We’d made it. Together.
Chapter 14
Ariana
It took time to convince myself that I hadn’t dreamed the whole thing. The longer I lay there with him, the more convinced I was that his breathing was steady and that he was still mine.
It wasn’t until the light of the moon shone through the window that he took my hand in his and beckoned me to follow.
The two of us finally slipped out of the tower room in the middle of the night. I refused to let go of his hand because I was afraid that I might lose him. His fingers curled around mine as if he felt the same. We escaped to the safety of his chambers and he didn’t put me in my room. Instead, he brought me to his bed.
“You will sleep with me tonight, my little sigma,” he murmured, and I shuddered hard.
“Yes, Alpha,” I breathed softly, and he picked me up. Gently, he deposited me on the mattress and I slid underneath the covers. He followed and I curled into his strong form.
I was still naked with his drying blood on my skin, but that didn’t matter. I clutched onto him with everything left in me.
Exhausted, we slept until late in the morning. The servants brought us breakfast, and neither of us wanted to let go of the other in order to get up and eat it. Eventually though, my stomach growled angrily, and he chuckled with amusement. I whined when he unfurled his arms from mine, but when he climbed out of bed, I was rewarded with a view of the hard muscles of his backside. I watched him as he put together a plate for me to eat and brought it back to me, picking up a piece of cheese and pressing it to my lips.
“You will eat,” he commanded.
I opened my mouth immediately and bit into the cheese. I chewed and swallowed the small bite, before he fed me another.
“Magnar,” I breathed.
“Shhh, my beautiful angel. You took care of me and now I am going to take care of you,” he said firmly.
I didn’t argue.
“I just wanted to say that I love you, Alpha,” I whispered, and his finger traced my cheek.
“I know, beautiful. I love you too, Ariana. More than you’ll ever know,” he answered, and my heart swelled. “Now be a good girl and open your mouth so your alpha can finish feeding you breakfast.”
He fed me every last bite off that plate. I ate it all. To be honest, I wasn’t sure when I had eaten last and I was starving. When I finished off the meats and cheese, he fed me some deliciously ripe berries one by one. After I was through, I gently grasped his wrist and brought his fingers to my lips. I licked them hesitantly at first and he smirked knowingly before I started to suck them clean.
He groaned.
“Ariana,” he warned. “Careful. Keep teasing me and I’m going to have to put you over my knee,” he added with a purr.
I smirked, making a popping noise with my lips as I pulled back and released his finger from my mouth. He chuckled and plucked me out of the bed, squeezing me a bit tighter than usual. He carried me in his arms into the bathroom and prepared a hot bath for me, slowly lowering me down into the warm water when he was ready. I knew that he wouldn’t take no for an answer and I didn’t even try to fight him as he began to wash me himself. In an effort to make it easier for him, I reached for the shampoo and he gently batted my hands away.
“I’m going to give you a bath, my sweet sigma. You will be obedient and let me wash every inch of you without a fuss, do you understand me?”
“Yes, Alpha,” I whimpered, feeling a rush of desire and bliss settle deep in my core. I knew what would happen if I didn’t. I chewed my lip imagining it, but the feeling of his hands running along my skin was too intoxicating to ignore.
His hands massaged my scalp and I moaned, feeling the warmth of his touch deep in my soul. It was as if his fingers had been made for me and I sighed with happiness. My alpha was alive and once again, the world felt right. In that moment, I found myself at peace. I slipped away from the worries of the Cult and what might happen in the future. I lived in this single moment, my body encompassed by warm water and my alpha’s fingers on my skin.
His lips pressed softly against the top of my head and a fuzzy warmth floated through me. There was truly nothing better than this.
“You’re a very special little thing,” he murmured.
I blushed, not knowing what to say.
“Thank you, Ariana,” he added softly. I turned my head and gazed back into his loving eyes.
“I didn’t want to lose you,” I whispered, unable to hide the shake of emotion from my voice as I thought about what could have happened. Almost by force, I focused on the fact that I hadn’t lost him, that he was right here in front of me and the two of us were whole once more.
He traced his forefinger along my cheek until he cupped it just beneath my chin. Slowly, he drew me closer until his lips pressed against mine in a tender kiss that made my toes curl. In its gentleness, it was incredibly possessive, and I was surrounded in its warmth. When he eventually pulled away, I found myself breathless and wanting. I didn’t push him to go any further though. He was in control, not me right now and that was comforting in its own way.
Without pause, he lifted me out of the bathtub, dried me in a fluffy towel, and brought me into our closet. He dressed me, choosing my gown and a pair of sandals with leather straps that
