15. Kaia

Without warning, he slips inside of me. The stretch is still there, and it takes him multiple slow and short thrusts to bottom out. I feel impossibly full, like there is no possible way I can keep going. My organs must be rearranged at this point because I swear I can feel him in places I didn’t know existed.

“Look at us, mate.” His voice brings me back to the moment, and I look down at where we are joined. But more importantly, I see why I feel so impossibly full. As he slides out and then slowly, so fucking slowly, back in, I can see it. My stomach bulges with the sheer size of him. “See how well you take me?”

“Oh, my god.” I moan and clench around him. He drops my legs and lies down on top of me, allowing just enough of his weight to calm my nervous system.

“Are you in pain, my love?” he asks while leaving sweet kisses all over my face. I capture his mouth with my own, tasting myself on his tongue when he opens for me. His hair is soft between my fingers, and I tug lightly on it.

“No. But I need you to move, Thoren. Please. I need you to fuck me.”

“And how does my mate like to be fucked?” he asks. “Slowly? Deeply?” As he asks, his hips do as he says. He drags his monstrous cock all the way out and then thrusts it all the way back in. The heat from the lube is driving me mad. “Or does she like it a bit rougher?”

His hips pick up the pace, and he slams into me, our bodies slapping together with the force. My legs wrap around him, and I lift my ass into the air, desperate to meet his every thrust. One arm helps me, wrapping around and lifting me by the hips, while his free hand squeezes the sides of my throat. The lack of oxygen heightens everything, and without warning, I come again .

“My sweet little mate,” he says, fucking me through it. “Do you want me to breed this tight little cunt? Make you grow round and full with the fruit of my seed?” He fucks me with reckless abandon, releasing my throat to press down on my lower belly, where his cock causes me to swell.

It shouldn’t turn me on so much, the fact that he wants to breed me. But the idea of his cum coating my insides as he drives it deep inside of me makes my legs shake and my pussy spasm with pleasure. Fuck, I want that. I want that so badly.

“I’m going to come, Kaia.” His hips pick up the pace, his rhythm becoming erratic and wild. Another orgasm is building, and I think this one might be the death of me. Surely my body has nothing left.

“I’m going to come inside of you, painting your insides with my seed. This body will grow round with my child, your breasts swelling with milk. Be a good little mate, Kaia. Take it. Take it, my beautiful mate.”

When the final orgasm hits, I scream, and my back arches. His wings spread and cocoon us again, probably trying to block some of the noises I’m making. The soft cord of his tail wraps around my calf, and then I feel him come. His cum, hot and plentiful, fills me over and over again.

Thoren’s handsome face contorts, his eyebrows scrunching and his jaw going slack. His body is a work of art, his muscles flexing and bulging as he finishes. I can’t take my eyes off him, and when he is finally sated, he looks back at me. There is so much emotion in those eyes, and it doesn’t even scare me. If anything, it comforts me. It shows me that what we just did means something to him. I wasn’t just a quick lay.

This was important .

He lifts my boneless body from the bed and carries me into the adjoining bathing area. It’s not the fanciest inn, but we do have a beautiful tub with running and heated water. I can hear him turning it on, and he continues to carry me around while doing who knows what. I’m too out of it to care. I just want to be held.

“I will not let you go, sweet Kaia.”

Guess I said that last bit out loud.

“Are we taking a bath?” I ask, trying to lift my head.

“Shh,” he soothes, pushing my sticky hair out of my face. “I’m going to bathe you, get us some clean sheets, and then we are going to get some much-needed rest.”

I must fall asleep because the hot water wakes me up. I’m still in Thoren’s arms, though, and so I sigh and lay my head on his shoulder as he carefully and gently runs a soapy cloth over my body. He takes great care between my legs, using only his fingers to make sure I am clean. I hiss, the sting of the hot water reminding me that I’m human, and I was not meant to take a gargoyle’s cock.

“I am sorry that I’ve hurt you.” He kisses my damp hair, then my temple. “I will go slower next time. It pains me to know I’ve injured you.”

Another puzzle piece slides firmly into place. It’s like I can physically feel the bond tightening, pulling our souls closer and closer together. They’re tangled up, knotted and twisted together. The idea of severing that bond causes nausea to roll through my body.

