22. RECOGNITION

22

RECOGNITION

A iden's hands trembled as he squirted shampoo into his palm. He felt out of control. The question of whether he should stay with Charlotte, even though her stalker had come to town, lingered in his mind. Maybe he should call Riley after all.

When they returned to Rosebrook Valley, he distanced himself from Charlotte to get his emotions in check. After they slept together, they needed physical distance. He couldn't have her; couldn't keep her. Distance was the only way he knew to prevent devastation in the long run.

His nails scrubbed at his scalp; soapy water ran down his spine.

The problem came when not touching wasn't enough. Being in her presence, laughing… breathing the same air… it was too much.

It took everything in him not to take her every single night after the first time. An entire week of sheer torture.

He'd acted like an outright jerk the day he dropped her off at home, but he needed to get away. Needed distance before he did something stupid.

The problem came when putting greater distance between them did nothing to quell his need to be with her. In fact, he felt off-balance and out of sorts. Sleep eluded him, and the drive all over with no actual destination didn't ease the ache. The farther he drove away from Rosebrook Valley, the worse the pain in his chest became.

Now that Charlotte's stalker made his presence known again, he needed to protect her, but at what cost?

Rinsing the shampoo from his hair, he closed his eyes.

He shouldn't have kissed her again.

Alcohol wasn't the problem. With his preternatural healing, his body metabolized alcohol faster than a human's. Short of shotgunning beers, it took a lot to become inebriated. No, alcohol wasn't the problem. The problem was his growing need for her.

Why did he feel like this?

He understood his attraction to her. Their emotional bond sparked his interest, and paired with her beauty, it made sense his feelings grew into desire. But to feel like his world was crumbling and that cutting off a limb was preferable to being away from her? That wasn't normal.

He'd expect this kind of behavior if they were Korrena pairs, but that wasn't possible. For one, she was human. The Oracle explained the only reason Blaire could be Lukas's Korrena, while human, was her bloodline. She was the only one of her kind like that. Then there was the fact he'd had sex with Charlotte and tasted her blood. Sure, she hadn't consumed his blood, but was it necessary?

The textbooks stated that sealing a bond required sharing blood and sexual intercourse. But had anyone tested it? If only one half of a Korrena pairing consumed blood, would it stick ?

He shook his head. She's still human, so it's impossible.

It had to be the reduced blood intake. It was the only other plausible reason he felt so out of control. The beginning stages of sanguis manie riding him hard, making him want to feed on a live source and act on primal instincts.

When he returned to the academy, he'd planned to return to a normal feeding schedule, but he was so depressed the day he came back, he only took what was essential to function. Then during the entire drive—for sixteen hours—he didn't consume blood. He didn't know how many hours had passed since he met up with Charlotte, but he still hadn't fed.

Now he stood in her shower shaking like a fiend withdrawing from a drug. His throat burned with hunger, and his cock jutted out, aching with the need to follow her smell that permeated the bathroom, made potent by the hot steam.

He thought he knew his limits. Thought he understood how long he could deny his body's needs. Thought if he surpassed those limits, he could control the hunger, control the monster inside him.

How wrong he was.

He shut the water off and stepped out of the shower, ignoring the ache below his waist. Lifting his jeans, he dug out his cell phone. If he was going to stay with Charlotte, he needed reinforcements.

Aiden:

Emergency. I need blood. Now.

Lukas:

What? Where are you?

Aiden:

Charlotte's house. Don't tell anyone. Can you bring me a few packets ?

Lukas:

Yeah, but are you good?

Aiden:

No.

Lukas:

I know where she lives. Blaire showed me once. I'm on my way.

Lukas:

Sanguis manie?

Aiden:

Soon. It's starting.

Lukas:

Where you gonna put them?

Aiden:

I'll hide them in her fridge. Leave them on the porch and text me when you do. I'll slip out and get them.

Lukas:

K. On my way.

Aiden was thankful his best friend didn't push for more information beyond what was needed. He didn't have the mental fortitude for a long text conversation. It was hard enough to text with unsteady hands.

He toweled off the best he could with how severely his arms shook, slipped on his boxers again, and then lowered himself to the floor. He kept his back to the corner of the bathtub and wall, legs drawn up to his chest. Trembling hands threaded through his hair and clenched as he lowered his forehead to his knees.

