Page 43 of Cursed by Death

“I don’t have to come to terms with anything. You’re my mate, my reason for being, and that’s always going to be the most important thing to me. That’s what being a mate means to a shifter. I understand that you’re not going to feel the same way because you’re… human.”

“But I'm not, am I? Not entirely. My father is a demon. My mother was human until she was pregnant with me. Then she was infected and forced to have me early or let me die because she had to get me out of her body before she changed entirely because vampires can’t have babies. So, what does that make me? Not human. Never that. But still too human for the shifters.Too human for the demons and a toy to be played with. A blood source for the vampires. But still not human enough for the other humans.”

I swallowed as I looked away from his intense gaze. It was like he saw right through me and I found it unnerving.

“I don’t care how human you are,” he growled. “You’re fucking mine. That makes you perfect for me. Absolutely perfect.”

I snorted but I really wished we could change the subject.

“Out,” Rally growled. “Everybody get the fuck out and leave me alone with my mate.”

They didn’t need to be told twice. They all left without a word and Rally and I were left alone in the kitchen staring at each other.

I had no idea what the hell to say to him.

Good fight?

I didn’t think it had been. Instead, I said the most insane thing I could possibly say. “You should shift now to heal your injuries you got during the fight.”

He had taken a step towards me but he stopped, standing completely frozen as he stared intently at me. “You want to see me shift? Aren’t you worried you’ll be afraid of me?”

Honestly, I felt stupid now because it hadn’t been something I'd even thought about. I had never been around a shifter in animal form before but I had just assumed he’d have enough control over himself not to hurt me.

You didn’t often hear about shifter attacks anymore unless they were intentional. Unless, of course, they were all kept very hush hush and under the radar. Which I was willing to bet they were because they likely wanted to keep their dirty laundry to themselves.

Still, this was Rally we were talking about here. “I don’t think you’d ever hurt me.”

“I want to kiss you right now.”

That thing inside of me that I tried to keep a tight leash on flared to life.

If he kissed me it might be him who ended up being afraid.

Chapter 22

Rally led me over to the small two seater table in the corner of the room and had me sit down in one of the rickety chairs.

Rally stepped back into the middle of the room and immediately began stripping out of his clothes. I thought about doing the right thing and looking away to give him some privacy but I didn’t have that in me and I wasn’t capable of it. I tried. I was incredibly greedy and I didn’t want to miss any part of him shifting in front of me.

Yeah, that had to be it.

I was taking it for the gift that he was so freely choosing to give me. And, besides, if he didn’t want me to look then he would have gone into the other room to take his clothes off.

He threw each piece of clothing that he took off at me. I neatly folded his shirt, pants, and briefs and stacked them in a tidy little pile on the otherwise empty table. Thankfully, he didn’t throw his dirty socks at me but tucked them into his boots.

He sat his boots off to the side and stood there before me in all his naked glory.

He was thick around the middle but not fat. More like stocky or sturdy. He had hair on his chest and stomach but I didn’treally take a good enough look at it because my eyes were too drawn to the bruises blooming to life all over his middle from being punched by that loser. He must have packed one hell of a punch and Rally hid whatever pain he was in very well.

My eyes dropped lower to his cock almost as if they couldn’t help themselves and were drawn down to it.

Like the rest of him it was thick and wide. At the moment it was also very erect.

I forced my eyes back up to his face to find him watching me intently.

I shrugged sheepishly, mildly embarrassed. I wasn’t going to apologize for looking, though I probably should.

If Rally was embarrassed I couldn’t tell. He stood there confident and proud, not even attempting to cover himself up. Then again, he clearly had a lot to be confident about.

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