12. CHAPTER 12
Even though my apartment is squeaky clean and in perfect order, I still run around, finding myself things to do and places to dust.
It isn’t like Grayden hasn’t been here before, but this time is different.
This will be the first time we’ll see each other after our life-changing confessions in San Francisco. It will also be our first face to face after we’ve had sex. A lot of things can go wrong, but I’m well aware that a lot of things can go right, too. The problem is that I don’t know what exactly I want.
When there’s nothing left for me to do, I sit on the vintage sofa that’s seen much better days. It’s not nearly as comfortable as the one in the Presidential Suite, and as far as I know, this one doesn’t hold any steamy memory like it either.
Heat spreads across my face and I fan my hand, hoping to get rid of the angry red splotches before Grayden arrives. The redness is so strong that I can see it in the window’s reflection across from me.
A knock on the door startles me, ruining the little progress I’ve made on getting my skin color back to normal. I jump to my feet and cross the short distance to the door. Before I open it, I subconsciously brush my hair with my fingers and glance at my washed-up old band T-shirt to make sure there are no stains. I mentally curse myself for not changing into something nicer.
“Helia?” Grayden asks through the door when I don’t open immediately. I realize that his heightened wolf senses allow him to hear me, which means that he must be aware of me standing in front of the door like an idiot.
My fingers fumble with the several locks on my door. I turn the deadbolt first, then a barrel bolt, and finally a chain lock. Grayden waits patiently and offers me a small smile when our eyes meet.
I sharply inhale, still unused to the idea of who he is. It’s a bit scary to imagine this guy that I’ve spent more time with than with anyone else outside of my workspace is this big bad wolf from the stories my parents told us when we were kids. He’s one of the cursed ones.
And yet, he’s also the same guy who makes me laugh. He’s that one stranger that I picked up on the side of the road and took home to make sure he wouldn’t die. He’s my fake boyfriend who went above and beyond to help me with my work situation. He’s kind and funny. My friends love him. My boss loves him. I...
“Expecting a break-in?” he muses, interrupting my thoughts.
I lift my eyes in question before I realize he’s commenting on my locks. I step aside to let him in as I reply, “It came with the apartment.”
“Do you have any protection spells around the place?” he asks when I close the door.
“What is this?” I glare at him with naked suspicion in my eyes. “Are you staking out the place? Or is this your way of threatening me? Whatever it is, forget it.”
A flicker of hurt flashes in Grayden’s eyes, but it’s gone too fast to be sure. He schools his expression into a cold mask and walks to the sofa where he sits down without an invitation. Feeling only a little bit bad for going off on him, I decide to dial it down a notch and join him to hear him out. He did save my life after all.
“What is so urgent that you have to come all this way?” I ask with a slightly gentler tone.
I don’t miss his formal outfit. He must’ve come straight from an important event. Why does he have to look so good in his suit? Fucking red and black suit him perfectly, going well with his dark eyes and dark hair. His stubble is a bit shorter than usual, which further speaks of the event’s importance. His hair is styled back by a professional for sure, his locks shorter and his faded sides recently buzzed. He looks even more dashing and handsome than ever before.
“My brother got married today,” Grayden starts, which explains his attire. “But before that, he got crowned as a king.”
I raise my brows in surprise. My expression shifts into one of sadness and I even go as far as to touch Grayden’s hand for a short but comforting second. “I’m so sorry.”
“Huh?” he asks, tilting his head to the side as his brows furrow in confusion. His mouth falls open as realization hits him and he shakes his head, letting out a soft chuckle. “No, no, my father’s not dead.”
“Then how did your brother become a king?” I ask, giving him a confused look.
“Long story short, my father has prioritized our kingdom above his relationship with my mother or the rest of the family,” Grayden starts. I subconsciously lean closer, my interest piqued by the society and hierarchy rules the wolves live by. “He always said that when Garren reaches a certain age and has proven himself to be a formidable leader, he will step down to let him take his place. I’m not going to lie, it’s been a shaky journey for Garren, and at some point, my father has even considered skipping him altogether and installing me in his place, but in the end, Garren came through. Mostly at least.”
“So, your father is free now to spend more time with your mother,” I conclude, ignoring the fact that I’ve slept with a prince who was close to becoming the king of my species’ mortal enemies.
