Falk Clan Tales - Chapter 102: Chapter 102

Nicholas took the steps to Castle Falk two at a time, barely stopping to greet Callius and his brothers in the foyer before setting off to greet his mate.
His mate. No matter how many times he thought about it, he always grinned like a madman. How did he get so lucky? Minerva Lykos was everything he ever wanted in a female.
She was feisty and fun, curvy and confident, brilliant, and surprisingly vulnerable when he least expected it. A goddess in the sheets, and a worthy adversary when playing video games. The game console was the next thing they’d set up that morning. He could not wait for a rematch of strip trivia and had been listening to a podcast featuring pop culture references just to brush up on his skills.
Afterwards, Nick reluctantly went down to the construction site to oversee the delivery of some important materials. He hated leaving her, but he knew better than to coddle his fearsome she-Wolf, besides, she’d had to run her finished artwork over to the gallery in Manhattan.
Fucking Roger. It had been so worth seeing that male piss his pants when Nicholas and Devine had cornered him in Tiny’s backroom. The Gorilla Shifter had made sure the Dragons did nothing to reveal themselves, but there was more than one way to put the fear of the gods in a man. Especially a weakling like that rat bastard.
Stealing from a woman, Nick’s woman. The lout was lucky he’d walked away on his own two feet. His Dragon had wanted him flayed and charred over Dragonfire. Not a bad idea, to be honest. But Devine had it right when he told Nick the loser was not worth getting in trouble with their Alpha. Callius Falk was one mean motherfucker when he had to be, and if it meant protecting his family and Clan, then he was downright scary.
But no. Nicholas did not need fangs and claws to get his message across. A well-placed snarl, and the threat of bodily harm seemed enough to have the man staining in his pants and handing over everything he had stolen, minus his payment to Tiny, which Nicholas had replaced.
He did not want the Silverback hurt by this affair, and besides, it was good to maintain friendships with other Shifter groups. Nick would not miss the money, having plenty himself. And he understood the gallery had yet to take their cut. Minnie had been livid for all of ten minutes, then he explained about his stock portfolio and Niko Falk’s penchant for making money.
“I will pay you back,” she’d said, but he’d tickled her until she relented.
“Don’t want your money, minx. I want this,” he’d said and buried his head between her thick thighs, his fingers tugging on the plump tips of her ripe breasts.
He readjusted his boner in his jeans and ignored the laughter and conversation going on around him. Where was his mate? He sniffed the air, catching her scent lingering in the room off the main parlor, but it was old by a few hours at least.
“Hey Nick,” Sunny said, walking up to him with a worried expression on her face. He had never seen his brother’s mate look so upset, and concern had him halting his forward progression.
“Is something wrong? Where is Devine?”
“he’s fine, Nick, and so am I, but well, you see, I think there’s been a misunderstanding⁠—”
“She’s right, Nicholas,” Winifred Falk interrupted them, and Nicholas owed his head in reverence to the Alpha Dragon’s mate.
“We upset Minnie by assuming she was ready for children. I am so sorry, and a little embarrassed that we came off as so pushy. I talked to the other mates, and they are all profoundly sorry for making Minerva uncomfortable⁠—”
“I don’t understand,” Nicholas said, shaking his head. “Minerva got upset over talk of young?”
“Nick, her mother lost a pup during childbirth⁠—”
“Her brother, Angel. Yes, I am aware, but what does that have to do with us?”
His heart was pounding, and his beast was snarling. Was Minnie alright? It was the only thing that mattered to him. He wanted to run out of the room to search for her, but listening to her friend might help, so he waited, and he listened.
“Well, she is afraid of childbirth and since I have known her, she has never mentioned wanting children⁠—”
“That is her right to decide. I am sorry, I still do not understand the problem,” Nick stated, rubbing his hand across his face.
The Dragon within him was snapping and scratching at his skin, demanding to be loosed to pursue his mate. Something had upset his sweet little minx, and Minerva had fled. He needed to find her, to let her know he would make right whatever had spooked her.
“It’s just, well, look at everyone here,” Sunny stated, pointing at Jozette coddling her newborn, and Noelle chasing a pair of twin boys around the tree. There were kids everywhere, and while he was thrilled to be part of a Clan with so many young, he was not in any way lacking for want of a babe.
“Look, we know how all you big Dragons crave young, so naturally we’d assumed she wanted babies⁠—”
“Wait, does she think I only want her for young? Fucking hell,” he murmured. “I have to go after her.”
“Wait,” Sunny said, flicking her gaze to Fred before stopping him with a hand raised. “Don’t you want her for her ability to bear your young?”
“I have no idea what gave you that impression, Sunny Graystone, but I want Minerva because she is my topaz rose.”
“But Devine said you both dreamed about fathering children for decades.”
“I have a new dream now,” he growled, voice barely human.
“She is mine. She is my dream. Es meus. Est sominum meum.”
Roooaaaarrrrr.
Nicholas was already shucking off his clothes by the time he reached the back of the castle. Pulling on his cloaking ability, he shot off into the dark skies and combed the woods for his mate. Her scent was faint, but he needed to find her, to let her know where she stood in his life—and that was above everything else.
