Page 6

Chapter 6

Della

“ W here are you sneaking off to?” Mikel asked as I got dressed for dinner with Haden and his parents tonight.

“I met a friend,” I lied.?

Mikel seemed surprised.

“That’s great.” He smiled and stepped into the room where I was trying to fix my hair. “What’s her name?”?

I stilled as I raked my fingers through my curls. I couldn’t tell Mikel that it was a man. He would tell me that men had ill intentions. But Mikel shouldn’t worry about Haden’s intentions; he should worry about mine. I had been going to see Haden every day for two months. Usually at his house while he worked on building it. Haden was nothing short of a gentleman, only giving me a few lingering kisses but never going for more. I was hoping he would tonight, and if he didn’t, maybe I would be brave enough to move it to the next level.?

“Penelope,” I said quickly when I realized my mind had wandered for longer than necessary.

“What are your plans? You look pretty.” Mikel smiled at me.?

“Dinner with her parents, nothing too crazy.” I felt bad about lying, but there was no way that I could tell him I was trying to seduce a man who was not my mate.?

“I wanted to talk to you yesterday, but you were gone. I just wanted to say that you seem so happy lately, and it makes me so happy to see, Dells. Being a god can sometimes feel suffocating and lonely. And I am thankful that the stars made us together, but I know that you have craved a friendship besides me. I am happy for you.”?

Tears filled my eyes.?

“I love you, Mikel. You will always be my best friend.” I reached out and squeezed his cheek playfully.?

“I love you too. Have fun tonight.”?

“I plan on it.”?

I watched Mikel walk out of my room and felt like an asshole for lying. I would have to tell him eventually. I shoved away those impending thoughts and glanced over at the mirror, checking over the simple dress I wore tonight. Excitement coursed through me as I thought about Haden. I would be a bit early, but because I hadn’t seen him yet today, I couldn’t wait any longer. I summoned my star mist.? When my magic fell away, I was outside of Haden’s family home. I smiled when Haden stood up from the front steps eagerly.?

“Did you hear me praying that you would show up early?” he asked.?

“No. But I couldn’t wait to come see you. I missed you so much.”?

“Today was terrible.” He leaned in and kissed me. “I know you have to work, but let’s not spend an entire day apart again.”?

I chuckled softly as I gave him one more kiss. Haden led me inside, and his entire family stood to give me a hug. The food smelled so good. My greedy eyes looked over the steaks and large array of side dishes I had never seen before.? I sat down eagerly. I was starving. Haden plated food for me when he saw how impatiently I was waiting. His family started talking about wedding plans.

“You are engaged?” I asked Holden and Sara.

“Yes, sorry, we assumed Haden told you.” Sara gave him a pointed look. Then she lifted her hand, showing me the pretty golden band with stones around the entirety of it. At first, I wasn’t sure what to think about being friends with them, but when I saw Holden and Sara together, I could not help but wonder if they were supposed to be written in the stars. There was nothing remotely romantic that stirred in my chest for Holden. But each time I looked at him, I could see our bond floating between us, reminding me that I was supposed to be his.?

“When is the wedding?” I asked.

“Soon, we don’t want to wait too long, but we haven’t picked an exact date.” Holden grabbed Sara’s hand on the table and squeezed it. They started going into detail about the food and flowers. I had never been to a wedding. They weren't custom for gods; we just completed the mating bond and were married. Would Haden want a wedding?

Haden was already staring at me when I looked at him. His hand came under the table and rested on my thigh, and he began rubbing his thumb back and forth on my bare skin. The simple touch was igniting a frenzy inside of me. I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye and saw he was staring at me—admiring me as if I couldn’t see him.

“Ardella, you need to come to dinner more often.” Henry smiled. “This has been such a great night. Watching our two boys with two incredible women has been the highlight of our parenting life thus far.”?

I smiled at them.?

“I think our parents might like the girls more than us,” Holden said to Haden.?

“Do you blame them?” Haden smiled.?

Penelope stood up and pinched Holden’s cheeks.?

“My boys will always be irreplaceable.” She smiled. “But it is nice not being the only woman.” She started grabbing dishes and smiled. “Ardella, do you mind grabbing those?” She nodded to the dishes in front of me.?

“Of course not.” I stood up quickly and grabbed the plates, then followed her into the kitchen to set the dishes down. Penelope was watching me closely, so I looked at her, and she smiled softly.? She glanced at the other room to make sure everyone at the table was in conversation, then leaned over and said, “Haden told us who you are.”?

My smile fell, and I glanced down at the counter.?