He couldn't leave the bathroom until Lukas arrived.

He wouldn't put Charlotte in danger.

Even if his instincts clawed at his throat like a rabid animal at the edge of starvation. Even if the cravings for blood clouded his mind with sick thoughts, he would never act upon it.

After what felt like hours, his phone vibrated on the floor, and he snatched it up.

Lukas:

I'm here. Packets are beside the door.

Aiden scrambled up from the floor and peeked out the bathroom door. The house was dark. He had been in the bathroom so long Charlotte went to bed.

He stepped out of the bathroom and crept through the house to avoid making a sound and alerting her. Once he reached the door, he unlocked the deadbolt and doorknob, then eased it open. Pushing open the glass exterior door, he slipped out onto the porch. Lukas stood there with his hands buried deep in his pockets, a look of concern etched in his features.

"Thanks, man," Aiden rasped. "I didn't think I could stay all night like this." He held up his hand to show how violently he was shaking. Even his voice sounded borderline feral.

Lukas cursed under his breath. "Why did you let it go this far? Did you know your eyes are glowing?"

"Shit. No, I didn't." He dug his fingers into his eyes, as if applying pressure would prevent his body's natural reaction to the lack of blood from rising to the surface. When Charlotte mentioned his eyes glowing, he hoped it was a trick of the lighting, but he couldn't take chances. He had to get away from her. "I was stupid." A poor explanation, but the only one he had. He'd made a foolish choice by avoiding feeding. He lectured Riley about it often.

"Yeah, well, do I need to stick around? Send Blaire?" Lukas peered around Aiden toward the house. He wouldn't see anything. Charlotte had closed the curtains, and Aiden assumed she'd closed them to hide from the stalker.

"No." He crouched to pick up a blood packet, tore into it, and gulped down the thick liquid without stopping to breathe. The relief was instant.

"Better?"

"You have no idea."

"Actually, I do."

He wiped the corners of his mouth and raised a dark eyebrow. "What?"

"When they locked me in the dungeon, I sat there for around twelve hours, and it'd been a while since I drank before that."

"What time is it?"

Lukas pulled out his cell phone. "One. Why?"

He left the academy at three in the morning. His last blood packet was around ten the night before. He wanted to laugh at how foolish he'd been when the reality sank in of how long he'd gone without blood. "It's been twenty-seven hours since my last packet this size." He held up the empty bag.

"Are you fucking serious? What the hell, man?"

"Shhh, you'll wake her. She's already freaked out because of the stalker." He looked over his shoulder toward the house, listening for Charlotte. "But yeah, I know. You don't have to even tell me how risky it was."

"Why did you not drink something today? And why is she freaked out about the stalker down here? Didn't she move here to get away from him?"

"I wasn't at the academy. And that's one reason, but he followed her here. "

"Where were you?"

"Here, there. Everywhere in between." His shoulders lifted in a shrug.

"You could have stopped at a clinic."

"Yeah, I messed up."

Lukas sighed, his hand raking into his hair. "You said the stalker followed her here?"

"Yeah, he broke in and left roses on her bed."

Lukas cursed and turned in a circle, rubbing his hands over his face. "And that's why you're here?"

"Yep. Her parents aren't here. I can't leave her alone, man."

"Yeah, I get it. But something has to give."

He bent to pick up the other two packets. "I know. Listen, I need to get back inside and hide these before she gets up and finds me missing."

"Alright. Call me if anything happens. If you need more, let me or Seth know."

"Yeah. Thanks, man. And keep this from Riley."

Lukas gave a stiff nod before turning and jogging down the paved walkway, disappearing into the night.

A scream tore him from the first peaceful sleep he'd had in days.

He untangled himself from the blanket wrapped around him and jumped up from the couch, running for Charlotte's bedroom ready to rip the throat out of the asshole who dared to come into her home while he was there.

Throwing the door open so hard it stuck to the wall, he froze, chest heaving.

Charlotte lay on her bed, tangled in her bed covers, thrashing in her sleep. Her cries and whimpers echoed in his ears and hit his heart like a kick in the chest.

He crossed the room in three quick steps, then knelt on the bed and grabbed her shoulders.

"Charlotte! Charlotte, come on, it's me!"

Her head thrashed from side to side as she clawed at his arms, tears running down her temples into her hairline.