Tugging on their new and fragile matebond, Nicholas hunted Minnie to the ends of the forest. Her sadness stabbed at him like a dagger, but she needed space. He realized that as he circled above. His mate was a smart, caring, and totally badass she-Wolf. But even so, she was entitled to time to work things out.
He returned to where her scent was strongest, to the cabin the Falk Clan used for changing and playing in the woods beside their castle. Inside, he hunted up a pair of sweats and waited impatiently for Minnie to come back to him. All the while, he kept the link to their bond open so she could find him when she was ready.
After a few hours, she came back. He knew the moment she stepped over the threshold. It was like he could breathe again, and Nicholas gave silent thanks to the universe for bringing her back.
Silently, he walked over to her, greeting her Wolf with gentle strokes along her snout and ears. He took a fluffy, clean towel from the shelf and started rubbing her dry. It was snowing, and she was cold and wet from her travels.
The she-Wolf sat back on her haunches, sadness welling in her gold eyes, and a whimper rose from her throat. It was killing him to see her so sad, but he needed her warm and dry and safely back in her human skin before he spoke. Nick did not have to wait long.
Thank fuck.
“Nicky,” she murmured, tears flowing as he wrapped a second, larger towel around her shoulders. “I have to talk to you. I have to apologize⁠—”
“About what, my love?” he asked, then nuzzled her helplessly. “Christ, I missed you. Come here,” he murmured.
Nick busied himself wrapping her up in his arms and carrying her to the sofa in front of the fireplace. He’d started a flame there a few hours ago, and the room was toasty warm—perfect now that she was in it.
“I’m sorry, I am so sorry,” she began.
“For what, silly Wolf? I love you. Everything is alright.”
“It’s not,” she replied, shaking her head. “I told you about my mom, but I never said I was afraid to have kids, and the truth is I don’t know if I will ever not be afraid. It’s just something I always took for granted. I never planned on finding a mate, so I never worried about it. I didn’t know Dragons crave young to settle their beasts. Sunny told me, but if I knew, I would never have kept it from you. I understand if you want to leave me⁠—”
“Minerva, my sweet mate. Are you quite finished, love? Now it’s my turn. Yes, I had dreamed of being a father someday, but that was a secondary thing. My first dream was finding you.”
“You don’t have to say that⁠—”
“And I wouldn’t just say anything, my love, don’t you know that by now? You are the only thing in this world I can’t live without. You are my breath, my body, my soul, sweet Wolf. I need you, and only you, my topaz rose.”
Nicholas’s forehead pressed against hers as he confessed the depth of his feelings to his mate. She deserved so much out of life, so much from him, and damn it, he was going to spend his entire life trying to give it to her.
“You mean that?”
“Yes. I mean every word. I need you, Minerva. If you do not want young, we will not have them. We have dozens of nieces and nephews already to spoil between our combined Pack and Clan. Oh, and the females all apologized. They did not mean to hurt you or to appear insensitive⁠—”
“They said that?”
“Yes, love. I swear it.”
“And if I decide I want to try for a baby someday?” she whispered the question.
“Then we will try,” he replied simply, cupping his hand over the back of her neck, and pressing his mouth to her head. “Silly woman. You and me—we are it for one another. I am yours forever, my love. Don’t you know I cannot live without you?”
Minnie sighed and pressed herself firmly against him, placing kisses all over his face and neck. She straddled him then, and Nick’s body reacted predictably, as it always would for her.
“There is one thing I must ask you to promise me, mate,” he growled as she pushed his sweats down and cupped his rigid staff with her hands.
“What? Anything,” she replied, her golden gaze unafraid and full of feeling.
“No more running away. Don’t ever be scared to talk to me. We can accomplish anything together, but I need you to trust I am here for you,” he said, moaning as she stroked him lovingly, teasing a pearl of white from his slit.
“I swear it. I’ll never run from you. I love you too, Nicky, more than I ever thought possible.”
Then, his sexy little minx slid down his body and kneeled before him. Pushing him back into the cushions, Minerva covered Nick’s head with her mouth, sucking it into her hot, wet cavern.
A slow, steady pressure built inside him, hot as Dragonfire and just as powerful. She was incredible. Sweet, sexy, powerful, beautiful mate. Nick held her curls away from her face so he could watch as she loved on him with her wickedly talented mouth and hands.
“Better stop now, minx. Fuck, I’m gonna come.”
But she didn’t stop. She increased her efforts, eyes flashing gold when he exploded into her mouth. His sweet Minnie swallowed down every drop of his climax, and damn, but it was the sexiest thing he’d ever seen. Nicholas could barely restrain himself. He tumbled them both onto the floor, sucking one ripe nipple into his mouth as he delved between her thighs with his thick fingers.
“Nick!” she yelled his name, bucking against his hand while he bit down on her tiny nubbin, curling his fingers to hit just the right angle.
Nick and Minnie stayed in the cabin for hours after, loving each other so thoroughly he did not think either of them were going to make it home. But after a while, he dressed them both in borrowed sweats, and took his mate back to their home.
“Are you still gonna knock this place down?” she asked as he carried her over the threshold.
“You kidding me? This is my dream house, minx. We’re gonna turn it into a castle together,” he said, nipping her lip playfully.
That night, as Nicholas watched Minnie sleep, draped across his chest, he relaxed for the first time in centuries. Everything he had ever wanted was right there in his arms.
Es meus.