Page 63 of An Alien for Her Heart

When my core-rhythm hasn’t sung…

Her unsaid words send a lance through me.

“I feel it,” I tell her, my thumbs brushing over the delicate skin of her cheeks. It’s the only thing I can say. The only thing I’m going on. “In my core-beat, you are there. In my soul, in every fiber of my being. You’re a part of me, Catherine. You always have been, and you always will be.”

Her throat moves and a shudder goes through her frame, her body stealing some of my heat, but not fast enough. “What about the fact that I was married before? Had children? A life.”

“I’m not here to replace them.” I study her beautiful face. “You don’t have to let go to move on, Catherine.”

She blinks and a single tear escapes, tracing a silvery path down her face. I catch it with my claw, marveling at the precious drop.

“My heart…” she whispers, hand shifting over her chest and I know she must be referring to her core-organ.

“Let me heal your heart.”

More water escapes her eyes and I’m not sure that is a good sign. But she grips me tighter. She leans into me as her shoulders rise and fall with heavy sobs.

“I’m sorry, my sura,” I murmur, my chest aching with the weight of her pain. “I’m sorry you had to go through so much to find your way to me. But I believe it was all for a reason. Every hardship, every heartbreak…it led you here, to this moment. To us.”

Catherine’s breath hitches, her hands coming up to cover mine where they cradle her face. “You really believe that?” she asks, hope warring with disbelief in her eyes.

“With each core-beat that calls your name,” I vow. “This is fate, Catherine. You and me, here and now…it’s what was always meant to be.”

A shaky laugh bubbles up from her throat, half-sob and half-joy. “I never thought I’d have this again,” she confesses. “Love, a future, a…a mate.”

The word sends a thrill down my spine, a primal satisfaction that settles deep in my bones. “Say it again,” I rumble, my cock rising in my trouse despite the cold water around us.

Her eyes sparkle up at me, a slow smile curving her lips. “Mate,” she repeats, stronger this time. “My mate.”

A growl rumbles up from my chest, and I crush her to me, sealing my mouth over hers. Catherine responds with equal fervor, her digits tangling in my mane as she arches into me.

“When it happens, it’s not gentle, sura,” I warn, my voice dropping to a near whisper when we take a moment to breathe. “There will be biting, scratching, a level of force you’ve never experienced. When I take you, truly take you, the rut strips away all civility, leaving only the basest of instincts. It’s aboutdomination, my sura, about leaving a mark that can never be erased.”

I can hear Catherine’s heart pounding, can smell the mix of fear and…excitement rolling off her skin. She moans into my mouth as I take her lips again, the sound sending all my lifeblood rushing to a singular place. It takes every ounce of my control not to pull her against me, to claim her right here and now.

“I want to have every ounce of you, Catherine. I will.”

I’ve said a lot. Enough to scare my little human away certainly now. To my surprise, she breaks the seal of our lips, deep breaths wracking her frame as she pierces me with those gemstone eyes.

“Varek.” The way she says my name, full of tenderness and understanding, nearly undoes me. “I’m not afraid. Not of the rut, not of any part of you.”

I search her gaze, hardly daring to believe what I’m hearing. “You must understand. Once the rut takes hold, I won’t be able to control myself. I could hurt you, I—”

She silences me with a digit pressed to my lips. “You could never hurt me,” she says with a conviction that rocks me to my core. “I trust you, Varek. With my body, with my heart…with everything I am.”

Emotion clogs my throat, rendering me speechless. I pull her close, burying my face in her damp mane as I try to compose myself.

“I don’t deserve you,” I manage after a moment. “But gods help me, I want you. I need you, Catherine. More than I’ve ever needed anything in my life.”

“Then I’m yours,” she whispers, her breath warm against my throat.

Joy, pure and incandescent, explodes in my chest.

I have to get her out of here. Have to get her to safety.

“Catherine.” I push away from her so she can look at me. “I know a way out of this. At least, to get you out of the cold water. But…”

“But what?” Her body shivers again and I know it’s the only option.

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