Page 29 of The Gods We Defy (All Gods Must Die #2)

CHAPTER 29

N umbness spreads throughout my mind and body, not believing what I’m seeing.

Kestral. Kestral is in front of me. His eyes closed, his face slowly gaining color.

I blink, trying to see past what must be an illusion in front of me, when he opens his eyes. His brown eyes. Not steely silver gray.

He moves to a sitting position and glances down at his body. The bleeding has completely stopped, his face no longer pale, and his wounds are slowly healing with the powder.

He glances over at me and frowns. Eyes I have seen so many times behind his mask. But now that I see his entire face, I realize how many times I saw it on Kestral too.

It’s not an illusion. It’s him.

“Seren…”

But his voice. It’s not the same. It’s deeper. More gritty. Which doesn’t make sense.

His frown deepens, and he winces, reaching up to his head when his eyes widen as he realizes his mask is missing.

I open my mouth to ask him to prove to me what I’m seeing isn’t another illusion. To explain why? But nothing comes out of my mouth, and I continue to stare at him while more and more questions spin around my mind.

“I—” Sounds of cheers and claps sound out from somewhere behind us. Hunter/Kestral places his mask back on and grabs the gold ore and my hand before pulling my shellshocked form through the portal.

We arrive in a familiar room. The exact one I woke up in after I was knocked out, tied up, and placed in the forest for the sidhe hounds.

The silence grows around us as I stare at the room, trying to understand anything.

“I know I should’ve told you,” he says, removing his mask while his eyes plead with me to understand.

He reaches a hand out to me and I step back. The guilt and pain in his face only growing.

“Your eyes…” I start. “They’re brown and your voice…”

He closes his eyes, and a moment passes before he opens them, revealing silver, steely gray eyes in place of his brown.

It really is him. “Why?”

He clears his throat before speaking. “I needed you to be safe. I needed to make sure nothing happened to you.” His voice sounds just like Kestral’s instead of Hunter’s gritty one.

The shock slowly seeps away, bringing every question to the forefront of my mind.

If Kestral was Hunter this entire time, it meant he was with me in the trials. “How were you allowed to join the trials? Entering alone probably broke a few dozen rules.”

He reaches out to me again but stops himself midway, pulling his hand back to slide through his hair. “Technically, I didn’t. I didn’t use my powers, and I made sure you all took the lead, becoming more of a bystander.”

I narrow my eyes on his too simplified answer. “You took a toxic spike to the shoulder for me,” I remind him. “You stopped me from falling down an endless pit and saved my life in the Burren. You saved me back in the mountains after the snake bit me. So how is any of that not interfering with the trials?”

He squints his eyes as if realizing the extent to which he has helped me. I freeze when I realize it, too.

Kestral is Hunter and Hunter protected me all this time, meaning Kestral was always there. He got poisoned for me. Twice . Was willing to sacrifice himself for me. Looked out for me over and over again. Was a friend when I needed one. Kept me company when I was alone. The list goes on.

He shakes his head. “I don’t care if I broke the rules. Nothing can happen to you. Do you understand me? Nothing .”

The slow growing anger at his lie quickly evaporates as I look at him. Really look at him. There’s no longer the cold, blank, emotionless expression that he always has kept in check. Instead, I see everything I’ve wanted to since I started falling for him.

Longing. Admiration. Need. Love.

I swallow hard. “It was always you?” I ask.

He scans my face and whatever he sees makes him take a step closer. “From the first trial in the caves, yes. Before that, it was the real Hunter.” He moves another step closer and when I don’t pull back, he moves again.

“Where is the real Hunter?” I ask as he takes off my mask and places it on the bed beside us.

His steely gray eyes sparkle with mirth. “Alive and on the other side of the fae lands, enjoying riches beyond his wildest dreams and freedom he could only dream of.”

Kestral. My mate and the other part of my soul.

He’s here. Has been by my side the entire time.

I see love in his eyes now. See it and let it consume me.

I step into him, and he instantly wraps his arms around me, holding me tight as he gazes down at me.

“All this time?” I ask and he nods.

“All this time.”

I smile and tighten my arms around him when a memory flashes in my mind, making me pause. I pull back and he freezes.

“The creature in the mountains. It was Nathaira.” I wince, remembering what I did. “And I killed her, remember?”

Kestral instantly relaxes, chuckling in relief as he pulls me back into his body. “Don’t you remember what I said? What Hunter said?” He nuzzles the side of my face and sighs in content.

I think back, trying to remember. ‘ Well… That’s one less issue in our way.’

He pulls back and gives me a heart-melting smile. “I have never cared for her, nor had I met her before that day. My mother knew there was more to you and I. She saw it and wanted to ensure nothing would come of it. But she doesn’t understand how much you mean to me and how far I am willing to go to ensure your safety.” He leans into me, his eyes dropping to my lips.

