Chapter 13

Kellan

I almost can't contain my shadow when she asks me to fuck her. I had no idea this was where the early morning would take us, but you won't find me complaining. She is absolutely perfect for me in every way. She isn't afraid of me or what I represent. She only embraces every part of it.

"When I take you in this form, you will be mine forever. I'll make sure of it. You were going to be anyway, but if you choose to have me like this, you'll never be free of me again. You're positive that's what you want?"

"Yes. I'll choose you every day if you need me to."

I lean in. "Greedy girl. We'll see how confident you are when my shadow fills all your holes like a filthy whore. Maybe I should play with you for hours until you beg me to let you come."

"Please," she groans, and it's the sweetest sound.

"Next time, pet. I've been waiting too long to have you like this to have any kind of restraint today. Let me see that pretty pussy."

My shadows pull at all her limbs, spreading her legs wider. I can see her dripping cunt and I know it's all for me. I concentrate my smoky mass and form a phantom hand before running a finger across her deliciously wet center.

She moans, "More."

"So eager to be a perfect slut for me."

I push two shadowy fingers inside her, and she clamps down around them instantly. She takes them so well, like she was made for me. I push in and out of her at a painfully slow pace, building her up just enough to push her to the edge but not enough to let her fall over it. I may be eager to be inside her, but I still want to tease her a bit. She's so much more beautiful when she's desperate and begging. Her chest rises and falls, and I can feel her heart slamming in her chest.

"Kellan," she begs, and I smile at her. "Kellan, please."

Hearing her say my name will never get old. I pull my shadow fingers from her and place my form between her beautiful thighs. A tendril reaches out and wraps itself around her delicate throat, applying the perfect amount of pressure.

"Look at you, so desperate to be a whore for Death."

I line myself up and slowly slide inside her. Her back arches up off the bed as her pussy stretches around my shadow cock. She gasps, probably wanting to tell me that it's too much, but with my tendril wrapped around her throat, she's not able to speak.

"You're taking me so well, pet. Breathe," I instruct her, loosening my grip on her throat. She listens and takes a deep breath.

I lean into her, watching as goosebumps appear everywhere our bodies touch. A tendril finds its way to her clit, rubbing small circles as I begin to thrust inside her. She moans loudly as her pleasure builds. The only thing I want to see is the look on her face as she comes for me in my true form.

I've learned the more I degrade her, the more her body ignites, so I've been trying to incorporate it in more. These aren't words I've ever said in this way before, but I love the way she reacts to them. Her nipples pebble, and her pussy clenches every time I call her my slut.

"Does my filthy slut want to come?"

"Yes," she moans and clenches around me again, exactly how I want her to.

"Do it. Show me how desperate you are to belong to me. Come on my cock, pet."

She falls over the edge on command, crying out my name as her warm release heats my shadow. I continue thrusting in and out while her pussy flutters around me. As she begins to come down, I decide I'm nowhere near done with her. I want to hear her moans on repeat.

My shadow tightens around her throat again, ready to take this up to another level. I pull my cock out, and her juices drip down to her tight hole. I bring another shadowy extension of myself out to spread it around. She is at my mercy, and I promised to fill all her holes. I quickly shove my cock back inside her pussy, as the shadow extension massages its way into her ass. Just like in her dream, she has me filling her in both places at the same time .

"That's two holes filled now. Sluts get them all filled, don't they?" I ask, releasing the grip on her throat as I thrust in and out of her.

"It's so much," she says as a tear slips from the corner of her eye and falls down her cheek. I never thought I would enjoy seeing her cry but having her at my mercy is a fucking gorgeous sight.

"Who do you belong to?" I ask, already knowing the answer but I want to hear it directly from her.

"You," she moans, "I belong to you, always."

"Fuck yes, you do, pet. You're mine, and you'll never leave me. I won't allow it."

I slam my cock along her sensitive walls, making her cry out. My shadow tendril that was wrapped around her throat, takes the opportunity to fill her parted mouth. It presses down on her tongue, forcing her to keep it open.

Drool seeps from the sides of her mouth, and her nostrils flare. She loves every moment of this. When I reach out and pinch one of her nipples her eyes roll back in pleasure, so I repeat the process on the other side. I feel my release building inside me, my shadow threatening to explode, but I want her to ride out that high with me.

"Come again like a good little slut," I tell her before tweaking her nipple again.

She tightens around my cock, and I can feel the electricity bouncing between her body and mine. Her back arches, and her eyes squeeze shut as she succumbs to the pleasure. I come with her, shooting the cool release of my shadow inside her. She twitches at the sensation.

I shift back into my human form to pull her in close. She snuggles into my chest and fits perfectly. It's as though she's always belonged there.

"You're perfect," I whisper in her ear, trying to steady my breathing. Being like this with her is more than I could have ever imagined.

"That was..." She trails off, eyes full of emotion, before a huge smile consumes the entirety of her face. She bursts out into a fit of laughter, and I'm immediately confused. How can she go from being so serious to borderline hysteria?

"Are you okay?"

"I just willingly fucked Death," she says before she starts laughing again.

"I'm a bit confused. Is that a bad thing?"

She reaches up to touch my face, and I lean into it. "No, it's not a bad thing. I'm just having a moment. Life has been fucking me for years, and I just find it super ironic that I fucked Death."

"You can do it again if it will keep making you laugh like that." I trail my finger along her shoulder down her arm. I love hearing her laugh. Usually, she carries around such a painful aura.

"We will absolutely be doing that again. I have to get ready for class, though." She sighs.

Just tell her. I think to myself, but I can't. The Others will already be angry enough at me. I don't want them to think she will keep me from performing my duties. With any luck, they will see that I can have her, and nothing will change.

"I suppose you're right. I have work to do anyway."

