Bronto's Revenge: 2 (Barbarian Lust) Read online

  Bronto dropped the rope and walked to the outskirt of the forest. A full-grown dinosaur headed in their direction, its head bobbing up and down in conjunction with its languid footsteps.

  Ground debris rustled as Zypher settled beside Bronto. “I think we stirred ourselves a whole lot of shit,” Zypher said. “Look at the size of that thing.”

  How could he miss it? It stretched at least eighty feet long from head to tail. “It’ll take it a while to get here. Let’s get everyone settled in the underground shelters.” As he stepped over a large rock, making a path to the camp, he spotted two more dinosaurs entering the clearing.

  “Men,” Vulcan shouted, “let’s go! If they’re coming for the babies, they’ll trample us. Round up the tribe.”

  “I doubt that’s their intention,” Tyran said. “But it isn’t wise to assume what they’ll do.”

  Bronto trotted to his hut to wake Ivy but when he threw back the flap the dwelling was vacant. His heart lurched as he dashed toward the yard, checking the other huts for occupancy as he passed by. Of course he wouldn’t find anyone because they were hollering and racing toward the underground shelters. He’d seen everyone whose name he’d encountered in his mind. Everyone but a specific woman whose absence shot his guts to his throat.

  Where the hell is Ivy? She wasn’t by the pen or the fire. Or with Wisteria because Vulcan already had her tucked beneath his arm as he urged her away.

  “Ivy!”

  No answer. Not a peep.

  What if the species had broken through the guards and taken her from the hut? Oh man, he didn’t want to think of that possibility. “Ivy!” he shouted again, his stomach twisting in knots.

  His heartbeat raced in panic mode, reaching his ears. Then suddenly it stopped when he spotted her by the supply hut, handing a fistful of something to Grunt. What the fuck? Grunt could have swept her away as easily as any of the species could have. No one would have questioned her absence either, assuming she’d sought shelter.

  Bronto steeled his shoulders and forced air into his lungs. A dull ache ticked along the tension in his spine. Part of him wanted to wait it out to see what she’d do next but he refused to err on the side of caution and he charged forward.

  He grabbed her by the arm and none too lightly. “What are you doing?” he asked, yanking her around.

  “I-I was…” Her eyes widened when she spotted him and he bet she didn’t like the expression she saw.

  He’d never felt so damn betrayed. Men like Grunt didn’t learn lessons. So, the beating he’d already endured and the prospect of a new ass whooping held no merit. Bronto clenched his free hand into a fist but restrained from sucker punching the SOB. Realistically Grunt hadn’t done anything but hold up his hand. He hadn’t even touched Ivy. It was her touching him when she laid something in his palm. “Go to the weapons shelter,” Bronto ordered.

  Her gaze danced around his face. “What about—”

  “Now.”

  While she turned and ran off he glanced at Grunt’s hand to see what she’d given him. Tips of yarrow leaves were sticking through his fingers. “Stay away from her, Grunt. This is my final warning.” He stormed away, keeping his eye on Ivy’s back as he followed her to the shelter.

  A thunderous boom-boom resounded louder and shook the ground as the footsteps drew near.

  He didn’t know if he could keep his hands off her dainty neck so he neglected to climb down the steps behind her. He now understood why Vulcan got so upset with Wisteria when she’d run off. Damn women had a way of riling a man’s blood in a derogatory way as quickly as in a positive way. But in no way would he step foot in the hideout with her in this state. Three others took the stairs ahead of her and he didn’t need anyone to witness the verbal lashing he was about to give. He was so damn mad he could’ve thrown her over his knee and spanked her without a second thought. Actions spoke louder than words, so yeah, it’d be better to address his anger on her ass.

  Once she was secured inside, he closed the door and ran back to the camp. Vulcan and Zypher stood at the end of Zypher’s hut near the clearing. Vulcan had his Barrett aimed at the head of a dinosaur that stood on the outside of the forest wall, eating leaves off the top of a conifer tree. Zypher was equipped with his M16 but held it so the barrel pointed to the ground. Tyran was nowhere in sight. Where the hell did he go?

