Chapter 48
A while ago p>
Lily POV
The rain pelted against the window; the rhythm was perfect a contrast to the jumbled emotions swirling withing me. My mind was still whirling with confusion and exhaustion. The remnants of my fever still teased at the edges of my consciousness, clouding my thoughts, but it was not enough to dull the discomfort coursing through me.
My body ached, not from the fever itself, but from something deeper – something primal. I could sense it pulsing within me, like an unspoken yearning that twisted my insides.
My heart raced as Lucas pressed close, his breath warm against my lips, his familiar scent enveloping me. I knew what was coming – his lips seeking mine. My heart quickened but I didn’t feel the excitement I once felt with him. There was a pull of familiarity, yes, but also a sickening heaviness almost irritation.
I wanted to move, to avoid the kiss that seemed inevitable, but my body betrayed me. The comfort from kissing him, the memory of our countless embraces held me in place. I wanted to pull back, to ask why – why had he betrayed me? Why had he kept me in the dark about my father and my sister’s evil plans?
A part of me still wanted to believe in him, to let him offer the comfort he once did, but it felt wrong now. I wasn’t that same girl anymore.
But I was weak, too weak to resist fully and my body didn’t seem to cooperate with the commands my mind was giving it. My muscles refused to move and all I could do was watch as Lucas inched closer. My heart pounded in my ears, not with anticipation but with confusion and fear.
But before our lips could meet, the door burst open with such force that it splintered against the wall. It happened so fast that I barely registered the blur of motion that followed and suddenly Lucas was no longer in front of me. Instead, what I heard was a sickening sound of flesh hitting flesh.
I blinked, my mind struggling to process the change in the air in the room. Where Lucas had stood just moments ago, there was now an empty space rather his body was hurled across the room.
Before I could gather my thoughts, Lucas recovered and launched himself into the hulking figure that stalked him.
But of them fought for a while and in the next instant, I saw Lucas crashing through the window, shards of glass exploding outwards, some spraying into the room as he disappeared into the stormy night.
My breath caught in my throat; my chest had tightened with shock. I still couldn’t comprehend what had just happened – Lucas was gone and standing near the window ready to follow him – that hulking figure who had been fighting Lucas a while ago, who was also dripping wet, obviously from being in the rain was none other but p>
Kai – Alpha Kai.
I gasped…gripping the edge of the bed as I saw him clearly for the first time.
His very presence seemed to suck out the air in the room, filling up every space as if he brought the storm with him. His broad shoulders heaved as he stood there, chest rising and falling rapidly. His clothes still clung to his sculpted muscles, his hands was still clenched into fists and his eyes blazed with fury so intense that it made my heart skip a beat.
He turned – and our gazes locked. I felt a jolt of electricity course through my body and suddenly the heat I had felt before – the feverish, burning sensation that had left me restless – flared up again, stronger this time. It wasn’t just the remnants of my illness, it was something far more powerful, something that set my blood on fire.
It was as if every cell in my body had suddenly awakened and was screaming for attention.
I heard my wolf – Nala ‘s voice filter into my mind. Usually, her voice is firm -almost cold but now it was filled with excitement and reverence.
“He’s here… he’s here. Our mate,” she whispered “He’s here at last p>
My mate!
I stood frozen, my mind reeling from this new information as the truth washed over me. Alpha Kai – the most feared and respected Alpha in our region – was my mate? The very man who had just thrown Lucas through a window and was ready to go after him, probably to finish him – was my mate? My true mate?
It seemed impossible, yet the reaction of my body and my wolf left no room for doubt.
I couldn’t speak. Words seemed to fail me, my throat felt tight with a lot of emotions at once – shock, confusion, fear and something else p>
Kai took a step towards me, his gaze never leaving me. The anger that had consumed him moments ago seemed to had simmered down, replaced by an intensity that made my pulse race. His movements were slow, deliberate as if he was afraid that he’d scare me, theough there was nothing gentle about the storm raging in his eyes.
I swallowed hard again, my body grembling form more than just the cold that had rushed in through the broken window. I wanted to say something, anything but my voice wouldn’t come. I was too overwhelmed.
“I I stared, my voice barley a whisper.
Kai stopped at the edge of the bed, his hulking frame making me feel both small ans safe at the same time. My heart resumed its racing, the urge to run flashed into my mind. I felt like I was cornered but I also felt an pull towards him. Nala stirred within me uprging me not to flee from our mate.
When he sank in on the space between us, my lips moved p>
“M-Mate?” I uttered, y voice trembling, both in question and affirmation.
Before I could say anything else, Kai moved.
With the swiftness of a cat, his hand cupped the back of y head, pulling me towards him. His lips crashed onto mine and my world tilted on its axis. The kiss wasn’t soft or gentle – it was hungry, demanding and primal as if he had been waiting for this moment his entire life and now that it had arrived, he wouldn’t hold back.
His lips were firm against mine as he sucked my lower lips with such fervor that made me gasp into his mouth. The sound of my own breathless surprise barely registered in my mind as his other arm wrapped tightly around my waist, fitting my body against his. His grip was so tight that I was sure I would find bruises the next day.
Yet, despite the force, despite the intensity, I found myself getting lost in the kiss. My sense was overwhelmed by him – by the heat of his body, the way his chest pressed against mine, the firmness of his hold. The world around us blurred until it was just us with out lips moving against each other perfectly.
My lips parted under his, as a soft moan escaped my throat causing Kai to deepen the contact. His tongue swept into my mouth as if he wanted to taste me. Every stroke of his tongue against mine, ignited something wild inside me, something I hadn’t realized I was capable of feeling. My wolf howled with approval, feeding into the heat that spread through my body like a flame that was quickly growing out of control.
Kai’s grip on me tightened, as if he couldn’t get close enough. His hands roamed my back, digging into my flesh, marking me with the intensity of his claim. My hands, though trembling at first, found their way to his shoulders, grasping onto him for balance.
I’ve never been kissed like this before. Lucas’s kisses had been soft, sweet, careful. But Kai? He kissed like a man starved, as if nothing in the world mattered but the feel of his lips on mine.
Just as quickly as the heat between us flared, it began to die down. The kiss softened and slowly, his lips left mine, instead, he rested his forehead on mine. We were both breathing hard, our chests heaving.
I slowly came back to myself, my hands gently resing on his chest now. Slowly, my fingers grazed the scar that cut across his face, and instinctiveluy, I pulled back but befoe I could completely retreat, Kai’s hand shot out, catching my wrist in a firm yet gentle grip.
He held my had in place, his eyes still dark with desire as they searched mine. My heart pounded in my chest, but not from the hunger that had drivem us moments ago. How could this be real? How coiuld I be mated to Alpha Kia? And why, after everything I had been through did my body crave his touch so desperately?
“I… don’t understand” I whispered looking up to him.
He didn’t say anything at first. He simply held my wrist, his thumb brushing over my skin in slow, deliberate circles as though the wanted to soothe the pain inside me.
“You don’t need to understand right now,” he finally said “You just need to know that you’re mine. And I will protect you p>
My heart clenched at his words. Could I trust him? After everything that happened? After the betrayal I had experienced from those closest to me, how could I trust that he would be any different?
But before I could try to answer that question, the exhaustion from the night’s event – both physical and emotional caught up with me. The room blurred, my vision grew hazier as my body slowly felt heavy – giving in to fatigue.
Just as I felt the last strand of my consciousness leave me, Kai’s arms wrapped around me, holding me close once more.
The last thing I heard before I felt darkness again, was his reassuring promises.