WITCHE'S BEAST *(needs editing )

Chapter 14

                        Evelina

The truth I had learned made me doubt him for a moment. Fear drove me to run — and now I regretted it. Aaron had chosen to stand by me, no matter what his people thought, yet I had faltered.

If it were him in my place, he would have stayed. He would have faced the storm head-on because he had that much faith in me. I had wavered, but he never did. He respected me, respected my choices, and in that space, I had grown to love him. Love made me feel pure, as though it stripped everything else away and left only truth.

I searched the woods, desperate to find him. I needed to speak to him, to tell him I trusted him, to show him I wasn’t afraid. The bond gnawed at my soul for pushing him away, clawing at me with every step.

By the river, I paused. The water flowed smoothly over stones, clear and beautiful, a fragile moment of calm.

Then Aaron appeared.

He emerged in his wolf form, crouched down, and shifted back into a man. Bones twisted, flesh shifted, a painful process I could barely watch — yet he moved through it like it was nothing. He was used to the pain.

“What are you doing here, Eve?” His voice was guarded, his face unreadable.

My eyes betrayed me, wandering over his naked body. Heat rushed to my cheeks.

“I was looking for you,” I admitted softly.

He didn’t care that he stood bare before me. But there was distance in his voice, and I forced myself to look into his eyes instead of everywhere else.

“Why?” His single word cut deep.

I swallowed hard. My lips refused to move, my throat dry. He spoke again, filling the silence.

“I’m a danger to you, Eve. I’m afraid I’ll hurt you.”

The words broke something inside me, but they broke him more. I saw it — the torment in his eyes, the way he hated himself for even saying it.

I stepped closer. “Aaron—”

“Don’t.” His voice shook. “Don’t come any closer, please. If you do… I might not hold back.”

But I kept moving, slowly closing the distance.

“Before I met you, my life was never safe,” I whispered. “I was born with royal blood, but I’ve never lived like royalty.”

He shook his head. “I wouldn’t survive it if I hurt you.” Fear laced every word.

I reached up and touched his face. His skin was warm beneath my hand.

“You won’t,” I said firmly. “You aren’t a monster.”

He flinched. “You saw what I did to Eric.”

The bond pulled at me, demanding I give in, my body trembling with the need to be closer.

“We’ve all made mistakes in anger. You’re not perfect, Aaron — no one is. No one expects you to be.”

I pressed my hand against his chest. His breath escaped in a heavy sigh, and for a moment, I thought he might finally let me in. My lips ached to taste his.

“That’s one mistake I couldn’t live with,” he said quietly. His rejection stung, but I wasn’t ready to accept it.

“I love you, Aaron.”

He froze. His face went blank, unreadable. Did he not feel it too? Did he not feel anything beyond this bond?

I parted my lips to say it again, but his hand pressed gently against my mouth.

“Don’t, Eve. Don’t speak. I’m already fighting not to take you here and mark you as mine.”

The beast flickered in his eyes — hunger, lust, raw need. And I wanted him to give in. I wanted him to claim me, to burn his mark into my skin.

He lowered his hand. “I’ll take you home now.”

But I didn’t let him. I rose on my toes and captured his lips in mine. The kiss ignited like fire, consuming us both. He growled, a sound that rumbled through me, and when I nipped his ear I whispered, “Mark me, Aaron.”

His gaze locked with mine, dark with desire. Then he kissed me, harder, hungrier. His lips trailed down my neck as his hands ripped my dress apart. The cool air hit my bare skin, followed by the heat of his mouth.

Shivers raced across my body as he sucked at the sensitive curve of my neck. My moans slipped free as I pressed against him, feeling the hard length of him, aching for more.

It all happened too fast to comprehend — the pleasure, the bond, the wildness. When his canines sank into my skin, pain seared me for a heartbeat, then ecstasy surged through every vein. I cried out in bliss, clinging to him as he kissed me again.

“We’ll finish this tomorrow night,” he whispered against my lips. “After your ceremony.”

My body burned with need, aching for him to stay inside me, to make me his completely.

“Okay,” I breathed, dizzy and trembling.

He kissed me once more, and I smiled through my ragged breaths — then glanced at my ruined dress. Torn to shreds. How was I supposed to leave like this?

He chuckled softly, pulling me toward the river. We slipped into the water, and he held me close from behind.

“I love you too, Eve.”

My heart soared. I turned in his arms, staring at the man who was everything to me, and kissed him playfully before splashing water in his face. He splashed back, laughter echoing with mine as we chased each other through the water, giddy and breathless.

For that moment, there was no prophecy, no war, no fear. Just love. Just us.

I wanted it to last forever.

But I knew a time would come when we would face enemies, choices, battles that could tear us apart. When that day came, I prayed we would fight as one.