Chapter Thirty-four
‘That was quite a day,’ said Emberlyn.
Oh, she wasn’t wrong. Sinking into the sofa of the manor’s living room, Ripper patted the spot beside him and draped an arm over the back of the couch. ‘And a profitable one for you.’ There had been barely any stock left on her table when the fair came to an end.
She slumped onto the sofa. ‘It usually is,’ she said, listing into him with a yawn.
He nuzzled her hair, inhaling. She smelled good. Smelled of her, him, magick, strawberry shampoo and her signature floral perfume. ‘Tired?’
‘A little.’ She slung an arm around his waist. ‘Thank you for hanging with me at the stall today. I know it had to have been pretty boring.’
‘Being with you is never boring.’
A door slammed shut upstairs.
‘You know, I’m getting used to that.’ The banging, the whispering, the furniture moving, the eerie noises. ‘I didn’t even freak this morning when my empty mug slid across the table.’
‘It’s just life at the manor.’ She tipped her head back to meet his eyes. ‘Your house isn’t free of spirits, you know.’
Ripper felt his brows draw together. ‘What?’
‘I only saw two—’
‘You saw two?’
‘Nothing malevolent,’ she assured him. ‘They both used to live there, though not at the same time. That’s all I picked up from them.’
‘How come you never mentioned it before?’
‘I didn’t want you feeling uncomfortable in your home. But you said you’re getting used to ghostly stuff now, so . . .’ She let her eyes close, giving him a little more of her weight.
Ripper stared down at her, playing his fingers through her hair.
She was so fucking beautiful it made his chest ache.
There was a time she’d watched him carefully, not quite sure of his intentions or nature.
Now she could sit beside him, relaxed and pliant with her eyes closed. A sign of pure trust.
Emberlyn wasn’t a creature who easily put her faith in people. That he’d earned her trust was something he prized and would never take for granted.
‘You’re staring,’ she accused without opening her eyes.
‘It’s my right. You’re my mine.’
She let out a soft snort of amusement. ‘Possessive much?’
‘If I could, I’d stamp my fingerprints all over you. And I mean all over you. Someone would be able to play dot-to-dot on your skin. Of course . . . if they tried that, I’d have to kill them. Because a lot of the places that would bear my prints would be parts of you no one else gets to touch.’
‘Hmm, well, I bear plenty of other marks – be satisfied with those.’
She did bear plenty. He liked to leave little score marks and bites on her flesh. There was just so much pretty skin to mark, what else was he supposed to do?
‘Also, I don’t think there’s a part of me that doesn’t wear your scent.’
Probably not. Honestly, at this point, his scent perfumed her skin as distinctly as her magick and sheer strength of will. A strength that appealed to him as much as her looks and, well, everything else about her.
He’d spent every day of his life at Chilgrave, but he didn’t need to have encountered more of the world to know that Emberlyn was singular. As soft and sweet as she was shrewd and merciless, his witch was a living contradiction.
He coveted every layer – the classy Alpha, the warm underbelly, the cunning avenger, the uniquely talented witch, the protective friend, the sexual sort-of-submissive who demanded you earn that submission.
He couldn’t imagine no longer wearing the scent of her magick – it felt too much a part of him now. Like another layer of skin. ‘I want to claim you,’ he found himself stating.
Her eyes snapped open, her muscles tensing.
Ripper almost grimaced. ‘I never meant to blurt it out like that. I was going to broach the topic at some point tonight, though.’ Usually when he’d say something serious like that, she would watch him closely, monitoring his expression . . . as if searching for signs of uncertainty on his part.
This time, she looked away, sitting up straight. Trying to process his words, he knew. Attuned to her, he felt no rejection of his statement, only a surprise tinted with disbelief that had caused her to mentally fumble. And now the pulse in her neck beat as hard and fast.
Understanding why his declaration had taken her off-guard, his heart hurt for her. This wasn’t a person who’d ever felt truly indispensable to anyone. It always rattled her a little when he only ever wanted to get closer rather than break away from her.
Deciding to give her a few moments, he stayed quiet while she found her mental footing.
If she said she needed more time, he’d give it to her.
But he wasn’t going to back off completely.
Not from this woman who – as unwavering as any tank – had knocked down and trampled over his every mental wall, every doubt, every reservation.
His sexual hunger for her had always been an elemental, relentless force. Something that never faltered, always intense and oppressive. Nothing had ever eased it. Almost as if that need for her had been imprinted on him somehow.