"Wake up. I need you to wake up," he said, trying to sound soothing, but he couldn't mask the panic in his voice. He intimately understood the feeling of being imprisoned within one's own mind; defenseless and unable to escape the malevolent forces that sought to harm.

Charlotte's eyes flew open, but she stared up as if not quite back with him yet.

He lowered his forehead to hers and squeezed his eyes shut. "Come on, Kitten. You're okay. You're okay."

She threw her arms around his shoulders and dragged his body down on top of her, taking all of his weight. Crying softly, she buried her face in his neck, clinging to him, taking deep drags of his scent into her lungs.

"That's it. You're okay. I'm here."

She sniffled and let her arms fall from his shoulders after several minutes, allowing him to move to support himself on his elbow, still hovering over her in case she needed him again. "Don't call me a kitten," she said. Her words lacked heat, leading him to believe she didn't wholly dislike it.

"Did I call you a kitten?"

"Yes," she said, a pout on her face as if the name offended her sensibilities.

He brushed his thumb over her temples. "You remind me of one. "

Her eyes rolled, and she squirmed. He sat up, tucking his leg beneath him, placing one foot on the floor, allowing her to move into a sitting position.

"So, you want to tell me what that was about?"

"Just a nightmare."

"Well, yeah. But what about?"

Her arms crossed beneath her chest, diverting his attention downward, revealing her choice of attire—a baggy T-shirt with no bra. The twisted covers, and her bare legs on display, made it obvious she wasn't wearing sleep shorts. Was she wearing anything underneath? He shook his head.

"You won't tell me about your nightmares, so why should I?"

He licked his lips, dragging his teeth over his lower lip before grinning. "You got me there, but come on. You scared the shit out of me."

"It was the stalker. He tried to kill me." She looked up into his eyes as hers welled with tears. "He had already killed you."

"Well, that didn't happen. I'm here." He thumbed away a tear that tracked down her cheek. "I'm harder to take out than you'd think, Kitten."

Her laugh sounded watery, and she sniffed. "Stop that."

"What?" He tilted his head as if he didn't understand, and she rose to the bait as expected. He wanted to make her forget about the nightmare.

"The kitten thing." She tried to look put-out, but the longer he stared at her, the more he saw the cracks in her armor—until she burst into laughter.

"You don't really hate it, do you?"

Her gaze moved to the wall. "No," she mumbled, a pout in her voice .

"What was that?" he teased.

"You heard me."

"Mm, nope. Sure didn't."

She pivoted and smacked his bare arm. "You did too!"

"So you like being called kitten?" The blush that spread across her cheeks made his brows rise. "Do you like it when I call you kitten? Or just the nickname in general?"

Her gaze lowered to her lap, and his heart sped up. She already responded to him in ways he didn't expect, but now this? Couples gave each other pet names all the time, but kitten hit different from how baby or honey did—and they weren't even a couple.

It wasn't a name he'd use in public knowing she enjoyed it instead of humoring it. The shift in her reaction made it feel sexual and almost kinky.

He took a chance, ignoring the warning signal not to tread into those waters. "Do you want me to call you kitten?" He paused, his throat clicking with his hard swallow. " My kitten?"

Her head snapped up at his last question. Her pupils had devoured her irises almost completely.

Holy shit. He swallowed the knot in his throat. Ignoring the way he felt about her wasn't working anymore.

He wanted her. Needed her.

He didn't know how he would navigate the divide between their species, but he would do it. Maybe one day she would grow tired of him, and he would never have to deal with it, but that was a future problem. Denying himself what he wanted now wasn't fair. He wouldn't do it. Not when he could see she wanted him too.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, leaning in and kissing her jaw, moving to brush his lips across her cheek. "I shouldn't have denied either of us what we wanted." His lips hovered over hers. "You do want this, don't you?" With a vulnerability he felt to his bones, he added, "Me?"

A tear fell. Her whispered confirmation mouthed over his lips was all he needed to know she was his—at least for now.

As he pressed his lips to hers, she whimpered at the touch. He loved the sound of her desperation. A desperation that turned from sound into action when she shifted, her hands moving to his shoulders as she rose to her knees. He twisted to plant both feet on the floor as she threw a leg over his thighs and straddled his lap.

The way heat radiated from her core against the thin fabric of her panties and his boxers made him shudder.

His hand moved to cup the side of her throat, his arm encircling her waist as he claimed her lips again, pulling her flush against him.

