Brenna's POV

I felt so safe with him, and I was grateful that he was so gentle and kind to me. I wasn't used to being respected by a man. My father was cruel to me, and most of the other men around me were only interested in marrying me for alliances, so they weren't much better.

Before I knew it, I turned my head up and pressed my lips against his.

They were so soft and warm. His tusks pressed against my cheeks, but it wasn't bad. He flinched at first because he wasn't expecting it, but then he leaned into it and moved his lips rhythmically with mine.

I felt his rough hand slide down the curve of my hip and under my nightgown. He traced his fingers up my bare thigh. He squeezed my hip as he kept kissing me. Gods, his touch was intoxicating.

My heart was pounding; "What was I doing?"

I started to feel afraid because I didn't know what lovemaking entailed. I wasn't ready for it. All I knew was that it led to babies, and most women who have said anything about it referred to it as a painful duty to their husbands.

I think he felt me tense up at that moment and pulled his lips from mine. "Are you alright," He breathed softly.

I'm glad he couldn't see my face in the darkroom because I probably looked like a lobster at this point. "I'm just nervous. I don't want to... to go too far." I admitted.

He understood what I meant. He pulled me against his body. I could feel a hard bulge pressed against my pelvis. Then, he lifted my leg to wrap it around his waist. He kissed the top of my head and wrapped his arms around me.

His body relaxed, and after a while, his breathing deepened. He'd fallen asleep, and I wasn't far behind him. I nuzzled my face under his chin and finally fell asleep myself.

Jasper's POV

I could feel the light begin to peek through the windows. My sleeping quarters were one of the few places that could have windows since part of the castle was built into the mountains. My room was built out on the north side and overlooked the waterfall.

I slowly started to recall my dreams. Gods, it was the best dream, feeling her body against mine, tasting her sweet lips. I felt something move beside me, causing me to jolt fully awake. I froze, realizing Brenna was in my bed.

It hadn't been a dream; she was snuggled against me, breathing softly. One of her hands was against my bare chest, and the other hand was entangled in my hair. I rubbed my eyes to double-check. I thought I had imagined everything that happened yesterday.

As much as I wanted to lay here forever, I untangled myself from her carefully. I didn't want to wake her up because she looked so peaceful. I suddenly felt guilty and afraid. I still needed to explain everything to her. There just hasn't been a good time to do it. I wondered if she'd be upset with me for waging war with her people. On the other hand, I was afraid that her reason for kissing me last night was more to comfort herself than her having feelings for me.

I started to walk away to find a shirt to throw on until I heard her voice.

"Chief," She whispered.

I turned to see her staring at me with those big doe eyes of hers. "Who are you calling Chief little warrior" I smiled at her and sat on the edge of the bed.

Her expression changed and became a little more serious. "I'm sorry, what do you prefer me to call you."

I looked at her softly, "I'm only kidding. Most of my people call me Jasper.

I waited to see if she'd say anything else, but all she did was sit up and pull the blankets around herself.

"Did you sleep alright?" I asked.

She gave me a nod in response. I couldn't figure out what she was thinking.

"About last night...," her face immediately turned red when I mentioned it. "I'm sorry" is all I could muster. I hoped she felt something for me. I waited for a response.

"Why are you sorry?" she asked

"I just thought you might regret it, " I muttered

"I don't regret it." She answered shyly. She inched closer to me, so I pulled her onto my lap.

"So you wouldn't mind if I... did it again," I said, leaning into her. She shook her head and smiled.

I placed her arms around my neck. Then I wrapped my arms around her waist. I couldn't believe she was letting me do this again. I pressed my lips onto hers and began kissing her. She let out a small muffled sigh as I squeezed her hips.

The more we kissed, the more I wanted her. I could feel my dick getting hard and throbbing, but I knew that wasn't on the table. She was clearly a virgin. I let myself push some boundaries and slipped a little tongue into her mouth to see if she'd mind.

She didn't seem to withdraw, so I kept going. Her hands slid down to my chest as I sucked at her bottom lip a little. I wanted her so badly. She was sitting right on my cock; I had to stop myself. I knew I needed to come clean and tell her everything.

I reluctantly pulled my lips from hers and looked at her. "I need to tell you something, Brenna. I only hope it doesn't make you angry with me."

I spilled my guts to her. I was completely transparent with her, even if it would hurt her to know what her father had said and done. She needed to know why she was here and how her father had betrayed our trust to meet with him.

I told her how Corvus manipulated the situation and lied to his people so they would think the Orruk kidnapped her. I told her that his soldiers even requested that she back me on my claims of innocence if I hadn't "kidnaped" her.

Corvus's lies managed to infect my people as well. I told her it was my fault that two of my men kidnapped her. I felt I shouldn't have trusted my people as much as I had and should've been more protective of her. I didn't think they'd listen to Corvus's bullshit too.

She didn't say much, but I could tell it had crushed her to hear that her father didn't care for her. I asked her if she was okay and if I could do anything to help her, but she declined all my offers. Her only reply was that she needed some time to herself and asked if I could leave her alone for a while.

I couldn't blame her, so I left the room to deal with some duties I had here, but I couldn't help but worry that she'd not feel the same anymore toward me after all this. At least my conscience was clear.

Sometime later, I came back to check on her. She was lying curled up in my bed and didn't move when I came in. I couldn't tell if she was awake. "Brenna?" I said

She still didn't move, so I walked over to her. She just stared blankly at the wall, still crying. I hated myself at this moment.

"What can I do?" I pleaded with her.

Her eyes met mine. Her lip quivered when she went to speak. "Take me home." Her voice cracked as she began to sob.

My heart broke. "If that's what you want."