  Unarmed, Bronto felt naked but it was better than feeling like an idiot had he grabbed his bow or knife to fend off the humongous creature. Unless he was positive it was a shifter he found no reason to poke it with an arrow just to hurt it anyway. Despite the ineffectiveness of those types of weapons against the true-blooded animals, he should’ve been armed with something. The rifle he’d taken from the weapons shelter the other day was tucked in his hut inside the crate. Nice place for it. If the dinosaur showed aggression he wouldn’t have time to get to it. Vulcan would and could take it down with his Barrett. Hopefully. The damn monster was bigger than the T-Rex. How in the hell could they tell the difference between a shifter and the real thing?

  “Do you think it’s a shifter?” Zypher asked as if reading Bronto’s thoughts.

  “I’m not sure,” Vulcan replied. “But I doubt a shifter on a mission would stop to eat before obliterating the camp.”

  Good point.

  Twice now Bronto had been caught empty-handed. He needed to get his head out of his ass regarding Ivy and act more responsibly to protect his people. Vulcan had assigned him second-in-charge for a reason. If he failed in his obligations as a fighter he might as well reside with the families on the other side.

  He ran a stiff hand through his hair and watched as a second dinosaur joined the first. It wasn’t as tall, and rather than eat the leaves that were within its reach, it stood up on its hind legs and placed its front feet on a tree. It pushed and pushed until the tree uprooted and toppled to the ground.

  “Hell, we could’ve used them twenty minutes ago,” Zypher said under his breath. “They would’ve saved us a lot of trouble.” He looked at Vulcan then at Bronto. “What, no smart-ass comments from either of you?”

  Not from Bronto. He currently was not in the mood for humor or sarcasm. Now if someone issued an order to take those monsters down with their bare hands, he was their guy.

  Another tree dropped with a ground-shaking thud. He wasn’t thinking about the additional wood they’d just inherited. He was wondering if Ivy felt the vibration and imagining her scared expression if she had.

  A third dinosaur avoided the trees and found interest in the huts. Its long neck stretched right in front of Vulcan to sniff Zypher’s dwelling. Vulcan and Zypher both backed up while it investigated the pelt-covered structure. Some of the horses whinnied and reared and others backed up as far as their tethers allowed, stomping their hooves.

  The dinosaur wasn’t threatened by the loud commotion or by the armed men because it turned around as if it couldn’t care less and headed in the direction it came, its feet thundering across the dirt. The vibration actually knocked the men off balance. Zypher teetered into Vulcan and Bronto sat down.

  The other two creatures fell into step behind it, apparently having had their fill of leaves. Vulcan stood silently until they were far enough way to remove any threat. “Zypher, go ahead and release the people. Bronto, help me gather those trees.”

  Bronto nodded and headed for the forest. He was still pissed enough that he could’ve stacked them and pulled all twelve at once. One-handed. By himself.

  “Feeling a little deceived?” Vulcan had the gumption to ask.

  Apparently he’d seen Ivy with Grunt. Seriously, who hadn’t? “A little.”

  Vulcan gave Bronto’s shoulder a squeeze. “Don’t be too hard on her.”

  “Smart-ass,” Bronto grumbled.

  “Hey, I’m only giving you a piece of your own advice.”

  “You were pissed enough to murder Wisteria for running away. You overreacted a bit.”

  “Ivy hasn’t done anything but hand Grunt some
yarrow,” Vulcan presumably tried to reason.

  Bronto glared at him over his nose. “Exactly. I busted my knuckles on his face in her honor and she offers to nurse his wounds?”

  “You can’t hold it against her.”

  “Like hell I can’t,” Bronto growled.

  “Their instinct is to nurture. Leave her alone.”

  “How about I give Wisteria a reason to nurture you?”

  Vulcan laughed and slapped Bronto on the back. “I wouldn’t mind.”

  “Yeah, I bet you wouldn’t.”

  “Realistically, Bronto, Ivy didn’t offer to nurse his wounds. She just offered a remedy.”

  “Same damn difference.”

  Vulcan smirked. “Then look at it this way.”

  Great. Can’t wait to hear it.

  “She’s only nursing the wounds instilled by Rocko, not you.”

  “You are a smart-ass,” Bronto stated then walked away, listening to Vulcan burst into laughter.