She rocked her hips, taking pleasure from the straining erection trapped snugly between them. Moaning when she angled just right, he slid his tongue into her mouth to duel with hers.

Her grip tightened on his bare shoulders, her nails biting into his flesh. "More. I need more," she breathed against his mouth, breaking the kiss.

Without making her wait, he worked her shirt up and off her body, tossing it to the side and freeing her breasts. His hands slid down her body, mapping the curve of her waist and the shape of her hips until he palmed her backside. Pressing her core to him as he swiveled, he lowered her onto her back, chasing after her with his lips devouring hers.

He rained kisses and bites over her neck, shoulders, and down to her breasts where he found the faintest trace of yellow where the bruising he left her with had all but vanished. That wouldn't do.

He dragged his tongue across her skin before latching on and pulling the soft flesh into his mouth, causing her to buck her hips. A throaty moan escaped. When he applied slight pressure using his blunt teeth with the suction, she mewled and squirmed beneath him, much like she had done before. A reaction seared deep within his core memories.

Worshiping Charlotte's body would never get old.

He lifted his head. Satisfaction with his work had a slow grin spreading across his face. "My mark looks good on you, Kitten."

She whimpered at the name.

He moved down, trailing his tongue lower from between her ribcage all the way down the soft flesh of her stomach until he reached the lacy line of the powder blue panties she wore. His fingers curled under the waistband, working the fabric over her hips and down her legs until he tossed them aside, baring her to him.

Before, he missed the opportunity to savor what she offered him, but he wouldn't make that mistake again.

His fingers traced a path across her hips, along where her leg creased at her pelvis. "You're so beautiful," he murmured, eyes trained on the pink, bare, swollen flesh glistening with arousal below a faint dusting of red hair.

When he finally allowed himself to have a taste of what he had yearned for since the night they slept together, a shiver ran down his spine. The sweet flavor of pineapple cake, much like the scent he'd grown accustomed to, burst across his tongue.

With his tongue pressed flat, he traced it over her slit, indulging in the irresistible sweetness that left his mind in a blissful haze. He flicked the tip of his tongue across her swollen clit, making her hips rise off the bed as she cried out, hands grasping into his hair and gripping with force, making him grunt.

To keep her still while he enjoyed her to his heart's content, he wrapped one arm over her trembling thigh and the other around her hip to press his palm to her lower belly. He angled his thumb down and toyed with her clit while he moved down, sucking her sensitive folds into his mouth in small increments until he reached her entrance.

She panted, moaning as she tried to grind her hips against his face, but his hold kept her still as he eased the tip of his tongue inside her, consuming the most potent source of her essence.

"Aiden, I need more," she whined, her hands falling away from his hair to squeeze the covers at her side.

He lifted his head to find not only her face flushed, but her chest had taken on a splotchy red tone. The sight made him grin. He loved making a mess of her.

Tightening his grip on her thigh, he continued the torturously slow circling of his thumb on her clit as he turned his head and sucked the flesh of her inner thigh into his mouth.

She let out a garbled sound that made his leaking cock twitch in impatience to get inside her. His teeth sank into her skin in response to the sound, and she wailed so loud he was glad her parents weren't in the house.

"Fuck. Shit." Her breath shuddered as he detached. " Fuck." Her back arched when he bit again, crying out, "Fuck me, Aiden!"

It amazed him how crass her language became when lust overwhelmed her. Not that he minded it. Her losing all filters, allowing herself to surrender to her baser needs and instincts, gave him deep satisfaction. He longed to succumb to his instincts the same way, but he refused to harm her.

His tongue ran over the fresh mark on her thigh, soothing the sting he must have left behind.

Moving off the bed, he slipped his boxers off, freeing his aching cock, which twitched when she licked her lips. Her lust-drunk gaze locked on the leaking head. He didn't think she realized she was leaning toward it .

He gripped the base of his shaft and stepped forward to the side of the bed. Her gaze snapped up to his, and he gave her a lazy smile.

His knees buckled and hit the side of the bed when she surged forward, swallowing the head of his cock into her warm mouth. He didn't expect her to go for it so fully. She scrambled up onto her knees, one hand pushing his away from his shaft and taking its place, the other hand moving to grip his hip.

