In that moment, all the things he’d said she convinced herself meant nothing rushed her:
“You are beautiful. I thought so the first time I laid eyes on you.”
“You’re right. I’ll never hurt you, ever.”
“I love being your hero.”
“I know this one werewolf who’s not just pretty, she’s beautiful.”
“I’m not assigned to guard you, and your brother didn’t send me. I came here to be with you.”
Why hadn’t she realized it before? How could she have been so dense? She was inexperienced, and he’d never made a move, but he spent hours with her every day. He complimented her every chance he got. He patiently taught her everything she knew about the immortal world. But he’d shielded her from his feelings for fear she’d run, and she had. Would he ever forgive her? Could he?
She’d hurt the man she loved the most, and knowing it caused a deep pain in her chest, so searing she was sure the ache would kill her.
“You are mine. I want you. I need you, and I love you. I’ve never loved another. I’ll never forget you, and believe it or not, you will never forget me,” he said firmly, his eyes still ablaze, holding hers captive.
He was angry, angrier than last night, angrier than she’d ever seen him: his eyes afire, his jaw clenched, a muscle ticking, speaking to her in a way he never had. Still, she wasn’t frightened. In her heart, she knew, as she knew the day he’d turned demon for her to see, he’d never hurt her.
A sob escaped her then she wiped the tears streaming down her face and admitted, “I ran because I love you. Because I hoped I could forget you—”
“Because I’m not a werewolf!” he screamed, cutting her words off before she could explain then he unleashed his emotions.
Pain, anguish, torment, anger and rage…The intensity of his emotions struck the middle of her chest. The ache inside her fused with it, making the pain too much to bear. She swore any minute her chest would burst. Overwhelmed, her legs wobbled as useless tears continued to flow down her cheeks, recklessly bearing her river of misery for him to see.
“No,” she managed to say between sobs. “Because I thought…I thought…I could never have you…I thought you…were destined for someone else.”
In a split second, the anger, pain and anguish surrounding them vanished. His face paled, the red in his eyes dissolved. He stood still, staring at her in disbelief until finally his arms encased her. Holding her head tenderly against him, he rubbed her back ever so softly. He rested his chin on top of her head, and waited patiently as she sobbed against his bare chest, unleashing the agony she’d suffered and the agony she’d caused him, the man she loved.
“I’m sorry, Liv. I’m so sorry. Please forgive me, deliciae,” he whispered every so often.
Please, please let him forgive me. I can’t live without him. I don’t want to live without him, she prayed.
“I’m sorry, Cain,” she said between sobs. “I’m sooo…sorry.”
Cupping her cheeks, he angled her face to his and whispered, “Shh…shh…darling. Everything’s fine.” He then pressed his lips against her forehead softly and pulled her against him again.
The warmth of his body soothed her as deeply as the words he’d uttered.
She knew he’d forgiven her.
She knew he’d never hold it against her.
She knew he loved her.
He said so, and she believed him. Just like that, the ache in her chest dissipated and her sobs quieted.
Then he whispered those familiar words, “Meae deliciae, meus sodalis.”
She pulled away from him slightly to stare into his blue eyes. “You realize I don’t know what that means, right?”
His eyes on hers, he rubbed the tears from her cheeks ever so softly then nodded.
“Well, are you going to tell me?”
He chuckled, and despite the tears streaking her face, she couldn’t help but follow. His laughter was contagious. He possessed the ability to make anyone forget their troubles and laugh.
“It means, ‘my darling, my mate,’” he replied, then kissed her lips softly.
The tender kiss, coupled with his heat, rekindled desire in her.
My darling, my mate, she thought.
Perfect.
Chapter 15
Smiling, excitement coursing through him, the anger and rage Cain felt moments before were now nothing but a bleak, forgettable memory.
It couldn’t have been more perfect if he’d dreamt it. That was a lie. If he had it his way, Olivia wouldn’t have shed tears, but the end was all that mattered. After five months, Olivia knew she was his, and she remained in his arms. To top it off, she loved him. He couldn’t be more thrilled.
