Chapter 83: Just One More
[Flashback]
Sniffles echoed in the small apartment as Lynsandra packed her things and prepared to move out. She kept wiping her tears, telling herself not to waver, not to linger. Deep in her heart, she knew Victor would come to her and try to sway her again.
Not because he loved her deeply, but because she knew he needed her.
As Lynsandra hugged a box to her chest, her steps slowed. She turned her head toward the mirror. Her eyes were slightly swollen, the tip of her nose red, and her entire appearance just looked... pathetic.
She pursed her lips as another large tear fell from her eye. Looking at herself — hair tied neatly but with strands spiking everywhere, oversized glasses, plain clothes — she realized what Victor had said was true.
She looked dull.
Compared to Katarina, who never wore the same clothes twice, whose hair was always styled differently to complement her outfits, adorned with sets of jewelry, Lynsandra truly had changed. And right now, she couldn’t help but believe it was her fault, not Victor’s.
"If only... I didn’t forget to take care of myself," she whispered. "If only I had given him what he needed whenever he was in heat..."
Bitterness crept into her chest until she could almost taste it.
There were many things she had given Victor, compared to the things she couldn’t fulfill. After all, she had claimed to him that she was wolfless — but giving herself to him would expose her lie. On top of that, she just couldn’t let him mark her, for one reason.
Even if Lynsandra had lost her mind and cut ties with her father, at the back of her head, she knew the Royal Pack might drag her back. It wasn’t that she didn’t want Victor to become Alpha King — rather, she didn’t want him to blame her for confining him to the suffocating responsibilities she herself had endured since childhood. Responsibilities so heavy that she had run away from them.
"Haha."
She laughed as she held her head, laughing even harder in mockery until she hunched over.
When her laughter subsided, tears fell once more. She forced herself to look at her pitiful reflection before resuming her packing and finally leaving.
She left with a plethora of "what ifs" in her mind.
What if she loved Victor more? What if she had been more honest? More forthcoming? More adventurous and daring?
What if... she had given him everything, and not just pieces of herself?
Those thoughts ran through her head for a while until she forgot them. Or rather, she grew numb from thinking about them so often that they no longer felt worth dwelling on.
Strangely enough, those thoughts resurfaced while she was confined in the embrace of another man.
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"Ah!" A loud moan escaped her lips as her back arched, her hands pinned at her sides, his fingers filling the gaps between hers.
She thought it wouldn’t hurt the first time, considering the pain she endured every full moon. She thought another part of her being torn open wouldn’t be much different, but she was wrong.
Even if Elias was gentle and slow, she still felt stretched and torn. Her body shivered as cold sweat formed on her forehead, chest, and back. Yet his kisses and heated breaths along her shivering skin eased some of the pain, almost cruel in their contrast.
He was the one causing the pain, and yet he comforted her at the same time.
After minutes of back-and-forth between pain and pleasure, the pleasure began to overtake her entirely until her mind saw nothing but sparks and fireworks. Her moans grew louder, echoing through the space — and the more she unraveled, the hungrier he became.
Confined within his muscular arms, she let herself be caged there. Rather, her slender arms wrapped around him just as tightly, inhaling his scent, melting in his heat, their bodies striving to become one.
His touches grew rougher at times, but whenever he felt himself losing control, he would slow down and steady himself.
Soon, his movements deepened, his grunts growing louder alongside hers as her tightness clenched around him. With a few more thrusts, he felt the heat gather in his groin before it finally burst free.
His body shuddered as he jerked inside her.
"Hah..." Lynsandra panted beneath him, her mind hazy. After a few weak blinks, she met his eyes. "Eli."
Elias lowered his gaze to hers, his hand brushing her cheek. He wiped at it gently with the back of his hand before leaning down to kiss her.
A low chuckle escaped him as he rested his forehead against hers. "God... you’re amazing."
Her eyes remained closed as she let out a soft laugh. Lifting her head slightly, she kissed him, but just as she pulled away, he leaned in and deepened it.
A protesting moan slipped from her lips as she lightly slapped his shoulder.
"I told you it’s going to be a long night," he whispered, trailing kisses along her jaw and down her neck. "Just one more, alright?"
Lynsandra felt her strength draining, her arms resting over his shoulders as he continued marking her skin with kisses.
"Just one," she whispered.
But the moment his lips claimed hers again, she felt him throb inside her. He hadn’t softened, even after releasing that much tension. Nor had he pulled out.
Before long, their bodies fell back into the same rhythm as before, his lips and hands roaming freely, leaving bites and marks across her skin, while her fingers dragged down his back.
That promised "just one" turned into an endless plea as he grew greedier with each orgasm. And as if spellbound, she stopped counting the times he whispered, "just one more," letting their heat pour into each other until, at last, both their bodies gave out.
*****
[Harem]
Severin paused from working on his canvas as the tips of his ears twitched.
He turned his head toward the large window, staring out from the stool where he sat. The sky was still dark, but the night was nearing its end.
"It’s almost morning," he murmured. "...she didn’t come back."
