Chapter 48

Chapter 12:

Trisha’s P.O.V:

It was late into the night when I was woken up from my sleep.

It was a strange new sensation for me, to wake up in the arms of the man I loved, but it was a sensation that I would very much welcome for the rest of my life.

Damien had curled himself around me and he was fast asleep. He looked so peaceful that I just wanted to snuggle back into him and never wake up. I don’t think he’s ever been able to sleep next to anyone like this before; he must’ve been really tired. I brought up my hand to his face to brush away the strands of hair that had fallen on to his forehead. When he didn’t rise, I brought my face closer to his and placed a soft kiss to his lips.

When he still didn’t rise, I took the opportunity to go check on Neema. He’ll be fast asleep at this point, but I had this guilty feeling in my gut for not being able to put him to bed tonight. So I rose from the bed, careful not to make any sudden movements and placed my feet on the ground. I pulled on my panties and Damien’s oversized shirt and went out of the room, locking the door softly behind me.

The Shelter was quite at this time of the night, the only people awake would be the night guards. I walked through the empty hallways and went down the stairs to Neema’s room. As expected, the door was unlocked, but when I went inside I was surprised to see that Neema had a visitor.

“What are you doing here?” We both asked at the same time before I shushed him with a finger on my lips and told him to move to the balcony. Neema was sleeping peacefully and I didn’t want to wake him up. So giving him a small kiss on his forehead and went to the veranda, leaving him to his blissful sleep.

“I didn’t think you’d be up at this hour.” Lucas told me once we were both in the balcony, the door shut behind us and the sea laid absolutely still all around us.

The Shelter was located in the middle of the Caribbean Sea, in a tiny deserted island that Rosanna used as an anchoring spot for her five ships. There was a light house at the centre of the island that kept watch for enemies or target ships, but other than that, there was nothing else on the island other than a few trees and exotic snakes. We preferred to stay on the ships themselves.

“I just came to check up on Neema.” I said awkwardly, only just realizing that Damien’s shirt came only to my mid thigh.

I hadn’t expected to be this awkward around Lucas, especially since we have been lovers in the past. But that felt like a lifetime ago and we’d both changed a lot since then. Lucas was a good man and whoever he chooses as his mate would be really lucky…he just wasn’t the one for me, no matter how much I had tried to make myself believe otherwise. But if I am to be honest with myself, Damien never had any competition with Lucas. He’s always been and always will be the only person I ever love.

“You know, Damien had thought you were mated to me when he came searching for you.” Lucas said into the awkward silence that had descended between us. “Imagine his surprise when he walks in on me with someone else and nearly kills me for cheating on you.” He chuckled.

I lowered my eyes to my feet, feeling guilty for leaving things unfinished between us. “I’m sorry, Lucas.”

“Nah! It wasn’t your fault.” Lucas said before I could say anything else. “You never really got over Damien and I don’t think I could compete with someone you’ve loved for over a hundred and fifty years.”

“Seventy.” I corrected while shaking my head. “I’d been in love with Damien for over a hundred and seventy years. It had started off as a simple crush, a want to be a part of his inner circle just to be close to him, but even I hadn’t realized when that crush had turned into love. That want to be part of his inner circle had turned into a want to be a part of his life.”

I didn’t think it was possible to be this intrigued with someone you’ve just met, until my chance encounter with Damien at the gazebo that fateful night. His voice had drawn me to him. It had been so beautiful and pristine that it could bring angels down to earth. And then I’d seen his face, know a man who was gentle and kind, even if it had been for a few seconds, before the reality of who he truly was had hit full force.

“Well, if it’s of any consolation, I think Damien had been just as crazy about you as you’d been about him.” Lucas told me with a small smile. “Did you know he keeps your stuff on top of his vanity? He even has your old wedding ring from back when you were human.”

That was something I hadn’t been expecting. “My old wedding ring? The last I remembered, it had been with father. He must have given it to Damien at some point.”

“Yeah…” Lucas scratched the back of his head awkwardly before he went to the edge of the balcony and got on top of the railing, in preparation to jump. When I went to tell him he could stay with Neema, he simply shook his head. “Looks like your man has followed you here, I better get to my room before he tries to murder me a second time.”

And before I could protest, Lucas jumped up onto the balcony above and soon, reached his assigned room. The door to the balcony opened a split second later revealing an annoyed looking Damien.

“I prefer my scent on you, Trisha; can you not mix it with that mutt?” He grumbled. He was only wearing his pants; his chest gloriously exposed to my eyes and it made me want to go a little wicked and do some things I should not be doing in the open.

The devil must have been on my shoulders because I grinned. “You can always rub it back on me.”

I could see the flare of desire in his eyes as soon as I said the words. Damien closed the door behind him and came into my arms. He lifted me us so that I was sitting on the railing while he wrapped his arms tightly around me so that I don’t fall over. In turn, I wrapped my legs firmly around his hips and my arms around his shoulder.

“The old Trisha would have blushed a thousand shades of red if she spoke such words to me out loud.” He commented.

“The old Trisha wouldn’t even have dared or had the courage to make you mine.” I nuzzled my nose against him but when I pulled back from him; the amusement had been wiped off his face. “What is it?”

“Am I really yours, Trisha?”