He knew these small injuries would heal quickly and she could barely feel them, but he still went over her slowly, soothing them with his lips and tongue and apologizing to her for every single one. At first Renay only shook her head and muttered, but as she regained her breath, she began to laugh softly.
“Tyff, it’s okay. I can barely feel them.”
“That is not the point,” he whispered. “I cannot bear to see you injured by my hand.”
“I wouldn’t call them injuries,” she said, wryly. “More like love taps.”
“Love… Taps,” Tyff echoed, confused. There were taps that poured love?
“It’s something you say when a mark is very soft, given without intent to hurt.” She reached up to stroke his face, caressing his hair. “I almost tugged your hair out by the roots, I think.”
“I did not feel a thing,” he declared, lying through his teeth. His scalp was still pricking, and he could clearly see a dust of hair on the bed that she had surely pulled out.
She giggled and it was the sweetest sound he had ever heard. He leaned over to kiss her, feeling her joy rising to meet his own.
“I’m headed for the shower,” she whispered. “Will you join me?”
“Of course,” he answered. “Let me call the kitchens for some food. You go ahead.”
He watched her gorgeous naked body slip gracefully to the edge of the bed and his eyes were fixed to her ass as she walked away from him. She had to disappear behind the bathroom door before he could concentrate on anything else.
He called the kitchen and asked them to prepare some of Renay’s favorite dishes, especially cake and ice cream. The night was young yet, and he wanted to make sure they had plenty of sustenance. He wasn’t done claiming her yet.
When he got to the bathroom door he paused, watching her soaping herself as the clouds of steam rose around her. He walked slowly toward her, savoring the sight. She saw him watching and grinned, deliberately slowing down her soapy circles to put on a show for him.
His eyes fell from her face to take in the glory of her body. He had never seen such perfect curves on any female. Her breasts were huge and soft, her hips wide and her ass ripe. He loved her thick thighs and her gorgeous, curvy waist.
He heard her giggling and his eyes strayed to her face. She shook her head.
“No one has ever looked at me like that before, Tyff.”
“Well, you had better get used to it.” He grinned as he stepped into the shower. “Because I plan to look at you like that every minute of every day from now on.”
She wrapped her arms around him, squirming against him. Their bodies were slick with soap and the pounding water as she kissed him gently.
“You promise?”
He kissed her back. “I swear.”
They kissed, long and deep. Tyff felt Renay becoming bolder as she pushed against him, starting to run her body against his as she gained confidence while exploring his mouth. He took a few steps forward, pushing her against the wall of the shower.
His hands slipped around her waist to cup her ass. He lifted her slightly, everything hot, wet, and slippery. She gasped eagerly, thrusting against him as the hot water pounded down on them both.
“Yes,” she whispered. “Yes. More.”
He grinned, lifting her even higher so he could get a better angle. He felt himself swelling to fullness again, ready to act as the instrument of her pleasure.
He wasn’t done claiming her yet. In fact, he didn’t think he ever would be.
Chapter Thirty-Four
The morning air was bitterly cold against Renay’s face as she stood on the flight platform above the ship. They had taken it as high into the atmosphere as they dared without risking escaping gravity. They didn’t want to escape the atmosphere and head into orbit, just reach the highest point they could before the oxygen got too thin.
A few hundred troops stood before her, Tyff by her side. No matter how cold she was, she knew that the poor troops were even colder. The clouds could be like ice at any time of day, but at this time, before the sun graced them with warm rays, the wind cut and the softest of mist became full of icy daggers.
Tyff was teaching them to stay warm without shifting, calling on their dragon to heat their blood while they stood at attention. They were responding well. So far, only a few looked truly uncomfortable.
Tyff was making a fine speech about honor and discipline, but Renay wasn’t really listening. It didn’t matter what he said, only that the troops stood to attention for the required time. After this he would have them shift and begin exercises immediately. It was a test across multiple levels of skill—resisting the cold and maintaining attention, shifting suddenly while cold, and going straight into aggressive battle maneuvers without warming up.
Renay pulled her fur cloak about her a little more tightly. She was dressed in the traditional garments of a Preor female—long leather trousers with bindings on the calves to hold on the thick boots, a heavy, embroidered leather tunic over a bright silk shirt with long sleeves and a fur-lined cape made out of a very finely tanned leather very different to the tough stuff that made up katoth pants or her tunic.
She had cut her hair very short, determined not to just look the part but take to her duties with commitment and determination. The other mates had drawn the Preor willingly into the world of humans. Renay meant to become a part of Preor and never look back.
She took a step down from the small rise where Tyff was standing and strode up and down the ranks. She knew almost every warrior’s name now and was beginning to educate herself on each one’s strengths and weaknesses. Tyff certainly couldn’t handle the job alone. While he focused on keeping their attention and making sure the ranks were straight, she looked through to pick out which troops were struggling.
She noticed a couple who were literally turning blue. She wouldn’t embarrass them by pulling them out in front of the others, but she knew Preor were honorable to the point of damaging themselves. These Preor would have to be evaluated by Yazen, like it or not. They may simply need to be put on different duties. It was her job to make sure the right warriors ended up in the right roles.
Every single one of them was precious and useful and she made sure they knew that. It did no good to work themselves to death out of stubbornness in a role that wasn’t suited to them. Many had been sent to Dawn and Yazen now for evaluations and Renay had been personally responsible for their reassignment, under direction of Tyff.
She turned to walk down the other side of the ranks, noticing a few warriors glancing her way. She knew she inspired a little fear and awe in all of them, but she wasn’t sure why. Tyff said that he had overheard the warriors talking, and they respected her calm yet firm manner. Plenty of warriors who had been reassigned had argued with her and found themselves walking away with their minds completely changed and not even fully understanding why—or how.
She returned to her place by Tyff’s side. She was ready for the next stage of the day, and she knew Tyff was almost done with his speech. Later that afternoon there would be a theory session on Preor history taught by Renay and the warriors would be required to answer questions based on today’s speech. Tyff had been in full favor of this idea but even he was surprised at how well it had panned out.