Page 31 of Meant to Burn
Azriel stops abruptly before opening the door, telling me to cover my eyes. I think about peeking, but I kind of want to be surprised more, so I cover my eyes and shut them tightly, letting him lead me in by my arm. I hear the door shut, and then he’s gently guiding me around the living room. I feel the breeze of thechilly October night as he leads me onto the balcony, and when he tells me to open my eyes, I gasp.
There’s a covered meal on the small two-seater table on our balcony, and he pulls out a chair for me. I look around at the candles on the floor, and I rack my brain, trying to remember the special occasion when it finally clicks. It’s our anniversary. The day of his summoning. I grin at him as I sit, and he lifts the lids off our food. It smells amazing, and it’s my favorite—gumbo. He’s been patient with me as I learn how to cook for us, but I can’t deny, I’m not very motivated when he’s so good at putting recipes together.
Sitting across from me, he grins back, and I clean the plate fairly quickly. I make conversation about the shop and the customers, reveling in how easy it is between us. We’ve adjusted to partnership effortlessly, and I sigh with happiness as I reach for his hand, just to frown when I find it shaking in my grip.
“What’s wrong?” I ask Azriel, and he gulps. “Baby?”
His golden eyes are leaning more toward an amber color in his human form, and they’re wide right now as he bites on his full bottom lip. I take a long look at his strong nose, chiseled jaw, and brown hair glowing lighter as the sunset casts its beautiful light upon him. I’m hypnotized. Absolutely unable to look away from him.
Azriel lets go of my hand, pushing his chair back and standing. He takes a deep breath and comes to my side, then drops to one knee and looks up at me. I gasp, covering my mouth as his eyes water.
“Elijah.” His voice breaks on my name, and a tear spills down my cheek. “From the moment I saw you for the first time, I knew you’d be important to me. I just never realized you’d end up being my treasure, my love, my whole world. I’ve never loved anyone the way I love you, Beloved, and I’ll never love anyone else. You’re my reason—my reason to exist. I want to walk besideyou for all of eternity, and I want you tied to me in all ways possible.”
I watch as tears spill down his cheeks, and my bottom lip wobbles as I sniff. He reaches into his back pocket and produces a simple dark gray band, and when he turns it and the light hits it, I see the engraving on the inside.
Little Lamb.
“Elijah Rivers.” He smiles at me, and my heart squeezes in my chest. “Will you do me the honor of being by my side forever? Will you marry me?”
I gasp even though I knew it was coming, and then I smile through my tears and nod quickly, shoving my hand toward him.
Azriel chuckles. “Say it, Little Lamb,” he whispers, taking my hand in his and kissing my knuckles. “I want you to say it.”
“Yes,” I choke out. “I’ll spend forever by your side.”
The grin on his face is blinding, and he slips the ring onto my finger and kisses it too. It fits perfectly, just the way he does in my life. And yeah, I know forever is a long time by his side, but apparently, I became immortal the moment he bound me to him. So forever really is what I will give him.
Grabbing the back of his head, I pull him to me, pressing my lips to his softly. It quickly grows heated, and he stands, pulling me up with him. I stumble forward into the apartment, but as soon as we make it to the living room, he picks me up and carries me to bed. I bounce when I land on the mattress, looking up at him through my lashes. His cheeks are pink, and I can’t tell if it’s from the cold, arousal, or his crying. But it makes him look gorgeous.
I want him so badly.
I quickly shed my clothing, and so does he, and when I’m completely bare, I spread my legs for him. He crawls toward me, hard cock hanging heavily between his thighs as he settles himself between mine, and then he puts my legs over hisshoulders and kisses my belly button. It ignites a fire within me, and it doesn’t matter that we’ve done this hundreds of times; it still feels like the first time. He takes me nightly, sometimes soft, sometimes rough, butalwaysworshipful.
I moan when his mouth wraps around me, the heat of his tongue circling the head of my cock, making my eyes roll to the back of my head. My hips have a mind of their own as I chase my release, and when I find it, spilling my cum down his throat, I’m reminded of something I’ve been thinking about every day for the past year.
Azriel was never my demon.
He was the answer to all my prayers.
I plan on living my life just as I was meant to.
By his side.
Forever.