Reaching for him, she hooked her arms around his neck and placed her lips over his firmly. He was as enamored, captivated, by them as he’d been before he ever kissed her. The willpower he learned over the last five months granted him the strength to pull away slowly.
“Don’t you need me?” she asked, her cheeks flushing, a stark reminder she was a virgin.
Despite his need for her, the need to mark her and claim her, the need he’d battled with for months, he couldn’t and wouldn’t take her now.
He stared into her puffy eyes, his body strung tight unable to believe the words he was about to utter. “Yes, darling, I need you, but I can wait.”
“Why?” she asked, then immediately looked away from him, flushing a brighter shade.
He lifted her chin with his finger then said somberly, “Because I want it to happen when my mate hasn’t shed tears I caused. I want our first time to be special.”
In all honesty, it was more than that. He had held back his need for months. Because of it, he feared he’d lose control, take her roughly and make it painful instead of pleasurable. Making matters worse was the fact she was a virgin. He needed to take his time with her, introduce her to sex slowly.
“You didn’t…I did—”
“No, darling, I did. If I had been braver, if I hadn’t been such a coward…I should’ve told you long before today and spared us both pain. I will repay you for every hurt I caused you. I promise.”
“I forgive you,” she said softly. “But I hurt you, too. I’m sorry. Will you f-forgive me?” she stuttered, nervously.
“There’s nothing to apologize for, nothing to forgive. If I had told you sooner, you wouldn’t have run.” He rubbed his palm against her back. His mate, responsive to his touch, arched. He smiled, pulling her into him until her cheek rested against his chest. “I think I promised you a day at the beach,” he whispered in her ear.
He didn’t wait for a response. Materializing at the shore carrying her, he ran into the ocean then dropped her in the freezing water.
She shrieked and laughed. “That was not nice,” she said, standing in front of him, then splashed the cold water on his face.
She removed her wet shirt, inch by inch uncovering her glorious flesh. His eyes ravished her body.
Her gaze raked his body, stopping when it met his eyes. “Umm…I think you didn’t think this through,” she said, pointing to his wet jeans.
He’d been too consumed admiring her to notice. Smirking, he said, “You’re right. I didn’t.”
Closing the feet between them, he wrapped an arm around her, pulled her against him and materialized in the spare room. She wobbled slightly.
He placed his hands on her shoulders to steady her then mumbled, “Sorry.”
Heading to the bags of clothes he’d left on the floor, he rummaged through them.
When he heard her ask, “Think I’ll ever get used to that?”
He turned and said in assurance, “Yeah, you will.”
Finding one of the beach shorts he’d purchased the night before, he ran into the bathroom to change. He then materialized an inch from her, planted a wet kiss on her lips, snaked his arms around her waist and materialized on the shore. She tensed only briefly before her body molded against his.
Pulling away, he asked, “Was that time any better?”
Quirking a brow, she said, “That’s cheating.”
“Yeah? How so?”
“You kissed me, so I couldn’t feel the world shifting around me.”
Leaning into her, a hair’s breadth away, he shot back, “Darling, that was the point. For the sake of ensuring you don’t get dizzy every time, I’ll kiss you.”
She smirked, then pushed him away, and treaded seductively toward the water wearing that hot pink bikini well. She had no idea how well. His feet willingly led him to her.
For over an hour, they played, splashing water on each other like kids. When they were both exhausted from their games, they strolled toward the sand hand in hand. There, they lay side by side.
She lifted her weight on her elbow, and faced him as she twirled her fingers in the sand. “Do you remember the time you were gone for days in the demon plane?”
He shifted his weight and faced her then ran his hand down her shoulder, enjoying her skin’s softness. He couldn’t seem to keep his hands off her, but then he supposed it didn’t matter anymore. She’d accepted him, so he could caress her all he wanted, all he needed.
