My Panther Mate & Our Little Cub novel Chapter 84

Chapter 84 The Bonfire Gathering

Finished

In the middle of the tribe stood a giant bonfire, stacked high, with a ring of stones laid around the outside.

Freshly slaughtered animals were being carried over and set on the stone slabs nearby. Trimmed branches. had been piled into neat stacks, fresh fruits and gourds rested on broad leaves, and several cooking stations had already been set up. The stone pots were enormous, steam curling out of them in thick white plumes.

The therians were half–dressed at best, their bare upper bodies painted in bold streaks of color. Animal fangs hung around their necks, and every one of them radiated a raw, untamed energy.

The sub–therians wore all kinds of ornaments too–glittering stones around their necks, flowers tucked into their hair, and bright feathers woven through it.

Zachary felt like he’d stepped straight into a movie. Everything around him was so primitive, so

full of character that he could hardly take it all in.

More than once, he caught himself questioning whether any of it was even real.

It was too dreamlike.

“What’s the occasion?” he asked curiously. “Why’s it so lively today?”

vivid, so

“A bonfire gathering,” Elias said, tucking a flower another sub–therian had handed him into Zachary’s hair. “The tribe holds one every year after the long–distance gathering trip, right before the cold season starts.”

Zachary reached up and touched the flower. It was his first time wearing one, and he had no idea what it looked like on him.

Taylor and Jaden ran off to the other side, then came hurrying back a moment later with a huge armful of flowers–blue, purple, pink… Every bloom looked carefully chosen, all fresh and beautiful.

Zachary was a little surprised there were still so many flowers in bloom this season. He leaned down and took a sniff. The scent was light and gentle, not overpowering at all.

Elias volunteered immediately. “Quincy, Zachary–I’ll help you put them on. You’ll look amazing. I promise!”

Zachary noticed some soft, slender vines lying nearby, and an idea came to him at once. He blinked, then said, “How about I show you how to make flower crowns?”

“Flower crowns?”

“Yes! Yes!”

He’d thrown up several times at noon, and his stomach still felt hollow. He didn’t have the energy to join the crowd, so he found a place to sit instead. Crossing his legs and leaning back against a rock, he picked up the vines and flowers and started weaving.

Quincy and Elias learned quickly. The two cubs were pretty good at it, too. Before long, following Zachary’s steps, they’d each made a round little flower crown of their own.

Taylor lit up. “So pretty!”

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Chapter 84 The Bonfire Gathering

“Oh wow…” Elias was even more delighted when he saw the finished result.

Finished

He definitely wasn’t shy about going all out. He’d packed on so many flowers that the vine underneath was almost completely hidden, but somehow the colors still worked beautifully together. The crown suited him perfectly.

Paired with Elias‘ bright smile, it gave him this bold, radiant kind of beauty–confident and impossible to ignore.

Once Taylor put his on, he happily dragged Jaden around the tribe to show it off, attracting all kinds of attention. Before long, the other cubs were running after him and bombarding him with questions.

Taylor lifted his chin proudly. “My Sire made it for us.”

The moment they heard that, the other cubs immediately ran off in search of their own sires.

Soon enough, all kinds of sub–therians were being pestered by their cubs and came over to ask Zachary and the others how to weave flower crowns, too.

Before long, almost every sub–therian and cub in the tribe had one perched on their

Cad.

By the time Matthew and the others finished sorting and dividing up the things they’d brought back and returned, two crowns had somehow ended up on their heads too.

And weirdly enough… they suited them.

Big intimidating men wearing flower crowns, somehow managing to look both fierce and shy at the same

time.

The one Elias had made had originally been meant for Ethan, but Kyle snatched it first. Before Elias could say anything, Kyle was already smiling at him and thanking him with suspicious enthusiasm.

One compliment followed another until Elias was too embarrassed to even ask for it back.

Silas looked at Matthew and Yael, both still fully dressed, and tossed them each a packet of natural pigment. “Hurry up and paint yourselves.”

Zachary looked over curiously. “What’s that for?”

Elias explained. “It’s part of how we celebrate. They say painting patterns on therians makes them braver.”

Yael stripped off his shirt without hesitation, spread his arms wide, and turned to Quincy. “Alright. Go ahead.”

Quincy dipped his fingers into the black and white pigments first, then expertly dragged a few strokes across Yael’s body.

The lines of muscle across his chest and torso looked as if they’d been carved out with a blade, every inch of him radiating pure strength.

And with those bold painted streaks layered over his skin, he looked wildly primal–dangerous and ridiculously attractive.

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Chapter 84 The Bonfire Gathering

Zachary stared.

Is this some kind of racial gift?

Back in the modern world, getting a body like that would take at least several years in the gym.

When Quincy moved around to paint the front of him, Yael deliberately flexed his chest, and when Quincy’s fingers brushed across his skin, he even gave it a little bounce.

Yael arched a brow. “Well? Nice to touch?”

“Behave yourself.” Quincy pinched him once and quickened the pace of his painting.

Matthew saw the way Zachary’s attention had been caught by Yael. His golden eyes darkened.

Finished

He stepped forward until he was standing right in front of Zachary, then reached up and pulled off the fur top he was wearing.

The next second, Zachary found himself staring at a lean, beautifully built half–pa

Matthew’s chest was full without being excessive. The muscles in his arms were

striking they looked almost obscene.

body.

TRY gfy cut, and the lines tapering down from b;

Cleanly defined

Zachary couldn’t look away. He swallowed unconsciously.

That body was…

Perfect.

so clean and

As if he hadn’t noticed Zachary’s heated stare at all, Matthew silently scooped up some pigment with his fingers and smeared it haphazardly across his chest and waist.

Compared to Yael’s, it looked unbelievably rough.

When he tried to reach his back, though, he clearly couldn’t manage it very well. The motion was awkward, almost clumsy, and just a little bit difficult.

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