Moon Bound

Mating Ritual

Kissing Aiden wasn’t anything like it had been in my dream.

It was so much better.

His soft lips captured mine hungrily, and I was all too happy to let him devour me. The autumnal scent he permanently carried with him invaded my senses, adding to the addicting dizziness that was making my insides gooey.

Desperation consumed me. I needed relief from the pulsing desire that was coursing through my veins. I climbed onto his lap, pressing him back into the marble stairs. My hands wandered down his solid chest, ripping at the buttons holding his shirt together as I fell deeper into the intoxicating kiss.

One of his hands tangled in my hair to draw me in closer. It wasn’t enough. My thighs went damp, the need to be as close as possible to him growing into an agonizing pull. A whimper escaped me when he gave a gentle tug, exposing my neck to him.

The kiss broke, leaving me panting. The burning in my lungs was the best thing I had ever felt in my life. If that was what kissing Aiden was like, I never wanted to breathe again. I started to protest his absence but he silenced me by nuzzling into my throat. His teeth delicately scraped against the dip where my neck and shoulder met.

"This is where I will mark you." His lips pressed into the spot. Then they were moving, just like in my dream, wandering the length of my neck. He spoke between the kisses he placed on my skin, "Or maybe it will be here. Or maybe here, right where everyone can see that you are mine."

Aiden lifted his head to meet my gaze, his pupils dilating as he took in my bewildered expression. He ran a calloused thumb across my bottom lip, "Maybe I'll just mark you everywhere.”

That yanked me out of my stupor. I froze in shock, unable to tear myself away from his magnetic stare. My stomach churned hard, a stormy ocean of confusion and horror at what had just happened.

The few bites I had of my breakfast earlier rose to the surface and I scrambled away from him, emptying the contents of my stomach onto the polished floor.

I grasped my knees, gulping over and over as I fought to catch my breath.

What the hell had I done?

Kissing him was so out of line and I managed to cross it without even trying. Moisture gathered in the corners of my eyes. I should have been focusing on severing the bond and finding a way out of here.

The fact that I had even considered letting this thing play out, and then threw myself at Aiden like a hormone controlled puppet, made me lurch forward and vomit again.

This wasn’t right.

When I was done all I could do was babble incoherently, "I'm.. I didn't.. Why? I'm sorry." I gasped for air. The pristine room spun around me.

This was so wrong on so many levels.

I searched for a way to rationalize what I had done, but nothing came forward. It was flat out unacceptable that I had kissed my captor, no matter how handsome or occasionally charming he could be.

"Lyra, are you alright?" The deep, concerned voice drew me out of my thoughts. I lifted my head to see multiples of Aiden wavering over me as my vision blurred.

Gibberish was all that came out as I stumbled forward and collapsed against the steps. Aiden scooped me up to cradle me against his chest. He hurried into the bedroom, yelling for Killian.

I slipped into oblivion, seeing Aiden's worried face looking down at me one last time as the darkness swallowed me.

***********

Warmth brushed against my forehead, gently waking me. My eyelids fluttered but when hushed voices spoke near me, I stilled and listened.

"She isn't human." Killian stated point blank.

What did he mean I wasn’t human? Of course I was. Granted there was the teensy snag of me growling and hitting Aiden, but maybe that could just be chalked up to being in a high stress situation.

"No. A human female wouldn't be able to growl like she had. Or break my nose."

Well then. That didn't take him long to toss my wishful thinking out the window.

"She says she doesn't feel the bond, but then she loses all control just when I think she's about to reject me. How can she be so out of touch with who she really is?"

Aiden's frustrations mimicked mine. It was true, I certainly didn’t feel like myself. Not that I thought being a wolf was my true nature. But I was acting out of character, that was for sure.

Killian let out a long sigh, "I'm not sure what she is. But I have seen something similar to this before. There was a young man I knew once. He had a ward placed over him by a witch. The fool just couldn’t stay out of trouble and had crossed a coven in Europe. I helped him find a local witch who could hide his true nature in an attempt to stay off the coven’s radar. However, when he found his mate, he couldn’t fully feel the bond because of the ward that had been put on him. It slowly killed him.”

There was a brief pause. Another brush to my forehead almost made me flinch. “The two sides of himself were at war. He couldn’t handle it; mentally, physically, emotionally. Magick bonds are different from shifter bonds, but they do have one thing in common. If you don’t accept them, or reject them with certainty, you will die.”

“How long?” Aiden asked. His voice was tight, strangled by thick emotion.