“Yeah.”
She looked away from him then continued, “You found me in the garden.”
He scoffed. “As I recall, I scared the crap out of you in the garden.”
Gaze darting toward his again, her expression softened. “I had been worried about you. I was used to seeing you every day. As the days passed, I kept thinking the worst. I kept getting this image in my head of you burned like the day you saved me. When I saw you again, it hit me. I realized I was in love with you.”
His heart tightened in his chest. He remembered the moment well. He’d scolded himself for hours afterward. Now, he was doing the same because that had been two months ago. She’d loved him for two months, and he needlessly stalled.
“Liv, I’m sorry. I tried not to read you, but sometimes I caved and felt your attraction, I just…I thought you needed more time.”
She leaned in and kissed him. A quick thoughtful kiss that shouldn’t have had him imagining her naked beneath him, but it did.
“I didn’t tell you so you’d apologize. I told you so you’d know,” she said, smiling.
“You’re sharing?”
She nodded and smiled.
“Then I’ll reciprocate,” he said, his fingers trailing down to her waist. “When I found you, I fought my baser instincts. That first day, when I let you walk out of sight, it was the hardest thing I’ve done in four hundred and fifteen years. Then I saw you the very next day, I was thrilled. That night I was injured, so you were around for several days. I grew so used to having you around. It was hard, not being able to do the things I wanted to do, but—”
“What did you want to do?”
Grinning, he said, “I wanted to touch you, hold you, kiss you, anything and everything.” He paused. “When Joce moved into the estate, I spent my days finding excuses to see you. At night when hunting Malums, I thought about you constantly. It was torture, knowing it would be hours before I had the chance to see you again. So…” His words trailed off. Looking away from her, he reconsidered his confession.
“So…” she prodded.
His gaze shot to hers, thinking what the hell, he said, “After my shifts, I’d materialize at the estate in your room and watch you sleep for hours. Just being around you calmed me, I knew…or I felt you needed time. It gave us both what we needed.”
Her eyes widened then her face broke out in a huge grin. “You little voyeur,” she teased then burst in a fit of giggles. “No wonder I dreamed about you nearly every night. Your stench wafted into my senses.”
He sat up quickly, his hand gripping her hip. “You dreamt about me?”
Flushing that beautiful rosy shade, she nodded. “Well, it was your fault.”
“Wait, did you say my stench, darling?”
He didn’t wait for her to respond. At immortal speed, he lifted her in one swift movement and headed for the water.
“Cain, no! I’m almost dry,” she said between giggles.
“You should’ve thought of that before you insulted your male,” he teased then unapologetically dropped her in the water.
Still laughing, he picked her up again, and headed toward the house.
Her head against his chest angled to his, she asked, “Do you think I’m a doll you can throttle as you please?”
“You are my very precious doll that teases me constantly,” he retorted.
“Only when it’s well deserved.”
He halted just so he could enjoy gazing at her. “God, I’ve missed you.”
She quit laughing abruptly, her expression saddening. He felt it—that same sadness he’d felt in her before.
“What’s wrong?”
“You mean the days we were apart?”
“Yeah, and over the last couple of weeks, I knew something was wrong. You weren’t acting like yourself. I should’ve known—”
“Several weeks ago, I decided to leave,” she admitted softly.
He released her, allowing her feet to touch the sand then he kneeled before her and clasped her hands in his. “Mate me. Marry me.” He hadn’t meant to sound like he was begging, but it did and he didn’t care. “I promise I’ll do everything in my power to make you happy. I promise I’ll spend the rest of my life making up for being a coward.”
Her eyes widened even as tears welled. “We haven’t even…”
He cut her off because he didn’t want excuses, because he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. “I’ll be everything you need, whatever you want…”
Tears rimmed her eyes and fell.
At the sight, his chest tightened painfully, hating her tears, hating he’d caused them. Cursing himself, he reached out and read her. He realized then she wasn’t sad, no, those tears weren’t sad ones. She was happy and a bit overwhelmed.
