The Beast And The Blessed by Ashley Breanne
Chapter 69
Natalie’s P.O.V.
I could feel it. The sadness and panic pumped through our mate bond. It was subtle, almost muffled. But it was there. It was the first thing that I had felt from Killian since I shifted. The fact that it came through at all told me that he was hurting tremendously. I placed the towel on the counter, my damp hair hanging down and soaking into my shirt as my hand moved up to grab my chest as it grew more intense.
I stumbled toward the bathroom door needing to get to him, pulling it open at the same time that the bedroom door slammed shut, and my mate marched toward me. There was no second thought as I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and my legs around his waist as he picked me up and held me to him tightly. The pain etched into his face, and the water lining his eyes made my heart shatter. He shoved his nose against my neck as he breathed in deeply, and I tightened my hold on him, wanting him to be impossibly closer so I could take his pain away.
But all I could do was hold him as he tried to steady himself. Watching and feeling my strong king and mate breaking made me feel like my insides were being ripped clean from my body, and I didn’t know how to make it better. “I’ve got you,” I whispered, and his arms tightened around my waist. “You’re okay. I’ve got you.”
He had never shown any emotion so deeply. His hard and cold exterior had been melting more and more each day, and I had been worried for the day that he would finally embrace the pain and stress of his reality. The pressure alone was enough to break any man, but this was more than that.
This deep seeded agony that was pumping through his body and our bond was something I had never expected before.
Even when I was at my lowest, strapped to a pole with the flesh hanging in strips from my back, I had never felt this kind of pain. My pain had almost always been physical. Killian’s was emotional, and that was something that medicine and
Healers couldn’t fix.
“I’ve got you.” I bent my head down, pressing a kiss against his neck firmly as he took in a shaky breath. His body grew rigid as he swallowed, but he didn’t let go.
I kissed the same spot one more time. The spot where my mark would one day lay when he was ready.
“You can’t leave me.” He growled, and I nodded even though I was thoroughly confused. “You’re mine. You can’t leave me.”
He pulled back, and I looked over his face. The cold mask he had before was trying to force its way forward as he pushed his emotions down, but it was failing to hide the pain in his eyes.
His eyelids dropped as he pressed a punishing kiss to my lips. I accepted it greedily, kissing him back with everything I had, wanting to show him how much I loved him…wanting to tell him that everything was going to be okay.
Killian’s tongue met mine as he kissed me deeper, and I let out a m*oan. His hand held me to him by the back of my head before he ripped his lips away from mine, but I leaned in, following him, trying to steal one last taste.
“Say it!” He demanded, but the hurt in his words made my heart clench.” Say you won’t leave me!”
I desperately wanted to ask what had happened, what had caused this. But my need for information was far less important than his need for comfort. “I won’t leave you. I’m yours, forever.”
Killian looked at me, staring from eye to eye before he seemed happy with what he saw there, and he pulled me back to him. “Mine.”
The kiss sent butterflies down to my toes, and I gasped as laid me down gently on the bed. His touch was new, invigorating. Making love had been slow and torturous, bringing me to new highs. But this…
Oh, this made my heart sing with happiness as he kissed me like I was the Goddess herself, and he wanted to worship me. His large and calloused hands trailed down to my hips before sliding up and under my t-shirt.
My arms were still wrapped around his neck as he dominated my mouth, taking every gasp and m*oan I let out as he began to grind his hips against mine. “Again!” He demanded as he pulled his lips away and trailed them across my jaw and down my neck, leaving butterfly kisses in his wake.
“I’m yours.” The m*oan was loud and uncontrollable as he reached my mark, licking and kissing it before his teeth sank into my flesh as he bit down aggressively.
The orgasms ripped through me before I could prepare myself, and I dug my nails into his back as I arched into him. He moved with me as I grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled it up and over his head.
“Again.” He stated calmly this time as he kissed down my collar before reaching between us and ripping my shirt from my body. The feeling of his chest and warm skin against mine sent goosebumps over me, and I lifted my hips, silently begging for him to free me from the rest of the fabric.
“I’m yours.”
Killian growled in approval as he rocked into my hips one more time before doing exactly as I had wanted and removed my shorts and underwear in one swift pull. He dropped his as well before climbing back over me and settling between my legs. His hardness slid in between my lips, and he coated himself with my wetness.
He was only there for a moment before he pulled back and pressed his tip to my entrance, pushing in as far as he could go. Our bodies collided in a flurry of hard and punishing thrusts. It was delicious as he fought to control himself. Our lips
brushed against each other as we panted and moaned with every movement, but never fully connected.
Yet, our gaze did. He held my stare as I grew closer to my orgasm, and my eyes squeezed shut as he tilted his pelvis and began to rub roughly against my wet c*li*t. The fiction was too much, and my wall tightened around him as I held him deep inside me.
Black spots danced in my vision as my body trembled. It was more than just my impending orgasm. My beast was fighting me to come forward, demanding that I claim our mate.
Killian’s muscled tightened as he let out a deep guttural m*oan. The sound of it sent me over the edge as he whispered with a wild look in his eye. “Again.”
My teeth extended as I gave in to my beast, wanting it just as badly as she did.
“You’re mine,” I growled, pushing my head up and biting into the soft skin of his neck, placing my claim as he thrust into me faster, whispering my name over and over again before pulling out and c*umming on me. Keeping his head still and allowing me to care for his mark with slow and loving licks.