Watching her sink lower on his cock, his eyes drank in the sight of her hourglass figure bent in front of him on the bed, her knees tucked beneath her, her small feet the only thing visible past her rounded backside. He wanted to sink his fangs into the plush flesh. He groaned at the mental image while she swirled her tongue around the head as she withdrew.

Glassy, striking green eyes looked up at him, lips swollen and begging to be kissed. "I need," she started, her cheeks becoming rosier before she flicked her gaze down, falling silent.

He curled his finger beneath her chin, lifting her face to look at him. "Tell me what you need, Kitten. It's yours." Anything she wanted; he would give her anything within his power. He didn't know what was happening to him—why he felt the driving urge to handle her the way he did—but he didn't want to stop.

He couldn't stop.

Instead of speaking, she lowered her mouth back down over his shaft, her mouth open in a way that gave no suction. Her nails dug into his hip as she pulled him forward, pushing his cock farther into her mouth. Her gaze darted up to his as she gave another tug on his hips. A shudder ran through his body when he realized what she was asking for.

Both of his hands cupped her cheeks, holding her on him. "Tap my hip if you need me to stop," he said, barely able to hold back the growl working its way through his chest to his throat. Her hummed response vibrated through his shaft, making it pulse and leak against her tongue.

He dropped his right hand and curled the left into the mess of curls clipped to the back of her head.

Starting slowly, he eased her forward down his length, testing how far she could go. When she made a small sound of discomfort, he lessened the depth and held her still, letting her get used to the feeling. The apprehension didn't last long. As she accommodated to the thickness in her mouth, he increased not only the pace, but the force he applied to the back of her head.

Her moans, and the squirming of her hips, spurred him on. He knew she could handle it. Her movements and moans showed she enjoyed it.

The sounds she made as she slurped his cock like her favorite candy made him curl his toes into the carpet. Her nails biting into his flesh, breaking the skin, ignited his blood. The marks would heal soon, and the reality disappointed him. He wanted to carry her marks as much as he wanted her to carry his.

"Fuck, Kitten. This feels incredible." His hand tightened on her hair, and she moaned against his shaft, sending a vibration through him that almost made him come. "I have to stop, or I won't be able to bury myself deep inside of you, and I need to do that." He tugged her head back off his length, and she sat back on her feet, her hands dropping to her thighs.

Tendrils of flaming red curls hung around her face and stuck to her sweat slicked neck and forehead, fallen from the hair clipped on her head. Her parted lips looked swollen and red. Her chin glistened with the remnants of drool where she lost herself to giving him control.

She looked breathtaking. Debauched, marked, needy .

Before he could say anything, she crawled across the bed, lowered her chest to the covers, and then turned her head sideways on the pillow. With her back arched, knees planted on the bed, her backside swayed in the air, revealing her swollen lower lips to him. The silky arousal that he savored before now coated her bare core, inviting him for another taste.

He cursed to himself. "You tell me if it's too much." His instincts flared to life, making those words come out guttural and strained. "This is all for you. You control this. Do you understand?"

Her quick nod eased a tightness in his chest.

He needed her to understand she had the power to make him stop. No matter how much his baser needs took over, he would stop if she willed it. He might be the one taking the lead, but he would never take what wasn't freely given, and he wouldn't cross a line she marked in the sand.

Positioning himself behind her on his knees, he sat back on his heels. He leaned in and sucked the skin of her backside into his mouth like he wanted to do before, latching on with his teeth like he'd done to other parts of her. She cried out and slammed her fist on the bed, the other squeezing the covers in her grasp.

He lifted his head to admire the red and purple mark. He growled in pleasure, moving down to swipe her core with his tongue, indulging in another taste. She whined at the contact.

He lifted his head and placed his hands on the cheeks of her backside, squeezing tight. "Shhh. I just needed another taste. You're a temptation I can't resist." He stroked his cock slowly before gliding the head along her core, lubricating himself. "You have no idea how wet you are for me, do you, Kitten?"

Her soft whine in response made him smirk. She hadn't said another word since she begged him to fuck her. But her needy whines, moans, and desperate garbled pleas that almost formed words let him know he had her where he needed her. He would do anything to make her feel good.

Her knees spread farther apart as she lowered herself a little more, angling herself in line with his length as he pushed forward, nudging at her entrance but not entering her. Her frustrated whine when she tried to push back and didn't move made him smile. He held her hips still in a bruising grip, preventing her from sinking down on his cock.