And now she felt imprinted on him.
The sensory memories of her softness, her scent, her warmth, the pinch of smoke in her voice – it was all rooted in his brain, vivid and distinct.
In hindsight, it seemed laughable that he’d once thought that he could be satisfied with just spending a little time in her bed; that he could later walk away without a qualm. But he hadn’t known her back then. Hadn’t had any clue that she had the potential to carve her name into his bones.
Logan was right that he’d needed either to take the jump or let her go. There was no way Ripper could do the latter. Ever. This woman was it for him.
Every cell in his body and instinct in his system insisted that she was his. Deep inside himself, he’d already claimed her. He just hadn’t made it official.
She sank a hand into her hair. ‘I don’t know what to say.’
At the break in her voice, something in the vicinity of his chest melted. ‘Let me have a guess at what thoughts are running through your head. You’re thinking how you’ve done the mating thing before and it didn’t go so well.’
She gave a sheepish shrug. ‘Kinda.’
‘You’re thinking the best way to ensure that history doesn’t repeat itself is just to avoid taking another mate.’
She inclined her head slightly.
‘And you’re reflecting on how we haven’t been together long, so you’re thinking that maybe I can’t be so sure of us this soon anyway. That about cover it?’
‘Yes. And I’m sorry if it hurts your feelings—’
‘Don’t apologize for how you feel. Baby, I’ll be honest, I had my own reservations about mating. I saw firsthand what can happen to a woman who loses her mate. But Logan gave me a reality check, and now I’m gonna do the same for you.’
Her snort was weak. ‘How benevolent you are.’
His lips almost drew up at that. ‘I know.’ His humor faded as he went on.
‘I can only imagine what your last hour with Michael was like. As if it wasn’t bad enough that he gutted you so deeply you wanted out of the mating, he changed into his In-between form, goddamn attacked you and then disappeared from your life. But I’m not him, Em.’
She frowned. ‘Of course you’re not. It’s just . . .’ She trailed off, sighing.
‘Colton said that Michael is strong. Bullshit. He’s fucking weak. Weak for cheating on you, for not having the guts to immediately admit it, for trivializing your pain and for not even bothering to apologize. Do you think I’d do any of that to you?’
‘No, never,’ she replied instantly. ‘But you feel the pull of the full moon more than most. You turned Rabid once before—’
‘And the odds of it happening to me again are seriously low.’ He palmed the back of her head. ‘Especially now that I have you. You’re my very own homing beacon. You call to me more strongly than any full moon. How could I ever leave you?’
*
Those words hit Emberlyn right in the feels. Hard. Her chest clenched painfully.
She’d had a weakness for Ripper from the start – it had been hormonal at first, yes, but still he’d drawn her like nothing else.
When she’d given in to the escalating sexual chemistry that seemed to know no bounds, she could never have imagined that, over time, they’d become more and more intertwined until she couldn’t imagine him not being part of her life.
Ripper wasn’t merely under her skin, he’d become as vital to her as the blood in her veins. To lose him would gut her more than any other loss she’d endured.
For the first time, she could understand why her mother had broken when the sperm donor left her without a backward glance. Emberlyn wouldn’t allow herself to fade away if Ripper left, but she would be completely lost.
‘Don’t let what happened with Michael make you hold back from me,’ Ripper insisted. ‘You weren’t meant for him. You were meant to be mine. We just didn’t get that until now.’
Her feels yet again got slammed.
‘As for you thinking that maybe I can’t be sure this is really what I want .
. . I don’t need to have spent years at your side to know that I don’t want to be anywhere else.
As we’ve already established, I see you.
I know you. I’m sure of my decision. I don’t need more time and – heads-up, baby – I don’t have it in me to give you space while you think it over. I can give you time, not space.’
Like she’d ever want him to stay away.
‘You’re not a person who lets their fears dictate what they do. You never have been. Don’t let that be different now.’
She exhaled heavily. ‘Ames once said that I was a walking curse. That I drove away or destroyed the people around me.’
Ripper’s expression hardened. ‘That motherfucker is not someone you should ever listen to about anything.’
‘I didn’t listen. I rolled my eyes. I’m not responsible for the choices that the people around me make. But I am so tired of having people fuck me over or leave me. The only people in my life who’ve been permanent, reliable fixtures are the twins.’