Releasing a breath, his clenched muscles relaxed. “Meus sodalis, do you accept?”
She nodded and mumbled, “Yes.”
He pressed a firm kiss on her stomach then stood and carried her toward her home.
She shrieked. “You know I can walk.”
“I prefer to carry you,” he said then firmly placed his lips over hers.
She parted hers, then hesitantly darted her tongue into his mouth. The action so slow and cautious, he knew she was unsure of herself, worried about her inexperience. Endearing him to her, a beautiful reminder he was the first and would be the only. Losing all thought, all sense, breathing her in, he delved into her mouth assuring her. So enthralled in assuring her, enjoying her, he didn’t realize they were falling until he lost his footing. Suddenly, panicked he pulled away just as the pool water splashed around them.
Olivia broke away from their kiss, giggling loudly. The sound of it resonated inside him, feeling like a bolt of energy rushing into him. It happened every time she smiled, every time she giggled, every time she laughed, and still he hadn’t gotten used to the sensation. He hadn’t gotten used to her ability to cause it, so he couldn’t help but stare as she threw her head back and laughed that beautiful laugh.
Wriggling from his grasp, she swam to the end of the pool. Grinning, he followed, determined to reach her. Once he did, he snaked his arm around her waist and pulled her toward him simultaneously pressing her back against the wall and planting his lips over hers. This time, when he parted his lips, she mimicked him. He dove in, playing with her tongue gently, relishing in his mate’s sweet taste.
He’d kissed hundreds of women, made love to hundreds, but none tasted as sweet as her. Her lips were soft, moist and wet from the water, sliding against his. Her temperature spiked, heating his flesh. When she wrapped her arms around him, he ran his hands down her chest, around her hips and pressed her pelvis toward his, an instinct he could no more control than his love for her. The simple action made her moan sweetly into his mouth. He couldn’t help but smile against he
r lips. Still, he kept his slow, gentle pace as he trailed his mouth across her cheek, toward her neck. In that sensitive spot where her neck met her shoulder, he kissed and licked her, her pulse quickening against his tongue.
“Touch me,” she whispered in his ear.
Fuck. He wanted to touch her. He just wasn’t sure it was a good idea, and a part of him was scared even a touch would make him lose control. He wouldn’t lose control, never with her.
Still, he couldn’t help the groan that escaped his lips when he heard her whisper. His shaft pulsed, throbbing against her core. He couldn’t deny her and wouldn’t deny her, but where should he touch her? Where did she crave his touch? Dragging his hands over her hips, he slid them to her butt and lifted her. Immediately, almost like an instinct, she wrapped her strong, lean legs around his waist. The simple action made the tethered hold on his control slip.
Tracing his tongue along her chest, he untied the string holding her bikini top. It fell away. He pulled away only briefly, to stare at her beautiful breasts, simultaneously running his hands over them. Her nipples tightened with his touch, goose bumps erupting through her flesh. Replacing his hand with his mouth, he fondled them with his tongue. She arched her back, releasing a moan. His fangs lengthened and accidentally nicked her.
A taste of her in his mouth, his muscles shuddered and quaked, reeling from the tiniest taste. Eyes ablaze with desire, craving and yearning, his demon demanded he claim her, drink her.
Battling his demon, every muscle in his body tightened. He groaned deep and guttural, sounding inhuman.
It took every ounce of willpower, but, finally, he summoned the strength, released her and stepped away. His gaze locked on the nick he’d made, a single drop of blood oozing out, tempting him further.
Her arms went to her chest, attempting to cover herself. Still, he could see that single droplet of blood. Still, it called to him.
“Cain,” she said softly.
He drew his gaze to hers. Cheeks flushed, the blue in her eyes spiked with incandescent yellow, like bright threads weaved into the depths. Beautiful.
Awaiting Fate Page 10