I sigh and nuzzle into his neck, breathing him in. His scent is comforting and pushes away the dark and scary thought of leaving and the equally dark and scary thought of staying. If I can just be here in the moment with him, maybe I can ignore all other responsibilities. Just for the night.

“You didn’t hurt me, Thoren,” I tell him, my lips brushing against his stubble. “That was the best sex I’ve ever had.”

He chuckles. “I’ve been told that nothing ever compares, and now I believe them.” He smiles down at me as he rinses my body. “My mate. My beautiful human mate. The Gods chose well.”

He sounds sad, like he expects me to remind him that I’m trying to leave. And I am. The whole reason we traveled here was to find someone who could figure this whole thing out. Maybe if they know how to send me back, they could also fix this whole mating bond thing? Maybe we could sever it in a humane way, in a way where neither one of us would feel anything?

But then there’s still the issue of his afterlife. They supposedly have a purgatory of sorts, where they wait for their mate to come find them and take them on into the happy part of dying. It’s hard for me to take this seriously, seeing as none of the religions in my world have any proof. So how can we know that he’ll just be waiting there for all eternity? Because I’m sure you only get one whack at this mate thing, and if I go away and his religion is true, I’ve screwed him.

And then there’s my feelings to think about. It’s not like I feel nothing for the guy. I actually am really starting to like him. Even beyond the mating bond, I think I can see the feelings developing, the attraction growing stronger every day. Sure, the whole mating thing is probably influencing all of my decisions, but I’m still me. I still have autonomy over my body and my mind.

I sigh against him. I really like him.

Fuck .

“Stop thinking so hard,” he whispers, holding my body close to his. “We can think in the morning. For tonight, just relax.”

He’s right. There’s always tomorrow. Tomorrow, we can talk to someone and go from there. Hell, we don’t even know if this person we are planning to see will have any idea how to send me home. And then the realization hits me.

I don’t want them to know how.

Everything about this would be so much easier if I didn’t have to make the choice. If it’s taken from me, then I don’t have to worry about severing the bond and hurting Thoren. I wouldn’t have to go back to my boring life, forever thinking about this whole other world I discovered. And Thoren.

I also wouldn’t have to worry about making the psychotic choice to stay. Because if I’m being honest with myself, making the decision to stay is insane. Who does that? Who falls into a different world, falls in love with a monster, and just decides to stay? Especially when the option is there to return home.

But what am I even going home to? I have no job, a shitty studio apartment, and hardly any family. I don’t even really have friends. Sure, I talked to some people at work, but they were barely acquaintances. I had no love life to speak of, and I was just… alone.

But here, I have Thoren and Selah and Aggie. I have Natalie and Erik now as well. I have someone who will never want to leave me. He’ll never hurt me or cheat on me; the mating bond ensures that. Not that I think he ever would anyway. That’s just not who Thoren is.

And the orgasms aren’t half bad either.

“Stay here for just a moment,” Thoren says, waking me as he places me down in a chair. I’m still wrapped in a soft towel, my hair damp and hanging down around my shoulders. I watch him with heavy-lidded eyes as he dresses himself, covering up that beautiful gray body of his. “I’m going to run downstairs and get us some new sheets. My mate has soaked the others.”

He winks and kisses me on the forehead.

“Embarrassing,” I mumble. “I’m sure half the inn heard me screaming out your name. I don’t know how I’ll face anyone in the morning.”

“Half the inn?” he teases. “More like half the city.”

I reach out and lightly smack him on the ass, eliciting a warning look from him.

“Do that again, Goldilocks, and I’ll make sure you get it back tenfold.”

My thighs clench, and impossibly, my pussy moistens. Jesus Christ, no wonder newly mated couples never leave the bedroom. Even being threatened with a punishment has me readying to go a second time. Not that I think my body could even survive it. And Thoren must be thinking the same thing because his cock lengthens and stretches his trousers.

“Just go get the sheets,” I say, shoving him playfully and laughing right along with him. God help me.

“I will return shortly, mate.” He leans over and gives me a fiercely passionate kiss on the mouth. If I wasn’t sitting, I’d probably be weak in the knees. “Don’t go anywhere.”

With one last look over his shoulder, he leaves me alone with my thoughts.