Page 30 of The Orc Protector's Secret Baby
"Cagan?" Hayden questions, her voice achingly tender. The melodic sound of my name on her tongue, spoken with such warmth and concern, almost erodes my resolve entirely. But I only shake my head wordlessly, unable to meet her searching emerald gaze, so filled with care.
"Forgive me," I rasp hoarsely, stumbling back several paces to put some much-needed distance between us.
Desire still simmers hotly through my veins, making my massive hands tremble and flex with the fierce urge to reach for her again. But I clench them into tight fists at my sides. I cannot, will not give in to my own selfish appetites.
"I… I don’t know what came over me," I stammer. "I shouldn’t have been so bold.”
Hayden continues to stare at me wordlessly, her luminous emerald eyes boring into me. To my shock, I don’t see even the faintest shred of anger smoldering in their depths, but rather a heated, yearning look that makes my pulse quicken and my blood boil with anticipation.
"Cagan," she finally whispers, her voice rich with unspoken longing as she takes a deliberate step nearer, closing the small gulf still separating us.
The sound of my name upon her tongue sends an involuntary spike of raw need lancing through my core. Unconsciously, my huge hands clench into even tighter fists, my nails gouging painfully into my palms as I wage a war within myself to resist the urge to reach for her once more.
"Cagan," Hayden repeats more firmly, erasing still more of the scant distance between us.
Her heated emerald gaze flicks briefly down to my mouth before slowly returning up to meet mine. I cannot restrain a shudder of desire under the intensity of her unwavering stare. She stands mere inches away now, so close I can feel the seductive warmth radiating from her body.
My traitorous heart slams out a jagged staccato against my ribs in response. My breath catches raggedly in my throat, coming now in short, harsh pants. I realize I want this woman with a ferocity that terrifies me.
"We can’t do this," I somehow manage to grind out, though the half-hearted protest rings feeble and hollow even to my own ears. "It wouldn’t be right. Not like this."
But even as I speak the weak words, my massive arms flex and bunch with the volcanic urge to pull her to me once more. With her standing there, so temptingly near, my tenuous restraint is fraying by the second. Soon it will snap altogether, I know. And perhaps some small, secret part of me wishes it so.
An expression of fierce determination flashes across Hayden's exquisite features, her jaw set stubbornly. Then without further hesitation she decisively closes the scant remaining distance still separating us. Throwing her willowy arms about my bulky neck, she presses the length of her supple body wantonly to mine. Before I can summon the will to utter even the slightest protest, she pulls my head down and finds my mouth again with her own in a kiss that is hungry and brimming with sensual intent.
For a single, earth-shattering heartbeat I stand paralyzed, unable to respond at all. My mind reels, overwhelmed by the scent and taste of her. Then heedless instinct conquers coherent thought once more.
With a muffled groan, I grip her delicate waist, reflexively pulling her even more tightly to me as I return her ardent kiss with a fervent urgency to match her own. In this sublime moment, nothing else matters but the exquisite feel of her soft mouth moving eagerly against mine, our passion cresting then breaking over us both in waves, carrying away the last tattered remnants of my restraint.
When we finally break apart some timeless age later, both gasping harshly for breath, Hayden gifts me with a smile of such radiance it rivals the sun. "I think this makes everything right between us now," she murmurs, nuzzling against my throat in a way that unravels me entirely.
Unable to form any words in response, I simply tighten my arms around her possessively. Perhaps there are still arguments to be made for stopping this madness. But they can come later. For now, for this one perfect, stolen moment, I intend to lose myself completely in her warm and willing embrace. The rest of the world can wait for now.
17
HAYDEN
Iam drawn to him like a moth drawn to flame. His fierce nature to protect me, and to shelter me unlocks something primal inside me. He is such a paradigm. His large muscles, rugged scars, and callused hands make him seem so menacing. But the way he’s holding me right now, so gingerly as if I may break, and returning my kiss so tenderly makes him anything but. He breaks from the kiss and stares deep into my eyes. Our foreheads still touching.
“What happened here, Hayden? Tell me so I can make whoever did this pay,” he growls out.
"It was the wolves," I explain, still reeling from the terror of it all. "I was inside, reading, when I heard their howls. Before I knew it, they were inside ransacking everything.” I shudder at the memory. "There were three of them. I had no time to hide, but did I manage to grab my knife and slash at them whenever they lunged at me. They were more interested in the food, thankfully.”
My voice shakes as I recount the horrific details.
"I did everything I could to fend them off, to protect what little I have, but they were relentless.”
I can feel the tension radiating off Cagan. His instinct to protect me on high alert. I wouldn’t take it past him to seek out every wolf involved and mutilate them.
"When I realized there would be nothing left worth salvaging, I ran as fast as I could into the woods and climbed up a tree. I watched from above as they destroyed everything.” I feel tears welling up as the thought hits me again. "And now my home is gone. You worked so hard on it, and I know it wasn’t much… but that's all I had."
“You have me, Hayden. I’m not going anywhere,” he says as he stares directly in my eyes like he’s trying to see deep down into my soul.
“Well, I was going to find you, but I had to clean myself up. I was covered in dirt and debris, so I went down to the nearby stream to wash off," I explained to him.
Cagan nodded, his jaw clenched. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there to protect you."
"You couldn’t have known Cagan, this is all so bizarre,” I say. “Then I went back to see the remains, hoping to find some extra clothes, but I didn’t have any luck.”