44

I stood still with my eyes closed, only feeling his hands as they unbuttoned my red blouse and gently pulled it off me, only to then grasp my hips firmly.

I breathed calmly and evenly, trying not to show my fear to the outside, but I couldn't prevent the slight trembling of my body, no matter how much I resisted it. His hands pulled me closer to him, making it impossible for me to escape from this situation, but even without his tight hug, there was no place I would have preferred to be more than here with him.

I blindly searched for his face and put my hand on his cheek. A tingling went through my fingertips directly into my whole body, enveloping me and making me open my eyes in fascination.

He looked me straight in the eyes, giving me the well-known goosebumps, and had the gift of taking away my sense of space and time with his gaze. We could have stood here for years, frozen like rocks, and I wouldn't have noticed. A single minute that felt like a lifetime.

Perfection, that word sounded made for us. We were so close to forming a bond for eternity, but it no longer made me nervous, no longer scared me, and even the trembling stopped upon looking into his eyes. Just him and me, both of us, united to be there for each other. I didn't know if it could really become love. It didn't matter anymore either, at least not in this breathtaking moment.

Cautiously, he gripped me tighter and placed his lips on mine, driving me insane again. He let me melt in his arms, and as if I would suffocate without his affection, I pulled him closer, allowing him to slowly move away from my lips and down my neck. He left little trails of soft kisses on the way to the crook of my neck, eliciting a soft moan from me that caused him to grunt softly, as if he were a predator about to pounce on his prey.

A short, unbearable pain made me whimper softly, made me bite my lip so hard that the metallic taste took over my entire mouth. Luckily for him, he held my arms tight, otherwise I probably would have thrown around wildly and hit him. A few seconds passed before the pain completely disappeared and only a warm feeling flowed through my whole body. His scent erupted from every pore, mingling with mine to create an incredibly intense blend that was instantly seared into my subconscious.

As I slumped in his arms, feeling like I was sleepwalking, Saphir danced for joy and the tall black haired man trembled and licked the wound he had inflicted on me as if to make it more comfortable for me.

Limp and exhausted, I inhaled our scent intensely and suddenly all sorts of images shot through my mind of him by my side, dancing and laughing, arguing and making up. Parts of my life passed me, flickered in front of my eyes. Fears, hopes, desires, all this united in me, changed me, let me experience our relationship anew.

Completely overwhelmed, I tore myself away from him, held my head and hoped it would stop soon. As beautiful as it was, it scared me and made my head pound. He hugged me again, wanting to support me, pressed his chest tightly against my back and kissed my head, inside which fireworks were taking place that made my heart race.

Gasping for air, I looked at the mirror and recognized both of us. His head rested on my shoulder, eyes closed. I did the same, closed my eyes and let everything sink in. My breath matched his, my heart settled, and the images in my head vanished, allowing utter bliss to slowly spread through me, causing me to turn to him in his arms and give him a smile that was genuine and was meant affectionately.

"Are you okay?" he stroked my black hair, then rested his hand on my shoulder and looked at me questioningly. "Yeah, I'm fine now," I whispered back to him, laying my head on his chest, addicted to listening to his heart beating. Everything about him seemed perfectly familiar to me. The worries that had raced through my thoughts before, stopping me from surrendering to him, were gone. A candle of doubt blown out by a violent gust of wind, leaving nothing behind but the feeling of having done everything right.

Fate had brought him to me. Jealousy drove me away from him. The doubts had made me lonely. But the connection was our destiny from the beginning and I was glad to have overcome everything and now belong to him.

Forever.

***

We lay in bed together, glancing into each other's eyes again and again, only to then stare at the ceiling again. We first had to get used to everything new, let the smell and the sensations affect us. Only his hand lay between us on mine. Again and again he stroked it with his thumb, giving me a tingling sensation every time that had a warm and calming effect on me.

We would have three weeks to complete the connection completely. My first time was still missing, but I wasn't ready for it yet. Of course, I was afraid I wouldn't be ready for the next few weeks before the deadline, but I didn't want to lose the feeling of his mark under any circumstances, and as close and loving as he was to me, I'm sure I really would by then want. But what I didn't want was to let him go.

