Page 3

N ot only did we make it through all of the first round of snacks that Miss Tilly and I made, but we refilled it twice before everyone had had their fill. While it all definitely helped brighten everyone's moods a minuscule amount, it was still a little somber and borderline uncomfortably quiet, but I know everyone is just trying to unpack everything we’ve encountered.

Now, we’re all sitting around, stomachs full and safe, but no one is breaking the growing silence.

“Okay, so…How about we all get some much-needed showers and rest? Then, we can all meet up in the morning to discuss everything”—I twist my head, my eyes meeting Roman’s before moving to our new guest from Khoas’ pack—“and make a plan to move forward.”

Benny slaps his hands against the top of the island as he springs from his seat. “Sounds like a plan. Night, everyone!” And just like that, he’s bounding down the hall towards his door as the rest of the room slowly rises.

As much as I want to drag Roman away, I also have this need to be sure everyone is settled in and has what they need. Slate and Andrei are the next to call it a night. After everyone has made their way to their rooms, I begin to hear water running throughout the townhouse as everyone prepares to cleanse themselves of everything we encountered. Khaos finishes saying a few words to the woman and then gives me a giant bear hug—or maybe a wolf hug—and quietly walks away. The twins are whispering at each other, and it doesn't look like they’re having a pleasant conversation. I don't think I've ever seen them so quiet or irritated with each other—or anyone for that matter.

Roman must also notice it because he cuts off my train of thought when he barks at the twins, “Is something wrong with you two?”

“Yes,” “No,” they answer in unison, Dolos looking more irritated while Eris looks like someone kicked his pet.

Roman raises a single eyebrow and just stares at them, waiting for one of them to say something, but when no one does, his irritation seems to rise. “I'll give you the night to get your shit together, like everyone else, but you will tell me what's going on with you two in the morning.” He leaves no room for discussion and begins to walk away. I can't help but peek around Roman on our way to our room to check on them, finding Dolos watching the quiet woman.

“Are you not going to talk to her at all before tomorrow? Does she even know where she's sleeping?” I know I shouldn't push him, but speaking from experience, finding out you have family that you didn't know existed, especially when you thought you were all alone in the world, you should treasure every moment, no matter how hard it is to face the truths that come with them.

He doesn't immediately answer me, but he does lift me off my feet and crash my body against his chest like he needs to hold on to me, or I could float away.

“Roma-hmph—" I'm cut off with his finger on my lips.

He turns us through the doorway of our room and kicks the door shut behind him before gently setting me on my feet and turning to his dresser, fidgeting with the few things he has sitting on top of it.

“It would seem that you are far stronger than even I gave you credit for…how do you continue to handle this over and over?” He turns toward me with so much pain in his eyes that it makes my knees buckle.

“Oh, Roman.” I open my arms to him because I don't trust my legs to carry me across the room. He rushes into me and just holds my body plastered against him with his nose resting in the crook of my neck, just breathing me in.

“I'm here,” I soothe, and it's my turn to run my hands up and down his back—like he's done for me so many times. “I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere. And I'd be willing to bet that once you give her a chance, she won't either. I know it's hard. I know it's scary to have someone else to care about. I know it's hard to realize you don't know everything about your own life. But we'll get through this. All of us. Together.” I repeat the words he’s also told me so many times now.

We stand there just existing and holding on to each other for dear life until I gently pull myself from his embrace and lead him to his bathroom.

When we enter the bathroom, he goes to take charge and prepare everything, but I stop him, “Let me take care of you this time?”

He looks perplexed, like the thought of someone, anyone, taking care of him is such a foreign concept.

“You do know you're allowed to let others care for you as much as you care for them, right?” I whisper softly as I approach him and wrap my arms back around him. I just can't fight the need to be in constant physical contact with him right now, especially when he needs me like this.

I pull back slightly, allowing me to look him in the eye. “We really need to work on sharing those kinds of responsibilities here, okay?”

