Page 23 of Consumed By Fire
My face burns when I recall how angry he was when I told him that my mate wasn’t having sex with me because he no longer finds me attractive in my current state. It was the first thing that came to mind, so I went with it.
I look down at myself for a few seconds. My thighs are thicker, my hips wider. Gone are my toned abs; I now have a baby belly. I’ve always had full breasts, but they are huge now. Full and heavy and covered in blue veins. That can’t be sexy, surely? My nipples are much bigger, too. They are darker and get hard at the drop of a hat. Irritating.
I love being pregnant. I think that it is amazing how my body has adapted and changed to grow a baby. But I have to say, as far as looks go, I preferred my toned, lean body. I don’t feel attractive right now. Maybe that’s why I said what I did. His anger shocked me, though. He was pissed off at a mate I don’t even have. I tried to backpedal, but it didn’t work.
Octane is attracted to me. He said as much. He told me that he almost came all over me. I feel heat suffuse my chest, moving up my neck and spilling over onto my cheeks. My belly tightens. I get this zing of pure need that resonates from between my legs. I get turned on easily now that I’m with child. It’s the weirdest thing. My libido has skyrocketed. I come more easily, too. I read up that there is an increased blood flow to my vagina. It also has to do with hormonal changes. It can have that effect on a woman. Right now, I’m finding it seriously annoying.
Octane stops in a clearing and turns to me. “I think that this would be a good place to set up for the night.” He looks up at the thick canopy of trees above us. “We should be sheltered and hidden here. I also think you’ve exerted yourself enough for one day.” He glances at my belly for a moment before looking up at my face.
“I’m fine.” In truth, my back aches, and my muscles feel sore and tired. “We can keep going if need be.” I can handle it.
He shakes his head. “We’re stopping here. We’ll set off again at first light. We should try to find some food and water before resting up.”
I nod. We found some acai berries earlier, but there are only so many of the purple fruits I can eat before I get a tummy ache. I noticed that Octane also only ate one or two handfuls. It was enough to stave off the worst of my hunger but not enough to fill me.
The worst of it is that my mouth is dry. We haven’t had so much as a drop to drink, and I’m feeling thirsty.
“We can rest up for a few minutes, and then we’ll need to go foraging. I would leave you here, but…”
“You can trust me.”
He lifts his brows. “Really, now? Because last time I checked, you are the whole reason we are out here in the first place. You tried to escape earlier, remember?”
I sigh. “That’s true, but in hindsight, it wasn’t the best idea. I could’ve been captured and put to death.”
“You still could be.”
“Exactly. That’s why I won’t try to escape. Having said that, I’m happy to help when it comes to finding food and water. I’ll tag along so we don’t have to start another argument. There’s no point.”
“Good to know we agree on something.” Octane sits, keeping his legs open. He leans back against a tree trunk and groans, closing his eyes. “I don’t look forward to sleeping on the hard ground tonight.”
My eyes are drawn to his thick cock. I know I shouldn’t be looking, but I can’t help it. My gaze tracks upward to his tight abs and up to his broad chest, landing on his face, which is filled with amusement.
“See something you like, little Red?”
“No!” I suck in a deep breath and quickly turn my head away. Why am I such a damned idiot? I keep sticking my foot in it. “No…it’s…I…”
“Sit your ass down, Trinity. I’m teasing you. In light of recent events, it was probably in bad taste.”
“I thought we were going to forget that ever happened.”
“Yeah…well…it’s kind of hard to forget, but we can certainly try to move on from it.”
“Yes, let’s do that, please.” There is a pleading edge to my voice that I don’t much like. I wish I could erase the whole thing.
Octane keeps his gaze on me. “You shouldn’t look at me like that, Trinity. Is it different with your kind? Don’t you mate for life?” His eyes narrow on me.
“We are all the same kind. There is no yours and mine.” I lick my lips. Why was I checking him out? Arghhh! I need to stop this. “I wasn’t looking at you in any kind of way.”
“Perhaps I misread what I saw on your face.”
“Perhaps you did,” I mutter, not sounding very convincing. “I don’t need a break. I’m thirsty.” My stomach growls. “And apparently hungry, too. We should get going.” And move on from this uncomfortable conversation.
Octane jumps to his feet. “Let’s see if we can get you fed.”
I’m shocked when he climbs a nearby tree. He does it easily and quickly, navigating the branches effortlessly. He sticks his head up above the canopy for a few moments before climbing back down almost immediately.
“This way.” He points, and I follow him through the jungle to a grove of coconut trees. More than one tree has several coconuts growing on it, but they’re high up on long, narrow trunks. I crane my neck. Coconuts means coconut water.