“Possibly until the next blood moon. So…,” Killian petered off with a hum. A threatening snarl snapped through the air and Killian cleared his throat, “A couple months give or take. We aren’t designed to ignore the mate call. When you find your missing half, you need to acknowledge it. And since her body thinks it’s human, the denial will probably wear her down at an accelerated rate.”

I was going to die?

My fingers curled into fists and my nails dug deep into my palms as I fought to remain calm. Things just seemed to be getting worse by the second. When would the black cloud of bad luck hanging over my head go away?

“You can stop pretending whenever you would like. I know you are awake. Eavesdropping is rude, princess.” Killian chided, his breath hitting my ear and making me jump. I hadn’t noticed that he had been so close. He sounded farther away a moment ago.

"You don't understand," I blurted as I sat up. Aiden's face was pale from where he was bent over the bed. He reached out to me, wanting me to go to him, but I turned to Killian instead.

"I can't shift. My parents told me I am human. Our Alpha said I am human. My mom spoke to people outside of our pack and they came to the same conclusion. The only time I have ever wolfed out slightly is with him." I hooked my thumb in Aiden's direction. Killian shrugged, chewing on his lip thoughtfully.

"He is your mate, unfortunately for you, and that means he brings out all parts of you. You are incomplete without him."

I scoffed at him and crossed my arms over my chest. "f**k that. I don't exist just to be someone's mate. I am already a complete person."

Killian shot me a charming grin. His teeth were shiny white and perfectly straight. I couldn’t help but wonder what the deal was with these guys and their flawless teeth. Their dentists must love them. I ran my tongue over my own, feeling a little insecure at the gap on the upper right side.

Having a pair of physically immaculate kidnappers make me feel self conscious about my appearance had to mean that I had hit rock bottom.

"You are right. You are so much more than that. But you are also his mate. Sometimes we are handed shitty cards in life. You just have to let them play out. Look at him flos, he is a man stranded in a desert. And you are his oasis."

I thought back to Killian telling Aiden he would need more cash to deal with this situation. Anger settled like a brick in the pit of my stomach.

"How much is he paying you to say that?"

Killian broke into laughter. It was a haunting sound, but a small part of me liked that I was able to get that kind of reaction out of him. The man was enigmatic and enticing all at the same time. He pushed a tendril of dark hair out of his face and winked at me.

A small shock of pleasure zinged down into my core.

Relief flooded through me. That was all I needed to know that I wasn't Aiden's mate. If I was, my life would be consumed only by him. I wouldn't feel any sort of attraction to another man.

"I think I'm starting to like you flos."

"Well stop liking her. That's not what you're here for. Can you help us or not?" Aiden snapped. For a moment I had forgotten that he was in the room with us.

"You wound me golden boy. Of course I can help. This isn't amateur hour. All we have to do is convince your sweet girl that the bond is real. And then complete a mating ritual."

Mating ritual?

What the f**k was that?

Killian smirked at the confusion that had to have been plastered on my face. He rose from where he had been kneeling next to me. His tall body bent so that he could make eye contact. His frosty eyes were unreal. Streaks of lavender ran through the blue shadowed by a curtain of long black lashes. The power within them held me locked in place.

"Blood. s*x. Running wild under the full moon. It's a beautifully carnal experience. You'll love it princess."

Aiden growled beside me. I rested my hand over his to stop him from tearing into the warlock that clearly had a death wish.

"Don't act coy. I know what you've been dreaming about. It must be hard being cooped up in here with the two of us. A young woman who has never experienced that part of life. And now your body is trying to implode on itself in an attempt to let the mate bond break free. You poor, frustrated, little thing."

I shook my head, snapping out of the hypnotic state his eyes held me in.

He knew about the sexy dream too? How was that possible?

He winked at me, his mouth curling up in a taunting grin, "No need to be embarrassed princess. We all need to indulge in our desires from time to time. I thought it was cute."

I stilled at the amusement in his voice. He was making fun of me. Rage and embarrassment flushed my face. I clenched the sheets, ready to tear into something. When I was able to speak it was through clenched teeth.

"Is nothing sacred in this house?"

Killian shook his head, "I'm afraid not princess. Your subconscious is screaming for some relief and wants everybody to know it."

I looked over at Aiden, who was wearing an unhappy expression. Then I looked back at Killian who was sneering down at me. A small growl grumbled in my chest, and for a moment Killian looked surprised, but covered it with a laugh.

And that's when I lost it.