Page 22 of Beyond Fate

The lovemaking had come to an abrupt halt, and now Casimir held Damon protectively from behind as they lay together. Time seemed to stand still as they cuddled on the rocky cliff, with only the rising sun to mark the passing hours. Occasionally, the faint sound of cars could be heard driving along the roads below, but their gentle rumble was overpowered by the sound of the breeze.

The pain of feeling Damon’s wolf fail to join their bond was unbearable for Casimir, and he never wanted to feel, or have Damon experience, that level of anguish again. His nékah had already been through too much.

Damon slightly stirred in his arms, but Casimir refused to let him go. After watching his mate suffer since being pulled from the sleep, Casimir finally had the chance to comfort him. Damon would not be leaving his arms anytime soon.

Chapter Seven

Although Damon would never be the same again, it was time to get back to the real world. Maybe. “I have a problem,” he said to his mate.

Casimir’s arms tightened around him. “Name it and I’ll destroy it.”

Despite the pain Damon still felt resonating inside of him, he grinned. “That easy?”

“For you. Hell yes, nékah.” Casimir placed a soft kiss on his shoulder. “Miákahy, ceutyâ nétya.”

“Are we doing more pop quizzes?” Damon chuckled.

Casimir groaned behind him. “You’re telling me you don’t recognize at least one of those words? I’ve said it in reference to you a few times already.”

“Hole?” Damon smirked. “I told you we have to work on your sexy talk.”

“You are a troublemaker.” Casimir tightened his arms. “Roughly translated, it means my sword is at your command, beautiful wolf.”

“What if my problem is my family?”

His mate sighed heavily. “I really did like them.”

Eyes wide, Damon sat up. “You’d kill my family if they were the problem?”

Casimir rose up so fluidly it appeared as if he’d floated up from the ground. He really was a weapon himself. Damon still couldn’t believe fate had given him a warrior. Maybe it knew the battles that were coming Damon’s way and decided to provide him with a life raft.

Or, in Casimir’s case, fate had given him a battleship.

Locking gazes, Casimir said, “The moment my mark appeared, I was ripped away from my family to endure a thousand years of brutal training. Afterward, I spent a millennium serving a despicable king, followed by two thousand years of being hunted. Throughout all that time, I have never had any ties or relationships. But now, I have finally found my mate, and I will do whatever it takes to protect you. I will eliminate anyone or anything that dares to make you shed even a single tear.” His jaw tightened. “If Panahasi was not Life itself, he would already be lying dead at my feet.”

Damon was blown away by what Casimir had just revealed about himself. He was aware his mate never stayed in one place too long because he was being hunted, but Damon couldn’t imagine living four millennia and not making at least one connection.

Damn. That was… He was at a complete loss on how to even begin to process that.

“In that case, my family are saints,” Damon said slowly.

“Tell me.” Casimir ran his hand over Damon’s arm and down his side. “What troubles you?”

Damon had always been close with his family, able to talk to them about anything. Although the keeper had fixed a lot of what was wrong under his hood, Damon couldn’t bring himself to talk to them about any of this.

He still felt like a freak who no longer deserved to be a Frost. “The things I said to them before I flew off.” He closed his eyes. “I adore my dad, look up to him, see him as our family’s solid foundation, and…” Damon cleared his throat as guilt ate its way into his gut. “I attacked him. I threatened to drink from his vein.” His throat tightened.

“And you don’t believe he knew what you were going through, that he wouldn’t understand or be forgiving?” Casimir brushed aside Damon’s hair and kissed his temple. “From what I have observed, parents are reasonably forgiving.”

“I’m pretty sure the parents you’ve observed didn’t have their offspring trying to sink fangs into them.” He pushed to his feet. “Where exactly did you put my jeans and underwear?”

He was still stumped on how his mate had gotten his clothes off, not to mention his boots. Damon felt damn silly standing there in his shirt and socks. But at least he saw where his shoes were. Well, one of them.

This could not be his life right now.

Casimir glanced over the edge of the cliff with a frown.

“Dude, my wallet, cell phone, and keys were all in my jeans.” Damon groaned.

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