“Well, not directly, no. He had Beta Nilo tell all the staff you are his true Luna and to treat you as such.”“Hmm,” I pondered the possibility of him feeling the mate bond like Val suggested. It seems more plausible now. I twirled the ring around my finger; the wedding ring Lachlan had given me earlier today. Even the ring with this marriage is different. My first was dull and thin. It was a cheaply made ring to match our cheap marriage. This ring is elaborate and beautiful. It may be the most beautiful accessory I have ever had in my possession. Well, besides the necklace, but Lachlan said that the necklace was given to me by someone else. The individual just asked for Lachlan to be the one to give it to me for some odd reason. I wish I knew who it was from, or wish Lachlan had finished explaining to me why he was the one to give it to me before all those women interrupted him. I would love to know who had access to siren or fae magic.There is so much difference in this life. May
I was absolutely stunned. He never would have done this in my first life. The only thing he had ever given me was scorn and hatred. “Maybe this isn’t the same timeline, Ela,” Val tells me, “It can’t be.”She is almost in tears of relief, that hope of being accepted by our mate blossoming inside her once again. “He would have told us if he felt the mate bond, though. Remember how you were the first time we laid eyes on him? If my uncle had not been holding on to us as we walked down the aisle, you would have made me run to him.” His indifference and cold demeanor is what prevented me from saying anything to him when I finally could speak to him at the reception, away from my uncle. His attitude was like ice water dousing me and waking us from the spell the mate bond cast over us. “You are being pretty cold to him in this life. Maybe he is just too scared to say anything, just like you were.”“Well, I’m not going to be the first to say it now, either. If he feels the mate bond, he wi
Lachlan POV After slipping off her worn-out and beat up slippers, I couldn’t stop myself from tasting her skin. Her feet were adorable and smooth, and my lips were on them before I could stop myself. To my surprise, she didn’t stop me either. No, she seemed for a moment overcome by the bond and unable to do anything but react to my touch. Thank the goddess, something has finally turned in my favor. I thought she might kick me in the face or slap me again for kissing her. Her reaction had Killian mewling for more. He was the one who told me not to push her, but now that the fire was lit inside us, seeing her body vibrate with want and hearing her sweet little gasp, that was all he could focus on. “Not yet, you animal. She doesn’t trust us yet. Calm down,” I told him. “She can trust us after,” he growled, “Let’s put a babe inside her womb, then that solves all our problems.” “No. It may get her to stay with us, but that’s not how we are going to gain her heart and her love. Wh
Elelira POVI was nervous about meeting Lachlan’s Lycan, hoping the decision wasn’t going to hurt Val in the long run, but the moment Killian took over Lachlan’s body I had the wind knocked out of me as I was pounced on, falling backward onto the mattress. My entire body was overcome by the pull of the mate bond, my skin erupting into mind-numbing sparks. I couldn’t think about those worries any longer. I couldn’t think about anything. I was all sensation and euphoria like I never felt before. The bond inside us, that had once called out to Lachlan, but deadened with my deprivation over time, was jolted back to life. My whole body felt like it was singing from his touch. Does he feel this too?“Mmmh,” the Lycan controlling Lachlan’s body purrs, making his chest vibrate against mine.Goosebumps rise up on my skin, and Val, the pushover, purrs back. I can’t blame her. It’s too hard to fight the bond when he is touching me. "Hi," I managed to mutter out in an airy voice."Hi, Elelir
I feel disoriented for a few seconds, time standing still as reality sets in.I told him not to kiss me again earlier today, then our Lycans went ahead and did the act for us, leaving us in a very awkward position.“I’m sorry,” he pants, his hands still resting on the sides of my face. “I was yelling at him to stop, but he just ignored me.”I press my lips together, still feeling his warmth and moisture on them. I can’t really blame him when Val initiated it as much as Killian did. “That’s okay,” I mumbled, pushing my body away from his and kneeling at the end of the bed, “Val is to blame as well.”He looks disoriented and lost, almost, as he stares at me, still lying on his back on the bed. I felt self-conscious, wondering what he was thinking. That was the first willing kiss I had ever had. The thought is wracking my brain. It may have been Val, but my body was still a willing participant. The thought is humbling, and makes my stomach feel like a bottomless pit.Every other touch
Lachlan POVShit, shit, shit. “You tell me not to mess this up, then you go and scare her again like that!” I screamed at my Lycan in my head, facing the wall so Lira couldn’t see the anger on my face and think I was mad at her. “We had her! Her walls were finally coming down! Did you not learn anything after the kiss earlier? We agreed not to do that shit until she trusts us!”“I know,” he cried weakly, terrified seeing the look on Lira’s face after she moved away from us, hurrying to kneel at the end of the bed in a meek stance. We’ve seen that look plenty of times. We lived in war and battle all of our adult lives. That appearance is all too common for those who survive something truly horrifying. That was the look of terror that grips a person when nightmares that are all too real resurface, driving a person to the brink of madness and fear retakes them. We did that. We made whatever nightmares plague her mind resurface, all from our touch. I thought the mate bond would be en
Elelira POV It’s hot. Too hot. My body is a tingling sensation of warmth and comfort, soothing sparks enveloping me. Something is weighing me down, preventing me from moving freely. I try to roll over, as Val stirs awake in my mind, then it hits me. I’m being held by Lachlan. I’m so warm because I’m no longer in the drafty tower room, and I’m in the arms of my mate. A mate that doesn’t know he’s my mate, who hurt me beyond measure in my first life, and I was on the brink of a fit of terror from his touch just last night. I’m not on the brink of terror now, though. I’m just hot. And I need to empty my bladder. I pushed firmly against Lachlan’s arm, trying to get it off my body. His grip just becomes tighter, squeezing my torso and making the urge to pee ever stronger. “Alpha!” I hissed, trying to wake him, tapping my hand on the side of his face. “Mmh,” he groans, resting his chin above my head. “Just wet the bed,” Val yawned, “Maybe he won’t try
Lachlan POV I fell asleep watching Lira, mesmerized by everything about her. When my eyes eventually got too tired to stay open any longer, and sleep was heavy on me, that was when Lira started to scream in her sleep. It was horrifying. Watching her go from peaceful tranquility, her angelic features relaxed and lovely, to seeing her wear a mask of pure terror, her screaming and cries jolting my heart was almost too much for even me. I don’t know how she stayed asleep through it all. I tried to wake her, worried she would break her jaw from clenching it so hard, or she would hurt herself by scratching at her skin too deeply. She wouldn’t wake, no matter how loudly I called to her or how much I shook her, trying to be careful not to touch her directly. The last thing I wanted was to touch her and make her even more terrified of me, but when Killian suggested doing just that, I had no other option. He came forward, as I didn’t trust myself not to scare her if she