  By the time they dragged the first load of wood and stacked it near Zypher’s hut, Ivy and Wisteria had returned and were sitting in front of Vulcan’s dwelling. Birmon lay curled in Ivy’s lap, his wings covering his head. Wisteria’s mouth moved as if she were talking but Ivy’s face was tilted toward the animal and hadn’t moved. She was probably envisioning her fate. Smart woman. Let her worry about it for a while.

  He tried ignoring her as best as he could during the remainder of the afternoon while he, Vulcan, Zypher, Trice, Rocko and Tyran reinforced the huts but he failed a half dozen times. Not once had he caught her eyes on him. Not once. Not one frigging time, and at one point he stood so close she could’ve reached up and touched him. At least he’d worked off a chunk of his anger. Not all but a good-sized portion. He still wanted to throw her over his lap and beat her ass. Maybe not as hard but beat it nonetheless.

  He said not a word as he pulled her to her feet by the hand and led her into his hut. With the door having been reinforced, he latched it closed with a small piece of rope. A gap remained around the entire doorframe but it was better than the prior flimsy leather flap that could easily be lifted.

  Ivy broke from his grip and fled across the hut to the farthest corner between a pile of hides and the wooden supply box. She spun around, holding up her hands. “Before you yell, let me explain.”

  “You’ll do more than that, I’m afraid.”

  She flinched and sat down on the crate, wringing her hands in her lap. “You have no reason to be angry,” she said so softly he hadn’t heard the entire sentence.

  Angry pretty much summed it up and he got the gist. “What part of the entire scenario don’t you get, Ivy?”

  “You.”

  “Me?” He strolled to the fire, turned, facing her, and folded his arms at his chest. If he moved any closer than ten feet he’d likely lunge for her perfect little throat. “Are you insinuating that I’m being irrational?”

  She nodded, lowering her gaze to his feet. “Yes. It’s human nature that the women from my clan offer healing methods to those who’ve been injured.”

  “Then why didn’t you offer any to Sledge after Vulcan rearranged his nose for beating your sister?”

  Ivy’s mouth dropped. She snapped it shut and looked him in the eye. “He seriously hurt her.”

  “And Grunt hurt you,” he shouted.

  “It was just a slap.”

  “Just a slap,” he repeated in disgust. “Men don’t just slap women.” They needed a reason. Like betrayal.

  “Do unto others. That’s what Wisty told me. I slapped him first.”

  “Sometimes a man needs to analyze a situation before reacting. You didn’t threaten his life in any way.”

  She shrugged.

  “What about Jade, Ivy? He raped her. That’s more than a slap. You’ve not only insulted Jade but you’ve insulted Rocko and me as well.”

  Her eyes shot to his and bulged. “How?”

  “By trying to repair the lessons displayed on Grunt’s face. I beat him for your sake. Rocko beat him for Jade’s. When you offered yarrow to mend Grunt’s wounds it signified your disagreement with how we handled the situation. That’s a low blow to a man. I’m still feeling the sting.”

  Tears filled her eyes and the tip of her nose turned red. “In our culture Grunt did nothing wrong,” she argued in a desperate tone as if trying to convince herself his actions were justifiable. “Men take women against their will all the time. Even amongst my peaceful kind, if a man wants a woman and she resists, he forces himself upon her. No harm done.”

  Bronto narrowed his eyes and took a large step closer. “In my culture assault and rape are against the law. Jade is from my world. She’s been violated in the worst way possible.”

  She huffed and again looked at his feet. “I don’t want to talk to you right now.”

  Of course she didn’t. Sometimes common sense took precedence over beliefs and he had a feeling she was beginning to understand the difference but was too stubborn to admit it. “Talking isn’t what I had in mind. I’m going to throw you over my lap and spank your ass. There are not any yarrow leave big enough on this planet to heal the burn.” No way in hell could he actually beat her but she didn’t know that. He wanted to scare her a bit. Hopefully he’d succeeded.

  She jumped up so quickly she stumbled. “I’m not a child deserving of such.”

  “You’re right,” he said, strolling into her space, leaving a foot of distance between them. “You’re a woman who overstepped her boundaries who deserves more than a simple ass blistering.”

  She placed her hands over her bottom as if to protect it. “Is that not going against your beliefs?”