It seemed ridiculous to me to try an inner rebellion for a few days, but I couldn't shake the feeling without it wilting, like a flower deprived of water that would be forgotten in the sun.

I looked over at him in concern and he immediately met my gaze. "Can't I just come with you?" I whispered softly while turning on my side to get a better look at him. He also turned in my direction and gently stroked my cheek, which made me close my eyes with relish. "That's not possible. The war that's raging outside these walls isn't for you. I want to know you're safe.", he whispered.

"Where should I be safer than with you?" I opened my eyes again and looked at him pleadingly. I really didn't want to stay here without him. At his side I felt really safe for the first time. "It's safer here. Besides, I'll be back quickly." He kissed my cheek and pulled away from me. "I still have a few things to discuss. See you before I leave. Get some sleep." He smiled at me for a moment, then winked at me, then put on a jacket and left our room.

As soon as his presence was no longer felt, unbearable nervousness spread through me. That was actually exactly what I never wanted. Being dependent on a man, but that's how it was now, and up to now he's always tried to treat me well, so it really wasn't that bad. Without wasting any further thought, I closed my eyes to get at least a few hours of sleep.

That crazy rooster could be heard even here, and I quickly jumped out of bed and slammed the window hard. My tiredness put me in an incredibly bad mood, and I quickly retreated to the bathroom, annoyed. Cold water would wake me from a half-sleep, I was sure of that, and as soon as my hands spread the clear water over my face, I immediately felt better. My nose still hurt, but I just looked in the mirror at the wound my companion had inflicted on me.

Small traces of his teeth were surrounded by a deep red. The wound was warm, almost hot, and just looking at it made my heart pound. I didn't see it as an injury, more as a good thing to be proud of. " We can be proud of that too!", Saphir said happily and howled loudly. I just rolled my eyes. "Calm down okay. I still won't submit like you would like me to. This will be an equal relationship."

Saphir laughed, putting me in a bad mood again. Just because she didn't believe me. Did he also think that his marking would now make me subservient to him? Was I perhaps already submissive to him without wanting it or even noticing it?

I tuned out the negative thoughts that had been in control of me for far too long. Everything would be fine this time. Even if without love, then still with respect and trust, with compassion and acceptance. I took a last look at the makeup in the mirror and then proudly walked to the closet.

Today would be the last time he would see me for a few days. I wanted to be pretty, to turn his head, to be a lasting memory he would lick his lips at no matter where he was.

A beautiful black dress that reached to the floor and was strapless at the top smiled at me and, smiling, I took it off the white coat hook and put it on. As I looked at myself in the mirror, I knew why I had chosen it. You could see the marking, you couldn't miss it at all and in the subconscious I wanted everyone to be able to see it.

I turned gracefully several times and then stopped abruptly to arrange my long black hair one last time, which shone more intensely than ever before.

Humming and prancing, I ran down the hallway until I slammed straight into something hard. "Oh god, I'm sorry." I apologized to Nero, who gave me a startled look. Apparently he hadn't seen me coming any more than I had seen him. But his face quickly softened again, even if the smile came across as played, as always. "My goodness Melody. Damien told me this morning but seeing it with my own eyes makes me prouder than I thought. How are you doing with that?" He beamed in his smart suit and took my hand. I just didn't feel like hanging out with him for long. My thoughts and feelings all drew me to Damien, who I desperately wanted to be with me. "I'm fine. I'm on my way to Damien's. See you for dinner.", I told him with a smile, but when I wanted to pass him, he held my arm and looked at me depressed. "Damien and Aiden are already gone."

My heart stopped... My breathing became shallow... Why did he just leave. Without a word. Without a goodbye. "He has the right to ." My gaze fell to the ground. There was nothing of respect or trust. He was the prince, I was the submissive, drooling after him like a little puppy.

