Erica’s POV
I was dumbfounded. He stood there, at the door staring at me. He refused to move.
My heart was trembling. I had to go. I couldn’t stay any longer.
“Dante, move out of the way.”
“No. Not until you say what I asked you to say, Erica. If you really want to leave, tell me, make me believe that you would rather spend your life with Lorenzo than be with me.
I opened my mouth but I felt it clamp shut. I couldn’t lie. I had exhausted all my lies. Any more and my heart would shatter to pieces.
His bright green eyes stared into my soul. My body was captured with fear, fear of what was to come if I kept staying here.
“I am waiting, Erica.”
His voice made my heart skip a beat. I still couldn’t say a word. Damn this! Why did this have to happen to me now?
I averted my gaze and stared at the ring on my finger. I ran a finger across it and the bumpy stone stubbed my fingers a little bit.
I didn’t love Lorenzo. Being with him felt like being with a stranger. Kissing him, touching him felt revolting and I would hate myself times over if I ever made a move on him.
Dante had always been different. He had hurt me, betrayed me, shunned me, and scorned me. But despite all that, my body yielded to his touch. He was my mate but what kind of mate was I blessed with?
Damn all this!
Humans were so lucky. They didn’t have to deal with this bond. A bond so strong that it binds your heart to one person and makes breaking away feel like the pain of a stab wound in the heart.
They lacked our strength and speed but they made you for it in independence.
“Erica…”
I looked up and Dante had stepped away from the door and was walking up to me.
This was my chance. If I was fast enough, I could evade him and get to the door and escape.
Move leg!
But they didn’t obey my command. I was rooted to the ground like a tree that had been planted there for years. My body felt heavy. I could feel gravity ten times heavier than before.
The air seemed to get thicker, the closer Dante got to me.
I opened my mouth.
“Stay away from me.”
The words were feeble. No one would believe that that was sincere. My logic knew that this was wrong, that being in the same room would spell disaster for me, but my body, spirit, soul, and wolf were stronger.
Logic didn’t have a foothold to begin with. It was a four against three and how badly logic was losing.
“Erica, please.”
He grabbed my arms firmly but tenderly. My skin came alive and I could feel my breath being stolen from my body. My skin tingled where his hands lay and my wolf sprung to life and pushed herself closer to me.
He took a step closer and the gap yus became non-existent. His hands moved from my arms and wrapped around my waist. My nostrils were filled with his scent and perfume. My wolf pushed harder.
I had never seen her this persistent.
“I can feel her, you know. I can feel your wolf inside of you, urging you, pleading with you to please be with her mate. Why do you deny her that peace and pleasure?”
He stroked my face and pushed back a wondering lock of hair. His voice was the most gentle that it had ever been. His eyes had a deep longing and sadness about them. I felt my heart crack. What was he doing?
He took my hand and though I struggled a little, he placed it against his chest, close to his heart.
“Close your eyes.”
His words were soft and gentle. Nothing like a command. It was their gentleness that made me succumb and my eyes closed.
I focused and could feel his heartbeat pounding strongly against my hand like it wanted to leap out of his chest.
Hooooowwwwwwllll!
I winced in pain. A loud howl filled my head and I knew that it wasn’t the howl of my wolf.
It was his.
My heart skipped a beat when I heard it again. It had a powerful voice, yet all that power was wrapped in a shroud of sadness. I could hear the sorrow and heartbreak in its tone.
I felt my eyes become moist was this all caused by me?
“He wants you, Erica. He had been like this. He won’t be with anyone else except you. Please, Erica”
I opened my eyes. Our gaze clashed and my heart beat rapidly as I saw the pain that had eclipsed his green eyes.
“I love you. Please don’t judge me with the things I did six years ago. I want to start afresh with you. I don’t care if we don’t have kids. Having just you in my life is more than enough.”
I felt a tear stream down my face.
He did have kids. My triplets were his children but how could I tell him that? How could I tell him that I had hidden his children from him for six years?
“Erica…”
My name on his lips sounded different. I had never heard my name in such a delicate and beautiful way.
He pulled me closer and cupped my face with one hand. I couldn’t do anything to stop him. I didn’t think that I wanted to stop him.
His lips were warm and inviting. His touch made my body come alive and set my soul ablaze. His lips were soft and the way his tongue dipped and dove into mine nearly stole my breath away each time.
One time. One last time couldn’t hurt.
I felt my body unraveling and piece by piece, I fell apart.
My arms went around his neck and wandered into his soft and silky hair. It was amazing. Nothing mattered in that small space of time. I had lost all sense of reality and could only feel Dante warm against me.
I groaned his name against his lips and pulled him closer to me. It was wonderful. I needed more of him.
His lips left mine and wandered down my body, peppering my neck and face with sensual, soft, and wet kisses.
I threw my head back, moaned softly, and pulled tightly at his hair as his lips found my cleavage and were hungry for my nipples.
“Dante…”
His name on my tongue felt different. It felt rejuvenated and fresh.
“Erica”
He pulled away from me and cupped my face with both of his hands.
His eyes stared deep into mine. My heart skipped another beat. What was…
“We can’t do this here. I want all of you.”
My eyes flew wide open. Do… Do what here?
Before I could say anything, I felt myself being hoisted up and I was placed on his shoulders in a fireman’s lift.
“Dante! Put me down!”
I was yelling and pounding his back. The spell his lips had cast on me was broken.
He ignored me and grabbed his car keys and headed outside his office. My cheeks were flushed a bright red.
He was taking me outside?! Like this?!
I beat his back harder but he didn’t even flinch.
We passed his employees and though they saw us, none of them said a word or batted an eye.
“Dante! Stop this!”
I was fighting. Or was I?
I knew that my strikes could be harder but my fists seemed to turn to mush once they came in contact with his body.
We were in the parking lot and though I was sort of upside down, I could tell that we were getting closer to his car.
I then hit me. He was…
He grabbed the door and yanked it open.
He placed me inside the driver’s side passenger seat and locked the door
I tried to be agile and escape from the other side but he came in and blocked that side as well.
I was trapped. Willingly trapped. Part of me knew something like this was going to happen but I went to see him anyway.
“Dan…”
He silenced me with a kiss and I felt myself swallow my words and I was engulfed with silence as he pulled away from me.
That spell. That spell. He had cast it again.
He put the key in the ignition and the car roared to life.
He cupped my face tenderly but firmly. His eye burned into my soul and my tongue was glued to the roof of my mouth.
“I will make you mine, Erica.”
He paused and squeezed my face a little tighter.
“No… you are mine…”