“But…” I start and he groans with a chuckle. Leaning forward, he rubs his nose along my neck, making me shiver, and I feel his smile at the side of my cheek.

“Ask me your questions, mate.” His grip around me becomes more possessive, even as he pulls back to look at me. “Because when you’re done, I’m going to worship every inch of your body.” His eyes darken with lust and a slow smile spreads across his lips.

A flush of warmth spreads all over my body, making it feel too hot in here and I forget for a moment what I was going to ask him.

He slides his hands around my body, his eyes following them.

“The… curse?” I ask and then nod to myself. “The curse. You mentioned a curse,” I ramble as I try to blink away the fog of desire quickly curling around me.

His hands spasm on me, his expression quickly changing to one of guilt and fear.

“Tell me,” I ask softly, and he nods with a sigh.

“My mother. She tricked me…” He shakes his head. “I was six when she told me about mates and what that meant. She said what she was going to do was a gift that would protect me.” He brings a hand to my face, brushing his thumb along my cheek and lip and looking at me like I’m his entire world.

“But I quickly learned it was a curse she could use to manipulate and control me. When I first met you, I instantly knew who you were and what you meant to me. And I quickly realized just how horrible the curse was.”

I scan his eyes, finding heartache. “What did it do to you?”

He clenches his jaw. “It tried to keep me from you.”

“And if you didn’t stay away?” I ask, and he winces but stays silent.

“Kestral?” I push, afraid to hear the answer, knowing already that it’s going to be something I don’t like.

“It would cause pain,” he admits.

Shock spears through me.

“Whenever I was near?” I ask, and he nods reluctantly .

“But what about touch and…” Kiss? We’ve kissed. More than once.

He nods again and I move to step back in shock, but his grip tightens on me, holding me close against him.

“It’s broken. I don’t feel pain anymore,” he reminds me, but I can’t think past the pain he must have felt.

“But you did,” I tell him, thinking back to every touch, every kiss.

The kiss with the fire. My eyes widen, when I realize he wasn’t in pain because he was siphoning the fire into himself. He was in pain because of our kiss.

“Is that why you said you couldn’t have a mate? Why you hated?—”

Sadness twists his features. “I never hated you. I had to tell myself that lie over and over when all I wanted to do was hold you, touch you, and never leave your side. She told me once that if I ever had a mate, she would kill her in front of me. That she would make me watch.”

“But you broke it somehow back in that cave?” I ask, remembering the black liquid that came from his body and the shriek as it disappeared. “It happened right after you pulled the poison out of me. But how did it break? Not that I’m complaining, but why now?”

His eyes soften. “I can’t be sure, but I think it was because it was a selfless sacrifice. I didn’t care what happened to me once you were safe. Without the immunity clearing the poison, I think I would have truly died.”

I blanch before grabbing his hand, telling him we need to see a healer, now .

He laughs, a carefree melody that seeps into my chest, making it feel warm.

“I’m fine,” he says, pulling me to a stop. “ More than fine.”

“Promise?” I scan his face for a lie, but he looks at me like I’m the only thing he sees.

“I promise.”

“But what does it mean? Now that the curse is gone,” I ask.

He drags me back into the warmth of his body and wraps his arms around me once more. “It means … that my mother’s reign of control over me is gone.” His hard voice softens. “It means I get to do what I’ve wanted to do from the very first moment I met you. I tried to push you away to keep you safe from her. From me . I know it’s not a good enough excuse, but I thought I could never have a mate. And now that I can, I never want to let you go.” He dips down, his lips sweeping mine, his tongue running along the seam, making me gasp.

“Seren,” he groans, pulling me in, as if he can’t get close enough. He drags his hands up my body and through my hair while brushing kisses along my jaw and neck.

“I’m dirty,” I remind him, remembering where I’ve been these last few days.

He hardens against me, his mind taking a completely different turn.

“I’ll lick it clean and promise not to miss an inch,” he says with a growl that sends warm shivers across my body, making it come to life.

“But you’re still healing.” He pulls back, and I narrow my eyes at him, thinking he’s going to stop and leave me in this… frenzy of heat and want and need.

He chuckles low at the look on my face and draws me back in, his lips finding the side of my face, my ear. “Let me take care of you,” he whispers with the hint of a plea.

I nod and slide my arms up and around his shoulders. His lips find mine once more. I open my mouth as his tongue caresses, dragging a moan from my throat.

The sound unleashes something wild inside him and he snaps, deepening the kiss as he hauls me up. My legs wrap around his back, and he grinds into me, teasing me, dragging another moan from my mouth.

I didn’t know it could feel like this. This all-consuming need to want someone. To need their touch and warmth. To feel the delicious weight of their body against mine.

And now that I have, I can’t get enough of it. Of the feel of him. Of his scent. His hard grip as it tightens on my thighs.

He moves, bringing us outside, the bite of the cool breeze nipping at my skin as I continue to get lost in him, in the taste of his mouth and lips and tongue.

