Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 80431 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 402(@200wpm)___ 322(@250wpm)___ 268(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80431 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 402(@200wpm)___ 322(@250wpm)___ 268(@300wpm)
Valor pulled him closer. “I swore to you the moment I came to your room at the facility and you slept in my arms.”
Zorion traced his fingers along Valor’s jaw, his heart hammering a hard rhythm.
They stayed there a long moment, letting their touches and eyes speak for them.
Eventually, Valor pulled them from the water. Zorion admired the droplets glistening down Valor’s bronzed skin as they made their way to the shore.
Zorion spread their tunics on the grass while Valor gathered dry twigs and brush to start a fire.
He struck two stones together with practiced ease, coaxing a spark until the flames ignited and crackled to life. The scent of burning wood mingled with the sharp scent of the tide and surrounded them in warmth.
Valor pulled him into his embrace and pressed a tender kiss to his damp hair before whispering, “Yield to me.”
He turned in Valor’s arms, feeling heavy with the weight of the moment.
Zorion took his time getting to his knees in a submissive position. He lowered his eyes to the ground for a moment as an act of reverence.
He felt Valor’s shudder, heard the hard hitch of his breath, saw how the act made his cock stiffen.
Zorion lifted his gaze back to Valor. He swore he could feel the beast within him, silent and watchful.
“My cherished.” Zorion enunciated each word. “I will obey you, honor you, and trust you to guide me through life…forever. I will fight beside you always, until the day I fall. I yield to you, Valor, the man of bravery and most worth.”
A growl rumbled from Valor’s chest as he cupped Zorion’s chin in a strong grip and tilted his face upward, locking their gazes.
He pressed the gentlest kiss to Zorion’s lips before he responded.
“Thank you,” Valor whispered. “My cherished, my soul’s mate. I vow to never fail you, leave, disgrace, or mistreat you. I will protect you with my life. If we fight together, we will be victorious together, or we will fall together. I will forever honor you, Zorion, phantom of the night sky.”
Their lips met again, their bodies drawn together, as Valor guided Zorion down onto the warm grass and made slow, passionate love to him. Not as warriors nor as assassins but as soul-bound men.
This time wasn’t about pleasure or release. Valor thrust deeply into Zorion as if engraving his devotion inside him.
The earth embraced them as their hearts beat as one.
Chief Aiken Oakley
Valor
Valor woke to the heat of the sun on his sweat-dampened skin, a satisfied ache in his muscles, a deep hunger gnawing at his stomach, and an empty space in his arms.
He sat up and let out a big yawn just as a familiar bristle of fur rubbed against his back.
“Morning, Neptune.”
The big cat settled beside him, stretching her long body out to bask in the sun.
“You seen my cherished around here anywhere?” he murmured, running his palm along her back.
After a few seconds, Valor spotted Zorion perched on a smooth boulder. He was a vision of strength and grace, naked and drenched in sunlight.
His toned body glistened, droplets of water tracing paths down the contours of his chiseled torso.
Zorion’s long, platinum hair was darker when wet, slicked back and clinging to his shoulders as he crouched in perfect stillness, eyes locked on the water’s surface.
Valor watched, mesmerized, as Zorion slowly lifted his arm, flexed his wrist, fingers poised, waiting. Then, in a blur of movement, he struck.
Zorion plunged his hand into the water with the speed of a striking hawk, and when he yanked it out, he held a writhing fish tight in his fist.
Valor’s breath caught.
He had always known Zorion was fast, but this…this was beyond what he’d seen during their training.
Omega had honed Zorion’s instincts to an unnatural degree, his strikes now faster than the eye could track.
As Zorion began to walk toward the shore, a piercing cry split the calmness of the morning.
A huge eagle with its wings spread wide enough to create shade descended toward Zorion, its talons gleaming like polished onyx as it plummeted with unstoppable force.
What the…?
At the last second, it flared its wings, catching the wind with a power that defied gravity, and landed on Zorion’s right shoulder as if it belonged to him, as if they were one.
The huge raptor’s golden eyes gleamed with challenge as it glared at the fish in Zorion’s grasp. It let out a sharp screech, flexing its bronze-colored wings.
With an easy smirk, Zorion lifted the fish just out of reach. The eagle lunged, snapping its beak at the prize, but Zorion moved fluidly, teasing the great bird with a fondness that spoke of a bond.
Valor chuckled when Zorion was close enough to hear him. “You tempt fate playing with him like that.”
Zorion rubbed his temple along the bird’s stark white chest. “He knows better than to challenge me.”