a knowing grin, he added, “We can play music.”

After more murmurs, Kayla’s mother declared, “We’ll need food.”

Lachlan agreed with a smile. Mason had mentioned that she was a great cook. Since she’d finally accepted his relationship with Kayla, she’d been stuffing him with her delicious concoctions.

“And elderberry wine,” one of the witches near her added.

“We’ll have a feast in our land,” Matilda said.

Lachlan blinked with surprise. A welcome into the Forests of Northern Caledonia where the witches lived in their hidden tree houses was a huge leap forward.

Ian and Raina exchanged glances, and he nodded. “We will bring meat for the feast.”

Would Raina hunt for the meat as a wolf? Lachlan tried to picture her hunting in wolf form, but visions of her naked human form dominated his imagination.

Many wolf shifters and witches headed back to their homes, chattering about the celebration. Raina lingered near the forests edge, talking to her father. She wouldn’t leave, would she? After all they’d been through, she couldn’t return to her pack. She belonged with him. Since he’d been with her in the cave, he knew it to be true. And while she stood by his side while he’d recovered in stone, he knew she’d felt the same way. They were meant to be together. He wouldn’t let her go.

His beast raged, clawing to grasp what he wanted. Her. He wanted to claim her as his own.

His partner.

His mate.

The idea he once considered unnatural now made perfect sense.

Lachlan glanced around their land. What did he have to offer her—a spot next to him on a stone stage? When she’d sat by his side as he recovered, she’d done so lying in wolf form. He wasn’t quite awake, but he’d felt her presence. He doubted resting on stone would be appealing over the long term.

Mason rarely slept there, anymore. He now spent much of his time with Kayla in the moors doing who knows what.

Och
, Lachlan had an inkling of what they did.

Why couldn’t he spend his time with Raina? He could adjust to however she preferred to live. He could clean up one of the abandoned cabins left by his clan.

If
she wanted him.

“Raina,” he called and loped her way. “Wait.”

Both she and Ian turned. “What is it?” she asked.

Damn, he had her father to face. An alpha wolf. He didn’t know the courting aspects when it came to wolf shifters, but he knew wolves’ pride ran deep. He lowered his head and asked, “Ian, I know our kinds haven’t interacted much in the past, but I hope that will change. I’ve gotten to know Raina. I know she is remarkable, so helpful and generous—one of a kind.”

Ian squinted at Lachlan. “Where are you going with this, Lachlan?”

“I know this might not follow the rules in your pack, but I’m asking for your permission to spend some time with Raina. Maybe go for a walk.”

Ian stared at him without blinking. “It sounds like you’re asking her on what humans call a date.”

“Aye. I’d like to take Raina on a…
date
.”

The human term sounded strange coming out of either of their mouths. Wolf shifters didn’t date, they mated. And when they found the right one, they mated for life. Gargoyles weren’t as exclusive. Some relationships failed, and the partners moved on. The lucky ones found their partner they took on as their lifelong mate.

Lachlan had never pictured settling down with a mate no matter how many times his parents had harped at him to do so.

Raina stared at him wide-eyed and speechless. In the depths of her eyes, he found she was the one for him. He’d been wrong about many things. Love didn’t make him weak; it inspired him to strive to be better. To be deserving of her love. To be a better leader. To care for others the way she’d cared for him. To believe in others the way she’d believed in him.

Ian’s gaze turned from Lachlan to Raina before settling on his daughter’s face.

“If there’s one thing I’ve learned about my daughter, it’s that I should trust her judgment. It’s not what I nor the pack think what’s right for her, it’s up to her to decide. So I appreciate you for asking me, but the decision is up to her.”

Lachlan turned to her. “Would you like to come with me, Raina?”

She blinked a few times, as if processing what was going on. “And go where?”

Anywhere, as long as I’m with you.
“Why don’t we walk the shore?”

She scanned him and his heart pounded out the time in slow motion. His muscles all tightened as he awaited her reply.