"You want it, Kitten?"

She made a soft, needy sound, wiggling her hips, begging without words.

"No. I want more than that. I want you to tell me how much you want this." He slid the head in an inch, and she gasped. "Well?"

"Please," she said, looking up at him with one eye from where she held her cheek pressed against the pillow.

"Please what?"

"I want it."

"What do you want?"

"You know what I want," she pouted with frustration, but it lacked any bite, a moan following her words when he dug his fingers into the fleshy part of her backside.

"I want to hear it." His voice was a sharp command, but the rasp in his voice betrayed his need to sink deep inside her. He didn't know how much longer he could hold up a conversation.

"Aiden," she sobbed. "I need you to put it inside me. I need to feel you. I need it. I need it. I need it." Tears filled her eyes, making his widen at the naked longing in her voice as she repeated her plea over and over while choking on her sobs.

He inhaled long through his nose, taking in the sugary aroma of her scent floating in the air, pushing down the burn in his eyes. He never knew sex could feel like this.

No, this wasn't sex. This was a joining of souls.

Her need was so potent he felt it inside of him. Her longing and need for him hit on a visceral level, mirroring his in startling clarity.

With no further preamble, he punched forward, sinking all the way until his thighs met hers, making them both cry out in unison.

Her walls fluttered around him, but she wasn't coming, not yet.

Once again, he couldn't bring himself to take her slow and delicate, like she deserved. He needed to possess her. So he did. He thrust his hips, intending to mark her insides as thoroughly as he had done to her outer flesh.

His hands slid up to her waist, holding her tight beneath the ribs. He pulled himself closer to her as he ground his hips. Sweat glistened on her spine, and he curled himself over her to lick it from her skin. It tasted salty and sweet.

His size easily dwarfed her beneath him, and he took advantage of that, lowering his mouth to bite her shoulder as he pounded into her. She squirmed beneath him, moaning and pleading for more.

Before long, the taste of copper mingling with sweet vanilla sugar met his tongue. He hesitated, but she wasn't having it.

"Harder," she rasped. "Bite me harder."

Growling, he pulled her skin into his mouth, savoring the addictive liquid, driven by her demands. She wanted him to bite harder instead of urging him to stop. She didn't know what she was asking for. Did she know he was drawing blood? She had to feel it.

He rocked his hips against her, rotating them in a way that must have hit a spot inside her she liked because she shattered around him with a broken sob as he detached from her skin.

The walls of her insides choked his shaft, sending him flying over the edge into his own climax, pulsing inside her, painting her with the most intimate thing he could offer her.

Allowing a modicum of self-preservation to trickle in, he squeezed his eyes shut so she wouldn't see them this close up—in case they were glowing. He took a deep breath before opening his eyes again.

She lay still beneath him, panting, eyes closed.

He slid his tongue over the spot where he'd bit her. An angry bruise marred her skin that pacified something inside him, but confusion swept his mind when he didn't see anywhere he broke the skin.

Lifting himself from her back, he looked down at her, trailing his hands down her spine, relishing the feel of her sweat-slicked skin beneath his hands. Rolling her face to bury it into the pillow, she hummed a soft moan, responding to his ministrations. She truly acted like a kitten, purring for him when he petted her. So he continued, hoping to soothe her after such an intense moment between them.

As his hands slid up to her shoulder blades, he choked on his own saliva.

His chest seized and his hands trembled as he stared without blinking at the faded black tattoo beneath her hairline at the top of her spine. A circle with a straight line splitting the middle and an upside-down crescent slicing through the base of the circle.

He knew for a fact Charlotte didn't have tattoos. But he didn't need to know that to know what was staring him in the face.

The fading mark on her skin called to him, and his entire body responded. His nerves were alight with a mix of desire, fear, confusion, and need. His cock thickened again, still inside her.

Charlotte was his Korrena.

How the fuck does that happen?

The sound of rustling woke Aiden, breaching into the most peaceful sleep he'd experienced in a long time. A nightmare was trying to seize him, but it failed to take root. He rolled his head to the side to look at Charlotte, only to find her side of the bed empty.

His brows drew in, and he blinked a few times, focusing his vision on the darkness in the room. It took a moment for his mind to catch up with the present.

Charlotte was missing.

