Chapter 49: The Second Bond
AYLA
"Thank you" I said as Cassian and I walked to my room.
Astrid was reunited with her sister because of him and I had given her the week off to take her sister someplace safe and be with her. She had wept when she thanked me. I had wept too.
"It is nothing." Cassian smiled.
We were standing right outside my door.
"It is not nothing." I looked up at him. "If you had not been there and forced Willow’s hand, I would not have been able to help Astrid."
"Then I am glad I was there."
He said it so simply. Like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
The space between us felt charged. I could feel the warmth of his body even though we were not touching. His blue eyes held mine in the dim light.
"You should get some rest," he said. "It has been a long day."
"You should also get some rest." I smiled. "You need it more than I do. I have kept you on your feet all day."
He chuckled. "For you? Anytime."
He reached past me and pushed the door open. I stepped inside, but he stayed in the doorway, his hand resting on the frame.
"Goodnight, Ayla."
"Goodnight, Cassian."
I watched him begin to turn away and something in me snapped.
"Cassian."
He turned back.
I stepped forward, my hand reaching out to grab the front of his shirt. I pulled him toward me before I could lose my nerve, rose onto my toes, and pressed my lips to his.
He made a sound against my mouth. Surprise, maybe. Or relief.
Then his arms wrapped around me, pulling me flush against his chest. His hand slid to the back of my neck, his fingers threading into my hair as he kissed me back.
His tongue slid against my lower lip, asking, and I opened for him. He walked me backward into the room, kicking the door shut behind us without breaking the kiss.
We stumbled across the floor, his hands finding my waist then my hips before sliding up my sides. I fumbled with the buttons of his shirt, my fingers clumsy and desperate. He pulled away just long enough to yank it over his head, then his mouth was on mine again.
We fell onto the bed in a tangle of limbs and breathless laughter. I landed beneath him, his weight pressing me into the mattress.
He pulled back, his blue eyes searching mine.
"Are you sure?" he asked.
I reached up and traced the line of his jaw. "I have never been more sure of anything."
He lowered his mouth to mine.
His lips traced my jaw, my throat, the hollow of my collarbone.
His hands found the ties of my dress. He loosened them one by one, his fingers brushing my skin with each tug and when the fabric fell away, he pulled back to look at me.
"Goddess," he breathed. "You are so beautiful."
Heat flooded my cheeks. I reached for him, pulling him back down to me.
His mouth found my breast, his tongue circled the peak before he took it into his mouth. I gasped, my fingers threading into his silver-white hair. He lavished attention on each one, sucking and licking until I was writhing beneath him, until I could feel the wetness pooling between my thighs.
He pulled back again, just enough to look at me.
"I want to see you," he said. "I want to watch you take me."
I nodded and he rolled us over so I was straddling him.
The position made me feel powerful. His hands found my waist, his thumbs tracing circles on my hipbones. His blue eyes were dark with desire and his chest rose and fell beneath me.
I reached between us and wrapped my hand around his cock. He hissed through his teeth, his hips bucking into my grip. I guided him to my entrance and held him there, hovering, savoring the anticipation.
"You are in control," he groaned. "Take what you need."
I lowered myself onto him.
I felt every inch of him as I sank down, my body stretching to accommodate him. He was thick, and the fullness of it made my breath catch. I paused when I had taken all of him, my palms flat against his chest, feeling his heartbeat beneath my fingers.
"Fuck, Ayla," he breathed.
I began to move.
His hands guided me, his thumbs pressing into my hips and his eyes never leaving my face.
I rode him.
It was nothing like what I had experienced with Ares. This was a slow burn... a worship.
"Look at you," he murmured, his voice rough. "Look at what you do to me."
I looked at him and I could see how much effort it was taking him to hold himself together.
I leaned forward, my hands braced on his shoulders, my hair falling around us like a curtain. The angle changed, and his cock hit something inside me that made me cry out.
"There," I gasped. "Right there."
He began to thrust up into me, meeting my movements, driving deeper. I could feel myself nearing the deep end.
"Cassian," I breathed. "I am..."
His hand slid between us, his thumb finding my clit. He circled it in time with his thrusts, and that was all it took.
The orgasm crashed through me. My body clenched around him, my head fell back, and I cried out his name as I came apart on top of him.
He followed a second later. His hips bucked, a low groan tearing from his throat. I felt him pulse inside me, felt the heat of his release.
His breath was ragged, his body trembling with the effort of restraint.
"Ayla," he said, his voice barely a whisper. "Let me mark you."
"Yes." I breathed.
He buried his teeth into my neck.
The pain was sharp and brief, swallowed by the wave of pleasure that followed. I felt the bond snap into place, a thread tying his soul to mine. I felt him, his love and his devotion.
I collapsed onto his chest, my face pressed into the curve of his neck. His arms wrapped around me, holding me close.
"Thank you," he whispered against my hair. "For choosing me."
I kissed his chest, right over his heart.
We lay there, tangled together, my body still seated on his, his cock still softening inside me. The room was quiet except for our breathing.
Cassian’s thumb traced lazy circles on my back.
"Should I get up?" he murmured.
"No." I pressed closer. "Stay."
I closed my eyes, listening to the steady beat of his heart beneath my ear.