Jacob

I know this feeling all too well. This feeling of being entirely at the mercy of someone else, your life in their hands. It grows between us as our lips meld together, our heated kisses eliciting the formation of a bond that's perhaps the greatest thing fate has ever accomplished for us.

It's not a fated mate-bond. But this is something more. The fated mate-bond is a magnetic pull, drawing you to the werewolf you're meant to mate with. If you're apart, you cannot function, you cannot breathe, and the pain is entirely physical.

This is different. This is your heart becoming one with the one who owns it, so that no matter where you are, no matter how far apart, it's not physical pain you'll feel. It's gnawing agony that will only ensure your heart is whole when you're close to each other again. You'll both exist, even when apart. You'll tread through life, even if you're just a fraction of yourself. But when you're together, you'll truly live. You'll experience a life like no other, a feeling so deep that no words are efficient to describe it.

That's how I feel. I feel untouchable. I feel as if there's nothing in the world that can come between us now. This is so much more than being fated. This is two hearts etched into the sands of time, in the Kingdom of Mother Selene. It's our souls, which will live on for eternity even after our bodies turn to dust, and they'll unite in the Heavens under the promise of eternal love.

Love. It's a very powerful word. Not something that can be thrown around lightly. And love isn't just given freely. It's earned.

It begins with the little things.

The sharing of fruits when I dropped mine on the playground, and she couldn't stand to watch me spend all day pouting about it.

The helping me up when I tripped over my mangled shoelaces, and she knelt down and tied them for me.

It's her reading me a bedtime story when I can't sleep, the way my mother used to.

It's the little things that sprout the first feelings in us, and leads those seeds to grow into the magnificent bloom that it is right now.

It's not about a simple thing like reproduction. I know what my father said, but I really don't care. What we have is so much more than that, and I suddenly feel the need to tell her again.

Fuck! I'd tell her a million times in the span of a day if I have the pleasure of those doe, silver eyes penetrating my soul and seeing the truth inside my heart.

"I love you, Anastasia Hemming ."

She bites her swollen lip - swollen from our kisses - and it drives me insane. But not here. Not like this. At least not like two wild beasts going at it on the floor.

I get to my feet, and lead her towards the three-seater, where I guide her to sit down before taking a seat myself. I feel the sudden need to tell her that if we went ahead, and formed a bond between ourselves, we're doing it at the risk of her never bearing off-spring.

It's not myself I'm worried about. It's her. I've seen her on countless occasions with the younger ones in the orphanage, and how their interactions clearly brought her joy and fulfilment. If she has to choose this - choose me - she'd have to give up any hope of having her own.

Disappointment creeps through her face, and I want to kick myself for what I'm about to tell her. I fold my hand around hers, and hold her hand on my lap, smoothing away the few strands of hair that's stuck to her forehead from the light sheen of sweat.

"There's something you need to know, Ana."

"What's wrong, Jacob? Are you not a virgin?"

I burst into laughter, wondering where on Earth is the shy, reserved Anastasia I knew. "No," I swallow down the urge to hold back and leave this for some other time. She deserves to know, she deserves to make her own choice. "If we form a mate-bond, we'll never be able to have kids. My father told me that if you don't mate with your fated -"

Anastasia presses a finger to my lips, shaking her head slowly. "Your father was wrong."

"What do you mean?"

She takes a deep breath and cups her hand over mine. "Kierren and my mother weren't fated to be mates. But they had me anyway."

I frown, because firstly, I had no idea. Secondly, I've never heard of a miracle like this. "How is it possible?"

"My mother was descended from a true-blooded Alpha. She wasn't always an Omega. She was just reduced to that when the elders of my father's tribe found out about them. It was her Alpha blood that allowed them to conceive."

The wolf inside me perks up at this information, and heat spreads through me like wildfire. It's an innate need to continue the Alpha bloodline, which sends the blood rushing to my core.

"Does that mean you'll bear our kids?"

Anastasia giggles, placing a hand over her mouth. "Not now, Jacob. I'm not quite ready yet. There's so much I need to learn about my heritage, and about myself."

I lift my hand to cup her cheek, my thumb skirting across her swollen bottom lip. "What about this - us? Is this something you want?"

She parts her lips and nods her head slowly, and I move in to kiss her again. This time, it's less rushed, and I focus on kneading out any concerns she might have.

