SWNOVELS The Alpha’s Pen Pal: Chapter 69
Once Haven and I had straightened ourselves out after our quickie, we left the villa with Nolan and Cassandra, following them through the winding stone paths of the island towards the center. The starlight glinted off the white houses, and the scent of the blossoming bougainvillea trees mixed with the salty brine of the seawater and invaded my senses.
It was that exact scent that had awoken that desperate, aching need in me while we were getting ready. That, and the swirling magic of the island and the way Haven looked in that almost see-through dress.
I inhaled again and caught another whiff of our mixed scents underneath the smells of the island, the scent of my cum lingering between her legs. I didn’t let her wash it off. Not with that dress she had to wear. Not with the way it hinted at what lay underneath. That scent would warn off any wandering eyes.
Luckily, the dim light from the darkened sky prevented her dress from being too sheer. Had we been in the sun, I’m sure there would be nothing left to the imagination. But under the light of the stars and the pitch-black night sky, there was only a subtle glimpse of the small swell of her breasts and the curve of her ass and thighs as they extended beneath the billowing fabric of the skirt.
We reached a stone archway covered in jasmine. We could see nothing beyond the archway as the path curved back into dense hedges, vines, and trees.
“You two may continue on,” Cassandra said, stopping just on this side of the arch. “Your gamma and I will wait for you back at your lodgings.”
“Nolan can’t join us?” I asked, my brow furrowed.
I glanced at my gamma, at the matching frown on his face. He crossed his arms over his bare chest and looked at Cassandra.
“Only those seeking answers may enter the sacred grounds,” she said.
“Then why did I have to wear this?” Nolan asked, gesturing at the white linen pants similar to mine that offset his caramel skin.
“It is custom.” She shrugged, then smiled at Haven and me. “Just follow the path. It will take you directly to the temple.”
I nodded at Nolan, and he sighed but nodded back, stepping aside so Haven and I could pass. We followed the overgrown path, careful to avoid the reaching branches and winding vines that grew denser as the path got closer to the center of the island.
Haven rounded the corner in front of me and gasped, freezing in place. I stepped up behind her, and my own breath caught in my throat at the sight before me.
The temple of Selene. Bathed in starlight, the round, open-air building had a roof held up by pillars, with jasmine winding around each column. Sheer fabric hung inside the temple, hiding the interior from view. There was a small, crystal-clear pool in front of the temple, with a flawless reflection of the temple in it.
It was beautiful, and as I glanced over at my mate, my breath left me again. The way her hair glowed in the starlight, and the way she looked in her gown for the temple, with the scent of the island and her own sweet scent blending together. She belonged here. I knew she had her doubts and insecurities, but the more I thought about it, the more convinced I became that she was, in fact, Selene’s daughter.
I reached out and took her hand in mine, stepping close to her and lifting her hand to my lips to kiss.
Walking towards us down the steps of the temple was an older she-wolf with dark auburn hair and green eyes, dressed in a white robe made of a similar fabric to Haven’s dress. Her eyes held a wisdom only obtainable from holding the knowledge of the gods.
The high oracle.
“We’ve been expecting you,” she said as she stopped in front of us.
“Yes, his mom, Luna Emily, contacted you to inform you of our visit,” Haven said.
The oracle shook her head. “We’ve been expecting you for much longer than that, my dear.”
“How?” she asked.
“Selene told us you would come. You and the young alpha from California.”
“So, she is Selene’s daughter, then?” I asked, my heart racing in my chest.
The woman’s eyes twinkled, but she didn’t respond. Didn’t confirm or deny. “You may ask her that yourselves,” she said, turning to walk back up the stairs.
“Ourselves? How? I just assumed you would ask her for us,” I said as we followed her, hand in hand, through the curtains and into the temple.
“You must find the answers you seek together. We can connect those worthy of a visit with Selene to her through a sacred ritual.”
“And what is this ritual?” Haven asked.
“First, you must both rid yourselves of the baggage holding you back from completely accepting your bond.” I swallowed, and Haven froze, looking down at the floor and avoiding my eyes. “Then, as you reconnect and reconcile, we will harness the energies from your euphoria to help your minds leave our realm behind and join Selene in her moon realm.”
