Page 39 of Betrayed Alpha Mate

She sobs once, the sound sharp and broken, before her hands fist in my jacket and she presses her face into my chest like she’s fighting herself.

“I hate you…” she breathes.

“I know,” I murmur, forehead resting against hers. “I deserve it.”

Her breath shudders, and without warning, her lips are on mine. The kiss catches me by surprise, and it’s not gentle or hesitant. It’s desperate, furious, full of years of hurt and longing colliding all at once.

I kiss her back like I’ve been starving, like my soul recognizes hers and doesn’t care about the consequences. The bond surges, bright and powerful, wrapping around us both as the storm rages outside.

And for one suspended moment, nothing else exists but the taste of Emily’s lips and the warmth of her body pressed against mine.

Chapter 12 - Emily

I can’t believe what I’m doing, clinging to Sean as if he’s my lifeline. I told him not to touch me, yet I’m the one clawing at him with desperation, even on my tongue.

The kiss is hot and desperate; our bodies soaked from the storm but burning with desire as I mercilessly tug on his jacket, pulling him closer, clinging to just a semblance of my sanity that warns me to stop.

That’s when I break the kiss, fighting against the incessant pull that demands my attention, and restraining myself against the infectious sweetness of his lips. Breathlessly panting, I frown at him, searching his eyes for any reason not to believe what he said about wanting me, but there’s nothing that betrays his words in his eyes.

Not a flicker, not a glint of dishonesty as he stares into my eyes, but there’s a hint of wariness when he takes a deep breath.

“We don’t—” he begins, but I press a finger to his lips to stop him, my magic consuming the space around us as I gulp and shake my head slowly. No matter how much my mind is telling me—warning me—not to go through with this, the bond cages us in ribbons of white magic. It’s something I can’t escape, and as my lips tingle and arousal pools between my thighs, I’m ready to take the leap.

“I need to test a theory,” I say breathlessly, moving in toward him as if I’m drawn closer by the magic. “A theory about the bond.”

Sean gulps as he cups my face, then stares deeply into my eyes. “You’re vulnerable, Em.”

“I know what I’m doing,” I retort, stepping closer and crushing my lips to his with enough force to let him know that I mean what I said. Something has come over me—perhaps my magic, perhaps the fated mate bond—and there’s no more running from what I’ve been trying to resist all this time.

My body won’t let me, as it naturally reacts to Sean’s touch, his hands planted on my waist as our lips move in sync, my magic spread all around us like a protective shield or bubble. All that matters in this moment is his touch, his kisses, the heat at my core, and demanding release as I wrap my arms around his neck.

My thighs go next, wrapping around his waist as he draws me up and carries me to my bed. Thunder cracks as if to announce my arrival over the metaphorical threshold of this decision, and in the distance, faintly, is the sound of my kitchen filling up with the storm. But the unleashing of the storm outside matches the storm releasing from inside me, and it’s as messy and wild as this kiss.

Goddess! I almost forgot what it felt like to have my lips on his, or what it felt like to surrender to his strong, capable hands as they guide me onto the bed. His kiss bridges the distance of the five years between us, and it becomes redundant—all that time spent apart doesn’t even matter when we don’t make it to the bed.

I’m pressed up against the wall, one hand on the back of my head, the other cupped around an ass cheek as he grinds into me. His hot, rigid erection digs into my core, teasing me with what it would feel like if he were inside me now, making me crave that friction, my empty walls drenched and clenching around nothing.

“Sean…” I murmur against his lips when I break the kiss for air.

He plants his forehead against mine, breathing raggedly as he stares into my soul, eyes glossed over with heady, dark lust.

“Emily…” he responds, voice hoarse as he murmurs against my lips, slowly rocking his hips into me.

I muster every last bit of control I have left—even as it hangs by a dangerous thread—to gather all my courage to vocalize my next set of words when I say, “I want you to fuck me, Sean.”

Sean’s eyes instantly darken, a stark contrast to the air lit up by traces of my magic swirling all around us, but matching the crackling of thunder and the storm raging outside. Sean reclaims my lips in a heartbeat when he digests what I said, his hunger growling against my lips as his grinding becomes more rigorous, more purposeful, as if he’s already inside me. We haven’t even taken our clothes off, but I’m already soaking wet for him, and on the verge of coming.

Our kisses are hotter, more desperate, and sloppy as he lays me down, taking both my wrists in one hand and pinning my arms above my head as he settles between my thighs. The position is dominant, authoritative, as he breaks the kiss by grazing my bottom lip with his teeth.

The act borders on pleasure and pain in a subtle way—a way that I’ve never felt before, but suddenly, I feel thrilled, excitement building up in the pit of my belly. When Sean releases my bottom lip, it tingles delightfully, and his eyes are as dark as the void, the blackness of everything and nothing before the universe was born.

My chest heaves with uncontrollable breaths as I see beyond Sean’s physical form, but into the depths of his being, his soul, his shadows, everything that makes him whole, simply by staring into his eyes. My chest swells, heart filling with a wholeness I’ve only briefly touched when our bodies united before.

Now, I taste it with our clothes still intact, and I have never wanted anything more than for our bodies to be united. But I also tasted just a flicker of pain, and I want to feel it again; I want it to drown out all my inhibitions and turn myself into his.

I’ve always been his. I’ve always belonged to him—mind, heart, body, and soul. I’ve only been hurting myself, pretending that he wasn’t my everything. Now that I’m underneath him, gulping when his other hand settles on my throat, my magic gathers in my core with the type of control I was chasing all this time. I’ve surrendered control to him, and now I can wield my powers the way I want to.

“Fuck me, Sean…please…” I practically weep, tears building in my eyes as his hand slides to my jaw, his thumb pressed under my chin, and nudging my head upward. He dips his head at my neck, the sharp tip of his nose skimming my throat as he inhales deeply.