Page 51 of Mated Exile

"Delilah." Kieran bites his lower lip, and my breath hitches. "I'm so sorry for what I did to you. I'll never deserve your forgiveness, and I don't expect to get it. But I hope one day I can earn your trust. Even if I never get to have your affection or—or anything more."

Taking in a deep breath, I bring my free hand up to his chest, and feel the surge of his heartbeat against his skin. "I want to forgive you. It's all I've wanted for years. Something I've dreamed of more than anything."

"You have?"

"Yes."

His voice dips low, hand pressing against my waist, and he murmurs, "I hope you've dreamed of more than that."

I swallow, remembering the brush of his skin against mine, our clothes coming off, so close and tantalizing, even if it would've been a mistake. "I have."

"So have I."

The moment hangs between us, the space between our bodies shrinking, and almost without thinking I reach out with my awareness. It's become something like a reflex, though for a moment I expect to hit another wall, just as I did with Bastian this morning.

I don't. Instead I hit a deep pit of blackness, a rot at the core of Kieran's very spirit that jumps at my touch and unfolds within him. Pressing my hand against his chest, I close the distance between us until our mouths are nearly close enough to touch, my head tilting one way, his the other, our breaths hovering in the air.

He brings his hand up to the back of my neck and growls.

"Dee." His voice is rough, low, full of lust and longing. I swallow, and his thumb presses against my neck. "I want to be the one to have you. I want to grab you, and bring our bodies together, and make you mine. But I don't want to do it just because it's sex—I want to be worthy of you. I want to feel your mind, heart, and soul within me, just like I want your body."

Shivering, I murmur, "I want that too."

"Could we ever? Do you think?"

"Yes," I answer, splaying my hand on his chest, feeling the hole just beneath my touch. "Let me in. I want to make you better."

Kieran shudders, his body trembling so violently that I feel it beneath my touch. Then he grabs me at the waist and neck and draws me against him so tightly that our mouths meet in an open kiss with nothing between us. His tongue is relentless, and I moan, feeling him wrapped around me, my hand trapped against his chest.

The darkness in him retreats, beat back by a surge of light and warmth. I shudder at the strength I feel from his body as the rot that's festered within him shrinks at my touch. My wolf leaps eagerly at the chance to touch him, and my legs part unbidden, wrapping themselves around his thick, strong thigh. Kieran groans against my mouth, licking my lips and drawing my bottom lip between his teeth, sucking and nibbling.

I feel his hardness against my thigh, and I want to trap it between my legs, draw it inside me and make him mine. My fingers dig into his chest, reaching for the darkness, desperate to drag it out and force it from him like an exorcism. The thing inside me that's woken up, the powerful and forceful thing, unfurls its claws and scrabbles for it.

Kieran suddenly pulls back, so fast I nearly stumble. His hands steady me, grabbing my arms, his eyes wide and his breath coming fast between reddened lips. I stare up at him, brows drawn together, about to demand to know why he stopped the kiss—then I pause, eyes wide with horror.

On his chest, where my hand was, are five small, glowing points in the shape of a clawed hand.

My hand.

Twenty-Two

Delilah

Iblink, and the glowing points are gone, but the sensation that I've done something terrible and violating isn't. Shuddering, I ask Kieran, "Are you okay?"

At the same moment he says, "I felt something."

We pause, both breathing, and he draws me close to his body, almost near enough to kiss but not quite. I stare up into his eyes, searching his face for a sign of fear or betrayal. My awareness settles down beneath my skin, and I shiver at what I almost did without even realizing it.

"The mate bond," Kieran says suddenly. "I felt it do... something."

"I'm sorry," I blurt out. "I didn't mean to, it's just that it's such a big wound, like a black pit almost, and it was like I couldn't help myself."

"Oh." His brow smooths. "So itwasyou."

I cringe. "Sorry. I told Roarke I wouldn't use my powers on anyone on purpose, but I—I can't help the part where I feel emotions. Apparently that's not something I can turn off as easily. I promise not to mess with the bond again."

"I didn't even know you could." His hand moves up to my cheek, which he cradles tenderly, and my eyes flutter closed as I lean into his warm and familiar touch. "It's okay, Dee. I trust you. I just didn't know it was something you could actuallytouch."

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