“And in English?” Haven asked with an awkward chuckle.
I looked around the temple, at the candles and the wine and the many cushions and plush fabrics and furs on the sunken floor. At the alcoves where there were similar cushions and sheer curtains that would block the occupants from view of those in the main room of the temple. I clenched my jaw and blew out a breath, then looked down at Haven. “She means we have to do a sex ritual, Sugar Plum.”
Her mouth popped open into a little round O, her blue eyes widening in realization as she took in the temple’s interior.
“To put it crudely, yes,” the oracle confirmed.
“How does it work?” Haven asked, her voice a whisper. “I mean, I know we have sex, but—”
“The other oracles and myself will be in the alcoves there,” she said as she gestured around the temple.
“You’ll be watching us?” Haven asked as her eyes followed the sweep of the oracle’s hand.
I picked up on the flutter of her heartbeat and the nerves flying through her body, and underneath that, the hint of her arousal. I bit back my laugh and my surprise at her reaction. Public sex, while uncommon now, was a huge part of werewolf culture in the past, when mates used to claim each other in front of the pack. Even my lycan, usually quicker than me to snap into possessive mode, was at peace with the idea.
While I didn’t love the thought of others seeing my mate naked and in the throes of passion, a deeper, more primal part of me relished in the thought of staking my claim over her so publicly. Even if it was just as part of a sacred, somewhat private ritual.
But Haven’s reaction to that bit of information surprised me. I was not expecting her to be turned on by the idea.
“No,” the oracle said, answering Haven’s questions. “Not really. Not if you don’t wish us to, at least. There are curtains there”—she pointed to the far wall of the temple—“that we can draw around you and your mate while you complete the ritual.” Haven nodded. “I will give you and your mate time to discuss—”
“We’ll do it,” Haven blurted out, and I squeezed her hand, drawing her gaze to me. “We need answers,” she said. “No matter what I think, no matter my doubts, we need answers either way. You need them to mark me. We need them for our own peace of mind. And if this is how we get them, then so be it,” she finished in a firm voice.
“Very well,” the oracle said, a soft, knowing smile on her lips. “I will close the curtain while you prepare yourselves,” she added with a nod at the sunken temple floor.
I walked forward, Haven’s hand still in mine, pulling her with me as the oracle closed the drapes. She dropped my hand and took a few more steps, and I closed the distance, stepping up behind her to whisper to her.
“Tell me, Haven,” I chuckled, kissing the shell of her ear and raising my hands to rest on her hips. “How excited did the thought of others watching us fuck make you?”
She blushed, the pink extending down her neck and chest. “More excited than it should have,” she whispered.
I smiled against her cheek and nodded, my heart pounding at her confession. “Me too,” I admitted, reassuring her. She relaxed back against my chest, tilting her head to kiss me softly.
I released her and sat on the cushions, reaching over for the wine, and Haven lowered her body next to me, her eyes meeting mine.
I sipped the wine, letting the full-bodied flavor of the deep red bouquet float over my tongue and letting the warmth of the alcohol spread through my body and relax me. I offered the goblet to Haven, holding it for her as she sipped.
After setting the goblet down, I pulled her to me, settling her sideways in my lap, one arm around her waist and the other in her hair as I pressed my mouth to hers. My tongue swept over the seam of her lips, tasting the wine that lingered there.
“Tell me,” I murmured to her. “Tell me what you’re afraid of.”
She tightened her hold on my shoulders, her eyes closing as she breathed. “I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop,” she admitted. “All my life… whenever things seemed to be going well, something happened to prove me wrong. I keep wondering when that will happen. I keep waiting for you to realize this isn’t what you want.”
“Haven…” I soothed, my hands moving up and down on her back.
“I know, I know,” she murmured, pulling her body closer to mine and turning so she straddled me. “I know it’s an unfounded fear. But it’s my truth.”
I nodded, my nose brushing hers. “I still think I don’t deserve you,” I confessed. “I still blame myself for what happened to you. When we were kids.”
“That wasn’t your fault, Wesley,” she said, her hands holding my cheeks. “You were just a kid. What could you have done?”
“If I would have acted faster, realized sooner—”
“It doesn’t matter. It’s in the past. We found each other again, and that’s what is important.”
