Bastien’s POV
My wolf is going out of his mind with the need to claim Selene.
She’s driving, her attention fully focused on the road, but every few minutes she sends a worried glance my way. She’s so beautiful, and her sweet scent is making my mouth water. I’m not sure I can wait to get home. I want to take her now, finally make her mine in every way possible.
I’ve been worried about my little wolf lately: first the strange illness and her refusal to seek help; then the incident with Arabella and her flight from the hospital. Worse was her determination to hide from me during the storm, and her devastation throughout; her secretive behavior afterwards.
Perhaps it is simply that so much has happened in such a short period of time, or that I’m projecting my own distress about the rejection onto her, but something tells me there is more to her actions than meets the eye.
Tonight didn’t help, staying on task after learning that Selene had nearly drowned had been nearly impossible. Only Aiden’s level-headed counsel kept me from tearing through the city to reach her. When I was finally free to leave I’d been ready to cart her out of the party, pack obligations be damned.
Then I found her with Drake Cavanaugh. It infuriated me to know that he’d been there for her when I was not, that he’d done my job and I couldn’t even hold it against him. He’d been right, if it weren’t for him, she would have died, and there would have been no one to blame but myself.
Still, seeing him comfort her; seeing Selene no longer wearing my colors but sporting his, made Axel roar in outrage. My wishes to abandon the party were eroded by my need to formally stake my claim, but even that went out the window when Drake told me what Selene apparently intended to hide – what she’d lied to my parents about.
Yes, something is definitely wrong.
This is not terribly unusual for my wife. Communicating her emotions is very difficult for her – with good reason. Her brain had been wired to associate showing her emotions as a vulnerability others would exploit to inflict harm upon her, but I thought we’d made good progress over the years.
It seems getting to the truth of the matter will require some creative solutions. In the back of my mind I’m already devising countless debauched strategies for making her talk, but right now my plans for Selene have nothing to do with extracting secrets, and everything to do with filling the gaping hole in my chest where our mating bond is supposed to implant.
I know I’m dangerously on edge, that Axel’s desperation to join with her is dangerous for my delicate mate – yet I can’t dampen the flames engulfing me. I need Selene in the most raw and primal way. I’ve been ravenous to claim her for years, and the strange fog now dulling my ability to reason is like a sweeping invitation to give in to my base instincts.
I’ve been lost to this bizarre haze since dinner first started, the world going fuzzy all around me. At first it seemed like everything was under water– dulled, distant and distorted. Now everything has reduced to a single focal point: Selene.
My drowsy euphoria has slowly morphed into excruciating lust and the gradual disintegration of my inhibitions. I feel the way she-wolves must in heat, as if my entire world has reduced to a single searing need – so powerful and all-consuming I think I might go mad without it.
Axel’s urging to claim Selene right there on the dance floor had jarred my senses enough to slip away from the pack, but only my wife’s gentle plea had overpowered my desire enough to get me out of the building.
Now I count the minutes until we reach home, knowing with a resigned sort of certainty that I’ve finally lost the battle against my instincts. Tonight I will mark Selene, once and for all.
_________________
Selene’s POV
By the time we get home Bastien is so far gone into the drug that I barely recognize him. Though his pupils are still blown wide, the glowing state of his eyes betray how close he is to shifting. His claws and fangs are halfway extended, and the low purr in his chest is sending tortuous vibrations through my most sensitive parts.
I’m barely able to drag him inside and up to our room. He’s stumbling and swaying like a drunk, but he’s also determined to get his hands on me, attempting to remove my clothes multiple times as we ascend the stairs to the top floor.
I swat him away every time, ignoring his admonishing growls. When we finally enter our apartment I don’t even make it two steps inside before I’m trapped between Bastien and the door.
Bastien’s mouth slams down on mine with crushing force. The violent fervor of his lips devastate my senses as his arms wind around my body, pulling me close and lifting my feet off the floor. I wrap my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist, clinging to him like the lifeline he is.
He devours me, body and soul. His lips blaze a scorching path over my skin as he strips me bare, his powerful hands stroking and kneading my flesh so forcefully it seems he’s trying to fuse our bodies together.
I throw myself into his embrace just as passionately, slanting my mouth beneath his to deepen the kiss. His tongue delves into my mouth, coaxing mine out of hiding to tangle with his. Bastien groans with pleasure as my hips rock intuitively against his, and the world around me fades.
I melt into his arms, giving myself over to the heady rush of desire. His lips claim every bare inch of skin they can reach, his teeth nipping my delicate skin, only to be followed by the soothing caress of his tongue.
My heart feels full to bursting and my lungs feel empty of air. I breathe Bastien in, knowing he is the only cure for the ache. The bittersweet pang of love and imminent loss consumes me; another last kiss. Another last chance to be with the man who gave meaning to my life when it seemed all was lost.
The tears fall without my permission.
They slide down my heated cheeks before I can stop them, and I know the moment Bastien scents them. His pulls away from me abruptly, concern and regret written plainly across his face. “It’s nothing.” I promise, but he isn’t convinced.
“I’m sorry.” Bastien professes gutturally, looking absolutely beside himself as he sets my feet on the ground and shifts away.
I try to follow him but he holds out his hand, stopping me from coming near. “Don’t.” He orders, “Please don’t make this any harder.”
A frigid draft of air sweeps over me, freezing my blood. “I don’t understand.”
“I can’t be near you.” He growls, eyes flashing. “You’re making it worse.”
“Bastien–”
“No, Selene.” He cuts me off, “I can’t do this. It will ruin everything.” His words are slurred, his eyes unfocused.
I gulp in a few steadying breaths and understanding slams into me. Whatever Bastien is on, is sending him into rut, and I was merely the closest female – but not the one he wants. Not the one he needs.
“Do you want me to call Arabella?” I offer, hating the words but unable to stand the tortured expression on his face.
He grimaces, “She’s still in the hospital.”
Color floods my cheeks, “I’m sorry.”
“Stop apologizing.” Bastien growls.
“Do you want me to go?” I ask in a small voice.
“No.” I almost feel relieved until he adds, “You stay. I’ll go.”
The door slams shut as Bastien storms down the stairs, and I slide to the floor of my foyer. My tears fall unhindered now, grief and rejection egged on by my seething hormones. Confusion and anger surge through me as I try to figure out where I went wrong, how I got here.
A few days ago I was happier than I’ve ever been in my entire life, now I feel as if the world is crumbling beneath my feet. My marriage is over, my husband – the love of my life – wants nothing to do with me. My pack hates me for the crimes someone else committed against me, and I’m pregnant with a child that has already survived one attempt on its fragile life.
I’ve always known I would have to leave Elysium after the rejection ceremony, but it’s beginning to feel like I need to move up my plans. I’m afraid of what might happen if I stay here, and I know that the best case scenario still ends with heartbreak.
I don’t know where I’m going to go, but I know the best thing I can possibly do for my baby is get out of this place while I still can. I hate to leave the people I love, but I also don’t think I can bear to watch them replace me with Arabella.
My days with the Nova pack are numbered. I have to get out before it’s too late.
