Chapter 460: Can I Really Have You? Part 2
A rumble of desire sounded under her cheek, calling out to something deep within her and she slowly released him to meet his eyes once again.
"You have me," he confirmed, his hand on her neck and thumb under her chin, tilting her head so she would see it in his eyes and wouldn’t mistake it. She could feel his truth resonating deep within her being, calling to her and waking her up.
"You have me," he repeated, softer now before dropping his gaze to her lips. "Can I have you?"
Her eyebrows threaded together, and she nodded, gripping his arms. "You have me, Seth."
Those words of confirmation and his name on her lips unfurled the desire that was poised, waiting to hear it. He kissed her, claiming her mouth first before his intent to claim every other part of her. He wanted to be gentle and tender, but there was something urgent pushing him forward to claim what had always been his... right in front of him this whole time. Somehow she had been right in front of him, and he had not seen her for what she was. His mate.
"Goddess, you’re mine?" He whispered against her lips, a question to the universe that was full of awe. How could he be blessed like this?
"Yes, I am yours. Please," she pulled him back, urging him deeper with her hands gripping his arms and then wrapping around his shoulders. "Please," she whimpered against him, letting her need for him bleed through. She was vulnerable and needed him to take her, to reassure her of his truth that he was actually hers. That he wouldn’t leave her.
Seth scooped her up, wrapping her legs around him and pressing her closer—flush against him so that they were aligned. She couldn’t be close enough—he was trying, he was urging himself deeper into her, licking her mouth and tasting her warmth and trying desperately to taste her soul where he felt the urge to devour it and make it part of his own.
He carried her over to the sofa and sat with her in his lap, their mouths still entangled, still trying to taste the center of each other—still trying to reach it. He groaned in frustration.
"I need you," he breathed against her, pulling her closer and pressing her into him, but she couldn’t be close enough. There was still something between them.
Her hair fell over her shoulder, and he caught sight of her bare neck. And that’s when he knew, he felt it. The need rose from his groin, lighting a fire in his belly that continued up through his chest until his teeth were aching for her.
Nedra felt that column of fire light in him, his gaze set on her neck. She pressed herself against him and bent her head to the side, offering him that part that he wanted.
"Take me," she whispered, clawing at his shoulders. "Please," she whimpered, suddenly terrified that he wouldn’t do it. If he did not do it now, he never would and then she might lose him completely.
Seth pulled back from her, and her lips quivered. They locked gazes and he saw the fear in her eyes. He hadn’t dispelled it yet. So many years that they were together but apart—no wonder she was still afraid to lose him.
He kissed her tenderly, shifting her so that she was lying on the sofa. This was worth taking their time. This was worth showing her how much she meant to him other than simply in a frenzy of need.
She watched him with tears still welling in her eyes, fear feathering her forehead. Why had he stopped? Why had he slowed down when he could have claimed her right there? But he smiled, and all the warmth from that beautiful smile of his sent her fears aflight.
He bent and kissed her forehead and then her cheeks and then her eyes before his hands found the hem of her shirt, and he slowly lifted it over her head. He had had her so many times but not like this. Not when he could feel the quiver of her breath like it was his own. Not when every touch sent a spike of electricity through him.
She raised herself off of the sofa to reach for his shirt, pulling it over his head more urgently than he had with her, and he chuckled at how she was pressing him to do this faster.
And then she smiled, and it was like his whole world caught on fire. Nedra never smiled.
"Goddess, you’re beautiful," he breathed, dropping to his forearms so that she was right below him.
"You have seen me before," she whispered, lifting herself to claim his lips, pulling at his hips so they would dip and find her.
"And you have always been beautiful. But now I am seeing you as my mate," he said in a husky whisper, nuzzling into her neck where she pressed him against her scent, clawing at his hair and then scrambling to find the buckle of pants and pushing them off of him before removing her own—all while Seth was entranced with the scent of her, licking her neck and finding the place he wanted. He groaned against that spot and nipped the skin when she urged him inside.
"Yes," she gasped, feeling him inside of her again—but this time it was so much more. It was so much more. Their souls were somehow entangled there, moving together and setting their beings alight. This was the threshold of all existence, and she felt the truth of it and the truth of what he was to her like she never had before.
Seth remained burrowed in her neck as he cradled her head in his hands, dipping and rolling to unite with her. The soft shelter of her was vulnerable and exposed and his... all his. Every whimper and soft moan spurred him further to that place where they were united behind their eyes, their spirits threading and weaving.
"Goddess, Nedra," he groaned into her neck and then bit down gently at the graceful curve where her neck met her shoulder without breaking the skin.
She shuddered beneath him from the tease of his mark.
"Why are you teasing me?" She moaned, finding a handful of his hair and clutching it in her fist as she pressed his hips further into her.
His head lifted away from her so he could see her eyes. She was drunk with the sensation of him flooding every part of her, but when she felt his gaze her eyes lit up, bright and deep and welcoming.
"Are you truly ready to be mine, love?" He asked, wanting to hear her confirmation once again.
The question trilled inside of her, calling to something deeper than her mind. This wasn’t a decision of logic. His soul was speaking to hers, and she whimpered in response to it. She was hearing him and feeling him on a level she never had before.
"Yes, Seth. Goddess, yes. Yes, please," she urged him back to her, claiming his mouth with hers where he groaned, devouring her whimpers.
And then his mouth was back on her neck, the heat from his breath and his tongue rolling against her skin, getting it ready. He was embracing her, one hand behind her back and one in her hair as he continued rolling into her, and then he bit down—sinking his teeth into her shoulder as his hips swirled and pressed—finding that spot that sent her over the edge and shattering it.
She shuddered under him, clawing at his hair where his mouth was still attached to her, teeth sunk into her flesh and penetrating something she didn’t even know existed. He was everywhere—flooding her, every part. His emotions and his memories and his thoughts of her—every tender moment they had had erupted behind her eyes.
"Mine," she moaned, clawing at his back. "You are mine."
