Kaylee and Damien (6th in werewolf series)

Chapter Eleven

"I want to be near you. I cannot explain it, Kaylee. When I am not with you I feel like a part of me is broken and when I am near you that part is fixed." Kaylee felt her heart swell at his words. She raised her hand and caressed his cheek.

"I love you, Damien." Damien looked down into her eyes and laid his hand over hers.

"I do not know what love is, my wolf, but I am over one thousand years old and when I met you twenty years ago it was the first time in my entire life that I found myself feeling. You are the only thing in this entire world that I know without a doubt I would die for. Without you my life would go back to having no meaning and no happiness. That has to mean something." he said earnestly. Kaylee pushed her body closer against his and gazed up into his clear blue eyes.

Her body was on fire as he ran a hand through her hair and she knew the heat had nothing to do with the vampire venom flowing in her blood. She was sure he was going to kiss her as his eyes moved down to her lips but then just as quickly as the passion had flashed in his blue eyes he pulled away from her and crossed his arms over his chest.

"You should get cleaned up." he said quickly.

"Why won't you kiss me?" Kaylee asked as she tried to pick her bruised ego up off the floor.

"I have already explained that to you." Damien replied without meeting her eyes. Kaylee let out an irritated growl and stomped over to her closet. She pulled out a clean pair of gray lounge pants and a tank top and walked to her bedroom door.

"We'll talk about this later." she said matter of factly and he simply nodded as she walked out and closed the door behind her.

She walked to the bathroom and turned the hot water on in the shower. She stripped out of her bloody clothes and examined herself in the mirror. Most of her wounds and bruises were gone, except for the bite on her arm. Luckily it been more of a glancing blow from the vampires teeth and not much venom had been injected. She stepped into the shower and sighed with pleasure as the hot water beat down on her sore muscles. She thought about Damien as the steaming droplets quickly fogged the room and she felt her body heat. Why did he push her away?

She knew that he loved her and she knew that he wanted her. She had felt his desire for her pushing against her stomach when she had pressed herself against him. She didn't believe for a second that he would ever hurt her.

She thought about the words he had spoken to her before their near kiss in her room. She knew that Damien had not spoken the words in an attempt to woo her. He wouldn't even know how to think about doing something like that. No, he had simply been stating what he saw as facts and for some reason Kaylee found that more romantic than ten thousand sugar coated promises.

She thought about how far their relationship had come in just a few short days and decided that she wouldn't rush him. He was here now and clearly he meant to be around her everyday... She wouldn't have to go days or weeks in between visits and never know where he was or if he was okay. That was more than she had ever thought they'd have.

As she turned off the water and wrapped her hair in a towel she thought about her mom and dad and wiped a tear from her eye. Her mom had always been so eager for her to find her mate and now he was here and her mother would never know. She could imagine what her overprotective dad's reaction would be but she knew her dad would like Damien once he got over the initial 'my baby girl has a mate, this cannot be happening' phase. Her dad had always liked straightforward, no nonsense people and Damien definitely fit that role.

Kaylee brushed out her hair, but didn't take the time to blow dry it before pulling on her clothes and leaving the bathroom. She walked to her bedroom but Damien wasn't there. She followed his scent down the stairs to the kitchen and found him standing at the stove with Vanessa.