He nods. “But you've been through far more than me, let me—”

“No. I mean, yes…My shit tends to hit the fan more often and harder, but this is heavier for you, and I want to take care of my...mate.” I smile warmly, remembering that using those words can help when I need to get my way, and this is one of those situations.

“That's unsportsmanlike conduct,” he says with a sweet smile, peeling his body from mine to allow me to prepare a bubble bath for him. Not only does he need to relax, but I need to see my big, hunky werewolf sitting in a bubble bath.

“Well, if you had just agreed, I wouldn't have had to pull out my secret weapon,” I try to say without laughing and fail. I turn the water on nice and hot, adding the same chamomile bubbles he gave me after he rescued me. How does that already feel like a lifetime ago?

I dim the harsh white lights in the room to a dreamier aesthetic, lighting a few vanilla candles on the white marble countertops. I get him settled in the bath and lean in behind him to massage his massive shoulders. He slowly melts under my touch and groans when I work out a few especially hard knots, which is actually most of his neck. He's wound so tight I wonder how he's able to move as gracefully as he is, both on and off the ice. He finally sinks into the water on a low groan and gives in to the magic a bubble bath can provide.

I move to step away from him when he gently catches my wrist. “Don't go,” his husky voice breaks the silence, begging me with a deep pain and need in his eyes.

Allowing him to pull me back to the tub, I rest my hand on the side of his face and kiss his forehead. “I'll be right back. Please rest.”

His eyes search mine before he nods and relaxes his head on the back of the tub, resting his eyes.

I scurry back into the room as quietly as I can, searching for my phone. When I've finally found it, I tip-toe to the bathroom door and line up a perfect picture of Roman in a bubble bath that I will treasure forever. Except I wasn't properly prepared for my covert mission, and when I snap the picture, it makes that god-awful shutter sound that phones make. My cover is blown, and his eyes fly open and catch me ogling him.

Instead of fessing up and brushing it off, I panic and bolt away from the door, like he doesn't know it was me standing there, taking a picture of him. If I could see my wolf right now, I think it's safe to say she'd be rolling her eyes—which she apparently heard me think because she huffs in agreement, causing me to giggle.

“What are you planning on doing with that picture? Is this where you tell me you're really a witch and now you’re going to try to blackmail me?” he hollers from the bathroom, and I'm finally able to relax a little at the humor in his voice.

Quick, Leera, how can we distract him from the fact that I just wanted to keep this moment for myself?

The thought is instant, and I grin to myself like an idiot because I'm that proud of myself, but it's a good plan.

After taking a few moments to prepare for my plan of distraction, I ready myself with a deep breath, hoping I can draw some courage from my wolf.

I finally walk through the door of the still dimly lit bathroom. I expected Roman to still be resting with his head against the back of the tub. Instead, he's staring directly at me as I try my best to sway my hips in a sensual way without looking like a waddling duck. I must be doing it right because his eyes look like they're only a second from falling out of his face, and I think he's drooling.

“I was hoping I could join you,” I whisper because I used all my courage to walk across the bathroom…naked.

He doesn't answer with his words. He growls and leans over the edge of the tub, reaching for me. Once he's grasped my fingers, he pulls me up against the warm basin before hooking one arm under my legs at the knee and the other on my back, keeping me from toppling over. I will never get used to how strong he is, I think as he lifts me into the tub like I weigh nothing at all.

Once he's gently settled me in his lap, resting my back against his torso, he begins massaging my body.

“I'm supposed to be the one taking care of you, remember?” I breathe.

He continues massaging my body, which not only feels amazing but is also setting off every nerve ending in my body at the intimacy of everything.

“But what if me taking care of you calms me and therefore, in turn, takes care of me?” he grumbles against the shell of my ear, causing my toes to curl and my core to throb.

I open my mouth to speak, but now he's scrubbing my scalp with what feels like his claws, and I have to snap it shut to keep myself from moaning.

