Chapter 12Selene
Chapter
Twelve
SELENE
T he cave is silent, the only sound is the soft crackle of the fire Damien had ignited with the flick of his hand. I sit by the flames, trying to make sense of everything that’s happened in the past few hours. My body still hums from the power I unleashed earlier, but it’s a strange sensation, like something just below the surface, waiting to escape again.
And now Damien is here, standing only a few feet away, his presence filling the small space. His eyes have been on me the entire time, watching, waiting. There’s something intense in his gaze, something that makes me feel like he’s seeing right through me, past my defenses, to the parts of me I’ve tried so hard to bury.
I swallow hard, trying to steady my breath. “What are you doing here?”
He tilts his head, his expression calm but unreadable. “I told you, Selene. I’m here to protect you.”
“From what?” I ask, my voice coming out sharper than I intended. “You’re the one who put me in this situation in the first place.”
He steps closer, his boots barely making a sound against the stone floor. “The Hunt is bigger than you or me. It’s a part of the balance between realms. I can’t change that.”
“You say that like I should accept it,” I snap, feeling the frustration bubbling up inside me. “Like I’m just supposed to be okay with being hunted like some animal.”
“You’re not an animal,” Damien says quietly, his voice taking on a strange softness. “You’re something far more powerful.”
I glance up at him, my heart racing, and for the first time since he arrived, I notice the shift in the air around us. There’s a faint glow along the walls of the cave—runes, etched in light, flickering softly like they’re alive. I narrow my eyes, focusing on them. “What did you do?”
Damien follows my gaze, and a small smile tugs at the corner of his lips. “I put up protection runes. The others won’t be able to find us here.”
“Protection from what?” I ask, my voice shaky. “From them?”
He nods. “As the facilitator, I’m able to maintain the balance of the Hunt. That means ensuring no one breaks the rules.” His eyes flicker back to me. “But right now, it’s also to protect you.”
My skin prickles at his words, an uneasy feeling settling in my chest. “Why would you need to protect me?”
Damien moves closer, crouching down in front of me so that our faces are level. His proximity sends a wave of heat through my body, making it harder to think straight. “Because you’re different, Selene. You know that, don’t you? The power inside you... it’s not like anything we’ve ever seen before.”
I open my mouth to protest, but the words die in my throat. Because deep down, I know he’s right. I’ve felt it—this strange energy that’s been building inside me, threatening to spill over at any moment. But I don’t understand it. I don’t even know how to control it.
“I don’t know what I am,” I admit, my voice barely above a whisper. “All I know is that... this isn’t what I expected. None of it is.”
“How much experience have you had with men?”
My breath catches at the question, heat flooding my cheeks. “What?”
His gaze doesn’t waver. “You heard me.”
I swallow hard, feeling my heart pound in my chest. I don’t want to answer, but there’s something in the way he’s looking at me that makes it impossible to lie. “Not much,” I admit, barely able to meet his eyes. “I’ve never really... been with anyone.”
His expression shifts, surprise flickering across his features before he settles back into that same calm control. “Never?”
I shake my head, embarrassment rising in my chest. “I had a boyfriend once,” I say softly, my voice thick with old frustration. “But we didn’t do anything beyond kissing. He... wanted more, and I wasn’t ready. That’s part of why we broke up.”
Damien raises an eyebrow, and I can tell by the way his lips twitch that he’s fighting the urge to say something. “Why weren’t you ready?”
I shift uncomfortably, unsure how to explain. “I grew up in a really conservative family. My parents taught me that... intimacy was a sin outside of marriage. I guess it just stuck with me.”
He scoffs, a sound filled with disdain. “Humans and their ridiculous rules,” he mutters. “They teach you to fear your own desires, to suppress what’s natural.”
I open my mouth to protest, but the words stick in my throat. The truth is, I don’t know if I still believe all of that. It’s just... what I’ve always been told. And the memory of my ex breaking up with me because I wouldn’t go further—because I couldn’t let myself go—still stings .
Damien watches me closely, his gaze intense. “So you’ve never experienced it,” he says quietly, as if he’s piecing it all together. “You’ve never let yourself feel it.”
I shake my head, the weight of my inexperience pressing down on me. “I’ve never... I’ve never even—” My cheeks burn with shame, and I look away, unable to say the words.
But Damien isn’t fooled. His eyes darken with understanding, and he leans in slightly, his voice dropping to a husky murmur. “You’ve never climaxed,” he finishes for me, his tone laced with both intrigue and something darker.
I nod, feeling like I’m on the edge of a cliff, unsure whether I’m about to fall or fly.
His hand lingers near my face, his thumb brushing the curve of my jaw. “Your body wasn’t meant to be caged like that, Selene. It’s part of who you are, part of the power inside you.”
The way he says it, like my body and my desires are something powerful, something important , sends a strange thrill through me. I’ve never thought of it like that. I’ve always seen my restraint as something to be proud of, something that made me good. But now, with Damien so close, with the heat of his body seeping into mine, it feels less like control and more like a chain. A chain that’s been holding me back.
“Let me show you,” he whispers, his lips brushing against my ear. “What it feels like to be free from those human chains.”
The heat between us is suffocating now, my body responding in ways I can’t control. Every fiber of my being is screaming at me to close the distance, to let go of everything I’ve been taught and just... feel.
His breath ghosts over my lips, and for a moment, the world falls away. There’s only Damien, his eyes dark and intense, his touch soft but insistent. My heart races, and I know I should pull back, but I can’t. I’m too far gone.
His lips brush against mine, and I feel my body arch toward him, every nerve ending alive with need.
Then, just as his lips are about to press down, something shifts. A flicker of energy pulses through the air, and the runes around us seem to glow brighter. I feel the power building between us, raw and untamed, like a storm waiting to break.
But instead of fear, I feel a strange sense of release. Like everything inside me has been held back for so long, and now, in this moment, I’m finally free.
Damien’s lips hover over mine, his breath warm and steady. “Are you sure, Selene?”
I meet his gaze, my chest tightening with anticipation. And for the first time in my life, I know exactly what I want.
“Yes,” I whisper.