“I always knew that Haden was different,” she started. “He was always so much more guarded with his feelings and wants than Holden was. We were so worried he would never settle down because no one ever caught his attention. I should have known that he would not settle for just anyone, but I was surprised when he told us who you are.”?

I looked up at her and smiled, relieved at her reaction.?

“Holden is my free-spirited child, but Haden, he is not a risk taker. He will not go all in with something unless he is certain that it is exactly what he wants. I don’t think I could have picked a better fit for him.” She smiled at me. “I just wanted to tell you that we are so happy for you two, and one day, maybe we will all be one big family. Is a goddess allowed to get married?”?

I smiled softly at her question.?

“We do get married,” I said. “Thank you for making me feel welcome. I did not grow up or have parents, so all of this is new to me. But I can’t imagine a greater family to show me what it is like.”?

Penelope hugged me tightly. I hugged her back, and I wondered if this is what it would have been like to have a mother. After a long moment, she pulled away.

“Take care of him; he’s all in on you.”?

“I promise.”?

Haden walked up, and his mother let us have space. He smiled down at me and saw the tears welling in my eyes.?

“What’s wrong, Storm?” His thumb brushed against my cheek.?

“I’m thankful that the heavens brought you to me.”?

Something flickered through his eyes as he leaned down and kissed me softly.

“I want to take you somewhere,” he whispered. “Can you take us to the house with your star mist?”?

“Yes.” I smiled.?

“Ardella and I will see you guys later.” He called out without looking away from me. My star mist circled around us, and when it disappeared, we were standing next to Haden’s house. I glanced at it and stilled. It had the outside walls up. I looked at Haden, and he smiled brightly.?

“My dad and Holden helped me get them up today.”?

He grabbed my hand, led me up to the door, and pushed it open. He fumbled around for a minute before a lantern lit up the space. There were no internal walls finished, but it looked like a home.

“Haden, this is so exciting. It’s looking so good.” I turned and looked at the progress he made since I left a day ago. I froze when I saw the bed he had set up and looked at him.?

“I was thinking about staying here some nights.”

I nodded, and Haden stared at me. I could feel the tension between us. Please come over here and kiss me , I begged silently. Haden swallowed hard as he looked over at me. His eyes lingered on my exposed skin. When his eyes met mine, I held my breath and waited for him to finally make a move. He cleared his throat lightly and ran his hand through his hair. When he turned away from me, disappointment coursed through me.

I looked at the bed and sighed softly. Did he not want to do anything? Was it not customary to do anything like this before marriage?

“Is there a reason you never touch me more than kissing?” I asked, sounding far braver than I felt.

Haden turned to face me quickly. He stared at me, frozen to his spot, like maybe he hadn’t heard me correctly.

“Do you want me to?” His voice was shaky.

“Are you kidding me?” I asked, smiling at him.

He exhaled loudly, his nostrils flaring as he looked at me. “I just assumed that you didn’t do that until marriage.”

My brows pinched together with confusion. “Why would you think that?” I asked.

“The whole being-a-goddess thing? I don’t know; I just figured it was like a spiritual thing.” He fumbled his words in such an adorable way.

I laughed softly, and he finally relaxed as well.?

“Hell, no, Haden. I have been impatiently waiting for you to make a move. I thought that you didn’t want to for some reason.”

Haden’s eyes traced all over me. “Fuck no, I have been holding myself back.”

“Well, stop holding back.”

That was all he needed to hear. Before I could react, Haden was pulling me to him, his mouth crushing mine. His hands gripped my hips and tugged me against his body. Haden backed us up, so the backs of my knees hit the bed, and we fell on the bed together. He stared down at me, his eyes drinking in my face. His fingers gripped my jaw before his thumb rubbed against my mouth roughly.

“So pretty, Storm,” he whispered.?

His words shot straight through me, making my stomach clench tightly.

“I’ve not done anything before,” he confessed as he stood up. I smiled because I was happy that I would be his first and his only.

“Me neither.”

His frost magic filled his eyes, and a possessiveness came over them. Sitting up, I lifted his tunic, kissing his toned stomach. He let out a soft sigh as my mouth trailed over his muscles. He grabbed his tunic and ripped it off of himself. I looked up at him and admired how fit he was from working hard.?

I lifted my hand and ran it down the length of his torso. Haden watched silently as I got to the band of his trousers. I untied them as I stared him in the eyes. Haden snagged his bottom lip with his teeth as he watched me push them down. I shot my star mist out, and his boots were gone as well. He smirked at me, now standing completely naked for my appreciation.?

“So eager for me, Storm?”?

“You have no idea,” I sighed.?

