Barbarian Lover (Ice Planet Barbarians #3)(53)

Back and forth, we argue about who should stay and who should go. Plans change hourly, until I’m ready to tear my hair out if Vektal puts his foot down and says ‘no’ to my suggestions one more time.

He is the chief, and he is my friend, but he is also incredibly stubborn. A pain in the ass, as Kira says.

I’m short tempered, myself. Haeden is still healing and Maylak, who is pregnant and must be careful with her own health, hasn’t had time for my wound. It pains me, but not nearly as much as being unable to sleep with my Kira and not caress her.

She doesn’t have to tell me that she’s uncomfortable sleeping in the cave with my family around her. It’s evident in the stiffness of her body as we undress for bed. Or at least, I undress for bed. Kira simply takes her shoes off and lies down, fully clothed and twitching with every small sound. Every hiccup Sessah makes, every snort my brother Rokan makes in his sleep, every murmur of my father and mother as they mate – Kira hears all of it, and it’s clear she’s bothered.

There will be no mating until we have our own cave and privacy.

Very well, then. I will just have to push things along. My need to claim my Kira again overrides everything. I hunger to taste her sweetness on my tongue, to mate her mouth with mine, to sink my cock deep into her cunt and hear her bellow with pleasure.

It’s these thoughts that drive me to suggest a trip to the South Caves the next morning. Kira’s nibbling on one of the root-cakes that she and the human women seem to enjoy so much and chatting with the others by the fire. Vektal is relaxing in the pool while Georgie braids his hair into a thousand tiny braids that stand up straight around his horns and look like a strange nest. Everyone’s relaxed and enjoying themselves before starting the day – a perfect time to sneak away with my Kira.

When she finishes eating, I pull her aside. “Come with me today.”

She dusts off her hands and nods. “Where are we going?”

“To see the South Caves. I want to take a look at how many caves we have and their placement before we make final decisions of who should stay and who should go.”

Kira tilts her head and gives me a curious look. “You don’t know the caves?”

I do, actually. I know them by heart, and have been many times. But I’m itching to have alone time with my lovely mate, and this is the best way to do it. “I do, but I wish your feedback.”

A brilliant smile crosses her face and my cock surges at the sight of it. We definitely need to get away from the others, or else they’re all going to watch while I claim my lovely mate, because I’m not going to be able to resist touching her for much longer.



? ? ?





“Well?” I ask as she steps into the mouth of the South Caves. “What do you think?” I’m anxious to hear her thoughts.

She gazes up at the high ceiling. “You have stalactites.”

“I do not know this word.”

“The rock icicles,” she says, and points at them. “They’re not in the other cave. I think Harlow was right that the elders had rock cutters of some kind when they made your cave.”

I admit I’m a little dismayed that her response isn’t enthusiastic. If I’m in charge of this cave as Vektal wishes, she’ll be with me. I want her to like it here. I want her to be with me.

“These caves are very different,” I admit. “There is no bathing pool in the center of the cavern, for one.”

She gives me a prim look. “That is not exactly a bad thing. The less I see of other people’s junk, the better.”

I chuckle. Her modesty is strange. She’ll lose it eventually, but for now, I’ll enjoy her blushes and her squirming. “Do you not wish to see your mate naked?”

“I see you naked plenty,” she says, and her cheeks are pink as she steps past me, gazing around her. “It’s darker in here, and colder.”

I follow her. “The other cave is warmed by the underground spring, so it stays pleasant even in the brutal season. Here, we would need to rely on more fires.”

“Fires aren’t bad,” she says, her expression thoughtful. “We still have a lot of people eating cooked food. And the ceiling is high so the smoke won’t be so bad.” She heads toward one of the private nooks that are living quarters. There’s still an old leather screen propped up in front of the cave mouth as a nod to privacy. And she gasps. “My goodness. It’s so big in here!”

“Is it?” I feel a hint of pride return. “Do you like it?”

“As long as we don’t freeze in the winter, I think there’s potential,” she says with a small laugh. She pushes into the private cave and looks around. I follow her. It’s been at least fifteen full cycles of the seasons since this cave was inhabited, and I don’t remember who it once belonged to. In the center of the room is a dug-out fire pit with neat rocks circling it. There’s a flat section off to one side that probably housed the bed furs, and a few withered baskets that have been chewed at the bottom. She walks past all this, and then flashes me a smile and sticks her hand out. “Show me which one you had in mind for us?”

I return her smile and take her small hand in mine. I love the feel of her cold fingers lacing between mine for warmth, and the urge to drag her to the floor of the cave and claim her is nearly overwhelming. I stare down at her, my cock hardening in my loincloth.