Page 56 of Where the Dark Knelt (Worshipped by Darkness #1)

And when he sped up, pressing harder, rougher, I shattered. My orgasm tore through me, my moans muffled by his mouth as he refused to break the kiss. I trembled helplessly against him, my walls clenching around nothing, desperate for something to fill me again.

Then, with a feral growl, he grabbed my waist and yanked at my dress, nearly tearing it off me in his frenzy. I barely managed to catch his wrist, gasping out between kisses, “Desmond… wait, the dress… be careful…”

He let out a guttural snarl of frustration, his chest heaving against my back.

His eyes were black with hunger, no longer glowing, they were just dark, bottomless pools of need.

With a swift, brutal motion, he pulled my dress over my head and threw it aside, his tongue immediately plunging back into my mouth in another devouring kiss.

I moaned when I felt the blunt head of his cock press against my clit, teasing me for just a moment before he began to push inside, stretching me open inch by slow, devastating inch. A loud, helpless moan spilled from my lips into his, and I felt him smile darkly against my mouth.

“Good girl… taking my cock so well… such a perfect little saint for me…” he whispered, his voice ragged and low with praise.

And then he pulled back just enough to grab the dildo again, dragging it through the slickness dripping down my thighs, coating it in my juices.

“Let’s add something else… shall we?” he murmured into my lips.

Before I could answer, he pressed the tip of the toy against my ass, slowly pushing it in, filling me at the same time as his cock stretched my pussy wide.

The double penetration sent a white-hot wave of pleasure crashing over me.

My head fell back against his shoulder, my entire body arching as I clawed at the wall for balance, desperate for something to anchor me as ecstasy tore me apart.

“Shh… just a little more…” he hissed against my throat, his hot tongue flicking over my skin, the metal of his piercings sending jolts of electric sensation straight to my core.

When he finally bottomed out, the dildo fully buried inside my ass, he started to move. Slowly at first, then harder, faster, his hips slamming into me with each thrust. His cock and the toy stretched me to my limits, filling me so completely I could barely think, only feel.

I moaned his name over and over, my voice ragged with surrender. His lips found mine again, swallowing every desperate cry as he fucked me harder, deeper, until I shattered all over again, my body shaking with the force of my orgasm.

“I’m yours… goddamn it, I’m yours…” I gasped into his mouth, my voice breaking under the confession.

He let out a deep, guttural moan, his hips bucking once more before he came inside me, filling me with his heat as his entire body shuddered against mine.

We stayed like that, trembling, clinging to each other in the dark. His forehead pressed to my shoulder, his breaths ragged and uneven.

“Damn…” he muttered softly, almost to himself. “Do you really… do you really want to be mine?”

I felt tears prick my eyes at the raw vulnerability in his voice. I swallowed hard, my chest aching with the truth that bloomed like fire through my veins.

“I… I think so… damn it, Desmond… I think I do…”

And with that confession, something deep inside me, something I’d buried under all my fear and anger and loneliness, finally bloomed into life. It wasn’t just lust anymore. It was love. Raw, terrifying, beautiful love.

And as he held me there, his lips pressing trembling kisses to my neck, I realized I didn’t care if it destroyed me.

Because I wanted him. All of him. Forever.

Chapter Thirty

Eveline

Desmond wouldn’t let go of me that night. His arms caged me against his chest, holding me with a possessive tenderness that almost felt like love. But by morning, he was gone, disappearing as silently as a stray cat slipping back into the shadows.

Sometimes, it felt like he was running away from me.

Desmond was like poison in my veins, he was addictive, burning, dangerous, but so sweet that I couldn’t resist him no matter how hard I tried. I had already given him my body, piece by trembling piece. But my soul… my soul was another question entirely. I wasn’t sure if I still had control over it.

Yet even then, I told myself ‘I wouldn’t give myself completely to a demon.’

The day finally came when I was to take my vows, to choose whether to devote my life to God as a nun or leave the monastery behind forever. The decision tore at me like claws under my ribs, filling me with a restless, suffocating anxiety.

Few days before the ceremony, Desmond vanished without a trace, leaving me alone to face my choice. He said I should decide for myself…

A white dress and veil lay neatly folded on my bed.

My hands shook as I picked them up. My gaze drifted to the open box beside them, to the dildo lying there, glistening with memories of him.

Shame and longing twisted in my stomach.

