Crimsonborn

Prologue

“Mine.”

His hot breath tickled my neck, setting my body on fire even before he touched it. Goosebumps spread over my prickling skin when his teeth brushed against my throat and I pressed my back against the wall, afraid my knees might give out. My eyes fluttered open when he drew his face back. His hands were still resting on the wall beside my shoulders, locking me there with no escape despite the empty air between us.

Too much space, too much distance.

My body cursed it all, but I knew that if he moved any closer, I might lose this fight before it even started.

His eyes were the same as the first time I met them in the forest just outside my home, gleaming with that cold, unearthly glow like two stars that shone just for me. Curious, searching, drinking me in like he was drowning, and I was his salvation.

There was desperation in them now. I couldn’t fathom how a man like him could look so powerful and so vulnerable at the same time.

“Say it, Freya. I want to hear it from your lips. Say it!”

When I didn't reply, he took a step closer, removing that maddening distance between us. I could run away from him—the door was just a few steps away. I was strong enough to push him off. But my body refused to move even a muscle, held mercilessly by those beautiful eyes that had never looked more sorrowful.

I knew I should run. I should push him away. I should tell him to leave. I knew it, but I was too weak to resist the pull I had been fighting for so long.

Still, my lips remained sealed.

“Freya, please…” he pleaded. I sucked in a sharp breath when he pressed against me, frustration and impatience flickering in his gaze. I used what willpower I had left to turn away from him.

The door was just there. If I reached with my hand, I could touch it. If I took a few steps, I could be out of the room.

“Freya,” he groaned, his hoarse voice tearing away a moan from my mouth before I could stop it. “My Freya.” His lips pressed below my ear, slowly tracing the outline of my jaw while his hands slid to my waist. “Why won’t you say it?”

He kissed the edge of my mouth, and I opened it for him on habit, receiving a low, sensual sound of approval right before his lips collided with mine. I could smell the wine on his breath, but instead of the sour, herbal flavor, his tongue tasted like heaven as it explored every corner of my mouth, searching, begging, claiming. I closed my eyes, surrendering to the overpowering need that made my body press against his.

I shouldn’t be doing this. I shouldn’t be craving a man that was not fated to be mine, but I couldn’t help it. Every treacherous cell in my body wanted him. What had I done to deserve such punishment from the Moon Goddess? Why was she so cruel?

His hands wrapped around my waist, pulling me firmly against his hard body. His fingers trembled while they tightened and relaxed on my hips, his heart racing almost as fast as mine. I could feel the length of him pulsing against my stomach, eager and impatient, making the heat between my legs grow into a devastating inferno.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, grinding myself against him until he groaned again.

Tomorrow, things were going to change, but tonight… I could have tonight.

“I love you,” he whispered against my lips. I tried to kiss him again, to silence the words I had wanted to hear for so long, but he pulled back. “Say it, Freya. I want to hear you say it.”

No sound dared escape my mouth.

What would telling him I loved him do but tear what was left of our aching hearts? Binding each other with another promise was only going to make it harder to let go.

I slid my hand behind his neck, pulling him down for a kiss. He tried to resist, as if wanting to keep my mouth free so I could do as he asked, but I dug my nails into his skin until his resistance died down and his lust took over.

His rough palms slid underneath my nightgown, fingers running up and down my bare legs, my hips, my waist. I groaned impatiently. A second later, he was grabbing the back of my thighs and lifting me until I was pressed against the cold wall. His kiss turned feral, almost like that night, when he lost his sanity and took me again and again, leaving his marks for everyone to see. The night it all changed.

He jerked back with a frustrated growl, yanking the nightgown over my head and throwing it aside. Still holding me with one arm like he was afraid I might flee, he undid his belt and freed his length, pressing it at my entrance. I rolled my hips in response, urging him to move.

Our lips collided again, like desperate lovers searching for each other after being separated for far too long. He slid inside me with a powerful thrust and our moans sang together in a melody that our bodies knew all too well.

Another moan escaped my mouth and his movements turned even more feral, fanning the heat in my body until it was threatening to consume my soul. The way his whole being responded to my lightest touch was waking something new inside me, something that made me want to scream and howl and cry. So I clung to that warmth and familiar power, stealing part of it to keep forever.

The cold touch of the stone disappeared, replaced by the soft caress of the sheets. Gripping my hips tightly, he yanked me to the edge of the bed before another of his relentless thrusts had me arching my back and screaming his name.

The tips of his calloused fingers drew fiery lines across my chest, my ribs, my navel, moving lower and lower until they settled on the most sensitive part between my legs. I stifled another needy whimper, and he stopped, dipping his thumb inside of me until it came out wet with my arousal. He set it back on my sensitive nub, teasing it until I was panting and clawing at the sheets.

His broad shoulders glistened with sweat while his fingers dug into my flesh, those full, sensual lips parting as if he was drinking in the air filled with the sounds of our lovemaking. A strange sort of fascination gleamed in his gaze while he watched my every reaction, every movement, every moan and roll of my hips. He knew exactly how to touch me: when to be gentle and when to be rough, when to stop and when to continue, even what to do when I didn’t know what to do with myself.

Our eyes met, and my breath caught when he smirked, as if he knew exactly what I was thinking. Without warning, he flipped me onto my stomach, grabbing my hips and pulling them toward him until his length rubbed teasingly between my thighs. I whimpered, pressing myself against him in a silent plea only to be given a small, shallow thrust that stopped right before reaching the place where I wanted him.

“Your body has always been more honest than your mouth,” he growled, grabbing a fistful of my hair and pulling me up until my back hit his chest. One of his muscled arms wrapped around me while the other pushed the dark locks out of the way. He ran his tongue over the length of my neck, stopping at my nape and teasing it with his teeth.

One bite on that spot, and I would be his forever. One bite and…

No. Nothing will happen because he was not mine.

The reality hit me harder than ever before, and my knees buckled. He held me to him, his strong arms the only thing keeping me from falling apart while I closed my eyes to stop the tears.

“Tell me what I want to hear or I will leave,” he whispered in my ear, his hold around me loosening. I clung to him as panic blossomed in my chest.

No. I wasn’t ready. I wasn’t ready to let go. Not yet.

“I love you,” I whispered. “I’m yours.”

He sucked in a startled breath like he was surprised I’d actually said it. I didn’t think it was possible, but I could hear his heart racing even faster than before. His grip around me tightened, then he grabbed my chin, turning my face toward him. He kissed me again, gentle and sweet and loving, but all I could taste was the bitter taste of goodbye.

“I’ve waited so long to hear those words,” he whispered so quietly that I wasn’t sure I was meant to hear it. “I love you, Freya. My Freya,” he said louder, letting me lean on the bed again. “My Freya,” he repeated‌, his voice full of heart-wrenching affection. Ripples of pleasure surged through my body as he began to move again and I lowered myself to the sheets, hiding my face so he couldn’t see the tears. “I love you. I’ve loved you since the moment I laid my eyes on you.”

I bit my lip until it bled, trying to hold back a sob.

I shouldn’t have opened the door. I shouldn’t have caved in after hearing that pleading voice.

Listening to those words that tore my heart, happiness and relief dripping from them, had been a mistake. It would have been so much easier tomorrow if I hadn’t allowed hope into my heart. But it was too late now and I couldn’t delay it any longer.

Tomorrow, I had to choose between love and fate.

A choice that would seal my future.

A choice that would break my heart.

A choice that only I could make.