“Now who's playing dirty?” I barely get out before I'm unable to hold the moan in any longer, as I arch into him, earning me a growl from him. That's all it takes for our calm bath to turn into frenzied touching.

We hurriedly bathe each other, lathering, scrubbing, and massaging each other's bodies. When we're all clean and have washed the day and recent experiences off our skin, I suggest we move this party to our bed.

He gets out of the tub first and shakes off, which results in a small fit of unexpected giggles as I remember that he's a werewolf. And I'm a werewolf. Do things like shaking come naturally or are they learned? I can't help but giggle again at the thoughts that cross my mind.

My thoughts are broken by him lifting me out of the bathwater, desperately clinging to his biceps as they flex beneath my fingers, and there's no way I'm not another kind of wet right now.

He inhales deeply, and I remember that he can smell my arousal, which reminds me that his scent would be stronger as well, I allow myself to concentrate on my wolf and inhale deeply, and I’m immediately overwhelmed with the muskier cherries and leather that I smelled when I went into heat. I was so wrapped up in the moment the other times we were together, I didn't even allow myself to notice the little things. I want to mentally catalog every single moment. Forever.

Being a part of that end-of-life ceremony reminded me that even if we could live an obnoxious number of years, we're not truly immortal. We can be killed, and…I just…there's no way I could live without him now that I have him.

I have this raging need to be near his neck. I rest my hands on his shoulders, pulling on them a little. “Hold me. Please, Roman.”

I didn't need to beg; he was already lifting me into his embrace. As soon as our bodies meet, still slick with bath water, I wriggle and wrap my legs around his waist. He throws his head back on a low, rumbling groan, and I pull myself up to lay my head on top of his shoulder, breathing him in the same way he does me so often.

There's a burning sensation in my gums, and it causes me to whine.

He immediately snaps out of the lust-induced fog and holds my body at arm's length, causing me to whimper. “Oh, sweetheart, I'm sorry. Not yet.”

I stop and look at him in confusion, urging him to explain himself.

“That need you were feeling was to complete the mating bond; if you had bitten me, we would have needed to complete the ritual to prevent an unintentional rejection,” he explains calmly while he begins to play my body like his own personal instrument again, which delays the gravity of what he just said.

“Wait, what? I would never reject you.” I’m volleying between panic over his statement, and need because of the things he's doing to my body.

He rolls my nipple between his thumb and forefinger and my knees shake without my permission.

“I know you wouldn't Princess, but an incomplete mating bond can cause it to reflect as a rejection. I just want it to be perfect for you, and that's my fault for not explaining that before.” He leans in and begins kissing across the same spot on my shoulder, and I can feel my need for him beginning to collect on my thighs. “But I'm still going to take care of you.”

He says that, but the second the word left his mouth, all of his heat left my body, and he walked into the bedroom without me, leaving me standing there gaping at him, I'm sure.

“I didn't want to carry you again and make it worse. Come here, Leera.” His voice has taken on a firmer tone, and the collection of moisture is now sliding down my legs as I make my way to him.

He's sitting against the headboard again, just watching me try to saunter towards him. He reaches between his legs and maintains a steady grip on his length, occasionally stroking it slowly, his eyes never leaving mine.

When I approach the bed, instead of walking around to the side and joining him, I begin at the end of the bed and crawl to him. Just as I reach him, I intend to reach out and touch him, but he anticipates my move and captures my hand. In a quick series of obnoxiously graceful maneuvers, he has me turned around, on my knees, facing away from him. He leans over me, and I can feel him brush against my sensitive skin, causing me to whimper again, “What do you want?” he asks while he reaches around my body, teasing my nipples.

My back arches, and my head falls back against him. “You, Roman,” I breathe. “I don't want you,” I continue to pant, but his hand stills at my words when I remember I wasn't finished with my sentence. “It’s not a want…I…I need you.”

He releases a ragged sigh of relief, immediately followed by a trail of kisses down my spine, causing me to wriggle in his grasp.