  “No. I’m not going to beat you in retaliation or revenge. I’m going to beat you as punishment to teach you a lesson about groveling over a bad guy.”

  She backed into the wall. “I didn’t grovel.”

  “You opened a can of worms, Ivy.”

  “I don’t know what that means.”

  “You led Grunt to believe you care about his well-being. He’ll interpret that little bit of attention as a come-on. He will not leave you alone despite me warning him to stay away.”

  “I get it, okay?” she said through a shaky breath.

  “Don’t try to pacify me with meaningless words.” He grabbed her arm and yanked her forward, plowing her into his chest. “You should’ve gotten it before approaching him with your affections.” Her poorly thought-out intentions thoroughly sickened him. Worrying about Grunt’s future intentions sickened him worse. Sure, Bronto understood her cultural indifference but really, why would she run to Grunt’s rescue? The man deserved to suffer the consequences of his actions. If what he’d done wasn’t such a big deal, why’d they even rough him up? Why in the hell couldn’t Ivy see that? They didn’t deliver ass whoopings just for sport.

  “Please move aside. I’d like to leave now.”

  “The only place you’re going,” he said while sitting on the crate and pulling her onto his lap, “is over my knee.”

  “Bronto, stop,” she yelped while struggling to stand. “Don’t do this.”

  Ignoring her pleas, he locked his hands around her waist, and damn him to hell, the feel of her ass wiggling against his groin aroused him and his cock sprang to attention. Shit, he couldn’t go there right now but if he didn’t act fast, yeah, that was exactly where he’d go. He blinked to kill the sensation then stood her on her feet.

  “You’re a mean beast,” she shrieked, tugging the frock in place around her thighs. “I said I get it. There’s no reason to frighten me.”

  “I’m having a hard time believing you.” He rose and clamped his hand around her wrist.

  Again she shrieked. She twisted her arm free and took a backward step. She had the right idea because if he didn’t get away from her, and soon, he’d lay her down and fuck her senseless.

  “I hope you’re proud of yourself,” she spat right before she dashed to the door and fled outside.

  Yeah,
what a great disciplinarian he made.

  Chapter Nine

  Ivy had never, ever been so angry in her entire life. Bronto had better apologize or she would not step one foot near him. He’d come to Jade’s hut during the night but Jade convinced him to let Ivy cool down until morning. Well, it was morning and she was still blazing mad, so that hadn’t worked. Maybe she was more upset at herself because she realized she truly had hurt his pride. She hadn’t meant to. She’d just followed her nurturing instinct as any woman from her peaceful clan would have. Learning Barbarian customs was going to take a lot of work.

  Having run their argument through her head constantly, she understood what he’d been trying to convey. She’d also apologized to Jade. They had a very long, endearing talk during the night. Ivy didn’t want to mislead Jade into thinking that Ivy thought what Grunt had done to her was okay. Ivy realized it wasn’t okay and women should have a say regarding what happened to their bodies. She was so sorry no one pointed that out before any of this happened. Sadly, because of her naivety her dignity had suffered.

  Oooooh, she wanted to hurt Bronto. Really badly.

  No, she didn’t. That was anger speaking. Truth was she missed listening to his heartbeat sing her to sleep. Missed his strong arms holding her tightly. Just missed him in general.

  She tossed the hide aside and gazed at Jade where she sat near the fire, weaving a blanket. Her eyes were red and puffy as if she’d been weeping. It saddened Ivy. They’d formed a friendly bond last night and she’d rather not see Jade hurting.

  Ivy stood and sauntered across the hut. She woke with belly cramps and they continued to worsen. She rubbed her hand back and forth across her tummy while she dropped to her knees near Jade. “Hi,” Ivy said softly.

  “Hi, baby doll.”

  Jade hadn’t looked at her. She wouldn’t take her eyes off her project and Ivy knew it was because she didn’t want to expose her pain. “Are you all right?”

  She nodded and a tear slipped from her lashes.

  “Are you still upset because of Grunt?” Ivy asked, laying her hand on top of Jade’s. Her upper arms were bruised from Grunt’s grip and the side of her cheek near her ear was slightly discolored. “Do you want to talk about it some more?”