Shortly before losing contact with her family, Aislinn and Darius had stopped for a little break in their journey. Darius was busy hunting for their next meal with his wolf, Moros, so Aislinn was alone and pondering their recent moments together.
Since kissing him, she had kept Darius at a bit more of an arm's length. Something about it had left her feeling off, and she didn't know if it was guilt, anxiety, or something more. Regardless, she didn't enjoy the feeling, and wanted to avoid it, so she was pleasantly surprised to find that Darius wasn't pushing her too hard. That said, he did try his luck at every chance with little kisses to her cheek or neck when she slipped up and let him in. She felt a bit guilty, since she was likely sending mixed signals to him.
She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't hear him approaching. When he let out an amused chuckle, Aislinn jumped a bit.
"Apparently I need to keep a better eye on you, lest you turn into a snowlady" Darius teased her.
"Huh?" Aislinn asked, confused. She looked at her arms to find a coating of snow had made its home on her while she was lost in thought. With a soft laugh, she got to her feet and shook the snow off. "I think I'm just travel-weary, and spacing out easily" she said as her excuse.
"Well, I have something that will change your mood" he said with a grin. "It's a surprise; but, you'll get it after we eat."
Aislinn raised an eyebrow, curious about what he could be talking about. She didn't press him on it, though, and instead worked with him to start a fire and clean and cook the game he'd caught.
While sitting by the fire, waiting for the meat to cook, Darius sat down beside Aislinn and wrapped an arm around her to pull her close to his side. "Need to keep my snowlady warm" he joked as an explanation.
Blushing, Aislinn knew that pulling away was pointless since everyone was always worried about her freezing in winter. Instead, she just gave him a tight smile then turned back to watching the meat.
"So tell me, Aislinn" Darius began cheerfully.
"Mm?" She hummed in response, turning the skewered meat carefully.
"How many children do you intend to give me?" He asked.
Aislinn let out a gasp, dropping one of the skewers in shock. Darius was quick, leaning forward to snatch it before it landed in the flames.
"What kind of question is that?" She demanded, turning to face him despite her beet-red face.
"One we need to discuss. I need at least one heir; but, being an only child has been a lonely life, so I would prefer a large family" he said, giving her a devilish smirk.
She snatched the meat skewer from him to place it back over the fire, turning away from him to do so as she let out an exasperated sigh. "I told you, I'm not—"
"But you are" he whispered, his lips right next to her ear, causing her to jump and shiver at the same time. He pulled her into his lap, and stared deep into her eyes, leaning forward so that his forehead was pressed to hers. "You may not have your wolf...But mine knows. You are my mate, and it is agony keeping my hands off of you. I want to see you pregnant with my pups" he told her, then kissed her before she could respond.
This kiss was different than the last. Before, he had been slow and passionate; whereas now the kiss had an urgency to it, a need he wanted her to fill. His words and actions were throwing her off completely, and she didn't know how to respond. Her lack of response did nothing to discourage him, though, and he changed from kissing her lips to trailing kisses from her mouth down her neck.
"I want you, mate" he growled against her skin, ripping the shirt off of her that she received from Drystan, then flipping her from his lap to the ground.
Startled by the aggressive move, she let out a surprised gasp, which he took to be approval. He leaned over her and began kissing her neck again, only this time he continued down lower.
"Darius, no" she said in a breathy gasp as her body responded to his kisses, but her mind screamed to stop.
He hesitated, glancing up at her, seeming to have an internal debate over whether to continue or not. Aislinn took his hesitation as a window to wriggle away from him, causing him to let out a groan and roll onto his back.
"I can see why you will be the death of me" he muttered miserably.
Aislinn glared at him once she was a few feet away. "I told you, I'm not your mate" she insisted.
He let out a sigh, then sat up at this, and reached over to grab her ankle. He pulled her towards him in a swift motion, as if she weighed nothing. She let out a small shriek and tried to kick free; but, he only laughed and hauled her into his lap again. This time, he sounded harsher when he spoke.
"I find that hard to believe" he told her, turning her so she was facing him. "You see, I overheard your conversation with your vampire friend. I know for a fact that you are my mate" he sneered.
Aislinn's eyes widened, her blood freezing in her veins. She was so stunned she couldn't form words.
"I also heard that you are old enough to have your wolf; but because of me, don't. So pretending to be too young for me isn't going to change anything" he added with a smirk. "If only you would have let me have a pup or two from you before I kill you...Fortunately for you, I am not one who enjoys taking such things by force" he said, then shoved her aggressively off of his lap.
When she hit the ground, she was also knocked back to her senses, so she rolled away from him before getting back to her feet. "But you said—" she began, wanting to believe he didn't want to kill her.
"I said what I thought you would wish to hear" he said with a shrug, getting to his feet as well. "I do need an heir, and it would be best if it came from my fated mate...But, I cannot waste time trying to bed you when there are far more important things to deal with" he explained, walking closer to her.
She scrambled backwards away from him; but, wound up running into a tree she didn't remember being there. In the moment it took her to register her obstacle, and turn towards it, Darius was on her. He grabbed her by her hair, twisting his hand in it for a good grip, then forced her to her knees in front of the tree.
Only it wasn't a tree. It was a person.
"I am so pleased you made it so quickly" Darius said to the newcomer. "I wanted you to meet her before she dies."
Aislinn looked up as much as she could, Shaela smugly staring down at her. When their eyes locked, though, a look of surprise passed over Shaela's face.
Darius said with a smile "mother, meet my mate."
— End of Book 1 —
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Veritas
WerewolfBook 1 of 2 Aislinn Jones has had a unique problem for as long as she can remember: her dreams. They are vivid and haunting, and plague her whenever she tries to rest. Her father's solution was to train her to a point of exhaustion where she was pas...