Gently, I guide her down against the cushions, taking my time to explore the expanse of her petite body, her supple curves feeling like heaven to the touch. She clings to me with her arms wrapped around my neck, and abandons the kiss only to whisper,

"Take me, Alpha."

I am hers to serve, and I slide my hands down to the edge of her dress, rolling it over her thighs to expose the dark thong covering her womanhood. I hook my fingers into either side of the waistband, delighting in the sweet sound of her breathless whisper as my name leaves her lips, while I pull her underwear down her legs.

My palms smooth over her soft thighs, as I find her weakness in the form of an erected nub. She's just as needy as I am, and as soon as the tip of my finger connects to her little bundle of nerves, she throws her head into the cushions and mewls for more.

It's my duty as her lover to please her, and when she cries out "More!" I slip a single digit between her folds, her essence so warm and wet I have a hard time controlling myself. She fists a handful of my hair, and spreads her legs wider as I thrust my finger into her.

The scent radiating from her fills me up with as much desire as to make me explode. She releases my hair and grabs onto my waist, drawing me closer, closer, closer.

"Ana, we can't," I whisper in her ear, but it's more like a strangled plea.

She writhes beneath me, bucking her hips up and begging for more.

"I trust you," she says breathlessly, "I trust you not to go that far. Please!"

To heed to her commands feels like what I was born to do, and I move up only an inch enough to pull my sweatpants down, breathing a sigh of relief when my erection is freed. She grabs me by the collar, capturing my lips as I sink between her thighs and plunge into her depths.

We both gasp on each other's lips as I dive into her tightness. It feels so fucking good, I might just -

I can't! I press my eyelids shut, straining my mind to exercise control. I move slowly, cautiously as I thrust back and forth. The moans falling from her lips are like music to my ears. It doesn't help that I'm trying not to spill inside her, but as soon as her nails dig into my shoulders, her mewling turns to cries of pleasure and her walls overflow with wet, hot slick, I pull out and press my aching length against her thigh.

~

We're twisted together in the aftermath of the new bond that's been formed between us. Her fingers threaded through mine, her head on my shoulder. Her scent fills the room, like sweet nectarines on a bright sunny day.

We've been curled up on the couch for a long time, but this really does feel nice. Anastasia has her eyes closed, a gentle smile playing on her lips every now and then. Smiling to myself, I press a kiss to her forehead and lift her arm across my chest. Derek and Kierren haven't returned, and I'm sensing they knew there was tension between us that needed to be lifted.

And how right they were!

I notice the faint scars on her wrists, and grimace to myself thinking about just how much she's been through. I want to do better, I want to be by her side, and I wonder if she'll allow me that honor.

"Ana?"

"Hm, what is it?" she mumbled into my chest.

"Will you - will you stay?"

A few moments pass, and I wonder if she's fallen asleep. I tilt my head to the side to check, but she's staring into the void, lost in deep thought.

"Ana?"

"I'm not going back on my decision, Jacob."

I feel my heart sink, and hold onto her more tightly just in case this is a dream. I don't want it to end. I don't want what just happened to be a very vivid fantasy. I want it to be real.

"But," she goes on, getting up to look me in the eyes, "I wanna see where this goes. You and me. We both have a lot to overcome, especially about Gisele. And I don't want any residual hurt to come between us."

"It won't."

"Then a little bit of time won't hurt either of us."

She offers me a reassuring smile, and returns her head to the pillow of my chest, but I hook a finger under her chin and draw her face towards me.

The kiss is slow with the promise of going further. I pull away only to I smile when she mumbles her protest, taking pleasure in the way her breath speeds up and her eyes dare me to enrapture our souls in a fervent kiss again.

There's nothing I want more than to keep her here, where she belongs, in my arms with her lips swollen from the intensity of our emotions. But I know that I won't ever lose her again. She's made me a promise with her heart and with her body, and I would hold my end of the promise even if it lasted an eternity.

"I won't lie and say that I'm not hurt, but I know this is something you need to do. We both need time, but I have faith in our love."

"I swear there is no one else in my heart. There has never been anyone else besides you, Jacob." She reaches up and caresses my cheek.

I turn my head slightly to place a kiss in her palm. I know, Ana. And I'll wait for you for as long as I have to. The ball is in your court, all you have to do is let me know when you're ready to start this with me."