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7
Keir stepped into the kitchen and found Rhia staring at him expectantly. “So, your father can teleport? Is he a god, too?”
“Maybe in his mind. He’s from another planet. In fact, another solar system.” He braced himself for another battle.
“Of course he is. And that would make our kid, what? A quarter alien?” Rhia pulled her hair free of the scrunchy she’d worn all day, ran her hands through her long blonde strands, and let her head fall back. “I could really use a drink to hear that story, but you don’t have any alcohol. I looked. Maybe we could hold off after I get some sleep?”
Her gaze conveyed a weariness he hated seeing in his mate. They may have been together less than a day, but all his senses were attuned to her well-being. He’d do whatever was necessary to make her happy.
“Before we call it a night, I’d like to kiss you.” Keir rolled the dice.
Either she’d become used to his sudden changes of subject or she, too, wanted some kind of physical contact to ease their mutual ache. Her expression didn’t give away what his request made her feel.
“So, now you think you’re some kind of prince that can change my mind with a magic kiss or something? None of this feels real, Keir. The demons, your father, your brethren in a castle in Scotland and being about to use portals. You realize how unbelievable all of this is, right? One kiss is not going to change my mind.”
"Oh, Rhia. This is as real as it gets. But none of those things matter. You are my mate. No one can change that. I knew it ten years ago. I know it now.”
Tears filled her eyes. Keir held himself back. He wanted her to want him.
She raised her chin, defiance and skepticism in her eyes. “Look at me. Do you see a fated mate who you can’t live without, or do you see a gullible witch with powerful potions that will get rid of your enemy? What makes me so special?”
“You want to know what I see, Rhia? Let me tell you."
Moving toward her, he got as close to her as possible without touching. "When I look at you Rhia, I see a desirable woman, curves in all the right places. Long, silky hair you shamefully hide in a ponytail. And your eyes Rhia, they call to me the most. Reaching me here.” He brought his hands over his heart. “Where no woman ever has. And equally important, I see a woman who stands up to me, challenges me. It’s not just your potions, it’s the woman smart enough, talented enough to create them. All of that combined excites me and confirms you are the other half of my soul."
Dipping his head within inches of her sweet lips, he whispered. "You are mine Rhia, and I’m yours. We will carry out this prophecy and we will get past our differences. I vow it. Since that night you ran from me, did you know I've had visions of you? I've had them for the past ten years, Rhia. Ten years. And every night you are the woman I've seen, desired.”
"Listen, Keir, that all sounds—nice. I mean, what woman doesn’t want to be wanted? But what if this is only lust between us? I mean, you feel it too, right? I can’t turn it off. My mother never said this intense connection was part of it.” Rhia pleaded, her voice shaking.
Keir cupped her face, tried to find the right words. "First, I wasn't going for nice. You are the one. Denying it only delays our pleasure. And without the lust, I would know you’re not my mate." He took one step back, a calculated risk, giving her a bit of breathing room and time to digest the truth of his words.
Rhia shook her head. “You realize this is insanity. I don’t know if I want to push you away or crawl inside you, beg you to never leave me.” A single tear fell down her cheek, and before she could wipe it away, Keir leaned down, kissing the salty drop. If he could absorb all her pain through that one drop, he would.
But what he could offer her instead was eternal belonging, pleasure they would experience with no other, and the acceptance she craved.
“I won’t. We’re in this together, Rhia.”
Seconds ticked by, filled with anticipation. Rhia nodded her consent, but instead of first taking the kiss he wanted, he buried his face into her neck, inhaling her addicting scent. Ambrosia.
Nipping her flesh, he licked the sting away, then ran his tongue along the hollow of her collarbone to just below her right earlobe. Her body responded. Her skin broke out in gooseflesh along her arms as he stroked, then kept doing down to her hips before then pulling her tightly against his throbbing erection.
Another level of desire connected them. Her increased heart rate matched his. Their shallow breathing filled the room, a symphony of sound and need.
“You take my breath away, Rhia."
She released a throaty moan and her sexy response gave him the permission he’d been craving, making up for ten years of anticipation, frustration, and it filled him with hope that she’d finally accepted him. Accepted their destiny.
Keir reacted swiftly, capturing her lips in a desperate kiss. There wasn't an inch of his body that wasn't on fire. His left hand somehow made it between their fused bodies. He cupped a breast, kneading her flesh, seeking another of her sweet responses. When his thumb brushed over her erect nipple, her quick indrawn breath was the best damn sound he’d heard in forever.
Triumph filled him as she wound a leg up his thigh, arching her back.
Tearing his mouth from hers, he captured the other nipple in his mouth through the fabric of her top. A moan escaped his little mate, but before he could decide where to next touch her, taste her, she unexpectedly pushed against his chest.
“It’s too much. Please, I’m sorry, I thought I could…but, I need some more time. And some sleep.”
With his wolf screaming at his decision, Keir released her. He’d be patient if it killed him. Pushing her into the mating, both the physical act and the practical, could shut her down and have her running at the first opportunity. And if that happened, he would never forgive himself.
Releasing Rhia was harder than he imagined, but he would not use her response against her. “I can’t say I’m not disappointed. But I’m not going to force this mating on you, Rhia. Ever. You can have my room. While you’re in the shower, I’ll find something for you to wear. You can even use my toothbrush.”