Grayden nods. “Garren also got married today, but that’s not the shocking part. The girl he married is a commoner.”
“Isn’t all this a little outdated?” I challenge, finding it sexist, discriminatory, and quite frankly, appalling. “If two people are in love and they’re good to each other, the rest shouldn’t matter.”
“I’m starting to think that too,” Grayden admits in a barely audible whisper. I don’t have time to dwell on his words because he continues, “The reason why I wanted to see you is to make sure that you’re safe.”
“Haven’t you seen the collection of locks on my door?” I joke, but it lands flat as he shoots me a serious look instead.
“My brother’s first official speech as a king was to declare war on the witches,” he tells me, wiping away any trace of smile on my face. My eyes widen as I wrap my head around the gravity of the situation. Grayden reaches for my hand, taking it in his. “A lot of people will die. Wolves, witches, and humans. I want to come up with a plan to keep you safe. I need you to be safe.”
“We have to stop this,” I breathe. “We have to do something.”
“We can’t,” Grayden says, sounding so sure of it. “We’re too low on the food chain to do it.”
I furrow my brows in disbelief. “Are you fucking kidding me? We’re the only ones that can do it. You’re the king’s brother, and I’m our leader’s twin sister. If we can’t do it, then no one can.”
Grayden scoffs. “I might be the king’s brother, but we’re not exactly tight. I also haven’t done anything worth mentioning in my life that would warrant me even a sliver of respect from the wolves. They won’t listen to me.”
“You need to make them listen,” I insist. “We need to do this, Grayden. I can’t sit by while people are dying. Please help me.”
“This is crazy,” Grayden argues. He stands up and paces the room. His massive frame makes the apartment look tiny. He runs his fingers through his hair in a gesture of desperation and frustration. “I really don’t see a way out.”
I get up and stand in his path. He stops short, lowering his head to meet my eyes. There’s so much pain in them, no doubt mirroring my own hopelessness. At that moment, our hands might be tied, but there’s one thing that we can do. One thing that no one can keep us from doing.
Throwing caution into the wind, I stand on my tiptoes, put my hands on Grayden’s cheeks, and pull his mouth down on mine. His lips part in surprise which only lasts a second before he responds.
“Bedroom,” he growls against my mouth.
He lifts me into his arms, and I wrap my legs around his waist, feeling his growing bulge against my softness. His wolf senses must help him navigate because he doesn’t crash into one thing while still kissing me. He gently sets me on the bed and looks at me with pure lust in his dark eyes.
“I want you so bad,” he tells me, lowering his lips to my neck and showering it with kisses. “I couldn’t get you out of my head. I tried, but I couldn’t.”
“We shouldn’t do this,” I say with zero conviction. “But I need you.”
“One last time,” he promises, his breath tickling my ear as he catches my earlobe between his lips and nibbles on it.
“Fuck,” I moan.
“You’re so damn beautiful,” he whispers in awe. “So fucking sexy.”
Grayden lifts his mouth back to mine, giving me a soft and sweet kiss with a silent promise of burning passion to be released. I can feel him trembling as he’s trying to take things slow. To make love to me.
As his lips travel in little trails around my face and neck, his hand moves slowly up and down my side and stomach, his thumb occasionally brushing my breast. I lift my hips upward, coaxing a groan out of him when I press against his already hard erection. He slides his hand underneath me and holds my hip up, pulling me into him as he presses his hardest part against my softest.
His mouth finds mine, enveloping me in a deep kiss that sends shivers all over my body, leaving a tingling sensation in its wake. He’s the only one who has ever kissed me that way. The only one that is able to make me feel all those things. The drug that I can’t get enough of. The sensations are so powerful that I don’t want them to stop. It’s him. It’s all about him.
Grayden pulls back a moment, his eyes meeting mine. There are so many unspoken things in the air between us and so many obstacles to overcome. When he looks at me like that, with a flame of love and passion, I don’t consider whether this is worth it. I don’t ponder whether this is possible. I don’t care if there’s a future for us as long as we have now.
For the first time ever, I understand why people keep saying that we only live once. Embracing the moment and all that crap finally makes sense to me.