“I need to be clean,” I plead with a laugh even as I lean closer to him, not wanting to be away from his touch.

Reluctantly, he slides me down his body, his eyes roaming over my face.

He dips his head toward the pool. “There’s a barrier blocking anyone from seeing or getting in,” he assures. “Although I very much doubt anyone would try to swim the ice lake.” He places a kiss on my head and steps back. A look in his eyes that holds a dare. One that I am more than willing to follow through with.

Bending down, I untie my boots and slip them off before stripping out of my clothes, taking my time as I slide my pants down.

An agonizing groan hits my ears, making me smile. I smother it, hearing a splash, and glance up to find him already stripped and in the pool. His bare, muscular chest is the only thing visible above the steaming water.

“ Please … continue,” he begs. “I’m enjoying this far too much.” His voice is hoarse as his eyes slowly caress the length of my body.

I remove the rest of my clothing, slowly , as requested, my eyes never leaving his. He bites his lip, drawing me to them.

“You…” he rasps. “You’re stunning. Every glorious inch of you.”

I move toward him, and a slow, satisfied smile slides across his face. Stepping into the warm water, a spark of energy seeps into me.

“The waters have healing elements in them,” he says as he moves toward me, backing me against the edge of the pool, his hard body trapping me, caging me in.

But I don’t feel trapped as his hands slowly slide down my sides. He dips his head, his lips sliding down my face and neck to my breasts. I arch into his mouth and touch, raising my hands to draw them through his hair, draw him closer.

His breath curls around my nipple, his tongue flicking the small hard bud, sending sparks of pleasure down to my core.

“Kestral… I need…” More . I need more and he answers my silent plea, lifting me up to the edge of the pool and laying me down.

The cool ground lines my back as he explores by body with his hands, curving over my breast and stomach, his lips trailing a path behind them, lower and lower.

The world around me disappears, the cold ground beneath me gone as I float away. My only anchor is him as he hooks my legs over his shoulders and dips his head.

Short, sharp gasps slip from my mouth as he slides his tongue along the length of me, swirling and sucking. His fingers on my hips, holding me still as he licks long, languid strokes that burn from the inside out.

A delicious heat that expands, spreads to every limb.

My senses overload and all I can feel are his hands, his mouth, his tongue , as it slides along the inside of me.

“Kestral,” I beg, needing him. Needing to feel him inside me. But instead, his finger replaces his mouth, sliding inside and drawing a low groan from the back of his throat.

“You’re so tight,” he breathes. “So wet.” Back and forth, he moves, pumping his finger inside me, adding another before he dips down once more, his tongue joining his fingers and sweeping up to the bundle of nerves.

“Come for me,” he growls, and it vibrates through me, pushing me over the edge.

My core spasms, the climax ripping through me, obliterating every thought as I scream out his name over and over. He doesn’t stop, his mouth greedy as he continues to suck and lick me, drawing out every last inch of my pleasure until I’m a trembling mess.

His hands tighten on my thighs, and I glance at him as his eyes rake over my body, lighting it up once more.

“ Mine , my mate. My love,” he whispers, his lips brushing my stomach as he pulls my body to him, sliding us down into the warm pool of water, until we’re pressed against one another.

His hard length twitches against my stomach as he pushes my body back against the pool wall.

I hook my leg around his waist, needing him closer. Needing more of his touch, his skin, his scent as it surrounds me.

“I love you…” he whispers, grabbing hold of my hips as he nudges my entrance and slowly pushes inside. I gasp as he slides into me, inch by inch until he’s seated fully inside me. “Have loved you from the moment I saw you.” A slight pinch of pain at the delicious stretch as he stills and looks down at me, his chest heaving as we meld together.

He loves me…

He nods as if reading my mind. “I love you, I love you, I love you,” he chants, dipping down to kiss me.

“This…” he breathes. “ This is everything.” And then he moves, pulling back before sliding in again, slowly , so slowly, I feel every inch of him once more.

Pressure builds inside me, tightening along my skin with each teasing stroke. Again, and again.

“I love you, too,” I admit. To him. To myself. To the world around us and anyone who wants to listen.

“You’re mine and I’m yours. Now and forever,” he vows and then he lets go, thrusting faster, deeper, harder .

I match the movement of his hips as his mouth crashes to mine, his tongue tasting, teasing me.

A thread winds around us, weaving together to bind us as one. Warmth spreads across my entire body, across every sense and nerve. Growing and growing.

Release tears through me, this time an all-consuming pleasure that shatters me completely.

Kestral releases my lips with a roar, his grip tightening on my hips as he slams into me once more and stills as he comes.

Finally pulling back, he looks at me; the only sound around us our panting breaths as they slowly even out. And then. Silence .

Serene and beautiful as it spreads out around us. His lips find mine with a soft brush before he pulls back and looks at me, a silent vow in his eyes as the mate bond glows between us.