Page 17

Feeling himself getting closer, too, he put her down on the floor again—face down, ass up—, his cock still inside her, slipping a hand under her head so she wouldn’t rub her face against the carpet.

He leaned over her, caging her with his body, and began thrusting into her pussy like an animal, quick and harsh.

Mixes of their juices and creams dripped out of her cunt, her walls continuously clenching as if her climax still hadn’t subsided.

“ Fuck , fuck , yes,” she chanted.

He grunted in her ear, the force of his hips gradually pulling her down until she was fully laying on her stomach. Her hands grabbed a fistful of his fur, pulling at it with every movement.

He roared loudly and emptied his seed inside her. When he pushed his knot into her, the human cried out and squirted around his cock, wetting his fur and the carpet.

He stood over her, breathing heavily against her ear, trying to calm down despite the feeling of her pussy still clenching around him.

Very slowly, his mind cleared and his knot gradually decreased.

When he finally slipped out, all of his come—mixed with her cream and juices—gushed out of her pussy.

He leaned back and watched her carefully.

She was still catching her breath and her eyes were closed, but there was a small, pleased smile on her lips.

He noticed scratches on her thighs, not deep enough to draw blood but still noticeable.

He hadn’t realized he was gripping her so tightly, and his mouth tasted sour from the realization.

Grunting , he stood up and headed to the bathroom.

He took a towel and dipped it into hot water, then walked back into the living room.

Quickly discarding the ribbon, he freed her and laid her on her back.

She watched him with half-lidded eyes as he carefully cleaned her chest, then between her legs, without saying a word.

He wrapped his arms around her, picking her up bridal style, and he momentarily moved her to the couch.

He took the dirty carpet and dropped it into the bathroom with the used towel, making a mental note to clean that later.

In the living room, he grabbed some new furs and set them on the floor, then picked up the human again and placed her back on the floor in front of the fire.

The human… his human.

Naomi .

Satisfied by the release and feeling more relaxed, the white noise clouding his mind began fading.

He laid next to her, and she scooted closer to him, putting her head on his soft chest as he pulled another fur over her naked body.

“ I missed you, Kilean ,” she whispered.

The mention of the name had him stiffening for a moment, clarity slowly spreading in his mind. She was the one that chose it for him, and she was the only one that ever used it. He had almost forgotten he had one now—until he met her again and she reminded him how to feel like a real person again.

Nowadays , it was harder to remember who he was whenever he was in Hell — what he was, other than a mindless demon.

Maybe it was his age catching up to him, maybe it was the stress of the endless work and trials he was still undertaking, or maybe he was getting too used to her presence—even though it was so scarce—that whenever he went back to being a nameless krampus, the humane part of his brain would shut off as a coping mechanism.

Naomi was his anchor. She pulled him back into his own mind whenever they met again, giving his beast side a break.

“ Was I too rough?” Kilean asked, almost embarrassed.

He brushed a hand against her leg, feeling the presence of the scratches even though they were covered by the blanket. Despite the fact that they had previously planned that roleplay encounter—like many others in the past—he always worried that he might have gotten carried away.

“ I tell you every time, you can be rougher with me,” Naomi answered. She dipped her fingers in his grizzled fur, the corner of her lips tugging upwards. “ I still liked it, though. Very much.”

He leaned down to brush his face against her hair, taking in her scent, forcing his brain to catalog everything about her so he could hold onto those memories whenever he felt lonely.

He was lucky he got to have her like this at all, but he couldn’t help being greedy, when a woman this beautiful and kind showed him how good life could be.

After all these years, his ascension process still wasn’t over.

As the Nightmare had told him back then, the higher-ups didn’t like the idea of a low demon like him getting more power and freedom.

But he had something to fight for, so he hadn’t given up despite the hardship.

He would get to the end of this, one way or another.

Even if he had to forget who he was from time to time.

“ I have something for you,” he said.

With a gesture of his hand, he materialized the Christmas decoration and handed it to her.

This year, he made a wooden replica of the chalet.

With all the practice from making her decorations over the years, he challenged himself with a more complicated project.

It was a little crooked, but looked good enough to show the clear similarity to the real chalet.

“ Oh my God , this is our house!”

Our house.

Almost choking on his words he said, “ Yes , it is.”

“ They keep getting better and better,” Naomi said, smiling brightly at the decoration. She put it on the couch. “ I’m too comfortable here, so I’ll put it there for now. That way I don’t accidentally roll onto it and break it.”

She kissed his cheek as a thank you, then wrapped her arms around him, cuddling against him once more.

“ How have you been?” he asked, curious.

“ I’ve been okay. I got a promotion at work, and that was fine at first, but I tried too hard and got burnt out quickly,” she explained, sighing. “ It was a rough few months but I think I know how to balance it now.”

She played with the fur of his chest. “ Actually , I’m thinking of quitting soon.”

“ You are?”