I tighten my grip around Grayden and pull him down on me. He kisses me hard, his kiss mirroring the need in me. His cock grows and hardens against me, throbbing against my stomach.
I slightly push him off me and he understands immediately, allowing me to take the lead. He rolls onto his back, and I climb on top of him, rubbing my tingling pussy against his massive, hard member. Grayden lets out a guttural sound, and I bite my lower lip. Even with our clothes on, he feels so good between my legs that I could finish right here and now.
I teasingly rub myself against him back and forth, before gesturing to him to sit up. We quickly tear off each other’s shirts, jackets, and everything else, including the flimsy layers of protection that would be our underwear. His boxers have a damp spot on them, nearly matching my own soaking stain left by my arousal.
Without taking his eyes off me, Grayden’s fingers found their way down along my clit, teasing me and making me shudder with pleasure. I lift myself on my knees, inviting him further. He doesn’t need to be told twice, and gently moves his fingers to the entrance of my pussy, playing with my lower lips.
“Grayden,” I moan his name, begging for more, mixing with the pleasure already received.
Two can play this game. I move my hand between us, between our sweating bodies, and lower it until I reach what I’m looking for. I wrap my hand around his hard member, gently stroking it and slowly gaining speed.
“You have to stop,” he warns, his voice thick and heavy.
“Or what?” I challenge, sounding just as breathless and overcome with the powerful sensations his fingers are inflicting on me.
Instead of replying, Grayden pulls his hands away from my now dripping wet pussy and lays flat on his back, pulling me on top of him. He grabs his big throbbing cock, guiding it toward the entrance of my pussy as I slowly sit down on top of him, eagerly welcoming it with my lower lips’ kiss.
When I straighten my back, Grayden reaches up for my breasts as I begin to ride him. He gives both of my breasts equal attention, rubbing, massaging, and cupping them in his hands. I move my hips back and forth, up and down, riding him like it’s the last time we’ll ever get to do this, which could very well be.
“I want to taste your nipples,” he growls, the sound guttural and demanding.
I obey, lowering my upper body and putting my weight on my hands on each side of his head. Grayden puts his mouth on my nipples, sucking each of them and teasing them with the heat of his tongue. As he does that, the muscles on his toned stomach tighten, moving as he thrusts his hips upwards and deep inside me. He buries his face between my perky breasts with a guttural groan as he rides and fucks me through his own orgasm, filling me up with shot after shot of his massive load. We both writhe against each other in a shared ecstasy.
But we aren’t finished yet. Without him pulling his cock out, we turn over with him on top and he begins thrusting in and out of me, barely losing any of his thick hardness. I moan softly at first but more loudly as he begins banging into me, burying his cock to the hilt deep into my pussy. I thrust my hips up, catching the rhythm of his movement. My fingers rub my aching clit, tripling the sensations.
Without stopping, Grayden kisses my lips, my neck, my collarbone. He groans against me, the vibrations making me shudder.
“Fuck, Helia,” he whispers, his voice hoarse and thick. “You feel amazing.”
He buries his face in my shoulder, his movements getting more frantic as he moves toward a second orgasm. I heard about this before, but I never met a guy who’s able to do it. I don’t know if it’s a wolf thing, or he’s one of the rare exceptions that are able to ejaculate more than once without losing the hardness. Either way, I don’t care because I’m on cloud fucking nine.
I’m not too far from finishing myself. I can’t tell if the wetness on my flower-patterned sheets is from me, him, or both of us. My wetness is just as eagerly pouring out of me, making him slide easily in and out as he thrusts his hips back and forth.
I can’t hold back anymore and dig my nails deep into his back when my first, second, or even third orgasm takes a hold of me. I’ve been feeling way too much and too strong to be sure.
“There you go, baby,” he groans. “Come for me.”
And I do. I would even if he hadn’t asked me to. My orgasm is so intense that I reflexively press my mouth against his shoulder to muffle my moaning scream. My entire body contracts and I convulse in his arms, trembling and shuddering. Without realizing it, I’m digging my nails into his back as well as sinking my teeth into his shoulder. Grayden takes it all and fucks me through my orgasm, riding me through it to the other side.
The sensation of my pussy tightening around his cock must’ve been so intense for him because, in the next moment, he thrusts into me with the strength of a wolf—hard, powerful, and raw—burying his cock as deep inside me as it goes, filling me with the last drops of his load.
