“Yes,” I sigh.
“Did you sort out the Demon problem?”
“He is coming to L.A. There are issues to deal with. I need him close,” I say, irate.
“Aefre, I told you not to get involved with him. I won’t be subject to another bond,” he snaps.
“It isn’t like that,” I lie. “Please just accept he is now part of our group; I need him as much as I need any of you right now.” I must look and sound as weary as I feel because he doesn’t protest further. He comes behind me and wraps his arms around me. He stares at me in the mirror as I sink back against him, relaxing into his embrace.
“I need to get back to my husband,” I state eventually, pulling myself away from him. He drags me back and whispers to me, “I can’t wait until you call me that.” He runs his hand over my stomach, stroking his thumb over me.
“Get your hands off my wife, if you don’t mind,” Cole says from behind us, his jealousy coming at us out of the blue.
CK spins us around, his hand still on my belly. “I will if she wants me to,” he murmurs. Cole’s eyes are full of rage as he watches CK stroke his hand over my stomach, his ring flashing in the light. I straighten up, pulling away knowing now why Cole is angry. I wish that I didn’t have to choose but my new charge tips the balance. He needs me more than my sire does. Again, I wish we could stop this and just all of us be together.
Cole looks smug as I move away from CK.
He says to me, without a care in the world, “I thought you gave this day to me?”
“Yes, before Cole showed up. My new charge takes precedence,” I mumble.
He is livid but there isn’t anything he can say without it making him sound like a hypocrite. “I see. I shall leave you to it then.” He pushes past us, and we are left alone. I feel awful about Sebastian and about hurting CK and Cole is still furious.
CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED FIFTY-FOUR
“Y ou gave him a ring?” his voice is like a whip and I cringe slightly.
“I did. It was something I wanted to do,” I say honestly as there is no point in lying. Well, any more than I have to.
“Something you wanted to do,” he repeats slowly. “It seems to me that you always get to do what you want.”
I blink at him. That is quite harsh coming from him, but I suppose I have hurt him, unintentionally.
“I’m sorry,” I say quietly.
He moves closer to me and takes my right hand, lacing his fingers through mine. He pushes me back against the counter and lifts me up. He roughly pulls my head towards him for a kiss before he rips my knickers off me. I wrap my legs around him, pulling him closer and he frees himself. With a hard thrust he is inside me and I cry out as he is being unusually rough with me. He pulls my hand up, our fingers still entwined. He lets me go and pulls my ring off my finger, clenching it in his fist tightly. “You are my wife,” he growls as he continues his vicious onslaught, pounding into me hard, his fingers digging into my flesh, pinching me.
“Mine,” he says again. “Say it,” he barks at me.
“Yours,” I say.
“Again,” he orders.
“Your wife. Yours.”
“Not his. You will never be his,” he says forcefully.
I am breathing heavily now as he is speeding up his movements. I’m pinned between him and the counter, his grip on me stopping any movement from me. He is holding me in place, doing all the work and I don’t like it. I squirm against him to get some leeway, but he tightens his grip on me, needing to dominate me completely.
“Say it,” he rasps harshly. “Say it.”
I can’t. I can’t say it. Truth be told, I will be his wife one day, and the more days that go by, the sooner I hope it will be.
“Say it!” he yells at me as he Shifts, his claws digging into me.
“Not his,” I whisper.
He growls as I don’t say what he wants me to. “You will never be his,” he repeats. “Never. You. Will. Never. Be. His.” The staccato rhythm of his words matching his actions and he comes inside me breathlessly, leaving me slightly shocked by his forcefulness and of course, left wanting. He leans his forehead against mine briefly and then pulls away, adjusting his clothing and pocketing my ring in his back pocket. My ring. My hand feels bare without it. It is a heavy adornment and it feels wrong that it isn’t there. I just stare at him, unable to speak, not wanting to speak. My anxiety levels must be radiating off me as CK comes back into the bathroom and asks harshly, “Everything okay in here?” He sees me all disheveled and silent still on the counter, my ripped knickers on the floor and Cole glaring mutinously at me. I run my hand through my hair and try to gain some composure.