Page 50 of All for the Beast

Katy rested her hand on his shoulder, the flirty look disappearing once more.

He cocked an eyebrow at her and raised her chin to meet his eyes, which were blue and lovely and filled with tears.

“If going to Earth with you meant having any kind of chance for us to work out, I'll do it in a heartbeat.”

Katy averted her eyes, and V let go of her cheek. He could feel his heart hardening, turning to stone to keep from ever feeling that level of pain ever again.

Before she even gave him a response, he flipped the blanket off of him and shot to his feet.

“Never mind, Katy. I don’t think I’d love my time on Earth anyway.”

V began frantically searching for his clothing. Katy remained laying on the rug, the blanket pulled up to her breasts. He tried not to look at her as he pulled his pants on.

“I’m not going to sacrifice my life here just because you don’t feel like staying. I can’t do it.”

He wasn’t precisely angry at her, but the situation, hell, even at Gerri. Why would the cosmic forces at play connect him with a woman who didn’t want him, who didn’t want to join him on his journey as king, nor accompany him as his queen? What was the point of it all besides the torture?

He pulled his shirt on, angrily missing the hole a few times, muttering more to himself than her.

“I don’t even want to be a prince anymore. I don’t deserve such a title. I haven’t done my duty. I’ve donenothing.”

V seethed through gritted teeth, and after finally getting his shirt on, he saw that Katy had risen from the rug. She stood behind him, holding the blanket to her breasts, looking like some flawless goddess carved from stone.

“V, just listen to me for a second,” she pleaded. “We have to talk about all of this before you go.”

He gripped his nails into his palms, nearly slicing the skin clean through. He spoke with conviction in a voice that was far more terrifying than any way that he could have yelled at her.

“Now you want to talk, Katy?” he said, feeling bitter. “After all this time, now you want to talk? You’re the one leaving. So why don’t you just go?”

V spun around and stomped away from her, his mate, his beloved, the person who would likely be the love of his life. But he couldn’t hurt himself anymore. He couldn’t keep letting the stake sink deeper and deeper into his chest.

“V, please!” Katy was the first to scream. She sounded mournful, agonized, and oddly enough, some of that made V feel hopeful.

He turned back to her, the sight of tears streaming down her cheeks making his chest ache. She gripped the blanket, frozen in place, unable or unwilling to move toward him. He wasn’t sure.

“I realize what I am doing to you, Vharlk,” she said, her voice breaking. “By rejecting you, I am sentencing you to death. You must know what that does to me, to my heart, my entire being.”

Her shoulders shuddered, and he came to her. He stood in front of her, still gripping his fists, doing everything he could to keep from embracing her and letting her weep on him until she couldn't weep anymore.

“Tell me,” he murmured.

Katy swallowed hard, gazing around with unease.

“I’m afraid to take this chance with you, V. I am so scared to do something different with my life, something so different that it makes me sick. I don’t want to sentence you to death. I care for you …”

She trailed off, starting to blubber. It was then that he could no longer resist despite his heart shattering like a glass ornament. He touched her shoulders, the softness of her skin sending chills up his spine.

“Go on,” he whispered.

“I don’t know why I’m so scared, V,” she said, tears rushing like rain. “You treat me so well, like a fucking queen. The sex is unbelievable, and I know that you would be with me forever, without a doubt.”

V kissed her forehead, listening to her as closely as he could, that sense of hope washing away like a house in a flood. Nevertheless, she was going to leave a permanent stain on his heart for as long as he would live.

“I know I have feelings for you, V. I know I do. They are there. They are so comforting and strong.”

She rested her head on his shoulder, and she continued to cry. V held her as long as he could, even when she let the blanket fall, leaving her naked and pressed up against him. He stroked her back, smelling her hair, memorizing every inch of her angelic presence.

“I do want you, V. I’m just so unsure,” she continued muttering into his shoulder.

---