Chapter 11
CHAPTER ELEVEN
LILLY
It doesn’t take me long to find Lord Manning in the study. His black suit is pressed and pristine, not a single hair out of place. And he’s not alone. Garrick stands across from him in complete contrast, his hands in the pockets of his black joggers underneath a white t-shirt. Gods, why do joggers have to be so ridiculously hot?
The two men turn to me like they’ve heard my thoughts. I suppose there’s an outside chance they have. “Lilly,” they say in unison.
“I came to find Jason,” I say, and chastise myself for how ridiculously small my voice sounds. I square my shoulders and look towards Jason, clearing my throat to try again. “I thought we could continue where we left off last night.” There . That was much better.
A growl sounds from low in Garricks chest, his wings shifting with the sound. As if he has any reason to object … I ignore him and keep my gaze on Jason. “Absolutely not,” Garrick demands, his voice leaving no room for objection. Every bit the High Lord.
Jason turns to Garrick with a quick look of confusion, then bows his head. He turns to me with a look of pity. “I’ll let you two sort this out.” My eyes follow him out the door before I round on the man who just stole my chance at a match.
“What. The actual. Fuck.”
Garrick seems to relax now that Jason has left, that cocky smirk returning to his perfect face. I could punch him—I want to punch him—but Garricks next words stop any violent thoughts. “You’re mine.”
“What?”
“You. Are. Mine.”
My mouth opens and closes like a gaping fish at his admission. His? Something in my chest cracks open and takes flight at the thought. “But…” What’s the catch? Haven’t we spent the last few weeks trying to set me up with someone else because he didn’t want me? You don’t want him either , I remind myself, but the words are hollow even in the safety of my mind.
“I thought I could do this… hand you over to someone else, let you choose the bond with someone else, but I can’t. From the moment you stormed into this manor my body has been attuned to you. Drawn to your every breath as if my own depends on it.” Garrick takes a step towards me, then another, closing the short distance between us. “I have secrets, ones that I thought I couldn’t share with a partner. Not yet. I thought no one outside of my inner circle would understand. But the truth has been on the tip of my tongue from the first moment I saw you. And now…”
Breathing is difficult and thought is impossible with him so close. I lay my hand on his chest, pulling myself closer to him. “And now?” I ask, my face tilted back as his red-tinged silver eyes devour my very being.
“And now I’ve decided that if I don’t mark you… claim you as my mate right here, right now… then I’ll destroy the world and whoever is in my way to do it later.”
My canines bite into my bottom lip as I snatch it between my teeth. I can feel his heart pounding in his chest, echoing my own. It’s a drum march, pushing the two of us closer. I open my mouth to ask him what the hell is taking so long, but no words have the chance to escape before he takes my mouth with his.
His lips are firm and soft, his breath tasting like mint. The world disappears as his hands grip my hips and he lifts. I wrap my legs around him, my arms winding around his neck as the rest of my body presses against every inch of his. The need to be closer—to close any space between us—is all consuming as his lips release mine only to trail a path of fire down my neck.
A moan escapes me just as my back hits a wall. Pressing me in, he leans back just enough to rip his shirt over his head, and I take in the expanses of his chest. My bottom lip is between my teeth again as my hands explore muscles that had to have been sculpted by the Gods themselves.
His lips find mine once more and I kiss him back with a feral need I never realized I had, hands clawing into his back. A moan escapes my lips and he takes the invitation, his tongue delving into my mouth. Exploring, claiming. His face pulls back just enough to capture my eyes in his when he finally releases the kiss.
“You are mine.” He says, and I can only nod, unsure if I can even form words right now. He smiles, and it’s wicked and perfect as he brings a hand up and snaps his fingers. Suddenly neither of us are wearing clothes. Well that’s a hot little trick …
Finally words return to me. “Yes,” I moan, arching my back and pushing myself against the long, hard dick that’s pressed up against my abdomen. In one fluid motion he pulls back and thrusts inside of me, filling me to the hilt. Gods, nothing has ever felt so good as my body expanding and forming to the shape of him, as if our two bodies were fit exactly for one another. Garrick’s not slow or gentle as he slides in and out of me. His pace is hard and demanding, as if everything he is—down to his fucking soul—has been deprived of me. Why had I ever denied myself this?
“Mine,” he growls again before his head lowers to my neck, his teeth sinking into the soft skin. Something inside me explodes, the world shattering and remaking itself, and the very essence of my being right along with it. My own canines find their mark just at the base of his neck and collar bone. Everything’s changed. I am his. And he is mine.