Chapter 4 - Touching

Mav's P.O.V.

I don't know how long Sienna and I have been silently sitting on the floor. I feel like a fool for breaking down like I did. No one has ever made me feel anything other than pain. The sparks from the mate bond and the kindness of her touch were too much. Sitting here holding her hand has given me time to calm down enough that I'm ready for her to show me around.

"Thank you for sitting with me like this. You can show me around now." Sienna looks at me in concern.

"Are you sure? I don't want you to do anything you're not ready for." I turn to face her while keeping her hand in mine. Her eyes are the most beautiful I have ever seen, and with her pale blonde hair, she almost doesn't seem real.

"Yes, I'm sure. I'm usually not a big baby. I can take beatings without flinching, but you made me feel something inside that I'd never felt before, and I didn't know what to do. Just being here with you this short time has made me feel like some of the broken pieces of myself have been fixed. I know you may not accept me, but you've already made me feel, and that means more to me than you'll ever know." She smiles slightly and puts her hand on my cheek. The sparks and warmth make my pulse race.

"I'm not going to reject you, Mav. I just want to make sure that this is the life you want. Going from what you went through at the palace, to living in a pack and becoming someone's partner, is very different. Take some time to get used to this, and then when you're ready, we'll mark each other." I don't know what this feeling in my chest is, but it makes me want to hold onto Sienna and never let her go.

"You're incredible. I'm so scared that I'm going to do or say something to mess this up," I tell her.

"Don't be scared. Say and do what you want. Right now, what do you feel like doing?" I look away, not sure if I should tell her the truth.

"I want to hug you." I look back at her, and she smiles again.

"That's something I can do." Before I can react, Sienna climbs onto my lap and straddles me. When she wraps her arms around my neck, her body is plastered to mine. I put my arms around her and hug her tight. Having her like this feels so good. I can feel her heart beating against my chest and the tickle of her breath on my cheek. Her scent is so strong, I'm swimming in it. Sienna slides her hands from my neck over my shoulders and down my arms. My body begins reacting to her touch, and I try to move her off of me before she feels it, too. She pulls away slightly to look into my eyes.

"It's okay to have that reaction with me. It's not okay to have it with someone else. If you do, we'll have problems. I'm assuming you've never been with a woman." I shake my head as she slides her hands under my shirt and over my chest. I shiver from all the sparks she's causing and it’s making me get even harder.

"I've never been with a man either. I've never been kissed or touched a man, like I’m touching you. We may have come from different backgrounds, but there are a lot of things that we'll be experiencing for the first time together. Do you like it when I touch you?" She keeps her eyes on mine as her hands rub over my back, sides, and chest.

"Yes. Can I touch you?" I'm scared I'll touch her somewhere I shouldn't. She tilts her head to the side and smiles. She takes one of my hands and slides it inside the back of her shirt so it's on her back. I slide it up and down gently.

"Don't be scared to touch me. I'm your mate. Can I kiss you?" Sienna shifts on my lap, and I groan. She wants to kiss me. I can't speak, so I just nod.

She lightly puts her mouth to mine. When her lips start moving, I go with instinct. This is more than I could have ever hoped for. Her lips are so soft.

"What did you sleep on at the palace?" I put my other hand under her shirt and rub them both over her smooth back.

"On a blanket on the ground." Sienna gasps and kisses me again.

"Tonight, will you sleep in my bed with me? I want to be there for you in case you have nightmares or don't remember where you are? I've seen it happen with wolves held captive by other packs." The thought of having Sienna lying next to me all night makes my mind go crazy.

"Yes. Thank you for being so kind." She kisses me again, and this time, she sucks on my bottom lip, causing my erection to get painfully hard.

"Don't thank me. Part of me is being selfish. I don't want to let you out of my sight. No one is going to hurt you ever again, Mav. I do have a question, though. If you don't return to the palace, the King will know you haven't completed your mission. How long do you think we have before he sends someone else to kill me?" She asks so matter-of-factly that it makes me feel sick. Sienna is right, King Harlan will send another assassin to kill her, and if he finds out I'm here, they will try to kill me, too. I'm still a trained killer. Whoever comes to kill my mate will die a painful death.

"He will probably know something didn't go as planned by tomorrow at the latest. King Harlan is not a patient man. He'll send someone immediately to see what happened to me and try to get to you. Sienna, I was trained by them. I know their tricks and how they operate. Let me help you secure the pack to defend against them. I will not let them get to you." She smiles and kisses my cheek.

"Hearing you speak like that warms my heart. You will see that many in the pack don't like me. Some have even tried to leave to go to the palace and offer to kill me for the King. It's a fight every day just to figure out who I can trust. Thank you for being on my side." I look into her eyes and see a vulnerability that I know she tries to hide from the world. She's an Alpha, probably the strongest woman in the world, but she's also scared. I lean forward and kiss her. It's the first kiss I've initiated, and it wakes something up inside of me.

"I will always be on your side. When the assassins come, we'll kill them. When the King runs out of people to send, he'll get angry and come himself. When that happens, we will kill him and the Queen. They're both evil. We will do this together, my beautiful Alpha." She smiles so brightly her entire face lights up.

"I think I'm falling in love with you, Mav." Love, that's that feeling in my heart. I have never felt it, but hearing her say the word, I know that's what I'm feeling.

"I will be the man you need as a mate and partner. Most of all, I will be the man who will always love you." She wraps her arms and legs around me, and we stay in each other's embrace without saying anything. Sienna is my life now. She is my chance at a future that doesn't include pain and torture. She is my reason for living. Anyone who dares to threaten her is ensuring their own death.