7. Zachariah

CHAPTER 7

Zachariah

I toss and turn on the bed, sleep evading me despite it being midday.

My mind is restless, my thoughts snapping from Talia's cutting words to her sexy-as-hell kiss.

The blood runs hot in my veins just thinking about her lips pressed against mine, the way her soft curves had felt underneath my hands. The way she'd gone pliant in some areas, and tense in others.

The way I couldn't stop thinking about having her under me, sinking my cock and fangs into her at the same time like I'd dreamed about for centuries.

Fuck me, I was half hard just thinking about it.

I felt her in that kiss.

Felt the Talia I knew all those years ago—the one with the brilliant mind and the wicked tongue and the sweet-as-sin smile. The Talia I spent countless nights walking along a moonlight beach with, the conversation between us free-flowing and never-ending, never reaching a lull or a wall. The Talia who I could barely separate myself from even when dawn approached and the sun forced us apart. The Talia I planned to marry and complete the mating bond with after we said traditional vows.

The Talia I let get away.

I can't let that happen again.

I can't make that mistake again.

I have to make amends. Have to let her know I regret leaving her more than anything else I've regretted in my entire existence.

Have to convince her to tell me what she needs from me to earn her forgiveness. All she has to do is speak it and I'll make it happen.

I fling the sheet off my body, not bothering to put on a shirt as I storm out of my room, stopping in front of the door right next to mine. I hesitate for only a moment, my fist raised above the wood, before knocking.

Talia opens the door, wearing a pair of indigo silk pajamas with shorts that show off her luscious thighs, and a tank top, her breasts peaked beneath the thin fabric. Her lilac eyes trail the length of my body, widening at my bare chest and the simple pair of pajama pants I wear hanging off my hips.

"I see the uniform has changed," she says, her tone dripping in that snark she hasn't let go of since I first saw her. "It's the middle of the day, Zachariah," she continues before I can respond. "What do you want?"

I struggle to remember how to speak, groaning at just the sight of her. She's the most gorgeous thing I've ever seen, and everything in my soul reaches out for her.

"It's not about what I want," I finally grind out the words. "It's about what we need . May I come in?" My muscles are basically locked as I hold myself in place, my fingers itching to touch her bare skin so beautifully on display.

Fire ignites in her eyes as she arches a brow at me, stepping back just slightly to allow me in. "You always did have the finest manners," she says in a teasing tone as I step over the threshold.

Her quarters are drenched in her scent, only further plucking my instincts that demand I reclaim every inch of my mate. The female the fates chose for me, but the one who stole my heart all on her own.

"I need to make something clear," I say, turning to shut the door behind me.

"Don't you always?" Her tone is as sharp as her daggers, but there's a playfulness over her features, and the combination only makes me want her that much more.

I flash her a warning look, my eyes falling to her luscious lips. "Such a sharp tongue you have for me now," I say, stalking toward her, loving the way her scent turns heady at the move despite her turning and backing away.

"Please," she says, shaking her head as I back her against the closed door. "My mouth has always been smart, ever to my noble parents' chagrin. If memory serves me, my mouth is one of the reasons why you pursued me in the first place."

I brace an arm against the door, bringing our bodies closer but not touching. I use my free hand to reach toward her face, gauging her reaction as I lightly trace my thumb over her bottom lip.

She allows the move, her eyes never leaving mine.

"This may have intrigued me when I first met you," I say, tracing the lines of her mouth. "But this is what made me fall for you." I drop my hand from her lips, lightly grazing the center of her bare chest, just above the silk that dips in a V between her beautiful breasts. She arches under the touch, and the blood thrums in my veins so hard it almost hurts.

"Is that what you needed to make clear?" she asks, her voice low and soft and open.

"No," I say, relishing the closeness, the way she's letting me so near her, her words no longer sharp. "I felt you in that kiss."

She visibly swallows, then shrugs. "Just because my body responds to you doesn't mean you own any part of me."

"But you own all of me," I say, my head dipping, unable to resist seeking out another taste. I let my mouth hover a breath above hers, knowing I will never take anything she won't freely give.

My heart pounds against my chest, everything inside of me tightening as her eyes hold mine, a combination of fire and need and battle raging there.

Another heartbeat and her lips crash against mine, her hands reaching up and wrapping around my neck to draw me closer to her level.

There's a hint of punishment in the kiss, and I groan at the taste of her, my arms falling and snaking around her lower back to draw her flush against me.

I draw back, sucking in a sharp breath as I catch her gaze again. "If kissing you is the only way I can help you remember what we used to be, then that's what I'll do." I capture her lips again, sucking her plump bottom lip into my mouth and relishing the way she whimpers at the move.

She clings to me, arching against where our bodies touch, the thin fabric separating us damn near searing.

She kisses me harder, slipping her tongue between my lips to meet mine, and I damn near fall to my knees.

Goddamn, she was made for me.

She feels like mine .

Instincts blaze, begging me to hoist her up and fuck her right here against this door, claim her as my mate and finally seal that bond between us forever.

But I know she's not on the same page.

I know I merely feel good to her, and I'm prepared to be that for her as long as she keeps me close.

I pull back, both of our chests rising and falling rapidly. I cup her cheeks, ensuring she sees the sincerity in my eyes. "I went into statis knowing I'd lose the best thing to ever happen to me," I admit. "And then when I woke up…I spent the last two years thinking you were dead," I say, my voice cracking slightly. "But you're alive, and fate is giving us a second chance. Whatever I have to do to make amends for my mistakes, I will. And I'll use every advantage I have, and if your body is my only ally, then so be it. Just tell me you want this," I say, dragging my hand down the side of her ribs, slipping it carefully beneath her silk top, watching for any sign that she might say no.