“I’d love to.” She turned and kissed her father on the cheek. “Thank you, Papa. I’ll be safe with him.”

Ian closed his eyes and reopened them slowly. “I know you will, Raina.”

When she hugged her father, Lachlan overheard Ian whisper, “Remember, I just want you to be happy.”

When Lachlan and Raina walked away from the others, she said, “That was an excellent suggestion about the celebration, tomorrow.”

“Hope so.” Lachlan replied. “I was a little out of it.”

As soon as they traversed far enough away from the others into the dense forest, he turned to her and flashed an impish grin.

“What are you smiling about?”

“You,” he replied. “Getting you alone.” He still couldn’t believe the alpha of the wolf shifters would let his daughter go with a gargoyle—a sure sign that times had changed on the Isle of Stone. Then again, Mason and Kayla had ignited that spark with interspecies relationships, forging a new era.

He ran his fingers down Raina’s bare arm, as soft and satiny as he’d imprinted on his memory. After having a taste of how soft the rest of her body was, he couldn’t wait to continue the exploration.

She raised an eyebrow with speculation. “And now that you have me here all to yourself, what do you want to do with me?”

Her sassy tone made his cock twitch with excitement. “So many things.” He pulled her close and bent down to kiss her. “Starting with your lips.”

The way she melted into his arms without holding back spoke all he needed in response. A sign she wanted him—and trusted him.

“I’m done for, Raina,” he admitted.

“What do you mean?” She pulled back with surprise.

“All others. I don’t want anyone else but you.”

She raised a brow. “Surely, there’s a hot little female human out there who’d spark your interest,” she teased.

“No.”

“Or a sexy gargoyle shifter.”

“Wrong again.”

“So just me?”

“All I want.” He kissed her again. “Or need.”

“For how long?”

He grinned and entangled his fingers with hers. “How about fur-ever.”

A small laugh escaped her. “You’re too much.”

An unwanted image flashed before him. She couldn’t be his. She was supposed to be with Seth. “What about Seth?”

She shook her head. “I told him it would never work. Trying to force it would lead to strife in the pack.”

“What about you being with a gargoyle?”

She shrugged. “I doubt everyone will accept it, but we’ll manage.” She searched his eyes. “Because you’re the one, Lachlan. The only one.”

He kissed her hand. “There’s so much I admire about you. Your sense of right and wrong. Your devotion to the pack.”

She glanced away as a blush rose in her cheeks, but then she raised her eyes to his and rewarded him with a luminous smile.

“I’ve never felt this much for someone before,” he admitted. “Do you think it’s possible we can be mates?”

“Aye. It all became so clear when you were unconscious. I finally understood what my wolf knew from the start. We’re meant to be together.”

For a moment, filled with a sense of awe, he had no words. Warmth spread through his chest, such an uplifting sensation. For a gargoyle rock star who’d aimed to bed a different woman every night, the concept was new. But he’d changed, and he knew it to be true. Raina was part of his life now, and he couldn’t imagine not being around her.

“I want to be with you, Raina. No matter what obstacles we’ll face. I’m falling in love with you.”

She ran her hand over his chest, making him groan. “I feel the same way.” She rose on her tiptoes and gave him that sweet, but saucy smile that drove him wild. “Now, shut me up by kissing me again.”

He backed her up against an oak tree, raising her arms over her head and pinning her wrists against it. She didn’t pull away, letting him take charge, moaning when he kissed her exposed neck. Within seconds, he was hard, pressed against her body. Her scent made his beast claw, itching to claim her. Rip off her clothes and drive deep inside her.

Lachlan released her wrists and pulled back. She wasn’t just another female, like one of the many lasses he’d seduce after shows. She was something more—much more, and he wanted her to know that.

“Why did you stop?” She panted. Her mussed hair made her look even more irresistible.

He turned away. “Trying to regain some self-control.”

“Why?”

“I don’t want to rush things with you.”