"Work?" She questions.

"Yes. As you know, I am the harbinger of death. I have to lead the souls to my realm."

She takes a moment to absorb my words. "What's it like, always seeing the end of someone's life?"

"It's always different. It all depends on the circumstances surrounding the end of their human lives."

"But you never get to see any of the good parts."

I never thought about it like that. I've spent so long being focused on my job and ensuring the souls are on their correct path that I never cared about what their lives were like or the things they did prior to meeting them. Even now, I still don't care about them. The only one that matters to me is her—the brown-eyed beauty lying next to me.

I run my hand along her cheek. "Lena, you are the only soul that means anything to me. Nobody else matters. It's only you."

"What's so special about me?"

"When I'm in your presence, I come alive."

"It's like you can finally breathe," she whispers as a tear slips from the corner of her eye.

I nod before leaning in to kiss her softly. "I really should get going so I can get back to you. If you're ever in need, call out my name. As long as I'm able to, I will come for you."

I stand and shift back into my true form to escort the first soul, but before I leave, she calls out to me.

"Kellan."

I turn to look at her. "Yes, pet?"

"I'm yours."

I shift back to my human self and lunge toward her, pressing my lips against hers again. She is mine—mine—and I will never let her go. I pull back, and she wraps her arms around me one last time before letting me free.

"You're mine," I confirm before shifting and disappearing to collect my first soul of the day.

It's an older man who is sitting in his car. His death was sudden, a heart attack. I walk up to him, wondering if he has any loved ones that he's leaving behind. He catches sight of me, and a sense of understanding washes over him. I reach out, and he grabs my hand. In a flash, we vanish. I bring him to my realm and urge him off to continue his purpose.

I'm about to move on to collect the next soul when two familiar figures appear in front of me. The angel and demon. This can't be good. I grow anxious over the possible consequences they are here to advise me of. The Others sending them means they know I didn't heed their warning.

"You broke the rules, Death," the demon says with a smile on his face, getting right to the point.

"I didn't break the rules. I didn't intentionally show her my true shadow form outside of her dream world. We all know that dreams are a gray area." I walk forward to stand closer to the angel because, quite frankly, the demon is pissing me off. "Don't get me wrong, I planned to tell her. She just beat me to it. She accidentally saw my shadow form when I appeared in her bathroom. She recognized my eyes."

"Yes, we are aware of the details of the encounter," The angel says. They give me a pitying smile.

"A technicality. You still placed yourself in her path. You are still the reason the incident occurred, and you changed her purpose. There are punishments for that," the demon huffs.

My breathing quickens, and I feel butterflies in the pit of my stomach. I changed her purpose. Could this mean she will be allowed to stay with me? I wait to see what the two of them have to say next. The Others must have a message for me.

"These are strange circumstances, Death. This has never happened throughout the expanse of time. God and the Devil have settled upon a fair solution, but you must agree to abide by it. If you do not agree, your access to her will be taken."

"They will do no such thing! Lena is mine!" I growl, smoke billowing all around me.

"If you wish for a chance at keeping her, you will agree to follow a few new rules for the time being," the angel sings out.

Time freezes and I have no other choice but to agree. I have a chance to keep her. My only hope is that these rules are achievable because there is no way I am letting anyone take her from me, not God or the Devil.

"What are your rules? I will follow them. "

The two of them glance at one another to see who will tell me the news. Finally, the angel makes eye contact with me. "You are not to see her again until this plays out."

"You can't keep me away from her," I try, but the angel only shakes their head.

"These are the rules that have been selected. You will stay away from her for a short period of time in order for her to fulfill a new purpose and she will need to choose you. She will need to choose her life with you over the convenience of death. You are only being offered this because you have not confessed everything to her entirely. If she can withstand time without your presence and choose to live, then she will be given the choice to stay with you forever."

I mull over their words for a moment. Lena doesn't know what I know. I didn't get a chance to tell her everything. Now she is supposed to choose strength and life. She needs to choose life to be shackled to Death for all of eternity. She wants me. I know she does. Our connection, the pull the two of us feel for one another, is strong. I know it.

"This is the only way?"

"Yes, her existence has become incongruous. This is the only way to rectify that," the angel says with a sigh as if this is hard for them to talk about.

"Reaper, if you attempt to interfere again, we will take her from you," the demon says with his sadistic grin. "You should know, if she takes her life, her soul will belong to my master. "

"The fuck it will! How do you expect me to sit back and watch her struggle, to watch her hurt? How long exactly am I supposed to stay on the sidelines?"

"For however long it takes. It could be a day; it could be a month. The timeline is up to her. Interfere or don't, it doesn't matter to me." The demon laughs.

"Kellan," the angel says firmly, pulling my attention back over to them. I used to crave being called by my true name rather than what I represent but it doesn't sound right coming from anyone besides my pet. She is the only one with the right to call me that.

"I wasn't aware we were on a true name basis." I glare at them.

"Give her a chance and have faith that all of this will work out the way you hope for."

"Fine. I'll stay away—for now." And I will because I believe them when they say this is her only chance. She needs to choose me. I have to trust our connection with one another.

"The plus side to not worrying about her is that you can get back to work uninterrupted," the demon remarks.

"Fuck off. Don't you two have somewhere else to be? I get it. I'll stay away. You can tell The Others I will stay in line. Now, leave," I hiss.

With that, they disappear, and I find myself wishing I had stayed with her longer than I did this morning. I should have confessed everything to her and told her that I love her. Who knows if I will be able to the next time I see her.

I'm forced into the shadows again. Compelled to watch her potentially suffer and do nothing to intervene. As much as the idea rips apart every fiber of my being, I have to do it. It's the only chance we have to be together. They gave us a chance, and I have to hold onto that.