Page 135 of A Debt of Darkness

If I had a beating heart, it would have stopped as terror spreads through me, causing me to lose my rhythm and control. Ivy smiles and her finger digs into my chest before she runs her nail up my body, scratching my skin before her hand reaches my mouth. She pulls my lips apart and plays with my teeth, sending shivers down my spine and setting my soul on fire.

“Ivy…”

“I want this,” she says. Definitive. Certain. Fucking sure.

She places her wrist over my mouth and her eyes beg me to bite her.

I hesitate.

Despite all the longing and the need and the desire surging through my vessels as my craving becomes unbearable and the need to taste her almost consumes me. I’m agonizingly close to having the very thing I’ve longed for and the only thing preventing me from acting is the need to protect my mate.

It trumps every other thought, every other reason.

More than anything, more than everything, I need to keep her safe.

Ivy’s everything and I won’t risk her safety. Not now, not ever. Not with anyone, even if it’s me.

“Ivy, I’ll know…”

She nods and her finger silences my mouth.

“You’ll know me. All the bits of me you find and some of them might be those I hate. The dark and twisted pieces no one else sees, no one else knows.” She lifts herself, pushing me back as her knees slip either side of my thighs. “You’ve shown me yours, Henry. It’s about time I showed you mine.”

My hands cup her ass and I lift her onto me, slipping my cock inside her again. I move her, helping her hips roll as we fuck, eyes almost level and connected with every fucking beat.

“If you’re sure, lea. Only if you’re sure.”

She nods and bites her lip nervously. “Please don’t hurt me, Henry.”

It’s a cry of vulnerability that exposes all of Ivy’s fears and weaknesses, and I smile, promising her what she already knows. She’s mine, as I am hers, and there’s nothing I won’t do to keep her safe. No limit to my protection. No end to my devotion and nothing I will not do for her.

“I adore you, Ivy. For all you are.”

I drag my finger down her neck, pulling her collar down as my mouth plays with her neck.

“I will always love you, lea. Always cherish and protect you. Always worship you with my body and my soul.”

Ivy whimpers and tilts her head back, exposing her neck as she offers it to me. Her carotid pulses so fucking fast it’s impossible to resist its thrall and my fangs pierce her velvetskin, tasting amber and chocolate, honey and cinnamon. Ivy’s blood is heaven and I drink it slowly, savoring every fucking drop and all the memories that pour into me as my cock worships her cunt and we careen towards ecstasy.

It's perfect. She’s perfect.

And her memories mix as they flow into me.

Joy, elation and hope. A childhood playing in parks and eating ice cream. A mother who adored her daughter but vanished and the agony of losing a parent who worshipped their child. A descent into chaos, a journey towards darkness. A distant father who became bitter and angry, her hours hiding from a drunken man who railed against the world’s injustices.

It’s a snapshot, but it’s all I need to know and the anchor I needed rests in the person who’s my home. She’s my salvation and my savior. My hope and my light. All of my fucking reasons and then some. She’s calling me to her, as she’ll always call to me and her trust is a gift I’ll never abuse.

Our souls connect and our bond strengthens as Ivy’s pleasure grows and the venom seeping from my fangs sends her hurtling toward oblivion. I let myself go, allowing her to take me with her as she chases our climaxes and our pleasure builds. Hers merges with mine, and mine drives hers forward and she screams as she comes on my cock while I’m savoring her orgasm as it almost overpowers mine.

I come so fucking hard it rearranges the fabric of my being and I pull Ivy against me, needing her perfect little body to ease the sensation overwhelming mine.

“Perfect, Ivy.”

She smiles and her eyes glaze over as the warmth of her orgasm carries toward sleep. I lower her down, gently. Lovingly. Patiently. Easing out of her as I kiss her chest and moan when she sighs with pleasure.

“Henry…”

Her voice wavers, and it breaks my fucking heart.

---