“Rush?” Her half-hooded eyes had darkened with lust. “That near-death experience proves time is short. It seems like I’ve been waiting for you my entire life.” She ran her fingers through his hair, pulling him down to her face. “Don’t make me wait any longer.”

Her warm breath fanned his lips. Her mouth was only inches away, and her invitation made it more difficult to restrain himself.

She slid her hand down his torso. “I need you. Now.”

Her admission did him in. He couldn’t hold back any longer. He pulled down her dress to expose her breasts. His hands roamed over them while he alternated filling his mouth with each full, delectable mound. Her low moans spurred him to continue his exploration.

Gods, he wanted her. He continued to touch her satin skin, finding his way under her dress. The warmth coming from her had him raging hard. When he stroked her moist silk folds, she dropped her head back and moaned, whispering, “Aye, Lachlan.”

He didn’t need any more encouragement. Her channel was so wet and tight, he yearned to be inside her. He pushed his kilt out of the way, freeing his aching erection, to sink himself into her.

He paused, stifling a groan. “Do I need to find protection?” He always sheathed himself with human females. With Raina, it was different. Shifters weren’t susceptible to human diseases, but they could conceive a child.

“No, I drink an herbal brew,” she said. “Besides I’m not fertile, right now.”

“How do you know?”

“Wolves are in tune with their bodies. We’re in sync with the moon.”

He gazed at her with fascination. Wolves had such a mystical connection to the moon. Some good, others not so good. In this case, he had no complaints.

“Now, Lachlan,” she said, backing herself against the tree and pulling him closer to her. “Right here.”

As if he could stop himself. He lifted her legs, and she wrapped them around him, clinging to him. When he drove into her slick heat, she cried out with pleasure. He gripped her hips as he penetrated her deeper with each thrust until she accommodated him. Buried to the hilt, he groaned in ecstasy like he’d never known. This was it, his paradise. No place else he wanted to be.

Her expression turned rapturous, as she filled his ears with ragged pants and soft moans. Her scent, now tinged with perspiration, wrapped around him and intoxicated him with a heady need for more. Atop the physical bliss, a world of new emotions surged through him. She was the one. He’d do anything to protect her.

She gripped his shoulder blades tighter as she clung to him and their frantic pace increased. Her moans escalated, and she clamped around him so tight, indicating she was on the brink. She cried out when she climaxed. Her face, her sounds, and her tightness pulsing around him enveloped him in exquisite, tortuous pleasure, making him unable to hold back any longer. He crashed over the edge, surging deep inside her.

After a few idyllic moments, he pulled out and released his possessive hold on her. He sat on the tree stump, pulling her onto his lap, and she rested her head against his chest. Both bliss and relaxation swept through him. He was enraptured with the connection to her, body and soul. She was his. She was home.

Mine.

He caressed her back. When he reached a scrape, she winced. He came to his senses. “Your back. The tree. Are you all right?”

“I’m fine,” she replied.

He glanced over her shoulder. “You’re all scratched up.” Raising his hand to his forehead, he said, “What was I thinking.”

“I’ll be fine,” she reassured him. “I’m a shifter, remember? It’ll heal in no time.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “Besides I liked it. A lot.”

Many minutes later, with her head resting on his chest and their legs intertwined, Lachlan said. “I still owe you a date.”

“Sounds like a good idea.” She turned to face him and traced down his torso. “I can’t go back to my pack and tell them what exactly we did, now can I?”

“No. We walked together. That’s all they need to know. The rest is for us. But I would like to give you an experience.”

She raised an eyebrow in that cheeky way that did him in. “I thought you just did.”

He chortled at her suggestive reply. “You know what I mean.” He glanced around the island. “There’s the concert tomorrow night. Say you’ll come.”

She smiled in a way that made his entire soul beam with a new sense of lightness. “I wouldn’t miss it.”

They meandered down to the shore, walking along the water’s edge. The seas had calmed and no signs of approaching humans marred the view. A couple of dolphins breached the surface. They appeared to be a mother and her young. The youth reminded him of when he’d brought up protection.