“Even so,” I said, my voice hoarse and tight. “I will never stop proving myself to you. I will never stop trying to earn your love and your heart.”
She kissed me, her body pressing against mine, and my hands moved down to her butt, squeezing and holding her closely. “I love you, Wesley,” she muttered.
“I love you too, Haven,” I replied, my lips traveling down her neck.
“Show me,” she moaned, her head tilting towards the open-air ceiling of the temple and her hair falling down her back in an avalanche of red curls. “Show me how you love me.”
I kissed down to her marking spot, sucking on the soft skin there, and pulled the bodice of her dress down her shoulders and arms until the fabric settled around her waist, and she sat topless in my arms. Her nipples pebbled in the cool air, and I captured one in my mouth, my thumb and forefinger pinching and rolling the other.
Her pale skin glittered in the starlight, her red hair blazing like the sun from the flames of the candles. Her hips rolled, and her dripping wet pussy rubbed my penis through my thin linen pants, drenching the fabric.
Her eyes looked down at me, wide and filled with a desperate need and no hint of shame. I lifted her body, maneuvering us so she lay on her back. Her red hair splayed out on the cushions, silks, and furs, her naked breasts rose and fell with her breaths, and her hard nipples pointed straight to the heavens.
I knelt between her thighs and pulled her dress down her hips and legs, exposing her lower half to me. Her entrance shimmered with the moisture collecting there, her inner thighs slick with her arousal. I sat back, removed my pants, and just looked at her, taking in all of her beautiful body.
It was becoming my favorite view—her naked and waiting for me. The way she peered up at me with those blue eyes, full of love and anticipation. The way her pale skin flushed from the pleasure I gave her and the thought of the pleasure she was about to receive.
It didn’t even matter that others were watching us, observing us, listening to us. My mate only had eyes for me and me for her.
We may not have known yet if she was Selene’s daughter, but in my eyes, she was already a goddess. She was my goddess, and she always would be, no matter what we learned during this ritual.
The scents from the island and my mate mixed with the vanilla and amber incense burning in the temple and the magic swirling around us. All of it was a heavy, heady aphrodisiac. My dick grew harder, and Haven writhed on the cushions, her thighs clenching and rubbing together as she sought her release.
“Wesley,” she moaned. “I can’t wait much longer.”
I hovered over her, holding my weight with my forearms, caging her in. “I know,” I replied, my voice just as husky as hers. “I feel the same need you feel,” I reassured her. “My body craves yours.”
She nodded, her eyes squeezing, and her back arching so her nipples grazed my torso. I ran one hand down her neck, chest, and torso until I reached the apex of her thighs. I slid one finger inside her, twisting it as it entered her soaking wet pussy. She was more than ready for me.
I rolled us so we were on our sides, her facing me, and I wrapped her leg around my hip to give me the proper angle to enter her. My cock notched at her entrance, and I rocked my hips forward, sliding myself into her.
She moved her hips so she sank down onto me, taking me in with a low moan. I cupped her ass with my hand and wrapped my other arm around her shoulders, holding her close to me. And with each thrust of our hips, our entire bodies rubbed together.
Everything was heightened. Every touch, every kiss, every thrust of my body into hers was exceedingly more pleasurable than the last. She took me in deeper than she had before, held me closer than she had before, and kissed me harder than she had before.
Our moans, sighs, and whispered words of love filled the temple as we clung to each other and moved together towards ecstasy. I pushed all my love for her towards her through the bond, and she did the same
As we neared our euphoria, I could feel it. Feel the magic pulling at us, pushing us to find our release.
“Haven.” I sighed, squeezing her to my chest and looking into her eyes.
Her lips parted, and she rocked faster against me until her walls clenched and pulsed around me. “Oooh,” she sighed, her eyes closing and her neck arching.
Her nipples hardened even more, and as my balls tightened, I found my release. I mimicked her long sigh of pleasure, closing my eyes and focusing on the feel of my mate around me and in my arms and the way our scents combined as we came together on the floor of Selene’s temple.
The magic pulled at me harder, tugging at my mind in my euphoric state. I relaxed into the pull, letting it guide me higher and higher until my mind floated above the stars, and all I could feel was warmth, light, and love.