As each of our orgasms subside, we slowly disentangle and lay down together. He pulls me into his arms, and I rest on his chest, listening to his steady heartbeat. I don’t want to move, afraid that it will break the moment. I don’t want this to end. I don’t want us to be on the opposite sides of the shore, wanting to swim toward each other, but the river’s just too wide and wild.
“What are you thinking about?” Grayden asks, his chest raising with every breath he takes.
“This. Us,” I reply honestly.
“I want this,” he admits, his voice barely audible. It sounds like even he is surprised by his admission. Sensing that he has more to say, I prop myself up with my chin on his chest to look at him. “I’ve never been in a relationship before. Fuck, I’ve never been with the same woman twice until now.”
I raise my brows in surprise. It’s not like I expected him to be a virgin, but with the skill and stamina that he showcased in bed, it’s not a stretch to guess that he’s been with a lot of people.
“I shouldn’t have said it this way. I didn’t mean to make it sound like that,” he says quickly, stumbling over his words. “What I’m trying to say is that I’m not good at this. I don’t know how to do emotions and feelings. I never had to show up for a person, but I want to be there for you. I never had to fight for someone, but everything in me is screaming to go to war for you. Or, well, end the war before it starts.”
“I know what you mean,” I tell him, sparing him from trying to explain something that he doesn’t yet understand. “If it makes you feel any better, I’m pretty sure we’re in the same boat.”
His face lights up and his dark eyes soften. His lips curl up into a relieved smile. I reach up and gently rub his stubble. He turns his head to the side to kiss the inside of my palm.
“We’ll be outcasts,” he whispers. “They’ll never accept us.”
“There’s always a chance,” I reply, my brows furrowing as I cling to the idea. “We need to come up with a way for the war to end before it even begins. We need to make sure that our centuries-old feud doesn’t claim even more innocent victims. It’s archaic and downright wrong. The witches and the wolves have evolved. We have to make them see that. They must understand that we don’t need to be enemies. We can all live together. Peace is possible.”
“It won’t be easy,” he warns, and I nod. “Our efforts might backfire on us.”
“As long as we’ll give it our all, I’ll know that we did everything we could to give us a chance,” I tell him, surprising even myself that I genuinely meant every word of it.
Grayden chuckles softly and shakes his head.
“What?” I ask, gently smacking my palm against his chest. I’m smiling, feeling lighter with the knowledge that I’m not alone in this. He will be by my side no matter what happens, and who knows, maybe together, we actually stand a chance.
“I just can’t believe that I’m going to go against my family for witches and humans,” he says, his tone one of disbelief. “Out of all of us, I’ve been the biggest hater of everyone that’s not a wolf.”
“What changed?”
“You invited me to San Francisco for what was probably the best weekend of my life,” he tells me with a low chuckle. “I’ve spent the evening around humans, chatting and laughing with them as if they were my friends. What started as an attempt to impress you and to lure you into my bed, ended with me realizing that they’re not that different from wolves. Yeah, they’re a lot more fragile and vulnerable, but they can be just as annoying as most wolves. They’re also funny, generous, and kind. They can be fun if given a chance.”
“What about me? Did your view of me change when you found out who I really was?” I ask, then hold my breath in anticipation. I’m not even sure why I asked him that. I just hope his answer won’t hurt me.
“A bit,” he admits as he absentmindedly runs his fingers up and down my bare back. “I wanted to hate you. I tried really hard but couldn’t. You might be a witch but that doesn’t change the fact that your heart is good. You are kind, caring, and compassionate. You saved me when I was a stranger. I wondered if you would have done the same knowing who I was, and no matter how I turned things around, I’m convinced that you would. It’s who you are. It’s why I can’t help but keep falling for you. Deeper, harder, and faster than ever before.”
His eyes meet mine, his words hitting the softest spot in my heart. My eyes tear up, the corners of my mouth slowly lifting up into a wide smile.
“I keep falling for you too,” I say back, then push myself up to kiss him. He wraps his arms around me, holding me close as our lips pass along everything that can’t be put into words.
This is what I want. He is who I want. I’ll fight both for our happiness and for him. We both will.