When only a needy little gasp escapes her lips, her eyes hooded as she looks up at me, I continue the path until I reach her bare breast beneath the fabric.

I shudder at the touch, at the feel of her breast in my hand as I massage and tease her nipple until it's pert and pebbled for me before doing it to the other. She arches against me, her head back against the door as she trembles beneath my touch.

"Talia," I growl her name as her hands explore my chest, the muscles in my abdomen, and then lower as she brazenly teases my cock just over the fabric of my pants. The touch is explorative and languid, like we might have touched each other had we been given the chance to complete our vows all those years ago.

I follow her lead, dropping my hand lower and between her thighs, teasing her over the silk. Fuck me, I can feel her heat through the fabric, can feel it dampen as I slide my fingers up and down her slit.

She rocks into the touch, one hand gripping my hip, the other stroking my hard cock over the fabric with a little more vigor. My fangs snap out, and hers do too. It's the sexiest thing I've ever seen.

She moves against my hand, chasing her pleasure without hesitance, the sight of which is winding me up so tight I feel like I have mere decades of life rather than centuries.

"Talia," I say again, demand in my tone.

I ease up on the pressure between her thighs, slanting my mouth over hers in a quick kiss before pulling back. "You have to tell me you want this. You have to tell me. We've never gone this far before, and I don't want to make one wrong move with you."

A confident, almost sinful smile shapes her lips as she reaches up and kisses me again, hard and punishing and sexy as fuck. She slips her hand beneath the band of my pants, gasping slightly as she grips my considerable length, her eyes meeting mine.

"I'm not the naive virgin you left standing at the altar centuries ago, Z," she says, gripping me tight while circling her thumb around my sensitive head, making me jolt into her grip instinctively.

"I'm not either," I say, slipping my hand beneath her shorts and finding her delightfully bare beneath. "But I'm wildly out of practice," I admit. "There hasn't been anyone since I made my promise to you."

Her lips part, shock filling her eyes. "Zachariah," she breathes my name.

I never take my eyes off her face as I drag my fingers through her slit, my entire body tensing at how slick she is, how hot.

She moans slightly, rocking against my hand before she releases my cock and brings her hand to join mine. She never takes her eyes off of me as she moves my hand, dipping her fingers into her own wetness before returning to my cock and slicking me with it.

"Goddamn," I groan, the sensation hot and intense as she works her hand over me.

All thought empties out of my head, and I slant my mouth over hers at the same time as I slip a finger into her heat, shuddering at the sensation.

She moves against my hand, keeping pace with her own torturing of my hard, aching cock. Her kiss is as needy as the moans escaping the back of her throat as I slip another finger inside her.

Fuck, she's hot and wet and squeezes my fingers so damn tight, the two of us losing ourselves to the passion radiating between us.

"Z," she moans against my kiss, and lightning snaps down my spine at the term of endearment. She says it like centuries haven't separated us, says it like I'm hers and she's mine and there's never been any other way.

I draw back, precome beading on my cock as she works me in deft, claiming strokes. As we find a rhythm touching each other in this way, so new despite feeling so fucking familiar.

"That's it," I say, working her in sure touches and teasing plucks of her swollen clit. "You're going to come for me," I say, nothing but primal dominance in my tone.

My fangs are dying to sink into the soft flesh of her neck, but I don't think she's ready for that.

I turn my head in submission, giving her the invitation to bite me if she wants, but instead she groans, frustration and need crinkling the delicate lines of her face.

She grips me harder, capturing my mouth in a searing, hard kiss before pulling back. "You're going to come for me , Z," she says, her voice breathless.

"Fuck," I say as she strokes me harder, faster, and I can do nothing but match that pace, fucking her with my hand as she rocks against it, our mouths clashing together.

I feel my release building at the base of my spine.

I sink my fingers into her farther, grinding the heel of my palm into her needy little clit, and she jerks her mouth away from mine in a ragged gasp as I feel her flutter around me.

Her lips part, her eyes closed. "Z," she says on a shuddered breath, her thighs clenching around my hand as she comes on my fingers.

The sight of her coming on my hand, the way her lips part on the sweetest little moan, is the sexiest thing I've ever seen. Pair that with the way she's stroking me, and I spill hot and heady into her hand, my hips thrusting over and over as I groan, wishing my cock was sunk into her instead of my fingers.

I lean my forehead against hers, our breathing ragged.

She reaches up, kissing me again, more lazy this time, before she gently pulls away from me, walking across her chambers to wash her hands, cleaning herself up before turning to face me.

I don't bother to clean up, I simply draw my fingers to my lips to lick her flavor clean. Her skin flushes at the sight, but she shakes her head.

"You can't waste your time on me, Zachariah," she says, not a hint of sharpness in her voice, just sincerity. "I have missions of my own now," she continues. "I have so much going on...too much to fall for you again."

I stride across the room, gently cupping the back of her neck as I bring my mouth down on hers again. She immediately responds to my kiss, telling me every single thing I need to know with that reaction.

"We'll see," I say, drawing away from her, knowing I need to leave.

Because if I don't?

We'll end up in the bed two feet away, and I know she's not ready for that.

"Nothing with you would ever be a waste of time," I continue. "And I know you have missions of your own, a life of your own. I'm not trying to alter that or take that from you. I just want the chance to be part of it." I swallow hard. "I've heard courting is a little different in this century," I say as I reach her door, pulling it open to step through it, lingering just outside of it.

I have to gather all the willpower I have to leave her standing there, looking gorgeous as hell and totally fuckable.

"And just so you know," I continue before I'm about to close her door. "I may have slept for centuries, but I only ever dreamed about you."