He bolted upright, and the air in his chest stuttered when he caught sight of her standing in front of the other window holding the sheer curtains open, looking out into the night.

She stood bathed in moonlight, unaware of his gaze on her, her naked skin ethereal under the luminous blanket of night.

"Come back to bed," he said, voice rough from lack of use. He cleared his throat. "You shouldn't stand in front of the window like that."

The curtain slipped from her fingers, and she looked over at him. "Why?"

"If someone's out there, I don't want them seeing you like that."

Her hands came up to rub up and down her upper arms, her arms wrapped around her like a shield. "I didn't think of that," she murmured.

He pulled the covers back, urging her to join him in the bed. He didn't like her so far away so soon after his discovery. "What are you thinking about, then?"

"I feel funny," she said, crawling from the foot of the bed to his side. He had to suppress a groan at the way her hips swayed with the movement.

"How so?" He pulled her into his arms when she reached him, pulling the blanket over their naked bodies. She put her hand on his chest, snuggling against him.

"My chest. I woke up because I felt panicky." Her finger trailed down between his ribs and swirled in circles on his abs. "When I snuggled up to you, it went away. I don't know what happened."

The thought crossed his mind that the feeling she picked up on was his own panic when the nightmare tried to take root. Did her making physical contact soothe it and drive the nightmare away? Was she already responding on instinct to the Korrena bond?

"Are you okay now?" His lips brushed the top of her head, his thumb stroking her upper arm.

"Mm," she mumbled, yawning. "Do you think he's out there?"

His grip on her tightened, and his teeth locked, jaw clenching. "Don't worry about him. I'm here."

As long as she had him, nothing would get to her.

She belonged to him now, and he would do anything to protect her. No one would take her from him. He'd kill them.

"Go back to sleep," he whispered. "I'll take care of you."

She wrapped her arm around him and nestled deeper into his hold as if his words settled her. He wrapped his other arm around her, tugging her closer as she drifted back to sleep. She hitched her left leg over his leg, bending it at the knee. The warmth from between her legs against his thigh made his cock twitch.

They'd had sex. He'd tasted her blood. Both were more than anyone he'd known who formed a bond did before sealing it.

Seth tasted Riley's blood before they sealed their bond, but they didn't have sex. Much to Aiden's displeasure, Seth explained how more happened between them, but they never went as far as intercourse prior to sealing the bond. Seth needed answers, so Aiden didn't fault him for oversharing.

Did having sex intensify everything ?

He laid his head back against the pillows, closing his eyes.

He remembered learning that the more physical contact they shared, the stronger the bond grew. It was a reason many Korrena pairs couldn't resist touching one another prior to awakening. The instinct to be tethered to their mate was strong long before awareness set in.

That explained why it became frustrating not to touch Charlotte after they slept together the first time. Why he would find himself wrapped around her when he woke in the night if she wasn't thrashing about. How the urge to touch her arm or back as he moved about the kitchen when she cooked meals pushed at him.

His eyes shifted to the window as unease settled in his chest.

He said he was done refusing them what they both wanted, but how would he handle this newest development? It would be near impossible to hide their connection now that he knew she was his Korrena. The physical and emotional pain of going back to his dorm alone when her parents returned would be enough to drive him mad. He knew it. The bond between them had grown faster than it had for others he knew.

He couldn't tell anyone about the mark. A mark that wouldn't show at the back of her neck anymore because they weren't a sealed pair yet.

If he told them, and Charlotte found out the truth about what he was…

One small favor, he no longer had to worry about the Blackthorn Clan wiping her memories if she discovered the truth. The Korrena bond protected her from that. Forced separation of a Korrena pair violated their laws. Wiping her memory would force them to never be together.

The problem he faced now came down to his species .

Charlotte had been so upset about what she witnessed in the alley before he came to Athens that he felt certain she would reject him as a monster.

Korrena pairs could choose separation. She could choose to break their bond. After witnessing Blaire and Lukas have their bond stolen, he knew formed bonds could break. But if the bond was never sealed, then all Charlotte had to do was walk away. She didn't know the pain and suffering it would bring them.

Even if she knew, would she prefer it to being with a monster? Because that's how she viewed his kind after witnessing that rogue attack. Monsters who fed on poor, unsuspecting humans in dark alleyways. Like vampires on TV.

He'd finally found her. The person made for him.

And all because of his birth species, he would lose her.