“ At the start of the year I decided to use my drawing skills for something more,” she started. “ I shared my art online, and started making mini-comics. Apparently people like it, and I’m making some money from it already.”

Pride filled his chest. “ There is nothing you can’t do.”

“ I started making a monster romance graphic novel. It’s been really fun, and my followers are excited about it. If I can get that going, I might be able to support myself solely with my art and writing.”

He took her hand and squeezed it. “ You should do what makes you happy. Your art is stunning, and everyone deserves to see it and appreciate it.”

“ You’re a sap,” Naomi whispered, chuckling softly.

Kilean hesitated a moment before he asked, “ And what about your private life?”

“ I tried a few dates, but no one is sticking out. There was one woman I thought would be the one, but our personalities were too different.”

Naomi was everything he had. He didn’t want her, however, to live like him and only have one thing to look forward to. Her life was different from his, finite and full of promise, so he wanted her to live it to the fullest.

Because of that, they had made an agreement a few years ago that Naomi would look for affection elsewhere, too.

Naomi knew she couldn’t tell people about him, but she always made sure to approach potential partners with the idea of open relationships or polyamory, telling them she had someone else that she wouldn’t give up on.

From what she had told him, Naomi had met many people who were okay with the arrangement.

While she had adventures with some of them, she had never managed to form a connection with anyone—one deep enough to want them to stay permanently, at least.

If Naomi ever fell in love with someone, Kilean would find a way to be okay with letting her go. And if she wanted to keep them both, he’d be happy with that.

She sighed quietly. “ I don’t think I’ll ever find anyone to fill your spot, to be honest.”

“ Naomi …”

He called her name in a whisper, as if worried that saying it out loud would make her disappear.

“ I know, I know. You can’t stay, I know .”

Her voice was sad, but not irritated. He would have preferred that she was mad, to yell at him that he wasn’t doing enough, or to stop bothering her and giving her false hopes.

All of that would have hurt less than her simply accepting this life, of waiting for this night every year and never asking him how the trial was going, too worried that talking about it would sadden him.

He cherished these rare and blessed moments with her, but part of him still wished more for her. She deserved more than him and what he could offer.

“ I can feel it getting closer,” he confessed, quietly. “ But I think I still have a few years in front of me.”

He truly, truly , hoped the end was near. The process was draining him, and the uncertainty was hurting both of them.

“ It’s okay,” she repeated in a whisper. “ Waiting is hard, but I’m glad I can have you at least once a year.”

She smiled, then, her eyes unfocusing as if looking for something inside her memories.

“ Our routine is pretty nice, actually. Coming here every year, meeting you, spending some time in the snow, then having my friends and family join me right around Christmas . This place is so pretty, and it holds such beautiful memories for me now.”

It pleased him to know she had made great memories there, that she was living well even when he wasn’t present, and that she was coming back to the chalet because she loved it, and not just to wait for him.

He had been doing his duty for so long that he couldn’t even remember a time when he was young.

For so long, his life had no meaning until he met her.

Now , he could work himself to the bone every day, knowing that after all that work, his reward would be spending time with her.

He could undergo years of hardships to improve himself, knowing she would welcome him with open arms when he finally achieved his goal.

She had saved his life that first day, when she found him bloodied and unconscious in the woods. If only she knew all the ways in which she really rescued him.

“ Your affection is the only thing keeping me going,” he admitted. “ You should know, if I never cross that threshold again, it’ll never be my choice. If you don’t see me again, it’s because it was something bigger than me. If you don’t see me again, I would likely be dead.”

Sadness immediately flooded her eyes. “ Do you have to be so catastrophic?”

“ I’m sorry,” he whispered, brushing his knuckles against her cheek. “ I just need you to know where I stand.”

“ I hope nothing ever happens to you.”

“ I hope that, too. I want to keep coming back and see you gradually become gray like me.”

If he didn’t do anything stupid, he would likely live for much, much longer than her lifespan. If he could permanently stay by her side until the end of her days, he’d be happy.

She opened her mouth in a big yawn, her hand slow to cover it. “ Sorry ,” she mumbled.

“ You’re tired, you should sleep.”

Naomi shook her head against him. “ No , we don’t have much time to begin with, I can’t be sleeping while you’re here.”

“ You can, and you will. Just a few hours, then I’ll wake you up, and we can spend some more time together before I go.”

Her pout warmed his chest, another feeling he only ever experienced when he was in her presence. In any other moment, his life was filled with only cold. But here, with her, there was only ever warmth.

“ Sleep ,” he commanded, gently.

Letting out a resigned sigh, she made herself more comfortable against him, her arm wrapping around his big body. He hugged her back, his tail wrapping possessively around her leg, and put his chin on her head.

“ Make sure you wake me up, okay?” she asked, voice gradually getting quieter. “ Don’t disappear.”

His lips brushed against her forehead, smiling sadly. “ I promise.”