I slammed the box shut and shoved it deep into my closet, burying it under folded clothes as if that could erase him from me.

All the sisters were already gathered in the hallway before the altar, each dressed in white like me. We were still a team, a family, and that warmth soothed a small part of the storm raging inside me. But as I walked the path toward my final vows, my head held high, my heart trembled with doubt.

Who was I meant to be?

The answer seemed obvious, yet unbearably painful.

When I reached Eata, she smiled at me with soft, maternal kindness and held out her hands. “Are you ready, love?”

Love.

That word.

It had become so familiar on her tongue. But I wanted to hear it only from him. Only with him did I feel truly alive, like the world was something more than endless prayers and silent corridors. He awakened something in me, something wild and aching and beautifully human.

I never thought a demon would become my reason to keep breathing, my secret purpose.

Tears burned behind my eyes as I shook my head and threw my arms around Eata, hugging her tightly.

“I… I think this isn’t for me,” I whispered.

A collective gasp rose from the sisters behind me, echoing through the hall like a quiet lament. But Astra stood at the back, smiling softly. She nodded in silent approval, and her gentle acceptance gave me strength.

“I know that sisterhood and life in this monastery, monasticism itself, is the meaning of your lives,” I began, my voice trembling as I forced the words past the lump in my throat. “It’s something you all reached after years of reflection, of finding peace within yourselves. But… I…”

I swallowed hard, my heart pounding painfully in my chest. “I think I’ve found a different meaning to life. It isn’t here. I know I could be happy another way, that my path leads me somewhere else…”

Eata cupped my cheek, her eyes warm but filled with quiet sorrow.

“We understand, little lambkin. We’re not angry.

This is your choice. And we’re glad that over the years, this place helped you in so many ways, look at you now!

You grew up into a beautiful woman…” She smiled at me stroking my hair with a smile of a mother…

“And you healed your depression through these years, that’s the goal, isn’t it? ”

“I can’t say it’s completely cured,” I admitted, a small, sad smile curling on my lips. “But… I feel more stable now. And honestly… I think true love might be my cure. It’s out there, waiting for me.”

“Certain kinds of love do heal,” Astra murmured softly. “But you’re not talking about God’s love, are you?”

“…No.” I shook my head. “I’m looking for a man’s love. And I know… he’s looking for it in me too.”

Silence fell over the room, filled with mixed emotions. Some sisters lowered their heads in sadness, others smiled gently at me, their eyes brimming with quiet understanding.

“I want to give up my vows.”

Eata exhaled shakily, then pulled me into another hug.

“I accept your refusal,” she whispered against my hair. “It’s a pity you won’t join us completely, but remember, our doors are always open for you, lambkin.” She patted my head lovingly before letting me go.

I hugged each sister goodbye, whispering my gratitude to them one by one.

But when I stopped in front of Astra, I saw that she was crying so hard her whole body shook.

As soon as I wrapped my arms around her, she completely fell apart, sobbing into my chest. My heart ached seeing her like this.

Of course I didn’t want to leave her here…

Over these past ten years, she had become my closest friend – my sister, my best friend in this world.

I leaned down and whispered into her ear, my own voice trembling, “You’re forever in my heart, hon. I love you so so so much…”

She only cried harder, her tears soaking into my neck as she clung to me tighter. I started patting her back softly to calm her, feeling tears prick my own eyes.

“I’ll visit you more often than you think,” I whispered.

“Promise?” she sniffled, her voice small and cracked.

“I promise, hon,” I teased softly, brushing her hair back.

She giggled through her tears and finally let me go, though her hands lingered on my arms. “Run… love… and find your beloved…”

“Thank you,” I breathed, my heart full of gratitude and sorrow all at once. I turned away from her, carrying her love with me in my soul as I walked forward.

I walked down the long hall toward the monastery gates, my steps echoing softly behind me.

The sun blazed overhead as I emerged outside. Heat prickled across my skin, and for a moment, the world seemed blinding and too wide. But when my eyes finally adjusted to the light, there he was.

Desmond.

He was leaning casually against his motorcycle, a lazy smirk curling on his lips. He held out a helmet with cat’s ears to me, his eyes glinting with mischief and promise.

My heart slammed against my ribs.

“Good choice, kitten.” He winked.

I nodded, a small trembling smile breaking across my face as I walked toward him, toward my fate, whatever it would become with him.