“Mine,” he growls, and I again feel the heat of his body leave mine, but only for a moment. He plunges his face into my dripping and sensitive skin, and I cry out in pleasure. The new angle offering a completely new range of stimulation as he licks my entire slit and then pays extra attention to my clit. My arms and legs are shaking, and I can no longer hold the weight of my head, letting it hang between my shoulders as I pant and moan and cry his name.

Just when it feels like the world will fall away and the pleasure will consume me, he pulls away, leaving me a whimpering mess of skin and bones, my soul having already left my body in preparation of the impending orgasm.

“Roman, please!” I beg shamelessly.

He reaches around me, using each breast as an anchor for his grip, and pulls me up so that my back is plastered against his front, and the throb between my legs being brushed with the head of his cock is the sweetest kind of torture.

“Do you trust me?” he breathes against the shell of my ear.

I'm nodding frantically both because I do trust him blindly—with my mind, body, heart, and soul—but also because I really want to feel those fireworks dancing across my skin.

“Tell me, Princess,” I would almost think he's unbothered by all of this intimacy if it wasn't for the way his dick twitches against me while he lazily trails his fingers all over my body, except exactly where I want it.

“Yes, mate, I trust you with all I am. Now, please let me come,” I whine impatiently.

He reaches forward and bands one arm around my middle, almost completely holding me up, and then I feel him reach between us and grab his length. For a tiny, minuscule moment, I feel a small spark of fear at not being prepared for this. I know I want to complete the mate bond, but he said we weren't doing that tonight.

Now I'm just confused, which he must feel through the bond because he continues to lazily stroke himself when he explains, “Just because we're not taking that final step tonight doesn't mean you can't come all over my cock, my little miracle.”

Now I'm even more confused, but a shiver of anticipation skitters through my body when he finally lowers his hard dick between my legs, but he doesn't enter me. He starts moving in short, slow movements through the wetness still gathering in my core. The friction and the lightning shooting through my body at the contact are enough to cause me to pant and moan again. But he's not done with me yet. His short and slow movements across my center become long and languid strokes that are now creating the same delicious friction against that beautiful bundle of nerves, and I grip onto him for dear life.

“Oh my God, Roman…” I had another thought after that, but my body took over, and I couldn't stop the moan that escaped me. Every orgasm with this man felt like I was being destroyed and remade all at once, and this one would be the most intense yet. “…P-please, don't stop this time.” To reinforce my need for this release, I begin to rock my hips with him, finding my own ways to draw out the most amazing sounds from him.

He slows and allows me a moment to take over while I continue grinding against him, bringing us both unparalleled pleasure. He removes the arm he has banded around me and moves both of his hands to grip my hips, and the feel of him holding me like this urges me on.

“Yes…Fuck, Leera…You're fucking perfect. Come for me, Princess,” he pants in my ear, trailing kisses along my neck, nipping as he goes.

“Oh gods…Roman. I'm almost there…I can't…” My movements become frenzied and completely out of control, but the wave is cresting over me, and I want to ride it all the way to the top.

Roman is practically roaring behind me, his grip on my hips tightening, sending even more electricity to my body. Without warning, my entire being implodes, and the shockwaves consume me. I'm fairly certain I'm screaming, but I can't be bothered to care right now. My vision turns white, and Roman catches me when my body slumps against him. He jerks a few more times and groans into my neck, saying my name like a prayer.

I must have passed out because I don't remember being laid on a pillow, but I’m awakened by a warm, rough feeling between my legs. My head feels heavy, but I lift it enough to see him cleaning me up. I don't even have the energy to thank him because I fall back to the pillow, sleep trying to claim me once more. The next thing I know, I feel his large, warm body pulling me into his embrace and wrapping around me.

Before I give all the way in to the darkness, my last thought is that every horrible thing I've ever had to go through, and likely still have to go through, will be worth it if it's my payment for having him as my mate and life partner.