Page 138 of The Knucker King

“Lord!” she snapped.

“Little witch?” he replied, going cross-eyed as he looked down his snout at her.

“Put me down!”

Trewoofe grumbled as he marched into the closest sea cave. It was warm and gloomy inside. The air was heavy with the smell of wet sand and salt. The space was large and allowed him to move reasonably encumbered. The walls were high and ridged, and there was a deep tidal pool. He pressed his head to closest ridge in the granite wall so Avice could dismount. She slipped off in a tangle of skirts and sandy feet. The peek of her tempting thighs so close to his face did absolutely nothing to calm the boiling blood pulsing through his veins. Instinct urged him to return outside. He needed to protect his soul-bound and Kingdom from the Sidhe King on his beach.

Trewoofe snapped his head to the cave entrance, nose twitching, catching the visceral sent of Morgowr blood on the sea breeze. He dug his talons into the sand and lashed his tail. His crest was flushed and full, blaring red even in the gloom of the cave.

“Lord?” Avice asked.

He flicked his gaze from the entrance to her and back again. “Yes?”

“Do not ever do that again without asking me first!” she growled. “You do not get to control who I am with or where I go!”

It was then Trewoofe knew he had erred.

Barring the afternoon of Equinox, Avice had only spoken kindly to him, so hearing her voice laced with wrath made him recoil. What was he thinking, carrying her off the beach like some brute? He knew that Avice had horrible things done to her body without her permission.

He dropped his head in shame and his eyes widened in horror at what he saw. His entire front was stained with Treth’s silver blood and bits of his shattered blue scales. Trewoofe knew that not only had he behaved like a brute, but he also looked like one. He quickly dove for the tidal pool, sluicing himself clean in the salty water as Avice watched on with a scowl.

Trewoofe sidled up to her, his ears flattened and his eyes on his paws. “I apologise. It was only out of fear for your safety.”

The ridge she was on was roughly his height, and she could look at him face on. Despite the gloom, her eyes were bright with fury, and he felt the burn of her wrath.

“I understand that you were angry and scared, that it came from a place of protectiveness and care. But you do not get to do that to me, Trewoofe.”

“I will never do it again,” he promised, meeting her face. “The instinct for Knucker’s to protect their families is very strong—” Avice opened her mouth to speak. “Please let me finish,” he said, resting his chin on the edge of the ridge she stood on and looking at her sorrowful eyes. “As you said the afternoon of the ritual. I offer it not as excuse, but an explanation.”

Avice snapped her mouth shut and nodded.

“I explained to you how territorial Sidhe Kings can be,” he rambled, “added to that, seeing my soul-bound nearly killed by him. I saw red. The rage, it was—”

“Soul-bound?” Avice asked, her mouth round.

Trewoofe twitched his tail. Just days before he had stopped himself from telling her how he really felt. He continued anyway. He had to tell his little witch the truth. The sight of her being knocked from her feet, being so close to death from another’s jaws, he could not hold back anymore.

“Knucker’s mate for life, Avice. I cannot tell you how blessed I am by Nature herself to find another soul-bound.”

“I, uh…”

“I know it is too soon in our courtship to say such a thing. But I nearly saw you killed just moments ago, and I cannot stay reserved about the depth of my feelings,” he babbled. “Though, I was so proud when I saw you strike a blow to his—”

“Shush.”

Avice stepped forward and sat. She gestured for him to move his head, so he was side on to her. Trewoofe did as she bid and pressed his lower jaw against her folded legs. His pupil contracted on her in the gloom. Her cheeks were flushed, and she looked like her mind was turning like a spinning wheel. She ran her hands over his head, and to the base of a horn, leaving it resting there, tickling his sensitive scales with her palms.

“I accept your apology. I scolded you because you removed me from the situation without my permission, but I understand why you did it,” she said. “I also need to say two more things.”

Trewoofe rumbled from her ministrations. She had found his scalp and throat was sensitive in his human form, and she seemed to have realised it was the same for his Knucker body. Tingles shot down his spine, making his crest flutter and tail twitch. He melted under her touch, happily enthralled by her gentle caresses.

“I am sorry for throwing a boot at you,” she continued, “and thank you for saving my life.” She continued patting him, and his crest quivered, coloured with his arousal display of pink and purple. “I care very deeply for you, Lord. You must know by now I adore you. We were only apart briefly, but I could not stop thinking about you.”

“I accept your apology,” he purred. “It is my honour to protect you, Avice. A Knucker’s greatest purpose is to look after those he cares for.”

She let out a breathy sigh and deepened her petting. Trewoofe felt more than just the pleasure from her touch. Power thrummed up through him from the sands and delightful sparks made his paws tremble. In a blink, coastal wildflowers popped up over the sharp points of the granite. White oxeyes, pink campions, and purple parsley rolled out like a lush rug for them to lay on.

Trewoofe could smell her over the delicate florals.