Forbidden Desires : The Immortals Book One

Chapter 24

"Ow! That hurt..." Water sloshed around as Nathalie squirmed in the tub.

"Désolée." Gaspard gently dabbed at her shoulder. The bite had nearly healed, the skin around it still tender. Looking at the mark, his mark, he was filled with an overwhelming sense of pride-now the world would know she was his. The longer he stared, his pride was diluted by dread-he'd marked her for death without meaning to.

Steam rolled off their skin as she leaned back against him and closed her eyes. Bubbles clung to her chest as he gently washed her, his hands rubbing up and down her arms.

"So it stays...forever?" she asked. Not like she'd have to worry about it for long-dead woman walking.

"Ouai," Gaspard replied with a kiss to her cheek. A growl rumbled in his chest as he ran a wet hand over his face. "I am so sorry; I should've been more careful," he said ruefully. This made an already complicated matter twice so. "It's spring-long sleeve dresses could work."

"Until he takes me to Tripoli and I have to wear a bikini." He shifted uncomfortably behind her, disturbing the bubbles and she placed a hand on his arm. "If I don't feed from him, if I immediately rebuff him then he's gonna know something's up," she warned, sensing his anger. Being mated enabled an exchange of emotions, both of them tapped in to the feelings of the other.

Gaspard raised his chin in a huff, unwilling to admit she was right. If they were going to pull this off, if they were going to try to be together, they had to be smart about it-that didn't mean he had to like it. He kissed the back of her neck and leaned her forward as his lips went lower, whispering, "You're mine, Nathalie...every inch...down to those fucking fangs of yours."

"You've made that plain enough, I think." She shrugged her wounded shoulder towards him. Silence reigned before she spoke again. "You think I can put some concealer on it?"

He chortled. "Every Lycan will still see it; some of the ladies tried to hide theirs while they were here, but we can still sense it. Did you notice?"

Nathalie shook her head; she was too overwhelmed with trying not to get torn to shreds and resisting the connection that formed between them. "I was otherwise occupied," she whispered.

"So you were." Gaspard nuzzled his face against her cheek. Conflict made him draw a heavy sigh as he rested his head on his hand. Give up his mate to save his daughter-It had to be done there was no questioning it but...he wished with all of his heart he could keep them both. All he could do was trust she could keep herself safe until things were clear for them to meet up and once he had her back...he'd never let her go. "Please be careful."

"I will. We just...have to wait for the right time." Nathalie opened her eyes. This would be the hardest thing she'd ever had to do. To truly end things with Cain caused knots to form in her stomach. He'd demand to know why, what made this time any different from all the other times she'd tried to leave-The truth would destroy them all.

"Nat?"

"Hm?"

"I love you," Gaspard said as he rubbed warm water over her back. Maybe if he said it enough now, that would make up for not saying it before. "Je t'aime, ma petite vampire."

A smile graced her lips. "...mr i Tw."

His brows furrowed. "What?" It sounded like she said 'meer i two'.

Nathalie repeated it, firmer this time. "It means 'I love you' in ancient Egyptian." She turned her head to face him, his happiness flowing through her. His smile widened as her gaze met his.

"What?" she questioned. Gaspard planted a kiss on her forehead.

"You have to teach me that one day..." he said with a chuckle.