“You’ve thought about this?” he asked. I nodded as I grabbed his hard length and moved my hand down it. Haden moaned loudly, and his eyes fluttered shut. Note to self: Haden likes this a lot. I did it again, and his hips surged forward involuntarily. He grabbed my wrist and pulled me up so I was standing flush against him, giving me a fleeting kiss before turning me around. His hands made quick work of my dress, letting it pool at my feet.?

He then gently traced my silver tattoos before turning me back around. His eyes slowly fell down my body, and he bit that lip again and looked like he was memorizing everything about me.?

“Fuck,” he said softly. “I’ve thought about this a lot, and my mind did not do you justice.”?

His hand lifted hesitantly, and he wrapped it around my neck softly before slowly dragging it down my chest, down my stomach, and then, so slowly, he touched me where I wanted him to the most. I sighed when his fingers dragged through my arousal. Haden’s eyes took in everything about my face as my mouth fell open.

“Fuck,” I moaned softly. His eyes moved down, and he stepped back slightly so he could watch his fingers push into me. I reached out and grabbed his shoulders. Haden’s mouth fell open as he pulled his fingers out and slowly sank back into me. I grabbed his hand and moved his thumb, circling my clit. I dropped my hand away, and Haden was touching me perfectly. Heavens above, I wanted him to feel good too. I reached down and stroked his hard length. Haden gripped my hand and tightened my grip, pumping my hand faster.?

“Just like that, Storm.”?

I kept doing it, and Haden’s eyes closed tightly before he withdrew his fingers and lifted me up. He laid me on the bed and crawled over me. His mouth crashed into mine, and I kissed him feverishly. I was desperate to feel him inside of me. I wrapped my legs around him and rubbed him against me. Haden rocked his hips forward and through my wetness.?

“Fuck, Storm, are you sure?”?

“I have never been more sure about anything in my life,” I said breathlessly.?

Haden pulled back and lined our hips together before slowly pushing inside of me. Gods, I felt impossibly full as he moved forward. I clenched my eyes tightly at the small pain. Haden began to pull away, but I tightened my legs around him and thrust my hips forward, taking him in as far as I could.?

Haden moaned, and we both didn’t move for a moment. No thoughts came to me as we both waited for the other. Fuck, this was better than I imagined. The pain subsided, and I slowly loosened my thighs on him.

“You feel like fucking heaven,” Haden breathed. He pulled out and pushed back in slowly, glancing at my face to make sure I was doing alright. I moaned at the pure ecstasy of this. I did not know this would feel so euphoric.?

“Faster, Haden,” I begged.?

He listened and moved his hips faster.

“Oh, gods,” I muttered softly. “Just like that.”?

Haden was staring down at me. His eyes were turning icy blue, and I smiled at him. My fingers pushed through his damp hair and yanked him down to me. My mouth was demanding, making him move faster.

“You look so pretty under me, Storm,” He ground out. His hips surged forward hard and circled again and again. Haden’s skin glistened with sweat as he moved against me quickly.?

“You feel so good. I did not know it would feel this good.”?

Haden sighed before he leaned down and kissed me roughly. My fingers dug into the flesh of his back as a sensation started building deep in my stomach. Haden’s hands came up and gripped my jaw tightly as his mouth devoured mine. He pulled back and knelt so he could grab my hips, then he yanked me against him roughly. His gaze fell to where he filled me.?

“Fucking hell,” he muttered. “I’m close.”?

“Me too.”?

“Tell me what you need to cum around me as I bury myself inside of you.”?

Shit.?

I grabbed his hand and showed him how to rub my clit as he drove into me.?

“Yes, do not stop doing that.”

Haden was getting more and more frantic with his thrusts. I stared at his face, but the feeling of tipping over the edge made me close my eyes tightly.?

“Eyes on me; watch me when you cum.”?

My eyes fluttered open as my orgasm tore through me. “Haden.” I moaned out as he slammed into me, desperate to cum with me. He buried himself deep inside of me with a final moan. He panted as he collapsed on top of me, and we both lay there tangled in each other’s bodies, our breathing filling the space. After a minute, Haden looked up at me and gave me a grin so big that my heart squeezed.?

“How does anyone get things done when they can feel like that all the time?”?

I laughed, and he leaned up to give me a chaste kiss.?

“You own me, Ardella. I am yours for my entire existence.”?

Tears stung my eyes as I pulled him down and hugged him to me tightly, once again begging the heavens to let me keep him as my mate.?

“Will you stay the night with me?”?

“Yes.” I smiled as we both wiggled our way under his blankets. Then he pulled me back against him, his arm wrapping around me like I would disappear if he let me go.