He was only gone for two days, but the longing took me by surprise again and again. Especially in moments when I had nothing to do, my thoughts were only with him and made me a terrible werewolf. Previously independent and concerned with my own well-being, now only he and his feelings were of interest to me. A part of me was beginning to regret the make-up that seemed like he had injected me with the most beautiful drug and then just taken it away from me, leaving me alone with the withdrawal that was nagging at me so painfully.

"What's the matter with you?" Camilla asked me, just strutting up the stairs. I sat on the top step as always, wanting to keep at least part of my routine, even though it was now midday. "Nothing worth talking about," I replied, looking past her to the gate as if my life revolved around when he drove through there in his convertible.

She just stood in my way, blocked my view and suddenly looked serious. Her short hair still made her look like a mischievous goblin straight out of a storybook. "You have to do me a favor." I eyed her curiously, noticing that she was holding a key between her fingers that she was nervously fiddling with. "And what favor would that be?" Actually, I didn't want to do anything at all, but I didn't want to sit here and wait even less.

She took a deep breath, then abruptly grabbed my hand and pulled me behind her. First down the stairs and then across the courtyard behind a corner from which you could only see a small part of the market. If there was drug trafficking and crime here, this dark alley would have been perfect for it. "I know where Bastian is locked up and I want to see him." Frowning, I thought for a moment who that was supposed to be. She apparently noticed my brooding and frantically tugged at my white sweater. "Man Melody! The guy who attacked us." I widened my eyes and slapped her hand away from me. "What do you want with him?!" I asked her angrily. I couldn't understand why she would want to see him, or even why she was even including me in this.

She put her hand in front of her mouth as if she wanted to swallow the pain she was feeling and never let it out. Her eyes filled with tears as a soft sob escaped her mouth. I remembered the day back. Of her, who seemed so broken to me, sitting by the tree and no longer showing any emotion, and this memory made me suffer with her.

I cautiously took a step towards her and hugged her comfortingly. "I'll come with you." I promised her. I knew she would go to him without me, and I didn't want to take responsibility for that. My only option to stop them would have been to tell Nero. But he had thrown her out of the castle before without batting an eyelid. He would do it again.

"I have the key. We just have to get past the guards over there and down into the basement.", she broke away from me and turned around. I looked past her down the alley and spotted two even bigger guys in front of a big door. "How are you going to get past them?" I asked, anxious to hear their answer as they didn't seem easily distracted. "Well, that's where you come in." She grinned cheekily at me, suddenly looking like a psycho with a smile on her lips and tears in her eyes.

"Me? How am I supposed to distract them?" "Who's talking about distracting?" Confused, I looked back at her from the guards and was now completely confused. "Melody, you're the Luna of the pack now. Go, let your charms work and say you want to see a prisoner," she suggested, but I shook my head wildly. "I'm not doing that. If Damien finds out then-" "My God! Have you become a lapdog now. Do you want me to get you some tea and knitting?" she hissed and with her words she triggered something in me that wanted to prove to myself that I still had a mind of my own.

I snatched the key from her hand, noticed her triumphant smile for a moment and then ran ahead of her through the narrow alley directly to the guys.

I stopped just in front of them and showed them the key. They looked at each other briefly and then back at me. "Where did you get that from?" said the one on the left, whose hair was long and black hanging down on him. "I'm Melody, Damien's mate. I want a prisoner right now," I said boldly, chin up, hoping they wouldn't ask any more questions. "Has that been clarified with Nero?" the other asked me and took a step towards me. My heart beat a little faster and my hands started to sweat a little. "Yes," I croaked. My throat was suddenly dry and swallowing was painful. I didn't like being in such situations. Especially when a nervous goblin clawed at my back.

"Then go in, but the other one stays outside.", he ordered and went back to his old position. "It's important that she comes with me." "Why?" the blonde asked and slowly the two of them made me really mad. "You know what. I'll tell Damien, as incompetent as you work here, I'm sure you're easy to replace." I really hoped they were just physically big and not up to much. A reasonably educated man would have recognized my lies and deceit, but the two apparently didn't, for they looked at each other, nodded and made room for us to get to the door. "After you." Camilla whispered in my ear and with a trembling hand I unlocked the door and walked down a narrow, dark staircase. Just enough light burned.